Without hesitation, Zion dashed forward, using Devan's corpse as his shield.
Plasma bolts slammed into the body, melting through its flesh and armor in seconds. Yet, Zion had managed to get within six feet of the next mercenary.
Heat washed over his face as shots grazed past him, some missing by only inches.
Zion lowered his body just slightly before launching himself at the next mercenary, his blade already in motion.
The mercenary realized the danger he found himself in and quickly raised his plasma rifle as a shield in front of him.
'That's it,' Zion thought, a grin spreading on his face.
His sword pierced through the plasma rifle's energy cell, destabilizing the plasma in an instant.
It seemed like time slowed down for Zion.
His eyes fell on the cracked energy cell, watching it slowly light up a yellow color.
He pulled back his arms as fast as he could, using them to protect his face.
Then—
The cell exploded.
The blast washed over him.
But instead of tearing him apart, it slammed into the black scales covering his forearms. The scales readily absorbed the blast, redirecting it back toward the mercenary the next second.
The mercenary never even got the chance to scream.
He was hurled out of the smoke like a ragdoll, his body twisting midair before crashing violently into a stack of metal crates. The pile collapsed from the impact, loud metallic bangs echoing through the warehouse.
"What?!" a mercenary shouted, backing up with his gun raised toward the smoke.
"Fuck! That was Gerald," another mercenary said, a large flat shield appearing in his left hand while a sword appeared in his right.
"Tanks up front!" a female mercenary's voice echoed through the confusion, attempting to gain control again. "Gunmen, spread out!"
The order echoed through the warehouse, but it didn't happen instantly.
Some mercenaries hesitated, still staring at the smoking crater where Gerald had been moments ago. Others cursed under their breath, their eyes scanning the smoke.
Then training finally took over.
Two burly mercenaries moved forward, their large shields held in front of them. A third joined them seconds later, a female mercenary with short hair and a spear in her hands.
For a moment, the mercenaries waited in silence as the thick black smoke rose to the ceiling.
"There's no way he survived the blast, right?" someone muttered.
Just then, the smoke thinned for a brief moment.
In that moment, Zion burst out of the smoke.
He came through low, his left arm aimed forward as he charged, the faint blue light around it growing brighter.
[Five percent energy loaded,] Uriel's voice echoed through his mind.
'Release,' Zion thought, his left arm a few inches away from the right burly mercenary.
A bright blue light flashed around him the next second.
Then—
Boom!!
"Argh!" the burly mercenary screamed, raising what remained of his arm into the air.
His shield clattered to the ground, a large circle melted through the middle, smoke still rising from it.
'Good,' Zion thought. 'He's still blocking the others from shooting.'
With one of the shields gone, he easily grabbed the edge of the remaining shield with his left hand and pulled back with all his strength.
The other burly mercenary, still distracted by the horrible scene beside him, stumbled forward.
By the time he focused back on Zion, it was already too late.
The blade on his right arm pierced through the mercenary's head, killing him instantly.
Just as he was about to turn to the mercenary wielding the spear, his instincts screamed at him to dodge.
Without hesitation, Zion jumped aside, just in time to feel a searing heat soar above him.
A red plasma beam missed him by a hair's length, instead colliding with the wounded mercenary and killing him on the spot.
"Shit," Zion cursed, watching his living meat shield collapse in front of his eyes.
'I didn't think about the one that entered last,' he thought, already running more energy to his left arm. 'I HAVE to kill him NOW.'
Taking fire from one side was already bad enough, but from both sides while fighting a close-range mercenary? That was impossible, even for him.
'Uriel, use fifteen percent of my energy and maximize the spread,' he commanded.
[Affirmative…] Uriel responded hesitantly. [Maximizing spread will hurt your arm. Be prepared.]
Zion had no time to respond, seeing the rifles from all the remaining mercenaries load up.
He twisted his body as he moved, using the falling corpse to block the wave of shots before discarding it.
As more energy poured into his arm, he could feel its temperature start changing. Slowly, multiple metal compartments shifted out, this time far flatter than anything he'd done before.
[Reaching energy levels in fifteen seconds,] Uriel reported.
Zion jumped back, a spear slicing through the air where he'd been standing a second ago.
The female mercenary followed up without hesitation, kicking off the ground while stabbing her spear toward him.
Zion stepped aside, the blade in his right hand slicing down, colliding with the spear's shaft to push it away.
As her body tilted forward slightly from the sudden imbalance, Zion raised his left arm and pushed the searing-hot forearm into her face.
The female mercenary let out a beastly cry as her face started to melt. She quickly let go of her spear and jumped back, her hands reaching for her eyes—her eyelids had melted together.
[Ready to fire,] Uriel's voice echoed through Zion's mind.
Without hesitation, Zion spun around and gritted his teeth.
His eyes locked onto the mercenary in the back, still aiming a rifle that was slowly starting to flash an orange light.
'Release it,' he thought, unclenching his left hand.
The blue light around his arm grew unstable for a moment, almost seeming to swell around it.
"Fuck," Zion mumbled through clenched teeth as the burning sensation around his arm intensified.
Then, a broad blue ball, nearly half the size of a human body, burst free.