Aaron rubbed his numb hands together vigorously as he watched Sila sow another patch together for the inner membrane of the pipeline. Baird had already headed back inside for lunch. He had finished creating the massive volume of paste already as it was, so his usefulness to Aaron was as limited as his knowledge of the technology required for the task. 

He glanced up when he heard another pair of footsteps crunch down on the snow. The black rope dangled from the Sand Dollar's exit hatch, and just below it, Wendy met his gaze and shivered. She sipped from a thermos, stood still, and blinked a couple times before finally began crossing the distance between herself and Aaron. 

Aaron grinned at the blonde and met her halfway. "Hey!" he greeted her, "What's up?" 

"It's brass monkeys out here." 

Aaron sputtered with laughter. "And what's that supposed to mean?" 

Wendy narrowed her eyes and pinned her arms closer to her body. "It's bloody freezing, that's what! How do you stand it?" 

"I dunno," he said with a shrug, "I guess I'm just keeping myself moving." 

"But you've been out here for five and a half hours! You only came in for a bloody minute to take a slash, but other than that, you've been standing out here!" 

Aaron smirked. "And you've been keeping track of where I'm at...why exactly?" 

Wendy stammered. "That's...not...that's not the point." she finally said, taking a sip from the thermos. "I came out here to bring you some coffee. Gotta warm up at some point, right?" 

Aaron took the container with a smile and also took a sip. "Thanks. You shock me." 

"How's that?" 

"Well, if it were the other way around, with me giving you a cup after having sipped from it, you'd be like, 'Ugh, that's bloody disgusting!'." 

Wendy's eyebrows twitched. "Are you complaining?" 

"No, not at all." he replied with a hearty chuckle and a playful tap on her shoulder, "Just your inconsistencies fascinate me." 

"You're weird." 

"Birds of a feather, gotta say..." he trailed off. 

"Might not be such a good idea to bring up bloody birds right now, considering all the Divine Flock rubbish we can't seem to get away from." 

"You've got a point." 

Wendy exhaled both visibly and audibly. She glanced at the tray on the ground and frowned. "What's that?" 

"Filler paste. Gotta let it freeze for a few hours, then we can thaw it and start filling the holes in the metal. We're lucky to be where we're at, 'cause we can just leave it outside. We certainly don't have room in the freezer for something that big." 

"Well, obviously! That tray's wider than the whole bloody freezer!" 

Aaron nodded, but said nothing more for a few moments. He perked up when Wendy shuddered. "You alright?" 

"Not really. It's still freezing." 

"Well," he said, holding the thermos up to her, "help yourself." 

She hesitated for a while, but finally conceded and drank another mouthful of the steamy liquid. "Thanks." 

"No problem—wait a minute, I thought you didn't like bitter drinks." 

"I don't like tea. If you haven't noticed, there's a bloody difference." 

"Well, yeah," he said, "but how're bitter leaves in water any worse than bitter beans?" 

Wendy shrugged. "It's different. One's coffee, the other's just...wrong." 

"If you say so." Aaron raised an eyebrow when the blonde quivered again. "My goodness, girl, you need to get back inside." 

"So do you! Why do you think I brought myself to come out here?" 

Aaron gave her a melodramatic sigh. "Okay, if you insist. I guess it's about time I get lunch, anyway." 

"Well, I already took care of that too." 

"You did?" 

Wendy narrowed her eyes. "Don't make me bloody repeat myself. You heard me." 

"Okay, well, thanks." Aaron said, stepping alongside Wendy and putting his arm around her as they walked back to the hatch. "You rock." 

Wendy looked up at him. "You really mean that?" 

"Of course I do. Don't make me bloody repeat myself." Aaron remarked with a smirk. He closed his eyes and brought his lips to her cheek. 

Wendy made no move to resist, but allowed him to kiss her. Once he withdrew, she pecked his cheek in return. She met Aaron's eyes, and for once, she smiled. 

Aaron's heart fluttered, but with concerted effort, he kept a collected but pleasant demeanor. He led the way into the ship, leaving Sila to continue working in solitude until his return. 

****************** 

Two days later, Brant swept a heat gun over the last section of the frozen filler paste, gently thawing it so Aaron could patch up the last hole. The delay had been universally undesired, and the repairs had been tedious, but the end was in sight. 

While Brant thawed the paste, Aaron supervised, though in reality, his eyes remained mostly fixed on Wendy mixing paint. Baird, Sila, and Hannah labored to paint over the discolored patches on the fuel lines, Wendy's industriousness ensuring they never had to pause long before another batch of their desired colors were ready. 

