Chapter 10

Old Enemies

After a night in the car, the four of us; Train, Sven, Eve and I, of course, headed fifty miles up the river towards Rubeck City.

"She's got some nerve leaving Gyanza to us." Train complained as usual. We had been in silence the whole trip and I was somewhat grateful for his blunt remark to break the tension. "You know, I don't even understand why we're helping her in the first place, what a pain."

I knew little to nothing about Sven's history with the international police, as I choose not to go into the matter. The only thing I did know about it was because of Lloyd's death. But even so, if Sven had some sort of beef with this sociopath, I was worried that he might do something drastic.

"Who does this girl even think she is?" Train continued.

I was about to kick his seat from behind, but then Sven said, in a steady voice. "Gyanza's bounty is worth two million dollars in gold, so I wouldn't complain."

We were all silent again, sensing the tension off of Sven.

"So this sicko we're chasing," Train began as we went over a hill, and Rubeck city came into view. "Where do we find him?" Just then the car hit a bump in the road and I literally felt the car leap about two feet into the air. Train and I both cried out.

Rubeck city was big, very big. The whole place was built around the river, much like Desburg, only the buildings stretched far outside my vision. Glass and brick buildings lined the riverside; most of the buildings were under construction, with metal beams lining the place.

"If I have anything to say about it," Sven muttered as we pulled to a stop between a dark stone archway between an old store and hotel. "Gyanza will be a dead man before he gets his hands on that spirit water."

Before he finished that statement, I saw Train walking away out of the corner of my eye. I was annoyed that he decided to run off and to make sure he didn't get killed, or cost us any more damage, I followed him.

He didn't notice my presence until we were two blocks away from Sven. When he did, he yelped and jumped backwards.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say that you needed a bell around your neck." He said.

"You really have a bad habit on going with half-baked plans." I said. "We're supposed to be looking for Gyanza. What the hell are you doing?"

"Looking for a restaurant, I'm starving." Train said, and began walking forward.

I bristled. "Is food the only thing you ever think about?" He ignored me. "Hey!" I ran after him.

"If you only want to scold me then do so when I get back." Train said, crossing his arms behind his head. "Now where can someone find milk here…?"

"I wish you'd put more effort into listening to us as you do looking for a meal." I muttered.

A few blocks down, something became apparent; the whole city was abandoned. No one on the streets, all the shops was closed, not even a stray dog could be found.

"Where is everyone?" Train asked. "I heard rumors that the only people in this city are criminals, but there's seriously no one."

"Looks like they all skipped town." I said, glancing at a closed bike shop. "Gyanza must've been busy."

I noticed Train was staring at me, eyes narrowed. "Is Sweeper jobs the only thing you'll ever talk about?"

I felt flushed, for some reason. "It's not the only thing I talk about."

"Yes it is," Train said.

"No it isn't."

"Uh, yes it is." Train sighed. "You only talk about Sweeper stuff. Seriously, take a breather."

I glared at him. "Right now is hardly the time to relax."

Train rolled his eyes. "And right now we're not fighting anyone, so let's talk about something else."

I was about to say something, but then decided not to, for the sake of my conscious. "Alright, cat boy, what do you want to talk about?"

Train stopped to look in a store window. "Was Saya your friend?"

That… was unexpected. I knew that some time we'd have to talk about it, but I had forgotten.

"Well…" I coughed a bit. "Yeah, Saya was my childhood friend."

Train looked at me, curious. "You knew each other as kids?"

"Yeah," I thought back. "We knew each other at a young age… We hung out a lot, I guess."

Train smiled a bit. "It's weird right? That we both knew Saya, and now here we are working side by side."

I turned away from Train. "D-Don't say it like that. It's a Sweeper Alliance,"

"I know," Train said, and I felt his hand on my shoulder, and that somehow sent a nervous shock through me. "But hey, we're still working on the same team."

I glanced over my shoulder for a second at Train; he had directed his attention to the surrounding shops. I should've known better; there's no way on Earth he'd actually think about something like us being more than partners. Wait a second; no way do I think of us as more than just partners! Train is an annoying, childish, pain in the neck. But… then again…

He was kind of cute when he worried about me… and it was kind of romantic how he caught me yester day and…

I pinched the back of my hand to snap me out of that daydream.

"Hey Kirsten, look over there." Train said.

