It's been a long time, but here's another chapter. I can only apologize for the long gap since the previous chapter and the long gap between this and the next chapter, I've been incredibly busy at work.
Eagle and Sol approached a fortified compound, it was the home of a drug kingpin and they wanted to bring him to heel. Eagle had decided, that it would be a good first mission for Sol to go on with her. "If this goes bad, we'll be getting our hands dirty." Eagle said to her apprentice. She always hoped things would go smoothly, but prepared for the worst.
Sol would have been nervous, were he not accompanied by one of the deadliest people in the galaxy. "We'll be fine, they don't stand a chance if they try to fight." he responded, showing his confidence. If Eagle's reputation was to be believed, then he would just be able to sit back and watch as she single handedly wiped out the whole cartel.
Eagle laughed "You're right about that, but we're only going to slaughter them if they refuse to submit." she said. They could have blown the compound up from orbit, if they didn't want to offer the gang a chance to join them. She would have preferred killing them as that was what she was best at, but she had her orders and she was going to follow them.
"Are you sure they'll let us in to see him?" Sol asked. From the look of the compound, it didn't seem like unexpected visitors would be welcomed. It seemed like the sort of place, where unwanted people would be shot on sight. That being said, he had seen hardened criminals terrified by the tribe before. Even if Eagle was killed, the tribe would unleash hell on the people responsible. So shooting at Eagle, would be utterly idiotic.
Eagle nodded to Sol, as they reached the entrance to the compound. As if on cue, someone on top of the wall shouted down to them. "Who are you, and what do you want?" he demanded. Clearly he hadn't realized who Eagle was, based on how she was dressed. Which was quite odd for someone in the criminal underworld, as the outfit she wore was iconic.
"My name is Eagle Branwen, and I'm here to see your boss." Eagle answered. She hoped that they would let her in, before she had to start making threats. Things would run a lot more smoothly, if she didn't have to explicitly threaten their lives. However, she did have a long list of threats, already forming in her mind. So she was ready, if she needed to put the fear of god into the guards.
"Branwen, as in the Branwen Tribe?" asked the man on the wall, sounding extremely worried. His fear made sense, given the reputation the tribe had. He probably assumed they would kill him if he refused, which was pretty much true. His worry helped to emphasize the notoriety of Eagle, and the tribe as a whole. He didn't seem like the type to be intimidated by anything, but now he seemed like a scared child.
"Yes, now let us in. We just want to talk with your boss. If we wanted any of you dead, we would have wiped you off the map from orbit." Eagle explained. They really wouldn't have bothered with the niceties, if killing was their intention. In fact, the gang would have been dead before they knew they were even being targeted, so it should have been clear that the tribe had other plans for them.
Without another word, the man granted them entry into the compound. So, they made their way inside and approached the kingpin's house. They were watched the whole way, by confused and fearful guards. They knew who Eagle was, and they wouldn't dare try anything. The death of Mercury Black was common knowledge across the galaxy's underworld. He had been one of the best fighters the galaxy had ever seen, but Eagle had put her fist straight through his skull. So, the guards knew that they stood absolutely no chance in a fight against her.
The duo soon found themselves standing in an office, where a man in a suit sat behind a desk. He was smoking a cigar, and doing his best to remain calm. But it was blatantly obvious, that he was fearing for his life. "So, what does the Branwen Tribe want with me?" he asked them, trying to talk business.
"It's very simple. You can submit to us and keep operating, or we can kill you and destroy your organization." Eagle explained to him. She put her hand on the handle of her sword, making it clear that she would strike him down if he refused to submit. She was deadly serious and although the kingpin already seemed to know that, she always liked to make things as clear as possible.
The man sighed heavily, showing that he wasn't happy about the situation. Unfortunately for him, he didn't have much choice in the matter. "There has to be more to it than that, what would I have to do if I submitted?" he asked. Eagle and Sol could clearly see him getting more and more scared, the scare tactics were working.
"We'd pretty much leave you to your own devices, we'd just ask for your support occasionally. So, it's a much better option than getting yourself killed." Eagle said. When compared to dying at Eagle's hands, almost anything seemed like a better option. Though they could literally have offered anything and probably had their offer accepted, the tribe was trying to be fair.
