"I get some noise at the end. Looks like we are getting out of the abyss," the Collector reminded them.
At the rear, Kairo and Nyx got ready. This was the last straight line they would be going through, perfect for any last attempt at getting his card. If Selis or the Collector wanted to obtain the Eye of Truth, Kairo believed it would be here.
"When things get out of control, I would like you to run out of the abyss first," Kairo reminded in a low voice. For him, Nyx's safety was primordial, but not only that. With her out of the equation, there was no pressure point for them to use against him.
"Don't even count on it," she said defiantly. Her expression as determined as someone ready to risk it all. She took a look at Selis and the Collector, both whom had started slowing down as they got towards the exit.
"Instead, it would be smarter for you to flee and leave me behind. The deck of origin is too dangerous to be left in their hands. You've seen yourself how many people want chosen destiny; they would not stop in front of anything to get the Eye of Truth, Kairo. Especially in this place," Nyx explained. Her reasoning was simple: it wasn't about what she felt towards Kairo but about what the cards he possessed represented for the card mage police.
Kairo too understood that well. But he could simply not resolve himself to run away. If he did that, he had no certainty of what would happen to her. "What if they decide to get rid of you?" Kairo's mind wavered at the thought, shaking his head inwardly. There was no way he would allow that to happen.
Kairo observed the surroundings as they moved. They had to be way out of this. He knew about the abilities of his opponent. The double face card of the Collector would probably be the most tricky to escape, he felt. "The last time it was a real nightmare to get out of it."
At the fountain, Kairo had seen how scary double face cards really could be. Hence he moved with cautiousness. As far as Selis was concerned, she had already shown two of her cards until now: the Song of Harmony and those strange chains. According to logic, Kairo believed she still held her last and third card well secured in her launcher. Whatever that card was, there was a high chance it was the reason for her confidence to face Slayer.
"My dear friend, Kairo," the Collector suddenly stopped midway. At this point, the end of the abyss could be a few hundred meters away. Not far but not close either, like an elusive escape he could see but not reach.
Kairo got ready. Animate already in between his fingers. "I would be better off acting first," Kairo believed. Waiting for the others to make the first move would be giving them time to close their claws on him. Something he could definitely not allow.
Nyx summoned the Star Dominion, causing the orbiting orbs to revolve around her body. Card activated, the duo was ready to risk it all.
"I expected you to show some resistance. All the most interesting cards I collected over my lifetime had been obtained through a bloody battle. I expect nothing less from you, Kairo," the Collector smiled, unable to contain his greed. In his eyes there was a shining light as if he already held the Eye of Truth in his fingers. No one knew what ability this card from the deck had, but all of them wanted it.
"He's coming," Kairo's heartbeat increased. Around the Collector, the circuitry of the void was being summoned, causing howls mimicking lost souls' cries to flow in the area. Kairo flipped Animate in between his fingers.
About to set his plan in motion,
When suddenly there was a bright light that emerged in between them. A light so intense that the opponents were stopped midway from their card activation.
"It feels hot," Kairo frowned, taking a step back. He couldn't stare at the light in the eye, but he felt dense waves of heat flowing out from the light. Compared to this, the sky tears of the cathedral were nothing. This light was more than lava.
"Looks like another prime card. This is our chance to run before the fire seals us here," Kairo said. Nyx nodded, taking the lead. The Star Dominion all began revolving around Kairo and herself, causing a storm of stellar light to recover their bodies.
"Come forth to me, sand paladin," Kairo summoned his good old friend. Behind him, the circuitry of the void roared to life, drawing fine lines of mythical shapes into the air. From the confines of his card, a figure made of sand emerged. One particle after another, the sand paladin's figure appeared tall and proud in front of its master.
The sand paladin was connected to Kairo via a special link, and with a single look, it understood what was awaited from him. It stepped out majestically in front of Kairo and handed him its lance.
"Feels way lighter than the last time," Kairo smiled. Back in the submarine, he had used the exact same trick to catch the fleeing traitor. This time he was going to use it again but with a little boost.
