Painting's progress: 5%
Thud!
Three dark and small spots appeared by the waters, beyond the door leading to the basement.
These spots were small and with each split second it grew larger, fainter and the objects more vividly.
Splash!
A leg and two hands, all ladened with blood and droplets flew out of the gushing waters. Heading toward Leonard, suppressing a leg.
Leonard saw this incoming attack and immediately rolled for cover.
Splash!
The flooded water further damped his clothes, this didn't seem to thawed as the waters from the basement continued poured out.
"Selina! Stay away from the door!" Klein informed Selina and Royale in a controlled yet desperate tone.
Within the depths of the submerged basement. A blood painting reveals an invisible liquid, featuring symbols etched into its surface as it coats the walls.
There was an eagle, the other two have a visage of an ethnic man and a woman. Both have an uncanny resemblance to the totem, centered by the blood circle.
Selina felt a grip in her heart. She instinctively pulled Royale to her side, fearing distance with the walls.
"Selina! Behind you!" suddenly, Klein shouted with agency.
Selina perked up and turned, at that moment her pupils constricted.
Out of desperation, Klein dashed toward her, hand clutching his brass revolver.
But just before he closed in, a hand dragged Selina out of the limb's path. Completely saving her.
It was Royale's hand, her deep-blue eyes reflected Selina ladened with fear.
"T-Thank you." muttered Selina upon collecting herself.
Royale nodded without uttering a word.
During this, the arms and leg went straight on the walls and crashed.
Bam!
The smoke cleared shortly after, revealing damaged limbs. Skin peeling off and puss oozing from either its veins or flesh.
Selina felt nauseated while seeing this, causing her avert her gaze away, using her hand to cover.
The limbs didn't stayed as each of them flew to varied direction. Painting one detail at a time before immediately darting away.
This happened in just a few seconds.
At the same time, the leg which was caught by Leonard earlier, hurriedly dragged itself on the walls to bleed, allowing the blood to coat its nails.
Thanks to the additional limbs, the four painting's upper area encountered its completion, but barely confirming a picture.
Painting's Progress: 10%
Dunn saw the unfinished work's upper details.
Alerted, he quickly shouted, "Do not let the limbs finish the paintings! If they're slowing down, shoot them!"
Selina fought the horror looming in her heart and reached into her holster again, drawing out her revolver.
Bang!
A bullet pierced a leg that was slowing down. Dunn watched as blood spewed out of the limb and splatted on the walls to which it diligently draws on.
But instead of it ruining the unfinished art piece. The blood simply acted as though the walls are hydrophobic. It cascaded down without damping the wall.
"Ruining it using its own blood didn't even work..." Selina muttered after seeing this, finding the tenacity of the environment to retain the painting's progress unfairly absurd.
Progress: 15%
A leg was in trance, facing the wall on the corner right of Selina.
Bang!
Klein fired exactly at the moment it slows down. Successfully hindering it.
But at the same time, a stray leg that was revolving around the ceiling, pivoted on the corner and braced itself toward him.
Selina caught the leg's image from the corner of her eye as she monitor the limbs flying around.
"Behind you!' she shouted.
Klein heard her voice and immediately rolled on the side. Running water drenched his coat and hair.
He quickly straightened himself, slicked his hair back and assumed his earlier position.
The leg flew pass him and with the momentum it used during the assault, maneuvered from the wall and returned to the ceiling.
Dunn's dark eyes reflected the limbs, storming pass his periphery. Two would occasionally slow down, while the others would attempt to strike.
All of this was happening simultanously.
It was clear to him that if this escalates further without properly restraining the limbs or ending this completely. Their bullets would inevitably run out and the paintings would be finished.
The painting's effects are a mystery, but they're not equipped with a privilege to know and live. The surge of ocean waters below served as a vivid exemplary of what might happen.
As such, with this in mind, Dunn settled internally and called Leonard, "Mitchell, prepare to dive and eliminate the main body. I will accompany you."
Leonard lowered his gun and turned his head to their captain. Without having to explain, he nodded and withdrew his revolver.
Bang!
Selina fired a bullet, missing the leg that was slowing down but managed to impede its attempt of adding a stroke.
Not a second had passed did she saw a limb flew to her direction again.
Despite her heart pounding in her chest, she forced herself to lunged to the side. Landing with her hands first before collapsing under the sudden impact.
Splash!
Selina's hair loosened and she began feeling chill creeping in.
But thankfully, it was tolerable. She casted her hair aside before standing up.
Around this moment, Leonard had avoided another assault from a stray arm. He turned to hint Dunn that he'll enter first.
Just as he submerged his feet, the eeriness made him paused.
"What's wrong?" Dunn noticed Leonard stopping at the shallow waters, one step into the stairwell.
Suddenly, Leonard smiled before explaining, "I don't think the limbs could be the only ones to detach from the main body..."
Dunn went silent, his thoughts unknown.
It didn't take him long to acknowledge Leonard's suggestion, causing him to turn around to the other members.
"Then we'll capture the four limbs." Dunn didn't insisted on diving in, choosing to trust his subordinate.
Leonard nodded. Suddenly, he began stepping back from the basement and turned before dashing straight to the sofas.
Using the momentum, he leaped from the furniture and onto the table. From there, he timed his squat, an arm slowed down above an oriel window.
Plap!
Leonard jumped, hands opened in the air and just like earlier, he managed to grab the arm gradually stopping at a wall.
Splash!
Water splatted over his trousers on impact. His hair whipped and turned disheveled under the motion of falling.
Although his vision was obscured by his hair, Leonard quickly strike the arm's hands trying to clawed his skin.
One limb was captured.
Almost immediately, the other parts changed their course. While one was slowing down to continue to paint, the other two swooped toward Leonard.
