Kimberley stood in the bathroom of the funfair, holding up Alko's earring with a mixture of cold exasperation and disappointment. Udo and Ren were behind her, their faces reflecting their own frustration and confusion.
"He played us," Kimberley muttered, her voice filled with a quiet fury.
"For fuck's sake, Alko," Ren cursed, shaking his head.
"We need to find them, now," Kimberley said, her tone urgent. She turned her attention to her earpiece. "Ata, can you track him?"
Meanwhile, in the control room, Atamai's fingers flew across her keyboard. Her face was a mask of concentration as she worked furiously to solve the problem.
"I rigged his other earring. I turned it off so he wouldn't know," she explained, her voice steady despite the urgency. She pressed a key, and a fast-moving red dot began to glow on her map, marking Alko's current location.
"Bingo!" Atamai exclaimed, relief washing over her.
Back in the funfair bathroom, Atamai's voice crackled through their earpieces. "They're travelling through the Surrey Hills, specifically the Friday Street to Leith Hill Circular route! And...they're moving pretty fast, so they're most likely in a vehicle."
"Vehicle? Is he trying to help her escape?" Kimberley wondered aloud, her mind racing with possibilities.
Udo's expression hardened, his eyes cold and serious. "He's being sacrificed."
Kimberley and Ren whipped around to face him, urgency and fear flashing in their eyes.
"What?" Kimberley exclaimed, her voice barely above a whisper.
"It's where Fiend hosts go to increase their host rank in exchange for a loved one's soul. Alko is going to be her sacrifice. We need to get to him, now," Udo explained, his tone grim.
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In the moonlit forest of Surrey Hills, the trees swayed and whispered secrets to the night. Alko's unconscious body hung limply, tied to a giant wooden X-shaped cross, his limbs stretched out and secured to the four sides. Nearby, Leah and Volker methodically gathered large pieces of wood, piling them up beneath the cross.
Volker struck two rocks together, effortlessly sparking a fire that quickly began to consume the wood. He turned to Leah, his face illuminated by the growing flames.
"Are you ready?" Volker asked, his voice steady and grim.
Leah took a deep breath, her eyes closed for a moment of silent resolve. When she opened them, they gleamed with determination. "Let's do this," she replied.
She grabbed a wooden stick wrapped with Kevlar at the tip, dipped it into the fire, and walked over to the cross with the now fiery stick. She stopped in front of Alko, gazing at her childhood friend, a single tear tracing a path down her cheek.
"In the name of the Fiend Almighty, O Fiend, this sacrifice is from You and for You, accept the sacrifice," Leah intoned solemnly. She extended the stick towards the cross, ready to ignite it.
But she paused, her attention drawn by a distant sound. The snapping of twigs echoed through the forest, growing louder with each passing second.
"Volker, do you hear that?" Leah asked, her voice tense.
The sounds intensified until a powerful gust of wind tore through the forest, crashing into the trees, smashing them as branches snapped and trunks splintered in a chaotic roar. The wind extinguished the flames, toppled the cross, and sent Alko tumbling to the ground. Leah and Volker braced themselves, planting their feet firmly against the relentless force.
Through the swirling dust, they could just make out two approaching figures—one large male and one smaller female.
"Who the hell…" Volker muttered, straining to see through the haze.
As the dust finally settled, the figures became clear. There stood Charlotte and Trevor, exuding an aura of defiance and purpose. Charlotte's gun gleamed in her right hand, while Trevor's right boxing glove still smoked from recent use.
"Squad…Holland?" Leah exclaimed, confusion and recognition battling in her voice.
"Charlotte," the main captain of the Britannus kingdom corrected
"Squad Charlotte," she added, her tone cold and unwavering.
Charlotte stood with confidence, surveying the scene. "Well done, Mase," she said, her tone carrying a hint of approval.
Leah's eyes narrowed as she faced Charlotte. "How did you find us?"
Charlotte chuckled, a sound filled with irony and superiority. "We're the main squad of the kingdom, meaning we control cameras all over the city. One of them luckily captured you back at the auction, so we knew exactly what face to look for. Did you enjoy your little date, Leah?"
Volker, standing nearby, shook his head in disapproval. "I told you it was a bad idea to go on that date."
Leah smirked, her expression defiant. "I can taste the slight salt in your words. You've never been asked out, have you, Captain Holland?"
Charlotte remained unfazed. "I have a kingdom to run, that's the least of my concerns."
Leah scoffed. "You have a kingdom to run? No wonder it's going to shit."
