A/N 1: Really sorry guys, Paypal had issues with my card that's why I don't have money to spend to rent computer in a netcafe to edit some things and publish chapters. But thankfully, I was able to borrow $4 from a friend to use so here's your chapter for the day and hopefully, the $4 rent this time would last until I am able to post to you guys and extra chapter tonight or tomorrow.
Sorry for the wait!
A/N 2: Please take note, the original chapter title and Hilda's [Sword Art] on the previous chapter was changed in purpose from the original.
Supposedly it should have been [Light of Heaven] Sword Art that only NPCs are in-the-know but for some unknown reason, in my sleep, I suddenly thought of the name [Resplendent Sword] so I changed the title to "Resplendent Edge" to better accommodate her character.
SPOILER ALERT: We will be seeing more of this female knight and her Sword Art so I took the liberty of actually creating a good backdrop to her first appearance on the last chapter. (winks)
Lastly, please don't forget to VOTE and COMMENT your reactions if you like the chapter.
And also, please support me with a little donation @ www.patreon.com/reddcliffe or directly at my Paypal account @ nathanreddd@yahoo.com or just follow me on Facebook @www.facebook.com/chadmusika
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or at my blog as well @jereddcliffe.wordpress.com
Well then, please enjoy this chapter.
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Chapter 53: Claws That Hides in the Dark
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Jack never looked back when Karim decided to stay behind to give him the chance to get away.
In his heart, he was his brother.
He will not let his sacrifice go in vain so he must survive.
He led his team towards the narrow alleys going towards the hangar base.
Pressing on his ear, Jack yelled. "How much longer?"
"Five minutes. Tops." Said the voice on the line. "Just do your best to shake them off. We will do the rest for you when you get here."
After that, the call ended and Jack stopped before they got out of the alley. He leaned on the edge of the building, peeking out to the street. When he saw that there was no one, he turned his head towards his team and then gave a hand signal to rush.
With a silent nod, the seven surviving members of his crew jumped off one after another.
SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!
Their shadows blended with the daylight, crossing the street like panthers following a prey.
"I got you now!" Screamed a voice from above and the last two surviving crew members unluckily received the brunt of a full force attack of a Rune from above.
BOOM!
A loud explosion occurred and the buildings around that part of the streets shook violently. Glass windows cracked and shattered, metal railings screamed of collapsing as the ground where they were exploded with that aerial surprise assault.
"Bon! Louie!" screamed the five remaining.
One shadow after another descended from the skies and from the crater where dust clouds flew, Volga's voice boomed with delight and anger.
"You will not escape! This time, I'm going to crush you completely until you request for your own death."
FLASH!
A ray of light came from the silhouette of a man and that ray of light went straight for Jack who was still mourning the fall of his subordinates.
PANG!
A dull metallic sound echoed as a transparent shield made up of Mana shook off the powerful attack. But as a price, Jin who cast that spell fell back and fainted, Jack was left wide-eyed and in shock.
He survived but Jin who defended him got on his limit.
"Volga!" He yelled angrily and saw Volga ascending from the crater with an angry smile.
Pointing the tip of his sword of light at Jack, Volga erased his complacency and retorted. "Catching you is like catching a cockroach. You keep on avoiding us over and over. But no matter... today is the day you will fall by my blade."
"Tsk." Jack clicked his tongue as he surveyed his surroundings. He felt despair when they became surrounded by more than fifty knights fully clad with armors not less weak than his own.
Jack glanced at the now unconscious and probably already logged out or passed out Jin and he held the hilt of his sword, ready to lash it out with Volga anytime.
WIM! WIM!
Volga played with his sword, brandishing it like a Jedi before taking a pose with the tip facing Jack directly.
No smile of mockery could be seen on his face but only a look of anger and that of a humiliated individual. His fury rose form the fact that his so called 'man's honor' had been trampled upon and thrown around by Jack on their duel earlier.
He was a modern day prince, for goodness' sake!
How dare a lowly peon disregard that fact?!
Fury. Rage. Indescribable wrath. His chest heaved up and down as he ordered his men to surround them all.
Forget about the rules of a duel. Since it had gotten to this point, he will follow the deal with the Blue Card Legion and carry out his mission to complete his tasks.
