Chereads / Spectres of the Past: Prince of Spectres / Chapter 5 - Fox Flares & Vile Visions: part 3

Chapter 5 - Fox Flares & Vile Visions: part 3

On top of the train, Wade watches as Fox Flares circles around David.

Fox Flares is carefully watching Wade, as if its examining him and looking for a weakness to exploit

Wade

(Ok, his Manifesto seems simple enough…)

(It's similar to Anemoi, an element taking on an animal's form.)

(If it's just like Anemoi, then I can handle it!)

Winds begin to pick up as Wade's Manifesto begins to charge towards Fox Flares

David, still scratching furiously watches as the large bear approaches

David

Scatter.

As Anemoi swings at Fox Flares, it scatters into various small embers before forming again above Anemoi, and biting it

Anemoi begins to shake it off, as the winds start to pick up even more

The strong winds cause Anemoi to start growing larger, however as it shakes off Fox Flares, Wade notices something unusual

Wade

(What's going on?)

(After it attacked me, his Manifesto started to grow larger!)

David

Scatter.

As Wade is thinking, Fox Flares scatters again, forming a series of small embers

Wade

!?

(He's trying to do the same trick again, but I won't let him!)

As The embers start to gather behind Anemoi's head, it rolls over and swings at them, putting out the flames

Wade

(Nice!)

(Now, before it can regenerate, I just need to…?)

Wade looks to his side and sees a series of small embers appearing

David

Did you think you got the better of me?

Fox Flares!

The small sparks next to Wade's head suddenly explode, as Fox Flares reforms next to him

Fox Flares leaps in, trying to bite Wade, but Anemoi swipes at it, causing it to disperse again

Wade

Huff…huff…

(What's going on with this thing?)

(In theory, it works the same as Anemoi: the Manifesto is made up of an element, and can change its shape due to the fact it doesn't have an actual body)

(It's almost impossible to destroy, but the only way to do that would be to have an ability that negates other powers.)

(So in reality, the only options are to somehow counter the element or to knock out the user…)

(Given that my winds are quite literally fanning the flames for his Manifesto, I need to make this into a close quarters fight!)

(But everytime I try to get close–)

As Wade goes in to punch David, small sparks appear near his head again and explode

Wade uses Anemoi to redirect the small explosions, however, he is breathing heavily and is starting to seem exhausted

David

What's the matter?

It must be taking a toll on your body to keep your Manifesto active for so long!

(Still, this kid is impressive…)

(He's managed to both attack me himself, but all the while keeping his Manifesto's form in tact and using its ability to defend himself.)

(As someone with a similar ability, I know how difficult it is to use all of those abilities simultaneously.)

(He must have worked hard his whole life to bring his power to this point…)

…but, it's not enough.

In the face of our careful planning and thinking, this power won't make any difference!

Fox Flares starts to burn even brighter than before, with the flames on its body getting more intense

Wade

Huff…(I don't think I can keep this up for much longer, he was spot on…)

(...I can feel it, Zephyr's winds are getting weaker!)

(I don't know what else I can do though…tsk, I was so excited to be like my hero that I trained hard every single day to reach this point, but I guess all the hard work didn't amount to much in the face of raw talent…)

Wade loosens his stance for the first time in the fight

David

What's this?

Did you decide to give up?

Don't worry, I'll give you a quick death!

Fox Flares, scatter!

Wade

(Sorry, Prince…)

(We didn't spend much time together, but it was fun…)

Wade reflects on his time with Prince, as his smiling face comes to his mind

Prince (memory)

"C'mon, Wade!

Look at mom.

Even in her condition, she's still smiling!

She wouldn't want my first friend I brought to meet her to be crying!

So let's keep smiling and making each other laugh!

No matter what happens, we've got each other's backs, right?"

Wade

No, I won't let it end so soon.

As the sparks surround Wade's head, and become even larger than before, a powerful gust of wind blows them away

David

What?!

Wade

Sorry about that, but I'm ready to keep going!

David

Tsk, you can never make these easy, can you?

Cut to inside the train

Devil's Trill is exchanging blows with Vile Visions

Prince notices something and dodges out of the way of a sudden punch from Vile Visions aimed at him

Brian

Tsk!

(He's adapting!)

(I'm not sure how, but he started to figure out where Vile Visions is going to attack from!)

(Not only that…)

Prince whispers something, as Devil's Trill lands a strong right hook with an explosive sound on Vile Visions, causing Brian's ears to start ringing

Brian

(...he has that trick of the explosive sounds!)

(Because of those sounds, I can't keep my concentration, so my control on the train is starting to diminish!)

(I can't broadcast the fight to the other cars anymore, but I can't lose here!)

(I can't let this guy fight David, there's no way David could win that fight, so I need to be the one to pull through!)

Prince notices something and ducks, avoiding a surprise attack from behind

Prince

(I think I'm starting to get a grasp on this guy's power…)

(I can't be sure, but I think he's just creating illusions.)

(When I went to punch him, but Devil's Trill connected with a wall on the train I didn't know was there, I thought his Manifesto had some kind of intangibility, but I've been able to hit it since then.)

(Then, given how he was projecting the fight, letting regular people see our Manifestos, and cause the train to change so suddenly, it definitely had something to do with vision)

(And I noticed it earlier, but those random attacks that came out of nowhere, it's because he's hiding his Manifesto. That's how Devil's Trill can be exchanging punches with a Manifesto one second, and then I suddenly get attacked from behind!)

