Winds of Freedom

Chapter 59: Ready for Dessert!

{Pre A/N}

WINDS OF FREEDOM VOLVIO CABRONES!

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Chapter 59: Ready for Dessert!

SHaNg Tu ISlaNd – EGg TheRMos, Night Hoursasf?

Inside the cramped control room of the Egg Thermos...?

Panels sparked and alarms blared as the remnants of shattered and torn metal testified to the all-out battle between Spade and Dail.

BOOM

Spade's body flew back with a burst of force as one brutal impact sent him hurtling toward a cold metal wall. The collision leaving a deep dent in the surface as Spade could only manage a guttural grunt as pain seized him.

As he struggled to get up, in the smoke, his vision gradually cleared to reveal Dail emerging, his blade, glimmering ominously in the dim light.

"Dail... don't do this..." Spade rasped, the words trembling on his lips as he struggled to make sense of his brother's relentless advance.

"Please..." Spade's plea was barely audible over the cacophony of alarms around them. He reached out desperately, his hands weak and trembling, trying in vain to snap his brother back to reason, but nothing could break through Dail as his cold red eyes loomed over him.

As the distance between them closed, Spade felt an inexplicable paralysis, though every instinct begged him to move, his body remained frozen.

"Dail..." Spade whispered, the gleaming sword of Dail loomed ever closer.

"Dail!" Spade cried again, his desperate pleas growing louder, each cry a futile attempt to halt what he sensed was inevitable.

"DAIL!" he screamed with raw pain as without a single word, Dail brought down his blade toward him. In that heart-stopping moment...everything went dark.

...

Then, suddenly, a jolt of consciousness shattered the nightmare.

"Spade?"

"Gah!" Spade bolted upright from his sleep, his heart racing as he frantically scanned his surroundings. "What?" he said with confusion as reality reasserted itself. The remnants of his dream clung to him.

"Erm, S-Spadey?" came a soft, concerned murmur from behind him. Spade turned his head to see Delano, Duffy, and several members of the Red Scarves peeking around. Their faces were etched with genuine worry.

"Are you alright?" the gecko inquired, stepping closer. "You were moving a lot in your sleep."

"Have you not rested enough back in the palace?" Duffy added, his voice mixing reproach with care as he eyed the disheveled state of their comrade.

Slowly, fragments of memory began to resurface within Spade. He recalled the bitter taste of his battle back at the Egg-Thermos back in Shang Tu, but he was no longer inside that doomed fortress, he was now here, on Shuigang Island.

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Shuigang Island – Island Borders, Noon Hours

Vast snow-covered fields stretched beneath a gentle, orange-hued sky. Military trucks and vehicles were scattered along the border as soldiers busied themselves with equipment checks, huddled conversations, and brief moments of respite around smoldering campfires. Beyond the frozen expanse, the Kingdom of Shuigang awaited.