November 13, 2111
James Stone
As time passed, it seemed a cool breeze carrying clouds of dust and smoke picked up, whispering soft words, flowing in from the fragmented window a few meters to my side; glass was everywhere. Without any sunlight, the planet was shrouded in a permanent night, with almost certain doom on its horizon. An hour had passed since our encounter with Airra - the single most powerful individual I'd ever crossed paths with. After a chat and debriefing with my squad via our cyberwatches, we agreed to meet up with Wild-Heart's commando unit and the remaining rangers to chase down the last of the enemies. Unfortunately, the collapsing of the three towers had displaced my squad here and there. With my injuries, I expected to be the last to join up with them.
I lay against the floor of the torn-up, barren room with my head resting against a pillow-sized piece of rubble. The walls and ceiling was cracked and covered in dust; this building, still under construction, was surely abandoned. Uslar was hovering over me, medical supplies in hand, as he pulled the last bits and pieces of bark from my wounds.
"Amazing," Uslar mumbled to himself.
"Excuse me?" I clinched my jaw from the pain.
"Oh, ah, your wounds... it's amazing how your body fixes itself."
"Kalvin used to say the same thing."
"I can see why. Your body has been pushing out small pieces of bark and splinters as I've been working. It's like your body knows what is foreign and can just… get rid of it. It's just… wow!"
I chuckled. "Yeah. Hah, my body even rejected the nano-immunal bots given to every ARW citizen at childbirth. For years, they were in my body. But when I began to get my abilities, my body forced those nano-sized bots out."
"With your immune system, you wouldn't need them anyway. You're blessed with luck."
I scoffed, "Luck… those abilities brought me nothing but pain when I first got them. If I could choose, I never would have chosen them."
"Two billion to one odds of becoming an ace, and you wouldn't choose to be one? If you never got those abilities, who knows how different your life would be. Everybody I've ever known will have to live with the curse of age, but not you, James. You don't age."
"A real gift right there," I responded sarcastically.
Uslar sensed I didn't want to talk about this, so after a short pause, he changed the subject. "James, before… when we were at the mayor's place, I… I was out of line. I--"
I cut him off, "You spoke your two cents. You shouldn't have to apologize for that."
"But it's the way I handled it. I attacked you personally. I-I should've approached it differently," he expiated. Uslar pulled out the last of the bark and placed strips of peric fiber on the wounds.
"You said what you thought was right."
"I guess I was just angry and still in grief over Landis's death… from my brother--"
I stopped him. "Brother? Is that what that call was about - the one in the bathroom before the mission?"
Uslar paused, and grief filled his eyes and words. "You would think my brother would be safe… you know, not being in the war and all. I guess it goes to show death can grab hold of you at the most unexpected times and shake up the lives of everyone around you."
"What happened?"
"My mother said he was stabbed by one of his patients… some convict scum who tried to escape from the hospital during treatment. And now he's dead… just gone."
"I'm sorry, Uslar. You and I… all our brothers-in-arms... we couldn't understand more the pain of losing people."
"Yeah, it comes with the turf."
"Comes with the turf," I repeated. "You could have told me, though, in the bathroom. We could've worked out a leave of absence with the commander."
He flicked up his head towards me and stared at me sideways. "My mom wanted that. But… but I just couldn't leave my comrades another man down so soon after Landis and Narrisa. And honestly, I've been to too many funerals as of late."
"Too many indeed," I agreed.
Uslar stood up. "You should get some rest, James. In an hour or so, your body will be fit to take on the strain of battle."
"You're the medic."
I pulled out my cyberwatch, ready to inform the others of our status.
⁕⁕⁕⁕⁕
An hour later, I was up on my feet. My wounds, although not fully healed, had been restored immensely, and most of the pain had dissipated. I was ready to catch up to my allies. Uslar was across the vacant room, finishing packing his supplies. My cyberwatch lit up red. It was Valiic.
"James here," I answered.