I turned and followed my gaze towards an area just a few feet away from where the two of us stood now. There was an ordinary school girl, eating a Popsicle, just minding her own business. And then a group of thugs began to surround her. Without any other form of conversation, the two of us walked over towards the thugs and in a matter of seconds we had knocked out all of the thugs, and we even saved the girl's Popsicle from falling to the ground.

And then we finally got a good look at the girl. She was shorter than me, only by about five inches or so. She had shoulder length black hair, and violet eyes. She wore a standard school uniform, but I'm pretty sure that that skirt went against every dress code in the world it was so short; an inch over her thigh.

After using Hades as a blunt weapon, Train slid the gun into its holster. "Man, I guess those rumors about criminals taking over the city are true." Train shoved the Popsicle into the girl's mouth and took another look around. "What's going on? All the shops are closed."

"The shops are closed but I'm here and I can keep you company!" The girl said through her frozen treat.

Train and I both stared at the girl, and I swear I could see cartoon hearts exploding around her head.

"Now…" Train ignored her and went back to his search for food. "Where do I find a vending machine that sells milk?"

"Vending machines don't have milk, but I do!" The girl continued.

Again… we both stared at her.

"There has to be some place around here where I can get some milk." Train began again.

"I'll steal it if I have to, but first I need some sugar!" The girl said. She took the Popsicle out from her mouth, puckered her lips and leaned in towards Train's face.

All the two of us could do was stare at her, and I'm sure we were both thinking "She's not serious is she?" But when the girl's face was about a foot from Train's, it was obvious she wasn't kidding.

Thankfully a random white cat walked by us, so Train grabbed it by the scruff, and held it up to the girl's face.

Then there was a minute of silence, then Train set the cat down and it ran off.

The girl spit a few times. "Gross! Why'd you do that?"

"I was gonna say the same thing." Train muttered and grabbed my arm. "Let's go."

When we got about two feet away from the girl she called out. "Hold on! I don't even know your name!"

"Black Cat." Train said simply.

"Black Cat…?" I turned and saw that the girl had the biggest grin on her face. "I can call you Mr. Black!" The girl spun in a circle.

"Oh my god, please don't." I said, a little too loudly.

The girl looked down at a wristwatch. "Oh, I'm gonna be late. If only I could stay here longer." The girl started waving goodbye to us. "Mr. Black, I'm Kyoko, it was nice meeting you! Let's meet up for a glass of milk someday!" Then the girl ran off.

Train stopped and stared after her. "Now that is one annoying girl."

"Yeah," I agreed.

After walking around for an hour, I was getting tired of this obviously fruitless search.

"Train," I said. "It's obvious the stores aren't open and-"

Train smiled and pointed. "Over there," There was one bar that was open.

"Uh, bars typically sell beer, not milk." I said.

"We won't know until we try." Train walked towards the bar.

"Hey!" I followed him into the bar, and it was just as dead as the rest of the town; except for one lone bar tender and patron.

"Excuse me, do you have any milk?" Train asked.

Frustrated, I grabbed Train by the back of the shirt and dragged him backwards. "Don't listen to him, he's an idiot."

"You two shouldn't be out like this." The bar tender said. "It's dangerous for kids to be out and about."

"We're not kids." I corrected. "We're Sweepers, and we're after the killer."

The bar tender looked shocked. "Forget it, kid! Do you know how many cops he's killed?!"

"Yeah, but things can't keep going like this, can they?" Train asked.

"I hope not… I've been lucky so far." The bartender said. Then she gestured to a lone man sitting at a table. "Over there… at the corner table…"

"That old man…?" I asked.

"The killer got his son and grandson both." The bartender said gravely.

"Oh... that's awful." I whispered.

"Now all he does is drink." The bartender began to wipe down the counter. "I beg him to stop, but he won't hear it."

Train walked over to the table. "Train…?" I walked after him.

The old man looked up from his shot glass, his face was flushed. "Hm?" Train then snatched the glass from the old man's hand. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!" The old man tried to reach for the glass.

"You're killing yourself with this stuff." Train smiled. "Have a glass of milk, why don't you?"

"Leave me alone!" The old man yelled. "You don't even know me stranger!" The man looked at an empty flask on the table. "You don't know… you don't know what it's like to lose something more precious than your life… you don't know…"

We were both silent. Because we both knew exactly what that feeling was like.

"Sure we do…" I said. "…So much that it hurts."

"…?" the man looked at us with surprise, and then he narrowed his eyes at us. "Hmph… Liar…" He bent his head and began to shake. "My grandson… he had just turned five years old." I saw now that the old man was crying. "They were going to get him a birthday present… He left the house with my son… he was laughing… so happy… WH-Why? Why would anyone… WH-Why…?"

