Viviana and Adam, ‘The Adapter’, looked at each other. The chaos around them faded into the background. Acknowledgement. Their swords were raised, and their bodies were suspended midair by prefired grapples. At any moment they could pick a grapple to detach and another to retract to.

  Even though they weren’t moving, they could spring into action at any time. Adam spoke first. “Give back the item, and we’ll spare Landsknecht.”

  “I can’t do that. As a matter of fact, the gem isn’t even here.”

  Adam sighed, his voice modulating through the helmet. “Then show us the location.”

  Viviana shook her head. “Your presence means nothing. I will win here.”

  Adam chuckled, and then laughed. “You? Against me? I know you’re a knight killer. A newly minted soulbound, defeating Adler-Stern’s personal guard force. But here, without your soulbound weapon? I doubt you could scratch me.

  “Let’s say, one in a million chance, you do. Then what? My people will kill the rest of you. Once they’re dead, they’ll gather the parts and lock them up in our base. And I won’t be able to guarantee their safety.”

  “Safety from what? This isn’t Central. This is the academy. The worst is that they’ll be held for two months. Academy rules.”

  Adam shook his head. “The academy rules were created by the guilds. For the guild affiliated. But you, nor they, are guild affiliated. How do you not know this one, simple fact?”

  The air chilled. Viviana was sure she could get out alive and complete the mission. But could she extract the rest of Landsknecht? Like it or not, the members were currently irreplaceable. Bena was too important as a scout. Thomas already handled too many missions and finances to be excluded, and Lucian was their best fighter aside from Viviana herself.

  Maybe this guy’s threat is true. He’s a high ranker from Pact. He has power. He could do whatever he wants to the unprotected, to the unaffiliated.

  But Landsknecht has a bit of influence as well. And I’m an Adler-Stern. People know of us. But even so…

  The risk is Landsknecht.

  The reward is fame, influence, and a level up.

  Sure the plan went awry, but this is an unexpected landfall.

  Adam continued. “Or maybe you do know. Maybe you’re all just mad, risking your lives outside the guilds. Maybe you think you’re strong enough to live without them.”

  Viviana looked at Adam, looking into the cameras that made up his helmet. They were probably scanning everything about her. Heart rate, breathing, vitals, heat signature. Viviana hoped to hold his eyes. She spoke, staring directly into the pupils of a camera. “Honestly, I think–”

  Viviana activated her grapples mid sentence, hoping to buy a split millisecond. It worked. Adam reacted too slowly, chasing after her grapple, but Viviana had reached the wall faster. Instantly she kicked off of it with [flash step]. Not at Adam, but at Lucian.

  Well, Lucian’s opponent, to be specific.

  Her surprise maneuver caught the knight off guard. Viviana landed a clean blow to their grapple line, causing them to tilt, unbalanced. Lucian, fast on the uptake, landed an attack that took their arm off.

  A cry of pain from the opponent. Wonderful.

  Viviana kept moving, zipping back and forth around the battlefield. She didn’t look back at Adam. Adam gave chase, but as Viviana skated and brushed along walls, she placed [lightning traps], detonating them as Adam got close. He wasn’t hit by any of them, but the dodges he made slowed him down. At least that’s what Viviana hoped.

  The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as Viviana ducked, avoiding a slash that nearly took her head off. How?! His blades are too short!

  Viviana whirled backwards, grappling forwards all the while, just in time to block an attack. Her eyes widened. His sword changed?

  His dual short swords were nowhere to be found. Instead he was swinging a massive greatsword, extending his reach greatly. Viviana cursed as she blocked another attack.

  Heavy. His stats, and the nature of his sword. If I don’t structure my parries he’ll blow right through. Ideally I don’t parry at all.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Viviana wasn’t giving him time to strike. She kept moving, grappling, kicking off walls and [flash step]ping around, trying to find opportunities to influence other fights.

  There. A chance. Viviana rushed forward, cutting at one of Fortuna’s opponents. They dodged, even counterattacked, but Fortuna rushed forward to land an attack while they were distracted. The knight lost their foot at the cost of a couple locks of Viviana's hair.

  Viviana kept moving as skills fired off left and right. Fortuna blasted an opponent with fire, but they quickly dodged the fireballs.

  Viviana darted around to Thomas while Adam’s blades changed again, this time forming into four different daggers. Adam threw the daggers while moving. Viviana desperately parried with her sword in her right hand. One dagger slipped through, so she caught it with her left, causing the dagger to embed itself in her palm.

