The soldier stared at the thin notification board with undisguised disgust, ignoring Yamada and his nonsense. Every time the weird human so much as glanced at a spot of gore, it was immediately covered with the strange pixelation and became practically impossible to look directly at. Aliss' expression was having a strange combination of irritation, disappointment, and curiosity, poking at the remains of the ogres.

Regardless of the strangeness of her present behavior, the soldier was more irritated by the absolutely tiny amount of experience he'd received for killing the bulky enemies. Granted, they hadn't been able to so much as land a scratch on his armor, but he'd gotten more experience from killing even the smallest of demons back in Brimstone.

He needed to kill something bigger. A lot bigger.

Yamada gasped dramatically, staring intensely at a patch of blank space in front of him. "Guys! The city nearby - it's under attack! They need our help!"

The soldier's eyes narrowed as he looked at him. That sounded... convenient. Far too convenient. Unless somebody was reading his mind, he had a few questions about what was going on, but for now he had a target to aim his frustration at, and he knew just the gun to aim with.

Pointing, Yamada shouted loudly, "Onward, friends! Our battle with the forces of darkness proceeds yet!"

Aliss visibly flinched at the line, asking tentatively, "If you don't mind, could you perhaps avoid making comments like that?"

He glanced at her curiously. "Like what? This is no time to be wasting time! The city requires aid now, and we are likely the only force nearby that is capable of assisting! Our light shall banish the shadows of evil!"

The soldier glared at him, but he didn't seem to notice. Pumping a fist in the air, Yamada shouted, "Arcalibrix! I call upon thy wings and pray that thy speed may carry us to the battle and to victory!"

It was getting to the point that the soldier was seriously considering knocking Yamada out and leaving him here, but a familiar bird the size of a house descended from the sky with a triumphant cry, shaking the trees with the force of its screech. Eld and Isabelle looked like they desperately wanted to take a bite out of it, and the soldier's hands itched for a trigger, but Aliss noticed and shook her head slightly.

Patting the side of its head, Yamada stared into its golden eyes and asked eagerly, "Arcalibrix, can you carry us to Rutledge?" It squawked loudly in response, and Yamada turned to Aliss and the soldier excitedly. "Guys, he'll do it! Isn't that so nice of him?"

The soldier squinted at him. It made sense that Yamada could speak bird - one birdbrain to another.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Less than five minutes later, the soldier was casually jogging through the forest at an incredible rate, trees crashing and being pummeled into splinters as he went. Glancing upward, he saw Aliss and Yamada riding on Arcalibrix, heading in a straight line. He adjusted his course slightly to accommodate their direction and sped up slightly. Eld and Isabelle were following the soldier close behind.

He wasn't even going his fastest.

As it turned out, having a Speed statistic as high as his meant that he could pretty easily catch up or even overtake the bird that Aliss was riding on, but he didn't exactly know where the city they were supposed to be saving was. In all honesty he was only coming along because he wanted to try and summon the BFG, and more specifically use it on a target that was bigger than those ogres.

A few moments later, the soldier broke through the edge of the forest, and he saw a half-mile-long winged reptile blasting a beam of pure light straight at a milling crowd of raggedy-looking people, protected by a transparent white dome with cracks in it. Behind them was a soaring city, built from white bricks the size of buildings, towers visible at the corners of the pentagonal shaped wall.

Most would have either panicked or retreated at the sight of the colossal creature and the visible amounts of power it possessed. In the case of the soldier, he didn't actually hesitate.

Raising both arms, the soldier activated , and a colossal white shape formed in his hands. He grunted under its weight but lifted it regardless. A deep green glow began to build in the soda-can-sized barrel at the end, and the soldier pulled the trigger.

A green ball of screaming energy erupted from the tip, lightning bolts sparking out of it and striking the ground and trees as it shot forward. There was no kickback, but the soldier slid back regardless, uncertain of whether or not there actually was a minimum safe distance for the weapon.

The BFG was not a controllable weapon. The last time he'd used it it had collapsed a cavern a little smaller than Brimstone, and he hadn't had his present abilities at the time.

The sphere of colored death hurtled through the air at a moderate pace, but it was still a few moments before the enormous lizard noticed it. Turning with an irritated glare, it blasted another beam at the glowing ball. The beam was deflected off of the ball, veered sharply, and funneled back into the projectile, increasing in speed exponentially.

Eyes widening, the creature attempted to jump sideways, almost dodging, but the ball gently touched the tip of its tail.

The world went green.