Chapter 7 / Street Level Heroes:
Clint gasped at the pain as he felt his shoulder pop back into place.
"Now that's over with, you should gear up. I know you need much longer to recover but…" Matt began, guilt setting in.
"I know." Clint interjected, testing the flexibility of his now reset shoulder. "Take it from a professional operative: we're not going to get a better chance then this."
Matt nodded. He wished that Clint could have more time. He was in pretty bad shape. They both were. Matt had been sweeping the city when he had intercepted a call between one of the gangs, noting that Fisk was under attack and he was calling all of his allies to protect him. The three thugs that he had been following had been given separate orders: they were to make sure that Hawkeye was eliminated. When the thugs drove off, Matt was afraid that he wouldn't catch up to them in time. He was just lucky that they had spent so long sweeping the apartment building before finding the Avenger.
He took a deep breath, clearing his thoughts as Clint retrieved his bow and quiver. Matt paused for a second. The strap for the quiver had a strong scent to it. Could it be new? He shook the thought aside, that wasn't what mattered right now.
"I don't suppose those guys said anything before they attacked you? Anything that might help us track down Fisk?" Matt asked, unsure of where to start. He'd search with his senses block by block if he had to.
"No, they didn't say anything. But I think your Punisher friend might have been on to something with that factory…"
Reaching the rooftop edge that they had previously resided on a few hours ago, the two heroes paused for breath. Matt could smell the stenches of blood, sweat and gunfire. Frank had really done a number on this place. The vigilante noted the discarded rifle next to his feet. The Punisher must have fired upon the factory, shooting holes through the windows and walls before running out of ammunition, forcing him to take the fight closer. Daredevil tilted his head to the side, locking his focus on the two pulses that were currently engaged in combat.
"Bullseye's currently fighting the Punisher on the factory roof!" Matt told Clint, nodding his head in the direction of the structure. He head Clint sigh, readying his bow. As soon as he fired the rappel line, Matt launched himself onto the cable, wasting no time in traversing over to the opposing roof. He could feel Frank's strength waning, he did not have long left.
Matt sensed Frank hit the floor just as his feet touched down on the factory rooftop. He took a few steps forwards, coming to a stop when he heard Bullseye pick up the handgun that the Punisher had previously held. Clint came to a stop behind him, knocking a new arrow as Bullseye turned to face them, raising the pistol.
Clint loosed his arrow before Bullseye could fire a shot, disarming the assassin as Daredevil rushed him, using Clint's move as covering fire. The vigilante withdrew his billy clubs, attaching the two batons together to make a short staff. Bullseye recovered swiftly, withdrawing a sai to clash with Daredevil as Hawkeye flanked to the right, drawing his next arrow. Matt could sense Clint's lack of ammunition, the events of the past two days dwindling his supplies.
The three combatants dodged and weaved, Bullseye managing to fight off Daredevil whilst evading Clint's arrows, keeping the Devil of Hell's Kitchen in the archers line of sight as often as he could. The assassin kicked Matt in the stomach, sending him staggering backwards as he turned to his right, bringing his sai up to deflect Hawkeye's latest shot. The arrow span through the air, planting itself in the ground near Bullseye's feet.
"That was your last shot Avenger!" The assassin taunted as Matt sensed Clint reach over his shoulder, hand grasping at nothing. He heard the grunt of annoyance come from the archer's lips as he lowered his arm, bringing his bow into a fighting stance.
Matt readied himself to Bullseye's left. He could sense fatigue radiating from all three of them. They'd all suffered greatly in their on-going struggles. Each one knew that this was it. This was the moment when their struggles would end, one way or another.
Daredevil tilted his head towards Clint, subtly letting him know that he was awaiting his move. His old mentor Stick has taught him many lessons when it came to combat, but Matt realised that he had forgotten one of the most basic of teachings. One that he utilised on a daily (or more accurately: nightly) basis. He could almost hear Stick's voice as he recited it in his mind. Unless your opponents fight in unison, their numbers will only serve to your advantage. Whilst training Matt had always been afraid of being outnumbered. How could he possibly fight multiple opponents at the same time? He shook his head, clearing his thoughts as he refocused back on the archer, reading the stillness that had settled over him.
