Breaking In (1)

--Gatix—

We arrived at a destroyed portcullis gate, both walls demolished, and the gate lacked large sections of metal as if plundered. Are the fake knights using the metal as swords?

A large courtyard lay behind the broken gate, with a splintered door in the castle's wall as our point of entry. Unfortunately, we weren't the only ones there. We had barely emerged before a dozen fake knights noticed us and charged, swords at the ready as they screeched toward us. The closest knight swung his sword before I had raised Fang, but a step back and a bullet to the head solved that problem. With my attention distracted, I couldn't dodge the second knight. The force of its blow slammed against my hand hard enough to knock Fang free.

“Dammit!” I snapped my now-free hand toward the knight, grabbing him around the neck before slamming him against the ground. A twist of my hand silenced further protests. Two screeches drew my attention. Two knights stormed but a ball of fire collided with them before my neck could be skewered.

`Get up!” Ms. Queen yelled as she threw another fireball, finishing off the knight that survived her previous blast.

“Nev! How many?” I dodged a strike but fell victim to one from behind.

“Fifteen within the courtyard, with more emerging from the castle.”

“Dammit. Ms. Queen!”

“Got my hands full here. Golf!” She slammed the palms of her hands against the ground to shoot out a wave of fire. Two knights were incinerated, but two others managed to dive out of the way.

“Agent, more have emerged from the castle walls.”

Need to cut off their source. Another fake knight stepped within range. I summarily punched it in the face. Two more blows slammed into my back, the blows making me stumble forward. I could hear metallic shards falling to the ground.

“Gatix!” Three fake knights were practically hugging Ms. Queen, trading blows as she tried to avoid them. Her fireball attacks were about the size of her fist as she focused on dancing between their swipes. It wouldn't be long before a misstep would spell doom for her.

A screech to my left tore my focus away from her. “Nev!” I yanked Scythe off my back as I stepped to the side. “Short-range mode, ten percent power!”

BANG.

The fake knight exploded when he turned around to strike.

“Ms. Queen!” I yelled as I swung the weapon around. “Dive!” She had barely touched the ground before I rapidly pulled the trigger.

BANG.

BANG.

BANG.

Two fake knights exploded with the first shot, but the other managed to dodge. I needed two more blasts to finish it off.

“Agent, behind-” I managed to stay upright as the fake knight crashed against my back, but the claws tore ferociously at my neck plates.

“Agent, structural-”

“I know!” Ignoring the flashing lights inside the visor, I let go of Scythe's barrel and grabbed at the knight. Three others were already charging from the front, but with only one hand free, and the weight on my back constantly shifting around, aiming was all but impossible.

The world exploded in a pillar of fire, the weight dropping off my back in a pained screech.

“Nev! Motion tracker!” The blue clouds were almost on top of me when they appeared.

BANG.

BANG.

BANG.

“Agent, two to the left.”

BANG.

BANG.

“One to the right.”

BANG.

I saw the knight exploding through the dying flames. Neither Nev nor I picked up any other knights in the vicinity, but I knew we only had a moment's peace. I could already hear a chorus of screeches filling the air as reinforcements streamed in.

“Here.” Ms. Queen pressed a singed Fang against my hip. “We need to get into the castle.”

BANG.

Two knights coming from the castle broke apart. “Stay close to me, cover my rear.”

“Will do!”

“Nev! Keep an eye out for both of us!”

BANG.

“Yes, Agent.”

I started moving forward, ensuring my steps were slow and measured as I headed for the castle's entrance.

BANG.

“Ms. Queen, three from the left, four from the right!”

BANG.

Only ten meters separated me from the entrance.

“Ms. Queen, two from the center. Agent, five straight ahead.”

“Nev, long-range mode, quarter power!”

“Set.”

I aimed Scythe in the middle of the entrance after taking another step. I could see three knights running to make my acquaintance through the scope, the darkness of the corridor shielding the others. It didn't matter.

BANG.

“Run!” I spun around as Ms. Queen darted past me, finding four knights charging at full speed. Need to save energy... Shifting Scythe's weight to my left hand, I unclipped Fang and started firing, taking a step backward with each shot. Half the shots struck home, one snapping a knight's head backward, but the fake knights merely tanked the bullets and kept charging.

“Gatix, c'mon!”

I turned and ran after firing twice more, entering the castle after a few steps. A fiery light illuminated the corridor as Ms. Queen attacked, but it wouldn't be enough. The entire infestation would know by now we were in the castle.

Need to cut them off. I pressed Scythe's stock against my shoulder, but I tilted its barrel slightly higher.

BANG.

I'm sure the slug carved a path through the ancient stone, but the rain of debris was what I wanted. It started slowly but increased as the castle's creaks of protests grew louder. An additional fireball was the final push the roof needed to collapse and block the doorway completely.

“Good, now we only need to worry about those in here. Nev, lights!”