Marcus motioned Ms. Han to stay low as she came through the rooftop door. She crouched down next to him and after a deep breath turned the tablet in her direction, "Hello Liu, you sniffling pigman." For a second anger flashed over the man's face. The maniacal grin returned on the spot and he said, "There is something I want to show you, traitor." The face of the leader Liu vanished and made place for the view on a small house in the dark. It was nothing special, a home somewhere in the outskirts of Hong Kong, with a little garden and a few children's toys scattered around in it. Xiu instantly got tense.

"Did you think I wouldn't find your spawn?" The voice of the man came clear through the speakers, "If you come down right now and slit your own throat in front of me, I will consider leaving your son and his family alive. If your performance pleases me." Ms. Han shivered, her eyes went wide and a moment later she started to slowly stand up. Marcus put his hand on her shoulder and effortlessly held her down. Xiu's face became a mask of despair, "He is my son…." But Marcus shook his head and said, "Show them." Xiu looked utterly confused by his words, but then the camera view changed.

The camera rotated 180° and showed the street next to a parking car. Three men with white masks were lying on the ground. They were very, very dead based on the large wounds on their chests and necks. Ms. Han gasped and leader Liu was cursing in Mandarin. The camera was turned again and showed the smiling face of Achara. A second later the feed ended and a scream of rage from the most honorable leader started the battle.

Xiu sprinted towards the door and Marcus rushed to the half high wall at the edge of the rooftop. The enemies were quickly advancing towards the building. The Lancer was particularly eager to get into battle. He unleashed his stored momentum and with one mighty jump aimed to reach the roof. The thunderous roar of Janette' monstrous rifle overpowered every other sound, and the head of the Lancer vanished in the middle of the air. In his haste he had left the protective shielding of the Guardian and Janette doesn't miss. A second later the devastating minigun of the Guardian bathed Janette's hideout in hot metal. But the Hawkeye was already gone. Janette giggled in Marcus' ear, "One for me."

Marcus looked down at the enemy, eight left. He hadn't fully finished that thought, when he realized that there were only seven. A sound behind him made Marcus raise Carapace out of instinct. Something hit his back and an explosion engulfed Marcus. The attack was painful and yet less severe than he had expected. He was still on his feet and turned to find the attacker. In the corner of the roof stood the Kage, aiming a multi-shot grenade launcher at Marcus. "Plop", Marcus crossed his arms and the next 40 mm grenade exploded on his body.

For a normal human, heck, for most low to mid level class holders, a 40mm grenade would be a deadly threat. Marcus with his effective 90 vitality and Carapace shrugged off the attack without much of a problem. As soon as he could see again, Marcus Burst charged the Kage. But the man vanished right in front of his eyes. The night was one giant shadow, and the enemy obviously had learned Shadow Step, allowing him to move quickly and unseen. It wasn't full teleportation, they needed line of sight and a clear path.

"Plop", and another explosion hit Marcus in the back. His clothes were already torn. He clenched his teeth and quickly Burst charged in the direction of the attacker. Too late, the Kage had already moved. "Plop" The next hit and Marcus started to get antsy. The attacks weren't the problem, this took far too long. There were seven more enemies. Marcus Burst charged again, but didn't expect to reach the enemy.

Before he even had come to a full stop he turned and saw the man materialize out of the darkness of the night. The Kage raised his grenade launcher like before, and was suddenly accelerated through invisible force in Marcus' direction. The surge of speed catapulted the man over the whole roof and right into Marcus' waiting fist. Impulse Hammer opposed the speeding man and physics did horrendous things to his body. "One down," Marcus said over com.

As an answer Janette's rifle raised its voice again. "I am at two. Move faster, big man!" Janette's voice sounded strained. Alarmed, Marcus turned to rush down the stairs, when out of nowhere he was attacked from behind again. An enemy jumped him from behind, wrapping his arms and legs around Marcus in an attempt to strangle him. Only his training with Lars years ago allowed Marcus to get his hand under the choke hold before it was too late. A large amount of strength crests tried to break Marcus' neck and choke him out. His insane vitality and Carapace resisted greatly, but it wouldn't allow Marcus to get rid of the man.

That was a job for Impulse Hammer. Marcus moved his second hand, aiming at the head of his enemy and let it rip. Nothing happened. Confused and somewhat startled Marcus tried again, and even though he did everything like always… NOTHING HAPPENED! A rush of panic was quickly smothered by realization. There had been one unknown class in the ranks of the enemy. Energy Thief! Now that he concentrated on it, he could feel his endurance draining, slightly. It was a trickle compared to the reserves he had, but it told him he was right.

While his enemy still worked hard on Marcus' adamantium neck, he desperately tried to come up with a strategy to win, time was running! Carapace was still working, what about Force Control? A quick boost of acceleration made Marcus and his tick-like enemy a little lighter. Marcus clenched his teeth, no sense in coming up with a plan. Action was needed!

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Marcus formed a red, elongated rectangle around them and pushed the power density to the max. In the span of a second they were both accelerated upwards by 10 times Earth's gravity (g). The Energy Thief screamed in panic and held on even tighter. One second, two seconds, three seconds… The building was already more than 200 meters below them. Marcus wiggled around and their center of gravity did the rest, the man was now beneath Marcus. He created a downward-facing field in their flight path and sent them back to the roof like one big, obscene cannon ball.

The second acceleration had been a lot weaker, just 3g. Gravity was giving them a hand this time around. The roof was sturdy, but the impact and the power release from Carapace shook the whole building. It was painful for Marcus, deadly for the Energy Thief. When the dust had settled Marcus got back on his feet, looking up to the hole in the roof and down to the pitiful remains of the Energy Thief.

