Beast of Xeriel

by Elijah Isaiah

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  Meanwhile on the traveler, Kyah’s mace, shield and concussive protection proved effective against the remaining MәShean attempting to prevent Zeeba from working. Kyah flattened attacker after attacker just a few feet away from Zeeba. “You know Gala could have done this substantially quicker!” Kyah mocked, attempting to goad Zeeba into working faster.

  “Yeah, well second-best work, gets you second best time.” Zeeba retorted. Suddenly, sirens blared aboard the ship. Lights flashing in a sequence to signal self-destruction. Smashing her mace into one last MәShean, Kyah noticed the siren. Before Kyah could turn around, Zeeba zoomed past her heading for the exit. “Problem solved!” She laughed out loud. Kyah followed suit.

  Dara removed her red form the closer she came to the planet surface. She was afraid to draw the attention of Fei, who could be seen effortlessly annihilating the airborne MәShean fleet.

  Even with her new level of strength and powers, she was far from interested in challenging him again. She landed in the middle of the fray, a perfect disguise. Her purple broad sword and black shield materialized in her hands as she prepared to fight.

  Da-Xia descended past the atmosphere and could see the battlefield littered with soldiers. She nearly missed several MәShean and Pratham ships on her descent, as they rocketed threw the air.

  Da-Xia reached down, the ground quaking at her behest, a massive piece of land ejected. It flung toward her. Da-Xia readjusted, allowing her feet to gracefully meet the piece of land beneath her. Obeying her minds commands, the land moved toward the battle, with its host unharmed atop.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  F our soldiers circled Yaffa, each one scanning her for a potential opening. Every Pratham soldier heard of the stories and firsthand accounts of the “Deadly Beauties”. The twins were the greatest assassin’s in all Pratham. To engage them together in combat was to forgo your existence. But the story of defeating one alone would still be worth the shot.

  Yaffa grew anxious, she was losing precious time, but didn’t want to take an unnecessary risk and expose herself. Finally, a strong swing came from behind. The electrified baton flew right above her head as she ducked.

  She could hear the hiss of the attempt, her counter quick to follow. She spun to impale the target in the chest with the toxic blade of her dagger. A blaster bolt shot off her green plume, reminding her not to make a mistake.

  Yaffa hid behind the defeated soldier before he fell, to protect herself from the second round of blaster fire that landed plainly on the breastplate of the soldier’s armor. The thud and quick sizzle triggered her to spring forward. Seemingly without looking she chucked her second dagger into the face of the blaster owner.

  Such lethal precision and power, it quickly ended his life. She swung around to retrieve her dagger from the soldier’s breastplate. A baton crashed into the side of her face cracking her helmet. The force from the large man removed her from the ground. She traveled a couple meters before barreling back to the floor.

  Yaffa sprung back to her feet, although very much slower than usual. Not wasting time, one of the remaining two attackers approached from behind and wrapped her up tightly.

  Before she could react the second blow from the massive soldier rung her head again. This time the force shattered the side of her helmet. Yaffa’s eyes crossed from the trauma, nearly rendering her unconscious.

  She struggled to get free from the soldier’s grasp, as a third blow landed on her abdomen, causing both her and her apprehender to stumble back a few steps. Yaffa’s helmet flung off, her vision expanded.

  She could see the next attack coming. Yaffa wrapped her legs around the soldier’s behind her and leaned forward, using the soldier’s momentum to brace for the attack.

  The two began to tumble forward. Yaffa tucked her head to roll, forcing her capturer to unwillingly release his grip. The blow meant for Yaffa landed flush on her restrainer’s face. The man fell unconscious onto the ground beside his fallen comrades. Yaffa rolled free and quickly sprawled back to her feet. The last soldier stood before her, amazed at how true the stories were. Yaffa’s bloody face staring him down, preparing to end his life.

