Valknut

Despite the droid army's termination, the Kneapexio and Reaper Squad forces still battled the UICA. Kuroyurei launched Woodpecker Beak Strikes against the Kneapexio's six rocket-powered fists. As Isrina and Phoenicia fought Jin Feilong and Hernamidos, Fanghui overwhelmed Shien, Mivangeline, and Kyrinna with his Scandinavian Herald's Hand.

"Avian Form: Hummingbird's Tongue!"

"Panthreal Shiva: Dice of Shakuni!"

"Herald's Hand: Odin's Demise!"

Fanghui rapidly snapped his finger strikes to counter the trio's finger strikes.

"Avian Form: Twin-Burst Harrier!" Shien and Mivangeline nodded to each other before whirling into a combined cyclone shaped like a harrier hawk.

"Herald's Hand: Tsunami Strike, Raging Kraken!" The Supreme Herald spun into a cyclone that countered the couple's formation with whirling kraken tentacles.

The harrier and kraken cyclones drilled into each other. Shien and Mivangeline tumbled as Fanghui also trampled from the intense collision.

"Panthereal Shiva: Eyes of Krishna!" Kyrinna leered into Fanghui's eyes.

"Herald's Hand: Watchdog of Heimdall!" Fanghui leered back.

After the two resisted each others' hypnosis, Kyrinna breathed ice against Fanghui's fire breath. "Panthereal Shiva: Bahamut's Breath!"

"Herald's Hand: Breath of Garmir!"

"Panthereal Shiva: Monsoons of Vritra! "Kyrinna pierced her palm into the ground, summoning freezing water dragons against Fanghui.

Fanghui smashed his fists together to summon his winged shadow dragon. "Herald's Hand: Chaos Dragon, Nidhogg!"

The dragons collided into a catastrophic explosion that sent everyone flying, including Phoenicia and Isrina. Shien and Mivangeline held each other tightly as they plummeted into the city. Meanwhile, the second wave of the Federation arrived.

Wasp-shaped attack helicopters, bomber jets, spider tanks, and amphibious transports secured the beach and unloaded hordes of Reaper Squad commandos. When the secret police attempted to capture the tired Isrina and Phoenicia, Kuroyurei retreated from the Kneapexio and grabbed the two as far from the second wave as possible.

"Search every building!" Fanghui barked at the Reaper Squad in Chinese. "Your target is Shien Niang! Shoot to kill!"

"Hail, Fanghui!"

The second wave of Federation forces destroyed the last Red Strix as they split up into the city. Shien scampered across the city ruins, holding an unconscious Mivangeline. He dodged laser bullets as the Reaper Squad tore through houses to find them.

"S-Shien," Mivnageline mumbled.

"It's okay, Mivange!" Shien whispered and hid inside a tattered grocery store. "I'll protect you!"

"He went here!" The voice scramblers of the Reaper Squad yelled as they searched the store while the wasp helicopters scoured the area with their searchlights.

Shien snuck across the aisles, struggling to hold his girlfriend. He shuddered when the secret police kicked shelves and tables down. Roaring Chinese dialect hurt Shien's ears as they opened fire at him.

"God! Help us!" Shien carried Mivangeline.

He kicked the emergency exit down and tumbled out, barely dodging Hernamidos' flamethrower.

"Poor baby chickadee! Come here, I got some bloody seeds for you!" Hernamidos flew on his jet shoes, chucking cigarette bombs at the couple.

"Avian Form: Sparrow Hop!" Shien rapidly hopped like a sparrow to quickly carry his girlfriend to safety.

The King of the Reaper Squad fired pistols at the bouncy Shien until Isrina tackled him to the ground to break his jet shoes.

"Leave my Little Chickadee alone!" Isrina roared. "Avian Form: Shoebill Thunderforce!"

The powered fist sent Hernamidos flying, but the General skidded his foot to the side, launching whistling rockets at Isrina.

