The huge man pulled out his own throat and proceeded to remove the roots that had spread into his lungs.
"How???". Layla said as she manifested several roots to crush the huge man's skull.
He tore them off and approached her.
"That won't kill me". He said as he lowered his fist towards her.
She disappeared.
"Thank you Hendrix". Layla said to the recovered Hendrix as he has moved her out of the huge man's attack.
The huge man sensed something and lept away. The force generated by his actions destroyed much of the surrounding in it's wake as he landed in front of Cordius and struck a blow.
Cordius attack on the smaller man nearly took off his head.
Cordius binded his threads together to reinforce them and blocked the attack as he dropped his saber. The attack from the man tore off Cordius left arm as it broke through his defense.
The huge man hurriedly carried his partner and jumped up high.
"Another time then." The smaller man said to Cordius, his neck had recovered just as they departed, it was clear they had made it halfway through the forest.
"Is everyone okay". Cordius asked Team Beta as he turned around and walked towards them.
"No". Cordius said as he saw Cynthia's body and walked towards her. His face fell to the floor.
"We've failed today, we must report this to the leader of the guild as well as the Investigative Guild". Cordius said as he covered her body with a cloth, he used his threads to stop the bleeding in his left arm and covered it in multiple threads. He lifted Cynthia's body.
Her body was placed on a carriage as Team Beta prepared to return.
"Captain! Your arm!". Custos yelled out as he ran towards Cordius.
"It's a small price to pay to find out what kind of opponents we are dealing with, i don't know if The Roundtable will take them seriously but from what we have seen today. I believe we all need to do something about these cloaked men". Custos added.
"They have our full attention now". Cordius told Custos as he stared at the carriage.
"How did you know how to get here". Custos asked the captain.
"I attached my threads to each one of you allowing myself to be scatter and reform wherever the threads were but Edward contacted me with the team manaphone to alert me of the situation". Cordius replied him.
"The message was delayed several times.. it's almost like they disrupted it to stop information from getting across". Cordius added with suspicious thoughts but the impossibility of the very act greatly confused him.
Cordius used some threads to grab his left arm as he alerted his team to return to base.
Cordius and Team Beta began their journey back to their base.
They made their way into Oakwood and conversed with some travellers and residents.
They returned to the squad one base and the formerly injured checked at the healing bay for any undetectable injury.
They arrived by morning.
Custos entered the team hostel and collapsed into his bed, his suit dirty and his mind hazy. He had experienced real danger for the first time.
Cordius returned to his building, the captain's quarters. He entered his office and took off the armour from his detached arm. He then sat at the edge of his table, the events of the evening racing through his mind.
Cordius picked up his manaphone and contacted another knight.
"This is squad one to headquarters. I have an incident to report to the Guild Leader." Cordius said into the phone.
The secretary took a few seconds to verify the call and responded.
"Alright, i will forward you to the vice leader as the leader is unavailable".
"Thank you." Cordius replied her as he waited for the redirect.
"Cordius... What happened?". The leader inquired. The voice was feminine and her tone was serious.
"I believe it might be a matter of continental security. I need you to listen to the whole thing". Cordius said to her.
"Alright. Give me a day and i will be there. Tomorrow by noon" She told the captain.
"Thank you, i shall ready the base for your arrival". Cordius said as she ended the call.
Cordius stepped out of his office and headed to the centre of the base where the speaker laid. He picked it up and announced to the entire base.
"Tomorrow by noon, we shall expect a visit from the Vice. She will be coming here to discuss the mysterious events that took place in the evening with Team Beta and we shall decide how to move forward with handling the threat. Thank you for your time".
His voice was heard in the training rooms, the walkways, the walls, the dining halls, the hostels... Everywhere. The speakers were used to relay general information.
The members of team beta who were being checked up at the clinic listened closely as they knew they would be questioned by the vice and her team when she arrived.
Cordius preceded to call his vice captain to his office to prepare for the proceedings of the next day.
The huge man walks through a dark town with the smaller man also wearing his cloak.
They walk into an empty tavern and climb the stairs as they opened a door.
In the room sat the cloaked woman.
"You're late." She said to the other two.
"We had a little delay and we realise they made contact and had to delay the contact. It's a long story." The smaller man said to her.
"The ritual was completed before we left the village". He added.
"That is good. You both are here so i can show you the gift from the boss, he sent company". She said to the men.
"What kind of company?". The huge man asked.
"Come with me". She said to her partners as they left the building and walked into a large hall.
The men were surprised to see a large crowd containing dozens and dozens of Cloaked Men and Women. They knelt down before them.
"This is good." The smaller man said.
"This is very good". The man added as he laughed out loud, his laughter echoing through the hall and into the dark town.