A young lupo with red hair was sitting in front of a campfire. Dawn had already been breaking for a few hours and the reunion troops were about to leave. Moving the embers of the campfire to keep it just a little longer. She put down her stick and sighed removing her hood leaving her wolf ears out in the open. Both appendages stirred, the ears finally feeling free. Hearing movement on the gravel and sand in front of her she lifted her gaze from the embers to the young ursus in front of her.

Misha frowned and gritted her teeth, her hands bound with a pair of cuffs. She noticed that the girl was trying to tear her bonds with her claws discreetly, but luckily for the reunion leader, these special polymer handcuffs given by the mysterious sponsor of the reunion would resist the assaults of the girl's hands without flinching.

Crownslayer: Don't try to free yourself. I don't want to chase after you pup.

The young ursus frowned as she felt her anger rising...

Crownslayer: And don't try to attack me either. I've been ordered to keep you safe but if I break your leg and make it look like an accident don't blame me.

Soon all the girl's excitement was calmed. But a question popped into her mind.

Misha: What do you want from me? I don't know anything...

Crownslayer: Orders are orders. I just follow them...

Tired of the desert heat, Crownslayer lowered her scarf, revealing black crystal veins along her throat, a sign of her oripathy. Misha saw this and widened her eyes, realizing that the young woman in front of her was also infected.

Seeing her eyes wide open the lupo just raised an eyebrow, as if to ask her what the problem was.

Misha: You are infected too...

Crownslayer: Yeah. So is everyone else in reunion.

Misha: But you were fighting against Rhodes Island... Why are the infected killing each other...?

The young girl was surprised to find herself asking the question more to herself than anything else. And yet Crownslayer came up with an answer.

Crownslayer: Rhodes? Tch. Let me laugh. Rhodes is just a bunch of fools and dreamers who think they can make the world turn out the way they want it to by helping those who hurt them-

In her speech, wanting to demonstrate the endless animosity that the soldiers of the reunion had for Rhodes Island, Crownslayer stopped and heard a sound that the young ursus quickly began to hear as well, but behind her back. The girl turned around behind her to see a gargantuan and frightening man behind her. She fell backwards and crawled backwards in fear away from the wendigo that had stood before her eyes.

Crownslayer: Patriot.

The wendigo did not immediately look at the young woman and instead bent down on one knee and looked up at the young ursus to be more at her level.

Patriot: Don't be afraid little one...

He looked at her for a few seconds but his attempt to comfort the girl had as much effect as if he had pointed his gun at her. Then the wendigo sighed as he got up.

Patriot: It worked better... When he did it... Crownslayer. I see you... have succeeded in your objective.

Crownslayer: You could say that. The distraction you gave me was enough. Those poor bastards at the L.G.D. didn't see it coming. How did you do?

Patriot: I succeeded in my mission. But I was slightly injured.

Crownslayer: Then everything is fine-

Patriot: I also confirm. That the doctor from Rhodes. Is on the operation.

Crownslayer: ... Damn... Is he really that strong?

The wendigo's eyes flashed red with anger.

Patriot: This little battle. In Chernobog. After the attack on the academy. was far from a simple act of anger.

Crownslayer: Stop. He can't be him. He'd be on our side if he was.

Patriot: It's him. I know he is. He even remembered. From our past.

Crownslayer: That's impossible...

The wendigo could have done anything to bring the young woman out of denial. And yet she would not have accepted Patriot's proclaimed truth about the Rhodes Island doctor.

Patriot: Believe what you want. But beware of him. As much as Yelena or Talulah.

Crownslayer: That much?

Patriot: He is. A danger.

Misha: He'll come and save me...

The two leaders of the reunion turned to the girl.

Misha: Dr. Sebastian is going to come and save me! He promised me that!

Her eyes shone with determination. The girl decided to show some courage in front of the two leaders of the reunion. But surprised the two leaders looked each other in the eyes.

Crownslayer: The doctor from Rhodes Island wants to save you...?

Patriot: Probably for the same reason. That Talulah wants to get her. But without Skullshatterer's reason.

Crownslayer: Still can't tell?

Patriot: No.

Crownslayer: What a stupid idea... "I want to give her the big surprise." That she said...

Patriot: I don't share. Your friendship with her. But I must admit. That I don't like it either. This idea.

As soon as he finished his sentence, the sound of jets was heard in the air. That as soon as the two leaders of the reunion recognized them looking in the sky, to see the jets passing over their heads.

Crownslayer: The Columbian Army.

Patriot: Those are just. Reconnaissance aircraft. Fortunately.

Crownslayer: Mm. But what are they doing here? Columbia isn't with Lungmen.

Patriot: I'm willing to bet that's. His fault.

Crownslayer: Then we'd better leave now. They must be after us already.

The young lupo stood up and kicked the campfire out before putting her hood and scarf back on, then as she gave the order with her hand for her men to get ready to leave she raised her other hand to her earpiece.

Crownslayer: Skull? We have a problem. Rhodes Island is following us. We'll meet you at the mines.

Skullshatterer: You got it, Lyudmila. I'll see you there.

Patriot: Let's go!

The young lupo turned to a human form hiding under a cloak a few feet away. Smaller than her or as tall as Misha. Large horns protruding from its hood.

Crownslayer: It's time to show what you can do.

Patriot: Centuri. I'm counting on you.

In the midst of the troops a larger than the others sarkaz with a gigantic sword nodded.

--------

Ch'en: I hate this place...

Said the lung, looking around. The L.G.D. walked ahead into the Rhodes Island canyon following them. The two groups were moving through the desert canyon following the trail of the reunion soldiers. The sun above the lung's head burned her skin, the heat making her reflexively loosen her tie. Her eyes were on the lookout for the slightest movement on the heights, for she knew that this place was the ideal place for ambushes.

Swire: Speak for yourself, I feel like I'm going to break one of my heels on this gravel...

Ch'en: You know how to do other things than complaining about ruining your expensive clothes....

The lung's voice was tired and out of breath, just from the heat. The two leaders looked at the third one who seemed to be walking with her heavy shield without flinching.

Hoshiguma: Hm?

Ch'en: Aren't you hot?

Swire: You're wearing only black too...

Hoshiguma: No, I'm fine. Onis have a thick skin.

Said the young woman while taking a carnivorous smile. Then the two other leaders of the L.G.D. turned to the troops of Rhodes Island, seeing yato in a deplorable condition so much she was hot, as if it had been hours that she walked on the surface of the sun. And Noire Corne... Was not in a better condition.

Yato: This is it... I'm going to die...

Sebastian: Huh... Are you ok...?

Yato: No... Sorry doctor... I don't think I can go any further... I have to stop.

Sebastian: You say that like you're going to die...

Yato: I'm going to die...

The doctor seemed to think about it and took something out of one of the pockets of his equipment, a long cloak with a desert camouflage that he put on the shoulders of the oni and raised the hood to cover her head. The young woman was surprised at first, but she began to feel a little cool, without the sun hitting her skin in fact the temperature was much more acceptable ... Feeling embarrassed the young woman put back the hood of the cloak to cover her face, her mask hiding how much she was blushing.

Yato: Th-thanks doctor...

Sebastian: You're welcome.

The giant started walking again without caring about the rest, not being aware of the murderous looks the young woman was receiving.

Noir Corne: What about me?

Sebastian: Sorry, I only have one...

Hoshiguma: Tch.

Ch'en: Anything wrong?

Hoshiguma: Nothing...

Ch'en: We've been walking for an hour in this desert and we still haven't seen any sign of the reunion... We should have waited directly at the exit of the desert by dividing ourselves...

The giant hearing the lung speaking started to advance towards her and arrived next to her in a few seconds.

Sebastian: I thought I was clear enough. But I don't think it's a good idea to have a third of our forces that are already spread out facing all the forces of the reunion that are united.

Hoshiguma: I'm with the doc on this one Ch'en. If we were to split up, do you think you could fight Patriot? On your own? Or me? Or Beatrix? We need to stick together on this one.

Ch'en looked at the oni and sighed as she admitted defeat.

Ch'en: You're right Hoshi... Sorry.

Sebastian: 'I'm right...'

The rich kid feline looked at the giant and then moved her hand forward and knocked on the plate of the bulletproof vest.

*BONG*

Realizing she had just hit metal Swire's eyes widened. The giant looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

Swire: And how do you not die of heat with your iron cage on?

Sebastian: Habit. Operations in the outlands are common for Rhodes. It's not the first time I've wandered into the desert-

A cylindrical object fell at the feet of the four L.G.D. members and the leader of Rhodes Island. They all looked at the object for a second. Wondering what it was, the doctor reflexively pushed the L.G.D. leaders away from the object, throwing them a few feet away. And even before the first reflexes of the operators of the two groups were activated, the mysterious object that turned out to be an explosive did its job and the explosion threw Sebastian far behind the group. The blast knocked several operators off their feet and at the same time more art projectiles and crossbow bolts were fired from rocks further down the canyon.

Dobermann: Ambush!

Amiya: Defenders on the front line! Stand your ground! Sniper casters! Take out the enemy soldiers!

The Rhodes Island troops all gave a collective shout of determination before quickly moving back into position.

Amiya glanced at the giant and saw him embedded in a rock, smoking from the flames he had taken. But just as soon the giant began to move, pulling himself out of the rock he took a fighting stance and immediately leapt to the first line of defense. His very presence strengthened the morale of the Rhodes Island troops. The doctor moved forward in the open, holding his sword firmly in both hands and parrying all the shots the reunion troops fired at him. Allowing him to advance under fire.

His actions had already created a dark reputation among the soldiers of the reunion. So much so that he became the main target of fire, the target of the reunion. the young cautus understood the doctor's intentions and signaled to Yato and Melantha to sneak up and take the enemies by surprise. The two young women nodded and started to move towards the positions of the snipers and the casters.

But unfortunately the shots became too much even for the good doctor and when an arrow hit the giant's thigh Hoshiguma could not help but throw herself under fire with her shield forward.

Ch'en: Hoshi what are you doing!

The lung reached out her arm to try to catch her but was pulled back behind a rock by swire as a crossbow bolt slammed into the ground fracturing the rocks from the force of the impact.

Swire: Let her do her job!

The oni who was taking cover behind her shield looked at the giant and gave him an almost carnivorous smile. No words were necessary between them to understand each other. The giant took advantage of this respite to rush toward the troops of the reunion. At such a speed that no sniper or caster had time to aim at him, the giant found himself right in front of them. Some of them tried to run away, but they were violently cut to pieces by the doctor's blade. When one of the soldiers in the reunion fell backwards and tried to crawl away from the doctor, the giant swung his sword at the soldier, cutting him in half, and then he heard a faint cry of surprise and fear. Surprised he looked in front of him and as he thought he saw sand moving in front of him he could see Yato removing the hood of the cloak that the doctor had given him. Surprised not to have seen him, he was reassured to know that at least the camouflage was effective.

Sebastian: Oh sorry, I didn't see you-

The doctor, who was more panicked by the fact that he had almost wounded one of his operators than by the fight itself, did not hear the shots behind him. Feeling the air moving at the last moment he raised his forearm to protect his face and the arrows went into his body as Yato reflexively hid behind the doctor to take cover. And as he lowered his arm to see the snipers in front of him. He saw Melantha take out the last one with a sword strike between the shoulder blades.

Sebastian was reassured that the confrontation was already over. And without any casualties. Finally... He felt the blood running down his arm to see that once again there was a reason for him to be called the hedgehog... He sighed and signaled the Rhodes troops to advance. Then without thinking he took his sword in his hand and brushed it against his skin and clothes cutting off the shafts of the arrows to be more free in his movements, but keeping the points because they did not bother him.

Dobermann: Hey doc!

Sebastian turned in the direction of the perro, who had just knocked down a soldier from the reunion, wrapped in the instructor's battle whip.

Dobermann: I think I have someone to question...

The three leaders of the L.G.D. thinking it was their job to get the information also approached the poor reunion soldier. The soldier looked up and almost dropped his bladder when he saw the four individuals the reunion feared most in this operation in Lungmen.

W: So doc? Do we torture this one too?

Sebastian: Don't say that like it's something we do a lot...

He says with a sigh and opens the doctor's kit on his bulletproof vest.

Sebastian: Someone to hold his head?

Without thinking, the oni got down on one knee and used all her strength to hold the struggling soldier's head.

Soldier: Hey! Fuck you even if you pop my eyes out I won't tell!

Swire: Um... Doctor you're not really going to torture him...?

The giant turned his gaze to the lung and the feline who seemed terrified that the Rhodes Island troops would torture someone right in front of them. He pulled a syringe of clear liquid from his kit.

Sebastian: But do we really look like barbarians?

he asked, turning to the cautus next to him, who just shrugged.

The giant stuck the syringe in the jugular of the soldier of the reunion and threw it away.

Sebastian: Let's start simple. Who is your leader.

Soldier: Skullshatterer. Damn it! What did you do to me!

Sebastian: Truth serum kid...

Soldier: God fucking damn it!

Sebastian: Where is the reunion going?

Soldier: I-I don't know! We weren't told anything!

Sebastian: Did you hear anything about where you were going or where you were going?

Soldier: There was just a rumor that we would use a sandstorm to escape! What the hell did you do to me?! My head is going to explode!!!

