The Spiremen moved faster than expected. Without hesitation, three of them met Ripper and Roa’s charge head-on. Two attacked Roa, each forming weapons of crystal from thin air. The crystalline weapons were light and translucent as opposed to dark and opaque like the crystal slabs. The third stomped his foot on the ground creating a jagged wall of crystal that nearly bisected Ripper and forced him to halt his advance. Meanwhile, the helmeted Spireman shouted at the remaining assailant in an unknown language and pointed at the top of the bus where Julian and Renner fired periodic shots at Roa’s opponents. The woman nodded to the helmeted man stomping her feet in a similar manner to Ripper’s foe. Instead of a wall, a pillar burst from the earth launching the Spirewoman onto the top of the vehicle. The man smiled at Raina as he advanced.

Clutching her sword in both hands, Raina mentally went through the drills she’d performed over the past few days. She adjusted her footing then reached for the sensation she’d grown familiar with through her training.

[Combat Surge activated. Duration (00:30)]

Vigor: 240/280

She shivered from head to toe as the equivalent of an adrenaline surge flowed through her body. Seeing no reason to let the man set the pace, she attacked. Her movements weren’t the most graceful, but she was thankful for her training. When she’d first discovered her condition had been cured, her ability to control her body had been clumsy despite her enthusiasm and high Agility. Such inexperience would’ve no doubt been costly in a real fight. She slashed at the man aiming at the exposed area under his arm where the crystal plates opened up. The Spireman casually lifted his hand flicking two fingers skyward.

“Watch out!” someone yelled.

Raina heard the voice and just barely noticed something dark appear below her. She pitched to the side more forcefully than necessary which sent her tumbling to the ground. A message appeared in her mind as she was forced to roll along the ground to avoid another attack. She used the roll to bounce back onto her feet and got her sword back into a combat-ready position with trembling hands. Two spikes protruded from the earth in both the places she had just been. The helmeted man hadn’t moved and seemed to be looking at the door to the bus. She took the brief moment of reprieve to collect herself. Those spikes had nearly impaled her twice. Based on what she knew, her Ethos would have protected her to a degree but she didn’t want to test it against being impaled especially since her instructors had claimed that her Ethos was weak for a Warrior due to her low starting Stamina. She felt even more strongly about it after noting the message she had missed.

[Ethos: 150/170]

Did one of them clip me? she thought, going over the events once more. I must not’ve completely dodged the second spike in time. Her opponent was dangerous, for sure. Even though the spike had landed a glancing blow at best, her Ethos had still taken a decent amount of damage. She glanced at the bus to see Atlas standing in the door. He must’ve been the one that warned her. She’d have to thank him later. Then, she attacked again.

The Spireman kept an eye on Atlas but turned to meet her attack with a strange stance. He made horizontal chopping motions with his hand sending shards of crystal from the top of each spike into her path. Raina rolled under the first volley and turned the forward momentum into a lunge with her sword veering toward her opponent’s unprotected neck. Due to his stance, the man wasn’t in a good position to dodge her strike, so he clenched his fist which expanded the middle portion of his crystal breastplate upward to cover his neck. Raina gritted her teeth and activated her attack skill.

[Heavy Blow activated.]

[Vigor: 190/280]

Her sword glowed with faint red light as it connected. Sadly, the crystal dampened the impact of her attack which barely penetrated its dark surface.

[Combat Surge has ended. Reactivate?]

Without hesitation, she initiated another use of Combat Surge. The messages flowed through her mind informing her of the reduction in her Vigor and the renewed duration yet she paid them no mind. The Spireman flicked the fingers of his left hand up again and his right hand punched in Atlas’s direction. Raina dodged the spike she knew was coming by continuing her lunge into a pirouette left of her attacker while simultaneously pulling her sword free of the man’s crystal neck guard. The new position gave her a better vantage point to watch spikes fly toward Atlas. He ducked back into the bus at the last moment and Raina swore she saw something move at his feet.

Taking advantage of the Spireman’s split focus, she shifted the grip of her sword so that the palm and fingers of her off-hand were on the flat of the blade halfway up its length. With all the force she could muster, Raina swung the pommel of the sword into the man’s helmeted head and activated Heavy Blow.

The strike connected but he countered as her attack smashed into his head. He aimed a vicious punch at her midsection hitting her just below the ribs. Unfortunately for her, it wasn’t a mundane punch. The crystal plate on the man’s gauntlet extended mid-strike into a dark blade.

[Warning: You have taken critical damage. Ethos is below 25% capacity.]

Raina grunted as the blow pushed her back but failed to pierce her Ethos. The Spireman stumbled from the force of her blow though he kept his feet under him. She tried not to be disheartened when she didn’t see the telltale shimmer of his Ethos breaking. She had really put her all into that attack but the helmet likely prevented any critical damage. As it was, her situation was not ideal. She only had enough Vigor for a Heavy Blow and another Combat Surge or two more Heavy Blows; however, experience had taught her that once she hit zero Vigor, the fight would go downhill quickly.