"Avian Form: Riflebird's Wingbeat!" Isrina flapped her arms like bird wings to blow the rockets away. "Ouroboros Fang: Helshadow Serpente!"

Isrina's arms morphed into four-eyed cobras with upside-down noses that spat corrosive acid at Hernamidos' immune cape. While she held off the King of the Reaper Squad, Jin Feilong chased Shien. She crouched like a tiger, swiping her claws to cut his face. Shien pounced away from the feral attack with his Sparrow Hop, focusing solely on Mivangeline's safety. Jin Feilong swung her swordtail at the couple but Phoenicia blocked them with her gauntlets.

"Flee for safety, you two!" Phoenicia defended the couple.

"Thank you!" Shien hopped away.

"Panthereal Shiva: Enkindled Nirvana!" Kyrinna drew an icicle katana for Jin Feilong's neck.

The droid bodyguard ducked in time and stood against Phoenicia and Kyrinna, sharpening her claws.

"Protect us, Lord!" Shien ran into a hotel lobby.

He sat his girlfriend behind a long secretary's desk, watching the eight-legged tanks rotate their turret heads to find them.

Mivangeline held Shien's hand. "Shien, y-you didn't have to carry me!"

"It's okay, Mivange," Shien hugged his girlfriend tightly in tears with a smile. "I-I'm fine. I love you!"

They screamed when the Kneapexio tore the hotel down, charging a death beam from its mouth. Kuroyurei's crab pincers fired lasers into the Kneapexio's mouth, making the minotaur choke on its explosion. The two ran behind a big luggage cart, watching the Dynastiotron boss battle the giant minotaur.

"Herald's Hand: Divine Ragnarok!"

Shien and Mivangeline huddled when Fanghui chopped the luggage cart and suitcases into pieces charred with white fire. They backed to a wall, cornered and terrified of the Supreme Herald.

"Leave us alone!" Shien stood against Fanghui.

Fanghui touched three fingers on Shien's chest in a Norse triangular formation. "Herald's Hand: Valknut!"

Shien squealed in a high pitch as an invisible force gripped his heart. His heart beat rapidly, causing him to sweat, hyperventilate, and feel dizzy. Shien held his nauseous chest, vomiting blood.

"Jinhai's legacy ends now! Herald's Hand: Helix of Jormungandr!" Fanghui grabbed Shien's chest.

Before he could twist Shien's spine clockwise, Mivangeline kicked Fanghui back and carried Shien away.

Mivangeline carried the sick Shien and hid in a ruined car shop before the spider tanks could find them.

Shien muttered through his heartburn. "D-don't worry about me, Mivange. Fanghui only wants my life. R-run away as fast as you can!"

"No way, Shien! I'll protect you!" Mivangeline hugged him.

"Commander Mivangeline Shuruuko," Fanghui walked into the car shop. "It's over. We have the place surrounded."

She heard the marching of Reaper Squad commandos surround the building. Mivangeline embraced Shien tightly.

"I-I don't want you hurt, Mivange," Shien felt his organs twist. "G-go!"

"No!" Mivangeline cried. "We're staying together!"

"I can make one exception for you, Mivangeline," Fanghui offered. "Surrender Shien to me, and you'll be spared."

"No way! Why would I agree to that?"

"I think you have a consciousness as a Commander, Mivangeline. A mind to reason, yes? All I want is Shien. It's that simple."

"So you can kill him like you did to all the other Niangs? You obliterated his family because you're embarrassed that his father beat you?"

"Would you mind not yelling like that? It's annoying," Fanghui spat. "If you refuse my offer, I'll have no choice but to destroy both of you!"

Shien whined as his body's temperature flared with his rapid heartbeat.

Mivangeline buried Shien's aching head in her chest. "Dear God, Shien and I promised to date after the Syanic Earth. We just want to live a peaceful life together! Is it too much to ask?"