  Viviana winced as Adam made a motion, withdrawing all the daggers back into his hand. A telekinesis-like skill, or a property of his weapon?

  In either case Viviana kept moving towards Thomas. Thomas’s opponent was about to deliver a killing blow, but Viviana had tackled them sideways.

  “Help Fortuna!” Viviana yelled. “Extract her, and we’re getting out of here!”

  Viviana slashed at the opponent she tackled, but they wrenched themselves out of her grasp, parrying two blows before activating a skill that knocked her away like a baseball. Shit, Thomas!

  Viviana activated her grapples, flying back to intercept Adam, who should have been there, but he wasn’t. What's he doing? No, he’s doing what I was trying to do!

  Instead of chasing Viviana around, Adam was moving to help his subordinates. Viviana recognized the danger immediately and moved to intercept, but he was moving too fast. “Lucian, behind!”

  Lucian twisted, just narrowly avoiding Adam’s strike, buying himself a split second, but Viviana was already there, parrying Adam’s follow up attack. Another knight rushed in, pushing Lucian back into a one versus one. We’re back where we started. Lucian against his opponent. Fortuna against hers. Thomas against his. Me and Adam, facing each other.

  A flurry of strikes were exchanged. Viviana grew frustrated as Adam’s blade morphed and shifted mid exchange, finding ways to stab into her when any normal sword wouldn’t have. It’s that variable reach of his. If only I could draw my soul…

  Viviana was being pushed back, but if she retreated too far, Adam would simply attack someone else. Viviana gritted her teeth. Someone has to break the stalemate.

  That was Lucian. He killed his opponent, whirling to help Viviana, but Viviana shouted to help Fortuna instead. We’re getting out of here.

  Viviana could have sworn she saw Adam grimace. He hadn’t expected Lucian to win. Viviana was pressing harder with her strikes now, trying to keep him locked in place. Lucian just made the multiple one-versus-ones into an unbalanced fight. As expected of our second strongest fighter.

  Even so, the chances of winning were slim. Thomas was holding on by a thread, literally using Bena’s dead body as a shield. Viviana idly thought of how effective the strategy was. Making use of what is normally a dead weight. Smart.

  Lucian and Fortuna were doing well, but both of them were covered in injuries, and Viviana wasn’t faring well against Adam either.

  Then Fortuna was free to move, her opponent distracted by Lucian. Viviana noticed. “Fortuna, the gem is secured! Lucian, get them out of here!”

  Fortuna didn’t need to be told twice, firing her grapples down the hall and zipping out, the breach knight hot on her tail, but Lucian slashed at them, slowing them down. Viviana yelled for Lucian, taking out the gem and throwing it. Lucian twisted midair, catching it, simultaneously zipping away.

  “You cannot run. Our equipment is better. Your scouts are dead. Mine are not,” Adam said. He flicked his chin at the two remaining knights he had left. “After them.”

  Lucian zipped out, extending a hand and grabbing Thomas, pulling him out of another attack. Thomas reached out, grabbing both halves of Bena. Lucian threw them both forward and down the hall. He was running.

  Viviana moved to block the path.

  “Who said I was running?” Viviana said.

  I have a level to gain.

  Viviana zipped around, slashing at the two knights chasing after the surviving Landsknecht members and Fortuna. “You’re not allowed to leave!”

  One of the knights snarled. “Who says so, bitch? You? I go where I want. Back the fuck up.”

  Despite his words the knight stayed. He ripped off his helmet. Nothing but rage filled his eyes. Okay, I can use this. “Calm your dog, Adapter.”

  The dog snarled again, moving to attack her, but Adam stopped him. The other knight didn’t move. They both turned to face him, not even acknowledging Viviana.

  Adam was still watching her. “Is this your plan? Stay back and stall us? I have the greatest scout in the academy. I have the fastest gear. I will catch them.”

  “Oh? Does your dog have a good sense of smell?”

  The dog didn’t bite. Adam just sighed. That’s a little embarrassing. I… I thought that was a good insult.

  “This will be for naught. You’ve just given us more work. We will kill you, and then track down and kill the rest of you,” Adam said, sighing again. “I can’t believe I said all that nonsense. I really thought you hid the gem, but I guess you weren’t so smart after all.”

  Viviana pointed her sword forward, and Adam gave the signal. The two knights by his side instantly sprung into action.

  Three-versus-one. Hopelessly unnumbered and out leveled. A high ranker. If I don’t get a feat from this, I don’t know what will.

  patreon! 15 chapters ahead!