Red landed beside Derrin and turned on the incoming horde of Gearborn.
"So uh, you got anything else?"
"I was going to ask if you had any more crazy explosives."
"Nope, funny story actually. I stole that from the Gearborn in the first place. I can't believe I was carrying around something so fragile."
Derrin flicked the smear of oil on his blade to the deck, "Red, I don't think this is the time for that."
"Right…"
Red muttered angrily under his breath. He could try something, but it would only give them a few more moments at most. Sticking his hands in his pockets, he clicked one of the empty cores out of his gun. His other gun came out in one fluid motion. Well, time to hope for the best.
"One more step and I'll blow all of you to hell," Red yelled, holding his gun in one hand and the empty core in the other.
That was not going to happen. The core was empty, so the most it could do was shatter like glass. Even if the damn thing did have a charge in it, he didn't have any power left to shoot the thing. It was nothing but a bluff. They just needed to hope that the Gearborn took the bait.
The approaching group of Gearborn froze. They'd all seen what had happened a few moments earlier and didn't fancy joining their crewmates. Red kept the grin off his face. Exactly like he had… A familiar Gearborn stepped into the crowd.
"What are you all so scared of?" Alpha yelled, "That core is empty. He's bluffing."
A smile twitched at the corner of his metallic face. The Gearborn hesitated for only a moment before they seemingly confirmed that fact themselves. Red glanced over the edge of the ship and the raging waves below. They'd be dead if they jumped overboard, but he was beginning to think there were no other options. The Gearborn rushed forwards.
The deck exploded upwards. The pair stumbled back as boards and shrapnel scattered everywhere. Ayjax landed in the center of the surprised horde of Gearborn. He slammed his hands together, and a blast of air exploded outwards. Alpha and the others were tossed backwards like leaves in a storm.
There was a thin line of blood running down the corner of his mouth, but he looked relatively unharmed. His shirt was in tatters with a few thin scratches across his chest. It seemed he had a penchant for dramatic entrances.
Ayjax glanced around, "You two definitely did better than I expected."
Red scowled, "So now what?"
"Now we get the hell out of here," He stepped up beside them.
"What about the herald?" Derrin asked.
Ayjax glared at him, but before he could speak, the herald exploded out of the deck. Its fancy clothes had been eviscerated. However, the Steelforged himself looked practically unharmed. A body of sleek metal shone in the flashing light.
"That was quite exciting, but I'm afraid your quick departure is not going to be possible," The herald clapped his hands as he slowly approached.
"You two wait for me on my ship," Ayjax cracked his knuckles, "I'll catch up."
"And how exactly do you expect us to do that?" Red grunted.
Was the man insane? Actually, Red was fairly certain he was. There was no way in hell the two of them could swim across the gap between the ships.
"Just like this," Ayjax said with a grin.
"Like what…"
Before Red could finish his statement, Ayjax grabbed hold of the front of his jacket. His eyes widened in surprise, but a moment later, he was hurtling across the sea like a cannonball.
"What the fuck!" His voice faded into the crashing storm
Water pelted against his body like hail. If he hadn't been flying at startling speeds, he would've taken a moment to admire the scenery. After all, it was his first time flying through the air above the sea during a storm. Unfortunately, all he managed to do was spurt out a flurry of curses.
For what felt like the hundredth time, Red slammed into the deck of a ship. He didn't even bother to move and just stared blankly at the black clouds overhead. How had any of the stuff in the last 20 minutes been real? He heard another crash beside him and figured Derrin must have been thrown across as well.
Red rolled over and pushed himself to his feet. He quickly checked his pockets and was very happy to find that both of his shockblasters were still there. Derrin lay in a heap on the deck. The ship they were on was much smaller than the Gearborn ship. However, that wasn't the most surprising thing. It was the fact that there were no crew members. No one was sailing the ship or firing its shockcannons. It was empty.
Ayjax slammed into the deck a moment later, leaving a slight crater. He had a new cut across his cheek that was leaking a bit of blood. His entire body glowed a slight teal. Red realized he was now going all out. A feeling of overwhelming strength surged off the man. It was an undeniable physical exertion of Ayjax's raw power.
The herald landed in front of Ayjax a moment later. Its own aura was currently pelting against Ayjax, but to no avail. Red pulled himself back from the Herald. It had yet to reach the strength he had felt on the ship, but it was still strong enough to make most people cower in fear.
"You are quite the troublesome opponent," The herald remarked.
A trail of black liquid leaked out of his left eye. It seemed that neither of them had a strong advantage over the other. Both of them seemed mostly unharmed. The sudden feeling of fear slammed into him like a wave, causing him to stagger. The blasted herald was using his cursed power again. Derrin, who had yet to recover from where he lay on the deck, convulsed under the attack. Ayjax seemed completely unharmed.
"I would have liked to defeat you here, tin can. It seems I'll have to, unfortunately, let you go this time," Ayjax said as he stepped forward.
"I think you mistake me, human. After what you've done to my ship, I can't simply allow you to leave," He glanced at Red, "And I can't have you taking my lady's perfectly good specimens."
Ayjax laughed, "Too bad."
He rushed forward and swung his fist at the Gearborn. The herald leapt at him as well. A pair of daggers manifested in his palms. Ayjax's body suddenly turned a bright orange. The herald's eyes seemed to widen in surprise. Red wasn't certain what happened next. Ayjax's fist collided with the herald's chest. He expected the Gearborn to be thrown backwards.
Instead, the entire world shook. Orange light exploded from where Ayjax's fist connected. The dark sky lit up as if it were midday. The power of the blast threw Red off his feet, and he once again found himself on the deck boards. Cursing slightly, he looked up, finding the herald simply gone. Ayjax was kneeling on the deck, panting hard. Whatever he had just done seemed to have drained the man of his mist.
Ayjax's voice was ragged as he spoke, "Torrent. Sail."
A new ethereal voice echoed through the ship, "As you command."
The ship suddenly began to move. Red had no memories of actually sailing on a ship this size before, but he knew one thing for sure. The ship was moving far faster than a simple sail could allow…and ships definitely didn't talk.
"What just happened?" He stammered, still trying to process everything that had happened in the last few minutes, "Did you kill that thing?"
Ayjax rose to his feet and shook his head, "No. Those heralds are nearly impossible to kill when they still have control over their realm. As long as it is in use, my attacks are severely weakened. It won't be chasing us anymore, though."
He turned a smile to Red, "I'll bet that thing has never tasted an ultimate strike until now. It may have drained me completely, but I'll bet he won't be moving for a long while."
Red gave him a flat stare, "Are you purposefully saying random words to make what you just did sound cooler than it actually was?"
"You think it was cool?" He asked.
Red grumbled, "What do you need my confirmation to make you feel better? Anything cool you might have done is offset by the fact that you just threw us across the damn ocean!"
"Oh…"