Xero Chronicle: Invasion

by Ross Buzzell

  “I’ve seen first-hand how long that shield will last and at my hands, it will not be long.”

  Before she has a chance to respond or even react Disa’ani slams his spear into the shield once again. He notices that she tries to push off the ground with the arm he did not wrench behind her back but the force of each relentless blow sends her bouncing back to the ground. Using all three spears he attacks with the heads, the pommels and the bodies of each weapon so relentlessly that her attempts to struggle free are rendered useless, pinning her in place. The shield begins to fail as the ring begins to glow, getting brighter and brighter with each attack. He can tell that her brave façade has shattered and now only terror grips the woman as she realizes death is imminent. He notices her fingers quickly grasp the ring which begins to strobe before releasing a burst of energy powerful enough to hit Disa’ani like a hammer and send him careening backwards across the room causing him to drop the spear in his hand and the other two to fall free of his control to the ground.

  The force is not enough to slow Disa’ani down, however, and in the blink of an eye he is back on his feet only to notice a familiar blue glow coming from the door. Disa’ani can feel the presence of Konner, along with that of an Emissary, a miner and a being that would be a dragon rider. He lets his gaze fall to the doorway and sees his old friend accompanied by a few companions, one of which seems to be giving off the body heat of two beings instead of one. The moment Konner’s eyes land on the woman he pauses, lost in her beauty, this is his time. Disa’ani throws a hand up, lifting a spear off the ground and then plunges it forward, his still burning eyes throw his aim off some and the weapon narrowly misses Konners head and sticks into the wall.

  This is when Disa’ani feels his stomach drop slightly as the High King’s attention is now brought to him and a look he has not seen in year’s falls on his face. It is the same look that he gave the Cryptea right before he ripped them apart, and now Disa’ani is on the receiving end. Disa’ani sees his jaw clench and his nose wrinkle as he nearly snarls at his old friend, clearly still rather upset at his father being killed at Disa’ani’s hands, he can’t help but taunt his old teacher.

  “Konner, it is good to see you again… The last time I saw you weren’t I killing your father?”

  Disa’ani can see Konner’s rage begin to boil, if there is one thing that he has learned throughout his years training with Konner it is that when he has a propensity for tunnel vision and to most this unbridled focus on them spells out their doom. But for someone who knows almost all of Konner’s moves the tunnel vision can be made to work in Disa’ani’s favor. The ferocity that the shield ignites with and the growl that comes from behind clinched teeth points to his assumption being right.

  “And wasn’t I sending you through a wall?”

  Disa’ani can’t help but laugh, leaning back as he does. The attack was devastating yes, but the fall hurt more than the blow.

  “Patience boy, you will get your turn. First your girlfriend will die, then those two you brought with you and then… only after I’ve killed your friends will you be put out of your misery.”

  Disa’ani notices Konner’s body begin to shake but not out of rage, it is being moved by the pounding of the heart in his chest. Without a moment’s hesitation Konner charges Disa’ani, which is just what he hoped would happen. Konner throws his arm up preparing to attack with his shield and Disa’ani uses his connection to throw another spear at him. The weapon deflects and embeds itself into another wall while the first spear thrown is whipped around and slams into the back of Konners head so hard he falls forward. As he stumbles Disa’ani casts his third spear at Konner’s chest, he manages to deflect the third spear before he rights himself.

  While Konner gets to his feet Disa’ani moves two of his spears into a circular position around Konner, surrounding him. The third returns to Disa’ani’s hand as he notices that the cape has fallen from the woman’s shoulders and the ring no longer glows meaning she is defenseless. Disa’ani leaps across the room, forcing his other two spears to attack Konner and keep him at bay. The woman begins to scream as Disa’ani moves in for the kill. A gust of wind hits Disa’ani as his spear comes to an immediate stop having been caught by a stone gray hand. Disa’ani follows the arm to see the being who is giving off the energy of two people, the gray slowly spreads over their body as he is fascinated by the amalgamation before him.

  The amalgamation does something that as of now, no one has ever managed to do, not even Konner. They twist the spear away from the redhead before delivering a kick so hard to Disa’ani’s chest that he releases his weapon. He had only ever been hit that hard once, and it was by Konner. Disa’ani flies back into the kitchen of the dwelling but he keeps presses the attack on Konner. If he can take care of this one then holding Konner off long enough to complete his mission would be easy. Disa’ani ensures that the spears moving against Konner travel so fast he is forced to overclock his mind, this will buy Disa’ani the time he needs.

  The amalgamation of the two entities lunges at Disa’ani, his weapon in their hands. The attack is sloppy and not thought out. With a swift spin Disa’ani thrusts his foot so hard into the gut of the attacker that a flash of light erupts from them and a woman is sent flying across the apartment while a man, still covered in stone staggers backwards. Disa’ani throws a hand out and rips his spear out of the stone man’s hand, catching it in his own. His focus on retrieving his weapon leaves him unintentionally open for an attack. The man spins through the air and delivers a kick so powerful that Disa’ani staggers and nearly falls over. A metallic taste fills his mouth and he wipes blood from his lip. A smile forms as he rights himself, a worthy opponent that he is allowed to kill, this is going to be fun.

