The Phantom Riser

CHAPTER FORTY FIVE - VENDETTA (2)

What the hell just happened? Did a Riser just grab a Ranger by the face? A Riser? Revik couldn’t believe what he just saw. Right before his eyes, Kiro had come out of no way and thrown a Ranger away like he was a piece of cloth. It was a shocker that he could even keep up with their pace, much less be able to actually inflict damage on a Ranger. There was no doubt about it. This Riser… was dangerous.

Kiro walked past a hesitant Revik. All his focus was on Kelleher; the Knight class Ranger that was sent to kill him. Revik held his hand as he tried to proceed. He wasn’t sure what it as that was fueling his anger, but it was dangerous to remain involved in the fight.

“I don’t know what the deal is, but remember that he is still a Ranger, and he was sent to kill you. the best thing you can do to make sure he fails is to leave. You have that chance now. Don’t let him win at all costs,” Revik said. He earnestly hoped his little speech was touching enough to convince Kiro to drop the whole thing. It would be a lot easier to fight without having to worry about any of them. Besides, once they successfully clear the test, his job was done. He wasn’t going to be babysitting them forever, so he needed to make sure he got this one right.

But Kiro was making sure his efforts went to waste. In fact. It looked like Kiro was intentionally trying to get killed just so that he could sabotage him. Maybe he was the one Kiro had an issue with and not the Ranger; Kelleher. “Leave Kelleher to me. You can go to the others. I need to know they are at least safe,” Kiro said without flinching.

Revik felt the irresistible urge to knock Kiro. Was that Riser just giving him directions? Wait, that wasn’t even the problem at the moment. How did he know Kelleher’s name? and why is he so intent on killing him? It looked too personal for Revik to ignore. “Hey, how do you know his name?” Revik said with all seriousness.

“Believe me when I say this, but for now, it is better if you don’t know,” Kiro said. And for some reason, Revik believed him. The look in his eyes was not one of a liar. Besides, if the Riser could keep up, taking on Kelleher would be so much easier.

Out of nowhere, Kelleher launched missiles at them at very close range. Revik moved in to get Kiro out of the way, but he had other ideas. He pulled up a force field shield around the two of them, shielding them from the explosion. At first, Revik was impressed that by his reactions and that his shield could actually protect them from such an attack. It felt reassuring in a way. But as the smoke cleared, he realized that that attack didn’t put as much as a scratch on the sphere. Even Kelleher was impressed at how strong the sphere was. Although that attack was far from his most powerful, it did pack a punch. But to have been completely unable to scratch the Riser’s defense, he would definitely need to up his game.

Attack after attack, Kiro deflected. Revik could only watch from the sides since Kiro had refused to allow him to help him out. But Kiro was slowly gaining the upper hand. By clenching his fist, Kiro increased the gravitational pull around Kelleher, pulling him to the ground. He had time moving but he wasn’t completely immobile. But Kiro was just getting started. He increased the intensity over and over until Kelleher was digging deep into the ground. No matter how he resisted, he just couldn’t overcome the overwhelming force. If he used any more power than he was already using, just so that he could free himself from Kiro’s hold, the testing ground would definitely not hold. And that would cause way more problems than he was ready to handle.

But Kelleher had a trick up his sleeve. Despite his struggling, he pulled out an amulet he had in his pocket. Either Kiro didn’t recognize it or he paid no heed to it, but he made absolutely no effort to take it away from Kelleher. Revik on the other hand was terrified upon seeing the amulet. He yelled at Kiro to pull back, but he paid no heed to him either. He was consumed by rage. The only thing he was concerned with was crushing Kelleher. Revik struggled to enter Kiro’s gravity zone. It was extremely difficult to move in, but he needed to warn Kiro. Or he could end up losing his life.

He finally got a hold of Kiro. He shook him a couple of times to try to get his attention but Kiro shrugged him off repeatedly. “Hey, don’t you know what that is? I thought you knew a lot, or are you just being stupid? Leave now!” Revik beckoned on him but Kiro refused to oblige. Slowly, the effects of the gravity zone wore out. And gradually, Kelleher was able to get to his feet again. Kiro tried effortlessly to bring back the gravity zone but failed as many times as he tried. Revik moved between himself and Kelleher in a bid to protect him.

“Get out of my way, I’ve got this!” Kiro yelled.

Revik couldn’t understand what his deal was. He was usually very calm and collected and very cautious in his planning. But ever since Kelleher showed up, he had completely lost it. Why? “I’ll ask you this again. Why are you so bent on killing Kelleher? What is it that makes you hate him so much?”

Kiro was silent for a while. Revik wasn’t sure at first, but as Kiro rose his head to speak, he was sure. Kiro was crying. “Because, he’s the one who kills Karenia,” he said.