[center][u]Sector Zero[/u][/center] --- As the sky darkened while time passed, Raeven began to feel anxious. She stood and eyed Zachary's work on the shuttle. "I don't mean to rush, but how much longer do you think you'll be?" "Not much longer," Zachary replied as he fiddled with some wires. The broken regulator had not been easy to fix, because it comprised of circuitry and processors which had been damaged by the electric shock and could only be fully repaired by replacement. Zachary had no replacement parts, so instead he had to bypass it. Raeven gave a small nod before turning to look at the city towards the gate, where Hector's side of the battle continued. With a final weld and solder Zachary had the system operational again. "OK, let's get moving." Blake held Arianna's left arm up as he helped her walk, groaning internally at the predicament he had caught himself in. [i]'So close, yet so very very far...' [b]'Lets not be too impatient; we've waited a long time for this; a little while longer won't hurt.'[/b][/i] As he helped the weakened host walk, Blake noticed two others next to a vehicle. "Hey, you two!" Blake called out, "We're here to get back to the battle scene, we just dealt with some Hunters nearby a checkpoint." He explained to the two as they neared enough for conversation. Raeven turned to see Blake and Arianna, noticing Arianna's physical state. "Are you well enough to fight again, Arianna?" She asked. Arianna smiled lightly at Raeven's concern. "I just need to rest for a bit and see how I am when we reach the battle." Raeven gave a small nod and turned to Zachary. "It's on the way for us, if you don't mind taking them as well." "Sure, no problem," Zachary said, beckoning them into the shuttle. "If I'm making the trip I had better take more than just one person." Zachary entered the pilot's cabin and began starting up the shuttle as Raeven, Blake and Arianna entered. When they were settled in and the door closed behind then Zachary lifted off and flew back in the direction of the gate. "So, where did you want to be dropped off?" Zachary asked his three passengers. Raeven stood, ignoring the spike of pain from her hip as she moved to look out the front window of the shuttle. "Close as you can lget us to the battle. From there I'll get the package before returning." Blake nodded in agreement. "We're all headed to the battle's epicenter." "Alright, I'll see what I can do," Zachary replied and returned his attention to piloting. It was not long before the battleground was in sight, and it was indeed a dangerous and chaotic mess. A large rift was in the ground, stretching along the road. Undead warriors, military soldiers, civilian revolutionaries and Golden Mercenaries were all locked in a ferocious melee. Towards the front, near where Zachary knew Nekros was, there was a streak of golden and silver light. He was looking for a place to land when the world was consumed by light and deafening noise. When Zachary regained their senses, a few moments later, he could scarcely believe his eyes. The Wall was gone. With the implosion of air and the Wall dissolving outwards in red light, he figured out what had done it. "A Trap Core," he said in awe, "They used a giant Trap Core. Genius." Zachary did not have much time to appreciate the way in which the Wall had been taken down, or the unadulterated sunlight and air which now poured in, or indeed the freedom which had been achieved, for now shuttles were flying in through the gap in the opposite direction to which he was flying. While some of them bore Golden Mercenary markings, others which were in pursuit were military. Zachary quickly dived the shuttle down below the flight paths of the other shuttles. He found a patch of footpath which was empty of bodies and not in the immediate attention of any combatants and landed there. The rear of the battle was just a stone's throw away. "OK, everyone, here's your stop. Watch out for zombies, plasma fire, Vanguards, and artillery." Raeven was jolted out of her trance as soon as the shuttle dived, gripping the pilot and passenger seats for balance. She grinned triumphantly, inwardly reminding herself to tell Victor how brilliant he was as soon as she saw him. She nodded to Zachary and smiled. "Thank you. I'll return soon." With that said, she turned to face Arianna and Blake, finding a renewed determination to get the hell out of the desolate city. "Are you still coming, Arianna? I don't mean to offend you, but you look like death." Arianna looked up at Raeven, her eyes glazed over as she continued to think about the scene of the hole in the wall. She took a deep breath and looked at Blake. "I think I should sit this one out." Blake nodded in agreement. [i]'Guess I'm the tortoise in this chase...oh well.'