"We are being surrounded."
Luke looked around with a frown,
Khan called out from the distant rear,
"Cain! We have to avoid a battle as much as we can. I used up the Blessing not too long ago. If we start fighting, I won't be able to renew it anytime soon!"
Cain clicked his tongue, "Figured as much..."
He turned around to face the crowd,
"All of you, get out of here. Run straight ahead!"
The men didn't need to be told twice. The dust rose from the ground as they all rushed forward.
Hunter ran forward as well,
"Whatever these things are, they are fast as hell. They've boxed us in already. I doubt we'll make it out without fighting."
Cain clicked his tongue in annoyance. The problem was he could sense the existence of the Aether Beasts boxing them in.
But he couldn't see them.
It was strange, and odd.
'They are in the sand. However...'
When he looked down, even with the help of {Eye of Clairvoyance}, he couldn't see them.
It was either they were in too deep, or they had some type of camouflage that made him unable to detect them.
'If they are buried in too deep, them they might not be as much of a threat for the time being. We might have a way out without fighting.'
He frowned, 'Still, the fact remains that we are their target.'
Lukas walked up to them,
"What's the matter? Why are you hesitating?"
Cain stared at him in confusion. Lukas sneered,
"You know, perhaps I give you too much credit. If this how a leader acts in times ?"
Manny unsheathed his blades, "Oi, bastard! Who told you to mouth off?! I really hate your guts, you know..."
Lukas scoffed, "I don't have time to mouth off with a buffoon."
Manny's eyes widened, "Huh?! Wanna go right now?!"
"Enough, both of you." Cain said calmly.
"I get what you mean, but fighting right now is not the best thing to do. We-"
Lukas let out a humourless laugh,
"Yeah, sure. Then what do you think the best thing to do is? Run around, trying to avoid a fight, or stand our ground. I am many things, but a coward isn't one of them. I'm staying here. Men!"
The men running away all paused in their tracks.
One of them, a tall, burly man with a scorpion tattoo on his neck called out to him,
"B-boss Lukas! We'll die if we fight! We aren't as powerful as you are. Please, let's retre-"
"Shut it. I don't want to listen to your paltry excuses. How will you ever get strong of all you do is run and wait to be protected? Is this how you want to live?!"
Cain stared at what was going down with wide eyes...
Lukas continued, a deep frown on his face,
"Embarrassing. Disgusting! You think you can become part of a proper army with this conviction?! What kind of trash are you all?!"
The men remained silent, unsure of what to say.
Hunter turned to stare at Cain.
'What are you going to do now, Cain... Will you watch as he undermines your authority, or will you do some about it.'
Rollo gave Cain a sideways glance, but kept quiet as well.
"We... We want to fight, but these circumstances don't allow it. What use is fighting if we'll just die anyways?"
Lukas grinned, "Who said you will die?"
Murmurs spread across the crowd of over a hundred men as they mumbled to themselves.
"Isn't that what we were told? Could they be lying to us?"
"Well, Boss Lukas has always been the most powerful! I'm sure he has a plan!"
The burly man with the scorpion tattoo spoke frankly,
"If you can guarantee our lives, we'll stand and fight for you, right here and now!"
Lukas let out a laugh,
"Good. Very good! I might not guarantee your lives, but I will guarantee you a fighting chance."
With that, light shimmered in his hands as he pulled something out of his inventory.
It was a giant sword-shaped pillar that looked to be made of glass.
Murmurs spread across the crowd once again.
With a smile on his face, Lukas thought to himself,
'Fuck! I really didn't want to use this thing now, but I guess I have no choice.'
His eyes narrowed as he stared at Cain. A sinister smile tugged at the corners of his lips,
'Now, Cain... Let's see how you'll respond to this. Physical strength is only a single part of power after all.'
His muscles bulging under his armor, Lukas lifted the pillar and slammed it into the ground with full force.
The base of the pillar dug into deep into the ground, securing it firmly.
