Chapter 182: Chapter 182- Explosive
Fey’s hands trembled, liquid spheres hovering around her like beads of mercury, vibrating with unstable energy. She muttered rapid chemical formulas under her breath, controlling the volatile reaction with sheer precision. Emma crouched beside her, flames flickering at her fingertips, eyes blazing with focus.
"Shield’s down!" Emma barked, pointing at the staggering turtle. "Now, Fey, ignite it!"
"I know, I know!" Fey snapped, sweat dripping down her forehead. "The liquid’s volatile enough, once your fire enters, the chain reaction will—"
"Just say boom, Fey," Emma cut her off, grinning despite the tension.
"...Fine. Boom. A really big one."
Emma thrust her hands forward, her fire threading into Fey’s liquid bombs. For a split second, the orbs glowed like molten suns, heat waves rippling the air.
"Lea!" Fey shouted, "Get back, now!"
Lea, battered and bleeding, staggered backward, grumbling. "Oh sure, now you care about me dying."
The turtle roared and tried to summon another layer of water to defend itself, but it was too late. Fey snapped her fingers, liquid compressing tighter around Emma’s flames—
FWOOM!
The bombs ignited in a thunderous explosion, flames spiraling with compressed liquid, forming a massive shockwave of heat and pressure that tore through the turtle’s exposed body. Steam hissed violently, and the ground quaked beneath the force.
The turtle screamed, writhing, its armored body scorched and cracked.
Emma, panting, clenched her fists tighter. "Not enough... let’s push it further!"
Fey nodded, veins glowing faintly as she manipulated the remaining liquid fragments, compressing them even tighter. Emma poured more fire in, the two of them synchronizing like they had trained for this exact moment.
Together, they unleashed a second detonation, hotter, sharper, more violent.
The turtle’s roar cut off abruptly, its massive frame crashing against the ground, smoke rising from its body.
Emma grinned, sweat dripping down her chin. "Boom. Just like I promised."
Fey sighed, finally releasing her grip on the liquids. "...Chemically accurate enough for you?"
Emma smirked. "Explosive enough."
The smoke began to thin, and for a heartbeat, they thought it was over. But then, a low, guttural rumble shook the ground.
The turtle’s charred body twitched, its cracked shell glowing faint green from within.
Emma’s eyes widened. "Damn it... its core’s still intact!"
A jagged light flared inside the turtle’s chest, pushing back the smoke. The beast roared again, more furious than before, its movements clumsy yet relentless, like an animal clinging to life with pure rage.
Fey clenched her teeth, pulling the last few unstable liquid spheres to hover at her side. "Figures. Monsters like this never die easy."
"Then we’ll make it die hard," Emma growled. Flames surged across her arms, twisting and coiling like serpents. Her entire forearm glowed molten red as fire crawled up her skin, fusing into her muscles. She dashed forward, every step leaving a scorched mark on the ground.
"Emma, wait—!" Fey shouted, but it was too late.
Emma leaped onto the turtle’s cracked shell, flames roaring from her body. "Burn!" she screamed, driving her blazing fist into the exposed core. The impact exploded in fire, sending arcs of molten energy spiraling outward. The turtle shrieked, its massive limbs thrashing, but Emma refused to let go.
"Now, Fey!" she shouted, straining against the creature’s convulsions.
Fey snapped her fingers, sending the remaining orbs spiraling into the turtle’s open wounds. The liquid seeped into the cracks, surrounding the core like a death shroud.
"Detonate—!"
BOOOOM!
Lea, still catching her breath, spat dirt from her mouth and muttered, "Hmph. Show-offs."
And Lea’s voice rang out across the battlefield, sharp and commanding. "This... is Stage 5, the real deal!"
Immediately, her power surged, radiating from her in violent waves. Each punch and strike hammered against the turtle mercilessly, the air around her crackling with raw energy. Her fists tore into the monster’s limbs, its shell splintering under the relentless force.
With a final roar, Lea flung the turtle high into the air. Its massive body spun like a ragdoll against the sky.
Fey, already prepared, aimed the remaining bomb with precision. "Now!" she shouted.
BOOOM!
The explosion erupted in a blinding flash of heat and light, enveloping the airborne beast.
The turtle’s scream cut through the battlefield like glass shattering, then abruptly silenced. Its colossal body slumped, smoke rising from every crack, until at last it collapsed with a thunderous crash.
Emma staggered back, clutching her arm, charred but still intact, and smirked through her ragged breathing. "That’s how you kill a damn turtle."
Fey exhaled hard, letting her liquid scatter harmlessly into the ground. "You’re insane..."
Emma grinned weakly. "Maybe. But it worked."
The battlefield finally fell quiet, save for the hiss of steam rising from the turtle’s smoldering corpse. The three of them stood in silence for a moment, bruised, burned, and exhausted, just listening to the heavy thud of their own heartbeats.
Lea dropped onto a broken piece of shell, wiping the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. "...If I ever see another turtle in my life, it’ll be too soon."
Emma, still flexing her scorched arm, let out a sharp laugh. "At least this one won’t be moving again."
Fey’s expression softened just enough to show relief. She pulled her comm device from her belt and tapped into the intercom channel. Her voice, calm but carrying the weight of exhaustion, rang out across the link.
"Division Four here. Target neutralized. The turtle is down."
There was a pause on the line before static cleared and another voice responded with a surge of energy, Glain’s, steady but tinged with urgency.
"Confirmed. Excellent work. Hold your position and prepare for further orders. The fight isn’t over yet."
Emma sighed, rolling her shoulders. "Let me rest."
Lea groaned, lying back against the turtle’s cracked shell. "Can’t even get five minutes, huh?"
Fey clipped her comm back into place, her gaze lingering on the smoke rising in the distance where the sky-whale battle still raged. "No. We can rest when it’s truly over."