  “Been a long time since an enemy has made me bleed.”

  Disa’ani states with a laugh on his voice.

  “I’ll make sure to squeeze more out of you.”

  The man before him retorts. Disa’ani squares himself off with his opponent.

  “And what do I call the man I am about to kill?”

  The man squares off as well throwing two punches into the air as if to loosen up some.

  “I am the Protolith, the foundation of your ruin.”

  Disa’ani’s brow furrows, if he was trying to come off as intimidating it was not working.

  “Do you have any idea how cheesy that sounds?”

  The Protolith sighs then charges Disa’ani who throws his spear at the man who deflects it with a stone arm. The man manages to get close enough to deliver a physical attack, as he throws his fist out at Disa’ani’s face a stone spike protrudes out of his forearm. Disa’ani flips his fingers upwards and his weapon returns to him, only this time it slams into the stone spike so hard it shatters. The scream of pain that leaves Protoliths lips before he charges back in to attack Disa’ani.

  While the Protolith and Disa’ani continue to fight, matching each other blow for blow he catches Konner moving out of the corner of his eye. He hooks his arm with the man he is fighting and spins over his back using the momentum to fling the man into a wall all the while carrying the throwing momentum into hurling his spear at Konner, who now holds the redheaded woman. Instantly a shield is put up to protect them but the spear hits them with so much force that Konner, and by extension the woman are send flying out of the window. He takes in the beauty of his attack as the fall would not kill Konner but certainly would kill the woman. That is until one of his own spears slams into his shoulder with such a violent impact that Disa’ani is lifted off of his feet and sent through the window. As he falls he gets a brief glimpse of the one who through his weapon at him, it is the blond woman who gives off the power of an Emissary.

  Disa’ani falls the entire height of the building; he had failed at his mission. With a violent jolt Disa’ani slams into the ground so hard it gives way under him. He lets out a groan and yanks his spear from his shoulder, the wound heals almost instantly. With every bone in his body aching fro
m the fall he moans as he turns to his side and pushes himself off the ground. A pedestrian approaches him.

  “Hey man are you ok?”

  He asks, Disa’ani rolls his eyes at the man before he looks up at the large stone building across the street. With a powerful leap Disa’ani shoves himself off the ground and sails over the street and onto the roof of the stone building. The night air is cool, but he is not worried about that at the moment, right now he needs to get some distance and hope that they follow him one by one so he can pick them off before perusing the ring once more.

  Chapter: 5

  Disa’ani tilts his head as he runs, leaping from rooftop to rooftop he can hear the contact of his opponent far behind him, good. Disa’ani rapidly approaches a water tower, grabbing the base he slides around, under it and wedges himself in the pitch black corner of an attached building and wall that was once a divider but now is partially torn down. He watches as the Protolith comes to a stop in front of the tower, he spins and looks for Disa’ani but is clearly unable to see him in the pitch blackness. Deciding to mess with him Disa’ani begins to tauntingly whisper his name just loud enough to echo over the rooftops.

  “Protolithhhh…. Pppprrrroootolitthhhh.”

  He calls out, the sound being carried on the wind like the whisper of a ghost. He watches in amusement as the man twirls around, desperately scanning the rooftops while backing against the water tower. This would make it next to impossible to get behind him without getting noticed. Then the man does something Disa’ani doesn’t expect, he closes his eyes and tilts his head, Disa’ani had seen Konner do this many times, he was listening for Disa. With the most silent movement he can manage Disa’ani lines up the perfect shot and throws his last remaining spear at his target before leaping to the top of the water tower. Just before it reaches the center of the Protoliths spine he spins and deflects the weapon which sends it sliding clumsily across the rooftop.

  Running across the top of the massive barrel Disa’ani leaps off of the tower, fist drawn back, prepared to use his momentum and gravity to strike. In a move that takes Disa’ani off guard his opponent forms an ‘X’ with his forearms just as Disa’ani is about to land his blow and before his feet even touch the ground the man grips Disa’ani’s wrists tightly and changes his momentum before slamming Disa’ani face first into the rooftop so hard it bows slightly. His opponent leaps backwards, making distance, the move was impressive and Disa’ani nearly felt the blow. Gradually the soldier pushes himself off the ground; standing tall he dusts himself off.

  “Not bad, what is that?”

  Even though this man would certainly have to be killed Disa’ani would say that his skills are impressive as a move like that is learned, not downloaded.

  “Brazilian street fighting.”

