Unmasked

Talon's blood rushes out of his small wound, as if it were cotton in a stuffed animal. The blood spins, forming a point that starts to blacken. Three metal spikes are forged from his blood.

"Ugh, my head." He begins to fade out of consciousness. "I can't lose here." His vision goes completely black. Everything around him is outlined in green in his vision. "This feels stronger than before." Looking to his side, his blood is a solid green. He holds his hand out to it, and the blood begins to retract and move back into his body.

"How are you doing that!? How did you overpower me when I was taking the iron from your blood!?" The bandaged figure appears as a green outline, they point at him revealing a hole in their hand, where wind flow seems to be stronger.

Talon sends a blade of wind towards the bandaged figure as soon as his eyesight returns, however the blade seems to die out halfway.

"I see now, you're using all your strength just to keep the blood inside. It will all be futile soon." The figure holds out their hand, sending numerous metal blades towards Talon.

"Let's take a look behind the mask." The image of a rooster appears behind Talon as the blades are sent off course, crashing into the bridge behind him.

A small green breeze reaches the figure's hand as they grip into a fist, the breeze becomes an air blade that travels through the hole, assaulting the figure directly and causing them to drop.

"That is it! I am finished with this little exchange!" The figure picks themselves up using the railing on the wall, their fair, feminine face makes an ugly expression, long black hair flows from them as they tear off the bandages and glasses.

"I should have known it was you right when I saw that prosthetic arm, Vex." Talon

"I suppose being one of the only revolutionaries missing an arm would make that observation a little obvious. Thankfully Chase thought it was just armor." She draws a dagger as a hooked blade extends from the metal arm.

"Speaking of which, Hazel, why have you stopped fighting?" She gives Hazel a bone chilling glare.

Chase looks up from the sound of Hazel collapsing again, she shivers in fear. She looks over to Chase while trying to mutter something. The massive roots in the tower reach for Chase, he manages to dodge them and conjure the snake to spew poisonous gas from above. The roots wither, and Chase leaps out of the gas holding a cloth over his mouth and nose, in his open hand he holds a punch fang weapon ready to attack.

Hazel looks on with fear at first. "I'm sorry I couldn't fight for myself." She closes her eyes in acceptance.

"For not ever training, you're very skilled." Talon deflects an incoming sword.

"I have no need to train nearly as much as you peasants." She jumps from blade to blade as she closes in on Talon. "For I was born leagues above you rodents. And a rat in the face of one such as I, is a disgrace." She closes blades with Talon and her hook blade rises.

"I like to think of you as more of a rat myself." Talon smerks.

Her wrath builds and she brings the blade down on Talon. A burst of wind sends her flying back from him. Coming to a stop, she lifts her hand. All the loose metal objects around begin to shake and then are pulled towards her. They wrap around the metallic arm, forming a gargantuan version of her metal arm.

"Die you irritable rodent!" Vex rips a chunk out of the wall behind her and launches it towards Talon.

Talon watches in horror as the massive rock hurtles towards him. Before it could crush him, giant roots and vines reach out from the sides of the wall, catching the boulder. He turns around to see Chase and Hazel exiting the tower with a cloth over their faces.

"Are you alright, Talon?" Chase holds his hand up in victory.

"Yeah." He scoffs. "Hey Hazel, do you think you can send it back?" He points at the rock above him.

"I can try." Hazel is taken back by his forwardness.

"Perfect. Chase, try clouding Vex's vision." The pair share a nod.

"So Hazel has finally betrayed us, no matter, she will be easy to fight." Vex watches as Chase stands in front of Talon. "They will not be able to even catch three of the-" Vex is interrupted by a toxic cloud exploding in her face.

She drops the massive rock and waves away the cloud. When she can see again, she watches the vines launch the previous boulder. Vex slices through the rock with the giant arm blade.

"Pathetic is that all you got-" Vex interrupts herself as she watches the wind whipping around Talon as he appears from behind the boulder.

All the air pressure from her attack is directed against her. It shreds the giant arm to ribbons, as Vex screams in pain.

"What nobel plays with dead animals? It's disgusting. It's cruel." Voices of hatred orbit around a young, black haired girl.

"Let's throw her in the pit where she belongs." She sits alone in a dark hole filled with nasty ooze.

"I want to know if the rodents will play with her corpse." Hundreds of red eyes light up in the hole in front of the girl, as dread fills her eyes.

She stands in the pit covered in blood as hundreds of dead rats lay dead around her.

"Come here." With a glorious ray of light a hand reaches into the pit for her. "It's impressive you managed to survive that, and even kill all those rats." The man talking to her wipes off the blood with a towel. "You don't need to live here with these monsters anymore, you can come with me and my friend." The man points over to Julius, who has been talking to some others. "You will be treated well, without judgment. And we will see what else you can do." The area around the girl and this man begin to disappear.

"Okay." She nods.

"Wonderful!" The man is now seen in full, his hair is a fiery red, his eyes are a golden orange color.

"I - lost." Vex lays in a pool of her own blood, her heavy breathing begins to slow as a tear runs down her cheek, soon her eyes glaze over and she succumbs to her wounds.

"You won't be the only one." Talon lays Vex's dagger next to her corpse.

"We should start going to help aqua." Chase snatches his attention.

"But what about Beu? She doesn't deserve to die." Hazel stops Chase.

"I forgot that Beu and Ridner would be on the wall too." Chase goes into thought, he then looks towards Talon. Alright Talon, you go help Aqua. Me and Hazel will find Beu, then we'll all team up and fight Leon." He pats Talon on the shoulder.

"Thanks for the backup anyways." Talon bolts through the tower and towards the keep.

The ground begins to quake and a large crack splits the tower on the path Skull went on.

"That's the one she's in!" Hazel clings onto a root for stability.

"We need to hurry then." Chase helps Hazel up and they make their way to the tower.