"Come on, you piggy! Use those tendrils of yours!" Heios exclaimed with intense laughter as he rode Jasper like a surfboard.

  They were heading straight towards the capital with the speed of a comet. The impact crater they left behind was deep enough to create a massive sinkhole.

  "Piggy...?" Jasper questioned, his tendrils propelling them forward at an incredible velocity. "I only did this so we could get there faster, you Venusian brute."

  They had a simple plan: get in, eliminate Merviogogan, and get out. They had no time to waste on the local wildlife or Soul-Core's forces, that was Avu's job to handle. Their mission was clear and direct, they were the U.O.K, the elite special forces of Dark Intrinium, and they would not fail.

  Like, come on. A force like Avu and Aria could easily crush those Soul-Core warriors. They are pathetic.

  Nothing but pathetic.

  Pathetic like a pack of worms.

  They could try and mobilize all of their Soul-Core forces. Avu could still beat them with ease.

  He is a one man army and is not a force to be reckoned with. He is the First Follower for a reason. Anyone who dared to tread strongly against him has learned the hard way why he alone holds such a terrifying title within the Uprising of Kytron.

  His presence alone silences battlefields, and his reputation was built from the shackles of his own planet, built to the point of being deemed almost equal to the late Serith Arannis, those who have witnessed his power were either dealt a bad hand, or lived to tell the tale of it.

  If there was anyone people could call Devil Incarnate, it would undoubtedly be Avu Fujimara.

  As Heios and Jasper near the capital, they could see its gleaming spires and opulent architecture. With each step, Heios and Jasper's confidence started to break down. That city isn't puny like they hoped it would be. At first glance, it seemed like a town, but those spires grew larger the closer they got to the city.

  Armada Capital... A glory. It looked like a futuristic utopia. The buildings looked like they were made of pure crystal, the streets were paved with marble, and the sky was filled with holographic advertisements for luxury goods.

  Even if they were just killing one politician, they couldn't help but feel like they were invading a paradise. But that was the point, wasn't it? To bring this paradise to its knees and show it the true meaning of suffering. To show the universe that no matter how wealthy or powerful you are, Dark Intrinium would always be there to knock on your door.

  "How are we ever going to find this fucking guy!?" Heios yelled, his voice echoing through the jungle, "This place is huge!"

  "Could we kill a few more people other than him so I can take them with me for my projects? I'm starting to run low."

  "I told you to use that filthy Testharian albino monkey as one!"

  This could only be a racist reference to Satono Eria. Heios couldn't care less about her well-being.

  He had no right to be racist towards an exiled Testharian. He was an exiled Venusian himself.

  "I would have, but Avu seems to have a liking for her. He would be pissed if I took away his new pet," Jasper replied, his tendrils thrashing about in the air. "Besides, I already decided on who to get.”

  "And that is?"

  "Won't tell you! It's a secret!"

  Heios scoffed. He never really liked Jasper's hobbies. In his opinion, making dolls out of dead bodies was a sick and twisted way to pass the time. But then again, he was a Venusian brute who enjoyed nothing more than crushing his enemies with his bare hands. Who was he to judge?

  I guess even evil has a limit to accept how twisted someone can be.

  Behind Heios and Jasper was Mikael Asger, who blitzed through trees and used his spear as a vault to cross over any obstacles. He was pretty quick, as all Weapon-Types could be.

  Mikael has been tailing them for some time, having spotted them in a nearby deforested area. Soul-Residue really is a heck of a thing to sense on a planet lacking Souls.

  He stabilized Soul-Energy into an energy beam from the tip of his Doru Spear which he calls Thelisi. He could also use his spear as a way to propel himself forward with speeds faster than the speed of sound.

  Heios and Jasper were alerted with each sonic boom. Jasper looked behind him, realizing that trees were getting knocked over by the amalgamation of Mikael's speed and sound.

  "We got company!" Jasper mused, turning his tendrils to face Mikael.

  Heios cracked his knuckles, "The guy with the spear. Has to be that blue haired bitch's boyfriend. Good. I was getting bored."

  "I don't think you can take him on. He's still a long way from catching up. Even at his current speed, we have enough time to get to the capital and maybe even kill Mervio before he even gets there."

  Jasper was correct in his analysis. The Capital was just a few kilometers away from them and Mikael was a good 5 to 10 away from them. As eccentric as Jasper can get, he is level-headed.

  A perfect partner that balances out Heios' stupidity.

