The Beast Blade was baffled.

As he tried to shake-off the shock from being hit by an Arcane Formula coming from one of the Serico Sisters, his mind was a mess.

“How did she do it?”

“Wind elemental core?”

“What was that weapon?”

Like spring flowers in bloom, questions blossomed in his mind, each petal unfurling with apprehensive curiosity. How had Rixa come into possession of such a rare artifact? And if Bellator was involved, it seemed to be a departure from his usual schemes.

-I know what you're thinking,- she taunted, her eyes piercing with a knowing gleam. -I can see your little brain churning, trying to unravel the truth.- Her alluring face was adorned with an arrogant smile as she derided the Beast Blade with her words, reveling in her superiority.

Callis rose to his feet, brushing off the splinters and dust that clung to his jacket. He scanned the area, searching for his weapon, which he had been forced to release when he was hurled backward by the powerful Arcane whirlwind conjured by Rixa.

-You know, I could’ve killed you while you were down, but seeing you like this?- She smirked with untold satisfaction radiating from her eyes.

-You can’t imagine how much I’m enjoying this, finally we get one over on you, and that is better than any payment.- She gloated, her smirk ever increasing, almost turning into a loathsome rictus.

The Beast Blade paid little heed to her arrogant boasts, for his mind was consumed with formulating a strategy that factored in the new parameters introduced by Rixa's weapon.

Callis possessed an acute sense of spatial awareness, honed by years of training that had augmented his senses and physical abilities. His unwavering, and frankly unhealthy, discipline and relentless pursuit of perfection had sharpened his mind and body to a lethal edge.

-As much as I'm relishing this moment, all good things must come to an end,- she quipped, poised with the Scripti weapon aimed at Callis. 

The Beast Blade's gaze fell upon the glinting crystal, its reflection dazzling in the sunlight. He tried to recall the duration between activation and the Arcane discharge of the device. 

His mind raced as he calculated their respective positions and the trajectory of his weapon. As he focused on these spatial coordinates, time seemed to dilate for the Beast Blade. The wind caressed his skin, and he felt his muscles tense and coil like a spring, ready to be unleashed.

Callis' feet pounded against the rocky ground as he darted towards his weapon, cracking it with his initial step. He seemed to be faster than usual, maybe the lack of a cloak which usually held him back.

-No, no, no… Bad boys don’t get their toys.- Rixa's condescending tone did nothing to deter him.

With his eyes locked onto his goal, Callis became a blur of motion. But before he could reach it, Rixa fired her weapon, aiming it not where he was, but at his clear target.

Without missing a beat, Callis spun on his heel, breaking his momentum and avoiding the blast. His body contorted in a way that seemed almost inhuman, but it allowed him to evade the whirlwind that had been unleashed upon him.

Still the whirlwind grazed his body, but instead of pushing against it he relaxed, allowing it to push one side of his body back. He used the spin to his advantage and reignited his mad dash toward the older Serico Sister.

The Beast Blade approached Rixa as fast as he could possibly move, ready to punch her lights out, clenching his gloved fist so hard his claws accidentally popped out, piercing through the leather covering the tip of his fingers and the palm of his hand, even reaching the skin beneath it.

He loosed a guttural growl as he cocked his fist up, ready to put his whole weight behind it. His concentration was complete and utterly focused on Rixa, almost as if the world around him stopped existing.

There were only himself and his target, nothing more, but an uneasy sensation washed over him like a wave of sludge, causing goosebumps to rise on his skin. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off, even as he watched Rixa's weapon still in the midst of discharging the whirlwind.

He was so focused on his target, aiming to break her clavicle and disable her arm that he almost missed her face. She was smiling, the kind of big grin you only show to others when you know something they don’t.

-Good try sweetie.- She said with a sickly sweet voice, still mocking the incoming Callis, something only somebody as cold-blooded as she could do under the circumstances.

The Beast Blade hurtled forward, his gloved fist brimming with force, determined to take down Rixa in a single blow. He knew all too well that an injured Serico Sister was even more deadly than an uninjured one. However, it was too late for him to stop now - his trajectory was locked in.

Rixa's smile only widened as she reached into her leather vest and retrieved another Scripti weapon. With a devious aim, she pointed it straight at Callis, poised to unleash a powerful whirlwind that would crush the Beast Blade.

Time seemed to slow down, elongating each moment like a silk thread being pulled taut. Despite the impending danger, both fighters remained fixated on one another, oblivious to the chaos unfolding around them. Little did they know of their comrades' fates after their own encounters in the pier.

The outcome of this turn of events proved to be far more detrimental to Rixa than Callis. Just as she was about to unleash her powerful whirlwind and obliterate her target, an armored boot connected with her temple with brutal force, launching to the side.

Rixa collided with the ground, tumbling and bouncing along its unforgiving surface before finally coming to a stop against the fence. In her place stood Alexa, who had rushed to flank the older Serico Sister.

-Do I need to handle all your problems for you?- She joked as popped her neck with a satisfied smile on her face.

-I vaguely remember you crumbling down in your office asking for help not an hour ago.- Callis retorted as he stopped his mad dash, sliding on the rocks until finally braking. 

-I… I’ll give you that one, still I’ve been wanting to kick her smug face for years, so that’s a personal victory for me.- Alexa quickly replied as she turned towards the downed Rixa.

-That’s for the four javelins you got in my back 2 years ago you stultus!- The Captain of the Guard insulted Rixa and let out an uproarious chuckle.

As soon as Rixa stood up, she began laughing. 

The older Serico Sister was bleeding from the side of her head and had numerous scrapes and minor wounds all over her body. Her hair was disheveled, and the bandages around her arm had come loose, revealing a remarkably intricate tattoo that appeared to be text scribbled on her skin.

-You are defeated, surrender and we will see fit to grant you a measure of mercy.- Callis had managed to calm himself down, as he saw Rixa losing both her weapon while she rolled so she was currently out of options. 

Still she kept laughing.

-Mercy from you two dogs would be more insulting than getting killed.- She said, stumbling as she attempted to take a step forward, having to support herself against the fence to stay standing, surely after-effects from the kick she received.

She kept chuckling, amused by their grandstanding and speeches.

-What’s so funny?- Alexa asked, exasperated by Rixa’s attitude, she always did this, even when they had cornered her, she always laughed as if she had an ace up her sleeve.

-This stupid city, the even more stupid people that live on it from the lowest of the low to the highest of the high.- Rixa replied cryptically, in reality merely a play for time.

-Yeah, yeah and now you’re going to tell us how this city fucked you and you want to fuck it right back, congratulations, you sound like every criminal we caught.- Alexa replied, annoyed by the evasive answer.

-But if you’re asking me right now, it's because after all this fighting I’m going to leave with what I came for and neither of you two can do anything to stop me.- Rixa continued explaining, shaking her head to regain her bearings.

She took a couple of tentative steps forward, cleaning the blood from her temple with her hand before shaking it off to the floor with a snapping motion.

Before Callis or Alexa could move or even react a voice from behind them froze them in place.

-If either of you move, the child prodigy here gets it.- The cruel words of Lis Serico reached Callis and Alexa, who turned around to see Novus caught by her from behind, with a jagged short sword firmly planted against his neck.

The young Arcanist barely managed to mouth the words “I’m sorry” to them while Rixa passed them by the side with both of her Scripti weapons in hand. Some of the least damaged among their men also stood up and hobbled, dazed and confused towards the Sisters, ready to load some boxes into one of the barges.

-I would love to stay and keep remembering the good old times, but I have places to go and things to steal.- Rixa added, as she gestured her men towards the boxes without lowering both of her weapons, each aimed at Callis and Alexa.