Once he got into the interior though, he got to work, moving with a speed and grace only a Holy One-infused Adonis could. He felt the pace and beat and tension of the battle flow through him, knowing exactly when and how and where to strike at all times. Enzo was so attuned, he felt he could have waged this fight blindfolded.
Soon, the Honjo Masamune was coated in blood, slippery to hold and weighed down by the slaughter. His shield was dented from the concentrated fire, and his pistol was down to three shots, but he pressed on, taking out the enemy’s communication station, slicing through the guards of the commanders, and disrupting their entire operation.
“Elias,” the one named Marco screamed as Enzo put his sword through a man’s throat. Enzo pulled the Honjo Masamune out just in time to raise his shield against the three shots that hammered against it. Then, to his surprise, Marco rammed into his shield with his body, trying to knock it aside. He was soon joined by Dylan, their fat colonel. The other commanders had all stopped directing troops and were engaging him.
Except for that traitor woman. Jill continued to stand there and speak into her comm while the others did all the work. That coward. It pained him that she was still alive while his brothers and sisters had died in the field. The Betrayer was barely a candle to Azumi’s bonfire.
Two of them hammered at him with bullets, trying to flank him for a shot. However, no two mortals, vessels or otherwise, could take him down by themselves. He blocked a grouping of bullets from Dylan, dodged Marco trying to club his head off with the rifle, and attacked. A quick dart forward speared Marco in the leg with the Honjo Masamune, and then he turned and knocked Dylan down with a bash of the shield to the head. He reversed his grip and rammed the sword down at the fat man’s chest. The ugly colonel proved surprisingly fast and spun out of the way at the last second.
Right temple. Duck now!
“Burn in hell,” a voice to the side of him said.
Enzo saw one of the commanders with a pistol aimed at his head a scant meter away. He twisted away just as the man pulled the trigger. He felt a sharp pain burn his cheek. He finished his spinning motion and swung his sword in an uppercut. The Honjo Masamune sliced his assailant from groin to neck. The man, a look of shock on his face, tried to open his mouth as blood poured out of the long wound. A sparkling light left the man’s body and floated into the air.
“Faust!” the Betrayer screamed as his body fell backward. It seemed Enzo finally had her attention. She took aim at him and fired.
Left side chest. Now!
Enzo dodged with ease and the bullet hit one of her Prophus soldiers in the back. Realizing her error, she became more cautious and closed in, exactly what Enzo wanted.
The one named Marco, now limping, attacked with his rifle, still trying to knock Enzo’s shield out of the way. Enzo parried with the Honjo Masamune and slid the blade low to take out the fool’s other foot. Marco stumbled out of the way clumsily, narrowly avoiding losing his leg. He was off-balance, however, and slipped on the wet floor.
Enzo switched the angle of the Honjo Masamune and sliced the man’s chest open. Marco screamed as a fountain of red exploded all over the ground. Just as Enzo lifted the blade for the killing blow, his chest exploded in pain. He was knocked onto his back. He saw Jill locking eyes with him as she aimed another shot. Enzo kept the shield close to his body as she bounced bullets off it. The woman was a pest. He would make her pay.
Up now! She has just pulled back to reload.
As he scrambled to his feet, Enzo took a punch to the face from the fat ugly colonel. Another punch caused him to stagger backward. As the third punch came, Enzo leaned to his left and countered with the hilt of his sword, punching it upward through the soft tissue where the neck met the head. The large man toppled over, clutching his throat.
Enzo, gasping from the exertion, watched as the Australian writhed on the ground, his mouth opening and closing as if a fish out of water. With a determined smirk, Enzo walked up to him and gave him a salute with his sword. “You fought well, betrayer. You almost beat me. But like the rest, you are not equal to Enzo, leader of the Genjix. Now, to the Eternal Sea with you.” He reversed the grip of the Honjo Masamune and brought it straight down into Dylan’s stomach. The old man shuddered and gripped the blade as it pierced him.
All that was left now was the woman. Enzo looked around for her, but she was nowhere in sight. He tried to pull the blade out of the enemy leader, but couldn’t. He looked down and saw that Dylan had grabbed the sword’s blade collar and guard with his hands, and was keeping it in place in his stomach. Enzo yanked again. Still, the blade wouldn’t come out.
“She’s a fine blade,” Dylan rasped. “I’m keeping her.”
“You are not worthy…” Enzo began. He tugged again, but the fat bastard would not let go.
“You think too highly of yourself, you fucking bastard,” a woman’s voice said from behind. Then Enzo felt several sharp pains in his back. He stumbled forward. He spun and lashed out with his shield, just missing the woman as she ducked underneath it. Then she fired again, this time plugging him three times in the stomach at close range.
Enzo flew backward and landed roughly on the floor. The pain was greater than anything he had ever felt before. He felt his vision blur as she calmly walked up to him. Instead of finishing him off like she should have, the fool bent over and checked on the Australian.
“Dylan,” she sobbed as sparkling white lights of his Holy One danced into the air above them.
Enzo’s vision darkened for a few moments, and when his eyes focused again, she was still there, this time, checking on Marco. Enzo tried to sit up.
Stay still. Your wounds are serious.
“I refuse to let the Great Betrayer defeat me.”
The physical exertion was too much, and he lost consciousness again. This time, he wasn’t sure for how long. When he managed to open his eyes one more time, he heard the rushing of water like a gigantic waterfall and saw bright yellow colors flashing above him. He could barely make out the woman’s face as she shouted something imperceptible and shot her gun somewhere outside his field of vision. He couldn’t make out what she was saying, but it felt desperate. Maybe victory was still his. After all, he had never lost before. Even injured, he was fated for this glory.
Enzo blacked out one more time. When he came to, he saw a friendly face. “Palos,” he groaned. He was being moved. He could tell by the way the patterns on the ceiling ran behind Palo’s head.
“I have you, Father,” Palos said, leaning over him. “Rest. We’re getting you out of here right now. The evacuation is commencing.”
Then everything went black.
45 Last Meet Up
Now you know our truth. We are not wise or caring beings. We are not a species that respects and honors other forms of life. We are an aggressive, engulfing, terrible force that consumes entire solar systems.
If the Genjix are successful, Earth as you know it will die and follow the fate of the many thousands of other planets the Quasing have colonized. The Prophus do not wish that fate upon Earth. We fight now, and we will do so until there are none of us left. Until the Eternal Sea.
Tao
“Lock the doors,” Jacob ordered, his voice echoing off the high ceilings in the large room. “No one is leaving until we’ve come to a proper resolution, Roen Tan. And not just you; your betrayer as well.” The room lit up as a stream of flames burst into the air. “We’re settling this once and for all.”