Ok, Stallus thought. That was strange. Why learn fighting at such an old age? She looked at Azaroth, and he nodded from his place. The plan was clear then: they had to keep the woman distracted so they would be able to make a surprise move.Or at the very least, get close to each other."Why did you do that? Why did you learn at such an old age?" Stallus asked her.The old woman shrugged. "I Awakened. It was such a strange thing, but I can never forget the feeling. It was wonderful when I felt the rush of power that old age had denied me.""Suddenly, I could move and jump. I had power. I even fought on the front lines when the strong monsters raised their armies. But why did I learn it?" She leaned back against her sword. "Because I wanted more power, that’s it. I wanted to be at the top, but sadly I have thousands of apprentices to compete with.""And we all sought power. I had to come to terms with my own limitations. I climbed the advancement ranks, even passed the master rank, but see what you people of the Inferno Legion have done to me?" A cruel light entered her eyes. "I want your blood as retribution."She straightened and pointed her sword at the team, who had all moved together. "Where I come from, there’s no flashy magic like throwing fireballs and all that. What we have is cold steel and our martial arts techniques." Then she smiled. "But I must admit, they sometimes look like magic. Like this!"She lurched forward and swiped her sword in the air as if she were cutting an invisible enemy. Wind blasted out, twisting and narrowing but far more deadly than any air.They scattered as it passed them, the attack gouging the floor and slashing through the air with a whining sound. The old woman smiled again. "You sure are quick on your feet. I wish I had the opportunity to learn when I was so young. But still! Can you dodge this?"Then she slashed once, twice. Multiple wind slashes cut through the air one after the other until the whole thing overlapped.They each manifested their individual shields, which were like oversized clothes made of essence. It stopped one or two of the attacks, but the old woman wasn’t stopping and just kept at it, so they were forced to make a run for it.Hoping to confuse her, they scattered, but she just slashed the air for each person, fast and without missing a beat. She told them in her calm voice, "One of the strengths of my martial arts technique is speed. I have speed beside me and..." The old woman suddenly jerked back, her feet beating the air as she made a run for it by moving backward.Because two glowing crystals had been thrown at her. Two small explosions, meant to stun, blasted, but she was already gone.But that itself was also a trap. "Now!" Stallus shouted.Catena threw his chain, and it connected with her right leg in the air. She didn’t have the momentum to dodge nor the standing required to pull Catena from the air.Catena grinned, and with his other hand occupied by a small rock that he drained of strength, he jerked the woman up with the chain and slammed her down with all the strength in his body.She didn’t cry out, but they heard the fleshy thud of her hitting the floor with force. Catena drew the chain to repeat his actions, but the chain was empty."She’s..." He didn’t get to finish because they saw her, a blurring motion with a flashing sword, as she came towards Catena.Catena was looking in surprise as she got close, drew back her sword, and was ready to plunge it into his chest. She was so close, but Azaroth was closer.With his legs, Azaroth yanked Catena’s lower body from him, and he fell with a surprised yelp. Azaroth raised his hand and then sent fire at the old woman.It was a very good plan, hiding in Catena’s shadow and then busting out to send fire at the old woman. But she was just too fast and was gone again before the fire could reach her.The old woman wasn’t smiling again as the team regrouped. "Nice play," she began. "So you are good at fighting together. You can’t match my speed, so you try to make up for it with teamwork.""That is stupidity. You won’t get out of this alive with just that." She rested her hand on her hip, rubbing the place where Catena had slammed her down. She grimaced. That attack had been well coordinated and planned. Then she stood on the balls of her feet and held her sword with two hands. She then drew it back slowly, and the weapon started gathering essence as it moved until it glowed white with it, sparks of small lightning surrounding it.This is not something they could take alone. Azaroth knew. This is a proper skill, backed by the power of her rank. Power that is currently above them, Azaroth thought.Azaroth knew what to do next, and he hated it, but he accepted the fact that it was necessary. And that was exactly the reason why he hated it. It shouldn’t have been necessary if Azaroth himself was powerful.He checked his Chao core, but still, no reaction. Joint essence shield it is then.They moved closer to each other, then they brought out their individual shields and powered them until they touched. Then they started linking just as the old woman sent her attack searing the air toward them.The attack collided with their strength like the fist of a storm and drove them back, their cores draining massively as the collective shield absorbed essence to strengthen itself.The old woman looked at them. "Impossible."