Her eyes fixed on them with penetrating rage. She finished conjuring her magic…
"…Reiken! Shorai no Kuro Tamashi!" She thrust her hand forward. A small portal opened, and from within she pulled a spectral-looking katana.
She stomped her left foot hard on the floor of large cobblestones and watched them with a ravenous gaze, like a predator about to finish off its prey. She snarled, showing her sharp teeth, and exclaimed: "With me, sweet talk won't get you anywhere!"
A quick breeze separated the brute's head from his body, which rolled away like a reminder of what was to come for his friend. She approached close to his ear, breathed like a starving animal, then snorted and asked him, with her sharp voice mixed with the wild, deep tone from within: "Do you have anything else you intend to say?"
"Bitch! Die—"
In the middle of his sentence, he was interrupted by a massive spray of blood, gushing out like a lure.
"Not going to finish? What a pity… I guess my hand slipped." She laughed into his ear.
"I have more important people to deal with than a laboratory pawn, you know?"
She pulled the sword from his chest and then heard a loud volume of people marching toward her. She looked around the enormous stone room. The place was damp and soaked with water. There were also various machines and the same tanks like the one she had been in. She smiled eagerly and thought: Great, great…! There's going to be a lovely bloodbath here.
The massive wooden doors groaned loudly as they were abruptly opened. Several elite soldiers marched in, armed. Above, there was a terminal with some scientists watching her, ready to intervene from above behind the protection of bulletproof glass.
She took two confident steps forward. She made it seem as though she was going to surrender, but with swift movements, she drew her sword and, with fluid motions, shook it to opposite sides. "Angetsu, ryu… Ogi…"
She closed her eyes, brought the blade up to the line of her eyes, completed the incantation, and quickly opened her eyes. "Kuro no Kami… Gurai Genko!"
An enormous field of darkness engulfed the entire area, leaving everyone there blind and desperate. They couldn't even see the comrade next to them. One of them shouted: "Scientists! Can you see her?!"
The answer was several gunshots, immediately followed by the sound of their bodies falling like mere wet sacks of potatoes.
With faltering steps, one of them dragged his feet backward, his face contorted, sweating with fear. A breath of a whisper was breathed into his ear: "Kagenui…"
He felt himself become wet in an instant. His legs lost their balance, and he collapsed to the floor. His horrified friends tried to flee, thinking it would be a good idea.
An agonizing sound echoed, and everyone ran. Some banged their heads against walls, others against objects right in front of them. Then the floor shook violently, followed by a heavy stomping sound. A loud roar came from the girl: "Getsumen Kuzushi!"
The floor shattered, cracking and throwing many of them upward. The ground became uneven and left fragments with many sharp edges. Everyone died, either pierced or impaled.
In the center of the room, she snorted, tired, and dispelled the darkness field. She burst into a long, degrading laugh at them all: "You're all so pathetic! You could have at least made me break a sweat."
She turned to look for an exit. But at her first steps, a chilling sound crossed like lightning behind her. With a precise movement, she cut it in two. Her amused expression vanished, replaced by a serious version of herself. The door groaned behind her. The poorly lit environment made her shiver. She asked skeptically: "Who's there?! You've got strength, huh!"
From the great stone-ornamented portal, the echo of metallic footsteps approached—calm and serene. The individual stared at her and demanded: "Surrender! Subject 137. I can grant you mercy if you kneel before me."
He is strong… He knows this body cannot defeat him. There's something giving him that strength—something close to my own level… thought Ryukuro, nervous and cautious.
"What is your name, sir?"
"Silence! I gave you an order… Do it if you don't want to suffer!"
"I would rather face you with honor and die than obey an enemy!"
He stared at her, nervous, then contained his anger and burst into laughter. "You are the first person to have the audacity to think such a thing."
She turned to look at him. A tall man with silver hair stared back at her with a firm posture. She sheathed the sword at her waist, leaned slightly forward, kept her hand near the hilt, and then shouted: "Kage-giri!"
A cut made of shadow silently crossed the room. He extended his hand, caught her cut, and dispelled it. "Pathetic. You should have followed my advice…"
"Raycaliburn!" He raised his hands above his head as he spoke the words.
"Spada dei raggi eterni, appari davanti a me!"
A thunderous crash of lightning echoed through the room, and an electric sword formed in his hands. Keeping one hand raised above his head with the sword, he conjured: "Campo di tempesta!"
An electrified field advanced toward her. She counterattacked with a vertical strike. "Ryūsoku - Kyōfū!"
Dispelling the moisture and the explosion, she shot forward rapidly for her final attack. "Sakugetsu, ryu, ogi!"
She brought the sword to her waist as she ran, and within a fraction of a second, the blade of her sword expelled long violet lightning bolts. "Tenryūzan!"
She charged and struck him with everything she had. The energy accumulated in the blade made her forehead sweat from the heat it emanated. With extreme force, the ground gave way around her from the pressure created. "Anshō!"
Her quick draw collided with his sword, sending her flying far away, making her ricochet off the hard surface of the floor and the walls. The shockwave's rumble cracked several bricks, making the entire room tremble. The tattoo on her arm disappeared, and her eyes returned to their usual blue. She struggled to see who stood before her.
He emerged practically unscathed. The young girl, on the contrary, tried to stay on her knees, then lost her sword and the possession of her spirit.
She looked at him, confused, and asked: "What? What's happening? Why am I still here? Damn… I think this is my end…"
"Raycaliburn! Lampo dell'Avescuro!" In a spin, he cut the air in front of him, forming a great eagle made of electricity, illuminating the entire area with a fluorescent blue light as it flew toward her.
A quick figure crossed through the attack at the right moment and dispelled it. After landing, a small girl stood up. Her long, dark velvet cape fluttered. She adjusted her glasses and faced the man, introducing herself: "Raytto Caster, First Commander of the UMBRAS Trinity! Leave this girl alone!"
"Princess of Franpari… How did you know about this subject?!" he exclaimed, irritated.
"It was simple! Her mother told me everything. Nothing special."
The princess positioned herself in a combat stance and, with the palm of one hand, provoked him: "Come on, then! Dark Knight."