Sizwe cursed his bad luck. The sky was littered with flying crocodiles, a sight as surreal as it was terrifying. Further up, an abomination dominated the sky, distinct from the others. Its dark green scales gleamed, polished to a deadly shine. It had elongated limbs and a shorter snout, its bat-like wings flapping gently against the wind.
"Am I the only person who thinks that is a dragon?" Sizwe muttered.
"You better hope not," Cyprian replied softly as they hid behind an alley from the flying crocs. "It might be a lesser dragon species, but a full-on dragon is only a myth."
"What the hell is the difference? If it quacks like a duck, it is a duck."
Cyprian sighed. "There are a few species that go through draconic evolutions. One of them is this Winged Crocodile King. The more it evolves, the closer it gets to being a dragon but likely never will."
"Why is that?"
"Evolution is rare."
"What do you mean rare? There are hundreds of flying crocs in the sky."
"Anything below Class III is considered a pseudo-evolved creature. They don't have the true power to be called evolved."
"What? For real? Who came up with a dumb thing like that?"
"Who knows?" Cyprian shrugged.
"So what other draconic creatures have we seen before?"
"There are a lot, and most encounters were very bad, like the fire drake that once crippled the church or the poison snake that spread death and disease. We are lucky these ones are Class III. Otherwise, we would be toast."
"Damn, and here I thought I would wake up to an advanced world where I can eat and die of diabetes."
"You never told me why you were in cryo sleep," Mandla suddenly inquired.
Sizwe went quiet for a while. "You could say I was serving a sentence."
Mandla could see in Sizwe's face that it was not something he wanted to talk about, so he no longer asked. Sizwe saw the other king descend in a certain direction along with most of the lesser crocs.
"It's time to scram and leave this godforsaken town."
As they ran, a sound that Sizwe was familiar with rang out. He couldn't help but turn back to look as a yellow light was accompanied by a rapid sound.
"M134?"
His eyes lingered on the distant sound.
---
Tira, also known as God's Punishment, pried himself from his enormous bed littered with naked women. His underling had been standing there for a while now, insisting on him getting out of bed. He honestly didn't want to get out of bed; he was drunk and tired. Tira went straight to his fireplace, took out a red-hot iron rod, and grabbed the heated part with his left hand.
Senzo watched his superior self-mutilate, but he was used to it now. Tira's whole body was covered in scars, and his palms were mostly burned. Tira was a raging alcoholic and womanizer; he was not a good man. He was cruel and evil, but many people within the church were like this. Although Tira was not a good guy, he was powerful, and what the world respected was power. Justice was for the powerful to uphold, and what justice could one demand if they were weak?
The world was a cruel place where the law only applied to the poor and weak. Tira was no hero, but he was one of the church's dogs. As rebellious as he might be from time to time, he was a lowly servant to the church. The church allowed him to indulge in his vicious ways and covered his tracks; he only had to fight for them.
Tira was a very tall man at 7 feet, a giant with pale skin and golden blonde hair. He was very handsome and had a muscular build. His eyes were sky blue and deep with cruelty. Tira sighed.
"Didn't you say that Nara was here? Why must I deal with this myself?"
"This stronghold is yours to protect, sir. Nara is just here for the festival. You cannot sleep and expect guests to take care of your trash."
Senzo was harsh, but he was not afraid of Tira. He had been with him from day one; he had raised him. Tira was sometimes stupid in his actions, so he was always there to reprimand him.
Tira got dressed and headed downstairs where a few Guardians were waiting for him. These Guardians were an elite squad with divine weapons. They were well dressed with light armor and proper guns. There were eleven of these Guardians; Tira was the twelfth. Tira walked with his hands free; one of the Guardians had his divine weapon: the M134 Minigun.
On a trolley, a few of the Guardians were pulling an M61 Vulcan Gatling Gun. Looking at the sky, Tira could see the flying nightmares soaring freely over his city. This pissed him off. He saw the big-shot Crocodile King flapping its wings slowly as if it owned the place. Tira stared at this nightmare with anger in his eyes; even the creature began to sense the danger and couldn't help but stare back at this human who didn't break eye contact. The abomination had found a threat and descended.
"Get ready," he said casually, watching the creature descend. Tira was still a little drunk even after sobering up by mutilating himself, but he was used to this state; it didn't bother or hinder him.
"M134."
The Guardian handed the gun to him and held the belt of ammunition for him. As the abomination came close, Tira let loose.
**"Brrrrrrrrrrrr!"**
The Crocodile King was not ready for such an onslaught. In a short amount of time, the Crocodile King was riddled with bullets and crashed down like a meteor. Tira walked towards the Crocodile King and riddled it some more.
