Sayed and Jean stood before the two men, walling them off from Erin as they faced off. Erin held her hands at her sides, taking a deep breath as she watched the two captains move. She had no idea who they were, but they seemed strong. She didn''t question the golden gauntlet that Sayed wore nor the gemmed circlet on Jean''s head.


    "Is that Baptiste ''the Reanimator?''" the older man asked, his eyes wide.


    "It''s good to see you again, Captain Grayson." Jean bowed to the old man, purple energy crackling around his body.


    "And ''Sword Saint'' Sayed," the lizard man said. "Rare for so many big names to be working together."


    "Hah." Sayed laughed. "If only you knew the half of it. We have ''Thorn Queen'' Leah and ''Tin Man'' Ortega with us too!"


    "Shades." Erin shook her head.


    Of course, Sayed would reveal more than he should. That was one of the problems with him. So long as there was doubt, there was opportunity, but Sayed never left any doubt. He continued to laugh as he rested his sword on his shoulder.


    "What''s Ortega planning?" The lizard man narrowed his yellow eyes. "He''s drawn so many big names together, but why?"


    "Well, that is a long story," Sayed began.


    Slap.


    "No, Sayed," Erin said, stepping back from slapping him on the shoulder.


    "Fine." Sayed sighed, rolling his sword off his shoulder as he took a wide stance. "Then, foul villains, retreat or face the wrath of we three!"


    Crack. Crack.


    "You don''t get to call the wronged party villains," the Grayson said, cracking his knuckles. "You all stole and wrecked my ship!"


    "We didn''t wreck any ship," Jean said as purple energy wrapped around his body. "Spirit Shroud."


    A suit of glimmering purple light appeared around his coat, wrapping him a suit. He pulled a purple hat around his head with one hand, calling it into existence with a glittering light display. Sayed stepped up next to him, his sword glowing bright orange.


    Erin embraced the power of her gate. She wouldn''t fight directly, but she would act as support, which was where she preferred to be. Her skin began to itch as stems grew out inside her coat, ready to be used at a moment''s notice.


    "You fools think you can take two captains." Grayson looked them over. "Do you even know who we are?"


    "Do we need to?" Jean asked, a chuckle ringing out.


    He took a moment to glance at Erin and nod. Sayed did the same. Erin narrowed her eyes. They were trying to signal something to her. She then noticed that they were holding back. Eliza wasn''t out, and Sayed didn''t have both of his swords drawn. They weren''t staying to fight. They were going to run. Erin''s mind ran through everything that had been said. The Robin was destroyed. These men had to have come from somewhere. That meant the docks were being watched.


    That left one alternative.


    The aetherstorm was gone, and they would make a break for Roald''s ship. Neither Sayed nor Jean thought they could take on two captains, even with her helping. She eyed the captains. Just how strong could two men be?


    "Demon''s Thrust!"


    "Spirit Battement!"


    Sayed shot off with his sword at the lizard man captain, crossing through the air faster than Erin could see. At the same moment, Jean jumped at Grayson, his leg blurring into sharp kicking motions as he launched his own attack at the old man.


    "Might."


    Ting. Whoosh.


    The lizard man caught the tip of Sayed''s blade between two claws, holding the thrust perfectly as Sayed strained against it. Grayson dodged between Jean''s blur of kicks, seemingly unbothered by the fast stream of attacks rushing at him.


    Erin formed two seeds in her palms, pointing them up into the air and over the fighters. She knew why they had been so uncertain now, and they would need her help if they wanted to survive. Pulling in aether, she threw the seeds high in an arc so they landed behind the two captains.


    "Vine Whip!"


    Two vines burst out of the dirt, swinging toward both captains from behind.


    "Step."


    Fwoosh.


    Grayson disappeared from both her and Jean''s range, his feet blurring like he took a thousand steps at once until he was far out of range. The lizard man just turned his head and released a gout of flame from his mouth, cutting through the vine and reducing it to ash.


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    "Petty tricks." Grayson shook his head. "You have to be fools to think you can take us out, right Drake?"


    "They''ve spent their time out in the Fringes," Drake hissed. "Their ignorance is a mockery of the Military Police."


    "I would be glad to show you my might if you would release my sword." Sayed smiled as he struggled to remove his blade from Drake''s grip.


    "Gladly." Drake let go of Sayed''s sword, and Sayed nearly fell backward from the sudden release of tension. "Let us show you precisely what you are dealing with."


    Crick. Crack.


    With two snaps, Drake''s body shook, stretching and distending as he grew larger. His skin stretched as he doubled in height, his claws growing longer as his body stretched. Two sets of massive wings shot out of the back of his body, black leathery skin stretching between red-scaled bones as the captain filled the small space.


    "Is it some kind of curse?" Sayed breathed as he stepped back.


    "I don''t sense any cursed aetheric energy in him." Jean breathed as he retreated to Erin. "This is something else."


    ''My kind is ancient.''


    The voice wasn''t a statement of words but more like a thought that rushed through Erin''s mind. She saw ancient caves and deep caverns separated by lengths of wide oceans. There was a word in her world for creatures like this, creatures that lived in solitude and flew in the sky.


