“A selfish proposition, sure,” I shot back. Even the guys from Kizuna’s world weren’t this arrogant. At least they put the threat of the waves first . . . The resurrected were another story, of course.
“Your reaction suggests these negotiations aren’t getting us anywhere,” the fox said. “We would prefer that you accepted our terms.”
“I’m sure you would. What are you going to do next?” I asked. They all looked so hostile I couldn’t see them just backing down and going home.
“The fact that you were able to kill those causing the waves is a thorn in the side of Piensa,” the fox admitted. “If we can’t turn you into our allies, then we just have to remove you from the board.” The others behind the fox took this as the signal to ready their weapons. It seemed like a good point to call in Raph-chan. I focused on the skill C’mon Raph. With a sound like something tearing, Raph-chan appeared. It seemed she was even capable of breaking barriers now.
“Raph! Raph, raph!” said Raph-chan intently. It seemed like our other allies were in trouble too. At the same time, she was pointing up at the dragon in the sky above us. She wanted to say something to do with that.
“Raph Shadow, can you use your magic inside the Sanctuary?” I asked.
“Raph . . .” came the forlorn reply and a shake of the head. This was heading toward tit for tat with sanctuaries, then, but I couldn’t account for interference from the cage. It was probably better to wait and have Raph-chan incant her own Sanctuary magic later.
“Couldn’t we do this after we’ve stopped the ones causing the waves?” I suggested.
“Such a proposition does not suit everyone on our side. If we can defeat you, then we can obtain your technology for ourselves anyway,” the fox replied.
“You seem to think we’re going to be a pushover. I’ve got bad news for you in that regard,” I sniped back.
“Do you think we would show ourselves without some kind of trump card?” the fox countered. Then both the fox demi-human and puma therianthrope threw their weapons toward us.
“Watch out!” Shadow shouted.
“Go! Fragarach Custom!” one of the enemies shouted. With a noise that sounded dangerous, the swords that the fox demi-human and puma therianthrope threw flew up to us and started chopping.
“Shooting Star Shield!” I shouted in reply, putting up a barrier and sending out float shields to block the attacking blades. For a moment it looked like the disembodied weapons were giving up, dropping down to the ground, but then they attacked again, hard and low. They seemed to have some kind of auto tracking.
“Oh! Is this it? They move around so quickly!” Keel said, eyes wide as she watched the blades in the air.
“They will purzue a target until they land a blow. I’m zurprized at you being able to block them, Zhield Hero,” Shadow said.
“They do seem pretty powerful,” I replied. A heavy attack clashed with a float shield in that same moment, pushing it backward but luckily not breaking it.
“Impressive! I didn’t expect them to deal with that!” the puma said.
“Let’s try this next!” the fox replied. The entire Piensa squad rushed toward us. The fox and puma took out fresh weapons. Shooting Star Shield still seemed enough to handle the problem. Then the one with the dagger changed his weapon into an auger and threw it at us.
“Shield Breaker V!” a male voice shouted, and with a shattering noise, my Shooting Star Shield broke apart instantly.
“What?!” I exclaimed. The voice sounded as though it had enhanced the skill . . . which told me exactly who we were facing! I needed to boost everyone’s abilities or we wouldn’t stand a chance! I focused on magic and incanted. “All Liberation Aura!” I placed support magic on all my allies and then caught the swords of the incoming fox and puma on my shields. As power swelled up inside them, Raphtalia, Shadow, Keel, Raph Shadow, and Ruft all gave shouts and launched their own attacks into the opening created by me blocking the incoming attacks.
“Bind Wire!” S’yne shouted, matching the others’ attacks with wires to bind up our attackers. They seemed maybe on equal footing with Keel, but they weren’t ready to fight Raphtalia. Even Shadow could probably hold his own now with the new levels he’d received.
“I, the Staff Hero, command the spirits and command the world. Dragon Vein. Combine your power with my magic and bravery! As the source of your power, the Staff Hero implores you! Let the true way be revealed once more and provide them with everything!” The magician with the staff finished her magic. “All Remove Everything X!” The next instant, the three in the lead sped up! They slashed easily through the threads S’yne created and came right for us. With an assortment of clashes, Raphtalia combated the fox demi-human. Keel, the Shadow, and Raph Shadow attacked the puma therianthrope. Ruft and S’yne fought the eagle therianthrope. The eagle was surrounded with wind and floating skillfully in the air.
“Oh wow! This is amazing. Talk about a rush of power!” the eagle said.
“It can’t be . . . can it?” Raphtalia said, eyeing the two at the back while her katana was locked with the fox in front of her. I was dealing with the flying swords, but who knew how long that would last? They were going to land a hit eventually.
“Thiz iz . . . problematic,” Shadow said.
“Raph!” agreed Raph Shadow.
“They suddenly got a lot faster,” Ruft added.
“Bubba, are we going to be okay?” Keel asked.
“You back there! What are you?” I asked directly, glaring at the two holders of what had to be the staff and projectile vassal weapons.
“The guy with the shield seems to be their leader! Oh, great staff wielder, take him out!” the fox cried out.
“Take them all out, one after the other!” the puma said. The staff holder didn’t look like she wanted to talk. Then she pointed her staff at me and shouted.
“Air Strike Blast V! Second Blast V!” Two beams of light were emitted from the staff toward me. I put my shield up and took them head-on. I was able to stop them, but they were powerful! With a grunt, I deflected the attacks, shifting them away to the side. But then a flurry of axes flew toward me as though waiting for that very moment.
“Air Strike Throw, Second Throw, Torrid Throw! Tornado Throw X!” the male voice shouted.
“Shield Prison!” I read the incoming arcs of the hand axes and other weapons and then used a life-force-enhanced cage of shields to block the rotating tornado. The shield cracked and shattered around me, but the use of life force kept me safe. For now.
There was no mistaking it after all that.