The room was quiet, the only sounds that could be heard were the ticking of the clock on the wall and the sounds of 21's nervous footsteps as he paced the room, his eyes on the floor and his arms folded across his chest. 24 watched his friend with a nervous look as he, too, was dreading Raizel's reaction. They had done something that they shouldn't have... They had gone against the plan. They had betrayed their new friends by kidnapping Madison instead of hiding and waiting like they were supposed to do. They had physically harmed her by hitting her and knocking her unconscious. Raizel would be furious... He was likely to kill them and then the Organization just because they had kidnapped her. They were dead...they could feel it...he was furious. 24 turned his gaze from his pacing friend to the clock on the wall, it was now 12:25...Raizel had five minutes to get here...or they would have to kill Madison. They didn't want to kill her...she was like a sister to them. But they knew the Organization was watching them and that they would have to kill her if he didn't show up...or the Organization would know they were planning to overthrow them and instead kill them. 24 folded his hands and laid his forehead against them, closing his eyes in the process. He began saying a silent prayer to whatever God was willing to listen to him...praying that things would go smoothly. 21 was now biting his nails as he paced, a bad feeling growing in his gut. He knew something wasn't right...Raizel should've been here by now. Had the Organization found out their plan already and killed him? No...they wouldn't kill him...they needed him. What would they do with him if they had found out the truth? He wasn't sure...maybe he was just being paranoid.
Raizel ran along the street towards the address on the note. He could feel something was not right. She was in pain...physical pain. His eyes narrowed as he tried to determine what was the cause of her pain. He soon realized it was coming from her neck and determined that she must have been knocked out as the pain was surrounding a pressure point there. He began reversing the pain signals and soon felt the pain disappear and felt her begin to stir.
'Madison, are you alright?'
'Rai? My head hurts...where are you?'
Relief filled him as she began speaking. Her mental voice, while soft, was strong and stable. She was alright. He allowed comfort to flow from him to her through their mental connection. When he felt the pain in her head fade, he closed his eyes for a moment, thankful that she was alright.
'I'm on my way. Do not open your eyes. No matter what happens, continue to fake being unconscious.'
'What if the Organization get here before you do and start breaking bones just to see if I truly am unconscious?'
'I'll kill them before they get to you. Just feign unconsciousness until I get there. I'll be there soon...'
He trailed off as he came to a halt in the street. Something definitely was not right. He could sense another presence nearby and allowed his ability to expand out of his body as he scanned the area, his eyes narrowing.
'Raizel? What is it? What's going on?' She had sensed his tension and had become worried.
'Don't worry. I'll be there soon. It seems as though I'm being watched now. I'll take care of this then be there.'
He felt Madison nod through the connection then stepped back into the shadows where he had sensed Catrina stop.
"Go. Find the room within the building where she is being held. If you get spotted...do whatever you must to secure the area."
"Understood."
He watched her take off through the shadows again before moving to the rooftop and standing on the edge, looking out over the area. He felt someone come up on his left as he scanned the other rooftops.
"What are you doing, Master?"
"The building should be nearby."
"Understood."
Raizel continued scanning the area until he spotted the exact building Catrina had entered. Nodding to himself more than his servant, he took off again, Frankenstein right at his side.
24 and 21 both jumped back as the door slammed open to reveal Jake standing there with a devious look in his eyes. He scanned the room before locating the woman lying on the bed, still unconscious. His mouth twisted into a frightening grin as he took several steps closer to her, his hands still in his pockets. 21 was watching in horror, his eyes wide and his hands now at his sides shaking. Had they been found out already? Were they going to have to fight their way out of this? He felt his body start to shake as Jake examined the unconscious Madison. 24 placed a hand on 21's shoulder to reassure him that there was no way they could've been found out so soon. There had to be some explanation. Clearing his throat, he stepped forward and closer to their boss.
"What are you doing here already? We don't have the Noblesse yet."
"Then why is this woman still alive?"
"Sir, he has until 12:30...it's only 12:28."
"You had best check again, insolent worm."
24 turned to the clock on the wall, his eyes going wide as he saw the time. 12:33. Raizel was three minutes late. Madison's life was now at stake. He turned back to see Jake watching him with a grin, his eyes narrowed.
"Failed to watch the time, eh? Well then, shall I take things into my own hands now?"