"Just checking up on you and Uslar. Are you guys on the way?"
"We're just about to start stepping right now. Have you touched base with Wild-Heart's unit and the rest of our squad?"
"I was able to find Frost and Shadow-Walker and group up with Wild-Heart. Shadow-Walker had some minor injuries, but he's just as gaiety as ever."
I chuckled. "And Brad?"
"Still in the wind."
"Dammit. Inform me the moment he shows up."
"Roger that." Valiic ended the call.
With that, Uslar and I started to walk to the nearest doorway, side by side. We walked into another vacant room; hexagon in shape, loftier than the last, yet just as unfurnished and quiet. At the end of the room, straight across from us, was a doorway leading to a lift. That was the way out.
Creak.
From behind, the slightest noise alerted me. I spun around and saw a stasis field barrier blocking the doorway we just came through. I spun forward and saw the doorway to the lift now had a barrier, too! Then, from the ceiling, a figure dropped and tossed small coin-sized devices at our weapons. I tried to grab the individual, but he rolled past me, to the center of the room.
"James, your guns!"
Uslar tossed his gun aside. I pulled my pistol off my mag lock and saw a corrosive acid dissolving it away. My AR mirrored this. It was the result of those coin-sized devices. I tossed my weapons aside, too. In seconds, Uslar and I had managed to get trapped in a room with no firearms to defend ourselves.
"I've been waiting for your arrival, James," our assailant said with a calculated, deep voice.
He was an omelic man with two different colored eyes, yellow and purple, and he wore an all-black outfit with a bandanna branded with an unknown symbol and mask that showed the outline of his lips. Gold and black gauntlets steaming with a colored mist covered both his arms, and across his waist was a utility belt - probably full of many surprises. There was no doubt in my mind this guy had a mission he would stop at nothing to fulfill. He was the living embodiment of the unknown.
"James! That symbol on his clothing… that is worn by someone from the Brotherhood of Relics." Uslar's eyes were as wide as saucers, and his arms were trembling.
"He could be a copycat mercenary. The Brotherhood of Relics is a myth." Though, my mind was unsure if what I spoke was the truth or not.
"Is it?" The omelic spoke with a bravado that had nothing to prove; most unsettling. He directed his next words to Uslar. "Tell me, what have you heard about us?" His words were precise, as if every syllable had a purpose.
Uslar muttered, "Only what I've heard from the legends. Who… who are you?"
"The only name you'll ever know me by is Ghost." He turned to me. I tensed, ready for anything to happen. "Tempting Airra to use that Devisor bomb - that was an inventive idea, James."
The words threw me for a loop. Was he here to compliment me? Tease me? With the stranger's tone of voice, I couldn't really tell. I was intrigued by him, yet threatened by him at the same time.
"Thanks. I went on the ol' gut feeling," I said with a shrug, knowing damn well the whole Airra resolution wasn't what I had in mind.
The omelic smirked beneath his mask. "You're lying, James. That was a test to pick up your dishonesty indicators. Your battle with Airra was, in a word: Disorganized. Sheer luck is the only rationale conceivable to illuminate how you and your unit walked away from her alive."
His words sent shivers of unease through me. "What is this?" I asked.
"You, your ally, me, no escape; what does it look like, James?"
"Shivf!" Uslar pulled out his knife, almost dropping it because of how badly his arms shook.
I pushed down his arm, forcing Uslar to lower his weapon. "Are you here to kill us?" I didn't realize what I'd asked until the words left my mouth.
The omelic paused. "You see me, don't you?"
His callous words practically smacked open my jaw, but I held back. The last thing I needed was another obstacle. And whoever this man was, he oozed business.
"Look. We don't know you. We have no quarrels with your species. Let's not jump straight to blood."
"Tell me, James, why did Airra take a special interest in you?"
"I didn't realize Airra saw something special in me."
"Don't play dumb, James. That story doesn't end well."
"I'm at a loss. You're going to have to do better."