Seeing that the soldier was writhing in pain and having recovered all the information that interested him, the giant signaled to let go of the soldier, who fell heavily to the ground unable to move as the pain that ran through him was horrible. A surprising reaction for all those who were watching the scene.

Amiya: Doktah, what's wrong with him...?

Dobermann: The dose...

Sebastian: I had to increase it. Otherwise we would have had to wait a few hours for it to take effect.

Swire: What will happen to him...?

She said, taking pity on the soldier of the reunion whose blood was leaking from behind the mask.

Sebastian: He should come to his senses in a few hours.

Ch'en: Are you sure? The L.G.D. may need him for questioning.

Sebastian: You can trust me, I'm a doctor.

The three leaders of the L.G.D. looked at him with some doubt on their faces.

Sebastian: What-

Soldier: Die!!!

In a sudden and quick leap the soldier threw himself at Sebastian with a knife in his hand. The will to kill him on his face. The blade hit the giant between the ribs, a smile on the lips of the soldier who thought he had given a decisive blow to his opponent. But the giant looked him straight in the eyes, and grabbed his arm. Then closed his hand.

With all his strength.

And when some of the Rhodes Islanders saw the veins appearing in the doctor's hand and forearm as a sign that he was contracting his muscles, they all turned their gaze in another direction. Already knowing what was coming.

*splotch*

The soldier's arm was cut in two, the flesh and bones caught in Sebastian's hand and reduced to a pulp, a huge spray of blood being projected around. In panic and fear, some members of the L.G.D. fell backwards. Like the soldier who fell down because of his blood loss and the immense pain.

Ch'en: Holy shit!

But even though most of the troops on Rhodes Island did not want to see the doctor's actions, not everyone in the group did close their eyes. Amiya saw that her beloved doctor was being attacked and kicked the enemy soldier in the face, sending him flying backwards two meters. Liskarm stopped the soldier in question by raising her ballistic shield, resulting in the poor man's skull being crashed on metal instead of a pillow. Dobermann drew her whip in less than a second and immediately struck the soldier's mask. Using far more strength than the cautus she broke the soldier's mask and sent him tumbling against one of the canyon walls and crashing heavily against the rock.

While the poor infected man was coughing from his wounds, W came up beside him and pointed the barrel of her rifle at the soldier's face, making him freeze in place.

A vague wind passed through the Rhodes Island troops and immediately the doctor found himself in front of the enemy soldier. And to him it was as if death had just appeared before his eyes, hiding the sun, appearing only as a vague shadow to the bloodshot eyes of the reunion soldier.

The doctor raised his left leg and with the softness of a Patriot slap kicked and imprinted the shape of his shoe sole on the soldier's face, throwing his head against the sandstone walls of the canyon fracturing some of the rock and rendering the enemy unconscious.

The doctor drew his handgun from his holster and aimed it straight at his enemy with the sole purpose of finishing him off.

But he felt something in the air.

Something that his five senses could not perceive.

A quick glance at those around him.

Rhode Island didn't care what happened. No matter what happened they trusted their doctor to do the right thing. The L.G.D. was terrified. And rightly so... The sudden act of brutality on the part of Rhodes Island was surprising as much as the relentlessness of the soldier at the reunion. But to hell with the L.G.D.'s opinion, as Rhodes' opinion could go to hell too. What he was feeling... All those negative emotions in someone else. He turned his gaze to Amiya, as her sadness at watching the doctor coldly slaughter someone was emanating from her body like a mist on the ground.

When the two emeralds in the doctor's skull looked into the azure eyes of the cautus he was struck with sadness too. A communicating sadness and after feeling the emotions of the cautus he could hear her thoughts. "Please don't kill him." As if the girl's voice had just echoed in his head.

The opinions of his troops or those of the L.G.D. did not matter to him. But Amiya's opinion... That was all he considered. She was the only person who remained in his mind at all times... The moments he was trying to sleep. At the moments when he was being shot at on the battlefield.

She looked at him with so much expectation and so much admiration...

If there was one person he could not disappoint...

It was her.

The electric current that ran through his body without sparks flying stopped and as he held his sword out, the rage on his face subsided. The doctor stuck his sword into the ground, and raised his other hand to the soldier's arm.

Sebastian: Oh my God. Show mercy to my enemies and heal their wounds as you would heal mine.

Suddenly, strands of golden light signature to the doctor's arts began to dance along the blade and around the doctor's body, before approaching the soldier's arm from the reunion. A few wounds on Sebastian's body were healed, but the main amount of light began to fly towards the soldier's arm. The light circled where the arm should have been, like a veil of solidified light, before taking the exact same shape as the limb. Then suddenly. The light stopped shining.

To reveal an arm like new.

Sebastian staggered, the fatigue of using his arts hitting him like a freight train. But he remained upright and leaned on the handle and hilt of his sword to stay upright while he caught his breath. Slightly surprised but not showing it the doctor glanced at the rest of the soldier's arm that was still on the ground to see that it was still there. He had never tested the full capacity of his arts... He was healing a few wounds here and there, nothing too impressive considering the exhaustion he felt after using them just once...

Even for the holders of the most powerful medical arts, regenerating limbs was a feat. So for the doctor... Needless to say, the Rhodes Island operators were just as surprised as Sebastian.

Maybe he really was making progress...

Finishing to catch his breath, the doctor joined Amiya and glancing at the lung he began to speak.

Sebastian: Enjoy the gift I'm giving you. But if you want to take him in, you care of it.

The lung had become almost speechless, between the brutality the doctor had shown himself capable of, the coordination of Rhodes Island, and the beauty of the emerald-eyed giant's arts. This was more than one reason to be shocked. Even though she was dying to say something back to him.

The giant began to move on down the canyon, motioning for his troops to move with him. Amiya immediately went to his side. The girl looked at him, and when the giant looked back at her he smiled.

He had seen billions of worlds. But still, it was Terra that was just sucking all the good out of his soul. This world and its inhabitants made him feel endless anger, sadness and bitterness. So much so that sometimes he could swear that venom filled his veins...

But when he looked at the cautus next to him all that bitterness, all that anger and sadness disappeared. The craziest thing was that he didn't even know why.

He knew anyway. He would never let that bitterness overcome him as long as someone like Amiya was by his side.

Raising two of his fingers to his earpiece he opened his radio.

Sebastian: Echo 3-1, do you have a view of a sandstorm near our positions? No, near the canyons. Roger that. Go Rhodes! The day is far from over!

-----------

Amiya: It took less time than I thought it would.

Sebastian: Me too.

The exchange of the two leaders of Rhodes Island took place in front of a huge rock wall. In front of one of the exits of the canyon where the edges had obviously collapsed to block the passage. And probably a work of the reunion having for goal to slow down the troops of Rhodes Island.

Ch'en: Damn it!!!

The lung was visibly upset by what they had just discovered. They had been quick to reach this part of the canyons and yet here they were in front of a dead end. And given the speed at which they had just arrived, it could very well be that some of the forces of the reunion were still behind.

Sebastian: Calm down, missy.

Ch'en: How can I calm down?! The engineer units are too far away even by helicopter, and the only available detour through the gorge would take us three hours!

W: Then it's a good thing he's used to planning things a little more than you are, lizard...

As a vein appeared on the forehead of the lung and the sarkaz approached the giant, the cockroach took the bag she had on one of her shoulders and opened it.

W: Kaboom?

Asked the young woman holding a loaf of C4 and looking at the doctor.

Sebastian: Not kaboom. I want to save them just in case. Everyone back off!

The doctor moved a little closer to the rock wall and put his hand against it as the Rhodes Island troops backed away, already knowing what the good doctor was about to do.

He did not wait for his troops to signal him.

He got into a martial arts-like stance and drew back his right fist. And using every possible rotation of his body to increase the power of his blow, he struck the rubble wall in front of him.

At first sight, the L.G.D. agents were surprised more than shocked. For the blow that the doctor was striking was not fast... Almost slow, for Terra's standards. But what the novices didn't see, unlike Swire Hoshiguma and Ch'en, was how much force the good doctor was using in his blow. They could see that each of his muscle fibers was working, each of his joints trying to amplify the force of the impact. Then, surprise gave way to astonishment when the doctor's fist made contact with the rocks. Worse than a hundred C4 pack or grenades. But in any case, there was an explosion. The rocks were reduced to dust for the ten meters or so in the radius where Sebastian had struck. And while the air was blown toward the allied troops, causing hair to fly and eyes to close, the dust was blown forward into the canyon, showing a slope that led out of the canyon. But above all...

A real sandstorm.

At the top of the slope, and given the speed of the wind, it took only a few seconds for the wind to rush into the gorge and for visibility to become totally zero. Even for the good doctor, who had to cover his eyes to avoid suffering too much from the sand.

Sebastian: Holy shit!

Ch'en: Everybody gather immediately!

Sebastian began to hear something in the distance, through all the noise of the storm. The sound of a voice... Faint... But he recognized it instantly.

Misha: Doctor... help...

Maybe hundreds of meters away from his position. But he was struck with shock when he heard the voice of the ursus. So without thinking the good doctor started to run. As fast as he could, straight towards the noise he had heard.

Amiya: Doktah what are you doing?!

He didn't even take the time to answer. He ran, again and again through the sand, as fast as he could. The few soldiers at the reunion in his path were not worth the trouble of drawing his weapon, so he just ran into them. And taking 150 kilos running at fifty kilometers an hour had already broken every bone in their bodies. For several tens of seconds he ignored the shouts of the operators and the orders through his radio. He had to find her.

He had promised her.

He would not break his promise for anything in the world.

Finally, behind the curtain of sand in front of his eyes, he could see a shape wearing a cape.

Sebastian: Misha!

He put his hand on her shoulder and turned her towards him, a smile on his lips.

And yet, what he received was a stabbing.

Under the cape was not Misha but a soldier of the reunion. A pythia, and seeing the originium crystals on her throat that shone with a particular light it did not take long to understand that the young woman in front of him had arts that allowed her to modify her voice.

And that she was only a bait to attract him.

Immediately he was struck with rage.

An immense rage.

With a howl he grabbed the young woman's skull with one of his hands, before grabbing the knife still stuck in his flesh to slit her throat, leaving the blade stuck in her throat and dropping the poor soldier who was drowning in her own blood, trying to scream but only making gurgles of red liquid.

But his rage did not subside.

He was so predictable...

So pitiful...

So weak...

The veins in his skin turned black, his eyes turned blood red, and the human parts of his brain disappeared and were replaced by the instincts of a wild beast.

A soldier came towards him with a machete in his hand, but Sebastian closed the gap between them and threw himself on top of him to start biting him violently in the throat.

The soldier let out a cry of pain and terror, drawing more soldiers to the doctor's position. The beast let go of the one it was devouring to pounce on another soldier who was approaching. It flexed its fingers as if they were claws. Then it gave a blow of these claws of its left hand which cut the soldier in several pieces, another soldier who approached him suffered the same fate the second after but this time by the right hand.

As more and more soldiers approached him, he began to cut them, biting them one after the other. The more the blood tinged his tongue, the more he enjoyed the taste, and the more his reason disappeared.

This went on for several minutes, until there was no one left to kill in his field of vision, no one left to devour. His rage gradually subsided and he finally heard the radio again.

Ch'en: Swire! Swire where are you!

Swire: I don't know, I got separated! We're being surrounded, help!

Ch'en: I can't see you!

Hoshiguma: Get down!

Dobermann: I can't even see him attacking!

Amiya: Exusiai help me, my barrier won't hold for long!

W: It's ironic. I almost wish the doc was here for once...

Andreanna: W! You'll wish your lover was here later!

W: Bravo now I'm pissed.

Suddenly he heard several explosions in the distance.

At least Andreanna knew how to motivate the sarkaz to fight.

Sebastian wiped the blood off his hands and ran to the nearest place where he could hear a fight. Unsheathing his sword he ran as fast as he could in the direction, the sandstorm preventing him from seeing five meters away but fortunately for him he could still hear. He jumped from the top of a rock ledge and aimed his sword downward, falling, and skewering a Sarkaz mercenary who was just below him.

Killing his enemy instantly, he placed a foot on the body of the latter and used it to regain his footing and jump back. When the body of the colossus he had just killed fell, he could see a few soldiers camouflaging themselves with the air and sand currents, no doubt crownslayer units taking advantage of the natural camouflage. He glanced back to see Swire only a few inches behind, some wounded L.G.D. soldiers at her side and she too was not in the best of postures, cuts here and there as well as a piece of rock stuck in her right arm. The young woman opened her eyes surprised to see the doctor literally land from the sky. But he only gave her a reassuring smile as he knew how. A smile that meant not to worry anymore because he was taking things in hand. The young woman felt blood rush to her cheeks.

Then as Sebastian turned his eyes back to the soldiers at the reunion he caught the end of a machete only a centimeter from his eye. But fortunately that centimeter of distance was all it took for the giant to parry the attack with his sword. The enemy soldier had his arm thrown back because of the parry, and there was no way he could prevent Sebastian from bringing his sword down on him, slicing his torso from the shoulder to the pelvis. Two other soldiers thought it was a good idea to attack the doctor at the same time with the same attack. They slashed the doctor's neck with their machetes, one to the left, the other to the right. Once again his enemies were fast, but he was always faster.