"Herald's Hand: Njord Tornadus!" Fanghui clasped his hands to launch a whirlwind of cutting wind.

The couple huddled in a ball as the wind shredded their skins.

"Herald's Hand: Skadi Destrudo!" Fanghui lunged a palm to scald them with a burning blizzard.

Shien and Mivangeline embraced tightly and cried in pain. "Lord God! Please deliver us!"

"The Niangs will humiliate me no more! Herald's Hand: Glory of Valhalla!"

The couple was blinded by the bright silver angel wings that sprouted from Fanghui's back. Shien and Mivangeline closed their eyes as Fanghui lunged at them with his claws. However, someone blocked Fanghui's attack with a saxophone bo staff.

"You will not harm these children!" Oreic smashed his staff into Fanghui's face to knock him outside. "Enbu Fenix! Burn away all unrighteousness!"

"Oreic!" Shien and Mivangeline cried with joyful tears as Enbu Fenix whirled into a pillar of fire to destroy the surrounding Reaper Squad forces. "Praise be to God!"

"Sorry, I'm late!" He hugged the terrified young adults. "Psyinen has arrived! Everyone's here to help!"

"Fam! What's up?" Enshiron, Elysia, Ritom, Calice, and Nashura jumped onto the couple. "We're alive! Thank goodness!"

With Shien's gang reunited, Saitori, Rahim, Naphthien, Arius, and Magnus mustered the last of their UICA forces to battle Fanghui's second wave. Master Seniel healed Shien and Mivangeline as the Vulpi people helped the UICA battle the Reaper Squad. The Vultau masters summoned their creatures as Psyinen's portals released Dosigma and Emphynixyion to help Kuroyurei battle the Kneapexio.

"Okie dokie! That's everyone!" Psyinen rode on her oboe staff like a witch's broomstick, clapping her hands to close the portals. "Whew! I never fluctuated my mental age like that! How old was I again? Oh, wait, I remember."

"We need to help Mom!" Shien saw Isrina fighting the Reaper Squad leader. "She's fighting Hernamidos!"

Mivangeline took his hand. "I'll help you, Shien. Oreic, can you and the masters hold off Fanghui? We'll help you after."

"Certainly, leave Fanghui to us!" Oreic rallied the Vultau masters.

Mivangeline pat Enshiron's shoulder. "Enshiron, can you take the rest of the friends to help Kyrinna and Phoenicia take out Jin Feilong?"

"Yes, Commander!"

Oreic, Psyinen, Inveticus, Fermato, Seniel, and Yanshi surrounded the Supreme Herald with their creatures.

"It matters not if you've won the war ritual!" Fanghui glared at the race of people he held responsible for his family's death. "I'm the end of all Vulpi!"

"Stop this, Fanghui!" Oreic begged. "We know you've suffered so much with the Waxing Sickle!"

"Please! Forgive us, Vulpi!" Inveticus asked. "Don't let a few bad Vulpi dictate how you see us!"

The Supreme Herald seethed with anger, hallucinating Tastidios' skull mask on each master. His mind kept cycling the horrible memories of the Waxing Sickle.

"Fanghui! We see your sea of sadness!" Seniel wept when she saw Fanghui's eyes boil with hot tears. "I'm no Vulpi, but I know not all Vulpi are like Tastidios! Please let us help you!"

"Shut up!" Fanghui sobbed. "I failed my duty as da ge! My family can't rest in peace until I redeem myself by destroying the Vulpi!"

Enbu Fenix, Des Manthesia, Echelus, Levian Exedra, and Macadion Firma charged at Fanghui, but they were deflected back by his mercury barrier.

"Herald's Hand: Mountaincry, Lyngbakr!" Fanghui touched his finger to the ground.

The Supreme Herald summoned his island-sized stone whale that breached the city and devoured the masters' creatures. Oreic and the masters circled Fanghui on top of the stone whale, ready for battle.