"Airra hired me to kill you. She called me off and went after you herself. Why?"
"Why does that psychopath do anything she does?"
"Right." Ghost paused. "If I'm not going to get any information from you, then neither will Airra."
"So, I'm collateral damage in your power game with Airra?" I pulled out my knife, ready for a fight.
"Unfortunately." The man stood still, just staring.
Keeping my eye on Ghost, I spoke to Uslar. "Analyze the way he fights to the best of your ability. Judging by this guy's physique and weaponry, you won't stand a chance against him."
"So, I'm supposed to just let you fight him alone… in your state?" Uslar asked.
"I'll be fine."
I dashed forward, gaining speed. As I got close to him, I faked a stab and instead spun my leg to trip him. He flipped over me, and before I could attempt to block him, I felt a sharp prick in my wounded abdomen. I looked down to see a needle stuck in me and felt the cold fluid fill my wound.
Poison! I thought, then dove to the side, away from Ghost, tossing out the needle from my wound. But there wasn't any pain; I pulled up the tank top to see my wound fully healed.
"Wh-what was that?" I looked back toward Ghost.
"I never fight a weakened man," Ghost said with a shrug.
The technology was amazing - a fluid to enhance my healing capabilities instantly. The ARW had nothing like it! Who were these people?
Before I even had a moment to consider my next attack, Ghost tossed knives straight at me. As I flipped on my stasis shield to block them, they decelerated in mid-air and were pulled back to Ghost's gauntlets; it must've been some type of magnetic technology. Ghost then unleashed a few more knives at my feet, and I spun over them and met a grizzly jab to my gut. I was sent to the harsh floor, sliding to a stop, losing my blade in the process.
I lost Ghost for a split second but jumped back to my feet, ready to stop his next blow. Strangely, he was still, only a few meters away. Suddenly, my senses buzzed.
"Behind you!" Uslar shouted.
I spun around, realizing I was looking at a hologram. Silent as a still breeze, Ghost dropped from the ceiling and darted toward me. I could see the focus in his different-colored irises. It was like my death was playing over his eyes, reflecting for me to see.
I backed away, wide-eyed, breathing hard. I barely made it out of range of a swift swipe of his knife.
"Damn!" Shock jumped off my tongue.
I turned in a circle, looking for sturdy footing to block Ghost's strikes. I caught his fist and quickly realized this was no decoy like the last. Ghost quickly flipped back, kicking me in the chin and knocking me backward. Stumbling, I nailed the wall behind me. This was no amateur! Every attack he hit me with further debased my morality.
"Is that all?" Ghost taunted. "Years of training as a legionnaire, and this is the result?"
I grunted, "How do you kno--" I stopped and remembered Kalvin's warning. "You're the hacker!"
"Very perceptive," Ghost said with a grin. That would explain why someone would be so interested in a screw-up like me. I was his target and, therefore, his primary interest. This guy was no joke.
"James!" Uslar shouted. "He knows everything!"
"Clearly! Come on, Uslar, I need more than that," I grunted, shaking off the pain.
"That isn't what I meant! Your attacks, your blocks. He knows everything you're about to do. Every attack you make, he is already dodging. Every attack he makes, he is prepared for your reaction."
"Are you saying what I think you are?"
"Yes! He is an ace and has some type of foresight into your future actions!"
"Secret's out of the bag." Ghost lashed out an energy whip from his gauntlet. "It won't change the outcome of this fight!"
Before I could stop it, the whip wrapped around me and he pulled me to him. Out from the bottom of his free gauntlet, a knife popped out. Quickly, I reactivated my stasis shield, which dislodged the whip.
We were now meters away from each other, faced off. This fight had become long odds - almost a lost cause. How do I beat someone who knows everything I'm going to do?
"I'm curious, James, what happened with Steion?" Ghost interrogated.
At that moment, I got the sense the only reason I was still alive was to satisfy Ghost's curiosity.
