AngelFaux Again, thanks for the review. :-)
Kurapika couldn't imagine why he agreed to it. But here he was, surrounded by multiple assassins. The words of the head of the Nostrade family rang deep in Kurapika's mind.
The Ten Dons are hiring professionals to handle the Troupe. So, Kurapika... I want you to join those hit men.
And here he was now, surrounded by a wide assortment of assassins. Eight of them had being sitting down while another had his back against the wall.
Kurapika stood next to Mr. Nostrade, listening to the man he had punched earlier in the week, Zenji "Then, has everyone arrived?"
In the seat in front of him were three men. One wore military-like attire, the second person had red long hair hanging over his right eye and the third was a tribal man wearing a Tiki Mask.
"The job is to annihilate the Phantom Troupe."
In front of three assassins were another three sitting down in the opposite chairs. One looked like a nomad; another was looked to be a warrior with black hair and a Fu Manchu, and the third looked like he threw on casual wear, with a long scar running across his left eye.
"When the auction kicks off again, they may show up."
Then there were the other three; the three that stood out amongst the rest. The two sitting down in the middle of the six wore full purple attire. One was a tall, young, muscular man with long silver hair. He's wearing a purple short sleeved Shinobi Shōzoku, with a red sash around his waist and wristbands. When the man stared at Kurapika, he noticed blue cat like eyes.
"If they do, dispose of them."
Next to him was an older man, wearing a rather unique garb; the garb had a sign on it 'Forever Active'. Under the garb was a plain white shirt and pants with white bindings spiralling around it. The old man's silver hair was spiked back and had a Fu Manchu.
"You're free to use any means you want."
The last man was a rather, hidden character. He's wearing all white archaic gothic style clothing. The coat ended in a three-point tail coat with red trimming extending throughout the entire garb. The pants were tight-fitted and stretched over his pointed dress shoes. Above the coat was a white hood, complete with a plain white mask hiding his true identity. Whoever the man was, he didn't want to be known.
The man with a turban spoke, guiding the discussion on how they should hunt down the Troupe members "This team will be after the same target. We should decide how we address each other when communicating."
As the black-hair warrior looking man suggested using colours as names, Kurapika caught it, the azure blue eyes with wolfish pupils peaking through the mask. The man was staring at Kurapika with a finger held right where his lips were. Had Kurapika meet the man before? He could have sworn he'd seen those exact same eyes before, except on a shorter, younger boy.
"Call me Blue." The warrior man suggested, followed by the man with a tiki mask "I'll be Red."
The old, silver haired man chuckled under his breath "It's like playing a game."
The man with the turban looked dissatisfied with the older white haired man "Eh? What about you guys?"
"Silva." The giant blue cat eyed man spoke, followed by the older man next to him "I'm Zeno."
"Zeno? What colour is that?"
"We will both use our real names."
Blue groaned at the response "What?"
Silva looked unconcerned, barely looking at Blue as he spoke "You're welcome to call me by name, but I won't take orders. We'll do this our way."
The man in white garb chuckled silently, shoulders moving under the man's laughter as the man with the scar looked shocked "Silva and Zeno... of the Zoldyck family?"
Kurapika was caught off guard by the man after hearing the Zoldyck family. Were they really apart of Killua's family? He had to make sure to play it safe around them.
Zeno nodded with a sly smile "Let me know if you want someone killed. I'm willing to give you a thirty percent discount for being in the same line of work."
The man with long red hair looked uninterested as he spoke "Does it really matter..." the soldier finished the sentence off "what we call one another?"
"Agreed. There's no requirement we work together."
The man with the turban raised an eyebrow at the red haired man "But we're talking about the Troupe. Attacking alone will be dangerous."
The soldier grinned at the man in the turban before looking at Kurapika "And you?"
"Shaky teamwork will only cause confusion. I will move alone."
The soldier then turned to the man in white "That makes 5 to 4. What about you?"
"Well-" Before the man could even start his argument, Silva got up appearing right next to the man in a split second, fist heading towards him. The man in white stepped to the side, barely dodging Silva. Unfortunately, his mask got caught by the man's fist and was slammed into the wall. The wall cracked, followed by the mask shattering into the wall.
