As soon as the baby's cry sounded in the room, everyone present was stunned. Everyone's vision became blurred.
Daly Simone's ears were ringing, warm crimson liquid fell from her eyes, nose, and ears. She could feel how the darkness wanted to take her but she resisted and growled.
She could see how her panther was screeching on the floor, spasming with violent movements. Its body, which in itself was somewhat illusory, became almost transparent and quickly decomposed into white dust.
She could feel how the connection with her spirit had been broken, her panther had died.
The baby's cry had been too much for the spirit.
And it had almost been too much for herself, the only reason she was still conscious was because of the strong constitution and natural protection against attacks on the spirit body that all Beyonders in the Corpse Collector's path had.
Her blue eyes watched as Dunn Smith and Klein Moretti were in a similar or worse state than she was. The latter surprised her immensely that he was still conscious.
She could recognize what Dunn had in his hands the ashes of Saint Selena that protected him and adding to it that he was sequence 7 it was no surprise that he was still conscious. But Klein Moretti was a newly promoted Sequence 8 and didn't have the ashes of a Demigod protecting him, how was he still conscious?!
She couldn't think anymore because Megose's headless body turned towards the Clown. The remaining arm that was still holding the remains of the burnt newspaper split, and a sharp blade of white bone came out. Despite the horrifying appearance, there was also a holiness to it.
Immediately noticing that Klein was the target, Daly opened her mouth and the Language of the Dead thundered with power!
Megose's body twisted in pain and unnaturally bent backward.
"WAAA!"
With much more power, the baby's cry roared. Daly fell to one knee, blood-contaminated tears streaming down her face from her reddened eyes. She tried to get up but her body didn't respond, she was frozen!
Klein and Dunn were also affected but the one who got the worst of it was Daly, it seems that the baby had aimed most of the power of his crying at the Medium!
Megose turned to her and pounced. Blade raised high ready to mow her life down.
'Shit! Move body!' Daly roared in her mind but her body refused to cooperate.
She watched as Megose lunged toward her only to stop in mid-air, stunned she looked up at Dunn and saw multiple tentacles coming out of his back. Not only that but she also saw how from the box of ashes, black tentacle-like threads were also holding Megose in place!
He had stopped her!
Groaning, the feeling in her body returned and Daly stood up. She watched out of the corner of her eye as Klein extended the golden charm in his hand toward Megose.
But before he could activate it, the tentacles holding Megose exploded, red blood raining into the room.
Dunn didn't look the least bit worried by this, his gray eyes even glowed.
The tentacle-like threads of the ashes had absorbed the blood and wrapped themselves more tightly around Megose, wrapping themselves around the woman's swollen belly!
But it was not enough!
Writhing with fury and madness, the threads were rapidly breaking.
"Waaa! Waaa! Waaa!"
The baby's cries became even louder and more frequent, this time focusing not on Daly but on everyone!
The tentacle-like strands paused for a second, and they spun away as if a bolt of lightning had struck them.
Seeing the opportunity slipping away from them and having no more time, Klein turned desperately to Daly.
"Hold her in place for 3 seconds! I only need 3 seconds!"
Looking somewhat stunned at the Clown, Daly didn't let that stop her, and opening her mouth, the Language of Death roared!
"Chaperon!"
Immediately, behind Megose appeared the monstrous Gorilla-Bear. The spirit's slender but powerful arms wrapped around her and its mighty jaw sank into the shoulder of the burned body, refusing to let go.
Dunn who observed this and had his hand pointed at his left chest, immediately changed direction and pointed that same hand at Megose. The same tentacles from before came out of his back and wrapped around Megose and the Gorilla-Bear!
Megose squirmed but the Spirit's strength was too much for her, sensing her mother's desperation, the baby howled!
"Waaa!"
Chaperon let out a groan of pain and his form quickly took on a more illusory tone, his grip on Megose weakened allowing the mother to spam more, Dunn's tentacles exploded again in another shower of blood and Klein watched in desperation as Megose was about to break free.
He only needed a little more but if he missed they were all dead! He only had one shot left!
Dunn quickly aimed his hand at his left chest again, but before he could pull out his heart and use it as gasoline for the ashes someone was quicker.
