Down the stream, Gina leaped ahead to push Ben out of the way of an incoming attack. He was saved. But she was left stranded. Her Ki barrier failed, and some of the ice balls struck her on the side. She grunted as she sat down on the edge of the stream and clutched her left side in pain.
"Gina!" Neil yelled. "Keep your guard up!"
But she could barely keep herself up.
As four wizards closed in, Ben came shouting, "BEREARUM-TERA-JO!"
A Ki dome shielded them from the wizards.
"Are you alright, master?" Ben asked.
The wizards leaped back. Gina looked up. "I think I broke a couple of ribs."
"Well, they're ready for another attack and this shield won't hold long. We have to do something."
Neil was locked in battle with five wizards and had been separated from his teammates again. But he was no longer holding back and was showing all his skill. With precise Ki-charged strikes and superior strength, he was inflicting serious damage. Wielding dual swords, he was starting to overwhelm the Devil's Hearth.
However, now Gina and Ben were in trouble. He wanted to help. But diverting his concentration from his current foes was also not a sound plan. So, he decided to end his battle quickly and fired his Ki up to a maximum charge.
His strength was overwhelming. The wizards could no longer block his attacks effectively. Two put up their wrists to block his kicks and got their bones crushed and two had their swords shattered in an attempt to block his dual ones. The last one had no such luck. The Zaatsu's blades came sweeping in, cut right through his arm and got lodged in the side of his belly. As he pulled his sword back, blood gushed out.
Neil leaped away and swung his sword. A sharp wave of Ki smashed into the falling wizard slicing him into two.
However, he rushed away too quickly. In an attempt to protect his comrades, Neil ran towards them without knowing exactly where the other wizards were.
His feet got caught in a mudslide created by the miscreants. And before he could free himself, a large log came and struck him hard in the back of his head. He went down and slid for many paces before hitting a tree and stopping.
The wizards laughed.
Neil attempted to get up. But found it hard. He was shaken up, dizzied by the swift, strong blow to the head. His vision was shaky, but the shame of staying down screamed louder. He used the tree for support and pushed himself up slowly until he was standing straight once again.
All the while, the other side of the stream was on fire. Marcus was proving too hot to handle. Each of his strikes was filled with Ki and flames – strong, quick, and nigh impossible to block. The wizards were running all over the place to avoid getting hit. And they were also keeping as much distance between themselves and the raging Sokidu to avoid getting burnt. His fire was not just Ki – it was rage at seeing his squad bleed.
However, the wizards were still standing. Marcus was keeping all six of them away from Ella and was not letting them damage anyone either, but he had been unable to kill any more of them yet. And his Ki was getting exhausted fast.
Faris Naji then arrived to assist the tall duo. He immediately began healing Ella's Ki networks. In just a minute, he was able to pull out the demonic Ki from her body and throw it out. However, the arm that took the full force of the demonic effects had received more damage than he could have healed on the scene.
Faris grabbed the young Mystic by her arms. "Try and get up," he said. "I'll help."
She was able to stand up, but try as she may, she was unable to force a proper Ki charge through her injured left arm. She looked away as a bitter knot of despair twisted in her gut – she hated being the one dragging them down.
"It's alright, Ella, leave it be," the senior Mystic advised. "For now, just use the one arm. We have trimmed their numbers and taken out some of the seniors. All we need now is to combine the battles to finish them off."
Ella looked over at Marcus going berserk. "Master, what about the backup?" she asked.
"Forget the backup, kid." Faris shook his head as he smiled. "No one is coming to help us. We're the only help we've got."
Elsewhere, the Alchemist was about to attempt another trick. But this time, it was not alchemy. Appearing on a rock some thirty meters behind Hugo, he raised his arms up over his head and released a large amount of Ki.
"Come forth!" he exclaimed.
Hugo looked up.
The clouds parted.
A roc appeared!
