In the northern tunnel,
"Skrieeeek!"
"Slash!"
"Blam!"
"Open fire!"
"Rat-tat-tat-tat!"
The soldiers and GEMAs unloaded on a nineteen-foot-tall monster with the gray, snoutless torso of a rat and six long, spider-like legs, sharp and jagged like an insect’s; it had just obliterated a GEMA, detonating it with a sweep of its front leg right in the middle of a hail of bullets that was making it difficult for the creature to move.
The monster surged forward relentlessly; "psiu," the GEMAs fired their flame- and lightning-magic-infused rocket launchers; "blam!" "skrieeek!" hit point-blank in the head, the monster—a Skitterer, came to a halt and shrieked, but it didn’t collapse at all, snapping its head back toward the front, its glowing red eyes fixated on tearing through the soldiers and GEMAs before it as it opened its massive maw to reveal rows of sharp teeth,
"Skriiiek!"
It then sprinted straight toward the soldiers, circling the tunnel walls to evade the bullets; "Fire... fire... don’t stop!" a soldier screamed. They unleashed every firearm and elemental magic at their disposal, bright streaks of multi-colored light tracking the Skitterer as it ran in circles around the tunnel. Suddenly, the Skitterer dropped down from above, "blam!" "whoaaaah!" breaking the soldiers’ and GEMAs’ formation instantly; several soldiers fell victim to the Skitterer’s razor-sharp legs while the GEMAs kept up an incessant barrage with their gatling guns amidst a chorus of screams.
"Slash!"
"Blam!"
Two GEMAs were sliced clean in half by a sweep of the Skitterer’s front leg, exploding instantly on the spot and forcing the remaining GEMAs to fall back,
"Skrieeeeek!"
Seeing its enemies retreat, the Skitterer pressed forward through the gunfire; the situation turned critical as the infantry and GEMAs were pushed all the way to the rear defense line,
"Hold... hold the line... don’t let that damn monster breach the city!" a soldier roared.
Though their faces were pale with terror, the infantry and GEMA pilots kept firing on the steadily advancing enemy; one GEMA pilot closed his eyes, positioned at the very front as an incoming leg prepared to swipe him down at any second, but suddenly felt a shadow flash past him and opened his eyes. His mouth dropped wide open in shock as two figures clad in what looked like black armor sped past him.
"Ready, Casca?" asked Clyde, who was flying while holding Casca.
"Yeah," Casca replied.
Clyde released Casca, who instantly somersaulted directly over the Skitterer’s head; "blam!" Casca landed with both feet squarely on top of the Skitterer’s head, slamming the monster’s face straight into the ground; then, with a stunning flip, she tumbled backward and touched down, right as Clyde landed beside her and retracted his wings.
"Cease... cease fire!" the army commander bellowed.
The gunfire died down instantly; every soldier and GEMA stared at the two black-armored figures standing tall before them. The Skitterer rose slowly, propping its body up on its six legs,
"Let’s go, Casca," Clyde said telepathically inside her mind.
"Right," Casca replied.
Both shot forward in a flash; "skrieeek!" "from the right!" Clyde shouted in her head. Instantly, Clyde leaped and spun through the air with his legs extended straight while Casca slid low across the ground; the Skitterer’s massive leg swept harmlessly through the gap between them. Clyde executed a quick flip and brought his heel crashing down hard and true right onto the Skitterer’s head, slamming the monster back into the dirt; but before its head could hit the ground, Casca delivered a double-kicked upward thrust directly beneath its chin, sending the nineteen-foot monster flying backward to land flat on its back.
The two landed side-by-side once more, watching as all of the Skitterer’s upturned legs thrashed wildly in every direction. After a beat,
"Let’s go, let’s finish this monster off," Clyde said.
"Of course," Casca replied.
The two strode forward casually toward the helpless monster, whose limbs were doing nothing but flailing aimlessly; "flap," Clyde flared his wings wide, while Casca raised her tail high like a whip,
"Right!"
"Clang!"
