As far as I can see, nobody is there for me.
An endless wasteland extends beyond the horizon. An urchin surrounded by nothing but white sands and a black sky, the thing air makes it difficult for him to breathe.
A lone journey into the abyss, My soul is left remiss.
Everything and everyone has abandoned him as he sits alone in this limbo of sand, not even a storm in sight. A peaceful yet haunting sight, he can feel madness descending as he looks in all directions and hears nothing-not a whisper of the wind nor the stench of environment to wake him up from this nightmare of isolation. His only companion is the grainy sound of the sand that buries his feet with each step he takes and fills his palms as tries to dig his way out.
What will await me? Peace or further suffering, only one way to find out as the lord of death notifies me with a ring.
Spyke opens his eyes, coming to his senses. The body of his late wife in his arms, he rests her gently on the ground and offers a prayer. He prays that she finds peace in the next life, and that he can join her soon, wincing in pain as the damage he took earlier finally takes its toll on him. Annie looked peaceful however, and that kept him calm though his heart ached greatly. "I hope it's peaceful on the other side." he whispers. Overlooking the two of them with a hand hidden inside his coat stood Ghary, crouched on the ground as though to conceal his presence from wary eyes. Spyke noticed him though and as if to protect Annie and let her soul depart peacefully, he put his guard up immediately-though there isn't much he can do by shielding a dead body. Nonetheless it proves effective as the beady eyed Ghary hesitates to take action with the urchin looking at him so deathly. In turn, Ghary's contemplation on whether to commit to the kill or return to the crowd for a better opportunity-deciding on the latter and withdrawing.
"Hmph, I can't look someone in the eye before I kill, consider yourself lucky." Ghary muttered, carefully looking around to make sure nobody else spotted him."If I could just kill one of Kida's targets, that would do well to send him into a blind rage. If he loses it, I can kill him and seize the gang for myself. At this rate, all the people ahead of me or that pose a threat will be dealt with in some way, all that remains is Kida. If he goes berserk, that gives me a chance!" A selfish reason, the man who stood behind the power of Kida and the urchins now became the ultimate opportunist. To do so, he'd cross paths with not only the leader Kida and his right hand man Spear, but face wrath from underlings like Ueru and Rogue; he was unsure of Cameron's allegiance but found him to be too unpredictable to trust. Terrible at combat but very manipulative and ambitious, the reason he was in on Death Row Island was for being the one responsible for several covered up mass murders that all happened on his command. Serving under Kida as a wimpy executive allowed him to assess and analyze everyone intently without seeking suspicion since to them he didn't have a single imposing fiber in his body. As they went into this grand plan, Ghary foresaw something like this to occur and hatched a plan. Should Kida face adversity in this matter, he'd seize the opportunity to betray him and steal the gang for himself. To do so, he'd need to eliminate every threat himself which was why he took so long to act, but at a golden time where everyone's hands are full sans Kida, he turned to the second plan: make him go berserk. An enraged Kida meant his judgment would be impaired, in which all it took was a single bullet to put him to sleep permanently, but to to do so, he'd need a catalyst; that's where the targets came in. If he could somehow kill one of Kida's targets, that'd be enough to send him over the edge and work in his favor, however he had to make sure he wasn't seen or else that rage would turn to him instead. Why was he doing this? Why become a traitor at such a time? Simple, he saw potential in the urchins organization. He believed that with his negotiation skills he could the urchins into more than just some gang in organized crime, but rather build an empire, a following-borrowing the idea of expansion like Ixia but doing so through the shadows and in several markets rather than invoking violence. A plan of minimal violence and maximum profit, it all started with dirtying his hands for a deposit on the investment. "I can't shoot at him or else he'll deflect it with ease. What I need is someone to distract him, but he's become so strong in such a short time that I'm not sure..." Watching Kida from afar, he carries a menacing glare, hidden in the shadows; slithering around the scope of Kida, he bides his time and waits for his moment.
