Belaphorde held his breath. He was hidden behind a fallen tree. A crystal beast wandered around, feeling for magic in the air. Bel held the Needle in one hand and a core in the other. Aegis secured to his arm. The raptor-like obsidian monster wandered right up to the tree. Belaphored stayed calm as he crushed the core against the Needle. It shot out, and the monster shattered like glass. The shards lit up as it crumbled to dust and was absorbed into the artefact. The only thing that remained was a low-grade core. He pocketed the power pearl and hurried deeper into the woods. One charge would keep the Needle going for a few minutes; it’s power growing with each meal. Bel moved like a predator. He paid close attention to the movements of the creatures. He was looking for sluggish or floaty movements. Hints that would lead him to the boss monster.
The wind whipped up dust and pine needles. Bel pushed his trucker hat down and pounced another beast. It was struggling to strike and turn as Belaphorde dodged around it with ease. He stabbed it multiple times, shattering its structure until it had no more energy to protect itself. As Bel went to pick up the core, he heard the snapping of branches. Three crystal shards flew towards him in an arch. He raised his arm and flicked away the middle shard, the other two landing in the red dirt by his feet. His arm trhobbed from the impact. He dove for cover, crouching behind a mound of dirt. Peering over his shoulder, he could spot a pair of wings made up of hundreds of little blades. “Harpy” came to mind as he made out the contours of the creature. It moved it’s wings and flicked more daggers. Belphorde dove down and held his position. The harpy jumped up into the high crowns of the pine trees. It let out a metallic screech that rang in Bel’s ears. He activated the Aegis with a core, and the buckler lit up. Fractal patterns spread out across the disc and into a barrier that blocked out the sound. The harpy dived for it’s prey. The harpy collided with the barrier. Sparks filled the air, the light crystalizing into snowflakes at the impact. The creature flailed it’s wings as it was now free-falling into it’s back. Belaphorde pushed it down with the Aeigs barrier and stabbed it until he found it’s flickering heart. The harpy shattered into dust; it’s last shriek was completely absorbed by the shield.
With the hive queen taken care of, Belaphorde found a safe spot to wait out the subsequent wild stampede of the rest of the monsters in the exo-dungeon. After thirty minutes, Bel went out to collect the cores of the beasts that had shattered in the commotion and reaped the rest of the creatures that had shut down. Content with his work, Belaphorde got on his bike and disappeared into the dusty sunset.
He arrived back at the Satillite base with a bag filled with cores. The others could barely believe their eyes. Belaphorde had completed a dungeon solo as a Guide. Bel could feel the groups praise, confusion, and fear. He murmured out something reminiscent of a report and headed to his own room to sleep. The next day, while quietly enjoying some gruel and bread in the mess hall, Darlacarla approached Belaphorde.
“Hey bell-boy. Are you settling in? You haven’t gotten into trouble with anyone?” She slid on to the bench opposite Bel with a cup of hot water. Her smile was warm, but her red eyes and unwashed clothes made it clear that she was struggling to keep herself together. Her heart remained broken since she lost her lover.
“I’m fine, thanks to your efforts, Aunty. I appreciate that you took it upon yourself to explain my prescenes to the other Satellites. I don’t want any unnecessary tension.”
“Right as you say. Great.” She sipped her water. “Though it seems like you like to go solo this time around. Just shoot me a word if you feel like teaming up or taking on some Guiding.”
“I’d like to keep my head down. As much as I’d like to support the rebellion, I still do not know where I’m safe. I feel comfortable handling duengeons and supply cores with you Satellites, for the time being.”
“I wanted to let you know that I managed to get in contact with the Skull Girl that you had asked for. Wearing a mask and has electric powers. The name is Heidi. She will be coming by today to pick up some cores and chat. That will be your chance to check out the situation between you and the Skulls, or whatever it is you wanted with her.”
“Thanks. I owe you one.”
“Happy to help, kiddo. Now tell me, how in tarnation, did you take on a dungeon by yourself?” Darlacarla shifted the mood, and Bel obliged by doing his best as a storyteller. It helped that his audience were so eager and peppered him with questions.
After the meal, Belaphorde spent a few hours locked in his room. It wasn't much, but it had a lock and a mattress, which was all Bel needed. The beds back in Kaleido were too soft. Out here in the silence, surrounded by familiarity, he thought that he most likely was a bit insane for struggling against all the comforts that he was offered. No one had made him come here. He laughed softly to himself, feeling the numbing cold of the crystal in his chest. Behind his eyelids he saw the diamond grin of the Knave. A monster with the power to summon a Kaiju. It had talked to him. No crystal beast had ever shown any signs of higher intelligence. The Knave was special and had contacted him, though neither Vigo nor Kaigo had made any comment to allude that they had seen anything. Belaphorde had hoped to find the Knave during his hunt. He either wanted answers from the Knave or fight it. It was clear enough that the Knave and Kaiju were connected. The Knave had summoned it and would summon another one if the Kaiju made it back to it’s origin. Tina had said that they would know the Kaiju was coming when the Knave made another Dungeon. She had also said that they had never been able to find the Knave unless it was in the process of taking over a Dungeon. Belaphorde would continue his hunt and learn what made him different.
The sound of engines stirred him from his thoughts. The Skull Girls had arrived at the Satellite base. Belaphorde straightened himself up. He put on his dust-sheilding cap and grey wind-proof jacket. He waited a bit on the back side of the building, allowing the others to tend to their business. The other Skull Girls went inside, leaving Heidi guarding their pickup truck. She was wearing a hoodie and her iconic white mask with a purple streak. She pulled on her drawstrings to tighten the hood as the wind howled restlessly. Crossing her arms as she leaned on the car,
“Excuse me, Mask. May I have a word?” Belaphorde approached.
Heidi remained silent and sized up Belaphorde. She was about to dismiss this odd boy until she recognised him.
“I should strike you down where you stand, killer. But since you have beat me not once but twice, I’ll hear you out. Step inside."
The two got into the pickup truck and shut out the storm.
“You got balls coming back here after what you did.” Heidi spoke with ice in her tone.
“People like us don’t have the luxury of clean lives. But I have not sought you out because I thought it’d be fun.”
“Then speak.”
“I wish to fight along with the rebels occupying district twelve. However, I won’t tolerate any hostilities or degrading behaviour. Since the Skull Girls are the main organisers of the attacks, I wanted to check with you first if this would be possible. Last I dealt with you Skull Girls I was told my legs would be broken.”
“You have no idea of the damage you have caused, Killer Guide. We might be at war but that does not mean that we have forgotten how you left one of our sisters die and stabbed another through their eye with a shard of glass. I can respect you as a fighter, but you are delusional if you think you are safe with me or any other Skull Girl.”
Belaphorde sighed. “Then I won’t push the issue. I hope you will allow me then to continue my work with the Satellites undisturbed. Of course I will oblige you if you ever ask for a rematch.”
“Perhaps I’ll take you up on that. It’d be a shame if you died before I had a chance to expose your cheap tricks. I’ll ignore you for now since it’s too busy.”
Bel nodded approvingly. “One more thing before I’m out of your hair,” he started. “The Kaiju, it’s coming back soon. If it’s not defeated, there will be another one summoned. It’s expected to walk the same route as it came from. Your powers would be helpful in battling it, both for damage and searching out it’s core. I’d recommend that you take care of your Guides and create backup plans so you don’t instantly lose all your Espers. If you want to fight it, then search me out or approach someone from the Guardian Guild and say I sent you.”
Heidi was stunned. She thought seriously about what Belaphorde had said. He gave the Skull Girl time to process.
“It’s coming back?”
