200. The Expected Encounter
A few moments earlier, just after the collision…
Metal groaned as the bulwark distorted and explosions erupted across the ship. The ground trembled violently. A cacophony of shouts, screams, and crying haunted the hull as people scrambled to abandon the sinking battlecruisers, filling the corridors with despair.
Astrid and Friederich ran down a broad hallway, passing by personnel and knights. No one was fighting. The Umbral Dunkelheit had been defeated. It was every man for themselves.
"But why did Vanguard Charlie crash into an allied battlecruiser?" The question alighted briefly in her mind, but Astrid shook her head, banishing the thought for now.
"Let's go! They're attacking us!" one of the knights warned his comrades as he carried an injured man. They emerged from the opposite direction, his battered face covered with blood and bruised.
His face paled when he saw two Arcanists approaching. His hands rose in surrender. "Please, Arcanists. We've surrendered," the knight said.
Astrid waved him off. "No, tell me, who is attacking you?"
"I… I don't know… They just appeared out of nowhere after the crash!" his injured friend replied, clasping the stump of his arm. Dried blood and gauze were wrapped around it.
"A clean, severed limb? New enemies?" Astrid mumbled, thinking hard.
"Save that thought for later, Astrid," Friederich urged. "Go, now! Get to the escape pods!" he bellowed, motioning for the knights to move. They exchanged an uncertain look before nodding appreciatively.
"Listen, the entire vessel is going down. When the emergency protocol is triggered, it also grants all access to any mobile suits or crafts you can find!" one of the men shared willingly while limping past them.
"Got it! Thanks for telling us!" Friederich responded with a wave.
"Okay. Let's just go and meet them. We'll figure it out as we go," Astrid concluded. Friederich hummed in agreement, and they sprinted toward the merging Vanguard Charlie.
The wide hallway led to a collapsed section of debris and buckling beams, where flames and smoke roared.
"We must be close, Friederich," Astrid analysed. Then she spotted another path that led to their destination. "This way," she called out.
Their boots clanked against the metal floors, echoing through the new area. She could no longer hear any sign of people, only occasional distant explosions that sent tremors through the ground.
The path eventually led toward one of the entrances to the side port where they kept the Armatus mobile suits and the repair shop.
"Wait!" Friederich whispered, stopping Astrid from advancing further. He pointed to his long, pointed ear as it twitched.
"Huh?" Astrid gasped softly. She focused her own hearing, listening intensely. Something dark lurked within that hangar chamber.
"Let's ambush them!" Astrid schemed, flicking Friederich's shoulder.
He flinched. "What?" he frowned.
The Adamas effect rippled on his clothes, indicating that her prior durability enhancement was still intact.
"Just checking. Let's go!" Astrid urged and pushed him forward.
Astrid moved nimbly, her back tracing the wall as they made their way toward the side of the door. There were no footsteps, yet they detected the presence of an invasive guest.
"How many are there? Only one?" Astrid analysed, straining her ears.
Beside her, Friederich pressed his back against the wall, manifested his katana in its sheath, his thumbnail touching the metal guard of his blade in anticipation.
Then a cloaked figure emerged from the doorway, seemingly oblivious of their presence. Astrid jumped forward with her hands extended.
In her peripheral vision, a barrage of kunai whizzed through the air.
Reflexively, Astrid raised her hands. "Phoros!" She conjured the barrier.
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The spherical defence materialised, deflecting the throwing blades.
"Ambush!" Astrid warned Friederich. The cloaked figure reappeared right next to her, its black arc boots striking her side.
Astrid grunted in pain. The Adamas effect rippled, and she tanked the hit, using her hand to lock the leg to her side.
In front of her, a second assassin with two-toned hair sprinted forward, her dark purple cloak fluttering mythically and eerily. She unleashed a volley of kunai, a clear attempt to keep Astrid's attention.
Mustering her strength, Astrid yanked the first enemy along with her, dodging one of the kunai. Another grazed her skin. She bit her tongue, ignoring the pain.
"Two of them?" her mind raced.
The cloaked figure shifted her weight and spun mid-air, using Astrid’s lock as a pivot. A powerful kick slammed into her face, and Astrid heaved. Her fingers slipped, and the enemy broke free of her grasp.
Her ruby-red eyes blazed, her face red with fury.
Astrid’s fist was engulfed in raging flame as she arched it at the cloaked foe.
On her left, a surprise kick hammered her shoulder, shattering her Adamas. Her shoulder plate broke into pieces. Before she could recover, another kick was hurled at her back, and she stumbled forward. Her world rocked, her vision unfocused, and the taste of iron filled her mouth.
