Once again, a plume of ocean water exploded as a familiar figure jumped back onto the ship. The marine had returned, and this time she was determined to finish the job, no matter what it took.
Right away, she was greeted by two of her enemies.
One, a boy with silky dark blue hair that made her sick to her stomach.
The other, someone she'd had on her mind for a while now. The one who annoyed her the most. Someone with an aspect capable of teleporting others. His dull green eyes locked onto her with intense focus. There was a hint of worry in them, but he didn't let it shake him too much.
Noticing that he had taken a more forward role though, she quickly glanced around for their missing third member. She wasn't too far away, but she was a little strange this time.
Looking back at her for a moment, she sighed as she tore off her shirt with a simple tug. Her upper half was only clothed with a tightly wrapped sarashi, leaving her athletic build exposed. Her muscles were lean and defined, shaped by years of hard training, but the true eye opener was what laid on top.
Covering her flesh was a series of small, pale scars—fine marks scattered over her like paint strokes on a canvas. Reaching from her shoulder blades and traveling along her spine, then extending outward until they reached the backs of her arms.
The sight stunned her for a second, as she spoke aloud again,
"The two swapped roles? Why?"
Did they think changing their formation would give them an advantage? The answer really didn't matter anyway, as long as one of them died quickly whatever plan they had cooked up would end up falling apart.
Looking up, she saw the crow in the sky, still washing the ship in a tide of its black feathers. It was then that she was reminded of how she was so easily dumped into the ocean, the raw pain of her open wound being stung so suddenly.
Her anger peaked.
"Cowards! All of you! Cowards!"
Once more, the ships deck exploded into a storm of violence.
Hugo was the one to take initiative first, having blinked out of her line of sight and reappearing behind the young women. As the azure blade fell down to pierce through her neck, she spun as she grabbed his wrist not a moment sooner.
Before she could tighten her grip and break it for good though, he had already disappeared. Leaving behind the Azure blade behind.
Instead, Azdin reappeared before her as he quickly caught the falling blade in his hand, and thrusted it right towards her covered eye. She tilted her head slightly as the blade narrowly missed, instead biting into her ear and spilling mere droplets of her blood.
Annoyed by the sting, she clenched her empty hand into a fist and threw it right at him. Just as she anticipated, he disappeared right before she could make contact.
The black feathers filled the air like a storm of ash, swirling violently around the battlefield as Azdin flickered in and out of existence. One moment he was before the marine, the next he vanished into the curtain of feathers, only to reappear at her flank with a strike already in motion.
She twisted aside, letting the blow whistle past her ribs, then countered with an elbow, forcing him to disappear again. He reappeared behind her, but she ducked beneath his attack and swept at his legs, making him vanish once more. Every exchange followed the same impossible rhythm—Azdin appearing from unexpected angles, striking, disappearing, and re emerging elsewhere, while the marine calmly countered or avoided every blow with tame precision.
Occasionally, Hugo would join the exchange, turning the fight into a brief two-on-one assault. Azdin would appear at her side as Hugo attacked from the opposite direction, only for her to parry one strike, evade the other, and force them both back. Hugo never lasted long before withdrawing, leaving Azdin alone once again amid the swirling feathers.
Keeping up with the speed of an Ascendent was one thing, but making sure he didn't get killed himself while also keeping track of Azdin at the same time was too difficult. He could manage before because all he had to do was watch, but this time was different. He was filling in for the nameless Awakened, but clearly he was insufficient.
How Azdin had been able to last one on one against her, even with his support was beyond him.
Azdin vanished and reappeared above her, driving down with another thrust with the Azure blade, but she stepped aside at the last instant, his blow cutting through empty air. As he landed, she was already turning toward him, her eyes following him through the black-feathered storm only to watch him disappear again.
So this time, she made a simple prediction.
The moment Azdin vanished, she moved without hesitation. Her body twisted sharply, as she drove a powerful back kick into the space behind her. This time, her heel met something solid. When Azdin suddenly appeared in the path of her strike, an impact landed with a heavy crack as his body was launched violently through the storm of black feathers, flying several meters back.
Hugo's face twisted in horror, but he had no time to worry as the fierce Ascendent turned her attention towards him next.
The moment she even blinked in his direction, he had already disappeared. This time moving himself all they way up to the ships look out, creating a huge amount of distance between them.
Glancing around, she quickly found out where he was. Hugo wasn't too worried though.
It seemed like she was able to heal her leg somehow, but it wasn't complete. Whether she'd try to jump all the way up there in one go, or climb up she'd struggle. And if she got even remotely too close, he'd be able to escape easily.
Although, she didn't have to go after him, she could simply go after one his allies instead. She could try to finish off Azdin for good, or aim for the nameless Awakened who remained stationary.
Of course, Hugo could simply move either of them up here with him too, so he still held the advantage. Atleast that was what he hoped to make her believe.
"How many more times can you perform that trick of yours, I wonder?"
Once again, Hugo found himself in a terrible situation.
Just as he had feared, his essence exhaustion wasn't just obvious to Azdin, but it was obvious to her too. She had already realized that his ability to move her was limited. Although he could move his allies more frequently, in the end he had only done it to her only once. Deducing everything else about him from that fact was simple through some observation.
"Do you think hiding up there will fool me? How many times can you perform that trickery.. once? Twice? All I have to do is force your uses and I'll take your lives."
Like anyone, he didn't possess an unlimited amount of soul essence. All she had to do was force him to exhaust it, and whatever insurance they had would disappear.
The one who was at the disadvantage, was him.
Hugo's mind raced as he desperately searched for a way to turn the tides. Every possibility he considered seemed to lead to another dead end. The marine was simply too good at anticipating their attacks now, countering every move with infuriating precision.
Black feathers continued to drift through the air as she shifted her stance, preparing to make her next move. Hugo's eyes darted between her and the nameless Awakened, his thoughts scrambling for options, anything that might give them an advantage.
But before the marine could act, a strained voice suddenly echoed across the battlefield, interrupting the tense silence.
"She really is just gonna explain her plan out loud huh? Such strange flaw. And here I thought mine was a pain!"