  “I don’t hit as hard as you.” She said spitting blood onto the floor. “So, your injuries might take a while longer to kill you.” Yaffa smiled. The man was visibly more cautious as he no longer had assistance from his fallen friends.

  Yaffa rolled her neck, still feeling the effects of the quick beating she just received. Stalking the man like a wounded animal. She retrieved her blades from their two victims.

  “What do you prefer? Hand to hand? Or weaponry?” She asked. The man thought for a moment, not sure how to receive the question. “Jesh! Zeeba and I are jumping out of the ship!” Kyah called out through the crew’s connection. “I’ll grab you.” Jesh answered.

  “I really don’t have time for this sir.” Yaffa said impatiently. “Hand to hand.” The soldier finally answered. Yaffa smirked at his response. Dropping her daggers. “No armor.” He requested further.

  A grand smile lit up her face. “That’s a great idea! This will be so fun.” The two combatants deactivated their armor and removed their shards. Yaffa’s tight mesh body suit hiding the black and blue bruises printed on her body. Unphased by the previous joint assault, Yaffa stood smiling as if she were the larger individual.

  “Listen, I really need to get back out there, so I’m gonna make this quick. But don’t hold back or anything. I want this to be a good fight, so I can tell my sister about it later.” She said plainly, cracking her knuckles.

  The soldier rushed in swinging right for her face. Yaffa dodged multiple strikes as she created space between them. His strikes were strong and on target, if any had landed, she may have been knocked unconscious or worse.

  Her agility was too much for him to land a punch. His grunts and her playful laughs ringing through the hangar. He grew more tired with each swing, before an aired punch missed wildly.

  Yaffa seized the opportunity, grabbing his wrist, she took a harsh swipe as her nails dug deep into his abdominal skin. Absolutely shredding the exposed area. The large man jumped back in pain. His belly bleeding profusely. Yaffa began to slowly move in.

  Her opponent was now on the defense. Her unorthodox skills made him leery of his chances. However, she remained patient and poised. The large soldier started to favor his injured side, to which Yaffa expertly noticed. Fearing he would run, Yaffa lunged forward to feign a leg sweep.

  He reacted as she suspected lifting his leg and exposing the other. She quickly shifted her weight while changing directions. Twirling around, generating more force and smashed her heel into his shin.

  The crack of the broken bone preceded his whimper like yell. He dropped to one knee. His leg and abdomen injured on the same axis of his body. Yaffa slowly approached again. A wild swing later and she dislocated his forearm.

  Defeated and defenseless he awaited his fate. “You didn’t disappoint. You shouldn’t have relied so much on your strength. I was clearly better than you. Have to make adjustments to your opponent’s style.” She gloated. Yaffa took a few steps back to wind up her finishing kick.

  After a deep breath she twirled, gaining momentum and round housed the side of his neck. A crunch sound assuring it was broken, thus ending their bout permanently. Yaffa, took a moment to gather her strength.

  Just as she turned around, the soldier that was previously unconscious came to. His eyes sought after the nearest blaster. Her mind calculated which were closer. Her shards or her daggers? The soldier ran for the blaster as she scrambled for one of her daggers.

  He grabbed the blaster and fired aimlessly before he was struck in the face. As precise a throw as she had ever made. The final soldier fell. Yaffa leaned back to rest. Taking another moment. She reached over to recover her shards when she noticed blood dripping onto the floor.

  Her hands began to shake, her body starting to feel cold. She looked down at her wound from the blaster
bolt just beneath her left collar bone. She tried to apply pressure, but her strength was waning.

  Panting, her breathing was becoming choppy, her body working hard to replace the blood she was losing. Shaking uncontrollably, Yaffa crawled over to her shards and placed one bracelet on her wrist.

  She struggled in attempt to apply the other, as her consciousness began to flicker in and out. Fearing for her life and sister, she began to cry. “Zeeba! Help me!” She screamed as loud as she could, continuing to struggle. As the second bracelet latched and her armor activated, she could only muster the strength for one more pathetic word. “Zeeba.” As she rolled over unconscious.

