Jezebel looked between the knife Faith gave her and the gauntlets Calvin made for her nights prior. She then looked at Zachary's broken body.
“Like...” Jezebel threw the knife off to the side and locked her arms around Zachary's chest. Jezebel was not a very large person, and carrying a man of any size was not something she could do easily by herself. She walked backwards, dragging the archer like an unconscious terrorist in one of those video games he liked to blab about.
“I hope you're happy.” She watched as Faith and Calvin ran off in hopes of getting revenge.
“I totally hope you're happy.” Alice jumped onto Alexandria's back, but the robot was able to remain standing.
”I'm not going to boop anyone! How many times do I have to say it?” she giggled.
Nariko did not respond verbally to Aleecia. The carnage class chassis did not seem to have a way of communicating like the normal sisters did. But what Nariko couldn't say with words, she would say with action. The massive robot backed out of the way, giving Aleecia room to enter the corridor to the morgue. Nariko handed one of her Katanas to Willow.
”Oh? Does my sister wish to walk hand in hand with this peasant?” Willow laughed.
With the sound of Nariko moving backward, Aleecia took a few steps forward, still a little shaken.
“We’ve already done that! And hugged and-” Her face got a little red at the thought of waking up in Nariko’s arms,
“A-Anyway! I don’t know why she went and kidnapped Krista, but I still believe in her! So we should all stop fighting and Nariko should escape!” ”Oh my, how scandalous!” Willow twirled the katana in her hand. Damn, she might be really good with that.
”All affairs aside, Nariko has made her demands perfectly clear. No sister of mine will settle for anything less than what her heart yearns for. Which happens to be the two of you. There will be no cease fire until you turn yourself in.” “I can’t let you hurt them anymore, but I also can’t let Nariko take Krista! ...I’m fine with going with you, but leave her out of this!” Aleecia took another step closer, knowing that Nariko would be able to protect her if Willow tried attacking.
Willow folded her arms.
”Being one of my sister's concubines doesn't put you in a position to make demands.” It was then that Max seized his opportunity. Watching everyone fight without him was almost unbearable, but his moment had come, this was it. The police officer silently started walking towards Nariko, making sure to hide behind Noel. With everyone distracted, he was sure that nobody would notice his entrance, and he kept walking until he was right behind Noel.
As soon as he reached the reporter, he started his attack. In a single flash he sprinted towards Nariko at top speed, creating as little noise as possible; knife in hand. His knife was aimed at Nariko’s neck, and if it would reach it, her head would surely roll.
With Nariko's head so high in the air, it was impossible for Max to scale her before she took notice of him. So he threw his knife at her neck, hoping to score a hit. Nariko did not attempt to to deflect the projectile, which sailed past her defenses. But between the angle and Max's imperfect throwing ability, he wasn't able to hit the robot's neck. The dagger was embedded in the massive globe of eyes, which cause a few of them to blink off. It appeared her head was more durable than Max originally estimated. She was hardly blinded, and not too pleased to have been attacked. Nariko raised her weapons once again, she would not let her guard down a second time.
”That wasn't very chivalrous!” Willow turned to look at Calvin and Faith, who were charging towards them.
”But neither is this! Sister?” Nariko and Willow turned to charge the two infinites. Nariko's swords shielded Willow on all sides, while Willow herself held her katana out in front.
Calvin slowed as he saw Willow and Nariko charging in unison. Dully, he remembered hearing Faith’s voice. He looked behind, only to see her approaching the Carnage Sisters with what looked to be Julia’s gladius. Further behind her was Jezebel, hauling Zach away. There was no chance they could retreat, not without leaving the Infinite Archer behind. Calvin re-adjusted his grip on the pick, breathing in deeply. The air felt cold in his lungs as he took step after step towards the incoming charge.
Her hand tightened around the hilt of Julia’s weapon, feeling the weight in her palm drag her arms to the ground. She wasn’t tired by all means, but her lack of strength left something to be desired. Faith’s gaze zero’d onto the two Sisters, assessing their movements as she and Calvin stood fast in their approach. Dealing with both wasn’t going to be easy, especially not on their lonesome. Of course, others would draw away Nariko soon - the Carnage Chassis was their secondary objective, after all - but despite that they would, at least for a short amount of time have to deal with it.
”Calvin.” she called out, calmly, across the way. The edge of bloodlust in her voice overwhelming the twinge of anxiety it held.
”Just hold her off until the others can draw Nariko away.” and with that, she began to run. She clenched the hilt with both hands firmly, readying a strike for the future.