All six jumped when an earsplitting boom roared somewhere over the hill. They all dropped their current tasks and dashed over to investigate. They shared a communal gasp as they stared at the town below. Flames shot from several key buildings. Dark clouds of smoke ascended from the inferno and darkened the sky. 

Baird put a hand to his heart. "Lord have mercy..." 

Brant's piercing gaze probed farther, allowing him to see the burning bodies on the ground, as well as the terrified individuals hurrying away from the mayhem. He growled when he spotted the perpetrator. 

"Buzzard..." he muttered. 

Aaron gave Brant a sharp glance. "Buzzard? He's down there?" 

An axe materialized in Brant's hand. He charged forward and sprinted down the hill. "Not for long!" he called over his shoulder. 

Baird, Aaron, and Sila followed close behind. The four of them soon came to the end of their descent. Just before they stepped through the town gates, Brant held them back. 

"We've gotta be careful, guys—" 

"Yeah, obviously." Aaron interrupted, "But if you—" 

Brant shushed him. "He's got company. A whole contingent of Alcontean soldiers. And not only that, he's probably completed his transformation by now." 

"How could you possibly know that?" 

"Because, it was a while ago Albatross slipped through your fingers with that skull. It's inevitable he got it to Buzzard at some point." 

Aaron nodded. "We might wanna get in there before the whole town goes up in flames." 

Sila held up a hand. "Wait." 

Aaron huffed. "What?" 

The robot pointed at Aaron, and then itself. "Extinguishers." 

"Like, you and me extinguish the fires?" 

Sila nodded. Then it pointed at Brant and Baird. "Fighters." 

"Well, I plan to get some hits in after we finish up the firefighting, but sure. Sounds like a solid enough plan." 

Brant coughed into the crook of his elbow. "Alright, let's do it." 

The four rounded the corner and found themselves on the outskirts of the chaos. Screams filled the air, while smoke dominated the olfactory landscape. Townspeople fled to and from all directions, most sprinting away from the destruction, but some despondent souls hurled themselves headlong into the flames. 

Brant led the charge, weaving in and out of the maze of buildings. He and his comrades were forced to dodge several times as cars swerved off the roadway and onto the sidewalk. One man fell off the rooftop above them and collapsed his spine like an accordion once his head caught his fall. 

"You sure you know where you're going?" Aaron demanded from behind. 

Brant glanced back. "Of course! Right around this corner!" 

The quartet rounded the corner and found themselves in an open square. Buzzard stood triumphantly before a mass of Alcontean soldiers. He held a screaming brunette by the back of her neck and licked his lips. He raised his gaze at the sound of the newcomers, and once he met Brant's eyes, he sneered. 

"Let her go." Brant ordered through gritted teeth. 

"I don't think so." Buzzard said, spitting a green substance onto the snow, "I have a word to speak with you." 

Brant narrowed his eyes. "Say it and get it over with." 

Buzzard hacked into the open air. "I'm not even sure where to begin. I've never been as good with words as Dove." 

"I know. But for goodness' sake, start somewhere, and start now." 

"I'll just be frank. I'm disappointed in all the...failure going around these past few days." 

Brant frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" 

"Like you, for instance! Everything that's happened recently...it was started off by your failure! You failed to destroy that stronghold in Jasmidian, and so what happened?" 

"I met these nuts." he replied, jerking a thumb back at Aaron and Baird behind him. 

"And many more. Well, lo and behold, Eagle finds you. And what does he do? He tries to persuade you to return. How pathetic. He should've just ended you right there." 

Brant glared daggers at Buzzard. "Victor and I were close, and you know this. He would sooner have killed his own flesh and blood." 

"Ah, but that is his weakness. That's his failure. And then Dove, I surely expected more from him. But he...well, he failed just the same." 

"How did he fail? He got just what he wanted! He came for the artifact, and that's what he got!" 

Buzzard cackled. "You see so much, Falcon, yet you see so little." 

"Don't call me that." 

"I'm a god. I can do whatever I want. I'll bet you wish you could ever say the same." He snickered. "But as I was saying, Dove could easily have stricken you down, as he was planning to. But he was weak, just like Eagle." 

"Again, he was only after the artifact, and you're—" 

"I didn't ask for your commentary. So here I am, Buzzard, god of death and disease, to right the wrongs, and undo the failures of my timid comrades! I will be exalted!" 

Brant snorted. "Over my dead body." 

