The three drew together eyeing him warily, just as he eyed them. That was an adequate greeting. His eyes surveyed the wide open room, cleared of all clutter to maximize their ability to maneuver. It also kept him from laying in wait unseen. After Vulana, he needed to focus on D, wear his regenerative ability down little by little. Unless he severed the brain or the heart, he doubted he would be a quick kill. Bris was dangerous because he had access to every animal that had ever lived, both magical and non-magical. That even included dinosaurs. He saw they each had a rifle wand, and at least Vulana had an energy shield. He could assume the other two had one as well.
“Insolent pup! How dare you think you can take all three of us!”
Jeremy fired, a green shield sprang up instantly. The shot hit the shield and D laughed. He stopped laughing when the energy lance came out the rift behind him and passed through his chest to strike his heart. The fool hadn’t even seen him create the rift at the exact moment it had collided with the shield.
D coughed up blood, but Jeremy wasn’t fooled. D had moved at the last second and the shot had only nicked his heart. He could recover from that. Firing another bullet in his direction D blocked it once more, this time diving out of the way before the energy could tag him from behind as it left the rift once more.
“How long do you think you can continue like this? I know creating rifts away from your body takes a lot of energy. Think you can keep it up forever?”
Jeremy ignored Vulana’s words. You did not speak to the enemy. You did not care what they said. They lived only because you had not killed them yet. They were insects. Vermin. You did not lower yourself to speak with them. Speech implied they were intelligent and thinking. But only if you replied, otherwise it was just the yapping of an animal you would eat. Instead, he charged, sliding his fingers through the air as he did so. Bris, who had changed into a small tyrannosaurus, turned around to meet his emergence from the rift.
Fool. Couldn’t even tell a feint from the real thing. Jumping onto his back, Jeremy constructed a sword from thin air, slamming it into the spine with all his might. Bris lost the transformation as Jeremy was hit with another mind blast and sent flying. Bris cried out, the sword nearly severing him in two with his broken back as he lay helpless. Vulana continued to hit him with psychic blasts to keep him from easily using his abilities. While she had him occupied D ripped the sword out and drizzled his blood over Bris. The blood bubbled, forming tentacles that stitched the shape shifter back together within seconds so he could get back on his feet.
She couldn’t hold him down with her mental shouts forever. Jeremy knew all their strengths and weaknesses just as they knew his. Just as he was burning energy, so were they. External regeneration, ranged psychic punches, extinct animals. All of these took more energy than normal. They wanted him dead just as badly as he wanted to kill them. They knew he was dangerous. They also knew the longer this was drawn out, the worse their odds of survival would become while they would tire, it took very little energy for him to create a rift and step through personally.
Already Vulana was sweating, her breathing coming ragged as she stopped her assault. No stamina at all. Perhaps he would save her for last. The spoils of war as they said. That was fine, she was just an animal. A creature beneath him. You were allowed to do anything you wanted to a thing. She would become his toy.
Until he broke her.
He watched her face pale, then contort into a snarl as she growled at him. In response Jeremy opened his mouth and ran his tongue over his teeth slowly, snapping them closed twice with raised eyebrows. He knew she had seen and heard his thoughts-- he had directed them at her on purpose. Just as he knew she was reading his mind to try and counter his attacks. He could keep her from seeing his immediate movements, but he couldn’t control what she read completely. He had already taken all these factors into account. Warfare was as much about breaking the opponent mentally as it was physically.
The three changed tactics. They split apart, opening fire with their weapons, causing Jeremy to run as well while returning shots. A smart move. Attempt to tire him out physically to weaken his Rift Generation and Armory abilities. Using their numbers to put him on the defensive. Attacking from three directions had a higher chance of success than clumping together, and while they were constantly moving, it would be difficult for him to tag them with a surprise attack from behind. Meanwhile they ultimately saved their own energy for their own abilities, since Jeremy would have to work three times harder than they.