No time to linger, there are still five enemies left! And I believe a Monk and the Onmyoji have found Ms. Han. To underline Xeen's words the cracking of a heavy pistol a few stairs down echoed through the building.

Marcus ran down the stairs, cursing his lack of dexterity crests. One enemy has fallen, but one is still left. Xeen said and guided Marcus to the foe and Ms. Han. Marcus shot around a corner and through the doorway of the room with Ms. Han. He saw the enemy standing only a meter away from Ms. Han and....

STOP MARCUS!

Xeen's shout made Marcus hesitate just long enough to think a moment about what he saw. The Onmyoji stood next to Xiu and showed no signs of hostility. There was a corpse on the ground with a hole where one eye naturally should be. How did she manage to hit the Monk?

The Titan came to a sudden and awkward stop. Xiu raised an arm in front of the enemy, "Don't attack him. He is no longer our enemy." Marcus checked the corpse again. The dead man on the ground had a talisman on his shoulder… He had no idea what was going on here, but things must have changed. "I could use some help please." Janette's aching voice came over the com bead and Marcus left the pair behind without a word. Ms. Han knew what she was doing.

Again, Marcus rushed down the stairs, following Xeen's short and precise instructions. The descent was made more difficult as thick black smoke rose from the foundation of the building. The sound of a desperate struggle reached his ears as Marcus raced through the last rooms. He nearly tripped over the torn body of slain enemy, before he entered the room and saw Janette holding on for life. Her rifle was gone, several throwing knives were stuck in her body and the female Arcane Master assaulted her with a long sword. This was all he saw, before he Burst charged the woman in the back.

The tall woman turned deftly, her sword pierced straight through Marcus' chest and she dodged his initial attack in the same motion. Ignoring the weapon inside of him he delivered a wide hook, but the woman let go of her main weapon and danced around Marcus, a knife leaving marks on his body. She was fast and annoying. He tried to remove the sword, but the moment he did, the woman shot forward and aimed for his neck. Marcus moved his hand in the way and the thin blade cut right through it. This woman was by far the most skilled enemy he had faced that day.

She quickly moved around him, alternating distance and attack angles, stopping him from setting up an Impulse Wave. Black smoke quickly crept into the room and made breathing and seeing a lot harder. Marcus tried a kick, the woman sidestepped and caught his leg before he could pull it back. Her knife came down, aiming at his knee. In the same moment something hit her head, a throwing knife stuck deep in her skull. Marcus could see the surprise in her eyes before she fell to her knees and then to the floor. "You aren't the only one who can play with knives, missy," Janette scoffed.

Marcus removed the annoying sword and watched Janette chuck down two red Alchemist potions. Heavy smoke filled the room and the temperature was rising quickly, the sound of hungry flames drew closer. "We need to get out, the Firelord has torched the building," Marcus said. Janette nodded, pain filled her face. She put on her helmet again, hobbled a few meters and fished her battered rifle out of the smoke. Marcus lifted her into a princess hold, "Save your breath." Janette closed her mouth again and allowed him to carry her up the stairs, away from the raging flames.

They found Ms. Han and the Onmyoji on the way to the roof. Once they were there they saw that not only the building, but the whole jungle around them was ablaze. Marcus set Janette down and Ms. Han talked with the other man in Mandarin. "He will keep me safe, but won't fight," she said to Marcus, after they had finished their discussion. Marcus gave the stranger a hard look and nodded. He walked over to the edge of the roof and found the last two enemies standing in the opening. The minigun erupted and Marcus' position was hammered by lead. He stepped back and thought for a moment.

Janette was unable to move a lot. The Guardian Shield prevented sniping, the Firelord was a deadly close range enemy. The fire caused time pressure…. "Janette, are you up for a round of skeet shooting?" He asked, while still in thoughts. Janette theatrically raised her weapon, "Give me a target."

Without another word Marcus ran towards the edge of the building and jumped down, towards the waiting enemies. To the Guardian's credit, the minigun was already laying into him before he hit the ground. The lead storm was admittedly annoying, Marcus thought as he walked forward with his arms crossed in front of his head. It must have looked like Marcus wanted to go toe to toe with the Firelord, a dangerous proposition even for Marcus, given that there was so much fire for the Firelord to feed on. But Marcus had no intention to play by their rules, he was no longer a pure melee fighter.

One major downside of Force Control was its limited range. Fifty, maybe seventy meters was currently the limit for Marcus to create acceleration zones. This was the reason why he needed to get closer. The most honorable leader Liu stepped forward, the surrounding heat enhanced his abilities thanks to the Fire Eating ability. In this beefed up state he could even melt a Titan. Marcus formed a red instant-elevator around the confident man and shot him into the sky. The short surge cost Marcus 10% of his endurance pool. All worth it to hear the man scream as he was hurled upwards. Janette's rifle barked, silencing the screaming. A thin mist of blood rained down on the burning jungle, together with the headless corpse of the most honorable leader. A good helmet could have saved his life here.

Marcus focused on the remaining Guardian. The man dropped his massive weapon and raised his arms, "I surrender!" Marcus let him run and used Force Control to return to the roof, saving Ms. Han (and the damsel Janette) from the flames. Soon, all were in relative safety and they watched as the Onmyoji quickly vanished through the burning jungle. "There will be a change in leadership in the Brotherhood, together with a change of priorities," Ms. Han said, and added, "He promised me that nobody would come looking for me."

Sirens howled in the distance and bright lights quickly came closer. As they stood in front of the burning high-rise building and waited for the authorities to arrive, a thunderclap echoed over the jungle. Janette swallowed hard, "We might have a problem, Marcus."

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