A forced grunt on one end followed by the noise of blades colliding several times, Cobalt and Cameron once again duel it out, creating fireworks with their polished techniques. Up until this point, Cobalt dominated the battle between the two, only fighting with one arm while his opponent struggled with a two grip style. Where Cobalt fought with an empty mind, Cameron fought with a heavy one, reflective in his combat as his arms felt heavy and his body stiff. At one point it got tiring for Cobalt to endure watching such a troubled soul attempt to duel with their life on the line, and in frustration he finally immobilized Cameron for a moment with a stun move that made him drop his blade. The audience didn't like the way the fight was going and in turn saw this as their opportunity to ambush Cobalt, which was a terrible mistake. Cobalt saw it as a moment to send a message to Cameron that he won't tolerate a pathetic performance and proceeded to complete several swift strikes that in turn cut several bodies into halves, his Cobalt's red eyes flaming after they foolishly charged at him. Their bodies slapped the floor with a plop like a raw slab of meat, freezing the rest in fear, and prompting Cameron's mouth to drop in utter shock. The lack of remorse in his eyes, the conviction in those swings, Cameron could tell from that little display that Cobalt had grown as a swordsman.
Cobalt's distant gaze turned to him, his sword pointed him with the same hellfire swirling in his irises; Cameron didn't know why, but he felt something burning in his belly. A desire to defeat a strong opponent? No. Fear of death? Maybe. His pride as a swordsman? Definitely. A challenge made by the way he looked at him, Cameron felt everything in his body burn up. Not only did he watch those thugs get obliterated, but he did it right after numbing his hand for a moment, as if to teach him a lesson.
"Don't look down on me!" Cameron grimaced.
A flare shot in the darkness of his pupils, Cobalt's face wrinkles with a frown and tightening of the hilt to his carbon black blade, "You'll join them."
Brought back to his senses, he understood that if he wanted to live to see the next day, he needed to fight like it. From the vicious glare of Cobalt he could tell that the samurai acknowledged him as a capable swordsman and wanted nothing more than a fight worthy of the pretense known as a death match. He doesn't look like himself, rather he resembles that shadow that sold his sold those many months ago. He recalled, amazed at how far he'd come since those says of mercilessly killing, "I should've remembered your story, the reason why you became such a ruthless killer. When you have someone to protect, someone worth fighting for, it makes all the difference." Cameron realized, changing his grip style and straightening his posture like a proper swordsman.
Cobalt's irises still carry that fire, "I do. I fight to protect my woman, to protect my brother and sisters fighting here. As the head of the Tokugawa family, it is my responsibility to be the strongest of shields and the sharpest of all the blades. If you think you can best me with that weak resolve of yours, then that is quite the error on your part." the embers of his irises grow stronger, "I refuse to be cut down by a blade duller than a stick! If you think I'll let you anywhere near my captain, then you'll lose your life in the process."
Cameron clenched his teeth and scoffed, disgusted and tired of it always being about a Royale, a name that left a sour taste in his mouth."I'm not as righteous as you nor do I don't have anything to fight for." he declared, the memories of that fated day flashing through his mind, the days of old when he had someone to call his light, a person he envisioned spending his life with and to him, the last remaining shred he held onto as his reason from descending to darkness. Once he lost that light, his life spiraled into what it is now. To see Cobalt's resurrection as someone who was once on the same path as him to get his life on track and take the road to prosperity, it was a slap in the face. If there was ever a perfect chance to let out his frustration, it was now. Instead of taking it out on Azule to replace Sky, he could go after the one person that deserved it the most in his eyes. His hostile gaze comes to life now that he has a purpose again: to spoil Cobalt's happiness and take his life! A swift upper sword slash out of nowhere, Cobalt reacts in time dodge his initial slash and downwards one that follows. A close block that echoes a stinging sound, Cobalt's timing is impeccable in blocking the attempted lunge of Cameron's, surprised by the disturbing aura the ronin emitted; the young samurai knew those brief seconds from Cameron were far stronger and faster than before. Cameron does a clockwise spin to work around Cobalt, but the inkling blocks him again from behind and uses the momentum to roll away from the attack. With life in Cameron again, the crowd that backed off in fear once again surrounded them cheering on their ronin while the remainder of the grunts grabbed the remains of their fallen comrades and dragged them away. Cobalt's fiery gaze is matched by the envious one of Cameron, and with the raise of a chin by Cobalt met by the nod of Cameron, they clash