  He retorts, Disa’ani watches as the man keeps his eyes locked on him, this Protolith does not fight like Konner, he is being careful, keeping his senses open for any trap that Disa’ani may have laid before his arrival. This trait in an opponent makes Disa’ani hungry to fight him, deep down he even almost regrets having to kill him as this man… this Protolith will make an excellent opponent. Finally the man makes his move and charges Disa’ani, both men engage once again. Disa’ani finds himself much faster than this man before him yet with each blow landed by his stone fist the Boronian warrior is able to feel the attacks, his strength perhaps exceeds even Disa’ani’s.

  Disa’ani manages to catch the man’s wrist and pin it behind his back, like the redhead had done to him but with minimal effort his adversary breaks free. Disa’ani throws up both forearms to block an incoming punch but is unable to resist the pure power behind the blow and ends up smashing his own face with his arms. This snaps Disa’ani’s head back and forces him to slide away from the stone man. Fatigue begins to set in, never before has Disa’ani faced an individual that could test his metal as the one before him. Even though by his movements the soldier can tell that Protolith is beginning to tire as well he wonders who has more juice left. Swiftly Disa moves in for a strike at Protoliths head but before his punch lands he feels a powerful blast hit him in the ribs so hard that even through his armor he feels one crack. The force of the punch lifts Disa’ani off the ground a few inches and by the time he lands Disa’ani is greeted by the bottom of both the man’s boots which slam into his chest hard enough to not only bruise Disa’ani’s sternum but also send him careening into the water tower support beams forcing them to crack. Disa’ani, aching pain radiating throughout his body from weariness and the damage delivered to him in the fight throws his hand out and his spear returns to him. The man before him begins to shift as his skin turns to a different material.

  “What kind of man attacks a defenseless girl?”

  He growls between labored huffs of breath. Disa’ani, catching his own breath begins to chuckle, clearly this opponent is not immune to the flaw of succumbing to rage in the heat of battle, a good weakness to exploit.

  “Oh she was far from defenseless. With the cape and the fabled ring of the gods… She could snuff out all life on this pitiful little planet…”

  Disa’ani raises his fingers and snaps them.

  “…just like that. If it were up to me she would hanging from my spear right now for the whole world to see! As would the other two ladies you came with.”

  It was not hard to push his buttons, universally men are the same, threaten a member of the opposite sex, or someone that is perceived to be weaker and watch them wind up and go. Disa notices, however that the man fights his inner rage and instead of just lunging in for an attack two stone spikes menacingly form from his arms.

  “Then I am going to have to send you and whomever you work for to hell where you belong.”

  This is interesting, he threatens to kill a killer and thinks it makes him any better than Disa’ani, Xero or even Dark Seclusion. He begins to laugh, more to taunt Protolith than anything.

  “Someone takes themselves way too seriously.”

  And there it was, his trigger, the grey stone man charges Disa’ani. Disa’ani jabs at him with his spear; Protolith dodges to the left to evade. The man gets close, to close for the spear to be of any real use. A sharp, rib shattering pain echoes through his body as if he were hollow. His breath catches in his throat as the Protolith slams one of his stone spikes into Disa’ani’s ribs; this causes his grip on the spear to weaken. Protolith uses his free hand to rip the spear from Disa’ani’s hand; he spins and slams the spear into the side of Disa’ani’s head. His vision flashes black and white for a split second as his teeth slam together so hard it is deafening. The blow makes Disa’ani loose his footing and fall to the ground. His adrenalin kicks in and his entire body goes numb, his vision even corrects itself and before the Protolith can deliver another blow Disa’ani slams his fist square into the man’s chest hard enough to stagger him and cause him to drop the spear.

  Still being low to the ground Disa’ani watches as his opponent charges him, he drops to the ground and slides towards him on his hip while swinging one of his stone spikes at Disa’ani’s head. With a powerful push Disa’ani shoves his body off the ground hard enough to get airborne just as the weapon passes under him. Spinning in midair he lands on his back and throws two fingers out towards his opponent who has stopped and looks back at Disa’ani.

  “Tag… You’re it!”

  Disa’ani says smugly as his spear had responded to his command and embedding itself headlong into his side. The weapon did not penetrate deep, not enough to kill but certainly enough to injure. The man gives out a painful groan as he rips the spear from his side, gets up and flees off the rooftop, attempting to leap from one to another he misses and after a few seconds Disa’ani hears the sound of his body slam into the ground.

  Agony grips Disa’ani as his adrenaline wears off. His ribs are certainly bruised, possibly broken. Begrudgingly he pushes himself off the ground in no shape to persue his target. Hopefully the toxic nature of Energynium, which Dark Seclusion had bro
ught out back in the cavern, would cause poisoning that would kill him by nights end. With his hand on his side Disa’ani limps to his spear and picks it up. He walks slowly to the edge of the building, opposite of where Protolith had leapt from. The pain in his side has already begun to dissipate as his body heals quickly to the wounds of battle. He leaps off the building top and lands in an alleyway, the force of the landing jars his system and makes him groan, it hurt, but if his opponent manages to let Konner know where the fight took place he would not stand a chance in this condition.