"What do you mean?"
"You went through all the trouble of killing a warlord. Why?"
"He took and later killed my family."
"Revenge! You killed one of highest-ranking members of the most powerful alliance in the galaxy for revenge?" Ghost scoffed.
"When you put it like that--"
He cut me off. "You really are that single-minded. The chain of events you started with that kill is-- Let's just say, I hope it was worth it."
I could sense Ghost ready to pounce. However, before either of us could make another move, Uslar pulled out a knife and circled to Ghost's other side. As we surrounded him, Ghost sent glances back and forth, clinching his fists.
"Uslar, you can't fight him! He's too powerful!" I exclaimed.
"This is between me and him. Don't make a mistake you will regret," Ghost warned.
"If you pick a fight with one of us, you fight us all!" Uslar tried to threaten.
However, he was shaking ever so slightly. He was scared, and I couldn't blame him. Qwayks aren't the most physically capable species, and they aren't too adept at close confrontation.
Ghost then lunged for Uslar, and I immediately ran forward. Uslar jumped back in defense, but Ghost lashed out with the same whip – and it got him. Cat quick, writhing, Uslar slashed at the glowing whip that held him; it didn't work. Luckily, I was there. Ghost must have heard me, because he turned to see my blow coming and ducked. Uslar, still being pulled, plunged the knife at Ghost's chest.
"Errragh!" Ghost let out a grunt of pain as the knife pierced him.
He swiped away Uslar's arm, dropped low, and detonated a smoke pellet – and at that moment I lost him. Suddenly, he kicked me back and rolled away from the both of us.
No tears, no sign was shown that Ghost was in pain. Lean and muscular, the blade looked like it could have gone right through him, yet he tossed it aside like it had just scratched him. I had to give him points for resilience, despite how damnably bad this looked for us. If this lasted much longer, Uslar and I would both be cold corpses.
"Did you see that, James? I got him!" Uslar cheered, showing a slightly increased intrepid attitude.
"Maybe if we can continue to stagger his vision, we might… might just beat him."
I took a lunge at Ghost, but he was more than ready. From his gauntlet, a sudden blast of wind sent me flying backward. I landed on my feet but saw Uslar was in trouble! I reached for my only knife and tossed it at Ghost, and he jumped back, separating himself from Uslar. It bought me enough time to catch up with him. Not about to let me and Uslar reunite, Ghost blasted Uslar back with another windstorm, then came for me.
"You two think you have a chance?!" Ghost blasted me with wind, then pulled me toward him with the energy whip. "I've only just shown you a taste of what I can do!" I took a barrage of punches. Every block I tried, Ghost found his way around. Suddenly, a thick metal sheet sprouted over one of his gauntlets and he bashed my knee.
"ERGH!"
I felt my knee shatter and tear the flesh inside my leg. Helpless, I fell to my good knee, at the mercy of the person ready to kill me. Ghost flipped out a knife on his other gauntlet and sent the blade into my gut. The pain in my knees was far too great to feel the blade. For an instant, our eyes locked, face-to-face, with the man whose eyes reflected the direness of my situation. I gazed down and saw blood streaming down my already stained clothing.
Was this it?
Suddenly, Ghost pulled away from me. I looked up, still on my knee; it was Uslar, saving me. He swung his blade toward Ghost's shoulder, but Ghost dodged and pushed himself into Uslar. Both of them left my vision for a second.
Up! I had to get up. Somehow, I found myself on one foot, bobbing my head, trying to see through a black haze. Blood! Ghost, now a meter away, stared down at Uslar. A knife, Uslar's own knife, was jabbed into Uslar's heart. I fell right to him as a blast of shock sent my body into overdrive. Ignoring the tremendous pain, I reached for Uslar's chest. Instinct took over, and I pressed my palm against the wound, praying for the blood to stop; it didn't. Our faces were masks of raw terror.