  Chapter Thirty

  J esh soared through the sky, wiping out countless MәShean ships. Only his ruby flame visible as he made his way to Kyah and Zeeba. The red energy shining so bright it appeared much like a star. He spotted them falling and quickly swooped down after them.

  First grabbing Kyah by the arm before taking Zeeba by the hand. “I have to get to Yaffa! I think she’s hurt!” Zeeba exclaimed. “I left her at the east hangar!” Jesh responded. Jesh located an incoming Pratham fighter jet and forcefully swung Zeeba toward it.

  Drawing her daggers Zeeba planted them into the ship’s hull. The speed of the ship nearly causing her to lose her grip. The pilot took notice beginning a sequence of barrel rolls. Zeeba’s grip tightened even more as her body flung around in the air.

  Jesh flew in low toward the battle and let go of Kyah into the masses. Kyah dropped into the war zone a concussive blast emanating upon landing. Her attack, along with her infamous purple armor drawing the attention of the MәShean invaders. The majority of MәShean in her vicinity immediately focused their assault on her.

  Kyah used her shield to block inbound attacks, ducking and dodging, refusing to even attempt a counterattack. The A-Kialle, Muetus and Prisoners all were amazed by her valiant effort. Enough human blood had been shed for them to collectively combat the AI threat together.

  The united humans rushed to Kyah’s aid trying to thin the herd around her. However, the MәShean were formidable. Making short work of the prisoners and making it very difficult for the soldiers to penetrate the encirclement. Kyah was effectively surrounded.

  At the entrance of the Pratham compound PTong and Lale looked on. Spectating as Fei destroyed large amounts of the MәShean fleet single handily. The mighty Da-Xia’s gleaming yellow armor and massive guan dao wreaking havoc on the MәShean ground troops.

  Her powerful strikes accompanied by her ground shifts and seismic powers. Lale also noticed a huddle of MәShean being wiped out with a fair amount of ease but could not see the culprit. “Your sister is in trouble.” PTong calmly mentioned. Lale searched the battlefield in the direction of his gesture. The bulk of the MәShean forces were swarming Kyah, with no relief in sight.

  Da-Xia being occupied with a horde of her own, Kyah was essentially alone. Lale’s majestic purple armor covered her body as she reached for her right shoulder pauldron and withdrew her crescent shaped sword. “Can you get me to her?” Lale asked. “Possibly.” PTong answered.

  Lale sprinted down the slight hill toward the front lines. As she drew near contact with the outer banks of the enemy she leaped. PTong aimed his staffed. A large gale of visible wind propelled her into the air.

  The wind carrying her across the field before ceasing at the eye of the battle. Lale landed in the thick of the fight. Taking the offensive, she took out several of the MәShean. Kyah’s awe was short lived as she used her siblings surprise to fuel her own offense.

  Shield in one hand and now mace in the other, the two sisters were beginning to turn the tide. Their fighting styles interconnected well together, even synching some of their attacks with Kyah’s concussive blasts.

  Their prowess together was unmatched. But the overwhelming numbers would prove still too much for the duo. Eventually, their attacks began to dwindle and the two spent more time protecting one another than dispatching their enemy.

  Suddenly, from the sky a powerful red shockwave destroyed several feet of enemies in every direction. Kyah recognized the power of her nephew. “I told you to find your father!” Kyah’s frustration just breaching her exhaustion. “I’ve seen him. Kind of hard to miss.” Jesh said jokingly.

  “But you needed me more.” He continued. Lale looked upon her son. Jesh met her gaze. Both fought back tears, trying to remain focused on the more pressing matters. “I thought……...” Jesh began. “I was. Your father.” Lale managed to say. “How about we end this war and then talk this out!” Kyah interrupted. The three circled up to protect each other’s rears. Jesh’s energy increased, elevating his power to his yellow form, brightly burning over his purple armor.

