<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="text-decoration: underline"><div style="text-align: center;">Palaugrim - Santa Olivia (Cont.)</div></span></span><br/><br/><br/>And a miracle it was indeed. Hyuga couldn't pick an emotion to portray. Should he be happy that it was raining beams of light that seared their enemies? He had seen this type of attack once in Luciano, only it was a different version. He had mentally put a note that the use of such magic puts intense strain on the user, evidence noted in one of his diaries as to what happened to Master Lethe when she 'cleansed' Luciano. Still, looking back to his allies, he couldn't help but feel relieved, relieved that they didn't have to go back out there and put their lives on the line.<br/><br/>"What are you waiting for clerics?!" the man of science yelled. "This is exactly what we need! Put those skills to good use and heal the knights while we have time!"<br/><br/>For this instance only, words spoke louder than actions. The clerics had been revived by his hoarse yelling and instinctively tended to their duties. So many knights have been injured on their side; any moment spent in awe would be precious time wasted. Just as Hyuga was about to assemble a knight group for clean up, he caught sight of two knights headed their way from the vanguard. It was Alfrei and Vlad. They looked around surprised that the rearguard was congregated in the cleric supply camp.<br/><br/>"We got it bad." Hyuga informed the two as they walked up to him.<br/><br/>"I can see that. What happened here?" Alfrei questioned, still appearing to be in disbelief.<br/><br/>"They just kept coming." Georg butted in, still stretching his newly treated left arm while giving the head cleric a nod of appreciation. "But with that display of power by the Captain, we survived." he continued.<br/><br/>"That wasn't the Captain." Vlad interrupted.<br/><br/>"Master Lethe then?" Hyuga sighed, obviously thinking of the Luciano incident.<br/><br/>"I heard him say 'That dumb Lion' before barking out orders to us and dashing off. It could only be Lance."<br/><br/>"No way! That was Seraph level magic right there! How could anyone else display such a feat?" Hyuga cried out in shock.<br/><br/>"Hard to believe I know, but we were ordered to regroup and head to the center of town. Where's Natalia?" Alfrei brushed the topic aside for later.<br/><br/>The Dreamer's gaze turned to his left, there lay an unconscious Natalia being treated by one of the clerics, a worried Joaquim right by her side. "She's fine but drained of all of her reserves. I can't say if her actions are heroic or just plain stupid. Where's the new girl?" he asked back.<br/><br/>"Unlike Natalia here, she seems to be more reliable in prolonged fights. She disobeyed me and went after the Captain on her own." Alfrei informed Hyuga, eyes leveling a flat stare on Natalia.<br/><br/>"I heard that!" Natalia suddenly spoke up, still groggy but trying to get back on her feet. She lightly pushed the cleric's hand aside and stood up, only to fall back into Joaquim's waiting arms. "We have to go, the Captain needs us." she spoke with pride, ignoring the vehement shaking of her legs.<br/><br/>Hyuga was about to insist they leave her to the clerics when a thought suddenly invaded his mind. She was drained of her magic reserves; it normally takes days for an average knight to regain his/her full magic pool. However, since Natalia specializes in magic, it would probably take her a week at most just to regain half of her magic reserve. Going back to his discussion of the 'boosters' with the head cleric, Hyuga had a sparkling idea. He had meant to try this on himself first but found no reason to completely drain his own magic reserves without getting reprimanded because he cannot report for training. Rummaging through his small pack, Hyuga plucked out a small bottle with lightly glowing powder inside. Whether it was because he would finally get an answer to the question he had long put off, or help his squad mate, Hyuga had a gleeful smile plastered on his lips. He tossed the small bottle over to Natalia, followed by a water canister.<br/><br/>"Swallow that powder." he ordered the ruby-eyed knight. He had no time for contradictions or hesitation. The best way to get past the hesitation phase was by way of orders and sounding a little concerned and helpful. "It should help you regain your magic reserves way faster than how these boosters do."<br/><br/>Natalia stared conspicuously at the contents of small bottle in her hands, it was glowing, not entirely enticing to swallow if she may add. "Are you sure?" she had to ask.<br/><br/>Hyuga sighed. He acted like he was about to just take the bottle away when Natalia suddenly held on to it. "Okay okay! I'll do it. If something happens to me, it's on you okay?!" she threatened him before downing all of the powdered content inside the bottle. "Blech! What is this stuff?" she complained, more about the taste than the texture. Hyuga simply stared at her with anticipation, pen and paper on hand.