Corpse March

Chapter 54 Heavy Assault Angel

A stiff wind blows through the Curia’s courtyard, the grass bowing in its wake. All councilors are present. On one side are Florence, Gleam, Tsuki, Kikimi, and Tsumugi. On the other, stands Tomoe and Jessica. 

“Correct me if I’m wrong but, I believe it’s the challenged that has the first choice of champion.” In spite of the sheer numbers disparity between the two sides, Tomoe stands tall, with her chin upturned just slightly. “I opt to select Jessica as my champion.” 

Tsumugi steps forward. “I select myself as my champion.” 

“A bold move.” Tomoe strikes a thinking pose. “I can respect that.” 

Both Jessica and Tsumugi meet in the middle of the battlefield. Both of them shake hands before stepping exactly ten paces away from each other.  

“Auntie.”

“Yes, Tsumugi?”

“Don’t you dare hold back or surrender.”

“I won’t.” Jessica raises her left hand to show Tsumugi its back. “In exchange for a sum from the treasury, I’ve contracted with Tomoe, the only condition is that I can’t hold back. Be careful.”

“I’m not quite the little girl you remember.” Tsumugi smiles as her staff begins to glow a miasmatic purple. “I’ve learned a thing or two since we last fought.” 

“Good, good.” A bouquet composed of an endless number of guns emerges from Jessica’s sleeve. They’re so numerous that her arm is entirely swallowed by them. 

The sorcery of “Contracts”. Whoever signs Jessica’s contract is bound to follow it to a T. If they agree to give her their soul, then everything they have, everything they are, everything they will be, is at her beck and call. The only downside is that she too has to uphold her end of the bargain. The mass of guns seems bigger than the last time Tsumugi saw it. Seems like she’s been busy. 

“The duel will be to the blood!” Tomoe cups her hands around her mouth as she yells out. 

“Begin!” 

Jessica swings her gun arm around in a wide arc. A burning star of muzzle flashes blinks in and out of existence as a torrent of bullets rain down on Tsumugi. 

“Golohab.”

A shield made of black fire manifests in front of Tsumugi, burning the bullets into ash before they can even get close to her. She waits for the volley to stop.  With a brandish of her staff, the shield suddenly grows four writhing stumps that grow into four writhing  that grow into a singular vortex of pure black flame that shoots out towards Jessica. 

“That’s new. I’m happy you’ve been experimenting on your own.” Jessica smiles at Tsumugi. 

Jessica holds out her hand, and from her sleeve sprouts a mass of squirming hands. They quickly climb over each other to form a kind of crude tentacle which Jessica hooks to the ground and uses to pull herself to the side, narrowly avoiding the vortex. 

“Let’s not get distracted here, Auntie.” Tsumugi holds out two fingers towards Jessica and incants “Gha Agsheblah”. A bolt of black lightning ejects itself from Tsumugi’s fingertips and begins to rake the ground Jessica stands on. 

Her spell makes contact with flesh, but not Jessica’s flesh. Rather, it crashes against a mass of disembodied legs. Some of them old and wrinkled, some of them decayed, some of them as large as Tsumugi is tall, some are smaller than her hand. Each one of them once belonged to a person, living or dead but they are Jessica’s now. They huddle together into a loose throne-like structure that Jessica sits on. With every foot that is charred into ash, another simply takes its place.

“Gha Agsheblah” again and again, Tsumugi launches bolts of black lightning at Jessica but every time, the feet buckle and jump to a safe position. Jessica’s throne sways violently with every movement but she stays on top of it, completely unbothered. Time for a change in tactics. If she can’t beat her from a distance…

“Geburah” The only one of the sefirot she’s managed to master heeds her call. A scythe made of a kind of miasmatic energy forms at the tip of her staff. “Gharab” Feathers begin to fall as a single black wing suddenly spreads from Tsumugi’s back. Armed with her full melee complement, she begins her attack. 

There is a moment of pure silence that is followed by a gale force wind that almost seems to explode outwards from Tsumugi’s position. That is the sheer power that a half-hearted flap of her wing has. With a full-force flap, she vanishes completely, traveling towards Jessica faster than the naked eye can see. But in spite of her speed, Jessica’s ready for her. 