"That's the idea." 

Buzzard howled with pleasure as green vapors erupted from his fingers. The brunette's screams renewed as her skin morphed into black scales, which promptly peeled off her body and exposed her innards. After ripping her heart from her chest, Buzzard dropped her wilted corpse. 

Before Buzzard could take a bite, Brant lunged forward and swung the axe at him. In the process of dodging, Buzzard dropped the heart. He stared at it longingly before growling at his attacker. A green orb formed in his hand. Simultaneously, a sturdy shield appeared in Brant's. 

Buzzard hurled the orb at Brant, who blocked and watched as the viridescent energy dispersed across the surface. He coughed as fumes rose, reeking of death and decay. A sleepiness washed over him, and his wobbly legs betrayed him to gravity. Brant dropped to the snow. 

******************** 

Buzzard created another orb and pointed it at fallen Brant. Baird widened his eyes at the sight, and with gritted teeth, he lunged into his shoulder. The two tumbled to the ground together. As the martial artist scrambled to his feet, he landed a kick on the god of death's head. His heart leapt as another orb headed his way. With a sideways dive, he evaded. 

His eyes continued tracking the ball of energy, and he gasped as it collided with an Alcontean soldier. It exploded over his body, and he collapsed in screaming. Ghastly boils and sores ravaged his body, and he soon scratched sizable chunks of his flesh off in the pursuit of relief. 

Baird glanced back at Brant and observed with relief that the warrior was picking himself off the ground. After apparently shaking dizziness out of his head, he appeared battle-ready again. 

When he heard a scream, Baird redirected his attention. He rolled in the snow to elude an explosion of pus. Then he glanced back at Buzzard and noticed he had already risen again. He overwhelmed Brant with a barrage of deadly blasts that he successfully blocked, but only with great effort. 

Baird dashed up to Buzzard and swung his heel down on his meager calf. The smelly man howled and backhanded him. 

The martial artist stumbled back a few feet and clutched his jaw. He ducked under the swing of Buzzard's fist, and then leapt to avoid another blast. He swung his own uppercut at his opponent's chin. The gaunt man tumbled to the ground. 

"Do something!" Buzzard hissed at his men, "The Falcon's mine, but please do eliminate this pest!" 

Brant and Baird both widened their eyes as a barrage of projectiles flew their way. Brant increased his shield's size to cover Baird while he unsheathed his sword. Then, with a massive breath, the swordsman dashed out from behind the protection, sliced two men down, and took cover again behind a nearby building. 

Countless bullets pelted the area around Baird's hiding spot behind a sculpture of a pretty maiden. Footsteps drew closer, and the gunshots with them. When the maiden's stone arm flew off, a bullet flew right by his shoulder. Baird gasped and sprinted farther down the alley. 

He skidded to a halt when a skull-faced figure in dull black armor landed with a thud only a few yards ahead. The Thrasher pointed his glowing knife at the swordsman and inched closer. Baird tightened his lips and swung his blade straight at the Thrasher's chest. 

The sword penetrated about an inch into the armor, and electric sparks hopped all over it. But the Thrasher appeared completely unaffected, and his advance continued. When Baird reached out to retrieve his weapon, the Thrasher leapt into the sky with the assistance of his rocket boots. While airborne, he removed the weapon and tossed it onto a nearby roof. 

Baird ducked as a pair of bullets skimmed just past his ear. His head snapped back, and he gasped again. The soldiers were closing in, and their stream of bullets didn't appear to be coming to an end any time soon. He sprinted forward, then halted again as the Thrasher swooped down, knife poised to penetrate his flesh.

******************** 

A/N: Buzzard's low-key terrifying, if you ask me. I know I wouldn't want him to get his grimy hands on me, anyways. 😂 

If you enjoyed the chapter, please don't forget to vote and comment. 

And I guess now that we've had a good few antagonists so far, I'd like to ask, who's your favorite? And that could mean which one you love to hate the most, most compelling motive, best personality, anything. Go wild with your answer. 😆 

And once you finish that, let me pose you a random question: When you first pick up a book, what's something that makes you even more excited to read when you see it? 

(Maybe this is kinda weird, but when I see there's something like a pronunciation guide or something in the back, I get oddly excited. I guess maybe I assume if the author went through that effort, it can be a sign they put some good thought into the world-building to warrant it? Maps can be that way too. If the geography looks interesting, I may well think the events about to take place in that land will be awesome.) 

So, that'll be it for me! Have a great day, people, and I hope to see you in my next update. God bless!