The Legend Of Black Eyes

"What the hell is he?" Sylens asked. He was running while shooting nervous glances toward the big golem that chased after him. Heda and Friede followed on his heels.

They had gone through a door and beyond the crude metallic scaffolding. They found themselves in a spacious warehouse where many crates were stacked on top of each other. Some of them had bright flames painted over them, while others had a strange symbol that looked like three intertwined circles.

Heda was guiding the others through the maze of stacked crates and the piles of sacks as they ran away from Myles. 

"I told you not to leave him behind!" Friede hissed at the others. She stopped in her tracks and turned to meet the incoming golem. "I'll just apologize to him." 

Heda pulled her from her shoulders. Her face was contorted in an expression of deep hatred. "He won't listen to reason anymore. You didn't hear what he told me!" 

Friede brushed her off. "He's right to be pissed. You can go on ahead. You know the future anyway. You should know how this will end." 

Heda cursed under her breath. She knew what Friede was insinuating, and that made her anger flare even stronger. "Stay there if you'd like then! I'm only looking out for you." 

Friede scoffed. "He'll be upon us soon enough." She motioned her chin toward the rapidly approaching golem.

"Heda, what the hell are you doing? Leave her be. She made her choice!" Sylens screamed. 

Heda glared at Sylens, and the latter swallowed his words. She opened her mouth to speak but Rimbaldi's voice drowned hers. It echoed through the spacious warehouse like thunder. 

"YOU BASTARDS! YOU DESTROYED MY PRECIOUS AUTOMATA! I'LL MAKE YOU PAY. I'LL MAKE ALL OF YOU PAY!" His shrill voice was so strident the champions had to cover their ears. 

Heda gave Friede her most convincing puppy eyes. "Together, we can survive. Stalwarts are known for their treachery. He's obviously using us. We can't trust him." 

Friede shook her head. "He's been nothing but a great help. He's always dealt with our foes for us. Tell me Heda, are we craven champions that run away from a challenge?" 

Just as Friede finished speaking, the champions heard a loud explosion behind them. Two automatons, much smaller than the one they previously fought, but still up to twice their size, appeared behind the rubble. They were gliding toward them. Long poles protruded from their backs, pushing them forward using steam power. 

Heda cursed loudly. "This is exactly why I begged you to leave with us," she told Friede, frustrated. 

They were looking at the approaching machines. They looked like two oversized men made out of metal. One of them was painted silver, while the other bronze. Their ċhėsts looked like those of a human. 

Large pectoral muscles, as well as well tones abdominal muscles, were engraved their brėȧst plates. Their arms were also well tones, with muscles carefully engraved to make them look like metallic humans with herculean strength. Both machines carried swords that were as tall as the champions.

"We bȧrėly escaped one of them. Now we have to fight two?" Sylens hissed. He was frowning. His head darted from the machines to Heda, then behind him, where Myles was approaching them. "And we have Stalwart to deal with..." 

Friede's eyebrows knitted together. Fat creases formed on her fine nose. She rarely showed any anger, or happiness for that matter. This time however, her face had changed color. Her cheeks reddened, and her eyes flared wide open. 

"You two have forgotten why we've travelled this far," she told them with a venomous hiss. 

Heda returned her glare. "I've only been looking out for us," she said in an undertone.  .

Friede shook her head. "You've been so obsessed with reading the future that you forgot one vital part." 

"Oh yeah?" Sylens cut in, frowning in turn. "Pray do tell, miss 'All Life Is Precious!'" He gesticulated with his hands, creating air quotes as he pronounced the last words. 

"The future isn't set," Heda said before Friede could retort. She turned to look at Myles and projected her psionic link toward him. Myles, however, wasn't willing to speak with her. She cursed under her breath. 

"I'll deal with Stalwart. You find a way to defeat the automata," Friede said in a confident tone. 

Sylens, still frowning, looked at Heda for help. He noticed that the champion of fate had a new resolute look about her. Her green eyes were fixating the approaching machines. She didn't take a step further. Instead, she drew a dagger from her belt and spread her feet at shoulder length. 

"Friede's right. We have powers people would slaughter entire civilizations to obtain. Since when do the champions of the Holi Wars run from a challenge?" She said in a resolute tone that shook Sylens. 

Myles reached them at that moment. He stopped near the champions, his larger than life head tilted to the side. He eyed Friede, who was barring his way with her arms spread wide open. 

"We've put you through a terrible ordeal. For that I apologize. I know simple words can't redeem us, but please..." Friede fell to her knees and bowed to Myles. "Help us reach the mad scientist. I personally will never run away from a fight anymore. I'll do my utmost to help you find that treasure you're looking for as well." 

Myles looked at the champions, then shot a quick glance at the approaching automata. His bulky clay shoulders heaved, a grotesque form of a shrug. "I accept your apology, but I want to hear the same words from the others." 

"Can we do this later?" Heda snapped. 

Myles chuckled. Bits and pieces of clay fell from his inflated body. "As you wish," he said then jumped backwards. "Deal with them alone. Oh mighty champions of the Holi Wars." He crossed his arms and watched the champions in stubborn silence.

They couldn't tell what he was thinking. Especially that his head was covered in a helmet made out of tough clay. The helmet looked like an inflated ball with two tiny holes from which Myles peeked at them. His body towered above them, draping them in a large shadow. 

Sylens cursed loudly. "I ain't apologizing to him. I'll deal with the machines alone," he said in a haughty tone. He turned his back to them and ran toward the automata.

The machines were a few steps away from them at that point. Sylens coated his arms with time energy, all the while creating a bubble around him to slow the machines' approach. He jumped at the bronze one, and blocked its incoming sword swing with his bȧrė hands. 

They clashed for a split second. Sylens's feet shifted to the side, but he managed to get the machine to stop. The automaton's blow wasn't strong enough to blow Sylens away. The latter grinned, and made to jump over the sword and approach the automaton's head. However, steam surged out of the machine's elbow, and its sword continued its swing with renewed speed. 

Sylens flew to the side, crashing against the multiple crates that adorned the warehouse. They could hear his screams and painful wails in the distance. Friede made to run for him but Heda caught her from the wrist. 

The silver machine had reached them at that point. It brought its sword down on Friede, and missed by mere inches. Friede felt her hair flow backwards, and the resulting shockwave from the swing almost swept them off their feet. 

"Go get him now," Heda told Friede. "I tried to warn him, but he decided to act like a 'man'. He'll die without your help." 

Friede nodded. 

Just as she was about to move, the silver machine swung once more. Heda slid in front of Friede and blocked the incoming sword with her dagger. Her knees faltered, but she endured. "Go, now!" 

Friede disappeared from sight, running at full speed toward Sylens. The bronze machine had taken flight and was looking for the champion of time. They heard Rimbaldi's shrill laughter then. 

"I have more than a dozen of these," Rimbaldi's voice echoed throughout the warehouse.. "In fact, why don't I send them all your way now? Let's see what the Primordials' chosen are capable of."