Serratia slipped across the back of the Gemmer as it rumbled over a rough patch of rocks, cursing under her breath as she caught herself on the railing with one hand. She steadied herself against it as she double-checked the wire that currently tethered the Honno to the vehicle, flicking it with her finger. The Honno was fighting them every step of the way, leaving the razorwire taut and heavy. While she hadn’t been lying when she told Rontu that she’d be able to reel them in, the logistics of it were still a bit shaky.

She looked to Shen as she stood up and took a deep breath, rolling her shoulders and crossing her arms over her chest one at a time to stretch. “You ready?” She asked.

Shen nodded, taking a few steps back and lowering himself into a light squat. He gripped his sword with both hands and brought it to his shoulder, aiming the blade where Rontu and the Honno would be landing. “I am prepared!”

Serratia bumped her hip against the rail, the knot of razorwire relinking with her spool. She let out a yelp of surprise as she was suddenly yanked forward, the abrupt shift of weight causing her to be pulled to the end of the Gemmer. Her hands fumbled to grip the wire as she was almost thrown overboard, her shoulder slamming against the back rails hard enough to bend them.

“Hey!” Shen shouted at her, his sword clanging against the metal bed as he reached forward to grab her by the waist. His hands were immediately peppered by small needles. Not nearly enough to hurt him, but enough that it caused the hasty Shutok to immediately let go.

“Don’t touch me dumbass, I’m fine! Just get in position!” She barked back at him, shakily standing to her feet. She roughly pulled the wire towards her, any slack she created being suddenly sucked back into the spool at her waist. She lifted her leg high into the air, a pair of jagged blades appearing on her soles before she stomped them into the flatbed of the Gemmer. She did the same with her other leg, anchoring herself as she began to really go to town on reeling Rontu in.

Shen picked up his sword, watching her carefully for a moment before resuming position and turning his attention to the makeshift kite she was flying. Rontu and the Honno began approaching at a rapid pace once Serratia got into a rhythm, Shen now able to clearly differentiate the two as the gray figure struggled.

“Here it comes!” she yelled out, bracing herself as she heaved the wire towards her with another mighty tug. The Honno let out a high-pitched squeal as it fought against her, flapping its two pairs of wings hard enough to send gales that rocked the vehicle from side to side.

Shen carefully bided his time, watching as the Honno attempted to rise further into the sky to no avail. Serratia was holding firm now, both hands wrapped around her wire in an iron grip. The distance between them was now only a few yards.

One last tug was enough to bring it over the bed of the Gemmer, the Honno now securely hovering directly above them. Seeing no other options of escape, it finally decided to join the opposing pair. Rontu felt the talons loosen their grip before unceremoniously dropping him. His body bounced against the railing, sending him off the edge. The world flipped upside down as his head narrowly missed skimming the dirt beneath him, something stopping his momentum completely. He awkwardly craned his head forward, only able to see a pair of white gauntlets clutching his ankle.

The back of the Gemmer sank down slightly as the heavy Honno perched on the rear railing, Rontu’s head lightly bouncing off the ground before he felt Shen begin to pull him up. He hooked his free foot underneath the railing as he got closer to the edge, pulling himself along with Shen until he finally rolled back onto the flatbed. Hard steel never felt so comforting.

The Honno however, had no intentions of letting him enjoy his homecoming. Before Rontu had even gotten back to his feet it was already arming itself. The beak split open as it growled at them, extending the slimy appendage as it aimed at Serratia. That horrible choking sound hung in the air for a moment before Serratia pulled with all of her strength to remove it from its perch, the avian crashing down on its belly as it fired a projectile into the night sky.

Shen wasted no time as he tackled the creature, narrowly avoiding another spear of bone to the neck as the Honno twisted its head completely around and fired. His body rose into the air for a moment before he put more weight against the neck to pin it down. He was unarmed, having dropped his sword near the door to the cabin when he had grabbed Rontu.

“It would be good of you to enact that plan of yours, Rontu!” he shouted, trying to grab the creature’s esophagus and failing as it was sucked back into the Honno’s throat. The beak snapped shut as it began to more violently thrash, leaving him no chance to grab his weapon.

“Get the mouth open!” Rontu barked back, pulling the dynamite from his compartment and kneeling next to the writhing Honno.

Shen grabbed the elongated beak, his arms being jerked back and forth wildly as he dug the tips of his fingers into the crack. He grunted and strained as he slowly began to spread it, his arms visibly shaking from the strain as he parted it halfway.

This was more than enough for Rontu. He wrapped the fuse of the explosive around his finger, quickly striking the flint against his forearm and creating a shower of sparks. It took a few tries, the fuse finally igniting with a loud hiss. Wasting not a moment of time, he clenched the tube in his fist and jammed it into the Honno’s throat, releasing it deep within the creature’s insides. He wrenched his hand free, flicking some of the avian’s thick phlegm in another direction as Shen released his hold on the beak.

The jaw snapped back shut, but only for a moment. Within seconds it split apart once more, the Honno choking and hacking as it tried to regurgitate the explosive. Rontu and Shen looked at each other in a panic, Shen’s hands now forcing the beak closed as the Honno began to thrash once more. Rontu didn’t know how durable the average Shutok was, but he wasn’t keen on being face to face with an explosion.

A metallic squeal pierced his ears, the sound of Serratia’s armor scraping against the flatbed as she suddenly slid next to him. In a flash she extracted her harpoon from the monster’s abdomen, whipping the wire around the beak several times before tying it tight enough that it cut deep grooves into the keratin. She slapped her spool once, cutting it clean.

Shen rolled off of the creature, the feathered Honno now writhing for a moment before spreading its wings. It only took a few flaps for it to become airborne again, hovering above the trio as it shook its head back and forth. Serratia’s knot held strong enough though, the distance between them growing larger as it landed on the ground behind them and attempted to detangle the wire with its talons. The Honno craned its head low, desperately clawing and scraping against its beak. Unfortunately, the lit fuse inside of its belly had just reached the black powder.

The explosion tore the creature apart from the inside, the top half of its body quickly splitting from the bottom as dark blobs of burnt viscera scattered across the Barrens. Flaming feathers softly fluttered through the wind, gently and gracefully nestling in the dirt as they slowly curled and charred.

Rontu laid flat on his back, his armor slowly dissolving from his skin. He let out a soft chuckle, running his hand over his brow as Shen and Serratia likewise changed back. He felt the Gemmer begin to slow down, the brakes humming lightly before it came to a complete stop.

The door to the cabin burst open, Archie’s large form hurrying out as he looked around in a panic.

“What the hell was that?!” he asked, his hampered breathing slowly returning to normal as he as the real faces of those around him before homing in on Rontu.

Rontu stared back at him, his hand moving down to his chest as he felt his heart rate begin to slow. He took a deep breath and finally smiled.

“Don’t worry about it.”