  But is fury a good kind of stupidity or a bad one? Depends on who is on the receiving end of it. Heios' fury is hellish and when it erupts, it's a beautiful and terrifying sight to behold.

  "Captain! I've spotted them! They are heading towards the capital as we speak!" Mikael's voice crackled through the comms. "They seem to be charging the capital head-on. Looks like they're preparing for a killing spree..."

  [C]: "You got this, Mikael!" Claude said through the comms, with background noises of punches and slashes.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "Hm!" Mikael sped up faster, condensing more of his Soul-Energy into the tip of his spear. He activated a Soul-Barrier just in case to break through trees.

  "Fuck you, Jasper! You're too slow! I'm going to pulverize that guy myself before he gets to the capital!"

  "Sounds like a plan! I'll kill Mervio myself, don't die!" Jasper said, letting go of Heios, who was now a blur of motion.

  Heios's body began to glow. A glow of green and cyan while the air around him shimmering and distorting from the raw power he was emitting. He was getting ready for a battle.

  "Time for some punchin'!"

  "Hmph!" Mikael sighed, de-activating his Soul-Barrier. He beamed forward one last time as both were suspended in the air in between large trees. Mikael was speeding through trees in the hopes of getting a good punch in Heios.

  Heios formed an X with his arms to block the force of his punch, which blew Mikael back with the same amount. Mikael landed on a tree sideways, gripping his spear and launching himself at him, using his spear like a trident to traverse.

  Heios narrowly missed a lethal stab from Mikael, almost impossible to match his speed. Heios turned around and manifested a highly condensed atomic cannon and discharged it at him.

  "Shit!" Mikael jumped down by kicking his feet off a tree branch, creating a small crater in the ground, a green explosion of dust and debris shot up from the sky, and a beam of light shot up to the sky.

  The jungle shook. The trees around them swayed violently. The ground beneath them cracked.

  Heios went for a heel kick which was met with Mikael's spear. Mikael moved elegantly, using his spear to swing while dodging at the same time. Heios was having a hard time landing a clean hit on him due to Mikael's nimbleness and speed.

  An angry Venusian brute's is truly a force of nature. And with it, he gets stronger.

  Heios weaved and vanish-stepped behind Mikael in hopes of kicking his face into a tree. While Mikael dodged that, he was dealt damage with another kick.

  "Gah!"

  Mikael backflipped, stabbing the ground with the tip of his spear. "THYRIDA!" He yelled, creating a powerful AOE attack of Soul-Energy. Thyrida had the power to absorb any Soul-Energy emitted from someone else.

  Heios was pushed away against a tree. Standing up proved to be an arduous task as the tree concussed him for a short while. "... Gods, you fuckin'..."

  "Merviogogan is under Soul-Core protection and will not see any harm. Where is your friend?" Mikael pointed his spear at Heios, hoping to strike a nerve.

  "If you're going to kill me, then do it already! Not my fault you're a little weakling who can't finish the job!" Heios spat. "Merviogogan is dead! Jasper got there before you could, all because of me."

  Mikael got angry, his eyes flaring with Soul-Energy. "BASTARD."

  There is no way Mikael would kill Heios. All Soul-Core warriors operate under a no-killing rule. Even Claude Magami, who is on par with even Soul-Wielders of fundamental power. It's a feat for him since he was only on the extreme side.

  Killing Heios would only brand him as a criminal for the Soul-Core. Dark Intrinium has no issue killing soldiers, but certain squads of Soul-Core operate under such rule.

  Members of Dark Intrinium, even those of UoK might hold valuable information. Incarcerating them for interrogation would prove more effective.

  "You've already lost... You know why? Because you can't kill, because of your no-killing rule... and if you can't kill, I CAN!"

  Heios punched the ground, alerting every single of his turrets that he placed around the forest to fire. This was his grand plan. Jasper notified Heios of a Star Gazers Squad member chasing them.

  This was a trap. Heios was deliberately stalling.

  "Shit!" Even vanish-stepping wouldn't work. He could only use the trees as temporary obstacles for cover. He had to get creative. He used the flat side of his spear to deflect a few of them. But with the number of turrets Heios had, it was simply too much. He was riddled with holes.

  "RAAAAGH!" Heios ran to Mikael, who subconsciously activated a Soul-Barrier. "THAT BARRIER WON'T SAVE YOU!" He turned his arm into an atom-splitting energy blade which was severely condensed. Soul-Barriers could get pierced with it easily. Heios sliced away at his Soul-Barrier continuously, forcing Mikael to renew barriers and expending his Soul-Energy.