<br/><br/>"Well...? How do you feel?"<br/><br/>"I feel like I swallowed something powdery." she said sarcastically. Hyuga simply gave her a stern look, implying that she give him an appropriate answer.<br/><br/>Natalia focused on herself, trying to sense if there were any changes in her body. "I... I don't... I don't feel anything." she looked at the other less hopeful eyes. "Are you sure it's supposed to--" she stopped abruptly, hands instantaneously clutching her chest before falling down on her knees gasping for breath.<br/><br/>"Natalia!" four voices called her name simultaneously. They rushed in to help her but stopped just a second after they moved in. Natalia began to glow, white smoke-like light rising up from her entire body. She was gasping for breath but didn't seem to be in any pain. The four men watched in awe as Natalia slowly rose back to her feet on her own, the gasping subsiding as she did so. "This... this is amazing!" she yelped in glee, looking at her hands that were still glowing with light. "Hyu! What is this stuff!? I feel rejuvenated!"<br/><br/>A heavy sigh of relief escaped the man of science, like a great big thorn had been plucked out of his throat. However, he was not just about to tell Natalia what she just swallowed, nor would he tell the rest of them. "It's a rare herb that I recently found, infused with my own holy power." technically, that was half the truth. He just couldn't afford to tell Natalia that she just swallowed what they came to know as a Sin Crystal in powdered form.<br/><br/>"Do you have more of that stuff? Cough it up and hand it over Hyu!" Alfrei ordered the other, knowing that they needed the substance too.<br/><br/>"Y-yes, yes of course." Hyuga obliged, rummaging through his small pack once more to give his other companions a bottle each. The rest of them downed the contents in one go and went through the same ordeal as Natalia. Despite it being an unorthodox substance, it's effect cannot be denied; it was a much needed recovery.<br/><br/>"Alright! We're off to the center of town! Don't fall behind!" Alfrei bossed his squad around.<br/><br/>Before Hyuga could dash off with the rest of his squad, the head cleric managed to catch his right arm, stopping him from bolting off. "I would really like to know what that is." he insisted upon Hyuga.<br/><br/>The man of science sighed in defeat. Seconds later, he pulled the head cleric to the side where both of them could speak somewhat privately. "If you really must know, it's processed sin crystal in powder form." he finally confessed, expecting a violent reaction from the head cleric. Instead, Hyuga only got a nod and a contemplative look from the head cleric.<br/><br/>"Will there be side effects?" he suddenly asked.<br/><br/>Hyuga shook his head, "We'll find out soon enough." he responded and started on his way to the town center. "I can only hope there is none..."<br/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">____________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/>Panting as she continued leaping from rubble to roof then roof to pavement, Fiona struggled to keep her Captain in her sights. She was both amazed and exhausted, with only her desire to be there for her Captain serving as the fuel to her fire. For the first time since the start of this mission, she can now see her Captain in action without Reapers getting in her way. How could this man move like he was moving now? Where is he getting all that strength and speed from? Just how strong is he really? Why was there such a large gap between a regular knight and a Seraph in terms of overall abilities? What's their secret?<br/><br/>Questions that she found no answer to repeatedly echoed inside her head. Even after that hellish training she went through, she could still feel the burn in her legs from sprinting, leaping over debris, bounding off broken walls, running like hell just to get to the town center, yet her Captain showed no signs of slowing down. In fact, he was still speeding up, making it doubly hard for Fiona to keep up. He was even dispatching stray Reapers as he went, plowing through them like they were nothing more than large rag dolls! While all she was doing was running after him, desperately trying to keep his back in her sights. Was she not cut out to be a Pristine Knight after all? Now more than ever, Fiona felt powerless, a feeling she hated the most.