The goblins were only now catching up with the most recent development.
The fall of their smug comrade. Jace was already acting on the next thing.
[Current Cycle 5:1]...Halo prompted as the world froze.
Jace could only catch Adea's face with the edge of his eye, but coupled with how limply she lay on him, he could tell she was out cold.
Awakening and using her powers immediately on her dad must have completely drained her.
Damn! He cursed mentally as his mind returned blank about Hexers and how they worked. He only knew the basics; they were valued, could do really cool shit, had six types, and that's it.
Just have to get her out of here, he reminded himself as his hand slid slowly out of her beanie's pocket, the mini pistol in hand.
[Two Bullets Left]...Halo flashed in his vision.
Much appreciated, Jace thanked as he lined up his crosshair on one of the goblins left in the establishment and fired.
His bullet kissed its skull in an instant, ignorant of the slowed state of everything.
The female hobogoblin was just looking up from its dead accountant, it opened its mouth and screamed…Jace heard nothing.
His crosshairs were already lining up on another goblin, his hands steady. The moment his crosshairs reached its head, he pulled.
Another green gangster down.
[Cycle Exhausted| Runtime 5 Secs: Temporal time 25Secs]
[Bio Energy Remaining: 37%]
The flow of things returned to normal.
The Hobogoblin continued to scream, but she produced no sound.
The only tell was the bulging veins by the side of her neck; it felt like something was absorbing or restricting her noise from leaving her.
"Not my problem," Jace analyzed as he stood. Only two goblins were left inside the cafe, a couple were outside, beside their trucks, and Adea was out as she lay limply on his shoulder.
He couldn't engage…not while carrying Adea, and even if he wanted to, the mini pistol was done; he had dropped the chef's special handgun when he surrendered earlier.
Ping! Tink!
Two missed shots resounded around him; even without Halo's aid, he had known that their shots were off.
However, it was at this moment that the feminine Hobogoblin ceased its soundless screaming.
It looked at him with an all too familiar look.
Hate!... The next instant, it dashed forward, clubs poised. The world froze.
[Current Cycle 5:1 | Activation (-5%) Bio Energy]
Jace had all the time to respond.
He studied the raging gladiator, both of his hands locked in a carrying embrace; he couldn't retaliate.
But he could dodge like hell.
He jumped backward, the feeling as his being slowly made a backward arc as the Hobogobins club whacked air was phenomenal.
The gladiator-like attacker did not relent, though, having missed, it followed with a forward dash.
Intending to run him into the wall with its shoulders, Jace rolled.
[Cycle Exhausted | Bio Energy Remaining: 32%]
He stood as the hobogoblin dashed noisily into the wall.
"Drop her, human," one of the last two goblins left in the cafe ordered. It's gun pointing menacingly at him.
"Zo one zis kidzapping, za client of mine," a familiar voice declared with a Kachak of his shot gun.
Boom…Zareck fired; one of the goblins fell. A leg badly mangled.
Jace didn't dawdle; his daughter was gold to these lowlifes.
One glance at the lizardman, looking at him, proud of its first score. He dashed forward.
[Current Cycle 5:1]...Halo activated instinctively mid dash.
He barely noticed one of the goblins outside jerking backwards before he slid.
His head had barely moved as a red streak speared above his nose, piercing through the space his head had just been a moment ago.
There was no need for Halo to stabilize his physiological state, as the flow of things stabilized as he slid out of the Cafe.
His eyes studied the couple of goblins outside the Cafe coldly, calculating and plotting.
"Drop her!" the goblin that had shot at him ordered.
Judging by the golden tooth, Jace noticed as it spoke, he concluded that it must be among the upper echelon of the gang.
No weapon…they have a mounted gun and truck to chase after me…I am carrying Adea. Jace analyzed his current circumstance.
"Drop her!" the gold-toothed gangster raged on once again.
"Okay," Jace agreed as he went closer to the wall and laid her down as gently as he could, noticing the tear marks on her face and the almost invisible markings that had lit up when she awakened.
"I will get you home, love.' he muttered to her sleeping self as he stood.
He will just have to take them down as quickly as he could.
Step One: Surrender, and be very aware to avoid being shot at while doing so.
Step Two: Let them come close enough to him for him to disarm one of them….and voila, a bullet for the skull of every green-themed gangster.
Very good, Jace praised as a goblin stepped closer at the orders of Gold-tooth.
Just a couple more inches, He barked in his mind as the gangster drew closer.
A brawl?... He was pretty familiar with that from a life that thrived in the street.
He didn't need a textbook disarm technique.
He just needed the goblin to get close enough, and that gun was coming off its hand one way or another.
Just as the goblin stepped its feet into melee range, Jace felt a mass speed by his side and crash into one of the trucks…Zzareck.
His forked tongue was hanging loosely out of his mouth, his apron reddened with his blood.
[Cycle 3:1 | Activation (-3%) Bio Energy]
Jace's instinct, fight sense, and the light breeze he was feeling on his left arm led his response.
He dived to the side, not fast enough to avoid the charging hobogoblin completely, though.
He was roughly yanked to the side as the gladiator slammed into Zzareck, who was already sprayed on a truck in the most inviting manner.
[Cycle Exhausted | Runtime: 3Secs | Bio Energy Remaining: 25%]