The whole conversation was absolutely heart breaking. And I couldn't leave him like this.

"…'Stranger'…" I reached across the table and picked up a wine bottle. "…'I don't know you', huh?"

"Kirsten, what are you doing?" Train asked me. Without another word, I took the bottle, tilt my head backwards, and began drinking down the liquor. It was incredibly strong liquor, so strong I bet it could also work as rubbing alcohol. "K-Kirsten..! What the heck are you doing?! You don't even drink!"

After resisting the urge to gag the foul drink, I forced myself to swallow, and then slammed the empty bottle on the table. The world had taken on a slow, melt-y edge, and I felt slow.

I wiped off my mouth. "Can I drink?! Or can I drink?!" Train and the old man both stared at me with disbelief. I smiled a bit at the old man. "How's that…? Now we're drinking buddies. And… you can't call me a stranger okay?" The old man stared at me with amazement. "Listen to me, buddy…" I said. "That demon who killed your boys… we're the guys who's gonna make him pay!"

The old man stared at me with… hope.

I grinned and took a dollar out from my coat. "This is for the bottle. We've got to go, so take care, and next time we see each other, we'll share a house red." I grabbed Train by the arm. "Let's go cat boy."

I could feel the old man's smile linger as we exited the bar.

We got about two yards from the bar, and then Train placed a hand on my shoulder.

"What?" I asked.

Train had a look of admiration. "You're something else."

"What does that mean?"

"It means you're not like any girl I've ever met." The smile he shot me could kill a girl at five feet. "Don't ever change that."

"Ah…" I struggled to think of words. "Thanks…" I could get lost in those golden eyes of his.

I shook myself out of my daze, blaming the alcohol, and said. "Let's go alright?"

Of course Train hadn't given up his search for milk, and it was sunset by the time we found the motel room Sven and Eve were waiting for us in.

"I am so hungry!" Train said, overdramatically. He fell forward and groaned. "Every single restaurant in town is closed!"

"Odd," I said, stepping over him. "You weren't complaining about that when we were coming up the stairs."

"So Train," Sven said, walking over to his fallen form. "Did you have any luck with your search?"

"No man, I told you everything is closed!" Train whined.

Sven gave a groan of annoyance.

"See?" Eve said, suggesting that she and Sven were having some other conversation before we got here.

"You're hopeless." Sven sighed. He then walked over to a beaten-up looking bed, and held a long-sleeved, pink dress over Train. "Here,"

"Huh?" Train looked up. "What's that supposed to be?"

"It's a lure." Sven said.

"A lure…?" Train asked.

Sven smirked, and I just knew what he was planning. "No, just Lure."

I looked down at Train. "It's a tactic that we Sweepers use occasionally to capture a target." I explained, remembering that me and Sven have used this method once before. "We use ourselves as the bait to lure the suspect in, and then we take him down."

"Oh…" Train and Eve both said in unison.

Sven smiled at me, proud that I had remembered that term. "Remind me to give you a gold star later." He looked down at Train. "You'll be the bait."

"I will?" Okay…" Train slowly stood up.

"…And we'll have to dress you up as a girl."

"WHY?!" Train immediately came to attention.

"Gyanza prefers women and children." Sven said. "Typical pleasure killer… he's looking for weakness, vulnerability… we stand a better chance of flushing him out with you in drag…"

"NO WAY!" Train exclaimed.

"But Gyanza only likes to attack women!" Sven shot back.

Train pulled out a penny from his jeans. "Fine, then we'll settle this by flipping a coin!"

"Sounds good; heads I win, tails you win, deal?!" Sven bet.

"Deal," Train flipped the coin into the air.

"I volunteer to be the bait." Eve said. Both guys stared at her with open jaws. "…Women and kids right? I'm perfect."

"WHAT? NO WAY! IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!" Sven exclaimed.

"He's right." Train agreed. "Forget it! This is scary stuff!"

"Then I'll go." I offered. "That's what being a Sweeper's job is." Both guys then stared at me. "A Sweeper's job is to catch the bad guys and give people a reason to stop crying. Isn't that right?"

Train reminisced about us back at the bar.

"Right…" Sven agreed. "But even so, it's dangerous."

I rolled my eyes. "We'll take turns then. Who won the coin flip?"

Both guys went silent.