<br/><br/>Her idle thoughts were interrupted when several explosions sounded from a distance. Her eyes shot up, catching sight of several afterglows of spells cast around an area ahead of them. Someone was still fighting over there! The mere moment of distraction was all that was needed for her to lose sight of her Captain. The instant she brought her eyes back down, he was no longer in sight. Fiona slowed down from full running to a sprint, then to a complete stop, hands resting atop her knees as she treated her burning lungs to big heaves of this night's cold air. She wanted to take five, but knew that the enemy ahead wouldn't actually spare their opponent five minutes of respite.<br/><br/>"I have to keep going..."<br/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">____________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/>Lance watched in awe as the female Seraph battled the demon. She was overwhelming that monstrosity with her skill alone, granted she hasn't been too flashy with her own magic. Was he really that out of shape? Lance struggled to get back on his feet, ignoring the intense pain shooting out from almost every muscle in his body. He tried to make sense of the fighting in front of him, hopelessly trying to follow the two combatants' movements, yet they were far too fast for him in his current state. Instead, Lance focused on one, the demon he vowed to destroy, patiently waiting for a chance to strike.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">This is my last shot...<br/>I can't miss...<br/>I have to time it right...</span><br/><br/>He could feel his heartbeat rising from the intense pressure, from the knowledge that should the demon choose to attack him now, he wouldn't be able to defend himself. Perhaps it was his luck favoring him today that the demon had chosen to ignore his pitiful self, and perhaps it was just his luck that he could still move his spear-arm for a throw, all he needs now is for his luck to give him a chance.<br/><br/>When the battle seemed to have reached its climax, with the demon screaming out in agony from Lethe's relentless attacks, Lance felt his chance drawing ever so close. Lethe had driven the demon down to its last legs with a superb combination, leaving the demon in tears and cries of pain. He wasn't sadistic, not at all,  but hearing the demon cry like this felt like music to his ears. He wanted to hear more of her suffering (Light knows this demon deserved to suffer) but his chance had already presented itself, and he<span style="font-style: italic">will take it</span>.<br/><br/>Having noticed Lethe safely on the other side of the battlefield and out of his range, Lance's brown eyes locked onto the demon. He partly opened his lips for a deep breath, gripping the handle of his trusty spear as hard as he could. With all of his strength, Lance stepped back, once again ignoring the pain all over his body and prepared to throw his spear, only to be hit by a powerful wave of Sin that came out of nowhere. Taken by surprise, Lance staggered back in an attempt to maintain his fragile balance. No sooner than now did he realize that 'others' have joined the fray, two to be exact.<br/><br/><span style="color: #8080FF">"Seraph."</span><br/><br/><span style="color: silver">"Eve."</span><br/><br/>He heard them exchange greetings, and he knew that he heard the name right. The smaller one was Eve, so that's what she looked like. Lance immediately recognized the amount of danger him and Lethe were in. It would seem like these two actually valued the life of that crying heap if they decided to show up here and intervene. Priorities shifting to Lethe's safety, Lance decided without hesitation. He would buy her all the time he could afford to buy just for her to get back to her squad.<br/><br/>"Lethe! Run and get Gil or your squad!" he yelled out loud.<br/><br/>Then, resuming his interrupted stance, Lance hurled his weapon of choice with all the power he could muster. However, instead of it being aimed for the crying demon, he aimed for Eve. Lance's spear whistled through the air as it sped to its target, a testament to how much strength Lance had put into that throw; it closed the distance between him and Eve in mere seconds. However, Eve saw through the attack. No matter how well aimed he threw the spear, Eve simply swayed her head back and caught the spear with just one hand. Eve turned her head slowly to the direction of where the spear came from, only to see a battered knight, half-dead and still struggling.<br/><br/><span style="color: #8080FF">"How rude of you."</span>she mused calmly, turning her gaze back to admire the weapon she held in one hand.<span style="color: #8080FF">"I was just about to talk."</span>A devilish smile played on her lips.<br/><br/>At that moment, Lance had already accepted his death. With no spear, no strength, and no magic left, he had nothing to defend himself with against Eve's incoming counter. He could see it clearly, his death by his own spear. "So much for buying time..." he whispered to himself, satisfied that even in his condition, even for a small moment, he still managed to get the attention of Eve. If only Lethe would use this moment to escape, it would have been perfect. Lance looked at the shining tip of his spear headed straight for him. So that's what it looked like for those slain by it. Lance closed his eyes and smiled, anticipating a piercing pain... that never came?