The man in white used that time to create distance from the man, flipping back as if he were dancing away from Silva's location. Once the man had created enough distance between the two, he stood up calmly, the hood falling down to reveal the face hidden behind the mask.
Silva groaned in disgust, glaring at the man who stood there so calmly, especially after just being attacked "Vastorie..."
Kurapika was shocked to see the Vastorie's face, and for a second he almost believed what Daniel had mentioned. The two do look alike, the main differences being the hair and certain aspects of his face. Vastorie had short hair which was spiked back; a chiselled, well aged face and his eyes were also fraction smaller.
Vastorie almost had a permanent bemused expression from Silva's reaction "As I was saying... you have a better chance dealing with the Phantom Troupe members on your own."
"What are you doing here?!"
"Hmm...? Before or after you tried kill me?"
As Silva's eyes narrowed, glaring intently at the man, Vastorie raised his hands as if he was showing Silva sign that he meant no harm "Calm down. I was called by one of the Ten Dons, like you."
"You'll be useless in a fight against them..."
"Except, you know against whom; my ability is perfect for him... wouldn't you agree?"
Silva grunted again in disgust at the man's response. The man's demeanour pissed him off; the way he would calmly treat the situation as if it were some big joke. He highly doubted the man could help in any way, but it was true that his ability would be perfect for the situation, and the thought of him being collateral damage pleased him.
"Silva..." Zeno spoke up; barely batting an eye at his son "You know what his like."
"A leech who doesn't know when to quit..."
Vastorie grinned at the man "I prefer the term 'honey badger' it suits my... fighting prowess." Vastorie couldn't help but wink at the man. While the action did nothing but infuriate the man, Zeno cut in, smiling ever so slightly at the man "You done annoying my son?"
"Done...? I believe I've barely even started. But yes, for now... I believe I'm done for now. Wouldn't want to be in close proximity to you son. After all he is my type; big, burly muscle heads."
Silva eyes twitched in annoyance at the man's presence, the man just didn't know when to quit "Suit yourself..."
Vastorie relaxed his figure as Silva stepped back to sit down next to his father. Although the jaw drops from the two mans' family feud did nothing but scare the life out three of the assassins.
The soldier barely reacted at Silva's and Vastorie's sudden brawl "We now have our answer and a sneak preview of some of the assassins' strengths here today."
One of the guards next to Zenji raised a hand "The auction begins at nine. We will transport you to the auction hall."
Vastorie smiled, giddy at the thought of being driven to the battlefield. He acted as though he was a child "Ooh, we get even a chauffeur for the job."
"Please wait here until it's time."
Vastorie frowned slightly as he headed towards the door "I'll be here... outside this room. Trust me. You do not want me in the same room..."
Once the man closed the door, he pressed his head against the wall beside the door "Avlas... I wish I had you're strength. Every day, I wish I could undo everything..."
"~"
Vastorie shifted in his seat, observing the surrounding mafia members. He had no idea why he personally accepted the assassin contract. He has nothing to gain from this. The only reason he joined was to torment Silva, if the man was hired. If not, he would part like the wind.
Now that Silva was involved maybe it was a bad choice. Then again a job is a job; money is money, and now he had to complete it. IF worse comes to worse, he could always ditch Silva and Zeno in the midst of battle.
The man slunk in his chair, sighing very loudly. Suddenly, the blond-haired boy from earlier, walked pass him. He'd never seen the young boy until recently. Two things interested Vastorie about him:
The boy's tribal styled clothing. The boy wasn't exactly wearing next to nothing, but it had an appeal to it; elegantly designed.
The second was his reaction to seeing his face earlier. What was the reasoning to the boy's sudden shock, as if he had seen a ghost?
The boy stepped with pride, each step calculated like he was on the hunt for prey. But at the same time, he never gave off the pure bloodlust hunter presence like the other six, third and second rate assassins, at least at the moment.
Vastorie grinned, watching the blond-haired boy leave the hallway. He may have been on high alert but the boy seemed a little on the untrained side. A new Hunter perhaps...?
