Alex turned the golden scepter in his hand as he and Scratches, the giant bearcat, walked out of the forest. The scepter itself was bejeweled and would be worth a good bit of coin once they got off Diamond Peak and to a more inhabited island.


    "Are you sure I can take it?" he asked.


    ''The people of this island are long gone,'' Scratches''s voice itched in the back of his mind. ''They will not miss it.''


    Alex shook his head but didn''t bother questioning it. The scepter had been hidden away in one of the few rooms in the tower, kept behind glass in a display. He had found the lever close by, sticking out of a metal column placed up the tower through a roughly hewn hole in the floor and ceiling. All in all, the entire process was too easy.


    It no longer snowed outside, and the skies were starting to clear. It all gave Alex a feeling he had been lied to. Instead of the towers generating a barrier powered by the aetherstorm, he wondered if the towers maintained the aetherstorm. Runa''s dementia made it so that he couldn''t take her words at face value.


    "Were you here when the aetherstorm started?" Alex asked as they walked back to the keep.


    ''I was but a cub returned to my home.'' Scratches shook its head as it prowled forward. ''I remember when the storm was created. There was talk of a plan and much shouting. They were all very loud back then.''


    Crack. Drip. Drop.


    Alex reached up and pulled down his scarf. Above him, the clouds were clearing out, and the sun had begun to shine down with its warming rays. Winter was ending on Diamond Peak, and the aetherstorm above was almost entirely gone from the island''s north side. The clouds cleared up to the southeast and southwest. An electric hum shook the air as the aether dissipated into the atmosphere. The hair on Alex''s arms and head felt like it was standing on end. A static electric charge hovering over his skin was the best way he could describe it.


    "Why are things always more complicated than they appear?" he asked, mostly of himself, as he looked over the rest of the sky before settling on the path before them. "What''s that?"


    In the distance, Alex could see a figure walking toward the forest. They weren''t dressed in the red and black of their stolen Military Police Uniforms, so he knew it wasn''t one of his group. Whoever it was wore a heavy grey coat. If the figure had been larger, he might have thought it was Gary.


    ''A weasel.'' Scratches sniffed.


    "That''s obviously a person."


    ''I have traveled to many places. That person smells like a weasel.''


    Alex rolled his eyes but trudged forward regardless. He wasn''t about to argue with a creature that wasn''t sure if it was a bear or a cat. Scratches followed him, its massive form romping through the snow in easy strides, making it impossible for Alex to stay ahead.


    As he was walking toward the figure, he saw it stop and take on an odd stance. The man threw one leg backward, holding two fingers of each hand forward, one pointing down and the other pointing up. A cold sensation ran up Alex''s spine, and he was certain the man said two words. A vibration in the air shot out from his fingers as he swung them both like opening doors. The vibration shot out like a long blade. It kicked up snow from the ground as it cut through the air, and Alex''s breath caught in his chest as he realized what it was.


    Back on Earth, he often saw martial arts movies as a kid. They were easy to find online for free, and the subtitles could be in any language, regardless of what was spoken on screen. One of the most common things in those movies was a technique of a master swordsman, where they would cut into the air and send the cut flying toward their opponent. Alex opened his gate, hesitation fleeing from his mind as he focused on the metal device in his chest. It was a flying blade technique, if he wanted to name it.


    Electricity thrummed through his body from his heart, arcing out like lighting through his limbs. It was like the steady electric hum of being next to a live wire was running through every part of his person. Alex reached out a hand even as his gate finished its activation and focused his mind as he tore his gate open wider.


    "Steel Wall."


    Thwip. Thump.


    An electric blue light flashed in front of him, appearing like it had been there the entire time. A moment later, a heavy impact crashed and broke on the wall as the air-based attack hit and dissipated against the steel. Alex rushed forward, putting his shoulder against the wall and peeking into the cold field beyond.


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    Scratches had jumped to the side, avoiding the attack, and the figure stood unmoving in the distance. In Alex''s estimation, the figure was about fifty meters from him. He had ways to close in, but they would require being exposed.


    "Why can''t we just talk this out?" He sighed as he steeled himself and prepared to jump out behind cover.


    No matter what, he would need to get closer. He had some ranged capabilities, but they weren''t his go-to option. He had always been more of a puncher when it came to fighting, even back on Earth, the few times he got into trouble. Fists were something he could rely on when the going got tough. He dropped the scepter in the snow as he got ready to fight.


    "Three, two, one," he whispered before charging out from behind his cover.


    Twip.


    "Step."


    In a blur of motion, like he had slammed his foot against the ground a thousand times in an instant, he surged forward, disappearing from where he had been as another air-blade cut across the ground before reappearing a short distance away.


    "Rail Gun."


