"What was that!?"
"Who or what caused the explosion!!?"
The air inside the auction house, thick with tension from the recent explosion, seemed to momentarily settle as Lady Naga and her group exchanged glances, trying to piece together what had happened. Amid the debris and muffled cries, the man who had arrogantly won the Konran stood at the center of the stage, cradling the twin blades with a smug grin.
"No matter how you guys try to sway me, you will never get your hands on this baby!!"
But in an instant, that grin suddenly turned into a gurgled scream.
"Gurgle....."
The man was ripped apart, his body shredded by a blur of talons and teeth. Blood splattered across the room, painting the pristine walls in a grotesque mural of gore. From beneath the broken ground, the source of this carnage emerged–hulking, scaled creatures with razor-sharp teeth and talons that gleamed like polished steel. Their massive, reptilian forms moved with terrifying speed, their tails whipping through the air and smashing furniture into splinters.
Lady Naga's heart stopped as she and I locked eyes with the beasts. "No... Terradrakes," Lady Naga whispered, her voice trembling with disbelief.
"How did they get in here!?" Ino's voice cracked, her usual bravado replaced with palpable fear.
The name alone sent chills through everyone in the group. Terradrakes were infamous–Kaiju of unparalleled savagery, creatures that could burrow through steel and stone, leaving devastation in their wake.
"Ahhh!!!"
"Wha.... What is that!!?"
"Run!!"
The once-organized chaos of the auction house devolved into pure mayhem. Guests scrambled over one another, clawing towards the exits as the Terradrakes descended upon them, their monstrous jaws snapping shut around fleeing bodies.
"We have to leave! Now!!" Lady Naga barked, her instincts overriding the paralysis that fear threatened to bring.
"But the Konran–" Suguru started, only to be silenced by a deafening roar as another Terradrakes erupted from the ground nearby, sending shards of flooring flying through the air.
"Forget it!" Lady Naga snapped, grabbing Suguru by the arm. "It's not worth dying for!!"
"Shit!!" Hanabi exclaimed as one of the creatures lunged toward them while she was still trying to adjust herself with the cannon, only for Ino to unleash a barrage of fiery strikes from her bio-weapon. The flames singed the beast's tough scales, forcing it to retreat momentarily, but Ino's expression made it clear–she was as horrified as the rest of them.
"Move, now!!" Lady Naga commanded, pulling the group toward the nearest exit.
The screams of the auction attendees and the building emergency sound system echoed behind them as the Terradrakes tore through the crowd like predators on feeding frenzy. As Lady Naga and the others dashed through the wreckage of the auction house, weaving past fallen debris and shattered furniture, the horrific sounds of tearing flesh and the cracking bones followed them like a macabre symphony.
Despite the chaos, one thought screamed louder than the rest in Lady Naga's mind. 'How did the Terradrakes get into Nagoya!?'
The stench of blood and burning flesh clung to the air, thick and suffocating. Screams of agony echoed as the Terradrakes continued their massacre, their claws slicing through helpless victims like paper. Lady Naga's group moved with desperate urgency, dodging falling debris and weaving through the carnage.
"We're almost there!!" Lady Naga urged, her voice strained but steady.
But then, Ino's scream pierced the chaos. "The exit's blocked!"
Lady Naga froze, her heart sinking. She turned to see what I was pointing at– and dread flooded her veins. A horde of Terradrakes clustered around the exit, their hulking forms feasting on the mangled remains of those who had tried to escape. Their mouths dripped with gore, and their guttural snarls filled the space like a death knell.
"Stay calm!" Lady Naga barked, though her fear was clawing at her resolve.
"What now?!!" Suguru shouted, his voice cracking
Lady Naga clenched her jaw, her mind racing. "We fight through them."
Before anyone could protest, she suddenly turned to Hanabi and Suguru. "Go all out. Take them down with everything you've got!"
Hanabi didn't hesitate. Her bio-weapon Cannon hummed as it powered up, releasing a torrent of plasma bolts that streaked through the air and struck one of the Terradrakes, searing it's scales. Suguru followed suit, firing glowing energy arrows from his crossbow, each one exploding on impact and driving a few of the beasts back.
Roar!!!
The Terradrakes roared in rage, their attention now fixated on the group.
"Ino, you're with me!" Lady Naga ordered, her bio-blade humming to life as she leaped into the fray.
Ino's dual bio-Katanas flashed as she darted forward, slicing through the limbs of an advancing Terradrake. The creature shrieked, swiping at her with a massive claw, she rolled under it with agility, her blades carving deep gashes into its side.
Lady Naga moved with lethal grace, her bio-blade spinning in precise arcs. She drove it through the throat of one Terradrakes, the blade crackling with energy as it tore through flesh and bone. Blood sprayed across her clothes, but she didn't falter.
Even with their combined might, it seems like it wasn't enough. For every Terradrake they took down, two more seemed to take it's place.
"Lady Naga, there's too many!" Hanabi yelled, her cannon overheating in her hands.
"Damn it"
Suguru grunted as he loosed another volley of arrows, sweat dripping down his face. "We can't hold them off like this!"
'Fuck! What are we gonna do now!!?' Just as despair began to creep in as Lady Naga thought, a panicked voice from the crowd nearby screamed over the chaos.
"Look! Something happening on the other side of the exit!"
'Huh?' Lady Naga's eyes suddenly snapped towards the commotion, her heart pounding. Through the haze of smoke and carnage, she caught sight of a figure moving with inhuman speed, cutting through the Terradrakes like a whirlwind.
And in an instant, her breath hitched as a single thought crossed he mind. 'Is that Shikaku?'