<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF"><span style="font-style: italic">"If you keep smiling like that, I'll drive this spear through you myself."</span></span><br/><br/>"Gil?! Wha-- Ho--" he stammered, blushing a little after realizing that his moment had just been spoiled. "Just how many people and demons are out there that can easily catch my spear?!" Lance roared at Guilford who was standing right in front of him, holding his weapon in the same fashion Eve did when she caught his throw. Still, Lance breathed a sigh of relief seeing his friend. If Gil was here now, that means that he could finally rest and let his friend take over.<br/><br/>"It's all up to you... my friend..." Lance mumbled, glancing at Lethe with a smile before he fell into unconsciousness.<br/><br/>Guilford in turn, nodded at Lethe just like the old times, silently telling her that they should get this over and done with.<br/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">____________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/>It can't be! Eve's eyes widened, her expression, much to her discomfort, changed to that of disbelief. That voice she heard, that long blue hair that swayed with the wind, that poise, that man... was the very same Seraph that she killed! How could this be?! How was he still alive?! Why didn't she catch wind of his continued existence?!<br/><br/><span style="color: #0080FF">"You looked surprised."</span><br/><br/>Eve stepped back (just a little) when Guilford turned to face her. She could not allow this Seraph to see her look startled. Composing herself in the quickest manner she could, Eve put on her usual confident smile once again.<span style="color: #8080FF">"I would have to admit, you're tougher than I first thought."</span><br/><br/>Guilford smirked at her.<span style="color: #0080FF">"Is it really so hard to believe that you couldn't kill me?"</span><br/><br/>Eve hissed beneath her breath. Truth is, she wanted to kill him (for good this time) right where he was standing but he was different than the last time they crossed swords. He appeared to be calmer, looked even sharper, and most disturbingly of all, he emanated the same pressure she sensed from those two old men, and not just from him but from the female Seraph too. She hated to admit it but her opponents now were definitely stronger. It would seem her speculations that they have been preparing for her attack was spot on. With discerning eyes, Eve watched Guilford casually walk into the battlefield, taking his spot parallel to the female Seraph. He hasn't drawn his sword yet, but there was hardly any opening at all for her to exploit.<br/><br/>An uneasy sensation began sinking inside of her, and she could feel an annoying stir beginning to knot in her stomach. Was she hesitating? Syndra was with her and yet she still has this uncomfortable sense of apprehension. She could only conclude that Syndra's silence was a confirmation to what she already knows. This was not going to be an easy fight. Eve decided to stall time for her Elite Guard to arrive.<br/><br/><span style="color: #8080FF">"It's so nice of you to come--saved me the trouble of looking for you."</span>she began, arms folding before her chest.<span style="color: #8080FF">"Do the two of you like what we've done with the place?"</span>she asked, followed by a sardonic chuckle.<span style="color: #8080FF">"I hope both of you do, because this will be your graves."</span><br/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center;">____________________________________________</div><br/><br/><br/>Guilford's brows twitched lightly. For some reason, Eve's idle banter began to annoy him greatly. The last time they fought, her words were limited and she attacked him ferociously. Right now, it was three against two and yet she was stalling. Whatever it is that she has in mind, he would not give her the chance at it. He shifted his stance to hide his right hand, in which he began channeling a Divine Magic powered Banish.<br/><br/><span style="color: #8080FF">"Do you know wha--"</span>Eve stopped mid-sentence and immediately raised her left hand forward to block a fired spell at her. A white explosion engulfed where the three of them stood, pushing up a cloud of smoke around the area.<br/><br/>When the smoke cleared, Eve had a scowl on her face and the left hand she used to block Guilford's attack was severely wounded. The silent one and the crying one had both shifted to defensive stances. On the other side, Guilford smirked.<span style="color: #0080FF">"How do you like my new Banish? Stings doesn't it?"</span><br/><br/><span style="color: #8080FF">"You wretched Seraph! I will kill you!"</span>