Volga's left foot was slowly skidding. He was slowly preparing to step in.
Jack remained calm, his hand on the hilt of his sword.
He slowly raised the scabbard and took a firmer stance and then unsheathed the blade, slowly, not removing his eyes from Volga.
But before he could even unleash the sword, Volga dashed forth.
His step in was backed by his flight armor, this attack was intended to end Jack in one strike. The Light Sword aimed at his head and it was so fast that Jack was unable to react faster.
Volga was sure that he had timed this attack in a very shameless, unbefitting manner for a prince. But he had no choice left. He had to accomplish this task or he wouldn't earn the right to belong in the Blue Card Legion which he was part as a core founding member.
"I will earn my right!"
His momentum pushed his Light Sword to kill Jack Stone in one piercing attack.
Jack tried to back away, tried to swipe the tip of the light sword off his face away, or even block, or perhaps use distance to avoid injury but he was caught by surprise.
He was careless. He shouldn't have trusted Volga.
"Fool!" Volga was sure that he would succeed in this one single strike. The group was surrounded. There are more than fifty of his best men around them so in what one in a million chances would there be anything that could stop or hinder his sword from finishing his task?
And yet... there was.
Not one of the people around could have ever thought, and not even in Volga's wildest imaginations could he have ever thought... that his eyes that should have been focused solely at ending Jack Stone at this very moment... would be dragged into that one peculiar image behind his target.
No. That image was even beyond his men's encirclement.
Beyond the narrow alleyway where they trapped Jack and his crew, beyond the street adjacent to their current location... heck, beyond even the block, on the other side, passed the alleyway parallel to their current one, even far beyond to the other side of the path walk all the way to the second street.
It was a very small, very far, very inconspicuous angle, and, don't even talk about it being eye-catching in any manner, it was very, very, very small... like a speck of a sand in the dessert of details... so...
Why indeed, did Volga had that small notion to drag his gaze away from his target and glance at that small fleeting image... of a ragged-clothed boy walking dazedly on the street in between the heads of his men, through the shadows of the alley, passed the lights of explosions, further away to the second street on the next block...
Just how and what made Volga turn his eyes way from his target and look at that boy?
Who was that boy?
Why is he alone?
No... more importantly, what's that thing I saw attached at him?
His slight moment of inattention altered his grip and it gave Jack the chance to use all his attention to flip his body aside, draw his sword, and deliver a counter.
SLASH!
"Eh?"
"Huh?"
Two voices layered with shock and surprise rung right before the sound of spurting blood and the sound of metal slashing through raw flesh echoed.
One head flew while one's cheek was cut open. Even he himself, Jack Stone, was surprised at how he had managed to survive that moment and deliver a counter to kill his attacker.
Everyone's eyes widened in shock. They never even had the thought that Prince Volga would actually fail that one perfectly placed opportunity.
Not one soul around, even Jack himself, could've even dare imagine that a complete reversal would happen in that single lapse of a moment.
And yet, when Volga's headless body fell on its knee and bloodily dropped flat then being followed immediately by the sound of his head rolling on the alley way into a trash area... they were all sure that Prince Volga... had just experienced an in-game death.
[Game Over]
"The Prince..."
"His highness, he's..."
Jack, having been focused all this time, quickly turned around and picked up the light sword and then swiftly brandished both weapons towards the closest enemy blocking his path.
When he did this, the leaderless group dispersed in shambles while some even making reports while others still carried on to block his way.
Jack went straight towards the alleyway, followed by three others, two of which carried Jin while the last of the surviving crew of the Helium Guild in Shelter 96 having died just now.
"Chase them!"
"Don't let them get away!"
"Get that sword!"
The members of Volga's fifty men followed behind Jack as they frantically escaped. When they were about to be surrounded again, shadows came from above and unleashed sword slashes in midair that barred the pursuit of the Blue Card Legion.
"Jack!"
"Billion!" Jack raised his head and he couldn't be happier than this ally's arrival.
"Head straight to the hangar. We'll take care here!"
"Hai!"
Explosions immediately exploded as the reinforcements on City Lord Billion's command fought the Blue Card Legion.