(His ability isn't very complex, however it's tricky to deal with!)

(I started to get used to it, because by focusing on the Devil's Trill, I'm able to hear his fists cutting through the air…)

(Building off of that, if I listen for when his Manifesto moves…)

Prince closes his eyes before Devil's Trill suddenly stomps its foot down onto the ground

Brian

Ugh!?

Prince smiles

Prince

Found it!

Brian

H-how did you know?

Prince

You were really good at manipulating my sight, but you got unlucky fighting me!

Devil's Trill controls sound.

Brian

A-are you trying to tell me you could hear my Manifesto moving!?

How is that possible?!

Prince

Hehe, what can I say?

I have good ears.

Now why don't you do me a little favour and turn off your illusions?

Brian

Hee haw, like I'd ever do that–!

Devil's Trill steps harder onto Vile Visions

Prince

Pretty please?

Brian

Tsk…

Slowly, the train begins to morph back to how it was before the fight, with the dents and results of Prince's fight being clear all around, including the shattered window

Prince

Oops, I'm really hoping that Wade's boss will pay for this, cause I don't think I could afford to pay for the damages–

Wait what happened to you?!

Why are you all skinny now?!

Brian is revealed to be a frail and gaunt man with unkempt peachfuzz and bags under his eyes

Prince

Huh, I guess that big buff guy was also an illusion to intimidate us…

Anyways, one more thing before I knock you out.

You can broadcast stuff right?

Can you connect us to Wade?

On top of the train, Anemoi and Fox Flares are fighting, as Wade keeps getting in close to hit David, but at the last minute, Fox Flares reforms between them to defend David

As Wade draws back to catch his breath, suddenly, between the two of them, an image of Prince and Brian appears

Prince

Can they hear me from there?

Well, I guess I can do something with Devil's Trill even if they can't.

Hi Wade!

I've finished up inside the train, this guy wasn't too tough once you know how his Manifesto works!

Come back when you're done up there, and then we can enjoy the rest of the train ride to DC!

The transmission cuts off, Brian is smiling and starts to laugh to himself

Brian

Hee haw haw…

Prince

?

Brian

That was the worst mistake you could have made…

Prince

How?

Won't your friend lose motivation after seeing you get beaten so easily?

Brian

Hee haw haw…

No, knowing David, seeing our plan fall apart is only going to make him even madder…

This is the end of the line for you and your friend!!

Prince

Is that it?

If he's just going to get a bit more angry, then there's nothing to worry about.

Brian

Don't you understand?

That means his Manifesto is going to get stronger too.

Prince

That's fine, Wade can win–

No, Wade will win.

On top of the train, David is furiously scratching himself again while muttering to himself

Wade

Your partner's been defeated, why don't you surrender now and make things easier for everyone?

David stops scratching, now bleeding, he looks up at Wade with bloodshot eyes

David

Surrender?

That wasn't part of the plan.

Neither was Brian losing.

Neither was having a fed on the same train we were going to hijack!

Damn it all!

What even is the point of having a plan if we can't follow it?!

David starts walking towards Wade, and with every step he takes, the ground behind him ignites

David

At this point, it doesn't matter what I do because we threw out the plan already!

So no one can complain if I just blow up this whole train!

Fox Flares!

Scatter!

Fox Flares disappears from in front of Wade as all the embers begin to form into a giant ball of fire above the train

David

Is this what you wanted?!

I don't even care what happens anymore!

I should just destroy this whole stupid train!

Wade

(That fireball, it has to be at least 20 times larger than the ones that he exploded near me, and I only survived those because of my Manifesto…)

(I don't think that this is something Zephyr can handle…)

Prince!

I know you can hear me!

I'm going to do that thing from before, it's going to take all my strength though, so I'll need you to come and pick us up after we collapse!

David

What are you doing?

There's no possible way that Manifesto could stop Fox Flares!

Wade

You're right, this Manifesto can't.

That's why I won't be using this one.

The temperature starts to drop, as the winds start to pick up and storm clouds roll in from overhead

David

Huh?

What's happening?

Why did the weather change so suddenly?!

Wade

This is the strongest of Anemoi's four forms: Boreas.

I can't control it for very long though, but its good as a trump card in situations like this!

I'm sure it will be more than enough to trample your Fox Flares!

David looks up in shock as he sees the winds and the storm clouds forming into a giant Buffalo

Boreas roars as an intense storm picks up causing rain to start pouring, putting out Fox Flares, while the winds cause David to start to lose his balance

Wade

Ha…I…Win…

Wade collapses, as Prince catches him

Prince

Good job, looks like you used the last of your strength, oh, I should get rid of that thing before it causes too much trouble though.

David

W-what are you going to do against something of that size?

Prince

Punch it?

David

What do you mean punch it?

It's the size of a mountain!

Prince just smiles as Devil's Trill emerges

Prince

Don't worry, this is all according to plan!

So don't worry…

Devil's Trill winds up its fist as it punches and releases a giant explosion of sound, causing the storm clouds to separate, opening a giant hole in the sky

Prince

…I've got this under control!

David looks in awe as he collapses too

Prince

Oh shoot!

Now I have to carry two fainted people down!

From the side of the mountain, an eye watches the scene unfold through a small zipper

???

It's like you thought sir, he's undoubtedly the son of James Spectre.

There's no other explanation for that power of his.

Shadowy figure

Hmm, it seems that we'll need to make some more preparations then.

I can't wait to meet you in person, Prince Spectre.