yet again. Cameron went low, Cobalt went high. Cameron's swing is a narrow miss as Cobalt does a leap at the last moment off of the "wall" and then flips over Cameron; Cameron attempts to swipe at him overhead but just misses, then attempting a cross body slash on the landing Cobalt that he dodge with a lean of the shoulder away from the sword. Cameron's still in swinging motion however, and brings his sword back, looking to throw him off balance. Cobalt stiffly blocks with his sword and kicks him away, looking to create some space but Cameron's not letting him slip away. Cameron goes for another swing and misses yet again, getting warmer and warmer on a landing a strike; Cobalt thinks he's got an opening, but Cameron contorts his body to time a perfect lunge in the blind spot of Cobalt, even lift his feet on the hop step and straightening his body in mid-spin; Just barely does he graze his arm. Cobalt elbows him in the face and follows up with a powerful vertical slash, bringing his sword down with some force; Cameron interrupts the motion by parrying the attack, which stuns Cobalt for a millisecond-enough for Cameron to land a dull but effective strike across his chest. Cobalt backs away the moment his form was interrupted and only suffers his clothes getting caught at the most. Cameron smirks, feeling the momentum on his side after getting a nice reaction from the crowd and enjoying the feeling of outperforming the great son of Arosuke; Cobalt's irises subside and he's calm again, understanding that exchange was his loss. Almost at the speed of light, several slashes light up Cameron's line of sight-all feint attacks but one must surely be real. He has less than a second to pick a strike to block, and he chooses the correct one luckily, but in that moment, Cameron's smirk is gone. Cobalt's calmness felt haunting, as though whichever mood he is in, he's a lethal threat. Cobalt leg sweeps him high enough to grab him by the ankle and slamming him so hard into the ground he rebounds, performing a tornado kick while Cameron hovered in midair for just a second. A powerful spinning kick that sends him into the arms of the audience, Cameron rebounds and storms at him with purpose; Cobalt's chin lowers, the fire in his eyes returning as a powerful aura emerges. A powerful overhead swing met by the solid defense of the target, it's only a second that they're locked in this position, but it's enough time for them to stare each other directly in the eyes and read the other's thoughts. Cobalt saw hate in Cameron's eyes, and Cameron saw death in Cobalt's. Cameron uses the momentum of their collision to back off and catch himself, figuring he'd left himself in a vulnerable position. Cobalt's there in a heartbeat however, and Cameron felt his body scream in fear and operate of its own will. A lucky thing he's got reflexes quick enough to answer the speed of a Tokugawa, or else that would've been a critical hit. Cameron skips backwards and returns to a two handed grip, his knees and elbows bent with concentration. Cobalt's no longer on a solo grip and takes a wide stance, sweat starting to form on his face. Two clouds of dust remain where they stood as they confront the other, moving so fast that the only thing to be seen were the sparks left from their clashes, the colliding metal screeching and grinding several times in different places. When they return to the sight of the audience, they witnessed a deadlock in the battle as both swordsmen were wearing different colored auras: Cameron in red, and Cobalt in white. Cameron looked faster and carried some power in his aggressive swings, but Cobalt's footwork and dodging followed by near deadly thrusts reminded the audience that it was far from over. Everything moves in slow motion, sound, image, everything. Cobalt and Cameron could feel the heat of the other, the emotions carried in their strikes as their bodies extended, ready to launch devastating finishing blows on the other; both swordsmen intent on killing the other! A girl's voice comes flying in followed by Tangie crashing into Cobalt to knock him out of blast range, the furious strike of Cameron hitting nothing but air, but the pressure from his swing so powerful it created a rift in the air pressure and left a huge burst of air smacking the faces of the audience, who never witnessed such a battle. Cameron looks over to see Tangie being held in Cobalt's arms; at the last minute he caught her. When everyone looks over from where she flew, they saw an enraged Ueru rushing over like a freight train and quickly they made way for him to enter the battlefield. Tangie rubs her head and looks at Cobalt with innocent eyes and fluttering eyelashes, completing the set with pouting lips and blown up cheeks.
"Switch?" she asks in a light tone, trying her best to appeal to him, but Cobalt's darkened stone face sends a sweat drop down her face. Maybe she oversold it...
Cobalt grunts with steam puffing out his nose and looks at Ueru with a glare, "Shall I mince you?" he warns, doing his best to hide the obvious blush; on the inside, Tangie's got a smug look with a fist pump-she's still got him.
Ueru approaches the couple, joined by Cameron. "Your girl there had some big words but it looks like it meant nothing with only one arm, after all."