24 felt his fists clench as he watched Jake move closer to Madison. He felt a white-hot feeling begin to bubble in his gut, slowly rising up and filling his body. His eyes narrowed and his teeth clenched. His fists began to shake and he felt as though he was going to blow. He began having flashbacks to that horrible white room...to those awful white outfits...to the day one of his best friends had been killed for trying to stop Jake from attacking an injured person. He wasn't sure when it happened but one second he had been standing feet from the bed, almost on the other side of the room with 21, and the next second he was on the other side, fist extended, and Jake lying in a hole in the wall. His eyes went wide as he realized what he had just done. In a moment he had not only attacked their boss, but he had also blown his cover. The sound of rubble moving drew his attention back to the hole and he realized that he had just put his honorary little sister, and his best friend, in mortal danger. Thinking quickly he scooped Madison up and held her tight to his chest, whispering to her as he made his way to the other side of the room.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I know you're awake and I'm sorry. Please, live your life...be happy for me, for us. Please, be happy."
He thrust her into 21's arms and looked at his friend, whose eyes were still wide and now full of fear. He was shaking now and seemed to be in shock from what he had just seen. 24 gave him a hard shake and, when his eyes finally refocused, 24 gave him a slight smile.
"It has been a pleasure knowing you 21...it has been fun to work along side of you. We have developed a bond that no one could understand. I will miss you. Go. Take her and go. I'm sorry I have blown our cover. Run now. Get her out of here, find Raizel, tell them what is going on...and live. Go!" He shoved the two out the door just as Jake climbed from the hole and lunged for them. He slammed the door shut, sealing it off and glaring at Jake, taking his earpiece out.
"You have talked down to us for too long. You have hurt us, killed our friends, and treated us as though we're nothing but useless garbage. No more. I will not let you get away with this anymore!"
"And you think you can defeat me you insignificant filth? Bring it on then."
24, saying yet another silent prayer, let out a ferocious growl as he lunged for his former boss, intending to rip him limb from limb. Before he could land even a single blow, Jake slammed his hand into 24's stomach, punching a hole straight through. The blow caused blood to spurt from the wound and 24's mouth. Jake snarled as he lifted his eyes up, glaring at the man who seemed to be staring at the distant wall.
"You're pathetic. The organization knew all along that you'd betrayed us. We've had two missions all along, to recover the coffin or the Noblesse...and to destroy you and that other useless piece of trash. We just had to wait for you to screw up and now that you have, you're done for."
Jake ripped his arm out of 24's stomach, causing more blood to spurt out while laughing maniacally. He watched 24 stumble backward, clutching hist stomach with one hand and coughing uncontrollably. Jake grinned and began walking out of the room, in the direction 21 had gone. Even if he did make it out, Marie would be waiting for him so there was no need to rush.
21 ran as fast as he could towards the exit. He had to get away before Jake was finished with 24. He wanted to believe that 24 could win and would...he wanted to believe that they, alone, could handle Jake and Marie...but believing so would be foolish. No...he knew they were no match for those two. There was a reason they were in charge of finding the Noblesse...they were two of the Organizations strongest weapons and would stop at nothing to complete their mission. Cursing his stupidity, 21 ran for the stairs that lead to the roof. He'd take the rooftops until he reached a safe place...at least...that was his plan. As soon as he burst through the door onto the roof, a force hit him hard from the right and sent him flying, Madison still clutched tight in his arms. They hit the rooftop hard and slid halfway to the other side. 21 panted for a few moments before he sat up and looked to see what had hit him. His eyes went wide as he saw Marie standing there, her deadly gaze fixed on him and her nails extended into sharp claws.
"You're pathetic. You thought you could escape us by going to the roof? How stupid can you get? You two betrayed the Organization...No one betrays us and lives to tell about it."
21 pulled himself to his feet as she readied her arm to strike. As she brought her arm down he grabbed Madison and jumped, making sure his body covered hers. As they landed face down, he felt a searing pain in his side and realized Marie had struck him right as he jumped. He pushed himself up on his elbows, one hand going to his side as he looked at the girl beneath him. Madison's eyes slowly opened and she looked up at him, her eyes widening in fear. He knew she had been conscious all along and shook his head slightly, lowering his voice so that only she could hear him.
"I'm so sorry to drag you into this...Raizel should be here soon. I'll hold her off while you run for it...don't worry, you'll be fine. I promise."