    Alex clenched his fist, pulling back his right hand for a punch. He focused, taking a deep breath as he imagined a solid metal rod in the air. A blue electric light flashed as the rod entered the world. With a push of magnetism and throwing a punch like he was throwing a rock, he sent the rod flying at the figure in the distance.


    Whoosh.


    The bar shot off like a missile, careening toward the figure right on target. Alex didn''t let the opportunity go to waste. He assumed the figure had some form of defense. He charged forward, keeping an eye on the rod and the figure as he cut the distance between them.


    Shing.


    An air blade cut out with a flick of the man''s fingers, deflecting his rod and sending it careening off to the side and crashing into the snow. It was outside Alex''s range and disappeared in a flash of blue light. The figure''s fingers lined up on Alex as he charged, and Alex took in a deeper breath.


    "Wind Scythe!"


    Twip.


    "Step!"


    He could hear the man this time and shot off to the side in a blur of motion as the blade cut through the snow where he had been. Now, they had about ten meters between them. Alex could finally figure out why the man had randomly attacked him.


    "What''s your problem?" Alex asked, clenching his fists as he geared up his body for a fight.


    "I was sent to retrieve one of the trespassers on the owner''s island," the man said, the wind rotating between his fingers. "When I saw you returning with a monster, I assumed you were a threat."


    Alex looked over to Scratches, who was still a distance away, ready to bolt to the side at a moment''s notice. She had come closer but was still further away than Alex had gotten, thanks to his Path of Step. Alex eyed the figure.


    "So you attacked," Alex said.


    "I did. If you know what''s good for you, you''ll come with me back to the keep. The prince is paying me a pretty penny to get both the bearcat matriarch and any trespassers. I don''t have to kill you, but I will."


    "Heh." Alex smiled, holding out his right arm. "Junk Arm."


    Blue light flashed across his arm as it was covered by mishappen bits of metal. It elonged into a fist that was a little longer than his normal arm and a much larger fist. Alex flexed the fist in his magnetic senses, and it closed tight as he brought it close to his body.


    "I don''t know who you are, but I''m not going to do that," Alex said. "I''m ''Tin Man'' Ortega, and I don''t roll over for anyone."


    Because of his goggles, Alex couldn''t see what was going on across the man''s face. However, his fingers twitched at the name. Alex wasn''t surprised. He was wanted for a million dolers for burning down an island, but he was more surprised when people didn''t know who he was.


    "You said ''Tin Man'' Ortega?" the man''s voice shook. "My boss told me to be on the lookout for you."


    "The prince did?" Alex raised an eyebrow.


    "No, someone much more important." The man shook his head. "Did you really beat Mister Deadman?"


    It was Alex''s turn to be shocked. He had beaten a man named Mister Deadman. He was a guy dressed in a pinstripe suit with really pale skin that Alex met back on the island of Nowhere in Death''s Yard. The man had the power to manipulate and generate bones, and he turned into a giant bone scorpion before Alex beat him.


    "I did," Alex said.


    "You can call me Mister Foley," the man said as the wind twisted between his fingers, turning faster and faster as he drew them apart until he had a looping twister formed like a whip between them. "Miss Malone sends her regards, but I have to kill you now."


    Alex''s muscles tensed as Foley grabbed hold of the vortex with one hand. Mister Foleyh hadn''t attacked yet, and Alex wasn''t sure exactly what he could do. He was clearly cursed and could manipulate the air around him, but Alex didn''t know the limitations of his power. If Alex rushed in, he might lose before he understood what was happening.


    "Wind Whip," Mister Foley whispered, lashing out with the wind in his hands.


    Whoop-crack.


    Alex threw up his arm and caught the wind against it. The metal shook under the strike, and Alex clenched his teeth. He pushed back against the attack, but it didn''t stop with the initial hit. The wind lashed around his arm, rubbing against it with a vibrating force that shook through his entire body. His teeth clattered together as Mister Foley pulled back on the whip.


    "Wind Throw."


    Mister Foley pulled hard on the whip, and Alex''s feet left the ground. Foley didn''t seem like he should have had the strength to pull off the move, but Alex was rotating in a circle around the man. Mister Foley spun his arm in a circle, like a cowboy with a lasso above his head, and Alex was caught along for the ride.


    Crack.


    Foley swung hard on his windy whip, pulling the line taunt and carrying Alex with it. Alex sailed through the air toward the snow below, the ground rushing at his face faster than should have been possible. Alex closed his eyes, and pain rocked through his arms as he landed on his shoulder. He rolled through the snow to a stop as the wind around his arm dissipated.


    He pushed himself onto his feet without a moment''s hesitation, even as nails of heat slammed across his arm. Alex knew he needed to get back momentum in the fight. He focused his eyes on Mister Foley as he used his metal arm to push himself up from the snow.


    The fight was only getting started.