She watched the screen helplessly as one of Beleth's spider legs caught against Hunter and threw him against a wall, exposing weaponless Luke.
Hunter tumbled to the ground and lay still, even as Lucy's heart sped up.
Luke scrambled away, but Beleth stopped him. "Fight! Fight me."
Huh? It wasn't as if they were filming for a pro wrestling show. Why didn't Beleth kill him then and there? Not that Lucy was complaining, but she didn't like having an enemy she didn't understand.
Luke's breathing came through the comm harsh and jagged, full of fear. His face glistened with sweat.
Lucy kept her voice low and calm. "Luke, you can do it. I know you can. Don't give up, Bro."
She had to stop before her own panic filled her words, as she watched Hunter slumped into a heap in the corner, unmoving. He had to be just knocked out. No way he could be dead. Her mind refused to consider the possibility.
Tension built as Beleth stalked the silent Luke, who acted as if he hadn't heard either of them. Beleth seemed almost hesitant, resigned in his task, as though he didn't really want to kill Luke.
Lucy yelled at her brother. "Damn you, don't give up. There's something more going on here, and I need your help to figure it out. Get up!"
Beleth towered over her brother. Oh, God, no. "Fight me. Or will you do nothing? Will you sit by and watch, like you sat by while they killed your mother?"
Why was he taunting Luke? None of this made any sense. They hadn't even been there when their mother died; they'd still been at Rent-A-Kid, under lock and key.
"No, I'm not just going to sit by and watch." He reached into his backpack and pulled out a smoke grenade, then launched it at Beleth.
As fast as Luke had been, Beleth, as always, was faster. He dodged the grenade and it bounced off the back wall and clanged to the ground behind him. He lurched forward, to get out its way, but got caught in the green fumes as it exploded.
Luke put his gas mask over his face and ran across the room, but Beleth grabbed at Luke's backpack and yanked it away as he choked on the gas.
Lucy could see from the monitors that the gas was dissipating too quickly. In a room that size, it just wasn't enough, but if Luke used more he wouldn't have enough to complete the mission, if that was even a possibility anymore. "Luke, screw the mission. Just get yourself and Hunter out of there."
Leaving his pack behind, Luke scurried across the room and grabbed Hunter's sword, steel ringing as he slid it off the floor. "I have to finish this. I will not let anyone down again."
Like two bulls in a stadium, Luke and Beleth charged each other.
Long spider legs reached for Luke's neck, even as sharp blades lashed at his torso, but Luke dodged and rolled into a somersault. He erected a force-field around himself.
Beleth's blade hit it and ricocheted off, and the giant man fell hard to the ground. The combination of the fight and the gas seemed to finally be affecting him, at least marginally. He recovered a fraction slower, but still so much faster than a normal human. With a look of desperation in his eyes, he pleaded to Luke, "Use the sphere."
Lucy's heart skipped a beat. Why would he bring that up now? What would using the sphere do?
Luke shook his head. "Nice try, but Lucy got rid of that booby trap in the valley."
Did Beleth want Luke to drain his own life energy? If that was the case, it was a convoluted way of accomplishing what he'd had many opportunities to do himself.
This clearly enraged Beleth. He roared and looked more like an animal than ever before, the sound of his voice filling the large space. "Leave!"
What? Yes, dummy, leave. She couldn't figure out why Beleth was giving her brother an out, but he'd better take it.
Luke raised Hunter's sword and crept closer to his pack. "Never!"
Damn fool, still trying to complete the mission.
Beleth turned away from Luke and walked to Hunter, still slumped over, unconscious. "Then he will pay for your decision."
What? Oh God! This just kept getting worse and worse. Lucy wanted to run and help, but she wouldn't make it in time. Why hadn't Robyn arrived yet? Lucy wanted to check on them, though she'd given instructions already, but she couldn't pull her eyes from the screen.
Luke had to help Hunter. Why wasn't he moving? She looked to Hunter and to the vents. Shit! This was Luke's only chance to get the sleeping gas into the vents, but if he did that, Hunter would die. If he didn't, those kids would die.
Luke stood, paralyzed.
Panic gripped her voice. "Do something! Now!"
Beleth moved closer to Hunter, each step a loud thud, his muscles straining as if fighting himself.
If Luke didn't move soon, he'd lose his chance to do anything, and Lucy would lose Hunter and her brother.
Luke whispered something. "Sometimes there are no right decisions."