Rushing forward and wrapping her arms around Megose's burned body and what was left of Chaperon. Daly Simone spun toward a stunned-looking Klein and roared.
"DO IT!!!"
At the same time she said that, Chaperon disappeared completely and with the new mobility, the bone blade went all the way through Daly Simone's stomach who wouldn't let her go.
Dunn looked at this frozen, his hand stopped on his chest, his eyes widened like saucers and his mouth dropped.
"DO IT FUCKIN' SHIT!!!" With blood pouring from her mouth, Daly roared as she hugged Megose even tighter who was stabbing her multiple times to escape despite that the Medium wouldn't let go but her grip was weakening.
Looking at the brutal scene in front of him, tears fell from Klein's eyes along with his blood, and using his Clown powers he held them open.
Imbuing all the spirituality he had left in the Charm, Klein's mind went flat and blurry. With a deep voice and power, Klein roared in Hermes as he threw the Charm toward Megose who was being held by Daly.
"LIGHT!"
Through the hole in the ceiling, the sunlight shone like the previous time illuminated as if it was a pillar of light.
Guided by the charm, everything focused on Megose and Daly. Before it fell completely, with a roar, Daly lifted Megose's body and placed it on top of her.
The sunlight merged into a line above them and exploded like the sun!
"Nooo!" Dunn screamed reaching out his hand but it was too late.
Rumble*
In the white glare, Klein's eyes closed but the image in front of him was burned into his mind.
Megose's body which had only one arm and a bulging torso was destroyed in the holy light instantly. The half-illusory, terrifying creature in his belly without the support of a physical form was unable to complete its transformation.
It became a raging ball of black gas that before being obliterated by the light headed for the disintegrating newspaper in its mother's hand. The ball stayed next to the red-haired man's face before both were erased.
But seeing that also meant seeing what happened to Daly Simone. No sooner had Megose's body been destroyed than the woman jumped out of the beam of sunlight.
Her entire body was burned.
Her entire arms had been burned into a charcoal black, the same with her right leg and half of her face along with a bit of her waist and hip. But thanks to the fact that she had used Megose as a shield, she had managed to greatly reduce the damage.
Her dress had been greatly damaged and parts of it stuck to her skin.
Dunn quickly got up and staggered over to Daly.
Kneeling and placing the ashes of Saint Selena at her side. Dunn looked at the motionless Daly in terror.
Reaching out his hand towards her, the captain stopped himself before touching her not wanting to give her any more pain than she may be in.
"Daly?" the man asked, choking on his saliva.
"Captain..." Klein whispered with tears falling from his eyes looking at the scene in front of him. His chest ached and a huge guilt weighed on him.
"...W-what a-what about my n-new tan? Cough* Cough*" A weak voice replied.
"D-Daly?!" Dunn asked incredulously looking at the woman.
Klein also looked stunned.
'How come Madam Dlay is still alive?! She took the full Flaring Sun Charm! Did using Megose as a shield work? Or is this a miracle?!'
"Ha... ha... The one..." She replied, her voice dry and pained, her left blue eye open and looking at Dunn with a sideways grin.
"Praise the Goddess!" Dunn unable to bear it, began to cry.
"Ha... ha... you're crying like I died... How gentlemanly of you..."
Shaking his head, Dunn looked down at the woman beneath him.
"Try not to talk Daly, the Machinery Hivemind and the Punishers should be here soon."
"Okay, Doctor... Do you mind if I close my eyes for a moment? I'm a little sleepy..."
Dun's expression froze for a moment but then Daly laughed between coughs.
"Haha...cough* cough*...haha you should have seen your face...Don't worry, I know I have to stay awake...No matter how much it hurts..."
The man's eyebrows twitched and he could only let out a shaky sigh in response.
Chuckling some more at the man's reaction, Daly looked at Klein and gave a faint tantalizing smile.
"You might want to check on young Leonard... I already have my knight here but that princess hasn't yet..."
Despite the situation, Dunn and Klein couldn't help but blush a little before letting out an awkward laugh.
'If she can still tease in that state then she'll be fine...' Klein thought in relief as he nodded and walked over to where Leonard was standing with a stagger.
