Countdown

I dodge the next shot, feeling the beam brush across the side of my cheek singing the skin before it heals just as quickly.

(The heck is happening? The output is three times bigger than it was minutes ago. Is this some sort of trick by Tak? Or maybe an ability the gun holds specifically?)

Pondering in thought, another blast is fired clipping my side, Tak already charging another one as I start losing altitude from the hit. Pulling the trigger another beam soars towards me only managing to burn the ends of my hair breezing by to destroy parts of the festival grounds.

(He missed? ...So that's it he's getting flustered. Jai mentioned the possibility of the royal guards coming down, my guess...they don't know about Tak and his gang. He must be rushing to finish this fight so they can leave without getting caught. I'm not the only one short on time. In that case...)

Evading past the next shot I resummon my sword taking in the sudden changes while increasing my speed to close in on Tak.

(My sword is smaller? Is it...because of his Bakt?)

I swing down with an overhead slash, Tak raising his bazooka above his head to shield the oncoming attack before pushing me away.

He swings Bakt like a bat the next instant firing a shot in the opposite direction to propel it forward adding more force to his swings.

Our weapons meet time and time again pushing each other back as our feet slide in the dirt, one of us looking to gain the upper hand.

Swinging overhead for his neck Tak ducks under unloading another shot, the ray bypassing my sword yet again hitting me with enough force to the stomach to send me airborne.

(Shit!)

I watch as my weapon shrinks again stopping a few feet from the hilt nearly resembling a dagger. Throwing the small projectile it bounces off the gun breaking apart before fading away completely obscuring Tak's vision.

Resummoning the dagger again I toss it a second time watching the scene replay itself, the blinding light leaving Tak with no visual of my location. Repeating this method a third time I appear right beneath him as the blinding light fades away my fist connecting with his jaw in a surprise attack.

Grabbing the front of his shirt I gift him with a headbutt followed by multiple punches across his face, stomach, and chest until the gun falls from his hands when I send him flying with a kick to his exposed side.

Takata lands crashing into a drink stand, the fluids soaking his clothes and hair as he leans into the broken wood, tongue lapping at the splattered beer and other beverages on his face before crazily looking back at me even as I charged getting closer and closer to him.

"Not a bad idea kid. You caught me off guard using your weapon as a blinding smokescreen, but you see I've always had two weapons since the start of our fight."

He whistled a small tune, the instant it finished I felt a surge of pain rip through my stomach, the ends of a giant lance completely poking out as I fell to one knee in shock.

(This is, the same weapon he used to track us after getting Leifa's blood)

"Surprising, no? I want to introduce ya to Blip, my second weapon, it can shrink or enlarge itself depending on the specific tune I whistle, though you've already met when it was much smaller."

"Of course, there's no need to feel bad. You've managed to hold me up this long so I'll at least bother remembering your name."

Patting my head as he confidently strolled by, I could hear the sound of his footsteps pacing back and forward, searching through the dirt for Bakt.

Approaching me, weapon in hand, he held the muzzle against my face amassing energy for one final blast, his index finger fidgeting in anticipation near the trigger.

"See you in hell."

With those parting words, Takata fired the last attack...the gun aiming upwards at the last second as a horrifying scream of pain reached my ears followed by the sounding of Bakt hitting the ground and Blip shrinking in size before hitting the floor as well.

Wrapped around him like a backpack Thalia was choking him from behind, legs around his waist as she held a burner to his left eye. Tears and blood coming from the socket Tak thrashed about violently as he blindly slams her backside into one stand to another, hands reaching out frantically for anything item he could use defensively.

Ducking under a random pan thrown from the stand in their tussle my hands and eyes immediately land on Bakt. Quickly loading the gun on my shoulders I set my sights on Takata.

"Thal!" My sister's eyes shoot in my direction the moment I call her name, that mere instant loosening her grip as Tak grabs a handful of hair removing Thalia from his back to slam her against the rocky ground.

Eyes narrowed in anger small embers of magic energy rise coursing through me into Bakt building up a powerful charge. Feeding every bit into the gun I watch as Takata yanks the piece from his left eye, his right focusing before landing on me in terror.

"Tik Tok, asshole."

Firing the stored energy it consumes Takata's entire body blasting him back as it tears through the junkyard demolishing everything in its path disappearing over the destroyed hill his house sat behind, an ear-deafening explosion ringing out as the area is further engulfed in flames before silence permeates the air once more.

"Thal!"

Tossing the gun aside I slide over to my sister brushing the hair from her face, eyes looking at me she manages a smile tinged with hints of pain.

"Did we win?"

Answering with a smirk of my own I laugh eventually breaking out into a coughing fit as I help my Thalia off the ground enveloping her in a crushing hug.

"Yeah, all thanks to you."

Staring at the sky, the vast blue field above colored murky gray begins to fill with dozens of massive white blimps. Rounds of people fall from the hangar, the tiny dots of the royal guards blotting the area as they paraglided down raiding almost every inch of the junkyard.

Hoisting Thalia on my back I sneak away from the festival grounds running through the decimated residential area as the yelling of soldiers reached our ears, their shadows falling upon us like predatory birds.

Squadrons opened fire with shockwaves of magic as I weaved between burned-down houses evading their attacks, each of them increasing with intensity as the sight of the pier emerged, Thalia and I drawing closer to our exit point.

Calling on my wings once more I leap off the side of Myscia as one final shockwave shakes the area behind us, together with my sister in tow the two of us freefall from the country finally escaping the ruinous scrapyard.