Lukas lightly smacked the pillar,
"This right here, is an item that can invoke the presence of Yanagi, a Celestial of Light. It can fight against the aura of death that permeates this cursed desert. As long as you remain within its influence, you can fight to your heart's content."
Boulder's heart widened, "I definitely didn't expect that."
Khan walked over and stared at Lukas with a frown,
"Do you have any idea what you are trying to do?"
Lukas snorted as he waved his hand,
"Sure, I do. And so? Would you rather I run around like a headless chicken?"
A sneer appeared on his face as he glared down at Khan,
"What kind of twisted god afflicts his domain with the power of death. If I were you, I'd break my ties with such a god. Don't you think?"
Khan's eyes darkened, "You..."
Lukas shrugged, "What? Did I lie? Either way, it doesn't matter. Those who want to fight and live, come over here and stand your ground."
The men hesitated for only a moment before they walked back.
Cain simply watched silently. He had nothing to say. What could he say? After all, Lukas was not wrong.
It was true that running all the time could only get them so far. If they ran now, perhaps they would manage to save their lives.
However, to what end?
If all they did everytime they encountered impossible situations was run, then these men would never become stronger. In this world of blood and darkness, their fate would be to become fodder.
Cain sighed, "That's enough, Lukas."
Lukas chuckled and said, his voice laced with sarcasm,
"Finally done with your thoughts, leader?"
Cain nodded, a small smile on his lips,
"Yes. And I've come to the conclusion that you are right. We should in fact stand our ground."
Lukas raised a brow, "Really? Then what took you so long? Isn't that quite unreliable of you, leader?"
Cain smiled, "Yeah it is. However..."
His eyes darkened, and the air around his became denser.
He stared deeply at Lukas,
"It isn't your place to say. Every plan I make, I make in consideration of the well-being of the entire group. If you had such a a thing all this time, why didn't you say anything?"
Lukas smiled darkly as well, not even a bit intimidated by Cain's deadly aura,
"Hehe. So I'm required to tell you everything now? What a joke."
Cain shook his head, "Either way, now is not a good time for arguments. If this thing is as you say it is, then I will believe you for now."
He turned to the men behind Lukas with a frown,
"The nature of the incoming enemies is unknown. This means you have no idea what you will be facing. Don't be so eager to throw your lives away."
He took a deep breath in and forced his dark aura away. A soft smile appeared on his face,
"Even if you can't fight against them, there is nothing wrong with running away. Try your best not to die. That is all."
With that, Cain walked away.
Hunter had a small smile on his face,
"You handled that well. Although I think he still has one up on you."
Cain shook his head, "Doesn't matter. Since we are fighting, now is the time to make arrangements."
Cain looked around. With a team , he had confidence in getting out of almost any situation.
Cain walked up to Boulder who seemed to be discussing something with an upset looking Khan and Lucia,
"I'll need your help for this, both of you."
Boulder nodded, "What would you have us do?"
The others gathered around him as well.
Manny clapped his hand on his shoulder and grinned,
"Don't worry. With Cain around, as long as it isn't a giant water mutant beast that can swallow an entire island in one bite, you don't need to worry that much."
Cain smiled wryly, "About that..."
Just as he was about to say something, the ground shook.
Cain frowned, "Get ready..."
He directed his gaze at the ground once again. He still couldn't see any creatures, but he could feel something.
The sand around them was shifting rapidly.
With a stern expression on his face, Lukas declared,
With that, he closed his eyes and chanted a few words under his breath.
Because the moon in the sky was the only source of light in the desert, it was very obvious when another source of light appeared. Shining like a glorious, radiant star, Lukas placed his hands on the pillar.
The runes on the surface of the glass pillar absorbed the light, increasing its intensity even more until it all gathered into a beam of light that shot out of the top.
It shot a few meters into the sky, before falling down to the ground, this time, in all directions to create a small dome of light.
With a grin, Lukas drew his sword,
"Draw your weapons! You can now fight to your hearst content!"
One by one, they drew their weapons, just in time for the first of the creatures to emerge from the ground.