About three hours later, Train, Eve, and I was standing on the rooftops, watching Sven walk down the streets of Rubeck City, wearing a pink dress and matching hat, blonde wig, and white parcel. I had to force myself not to burst into laughter at the sight of Sven wearing drag. But of course, the get up hadn't been working. We had been watching Sven for about an hour, and not so much as a dead leaf had come across our paths.

"Huh, Gyanza still hasn't shown up." Train remarked as Sven looked around the street he was on.

"No," Eve said. "He may not show up at all."

"Should Eve and I switch places with Sven?" I asked.

"Not yet," Train said. "It's still too early. It's only been about an hour."

I watched Sven, only slightly worried. While I had no doubt that Sven could take care of himself, the idea of Sven possibly facing a psychopath so strong it could put steroids to shame was something I didn't want to think about.

"Looking good Sven," Train said, rather loudly.

Eve smiled and replied "Yeah Sven, looking good."

I relinquished. "Don't worry Sven, you look gorgeous."

We all silenced when we heard footsteps approaching Sven down bellow. Out of the very edge of shadows, a figure walked towards the man.

"It's him!" Train said, pulling out his gun and leaping off the rooftop. Eve followed with a mallet, and I followed with my own pistol.

It wasn't Gyanza. Worse, it was some other guy wearing drag trying to plant a kiss on the desperately-trying-to-pull-away Sven.

"Oh my, heaven's rained upon me!" the drag guy said. "Our kind is rare around these parts so don't go!"

"You've got the wrong idea man!" Sven cried. He pried himself away from the drag queen and ran away.

After watching Sven run out of sight, Train said "Well, I heard this was a crazy town…"

"It's true." Eve agreed.

"Yeah…" I sighed. "Alright, our turn to be the bait," I glanced at Eve, who had a determined look.

"Are you sure?" Train asked.

"Oh my god," I groaned. "Are we really going to start this again? Yes, we're sure. Besides we need to catch up with Sven."

Train nodded. "Alright then, I won't let you guys out of my sight."

Eve and I held hands as we walked down the dark streets. Now that the plan was actually in motion, the idea became less and less like a good idea.

After walking around for a few minutes, it seemed as if Gyanza wasn't going to show up at all. The suspense caused a bead of sweat to roll down my face, and any sudden sound would be enough to give me a heart attack.

Eventually, we found Sven a few blocks down. He looked at me and Eve, and before he could say anything relating to the words 'I never said you two could be the bait', there was a great rumbling sound. As if something had broken out of the stone street.

"What was that?" Sven asked. "It didn't sound like it was too far from here."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash, and then saw Train running ahead of us.

"Train, wait up!" Sven tried to run after him, but the heels he was wearing forbid that from happening, so he fell forward.

"Hey Sven, I need you and the Princess to cover me, okay?" Train called back.

I felt Eve's hand slip from mine and saw her sprint down the street.

"Eve wait!" I ran after her. "We have to stay together!"

"Kirsten, stop!" Sven called after me.

I ran after the two as fast as I could, but then my footing slipped and I came in contact with the hard pavement. I gave a groan of pain; the injury from that night at the docks was still in effect.

"Damn it…" I panted as I picked myself up from the ground. And then I realized that I was alone; alone in the middle of the streets of a city where there was a serial killer lurking about.

Oh damn.

Regaining what little composure I still had, I walked at a brisk pace towards the direction in which Train and Eve went.

It'll be okay. I thought. I'll be okay.

But then, I heard something or someone, most likely, behind me. Panicked I turned around to face some form of psychopath. No one was there. Then I heard the same sound behind me again, like something slithering behind me like a snake. On my wit's end I aimed my pistol at the darkness behind me. Again, nothing was there.

Just as I was starting to head after Train again, I felt a presence behind me. Before I could turn around, someone harshly whispered in my ear. "I wouldn't move if I were you. One wrong step and you'll suffer something much… much worse than a nasty cut on your leg."

I held my breath as I felt a cold hand on my shoulder. I couldn't see who this person was, but they sounded like a guy. Not Gyanza, most likely, as most likely he doesn't warn his victims before killing them.

"What do you want?" I asked, my voice was trembling, and I hated that fact.

The guy behind me made a few tsks in disappointment. "Dear me, don't tell me you haven't recovered your memories yet, Kirsten?"

I gasped, was this man also someone who knew about my amnesia? How many more people knew? "How do you know me?"

