Chapter 272: Vexical Prime: Avoiding Combat
Gunfire and explosion filled the air as waited on the other side of the door. They all looked at the door. Shepard was the one that spoke up. "Let’s go around. It sounds like they ran into someone else." He pointed out and nodded in a direction. "Let’s check through that door."
Jace led the way across the lobby, feeling far more exposed now that there were enemies located nearby. They were not in a secure location. But as he arrived at the door froze as he could hear something on the other side of the door. So he made a motion for them to halt and they did.
He slowly peaked out the door and then closed it and motioned to the elevators. "We have an entire Holy Empire unit out there. We need to get off the bottom floor. It will be more difficult but we only need to travel a few buildings so we will have to move between the windows." Jace explained as they moved to the elevator. He put the rifle on his back before he reached the elevator. The power was out but he just forced the door open.
"How bad is it?" Shepard asked as Atlas climbed into the elevator first and pushed open the hatch in the elevator and climbed up into the shaft.
"I am surprised we cannot see them out of the front window. But I am sure that will change soon. Which is why I want to get to a higher floor." Jace explained as he let the last of them climb into the elevator and then he stepped into the elevator and let the door close.
The rest of them were already climbing the cable when he climbed onto the roof of the elevator. "Which floor are we climbing to?" Atlas asked, fortunately the only floor he was worried about was the first one. But they might as well gain some additional altitude.
"Anywhere above the fifth floor." Jace answered as he climbed the side of the shaft instead of the cable. It was easier for him. He could have just jumped several floors but with the others here they would have just ended up injured or in the way.
So instead he just climbed it like a jagged wall. Soon they were on the fifth floor. Atlas was struggling to pry open the door when Jace arrived. He easily pulled open the doors and helped them past the elevator door.
Once they were all through they moved over to the window. They looked out and could see the tail end of the battle as one of the Circle of Yuri was giving a particularly difficult fight against the enemies. They were duel wielding some type of large pistol that was firing off large red laser bolts.
As Jace watched them they moved between cover firing as they went. But for a moment when it looked like a barrage of yellow lasers were about to hit them. They disappeared into a red and black mist that moved behind cover and reformed into a humanoid form.
"What the hell was that?" Adrian asked in surprise.
"A Vampire, not a very pure one. But they are still incredibly strong. You do not see them much in the Vexical Empire since the empire does not cater to them or deal in slavery." Shepard explained. "They have a range of abilities but with the way that one is moving, he is not strong. So he must be on the low end of the bloodline."
Jace had not studied much about the Vampires. But he knew they were an off branch of the human race. A genetic accident meant to rival the likes of nanohumans. Unfortunately the side effects of their genetic alteration made it so they could not be exposed to certain types of solar radiation. It seemed weak at first, which is why the bulk of their military grunts consisted of mercenaries and slave soldiers. But he had heard in passing about the strange abilities of Vampires, this was the first time he was seeing it.
"That’s on the low end?" Atlas grunted, "I would hate to see what Pure Bloods can do." Atlas was right about pure bloods being more dangerous. He had not researched anything in particular or even heard rumors but he was sure they were somehow far more dangerous.
"With a Spectre here I am curious how long a Pure Blood can survive." Shepard grunted out.
Something else then caught Jace’s attention. This side street was too small for mechs so off to the side he watched as the Holy Empire soldiers stepped back. Making way for a Mech that stopped and crouched. Then the front hatch opened up and a figure in glowing armor stepped out.
She walked out of the Mech and as she got more room a pair of wings made of hard light and metal appeared. Along with a pair of dual swords in her hands. She then dashed forwards.
No actually, she did not dash. She flew just above the ground. Going in a straight line towards where the Vampire was hidden. She then went over the cover doing a flip in the air. Surprising the Vampire for a moment.
Then the Vampire raised their weapons only for the Holy Empire’s soldier to cut off his hands and then slam one of her blades right into the chest of the Vampire. Then she brought her other sword back around and sliced off the head of the Vampire. He watched the body and head begin to disintegrate and fall apart after being blackened. As neighbors, the Holy Empire probably had plenty of countermeasures against the Vampire race.
"You would not happen to know what that is, would you Shepard?" Jace asked as he watched the feminine angel figure walk back to her mech while the other Holy Empire soldiers moved forward to go over the dead.
"No, that is... new." Shepard grunted. "I will admit of all the countries, the Holy Empire is the most difficult for the Union to get a foot hold into."
Jace frowned and backed away from the window. "Come on, we have some time to kill before we can move on. We might as well stay away from locations where we can be spotted."