[/i] "You're better off on the shuttle. I'll see you once this fight is done with." He looked to the fight before him, before looking back at Arianna once more. "It was nice talking with you; hopefully we'll talk in better circumstances next time." Turning back to the battlefield, Blake headed off, Kataskai activated. Raeven gave Arianna a reassuring smile before following Blake. She pulled her daggers from the sheaths in her sleeves and gripped them tightly, ready to slice and dice if she needed to. As soon as she reached the end of the battle, she jumped right in, forcing her way towards the front of the battle despite her aching hip. --- Meanwhile, Zachary was sitting in the shuttle watching the fighting take place not far from him. Normally, he would have been tentative about sitting so close to the danger, but now he was feeling restless. Despite the death he had dealt out from the shuttle earlier, the distance made it so impersonal and he itched for proper satisfaction. Yet he was torn between joining the battle and waiting responsibly in the shuttle. Suddenly there was a bang on the side of the shuttle and a skeletal face was staring through the window into the passenger bay at Arianna, banging its sword on the metal hull. Arianna turned to gasp at the sight and reached for the dagger in her boot, but before she could act Zachary got up and strode over to that window. With the distance closed between him and the skeleton, he focused his attention and the skeleton's sword was wrenched from its hand and decapitated it, causing the undead warrior to vanish in a flash of red light. As Zachary paced back towards the pilot seat, his face was a mask of indecision. Half way there, he hesitated, then made an about face and headed back to the door. "I'm sorry, I can't just sit here," Zachary said apologetically, not turning to face Arianna as he opened the door. "The doors are locked, but there's a plasma rifle and wind cannon in my pack if you need it." His pack was propped up next to the pilot seat. Before there was time for a reply, Zachary had opened the door enough for him to exit, slipped out and closed it behind him, locking it at a touch. Arianna watched him leave, feeling disappointed that she couldn't help. She pushed herself to her feet, gingerly making her way to Zachary's pack by the pilot seat. She fell to her knees in front of it and sat with her back to the pilot seat, removing the plasma rifle and holding it as she hoped that she wouldn't need it. Outside Zachary reached behind him and the dropped sword rose to his hand while he surveyed the battle scene. He was not trained in armed combat, and while his kinetic shield could protect against errant swings a dedicated attack could still get through, so he would have to pick his target carefully. Then, on the fringes, he saw a Vanguard engaged with a Golden Mercenary, and Zachary ran towards them. The greatest strength of the Vanguard is their armour, which rendered them almost impervious to normal attacks, but to Zachary this was also their greatest weakness, for every part of their body was encased in metal and thus under his control. The Vanguard was distracted by his battle with the mercenary, and had gained the upper hand, so he did not notice Zachary until it was much too late. At will, the Vanguard's helmet was forced backwards, snapping his head backwards and throwing him back onto the ground, presumably unconscious. The mercenary simply gave him a nod of thanks before rushing deeper into the fray to engage with another soldier. But Zachary was not done with the Vanguard yet. Sword poised in his right hand ready to stab, he laid his left hand on the leg of the armour. In his mind he was able to visualise the suit of armour, including all the straps holding it together, and thus he telemagnetically removed the Vanguard's helmet and chestplate. The Vanguard was unconscious, his face bloodied by the broken nose from smashing against the front of his helmet. But underneath that armour the Vanguard was quite clearly human, and Zachary hesitated. Did he really want to do this? Was this really what he had become? But Kaa'is intervened, and the sword thrust downwards stabbing into the Vanguard's chest. The sinking of the sword into the flesh and the outpouring of blood was accompanied by neurotransmitters flooding his brain, bringing him to a state of euphoria. He pulled the sword out and stabbed again, this time without further prompting from Kaa'is, and again, and again, each blow bringing Zachary a burst of pleasure. This reached its peak when the Vanguard's spirit finally yielded, and filled Zachary, bringing warmth to every vessel in his body, and he released a satisfied sigh. He looked up and saw another soldier who had seen him and had aimed a pistol at him. Quickly, Zachary applied a force to the barrel of the pistol and threw his aim off so the bullet whizzed over his head. Then he lifted the Vanguard's