Pende stood up. He was bleeding from his forehead, but otherwise didn't seem too badly injured. He smiled at the General's words.
"Well then General, it seems we will have to kill you then."
General Brunaulf didn't stop smiling, but his eyes took on a cold, emotionless stare. He looked at Zack and then asked, "And what of you? Do you share the view of your young accomplice?"
"I would prefer not to kill you."
"Then give yourselves up and maybe I can convince the Mayor not to burn you alive."
Zack extended his hand and a crackle of electricity shot out from it. The General sidestepped it easily and then turned his gaze upon him again.
"I take that is a no?" He asked, almost good-naturedly.
"I am afraid that isn't an option." Zack said, gritting his teeth.
"Then I'n afraid the time for games is over." The General raised his hammer high in the sky.
"Inito. [[Hammerhead]]."
The hammer burst into particles of water. Zack looked on in shock as the water particles coaslesced into two bigger weapons on each hand. The weapon in the General's hand was two huge hammers attached on either end of a large rod. The entire structure was made up of water and Zack noticed the faint shimmering of the weapon.
It would hurt like hell if I get hit by that though.
As if on cue, he heard a grunt from behind him, and Pende stood beside him, the wound on his forehead still trickling blood down.
"This ain't gonna be easy." He said and then extended his arms himself.
"Inito. [[Blade be my Body]]."
This was the first time Zack had seen Pende activate his Inito and he soon realized why. In an instant his arms and legs were both gone, replaced by a circular wheel-like blade. Zack looked agape in astonishment, as Pende balanced his body on the two wheels which started turning over rapidly. His arms were the same and soon there were four lethal circular blades extending, becoming a part of, his body.
It looked hideous, but Zack wouldn't want to be facing someone as lethal as that in a battle. He looked over to see Brunaulf's reaction to the same. The General raised one eyebrow as if impressed, but otherwise didn't see too bothered with this show of power.
He must be confident...
Zack prepared himself as well. He hadn't learned Inito yet but he had a basic grasp over the electric Incantations. He made a crackling ball of electricity between his hands, ready to shoot out to support Pende in the upcoming battle.
"Two versus one eh? Not that fair for this old man." Brunaulf said, his smile highlighting the insincerity of his words.
Pende didn't respond. Like a skater, he skid on the floor twisting and turning his body as he shot out towards Brunaulf. Zack positioned himself behind him, and then shot out two bolts of electricity in a straight line on either side of Pende towards the General. His idea was that with the General focusing on Pende's moving form, he would not be able to defend against the two electric bolts as well.
Brunaulf's smile never wavered. He threw one of the dual hammers like a boomerang towards the advancing Pende, who tried to cut through it. However even if the hammer was built with water, or perhaps because of it, his blades were absorbed by the water rod connecting the hammer. The rod stretched back like a string and the two hammers attached on either side of it turned about, using Pende's own blade as a hinge, seeking to meet and smash his skull.
Cursing, Pende dodged downwards, but the two hammers immediately coaslesced into a single one and then smashed down on his back. Pende coughed blood and rolled away after the impact. He stood up shakily, but otherwise didn't seem to have taken a major injury.
Meanwhile the electric bolts that Zack had shot out raced towards Brunaulf and then converged into a single bolt about to strike him. Brunaulf blocked it with his hammer, and Zack almost cried out in triumph.
For water was one of the best conductors of electricity, and Zack wanted his bolt to travel through Brunaulf's hammer and strike him directly.
Almost as if he could read Zack's thoughts, Brunaulf looked at him for a split second and smiled. In an instant he disconnected the hammer from the rod, and the bolt of electricity remained harmless trapped in that blob of water. Almost immediately another hammer head grew on the head of the rod and the General threw it like an arrow straight towards Zack.
Learning from Pende's previous unsuccessful attempt, Zack immediately began sprinting towards his left and dived at the last moment to dodge the dual hammers which sailed past him and knocked down three soldiers who were fighting against Poison Bloom and Enea.
"Hey keep your fight to yourself." Enea called out irritated, as she flew over them.
Brunaulf spared a casual glance towards her, and Zack was almost afraid he would attack her now, but his attention was immediately back on the two of them.
"You ain't no ordinary General are you old man?" Pende asked, as he spit out a broken tooth.
"King's Guard."
"Ha at least not an Emperor Knight."