Uslar looked up to me. "Jam--"
His eyes froze in time, and the life faded away from his body; he didn't even finish his last sentence. Uslar, covered with blood, fell, huddled into my arms, as if sleeping. His hand lay inside his pocket, clutching something. I pulled it out and saw a picture of him and his brother fall out. Anger, sadness, and frustration distorted everything as I threw a black gaze full of hatred at Ghost, waiting for a response; anything.
"He wasn't supposed to die. Only you were," Ghost admitted. His tone was calm and calculated, per usual; however, there was the slightest twinge of guilt mixed in there.
Barely able to think, I unloaded any words that came to mind. "Wh… re-really!" I heaved. "You fraken killed him in cold blood, and… and that's your bullshivf response?! St-standing there like you could care less?!"
"His blood is on your hands, not mine! It was our fight, and you let him get involved!" Ghost snarled.
"Frak you!" I snarled.
"I don't even know why I'm defending my actions to a dead man." Ghost pulled a blade from under the cloth around his leg.
Fury poured into my blood, but there was something else, too: Energy. All through my body, I felt strength and power rush out like a floodgate had been opened. Both my shattered knee and knife wound healed in seconds.
"What is this?" Ghost stopped in his tracks, knife in hand.
I rushed at him, moving faster than ever before. I launched my fist at his face, moving so fast, Ghost could barely react. My knuckles grazed his cheek, then I launched another and another, unleashing all my anger and energy at him. Bingo! I nailed him in the gut and sent him flying into the wall.
"Rraagh!" Ghost rolled onto the floor, letting out a cough of blood and holding his rib cage. He may know what my next attack would be, but he couldn't dodge it if he wasn't fast enough.
"I'm not done with you yet!" I jumped at him, but he rolled under my kick.
"ENOUGH!"
Ghost blasted me into the wall with a massive wind current. Again and again, I tried to push through, but the wind was too strong. Suddenly, a net of energy strands trapped me against the wall. Struggling, using all my power, I still couldn't break out of the energy trap. Ghost pulled out a syringe and injected himself with a fluid. His pain ceased, and he stopped clutching his rib cage. He then walked up to me and placed a knife to my neck.
"I've got to hand it to you, James. You proved to be more than I estimated. It still wasn't enough!"
"Go to hell!" I spat at him, but he ducked.
Bang!
An explosion blew a hole in the nearby wall, knocking Ghost off balance. The knife left my throat, and Ghost regained his footing. He turned to see the leftover rubble and wall debris lying around a gaping hole in the wall. Like a knight in shining armor, Brad stood there, taking in the scene. His vision locked onto Uslar, then me, and finally Ghost.
"Who da fuck are you?" Brad questioned Ghost. I noticed his cyberwatch was shattered; the reason nobody was able to contact him.
"Brad… Brad Swift!" I started, still in shock. "He… he killed Uslar!" Pain stumbled out of my voice, and a tear rolled down my check.
"Is dat so?" Brad, unfazed by any of this, directed his spiteful voice at Ghost.
He entered the room and unloaded his shotgun at Ghost; however, Ghost was prepared. From his utility belt, he slapped a device over his shoulder, and it disintegrated all the projectiles aimed at him with a series of zaps.
"Your guns are useless against me now," Ghost boasted.
Brad put his shotgun back on the mag lock on his back. "Dat won't protect yah from my fistz!"
"I assure you, Swift, I do not fear whatever it is you think you are implying." Ghost circled around the room, in motion with Brad. Both were sizing each other up. "Swift - I've heard that name before." Ghost paused. "Tell me, Damon, what is a hit man with your credentials and infamy doing in a war?"
"Damon?" I asked.
"Dat waz da name my adoptive parentz gave me," Brad responded to me, keeping his gaze on Ghost. His next words were back to Ghost. "N' dat past no longa suitz me."
"Disappointing. Your work with the Immortals turned that minor gang into the galactic powerhouse it is today."
"What is he going on about, Brad? I thought you were a hitman for a local gang and drug operation run by your adoptive family?"