**"Brrrrrrrrrrrr!"**
"I heard there were two of these. Let's go take care of the other one."
Tira and his elite unit walked away from the scene, but the abomination slowly rose and pounced, killing one of the Guardians in the blink of an eye, ripping him apart.
The elite unit was shocked by the sudden attack, but they were well-trained and immediately stepped away, ready to defend themselves. Only Tira was indifferent, looking at the beast as it healed its wounds.
"Oh my god, it has regeneration abilities."
This was the worst, having a Class III killing machine with the ability to heal itself was not good. The Crocodile King lunged again, its wounds closing as if they never existed. Tira braced himself, his elite unit forming up behind him.
"Spread out!" Tira commanded, his voice carrying authority.
The Guardians moved in unison, their movements disciplined and precise. Dante and Mika attacked the beast, their divine weapons firing at any chance they get. They attacked with calculated strikes, aiming for the creature's eyes and joints.
Tira, holding his M134 Minigun, charged forward, his strength evident in his powerful strides. He squeezed the trigger, and the gun roared to life.
"Brrrrrrrrrrrr!"
Bullets tore into the Crocodile King, but its regeneration powers made it a seemingly endless battle. Each time the flesh was shredded, it knitted back together, almost as fast as it was destroyed.
"Hit it harder!" Tira roared, not letting up his assault. His blows came faster, each one more powerful than the last. The Guardians supported him, their coordinated attacks targeting the beast's vulnerable spots.
Dante's bullets pierced through the creature's eye, causing it to roar in pain and fury. Mika's bullets tore through its wings, grounding it temporarily. But even as they inflicted damage, the wounds began to close almost immediately.
"We need to overwhelm its regeneration!" Dante shouted, his voice barely audible over the din of battle.
Tira's eyes narrowed, understanding what Dante meant. "Focus your attacks! Don't give it a chance to heal!"
The elite unit intensified their assault. Divine weapons fired, tearing through scales and flesh. The Crocodile King's regeneration struggled to keep up with the relentless barrage. For every wound that closed, two more were inflicted. The sounds of gun fired resembled thunder.
"Switch to the Vulcan!" Tira commanded. His voice was a calm amidst the storm of chaos around them.
The Guardian holding the ammunition belt for the M134 nodded and quickly swapped out the Minigun for the M61 Vulcan Gatling Gun. The switch was seamless, a testament to their training and coordination, but the Vulcan was mounted so Tira couldn't move as much.
"Cover me!" Tira shouted as he prepared the Vulcan. His elite unit formed a defensive perimeter around him, their divine weapons firing at the Crocodile King to buy him time.
The Crocodile King lunged at Tira, but Dante and Mika intercepted, driving it back with precise strikes to its eyes and joints. Blood and ichor splattered across the battlefield, but the beast's regeneration continued to repair the damage.
Tira took aim with the M61 Vulcan and unleashed its fury.
"BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!"
The sound was deafening, a mechanical roar that drowned out the cries of battle. The Crocodile King reeled under the onslaught, its flesh shredded faster than it could heal. The power of the Vulcan was immense, each round hitting with the force of a hammer blow.
"Keep up the pressure!" Tira yelled, his voice barely audible over the roar of the gun.
The Guardians redoubled their efforts, their divine weapons flashing as they struck at the beast's vulnerable points. The Crocodile King's regeneration began to falter under the relentless assault. Its wounds started to heal more slowly, the flesh struggling to knit itself back together.
"Now, while it's weakened!" Tira bellowed.
Mika darted in, her twin blades flashing as she severed the tendons in the creature's legs. The Crocodile King roared in pain and fury, but it was unable to support its own weight and collapsed to the ground. Dante's pulled out a spear struck, piercing through the creature's other eye and blinding it.
Tira saw his opportunity. He left the Vulcan and sprinted towards the fallen beast. His muscles bunched and flexed, Tira began to show off his abilities, he had extraordianary strength. That is why the church valued him enough to overlook his actions. He leapt onto the Crocodile King's back, his hands gripping its massive head.
With a roar that matched the beast's own, Tira began to pull. The creature thrashed and writhed beneath him, its remaining eye wide with fury and pain. The flesh tore and the bones snapped under his grip, but he did not relent.
The Guardians watched in awe and horror as Tira used his bare hands to rip the Crocodile King's head from its body. With one final, mighty wrench, he tore it free. The headless body twitched and spasmed before finally going still.
The battlefield fell silent, the only sound being the heavy breathing of the exhausted Guardians. Tira stood over the fallen beast, its severed head held high in triumph, his chest heaving, his hands dripping with blood. He was tired. His power had a flaw, he could only unleash it for short periods of time and after, he would be powerless for a while making it only a killing move. Tira could only fall on his back to rest, he needed time to recuperate.