great tower shield up and positioned it between him and the soldier in time to block the second shot. Plotting his next move, Zachary looked down at the suit of armour before him and thought how excellently useful it could be, and Kaa'is agreed wholeheartedly. He laid his hand on the leg again and by the time the soldier had run up close enough to go around the shield and get a clear shot Zachary was now completely encased in Warshiran steel. He stood up, his legs straining slightly with the extra weight, but when the soldier fired the bullet ricocheted off the armour harmlessly. Then Zachary unleashed a war cry and charged at the soldier with surprising speed. He was using his powers on the armour to amplify his every movement, in effect giving him great strength. The soldier drew his own sword but found it deflected by an invisible force moments before impact. The collision threw the soldier to the ground, and before he could get up Zachary threw strength-augmented punches at him. And as the bone-shattering blows continued, Zachary returned to a state of murderous ecstasy. --- Back at the front, the scene before Raeven made her pause, eyeing the large hooded figure in the front. She followed it's line of sight and saw Hector, Kisheto, and Yugeto continuing their fight and immediately began pushing her way towards them. As she fought, she looked around for Ishigo, hoping he had made it alright so far. Blake looked to the monstrous demon and the destruction that lay in its wake. "Such density...to have such a large pool of spirit to study...amazing." Blake watched in awe as Yugeto and Kisheto fought against Nekros. "Seems like they've both got powers now. Interesting." --- Kisheto panted and stood ready for whatever else Nekros could throw his way. He looked to Yugeto, who maintained the spirit link in between them. "How do we KILL this fool?" he called out. Hector raised his GS-9 and aimed it at where Nekros stood. "Just give him everything you have," he answered, firing off a few bursts at Nekros. The bullets simply phased through him, causing a flock of crows to erupt from the nonexistent wounds where blood would have shot out from. Nekros held his tome up once more and began chanting; around him, the crows started swarming once more, creating a tornado of screaming crows that whispered death in all who looked upon it. Nekros looked upwards and a flash of red light burst out from where his eye sockets would be were his face visible. The air around the battlefield turned to an even darker red. [center]"[b]FOOLS! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE YOUR FATE![/b]"[/center] Nekros raised his scythe up and slammed it down, causing his entire body to explode into an enormous storm of crows. The storm slowly contorted until a humanoid figure could be made out from the large swarm; it appeared as if Nekros had simply increased in size tenfold. --- [center][img]http://www.animalhi.com/thumbnails/detail/20121026/fantasy%20art%20books%20artwork%20crows%20hooded%20grim%20reapers%20birds%201280x960%20wallpaper_www.animalhi.com_6.jpg[/img][/center] "NOW, YOU ALL PERISH!" Nekros' voice boomed through the entire battlefield, his body having enlargened until it towered over the many men scattered across the area. His scythe reached the size of a small guard tower, and his tome was about the size of a carriage. His deathly aura seeped through the air, threatening to curse all living beings with its touch of death. Nekros raised his scythe and swung it forward with enough force to level the ground and instantly reap a majority of the people fighting about. Right before it could make impact, however, mulitple cords made of black shadow flung themselves around the scythe from behind Nekros, pulling it backwards. Ishigo stood behind the giant reaper, straining as he held the scythe in place with sheer strength. "KISHETO! YUGETO! GET EVERYONE TO THE SHUTTLE AND LEAVE!" he yelled. Nekros jerked his scythe upward, flinging Ishigo towards the sky. Ishigo flipped in mid-air and pulled on a newly-formed shadow cord that caused him to land gracefully infront of Nekros. Raeven grinned as she watched Ishigo before slitting the throat of the guard she had been fighting. She turned to face Kisheto and Yugeto. "Over here, boys! I'll take you to it." She looked around, finding Hector in the crowd. "Hector!" Hector nodded at the call and ran towards the boys, drawing his rifle to help cover them as they ran towards the shuttle. Kisheto and Yugeto both felt their hearts skip a beat when Nekros had nearly eradicated the ground on which they stood. However, Ishigo's maneuver succeeded in stopping the terrifying assault. Hector began shooting off suppresive bursts from his GS-9 while he pointed Kisheto and Yugeto towards Raeven. Yugeto looked at Kisheto and Kisheto nodded, "We're not going ANYWHERE, we've