No time wasted, Jack forego the pleasantries as he followed the instruction and went passed the second block beyond the next alleyway.
That's when, as soon as he passed through that block, Jack unconsciously turned his left and saw him...
"Wait." Jack subconsciously commanded. The two men carrying Jin looked at him and then to the kid that was dazedly walking the street towards the City Gate like a living zombie.
Jack's mind reeled, "I've seen this kid before. How come he's not in the Shelter Zone?"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Three consecutive explosions took away all other thoughts on Jack's mind as he turned his head back to see many people wearing The Union's uniform get blasted away by an attacker.
"No time to waste." Jack hissed as he picked up the kid and jumped to the roof of the buildings in front of him and went straight to the hangar bays. "It's very dangerous here, kid, so until it's safe, I will take you with me."
.
*****
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"What?! That piece of...!!" Kladis yelled angrily and this noise surprised the peacefully silent Scion. "It's one thing to die, but to actually lose the sword as well is just plain stupidity! How do you think we're going to move from here?"
The first batch of words was uttered loudly while the second batch of curses was spoken to himself alone.
"Something wrong?" From the side, Scion couldn't help but ask. She was a nominal member of the Blue Card Legion after all.
Kladis wore a pained expression as he glanced at her.
Leaning back at the tree, looking upwards, he placed a hand on his face and dragged it down as if wiping away a thick layer of makeup.
"Volga died while performing his mission." This short pained reply made Scion frown.
She had no good impression of Volga whatsoever but it doesn't mean that she hated him greatly as well. She tried to think of his relationship with Kladis and this caused her to wonder just how it feels for comrades-in-arms to be side by side with each other when in times of peril and tribulation.
"In war, casualties are inevitable. If it's on the enemy side then it's just a big bonus..." these words echoed on her mind as he watched Kladis take in this loss.
She wondered if they were close comrades and then decided that perhaps they are because they were in the same organization... after all.
After a while, Kladis stood up. He stayed silent that way and didn't even bat an eye on her.
This caused her to worry subconsciously and care for his mental state that when he turned his back at her and headed straight at the edge of the garden, she summoned her strength to ask, "Are you... okay?"
Kladis paused his steps for three seconds. He didn't utter any sound or made any other move during these long three seconds.
But then, he looked up, his shoulder shaking a bit, then turned to face her wearing a handsome smile.
This smile... caused her worries to vanish and make her feel a sense of relief. As to what kind of relief it was, she herself didn't know it as well. All she knew is that she was relieved to know that Kladis was able to take in the loss of a comrade in arms in this game.
"Thanks for worrying." He said with affection. "It's really heartwarming when you worry about me like that."
"E-Eh? I just..." She couldn't even continue. Why did I stutter? Why did I suddenly feel like I made an embarrassing blunder in front of him?
"Don't worry. We members of the Blue Card Legion have gone through a lot. This loss... Volga is a very important core member but his efforts to our cause will never be forgotten nor rendered void. It will be honored so please rest assured."
Scion unconsciously sighed. "Then that's good."
Kladis remained looking at her that way, his eyes soft and attractively alluring, especially when paired with that delicious smile. He was like a candy that gives off a smell of a fresh citrus fruit, ready to be eaten fresh.
Or perhaps this reference made her blush as she almost stepped back to effortfully control her wild beating heart.
"W-Why are you looking at me like that?"
Faced with this question, a smile of pure sweetness beamed on his striking countenance.
"Because just now... I think I saw your most beautiful expression. When you worried about me, I can't help but feel like my heart skipped a beat." After saying this, Kladis bid a farewell. "Please excuse me. I'll be going back to work."
Mind in steam, Scion could only nod and helplessly utter a stranded "okay" before she fell back to her usual spot with a beet red face.
She slowly raised the book and opened it on a random page, pressed her face hard and screamed muffledly.
"Why is he always teasing me like this..."
.
*****
.
In the shadows of the hallway right before his own room, Kladis saw Gats, with Kira on tow, waiting for his arrival.
"So?" Gats asked nonchalantly.
Kladis sighed and then looked back as if to see Scion through the walls of the castle.
"Almost there. The foundations are looking good. We will be able to use her soon."
