Zarek found himself getting slowed again and again. The people weren't very powerful, but they didn't seem to care about stopping him entirely, so they didn't even bother to confront him directly, just doing whatever they could to slow him down.
The shadows on the buildings appeared every once in a while, sotis flashing weapons, sotis just standing there, sotis firing out rounds that slowed his steps.
The distance between himself and them was too far for Zarek to rely on his Scouting Skill to map out the trajectory of their bullets ahead of ti, so Zarek had no choice but to take their threats very seriously. If he was too casual, and got a sniper bullet to the chest…
Death would be the only path forward.
After he killed Van Hollen's clone, they only grew more cautious.
'Their goal is just to delay… That ans their real aim here isn't to deal with GFI, they probably just want to deal them a small blow first that might boil over into sothing more in the future…'
Zarek could see through this, and the plans were quite ticulous and well thought out. By the ti any elite group made it there, the damage would have already been done.
In truth, Zarek wasn't very familiar with Sakks and Dalton. He wasn't even 100% certain who was doing the attacking right now.
He hadn't grown in this city, so he only had vague information about them. The only things he knew solidly enough were things that happened years from now.
Van Hollen's face was also obstructed, and there were many with cloning-type abilities. So it would be hard to pinpoint exactly who he was until he battled the main body.
And that was only if Van Hollen had managed to make a na for himself in the future or not.
That said… the number that could use their clones to boost their stats temporarily were a very small number. And those that did manage to grow often beca strong powerhouses.
If this Van Hollen was one of them…
Zarek's eyes remained a dark, smoldering fire. It seed that a lot of people were testing his patience today.
His steps ca to a pause again and he slipped behind a building as a rifle aid at him from a distance. But once again, no bullet fired.
Zarek didn't get angry as he patiently waited, though. In fact, he was only becoming calr and calr, just silently adding whatever organization this was to his kill list.
**
The number of people in the lobby had grown substantially. After getting Gabe and Eumada to stop, the next few were easier, and the few after that even easier.
Zade began to organize them based on their Talents, and soon even the antsiest of them cald as their numbers continued to grow.
From ti to ti, Priya would subtly hint at sothing and Zade found himself getting more and more impressed with the teenage girl. At so point, he stopped looking at her like a little girl at all.
His experience and hers in regards to dealing with battle and war was about the sa, but she had insight that was rarely seen in people. At the very least, she had a ticulousness that couldn't be easily replicated.
'The sounds have stopped…' Priya thought to herself.
It had been quiet for a while now. Too quiet.
The chaos that had been in the wider building had chilled considerably.
Her grip on her gun tightened just the slightest bit. She checked the exit door one more ti hoping to see a familiar figure burst through, but when she didn't see him… she took a breath and exhaled.
She wouldn't check again. Right now, they couldn't afford to be distracted.
He was coming.
The sound of heavy feet echoed. As though an army stomping their feet in unison, a two-file line of Van Hollen clones walked down the stairs of an opposing stairwell, filing out as though they were truly the soldiers of a platoon.
Everyone tensed.
The numbers were more overwhelming than they thought. It didn't take more than a few seconds for there to be double the number of clones as compared to them. Then triple, and they just seed to still be streaming out.
"Do it." Priya said, speaking to Eumada.
"I…"
"Do it."
There was a hint of danger in Priya's voice that forced Eumada's back to straighten. The mont Priya sensed the stream of Godsfall enter her gun, she fired.
Her bullet stread past a few heads, and then barreled into the chest of the first clone, then the second, and then the third, and fourth.
They had lined up all on their own. All Priya did was fire off a single gun, and suddenly a line of seven of them shattered into Godsfall.
The result left everyone stunned.
"They aren't strong. Every ti he divides, it's weaker. The numbers are only there to scare you. They're nothing more than paper tigers."
Priya's voice didn't stop her from firing again, taking out another seven clones before they could scatter. But their scattering only seed to confirm her words.
By the ti the clones were three or even four streams down from the main body, they had so little substance to them that even a child could kill them.
Van Hollen was trying to play a psychological ga with all of them, and their job was to not fall into it.
However, it was then another stairwell door opened. Rather than being head-on with the group, this one ca from the side.
Priya's jaw set. She had thought about barricading the doors, but that would have been cruel to anyone still trying to get to safety. Her heart wasn't as cold as Zarek's just yet, and… she knew that doing so wouldn't have been enough to stop the likes of Van Hollen anyway. He would have been a hop out of a window away from coming through the front entrance again.
'They're more powerful!' Priya realized instantly. She could feel that these clones, while lesser in number, were far denser in Godsfall. They were likely only two streams down from Van Hollen at most.
She sent a glance over to Zade.
Zade understood without her saying a single word. This ti, he would have to make up for his own mistake. With a step, he had already charged over to the side door, his polearm swinging.
Unfortunately, he had only just stepped out when yet another stairwell door opened, this ti from the right.
All of a sudden, they had a stream of clones coming from the front, a powerful set of them coming from the left, and…
Priya's eyes narrowed.
It was just three of them.
'The main body.'
Van Hollen looked at Priya calmly, his gaze hard to read. But it was clear and obvious that he was suddenly very focused on her.
Priya felt her heart beating out of her chest. Her face looked calm, but she was having as difficult a ti as anyone else.
Her promise echoed in her mind and her jaw set even harder. She grabbed Eumada's wrist with a hand and clasped three palms over the gun's hand, one from the middle-aged woman and two from her.
She had just over 30 bullets left. She would have to make them count.
BANG!
She didn't hesitate to fire.
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