Green bullets bounced off shields and barely missed flesh as the air filled with heat from the amount of energy bullets filling the room. Jeremy raised his arm as he jumped off the wall using his shield to deflect a bullet towards the ground. It passed through the rift he had created with his foot to come out the ceiling. In that moment he swung his other arm, redirecting the line of green once more with his second shield back towards D. D fired, the two bullets collided as Jeremy dropped into the rift on the floor, altering its destination. D spun with a roundhouse kick but Jeremy came out of the floor and not the ceiling as Vulana had thought. With fingers straight out, Jeremy brought them both around in a chopping motion, striking D above and below the knee. The flesh severed, falling to the floor as D lost his balance. Jeremy continued flying upwards, his elbow connecting solidly with the old mans side. A huge gouge erupted as Jeremy’s elbow tore out the mans kidney, his left coming around as he twisted his waist to sever his right arm at the elbow.
By the time Bris managed to close the distance and lunge as a rhino, Jeremy had already flown up into a rift in the sky to put distance between them. While powerful, Bris put himself at a disadvantage by separating himself from the group. He was effectively their best defender, but only if he could reach them. Most of his transformations were close quarter animals, the rest were mid range at best.
“Why are you doing this! This is madness! Do you want to destroy Atlantis!”
He ignored Bris who turned into his first magical creature-- a Hedgepodge. While standing only three feet tall and two feet long, Jeremy was wary. The shape shifter shot out a barrage of needles as it lumbered forward, forcing him to dance away. Two needles still managed to hit him in the leg though, the numbing agent in the tip already making it feel heavy. Instead of pushing his attack, Bris shot out more needles, creating a barrier around the three of them. He then stood guard over D as the old man slowly regenerated his limbs and organs.
Jeremy bid his time. Only the dead rushed forward haphazardly. The smart warrior waited for his opportunity to strike. When D was back on his feet, the laser war continued once more. With Jeremy focusing on defense while conserving his abilities. Their rifle wands ran out at the same time all three of his did, and like him, they tossed them to the side. Now would come phase two of this battle. This phase he would have the upper hand. While they were forced to use their abilities, he still had another weapon up his sleeve.
The three gathered together warily, ready for any move he made. Jeremy removed the two stun wands, little more than lengths of stick like the rifles, that discharged electrical pulses. Holding them out in front of him, he pounded the shock ends together and activated the weapons. When two like charges come in contact, they synchronized with sympathetic resonance. In effect two weapons became one. Pulling the two apart, a line of energy crackled down the middle. Taking a stance, he held the staff in both hands while giving his enemies an evil grin.
He twirled the staff over his head, releasing one end as he did so. The stick flew in an arc through the air towards the group, the electricity connecting it stretching ever longer. Bris spread his legs, his arm bulged into that of a gorilla as he raised it to block. Baton connected, Jeremy heard a satisfying crack. With a flick he pulled the weapon back, flinging the other half the moment his right hand grabbed the returning end. It was all Bris could do to move into position and take the beating as Jeremy made step after deliberate step closer and closer. Using each return of his weapon to advance.
As Jeremy took another step forward, D smiled thinly. That was all the warning he had before the floor exploded upwards. Even jumping skyward and into a time tear didn’t help him avoid the attack completely, fire and heat followed through the opening. Flames licked at his right pant leg, though he didn’t bother to put it out. Instead he gave a feral grin at the three as he let them watch his flesh burn and crisp. What good was your own flesh anyway if you took your eyes off the kill? It gave them an opportunity to attack while you were otherwise occupied. The least his body could do in this situation was unsettle their minds, causing them to hesitate due to their weaknesses.