He suddenly felt Clint twitch, instantly throwing his staff at the assassin, knocking the sai from his hands. He heard Clint's approaching footsteps as he launched himself after his weapon, throwing controlled punches at the barely recovered Bullseye.
Landing a glancing blow to Matt's face, the assassin retrieved his staff before locking himself into close-quarters combat with Hawkeye, who wielded his bow in a similar fashion to the staff. In the midst of battle, Clint caught sight of Matt as the vigilante pulled himself to his feet once more.
Bullseye's reactions were so quick, it was almost impossible to land a blow on him, whether that be close or ranged. It was almost as if he had Matt's senses, allowing him to constantly 'see' everything around him. Clint suddenly got a flash of an idea. It was quickly buried when the assassin pressed his attack, launching a foot backwards to kick Daredevil over once again.
Hawkeye was on the defensive, slowly retreating as he was pushed backwards by the assassin's onslaught. His crazy idea flashed in his head again as his leg caught on something: the arrow. His mind went into overdrive. If his plan messed up in any way, he could kill Matt, or blow his last shot and only chance at winning the battle. He couldn't last much longer, and Clint knew that Matt couldn't take Bullseye alone. He looked over his opponents shoulder to see the vigilante regaining his footing once more.
Screw it! He had to put his faith in Matt and his senses, praying to God that it wouldn't go wrong.
In his desperate final attempt, Clint grabbed his arrow from the ground, flipping backwards to put a bit of distance between himself and his opponent. He let the arrow loose mid flip, hoping to catch the hitman off guard. Bullseye was ready though. The assassin side-stepped the arrow, planting a predatory grin on his face. He knew that the archer barely had anything left in him. He began to advance on the Avenger.
Despite Clint's earlier comparison, Bullseye did not have Matt's senses. If he did, he would have heard the sound of Daredevil's fingers clasping the shaft of the speeding arrow, catching it mid flight. He would also have heard his approaching footsteps as the vigilante approached him from behind. But Bullseye was too focused on killing Clint, determined to prove himself the better operative and marksman. He hesitated slightly at the smug look in the Avengers eyes, a seed of doubt flickering through his mind before the arrow pierced the back of his shoulder. He fell to floor as the Devil of Hell's Kitchen landed on top of him, swiftly striking him in the back of the neck until the assassin was unconscious.
Matt slowly slid off of the assassin, fatigue finally catching up with him. He fell to a sitting position, focusing for the next few moments on nothing else but breathing. He noted Clint falling to his knees beside him, clearly as exhausted as he was, if not more so.
"That…" The vigilante took a deep breath, "…that was a smart move. Unless you were trying to hit him. Your body's readouts were a bit off so I couldn't really tell but it…it…"
"It worked out okay in the end…" Clint interjected. "…and yes…I trusted that you would make sure that I wouldn't kill you." Matt merely nodded, a smile creeping across his lips.
A coughing sound came from across the rooftop, as the Punisher himself came to. Frank pulled himself to his feet, looking around as his eyes stopped the three figures. He began to make his way over, retrieving his pistol on the way. He cocked the gun as he reached them, raising it without a moment's hesitation.
"No! Frank! There's no need for that. He's out already. Save it for Fisk!" Matt couldn't determine whether he meant it or not as the words left his mouth. Clint only observed, the man no stranger to killing, as Frank begrudgingly lowered his weapon.
Matt turned to Frank, ready to thank him just as his sensitive hearing picked up a phone call to one of the Kingpin's men below. He listened intently, face dropping as the call ended. Clint looked over to him, recognising his stance as he awaited the vigilante to tell him what he had learned.
"Fisk is escaping! If we don't catch him now he'll be make it out of our reach for good!"
The archer and the vigilante shot up, both ignoring their protesting bodies as they rushed off to prevent the Kingpin from getting away. Frank Castle stood still, watching the pair leave as he slowly withdrew a combat knife, turning his back on the heroes to face the unconscious assassin…
Notes:
-What's the Punisher going to do? Who knows? I don't! (I do really…)
-Only one more chapter to tie everything up now!