Vastorie shifted his gazed towards the hallway, watching it intently "Hmm, you don't seem to fit the assassin lifestyle like the others... What is your story? Were you dragged into this? I wonder..." Vastorie got up; shadowing the boy's every movement.
"~"
Kurapika stood in the hallway, stopping as he felt the phone vibrate in his pocket. He picked it up, confused as why it would be calling now of all times "Hello?"
The voice seemed terribly confused as if he had dialled the wrong number, or at least been trying to call the number multiple times "Oh, Kurapika?" Even with the confusion set in, Kurapika knew the person who the voice belonged too well, Gon. "Whew, we finally got a hold of you."
"Gon?!"
"Yep, can you talk right now?"
"Uh, sorry, I'm in the middle of some-" Kurapika suddenly stopped, looking around. He felt like he was been watched. However the intent was unknown. It didn't exactly feel like it was for malicious intent "I'll call you back."
"Wait! Can you give me one minute? I have something to tell you."
Kurapika shifted his gaze, looking towards every corner without seeming suspicious. He was watching the area like a hawk until what Gon said made him focus on the conversation "Killua, Daniel and I ran into the Troupe."
Kurapika's eyes filled with shock, shaking as Gon continued on like he had said nothing wrong "Actually, they caught us."
"What were you guys thinking?! DO YOU REALIZE HOW DANGEROUS THEY ARE?"
Suddenly, Kurapika felt the room's emotions change, like the watcher had let their guard down for a split second. However, Kurapika couldn't pin point the location in time. Whoever was watching him didn't want to be caught, or found.
The voice on the phone suddenly changed, and Killua this time was speaking "I thought I knew, but after we met them, it became painfully clear. They're strong. Right now, we have no chance against them. That's why we need your assistance."
And without fail, Gon spoke straight after Killua "We want to help."
Kurapika waited for a third opinion, but it was never heard. He wondered if the boy was getting roped into this, seeing as they were all caught. His expression soon changed, sporting a stoic expression. He tried to hide what the conversation was about to his quiet watcher "That's ridiculous. I won't help you get yourselves killed, especially when one of you has been quiet during the whole time."
Killua's eye's twitched in frustration at the mention of Daniel's current lack of enthusiasm. Just earlier, the boy had been talking about how much he was willing to defend the others against the Phantom Troupe, but now the kid was dead quiet. Even with that, Killua did not waver for a second, willing to sell Kurapika a request he couldn't refuse "Don't you want to know where their base is?"
"I have my own sources of information."
"Do you know all of their powers?"
"Enough!" Kurapika was fed up with Killua's petty attempts to join a suicide mission "Just stay away from the Troupe!" However, no matter how annoyed Kurapika got from Killua's attempts, the boy did not waver; not even for a second "You're the chain user who killed one of their members, right? They're looking everywhere for you. If you won't treat us as friends or equals, we'll do whatever we must to help!"
Kurapika stood still, the conversation going dead quiet. The words weighed heavily on him but even with Killua's words, Gon somehow had more to say "Kurapika... One of their members cried in front of us. He said that he couldn't forgive whoever killed his friend. I got really mad after seeing that. I couldn't let that go. We want to stop them! Even if one of us is quiet, I know deep down he wants to help."
With Gon's words, Daniel's eyes shot open wide. Gon believed Daniel wanted to help, even though he was scared out of his mind. There are ways he could help, even without having to go up against the monsters known as the Phantom Troupe in hand-to-hand combat. They're way too fast for Daniel's fighting style to hold out against their monstrous strength.
Maybe if they were long distance fighters like him, maybe... but even then the moment they closed the distance, he'd no chance against them. There is something he can do, but until he finds that moment of time he can be most useful, he'll work to the best of the ability, even if in that very moment he has to play hide and seek.
"Please, Kurapika..." Gon's final words waned in the wind, waiting for Kurapika to respond.
Kurapika finally met his watcher, standing in the corner of his peripheral vision. The man had been smiling, for whatever reason that may be, he had to hang up now and hide the others from this listener "I'll call you back."