"Malcolm didn't git da whole story. My adoptive dad waz jus' ah leader ova ah branch n' da--"
Brad was cut off as Ghost made a surprise attack, launching knives at Brad. Brad pulled a knife from his shoulder and blocked.
Ghost lunged toward Brad, who caught his strike and grazed Ghost's love handle with his blade. He'd actually grazed Ghost. Ghost stepped back; his face was a mirror of surprise, utterly baffled at what had just happened - and so was I. Knowing what I knew about Ghost, he should have no problem with Brad; yet, there we were.
"Impossible!" Ghost stared at Brad as if he were a puzzle. "I can't read you!"
"I ain't ah damn book!" Brad stated, obviously unsure of what Ghost meant.
Ghost and Brad now faced off, eyeing each other. If Ghost couldn't read Brad's moves, then this might just be a fair fight. I say that from experience in fighting them both before.
Ghost bashed his sturdy metal gauntlets together, and they caught fire. Brad bent down and stretched his back. He turned his neck from left to right, popping it with a series of clicks in rapid succession. He then proceeded to do the same with the rest of his body as he loosened himself up.
"Even though I cannot read you, I assure you, I will still kill you. Then James," Ghost snarled at Brad.
"Come n' try," Brad hissed back.
Ghost rushed at Brad, who dipped and weaved right as Ghost was about to reach him, then slashed downward with his knife. Ghost parried with one of his gauntlets, and the blade clashed against the metal and fire strapped to Ghost's arms. With a shriek, it sent sparks flying into the air. Brad was fast and uppercut-slashed at the hand-to-hand dualist, attempting to catch Ghost off-guard.
Ghost sidestepped to the right just enough, and the knife passed a hair's-breath from his face.
Quickly, before Brad could respond with a follow-up, Ghost thrust his gauntlets of fire in Brad's gut, burning away the power armor's shields and stunning Brad for a brief moment. Now open for more attacks, Ghost tilted one gauntlet backwards and let out an explosive blast of air, forcing Ghost's elbow into Brad's helmet with devastating force. The stunning blow had opened Brad up for another attack, and Ghost obliged him, putting a simple side kick into Brad's legs, doubling him over. Brad's shields were down, leaving him exposed to injury. Ghost flicked his wrist, and a pinball-sized black glop of goo darted from his gauntlets. It landed on Brad's armor and sent electric currents through the metal!
"The electricity won't break through the lower layer of your power armor, but it will keep your shields from recharging." Ghost stomped down on Brad, but Brad swiped Ghost's legs from under him. Ghost then beat Brad to his feet and ran through him, making him crash into the wall.
"You gotta brain on yah. Makez it more fun!"
Brad took the opening and used the environment to his advantage, back flipping off the wall and above Ghost. Brad flattened his body, feet first, wrapping his legs around Ghost's neck. He used his skills and got creative with his momentum, jerking to the right, changing the direction of his fall, and putting the weight of his jump into a powerful throw. Ghost was flung off his feet, skidding and tumbling across the floor. A groan escaped Ghost's lips as the pain from the attack started setting in.
Ghost looked up, and his eyes opened with surprise. After Brad had let go of Ghost during the throw, he'd planted both hands on the ground. When Brad completed the attack, he sprang off his hands, throwing himself into a quick back-spring, followed by another, another, and another to build momentum. When Brad had almost reached Ghost, Ghost bounded off the ground and threw himself into a spin that would have made an expert gymnast jealous. Flattening in the air like a sideways whirling tornado of flames, his body was perpendicular with Brad as they neared. Ghost whipped his gauntlets in and out until they nailed Brad, putting him into an uncontrollable rotation.
Ghost blasted wind currents filled with rings of fire, sending Brad faster and faster. He went flying right through the wall beside me.
"Raargh!" he grunted and forced himself to his feet. Even without the shields, the power armor was still sturdy enough to absorb a shivf-ton of impact.