I felt his grip tighten slightly on my shoulder. Not because he was angry, but more like he was trying to reassure me. "Don't worry about that Kirsten. I just came here because I was ordered to give you this." I heard him place something on the ground behind me. "After all, Creed felt it would be rather unfair for you to have to fight him with such a… pathetic weapon."

Creed…? As in the same guy who Train fought on the river side? The same guy who killed Saya?!

"Creed…" I began, hoping that my voice wasn't too unstable. "Creed is dead. He died in the oil tanker accident."

The man chuckled. "It takes a little more than a mere boat fire to kill the great Creed Diskenth. And, of course, you're the same."

"Creed and I are nothing alike." I growled. "He's a lunatic. And you're no better."

"On the contraire, Ms. Lusk, I'm very different than Creed. But you on the other hand; well, you'd be surprised at how similar you both are. Like your inability to die so easily."

No… that couldn't be. Creed was alive? After a boat exploded he was still alive? That was virtually impossible. But then again, shouldn't Train and I have died that night?

"As a great poet said once, there are more things in heaven and earth than dreamt up of in your philosophy." He paused, and there was a moment of painful silence "It seems I'm keeping you from your original quest."

"Who are you?" I asked.

"There's a time and a place for everything, Ms. Lusk. Now isn't the time for introductions. I only came to give you this…" I felt a sharp pain in my neck, as if I was shot with a pressure needle. I cried out in pain and instinctively covered the spot with my hand. Impulsively I turned to face the mysterious man, but I found that there was no one behind me.

"W…What…?" The pain faded away almost immediately.

"Don't worry, it's not poison, Ms. Lusk." The man's voice replied in my ear. "It's just a little something to revive you."

I whipped around to face the culprit, but yet again, he was gone. Angry I shouted. "Show yourself, you coward!"

"You should get going, Gyanza doesn't like to wait." His voice echoed from the shadows around me. "It's safe to go. Goodbye, little song bird."

I did a three-sixty, but there was no evidence that anyone was here. And then I remembered something, and slowly looked at my feet.

There was a black bag on the ground, about the size of a loaf of bread. Cautiously I picked up the bag. Just holding this bag somehow felt so… familiar.

Before I could see what was inside the bag, I heard a great rumbling, just like before. Realizing that time was wasting, I put the bag in my jacket and sprinted towards the source of the sound.

Not too far ahead of me was Train, aiming a gun at a man. This man, of course, was our target Gyanza. But not the Gyanza I was expecting. While the wanted poster claimed him to be at least seven feet tall, this man was a whole lot taller than seven feet. His skin had a green tint to it, and so did his hair. It reminded me of that one Marvel superhero, only with an afro.

But what I noticed first was that that weird girl from earlier today, the one we met behind the theater who almost kissed Train, was standing right in front of Gyanza, as if she was about to be victimized.

"Don't move!" Train yelled. "Don't try anything stupid, Gyanza. I'm placing you under arrest."

The girl squealed in delight. What was her name again? "I don't believe it; you've come to save me again! Mr. Black, you really are the man of my wildest dreams!" Oh wait, her name was Kyoko. Right, I tried to forget her.

"Hah, oh look, a Sweeper." Gyanza sneered.

Kyoko looked at Gyanza in annoyance, and then she moved the huge man's arm in front of her and screamed, while smiling, "Mr. Black, get this freak off me!" Gyanza growled in annoyance, obviously he was just as annoyed as I was. "Please Mr. Black! I'm nearing death and the only thing that can save me is a kiss from you!" Kyoko puckered her lips, as if expecting Train to walk over there at that second and kiss her.

"You're not that dead…" I muttered. "Not yet anyway…"

"Let the girl go now, Gyanza!" Train ordered, again. It's almost funny; the normal Train is a careless dork, but when he wanted to he could pull up real composure.

Gyanza gave a sick grin, and in a split second there was an explosion of dirt and rock from the pavement.

The girl Kyoko screamed in delight, even though she could've gotten killed, and began twirling in a circle singing "Mr. Black, I'm still waiting!"

"What the-" Train looked at the ground, and so did I. There was a large hole in the concrete, and behind that one I saw two more.

And then it hit me. Rubeck City is a town built by a river, and with towns like that, it's standard to build large sewers.

"Train, be careful!" I cried while looking at the ground with my weapon drawn. "He could pop up right behind you!"

Train finally noticed me and said "What took you so long?"

Before I could decide whether or not to tell Train, I heard Gyanza's laughter echo through the alley. It seems to come from all directions, so it was impossible to pinpoint where he was.

