Kyle watched as Ger’Sinh struggled to find words.  If the man hadn’t been actively trying to kill him, he almost would have pitied him.  As things stood, however, Kyle wanted answers that only the bandit leader could provide.  The man had made his way to a planet that was supposedly off-limits, and found Kyle an important enough target to risk his life to kill.  That had to be more than a simple vendetta.

Ger’Sinh’s hand subtly dipped to his side, where a smaller firearm was held.  Kyle hid his smile. These weapons functioned by of using highly-concentrated mana, contained inside a liquid case.  While Parasitic Resonance couldn’t pierce through the casing, the metal making up the weapon was engraved to conduct mana.  A fact Kyle used to absorb every drop of the concentrated energy.

When Ger’Sinh pulled the weapon out in a flash to shoot Kyle, it stayed inert.  With an exaggerated sigh, Kyle met his opponent’s eyes.  “I appreciate the theatrics, but it’s really time to get some answers sorted out.  Let me be more specific.  How did you even get here?”

Ger’Sinh’s eyes narrowed.  “Don’t toy with me.  Kill me and be done with it.”

Kyle shook his head.  “You’re not in a position to make demands here.  I am.  Now, how did you end up on Kertan Six?”

In response, Ger’Sinh grabbed two more poisoned daggers, flinging one at Kyle, which he dodged, and driving the other toward his own throat.  That was something Kyle wouldn’t allow to happen.  Activating Cultivate and Infuse simultaneously, he pulled modified ivy seeds out of the World Tree Seed, quickly launching the binding vines toward Ger’Sinh.  He also activated Healing Impetus on the man through Parasitic Resonance in case he still got scratched.  Thankfully, the binding took in time, and Ger’Sinh ended up with only a small wound, which was quickly addressed.  The poison on the daggers was potent, but simple.  Exactly the kind of toxin that Kyle liked handling.  Part by part, he focused his energy around the point of injury, condensing the poison into a single glob that he forced out as the wound closed.

What Kyle really wanted was to see if there was an easier method to leave the planet, but based on the hate in Ger’Sinh’s eyes, he figured he’d need to take a different approach if he wanted to get anything useful from the man.

“Why do you hate the Archdrake Supremacy so much?” he finally asked, a question that clearly took Ger’Sinh off guard.

“What?” the other man gasped out.

“Why do you hate them?  You’re clearly strong, you could have had lots of other opportunities.  You hated them enough to risk your life against me the first time we met, and something tells me that you didn’t come here just for revenge.  The people you work for have an issue with the Archdrake Supremacy, and if you won’t talk about anything else, I figure you’d at least tell me why you think it’s worth throwing your life away to spite them.”

“What would you care?” Ger’Sinh spat, anger rising in his voice.  “You and your precious Collective, more than happy to maintain your so-called peace, built on the backs of those without enough power to protect themselves.  Hypocrites, the lot of you!”

“So, you were one of those people oppressed by the Archdrake Supremacy?” Kyle responded, trying to keep Ger’Sinh talking.

“We all were,” the other man spat.  “The entire rotten system is designed to prop up the filthy lizards.  My family found an old heritage, followed it in a way that the dragons didn’t like, in a way that their priesthood found heretical.  And they died for it.”

Kyle just nodded, staying silent.  He’d heard similar stories of the Archdrake Supremacy, though they were often limited to the fringes of society.  Weaker dragons who ruled poor territories had a tendency to flex their power over their subjects, and the rules of the Supremacy made those abuses justifiable.  At least, within the framework of their own society.  Kyle could understand why somebody like Ger’Sinh would harbor hatred for their system, given what his family likely went through.

What Kyle couldn’t understand, however, was why Ger’Sinh had showed up here to try and kill him after all these years.  Making a show of looking around, Kyle met the other man’s eyes again.  “In case you haven’t noticed, this place isn’t exactly crawling with dragons.  Look, I had a job to do, just like you did when we crossed paths last time.  I hardly think that grudge is the only reason you showed up out of nowhere.”

“That grudge will last for the rest of your life, even though I won’t be here to see it settled,” Ger’Sinh spat back.  “And you’ll wish that you’d died when we first met.”

“Why?” Kyle said, letting the frustration bleed through.  “All I’m hearing from you is revenge this and revenge that, but why the hell was one failed mission so important to your organization?  And what does it say about them that they’d throw you at a fight you couldn’t possibly win?  So what, you killed a few weak C Grades before your evolution?  Get in line.  I’ve fought alongside people who have managed the same, without relying on cheap weapons to accomplish the task.”

For whatever reason, those words seemed to shock Ger’Sinh.  The other man’s jaw worked soundlessly as he tried to form an answer, finally landing on one.  “You weren’t supposed to be this strong,” he finally muttered.  “The report we received was that your evolution was forced; that it left you crippled.  And I felt it, too.  If your presence was anything like it is now…”

Kyle frowned, only now remembering that he still had Genesis Engine active.  The skill was still taxing to his mana network, but unlike Ignition, his body actually felt rejuvenated the longer it was active.  The boosted Endurance limited the damage in the first place, while the boost to Vitality alongside Adaptive Regeneration healed away any physical damage faster than ever before.