The aura Cameron felt before from Cobalt tripled, and in an instant he found himself on the receiving end of the attack protecting Ueru from what would be a sure death. Shocked by the responsiveness of Cameron and the powerful force from Cobalt's swing, Ueru realized he might've said too much. When Cameron thinks he's got Cobalt covered, a foot strikes him right under his jaw that sends him flying into the arms of Ueru, who caught him before he hit the "wall" surrounding them. A sneaky slide under Cobalt and propelling with her arm and shoulder to launch her body leading with her foot, Tangie got a critical hit and it was all thanks to their quick thinking. Cobalt catches the free falling Tangie and hugs her from behind, to which she giggles and nuzzles his nose followed by a kiss, which made everyone there sick. Cobalt and Tangie wear confident looks as they're finally together and ready to show these losers how strong their chemistry went, and on the other side, Cameron and Ueru had personal grudges that could get settled once they matched their chemistry with their coordination.
Elsewhere, another battle is on as the teamwork of Luke Garston and Lance are tested by Spear and the Tower Bridge Unit; thanks to the works of Santiago and Violet, who were sniping from a distance and interrupting the enemy's rhythm, they were able to keep the fight prolonged. When anyone thought to go after the two snipers, they were met by Luke, who made sure not to let a soul get past him. Lance had his hands full with Landon, Abby, and Duke, mostly throwing hands with his brother and relaying the other two in impressive fashion. Each time they tried to overwhelm him as a trio, they were met by a near miss from Violet, who had accuracy so frightening they didn't want to test whether they could dodge her shots in a vulnerable position. After some coordinating, Violet and Santiago take down the horde of grunts that'd been a nuisance and gave the pair a chance to fight fair with a 2-on-4 melee and them on support from the rear. With their backs to the snipers, Lance and Luke rely on them once more against Spear and the Tower Bridge Unit. Overlooking the fight was Kida, who looked hungry to get involved but found it delightful to watch the Tower Bridge Unit fight a tortuous battle against their own leader and comrade. The sensation of everyone being nothing more than pieces that he could utilize in a real-life game of chess left him with a sense of excitement, especially after how long he had to be away from the scene. However, his sneering grin dissolves the moment he felt someone's hostility near him. Immediately, he's met by the foot of Azule. A blade is unsheathed and he blocks him with such defense that the boy hops away-for only half a second as Azule once again brings his thunder kicks for another crack at him, to which Kida blocks the several furious high-pressured kicks. Just when Azule backs off, here comes Fuchsia soaring in like a missile and crashing into him with her left gauntlet after having used her right one to launch her. Kida blocks the gauntlet with his forearm, aware that with that type of pressure she'd destroy his blades; his face twists trying to hide the pain. After launching into him, Fuchsia sends herself up high and aims with her right gauntlet firing off at Kida. Several shots rain down on him, and during that mess, so does Azule. Azule drops in with a stomp, then catapulting off of him and charging in with a running knee, shifting his feet after landing to a enziguri kick that then becomes a leg headlock, and with a twist of his body he throws Kida a decent distance; Kida rolls for damage control and rises to his feet immediately.
"Finally, we can settle this. My reason for killing you in the name of Spyke means nothing anymore, but oh do I have some bad blood with your annoying ass!" another blade is revealed as he showed that he was carrying not one, but two swords. "In my absence, I picked up another sword. I guess you could say I anticipated this moment."
"Does that include me beating you, too?" He yelled, clenching his fists. "For all the problems you've caused, I'm ending you!" Azule's royal blue hair starts to glow brightly along with his eyebrows and irises, a mean expression worn as wrinkles form on his forehead.
"Cutting the chat short? Thought you'd want to hype this up more since it'll be the last time we meet."
Azule's face darkens, "I'll write it on your tombstone."
"I like the sound of that, maybe I should do the same for you!" Kida yells, dragging his blades as he sprints for the boy; Fuchsia steps in with a powerful punch, sending Kida rolling.
"Ayo what the f-"
"Fuchsia!" Azule shouts in a worried tone.
Fuchsia gives him a thumbs up, "Safe!"
