Broker-Chapter 236

The smoke of a burning forest provided a dark backdrop against the pale tone of the stone disk created by Liberty’s Standard of Glory. Around it, the heroes who had pushed their way to the center of the battlefield stood, accompanied by Pandora Committee troops. The low thrum of helicopter blades heralded the arrival of the eyes of the world. With not only live witnesses but the gaze of more and more people across the world as they tuned in, Liberty stood alone.

Harbinger stood off to one side, her hammer at the ready. Her full transformation activated. Ten feet tall like her sister and adorned with the curled horns of a bull. Every heavy huff of breath releasing a blast of silvery steam from her lips. Just opposite her, also facing Liberty, Crusader had her sword raised and her fighting stance set. Her own breaths creating rings of golden fire around her body that drew up into her nostrils and out in a glimmering display of flame.

Both young women were fresh from their fighting.

For all appearances, Liberty looked worn down. Her armor was broken in places, her lip bled, her shoulders were hunched. Even so, None of the heroes present argued who the true monster present was; not Handmaiden, not Evergreen, and certainly not the two young women trapped with her inside of her domain. The gleaming silver glow on Liberty’s skin shone without dimming. Her pupil-less eyes like white fire, her muscles taught and strong. She clenched her fists tightly and bore her teeth.

Harbinger adjusted the grip on her hammer and shifted a foot. Crusader tightened her stance, bending a knee slightly. Liberty’s head didn’t move, they couldn’t see her eyes, but both young women knew that she was looking between the two of them. Deciding. Harbinger glanced at Crusader. The distance between them wasn’t big, but it was enough to prevent Liberty from hitting both of them at the same time. I hurt Liberty with that hit earlier, but we don’t know where she’s at strength wise. Not yet. She can’t wait forever, she’ll need to make a move soon.

Crusader glanced her way and met her gaze. She was of the same mind. Let her come to us.

A pause.

Liberty’s snarl turned into a grin and she exploded into motion. She moved so fast that it seemed like teleportation to Harbinger. One moment she was standing next to her banner and the next she was almost on top of Crusader. “The healer dies first!” she bellowed and her hand lashed out. In the blink of an eye she had Crusader by her breastplate and had raised her off the ground. Harbinger’s eyes widened, She’s that fast? She thought as she pivoted and dashed towards her friend only for Liberty to bring Crusader back down to the ground with a crash and drag her across the stone below, grinding a divot in the smooth surface before hurling her at Harbinger.

LILLIAN!

Except Crusader didn’t go sailing towards Harbinger. Her boots instead dug into the ground as she gripped onto Liberty's arm so tightly it bent the gauntlet around the monstrous woman’s wrist. Harbinger didn’t hesitate, she launched herself forward with a mighty leap that sent her hurtling into the air before throwing herself into a forward spin. Below, Liberty pulled back with a bellow and wrenched her arm free of the gauntlet, hopping backwards as Harbinger’s hammer collided with the spot she’d been standing in.

Crusader moved immediately, sword gleaming with golden fire as she brought it up towards Liberty’s chest in a vertical slash. Liberty threw her head back, dodging and looking down at the swing with cold disdain. Then her eyes widened as the flames around the edge of the blade flared out. A splash of gold fire caught Liberty in the eye and she pulled back even more, gripping her face and swatting at Crusader while Harbinger took the initiative. Her powerful legs carried her to her friends side and she swung, bringing her hammer around like a home run swing. A crack formed in the air before it, shatter activated, and Liberty was sent tumbling backwards.

“YOU BRAT!” Liberty snarled, catching herself mid flight by quite literally planting her feet into the stone. Her entire body moved like a whip, rolling back with the inertia before she blasted forward, her face twisted once more in rage.

“Bull!” Crusader shouted.

Harbinger reacted, hopping back and readying her hammer as Liberty threw herself at her first available target. Crusader raised her sword in a ready stance, took a step forward to intercept, and then just as quickly stepped to the side. She swept her sword down with the motion across the path of Liberty’s legs. Liberty only had an instant to readjust to the new trajectory before Cass swung again. This time managing a blow right to the face that sent the mighty mythic stumbling for a moment. She shook her head and tried to right herself only for Crusader to dart in from behind and make a swing at her back.

