Fated Destiny

With a final strike from his plasma sword, Red Goblin ended the life of Ptolemaios, the man who had caused so much suffering not just to him, but to the entire world with his army, was now dead.

The loud sound of metal scraping against stone behind him drew his attention. Before him stood a woman around his height, wearing a modified Ptolemaic special forces jumpsuit and gasmask, however what really caught his attention was the humongous hammer she carried with her.

"Commander Yoshino, the Ptolemaic's martial arts instructor." Red Goblin addressed her, he knew who she was although they had never met until now.

"You... shall pay for this." Was all she simply said.

Red Goblin analyzed the situation. She can't possibly move fast enough to fight me carrying that thing around... besides, I can cut anything with my sword. I have the high ground!

He charged first, the woman quickly threw a smoke bomb down, which blinded him and in the confusion landed behind Red Goblin with her hammer, slamming it down. The shock wave threw him off balance, left him dazed, he fell down and he lost his grip on his plasma sword which rolled a few feet away from him.

Yoshino slowly approached the fallen man, dragging her hammer slowly behind her which left a scraping sound on the stone of the tower.

"You killed him... any last words, Goblin?" Yoshino raised the hammer over her head, preparing to end Red Goblin where he laid.

He didn't think this through enough, Red Goblin, who was heavily fatigued and injured from battling his way through the Ptolemaic Army to get to Ptolemaios' tower earlier could barely move now.

"I got what I wanted. There's nothing else you could take from me." Red Goblin taunted, waiting for the end.

"So be it." Yoshino drew back the hammer for dramatic effect.

Red Goblin closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable.

"Ah!" Yoshino yelled out in pain, a trail of smoke coming from her back. She dropped her hammer to the ground.

Red Goblin's drone beeped as it prepared to fire another laser at Yoshino.

"Your little toy won't save you." Yoshino picked her hammer up and advanced towards the drone, firing lasers only for them to be effortlessly blocked by Yoshino's hammer.

Red Goblin's eyes widened, "No!"

Yoshino brought the hammer down on the little drone, giving one final buzzing sound before exploding under the sheer impact.

Red Goblin could only stare in horror. His society destroyed, him as the final survivor. Yoshino had destroyed his droid which had been his faithful companion through all the hardship...

"How does it feel to lose someone close to you? You took Ptolemaios away from us."

"You destroyed my society... and now you took him away from me... my last friend." A tear rolled down Goblin's cheek. Yoshino stared at the still downed man, smiling. A moment of silence passed before rage and adrenaline suddenly filled Red Goblin.

"You took everything I had left from me!" With sudden energy Red Goblin rolled over to where his plasma sword was, stood up and ignited it.

"You're a broken man with nothing left! Just die!" Yoshino jumped in the air to bring her hammer down for one last blow.

"I am The Red Goblin!" Red Goblin raised his sword up to prepare for one final blow.

When the two collided.

A shock wave blew apart what remained of the top of the tower.

Silence.

When the wind picked up, a gas mask flew along with it. The hilt to a plasma sword rolled off the side of the tower...

Sometime later on top the tower... (intermission)

"C'mon you two hurry it up! We need to seal Orochi!" A woman shouted at two guys following her.

"Would you shut up already?" One of the guys shouted back, a red head.

"Watch your attitude, Yagami." The other man chastised.

"You shut up too, Kyo."

"Yeah? Make me, Iori."

"I'll kick your ass right here, right now!"

"GUYS!" The woman shouted to get their attention.

Unfortunately, the two were still arguing and were about to start throwing flames.

Slap!

"What the hell, Chizuru!?" Kyo and Iori both said in unison, rubbing their reddening cheeks.

"Take a look around and tell me what you see?" She asked them.

"Some old dead guy in robes." Kyo said.

"And it looks like a big fight went down here, too." Iori added.

"And what's with the giant hammer in the middle of the tower?"

The three Sacred Treasures took a moment to fully take the scene in before a massive winged creature with a scythe approached the tower.

At the base of the tower...

Red Goblin slowly opened his eyes.

"How...?" Red Goblin lifted his head up, his whole body felt like broken glass, though he could move his arms and legs albeit grudgingly with effort.

"Take it easy there," A young, somewhat scantily dressed girl with long braided turquoise colored hair stepped into Red Goblin's view. Red Goblin rested his head back down.

"I found you among the wreckage while looking for valuables," The girl explained while still rummaging around the broken stones, "It took sometime to pull you out from under some rocks, but I've saved people from much worse."

"Thank you," Red Goblin's voice was barely above a whisper, it hurt his chest to speak.

"Heh, no problem," The girl giggled a little, "I'm Scotia. Scotia Amundsen. You would be...?"

Goblin wasn't sure if he should tell her his real name or his codename, but he chose the latter, not until he could trust this girl at least.

"Red Goblin."

Scotia was perplexed by his name, "Interesting name there, partner." she giggled again and offered a hand to help him stand up.

Goblin took Scotia's offered hand and grunting with pain was able to stand up with her help, "Mind telling me about your... cowgirl getup?" She was pretty good looking he would admit.

"Well I am a treasure hunter. I have to be able to move quickly and be comfortable."

He couldn't argue with that logic.

"I reckon you want to get out of here. I do know why you were here." Scotia revealed.

"Really? Why am I here then?"

"Why, you were fighting those Ptolemaic thugs, nothing but terrorists is what they are. You must be some kind of hero to be fighting them."

She was right for the most part, "Yeah, you could say that." Red Goblin sighed deeply. He had gotten what he wanted in the end. Revenge. He had accepted his fate with Yoshino, before his friend had intervened that is... Now, he didn't know what to do. But it was time to put his past behind him.