Kida returns with twice the speed with his focus turned to Fuchsia, but the smiling octoling turns serious, holding up her wrists to intercept the attack. She brushes it off and palm strikes him in the face followed by a grapple that flips him, Kida lands however and in turn uses his entire body send a kick to her face; Fuchsia eat the hit but flinches from the attack, responded with a wild shot from her gauntlets that Kida avoids. Kida's back on his feet and looks to take off her arms, but before he can like up a swing on the distracted Fuchsia, his elbow is bent the opposite way as a blue shadow appeared below him. What follows is an elbow strike to the chest and a swing punch that sends him away for a moment. Azule helps Fuchsia recover to which she assures him she's fine. As she opens her eyes, she's surprised by the sight before her, His blue eyes showed a calmness similar to an ocean but carried a radiant light similar to a thunderbolt. Speechless for a moment, all they can do is look at each other and give a serious nod. A wild fire with a mild burn, Midnight Azule carries more composure than previously, his emotions under control and his senses honed. Next to him wearing her gauntlets proudly raised and prepared for another round is Fuchsia raising her chin with a widened stance as clouds of steam puff from the gauntlets; cranking noises can be heard as she breathes in sync with the tune of the puffing gauntlets. Kida's back again and got both his swords in hand and ready to battle, recovering from that little burst by putting his elbow back in place. He found it strange that a pair of children standing before him like now would be his big moment to debut his skills, but he didn't mind it too much with the amazing raw power of Azule and unpredictability of Fuchsia making it worthwhile. The duo open up the attack with a war cry rushing at Kida, who narrows his eyes to concentrate on their movements and predict their attacks. Fuchsia's up first, throwing a left jab, a splatter of her ink shooting out her knuckles to blind the man; at first, he's flustered by the tactic but remembers what happened a moment ago and that he had two blades to protect him. If there is one thing that can cut through anything, it's a sword. With a powerful pair of swings, he cuts through the ink like paper and finds both his targets missing. His eyes darted to the right as a shadow enters his vision, his head slow to turn before getting sent the other way; Azule landed a jump kick that hit him square in the cheek. Who waited for him on the other side? Fuchsia and her gauntlet that she had winding up for a super uppercut. Kida recovers from the hit and goes on the attack instead, targeting Fuchsia. Azule sprints in her direction, but she holds up her hand that tells him to back off. Kida does a double slash, Fuchsia's gauntlets eat the attacks, the most damage suffered being some scratches. She extends her arm with her fist facing Kida right afterwards, and a screen of ink is shot from her knuckles followed by a powerful gust escaping her palms. Kida's vision is compromised and that opens the way for Azule to go in for the kill, but his senses were still sharp enough to avoid the initial strike. Amazed by his concentration, he's exposed after banking on that attempt. Fuchsia's to the rescue, using the pressurized air compressed in her gauntlet to rocket towards Azule and grab him at the last second. Together, they stare down Kida once again, who brandishes both his blades and rushes at them; they're sweating a little now that the scale of their opponent has been shown. Kida sprints toward them lowering his head placing one sword ahead and the other behind and picks up speed, the two look at one another and then ready themselves. It's the speed of Kida versus the chemistry of Azule and Fuchsia as the kids were careful to avoid the cutting range of Kida, who used his excellent speed to always keep them wary of a critical strike. Every time he swung, it felt like the air was splitting-similar to Cobalt when he got serious, except it was twice the effect since he was a duel wielder. A thrust, lunge, and swing, Kida threw everything at the evasive children who craftily avoided death at every moment. Fuchsia showed her athleticism by weaving through his dual blades by relying on the strange transition of her gauntlets, the used both ink and air to maneuver. Her body was like a navigation tool as her brain is forced to go beyond and devise new ways to avoid what was near impossible off of conventional methods alone. Kida targeted her more frequently than Azule, seeing her as a pest threatening his chance at a wonderful solo battle against Azule. Every time he locked on her, he had Azule to answer for it, who stepped in whenever she evaded to get his attention instead. When it was Azule and Kida going at it, quite the opposite occurs: Instead of bobbing and weaving like Fuchsia, Azule ate the vicious slashes and strikes, returning the favor with powerful punches enough to make Kida cough up an organ. His kicks got faster and punches meatier, for Kida, every blow he exchanged with the kid made him question if it was really worth fighting, noting that the kid hit like a speeding truck. Several exchanges continue as Kida cycles between the two with neither side showing restraint, becoming further engrossed in combat; unaware of another existence watching them with malice.
