Chapter 13: Riding Out Death
Ouka
KIRIKO’S been shot!
No sooner did Ouka register the fact than a hail of bullets fired at him. In a moment of snap judgment, he pushed Kiriko down behind the cover of a row of seats. Cliff and Lovel dove behind the row on the opposite side of the aisle.
“Aggh…”
Ouka clenched his teeth when he heard Kiriko moaning in pain. Blood spilled from puncture wounds on both her legs.
They had been foolish in their carelessness. They should’ve been prepared for Heaven’s Gunner lying in wait for them, considering that their destination was technically still within Church grounds. Spinoza had ambushed them on the train cars, where they would have nowhere to run.
The showering bullets continued while Ouka regretted his lack of forethought, and No. 11, still standing in the middle of the train car, was caught in its assault. No. 11 protected his forehead with his arms, but the bullets cut through his entire body, splitting his wooden frame.
After what seemed like forever, the gunfire ceased.
“SPINOZAAAAAAAA!” Ouka shouted till his voice turned hoarse.
“…Ouka? Still alive, huh?”
Spinoza’s steady and quiet voice came from the front of the accelerating train car. Oddly enough, Ouka could hear his voice loud and clear over the noises of metal squealing, the rumble of the locomotive engine, and the wheels turning over the railway track. He poked his head out from behind the cover of the seats.
About twenty meters ahead, the door to the inner engine room was open, revealing Heaven’s Gunner and Spinoza. Spinoza was armed with a shotgun, which he aimed at the seats.
“I told you to back down before, Ouka… It’s still not too late. It won’t be long before every Golem goes berserk on the archipelago. Take Kiriko and those kids and escape this island while you have the chance.”
“You think I’d do that?!”
Kiriko was sitting beside Ouka with bloody legs. Lovel and Cliff were crouching behind the seats on the opposite side of the aisle. Ouka looked at each of them and said, “We’ve been used as your pawns from the very beginning. But we ain’t Golems. Don’t you go thinkin’ that everything’s gonna go as perfect as you plan!”
✦ ✦ ✦
“I thought you’d say that. Then let’s put an end to everything in the five minutes it takes to arrive at the research facility…” Spinoza replied. “Here I come, OUKA!”
A barrage of merciless bullets sprayed the seats they were hiding behind. The cacophony of clangs and sparks from the ricocheting bullets surrounded them. They were completely unable to make a move.
“Torah Lord!” Kiriko rose partially above the seat and shot her tranquilizer gun. Four times the number of bullets returned fire, making the attempt futile. A bullet struck her arm and she dropped back down behind the seat.
“Damn it! Don’t shoot at him like an idiot!” Ouka yelled at Kiriko.
“Won’t he run out of bullets?!” Lovel shouted across the aisle. “Why don’t we aim for when he has to reload?!”
“You can bet your damned neck he’s got more than enough bullets for firin’ the whole five minutes. And don’t forget: his Golem’s got four arms, and he has two. As long as he can reload some guns while he fires the others, he never has to stop shooting.”
Kiriko took Ouka’s advice and raised her voice. “No. 11! Turn your back to the enemy and crouch!”
Obeying her command, No. 11 turned around and crouched, warding off a few more bullets than standing had.
Ouka bolted from the cover of the seat with Dram. Bullets grazed his shoulders, but he couldn’t stop to feel the pain. He slid into hiding behind No. 11 in the middle of the carriage.
Yet, despite how big No. 11 was, he couldn’t block all the bullets pelting them, evidenced by the countless bullet holes that opened in Dram’s torso, though his forehead remained guarded.
“Kiriko, can you do anything to close the distance?!”
“I’ll try!”
No. 11 slowly trudged backwards toward the enemy. Ouka and Dram advanced closer, matching his speed.
About twenty meters lay between them. If they closed the gap some more, Ouka could sic Dram on Spinoza. But it was impossible at their current distance. As a four-legged animal, Dram couldn’t protect his forehead. Lunging straight at Spinoza from this far away guaranteed that the “e” on his forehead would have a hole through it before he even landed a hit.