A simple step backwards was all it took for the two soldiers to miss and stab each other in the shoulder with their machetes. They didn't kill each other, though. The doctor did. A single horizontal blow and he decapitated his two enemies at the same time. Their bodies and heads fell heavily to the ground.

Wasting no time he grabbed one of his vials of chlorophite and threw it at Swire. The feline caught the object in flight with her left arm.

Sebastian: Divide it between you and your soldiers!

He wasted no more time and leapt in the direction from which he had just heard the crack of a whip. Only a few seconds of sprinting and he could already see the sparks of lightning coming from Dobermann's whip. Through the sand he could perceive a dark shape seemingly approaching her from the side that the young woman had not seen. A gigantic shape, a goliath sarkaz for sure, but even bigger than the others.

He ran towards the perro with the sole purpose of protecting her and right in front of her he raised his sword to parry the goliath's attack. Using both hands along the blade to cushion the impact. And what an impact... An overwhelming force, enough to put the doctor on the wrong foot. When the goliath's sword struck the doctor, if sword could be used to describe the hulking chunk of steel the sarkaz was using, an explosion sounded. Enough to sweep the sand for a few feet, giving a clear view for a few seconds.

The various members of Rhodes and the L.G.D. finally came out of the confusion and looked at each other. Seeing where they were and where their allies were. But more importantly, what they saw and looked at was that the doctor was finally there. His presence alone gave a boost to the morale of the Rhodes Island troops and they all turned to the colossal sarkaz.

Sebastian didn't immediately recognize his enemy, in fact he looked different from the classic Sarkaz mercenaries. More powerful in any case, bigger, stronger, a more resistant weapon and thicker armor.

Giving an impulse in his legs and arms he sent back the sword of the sarkaz and gave a kick to the chest of his enemy to move him away. Ch'en and Hoshiguma also arrived early to support the good doctor, probably because they were already struggling with the sarkaz centurion. As soon as the giant finished getting into a fighting stance, the sand fell away from them and the centurion disappeared. Sebastian tried to hear him through the storm but there was nothing he could do. The man knew how to disguise the sound of his heart as well as his breath or his movements. So he could only rely on his reflexes.

Seeing a shadow at the last moment through the sand, the centurion attacked again, plunging his sword straight towards Ch'en, taking it on her right side. The lung having her reflexes at their peak dodged by rolling forward, the giant shifted slightly, and Hoshiguma she not having the speed of the other two raised her shield and stopped the attack a spray of sparks flying. The oni moved back a few centimeters because of the force of the attack but when she stopped moving back, a carnivorous smile adorned her lips because she had managed to reach the strength of her opponent.

Ch'en, who was the sharpest, brought her raythean down on the arms of the sarkaz, aiming to cut them off and disarm him. But his enemy was more skillful than that. The sarkaz took a simple step back and dodged the lung's attack with ease. But in the moment he forgot that it was no longer a two-on-one, but a three-on-one.

It was Sebastian who reminded him. With as much kindness as a blow of sword in the mouth. The giant attacked his enemy with a thrust to the face, but instead of splitting as he had hoped, the sarkaz's mask held and the doctor's sword ricocheted off it.

Hoshiguma: Get out of the way!

Freed from the force of the sarkaz, the oni began to rush towards the enemy, her shield raised like a train at full speed. The metal of her shield smashed against the armor of the sarkaz, breaking it because of the Herculean strength of the oni.

The sarkaz in pain raised his sword and brought it down on Hoshiguma. The emerald-eyed giant gritted his teeth. He lifted his leg and kicked the sarkaz preventing him from attacking and making him move back a few meters.

Ch'en: Don't take it out on her you asshole!!!

The lung went on the attack, instinctively she tried to draw chi xiao but the sword would not move from its scabbard.

Then she gave a blow of her raythean in one of the cracks of the armor of the sarkaz projecting a spray of blood, this one raised the arm to give a punch to the Lung. But Ch'en grabbed Chi Xiao still in her scabbard and struck between the legs of the sarkaz.

Like a sledgehammer on nuts, a foul crack echoed through the air. The sarkaz centurion let out a huge cry of pain and Sebastian gritted his teeth and breathed in quickly feeling the pain as well.

After her nutcracker Ch'en followed up with a blow of her raythean to his throat. Feeling fear, the sarkaz jumped back and disappeared into the sandstorm.

Just as soon Sebastian was attacked by the centurion in the back, and no sooner had he parried than the sarkaz had already disappeared into the sand. Then it was Hoshiguma's turn, and Ch'en's.

The centurion seemed to have opted for the hit and run strategy. Soon the giant and the oni found themselves back to back, entrenched by the onslaught of the sarkaz.

Sebastian: I have a very bad idea.

Hoshiguma: That's not the right thing to say!

*Clunk*

They heard Ch'en dodging a blow through the sandstorm.

Sebastian: I have a really bad fucking idea! Raise your shield to me and hold on!

Feeling entrenched Hoshiguma obeyed on the spot and aimed her hannya at Sebastian holding him as if she was about to be hit by a meteor. And meteor it was.

Sebastian drew back his fist and slammed it with all his might against Hoshiguma's shield.

**BONG**

--------------

At the same time at the L.G.D. headquarters

Wei: What are you looking at now?

The leader of Lungmen was sitting in his sofa, smoking a pipe while looking at several files recovered from Rhodes Island.

At the ceiling level on one of the beams of this one was lying Shirayuki who seemed to be reading something on her phone.

And finally Fumizuki. The kirin was standing in front of one of the windows of the Penthouse looking at the distance, especially towards the desert.

Fumizuki: Why do you care?

Wei: You are my wife, you could at least answer me.

Said the lung while grinding his teeth.

Fumizuki: I'm your wife when it goes along with what you want... *sigh* If you want to know everything, I'm looking at a sandstorm that has just formed in the desert.

Wei: Wow... So interesting...

It was the kirin's turn to grind her teeth.

Fumizuki: It's interesting indeed because it just appeared all of a sudden while it normally takes time. And what's more a supernatural phenomenon that happens exactly where your niece is supposed to be fighting.

Her dry tone of voice hit the lung making him realize what was going on, the Lungmen leader choking on his tobacco smoke. When the kirin returned her gaze to the action she felt something strange.

Suddenly, the sand in the sandstorm seemed to expand at an insane rate, and the sandstorm cleared. As if an explosion had just sounded. Fumizuki barely had time to wonder what was going on, when a shockwave sounded, making the windows shake with a big bang, the grains of sand that were so far away hit the glass walls and left small cuts showing how hard they had been thrown.

And as soon as the sound resounded Shirayuki jumped from her perch to be at the side of her lady looking around for any danger.

Shirayuki: Are you alright lady?

Fumizuki: Yes I'm fine. And you Shira?

Shirayuki: More fear than harm.

Wei: I'm fine too, thanks for asking!

The lung who was rubbing his head after falling from the sofa because of the surprise almost growled as he looked at the other two women.

Fumizuki: 'Why was I married to such a wimp...'

-------------

Sebastian's fist was smoking from the force he had just used. All around him the sand had disappeared, driven away by the explosion. The noise and the position of the oni and the giant was enough for the troops of Rhodes Island to understand what had just happened. And this time understanding that all the sand had just been cleared, the Rhodes Island troops resumed the fight as soon as they understood that the reunion had just lost all its advantages.

Hoshiguma felt the bones in her arms weaken with immense pain and fell to the ground. Sebastian looked to his left clearly hearing the heartbeat of the sarkaz next to him. The centurion was paralyzed with surprise, but when he saw the look in the giant's eyes fear made him bring his sword down with all his might on the giant. The giant having his senses at the maximum of his capacities could parry the attack on sarkaz with ease...

Ch'en who was a few meters behind the giant turned to the giant and putting her hand on Chi Xiao feeling the bloodlust of the sword she had an idea. She got into an attack position and raised her voice.

Ch'en: Chi Xiao! Unseath!

The L.G.D. troops, hearing their boss screaming, instinctively lowered their heads. And Sebastian, feeling something terrible in his back, threw himself to the ground.

A wave of blood-red energy went through the ten meters that separated Ch'en and Sebastian, cutting even the air in an arc... A spray of blood escaped from the sarkaz's torso, a gash of several centimeters even through the armor. Sebastian propelled himself on his two legs with sweat running down his forehead and neck from the attack he was about to take from the lung. He turned to her and with a face that was both shocked and terrified he began to scream.

Sebastian: What the hell is wrong with you?!

He said as the sarkaz fell to his knees, not yet dead but too injured to move.

Ch'en: What doc are you afraid of-

Misha: Doctor !!!!!

The voice was far away but nothing could make the doctor wrong this time.

Both he and Amiya and Ch'en heard the voice of the young ursus and so soon all three turned in the direction of that voice.

In the distance, hundreds of meters away, the three of them could see the young girl next to Patriot and Crownslayer.

The two leaders of the reunion looked shocked at the leaders of Rhodes Islandi. Then Sebastian felt the anger rise in him again, not a word came out of his mouth, not a thought crossed his mind.

He drew his sword and with a sharp blow at the neck of the centurion sarkaz decapitated him. And with a kick he sent the head like a soccer ball to the feet of the leaders of the reunion. Crownslayer was terrified that a leader of the reunion who was supposed to be much stronger than she was, was eliminated so brutally and simply, she fell backwards. Falling on her back with her eyes fixed on the head.

Misha realized that her chance to escape was now past the fear and stress. Summoning the feeling in her body the crystals on her body began to hurt like hell. But her heart began to beat faster and faster, her muscles grew stronger, and her pupils became red with blood. Feeling the heavy and strong hand of the wendigo on her shoulder, she decided to kick the side of Patriot's leg, aiming for the joint. The wendigo was surprised by the force that had been used against him, such force that this little one who was not even fourteen years old made him fall a knee to the ground.

Misha, feeling her instincts take over, jumped on Patriot and headbutted the wendigo, fracturing his skull on the spot and making him take a few steps back.

Sebastian saw the scene and realized that it was his time, and concentrated all his strength in his legs.

Then he made a leap forward. Propelling himself at a speed well beyond anything imaginable, covering the almost kilometer that separated him from his objective in a fraction of a second. Completely ignoring the chasm he had crossed. He brought his sword down on Patriot and the wendigo at the last moment raised his halberd and managed to parry the blow with difficulty.

At the same time, Misha had just picked up the wendigo and jumped back, landing right behind the doctor. Sebastian felt stronger than ever and determined. Crownslayer's gaze moved from the decapitated head to the doctor. She had seen him at Chernobog just before the assault by Mephisto's forces. And here he looked twice as large and twenty times as scary. Just one look at his face and she sensed danger. And when a bit of the giant's scent entered her overdeveloped nose she couldn't describe the smell. So much so that her brain began to spin in a loop. Until Patriot's voice snapped her out of this olfactory trance.

Patriot: Crown. Get up and fight.

When the wendigo looked at the giant and saw his determination and his muscles pulsing with strength, he knew that the next fight could not be harder.

The lupo at Patriot's side stood up and, although trembling, drew her machete and stood guard.

Sebastian: This is crazy, old devil... I've got a mad urge to kill you right now. Misha ?

the doctor asked, looking in his back briefly.

Misha: Doctor... I knew you would save me...

Sebastian: Hold on tight. And stay behind me.

The girl nodded, breaking her handcuffs with the strength of her arts, determined this time not to be captured.

Patriot: You know Yuri.... I remember that you taught me. Something very important when we met...

The giant raised an eyebrow.

Patriot: Always keep a flash.

Sebastian wondered what the colossus meant, before he remembered this teaching. This teaching came from his spetsnaz instructor. Who was giving advice in case we were about to be captured.

And shit.

The wendigo had taken advantage of the moment of hesitation Sebastian had to throw a flash grenade in the giant's face. And as proof that he had prepared well, the grenade exploded in the giant's face before he had time to see it.

His pupils burned at the time and he preemptively raised his sword to protect himself, relying on the air currents on his skin to guess the direction of the attack. Sebastian managed to ward off the attack. But just as soon he felt something in his back. Or more precisely. He didn't feel anything in his back. Nor in his legs. He fell heavily to the ground paralyzed.

His pupils regenerated and Sebastian realized something.

That the sprinkler had just been sprinkled.

The situation of yesterday had been reversed.

He wanted to get up but his legs wouldn't move. Just like his arms. Just at the ideal place to paralyze below his neck, Crownslayer's machete had planted itself.

The lupo struck Misha in the back of the neck rendering her unconscious for a few seconds, putting the girl on her shoulder.

The wendigo dropped to one knee as the giant felt more helpless than ever. He could not charge himself with electricity, for it was generated by his entire nervous system and the friction generated between his blood and the walls of his veins. But here he could not control his heart or his nervous system.

Regeneration?

No way. The machete remained stuck and his wound was looked at.

He began to grind his teeth, to the point where they would be on the verge of being broken by the force of Sebastian's jaw.

Patriot: I would have liked to give you the end of a warrior. Alas, there is a girl to take care of.

Sebastian grunted and tried to move every muscle in his body, but the wendigo could see that it had no effect whatsoever.

Patriot: You were never any good against your own techniques.

Sebastian: I'm going to kill you, you hear me! You motherfucker, I'll kill you!

