Ragna narrowed her eyes.

What incredible luck that they had to fight Gerard Donnerschlag out of all people. Because the mirror world had provided her with Mana, she had replenished her reserves. But the wounds Skyfrost had inflicted on her weakened her.

“Ragna Griffin. Altera Xion. Please surrender now, and I’ll guarantee you a fair trial. Fail to comply, and you leave me no choice but to bring you by force.” Gerard raised his hand and formed it into a fist. Electricity sparked out of it, discharging in the air.

“You’ve no jurisdiction here, and Ragna’s a free woman in Avalon.” Altera drew her partisan and pointed it at Gerard. “Rather than her, shouldn’t you be investigating Skyfrost?”

Gerard ground his teeth and frowned. His voice deepened. “Rory’s not a criminal.” Gerard raised his other hand as he spread his fingers like a claw. But then, he stopped himself. He exhaled, his facial features softened, and he spoke in his normal voice. “We’ve got permission to arrest you in exchange for helping with the evacuation and the protection of the city.”

“And Clockwork? You should be ashamed for up with a criminal like Clockwork. Don’t you have any pride as a Valkyrie?”

Gerard shrugged. “Offering criminals amnesty for public services is legit. It’s a good way to rehabilitate them. And it’s not like you’ve much ground to stand on. You allied yourself with Ragna Griffin even though you were supposed to capture her.”

Altera’s body froze, and Ragna glanced at her friend. “Is that true?”

Altera nodded. She clutched her right arm and looked away. “I…I…”

“You don’t need to explain.” With a motion of her hand, Ragna told Altera to stop. “Let me see if I guessed correctly. You had to capture my father and me. But because of Aurelia and our time together, you changed your plans. There was never a good time to tell the truth, and after everything we went through, it didn’t matter anymore.”

She couldn’t agree with that sentiment completely, and her old self would have thrown a temper tantrum. But the prospect of fighting Gerard didn’t offer the chance to discuss Altera’s lie. And she wanted to trust her friend.

For a moment, Altera starred into the air. Then, she smiled and let go of her arm. “Thank you.”

“Ragna, Altera.”

Ragna turned her head.

Eric and Jareth had arrived on the scene. Eric was breathing heavily.

“We saw a lightning strike and immediately came,” Eric said. “What’s going on?”

Ragna pointed at Gerard, and Eric’s chin and shoulders dropped.

“Oh, fuck me.” He forced himself to smile. “Guess we’re gonna die today.”

“Why’s that?” Jareth titled his head. “I can sense a particular vast amount of Mana from this individual, but Mana itself shouldn’t be the deciding factor in a battle. We’re four, and that man is alone. All his allies are defeated.” He pointed at Skyfrost, whom Gerard was holding under his arm. With his other hand, he lifted Clockwork’s body in the air.

The clockwork girl fletched her teeth and furrowed her brows. As she reached for a weapon, Jareth turned her. “You don’t have to worry. I didn’t lay a finger on him. He’s unharmed, but he’ll have nightmares for a few nights.”

“Can you give him her, please?” Altera asked.

“I don’t take orders from you.”

“Excuse me?” Altera narrowed her eyes and pouted.

Jareth paid no attention to her reaction and turned to Ragna. “What shall I do with him?”

“Do what Altera says.”

“Always or just in this instance?”

Ragna sighed. “Can we please discuss this later? We’ve bigger worries.”

“Ah, yes. The enemy.” Jareth lay Clockwork’s body on the street and faced Gerard. “I still struggle to understand why we’re at a disadvantage.”

“This is Gerard Donnerschlag,” Altera said. “When it comes to sheer destructive power and physical strength, he outclasses every Valkyrie.”

“We’re pretty much fucked.” Ragna grimaced.

“You can still give up and surrender.” Gerard spread his hand as if he offered them goods on the street market.

“I don’t know you very well, and I don’t know the others well either, but I don’t think asking them to surrender because something is impossible will work.” Jareth softened his voice. “But I do appreciate that you waited for us to finish our conversation. That’s very polite of you.”

Gerard smiled. “No biggie.” He sighed and scratched his head. “I guess trying to convince you guys won’t work.” He lay Skyfrost on the ground and looked at the Clockwork girl. “Lacie, please bring them somewhere safe.”