Calvin nodded briefly. His mind didn’t register the voice as Faith’s, but still the instructions rang clearly in his mind. His pace quickened. He felt a lump rise in his throat, but he swallowed it back down. He noticed that he was still wearing one of his gauntlets and flicked it off carelessly as he broke into a run, the distance between himself and the Carnage Sisters closing rapidly.
Nariko and Willow were far too fast for any of the infinites that might have tried to catch up. The world record top speed for a human is close to forty-five kilometers an hour, and it's not a speed they can hold for more than ten seconds. It's also an exercise that doesn't leave one in great condition for fighting robots. The carnage sister's horses were capable of running at least twice that, and didn't show any sign of tiring. It would be a bit before any reinforcements arrived.
Willow stood up on her horse as they approached, planting both feet on the saddle. When she stood like this, Willow was almost as tall as her sister. Cavin could feel the ground tremble as Willow's horse and Nariko's hooves pounded the floor. As the distance between them closed, Willow jumped into the air, but not without retrieving a second sword from Nariko. She used her momentum from the horse to drive her forward. Willow was prepared to land on Calvin with a vertical and horizontal slash. Her horse would past them both. Nariko slowed up, but she was following Willow into combat. With her arms raised into the air, a sword swing could come from anywhere.
I think I’m going with them. The thought passed through Calvin’s head unabided. He looked up to the descending form of the regal robot. His legs turned to stone. His arms felt sluggish. But his hands felt aflame. Silently, he raised his pick, placing one hand on each end and gripping tightly. The burning sensation in his hands seemed to cool as he gripped his work and raised it towards the incoming blades. The rapid-repeat clang of the two swords clashing against the pick was abrupt and took all of Calvin’s attention. The attention was quickly diverted to the fact that he was still alive. Brought down to one knee, certainly, and with arms that ached, but he glowed in appreciation for the fact his craft had held. Willow did not seem to share said appreciation. The strike had been an all-in, and while a more competent fighter would have capitalized on the successful defence, it was all Calvin could do to stand back up.
Willow came equipped with a saber and a cannon, but she was also formidable with two katanas. As a metalworker, Calvin knew that most people who fought with two swords often paired the katana with a wakizashi (short sword) due to the fact that it was easier to use with the longer, heavier katana. Katanas were traditionally two handed weapons, and only Shona Moffett, Miyamoto Musashi and a handful of comic book characters were ever able to use two katanas with much success. But Willow had strength that far surpassed that of normal men, and the weight didn't slow her swings at all. When one sword was slashing, the other was being pulled back to follow up. Her technique looked perfect to anyone without much knowledge of swordsmanship. Willow took a step with every swing, forcing Calvin to back up while he defended himself. At the very least, the broad head of the pick let him deflect the blows with relative ease, as long as there was room for him to move backwards.
Faith let her legs carry her down the hall, closing on on Calvin’s position. She took note of Willow’s form; one strike after another, deflected, if barely, by Calvin and his craft. The Gladius felt heavy against her arms, a kind of nervous anticipation. If she didn’t do something soon, who knew how long Calvin would be able to hold off for. He would have to give out at some point. Then it would be all over. She eyed Nariko, hovering near her sister. She let her peripherals trace the Horse as it ran down the hallway, seemingly without clear direction nor directive. Despite all her prior confidence, something assured his this wasn’t a battle she could win, not without magic, miracles or wonders. But all she had was a sword, her Ignis Pouch, and her wiles. She ran, circling around the hallway along the walls and to the side.
”Check.” she whispered, approaching from the right, hoping for Willow’s attention to be strained in her attacks against Calvin - preparing the strike at her leg and topple her in a single blow.
Willow was indeed focused solely on Calvin. Everything going on in her surroundings was of little consequence to her. It would not be difficult for faith to take advantage of her lower level of awareness. But someone else had their eye on Faith as she attempted to close the distance.
Nariko.
The carnage sister lowered herself so that her eight arms and four legs were touching the ground. Then in an instant, she jumped towards Faith. The magus noticed the flying carnage sister, and changed course. But the massive shockwave from her landing proved to be too much. The air displacement alone was like an explosion. Faith was thrown off her feet and rolled across the floor. She stopped moving when she slammed into the wall. Faith
was left writhing in pain. Her body wouldn't listen to her commands. Faith's state of vertigo prevented her from rising to her feet. But through her hazy vision, she could see Willow pressing her advantage against Calvin. There was no way he could stand up to her, not when she had two swords in her hands. But Faith had bigger problems to worry about. Nariko was closing in, raising her blades above her head. Faith couldn't muster the strength to raise her own hands. It didn't take a magus to guess what was going to happen next. All faith could do was close her eyes and brace for it. As soon as Nariko's blade thrust forward, Faith's body was splashed by something warm. At first she thought it was her own blood, but there was no pain, not from a stab wound anyway. When faith opened her eyes, she could see some of the infinites off in the distance. Alice was on her knees, holding her face. That seemed strange, since she was holding Alexandria moments ago. Speaking of which, Alexandria was nowhere to be seen. That was when Faith looked over herself. Aleecia had positioned herself over Faith to block Nariko's blades, and was showering Faith with her blood.
