CHAPTER 10
I tightened the grip on my dagger and took a step back. Weller sneered at me, and the new kid, a young girl with blonde hair, thrust a knife in my direction.
"Welcome back," Sabina repeated, "Traitor."
"Sabina," I greeted, cautious, "Weller. Long time, no see. And you," I turned my gaze to the girl, "I actually don't know who you are."
"I'm Alma," the girl replied, screwing up her face, "No need to ask your name: you're Axis, the greatest assassin that The Thorn of the Rose has ever trained. And you're the biggest traitor as well!" She curled her lip.
"And if I kill you," she continued, "I'll be the greatest. I'll be welcomed back like a hero!"
"You're like, what, twelve?" I sneered, "Sorry, I don't fight kids that can't defend themselves."
"I'm sixteen!" Alma spat, "And I'm perfectly capable of defending myself. I could kill you if I wanted. I will kill you! I'll make you sorry that you betrayed us!"
"You talk way too much," I noted, lunging at the girl with my knife. She jumped back at the last second and I missed her by millimetres. Weller stepped forward to interfere, but Sabina held him back. This fight was between Alma and myself.
"Come and get me!" Alma screeched. She flew towards me, knife flashing. I easily deflected her strike, and lashed out with my foot, catching her behind the leg. She went down hard, and I paused, waiting. She scrambled to her feet and went at me again.
"Is this the best The Thorn can do?" I scoffed as I dodged two more of her attacks, "Pathetic!"
Alma grunted and jumped at me. I kicked her in the chest, noting that she didn't think very clearly when she was insulted. Her attacks became sloppy and left a lot open, which I could use to my advantage.
I watched as she struggled to get up and slashed at her, nicking her arm. Blood flecked my face and droplets scattered as Alma frantically waved her arm about. How did she even get in this position? The girl was hopeless with a weapon and she couldn't even stay on her feet for more than a few seconds. Where had these guys picked her up from?
"I hope this isn't how you spar with everyone else," I remarked airily, "I'd be embarrassed if I was as terrible at this as you are!"
With a shriek of fury, she hurled herself at me, and I fell with her weight. Triumph flashed in her eyes as she raised her knife above my head, sure that victory was certain...
But then she halted, face paling and eyes widening as the dark bloodstain from the gash in her stomach spread across my chest and spilled to the floor. I shoved her off of me and removed my dagger, wiping the blade clean on my pants.
"Would either of you like to try?" I growled, glaring at Sabina and Weller. Sabina laughed.
"Oh, Axis, Honey," she said, "You should know from the time that you spent with us that we're no threat to you. We never did train to kill, and you would be much better than the two of us anyway, don't you think? Besides, isn't there some sort of moral code against attacking people who don't know how to fight properly, anyway? Unless they were your target."
Now it was my turn to laugh.
"Funny thing about moral codes," I said coldly, "Is that you need morals to follow them, and those were something that I had been taught not to have. Goodbye, Sabina and Weller."
I lunged at them, confident I could take out both with one strike. But instead of flinching away, Sabina raised her fingers to her lips and whistled. Instantly, five people dropped from the rooftops, surrounding me. Each held long knives, ready for a fight.
I chewed my lip and took a defensive stance. I could take on each of them one at a time, but if they all decided to attack me at once, I was done for.
I locked eyes with a young boy directly in front of me. He looked to be about sixteen, like Alma, and there was just as much arrogance in his demeanor. I flicked my wrist and watched him jolt. The boy was probably still in training.
"The one who kills Axis will immediately pass all training and be promoted to the Inner Circle," Sabina announced, shooting me a smug look. I glanced at Weller. He had always been softer than his wife, and even now he looked concerned for the well-being of the children. If he hadn't been too far caught up in this, he would've been a good man.
The kids moved all at once, not daring to risk solo attacks. I blocked a strike from my left, and ducked one from in front. Just as I dodged another blow to the head, I felt a blade scratch my back, blood welling from the wound. There were too many of them!