Ghary slithers his way to a corner and watches patiently, hungry to rob Kida of his kill, and what better time to do so when he's so invested in his battle too! Ghary snickered at his imagination, replaying the scenario in his thoughts like a movie reel and enjoying every outcome that could happen if he timed it right. Kida's despair, his blind rage, all of them were satisfying once he put a bullet in his chest. Around the corner, Azule and Fuchsia are back to their original style and bombard him with a barrage of strikes from close and far alike, but Kida's body was accustomed now, and now that he knew their patterns, he felt much stronger. Fuchsia becomes his first target, his bloodlust so apparent that Fuchsia shivered in disgust. As if teleporting, Kida appeared before Fuchsia with a wide swing that surely cut her down. That swing isn't completed however, as he's met by the teeth of Azule who had the rabid eyes of a beast. A bite that shatters his blade, Kida's back to only one sword, tossing aside his broken blade with annoyance. Fuchsia didn't even process what had happened, but saw from Azule's huffing and puffing hunched body that he must've exerted himself greatly to reach her in time. Kida isn't done however, confident that he can take Azule down now that he's showing signs of fatigue. Azule holds up his hand to stop Fuchsia, looking at her with a determined look and then looking over to Spyke and Annie, which Fuchsia understood right away and gave a nod. Azule kicks up a cloud of dust and does a cartwheel to a handspring backflip, dodging Kida's attack, and kicking the next sword out of his possession; Fuchsia rushes over to the sword and smashes it to pieces. Disturbed by the priorities of the children in going after his weapons rather than him, he had newfound respect for their efforts in stripping him of any lethal weapons. He knew what they were thinking now, and that only made him chuckle at their naivety. If they didn't have the resolve to kill, then it's their grave. Fuchsia darts in one direction and Azule in the other, capturing Kida's attention, the enemy focuses on Azule since he's the foolish one daring him so boldly; Fuchsia's goal is to retrieve Spyke and Annie while Azule distracts Kida. Kida and Azule match punches, creating an insane blast of air between them; the skin of Kida's hands are getting scraped with each strike that connects with Azule, and on the kid's hands, they were bloodied and bruised beyond imagination. Kida grimaces as the burn starts to deepen, disgusted by the cruel look in the child's eyes that resembled that of a predator. Kida throws another punch, but this time Azule catches it and drives his fist into his elbow, bending it out of place with the power of a single punch that sends squirts of blood everywhere. Kida wants to writhe in agony before it back in place but first he kicks Azule in the gut and sends him away to give himself enough time to recover; Meanwhile, Fuchsia reached Spyke and Annie.
"...Hup! Gotcha!" she grunts, putting the two of them on her shoulders; she felt relief but also anxious at the same time since while picking them up with her gauntlets she could sense life in Spyke while Annie's felt so...different. But she has no time to waste, as Azule's likely at the end of his rope and would need her assistance.
Azule's off his feet after Kida's leg sweep in which Kida completes his spin with an axe kick to the boy's stomach. Azule back slams on the ground with Kida's boot pressed on his chest, his enemy looking down on him with an arrogant look. He won. Now, with no weapons in hand, Kida stared at the kid's neck with a sinister grin arriving at his answer for how he'll kill Azule; Asphyxiation, also known as Suffocation. With a belly-full guffaw, his eyes pop out in madness with accomplishment that he'll finally achieve what he should've at the beginning of everything. He lifts his boot, and moves it up towards his throat, then stomps down before pressing on the squirming child's only source of oxygen. With both bodies on her shoulders, Fuchsia looks over in absolute horror witnessing everything, helpless that she can't help him. Desperately looking around for anyone, unfortunately no one could assist her. Cobalt and Tangie were still surrounded, and the others were still busy, but she did find only made matters worse. Hiding behind a corner with only a gun and head sticking out, Fuchsia saw a man with a sly grin snickering to himself. She tracked where the gun was aimed and saw it pointed at none other than Azule! Her mind raced. She couldn't unload them and sprint over even if she wanted to, because as it was Azule would either die by suffocation or his brains getting blown out. It's not fair. It can't end this way. That's what she's likely thinking in such a scenario where she's forced to watch Azule suffer yet again. A gunshot penetrates everyone's eardrums. Kida didn't know where it came from, but based on how proximal it was it had to be within his range, and in slow motion he saw Ghary jump from behind the corner, noticing how low the gun was pointed. It's too late for him to do anything about the speeding bullet; Fuchsia's heart sank as she watched the burst of light from the smoking barrel. The next few moments are a blur. A speeding bullet with Azule's name on it, shocked reactions from Fuchsia and Kida, and blood splattering everywhere…