Kurapika turned, giving the man his complete attention. A few hours ago, Vastorie had picked a fight with Silva Zoldyck, and now here he is, standing near Kurapika like he was the man's next target.
Kurapika had too much to worry about now. Killua and Gon's words were weighing heavily on him, repeating in his very mind.
If you won't treat us as friends or equals...
We want to stop them!
Kurapika clenched his fist for a moment, loosening it up after a second later as he focused on Vastorie "What you need?"
"I'm curious... I overheard you mention Gon... You wouldn't happen to know someone by the name of Daniel?"
"Several, why...?"
Vastorie shifted his gaze towards the wall on the far right "I couldn't help but notice you looked slightly shocked when you saw my face. Maybe... Just maybe..." Vastorie shifted his gaze back to Kurapika, smiling smugly as if had figured out a secret "you may have met my son."
Kurapika turned away, frowning slightly at the man's quick deductions "And...?"
"How is he?"
Kurapika blinked several times, confused at the man's question. He slowly turned to face the older man once again "Why ask me? Why don't you ask him...?"
Vastorie chuckled "I don't know..." he slowly turned towards the front door, walking in the direction as he spoke "It's a delicate topic... at least in my son's eyes. But for you, seeing as you may or may not know my son, I'll tell you. He'll hang up the moment I'll call him. But if he is doing something reckless, do stop him... He is my only son, and he was a pain in my backside, pun intended..."
With a wave, Kurapika could only blink at the man in disbelief. Pun intended...? What did you mean exactly by 'pain in his backside'? Kurapika shook the thoughts away, more worried about how to deal with Gon, Killua and Daniel.
A sudden explosion outside rocked Kurapika awake, forcing him to run outside to unfortunately join Vastorie's side. The guards were shocked at how close it was, aiming their guns at the wreckage as they waited for the attackers.
A lone man walked through the fire, slowly revealing himself to Kurapika, Vastorie and Mafia guards. The man was rambling, warning the others as if they were fighting for a lost cause "I-It's no use. They're too strong. We don't stand a chance..."
Vastorie whipped a finger towards the direction of the mafia members surrounding the door "Kill him or he's going to kill you!"
"What?"
The lone mafia member walking towards the building continued to ramble in the background while lifting his gun. He pointed at the mafia members without warning, unloading his gun at random. Kurapika jumped through the glass doors, hiding behind a wall as Vastorie stood there, shifting his weight every so often to avoid the oncoming hail of bullets.
The mafia members who weren't killed in the first few seconds took cover, firing back.
Vastorie frowned as they shot at random, each bullet hitting the man "He's being controlled! Aim for the head!" The moment Vastorie mentioned that, a stray bullet hit the man in the head. He fell on the ground, slumped over.
Vastorie shifted his weight once again yelling at the mafia members "If he was being controlled, the person must be close by. Call someone to fan-"
"I found the corpse of one of the assassins!"
Vastorie stopped at the mention of one of the assassins being killed. He had to weigh his options. Either the leader or a manipulator was currently in the building. If the leader was in the building, maybe he might have a chance of disarming the group. However, if the manipulator was in the building, the risks of collateral damage would increase.
Vastorie turned to look at the mafia member "Damn it! What floor? Actually... you know what, forget it! I'll find them myself. He's probably already long gone from the area."
Vastorie flicked out his hand, stomping the ground loudly as he left.
Kurapika grits his teeth, leaving to search the building as well.
"~"
Not even thirty minutes into the search, Kurapika felt it for less than a minute, malicious aura surrounded the area as if it was targeting him, the blood lust. The moment Kurapika activated his aura in self defence was when it left, moving on as if he wasn't the person he was looking for.
He blinked once before continuing on, more cautious than he was seconds ago.
Zeno and Silva blinked at the same time as the aura surround them. Silva could help but comment on the presence "There he goes again..."
Zeno shook his head at the intent of the aura, knowing full well who was casting that wide net of aura. It was a waste of time. The intent was to draw out anyone who had Nen capabilities, possibly zoning in on who was lurking in the building, attacking the assassins that managed to cross his path.