She reappears, inches from Jessica’s face. The only thing between them is Tsumugi’s scythe blade crossing against a many-gemmed speartip. Tsumugi breaks away but Jessica gives chase. Their blades clash over and over, her throne of legs bucking and swaying with every strike. 

But she overdoes it. Another flap of Tsumugi’s wing sends out an explosion of gale. The sheer strength of which manages to blow the throne into the air. The system of interlocking joints finally comes undone and the legs scatter into the wind. All that remains is Jessica falling in midair. Tsumugi need only take a step forward and swipe with her scythe to finish the battle. So she does. 

Then, the impossible happens. There should be blood on her scythe blade but there is no such thing. Instead, sparks begin to fly as black steel clashes against a pair of platinum wings. They flare outwards, shrugging off the black blade with ease. Tsumugi takes a step back.  

“You’re not the only one with new tricks, kiddo. Though, this one is a pretty old trick.” Jessica glides back onto the ground, her metallic wings riding the dregs of Tsumugi’s gale. “Plus, two is better than one.” 

“Oh?” Tomoe suddenly takes an interest in the melee. She recognizes those wings. That sheen, that form, even that spear, yes, there’s no doubt about who she took those from. Hanami. The magical girl of judgment. This is only a fraction of her power, true, but the fact alone that some part of Hanami still exists all these years later is equal parts nostalgic and terrifying. “Fascinating.” It seems that she chose her champion even more wisely than she thought. 

“This is gonna hurt!” Jessica suddenly dashes forwards as she uses one of her wings to swipe at Tsumugi, the speed and reach of which is almost unfair. Tsumugi barely manages to interpose her own wing between her and Jessica in time. It absorbs the blow, but the shock is still enough to knock her back a solid foot of space. 

There’s no time to counterattack, Tsumugi desperately needs to reposition and regain her bearings but wherever she tries to go, Jessica is ready to intercept. She merely needs to swing her gun arm around and unleash a deadly volley of bullets at Tsumugi.

Hell, she even ditches the spear to opt for another projectile arm, one composed of heavy ordnance this time. Heavy Machine Guns, RPGs, anti-tank rifles, they’re all there. The arm is all the more ponderous, but all the more powerful for it. A single direct hit burns all the feathers off of Tsumugi’s wing. It’s a miracle that none of that managed to draw blood. 

But miracles can only last for so long. Jessica fires a second time. That is Jessica’s final attack. Tsumugi can only brace herself. 

“STELLAR!”

She arrives like thunder during a storm. You see the lightning and you know it’s coming. It’s only a matter of time. You expect it. You welcome it. You know it’s there. But when it arrives, it still makes your heart stop. That is thunder. That is Gleam, standing between Tsumugi and Jessica, sword half-drawn. 

Lines of light appear in midair, each one is drawn over one of Jessica’s projectiles. Every single bullet, every rocket, everything. One by one, they fall to the ground, disarmed. 

“Sorry, Tsumugi.” Gleam sheathes her blade. “I couldn’t resist.” 

“Nobody asked you to intervene, Gleam.” Tsumugi steadies herself and adjusts her collar. “But thanks.” And for the first time in a long while, she smiles at Gleam and Gleam smiles back. 

“I invoke Trial by Combat!” Gleam’s smile disappears, a steely determination replacing it. “I select myself to champion the side of Tsumugi’s innocence.” 

“Very well.” Tomoe nods her head. “Then I select Tsuki as my second champion.” 

“A two vs two, huh?” Tsuki rolls her shoulders. “Ah, what the hell, if that’s what it takes to make this a valid trial then sure, why not.” 

Tsuki sheds her cloak, revealing the machinery underneath. Brass pistons begin to beat and steam begins to pour out of her exhausts as she readies herself for combat. Sheer mechanical might, that’s how Tsuki operates. 

“Focus down Tsumugi, watch our flanks for Gleam.” 

“Yeah yeah, whatever you say, granny.” 

Jessica and Tsuki begin to walk towards their enemy. Gleam and Tsumugi do the same. 

“Focus down Tsuki.” Gleam unsheathes her sword. “I’ll keep Jessica busy.”

Tsumugi spins her staff. “You read my mind.”