The wendigo stood up and motioned to Crownslayer to come forward, which the lupo did.

Patriot: Give up Yuri. That will save you from losing a third time.

The colossus began to walk away as did Crownslayer and Misha. But only a few feet away, Misha began to cough violently and convulse. Recognizing the symptoms, Sebastian became concerned. It had been 16 hours since she had received her treatment. A treatment she was supposed to receive every eight hours.

The lupo was worried for a few seconds, not understanding what was going on and neither did the colossus. Then, banging his head against the ground, the doctor started to shout.

Sebastian: What the hell are you doing? Her oripathy is killing her and you're standing there looking at her!

Crownslayer smelled the blood on the young ursus and could see that the black crystals on her skin were growing and that was the reason for the bleeding.

Sebastian: I have an emergency treatment in my medkit! Give it to her now! The blue syringe!

The two leaders of the reunion looked at each other for a few seconds, hesitating. Seeing people suffer and die from their oripathy had become their worst habit.

Crownslayer: As soon as I get close he's going to attack me...

Sebastian: I can't even move a finger so for God's sake heal the kid!

The wendigo approached the giant and opened the healing kit to take out an azure blue injector with the Rhodes Island logo printed on it.

Crownslayer: Patriot are you sure we should give this to the girl.

The wendigo looked Sebastian in the eye, and he could see that the giant was pleading with his eyes.

Patriot: Not like him to do that. Do it.

he said as he handed over the injector.

Patriot: My hands are too big.

The lupo took the medicine in her hand and looked at the girl.

Sebastian: I don't need to tell you where the jugular is...

With surgical precision the young woman placed the injector against the vein of the ursus and pressed the button at the end of it. A noise resounded and the solution entered the veins of the girl who almost as soon stopped coughing.

The lupo threw the injector away, reassured that she had not killed her best friend's sister. But when she saw her machete in the doctor's spine, she moved towards him.

Crownslayer: I almost forgot.

She grabbed the handle of her weapon and pulled it out of her enemy's spine...

Before stabbing it into his skull. Sebastian stopped moving at all, or even blinking his eyes, his pupils dilating.

Killing the doctor instantly.

She was about to take her machete from her enemy's dead skull, but Patriot stopped her.

Patriot: Don't do it.

Crownslayer: Why?

Patriot: You can never be too careful.

The young woman sighed and dropped her weapon before leaving with the wendigo.

Crownslayer: My favorite machete...

----------------------------------

????: Why do we use horses?

A young man asked as he watched the sun shine brightly over his head. He began to look ahead again. across the plains that oscillated between the desert and the green. The heat made his skull sweat and his body lean as a nail. He passed his hand through his hair, shaved short to abandon his Iroquois cut. Ah... What memories...

Armenia.

?????????: This is customary for us. Also I wanted to see if you could ride.

????: Well, I can. Satisfied now? Can we take a car? At least even the old ones around here must stink less and are more comfortable.

?????????: I'll be clear with you Yuri, it's not for a vacation that you come here. So you'd better shut your mouth and stop complaining, because if you don't I'll make you regret not staying in the shitty Moscow crackhouse from which I picked you up with my fists.

The young Yuri, just fifteen years old, looked at the old man on his horse in front of him. The old man had blue eyes and ivory white hair because of his old age. But still he was far too intimidating for the him of that time.

The old man had one hundred and twenty kilos of muscles for a 1m90. While the yuri of that time was less than 1m50, and if it wasn't for his intense heroin addiction he would still be a hundred kilos of fat.

Not to mention his cowardly behavior.

Yuri: sorry...

?????????: Sorry who...?

Yuri: Sorry Sebastian.

The old man began to smile with satisfaction at his answer. Then after only a few meters on horseback while Yuri was looking at a farm about ten meters away. When suddenly a woman in her forties came out of the house, slamming the door behind her and running across the field toward Sebastian, Yuri could see the tears on the woman's cheeks and the bruises on her face. The old man stopped and the woman grabbed onto the old man's leg.

Woman: Khndrum yem, ognir indz, na indz kspani!

Yuri: What is she saying?

From the house came out a man mad with rage who went into the field, but when the man saw the old man on his horse he froze with fear.

Soon the old man pulled a .38 revolver from his khaki jacket and shot the man in the field, hitting him in the leg.

Unaccustomed to the sound of a gun, Yuri jumped.

Yuri: Holy shit!

Sebastian: Come on.

The old man moved his horse straight across the field towards the man, Yuri following at a trot.

Yuri: But why did you do that?!

Sebastian: I promised him that the next time he would beat his wife he would be killed.

The old man handed the gun to Yuri who hesitantly grabbed it.

Yuri: Do I really have to...?

Sebastian: Yuri. We don't kill for revenge. Nor out of a sense of justice. But simply to prevent people like him from causing any more harm to the innocent. We do it so that no girl is raped again by the same man, so that another one doesn't kill an innocent person again.

Yuri: But if we kill them too. Wouldn't we be as worse as them?

The old man looked at him and burst out laughing.

Sebastian: Where did you read that, kid? In a Batman comic book? Life isn't like that. It doesn't matter what methods you use. You can kill, torture, hurt, manipulate. The only thing that matters is who you do it to and for who. This is your first lesson in our order. And here's the second. Promises are the most important things humans have. Kill him.

The teenager pointed the gun at the man who seemed to be begging for his life. Before turning the gun on his wrist, he handed it to the old man.

Yuri: That's your promise, you have to honor it.

Sebastian: I promised him that it was our order that would kill him. You are already part of it. So do it.

Yuri: Yes sir... never liked Batman anyway...

He pointed his gun at the skull of the crying woman's husband, his gaze cold, galvanized by his master's words.

*BANG*

Sebastian: Bravo, you just killed for the first time. What do you feel?

Yuri: Recoil.

Sebastian: Good.

------------------------

The troops of Rhodes Island gathered around the body of the giant. Without saying a word.

Amiya looked dejected, but her eyes didn't look like she was about to cry.

In fact, the faces of everyone on Rhodes Island were somewhere between sadness and doubt.

The L.G.D. troops moved towards them not seeing the dead body around which they had gathered, their three leaders in the lead. Hoshiguma, who was in a bad shape, saw the body lying on the ground, and immediately froze with tears in his eyes.

Hoshiguma: No no no no...

Swire who was helping her to walk felt sorry for her and gave her a sympathetic look. But the oni, despite her apparent sadness, was still hopeful. And Ch'en approached the body, anger visible on her face.

Ch'en: Damn and he didn't even manage to stay alive... Amiya you are the one in command of Rhodes Island now.

Amiya: ...

Ch'en: What's wrong with you? He knew the risks, so there's no need to stay down because he's dead.

W: Once again you are wrong lizard. They're not quiet because the doc is dead. They're quiet because we're pretty sure he's not.

Ch'en: Are you kidding me...?

She looked at the corpse, a machete stuck through the skull, into the brain. Eyes wide open, muscles stiff, a pool of blood under his body.

Ch'en: Look at him, no one can survive this!

She grabbed the machete and pulled it out of the doctor's skull leaving a gaping hole. Then she threw the weapon on the ground and turned to the Rhodes Island troops.

Ch'en: Look, he's dead. dead, dead, dead. So now stop looking at him like he's going to get up...

The weapon was out of the way.

No one was looking at him anymore...

Behind Ch'en's back, the giant blinked at the ground, several times in a row before closing his fists and slowly moving his arms to rest his hands on the ground and stand up.

The troops on Rhodes Island were wide-eyed. Terrified that they had been right. Hoshiguma's mouth hung open in surprise and Swire might have fallen to the ground in fear if she wasn't holding on to the green-haired oni.

And the L.G.D. troops...

All of them let out different curses and profanities, especially since they could see the hole in the back of his head.

Ch'en: Because he is dead!

The giant looked left and right to see if there were any other corpses near him, but he didn't see any and had to face the evidence. So he raised his hand and tapped with his fingertip on the shoulder of the lung.

Surprised, the young woman turned towards the giant and took a second to understand that he was right in front of her.

Sebastian: Hmm. Is it me you're talking about...?

After the initial phase of incomprehension Ch'en was struck with terror, screaming and falling backwards in mortification.

Amiya: Doktah!

The Rhodes Island troops let out a sigh of relief when they saw their doctor intact.

Sebastian: Amiya, is everyone okay back home?

Amiya: Ideally yes... Dokutah... Where is Misha...?

She knew she was asking a question that would hurt, but the doctor knew she needed to know.

Sebastian: They took her back... They got me like a rook. Sorry...

He lowered his head, feeling ashamed of his defeat.

Sebastian: Her oripathy is getting worse... The emergency treatments won't work soon, we have to find her soon or we'll lose her...

The news of the doctor came as a blow to the cautus.

Especially since thanks to the position of the sun in the sky the doctor could perceive that he had been knocked out for a good three hours. Then the clock was ticking and the last hour of the young ursus was coming faster and faster.

Dobermann: Doc, where are we going?

The perro stepped forward from the ranks understanding that time was running out and that we had to move quickly to catch up with the troops at the reunion.

Sebastian: I heard them say they were heading for the mines.

Amiya: So it's the mines...

Sebastian: If we leave now, we might have a chance to catch them.

His troops nodded and the doctor began to walk in the direction of the mines he had seen on the map. But no sooner had he taken the first step than a voice stopped him.

Ch'en: Hey wait a minute!

The giant turned to the Lung, his facial expression indicating that he was easily irritated.

Ch'en: Can you tell me what the hell you're doing?

Sebastian: Tennis. What do you think we're doing? We're chasing the troops from the reunion.

Ch'en: And you get the information from your beret?

Sebastian: As I said, I heard it.

Ch'en: I want reliable information. Do you think I'm going to risk the lives of my men because you heard the enemy say they were heading for the mines?

Sebastian: I'm not asking you to follow us if you don't want to believe me. You do what you want.

He turned again to leave, obviously annoyed by the lung, not being able to stand it anymore.

Ch'en: Hey!

Putting her hand on his shoulder and pulling to force the giant to look at her, the lung felt her arm get hit by the giant who still had his fighting senses sharpened and still felt alert. The doctor turned to her abruptly, putting one of his hands on his sword and taking a step back. Immediately the L.G.D. officers drew their weapons in reflex and the Rhodes Island troops prepared to fight as well, seeing the situation quickly escalate.

This second of tension seemed like an eternity until Sebastian raised his hand to the Rhodes Island troops to signal them to lower their weapons while his hand remained on the pommel of his sword. The young woman in front of him, neither intimidated nor frightened by anything, continued to show her irritation.

Ch'en: We are with you for fuck sake!

She says while pushing the giant's chest with her two hands, shoving him of only a few centimeters.

Ch'en: We are here for the same reasons!

Sebastian: Really? I feel more like you're just here to be tourists waiting for someone to save your ass every time there's a problem! You don't give a shit about fighting the reunion! Or save some poor kid who's stuck in this shitty situation!

Ch'en: Tourists?! We risk our life for that and we don't give a fuck ?!

She asked in directing her arm towards her troops.

Ch'en: They are all volunteers for this mission! It's not even counted in our working hours so you think we're here for fun?!

The giant frowned, wondering what the lung was getting at.

Ch'en: We're all here to save the child, we're all here to fight the reunion and prevent them from attacking innocent people in the city! Then stop believing you are alone with your private army because you are not!

She says while pushing him again but this time a little more violently.

Sebastian: I ask because I have seen no evidence of your involvement! You follow us like ducklings behind their mother! Did you help find out that the reunion was here?! Did you help clear the rubble to get through the canyon?! Did you help by using those damn helicopters you're so proud of to at least get close to the reunion troops?! You want me to tell you what you did?! Nothing!

Ch'en: You want me to tell you what the L.G.D. did?! Give some of it's lives!!!

The giant was surprised that the lung began to scream at the top of her lungs, passing another stage of anger.

Ch'en: Mathew O'donnel PC 10543! 54 years old! Raised his daughter alone but no one will come home to her tonight! Died in the canyon by taking an arrow in the skull! Ming Hui PC 69104! 27 years old! She was counting on this month's risk pay to pay the hospital bill for her mother's treatment! Died in the storm because no one could treat her in time! You're not the one who's going to tell a daughter that she'll never see her father again! You are not the one who will tell a poor old woman that her daughter is dead and that she too will die of her illness!

During Ch'en's monologue the doctor's facial expression had changed from anger to sadness and his hand had fallen from the pommel of his sword. The Rhodes Island troops were silent, not daring to say a word, just like the doctor.

Ch'en: We are not super humans! We lose brothers, sisters, friends, lovers in all this shit! And you, what have you lost so far?! except your fucking self-esteem when you got your ass kicked twice in a row!

The lung breathed heavily to catch her breath after her gasp. And if she wasn't mad with rage she would almost have a smile on her face seeing the doctor demoralized by his own actions. At the same time...

She was right. That was what Sebastian was telling himself. These L.G.D. people were similar men and women to those on Rhodes Island. With their dreams, their desires, their hopes. Real people. The kind of people that didn't just exist on Rhodes Island, the kind of people he had sworn to defend. Normal people. How could he come so fast to forget it...

Hoshiguma: Ch'en...

The oni approached the two faction leaders who were arguing while holding her arm.