Like a mana pool, martial designations received the ability to harness Vigor which they could use to activate their martial skills. The size of one’s Vigor pool was based on the individual’s Might and Stamina attributes. The way her instructor had described it to her reminded Raina of how martial artists in cultivation stories used ki to perform supernatural feats. According to her blade instructor, her Vigor pool was her lifeblood on the battlefield since without it she couldn’t fuel her skills. Furthermore, if someone depleted their Vigor, the fighter would suffer physical exhaustion similar to the mana burn experienced by mages when they spent all of their mana.

She was already beginning to feel the effects of her constant acrobatics as her lungs burned in her chest and her blade weighed heavy in her hands. On top of all that, her Ethos was nearly gone and she had no idea how much more Ethos her opponent had. Once her Ethos disappeared, Raina didn’t favor her chances even with the Relic ring that Ciel had given her as an emergency measure.

The crystal-plated warrior advanced on her, she spread her feet in a firm stance preparing for another clash. At that moment, Raina went bug-eyed as she saw a ten-foot-tall giant made of darkness emerge from the bus entrance. The creature had a gaunt appearance with unnaturally long arms and a hunched posture. The Spireman registered her genuine shock and reacted like a trained warrior. He turned and jumped to the side so he could see both Raina as well as the doorway into the bus. Both of his hands swept out in front of him prompting a person-sized barrier of crystal to form. It would’ve been a great move if someone had attacked him directly; unfortunately for him, that wasn’t the case.

***

Jack sent a mental command to the Shadowtitan directing it to ensnare the Spireman Raina battled. The man had good reflexes. He reacted by shielding himself with a wall of crystal, but it didn’t matter since the Shadowtitan’s grasp targeted his shadow.

He stepped from behind the conjured creature and nodded at Raina who didn’t hesitate. She moved around the wall closing the distance after the ghoulish hands erupted from the crystal warrior’s shadow binding him in place. As Raina raised her sword to attack, the Spireman stomped his foot and a pillar of crystal exploded from the ground launching him ten feet into the air as well as breaking the grip of the shadow hands. He rotated himself mid-jump and sent a fan of dark shards from the crystal slabs on his gauntlets at Jack and the Shadowtitan. Since no one was looking, Jack stepped in front of the Shadowtitan taking the brunt of the damage it would have to his Ethos. He ignored the notification informing him of the damage and assessed his options.

The Spireman was good, really good. Based on what Jack had observed, the warrior had to be high D-rank or even C-rank. The man in question landed on both feet with ease and assumed a combat stance to meet Raina who was rushing toward him. Definitely C-rank.

The situation was bad. Since they were going to a D-rank Remnant Gate, Jack assumed Raina had leveled her designation up to rank D. As a combatant, Jack’s lack of skills along with his unbalanced physical attributes put him at about average for E-rank, even though he technically didn’t have a rank since he lacked a designation. With his Shadowtitan’s Fist, he might pass for high E-rank depending on his opponent. Together, the two of them didn’t exactly equal C-rank.

Additionally, Jack couldn’t involve himself too much since he was supposed to be a frail Appraiser with little to no combat ability. If he entered the scrape and anyone caught sight of him fighting, they might get suspicious. Not to mention, the Spireman’s use of sharp crystals could wreak havoc on his clothing which might reveal more of his metallic body. Given that sigil tech prosthetics weren’t too uncommon, he had been able to play off the metallic flesh visible after the ogre damaged his coat sleeve. However, what about his leg or torso? Sigiltech was expensive and it would definitely raise some eyebrows if he had both a D-rank Relic as well as such an extensive augmentation. D-rank missions just didn’t pay that well. All of that didn’t even take into account his power core and the risk of his heart rate getting too high.

They couldn’t count on help either. Roa was tied up with her opponents who were expertly tag teaming the unarmed Aberrant despite the ferocity of her attacks and Ripper’s opponent kept him at a distance with crystal barriers that fouled his attempts to rush the Spireman. Jack couldn’t see the fight unfolding on top of their vehicle, but it was a brawl between a melee fighter and two ranged combatants in an enclosed space. Thankfully, the Weaver’s Needle would give Alindal the precision necessary to fight in such a space so Jack could comfortably put his faith in the elf’s combat experience and Renner’s competence. Meanwhile, Ciel seemed to be toying with the group he fought and he didn’t appear to be in a rush to help the team either; although, Jack was certain the Celestial was watching their fights.

On the plus side, despite the difference in combat power, Raina was performing better than he would’ve given her credit for. Ciel must’ve employed some high-quality trainers to prep her for the Remnant Gate and judging by her movement, Jack guessed she had been athletic in her previous life. She’d scored a good blow on her opponent yet Jack doubted her Might was good enough for it to translate into serious damage given Ciel’s earlier words and her fighting style which focused mainly on utilizing, what he assumed, was a high Agility attribute. Their best bet would be to attempt to outlast the Spireman’s mana pool or buy time for reinforcements yet Jack doubted Raina could last long enough for that to happen at the rate things were going.

