The three rush to Claws' side immediately from the shores. Katty checks Elena's temperature, a high fever-pitched-in, and the crew panics onboard. Alistor and his team quickly guide them to the nearest hospital in the Kingdom by Capital City. Claws hold her in his arms, following their lead.
"Oh, this isn't good. Hold on there."
Alistor assures him of their worries as they quickly dash through the fields. Claws then lost balance and tripped, but the others took action. Zolhalla shoves Katty in reaction for the priestess to land on him. They made their way through the gates of Capital City. They were followed by the whole crowd from the priestess' ship.
"Right this way, we're almost there," Katty announced.
Alistor and his team soon spot Tannen from a distance in town. Tannen is on break, enjoying a cup of tea at a table while reading the newspaper. The noise of a rushing crowd soon catches his attention. He takes a closer focus noticing Alistor and the others carrying a woman in distress. The group passes in a glimpse when Katty suddenly loses his balance and gets trampled by the crowd behind.
"What?"
Katty flinched for a moment on the ground. However, he soon regains his total balance entirely, like it was nothing.
"Sorry, no time to explain. We'll explain everything later." He runs off to catch up with Alistor and the rest.
They arrived, barging at the hospital doors, where she was taken to medical attention immediately. Claws and the others wait at the front desks hoping for the best.
"So, who are you?" Alistor asked.
"Oh, sorry… How rude of me to not introduce myself. The name is Claws. I am one of the knights from the region of Anneria. I serve under Priestess Elena."
"So, what happened to you guys?" Katty asked. "You all seem pretty beat up."
Claws paused for a moment in silence, shutting his eyes.
"They came from the midst of the ocean's floor. Our kingdom, Anneria, was attacked by a force of demons. A massive tide came crashing at our walls; we tried to fight back but stood no chance. Their numbers overwhelmed us, so we gathered as many survivors as possible and fled."
"I'm sorry. Must have been hard." Alistor said.
"Who could have done this? Any idea on the enemy?" Zolhalla questioned.
Claws pondered for a brief moment. Then, trying to recall any specific details on the foe that attacked them, Claws suddenly reached out for a scrap of paper from the desk.
"Let me draw this symbol for you guys. Maybe this will give us an idea."
He scribbled on the paper, showed it to them, and surprised Alistor. They immediately knew who it was, even from a poorly drawn scribble.
"That's the Aggerona Empire," Alistor said.
"We fought with them before," Katty mentioned.
They were all open up in ears; he looked at the door noticing Tannen watching from outside.
"It was nearly two years ago. The Aggerona Empire arrived over my school with that labyrinth. Since then, our school has been permanently closed. They were originally imprisoned within a mirror, but this fiend who goes by Mr. Rare approached me with it. I had no idea what I was getting involved in once it shattered."
He recalls his time with Bamboo and the rest. Various battle scenes replay from the back of his mind.
"They were the first enemies I've faced with Katty. It's been a long battle, but my team nearly collected all the mirror pieces from each demon general. Vilevelious was their leader when I came face-to-face with him. Ultimately, I barely stood a chance, surviving only by a miraculous outcome."
"I see…" Claws nodded.
"Yet there was still an unanswered question. Information Vilevelious kept to himself regarding his involvement with Rare, along with knowing something about my parents. Then, upon destruction, he last mentions a brother who would avenge him."
"And then came the Baronia Empire." Katty blurted out.
Zolhalla pulls out a giant poster of the Baronia King alongside the royal house.
"But that's another story to tell."
The whole crowd was speechless since this served no relevance to them. Alistor sighed with slight embarrassment. They returned to the subject matter, now knowing what was at hand. A nurse came to the room to bring some great news. Elena was well and making a recovery leaving everyone assured.
"That's good, at least. What a relief."
They went to check up on her to find her resting at ease.
Meanwhile, from the midst of the Aggerona Empire, Moon watches them from his viewing crystal as the priestess recovers. His second in command updates Taishae's plan of approach.
"Show a little enthusiasm, won't ya? It's our first line deploying down to Mathias for our starting invasion."
"Ooo, I don't really care. It's obvious what will happen. My expectations aren't high anyway. The first monster always gets destroyed easily, so I'm not excited about that mwah."
"A little positive support could help, don't you think? Think of how this would reflect on our army's morale. If so, is there something better you'd like to suggest before Taishae deploys the first line?"
"Shi shi, Well, if that's the case. I wouldn't mind making my grand royal appearance. Drop me in instead of sending the first line. Ooo, Elena's group will tremble in fear. There is no way they'll beat me."
"But you cannot leave at this moment." His second in command reminded.
"And why not?"
"Cause…You have paperwork remember? Plus, it would be too expensive anyway. We are on a tight budget."
He lays a stack of paper for him to go over and fill out.
"Since when do villains get the paperwork to do? Ooh, this is LAME; let Taishae move with the first plan. I'm gonna have a migraine at the end of the night."
His second-hand takes leave to send approval to Taishae. He is left with paperwork to do. Plenty of it.
Back at the hospital, Alistor and the others hear the sound of motorbikes approaching from downtown. Claws decide to check outside with the others. They arrive at the scene with the sight of bystanders in panic. However, they find Tannen already prepared for action.
"Motorbikes? What kind of enemies are these?" Katty pointed.
New Aggerona grunts were seen on cycles. Finally, the field commander stepped forth.
"Noxer's the name! And these are the Glamours! Advanced troops compared to the Whoopers."
A platoon of Glamours skims through the town, causing havoc and mindless destruction, waving the banners of the Aggerona symbol in the air. Then, Alistor and the rest get into action. Claws and his units offer to assist them in a battle against their first foes.
"Let's go then," Alistor said.
The priestess' men charge in, taking on the fleet of Glamours from the front with Zolhalla. A few bikes circle around Claws to mess with him. Katty and Alistor rush through the side of the fleet.
"Just like the old times," Katty smirked. "Even with cycles, these Glamours are nothing but all bark."
They both leap on one of the banners, causing one of the grunts to lose balance and crash. Other Glamours roll across the floor as the two breaks through the line.
Ah-ha!"
Tannen handles the other side with ease. He cuts through their cycles with his scythe, sending them flying away. Zolhalla holds the front lines with Claws and the others forcing the fleet to break up.
"They're not as weak as I thought," Noxer mumbled.
The commanding monster immediately runs over Katty, spinning his chain like a madman. The monster flocked his pompadour.
"I'm Taishae's left-hand man; now die!"
He starts wrapping Katty around with the chains circling from his bike. Finally, a massive ball was formed, encasing Katty from the chin up.
"Katty!"
Alistor attempts to rush to his side.
"No, you don't."
The monster fires a projectile at Alistor, slowing him down when more Glamours come in for distraction. Then, Noxer turned his attention back to the chained-up Katty struggling.
"Now, you'll be in for a shock!"
Voltage started forming on the chains, sending shock waves at him. Claws jump in to help Alistor handle the grunts on him while Zolhalla and Tannen keep the rest at bay. Katty struggles as lightning surges through his body; Noxer laughs at him.
"…Gah!"
Katty writhes in pain as the monster closes in on him.
"Time to end this, ha ha ha…."
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