"Kid if I were an Emperor Knight both of you would be dead already." Brunaulf said smiling.
"What's a King's Guard doing away from the King anyway?" It was clear Pende was trying to extend the conversation to get some time to breathe.
Brunaulf humored him.
"Lord Ja is an important friend of the King. His Majesty sometimes considers it prudent to have his own guard bolster his troops. Don't worry though, the Emperor Knight you seek will be here soon as well."
Pende tensed at this last remark and shot a meaningful glance at Zack. His meaning was clear.
We need to end this and get out before the Emperor Knight gets here.
Pende raised his left leg again, preparing to attack. Zack noticed that he couldn't determine where flesh ended and metal began on the leg. At one point his thighs naturally led to the wheel-like blade that whirred around like a motor. It almost made Pende look like a human cycle. Of course with the same blades in place of his arms as well.
Balancing on his right leg, Pende again rushed towards Brunaulf. This time, Zack began running, using Pende's twisting body as cover once more, but intending to release his bolt from close range.
Brunaulf smiled and swung around his hammer. The rods of both extended impossibly due to the fact that they were made of water, rushing towards Pende.
This time, however, Pende didn't attempt to attack or break the hammer. He jumped up high above the swinging hammer, twirling in the air and then positioning himself so that all four of his blades were pointed at Brunaulf. Zack couldn't jump up that high so he scrambled down on the ground and the hammer swung past him again. He stayed there, fearing the boomerang.
It never came however. Brunaulf had to shift to playing defense. He let go of the hammer swung towards Zack and conjured a new one to block the four blades that Pende had pointed towards him. Realizing he had an opportunity, Zack jumped up running forwards towards the General.
Even as he blocked Pende's strike, Brunaulf kept an eye on Zack. As the latter conjured up another bolt of electricity, this time intending to strike it like a sword towards Brunaulf's exposed midriff, the General turned towards him and kicked. A burst of water shot out from his feet, and Zack was forced to roll to the side.
If I block that I'm the one who's going to be electrocuted.
The conduction of electricity through water was a double-edged sword for Zack. On one hand Brunaulf always had to be cautious for any incoming strike, on the other Zack couldn't block any of his attacks with magik.
With a roar Brunaulf pushed back Pende and followed it up with a smash of his dual hammers on him. Once more the two hammers swung and coaslesced into a single giant hammer before coming down on Pende. This time Pende, instead of trying to cut through the rod, tried to cut through the hammer itself. The force of a block of water coming down at sufficient speed is not much different from a block of steel, and Pende found himself being pushed back into the ground even as both of his wheel blades in his hands whirred against the hammer, causing a screeching sound.
Static electricity!
A thought came to Zack and he concentrated his magik on the point of contact between Pende's blades and the water hammer of Brunaulf. Sure enough he felt a very weak, but present, source of electricity at the point of impact. Static electricity was created when two different materials rubbed against each other. Even though the force of the water hammer was no different to that of a steel one, in the end the material was water, not steel.
Zack concentrated once more and magnified the electricity being produced at the point of contact. Brunaulf realized what he was doing, and tried to retreat his hammer, but too late.
Zack magnified the pulse of static electricity and shot it through the water hammer towards Brunaulf. Once more the General disconnected the hammer end from the rod, but this time he was a fraction too slow and the electricity reached his body. A shock ran through the General's body and he was launched backwards into the corridor, crashing through the walls.
"Fuck yeah!!" Pende yelled in exultation, still panting from the skirmish.
Zack was not quite so optimistic. He had hit General Brunaulf with the electricity yes, but it was far from a lethal amount and perhaps not even enough to knock a seasoned warrior like him unconscious. As he listened intently though he couldn't hear any other sound from within the corridor.
"Is he dead?" He asked, almost to himself.
"Unlikely." Pende stepped beside him. " It's more like he is luring us inside."
Zack nodded grimly. That did seem like the more likely scenario.
"Well we had to go inside anyway." Pende said smiling. The wound on his forehead was still open and the blood dripped onto his teeth, making him look like a grotesque vampire.
Zack looked backwards. Enea and Poison Bloom were still engaged in battle with the soldiers, who seemed to be never-ending. Isadora caught Zack and Pende watching them and nodded grimly.
"They will be fine." Pende said and then stepped, or rather rolled, forward on his blade legs towards the corridor.
Zack looked back one last time at the carnage on the outer region of the palace and then stepped in behind Pende.