Then I saw them: to my left, just behind me a bit, were gas tanks, meant to be used in the ODM gear. I shook off my attackers for a split second and somehow got a hold of one. Swinging it, I smacked a couple of them upside the head, and hit a third in the stomach. The other two dodged quickly and I lost my grip as it moved towards them, and it flew over their heads towards a distant building. The battle paused as my opponents looked at it in horror and dropped to the ground.
But I didn't. The tank hit, and a deafening explosion shook the cavern. I felt my mind start to buzz.
Such a beautiful sound, like music; it's a symphony of destruction.
The words rang through my mind, and I felt myself get dizzy. I fell to my knees. I tried to stand up, but the floor seemed to be spinning faster and faster.
No, I pleaded,Not here. Not now!
The images flashed before my eyes, almost as if they were really there, and for the first time they were whole and clear, unlike the last few cases. A man with long black hair stood before me, his white suit pristine and neat. His hands were tatooed in a similar fashion to mine, with circles and symbols. The man grinned, revealing a pretty red gem inside him mouth. He clapped his hands together and placed them on the ground. Blue streaks of what looked like electricity arced through the air and the ground erupted in a beautiful display of crimson.
His name is Solf.
My vision cleared and I gasped, my breathing ragged and quick. In my moment of weakness, four of the trainees had pinned me to the ground, and the fifth one flew at me, knife ready to rip into my flesh. I closed my eyes and anticipated the pain.
The fwish of ODM gear sounded above my head, and I opened my eyes just in time to see Levi collide the kid as he soared through the air. The others, surprised by his sudden appearance, leapt up. I shot to my feet, poised to fight, and Levi, having ditched his gear on a nearby rooftop, landed lightly by my side. He drew a dagger of his own, and, back to back, we faced our opponents.
"You took your time," I snarked, slashing out at a girl with big teeth. Levi scoffed.
"You need to stop getting into situations you can't get out of," he retorted, "Maybe that'll teach you." He kicked one of the kids in the stomach and they looked ready to puke. I snorted.
"You sent me over here!" I reminded him. One of the teens aimed for my shoulder. I grabbed their arm and kicked it hard. There was a sickening crack, and the boy screamed, cradling the fractured limb. That was one out of commission.
"You asked!" Levi swiped out at a second one, and knocked out a third. Two left.
"Fair enough," I said, flicking blood off of my blade. Despite the heat of the battle, I found myself grinning, and the strange wriggly feeling returned. I shoved it away.
I felt the tip of a blade on the back of my neck, and I froze, trying to calculate the best course of action. But before I could move, Levi kicked my attacker in the ribs, snapping several of them, and pushed her away. I rubbed my neck.
"I could've gotten that one, you know," I grumbled. Levi ignored me, instead turning to face Sabina and Weller. We stared each other down for a moment, hardly daring to breath. Then, all at once, Weller rushed towards Levi, drawing a wicked looking sword from a scabbard on his back. Levi deftly avoided him, twisting to the right. I ran to go help him, but was stopped short when Sabina snapped a whip across the back of my legs. I fell down, twisting to land on my back.
"You betrayed us," Sabina growled, cracking the whip above me, "The first opportunity you had, and you stabbed us in the back. After everything we've done for you!"
"The Thorn has done nothing for me," I snarled, ice lacing my tone. I stood up and ducked the whip once more, "From the moment I woke up, I was forced to kill else I die myself. I lived in a hovel! I starved more than once! You watched me suffer every day, and yet you have the audacity to claim that I should hold any loyalty to you? You disgust me."
Her whip stung my arm, and I grabbed it, yanking hard. Surprised, Sabina didn't let go in time and got pulled toward me. I slammed her against a wall and put my dagger to her throat.
"This will be my last human kill," I promised, "Say goodbye, Sabina."
And with one lightning-quick movement, I slit her throat. I let her lifeless body fall to the ground, blood pouring from the wound like a river, staining my clothes and making my skin hot and sticky. Feeling cold, I tore my eyes away from the corpse and glanced toward Levi.
