Iridescent: Chapter Twenty-Eight

Iridescent

Chapter Twenty-Eight

~Set~

After the Fall

It was just before dawn as Vicky ran through the resort. She carried a metallic box. She ran down some stairs to the main lobby of the resort. Vicky ran up to Fang with the box. She waited patiently as Fang finished talking with Jekyll. Fang took notice of her and motioned her over.

Vicky looked at the box, “You said that I should hand out two to every person that wants one. Puppetmaster didn’t want any and Miwa can’t use any. So supposedly there should be four vials in here but there are only three.”

Fang shrugged, “So someone snuck a third vial. It isn’t that big of a deal. Probably someone being a little over cautious or ambitious.”

“Oh,” Vicky looked down at the box, “I guess that makes sense.”

“There is movement on the eastern horizon!” someone reported.

Jekyll sighed, “They’re up bright an early.”

Fang started walking to the front of the building, “The sooner we can get this over with.”

Vicky looked down and the box and shrugged. She ran back upstairs and returned the box to its location. Fang was right. Someone could have just grabbed another one when she wasn’t looking. It wasn’t that big of a deal, right?

Outside Tempi stood at the edge of the desert. The rectangular box like shape she usually carried with her was stuck half way into the sand. She rested an elbow on the box. The sun rose hiding the enemy in its shining glow. Tempi reached into her pocket for a vial. She injected the Blue Gold into her arm and threw the empty vial in the sand. Tempi took off the brown covering on her package revealing the collapsed version of an enormous fan.

As the several different vehicles approached, Tempi took the fan and brought it back with an amazing strength. The fan opened it revealing a scorpion pattern on a white background. She yelled against the strain as swung the giant fan around. An enormous gust of wind picked up blowing sand up like a giant wave. Tempi brought the fan around again creating another wave.

Dante looked on through the windshield of the car. He held Ai in her seat with one arm, “Hold on!”

The first wave hit them. They could feel the impact of the strong gust of wind. Dante did his best to control the car they were in. The speed they had been going dropped drastically against the opposing wind. On top of that, the sand reduced visibility so it was unsure of how much farther they had to drive.

“Keep going straight,” Ai said. “Break, the second wave is coming.”

Sure enough the second wave hit them, pushing their progress back and blinding them some more. Dante hit the roof of his truck.

“Hey!” he yelled, “You care to help anytime soon, Sanya!?”

Sanya was outside in the back behind her sniper. She propped it up onto the cabin of the truck. As usual she had a smile on her face.

“Dead ahead,” Ai said.

“Aye!” she fired the sniper rifle.

Tempi brought the fan down into the sand, open end first, creating a wave in the sand itself. She used the fan as a shield as Sanya fired at her.

The wave of sand struck the three vehicles. Dante hit it like a speed bump. Sanya grabbed on to the side of the truck bed. She hit the metal bed hard when the truck landed again. She also cringed when she heard the truck being riddled with bullets.

Miwa stood a balcony firing a barrage of bullets at the coming threat. Yin covered her face as bullets struck the windshield of her car. As more and more struck the windshield she swore and opened the driver’s side door. The window broke as Yin baled. She rolled in the sand as the car swerved out of control without a driver. Yin covered her eyes in the brief sandstorm until she could see. The ground started to rumble below the sand. Yin jumped to her feet and looked around.

“You have got to be kidding me,” she whispered to herself.

Puppetmaster sat casually on top of a high ledge of the resort. He had his hand folded underneath his chin as he watched the scene below unfold. An amused smile crossed his face. He snapped his fingers casually then waited to see what would happen.

Shuppet broke through the sand in his monstrous form. Yin took a few uneasy steps before falling. She watched the monster sail over her and disappeared again into the sand.

Zathura looked in her rear view mirror, “What the—! Did you see that!?”

Ren smiled, “Cool. They’ve got themselves a sand kraken.”

Zathura glared at him, “And who’s side do you think you’re on!?”

Ren shrugged, “I’m just saying.”

Shuppet appeared again, throwing the swerving empty car that Yin had been in earlier. A bladed leg landed just in front of Zathura’s car. She swerved, only the left side mirror was torn off the vehicle. The car that was thrown headed for the resort. Zara looked up at the balcony where Miwa was stationed.

“Miwa! Shoot it down!” Zara shouted.

Miwa’s attention turned to the flying car. All of his weaponry focused on to the car. Seconds seemed to go by slowly. After a stream of bullets aimed at the car, it exploded blowing several people to the ground. Zara’s ears rang as she lay on the ground.

Shuppet burrowed into the sand again. The ground shifted as he traveled under the sands. Zathura and Dante looked around their vehicles.