With a narrowed gaze, the Zaatsu wondered why Derek had wasted so much Ki. The roc was a huge summon, an evocation that used a considerable amount of Ki. But against someone like Hugo, it was nothing short of a foolish move.
Even before the gigantic bird could flap its wings once, Hugo raised a hand in the air and chanted, "TORAN-SOLOMON-SAVE!"
Quicker than it appeared, the roc disappeared.
Hugo turned around. Derek was standing bent forward and had a grin on his face. He brought both hands in front to show his wrists.
'Shit…' The captain of the Zeta Squad finally understood why Derek had summoned the bird. While he was distracted in sending it away, the Alchemist had conjured up a new trick.
"So, you know what these are, huh?" he asked raising one eyebrow higher than the other.
Around his wrists were gold bracelets adorned with a series of circular talismans and around his neck was a glowing red pendant shaped like a bull.
Hugo's eyes narrowed. The pendant was not wizard craft nor was the bracelet. He had read of such relics in old records, dating back to the first Martial Artists and founders of the Sanctum of Prostasia.
The Zaatsu shook his head once. "So, that's your hand, Derek…"
Derek chuckled. "Indeed." His limbs glowing green and body glowing red, he was ready for the final round.
"Where'd you find them?" Hugo asked.
"Does it matter? You should only be glad you pushed me this far…"
On the busier front, Faris Naji had begun calling the shots. He sent instructions over his telepathic link. "Marcus, create a fire barrier," he said. "Vince, electrocute the area. We are retreating!"
"But why?" Camille protested. "Master, we can take them out."
"I'm sure you can. But by the time you do, Ben, Gina, and Neil will be dead." After a pause, he added, "We have to retreat and regroup. Then we'll take 'em down together!"
As instructed, Marcus created a wall of flames several meters thick and wider than two football fields. Ella, Faris, and him then quickly rushed away.
On the other hand, Vincent unleashed a flurry of thunderbolts jolting everything in a 200-meter radius. He held Camille's hand making sure she remained out of harm's way. With the wizards stuck trying to free themselves from the shock, the duo found time to escape.
All five Martial Artists quickly rushed towards the eight wizards surrounding Neil like a wake of vultures. Faris, Camille, and Marcus simultaneously unleashed flames to send them away.
"Alright, listen up," said Faris. "Tend to your injured and do whatever you can to be ready for their next strike. Do you guys have any healing charms or potions with you?"
"Yes, I do," Gina replied.
"Good. Hand 'em out to the group and provide whatever else is needed." Looking at the White Bolt, he added, "Me, you, and Cam will give them time to get back on their feet. Think you can handle it?"
He nodded.
"Good. Then let's have at it, boys and girls…"
Ben, Ella, Gina, Neil, and Marcus moved farther away while Camille, Faris, and Vincent braced themselves for the incoming attack.
The flames had been doused, and the current grounded – all the wizards of the Devil's Hearth had banded together and were on their way.
Faris looked at Camille. "Draw up a sizable disturbance," he said. "It doesn't have to be strong. But just make sure they know we're here…"
She nodded.
"Vince, you take the right. I'll take the left. Camille, you stay front and centre."
Camille smiled as she dropped her head and moved ahead. In a hushed voice, she said, "Why am I always front and centre in forests?"
The White Bolt, moving to the right, looked back with a smile. "Told you," he said and she looked over. "Those who learn... are the ones burdened…"
With commendable command over water, Camille sucked the moisture out of the plants and trees, and then used fire to heat it up and produce steam. Visibility dropped to zero around her. Faris and Vincent masked their Ki and dived in from the corners.
The steam cloud kept growing. Very soon, the fast-approaching wizards were engulfed inside. They attempted to use wind gusts to send the steam away. But Camille kept producing more. They could not see far. They could not tell who was controlling the cloud nor could they see the prowling duo approaching from either side.
A wizard attempted to rush to one side and escape the steam. He was kicked back in by Vincent. They realized the White Bolt was there and decided to stay close together.