"Train, Kirsten!" Eve's voice called. We both turned to see Eve running towards us. And in a second I saw one of the sewer grates behind Eve lift up.

"EVE!" I yelled and ran towards her.

"PRINCESS!" Train followed suit.

Suddenly Gyanza burst out of the ground, his hand reaching for Eve. He thankfully missed her by several inches.

Now it was our turn; Train charged forward and leapt over Gyanza at a height that would put all Olympic records to shame, and with lightning fast movements he hit Gyanza on the back of the neck with great force. Because of Train's advantage, what with his speed, element of surprise and Hades, Gyanza cried out and pitched forward, leaning heavily onto his right leg. Then Eve morphed her hair into powerful fists, and sucker punched Gyanza right in the face. He went down, and it didn't seem like he was going to get up again.

"You did it Mr. Black!" Kyoko rushed past me so suddenly all I saw was a blur. "You did it! You did it!" She then puckered her lips again, and leaned in for a kiss.

And, very much like earlier today, Train pulled up a random stray cat to take Kyoko's thank you present for him.

"Aw, Mr. Black," Kyoko said while wiping off her mouth. "Why do you have to be so shy?"

"It's not because I'm shy." Train said.

Kyoko sighed. "Well I guess we can postpone our kiss for another time." She dug through her pockets. "But as a thank you for saving me," She pulled out four packages. "Here's one of my delicious Popsicles!"

"Thanks," Train said, a bit dryly.

"I don't have any milk flavor, so you'll have to settle for coconut," Kyoko handed Train a Popsicle. "The blonde gets strawberry." She handed one to Eve. "You get blue raspberry." She handed me one. "And that leaves tomato for me!"

Train spent no time taking his treat out of the package and digging in, but I had lingering doubts. The Popsicle was nothing like an ordinary Popsicle. It stuck to the stick and it had the consistency of gelatin.

Train looked at me with a curious face. "Something wrong..?"

I sighed. "I didn't do much, so I feel kind of useless."

"Don't be ridiculous." Train shrugged. "You warned me about Gyanza's underground trick." I stared at him with disbelief. I knew he was trying to help but… Train turned his head and smiled. "Hey sweetheart, you're too late."

I looked and saw Sven. He was staring at us with a blank face that could mean he was annoyed, or mad, or… something of other.

"I already took care of everything." Train boasted.

"I'm the one who knocked him out." Eve interjected.

"Sorry," Kyoko said. "I don't have a Popsicle for you."

"Okay, here's the plan." Train said through a mouthful of Popsicle. "Let's turn this guy in, get our bounty, and get the hell out of here. Sound good to you, Sven?"

"And don't forget to take me with you!" Kyoko said, leaning into Train.

"Sorry," I tossed the Popsicle in a trashcan behind me. "Our truck only has room for five people."

"SVEN..!" Gyanza suddenly spoke. In a flash there was another storm of dirt and rock from behind us. We all turned to look, and saw that there was another crater where Gyanza was knocked out previously, and it was pitch black so there was no way to see where he was. "Sven Volfied!" Gyanza's voice boomed from all directions. "You're the guy from the IBI! You're the one who sent me to the pen! Go figure, didn't expect to bump into you here. I've waited a long time for this! I was planning to pay you back anyway…"

"If you think you'll walk out of here a free man, you're sorely mistaken." Sven said calmly, but I could sense the anger just underneath the surface.

"You don't seem to get it, Volfied." Gyanza continued. "You're gonna pay for our last encounter. No one toys with Gyanza and gets away with it, no one! You're as good as dead."

"He drank the potion." Sven said, narrowing his eye.

"Exactly," I saw a shadow in the window of a store directly behind Sven. "Check this out, Mr. IBI!"

"SVEN LOOK OUT!" I cried.

I was too late, just as Sven was looking behind himself, Gyanza shot out of the store window, sending shards of glass and metal everywhere. In the storm of debris, Gyanza punched Sven in the back, and sent the man flying into the building across the street with enough force to chip some of the plaster off the wall.

Train aimed his gun again and fired all six rounds at Gyanza's left arm. But to my shock, the bullets deflected off his flesh without leaving as much as a mark.

"No way…" Train said.

"Your bullets are useless against me," Gyanza said, clenching his fist. Then with incredible speed he disappeared from the store front and burst out of the ground under Train, sending him flying into the air.