Something hot was racing through Aleecia, feeling like it was burning her alive. She felt hot liquid slip up her throat and couldn’t help gagging before spitting it out. The heat was radiating off of the spot where most of her left ribs were supposed to be. She let out a hacking cough as she choked on her own blood, red dripping down her chin. Her arms, which had been holding up her weight previously started to shudder before giving out and her weight sank, falling onto the girl under her.
It wasn’t burning anymore, but everything started to feel so cold. Tiny shivers ran along her skin and she let out another heart wrenching cough. But it wasn’t as loud as her last one, why was that? Aleecia’s eyes blinked open for a second, but as she opened them, only darkness met her. The world was blank and the sounds of battle were fading away. Her sense of sight was finally leaving for good. Tears mixed with blood as she stammered feebly,
“I wasn’t completely useless, was I?” Another hack came out of her, but Aleecia couldn’t feel it or the blood that splattered more onto her front. It wasn’t like her sweatshirt was going to be salvageable anyway.
“Don’t blame her o-okay? Sh-She can’t stop herself...” A hiccup followed by a choking sound slipped out against Faith’s ear.
“She’s gonna go after Calvin with her highest right arm in a diagonal arch for his neck. Save-” Her already drooping head sagged against Faith’s ear,
“Keep... Izzy alive.” Nariko's chassis was trembling. She wasn't making any sudden movements, but that would change very soon.
”Sorry… Faith… I-I’m... ”completely useless…” When Faith thought of the Night of Carnage, they weren’t necessarily pleasant memories. Leaving their rooms the next morning, finding the corpses of their friends, dead by one means or another. But regardless of that, she had always considered them a kind of adventure. Delving into a dungeon, fighting the monsters inside for no reason other than fun, or maybe to get better at the fights. It was a life and death game, after all. With the idea of the Carnage Class Chassis, things got even better. Finally, the Nights of Carnage would have a reason, finally the dungeons would have some meaning besides mindlessly running or attacking. They would have a boss to fight, and overcome together as a group. There would be rewards at the end, too, as promised by their one and only Doctor. A true quest.
And it was warm. The kind of quest that felt like a good idea at the time. Imagining all the stories they could tell after it was said and done, glimpsing the fun she would have with her new friends, and images of crimson tiled floors and frantic, panicked actions.
”H-hey…” it’ll be okay; it’ll be great, even; after all of this is over everyone is gonna laugh and play, and things with be great. We’ll be friends, even,
”Wh-what are you…” looking at me like that for? - I told you, things’ll be fine. That’s a promise, okay? It’ll be just fine,
”Y-yeah… it’s okay, Allie… J-just, uh… w-wait here, okay? I-I won’t be long... “ her words were soft, as Faith sat herself up against the wall, holding Aleecia in numb hands, before laying her to the ground to to the side of her.
Thunder rang in Calvin’s ears. He couldn’t hear anything besides a loud heartbeat that he assumed to be his own. He wasn’t sure. All he could see was the form of the sword-wielding Carnage sister. His arms ached as he tread backwards, blocking blow after blow. He wasn’t meant for this. He had never been meant for any of this. One of Willow’s swing went wide, and Calvin swung the pick in a horizontal arc. Without pause, Willow pulled back, avoiding the slow blow with ease. He looked back, increasingly aware of his rapid approach towards the wall. Willow rapidly closed the distance, and Calvin brought up the pick to wearily catch another slash.
“Fucking…” He looked up to see Nariko moving towards him, her blades poised to strike. He realized that he was about to die, and was alarmed to notice that the realization had little effect on him. He was brought back to reality by another salvo of swings from Willow. She could sense his flagging strength, and was pressing the advantage.
A conversation ran through Faith’s head. One she must have had, but in the heat of the moment and blood she barely remembered having. About programming, and the Sisters. About Nariko. Her grip had withstood long enough to leave the Gladius just a short distance away. Whatever Aleecia had said, she could only hope it held true. She walked, slowly, shakily, to the blade, leant down, and grasped the hilt. It was only a matter of time before Nariko returned to whatever little senses she had left, and even in her addled and shell-shocked brain she could reason that, whatever the Sister did next, she would be going for a slaughter. Automatically, she began a run towards Calvin and Willow, ignoring the pain in her muscles from the impact, occasionally looking back to spy Nariko’s actions. If she was charging, Faith was ready to kick out Calvin’s legs…
And let nature take its course.