Deactivating the skill, he looked at Ger’Sinh, heat rising in his chest.  “If you think I needed my boosting skill to handle you, you’re mistaken.”  Kyle’s voice was flat, and angry.  Did it really only boil down to Ger’Sinh’s grudge, and massively underestimating him?  Kyle also didn’t miss that they’d received a report, and the only two people who could have passed something like that along were Jax or the goblin Finn’el.  And given that he trusted Jax…  can’t wait to have a chat with that goblin when I get back.

Ger’Sinh looked at him, confusion plain on his face.  “How are you…”

Before he could finish, Kyle felt a surge of mana from above.  Reactivating Genesis Engine, he leapt away, extending vines from the stump of his left arm to grab Ger’Sinh and pull him along.  An instant later, the space where Ger’Sinh had been lying warped, then shattered, leaving a pillar of nothingness for a moment before the air cracked to fill the empty space.  Ger’Sinh’s eyes closed, and Kyle could barely make out the man’s quiet words above the thunder.  “Master.  I’ve failed you again.  Please, end it.”

The sky darkened slightly as the space around Ger’Sinh shook once again, but Kyle was ready.  Pulling him away, Kyle began to frantically dodge the now-constant stream of spatial attacks.  The forest around them was being ripped up in massive chunks, the otherwise precise attacks leaving massive shockwaves in their aftermath.  Kyle even had to push an occasional Healing Impetus into Ger’Sinh to keep the man from being too injured by the blasts, the attacks carrying that much magnitude.

Even with Identify active and focusing on Auric Perception, Kyle still had no idea where the attacks were coming from.  The only attacker that made sense was Ger’Sinh’s backer, and back when they’d first fought the power was at a level where Kyle couldn’t even detect it.  Now, he could feel it clearly, even though its source was still hidden.  Although, one thing was clear to Kyle now.  The attacker was B Grade.  If they’d been closer, or more willing to use larger attacks, he knew that he’d be in trouble.

Fortunately, despite the shockwaves from the attacks, none of them were aimed at him, and they were being targeted from far enough away that Kyle had an opportunity to react.  Between his own senses and C.H.A.D.D. highlighting the areas where space was twisting, he could continue the dance.  Certainly, the shockwaves were unpleasant, but the overall focus seemed to be entirely on Ger’Sinh.  His backer was trying to silence him, so out of spite Kyle was going to make sure he was kept alive.  So long as it didn’t cost his own life, that is.  Ger’Sinh knew something, and Kyle wanted those answers.

After another minute of evasion, Kyle felt something shift.  The air around him grew heavier, as his movements began to slow.  The moment it did, he felt another powerful presence approaching, this one familiar.  Always coming to the rescue, and more powerful than before.  As the space around him attempted to shift, Kyle activated Storm Shelter, infusing it with Heart of Creation and the concept of Immutability.  A blinding silver light appeared around him, shoving away the spatial energies trying to pull him away.  At the same time, the space around Storm Shelter seemed to crack and destabilize, as a deafening sound of thunder erupted around him.

Trees, debris, and even the ground itself outside of Storm Shelter were torn away, his barrier cracking and crumbling before the attack.  And then, as quickly as it happened, it was gone.  Through Synaptic Barbs he could feel Ger’Sinh turning his head to look at Kyle with his eyes opened wide, but he didn’t have a chance to pay attention.  The B Grade was getting serious in its attempts to take Kyle and Ger’Sinh, and even though he had no chance of winning a straight confrontation, he wasn’t without options.

He pushed more energy into Storm Shelter as he reached his hand toward the brightly-glowing World Tree Seed, withdrawing three items from the spatial storage.  The first was another of the stonebloom barriers, this one designed to fit inside his defensive skill.  The second was a set of scale mail he’d painstakingly grown; scales of stonebloom material covering thin yet tough fern leaves, all infused with the concept of Immutability.  Finally, Kyle withdrew an etched stick, now glowing with the same energy as the seed from which it had been grown.

With a defiant glare at the sky, Kyle pulled more power through Genesis Engine.  This most recent attack shattered Storm Shelter and left his stonebloom barrier cracked, and Kyle used the opportunity to launch himself toward the other approaching presence.  Pushing outward with Repel fought back against the constricting space somewhat, and the stonebloom armor’s natural resistance to mana helped him flee through the space.  Still, it was still getting progressively more difficult to move without Storm Shelter rallying against the suppressive effects.  With a nudge, he pushed Heart of Creation into Genesis Engine, the golden glow of his skill now mixing with brilliant silver as he redoubled his efforts to close the distance.

The renewed empowerment was what he needed, breaking free from the zone of compressing space just in time to see a large, armored form approaching like a meteor.  The moment it got close, a phantasmal silver shroud appeared in the air above him, and the pressure from the spatial attack was gone, replaced entirely by the B Grade presence radiating off the soldier in front of him.  The ogre was tall, even for ogres, and wore masterfully crafted armor.  He bore a sword and shield, and the familiar tusks jutted out as his savior arrived.  “Good to see you again, Kyle.  Jarberry asked me to send his best.”