Volker's attention shifted, his eyes scanning the surroundings. "Leah, focus. There are three of them, one is missing—"
Suddenly, a rapid figure sped around them, creating a swirling dust screen that obscured their vision. As the dust began to settle, Volker caught a fleeting glimpse of Trevor in front of him, his boxing glove poised to strike. Volker raised his forearms in a desperate attempt to shield himself, but Trevor's thunderous punch sent him hurtling into the distance.
"Volker!" Leah cried out, her voice filled with concern.
Troy appeared beside Trevor, a chuckle escaping his lips. His own boxing gloves were ready for action. "Trev back in form. Long day for you, man."
Trevor nodded, determination etched on his face. "Charlotte, we'll go after him. She's all yours."
Charlotte's eyes never left Leah. "Understood."
With that, Charlotte took a step forward, her presence radiating authority and resolve, ready to face Leah head-on.
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The starlit sky illuminated the decimated forest as the standoff between Charlotte and Leah reached its peak. The air was thick with tension, the silence only broken by the occasional rustle of leaves.
Leah clasped her hands together, her expression determined. "Kalo: Pickpocket," she intoned, and a long wire with a sharp metal tip materialized in her hands. Her eyes never left Charlotte, fixed on her opponent with unwavering intensity.
Charlotte frowned at the sight of the wire. "A wire? What's her passion technique?"
Leah formed a steeple with her fingers. "Benedi: Stealth," she whispered, and to Charlotte's bewilderment, Leah faded into invisibility.
"W-what?" Charlotte exclaimed, hastily glancing over her shoulder. Concern etched across her face as she strained to hear the slight rustling from the surrounding leaves. "Invisibility?"
Suddenly, a leaf crunched nearby. Charlotte gasped, making a split-second move to shield herself with her forearms, but something slashed across both arms.
"Shit!" she cursed, hopping backward and firing at the empty space before her. The sound of a leaf crunching behind her made her spin and shoot again, but another slash cut across her upper arm. "Fuck sake!"
Charlotte's paranoia grew as she looked around, her gun poised and ready. She sensed Leah behind her again but was too late, feeling a sharp pain as her left shoulder was slashed. The dance of attacks continued, each cut adding to Charlotte's growing frustration and desperation.
"The leaves are giving away her footsteps," Charlotte thought, her mind racing. "Still, it's pretty hard to keep looking over my shoulder to catch her when she attacks. I'd use vibration multiplication to make it rain bullets, but I don't want to harm him." She glanced at Alko's unconscious body, lying vulnerable nearby. "There's only one thing to do..."
In a split second, Charlotte flicked her gun into the air and formed a steeple with her hands. "Benedi: 360," she declared, gaining a panoramic view of her surroundings.
The gun still spinning in the air, her new perspective captured the precise moment a leaf was crushed behind her. In the blink of an eye, her gun fell back into her hand, and she immediately fired over her shoulder.
A loud silence ensued as the echo of the gunshot faded into the night. The tension in the air thickened, each second feeling like an eternity. Then, a faint, pained gasp broke the silence, followed by the sound of a body collapsing to the ground. Leah's invisibility faded, revealing her fallen form, clutching a wound in her side.
"Hi," Charlotte greeted, her voice steady.
Leah chuckled. "Captain Holland has some tricks up her sleeves, I see."
"Better refer to me as Charlotte before I shoot a hole in your other arm, blondie," Charlotte shot back, her tone icy.
"A lucky shot got you that excited? I can tell you're new to this. But either way..." A sadistic smile spread across Leah's face. "I've got what I wanted."
With a swift motion, Leah sliced her skin with the bloodied knife. Charlotte's eyes widened in confusion.
"Huh? What's she doing?" Charlotte muttered to herself.
Suddenly, her gun vanished from her grip.
"What the..." Charlotte gasped, looking around in confusion. Leah's chuckle filled the air, sending a chill down her spine.
"I...I can't feel my passion technique," Charlotte stammered, panic rising in her voice.
"You okay, Charlotte? You seem a bit...flustered," Leah taunted.
Desperately, Charlotte clasped her hands. "Kalo: Elysian's Colt!" she commanded, but nothing happened.
"What?" Charlotte's voice was laced with disbelief.
"Oh...did you mean to do...this?" Leah mocked, clasping her hands with a grin. "Kalo: Elysian's Colt!"
Charlotte watched in utter bewilderment as the revolver she knew all too well appeared in Leah's hands.
"No..." Charlotte whispered, horror dawning on her.
"Why're you looking at me like that? You see something you like?" Leah taunted, enjoying the moment.
Charlotte's most unusual nightmare had come to fruition. She found herself at the wrong end of her own gun.
Leah smirked. "Game over."