Gats, whose eyes have been closed, opened them to look seriously at Kladis. These eyes caused him to get serious without exception.
"Jack is preparing to leave the city. I need you to cover for Volga's blunder. Get back the sword and kill Jack Stone."
Kladis slightly bowed at him and said respectfully, "I will do my best."
Gats then took five steps to pass him by and said without stopping, "I don't want your best. I want it done."
"Of course, of course."
Gats disappeared in the darkness of the hallway and left Kira to cater with the now angry Kladis.
His fists were clenched and he wore a frightening expression of fury, his cursing words hissed only to Kira's listening ears.
"That fuck*ng useless trash! The plans we've carefully laid down all these years are going to crumble with his every blunder!"
Kira unequipped her armors and as soon as she did, a princess-like woman in a gorgeous nightgown greeted his eyes for a visual pleasure. Kira wore a sweet smile that was a hundred percent in contrast with her usual cold and indifferent expressions.
Even Kladis himself was surprised by this new side of Kira that he was discovering right now.
Her figure was superbly alluring. She may not be a hot girl but her long lasting mature and indifferent woman impression in his mind became an amplifier with this beautiful chick in front of her.
And now... this seductively alluring woman wasn't wearing anything under her nightgown, making his heart skip beats and lessen the hatred he was feeling.
"Let me ease your worry." Her beautiful voice rung.
A thrill crept over Kladis' body and he was pulled inside his room by the soft hand of that surprisingly beautiful pixie.
"Since when did you become so beautiful?" he can't help but ask. He was smiling from ear to ear.
FLASH!
His armors disappeared and all that was left was his casual formal wear. His five senses were in chaos...
Removing the nightgown from the latch on her neck, her back facing him, Kira playfully turned her head to the side and beamed a seductive smile at him.
"I choose the people I wanna show this side of me."
Kladis licked his lips and softly caressed her from behind. "Then I feel obliged to savour it."
PAH!
A very soft playful slap hit the hands that touched her.
Kladis froze but he didn't get angry. It only fueled his desire to conquer her more and more. But he didn't dare to continue. He just stood there and let her do her thing as she faced him.
Circularly tracing her finger on his chest, she giggled and said, "My rules."
Kladis licked his lips again and chuckled, "I'll comply."
"Good." She said softly. "No touching."
"Yes mam."
She didn't reply but she knelt down. Kladis's eyes went up and a surge of electricity travelled in every corner of his body that became a muffled moan.
His hand moved but it was slapped away again.
"Rules are rules." her angry voice said.
Kladis laughed. "I sinned. Please punish me."
"Heh." After her light laugh, a commanding tone came from her words. "Bad boys will be punished if they don't do as they are told. Now, I want you to do what I tell you. If you don't, then you will be... punished."
GULP. "I-I concede."
The electricity running through his body stopped and Kira stood up, licking her lips. She then pulled a chair and sat down like a queen, putting her left leg under her right which she raised slightly, indicating something.
Kladis watched, dazed, drooling.
This girl's gentle expression had a tinge of a different persona on her. And yet, she was neither arrogant nor was she demanding. She just silently sat there on the chair, right leg raised, meeting his eyes with a gentle yet strong-willed attractive eyes.
With their eyes meeting, Kira's gentle and confident smile was all she needed to completely destroy whatever kind of defenses he had on his sanity.
Kladis knelt and grabbed that raised leg, his lips touching her smooth skin.
She leaned back to her throne and looked down at the groveling man on her feet. Kira had a satisfied grin.
"Good boy." she softly uttered, her mind working on the plans of the great Father. Her lips then opened and gave a command. "Continue with your work on the vessel of Terra. Conquer her and make her your slave. If you do that, I will reward you. The Father above had given his command. Janus will die and the project will continue. Everything... will finally fall in their rightful places this time around."
Kladis raised his head. "Yes. Whatever you tell me to do, I will do it."
He gently continued to work higher. Kira smiled and seemingly satisfied, she pulled her leg to spread them, revealing an inviting view that boomed in front of her drooling slave.
"Go on then. Make me feel good."
"Yes... yes, master."
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The dark shadows looming behind the scenes are finally taking the center stage.
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Next chapter: AG's card in the grand game.