Hoshiguma: Take a breath... This is difficult for everyone... Seb what I think she is trying to say is that-

Sebastian: It's not worth it Hoshiguma... I understand... She's right all along. I have no right to complain. All we got was a few wounds that were treated by our medics... Not the loss of our comrades...

He looked at the rest of the L.G.D. troops behind the lung.

Sebastian: I'm sorry. To all of you.

Perhaps under other circumstances the silent soldiers of the L.G.D. would have grumbled or sent the doctor to hell with his apology, that piece of garbage between a lab technician and a commander... Except not. They could all see that this doctor was a doctor in name only. He was a soldier just like them and his apology was sincere. So they silently accepted it.

Ch'en: Doctor. I don't want to put more of my soldiers' lives on the line without knowing the risks... I think, at least I hope you understand... So please tell me if this information is reliable...

Seemingly calmed down, the young woman crossed her arms and stood upright facing the doctor.

The giant sighed and closed his eyes, making the lung raise an eyebrow.

Sebastian: I know this the same way I can tell there are 83 L.G.D. members behind you not counting Swire and Hoshiguma. I can tell that Lappland just took five steps towards Texas. Or I can say that the officer to my far left of the group just re-cocked his crossbow and has four bolts left in his crossbow but one is broken at the head. Just like I can tell the third guy to his left has a cracked rib from the way he's breathing. Or I can say that from the moment I started talking you blinked seven time. Or I can tell that a worm is going to come out of the ground two centimeters from your right foot.

The lung's eyes were wide open while the giant's were still closed. Because he was right from start to finish... First of all she had in mind the number of his troops and there were well 83. She had seen the white-coated lupo moving behind Sebastian's back to the member of Penguin Logistics even though she hadn't counted her number of steps. When she looked behind her, she could see the soldier to her far left hadn't even finished re-cocking his crossbow yet, and when he pulled them out he counted four, one of them broken. She looked a little further to the right and the surprised soldier nodded to confirm the lung's fears. Just as she blinked, for the seventh time. And finally, incredulous, she looked at the place where her foot was placed. To see a worm coming out of the ground... just beside...

Ch'en: But how?!

The giant opened his eyes again and it was his turn to cross his arms.

Sebastian: I'm one of the few people with only one pair of ears here and yet I may be the one who can hear the best. So contrary to what you think they didn't properly drop this information when they thought they killed me, but their soldiers kept exchanging this information over a two kilometer walk.

The L.G.D. superintendent turned to the oni with a look on her face as if to ask if it was possible but Hoshiguma remained unmoved.

Hoshiguma: Don't look at me like that. He does that all the time...

Ch'en: I believe you... Or rather she makes me believe you.

She said, turning to her L.G.D. friend who always had the right word to put the two leaders on the right foot.

Sebastian: Well, then get ready to go. You too Rhodes! Let's get mov-... Ing...?

He looked at his troops. But he looked at someone he hadn't seen before. Right next to Amiya and Dobermann was a young caprinae girl, white hair reaching her shoulders and golden eyes adorning her face. But the thing that struck Sebastian was her clothes. Clothes of a Sargonian tribe mixed with things found on the road...

This girl he did not recognize from Adam and Eve, so he could not help but raise an eyebrow in incomprehension. He looked at Amiya and the young woman had an expression of realization on the face as if she had just forgotten something. Then she elbowed the caprinae, who was surprised to understand after two long seconds and took a step forward towards the doctor.

???????: Hello. You are the doctor, right? My code name is Beeswax...

The girl stopped there as if that was the end of her presentation.

Sebastian: Um... Hello Beeswax... Tell me... What are you doing here...?

Beeswax: My older sister joined a place called Rhodes Island... So I came to join her...

Amiya: I think she means operator Carnelian dokutah.

Sebastian: Ah. According to her file yes, that could be a match...

Amiya: In her file Carnelian doesn't have a profile picture but I can assure you that the two of them have a family resemblance.

Sebastian: If you say so. But what are you doing here? in lungmen. In this desert...

When he asked this question, the doctor sensed that something was wrong. All the members of Rhodes Island began to look away. As if they were afraid of what the girl would say, or how the doctor might react.

Beeswax: Hm... So this place is called Lungmen... Why am I here...? Oh yes! The people dressed in white offered me food and a bed if I use my arts for them...

Dobermann rubbed her temples with her fingers. Getting ready to hear the good doctor yell and W put her hands in front of his mouth to stop herself from bursting out laughing as usual. The doctor's face broke down as he understood the girl's words.

Sebastian: Wait wait wait... The sandstorm, did you make it?

Beeswax: Yes. Why, did i do something wrong...? Oh yes.

The girl leaned forward with both hands together as if to apologize.

Beeswax: I was told that the use of my arts caused you a lot of trouble... And I am deeply sorry...

The doctor stood still for a second, the machines in his head spinning as he tried to understand without getting upset. Then he raised his hand and beckoned Amiya to approach him. The young cautus jumped on the spot slightly frightened by the reaction of her good doctor. But she realized it and walked over to him and immediately the giant started whispering so that the others wouldn't hear him.

Sebastian: Are you kidding me?

Amiya: I-I'm sorry doctor... But after questioning her for several minutes we were able to determine that she was not part of the reunion forces... And then look at her...

The two leaders glanced at the girl to see that she was watching a fly flying.

Amiya: She doesn't look smart enough to lie that well towards me... Besides, Mrs. Carnelian wouldn't be too happy if her sister was left to rot in a desert...

Sebastian: Is she really that powerful...?

The girl stared into space, recalling memories for a few seconds before coming back from her trance with a shiver.

Amiya: You have no idea how powerful...

Sebastian: Jesus... So we're not going to let her fight anyway?

Amiya: She is old enough by Rhodes Island standards...

Sebastian: Look at Popukar. I taught her to count to a hundred last week. Do you really think we're a good age reference for fighting?

Amiya: Eh eh...

Sebastian: And then we won't be able to mother her on the battlefield...

Amiya: Maybe we could ask someone else...

The two leaders of Rhodes Island turned to the L.G.D. at the same time, and as if they knew in advance what they were going to ask, the three leaders of the L.G.D. nodded their heads from left to right at the same time.

Sebastian: *sigh* damn it.

Amiya: Should we keep her?

Sebastian: Of course we're keeping her. You think I'm going to leave a kid here?

The giant stood up and faced his troops.

Sebastian: Rhodes! Pack up your things, we're leaving! Operator Beeswax, welcome back.

Amiya joined the caprinae as leader, feeling compelled to accompany her for the moment, and Sebastian began walking towards the mines again. Soon Ch'en found herself walking next to the good doctor without the two saying a word to each other. Seeing this the oni approached them from behind, the two leaders of the faction feeling her presence as she approached.

Hoshiguma: See, you can do things without killing each other.

The lung and the giant looked into each other's eyes without speaking for a second. And they could still feel the animosity in each other.

Ch'en/Sebastian: Hm.

Hoshiguma: But you are lucky Seb.

Sebastian: I am? Why.

Hoshiguma: You were lucky to see an extremely rare phenomenon that happens only once a year...

He raised an eyebrow, wondering what the oni meant. Hoshiguma looked at Ch'en from behind and put his left arm over the lung's shoulders to pull her towards him.

Hoshiguma: Hearing Ch'en say insults~

She said while laughing openly at her colleague and laughing out loud. Earning a laugh from the good doctor and a growl from the lizard.

Ch'en: Yes it's crazy, it's like someone here has the talent to piss me off.

Said she while moving away the arm of the oni of her and while shooting the giant a glare. The leader of Rhodes Island stopped walking forcing the other two young women to stop as well.

Sebastian: You know I have an idea so we can both calm down.

The lung looked at him.

Ch'en: What?

So fast that it was impossible to see. The doctor threw a right hook at the lung's face. Not using all his strength, not using all his speed, but using all his rage and animosity to land his blow. A bit like the kind of therapy where you have to scream to spend your anger... But in a less orthodox way. The blow was so powerful that a slight shock wave shook the surrounding area, moving the surviving strands of greenery in the desert and sweeping the hairs. Everyone was shocked to see what had just happened. The lung who had just received the blow took a step back and then two, completely disoriented. She shook her head to pull herself together, wiping a drop of blood from her nose. She looked at the giant and a carnivorous smile appeared on her lips.

Ch'en: I like that idea.

The lung in turn threw a punch, a straight uppercut to the doctor's jaw. Again her facial expression betrayed all the animosity she gave off with this attack. Using so much force in her punch that her heels dug into the rock. The giant receiving the attack nearly fell backwards, but pulling himself together at the last moment he stood up and as his jaw hung down he placed his hand on it and slammed it back down with a squaring crack echoing in the air as he did so.

The two leaders faced each other, neither of their troops knowing how to react. Then Sebastian raised his hand as if expecting a handshake.

Sebastian: Well, now that that is done we can make peace for now.

The lung shook his hand.

Ch'en: Okay. For now...

As soon as they had finished shaking hands, they began to walk again. Hoshiguma, who had been silent until then because of the surprise, sighed and started to walk with the two.

Hoshiguma: You two are unbelievable...

Sebastian: You should know us, right?

He asked with an amused smile on his lips, tapping lightly with the back of his hand against Hoshiguma's arm without paying attention.

Hoshiguma: Ouch!

The giant frowned and looked at Hoshiguma's arm.

And that's when he realized that it was completely broken.

A vein appeared on his forehead. Then two.

Then five other veins.

The doctor's head looked like a tomato about to explode because he was so angry.

Sebastian(Russian): Holy shit, who forgot to treat her so I can rip their fucking head off? !!!!

He screamed so loudly that no one in Rhodes' and the L.G.D.'s group could miss the scream. Although no one really understood what he was saying because the Ursus language was rarely spoken in the group. The L.G.D. agents were not exactly reassured to hear even more anger than a few minutes before. It was mainly the Rhodes Island operators who were terrified. Hearing the doctor yell one word in Ursus was a bad sign. Two words was a very bad sign. More than three words, you'd better start running and fast if you made a mistake...

----------

Lungmen: 20h11

Clear weather

Dark night

Misha was rolled up in a ball against a tree trunk around her Patriot troops who were setting up camp. Her hands were tied again and this time the wendigo was right next to her to prevent her from running away or trying... Crownslayer was there too, yet isolated from her troops. Sitting on the ground not far from the young ursus and sharpening one of her throwing knives. Then the wendigo heard his troops begin to whistle and clap their hands, the two leaders of the reunion and the young hostage looked in the direction of the noises and from the crowd that spread out came out an individual wearing a gas mask, two swords in her back and grenade launchers on her belt. Misha frowned, unable to shake the feeling of familiarity that pervaded her eyes as she watched this person.

The two leaders of the reunion felt relieved to see their third member. The lupo got up and ran over and the two young women hugged each other.

Crownslayer: Damn, Skull, you're okay... What a relief.

Skullshatterer: You too, it's good to see you back in one piece.

The two separated and Skullshatterer turned to the wendigo.

Skullshatterer: You too it's nice to see you safe and sound-...

The leader of the reunion stopped talking when she saw the wendigo's almost shattered mask, and she could feel the veteran raise an eyebrow... Even though he had no face.

Patriot: In case you were wondering. We've met. The doctor from Rhodes. Multiple times.

Skullshatterer: I see. I had a run-in with him too. He beat the crap out of me.

Crownslayer: Don't worry, we took care of him once and for all.

Skullshatterer: Really...? Because I was about to say that Rhodes Island and the L.G.D. were approaching and that their doctor was in the lead according to my scouts... And that he was alive and well...

The lupo jumped at the news and the wendigo didn't seem surprised in the least.

Crownslayer: What?! How is that possible?! I stabbed him in the skull with my machete...

Skullshatterer: Go figure... This guy is tougher than one of Mephisto's monsters...

Misha: I told you he was alive!!!

Surprised by the voice of the young ursus the three leaders of the reunion turned to her and in the case of Skullshatterer she froze in place.

The leader of the reunion took a silent step towards the girl, then another.

Seeing the way she walked, Misha was frightened and stuck to the tree. Skullshatterer came closer and slowly the hand of the young woman took the gas mask on her face and unhooked it, letting it fall to the ground.

Skullshatterer: Misha... F-finally...

The young ursus looked at the face of the leader of the reunion and froze on the spot. She recognized the face instantly.

It looked very much like hers... But the young woman in front of her looked slightly older and infinitely more mature, the main difference being that Skullshatterer's eyes were red. Not because she was crying but because that was their natural color.

Misha: I-Irina...?

It was the young ursus's turn to get wet eyes...

Skullshatterer: Finally Misha... I finally found you...

The two sisters didn't last any longer.

And threw themselves into each other's arms, crying their eyes out.

Misha: Irina... I thought you were dead... All these years...

Skullshatterer: I know, sis... I know... Me too... I didn't know if you had survived.

The two sisters separated their hugs, the older one looking at Misha intently.

Skullshatterer: Wow... You've grown... Are you going to catch me back soon?

After the initial phase of shock and comfort. Misha couldn't help but ask a question. A question that she formulated out loud.

Misha: Irina, why are you with the reunion?

Skullshatterer: I knew this question was coming... Misha, when mom died and I ran away from Chernobog it was the reunion that took me in. They saved me and opened my eyes. We are not the bad guys. We're just trying to protect and save the infected.

