SOUL REAPERS

Rocky 3.2

Rocky peeked at the savants as they sucked the souls from the corpses. Her foot tapped the ground while she chewed her bottom lip. It was happening again. Her stomach twisted into knots, and her vision blurred before returning to normal. She took a deep breath. "Screw it."

Bow grabbed Rocky's arm before the teenager left their hiding spot. "And where do you think you're going?" she asked.

Rocky had a terrible habit of rushing head-first into battle without a plan. She opened her mouth but couldn't come up with an excuse. She pressed her lips together and glared at her fellow squad member.

Bow smiled before turning to Mr. Pascal. "What's the plan, sir?"

The headmaster remained quiet, his furrowed brows showing he was in deep thought. As a former captain of the Lost Halos and the only adult there, the teenagers looked at him for answers. "Divide and conquer," he said. "There are forty-two savants and one knight. Out of the forty-two, only three have nine eyes. We'll pair up, take out the low-ranked savants first, and then kill the higher-ranked together."

"We can't kill the nine-eyed ones. They're too powerful," Lillian, the oldest student among them, said.

"We're not trying to kill them," said Mr. Pascal. "We only need to hold them back long enough for the squads to arrive and save everyone."

"And how long do you think we can hold them back?" Lucas asked.

"As long as it takes."

"Don't worry, my fans. The superstar will protect you from the monsters," Rocky said with a smug smile.

Bow ignored her and asked the headmaster, "What happens when the nine-eyed revenants attack us?"

"You run away." Mr. Pascal glanced at each student. "Understand me?"

"Yes," they replied.

"Good. Here are the teams: Rocky and Bow, you'll fight the three-eyed savants. Lucas and Anita, the four-eyed ones. Lillian and I, the five-eyed ones. Then, together, we'll go after the six, seven, and eight-eyed savants. Remember, no matter what, don't fight the nine-eyed ones. If they attack you, run away. Am I clear?"

The teenagers nodded.

Mr. Pascal walked to the end of the fallen canteen, glanced at the savants, and then looked back at them. "Alright. On the count of three, we run out of here together." He turned away and raised his fist, using his fingers as a count-up. "One. Two. Three."

They dispersed into their groups.

With her scythe in her left hand, Rocky used her right hand to summon wind around her, forming an armor with wings. There were nine three-eyed savants. She flew toward one and swung her scythe at its head. It parried with its three right arms and kicked her. Rocky slid backward. She planted her weapon's pole into the ground and stopped moving.

Three Eyes opened its mouth, releasing a dozen black strings that connected to the corpses on the ground. The bodies stood and faced the savant. It pointed at Rocky, and they ran after the superstar.

Not wanting to waste time and energy, Rocky aimed her palm at them and fired a dozen energy beams. The rays were not strong enough to destroy the bodies, so she cut the strings the savants used to control them.

"Your turn." She flew toward the savant and swung her scythe. The revenant tried parrying it again, but Rocky had imbued her weapon with cosmic energy, slicing its arms off.

The monster screamed in pain as she cut off its other limbs. When its body fell to the ground, she cut off the top of its head, revealing its tongue and beating hearts.