"Brad! You can't let him win! You can't!" I shouted, still trying to fight out of the energy net.
"Den why don't yah git yer lazy-azz in here?!" Brad took his knife and slashed at the energy net holding me; nothing. The blade didn't cut.
Ghost noticed this and wasn't about to let it happen. "No, you don't!"
He tilted his gauntlets back and blasted wind currents behind him, launching him toward Brad at blistering speeds. Brad barely had time to breathe, let alone dodge. But it was a testament to his experience in battle that Brad kept the presence of mind to roll under Ghost, just in time.
Ghost's leg smashed through what was left of that wall, a torrent of splinters clouding the air.
Whoosh!
Another gust of wind, and Ghost blasted himself back into Brad from the other side of the wall. Brad slid backwards from the impact. Ghost did the same thing again, but Brad was ready this time and extended his arm and cut at Ghost's neck, slicing him down as if he'd run into a clothesline.
With the speed of a ninja, Ghost spun off the ground, kicking Brad and flipping to his feet. He lashed out knives from his boots. Brad dodged but got sliced as they were pulled back with magnetics. Ghost exploded a gust of wind from his boots, launching him high into the air. He then spun and attached his boots to the ceiling. Ghost engaged Brad, jumping back and forth from the ceiling to the floor, using his special boots. Brad had trouble keeping up.
"What is going on?" Ghost grunted, frustrated by something I couldn't place - a frustration that had been building up throughout the fight. "What are you doing to me?" Ghost shouted just as Brad regained the upper hand.
Brad cocked back both his arms and double punched upwards into Ghost's back. Air whooshed from the fighter's lungs as he was knocked from the ceiling to the floor, just centimeters from the wall.
"I ain't gotta ah damn clue what yer talkin' 'bout!" Brad responded, then dashed at Ghost.
Ghost quickly performed a handspring to his feet and crouched just under Brad, with his legs coiled underneath him. Ghost exploded from the floor at Brad. However, Brad dived, grabbed Ghost around the waist, twisted mid-air, and arched the two of them towards the wall, easily angling Ghost headfirst at the wall. Ghost collided with the wall, and his head plowed through the woodwork with a painful cracking and crunching sound as the wood shattered under the enormous pressure from the attack.
"Damn!" I found myself saying out loud.
It wasn't over. Ghost blasted Brad backwards with a wind current from his boot. Still in mid-air, Ghost launched fireballs at Brad, who threw out a deployable stasis shield to redirect the fire back to Ghost. Ghost dove to the side, and the fire collided with the wood. Luckily, that type of wood was fire-resistant.
Brad landed on his feet. "I hope dat hurt!"
Ghost jack-knifed toward Brad, who flung a vial of airjin fuel high into the air. Ghost then deployed his full bag of tricks, but Brad was ready - and a bit lucky at the same time - to fight off Ghost's skillful advances. Brad got in a hit. Two. Three. He started to get the upper hand, and just as Ghost was stunned, Brad sliced open the vial of airjin fuel falling from mid-air. The liquid splashed over Ghost and ignited the fire over his gauntlets. He was lit ablaze!
"RAARGH!" Ghost roared in pain.
He blasted Brad backwards with a gust of wind and pulled out a white ball from his utility belt. He crushed the ball in his hand, and it exploded, filling the room with smoke.
Silence followed. A full minute of it. When the smoke cleared, Ghost was gone. The fight was over.
Brad was now at my side, and he pulled out his shotgun and blasted the energy net until I was released. I rushed over to Uslar's bloody corpse.
For an instant, Brad stopped and looked at me before prying Uslar from my grasp. After a moment, I stopped resisting, and Brad gently hunched Uslar over his shoulder. He stood up, pulling me up with him.
"It'z time tah regroup."
His words drowned out as flashes of moments Uslar and I had spent together in war played back through my head. My body was simply going on muscle memory as we made our way to the rest of our unit.