Faith didn't have a lot of mass, but she was able to bring down Calvin exactly when she intended to.
“Jesus fucking-” was all Calvin could get before he hit the ground, knocking the breath out of his body. Nariko's sword flew exactly where Calvin's neck was, just as Aleecia had predicted. Though Calvin's head wasn't there, Willow's arm was. Faith and Calvin were able to roll out of the way, preventing the falling arm or the spewing hydraulic fluid from landing on them. Willow turned to face her sister with her blade up. But Nariko was charging around in circles, pouncing around like a lunatic. Her swords raked the walls of the corridor without any clear target.
”Have you gone mad as a hatter?!” But of course, Nariko didn't respond. The eight-armed sister bounded back over to Aleecia's body. Nariko raised her arms and her body let out a hollow groan. It was loud enough that everyone on the floor could hear it. Then in an instant, She drove her swords into her head. The monster's legs sunk into the ground before the torso fell over on it's side, shattering the cluster of eyes it used as a head.
The monitors sparked to life, Davis's face was on the screen.
“Nariko has been defeated, and conquest belongs to the infinites. He could not have been more monotone in his delivery.
The night of carnage has ended. Nurses will resume their normal duties, as normal regulations are in effect.” He seened to be looking straight out at every infinite present.
“Remember that battle is nothing more than a gamble. Increasing your wager doesn't just ensure you can win more, you can lose more as well. It was hard to tell, but it almost looked like Davis was starting to smile.
Mas the price of conquest too high this time?” The monitor clicked off.
Willow dropped her katana on the floor
”Well, I guess it's back to work then.” A veil of smoke appeared in front of a wall, and she walked inside, only to walk back out fully repaired. If it wasn't a new body.
“I guess we should drag away the corpses.” willow thought out loud.
”We did it!” Alexandria walked up to Calvin and Faith, who were still on the floor.
”I was able to bring Aleecia over here so that she could slay Nariko!” She looked over her shoulder at Alice.
”A shame I had to give Alice's nose a boop with the back of my head, but she'll be fine.” Calvin wanted to get back up. To challenge Willow again. To beat her. His body did share his intentions. He laid on the ground, looking up to the ceiling, trying to take in all the information. The night was over. He looked down the hall to see that Jez had gotten Zachary away from the fighting. At least she was okay. He turned his head over to examine the wreckage of Nariko’s Carnage Chassis. He felt a wash of relief as he noticed it was truly dead, but that relief turned to horror as he took in the slumped figure close to it.
From the moment Nariko began her march to Aleecia’s body, Faith was preparing to stand. The ache from her encounter with Nariko was already beginning to overcome what adrenaline she had in her system, but even still, her resolve wouldn’t falter to injury. Davis, Willow, and Alexandria's words fell on deaf ears. Their words naught but hollow and dull echoes as Faith crawled to her feet and ran down the hall, dropping the Gladius as she went. The moment she came within Aleecia's vicinity, she slid to her knees, entering the spreading blood pool wantonly to get at the body.
”H-hey, Allie, I-I’m back. H-how are you?” every syllable was quiet and fractured as she pulled the girl onto her lap, attempting feebly to feel for her pulse,
”E-everything’s okay now.. W-we beat Nariko, s-so everyone’s safe… I-it’s okay for you to get up now.” tears burned the edges of her eyes with familiarity. This was only her first day here; this wasn’t meant to happen,
”A-Allie? Y-you can, y-y’know… get up. I-I need to thank you for… s-saving me and all…” she touched her face, feeling the chill of flesh, and abruptly raised her head to the ceiling,
”Davis! Lower the field and let me heal her! Now!” despite her broken voice her shouting carried across the space.
”Do it now! Not even the Council will stop me from killing you! C’mon… please Allie…” until shouting turned to tears of remorse.
Calvin slowly rose. Choked sobs escaped him as he looked at the prone corpse of the Infinite Dice Master.
”I’m going to kill you.” He said quietly to the departing form of the royal carnage sister. But it would have to wait. He ran over to the two girls. Faith was holding her body closely, calling to Davis.
“Aleecia?” He looked at her prone form and her ashen face. There was a sense of disbelief in his voice.
”Mercy -- Anyone! She’s -- Aleecia’s dying.” He looked down again.
“God damn it!” He walked over to the prone form of the Carnage Sister, and swung at it as hard as he could. It didn’t feel good. But it felt better than looking at the corpse of the girl he was supposed to protect.
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