Another arrow shoots, which we lazily avoid.
"Is he just dumb?" Spythun asks.
"Maybe. Or maybe he is counting on us getting tired," I say.
"He shouldn't be here…" Leo says, and looks at me – hoping for me to agree. "Right? The Born-sos…"
"That's right… Rahambose or anyone can't and won't just come here. Even when these lot here, fear Rahambose. This is too early for them to make such a move."
I feel a little twist in my stomach, and a bit of regret for saying that. But even Born-sos knew that at one point Rahambose won't care for this privacy, and come to cause… chaos. That is exactly why they feared him.
"Then how come…"
Even with such safe-place statement on this place… I doubt Born-sos would willingly try to stop a Rahambose. "I'll… go talk… to them," I lie in a mumbling and pondering manner.
I step outside, and put my back to the wall of the house. Slowly ducking, I collect a few stones and toss it into the bushes, as if somebody – I – am walking through it.
'Raigo,' I hear Spythun's voice.
'So I'm not an idiot,' I think slowly, hoping he can hear.
'I'm guessing the Born-sos won't care,' I hear Skyto.
'Of course not,' I sigh internally.
'No matter. Good job with the stones. He must think you really went away.'
'So… I suppose he is here to distract us. Must be very important if he came here.'
'He was meditating,' Hailo says. 'Rainbow.'
'Then he must be defenceless. Or so we can hope. This might be our best shot.'
'And what about the others?'
'They might be scattered like that night… we need to make sure that we split and keep them thinking we are distracted.'
'Ready,' Drego, Wyrom, and Leo say together.
'Only Wyrom should do. The Rahambose-killer is with him.'
'But I'm not as powerful right now. So I don't think that is a good suggestion, I'm sorry.'
'You are the only one who can kill him.'
'I didn't quite lose my powers, why am I going to stay back?' Drego asks.
'Well you could turn into me, Hailo, and Wyrom and give Gust and others a false hope that we haven't left – and are indeed distracted.'
'That is… A lot. If the others come… and to turn into each of you simultaneously… I'm not THAT strong.'
'Well it is our best shot.'
'Why are you going with those two? I understand Hailo having to go, but you…' Skyto says.
'What is that supposed to mean?' I glare through the wall.
'I'm not quite sure why I'm going,' Hailo says. 'Raising hand.'
'That's not how this works,' Spythun sighs.
'Oh? Questioning.'
'Well you could go there from wherever you are… or were. So I think you could best try to take others with you. I don't know if it'll work just on them alone,' Skyto explains.
'Why are us adults not going?' Tony asks. 'Okay nevermind, I understand. I'd rather kill this mot-'
'-you know…' Leo says. 'Considering how Lithin and Hate won't be here, just like the other night… Can I pitch in another plan?'
***
"Spythun!" Hailo says as I hang on, holding my knife's handle.
"You," Gust says, looking down at me. I simply give a wry smile. "Know that I won't be affected right?"
"I just wanted to check if I'm a boomerang."
I feel the knife slipping out of his skin even without him fidgeting his claw at it. I asked Wyron to throw me properly. But this was fine enough.
Rather than taking the knife out, he grabs my body and brings me to his mouth.
"But this… will hurt you."
"Yes it hurts my nose."
His mouth opens and I kick my feet up to his inner-upper jaw. I should put a knife in my boots.
Feeling the heat rise up, I bracelet myself while trying to transform into armour. But I feel myself gulp as another set of claws push my head backwards and kiss Gust.
Well that'd be romantic. My life ain't that genre.
It only gets hotter as Line breathes into Gust's fire too. I realise that it isn't claws that are pushing me, but the thorns at his neck – like a triceratops.
My body moves with his gripping hand around me, and I find Tony float away to a distance as Gust roars. I fall. Tony comes towards me and I hold out my hand, "Tony!" And she stops. Gust slashes his claws at her while one of his eye looks at me.
I fall.
I turn around to face the ground.
"Aweaugh," I say as I fall.
But I close my eyes, and breath out. Hearing Gust roar I realise he is going to breath fire again, I remove my waistband and whip it forward while pressing at the top of his head. My other hand holds the other end of my waistband, which comes from between Gust's open mouth.
"SKYTO!" I scream and he comes from the spot he had dropped me from, dropping his heavy sword to Gust's back. "Tony!" And I see her surely enough, she holds the vine she possessed and goes to Gust's lower jaw and lowers it while pulling down.
I find Line wrapping his vine on a spear and he aims to throw it right into Gust's mouth.
As he falls to the ground, Skyto holds me again and gives me a safe landing than throw me down again.
"SKYTO!" Leo shrieks.