  The heat from his body scorching the ground beneath him. He drew his twin swords, together the three prepared to end the war. Kyah created a clear concussive orb around her family. Reaching up with his palm, Jesh released the scorching power of the sun.

  The power transforming the orb to harness the energy of a small star. Kyah pushed outward sending the energy in all directions, disintegrating the MәShean all around them. One attack wiping out a host of the enemy.

  Lale charged forward, catching the MәShean off guard. The blinding flash of the previous attack disguising her rush. Her crescent shaped blade severing multiple enemies with each precise swipe. Jesh took to the sky, raining blasts of bright yellow energy from above, rays of the sun’s power onto the battlefield.

  As the pockets of MәShean began to scatter, Kyah moved in, pummeling with her mace, smashing with her shield and sending concussive waves into the sea of enemies before her. The seemingly countless MәShean not only becoming numbered, but now the minority in strength and most evident, lack of conviction to fight. The retreat had begun.

  Fei swept through the sky, reaching atmospheric heights without slowing in speed. His power increasing as he saw fit. The void like dark energy reverberating around his body. Finally, satisfied with his display of power, Fei stopped between, the planet surface and space.

  Beneath him, the army of the retreating MәShean on the verge of defeat. Above, their ships attempting their escape. Fei’s dark energy channeled toward his outstretched hands. The MәShean preparing for their jump to light speed.

  A tidal wave of his stored power wiped the ships from existence before they could jump to hyperspace. The visible light sure to reach other galaxies, as the force carried on into deep space. Fei turned his attention to the fight below.

  Speeding toward the massive battle. His power throbbing in anticipation for Pratham’s destruction. Rumbles and crackling announced his arrival back through the atmosphere with a planet shaking thud as he landed on the ground. A small crater surrounding him, littered with MәShean remains from the power that accompanied.

  Many Muetus and A-Kialle were physically blinded by his destruction of the MәShean fleet. They tried desperately to cover their eyes, and cried out for help, not understanding the flash of light before their vision was forcefully torn away from them.

  PTong oversaw the battle from the safe distance of the Pratham compound. He saw his former clan member fight desperately against the AI around her. Da-Xia was finally showing signs of fatigue. Tapping into his new power bestowed upon him from Fei, PTong conducted life into her body.

  Da-Xia gained strength by the second. She was able to fight harder than ever before. Destroying everything in sight. The temporary boost rejuvenating her, serving her will to fight.

  The MәShean army was successfully surrounded. Fei to the north, Da-Xia, the Muetus, A-Kialle army and the remaining prisoners to the west. Jesh, Lale and Kyah to the south. Dara to the East.

  Steadily, their forces were beaten, collapsing into each other. Da-Xia gave the final swing of her guan dao through the last MәShean invader. The soldiers provided the celebratory war cry, while the prisoners scattered for freedom.

  The large group circled the piled AI husks. Jesh stared into his father’s eyes. H
e saw himself. True power, and for the first time he shuttered at someone else’s strength. His father, stared blankly, taking in the sight of his son.

  Despite Lale and her sister being within his scope of vision. Jesh could feel the beast beneath his father’s stare. It scared him. He finally, realized what Dara meant in her description of him.

  Dara stood motionless, witnessing the family reunion she was certain would coincide with her death. She thought to run for a moment but knew she wouldn’t get far. She thought to attack, but as she looked at Fei, his calm, his stoic behavior and attitude, she could feel a difference.

  He is not as he was before. He somehow felt even more menacing to her than the last time they were near each other. Dara fixated on Jesh, their connection coursing back and forth between them. She felt his fear.

  It took her a moment to realize it wasn’t her own, but Jesh’s. Her terror surfaced when she returned her gaze back to his father, to witness his eyes were focused on her. She wanted to look away but feared it would be just the time he needed to move against her.