But all twenty wizards kept moving ahead cautiously. Faris unleashed a Ki shockwave rushing towards them. They all avoided it.
"Vince, listen up," the Mystic said, telepathically. "They're sensory types. At least a few of them. We'll have to get in and get our hands dirty."
"Yeah, that's why they were able to avoid that shockwave," the White Bolt replied. "Tell Camille to fall back."
Faris immediately told Camille to rush back and join the others. Then, the duo moved in.
"Now, listen. Camille's heading back. The gang won't take long to heal. We just have to keep them busy till they get ready…"
"Got it."
Vincent was now avoiding elemental conduction while Faris was avoiding any extravagant use of the Continuum of Sempiternity. They were conserving strength. And they still had one huge advantage over the Devil's Hearth – they could sense and tell exactly where their enemies were.
They dived in, landing right between the wizards, and smashed their Ki-charged fists down on the ground. The resulting Ki shockwaves forced the miscreants to scatter.
Keeping them occupied was the only thing Faris and Vincent were worried about. No matter how good their sensory abilities were, the wizards were never going to be able to pinpoint the duo. They were both experts of Ki Manipulation and could suppress their Ki masterfully. Moving unnoticed, they began engaging.
It took the wizards a while to realize that none of the strikes aimed at them were meant to injure or kill. They were merely stalling. Some of them broke away and moved back, unleashing a strong wind to blow the steam away. Camille was no longer there to create more of it, but it did not matter. They had bought enough time.
When the mist thinned, the Mystic and the White Bolt were already retreating – or so it seemed. Blurred trails of Ki shimmered like afterimages, racing into the trees.
"After them!" a wizard shouted.
Fourteen surged forward, chasing the phantoms. The last six lingered a moment longer, finishing their spell to clear the steam, then hurried after their comrades.
The forward party clashed with the Eye compatriots – patched up, recharged, and fighting with renewed strength.
One wizard noticed and asked the others, "Hey! Where's the Mystic and the fast one?"
Little did they know, the chase was a lie. Faris and Vincent had never left and were locking horns with the six who had lagged behind.
Faris alone was strong enough to take out six of them. But with the added assistance of the White Bolt, the matchup became ridiculously one-sided.
In a Hail Mary attempt to slow the incoming giants of the arcane world, the wizards conjured up all their strength to create hundreds of ice needles and shot them forward.
With his superior speed and reflexes, Vincent avoided the attack by leaping in the air. Faris, on the other hand, lifted up the ground in front of him to use as a shield. Needles got lodged in the mud and pebbles and he remained unscathed.
While the sextet was wondering what to do about the leaping White Bolt, the Mystic used the Continuum to teleport behind them. The wizards found themselves stuck with nowhere to escape.
Faris unleashed a powerful Ki blast from six feet behind them while Vincent unleashed one from ten feet above. They attempted to form a shield to protect themselves. But from that range, it would have been a miracle had they survived.
Their shields barely had the time to form.
The blasts went right through and struck cleanly.
Their bodies erupted into a Ki-charged storm.
There Ki networks and clusters were shattered to pieces.
Vincent landed on the ground and gave a thumbs up. "Yours killed two, mine killed four!"
Faris smiled. "Don't push too hard, kid," he said. "Those damned braces are already biting – your wrist is bleeding."
Elsewhere, Marcus and Neil, assisted by Ben, unleashed a less powerful Ki attack to push the wizards back. While they steadied, Gina and Camille summoned evocations of their own – a dozen gleaming phoenixes each. With pure Celestial Ki pulsating in their veins, the mystical birds engaged the wizards while the group moved away.
Faris and Vincent, en route, saw the birds attacking the Devil's Hearth.
"What are you guys doing?" Faris asked telepathically.
Neil replied saying, "We've seen the effectiveness of the surprise attacks. All we need is one more to finish them all…"
Faris and Vincent exchanged a glance, then rushed to rejoin the others. The next attack would be the last.