As the two of us look behind, Skyto pushes his broken sword upwards – I watch it crumble as a huge sword makes its way, without even touching the sword. Wyrom comes forward and pushes his hands in between the two swords from clashing into each other. As I do so too, his shoulder yanks me away. As I fall to the ground I see the face of somebody bigger than Wyrom – with a purple bright on their… oh.
The sword shrieks out in a frequency, making me press my hands to my ears and push away from here. But as I open my eyes, I find it still in one piece. With Wyrom still holding the sword.
"You seem to have healed," Trapzedrun grins at Wyrom.
"DO NOT TOUCH THAT SWORD, ANY OF YOU," Wyrom says, pushing Trapzedrun back.
"Come on now, it only can crush. No traps."
"Guys?" Tyle says, as Gust starts getting up and spitting the spear out.
'Wyrom the vines-'
'-yes I get it. We can handle this. Just go!"
I look at Skyto, and he nods to me – so I start running away. As I look back, I find Wyrom and Line fighting against Trapzedrun as the rest start slicing down Gust – with him quickly regrowing. So I suppose that ends part A of the plan. Marvellous.
I skid and fall as I see the back of someone familiar. But I compose myself again as purple light rushes towards me. I start running the other way, while evading a purple crescent.
"I suppose my boomerang powers are afterall: real."
"Son of Rahambose… won't greet me? I almost was gonna birth your child," Trinity says.
"You are a dark blue shade away I'm afraid," I say while I let her crescent cut through a tree and burst it. "Perhaps you and that Gust guy… You know? End him and we can think about it?"
"Aw… I love a proposal."
'Gust is here.'
'Trapzedrun will be here, I just know that.'
'Rainbow is in the cave.'
'Razor might be there, Spythun you need to get to him and make sure to keep him occupied.'
'What about Trinity?'
'She said she saw some vision… our best guess is she'd be with Rahambose, at the castle.'
'Spythun if you see Trinity, you bring her to me. Your goal is Razor, and Razor alone.'
I weave out my path with threads of yellow lightning, to avoid Trinity. She is strong, but not as fast as me. Besides, I'd be a fool to-
"So you run, son of Rahambose. Of course. Why'd you fight me?" Trinity says while stopping, as another tree breaks – making me slide down a steep bump and avoid her. "Gust was right. You and that white b*tch," she chuckles, and I stay with my hands on the ground. "You are no son of Rahambose. You are nothing without your father or your friends. You are just a powerless, weak, messed up kid, who has to find warmth in the arms of another weakling, as you let her protect you. You are no son to Rahambose!"
"I'm not," I say as I lift from my knees. As my eyes steer towards her, she glows in purple, almost blinding me with the afterimage as I press my eyelids together. The forest bursts open, taking me into its arms.
***
Darkness… a spin into the unknown.
"Hailo," Wyrom's hand grips me as he whispers my name. My spin brings me to the room we are in and I spin around the corners and features… a cave, not a room. It wasn't the hall we were in a while back. "Are you okay?"
"I will be."
"Mmmmmmmmmmmmm," a chant enters as a stinging buzz, pushing me from my spin and back a few steps. Wyrom's hand grabs my wrist and I look down to the ground with a twist in my stomach.
I don't hear my name again, but I get time to compose myself, thankfully.
I nod, and we slowly walk towards the chant.
My hands shudder as I remind myself of the others having to face that immortal dragon or whatever… will they be fine?
As if to assure me; Wyrom squeezes my hand. Or perhaps it is to tell me…
The chants vibrate with the lightning's sizzling. The whole room covered with red lightning does not hide the feature-less greyman floating at the centre of the void of a room in front of us.
Floating alongside one of the curve of the barely waving red lightning, a blue coloured gem reached the greyman, Rainbow's, back; where a very tiny hill of many colours – whose only a small part we can see from in front of him, towering his meditating figure. The gem vibrates but the red lightning bends and encircles the gem as the Rainbows closed eyes and head twitches a little. The gem turns grey, as if camouflaging with his skin colour and it finds a place around one of the many tips and push Rainbow down just a little. He groans and maintains his composure.
"It turned grey," Spythun says, looking towards where I cannot quite see. "No I meant to say it turned back blue. Why can't Spythun say it properly?"
I just shake my head a little as I feel Spythun's hand shudder around mine, I take my other hand and squeeze Spythun's wrist to calm him.
But Skyto composed himself while breathing in and nods. "I suppose part A phase B is a success," Skyto grips the axe in his hand. "Now then-"
As Skyto's body pushes forward; I feel a shift, so does Skyto, and I scatter backwards while pulling Leo's hand, but he barely shifts while creating a purple crescent towards the red lightning.
But even as I do not blink, I find the red lightning constructing around Leo's hand. And I find the purple crescent at my neck.
"Tyle daughter," Leo's voice says in a grim tone, but he looks back and smiles like I have never seen before. "Hello Hailo. We meet again… remember me? It's me… your Queen. Elena."