Casca parried one of the monster’s legs with her tail, following Clyde’s mental prompt; then, "left!" "clang!" Casca parried another strike. They kept up the rhythm until they finally leaped onto the center of the monster’s thrashing, screeching torso, its legs scrambling wildly to find purchase so it could flip itself back over.
"Crack!"
Exerting his raw strength, Clyde ripped one of its legs clean off and tossed it aside like a massive tree trunk; Casca did the same, slicing through the remaining limbs with the blade-like spikes on her own legs. Once all of the monster’s legs were gone, the two leaped together onto the inverted head of the beast, stamping down in unison; "splat!" the head caved in completely, painting the surrounding ground a violent red.
"It’s done, Big Brother," Casca said in his head.
"Yeah... let’s go home," Clyde replied.
"But... why do I... feel like eating this monster?" Casca asked, her mask-like mouth opening to reveal her teeth.
"We’ll just ask Mary for meat and eat that... You’re not too hungry, right?" Clyde asked.
"Um... not really... I just kind of want to... I guess," answered Casca, her eyes glued to the carcass beneath them.
"Okay... let me, let me go," Clyde urged before Casca could start devouring the corpse below them and lose control of herself, especially since he, too, was beginning to feel the temptation to eat the carcass under his feet. "Okay, Big Brother," Casca replied.
Clyde scooped Casca up in a princess carry; then, expanding his wings fully, he launched into the air and flew into the city, passing right over the stunned soldiers and GEMAs who could only gawk in helpless amazement,
"Did you guys... see that?" a GEMA pilot asked.
"Yeah... what... were those things?" asked the GEMA pilot beside him.
The infantrymen, GEMA pilots, and armored medical transport drivers stationed at the rear were all rendered speechless, having just witnessed something impossible before their very eyes: two strange, devil-like creatures had effortlessly slaughtered a nineteen-foot monster whose sword-like legs had been tearing them apart only moments before.
***
Meanwhile, Clyde and Casca slipped back into the apartment undetected through the window; upon landing, a brilliant flash of light enveloped their bodies, reverting them to their original forms. Clyde checked his clothes, finding them completely intact; "sigh," he let out a sigh of relief, then turned to look at Casca, caught slightly off guard, Casca’s face, once cold and filled with sorrow, was now wearing a breathless smile, a vivid spark of life returning to her eyes,
"Big Brother... what are we?" Casca asked.
Hearing Casca’s question, Clyde paused; he knew the composition of his body, but he still had no idea what they truly were. Finally, he spoke,
"I don’t know. I don’t even know myself," Clyde answered.
"I don’t know what happened to me... but right now... for some reason, I actually feel alive," Casca replied.
"Yeah... I know. It’s written all over your face," Clyde replied.
Casca turned to look at Clyde, who was in the exact same state, panting with a smile on his face, his eyes shining brightly like someone who had found a newfound passion for life.
"You too, Big Brother," Casca said with a smile.
"Oh... I guess so. I feel the exact same way you do," Clyde replied.
"Do you think... our other siblings from the dream are like us too?" Casca asked.
"I don’t know," Clyde answered honestly, since he truly had no idea.
"Can you teach me what this screen means, Big Brother?" Casca asked, pointing at the holographic display in front of her face.
"Of course, I’ll teach you," Clyde answered.
The two fell quiet for a moment before walking over to sit on the sofa, where Clyde began teaching Casca everything about the "system" hovering before them. A few hours later, "yaaaawn," Mary woke up in her bedroom, rolling over onto her side,
"Uh... I fell asleep, didn’t I?" Mary said in her head.
She tried to gather her thoughts; as her mind cleared, she listened closely for any noise coming from outside her bedroom, but heard nothing from the main room, the atmosphere completely silent,
"Hmm... why are they so quiet... Are they still feeling awkward... Oh man, I should’ve hung out with them for a bit before going to sleep... I need to go out there," Mary said to herself.
She rolled over, climbed out of bed, and stood up; walking casually over to the door, she swung it open. Stepping into the living room, "Owh," a soft sound escaped her lips as she spotted Clyde and Casca fast asleep on her sofa, wrapped in each other’s arms. A gentle smile touched Mary’s face, accompanied by a soft, tender look in her eyes.