Even with the net was cast; the predator could have left the location. It had to have been for another reason, like a beacon to count the number of people in the building "Silva... He is a monster who can pull it off. And the consequences of doing so, was the sacrifice of his Hatsu. Let him do whatever he wants. We'll start from the roof and head down..."
Vastorie smiled, reducing the size of his En field to zero. "Four, not including myself can use Nen. So only one person in this entire building currently is my enemy; two, if I count Silva, and three if Zeno is involved. If I fight alongside them, I run the risk of turning it into a three-way handicap."
Vastorie ran a finger across his chin, stroking it attentively as he thought about alternating plans. He needed a flawless plan, one which if needed he could improvise on the spot. After all... he would be fighting beside the Zoldycks. And the Zoldycks could be he enemies as well.
"~"
Vastorie waited, observing the stairs attentively. He had been running around the building, wasting his own aura as he searched for the intruder. He was worried that he would be late to the party, missing out the fight alongside Zeno and Silva.
However, he should have taken his time.
Vastorie had been searching the building earlier, in hopes of finding the other assassin with the beret. The man had been holding a combat knife, one which could prove useful in the upcoming battle.
He needed a fall back of some kind. If he wasn't going to use it as a tool to harm others, at least he could use it as a tool to distract.
Vastorie pressed his back into the wall, holding out his aura a mere fraction so that he couldn't be backstabbed. He was dealing with a rather strong Phantom Troupe member, one who was able to relax, and keep cool even if his life were in danger.
Whoever was hiding in the room behind him, he saw Vastorie as no threat whatsoever to him.
Vastorie closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath, only to hear a distinct voice calling him out on his own short comings "Isn't it too early to relaxing, Vastorie."
"Sil..." Vastorie slowly opened his eyes, staring back at the man and his father "Aren't you a little late to the party. After all, I've been waiting out here for the last oooh, ten minutes."
Silva grit his teeth, stilling his emotions as he walked towards one of the many entrances into the room the Phantom Troupe member waited "Says the man who's wasted his strength in order to find a single man."
"Touché, however..." Vastorie smirked, slowly making his way to another door, as far away as possible from Silva. "I'm not some damsel in distress. I am a man of refined talents, one who after a good night's sleep is ready to go. I'm not some decrepit old man who needs a cane just to walk."
"Hmph, we'll see soon enough."
"Zeno..."
"Vastorie..."
"How's life treating you?"
"Same old... Same old..."
Vastorie jerked his head towards Zeno frowning slightly at the old man's comment. Out of all the Zoldycks, Zeno was the most tolerable out of them all. He was calm, collected, and rarely, if ever, acted out of his own emotions. He may have been all about the job, but the contract only involved the main target, everyone else didn't need to be involved.
Vastorie held his hand against the door handle, opening it as the others did so alongside him. The room opened to a rather large room, giving any fighters an edge when it came to distancing one's self from the others, without having to worry about running into something.
Nothing, except for the large table the Phantom Troupe leader stood on served as a breakable object.
The Phantom Troupe member waited, observing the three assassins as they entered. He had been waiting long enough, as if he'd been expecting the assassins that had entered the room.
"We meet again." The man's eyes fell on the three, dark as a pitch black sky.
Silva barely raised an eyebrow, curious to the Phantom Troupe leader's question "You remember me?"
"How could I forget? You killed one of my people."
"It was difficult..."
"Silva admitting to something being difficult, why... it seems you're out of touch."
"Don't-"
"Silva... he is not the target."
"He IS a target."
"Of a long dead contractor... He is a waste of time."
"Hmph..."
Vastorie silently chuckled at Zeno's quick, fired back responses. The man was like a vicious viper; one that would strike at anything that got in its way. Zeno was all about the contract, and the contract was to kill the Phantom Troupe members, not the man that stood beside them in the fight to come.
The Phantom Troupe leader turned to face Vastorie, curious to how he could have missed an assassin "I don't believe we've met before."
"Vastorie... Vastorie Darkscryer. Pro Information Hunter, family man and assassin... in that respective order."