A loud cry that calls everyone's attention like a ringing bell, what follows made everyone stop their fighting at look over in pure shock. The air felt cold and the heavy, a suffocating pressure that only a few were familiar with. Ghary's writhing on the floor holding his face with blood gushing where his eye would be, his piercing cries for help falling on deaf ears. Kida's far away from Azule with a cold sweat covering his stunned face, his knees buckling at the sight before him that brought an incredible fear, a doom that'd only been spoken of as an urban legend. Two parents stood by their son with blackened looks, only the whites of their eyes showing in the darkness. Azule's held in the arms of his mother, who wore an emotionless face, though the suffocating pressure everyone sensed indeed belonged to her, a replica of death itself as her hair flapped like the dark cape she once donned. Beside her with a ravenous look on the verge of losing it was his father, who was beyond furious at seeing what happened to his son. His piercing glare was locked on Kida especially, and in his hand was a gun smoking as well. The urchin gang lost their will to fight right then and there, as every shrieked in horror fleeing the scene and left their superiors to fend for themselves, screaming out how they just encountered the grim reaper and the devil. Julian swiftly aims his gun and puts another bullet in Ghary taking out the other eye, following up by a shot to the brain as payback for what he tried; Steam shoots out his nose like a raging bull as he kept his death stare on Kida, who didn't dare move a muscle. Maya looks at her recovering son, who was breathing heavily, aware that he was saved. When he realizes it's his parents who've come to his rescue, and how everyone on the battlefield suddenly froze on their arrival, he remembered Spyke and Annie and sprinted in Fuchsia's direction. With a glance to his parents, he nods at them, and they return it with soft looks-relieved that their youngest child was safe. As Azule reaches Fuchsia and takes Spyke off her shoulders and carries him on his back, Maya and Julian smiled a little at the nostalgia experienced, seeing Azule and Fuchsia as a much younger version of them when they started getting close. Chaos always run deep it seems, that's what they remembered when recalling those days.
"Cobalt! Tangie! Accompany them! You too, Santiago. Take your daughter and pick them up and then bring them back to the hotel. Haven them checked out by the medics!" Maya commands with urgency, her tone far from shaken, but clearly enraged. She was clearing everyone out so they wouldn't have to witness the carnage about to be displayed. Without hesitation, they follow her orders: Cobalt and Tangie were right on the other's trail, quickly abandoning their battles once they heard the severity of her tone. Santiago grabbed Violet by the hand and dipped the scene, heading for the car he parked some distance away. All the key people now gone from the scene meant the imposing pair could get to business. Right away, they already have their targets. "Luke Garston, I thank you for coming in on such short notice, but I'll be taking in your subordinates. Please leave the Tower Bridge Unit to me." she commands, the look in her eyes almost black with a yearn for their death; All of his subordinates felt shivers, never having seen such a side of Maya. They thought they were strong enough, that they were prepared to fight her at her strongest, but with a single look at death itself, they felt petrified. Regret crosses their minds as they finally understand the beauty of life and the selfishness of their desires, how they threw away everything to go against the wishes of the person they viewed like a father.
Garston holds up his arm as if to protect them, "I agreed to work with you all after learning the truth, but you know I can't let you kill them."
A sigh came from Maya followed by a shake of the head in denial, "I won't kill them…" Everyone but Garston breathed a sigh of relief-as he still had his guard up with suspicion; "I only have one question to ask. Should they answer wrong, I'll pass judgment as I see fit."
"Please…" A sorrowful Garston pleads.
"Members of the Tower Bridge Unit, I only have one question-a simple question. Will you listen to it? I promise you, if you answer with all sincerity I won't take action against you all. This excludes General Garston of course." They are all reluctant to agree, but as their general bows his head in acceptance of fate they figure they might as well follow in his lead. Agreeing to answer her question, they line up before her. With General Garston next to her and Julian still looking at the frozen Kida, Maya stares down every member of the Tower Bridge Unit before returning to their general's side. "Why did you come to Squirabia? Specifically, why did you come to Ravia? You weren't given orders by Cap'n Cuttlefish or Netifla to be as their acting bodyguards and attendees, so, care to explain?" Not a single word is uttered as beads of sweat drop down their faces, especially Landon's who felt terrible pressure in having to respond as the leader.
"We came here to kill your son on the orders of Liandt of Parliament." Lance responds, prompting shock from his comrades; Julian tittered, amused that someone had enough guts to say that to his wife's face and within his range. Everyone awaits Maya's response, especially Luke Garston, who was sweating profusely in thought of how he'll have to defend the others from Maya's wrath. But, that never came, instead Maya lower her chin and closed her eyes to think. While she contemplated what to do, the others looked at Lance with disapproval, ready to grill him for being a snitch. "Oh stuff it!" he lashes out, fed up with the trio; "How dumb are you to not realize she's looking for us to give a testimony. The jig is up and he's probably being arrested in the coming days, which means we're being given a chance to plead our guilt in a confession and not get hit with a harsher punishment, isn't that it?" he asked, looking over at her.