“Get me another fifteen meters—even ten will do! At any rate, help me get up to the front car!”
Kiriko nodded, though he couldn’t see her. No. 11 succeeded in gradually advancing another five meters against the hail of bullets.
Keep it up, No. 11…! We’ve got a chance at winning if we can get a little closer! Just as Ouka got his hopes up, he heard a thundering burst that sounded different from a shot fired by a revolver.
The back of No. 11’s right leg exploded into sharp fragments of wood, halting his forward advance.
“Spinoza busted No. 11’s right leg…!” Kiriko hissed over the flying bullets.
The bullets from Spinoza’s double-barrel shotgun had blown the Engrave Incantation clean off No. 11’s leg. He was trying to inhibit the mobility of both the Tamer and her Golem. Against all odds, No. 11 dragged himself forward with just his left leg. His speed decreased to half of what it was before.
“Kiriko, how many shots does a shotgun have?!” Ouka hollered, his voice straining with his attempts to avoid bullets.
“Seeing that he’s not firing it like crazy, I’d say he doesn’t have many shotgun rounds on him… But our advance will be over if he gets the left leg too,” Kiriko answered, her voice bitter.
Cliff turned to Lovel and urged, “Lovel! Can’t you fix the chipped Engrave Incantations with your Remote Engrave Incantation?!”
“Sorry, I’ve got practically no knowledge about Engrave Incantations! I can’t do something so detailed without a textbook!”
Ouka grit his teeth at her disappointing answer. Neither he nor Kiriko could use Remote Engrave Incantations. They couldn’t fix No. 11’s right leg, and it was only a matter of time before No. 11’s left leg was blown off. The remaining ten-odd meters felt like hundreds.
Lovel’s voice came behind Ouka. “Kiriko, break this window!”
Hesitation flashed across Kiriko’s face for a moment, but she promptly reloaded the tranquilizer gun and shot the window above Lovel’s head. Lovel leapt and leaned outside the train car through the broken window.
“Lovel?!” Cliff cried out as bullets zoomed after her. She pulled herself onto the train car roof before the bullets grazed her.
Her voice echoed through the ceiling. “…I’ll spring a…surprise attack through the…roof…to distract…him…” They barely heard her say before her footsteps disappeared onto the next train car.
“That’s too reckless…!” Cliff exclaimed.
Kiriko heard him and shouted, “No. 11, please advance on a little farther, no matter the cost!”
No. 11 crawled the distance with his one leg. Once he almost reached the end of the first train car, the explosive burst of a shotgun cracked the air. What they had feared happened. The shotgun bullets ripped through No. 11’s Engrave Incantation, rendering the left leg immobile.
“Shit!” Ouka swore against his better judgment. Their hopes of closing the gap any farther had been completely dashed. Around twelve meters stood between Ouka’s current position and Spinoza. The distance was still too great.
Should we wait until we arrive at the station? No, No. 11 won’t last until then.
Innumerable bullets had pierced holes through the Golem’s neck, and his whole head threatened to fall off at any moment.
To make a dire situation even worse, Dram was reaching his daily time limit. Ouka had used him nonstop since the day started. He had a few minutes of use left at most.
Damned if you do, damned if you don’t, Ouka thought.
“Dram, let’s do this,” he reluctantly groaned to his partner. Dram moved out of his stiff crouch.
Behind him, Kiriko shouted, “Ouka! You aren’t planning on having Dram attack from there, are you?!”
“…I am.”
“You can’t do it! You won’t reach him! Dram will be destroyed before he arrives at the enemy!”
“What other option do we got?! We’re out of time!”
“Please wait, Ouka!” Cliff cut into their conversation. “I have an idea!” Tension rang in his voice. Bullets sliced through No. 11’s wooden frame without pause.
“You have an idea?”
“Yes! I’m positive Lovel is waiting for the right timing. This method won’t work more than once, but you’ll have one shot to pull it off!” Determination colored his voice now. His voice was of a man who had made up his mind and wouldn’t go back on it. “The key moment is soon…when Heaven’s Gunner stops firing—”