got your back, Hector!" --- Zachary had been in the middle of revelling over his latest kill when the shadow of Nekros loomed over him. All the cortisol and adrenalin coursing through his viens suddenly shifted from fight to flight, and he picked himself up, gathered the shield and sowrd of the slain Vanguard, and ran back towards the shuttle, which fortunately for him was not too far away. With augmented strength he bolted towards the door, but forgot about his greater inertia until too late and was unable to stop entirely before crashing into the door. Picking himself back up, he unlocked the pilot door at a touch and hefted himself inside. Instantly he was looking down the barrel of a plasma rifle. Arianna had her finger on the trigger, ready to blast the armored man. Zachary reeled back, having forgotten when he entered the shuttle that in this armour he was unrecognisable, and quickly cried out, "Damn it, don't shoot! It's me, Zachary!" Arianna furrowed her brows, loosening her grip on the rifle a little. "Take off the mask." The helmet lifted from his head seemingly of his own accord, revealing Zachary's rather surprised face. "Sorry for giving you a fright," he said weakly. Arianna let out a soft sigh and lowered the rifle. "What were you doing out there? I nearly had a heart attack when the shuttle was hit." Zachary pointed out the window and replied, "I was running from that." Arianna followed his finger and looked out of the window, her eyes widening in surprise. "Woah," she whispered. "That's.. that's a lot of power." "And that's why I need to get this shuttle ready to go ASAP." Arianna nodded in agreement. "The others should be back soon. I'll keep guard in case anyone else decides to crash into the shuttle." --- Nekros suddenly reared his scythe back and shoved it forward, sending a swarm of crows rushing at the group. Ishigo jumped back and spun out of the way of multiple crows that attempted to pierce through him, and Yugeto simply dematerialized with Kisheto, flying out of the path. Hector, however, simply froze and stared as multiple crows tore through his body, causing him to fall to the ground in immense pain despite not having any real physical wounds. "MIERDE!" he yelled as he clutched his chest in agony. The crows flew out of his back and doubled back until they merged with the paper of Nekros' tome. The same ink blotch from before formed as the crows turned into ink which slowly began morphing into unknown letters. Chains erupted from Hector's torso and quickly wrapped around his entire abdomen and chest. He dropped his rifle and staggered back, failing to pry the chains off of his body. "Ughhh, VICTOR! AYUDAME!" Raeven watched the chains with wide eyes. [i]Just how much power does this host have?[/i] She rushed over to Hector, gripping the chains with one hand and sliding her dagger expertly between his skin and the chains before pulling back, using it as a makeshift crowbar. "It must be using your spirit against you!" Hector grit his teeth as the pain greatly increased. He had never experienced such a pain before- it felt like his body was being torn up on a plane that he couldn't normally perceive, as if limbs that didn't exist were being crushed and reformed, only to be crushed once again. "AGHHHH!" he yelled as the chains picked up speed, spreading to wrap his shoulders and thighs. Victor heard his screams and turned after decapitating a vanguard soldier. He gasped and instantly broke into a sprint towards his younger brother. "HECTOR!" he yelled as he brung his sword down on the chain. It was to no avail, as the sword simply bounced off, and Hector simply screamed in pain. Victor was horrified by the sound of his younger brother's cries. Hector's hands quivered as he felt himself give in to the pain. Every muscle in his body tensed up and he began hyperventilating as the chains tightened around his body. Yugeto rematerialized and ran forward towards Hector. He placed a hand on his shoulder and attempted to channel his spirit into the suffering mercenary's, but the chains simply whipped at his hands whenever he touched Hector. Hector shook his head and pushed Yugeto off, "NO! This... it's futile... I can feel it.... it's over...." Raeven slowly pulled away from the chains, her arms falling to her sides in defeat. "What about the three amigos?" She asked Hector, wishing she could help him somehow. "We need you." Victor grabbed the chains and pulled with all his might, but Hector simply swat his hand away and leaned on his brother. "Encontrado mi luz, hermano... Este es adios," he said, smiling weakly. Victor shook his head and reached to attempt to pull the chains once more, but Hector held up a hand and groaned in pain. His voice weakened to a hoarse whisper. "A cabo... de cien anos.... los reyos son villanos.." he began, coughing as he leaned his head