'I hope the Nighthawks cover the hospital... And that they get a paid vacation...'
But before Klein could take another step, Daly stopped him.
"Ah... Before I forget sir... We saved Tingen." She said with a wink of her good eye. Despite her horrible wounds and that they would definitely leave scars, Daly's blue eye glowed with life.
Dunn also lost a bit of seriousness and smiled at Klein as he let out a soft chuckle and shook his head.
Freezing for a second, Klein recovered and smiled with happiness.
'Yes, we did it! We stopped the descent of an evil god and ruined-'
Klein's eyes widened in absolute horror.
The person behind it all! The mastermind! What had happened to them?!
Suddenly, Klein felt someone grab him by the neck from behind and pull him up in front of a stunned Dunn and Daly.
Before anyone could do anything, the figure twisted his wrist.
Crack*
Klein's body froze, but his eyes didn't lose their glare but stared in horror at everything. The mastermind had not killed him but had paralyzed him!
Dunn immediately stood up and extended his hand towards the ashes but the mastermind was quicker.
In a few quick steps, he was already in front of Dunn Smith and grabbed him by the neck, and lifted him high. Before the captain could do anything, the blond man with his free hand pierced the Captain Nighthawk's chest.
"NOOOOOOO!" Daly roared as tears cascaded from her eyes. Salty tears.
"Captain!" Klein screamed through tears but neither could do anything to save or help the man.
Both were paralyzed.
Dunn coughed up blood and his body spasmed a little, he placed his hand on the arm across his chest but he no longer had strength. His arms fell limply to his sides and his gray eyes lost their luster.
Pulling his arm out of the Nighthawk's chest, a stream of warm blood fell on the face of Daly Simone who stared angrily at the man. The tears were wiped away by the blood.
"I'm going to kill you! I'm going to kill you!"
Ince Zangwill smiled at the Red Glove and laughed in satisfaction. The man simply knelt and grabbed the urn with the Saint Selena's ashes.
Looking at the black sand inside it, Ince let out a long sigh, full of pride and satisfaction.
"Finally... After so long..."
Turning to the paralyzed Klein, Ince Zangwill clicked his tongue and walked over to the Clown.
"Everything would have been easier if it hadn't been for you, you piece of shit."
Klein glared with absolute hatred at the man in front of him. His head was shaking with angry fury.
'Really this piece of garbage is going to be the one to kill me?'
This delighted Ince Zangwill who grinned hugely. Placing a bloody hand on the Clown's face, his satisfaction only grew as he saw the clear disgust on the man's face.
"You have no idea how much I want to make you suffer but unfortunately I don't have time for that."
Rising, and looking down at the man on the ground, Ince lifted his foot and stomped on Klein's head.
"At least I'll settle for your funeral being a closed casket."
Exerting force on his foot, Klein had a single thought as tears of helplessness fell from his eyes.
'Forgive me Benson... Melissa...'
Plop!
Lifting his bloody boot, Ince looked at Daly with a thoughtful look before shaking his head.
Daly could only watch as Ince Zangwill walked out of the building unable to do anything to stop him. Rivers of tears fell from her eyes, she choked, screamed, choked, cursed, and cried even more.
Dunn's and Klein's blood soaking her sides.
At noon on Monday, August 13, 1349. Klein Moretti and Dunn Smith were killed after saving Tingen and Daly Simone could only watch helplessly as it all happened.
...
"Where are you taking me this time?"
"Mmm nowhere special. It's just a little stopover, a short visit to Backlund and that's it!"
"..."
"You can't back out now. After holding back that annoying professor it's the least you can do for me."
"..." Ince Zangwill didn't reply, just clicked his tongue.
...
A few hours later. Backlund, somewhere in East Borough.
Walking the streets with a hat hiding his dirty, greasy hair. John Lennon looked at the charm in his hand.
His look was one full of terror, horrible dark circles under his eyes and he was quite dirty. Proof of several days without sleep or a bath.
Watching as the door on the charm glowed slightly. The man let out a shaky sigh as he continued to move as inconspicuously as possible while hiding the Charm.
"It's close... Adryan Kenway is close..." The Werewolf whispered with tremors.