Lacie nodded. With one hand, she grabbed Clockwork and Skyfrost by their collars, and with the other, she took out a corral makeup case. She opened it and disappeared alongside Clockwork and Skyfrost in a beam of light.

Altera faced her friends. “To make this clear. Take him out, but don’t kill him. Midgard needs him.”

“Same for me. Killing you was never an option.”

“Ah, that’s why Skyfrost tried really hard to drive a scythe through my chest.” Ragna clapped her hands and inflated her voice. “Now, it all makes sense.”

Gerard dropped his head. He pressed his palm against his skull, and his voice became as weak as a whimper. “Rory, why?” Gerard looked up. “I’m gonna have a serious talk with Rory later, but I meant what I said. I’ll convince the judge that you did what you thought was the best. You’ll return to your normal lives. Even you, Ragna.”

Ragna’s jaw tightened. “Did you zap your brain? You think I’ll fall for that? All that’s waiting for me is the chair or the incubator.”

Gerard shook his head. A weak smile formed on his face. “No one really believes a military cadet could be responsible for the mess. You couldn’t even get into the Valkyrie Program. Drake or someone must’ve manipulated you. Please, surrender Ragna. I’ll make sure that you’ll return to a normal life.”

Ragna bit the bottom of her lip. She clutched her weapon’s hold as it started to tremble. Her stomach started to turn. She would have vomited if she could.

Gerard meant well. He sympathized, but he was looking down on them. They did what they thought was best. They were nothing but misguided idiots with good intentions. She couldn’t have betrayed Midgard because she was just some dumb girl way over her head.

And he had a point or would have.

“Normal life?” Ragna suppressed a chuckle. “Look at me. Is this the girl you’re talking about? Is this the girl who could return to her normal life? Sorry, but that girl you want to save doesn’t exist anymore.”

“You’ve changed. That’s undeniable.” Gerard showed her a weak smile. “But I don’t believe your words. I’ll save you even if I’ve to beat you.” He crouched his body and spread his arm like a wild animal. Electricity surged across his skin, sparking in blue currents. His fingers, he bent like claws, and his voice boomed like thunder. “So, prepare yourselves to face a hero. This will be a fight for Midgard, for Rory, and you.”

He spurted forward and out of his chest, shot lightning. The bolt traveled through the air in Ragna’s direction.

Ice barriers rose from the ground. The lightning strike broke through them. They shattered, and only one remained.

Ragna and Eric could only stare at the destruction of Gerard’s attack as Altera created new barriers and doubled their number.

In response, Gerard clenched his hands to fists. Electricity coated them, and he threw a punch. Within a second, his fist broke through all barriers.

Altera activated the Fehu rune. She grabbed Ragna by the collar and beat her wings. Dashing backwards, she escaped Gerard’s punch and increased the distance between them.

“Thanks,” said Ragna.

“Don’t thank her yet.” Gerard’s body started to crackle.

He stomped on the ground, and lightning pulsated over the streets.

“Everyone, move.” Altera spread her wings and shot into the sky. Ragna followed suit, and Eric created rope to jump on the roof of the nearest car.

Only Jareth hadn’t moved yet. His mask stared at Gerard, and he crossed his arms.

“Jareth.” Ragna raised her voice. “What the Hel are you doing?”

She had to grab him before it was too late.

“Don’t worry.” Mana burst out of the square device on his back like from the boosters of a rocket, and Jareth levitated into the sky, avoiding the lightning.

“Is this a fucking jetpack?” Gerard grinned. His eyes radiated as they couldn’t stop gaffing at Jareth. “How awesome is that?”

“Indeed, it is.” Jareth nodded. “The device on my back uses my Mana to propel me in the sky. It’s quite useful since I don’t have wings to fly.”

“Why didn’t you tell us that you had that?” Ragna asked.

“You never asked.”

“Well, then. Let’s put your jetpack to a test.” Lightning discharged from Gerard’s body. The bolts changed their appearance, forming into stag beetles. The insects disperse, choosing one of Gerard’s enemies as their target.

“I admit, your abilities possess tremendous potential. Fighting you feels like fighting a storm.” Out of nowhere, Jareth pulled out a slim sword. Its blade glowed in blue light. “This should suffice.”

Jareth swung his sword. He swiped through a few beetles, and the air around his targets started to distort.