The tactic worked. All three took a step back, hesitation written in face and body. The explosion left a giant crater in both floor and ceiling, the flickering yellow of the electromagnetic cage showing through in the sky. Jeremy walked forward once more, putting extra pressure on his injured leg so the blackened skin could crack and bleed, the blisters pop and flakes fall to the floor. Again that expression of fear as they realized they weren’t dealing with the Jeremy Vahn they knew. They were dealing with the Ice Prince, who’s sole purpose for existing was killing and survival. Everything else didn’t matter.
Bris was the least affected, he snarled and altered his body into an Exploder. Jeremy didn’t know their real name, just the nickname other people called them. Four winged creatures with two sets of arms and walking on two legs. Four foot tall with big bug eyes and covered in light blue hair. Bris leapt forward, his wings beating furiously. Jeremy jumped backwards, the wind the wings created coming together to create a burst of flame.
He didn’t stop though, Bris flew over the crater in the floor with outthrust fingers. His nails ejected, the projectiles chasing Jeremy as he dodged. When they made contact they exploded like small bombs. Jeremy stepped backwards into a rift, appearing right behind Bris. Bris had already turned and ducked, avoiding the blow to the head. His fingers came up like a knife, impaling Jeremy through is left lung. Jeremy laughed, blood erupting from his mouth as he grabbed a hold of the appendage, pulling the shifter in closer. His right arm came up and around, a large blade sprouting from his elbow. In one swift movement, Jeremy separated Bris’ head from his body. Bringing the point back around to impale the head through the forehead just to be on the safe side.
He turned once more, yanking the hand out of his lung as he let the head slide slowly off his blade. It hit the floor with a wet thud. Using his rift powers, he reached inside himself, sealing his lung closed by turning the wound into an open time tear first. That was a temporary measure, he would need medical attention soon. But he had eliminated one obstacle, and D was already showing signs of struggle. He still had fresh scars along his arms and side where Jeremy had dismembered him. His movements were slower, so too would his reactions be.
The two looked into his eyes, saw his madness. Saw his resolve. The fear stench grew ever stronger. Now they would beg for their lives. Their sense of survival overriding every other factor. They realized he was stronger on a visceral level. They instinctively knew he was the alpha male, the pack leader. They instinctively knew he would kill them if they did not submit. Unfortunately, he would kill them anyway.
“Jeremy, let’s talk about this. Perhaps, perhaps we were wrong. Maybe your ideas have some merit. I-I see that now. So what do you say, how about we end this and be civilized?”
Jeremy stepped forward into a rift just as Vulana shouted out in warning.
“D!”
Jeremy saw D spin around right before his eyes entered his time tear. But he never saw Jeremy exit. His tear opened up inside the old man. Basic physics, two bodies cannot occupy the same space. D’s body burst outwards, painting the walls and floor with tiny fragments of quivering flesh. Painting Jeremy from head to toe as well. He turned to Vulana, the smell of blood coating him an aphrodisiac. She assaulted him with more psychic blasts as he drew ever closer to her. But they were weak and ineffectual. Her power was drained. Finally he planted himself inches from her face.
He would give her credit. She did not beg for her life. Did not cower and back down. She faced him squarely, meeting his eyes with anger and determination. She knew her death was imminent, yet she faced it as a true soldier. His fingers curled around her neck, lifting her off the ground. She spit in his face.
“Kill me then you monster.”
She was a thing. An animal. A creature that had no rights, no feelings, no conscious. Their words, their sounds of pain were all fake. All designed to make you have sympathy for them. So they could survive. He was within his rights to do whatever he wished. No one would argue, he was the alpha male here. He decided when he would kill her. And he would kill her when she broke.
Without warning he twisted, bringing her head down to smash into the floor. A quick thought allowed him to place a bullet into her joints. As she screamed, he jumped high into the air, bringing his fist down into her stomach. That stopped her screaming, as the air was expelled from her lungs and blood burst from her lips. His arm reached out and grabbed her shirt, ripping it from her flesh while leaving gouges in her skin. She fought him then and he beat her for it. His hands already reaching for his pants.
He hoped she would not break too soon.