Misha: But why are you fighting against Rhodes Island...? They are trying to help the infected too.

Skullshatterer: Tch. That's what they told you. Rhodes are not good people. They're run by big kids who think they can fix everything with hugs and kisses. In reality they don't care about the infected. You saw them collaborating with the L.G.D. that comes to slaughter the infected in the slums every day.

Misha: No! I saw that they had the infected among them... And I saw that they were helping the infected in the slums!

Skullshatterer: They never stop attacking and killing us! We're trying to free the infected from the tyrants who torture us every day! These people who killed mom and dad! Rhodes is just trying to make friends with them so they can live another day!

Misha: Maybe they attack you because you attack them! When I was attacked by the anti-infected rioters it was Rhodes Island that helped me, not the reunion! When Rhodes found me hiding it was the reunion that attacked them! When the reunion destroyed houses it was Rhodes Island that was worried about the consequences!

Skullshatterer: Enough! That Rhodes Island doctor has brainwashed you! You can't even understand your own sister anymore!

Misha: And what I saw with my own eyes in Chernobog?! I saw the soldiers of the reunion go into houses and kill innocent civilians! I even saw them killing infected people in the cache I was in!

The three leaders of the reunion frowned at the young Ursus' shouting, not understanding. But after a few seconds the answer came as a matter of course.

Mephisto.

Skullshatterer: That's enough, Misha. Whatever happens... everything will be fine.

The young woman approached her sister and took her in an embrace before whispering in her ear.

Skullshatterer: As soon as we get out of the city, we're going to get away from here to live properly. Columbia will be a perfect place for that, away from Rhodes Island, away from the reunion. But don't tell anyone.

The girl seemed happy to hear this news. Something that would allow her to get away from all this misery, from all this madness. Not having to worry about reunion stories, rhodes island...

Skullshatterer: Well...

The two separated and Skullshatterer put her gas mask back on.

Skullshatterer: Hey, where is Centuri?

Patriot: Dead. Decapitated.

Skullshatterer: No need to say by whom... *sigh*. Are we still all sticking to the plan?

Patriot: Yes.

Skullshatterer: I'll wait for Rhodes at the mines. Crownslayer you'll guard the mines and take care of getting the escaping infected through the tunnels and out of town. And Patriot. You know what to do. I'll make sure it's free.

Misha: Irina... What should I do...?

Skullshatterer: Stay here. Patriot will look after you. Once the battle is over I'll come back for you.

Misha: Please, big sister. Come back safely.

Skullshatterer: Yes, don't worry.

With that, Crownslayer and Skullshatterer left the ursus and the wendigo behind.

But a little further. Or more precisely, one kilometer further.

Among the rocks in the darkness there was a strange shape. It didn't look like rocks, and yet snakes were moving about on it and birds were beginning to make their nests in it, signs that whatever was there had been there for hours. But from that dark shape protruded the barrel of a sniper rifle.

Sebastian: This is the doctor, I confirm our plan. The reunion is going according to it. Ch'en, Amiya be careful, it's Skullshatterer who will welcome you.

Ch'en: Roger that, doctor.

Sebastian: W how are the explosives going?

W: Both are past the bridge, and I just finished arming them.

Sebastian: Good, retreat but stay close to the bridge.

W: Aye aye captain.

Amiya: Dokutah will be ok on your side?

The giant looked at the two hundred or so guerrilla soldiers in his rifle scope.

Sebastian: Easy.

Amiya: If you say so.

He turned off his radio and looked around the camp. The guerrillas had established themselves in a clearing. Sebastian was to the south of them, the canyon and the bridge to the mines were to the west and a forest was to the east. He could see two lone soldiers going into the forest to talk.

Their last mistake. The doctor fired two shots in a row. The bullets from his rifle traveled the mile to their targets. The first bullet struck the first soldier's helmet, shattering the metal and ricocheting off it to hit the other soldier in the face. And no sooner had the first soldier opened his mouth to scream alarm, than the second bullet lodged in the weakened area of his helmet, perforating his skull. The good doctor got up, took off the desert pattern cloak he had on his back and put it away while he slung his gun over his shoulder.

Then he started to run in the direction where he had shot the two soldiers.

--------

Shieldguard: Dimitri, Nicholai what are you doing?

A gigantic sarkaz dressed in the armor of Patriot's elite units started to move towards the woods when he saw that two of his friends had been talking next to a tree for several minutes now.

Shieldguard: Damn it, we should be on the offensive soon! Dimitri ! Nicholai!

He entered the darkness with his heavy armor and after a few seconds of approaching he could notice that his colleagues were not answering the calls. Although they were standing there against the tree, talking, when he decided to get a little closer, the soldier heard a whistle, just above his head.

He looked up and saw another man hanging upside down from the tree branch above him. And that was the last thing he saw. For Sebastian broke his neck immediately. Leaving the corpse to fall to the ground, Sebastian climbed down from his perch, looking at the two soldiers he had impaled on the tree to make it look like they were standing, before hurriedly stripping the shieldguard he had killed to put on his armor. Then noticing the holes in the helmet to let the horns through and that they were now empty, Sebastian turned back to the sarkaz he had just killed, before drawing his knife.

Cutting the horns of the demon with a sharp blow he put them in the holes of his helmet to pass himself off as the sarkaz and left the drill concealing his weapons and his equipment with that of the shieldguard. He started to walk among the guerrilla troops, nobody suspecting him. He passed by an ammunition dump on the ground, and without anyone noticing he placed an explosive on it. Walking to the guerrilla mortar boxes he placed another explosive.

Good, his plan was working as planned...

*CLUNK*

The halberd of the patriot was planted right at his feet.

Sebastian: Well, plan B...

The giant looked around to see that the troops of the reunion had surrounded him by drawing their weapons. Moreover, the wendigo was watching him and had already summoned another weapon in his hand.

Patriot: Your disguise. Does not work. On me.

The giant under the heavy armor sighed, and suddenly that armor began to melt, on the giant's skin, and the fabric of it to burn. Revealing the doctor who kept his clothes on, the clothes seemed unaffected by the overwhelming heat of his body melting the rock around him.

Sebastian: This is the third time we have fought today...

The giant drew his sword and clenched his teeth, the latter becoming sharper and sharper. The sarkaz in front of him was killing all his plans, destroying all his hopes. With a discreet press on the switch in his hand he detonated the bombs he had planted.

Sebastian: And I intend to make it the last one...

He said almost with an animal growl. Seemingly ready to cut up everyone in front of him.

And yet he found himself unable to get angry. Or rather his body could not get angry. His heart was beating fast, but not so fast that his body was overheating. His nervous system was on fire, but not enough to generate lightning. His blood was thickening. But nothing that would strengthen his blood vessels or his epidermis.

In short.

All his bodily faculties which made his strength most of the time were completely reduced to nothing. All this because he could not show his hostility towards the wendigo.

And that made him even more angry.

Why? Why couldn't he kill that old demon? He is neither his father nor a colleague right now, and yet he found himself unable to get angry at him. It was as if his body was telling him not to kill this man.

But the spirit of the giant had nothing to do with it.

Using one of his techniques Sebastian began to shake his sword in his hand. Less than a millimeter in the direction of the blades. And yet, thanks to the movement of his hand, the sword was vibrating with several thousand pulses per second.

This kind of weapons had many names: vibroblades, atom slicer... But the first one that the giant had remembered when he found himself in front of one of this kind.

It was high frequency sword. Or HF sword.

A technique accessible to few men to transform it from a lambda weapon to this kind of weapon. And a technology not accessible to even the best minds on terra. The guerrilla forces, emboldened by their two consecutive victories over the doctor, were no longer afraid of him. So three of their own attacked him at once, thinking that their numbers would be enough to win. The giant stretched out his arm and gave a simple sword stroke towards them. Without contracting his muscles, without giving force in his blow. Just as if he was moving his sword through the air. A soldier raised his weapon to counter the attack feeling that it was not powerful, but his weapon was cut by the giant's. Like a razor through the air. The same thing happened to the poor soldier himself. The giant's blade went through the body of the poor man and his comrades as if there was nothing in its way.

The previously confident guerrillas all took a step back when they saw that the doctor's blade radiated an aura of death. The contours of the weapon were impossible to see clearly, and Patriot saw this and frowned. He had only seen this technique once before... years ago when they first met.

But this time Sebastian wasn't fighting with a machete retrieved from a corpse and he wasn't four years old... Digging into his memories he tried to remember how he had defeated this technique the first time. A technique that had already made him lose an arm... Well, it wasn't really important since he had regenerated it in the afternoon anyway.

Unfortunately he risked losing much more than an arm against an opponent already much more powerful. With one of his hands behind his back, he signaled to one of his soldiers to discreetly take Misha away from here.

Patriot began to summon the strength he had left in his entire body as Sebastian with a movement of his arm threw a sharp blade of air all around him decapitating the first line of guerrilla soldiers surrounding him causing the others to retreat. Taking advantage of the second of inattention that the giant had because of his attack, Patriot threw himself at him and brought his halberd down on him with all his strength. The intention to kill him was clear in his attack.

Sebastian, strong of his technique was content to raise his sword in front of him. And the halberd of the wendigo was sliced in two cleanly. As if the doctor's sword cut magically through it. The giant didn't stop his sword, making it continue its course towards the old demon's skull. But the demon dodged by leaping backwards. And as the giant's eyes opened wide to perceive the wendigo's next move. A flash grenade was thrown by the wendigo right into the giant's eyes, but this time Sebastian wasn't surprised. He hid his eyes with his hand and the grenade exploded. A soldier who thought it was his time threw a throwing knife straight at the doctor who stopped vibrating his blade for a second to throw the throwing knife back at the soldier he felt in the air from the air currents on his skin. When Sebastian lowered his hand he looked at the wendigo in front of him who had just summoned a weapon in each of his hands.

Sebastian: Didn't anyone ever teach you to try the same attack twice on the same knight?

Patriot: Yes. You.

The colossal wendigo threw himself at the giant and gave a horizontal blow with his right hand weapon, cut by the doctor's sword, as was the weapon in his left hand that went for a thrust. The giant kicked the wendigo, destabilizing it and causing it to grunt in pain. Sebastian then gave a vertical blow to the colossus. Patriot managed to dodge at the last moment by taking a step to the side, but immediately Sebastian followed up with a spinning kick right to the spine of the wendigo, then not stopping there and putting both hands on the handle of his weapon Sebastian gave a blow of the end of his blade directed right to the skull of the old demon.

With surprising speed the leader of Rhodes Island the guerrilla leader raised his forearm to protect his face. Making the giant laugh inwardly.

It's not like his arm was going to block the passage of his sword.

*CLINK*

Sebastian was surprised because when his sword made contact a metallic noise resounded as well as a spark. He had just hit one of the sarkaz's originium crystals. The giant couldn't understand why it had just stopped something that sliced through the bonds between the atoms themselves. But Sebastian quickly remembered that the originium was beyond even his comprehension. Then suddenly the wendigo's arm began to glow with an ominous color, before exploding in a gigantic shockwave that threw the giant at a speed far too great to not hurt on impact.

His back made contact with the ground and using his legs the giant managed to get back on his knees stopping sliding after a while. He felt Misha's heartbeat go away and then he tried to get up but immediately the pain hit him like a bolt of lightning and he fell to his knees again.

He looked down at his body to see that his white shirt was starting to turn red at some points because of the metal shards that had just passed through it. Once again surprised by his speed, the colossus found himself in front of the giant. The giant attacked again with his high frequency sword but the wendigo raised his upper arm to protect himself again. The forearm had been annihilated by the phenomenal explosion that had fallen. And another one of those even worse explosions sounded again as the HF sword made contact with the originium.

Sebastian went flying again when the ball of pure energy hit him. His brain was freaking out in his skull and he was about to fall unconscious. His body hit the ground hard, or so he seemed to perceive through his blurred senses. He looked around and saw the bridge through his blurred vision. With a Herculean effort he activated his radio.

Sebastian: Rhodes, it's not going so well on my end... I think they're taking Misha to the mines... But I blew their assets. W in position I'm gonna need you.

W: I see you doc...

The giant sending a slight pulse through his nervous system, to locate where his injuries were and boy was he not disappointed...

Broken right femur, broken right thumb and ring finger, three fingers missing on the left hand, six fractured ribs, two broken, dislocated left shoulder, shattered knee of the left leg. Not to mention the multiple splinters of rock and wood stuck in his flesh, half of his ligaments torn and the infinite number of bruises along his body.

Luckily he had the ability to cut the pain in the injured areas because anyone would have died or gone mad from the immense pain of all those wounds.

The giant stood up and began to walk quickly and limply towards the bridge, trying to hurry as the guerrilla forces began to run towards him.

Patriot was smart, or at least had a great memory. He needed all five of his working fingers to make his sword vibrate at the frequency necessary to be so lethal. Without that it had little more effect than a simple electric knife. And given the state he was in, he might as well shoot himself, the result would be the same as if he were confronting the men in front of him.

On the other side of the bridge, a few dozen meters away.

A sarkaz was watching the scene in front of her with a Machiavellian smile on her lips. The giant was in the middle of the bridge, packed with explosives. The guerrilla forces were only a few meters away from him.

The pain, the fatigue, the sorrow could be read on his face.

