"Oh, what an unfortunate move." She knew full well how terrifying Mak was and how crazy he got when Armin was exposed to battle.
Chanaia muttered, but she didn't have time to see Mak lunge at the mercenary because her opponent shot at her, and she had to dodge the bullets. They were using poisoned darts; Chanaia could smell it. As an Infinite, Chanaia was also able to exploit the speed of her movements more than anyone else, and while the others looked for cover, she danced on the deck looking for a good target. Against the metal surface, her weapon was useless; she had to search for the unprotected parts of the enemy's human body. The mercenaries couldn't be underestimated for being Apagatus. Indeed, with the help of technology, they had become terrible weapons. They were already famous throughout the Army, and this was the first time her group had faced them. Chanaia had heard about their means of combat, but she had never heard of poisoned bullets.
"Their bullets are poisoned, don't let them touch you or you'll be half dead!" She yelled to her team.
"She shouted at the top of her lungs, wondering where Chanon was. Then she saw him. A wave of water had lifted him near the side of the ship, and he nimbly climbed aboard. This immediately lifted the team's morale, and Chanaia noticed how the gunfire from their side increased noticeably. Then she could no longer see her brother and knew he had camouflaged himself. Almost at the same time, one of the enormous half-machine mercenaries fell on its back, and the poison-dart-firing weapon was taken from the mercenary. The action almost caused the machine to lose the mechanical arm.
Chanaia, in turn, taking advantage of her opponent's hesitation, who had been glancing sideways at the downed comrade, fired and hit an exposed spot on his collarbone. The mercenary howled and lunged at her, but as she retreated, Chanaia was caught by a fifth enemy that thundered down from the sky right behind her. A mechanical arm grabbed her before she could do anything. Immediately, the one who was attacking her found himself struggling with something, and Chanaia noticed two shadows moving around the gigantic half-metal, half-human man. It was undoubtedly the doing of Amir and her brother. However, the mercenary laughed, and immediately, blue lightning twisted around his body. Chanaia gasped. It had electrified the metal body to throw off its attackers.
At once, Amir and Chanon materialized on the ground, the first convulsing and the latter trying to sit up, looking dazed. Chanaia watched them with her heart in her throat. She tried to break free again, but the mercenary holding her gnawed and nearly managed to suffocate her in his terrible grip. Then the metal giant holding her spoke in a squeaky, unpleasant voice.
"We'll take the women alive; they'll talk faster if we torture them. But I'll leave this one to you, Soto. That must hurt a lot."
The other man advanced resolutely, a smile distorting his face. His jaw was made of metal, and his head, like the others', was well protected by a strange helmet. Chanaia was wondering why he wasn't dead when a powerful explosion swept through the man called Soto. Chanaia's dull mind concluded that it had been Zenon's weapons that had vaporized the giant, but at the price of leaving a smoking hole in the deck and probably some other damage to the ship. She tried to stay awake, but she was short of breath and knew she was going to faint soon. Then, with an inhuman scream, her captor released her.
Chanaia fell to her knees on the deck, her eyes barely able to see Amir, still unconscious on the floor, and Chanon trying to stand while shouting something at him.
Something had gone terribly wrong. Thinking this, Chanaia sat up with great effort, disoriented. She fleetingly saw the rest of the crew engaged in combat with a mercenary who wore a huge suit of armor. Meanwhile, everything in the tower had gone silent, and she automatically feared for Zenon. Then something slammed into her collarbone, almost at the base of her neck.
She had been hit hard. So hard that Chanaia fell to her knees and hands, coughing. With great effort, she tilted her head in time to see the mercenary's metal foot strike her stomach. She tried to stiffen her body there, but after the impact, she estimated at least two ribs were broken because it was unbearably painful to breathe.
Chans!! She heard Chanon cry. She had been flung against the side of the railing; her back was against the balustrade, so she easily saw the metal giant as it approached her. Chanaia marveled at how calm she was as she accepted what was coming, because she was certain to die. In those moments, she regretted not having kissed Amir or told her brother how much she loved him. And as she thought about this, she could hear Chanon cursing and screaming horribly. Suddenly, she saw something jumping on the back of her future murderer. Chanaia's jaw dropped, and her eyes threatened to pop out of their sockets. How...? Chanaia thought.
Chanon couldn't believe what he was seeing: the gaunt, sick, and cadaverous Ilia was clinging to the mercenary's back. It looked like a malnourished squirrel attacking a gorilla. Chanon blinked. He could barely move. What had they done to him that he couldn't recover in time? Damn! He had to help them. Then he saw Ilia, who, without wasting a precious second, plunged a long kitchen knife into an unsuspected, unprotected spot on the bionic weapon suit. It had been the same spot Chanaia had discovered unprotected on the other attacker. The knife sank to the hilt. However, with a roar, the mercenary grabbed Ilia with one arm and threw her onto Chanaia. The two young women crashed harshly. And Ilia also slammed her head hard against the ship's wall. The wounded mercenary, meanwhile, despite spewing lots of blood from his mouth, edged closer to the women. His steps were hesitant but determined.
Chanaia glanced at the girl next to her. Oh Ilia... She thought, ready to go to her aid, but when she tried to move, the pain exploded throughout her body like a bomb. She felt desperate and couldn't think of any skill that would help her in her precarious situation. Someone help! She pleaded in her mind. To her shame, Chanaia couldn't keep her cool this time, and with growing panic, she convinced herself that they were both going to die. Then, as if out of nowhere, Chanon slammed into the metal mass, knocking it off its trajectory so that the two of them fell into the water after shattering the wooden frame of the ship.
Several seconds passed before Ilia slowly got up. She looked around while touching her head. Luckily, her skull was intact, although she would likely have a huge bump soon. She quickly helped Chanaia and, after making sure her friend was in no big danger, Ilia leaned over the railing toward the dark sea. There was nothing but the waves and some floating debris from the ship. Then she shared a worried look with the other young woman.
The last steel soldier had fallen after receiving a crushing blow from an iron ball that Atalaya aimed at his head. The crew was in bad shape, but the most important thing was that there were no more fallen. However, there was still no sign of Chanon.
Despite being wounded and battered, Mak and Keniak jumped into the water, followed by Atalaya. They searched eagerly for their captain, but the darkness was no help, and there was no sign of him.
Then Ilia felt Chanaia sobbing beside her, and turning around, she saw that the young woman had sat up and was staring anxiously at the sea. A terrible feeling came over her, and she trembled. If things continued like this, they would lose Chanon.
No! Ilia thought resolutely. She wouldn't let that happen. Then she jumped into the water.
"Ilia, no!"