"Oh..." The man looked dissatisfied with Vastorie's response; however Zeno and Silva already had made their move, walking slowly towards the man. As the Phantom Troupe member focused on the other two, he took off his jacket, throwing it to the ground.
Given Vastorie's strict dress code, he wasn't prepared to risk the chance of wrecking his favourite jacket. The jacket had covered only his arms and back, barely reaching around his chest and finally ending in the three-point tail. Under the jacket was a tight vest sleeveless shirt, three buckles wrapping around the chest region and a frilly section running along the neck.
Once the jacket hit the floor, Vastorie lagged behind the others, listening to the others as if prying for any other information. Given that Silva had already fought the man before, he might just give away the man's fighting style.
Unfortunately for Vastorie, Silva barely whispered loud enough for only his father to hear. Vastorie shook his head in frustration while watching the Phantom Troupe leader jump down from his make shift pedestal.
This fight could go anywhere, and the only information Vastorie had at his disposal, was the man's ability, the ability to steal another man's Nen ability. That was the only edge Vastorie had. He had only oneNen ability, which he risked losing. But the chances of him using it were impossible.
It may have acted passively, activating on its own but unless he acknowledged it, asking the summoned spirit to fulfil a task, it served no purpose... maybe an annoyance at best. The other would have been a stupid ability to copy, one which is only used in training situations. Outside of training, it was nothing but a way to leave him open and venerable to ongoing attacks.
After a few moments to collect one's thoughts, the fight started, each man moving to his own rhythm.
Silva was the first to attack, sweeping at the leader's head. The leader ducked the attack, eyes following the older man who dropped in by his side. Zeno struck like a viper, hands poised at stabbing the man like it was a knife.
The leader avoided each hit, surprised at the older man's speed, vigour with each attack. Vastorie took this opportunity, coming in from behind to sweep the man's legs out. The man jumped backwards, kicking off Vastorie as if he were a stepping stone, only to fall prey to Silva's brute strength.
Silva struck the leader in the chest, only to be blocked. Even though the man blocked his earlier attack, he used enough strength to hit him back in Zeno direction like a pinball machine.
Zeno drew aura into his hand, firing it off like a large beam at the Phantom leader. The force pushed him back, sending him flying in the opposite direction. Vastorie stopped the man mid flight, slamming his leg into the person's back.
Even though Vastorie barely used any strength in his attack, he forced the man to at least stumble backwards, head slamming into the ground before rolling backwards for another of Silva's attack.
The leader was however prepared this time, rolling away before drawing an unusual knife to slice though Silva's thick skin.
Silva was able to create some distance, only barely being nicked by the blades edge.
Vastorie stepped back, avoiding the man and his knife. It's a good thing he didn't pull that on me. What the hell even is that, a Ben's knife perhaps? I wonder which number... could be a great collector's item, or worth a small fortune.
"You okay?"Zeno asked in concern, even though his eyes were still focused on the enemy at hand.
"I'm just fine."
"You got nicked by a knife... you're anything but fine. It takes a lot to penetrate that thick skin of yours."
"Give me a reason not to kill you right now..."
"My handsome looks...?"
Vastorie received a glare from the man, which only made him straightens his back under Silva's scrutinizing constant stare "Alright, jokes aside. His ability is to steal another's, right? I'm the only one who has nothing to lose at all..." Ok, I might be lying just tiny bit right now.
Zeno frowned slightly at Vastorie, barely glancing at the man before turning back to face the leader of the Phantom Troupe "So you can steal other people's Nen? You must be a Specialist. I would consider you a threat if you could freely use the powers you steal. However, you must take risks to take those abilities. A technique that strong must have its drawbacks... I would guess you must clear four to five conditions before you can steal an ability."
"I believe three to four would be even closer, seeing as mine needs only three conditions fulfil."
Silva objected to the man's comment "Even though yours is practically useless in fights. You can't even use it freely."
"Right, but I still stand by three to four."