Her crimson hair began to glow. Astrid grew even more furious. She was out for blood now, intense mana surging into her veins as she was about to explode. "AHHH! VOLCANIC—"
BOOM!
A loud shockwave snatched everyone’s attention. Astrid’s tattered face snapped to the side.
A maelstrom of mana exploded from Friederich, the pressure wave alone vibrated the nearby bulkhead. Yet, at its core, the unkempt-haired assassin stood unyielding, having caught the deadly, shimmering blade of the katana between his bare palms.
Her jaw dropped, and words left. "Celestius Jovian!?"
“Nnnhg!“ Astrid propped both hands on the ground to steady herself.
"I’m impressed," Jovian muttered with a faint grin. "But can you get this dangerous thing out of my face?" he quipped lightheartedly.
Friederich hissed air out of his nose, slowly and steadily sheathing his blade. The whirlwind ceased a moment later.
"Well, who would have thought I’d run into Arcanists on the enemy frontlines? The Prime Guardian of Solis Aeternum," Jovian said, extending his hand amicably. "And the newest addition, a Lunarius of Aries, at that," he added, locking eyes with Astrid.
"What… what's going on?" Astrid questioned. She attempted to stand on her feet, only to wobble and collapse onto the floor, her head still spinning.
Two female assassins appeared behind her and pulled back their hoods, revealing their striking visages.
The woman who threw the kunai had black and white hair with striking purple eyes. On the right, the cloaked assassin who packed the powerful kicks with her arc boots was the bunny Wildren with a white hime-cut hairstyle and dull golden eyes.
"Ziyue? Lupus?" Friederich exclaimed, not believing his eyes.
"Miss me?" Ziyue chuckled sarcastically. Lupus didn’t respond. She stepped to Jovian’s side, crossing her arms.
"Wait! You all know each other?" Astrid muttered painfully. "I got beaten up for no reason! Ugh!" she grumbled with irritation.
"Somewhat," Ziyue responded with a wink.
Friederich’s face remained deadpan. Then, Jovian and Lupus joined his side. "Do you know where Celestius, I mean, former Celestius Ignius is?" Jovian asked bluntly, adjusting his gauntlets.
"And Rhok Wagner, where is he, Prime Guardian?" Lupus interjected, her tone detached.
"I don't know about Master Ignius. Astrid and I have swept this battlecruiser. If he were here, we would have met him by now," Friederich reasoned, rubbing his chin. "As for Rhok Wagner… can I talk to you in private, Lupus?" he proposed, eyeing Jovian as if asking for his permission.
The Celestius gestured toward the hangar. "Be quick."
"I don't have time to chitchat either," Lupus remarked, following Friederich’s lead.
The Prime Guardian and Lupus walked past Ziyue and Astrid, already discussing something.
"Don't look so wounded, big burly lady," Ziyue quipped with a shrug. "You're the one who tried to ambush us. And it was a poor attempt at that. I could smell that perfume of yours from the other end of the ship."
Astrid choked, glaring with discontent. This Ziyue lady didn't sit right with her from the very beginning. The sharp pain on her grazed skin was evidence of that.
"Hey, don’t try to murder me with your stare," Ziyue countered, approaching Astrid with her hand extended.
Cautiously, Astrid looked at Ziyue’s inviting hand, then she reluctantly reached out to grab it.
"Oop! Did I ask for a sweaty handshake? Am I that forward?" Ziyue mocked.
Astrid ground her teeth, her face shifting to a darker shade of red.
"Ziyue… Have some respect for the Lunarius," Jovian interjected sternly.
"Apologies, Lunarius Astrid," she stressed, her imposing shadow looming. Then her finger pointed at the wound. "That kunai has the Deadman’s Brand. I was just trying to extract it from your blood."
"Fine…" Astrid groaned, closing her eyes. "Insufferable woman," she muttered under her breath.
After a brief ritual and the flash of purple light, the curse was lifted. A sense of relief washed over her like a tidal wave.
"Well?" Ziyue asked as Astrid rose to her full, towering height. But Ziyue appeared unfazed by her imposing figure. "Not even a thank you. Rude," she quipped.
Despite the bulging veins on her forehead, Astrid mustered all her patience and chose to ignore her and her sarcastic remarks.
"That's enough. We have a rogue Celestius to hunt, and this ship is falling apart. Ziyue, you're on point. Lunarius, with me. I need a full report." Jovian ordered crisply, and his command cut through the tension, the group falling into formation.