on Victor's shoulder. Victor clenched his fist and put a hand on the back of Hector's head, "For when we are among wolves, we must howl." Nekros looked down at the tome as the letters on the page stopped morphing and reached a final shape. He reached forward with a single finger and tapped the name written in his tome in red ink. Just as he did this, the ink turned black, and Hector let out one final cry. He stepped back, and the chains exploded in a red and black flash of light. When the lights dissipated, Hector fell to his knees, and then toppled over, lifeless. --- Victor screamed and stood up to rush to his brother's corpse. He held Hector's head in his hands and cursed to the skies. "MI HERMANO! MI HERMANO!!!!!" he cried. As he did this, the crows began screaming once more. Ishigo, who had frozen in spite of what had occured before his eyes, snapped to his senses and jumped to Victor's side. "Raeven, get them out of here, NOW. Take the shuttle and GO," he commanded, pulling Victor by the shoulder. Victor hesitated at first, but anger quickly filled his veins and he stood up. "PUTO! I'LL MURDER YOU!" he yelled. Raeven was staring at Hector's body in horror, frozen in place. She was snapped from her trance when she heard Ishigo's voice, looking up at him with a hurt gaze. She nodded slowly before turning to look at the others, wincing at her injured hip. "Kisheto, Yugeto!" She called. "Let's go!" She turned to look at Ishigo, trying to gather her thoughts together. "Take this bitch down," she said, her voice cracking at the end. Kisheto had been stuck in place staring at Hector's body. It wasn't until Yugeto pat him on the shoulder, forcing him to turn around towards the shutte, that he regained his senses. "H-Hec-Hect-..." "GO, KISHETO!" Yugeto yelled, pushing Kisheto forward. The two ran towards the shuttle with Raeven following closely behind. When they neared it, the doors opened, and Yugeto jumped aboard first, followed by Kisheto, Blake, and Raeven. Arianna lifted the plasma rifle in defense, but sighed lightly and dropped it as she watched them enter. She noticed their demeanor and frowned. "What's wrong?" Raeven shut the doors behind her, clenching her jaw. "Hector has fallen," she murmured before finding a seat in the corner, staring at the floor. She closed her eyes tightly, trying to remain strong. She knew tears wouldn't help. Blake measured his surroundings carefully; the Golden Mercenaries would fall and crumble if Ishigo and Victor died in this conflict; it would be in the hysteria of the following days that he would strike. "He was a good man, Hector...it's a shame, really, that he faced this tragic death." He spoke, aiming to avoid Arianna trying to read his mind; it would be odd if he didn't comment on the situation. Arianna's face fell, wondering what would be next for the Golden Mercenaries without one of their courageous leaders. She looked up at everyone in the group, then watched Raeven. She knew that Raeven had been close to Hector. Her empathy seemed to take over as she involuntarily heard the thoughts of the group. When her mind crossed over onto Blake's, however, an eerie and chilling pang of...ancient emotion pushed its way into her head, sending Castiel reeling within Arianna's own mind. Arianna winced and gripped her head. [i][b]I apologize. I.. I don't know what overcame me.[/i][/b] Castiel said in a confused tone. Arianna sighed and closed her eyes, resting her head back. "OPEN UP! OPEN UP!" a voice outside of the shuttle rang as someone banged on the door. The doors hissed open to reveal a young man waiting outside, anxious and exhausted by the battle. "Are you flying out? You mind taking an extra passenger?" Matyo said. He had decided to stick around while the rest of the civillians ran towards where the larger shuttles were being loaded to ferry civillians out of the city. Raeven stood when the doors open, dagger in hand in case she needed to fight. She eyed the man before nodding and walking over to the door, sheathing her dagger once more. She took his hand and helped him in. "Are there any others?" As Mayto shook his head, she nodded and punched the button that shut the doors. "Take us out, Zachary." She said before returning to her seat. Zachary nodded and pulled the thrust lever, lifting the shuttle off the ground. --- Ishigo stood by Victor and looked at the giant reaper that prepared its next attack. "We're going to END this, Ishigo. NOW," Victor said in anger. Ishigo took a deep breath, trying to temporarily forget Hector's death. "On you, Victor." Behind them, the shuttle hummed to life and ascended into the air. The military was too preoccupied by mercenaries and their shuttles to bother about the lone bomber that made its way towards the wall. Nekros eyed the shuttle, but Ishigo stepped forward, "YOUR FIGHT IS WITH US," he stated boldly.