Zeno stepped back into the conversation, cutting the kids off from their squabbling "Regardless of how many he has to use; it would be difficult to clear those conditions while fighting the three of us... Meaning that you won't be able to steal our abilities while we fight... Proven by your need to use a poisoned knife as a deterrent..."
The leader tossed aside the knife, choosing to extend his aura out.
"Silva, I-"
Vastorie objected to Zeno's plan before he could say anything "Nope, it's my turn." He cracked his neck once, then twice on his opposite side before continuing "This is a once in a life time opportunity... and a man like this has a lot to offer, to my profession. You may do what you want on the side, BUT, whether I'm truly an assassin or not..."
Vastorie crouched a tiny bit; sliding one foot towards the man "My thirst for knowledge will ALWAYS," he kicked off the ground, charging towards the Phantom Troupe leader "trump my need to kill!"
The leader jumped back, focusing his aura into his hands. Vastorie switched gears at the conjuration of the book, choosing to keep his distance while circling the man like a lion waiting for an opening with his prey.
A book...? Kinda reminds me of my ability... except universally more useful.
The book opened, flipping through the pages before stopping on a certain page.
Aura focused in his hand as a large piece of cloth formed in his hand. Never once did his eyes leave Vastorie or the others. He seemed rather too calm and collected, considering that two out of three of them planned on killing him.
Vastorie shifted his weight, focusing his aura into his arms and hands while putting one arm behind his back. Without warning, he charged the man again. Let's see exactly how dangerous this piece of cloth is...
The man swung the piece of cloth in Vastorie's direction. Vastorie quickly ducked, using his own momentum to slide out of the way before coming back in.
Vastorie swung his hand from behind his back at the Phantom Troupe leader, revealing a serrated Combat knife. The man jumped out of the way, eyes trained on the knife. Vastorie never once left the man's side, picking up the knife the Phantom Troupe leader had thrown away earlier.
Before Vastorie could lunge forward, he was forced to back away from Zeno's attack. Calm and collected, Zeno was lunging towards The Phantom Troupe Leader with his aura.
Vastorie whistled at the old man's technique, observing the man's ability to control and manipulate his aura with ease. Even if it so much as tapped the enemy, it still would have harmed them.
Unfortunately, for Zeno and Silva, Vastorie needed the man alive. He wanted to know two things specifically. He wanted to know the Phantom Troupe Leaders name, and their reasoning for this little game of cat and mouse with the Mafia. What exactly was the purpose of all this fighting?
Vastorie jumped back into the fight, catching the others off guard. He managed to kick the Phantom leader out of Zeno's path of attack, and then use the man's back as momentum to get back out of the way.
Unfortunately for Vastorie, he failed to predict Silva's following reaction. Rather than landing safely on the floor, he felt Silva's presence right behind him "Oh Sh-"
CRACK
Vastorie heard the sound of something break in his back, followed by the sound of him colliding with the floor. When the man hit the floor, for a split second he thought his ears were ringing when the knives hit the floor.
It was excruciating to him, like getting hit in the back with a monster truck. He was pissed. The incentive was growing with each passing second; the reason to put Silva through the ground. Slowly, Vastorie got up. He groaned along the way as he let his aura creep out slowly.
Vastorie clenched both hands. He felt the hilt of one of the knives in his hand, the grip still filled with the aura of the murderer and blacksmith. Plans began to form in his head and there was one thing he'll get before the end of the night, revenge.
He turned, seeing the fight still go strong, himself already long forgotten in the game of cat and mouse. With a chuckle, Vastorie threw the knife at Silva as he allowed his aura to release, swallowing the room whole.
Silva may have tensed at the man's presence, but still stepped back in time to avoid the knife "You're still alive?"
"Silva... it will take more than a single punch to knock me out. I've had more broken bones from my husband," Vastorie held up his finger to immediately correct himself "due to poor self control... then you will ever hope to achieve; that being said..."
The man held out his finger to point at Silva, letting his aura condense and flutter his clothing, as if he had a fan pointed straight at him "I'm pissed off at you... and I'm going to 'Stamp on the Ground'. Prepare yourself Silva, this just turned into a three-way triple threat!"