  Yup. Mikael was the one in deep shit now. Heios was lucky that his own turrets don't hurt him. Heios then stopped, walking over his Soul-Barrier and looking at him with a sly grin. Brandishing his energy-bladed arm to strike a final blow.

  "187 turrets. 187,000 bullets. You can't possibly think you can survive this, can you? Everyone calls me a brute, but I'm smarter than all of you.”

  Heios taunted, squatting on top of his circular Soul-Barrier. It started to crack.

  To Mikael, it was Heios trying to kill him with all he had.

  To Heios, it was just him trying to prove a point. That he's not just some brute. That he is not some guy who only thinks about killing. He has personality. He is a genius. He can be a mastermind.

  This was his way to prove to Avu and even Lord Veyron that he is not a killing machine. He is a Follower. A Follower with a mind.

  .:. ...Fuck... .:. Mikael thought. He was out of options. He couldn't kill Heios. He was in checkmate. Heios was right.

  But what if Mikael didn't have to?

  He thought of a gambit. If it worked, he would survive. If it didn't, he would die.

  He had to do something. He looked around the forest. The turrets just kept firing. He thought of a way to obliterate all of his turrets without needing to eliminate his Soul-Barrier.

  This could only mean that he would have to expend a lot of Soul-Energy into this one gamble. If he survived, he'd be broke on Soul-Energy. Not to mention he had to protect a politician from someone who still has a large reserve of Soul-Energy left.

  If only someone could've joined him on this charade, but Nanasu and Claude were still busy fighting the strongest of the UoK. But this Heios isn't some lackey either. He is strong and his Soul-Spec is a clear counter to Weapon-Types.

  "Mother...fucker..." Mikael mumbled as his barrier was close to shattering.

  "What's that? I can't hear you over the sound of your impending doom!"

  Heios taunted him again, enjoying this deeply. A hysterical laughter escaped the walls of his mouth. "I can wait all day! Better for us because Mervio might be dead by now! I can see your body melting second by second by my atom-splitting bullets! Sooner or later, that barrier of yours will shatter like glass and you'll turn into a puddle of mashed up organs and bones!"

  "Do you always talk this much?" Mikael said. "You're right. You won. I will die. At least let me die in peace without you annoying the shit out of me."

  Heios laughed again, "Alright, alright. I'll stop." He stood up from his squatting position and raised his arm, ready to strike.

  .:. ...Now... .:.

  "TROMOS!" Mikael yelled as the ground under them started flaring up. It also got increasingly hotter too.

  "...What the f- What have you done now!?" Heios yelled, looking around as his turrets started melting down, following with explosions. Mikael was discharging a bigger AOE attack. This time, it released an explosive shockwave of Soul-Energy within a 4-kilometer radius.

  The temperatures started to soar to an astounding 125 degrees celsius, making those without an immunity to heat suffer critical burns or get cooked alive.

  The entire forest turned into a stove. The trees set ablaze, the ground cracked. The sky turned into a shade of orange and red. The wildlife started to panic and flee in all directions.

  .:. I hated to do this... to all the wildlife here... .:. Mikael said, his Soul-Barrier and the ground within his barrier safe from the heat.

  "DAMNIT! DAMN YOU! HOW THE HELL-" The minute Heios looked away, Mikael and his Soul-Barrier was gone.

  He vanish-stepped, and without a Soul-Barrier to stand on, Heios had to deal with the heat. He didn't have an immunity to extreme temperatures. But as a Venusian, he can tolerate it better. Still, it wasn't something he could last in for long.

  Heios had to vanish-step away or die in the heat. He decided to vanish-step toward Mikael to try and keep him here. But Mikael already planned this through.

  Mikael manifested his spear while Heios was above him going for another heel kick. Mikael parried his leg with his spear and stabbed him in the leg.

  "GRH!" Heios yelled before getting kicked back to the ground. He landed in a pool of blazing hot mud, subconsciously creating a Soul-Barrier to buy him time.

  .:. Alright, no time to waste! .:. Mikael beamed away towards the capital. He left Heios behind, to deal with the molten forest and his own severe leg wound.

  It's a shame to endanger the wildlife here. He had no choice. If it came to a life-or-death situation, what's the wildlife gonna do? Nothing. He made a choice to protect a life. Two lives. Merviogogan's life... and his.