"C'mon, we should leave before those P.F. boys show up and start shooting up whatever is left standing around here." Scotia climbed onto the back of her camel. She offered her hand to help Red Goblin hop on.

Red Goblin stared at the young woman, whose turquoise eyes stared back. They were young, eager for adventure wherever they took them. Should he travel with her?

He decided.

"Let's go," he took the offered hand and slowly climbed on.

And so they went, quietly without conversation. Their thoughts however were of each other. To Scotia, he was an interesting character and definitely handsome. To Red Goblin, she was young, adventurous, and beautiful like the purple gem she wore around her neck.

"I believe this belongs to you," Scotia handed him a familiar object that glinted in the moonlight.

Red Goblin slowly clasped his hand around the hilt of his plasma sword and instantly felt his heart perk up.

"I also found some weird robot parts on top that tower. They look like they're in good condition and you look like the kind of guy who would know what it is."

He could rebuild his friend again...

"While we're at it do you mind telling me your real name? Please?" Her voice was pleading.

He thought it over, they had only known each other for a short time, but he felt he could trust her. After all she had not only given back his sword, but what was essentially the remains of his friend.

"My name is ... ..." A relatively distant, yet close explosion drowned out his voice. Scotia smiled at hearing his real name.

"IT'S RUSH TIME!"

"Sounds like those nutjob P.F. boys showed up to kill whatever is left." The camel picked up speed. Another moment of silence, "Do you mind if I call you Red Goblin still? I like the sound of it actually, it has a nice ring to it."

"I don't mind, it's grown on me." He examined the hilt of his plasma sword, thinking about it. How far it has taken him. Running a gloved finger across the activator switch before clipping it on his belt.

"If we're going to be traveling together we should have a duo name or something. Any ideas?"

Red Goblin took a moment before saying, "We're both new faces to each other... how about 'New Face'?"

Scotia laughed, "I like it. Something simple with meaning."

Red Goblin's thoughts went to Yoshino. While he hated the Ptolemaics, his personal vendetta was for Ptolemaios. He had gotten what he wanted. Despite the near death experience from her, if he ever met her again he wouldn't hold any hard feelings.

"Hey, has anyone ever told you, you look like that one character from that one movie? What was it... Star Wars?"

"Shut up."

And they rode off under the moon.

On the other side of the destroyed tower...

Dragunov had been locked in an intense battle with an unknown intruder in red before her hovercraft was disabled and in the ensuing crash she was knocked unconscious for some time.

She had been awake for a while now, searching for survivors to no avail, she already knew that intruder had killed Ptolemaios.

Caroline had been off base so she knew she was safe from all this destruction, however Yoshino had been on top the tower...

Dragunov was afraid of her. While she prided herself as being the strictest and best commander in the Ptolemaic Army, her prowess was no match for the powerful woman known as Yoshino. But deep down she had envy for her. Yoshino was better than her if she put herself to it.

Dragunov kicked something on the ground while lost in her thoughts, she bent down to pick it up. A familiar gas mask with both lenses broken...

She looked up to see distinct purple locks of hair under some stones.

She ran over and quickly removed the stones to reveal the battered form of Yoshino, who was breathing deeply and even though she was unconscious there was a look of pain on her face.

"Yoshino," Dragunov shook her. This would go on for another moment with Yoshino still being unresponsive.

"Please don't kill me for this," Dragunov placed her mouth over Yoshino's and began CPR. It only took ten seconds before she was pushed off.

"What the hell!" Yoshino instantly laid up and pushed Dragunov away. Dragunov was blushing but was quick to hide her red cheeks.

"What happened? Where are we?" Yoshino was confused at how she had survived being thrown off the tower after that final blow with Red Goblin.

"Calm down. I just found you under some bricks." Dragunov slowly approached her again, "Ptolemaios is dead."

Yoshino stood up and took in the scene around her. All around them were dead soldiers, burnt out tanks and robots who had valiantly fought to stop Red Goblin, "I know, I was up there. I fought the man who killed him."

"And... did you kill him? Did you avenge Ptolemaios for us?" Dragunov pressed further.

Yoshino took a moment to think about Red Goblin. He was a man hell bent on destroying the Ptolemaic Army for what they had did to him and she couldn't blame him. She saw what the drive for revenge did to him, she wouldn't follow in that same path. She didn't know if he had somehow survived being thrown off the tower with her.

"What is done is done. Ptolemaios is dead and so is everyone else. There is no more Ptolemaic Army. We should find Caroline and move on with ourselves."

Dragunov took in her words, too afraid to say anything that would probably upset her. Everything Yoshino had said was true.

"And don't you ever put your mouth on me again! Understand?" Dragunov's cheek began to turn red again.

"IT'S RUSH TIME!" A distant voice yelled out.

"Quick! We need to move before the Regular Army get here!" Yoshino grabbed Dragunov's arm and forcibly dragged her away.

Making their way through a sea of dead soldiers and clusters of destroyed machines, they luckily had found an untouched Special Forces Hovercraft and were able to start it up. With Dragunov flying they had made it a short distance away.

"I thought you would want this back," Dragunov offered her a recognizable gas mask.

Yoshino took the gask mask which has had it's lenses broken and slid it over head, offering a sense of comfort to her.

"Thanks, sis." Deep down Yoshino knew she had always given her sister tough love, but she was always there to watch over her.

Dragunov smiled to herself and they sped off into the distance.

Squinting in the darkness Yoshino thought she saw a familiar red head in the distance and was reminded of Red Goblin. For him it was personal revenge, but for her she was just serving Ptolemaios. She would probably never understand the full story of what he went through. She wouldn't hold a grudge against him if they met again.

The End