Madison started to shake her head as she sat up and looked at him, taking his face in her hands, tears starting to streak down her face.
"No...I'm not leaving you. I'm going to stay with you."
21 took his hand from his side and then took her hands in his, holding them tight, his eyes locking with hers.
"Listen, I can't let you get hurt. You are the most important person to Raizel. If the Organization gets their hands on you, it's over. Go. Run and find Raizel...live for both 24 and I. Live and remember us."
Before Madison could say anything else, 21 was off her and charging towards Marie, his own nails extending into sharp claws. He let out a fierce scream as he swung his hands towards her. Madison watched as he tried to attack Marie, her easily dodging his blows and attacking him instead. After a few moments, she finally got to her feet and ran for the opposite ledge. Just as she was about to jump she heard a shrill shriek of pain and turned to see Jake flying backward, a huge gushing gash extending from his left shoulder down his stomach to his right hip. Her eyes went wide with fear, the tears now falling freely down her cheeks. Before she could scream out his name, Marie was in front of her, her hand poised to strike and a smirk across her face.
"You had so much promise...so much potential. But you chose to betray us. You are nothing more than useless garbage and you will be dealt with just the same."
Madison closed her eyes tight as she braced herself to feel the sharp pain of Marie's claws slicing her open, the only thing on her mind was Raizel and how she'd never get to be with him now.
Catrina made it into the building easily enough and began her search for her best friend. She stuck to the shadows and stealthily searched each room, slowly making her way through the different levels of the building. Her panic was quickly growing as each room she searched seemed to be completely abandoned and looked as though no one had been there for centuries.
'Damnit! Come on Madison...where are you?' She thought to herself as she continued to run and search every hallway, every room, every level but came up empty each time.
She finally made it to the sixth level of the building and froze. At the top of the stairs she found a man leaning against the wall, to her horror she realized it was the same man she had seen reading 24's note on the tree. He was gazing into the doorway across from him, the doorway that led to the sixth level...he was leaning in a way that prevented her from moving to the stairs that led to the seventh floor. She silently took a breath and scanned the area around her, trying to find a way to the door to search that level. Before she could even start to formulate a plan of getting past him, the man began speaking.
"Useless garbage...the lot. All three of them. I must admit, though, I am sad to see the girl be killed. She had a lot of potential, you see. She could've been great...a true weapon to fear. But she teamed up with these sacks of useless garbage so she must be treated as such. No one betrays the Organization, you understand...and no one goes against them."
Catrina wondered, for a moment, if he was talking to himself but then his head turned and she found his eyes locking with hers. He wore a frown and there was a saddened look to his eyes...it seemed as though he was truly sad to see the girl be killed. A fraction of a second later he pushed off the wall and turned to face her completely, his eyes darkening and a sinister smirk slowly spreading across his face. Catrina was horrified...this man...had sensed her presence.
"I can smell your fear, dear. I smell your desperation to find your friend, your longing to get out of here and back home, your desire to kill us all. I am impressed you made it this far and have gone this long without being found. You would go far in the Organization, though I doubt you would be interested in joining us. Therefore I am left with only one alternative...to do to you what I have done to this useless sack of filth."
Before Catrina could make a move, Jake had hit her hard on the left side of her head and had sent her flying through the doorway. She hit the ground hard and slid several more feet before finally coming to a halt. She winced as the pain filled her before she tried to sit up. She started to lift her hand to her head when she noticed how wet her suit now felt. Looking down, she realized she had come to a stop in a pool of blood. Following the trail, her eyes went wide as she realized it was all coming from 24, who seemed very close to death. She jumped to her feet and ripped her mask off before drawing her sword, her eyes narrowed and her teeth clenched tight. If this man could take down 24 without getting a single scratch on him...then what hope did she have against him? She knew she'd probably end up dead but she wouldn't go down without a fight. Jake's smirk widened as he watched her, flexing his claws as he slowly walked down the hallway towards her.
"This is going to be fun. I think I'll take my time with you. Then, just before I snuff you out for good, I'll have a little fun with that body of yours."
'Frankenstein... I'm sorry my love... It doesn't look like we'll be together after all. I hope you know that I didn't go down without a fight...but this is one fight I will lose. Forgive me...' With that final thought filling her head and her determination set, she raised her sword to eye level and charged the man in front of her.