The same pain she had felt four years ago. The same pain he had made her feel.

Revenge was a dish best served cold. And she had waited long enough for her dish to be frozen.

So now she intended to savor this dish.

She raised her arm containing the detonator of her bombs pointing with her index finger at the good doctor, the most satisfied smile she ever had on her face. But also maybe the one that was the most insane she ever had.

Her brain gave the command to press the button, and her hand tightened.

But she did not press the detonator.

Surprising herself, W did not manage to activate the detonator. She tried to put all her strength into her hand to set off those explosives, and yet it was as if another hand prevented her from doing so.

W: Fuck... But... Do it! Kill him!

Annoyance began to rise in the sarkaz as his hand still didn't seem to respond.

W: Kill him! Kill your worst enemy! Kill the one who took the one you loved more than anything!

A crossbow bolt went into the doctor's right shoulder causing him to fall against the deck railing. He drew his sword with one of his hands and miraculously managed to kill one of the faster soldiers who had made their way to him.

That pathetic piece of shit pretending to be a man... That's what she thought.

He had made her already crappy life hell. He had taken everything that gave her light in this world.

W: He doesn't even want to see me live!

That's not true. He saved your life several times.

W: He doesn't care about us, he doesn't hesitate to hurt us!

No. He dislocated your arm when you could have hurt other operators.

W: He hates me! I hate him!

No. No one understands you eachother better than the other.

W: He only uses me as a pawn!

He always orders you to retreat when the enemies approaches.

W: He doesn't care about me!

He stops you from smoking for your health. So that you don't suffer more from your oripathy.

W: He is a cruel man!

You see him suffer with every wound of his operators.

W: He does not know how to show mercy!

Every time he lets his enemies surrender.

W: He killed her! He killed Theresa!!!

He didn't. And you know it. All the evidence never made sense together, but you used him as the scapegoat of your misery.

W: I hate the doctor!!!

You love the dokutah.

W: Shut up !!!!!

That voice in her head was driving her crazy the more she heard it. That voice that she couldn't hear through her ears but was echoing in her mind. She wanted to know where this voice was coming from but at the same time she already knew.

She fell to her knees, feeling like her head was about to explode, the scar from the metal shrapnel stuck in her brain hurting more than ever. She tried one last time to press the detonator, but it was no use. She still didn't want to do it.

And yet all she had to do was push that button and if the explosives didn't finish Sebastian off, the fall would.

She could see that the doctor fell to the ground with a crossbow bolt in his leg.

She couldn't kill him. All of her body didn't want to. And if she couldn't kill him... then she could do the opposite.

She grabbed her grenade launcher and with an inhuman sprint arrived on the bridge near the doctor, and began firing at the reunion forces, destroying their groups and driving them back. Sebastian began to do the same with his pistol, but soon the wendigo and his shieldguards began to advance towards them in the front line, their firearms having as much effect on the shields as stone-throwers. So thinking no further W threw her grapnel to the right side of the bridge causing it to snag in the rock and she put the cable in the doctor's hand before wrapping her arms around him to hold on.

His instincts working in tandem with those of the sarkaz, he didn't need to think to pull like a madman on the cable of the grapling hook propelling the two members of Rhodes Island away from the center of the bridge and at that moment, the sarkaz was finally able to press the detonator and the explosives were set off. The explosion propelled them further above the mainland. The bridge collapsed, and as many of the guerrillas fell to their deaths, the patriot jumped from debris to debris and back again, on the other side of the bridge. Too far to reach with a leap, and having already lost too many soldiers. The wendigo had to face the facts. He had lost this confrontation.

But maybe the reunion would not lose the battle...

At the end of his strength the good doctor fell to the ground. His body and muscles were smoking from overheating, but above all a pool of blood was forming all around him. Seeing that he was beginning to lose consciousness, W grabbed one of the vials of chlorophyte from the giant's holster and opening his jaw she opened the vial and slipped it into his mouth. But when she saw that he didn't swallow, she pulled back her fist and punched his lungs with all her might. The giant started coughing and gasping for air, and so he swallowed the green liquid and immediately his body began to glow with a slight green color and his wounds healed themselves. Well, most of them, a good part of them remained, especially the fingers. Regaining consciousness almost immediately the giant looked at his rescuer, but the sarkaz disgusted with her action. Disgusted that she had not succeeded in killing him when she had the perfect opportunity, she backed away from the giant and instead leaned against a column on the bridge, putting herself in a fetal position. The giant, who also stood up immediatly by reflex, moved a hand towards the young woman. But when he looked at her face he realized that it might be better to leave her alone, and that she obviously needed it. So he bowed down and in a solemn tone said:

Sebastian: Sorry.

W: Sorry for what...? For hurting me so that I still hate you like you said last time?

Sebastian: I'm sorry that you had to save me when you didn't want to. I'm sorry because it hurt you. But also because I hurt you.

He didn't like being hated. Who did actually ? But being hated by the sarkaz made him imagine his grim past, that past in where he knew he did hurt so much people.

W: I don't even know why I did that...

She said over and over, her tone decreasing with each time as she stared into space.

Hearing a series of explosions the giant looked away to see columns of smoke rising over the battlefield. And with the mortars destroyed, as well as the explosives lover next to him, the good doctor was able to conclude two possibilities. Either explosive traps had been placed by the reunion forces on the battlefield, or Skullshatterer had just entered the battlefield and was already using her grenade launchers.

The doctor realized that he would have to hurry to help his troops and took one last look at the sarkaz. Feeling sad to see her so broken. But feeling that he would regret it, he started to leave for the rest of his troops. With the aim of helping them. But one thing was sure, neither he nor she would ever forget what happened that day.

-------

Amiya: Dokutah where are you?! The forces of the reunion made us retreat on traps they start to take the advantage again!

She said as she hurled an art projectile at the tidal wave of enemies in front of her. The black material had barely left her hand when an arrow from a bow came at her, startling her with her large ears and hairs straightening. With her reflexes she leapt to the side and dodged the arrow in-extremis, but while her eyes were still trained on the arrow she felt a slight wind coming her way. A soldier from the reunion was bringing his machete right down on her. The cautus grabbed the man's wrist, even though he was much taller than she was, and turned his wrist around with a simple movement, breaking his grip and making him drop his weapon, which she grabbed with her other hand, to quickly slit his throat and stab him in the chest with his own weapon, raising the soldier like a human shield against a volley of arrows that were aimed at her. Once the volley was over she raised her hand and fired multiple art projectiles at those trying to kill her. Suddenly sensing movement in the air behind her, she turned to see a logger bring his axe down on her at the last moment. But as the information came to her brain, she could see that the logger stopped and suddenly his upper body fell off, sliced cleanly in two. The doctor was standing right behind and as another volley of arrows flew at the two leaders of Rhodes Island, Sebastian stood in front of Amiya as the cautus dropped her meat shield to charge her arts in both hands.

The emerald-eyed giant began parrying arrows one by one and sending them back at the shooters, Amiya working in concert to launch attacks at the other enemies through the openings Sebastian left. Three seconds of this duo work, and the enemies that had focused on the cautus were all dead.

Sebastian: Amiya, give me the rundown.

Amiya: It doesn't look good doktah, the troops of the reunion are much more numerous than all our estimations and even with some reinforcements coming from the L.G.D. we have a hard time keeping up. They have pushed us to this point where they have planted explosives. Doktah go help the others.

Sebastian: Are you sure?

Amiya: Yes, I'll be fine on my own.

The girl gave him a determined look as she grabbed the sword of one of the soldiers she had just shot, looking down at her rings to see that they were starting to lose their color realizing that she had to start fighting with less use of her arts.

Sebastian: Well, good luck.

And the moment he was about to leave.

Sebastian: And above all, stay safe, I beg you.

The girl nodded with a reassuring smile on her face as the doctor threw himself further into the fray. Soon, as he looked at the troops in front of him, he realized that they were far more numerous than anything he had seen in the pictures he had taken of the reunion advancing to Lungmen. Then he could understand that the reunion must have done some recruiting among the population of the city's slums. And that consequently their desire of freedom and to save themselves from this hell motivated them enough to give the best of themselves in this confrontation. He analyzed the formations and immediately as he slaughtered the under-equipped soldiers in his path he raised his hand to his earpiece and called on the radio.

Sebastian: Franka Liskarm! Move immediately to the left flank and head straight to where that Sarkaz mercenary is, take a column of defenders and snipers with you and a medic and take him out!

Franka/Liskarm: Yes, sir!

Sebastian: Exusiai, go up the hill where Amiya is and shoot at absolutely everything in front of you! Noir Corne, Texas, with her!

This time he didn't hear the screams of his soldiers on the radio, but as he saw them running towards the place he had indicated he was reassured. Continuing his slaughter with endless brutality and force, scaring more and more the soldiers who were trying to kill him and attracting more and more attention as the target to be shot on the battlefield. But soon it was his turn to receive a radio call.

Dobermann: Doc! Lappland is throwing herself into the middle of the enemy! She's not listening to my orders anymore!

Sebastian: Fucking street dog... Dobermann, I'll take care of it! Stay safe and don't let them surround you!

Dobermann: Alright doctor!

The giant concentrated his strength in his legs and made an inhuman leap to the other place between the troops of the reunion where they seemed to concentrate. Lappland was in the middle of all these soldiers, covered with blood on every inch of her skin. Her blood mixed with that of her enemies because of her many wounds. Her wounds that made the lupo was a knee on the ground her two swords planted in the ground, her fatigue accumulating. But yet while she was in a weak position there now, the soldiers around her did not dare to approach. On the one hand because she was covered with the blood of their comrades without having anything to do with it, and on the other hand because in spite of her wounds and her apparent weakness she had an almost psychotic smile on her lips. Then suddenly, a light laugh escaped from her lips, before becoming a real laughter that was terrifying to die for.

Lappland: I'll kill you all...

The terrified soldiers took a few steps back and stood by their weapons, but their hearts were beating as fast as the hooves of a galloping horse and the sweat on their bodies was pouring down.

At that very moment Sebastian came crashing down to the ground and stood right behind Lappland with his back to her, as the lupo rose to her feet preparing to slash those in front of her.

Lappland: Come on... Help me bathe in their blood!

The young woman threw herself into the fray, cutting her enemies to pieces, feeling neither remorse, nor pity, nor anything but pure ecstasy. But her blind sword movements came to a halt after a few seconds when her blade collided with a real rampart.

Lappland looked in front of her to see a heavy defender of the reunion proudly raising his broad shield. Normally she would have just leapt up to strike his visor, but that wasn't an option. A butcher swung an axe right at her back. Feeling the gust of wind at her back she pushed herself away at the last moment. But when she looked at her enemy, she didn't see the soldier with a sword and a light shield point his right sword at the lupo's face.

Sensing the danger too late the young woman was about to be killed.

So thank goodness the giant was there to save the day... Like every time.

The soldier's weapon with the light shield was sliced into several pieces by the doctor who had just appeared next to the scene as if he had teleported. Or at least that was the impression he gave as he moved so fast. With a flick of the wrist, the butcher's head fell heavily to the ground, sliced clean off and the defender had a gaping hole in his helmet and skull in the middle. The last soldier was killed by Lappland who stuck her sword in his lungs leaving him to drown in his own blood. Even though she had just been close to death a few seconds ago, the lupo continued to throw herself into the middle of the soldiers who were gradually trying to flee, giving in to her deepest murderous tendencies without worrying about herself because she knew that the giant was protecting her. But at some point, the giant got tired of being taken for a fool. The doctor grabbed several grenades of all kinds throwing them around him in a circle, before grabbing the young woman by the waist with his arm, to jump again but this time out of the immediate danger zone.

When he landed heavily on the ground, enraged he threw the young woman on the ground. More than angry at being forced to take care of her like a wild puppy.

Sebastian: You're going to follow orders and stop your bullshit!

Lappland: You're going to shut your mouth and let me fight...

The giant threw himself on top of her and grabbed her throat to make her look into his eyes, his bestiality beginning to show as Lappland kept a defiant look on her face.

Lappland: I'm not your dog that you put on a leash doctor. I want to feel the taste of blood on my tongue and I don't care if you stand in front of .

Sebastian: If you continue like this I will put the leash on you myself.

Lappland: Go ahead, try it...

The young woman tried to stand up and although her strength was Herculean, the doctor's was like that of a god. Then she couldn't get rid of the man who tackled her to the ground. Then suddenly Sebastian tightened his grip around her neck. With her brain's oxygen supply cut off, Lappland's vision began to darken as she looked at the doctor trying to breathe rather than struggle.

Sebastian: There's my leash. My fists. Piss me off, and I will punish you. Obey and I'll let you fight.

After a few moments just before the young woman lost consciousness, Sebastian released his hold.

Sebastian: Do you understand...?

Lappland: Aye... Master...

He stepped back slightly. He hated the way the lupo called him. Just as he hated the submissive and master thing she was instilling between the two of them. But contrary to him, the young woman seemed to be beyond amused by that. She almost seemed to enjoy it.

Sebastian: Join the ranks. And fight to help Dobermann.

Without saying a word the lupo stood up and started to run towards Dobermann's group.

Hoshiguma: Seb, I need you now!

The radio calls asking for his help were not going to end... He thought with a sigh.