    Dragons.


    "Run," Erin said, turning and sprinting for the door.


    Sayed and Jean needed no prompting. While they were often the ones to rush headlong into a fight, they already knew that this wasn''t one they would win. They were on her heels as she ran through the door, and they both helped throw the door closed behind them.


    "Seed Spray!" Erin threw out both hands, sending a blast of black seeds at the door.


    Tap. Tap. Tap.


    "Thorn Garden!"


    Black thorny vines grew over the door, blocking it from being opened and providing a barrier. Erin had no illusions that it would hold for long, but every second counted if they were going to escape. In the end, they were lucky. If it took time for Drake to come out of his form, he wouldn''t be able to get through the door.


    "We need to get Mari." Erin panted as she turned and began to run again.


    "She''s already gone," Runa said from the hallway, forcing Erin to stop.


    The old woman stood wrapped in her coat next to Firril. The machine was bent over, helping support her, but there was a look of determination in the old woman''s eyes. She was in a moment of lucidity. Erin didn''t know how long it would last.


    "I sent her toward the ship the moment the storm stopped," the old woman said. "Get out of here, you young''uns. I need to give these people who are destroying my park a good talking to."


    Erin stood frozen, unsure of what to do. There was no way an old woman could keep two captains from chasing them, and Runa had to know that. What could she do to delay them? She started to say something but then realized that Mari would be alone, out in the snow, with maybe the rest of the Military Police soldiers and bounty hunters wandering around.


    "Shades," she whispered before nodding to Runa. "Thank you."


    "Do hurry," Runa said as she looked up to the black vines at the door. "We don''t want you to miss your ship out of here."


    Erin, Sayed, and Jean ran towards the exit, plowing into the snow outside. Erin knew that she was leaving Runa to die, and that scratched at the back of her mind. She didn''t like it but didn''t see any other options. There were just too many powerful people running around, and they were the small fish in the pond.


    <hr>


    Boom. Boom.


    Massive clawed arms struck at the metal doors, slamming them against their hinges and pushing back against the metal bars. Firrl stood unmoving as she watched the doors bend and cave. Runa stood beside her, carrying a resolute determination she hadn''t seen on the old woman''s face in decades, keeping her steady.


    Firril had seen everything. She knew what was coming. Gary was gone, blown apart by Bibi. She wouldn''t be far behind if she stood in the way of these two men. She often wondered what she would experience when she died.


    She was a construct of circuitry and aether. Her mind was a series of crystals that worked together and manipulated aetheric energy to think. When she died, those processes would cease. And she assumed she would cease with it.


    "We had a good run, Firril." Runa reached up and pattered her arm. "Go into combat mode and be ready."


    "Understood." Firril nodded, letting several panels on her armor click open.


    Like the turrets at the dock below, she was loaded with weaponry, just in case she was needed to defend the keep. This was the first time she had ever had to use the function, but thanks to Runa''s regular maintenance, her barrels extended from her arms with well-oiled ease.


    Firril aimed her guns at the door, prepared to fire on Runa''s orders.


    Bang. Screech. Thump.


    With a solid hit, the doors banged open, the metal screeching and bending as the doors bent outward and the vines were pushed away. An old man and a rapidly shrinking lizard man stood at the doors, both breathing heavily as they looked over the hallway.


    "I told you it was a dumb idea to go into your dragon form," the old man said. "We were in an enclosed space."


    "Fair, but I rarely get to use it," the lizard man said as he looked over the tatters of what once had been his dark red and black coat. "I''m going to need a new uniform."


    "Are you the rapscallions messing up my park?" Runa yelled, charging forward at the men with her fist held high.


    "What the—” The old man raised his hands as Runa banged on his chest.


    "Why are all you brutes coming in today and messing with my property!" Runa yelled. "I came out here to get away from everyone. I don''t want people messing up my park and ruining my machines!"


    The two men momentarily looked at each other, and their confusion was evident.


    "Miss." The lizard man leaned down, but Runa swung a hard fist that clocked him across the face.


    "Don''t you ''miss'' me!" Runa yelled. "How are you all going to compensate me for the damages? Are you with that wannabe king? He broke my Gary! It''ll take ages to repair him, and I don''t even want to consider the expenses."


    "Ma''am," the old man said. "I understand you''re frustrated, but this is a quarantined island. If you don''t stop assaulting my associate, I''ll have to arrest you."


    "Arrest me?" Runa asked. "Who do you think you are?"


    "We''re with the Military Police." The old man smiled. "Now, you can either step aside so we can chase down the outlaws who ran from here, or I can make you."


    Runa started to say something to Firril, but the old man raised a hand to cut her off.


    "And if your machine there so much as points one of those barrels at either of us, we''ll tear both of you apart limb by limb. Our mission is too important for you two to slow us down."


    Firril lowered her arms, let the panels click closed, and dropped her head in defeat. She had never expected them to be able to stop the two men, but she was surprised that they had managed a distraction this long.


    She could only hope it would be enough for the others to escape. The two captains rushed past both of them, no longer hindered and ready to continue their hunt.