487 CHPT 487: Enemies on Allies/Gods on Stand-By.

"Ursula... Ursula….. Ursula…. Ursula."

Maris' voice was like a steady patter at the back of her mind. Like droplets of water from an old faucet— something insignificant that disappeared the moment you lost focus.

Losing focus. Claude told her it was the same as dying. They were synonymous.

But how do you address that when a million things are happening at once?

The Fiara Family watching overhead like ravenous bats waiting to swoop in and suck the life out of them.

The Nine….

Her Father itching for a reason to fully cook the fillets Ronin would cut them into.

The other Students and Betters enraged by the now historical Glorian Upset.

And the very beings everyone watched.

The last match.

Hot blood bubbled as her hook-like claws curled into the skin of her thighs, freezing the moment it hit the air around her.

"Hey, miss. Your friends trying to talk to you. Wake up, you panic anymore and Frosty's gonna high tail his furry ass over there and eat a student." Cassidy's voice entered her mind. Quick and seamless as if her conscious gained a southern drawl and masculine tone… well, more masculine tone.

She shook herself off, turning to find Maris still tapping her shoulder as the Announcer rambled.

"Why…? Why not allow them to fight?"

"Oh don't sweat it, Maris. I'm not about to risk a debt collector or lost better running up on me for revenge. I'll stick to the main events." Warren whispered.

"So you won't help Claude and I fight off the ones after us?" Maris said calmly.

Warren looked as if he just put together a mystery only to realize it would result in his death. "Man FUCK—"

"I'd have to take a guess that it has something to do with Samuel. And if that's the case, this fight is going to be janky as hell."

"What is janky?" Maris questioned Isaac who stood at her left.

"Messy— poor quality. This won't be a classic one side versus the other kind of match. Even if that's what the Announcer desired." Isaac pointed at Claude and Samuel's backs as they faced their trio of opponents. "Those two are much greater enemies than the three standing against them. And that's clear….. even through all the other people with knives aimed at us."

Maris nodded and slightly unsheathed her sword, "I see."

There it was again. Hand on the blade, grooves and knit-work of the handle settling into her calloused palms. Blood in the air— faint and electrifying as if life was coming to her with another lesson on the importance of the small things. Small sweet invigorating things…..

Unlike the stadium grounds where beasts as big as three men crowded Claude. And fires as dark as the knight sky danced on Samuel's skin. She could almost feel their heart beats.

Claude's like the ominous and predatory gait of a wounded beast. Steady footfalls. Gaining. Growing. Never ceasing.

Samuels held something similar if not harder punching in slower speeds.

Boom….boom….bo—

"BEGIN!"

VWWOOOOOM!!!

The sound of the Announcers yell stunned her out of the weird trance she'd fallen into and gave her barely enough time to prepare for the massive wind blast that sent every student body crashing into the far walls in a roiling mass of bodies.

There were those among them that had better reflexes. Ursula caught all of them in an act of incredible sturdiness and durability, shrugging off and evading the mass of bodies flying at her as she carried them.

Stella flipped far out of the way of the blast only to find Chase standing next to her in his God Form. Alongside them Kali's Chosen looked as if she never moved. The rest of the students were too far to be near them and fully recovered on the other side hidden behind Tanks who looked like they could care less about the devastating wind current that hit them.

It was then that Maris noticed the faint bits of laughing and cheering.

She looked up at the stone box held up by earthen walkways connecting all the different Biomes of Ra Stadium.

The runes spitting imagery of the areas they couldn't see with human eyes showed the battle had already begun.

And a battle it was.

***

FWSSHHHH!!!

Samuel moved in bright purple explosions of flame generated from the sparks caused by the flick of his claws. He'd learned to fly with explosions.

And the speed that came from it allowed him to dip and dash through the greenery in a blur as silent holes were ripped through trees and bushes with every attempt Aiko made to take him down.

"STOP!" Claude snarled as he ran beside Samuel, swapping between swinging from vines and running like a scaled saber fanged maniac.

"SAMUE—" He tried to call to Samuel again as the forest burned in his wake before having to dodge a focused blast of what looked like sand.

SHSHSHSHSH!!!!

It brushed past him and hit the trees, shredding them down to their barest portions as they tipped over, sending birds flying and spectators roaring.

To Claude's left, Tufani was riding a sand wave, ripping up the forest floor and morphing it into more of his mineral dust.

"Is that an Element?"

"[The same way Classes have Variations so do Elements. Nature and Sand are very similar in that regard.]"

"Why are you yelling at your only teammate?" Tufani yelled over to him in between send blasts.

"Because he's a dick." Claude said as he continued to slap different portions of the trees he passed, slowly beginning to swallow the suns rays. When the shadows came he already moved.

WOOSH!

Tufani swerved on his sand wave to stay at Claude's side. Claude was already behind him, hand outstretched as darkness exploded from his palm.

Tufani didn't hesitate to attack despite the oddity only to be interrupted by a flanking shadow in the shape of a Wolves head biting into his face.

RAGHSH!

