Chapter 14: Self Sabotage
Felix barely stumbled aside as the spinning blade hurtled toward him, its razor-sharp edge slicing the air where his chest had been moments ago.
The blade ricocheted off the metal railing with a clang, before harmlessly falling to the floor below. The sound shattered the fragile calm of the balcony, a warning to everyone nearby of the chaos unfolding.
'And there goes our cover... Great. We'll have to move again,' Leo thought bitterly, his sharp gaze snapping toward the source of the attack.
A faint shimmer of movement above the balcony caught his attention. The sound of rustling fabric followed, accompanied by the faint click of boots landing lightly on the metal framework above.
Felix, in stark contrast, flailed and gripped his short sword like a lifeline, spinning around aimlessly. "What the hell was that?!" he yelped, his voice echoing far louder than it should have as he tried to locate the enemies without any success.
"There!" Leo hissed, but his warning fell on deaf ears, as Felix continued to spin around like a blind buffoon.
"The drunk pig dodged," a woman's voice remarked, calm and cutting, her words laced with a cruel amusement.
Before Leo could react, two figures dropped from the shadows, landing onto the balcony from the terrace with eerie grace.
The first was a lean man, his sharp features twisted in a smug grin. A glowing chain coiled tightly around his forearm, crackling with arcs of blue lightning that hummed ominously in the air, and beside him stood a woman with piercing red eyes, her twin knives spinning effortlessly in her hands.
Leo's eyes narrowed, recognizing the dangerous precision in her movements. Each rotation of her blades promised lethal intent, and their coordinated stances made it clear to him that they were seasoned killers.
The man smirked. "I'm Kael," he said, his voice smooth and deliberate. "This is my sister, Varra, and as per tradition of the Felter Clan, we are introducing ourselves before we kill our prey."
'Felter Clan?' Leo mused, trying to recall if that name meant anything to him, but just like his lost memories, even if he knew anything about the Felter Clan, he could recall nothing about them at the moment, forcing him to not dwell on the topic for the moment.
"Well, I'm called YourFather," Felix slurred, stumbling forward with a feral grin, "but you may affectionately call me Daddy as I slit your throat."
Kael's grin faltered at Felix's response, as without warning, he lashed out with the glowing chain, the air sizzling as the electrified links snaked toward Felix like a living serpent.
Leo's eyes widened as he watched the chain shift mid-arc, curving unnaturally toward Felix's chest.
'What the hell is that?' Leo thought, his pulse quickening. The chain defied logic, its movement guided by something beyond physics, as both its unnatural turn and its lightning energy seemed something that simple science could not explain.
But Felix, despite his drunken state, swayed just out of reach, the chain cracking against the ground where he'd been standing moments before.
"Whoa— That's a cool move! Mind telling me the name of your technique?" Felix inquired, looking impressed by the attack as Kael snorted in response.
"This? It's a little family skill called Thunder Serpent," Kael taunted, pulling the chain back with a snap. "It's not something a pig like you could ever dream of mastering."
Before Felix could retort, Varra flicked her wrist, sending one of her spinning knives hurtling toward Leo.
Instinctively, Leo raised his dagger to block it, but his breath hitched as the single blade suddenly split into three mid-air.
Each new blade arced toward a different part of his body, forcing him to twist awkwardly to avoid two and deflect the third.
"What the—?" Leo muttered, his heart racing as the blades embedded themselves in the wall behind him.
Varra smirked, her red eyes gleaming with malice. "Impressed? My knives always find their mark, one way or another."
Leo's chest tightened. These weren't ordinary weapons—they were infused with something beyond craftsmanship. His opponents weren't just skilled; they wielded abilities that defied logic, and it left him feeling unmoored.
Kael struck again, the chain lashing out with a crack of lightning as Felix stumbled back, avoiding the electrified links by inches, but the sheer force of the strike sent chunks of the concrete balcony railing flying towards him.
*SMACK*
One shard struck Felix's cheek, leaving a thin line of blood trailing down his face, as Felix looked genuinely confused by what hit him?
Meanwhile, across the balcony, Varra closed the distance to Leo, her twin knives moving in a deadly blur. She slashed and thrust with precision, her attacks forcing Leo on the defensive.
At first Leo felt confident facing her, as he tried to parry her attacks to the best of his abilities, knowing full well that the slowing down effect would kick in soon enough.
However, when even after fighting for 15 seconds, his special ability failed to kick in, Leo started to panic for his life.
'Why isn't it happening?' Leo thought desperately, his breath coming in shallow gasps. The clarity he'd felt in his first fight—the strange sensation of time slowing—was nowhere to be found this time around.
His movements felt sluggish, his reactions barely enough to keep up with Varra's relentless assault.
"What's the matter, boy?" Varra taunted, her voice dripping with mockery. "Losing your nerve?"
Leo gritted his teeth, parrying another flurry of strikes, yet each impact jarred his arms, the fatigue from his earlier fight weighing him down, as he realized that he was becoming progressively slower as the fight raged on.
'Fuck me, at this rate I'll die within the next minute if nothing changes. My body has not recovered enough for me to move my limbs this fast. The strain it's putting on my body is immense' Leo thought, as he came to terms with just how bad his position was in this fight.
Felix, meanwhile, ducked under another swing of Kael's chain and surged forward with drunken abandon, it was a dangerous move for if he miscalculated his dash even slightly, the only possible outcome was certain death, however, luckily for him, his timing was perfect.
*SMACK*
Smacking the blunt end of his sword straight into Kael's ribs, Felix turned the tide of battle in his favor.
Kael staggered, his grin replaced by a grimace of pain. "You'll pay for that," he spat, yanking the chain back for another attack.
But Felix didn't give him the chance.
With a drunken roar, Felix slammed the pommel of his sword into Kael's gut, forcing the air from his lungs, before slicing clean through his side.
Blood poured from the wound as Kael collapsed to his knees, his intestines spilling out as he got disemboweled in the most brutal way possible.
"KAEL!" Varra's scream echoed across the balcony, her composure breaking as she turned toward her fallen brother, giving Leo the breathing room that he so desperately needed.
With a desperate throw, Leo sent his dagger spinning toward her waist, towards where she had secured the teleportation crystal and much to Leo's joy, his aim held true, shattering the teleportation crystal strapped to her belt.
*Crunch*
The crystal splintered, and a brilliant light engulfed Varra's form as the teleportation magic activated.
"No!" Varra screamed, her voice fading as her body dissolved into shimmering particles.
Soon after, Kael's crystal also flared to life, pulling him from the fight, however, unfortunately, not before Felix sliced his throat, ending his life.
By the time he teleported out, his situation was beyond salvage, almost ensuring that he would be found dead on the other side, leaving only bloodstains and the pungent smell of his guts spilling over in the balcony.
Felix grinned, wiping the blood from his blade as looked towards the sky.
"WHOSE YOUR DADDY NOW?" He screamed, alerting even more enemies to their potential location, as Leo barely suppressed his rage.
Felix in his drunken state was as much of an asset as he was a liability, and Leo could not figure out how exactly to handle him.