13 ran through the silent streets, her breathing heavy and clumsy. She risked a look backwards at her pursuers, Sparks leading the pack. She turned into a side alley, gasping desperately for oxygen. She found the other end was blocked off, and Sparks was heading down the opposite side with Ataruni, Chiro, Gibson and Alpha. Ataruni stepped forward...
"Ataruni, please you've gotta listen!"
"Silence..."
It wasn't very loud, but it was commanding. 13 sank to her knees; a tear forced its way from her eye. Alpha stood forward, selected a small dagger and threw it at 13's neck. Instead of a hollow thud there was a metallic ping and the dagger dropped to the floor, at Delta's feet...
"Delta!"
He stood with his sword ready, glaring expectantly at Alpha...
"It's not right; you've got to listen to 13! She's telling the truth!"
"Is your mind broken or something?!"
"Not as much as yours!"
Alpha threw down his daggers, catching a sword that Delta lobbed towards him...
"13, give us a countdown..."
She did so from three...
"Three..."
Alpha and Delta glared into each others eyes...
"Two..."
The blades connected in mid air, sparks erupted from the metal that scraped against its opposition. The two disconnected, a flurry of blades and quick arcs of fire later they were standing a safe distance from each other. Cuts and scars appeared on both dualists, Delta's were surprisingly worse...
"Last chance for you to stand down!"
"Only when you listen to 13!"
Alpha swung and disarmed Delta, his blade whirling into the air...
"Ha!"
Delta jumped, narrowly missing Alpha's sweep. Catching his blade in the air and spinning like a top towards Alpha, the blade actually cutting through the stone. They locked together quickly...
"You're...starting to...annoy me...Delta!"
"It's only...the beginning...Alpha!"
Blades whirled in opposite directions, both came back round, but only one hit...
"Delta, no!"
The sword clattered to the floor as 13 caught him, Alpha's sword buried in his chest. Blood ran like treacle from his mouth as he slumped in her arms, his eyes barely open...
"Now...you see...your...mistake..."
Alpha glared...
"You had this planned..."
"I did comrade...my final stand..."
Alpha dropped the sword...
"Save your breath, you're hurt..."
Delta's hand twitched, pressing firmly on the floor...
"None of that...matters!"
He lifted himself onto his feet, swaying due to lost blood. He gripped the blade with his hand, and pulled...
"Delta, stop it, your hurting yourself!"
Sparks quietly shifted his gaze to 13, whose face was wet with tears. He glanced at Delta, noting that he was looking behind them. The sword pulled free, blood covering the stone beneath him. He adjusted his grip...
"My...final stand!"
He flung the sword over arm, narrowly cutting between the space between their heads. A sharp thud and a screech echoed behind them, causing a turn in heads. Behind them 23 screamed in rage as he ripped the blade from his skull, his eyes blazed with fury when they fell onto Delta. 13 jumped up, standing between a weakened Delta and a raging 23...
"23, leave him alone!"
You betray our cause!
"No, I betray your cause! Not mine!"
23 hunched his back, seemingly imitating a vulture. He snarled...
Then what is your cause, 13? Attempt to resurrect the Skeleton King like Cyclone did?
"He had no choice, he was his father!"
We come from the same body 13; surely that makes you his daughter?
"And you his son?"
23 walked back and forth across their path, his eyes locked onto hers...
I retain a mental body of the King's personality; you seem to have let yours slip...
"I assure you, you've got the wrong person. I might retain his shadowed side, the side that none, even himself, saw..."
A large blast echoed from the ground behind 23, who floated above them...
Come 13, 66 is calling...
He rose into the air, his laughter distorted. Fire erupted from his hands as he barrel-rolled into the dark crater, thick smoke trailing behind him. 13 ran to the edge, glaring at the disappearing flames...
"...13..."
She turned quickly, watching Delta being lifted by Alpha. Sparks quietly meandered towards her...
"Listen...I..."
"I don't want to know..."
He looked on as she quickly turned her head back, he tried again...
"I just..."
Her face lined with anger, she had almost lost everything she cared for. She gripped his neck and hung him at face level, her eyes sunken with rage...
"Just nothing SPRK-77, you and your careless attitude almost got Delta killed...!"
She hung him over the crater, his eyes wide with terror. Ataruni stepped forward, his claws ready for anything that could happen...
"13..."
She didn't take her eyes off Sparks, answering over her shoulder...
"Yes?"
"...what do we do?"
Her eyes widened, she turned to face him. Sparks grinned as he saw his chance to get even, nodding to Ataruni. Ataruni stopped, what was Sparks doing?! He threw out a hand...
"Sparks, NO!"
13 turned in time to feel a magnet connect with her face, she span with the impact and fell to the floor. Sparks had been released from her grip and was rolling across the stone, quickly jumping onto his feet and spinning his magnets. 13 threw up an electrical shield in time to block the magnetic bullets that Sparks sent her way, she span into the air and fired her own batch of plasma beams at the red monkey. The ground shook beneath them, 13 stopped...
"There's not enough time..."
Realisation hit, she dodged a magna-bullet and waved a ceasefire...
"Sparks stop, I'm calling a truce!"
The monkey was puzzled; she was beating him hands down...
"Why?"
"Let me have my say..."