Eve morphed her hair into fists again and tried to hit the man, but in a blur, Gyanza vanished, leaving only the air. Thankfully Eve leapt out of the way just in time before Gyanza could hit her.

I quickly aimed my gun at Gyanza and fired a bullet, but to no avail, he disappeared again. I growled. "He's too fast!"

I felt the earth under me uproot and a fist clamp over my ribs. Taken by surprise I yelped and aimed my gun right at Gyanza's shoulder. But with a sharp wave of his hand, the gun was knocked out my hands.

Gyanza chuckled and eyed me with sick pleasure. "Lookie here… tender meat. Been a while since I've had anything but a cop…" I struggled, but Gyanza's grip on me tightened, and I felt as if my ribs could break under the force at any second. "Aren't you a cutie…?" Gyanza chuckled. "Tell me girl… what shall we play? I know! Scream for me… make me smile…" His grip tightened more, but I refused to show any sign of pain, so I gritted my teeth as I felt my bones creak. "Do it!"

"Sorry to disappoint you," I gave the most arrogant grin I could, trying not to cry out. "But you're not going to get away with this. Kill me or not, it all ends the same, with you in the electric chair!"

Gyanza glared at me, and I saw how insane he was. "Aren't you a stubborn bitch…?"

Just before Gyanza could crush my ribs, I heard a gun click and someone yell out "Gyanza!" I painfully turned my head to see Train aiming Hades at Gyanza.

"That's enough! Put her down!" Train ordered.

Gyanza smirked at him. "What's wrong? Are you jealous because your bitch is hanging out with me?"

Train glared at Gyanza. "I said put her down!"

Gyanza raised his free hand to me and flicked me in the forehead. "No can do." He was so much stronger than I had previously assumed. The blow was enough to jerk my head, neck, and upper spine backwards. I instantly felt blood run down my forehead, and the world seemed to slow down.

"NO!" I could distantly hear Sven yell.

"LET HER GO!" Train screamed and I heard his gun go off six times, and then I felt Gyanza's grip on my ribcage release.

And then I felt myself hit the ground painfully hard. I felt every one of my nerves vibrate, but not because of the impact, but… something else… something much more sinister…

"Kirsten? H-Hey! Wake up!" One minute I was staring at the ground, and now I was staring at the night sky, and Train's worried expression.

"Are you alright?" Eve asked me, also looking worried.

I blinked, and gently touched my forehead. When I examined my fingers, I saw blood. "What happened? I blacked out."

"You didn't miss much," Train said. "Gyanza retreated back into the sewers when I shot him with those bursting bullets Sven invented."

I sat up, besides a slight headache, I felt fine. "What about Sven?"

"I'm right here." Sven said, kneeling down to me, and pressing his handkerchief to my injury. "Damn it, I should've kept a closer eye on you."

"No," I tried to shake my head, but the act made me feel dizzy. "No, I'm fine, really. We need to finish this guy off." I said.

"I know but-" Train began.

Suddenly the ground quaked and all four of us, including that Kyoko girl, were flung into the air by Gyanza's fist. We were unable to act as Gyanza delivered punch after punch, flinging us into the air over and over; into buildings and into street lamps.

Kyoko laughed. "This is fun! It's kind of like that video game where you bash the moles!"

Nice observation kid. I thought as I hit the ground again. Only we're the ones getting bashed.

"Enough of this," Sven suddenly said. "Train, Kirsten, listen up and do exactly as I say."

"I already know what you're thinking." Train smiled as I picked myself up off the ground. "Aim for his right knee and take it out. Am I right?"

Sven frowned. "How'd you know?"

Train chuckled. "Come on, don't forget. I'm number thirteen, Black Cat. Just look at him; it's obvious he's nursing an old injury in his right knee." Now that Train mentioned it, Gyanza had previously put a lot of weight into his right knee before, and that is what caused him to get put down the first time.

"Yeah, I know all about it." Sven frowned. "I'm the one who smashed his knee cap and ripped out his tendons last time we met."

"Then let's get to work man!" Train said.

Sven looked at one of the craters. "Are you able to get a clean shot?"

Train raised Hades. "Are you kidding? With this gun, I could do it with my eyes closed."

"Well," Sven smiled. "Let's see it then."

"I'll use one of your burst bullets." Train loaded a bright red bullet into Hades and tossed another one to me. "Just aim when he gives the clear, got it?"