"The Star Dominion will do its part. It's not as potent as Wind Breaker but should work just fine," Nyx said, a proud smile on her face. This time she wasn't standing behind Kairo protecting him like in the past. This time she stood next to him at the front.
"This will work just fine," Kairo spun the lance in his finger, causing a soft hissing sound to echo in the dense abyss.
"This prime card is different. If I were you, I would leave," Selis said. For the very first time, Kairo could see a faint air of seriousness sapper on her expression. Aided by the Song of Harmony, her figure floated in the air with the hieroglyphic letters swirling around her like orbs around a sphere. With a single thought movement from her finger, she skidded into the air, spinning and dodging across the echoes of the strange light appearing.
All around, the walls fissured with fire bursting out into the abyss. The sudden appearance of light made the abyss appear even darker, with only the right pockets shooting across the space.
The Collector's face flashed a disappointed smile. Jumping back, he narrowly escaped the strange light moving in front of his face. So hot that his skin turned red at the simple glance. "The Ghost Prison doesn't need much room. I just need to seal your escape path," the Collector said. His determination was unshaken. He wanted the Eye of Truth even if he had to end his life here.
"Come take it then," Kairo smirked. Everything was set the moment he got the paladin's lance in his fingers. Taking a deep breath, Kairo leaned forward and bolted towards his opponent. Nyx following closely behind with the Star Dominion.
"That's it. Seal your own path. Ghost Lord," the Collector summoned his magic. From within his cards, the howls of the dead echoed. Formless shadow after shadow emerged from the card like a group of demons escaping their sealed prison.
The ghosts floated in the air, wielding axes, hammers, and even bows.
"That's not the double face card from the last time," Kairo frowned as he ran. Still, he never slowed down. Already set in motion, they could only continue. "Let's separate," he said to Nyx. And the duo pivoted in two different directions.
"Her abilities have grown considerably stronger," Kairo smiled as he moved. Thanks to the Star Dominion, Nyx flipped and dove into the void, escaping the bursting lights from the abyss walls.
"Go, my ghost demons, fill the space with your wrath," the Collector said. The ghost beings all moved in unison, shooting towards Kairo and his partner.
Kairo evaded, stepping to the right. The axe of the ghost demon sliced downward, sending a wave so powerful the earth split into two behind him. The ghost demon murmured incomprehensible words from its mouth, words so bizarre Kairo felt his ears hurt listening to them.
"What's that?" Kairo, aided by the sand paladin, moved with ease. He lifted his foot upward and tilted his body in an arc akin to a javelin thrower getting ready. "Now," he said, releasing the sand paladin's lance forward.
It was at this moment Nyx returned to his side, stepping behind Kairo, a palm on his shoulder.
The movement of the lance mimicked the explosion of a star, sending waves of winds sweeping the ghost demons backward. The lance tore through the space forward faster than lightning; it zipped past the Collector, blowing his shirt on the way.
The Collector lifted his arms in surprise, shielding his face from the hurricane. "Pitiful. You will never escape the ghost demons. I have prepared this card exactly for you, Kairo. Your doom is here."
Kairo had a victorious smile on his face. His figure emerged from the other side of the tunnel, holding Nyx and catching the lance midair. It was like they had teleported with the lance and the sand paladin traveling through the space in an instant.
The Collector blinked in surprise. "I didn't know about this ability of his. However, it's far from over." The Collector was blind to the fire light that landed on his body. All he saw at the moment was the Eye of Truth getting away.
The ghost demons all returned to his side, chanting in unison like a chorus. The Collector smirked, ejecting a new card from his launcher. "Ghost Melody," he said.
Kairo and Nyx, running towards the exit, suddenly halted midway. The more they ran away from the Collector, the more the distance between them seemed to shrink, as if they were running on the spot. On their side, the walls of a strange corridor appeared, sealing both Kairo and Nyx in between.
Before they knew it, they were encircled by the ghost demons and the encroaching light once more. They had no escape route.
"His deck is different from the last one," Kairo's face darkened.