He wasn't doing so well. He was bleeding from a scratch on his cheek where Weller had grazed him with his sword, and because he had already been in a fight, he was tiring quickly. Having to constantly duck and dodge probably wasn't helping either.
His little dagger is next to useless against that huge sword Weller has I thought to myself, maybe if I can attack Weller from behind...
I flicked my eyes to the roof of a tall building near where Weller and Levi were. There, at the top, was Levi's ODM gear and swords.
Without a second thought, I took off, racing towards the structure. I began to climb the wall, hand over hand, hardly thinking about how fast I was going. As I took another step, however, I lost my footing and almost fell.
I clung to the side of the building, gasping in terror. Ice seemed to be spreading through my veins as I looked down and saw exactly just how far up I was. If I fell from this height...
Get it together, I scolded myself, This isn't any different from scaling the fortress and you did that all the time without a problem, so why should you freeze up now? Besides, I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of Weller's sword swishing though the air, Levi needs my help.
I took a deep breath and finished my ascent, pulling myself over the edge and onto the roof. Once there, I grabbed the gear.
"LEVI!" I yelled. He didn't look at me, but he did move closer to the building, forcing Weller to follow. Once he was directly below me, I pushed away all fears and jumped, gear in hand. I smoothly dropped it off to the Captain and landed feet first exactly on Weller's chest, knocking him away and buying time for Levi to strap himself down.
"Are you proud of your actions?" I asked, "Look at all of those children!" I gestured to the kids Levi and I had fought off earlier. All of them had gathered together in one big mass, groaning in pain. I balled my hand into a fist.
"Axis, move!" Levi leapt down onto Weller from Above his swords drawn. Weller jumped to his feet and swung his own weapon. Levi parried the attack with an expertly executed twist in the air and fought back with a fury. Weller was now on the defensive.
Itching to join the action, I ran out behind Weller and, with a well-placed blow, brought him to his knees. I kicked the sword out of his hand, and Levi scissored his blades at Weller's throat. All at once, everything grew quiet and still.
"Who is the leader of your organization?" Levi asked, pressing his swords a little closer together when Weller didn't answer right away.
"I am!" Weller blurted out, cracking under the stress. I reared back, shocked. Soft, gentle Weller? Now way! But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. When I had spoken with the director of The Thorn of the Rose, he had been hiding behind a curtain and had somehow warped his voice. Sabina had been with me at the time, but Weller had not. I hadn't thought of it much, then, though I wish I had.
"What is the purpose of it?" the Captain continued. Weller spat and was rewarded with more pressure.
"We're trying to take over the government," he growled reluctantly. Levi looked down on him, his face expressionless.
"And the children?"
"Taken from their homes at birth," was the reply, "And raised with us."
"That's all I needed to hear," Levi said coolly. His swords flashed and Weller screeched. Blood pooled on the floor, gushing from where Levi had severed the muscles on his shoulders. Weller would never raise his arms again. Levi tossed him to me, and I dragged him over to the group of children.
"We'll send the MPs down to collect you later," I warned them, "But I suggest you stay put. Move too much, and you'll wear yourself out."
Weller glared at me.
"You'll be sorry you betrayed us, Axis," he threatened, "You-"
"Enough," I held up a hand, "I don't want to hear it." Leaving Weller and the kids behind, I walked towards Levi, feeling woozy with exhaustion. Levi took one glance at me before grabbing the back of my shirt and taking off towards the rooftops. We landed in front of the round building that was hiding all the people. He practically shoved me inside, ordering me to stay put, and then took off again.
Feebly, I wandered to the back of the room where I found the piece of paper with instructions on how to return to the entrance, and there I waited. Levi would come back for us, I was sure of it. All I had to do was wait for two hours, and if he didn't, then I would go out and look around. It seemed like such a simple plan.
Little did I know that what lay in wait for me was anything but simple.