I nodded as Sven lit a fresh cigarette. "Nothing like a smoke during a fire fight…" Sven reached for his eye patch. "Now then, Gyanza, play time is over."

I stared at Sven. "It's been a while Sven… since you had to use your right eye."

"His right eye…?" Train questioned.

The ground started to rumble. "He's coming." Eve said.

"Sven, get ready," I said. And with a horrified shock, I remembered that I had dropped the gun.

Then I felt Train tap me on the shoulder, and offer me my gun. "Keep better track of this." He said. Embarrassed I quickly loaded up the weapon with the red bullet and clicked it into place.

"Train, Kirsten," Train said. "Aim at four o'clock!"

"You got it!" Train aimed Hades upward, and I followed too, trusting Sven's abilities.

Just as we had positioned our target, Gyanza burst out of the ground, and in that very second, at the same time, Train and I pulled the triggers on our guns and fired the burst bullets. They bounced off a nearby rain gutter, off of Gyanza's indestructible muscles, and into his right knee just before Gyanza could process what was going on.

With a flash of light and a powerful explosion, Gyanza cried out in pain and fell to the ground. And now, he was no longer the massive hulk of muscles he was before, but now he was just how his wanted poster described him.

"Are you psychic?" Train asked Sven.

Sven, slightly panting from exhaustion, stared at Gyanza's fallen form. "It's… my right eye. It has the ability to see a few seconds into the future." Just as he had said those words, Sven fell to his knees.

"Sven!" Eve ran to his side.

"It's alright," I reassured her. "He uses a lot of energy using his right eye. Give him some time to recover, and he'll be fine." Suddenly I noticed Kyoko clinging to Train's back. "What the- why are you still here?!" I cried. She didn't answer me as she seemed more interested in Train.

"What about you?" Train asked as the first rays of morning sunlight crept over the buildings. "How's your forehead?"

I gently touched it, and as expected, to my dismay, it had already healed. "It stopped bleeding."

Train blinked, and examined my face. "Wait… it didn't just stop bleeding… it's already healed?" He narrowed his eyes at me. "Do you also have some sort of superhuman power I should be aware of?"

I looked over at Sven, and then at Eve. I sighed, knowing that if I didn't tell him now I probably never will. "Train, there are some things you don't know about me."

"What do you mean?" Train asked.

I clenched my fist. "I-"

"Very impressive, Black Cat." A new voice cut me off. We all turned to see a man with long blonde hair, wearing a long black coat, a tall black hat, black sunglasses and white gloves.

"Chardon, there you are!" Kyoko said. "Where've you been? I've been looking for you!" She smiled. "You just have to meet my new man, Mr. Black!" She blushed. "I can't believe I'm calling him mine already."

The man, Chardon, walked past us and stood over the crippled Gyanza. Gyanza saw him and grabbed on to Chardon's jacket. "Give me more…" he begged. "I need more of that potion…! I need to get my strength back..!"

And then it hit me. Rinslett had said that two people, a man with a tall hat and a girl a few years younger than me were the suspects handing Spirit Water to the escaped inmates. This man, Chardon, and this girl, Kyoko, were the Taoists.

Chardon stared down at Gyanza. "It can't help you now." He said. "Besides, my purpose for coming here wasn't to save you. I only want to witness the end of someone who has the nerve to abuse the power I have given them."

At that moment, Gyanza screamed and I his muscles shrink until he was just a skeleton with skin on it. Gyanza Rujike was dead, and his face was frozen in agony, much like how Igor Planter had died before him.

Chardon turned around, took off his hat, and placed a hand over his chest in a sort of gentleman-like gesture. "Allow me to introduce myself. It comes as a great pleasure to meet you Black Cat. I am a member of the Apostle of the Star. My name is Chardon."

Kyoko let go of Train and ran to Chardon's side. "I am too!"

Train stared at the two. "The Apostles of the Star..?"

"Yes," Chardon placed his hat back on his head. "We are revolutionaries, led by the great Creed Diskenth."

Train's eyes widened as the roar of a helicopter came out of nowhere. "Creed Diskenth..? You mean he's… still alive?"

So that man was telling the truth… and that was what terrified me. The man who had previously spoken to me wasn't Chardon, but he was someone who was a member of this Apostle of the Star group. And if Creed was alive, the murder of Saya, that meant that he's stronger than I realized.

And what that man also said to me… that Apostle of the Star knew me… and Creed knew my name…

It made me fear not this group, but it made me fear myself.

Just who am I?

Somehow… I no longer wanted to know…