Liberty turned to defend, but Harbinger was right there to block her. Another swing, this time to the knee. Blow after blow landed, both young women putting on the pressure as they pushed Liberty back. Crusader went in for cuts and swipes, always in a position to strike but never seemed to land a hit. Yet as soon as Liberty capitalized, Harbinger moved in to deliver a telling blow. They moved around one another, passing through one anothers space and staying just close enough to have the others back. Soon, Liberty had both arms up in a guard, slowly moving backwards towards the center as the young heroes pressed in.

Keep the pressure on, hold her down! Just gotta get her to flinch, just a little!

A swing from Crusader connected. A cut stretched across Liberty’s waist. Liberty winced.

NOW!

Harbinger’s muscles, the power of the great minotaur behind them, coiled and sprang with an explosion of force that left splinters in the ground behind her. She raised her hammer, threw her shoulder forward and brought the swing up as she drew close, aiming for the chin. If I can knock her out for even a sec-

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Liberty’s bloody frown twisted into a grin.

Cass blinked.

She’s been baiting us!

The first punch drove right into her gut with so much force she might as well have been folded in half. The air went out of her lungs. Her vision blurred. Her head went fuzzy as the next blow came in from above. Two fists clasped together struck her just between the shoulder-blades and she was driven down into a knee. The pain was enough to knock her out for a heartbeat before she realized her sister had her by the arm. She heard Crusader call out and felt her friend dash forward but Liberty was already moving.

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She dragged Harbinger clear across the domain, all the way to the edge and swung her like a toy, smashing her body against an invisible barrier that refused to give way, not even for her bones. “Auck!” Was all Harbinger could manage before a hand planted on her collarbone and she was dragged again, her back pressed against the invisible barrier, her body creaking under the pressure of each second of it. It was more pain than she had ever thought was possible to be endured in her entire life and it ended with Liberty hurling her back towards the center.

Harbinger’s head spun as she tried to focus on seeing anything; her vision twisted and darkened, and her body ached. Need to heal… she thought only to see a silvery form falling from the sky above her.

A hand gripped her by the back of her own armor and she was pulled away as Liberty planted both feet in the spot where her head had been a moment before. A wave of heat ran through Harbinger’s body that only lasted a fragment of a second before Liberty was on the move again, barreling towards Crusader who was forced to disengage from her.

Shit. Shit. Come on… She thought groggily, rolling onto her side. She searched her instincts, drawing out the healing granted to her by the reforged power at her disposal. Green light burned behind her eyes as her bones started to set. She heaved and a gout of blood splattered onto the ground. Faster already! Damn it! She swore, pushing the healing ability to its limits. She could feel the mana entering her body, taxing against her stamina, but she didn’t care. She needed to be on her feet to keep the fight going.

Harbinger rose as Crusader was pushed to the brink. Her sword wielding comrade wasn’t as graceful as her teacher, her movements far more deliberate and forceful. She gave ground with every step, pulling back and blocking one titanic blow after another. Liberty’s fists, even the unarmored one, glanced off the edge of her blade as if they were made of metal. Crusader’s body ignited now and then, waves of gold fire lashing out to try to push Liberty back but the monstrous woman just kept pushing.

Meanwhile, Harbinger felt the last of her bones set, the healing doing its work. She knew if she threw herself into the fray half-healed it wouldn’t do either of them any good. I can’t let her realize that Crusader’s just building momentum for later, though! She flexed her fingers and recalled her hammer to her hand. “LIBERTY!” she shouted.

Liberty whirled, a moment of surprise on her face that changed into anger and then… confusion. She took a stumbling half step and the glow on her body faded a little bit more. The pure silver now tainted with small copper veins.

Another compound is down!

“CRUSADER! NOW!”

Liberty’s confusion faded as her eyes went wider, she snarled and turned back to Crusader who had finally taken a step forward. Her sword raised parallel with the ground as the words echoed out around her, “FIRST MARCH OF THE GOLDEN CRUSADE!” Liberty threw her arms up but the first blow struck her in the side, a long gash trailing across her thigh only for another to spread across her upper arm, then another, and another as arches of gold cascaded down on Liberty amidst Crusader’s merciless advance.