The man nodded, seemingly pleased with the answer. "If that's all, then I think we have a deal. I hope this agreement can be mutually beneficial." he said, before extending a hand to Eagle. He was suddenly less fearful, an alliance with the Brawen's would be extremely beneficial to him. Others would be less likely to mess with him, if they knew who he was working with.
Eagle reached out to shake his hand, but someone burst into the room before she could. It was a woman with a skull mask, and she was looking for a fight. "Eagle Branwen, you're going down." she said.
Eagle drew her sword, she knew exactly who she was facing. It was a bounty hunter, and she was known as the Grimm Reaper. "Like hell I am!" she yelled in response.
Sol and the kingpin both backed away, as the two women prepared to fight. Eagle with her sword, and the bounty hunter with her signature scythes. They were both legendary fighters and they were about to go at it.
"Surrender now and I'll take you in alive." the reaper said. As she stared spinning her scythes around. She was more confident than most of Eagle's opponents, and she had the reputation to back it up.
Eagle just laughed "I think I'll pass. If you're lucky, I'll keep your corpse mostly intact." she told the other woman. She definitely wasn't going to surrender, she was going to fight and she was going to kill the reaper.
The reaper was the first to make a move, she charged at Eagle. Swinging low, she attempted to catch Eagle's leg, with one of her scythes. She attacked with tremendous speed, closing the distance in an instant.
Eagle jumped backwards, dodging the blade by the narrowest of margins. Sparring with her sister, had made her great at evading fast. Not only did she dodge, she also took a swing at her attacker. She tried to slash the reaper across the chest.
Spotting the sword coming at her, the reaper was able to duck under it. But the blade got so close to her, that it trimmed her hair. It quickly became clear, just how sharp Eagle's sword was. It would have finished her instantly, had it caught her.
The reaper then took a swing at Eagle, using her other scythe. Again she aimed for the legs, as they were the least we'll guarded part of Eagle's body. This time Eagle did a backflip, landing on the kingpin's desk. She didn't usually resort to moves like that, but the quality of her opponent made it necessary.
Eagle waited on the desk, she wanted the reaper to attack her again. It would be hard to attack her head on, so she needed to draw her opponent in and catch her off guard. Though she seemed more like a thoughtless brute when she fought, she was actually a great tactician.
Rather than advancing on Eagle, the reaper decided to use one of her scythes as a projectile weapon. She threw it over arm, sending it flipping towards Eagle. It was going straight for it's target's head, with clinical accuracy. The reaper was known for never missing, especially with her scythes.
Using her prosthetic arm, Eagle grabbed the scythe out of the air. She could have held onto it and used it as a weapon, but preferred fighting with her fist. So instead, she threw it back with immense power. One perk of having a new arm, was that it massively increased her strength.
The reaper had to roll out of the way, to avoid being impaled by her own weapon. It went sailing past her, before embedding itself in the wall. She was now down to one weapon. That wouldn't be a problem against a normal opponent, but Eagle was one of the greatest warriors in the galaxy.
Eagle jumped off the desk, with her sword raised. She wasvready to bring her blade down, straight onto the reaper's head. There was enough force in her strike, to cut through her opponent's mask and slice her in two. Unfortunately, Eagle's sword didn't connect with the reaper.
The reaper used all of her strength, to catch Eagle's sword with her scythe. The sound of clashing metal was loud and she was put under immense pressure. But she was successful, in stopping the attack. Though she heard the handle cracking from the sheer force, as Eagle pushed hard against it. A lesser fighter, would have easily been overpowered by the immense strength Eagle could bring to bear.
Eagle was ready for the reaper to make the block, ending up using it as a distraction to gain the upper hand. As she continued pushing against the reaper, she kicked the woman's legs out from under her and sent her tumbling to the ground. It was a takedown she had performed thousands of times, and it usually brought the fight to an end.
The reaper got lucky. As she hit the ground, she rolled to the side. She got out of the way just in time, as the sword cut into the floorboards where her head had been. Many weapons would have broken with an impact like that, but Eagle's sword was much stronger than most.
Eagle swung again at her opponent, trying to catch her before she could get back up. But the reaper was too fast, managing to throw herself back to her feet and scramble backwards. She avoided the brunt of the attack and the blade did no serious damage, but it scraped along the front of the mask.
For the next few moments, the two combatants were equally matched. Each time one of them attacked, the other would parry the blow. Their weapons vanished into a blur, as their attacks gradually picked up speed. But still, they were caught in a deadlock. Eagle was starting to get mad at the lack of results , and the reaper was starting to worry that the fight was unwinnable.