“Where is it!?” Zathura asked Ren.

Ren looked around as well, “I don’t know!”

“Ragh!” Zathura groaned, “Here! Take the wheel!” Zathura let go of the steering wheel and opened the driver side window.

“What!?” Ren dove for the wheel, “What are you doing!?”

Zathura didn’t answer. She pulled herself onto the cars roof through the driver’s side window. Ren moved over into the driver’s seat. Zathura untied her two handed axe from the roof of the car and slid down to the hood. The ground shook and the sand started shifting. Shuppet emerged from the ground underneath the car, throwing it into the air. Zathura jumped off the hood, axe in hand, and into the air. She landed on the concrete and slammed her axe onto the ground. Shadow creatures leaped up from the point of impact as the car burst into flames behind her. Flying metal parts flew by her. Shuppet dove into the sand again.

Dante swerved the truck. He looked down at Ai. She looked calm for all that was going on but he could see that she was nervous.

Shuppet shot out of the sand. Sanya turned with her gun and shot at him. Shuppet used one of its bladed legs to defend itself before knocking the truck onto its side. The truck barrel rolled, throwing Sanya off. The truck came to a stop against a low wall.

Zathura noticed something in the corner of her eye. She moved suddenly, dodging and arrow. Zathura picked up her axe and spun, creating momentum. The axe cut a black scar in the air sending shadow shards at her attacker. Naru jumped out of the way and hid behind a block of the concrete. A shadow shard truck the block knocking a chunk off.

Shadow ran past Naru’s hiding spot. He out three daggers and threw them at Zathura. She ducked and dodged as Shadow ran at her. Zathura avoided the daggers and as Shadow ran at her she bent backwards avoiding a knife in his hand. She gripped her axe and swung it around. Shadow disappeared into the ground as the axe sailed at him.

Naru darted out of hiding. Zathura saw him and used her axe in an overhead attack. Naru avoided the attack by stepping to one side. When the axe struck the ground Naru brushed the handle. Ice coated the ice fusing the head of the axe to the ground. Zathura let go of her weapon and stepped back. Shadow jumped out of the ground and slashed at her back. Zathura screamed at the pain but then she gripped her axe and swung it around, breaking the ice that held it before.

Yin ran out of the sea of sand. She watched briefly as Naru was struck with the hammer end of Zathura. Yin turned suddenly. Chou jumped in from a large statue. Yin stepped to one side, Chou’s bladed fans whizzed by her face. She spun around, her fans catching the sunlight as she did. Vines shot up from the ground behind her. They arced up and curved down at Yin.

Yin grabbed her glaive and cut at one of the vines. She jumped to one side and slashed at another one. Yin darted forward, zigzagging through the vines and slashing any that she could. She felt something cut her cheek and her wrist. Yin caught a glimpse of the nearly invisible string. The vines were more for setting up the web of strings than really attacking her. She looked around quickly for the string user.

Kumo hid behind a thick vine. Yin raised her glaive to attack with it but it got tangled in the strings above her. She abandoned her weapon and threw out her hand.  Kumo was lifted off the ground and with a push of Yin’s hand Kumo was pushed back in midair and crashed into a column. To come to her brother’s aid, Chou’s fans glistened as she spun raising more vines. Yin’s weapon was released from its bind. Yin caught it and slashed as a vine. She raised her hand raising Chou into the air and threw her out into the desert.

Sanya dusted herself off. Chou crashed into the sand nearby. A shard of rock shot up from the ground, narrowly missing Sanya as she stepped back. She jumped to one side dodging a chain that was thrown in her direction. The sand exploded in a purplish glow. Deontay shot out his hand. A block of earth rose underneath Sanya’s feet. Caught off guard, Sanya swayed unsteadily. Hina threw a chain around Sanya. She pulled in the chain pulling the girl through the air and sending her crashing in to the sand.

Hina started to run up to her when suddenly the chains on her arms felt heavy. She fell to her knees. No matter what she did she couldn’t get up from her knees to stand. It felt like gravity itself was against her. She turned to see Deontay struggling too. Sanya rose from the sand, dusting off her gun. She aimed it at Hina, who was the closest. Hina strained against the downward pull, trying to move or do anything to save herself but there wasn’t anything she could do.

“See ya!” Sanya said just before she pulled the trigger.

Just before she did, a vine shot up from the ground behind her. It swung down at her, knocking her to one side. The gravitational force that held Hina and Deontay down was lifted. Hina looked around for who might have rescued them. Chou stood up from the sand. She smiled and waved at Hina before turning back to help her brother. Hina smiled back then looked at Deontay.

“We got this!” she said.

Deontay nodded, “If we don’t let her do that gravity bind thing again.”