Dunn lowered his revolver and immediately dashed in Leonard's direction in response.
Using the sofa as a stepping point, he leaped. Doing so, his trajectory timely encountered the two limbs flying like missiles.
Splash!
Dunn landed on his feet before rolling sideways, mitigating the impact.
But much to his capabilities, only one limb was caught by his embrace. Seeing this, his heart tightened.
Dunn lifted his head almost immediately and saw that the arm was still suspended in the air.
It had evaded him earlier and changed its course!
Bang!
Just before it hit Leonard, just a few inches gap from him and the limb. A stray bullet pierced its wrist, sending it away from Leonard.
That bullet came from Royale, who's deep-blue eyes forced calm and rationale under the glint of moonlight.
Dunn felt relief, then soon after, he began growing anxious by the presence of the two remaining limbs still storming the room.
Seeing the leg still squirming, he grabbed its toes and slammed it on the ground.
Bam!
Droplets of water, contaminated with blood splattered on his face. Using his own weight, he deprived the leg of its ability to fly.
"Klein." He called while suppressing the limb's struggles. "Hold this while I catch the other two."
Klein saw the leg's surface peeling and veins protruding like sacks. He gulped first before nodding.
After lowering himself down to Dunn's level, he clutched the leg by its feet, then using his weight brought down the thigh. Hair follicles brushed against his skin.
A clear detest made Klein distance his face from it. While restraining the leg, he watched Dunn quickly stood up before locking his sight to a limb.
Bang!
Royale fired a bullet that missed the fast leg, however it disrupted its process of adding another detail to the unfinished painting. The limb quickly left.
Since there are four limbs. Leaving one member or two to restrain them would be troublesome and could potentially lose their grasp.
While wrestling with the arm. Leonard quickly realized this and began searching for something to tie the legs with.
Right at the oriel windows. Thin but wide, almost translucent drops of curtains was instantly reflected from his pupils.
Due to this, he smiled at Klein, who's only meters away. "Moretti, how about you take this load with you as well?"
Klein, who was a keyboard warrior couldn't believed what he had just heard.
That meant double meaning! he exclaimed inwardly.
However, in this context, he set aside his pride and tried to reach his hand out, saying, "Alright, give me the arm."
Leonard tried to hand the detached limb, but with just one of his movement, the arm quickly began wriggling.
If he were to forcibly hand it to Klein, it would inevitably escaped their grasp. Rendering the effort futile.
So to solve this, Leonard tightened his hold of the arm, then suddenly he jumped as high and far as he could.
Splash!
Leonard slammed the arm onto the flooded floor after landing on the ground, causing more blood to spill out from its injury.
"Here." he let out a grunt while limiting the arm's movement.
Klein adjusted his posture and with an available hand, buried his fingertips over the Morroy's detached arm.
Finally free from having to hold a limb. Leonard didn't waste another second as he dashed to a nearby window and teared the curtains from its place.
Amid all this, Dunn commend to Selina and Royale.
"Don't shoot the leg, focus on the arm." he voice reverberated in the room.
Selina quickly understood what he meant. The captain is aiming to capture the said part without risking a friendly fire.
So instead, she locked her sight on the suspended arm, gradually slowing down at an unfinished painting.
Bang!
Her shot missed again as the arm flew off at an instant. It made Selina thought of this behavior akin to a pestering housefly.
The limb left her periphery, and just as she turned, her eyes suddenly froze.
The painting was half-way in completion!
In what the artwork Selina is facing is an image of a glade. Albeit made up of blood, it outlines trees swaying, and grass blades tumbling.
Her heart tensed and she averted her gaze away to see the other paintings.
Sure enough, their details was beginning to become vivid.
To her left, a lonesome house, deserted in a land ladened with cracks and ravines. Meanwhile the walls on her right, a scene of giant mushroom caps, scattered in a forest.
These are only three, and when she turned back, she saw a painting of a raging maelstrom, isolated in an ocean.
No way... T-The limbs are that fast?
In a terrified state, Selina quickly turned to inform Dunn of the painting's progress.
However, seeing that their captain leaped from one furnishing to another, before subsequently catching the third limb. She felt somewhat relief.
Thank the Goddess... she sighed inwardly before redirecting her attention.
Bang!
Royale let out another bullet and it went straight toward the arm, briefly slowing down.
Blood bloomed from the whole it bore. Disrupting its attempt to create a line once again.
During this. Klein, with the curtain provided by Leonard, strangled the limbs he's currently holding. They were tied individually.
Leonard saw the arm slowing down again and shouted to Royale, "Don't shoot!"
At the same time, he leaped from the bookshelf he landed and threw himself at the target
The arm quickly left.
Splash!
Leonard landed in the waters. He expressed his disdain at the failed attempt and immediately tried to predict where the limb was heading.
And soon enough, he figured its next course.
Without intending to let it escape again, he positioned right above the sofa. Then as the arm gets noticeably slow, he jumped.
Plap!
Splash!
Leonard succeeded in catching the arm!
Seeing this, Selina drew out her held breath, feeling relief like she had just presented her month's worth of project to the executives.
All that's left now is to get Mr. Roundel's body inside the basement... while in thought, she subconsciously turned to look at the basement.
From there, what greeted her made each strands of her hair stood on ends.
A head, featuring a smile reaching ear to ear. Its eyes were blank. No, Its eye was blank.
This severed head bobbled up on the surface of the waters, staring intently at Selina.
Then, without any warning. The world around her slowed down, her vision darkened, before she finally passed out.
...
Beyond the gushing waters of the basement. At its dark depths where light refused to permit.
The glowing crimson eyes of the totem grew brighter.