Chapter 13: 013 – Node base 3/4

<Antonia PoV>

I need to protect Octavius while he frees everyone!

There are 2 big grasshoppers, they look creepy with those skull-like mouths, their hindlegs look really dangerous, but they probably don't have a lot of movement range, and there’s a decent amount of space between them.

I should avoid their front so they can’t bite me and also their back so they can’t kick me, their side should be the safest place.

I take a sharp breath and run to the middle of the grasshoppers!

<Basic kick no.2>!

“Hyah!” I kick the right grasshopper on its middle leg, it’s very thin and fragile so it breaks easily!

It tries to turn around to bite me, but I jump to stay on its side, not letting it attack me.

But now the left one turns my way and tries to headbutt me!

However! Marceline blocks it with a sword!

We look into each other's eyes and nod, I’ll leave that one to her!

<Basic kick no.1>!

“Hah!” I kick the monster again, with even more force this time, toppling it!

The grasshopper starts flailing around, but its large leg can’t reach me.

<Basic kick no.5>!

“Hya!” I kick it one last time on its neck! 

It gets one cut on my leg with its front leg and it dies shortly after that.

Hah! It wasn’t tough at all!

I look at Marceline, and she’s also finished with her fight.

I take a look at my cut, it's not deep at all, but it’s still bleeding.

Annoying!

I take a deep breath, and use the <Sunflower overdrive> to close the wound using wood element.

It’s a pretty basic healing spell, it can only heal light wounds, but it’s still immensely useful!

Small injuries like this can build up, and they might even open and become worse if I keep fighting with them, or get infected, it also doesn’t use much mana at all!

It looks like the coast is clear for now, but we should hurry, whoever captured us will be preparing for us.

I’ll beat them up!

I take in my immediate surroundings.

Marceline doesn’t seem to have any injuries.

Dad is ok, but he’s very nervous, he can’t fight after all.

Makina also can’t fight, and she’s not injured.

We’re in a small hallway, the floor is swarming with crickets, there’s shrapnel all over the room, one of the doors has a big hole in it and a headless corpse is in front of it!

How scary!

I look at Octavius, he’s the one who did this, right?

Yikes, he can pack a pretty strong punch!

He’s in horrible condition though. 

He’s all beaten up, and that arm injury is like something out of a nightmare!

Arms are NOT supposed to be that flat or have teeth marks that deep!

He has the same bored expression he's been putting on since I met him though.

Is he trying to act though, or there something more to it?

It doesn’t matter.

I told him I’d get him to Basil safe.

But he’s the one who rescued us!

We did it the wrong way!

I’ll definitely beat whoever captured us to an inch of their life!

“Let me see that.” Marceline gets near him and inspects his arm. 

We hired her because she knew some healing spells after all, so she should be able to do something. 

 She shakes her head. “Ohh, this is bad, an injury like this is way above my skill, but I should be able to apply some first aid if we reach a safe place.” 

Dammit!

I’ll get everyone out of here safe, I won’t allow another injury like that to happen in my sight!

These people paid us to get to Basil safely, and I’ve been doing a pretty shabby job doing that so far!

Wait… “Is everyone here? I think we’re missing some people!” Oh no! Please be ok!

“Timotei is safe, but he’s chained in his cell.” Octavius explains the situation, and how many enemies we can expect..

Only 2 people and some of these locusts?

Bring them in, there’s no way I can lose!

“What about Master? Where is he?” Makina asks, she’s trembling and trying to not look at the floor, but there’s not a hint of concern in her voice.

Makoto… I don’t like him, he literally owns her!

Dad was also trying to butter him up for something, and I don’t like the implications of that.

But he’s also strong, very strong, if he’s safe escaping this place should be easy!

Octavius points at his cell. “He’s safe, but I don’t think he’s going to fight.”

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The hell does that mean?!

I go look inside the cell, and he’s curled into a ball crying!

*Sob* *Sob*

The nerve!

How can he be as strong as he is and still act like that?!

Very well, he IS a paying customer, it doesn’t matter if he’s a coward, I’ll also get him out of here.

“Let’s move on, the longer we stay here the worse it’ll be for us.” Marceline says.

I completely agree!

“Dad, stay here with the girl and the boys, we’ll be right back!” They should be ok here since there’s no other entrances.

Dad looked like he had swallowed a bug. “Please, please be careful, these people are much more dangerous than normal bandits.”

I give him a thumbs up. “I’ll be fine! So stay here while we get everyone out!”

I look at Marceline, she’s the only capable fighter left, she has a serious look on her face.

“I’m also going.” Octavius takes a step forward. “I can still fight.”

“Are you sure? We won’t be able to protect you in the middle of a fight.” Let me protect you dammit!

He nods.

“Very well, we’ll need all the help we can.” Marceline seals the deal.

Sigh…

The two extremes of boy, coward and overconfident.

Can’t you make my life easier?!

Hmph!

“Let 's go!” I say.

The three of us leave the room, and we enter into an empty hallway.

No locusts or other monsters…

I don’t like this.

There’s a metalic door at the end of the hallway.

“Walkmen, at the cry of war...” A woman starts singing in the next room.

It’s not the same song as before, I’m not feeling tired.

“We have to hurry! This song will strengthen her allies more the longer she sings it!” Octavius warns us. “If she finishes the song, any locusts she has will be at least twice as strong!”

I try to open the door, but it’s locked, so I kick it instead!

The moment it breaks, a locust tries to bite my leg, but Marceline pierces its head with her sword!

I kick its head too, killing it immediately!

The two of us rush into the room, but Octavius hides using the wall as cover.

It’s a big room, all the furniture has been pushed to the sides, there’s 2 other locusts in the room, behind there’s a shirtless man with a weird red cloth mask covering his entire head, it looks like a clown’s hat and a skull, and behind him there’s a woman singing.

“Hmph! That bastard Clovis couldn’t even do such a simple job properly!” The man with the mask angrily barks. “We should’ve just killed the lot of you back then!” 

“Assemble the steel and the bridle...” The woman continues singing

The masked man moves his hand, and the locusts start moving towards us with incredible speed. 

<Basic kick no.2>!

“Hyah!” I kick the locust that’s rushing at me.

The locust meets my kick with a headbutt!

This thing really is stronger than the other ones!

After a moment, I have to jump back, the locust is mostly undamaged, I’m still confident in winning, but if it continues getting stronger I’m definitely not walking away uninjured.

“And the Earth trembles to its core…” The woman continues singing, worsening the situation.

The locust starts charging at me again.

However, Octavius used some sort of spell to shoot the masked man from his cover!

I don’t think it did a lot of damage, my kicks would’ve hurt him more, but the locust stops for a moment!

<Basic kick no.1>!

I jump at the locust and kick it again right in the head!

It’s not enough to dent its armor, but it recoiled for a second, and the masked man coughed up some blood!

Octavius shoots him again, but he jumps to the side and dodges it.

Just as he does so the locusts stop moving completely, he probably can’t control the monsters and move at the same time.

<Basic kick no.3>!

<Basic kick no.3>!

<Basic kick no.3>!

I take this small window to do as much damage as I can, leaving a huge indent on the middle of its forehead, killing the monster!

Marceline also killed the other locust, but there’s a little blood on her mouth, it seems she’s not as unscathed as I am.

“To the resounding roar of the cannon…” However, the woman continues singing, as if she had no other worry in the world.

The masked man spits some blood. “None of you will live to see tomorrow!”

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