"Urck!" Tufani yelped as his cruel red aura took the brunt of the Phantom Wolf mauling and knocked him into a tree.

Claude used his Element to strap him where he fell and took off for the others.

His nose told him Bengal was nearby— close to Samuel, but he wasn't making himself visible to human eyes. And as much as Claude wanted to search him out with other means, he found Samuel. Firing blasts at Aiko— who easily shot them into purple explosions with the wind blasts from her arrow.

The sound was like high pitched pops. Like if tea pots exploded after the water began to boil and whistle.

Claude yelled and Frosty jumped out of the bushes near Aiko, barking so loud it must've felt like a bomb on her sensitive ears.

"ARCK!" Aiko yelped but didn't let herself lack. She spun around to shoot Frosty.

Claude panicked before speaking to him. "Grow."

Frosty's size bloomed like flowers in spring. His muscles bubbled, his limbs extended and widened to support his midsections expansion until he was triple his original size.

Aiko shot and hit his leg, blowing off a tuft of fur.

The crowd cringed as he lunged and bit down on her, shaking his jaws wildly before throwing her into a tree.

Samuel didn't get any time to react as a chain covered in green flames wrapped his midsection.

"Stop burning the FUCKING FOREST!" Claude used the strength borrowed from Diamondback and swung him in circles before throwing him into the bushes where he crashed into Bengal as he hid.

Samuel and Bengal sounded like wild dogs as they tumbled until one finally split.

"[A little flustered are we?]"

"His Fire damages Nature. It doesn't benefit it like regular fire— he's making me weaker by recklessly using it."

Claude flipped out of the way just as a wind shot blew a hole in the floor where he stood.

He turned to find Aiko perched up in a tree firing another shot already.

FWIP!

FWIP!

Claude evaded them all while trying to restrain her with branches before one shot hit his leg from behind. He was almost in disbelief before realizing one glaring issue.

The wind arrows she shot before didn't dissipate.

"Oh fuck."

Suddenly the speed of her shots picked up. For every one she fired, three more were called back into the battle from all areas.

Claude abandoned dodging and jumped up at her as his beastial siblings closed in.

"Foolish." She muttered before waving her hand and sending a blast of wind at his face. The sound caused her to miss the Malevolence Tether wrapping her waist and yanking her off the branches.

Claude pulled her down to him, jumping with his knee raised to connect with her chin.

CRACK!

The ground met her fast in a jingle of sectional plate armor and ornate flowy clothing. She got up in a burst of wind and flew off. Before Claude could chase her, Bengal pounced on him.

Lupines of Remus stink. He smelled him coming from behind before taking down Aiko.

WOSH!

His claws met air as Claude side stepped and twisted with his elbow flared. Smashing it into the enemy Lupines face with a loud crunch.

Before Bengal could hit the ground Claudes ears twitched and Loba snarled at him from the trees. He caught Bengal, gripping the back of his head to throw him in the direction of the sandstorm.

He was swallowed up by it in a flash of golden dust and refractive sunlight that looked almost like lightning. If Claude focused he could see Tufani inside, bloodied and angered from Claude's restraints.

He whistled. Frosty, Loba and Diamondback took off.

"Friendly fire has done you no favors. Neither will I!"

The storm smashed into Claude, swallowing him up as it did Bengal.

Inside he battled with Tufani. Punches, kicks, grapples that should've broken bone. It all was shown to the world in flashes as the sandstorm twisted and swapped forms.

It became even clearer when they suddenly were airborne and bursting through the reinforced glass covering of Predators Forest.

Suddenly they were visible to the massive stadium crowd without Rune magics.

The roaring could've been heard for miles.

The rest was hazy on Claude's senses. They hit the ground elsewhere. In a mountainous region with stone as far as the eye could see— split only by evergreens and mossy grass. A light rain slicked the earth and gave it an even colder feel. That same thing failed to dull the sounds of glass falling.

Claude opened his eyes to find he laid next to Samuel— still bound in his Malevolence Tether from before the blast.

Ahead of them Tufani stood comfortably beside Aiko as Bengal dragged himself to his feet.

From the hole in the see through ceiling sunlight fell on Tufani like magical rays. Solidifying and forming around the spaces in his armor to add to his form. Ending in a canid shaped helm with blood red eyes.

The hairs on Claude's arms rose.

"Chosen of Set….." Samuel growled.

"Son of Ronin." Tufani said casually. "The world mourned your loss….. to stay in the good graces of The Nine, of course. As for you brother, I am truly sorry."

Samuel spit flames at Tufani in an attempted cheap shot only for him to block it with a swipe of his spear.

"Don't come to me with your apologies, sandeater! He got what was coming to him. He was weak." Samuel tried to hide the steam rolling off his shoulders.

Tufani and Aiko viewed him with confusion at his words.

"And you—..." Samuel trailed off upon looking at Claude.

Followed by the others.

"And you….. son of someone that's for sure." Tufani said after looking at Claude.

Claudes ears rang.

"MAkE SEt….. sCrEAMmmmm….. AnD i'Ll rrrrReWard yOu…"

DING!

[EVO1 God Form Activated!]