54 Chapter 53: BR-eak Them (V)

Day rose like a plague, blanketing the embroiling figures in its warm sun that baked down onto their sweating bodies. The sand ran lush with blood once again as it softened under the advent of the gushing liquid, streaming down from wounded and burdened figures littered across the dunes. The bright rays threatened to blind those that doggedly stared at the sky, and so their gazes were kept downwards as they made their way through the fray.

Most of the mercenaries decided to walk alongside their employers instead of directly fighting each other, memories of the day prior still fresh in their minds. They were still a small length from the actual procession of either mage or scientist, as they would disrupt their formations. What's more, the stony disfigured faces of the lower Swill loomed over the mage-aligned mercenaries with their permanently etched smiles, and the weaker, less held together accidents slobbered all over the ground as they longingly looked towards ragtag groups.

However, both sides still clashed against each other all over the Fracois Frontline, the eyes of all but the mages peeled for the subject of their rumors. It had been three hours since sunrise and bloodshed had occurred, and yet none of their feared adversaries had appeared. Although many were still vigilant, it was undeniable that the less perceptive of the aware started to blow off the retellings as if they were mere stories. Blown up myths cooked up by spineless cowards.

What they didn't know was that they were standing a few meters or so from the nearest battle, Ulun holding up a hand in a gesture to his three companions to stay where they were. Domingo and Bie were squatting down on the red and further reddening sand, the former even poking at it with the edge of his bone blade. Bie bounced on his heels as he waited, while Uris clutched her tower shield against her chest as she floated above, propelled by the leathery wings on her right calf.

Ulun steadily brought his plated hand down, before grasping on the remaining untouched hooks. His form blurred as he streaked past, forming a murky brown and ash blonde line as he shot towards the embroiled scientists and mages. The three followed him at a distance as he quickly brought down the bladed insides of the cane/hook and pulled, dispatching some of the enemies at a moment's notice.

Bie broke out into a run as Ulun started to singlehandedly reap the lives of the people in the area, shooting past him as he found his own conflict to reign over. Uris and Domingo similarly directed themselves independently, as they had come to a consensus to while the days away until significant progress or drastic changes occurred.

Shouts pierced the ears of their allies as some people screamed in terror, aghast at the instruments at slaughter taking centerstage on the warfront. Steady, determined gazes streamed out of the eyes of many, though they all fell into nothingness similarly. A steady squelch from the figures wading past rivers of lifeblood was the ending note many lives finished on.

They fought their way past the procession of scientists into the huddle of battling mages, running through the ranks like hellions as weapons clanged and horns cried. Bie was soon surrounded by the rocky Swill with Aimee in tow, who had remained silent until now. She roared in ager as she rained down punches upon the rocky creatures, while Bie intercepted any blows that sought to harm her in turn.

With the ever-cracking Ekulech firmly grasped in his rightmost hand, he became powdered with pebbles and dust from the creaking limbs of the Swill. Aiming the lowest edge of the bearded hand axe at chinks in their rocky covering, he picked away at their bodies before slamming the handle into their chest.

Surprisingly, the force of the blow swept the Swill off their feet as they became suspended in the air briefly before falling backwards. Before they could make the full descent Bie aided them by firmly planting his feet on their chest and increasing his weight by five times using Mountain's Step. An imprint formed on the ground as the Swill's body sunk into the mushy red sand.

Before Aimee could be struck once again in her fervor, Bie swung his right hand with the red thread, and while it was careening in the open air, he brought his stump down, the hand axe boring down on the approaching Swill's skull. He then controlled his hand to wrap the thread connecting it to his stump around the Swill's neck, before pushing down on the stony body supporting him as he leapt towards his marked target.

The Swill dragged him along after recovering from the initial surprise, a bitter brown glow exuding from their body in soft waves as their tenacity suddenly increased. Not even the current weight Bie had set himself at put up much of a hindrance, and Bie could only maintain his current state using the shores of resentment he had piled up.

Bie retracted his hand, planting his feet firmly on the murky sand whilst skidding alone, his momentum gradually stopping as red particles writhed in his wake. He fixed his grip on Ekulech and turned into a blur as he skirted around the adapting Swill, tracing a circle in the terrain as he moved.

Suddenly, the Swill felt a strong force bringing him towards the baby blue skinned boy, their guard being jostled around as their sense of balance was repeatedly disrupted. Their feet sunk into the sand as an expression of defiance, relying on the flowing power within their stones to keep them grounded. As seconds passed, the stony creature seemed to regain their vigor, as the force slowly lessened.

Bie's face broke into a smile as ominous as the illusory wide grin behind his lower back. The Swill had no time to react, only barely able to see the gleaming smile and traces of light emitted from Bie's yellow topaz eyes.

POW!

In a flash, Bie disappeared from his position and the Swill's line of sight became a world of blue, before eventually fading into black. Bie pivoted himself as he fell to the ground, restoring his upright posture after his successful dropkick. The face of the Swill was shattered, and if it weren't for the plate boots the young Guide wore, sharp stone fragments would have buried deep into the flesh of his feet. Instead, the shards harmlessly clattered off the metallic surface, leaving only small scratches as a result of its collision.

The two quickly broke out of the hasty encirclement as the fight wore on, their figures adorned with dust from the dunes and from the Swill. As if they had emerged from an ancient tomb, they were enshrouded by the dirty remnants of their enemies, who indeed lacked blood. Aimee was more than enough red, however, as the blaring red lines intensified as she entranced herself in the sensation of battle.

Bie felt the same as her, unknowingly wading through the stony river of enemies that besieged the two. He was improving as he moved, slowly guiding his energy to the places he needed it to be when he attacked or defended. Black cuts and bruises marred his pretty face, yet his eyes were crescent moons.

Unbeknownst to the two enthralled in the conflict, the battle would soon reach its peak...