Harbinger darted forward, ready for when the combination attack ended and her turn to lay on the damage. The way I understand it, if she doesn’t finish first march she loses some of her momentum, if she completes it, she gets more. Or something like that. Either way she’ll have to move into the second march and that’ll take more time to build up to. Now I’ve just got to hold-

“Cocky little shit!” Liberty roared through the flurry of blows, throwing an arm out that grabbed a surprised Crusader by the arm. She pulled before Harbinger could get close enough to act, dragging her friend into a headbutt that released a small pulse of force out from the point of impact. Crusader staggered back, nose bleeding, eyes fluttering as Liberty whirled and kicked.

BOOM!

Crusader practically vanished from sight, reappearing against the invisible wall surrounding them. She slid down to the ground, her head tilted to the right listlessly as Liberty stood up straight, breathing hard. She was holding Crusader’s broadsword. Harbinger looked down at her hammer and up at her sister who slowly rounded on her. Liberty was covered in cuts and scars, blood streamed from her wounds even as they tried to heal. Golden flames pushed the restoration back, punishing her with Crusader’s power but the living titan in the form of her sister just kept coming.

“Outlast me?” Liberty demanded as she began her march towards Harbinger. “YOU?”

Harbinger clenched her jaw, “Just give up. You know what’s coming.”

Liberty threw her head back and laughed, “Oh you don’t have to tell me, Harbinger,” she snarled, “Does it look like I care? If this is the end, then I am going to make sure the heroes suffer for it.”

“You’ve finally lost it,” Harbinger said.

Liberty laughed again and reached up to slick back her hair with a bloody hand, “Let’s be real. Our father ran a cult, sis. Did we even have it together to begin with?” she said as she took a few test swings with Crusader’s sword. She nodded appreciatively, “A bit small, but it’ll do for cutting your limbs off one by one. How does that sound? Your friend's sword?”

“You’re an animal.”

“AND YOU’RE A TRAITOR!” Liberty roared, “YOU LEFT! I STAYED! I TOOK OVER! I PUT FATHER DOWN! I ENDURED THE RITES!” she swept her hand to the right before pointing an accusing finger at Harbinger, “You’re a coward, Harbinger, you always will be. Just like mother.”

“That woman was not my mother, she oversaw those rites! She let those things happen! She was almost worse than anyone else in this terrible place!” Harbinger retorted, raising her hammer to a ready position, “My real mother saved me, taught me what it means to be a hero. My mother stepped up and gave me a chance at a better life!”

Liberty tilted her head, her glowing eyes widening with manic curiosity, “Oh? Oh? OH?” she swung the sword left and right as she approached, her teeth bared, “Do tell! How much further have you gone in your quest to abandon your blood, sister?”

Liberty was within striking range at this point. Harbinger could kick off and cross the meters between them in an instant. That also meant that Liberty was within range as well. She felt a tremor go through her spine at the thought as she kept her eyes on her hated enemy. Somewhere nearby, she knew that Crusader was pulling herself back together. Her powers didn’t heal as quickly as other abilities though, that meant she needed to buy her friend more time.

She needed Liberty’s full focus.

So she spoke directly from the heart, the honest truth, even if it meant drawing out every last vestige of her sister’s madness and brutality. She raised her hammer in a ready stance, knees bent, ready to move as she raised her chin high and spoke clearly. “My mothers name is Sonya Chernovna! The Voice of the Hero Movement! The woman who saved me and put me on the right path!” she shouted.

Liberty went deadly still.

Her head tilted to the right as the copper veins on her body grew a little thicker, the silver glow diminishing a little more. Even so. Harbinger had never felt more murderous intent and bone chilling terror in her entire life. Even the pressure from Ishtar’s presence hadn’t prepared her for the cruelty that billowed off of Liberty in waves.

“I am going to kill you. Right now,” Liberty said with a single, flat, emotionless breath and struck.