He briefly considered letting the white-haired woman die, then taking down the Spireman once he was weakened, but he discarded that idea. Jack knew Ciel was watching the fights even though he was in the middle of his own and, regardless of the Celestial’s earlier words, Jack didn’t want to find out how irritable the blonde-haired man would get if Raina perished. Besides,, Jack wasn't sure he could be so cold-hearted, at least not at the moment.

Jack surveyed the battlefield one more time. Raina’s fight had littered the area with various crystal structures created by her opponent. There was also a decent-sized pillar a short distance from the bus where the woman had ascended to the vehicle’s roof. He watched Raina jump out of the way of another set of spikes that interrupted her charge. She hung back to catch her breath and the man responded by sending volleys of crystal shards at her which broke off of the existing crystal structures. A realization dawned on him as he went over the man’s actions thus far. He had an idea.

Jack and the Shadowtitan moved to the front of the vehicle. He sent the shadow creature behind the vehicle since it’s ability could work off of his line of sight as well as its own. Before he followed, Jack called out to Raina. “Hey!” She glanced at him but rolled to the side when the Spireman sent a spray of shards at her. “He can only summon crystals from the ground nearby him and he has to drop into one of those stances to shoot shards at you. Stay away from him and dodge the shards! I’ll use my summon to tie him up from here and make an opening for you!”

Raina nodded getting her sword ready while the man scowled. Jack directed the Shadowtitan to attack the Spireman again before ducking behind the other side of their vehicle along with the shadowy creature.

He heard Raina call out a warning as her opponent launched himself to break free of the shadow bindings. Fortunately, the Spireman had taken the bait. Jack listened closely to the man’s rapid approach. He would only get one good shot at this so he needed to make it count. The massive vehicle hid Jack from the other combatants which meant he didn’t need to worry about being observed. In front of him, the Shadowtitan was positioned like a shield though its true purpose was to obscure Jack from their assailant’s sight.

The Spireman landed in front of the bus, cautiously approaching the other side. When he rounded the corner, Jack ordered his dark summon to attack but a large spike impaled the Shadowtitan before it could do anything.

[The Shadowtitan has been destroyed. Call of the Shadowtitan is on cooldown (5:00)]

As the creature faded back into his shadow, Jack hurled his metal club as hard as possible at the attacker. The wisps of darkness from the Shadowtitan’s passing obscured the attack making it catch the Spireman off-guard. “Stay back!” he exclaimed, doing his best to sound afraid.

He heard a grunt followed quickly by footsteps as the dark-clad warrior closed the distance. Instead of retreating when his opponent emerged from the small shadow cloud, Jack stepped in and slugged him in the face with his left hand.

The Spireman’s surprise was so profound that he failed to erect a proper defense and staggered backward from the force of the blow. He’d probably expected Jack to run after throwing his weapon. The sound of Raina’s impending arrival caught his ear, so he placed his right hand on the man’s crystalline chest plate before he could recover and unceremoniously shoved him back into the rapidly dissipating cloud of shadowy wisps. The Spireman’s eyes widened when he realized his mistake.

Then, Jack retreated as fast as his mediocre Agility allowed.

***

Raina raced toward the front of the bus. She’d been forced to use another instance of Combat Surge for fear that she would arrive too late otherwise. Atlas didn’t have a combat designation so he would get torn apart by the Spireman once that freaky summon of his went down. She couldn’t let that happen.

With the added rush of Combat Surge, she ran faster than she had ever run in her life. Sword in hand, she rounded the front of the bus just in time to see Atlas clumsily running away as her opponent staggered backward through a thin mist of shadow.

He must’ve just killed that shadow giant, she thought. Even better, he was practically falling into her. The shadow creature likely put up a fight before it went down since the Spireman had a surprised expression on his face. Raina swung down with a heavy overhead chop on the man. The red light of Heavy Blow flashed across her weapon as it descended. He saw her and his hand flashed but she twisted mid-strike to avoid the spike he called up beneath her. Her attack fell true smashing into the exposed area between the man’s neck and shoulder. He cried out in pain for the first time as his Ethos failed. Her blade bit into flesh and spilled blood. Before he could recover, she half-sworded her blade again stabbing its point into the man’s throat underneath the crystalline neck guard he had formed earlier in the fight. Unfortunately for Raina, her foe refused to die quietly.

He roared as the blade veered toward his neck and the crystal slabs on the back of his armor shattered. Dozens of tiny shards exploded outward into Raina but she followed through with her strike, determined to fell the Spireman. She felt the point of her sword sink into flesh. A spray of blood filled her vision.

[Warning: Ethos has been depleted. Proceed with caution.]

Tiny pinpricks alighted on her skin. She didn’t feel pain, only warmth as something soaked through her clothes. Her head swam and she started to fall. Vision blurry, Raina glimpsed Atlas moving toward her. When she hit the ground, she didn’t feel the impact, only relief, and satisfaction. She had made it in time. She had saved someone’s life when they needed her. It didn’t matter that she hardly knew Atlas; all that mattered was that she had saved him. Her heart tightened as she thought of her mother. Like a cool rain in a torrid wasteland, darkness welcomed her into its soothing embrace.