Eagle decided to throw caution to the wind, simultaneously attacking with her sword and fist. While she strained against the reaper with one hand on her sword, she used her other hand to punch the reaper in the face. It was one of her most powerful punches, perfect for stunning enemies.
The reaper was too focused on holding back the sword, meaning she didn't see the fist coming straight for her face. It hit her like a freight train, shattering her mask like it was made of glass. Shards of it became embedded in her face. She gasped in pain, and stumbled away.
Eagle didn't give her a chance to recover from the facial injuries, repeatedly slashing at her with the intent to maim. Unfortunately, she couldn't land a hit, as the reaper managed still to stay just out of reach. This continued until they reached the wall, Eagle was about to trap the reaper.
The one advantage the reaper had, was that her second scythe was now within reach. Pushing through the pain, she quickly pulled it out of the wall. She grabbed it just in time, using both of her weapons to catch Eagle's sword. The brief pause in the attack, gave her the chance to move and avoid being trapped by Eagle.
As she tried to break through the reaper's guard and drove her backwards around the room. Eagle repeatedly slammed her knee into her opponents stomach, in an attempt to wind her. But the reaper tensed and massively reduced the effectiveness of the strikes.
Eventually Eagle gave up on using her knees, focusing on overpowering her opponent. The reaper was impressively strong, making her quite challenging even for Eagle. But that wouldn't keep her safe for long, nobody could truly hold out against Eagle's sheer brute strength.
While blocking Eagle's sword with one scythe, the reaper used the other one to slash at her opponent. Somewhat surprisingly, the blonde didn't try to dodge. The blade bit into Eagle's abdomen, drawing blood but not causing any serious damage.
Though she was now injured an infuriated Eagle, was able to knock the first scythe out of the way. With a single furious slash across her face, she blinded the reaper in both eyes. It immediately knocked the fight out of the woman, who screamed and dropped to her knees. Eagle had won.
"Holy shit, you messed her up!" exclaimed Sol. He knew what Eagle was capable of, but it was shocking to witness her brutality first hand. Had the reaper not been the one to instigate the fight, he would have found Eagle's actions to be excessive. But the reaper had forced her hand, and suffered for it. Still, he did feel quite sympathetic for the newly blinded woman.
Eagle was still furious, but she responded to Sol. "She got of lightly, for now at least. I'm not going to kill her yet, she'll be coming with us." she said. Eagle was capable of causing almost as much suffering as Vulture was, so being blinding the reaper was nothing compared to what she could have done.
"I know she attacked you, but shouldn't you put her out of her misery?" Sol asked, as he looked down at the writhing woman. He couldn't help imagining himself in her position, he would have begged for death if he had just sustained an injury like that. There were some ways of restoring vision but they were painful and expensive, so he would have chosen death if he was the reaper.
Eagle sighed "As much as I want to dice the bitch, she has information that may be useful to us. Someone hired her to come after me, and I intend to find out who it was. If that means getting Vulture and Hawk to torture and interrogate, then that's what's going to happen." she explained. Killing the reaper was what Eagle wanted to do, but the information she had meant that it currently wasn't an option.
Sol nodded "That makes sense. Anyway, how are you holding up? That cut she gave you, looks nasty." he asked. He understood Eagle's reasons for keeping the reaper alive, so he moved on to his other concern. Eagle was injured, and he wanted to make sure she was alright. The fact she was acting completely normal, was a good sign. But he still wanted to check, he cared about her.
Eagle briefly glanced down at her wound, she couldn't even feel it due to the adrenaline coursing through her veins. But she didn't need to feel it, to assess the damage. She had enough experience with giving and receiving cuts, that she could tell it wasn't life threatening. "I'll be fine once I get it stitched up, now let's take this bitch back to the ship." she responded, before picking up the injured woman and walking out.
Sol picked up the two discarded scythes and followed Eagle to the door. Before he left, he looked back at the kingpin. The man looked utterly terrified by what he had just witnesses. "Sorry about the damage she did and the mess she made, I hope it doesn't affect our agreement." he said to the man. The terrified man didn't respond, too shaken by what had just transpired.
Hope this chapter didn't suck. There will be another chapter when I have the time and energy to write it, and when I'm not working on my other stories.