Chapter 35: The Best Laid Plans&
Kimberly was angry. While she couldn’t take that anger out on Quis, she could focus it elsewhere. This world, this Atlantis was a suffocating place. She knew that deep in her bones. The people were not truly happy. They looked it, and they acted it, but how could they be happy in a place that had effectively stolen all their freedom from them?
It was the fault of the Sages. They made the laws. They enforced those laws. They needed to be punished. Needed to be removed from office. Hadn’t J said something to that effect? That there was an internal power struggle between those who resisted change and those who advocated it?
For all his words though, he had never actually said what side he was on-- had he? Wait,-- no-- he had. Kimi remembered his odd question about what she thought of change. He said she had nothing to fear from him after she answered, so that meant he was trying to change things. But was he trying to change them for the better? Kimberly had to ask him. If he really wanted to help the people of this pocket world, she had to help him. The thought of sitting on the sidelines was just intolerable.
First she would give him an earful. He was still a Sage. He had still allowed such injustice to happen. Had even helped create those laws and regulations. Had help keep these people as prisoners within their own culture. She might not be able to get angry at Quis, but she had no problems getting angry with Sage J.
Quis had already sent a runner to go find the Sage and bring him to her just a few minutes ago when they landed. Already she was formulating the words she would use, the postures she would take to get across her outrage. In its own way, it would be like putting on a character. Quis made soothing sounds as she led her through the building towards the Great Library, but Kimberly wasn’t allowing the words to cool her temper. Even the doctors who were dashing off to one section of the giant structure couldn’t divert her anger with curiosity.
Quis stopped in front of a pair of double doors twice as tall as Kimberly. A large carving of Yggdrassil, the world tree, and fount of all knowledge, covered them entirely. The leaves were gilded with gold and books covered the ground at the base of the trunk. Holding out her hand to showcase the doors, she showed Kimberly all her teeth.
“Behold! The true center of Atlantis. While the capitol building is the center of the city, this room is the center of the center. The entirety of this structure was built around this single room. These doors are all that remain of the original structure that once stood here. Built in 2535 A.D. of the original timeline, it survived until the end of the world in 5050 G.F.T.-- that is Galactic Federation Time. Collecting the vast knowledge of the ages. From the lost scrolls of the dead sea, to the forgotten tomes of Alexander’s great library and beyond. To find and secure this k
nowledge was the sacred duty of the Librarians who took care of this place. Even now, the Librarians are an honored position whose duty is to preserve and protect all within so it is not lost once more to the ages. Computers can get corrupted, files lost, but in here are the original works of the ancients.”
Quis pulled on the two handles, a black line split the tree as they opened slowly. When Kimberly stepped inside, she forgot all about her anger, her entire being filled with a sense of awe and wonder.
It wasn’t just a room, it was a small city in itself. Kimberly craned her head skyward, seeing layer after layer of balcony and a skylight far off. She could see staircases going downwards as well. Inching forward, she looked over the edge of the rail to see two more floors below her. She couldn’t see the back of the room, the shelves marching off into specks, the aisles created an optical illusion that they were converging to a point. Walls sectioned the library into rooms, each room holding a specific type of writing. Kimberly read a plaque on the nearest door that said fiction. When she poked her head inside, it was like walking into a small library all of its own. Yet more arrows and plaques would help her further narrow her search, giving year of publication and alphabetical order of author. There were even definitions for each time line as well, with Aa representing the first Earth and Bb representing the Earth she had come from.
She chose an aisle at random, then a book at random. While they didn’t use the dewy decimal system she was used to, the definitely had some sort of coded number process. The book she chose was one called The Lusty Bard. The one next to it with the same number, just Bb to signify a different time line, was called The Lusty Minstrel. Kimi read the backs of both, finding them almost identical. Only the name of the protagonist and a few other words were slightly different. She knew if she read them both, they would be near carbon copies.
Out of Time the Grand Quest Page 40