Looking towards the heartbeat he knew best he could see that the oni was facing alone a wave of soldiers from the reunion, protecting her squad of L.G.D. soldiers that had just been swept away by an explosive. She swung her shield and broke every bone in the body of one of the enemy soldiers, and as she saw another one approaching her from the side so as not to stand against the shield the young woman was holding, Hoshiguma dropped one of her hands from her shield to strike with a closed fist, cracking the skull of her attacker and killing him instantly. One last soldier threw a molotov cocktail at her, with a miraculous effort she raised her shield to burst the incendiary device against. But some of the gasoline contained in the improvised bomb spilled onto her leg, setting fire to the fabric of her clothes. Panicking, she tried to smother the fire as best she could but to no avail. Distracted by the incident she noticed too late the soldier with a simple machete running towards her to kill her. And this soldier did not see the giant running towards him behind his back. And much faster than him...

The giant concentrated his strength in his two hands and gave a powerful blow of sword he cut the soldier who tried to attack the oni in two, making a fountain of blood, right towards the oni. And more specifically her pants, putting out the fire... Surprised Hoshiguma looked at her lower body to see that she was no longer in danger of going up in smoke.

Hoshiguma: That's... A way of doing things...

The giant was about to laugh but he noticed an arrow being shot at the young woman, so he leapt forward and parried the arrow with ease, placing himself in front of the oni who raised her large shield to face her enemies as her squad finally began to emerge from their shock caused by the explosions, ready to fight. The giant stood his ground and soon raised an eyebrow when he noticed that the troops in the reunion in front of him seemed to be moving apart, or rather pushing each other. And out of the crowd came a single individual...

Seeming to have pushed the others aside so that he could fight against the L.G.D. and Rhodes' troops, Sebastian was curious about the man in front of him. Wearing clothes that could not be more civilian, gray and red, the only things that differentiated him from a normal young man from the streets of Lungmen was his mask and the long scabbard on his back. The soldier drew his sword slowly, thinking he was increasing the tension. That Sebastian recognized immediately...

A cheap katana probably bought on the Internet.

Sebastian had enough and leapt forward to strike with his sword towards the guts of his ennemy. While he was well on his way to being sliced in two just like his comrade, the soldier jumped back at the last moment, dodging the blade with reflexes so seasoned that the giant was surprised. But his dodge wasn't enough to put himself completely out of danger either. Leaving a large cut on his stomach with blood staining his clothes. The soldier of the reunion took a few steps backwards holding the wound grunting in pain. But instead of collapsing like a shit as the giant would have thought to do, the swordsman in front of him began to tremble with anger. Suddenly his blade flared up and one of his eyes began to glow red.

The good doctor felt his hair stand on end because of the approaching danger and almost as soon the man in front of him had jumped forward and swung his flaming sword at the doctor. The giant was initially surprised by this speed which seemed to match him, but managed to parry the weapon of his enemy. But to be simply swept away by the force of the attack. Sebastian had his guard broken by the blow he had just received of a simply terrifying power. And the giant, having underestimated his enemy, bit his fingers off.

Seeing this, Hoshiguma propelled herself forward with her shield directed straight towards the avenger. But this one, seemingly emboldened either by his anger or drugs managed to see the oni at the last moment and directed his sword towards her. In her frantic race the young woman was stopped by the blade of her enemy. The tip of the katana and the strength in the man's arms simply stopped the young woman when the metal tip made contact with Hoshiguma's Hannya. But being much faster than the oni, her opponent gave a blow of his blade at the level of the face of the latter.

Seeing this and being angry, the doctor began to stress and his physical abilities improved by themselves. He grabbed his sword with both hands and struck with all his strength on the blade of the soldier of the reunion in front of him. The katana broke cleanly, astonishing the soldier, who looked at the handle with his surprised soul.

But Sebastian knew, it was not with a cheap blade that he could compete with a blade of nano iridium reinforced arrangement.

In fact, it would take millions of years of forging knowledge to create a similar weapon.

With a sharp blow, Sebastian brought his sword down on his enemy, splitting his skull, before removing his weapon from the bones of his enemy. Removing the blood from the blade with a flick of his wrist, the giant looked at the oni to see her breathless from all the stress, but safe and sound.

*thump* *thump*

Recognizing the distinctive sound of a grenade launcher firing Sebastian reacted too late and the explosives impacted right at his feet. The explosion lifted him off the ground, throwing him further onto the battlefield. When he heard another blast, despite his injuries, he had no choice but to quickly get up and roll away from another grenade. When he straightened up his gaze immediately went to Skullshatterer, the leader of the reunion standing on top of a small hill in the middle of her troops not far from the doctor.

The troops on the battlefield went silent one by one expecting a few words between the two leaders, after a few seconds the only sound there was was the sound of flames in the forest.

Skullshatterer: Rhodes Island! Surrender immediately! And the infected among you will be spared!

Sebastian raised an eyebrow in astonishment. As a surrender demand there was more credible...

Instead of surrendering, the Rhodes Island troops tightened their grip on their weapons, ready to give a Dantean fight.

Sebastian: Sorry, but it's not habit of the house to surrender.

He raised his sword towards the young woman with the point directed straight at her face.

Sebastian: We'll give you a chance to give the girl back and leave without a fuss! It's up to you what you want!

The young woman with the grenade launchers began to grind her teeth, not considering for a moment giving back her younger sister...

Skullshatterer: Never!

Sebastian: Then we're at dead end...

The young woman put a hand on her mask and unhooked it, letting it fall to the ground, revealing her face.

Skullshatterer: My name is Irina! Leader of the assault squad at the reunion! And I will bring your end Rhodes Island!!!

Her uncovered face Skullshatterer stunned her own troops with her beauty as well as her enemies with her face, looking so much like Misha's that it was impossible to think that the two were not part of the same family.

A second passed, and when an ember flying in the air from the forest fire landed on the giant's blade, Skullshatterer raised both her weapons in a flash and began to fire. Soon the fight between the reunion and the L.G.D. and Rhodes Island was on.

Sebastian concentrated his blood flow in his eyes increasing their capacity and tinting his irises red. But at least thanks to this he could perceive the grenades fired by the leader of the reunion at an acceptable speed, allowing him to position his blade so that the grenade slides along the weapon and deviates from its initial trajectory, to explode further than on him and avoiding any injuries. A nice trick that obviously impressed his enemy.

But there was no time for tricks, this was a battle that had to be won. Sebastian moved at rocket speed straight towards Skullshatterer as the young woman continued to fire her grenades at the giant who dodged the projectiles with unfailing agility. And just as the doctor swung his sword at the young woman, thinking he was finally done, thinking he had won, he was surprised when the leader of the reunion dropped her M32's before the doctor's sword had even finished its trajectory to grab two swords she was hiding behind her back, taking one in each hand and putting them on guard in front of her, stopping the doctor's sword strike.

The shockwave from the force of this attack was enough to launch gusts of air that pulled back the young woman's hood and sent her hair flying in the wind, as did Sebastian's hair which despite its short length was moved slightly.

Surprised, the giant put both his hands on his sword, and put his strength and weight on it in an attempt to make the young ursus waver. But the young ursin didn't seem to have any problems to take the blow of the giant, in spite of her frail constitution and her much smaller size. In fact the scene seemed almost ridiculous. Because the giant seemed to be more and more frightened when he realized that the speed of the ursus was far beyond his own and that her strength was equal.

Skullshatterer: Don't underestimate me...!

The young woman began to have threads of red steam emanating from her body and she began to push Sebastian back slowly. The giant raised his sword, realizing that he was about to lose this exchange, and redirected it with all his strength and speed into the young woman's blind spot. But she deflected the attack with ease with only one of her swords, the doctor's haste having for cost the precision of the attack. Irina used her other sword to slice vertically through the giant's torso. A spray of blood shot out and the giant leapt back to get out of the ursine's danger zone.

He looked at the large gash he now had on his torso and picked up his sword with both hands preparing to give a fight against an opponent he knew was powerful. And not disappointing him on this point the ursine leapt on him making a shearing motion with her swords as if she wanted to slice the doctor in two. To get out of this situation Sebastian gave a blow of estoc at the level of the face of the young woman who managed to dodge backwards. But not without lacerating the doctor's belly again. He cut off his pain receptors, but it still managed to reach his brain.

Sebastian: You are strong, I admit it... But in any case...

With a movement as lively as it was imperceptible the giant threw a flash grenade he had prepared straight towards the ursine's face.

Sebastian: You're not so smart!

Thinking he had succeeded in his attack he threw himself forward mowing with his blade in front of him. But what a surprise when Irina went around her opponent to plant her two blades in his back. The large pools of red stained his shirt. The doctor tried to elbow her back but the young woman pulled her swords from her enemy's body to turn around the doctor in the opposite direction of her elbow, turning on herself at the same time she directed her swords towards her enemy's rib cage and planted her swords inside. The young woman looked at her enemy in pain.

Skullshatterer: And you're getting slow old man...

The young woman looked down when she heard things falling to the ground. Looking at the things, she could see that they were fragmentation grenades that were falling. A ton of grenades. Noticing that the doctor was about to knock her down with a sweeping kick. She jumped up slightly to dodge the doctor's leg and when she landed on her two legs she kicked too. But directed at the doctor's testicles. Making a crack sound and immobilizing the doctor's nervous system because of the immense pain. Then she jumped back, throwing herself on the ground behind a rock to dodge the shrapnel of the grenades, the explosives detonating and throwing bits of overheated metal into the air. Most of them ending up in the good doctor's body. The flames burning his skin and flesh horribly.

When the young woman emerged from the shock of the explosion she noticed that the giant leapt out of the smoke ball with his sword in hand. Sebastian himself was still smoking from the flames he had caught, some areas of his skin completely charred and some of his flesh missing and shredded by the splinters. But yet he hardly seemed to suffer from this condition. The young woman barely had time to move when the doctor fell back impaling the young woman's leg with his sword. Irina was seized with pain at first, but then she pulled herself together, the adrenaline canceling the effect of the pain.

Sebastian: You don't think you can beat me...

Skullshatterer: No. I'm sure I can.

The young woman grabbed something from under her cloak, revealing the object to be a throwing knife that she threw in the face of the good doctor. The doctor couldn't match the young woman's speed and instead the weapon went into his jugular.

His blood flow was cut off and the man was immobilized for a second. His heart simply could not supply his muscles with blood. He raised his leg and tried to kick the young woman who had freed herself from the doctor's sword and stood up. In the hope that despite his strength the young woman's low weight would send her tumbling away. Being familiar with this now the young woman gave a spinning kick on the doctor's leg countering his blow, using one of her swords she sliced the doctor's right arm this one falling heavily on the ground, then she followed with her own kick to the doctor's sternum breaking it and making the doctor's teeth fracture because of the force he had just used to clench his jaw in pain. And sending him flying far, far away from his confrontation with the leader of the reunion. Near his original position where Amiya was.

The impact of his body created a crater in the back of the cautus who immediately turned to it. Only to see the doctor's battered body. More exactly, she had never seen it so injured. It did not move any more, then the panic took to her and she rushed towards the doctor stumbling on the way but getting up she threw herself to the sides of the doctor knees on the ground.

In her back a wall of sand rose up, a gift from Beeswax who accompanied Amiya protecting the cautus from enemy fire.

The young leader of Rhodes Island held the doctor's head with her hands as her clothes soaked with blood. Then remembering that moment in Chernobog when she had brought her out of hibernation she grabbed his hand of his left arm, just as she had done when she woke up.

Amiya: Dokutah! Hold on dokutah!

His pupils dilated.

Amiya: Medic! Medic!!!

His blood was pouring out onto the floor.

Amiya: Doktah stay with me!

His heart, tired from all his efforts started to slow down, too much.

Amiya: Medic! Call a fucking medic!

He tried to breathe, but only blood entered his lungs.

Amiya: Please no dokutah...

Blood was flowing from his right shoulder... And his lost arm was hurting terribly.

Amiya: You have no right to do this to me...

The girl's tears that fell on the giant's face mingled with his own tears of sadness and regret as well as pain.

Amiya: Somebody please come and help me!!!

All the endorphins in his brain were released and the doctor plunged into a moment of euphoria as his brain cells died one after another.

Amiya: The dokutah... The doktah is dying !!!!!

The cautus' loud cries went unheard in the middle of the battlefield, where the balance was inevitably tipped in favor of the reunion.

But the good doctor knew what was happening to him as his view of the starry sky became blurred.

He was dying.

And Amiya knew it too.

His body wasn't responding, and this time it wasn't just something in his cerebellum that was preventing him from moving, his brain was slowly dying, making him feel like a man caught in a spaceship alone adrift... He couldn't ignore the injuries, they were simply too much for him to handle.

And the stars in his eyes disappeared, along with the reflection in his eyes.

Along with the strength in his hand with which he clutched Amiya's. His hand fell heavily into the pool of blood beneath his body.

Amiya: Doktaahhhh !!!!!

A/N: There you go! Finished dear readers. First of all, thank you for the 10K views on this book, then, thank you for reading this to the end and finally, good luck to everyone on the Ch'en alter banner! I hope you got it or will get it! I managed to get it twice... With free sweaters... Without making it one of my orundums or tickets that were reserved for Nearl. On that note, see you next time!