Maya lifts her chin and opens her eyes, "Yep." she answers plainly.
The tension that'd been built evaporated instantly.
"What?" they said in unison, including Garston.
Maya nods, "Everything Lance said is true. A call was made just a moment ago that Liandt confessed his crimes, claiming it was all on him. However, my daughter and my son have enough evidence of your involvement in the case that you don't comply. As I speak, Liandt is being detained. I am here with Julian to take you in as criminals. Confess, and your sentence might just be lowered."
"How can we trust you?" Abby's asked in frustration, still processing.
"Because your comrades are free. He made a deal with them that if they helped in defense of Inkopolis, he'd cut them loose and promise not to say anything about the unit's involvement in illegal activity. Unfortunately, you all won't be so lucky since you worked alongside the enemy and tried to kill my son, and even the princess of another country for that matter."
Luke finally picks up on it, "But since I intervened-"
"It's water under the bridge. I'm not mad at them, just disappointed that they'd allow themselves to be manipulated like that. As for your comrades elsewhere, they'll be pardoned for their actions in protecting their country. Perhaps you can do some reflection on that." Maya finished crossing her arms; "Lance, you figured it out from the moment I said I wouldn't kill you, correct? You're a sharp one."
"Yeah. You're terrifying, but you wouldn't kill your own comrades. From the moment you assured us our lives were protected and then you questioned us, it doesn't take much to piece the puzzle together. The same way we had an elaborate plan, so did you."
"Well said."
"So, what should we do with the others?" Julian asked, sending their attention over to the frozen Spear, Cameron, and Ueru, who were already exhausted from their fights to put up a facade.
Maya looked coldly at the trio with a darkened face, "Sit down and wait to bad arrested." she said with spite, her vicious tone making them follow orders as diligently; "As for the leader, do whatever you want with him. I've got my emotions under control but I can tell you're itching for action." She snaps her fingers for the Tower Bridge Unit to sit beside the urchins as criminals and wait for backup to arrive, commenting that General Garston will vouch for a lighter sentence.
Julian wears a scary smile, "You know me too well." he laughs, his radar exclusively on Kida; the trio of Spear, Cameron, and Ueru watch on in fear as Julian approaches their boss, wondering what will happen in the next moment after seeing what he did to Ghary. "You are the big bad boss. I heard about you, yeah. You tried to kill my son before but got stopped by my daughter and her united force. Then you escaped from Death Row Island of all the places and caused mayhem in a foreign land before coming here. Once again? You tried to kill my son." his tone, his demeanor, everything, all felt like something crazy was about to unfold. Julian had a readied look, as if daring him to try something. "Mess with one of my kids, and I'll kill you." Kida's hesitant to react, mostly because he can't hide the fear he felt. He saw death imminent if he tried something, but he couldn't allow his pride to be dragged any further. The eyes of Julian Royale were unforgiving, "Dance for me!" he shouts, firing several shots at Kida's feet, forcing him to dance around the shot; Julian then fired another set at him and the shot a bullet up high, aiming for it once again and firing a bullet that ricochets off the previous bullet and into the chest of Kida. The leader of the Urchin gang shrieks in agony as he's pierced in several locations, all missing the vital spots on purpose. For each time Kida cried out in pain, he fired another shot in his foot and hands, eventually taking out his knees and elbows, ignoring the pleas for mercy. In that moment, everyone and especially Spear, understood why the little boy had such a vicious attitude when fighting; he's cut from the same cloth as his father.
Around that same time, Azule and Fuchsia are carrying Spyke and Annie in a desperate rush to find a nearby hospital, gasping and wheezing while running at top speed with such weight on their backs. It's a bumpy ride for the bleeding urchin, who already felt cold from the loss. A numbing sensation that still carried an unbearable sting, he couldn't fight the pain any longer. Tapping his buddy's shoulders, he asked for them to put him and his wife down together. Azule's determined look he up until that point with the mindset of saving them dropped in an instant, understanding where this was going. He gently rests him down besides Annie with dejection, feeling as though he'd failed yet again. Fuchsia, knelt beside him and rubbed his back, feeling his pain. Spyke's breathing slowed, only able to look up at the smokey sky and then to his sleeping wife beside him before returning his gaze to the defeated inkling.
"I'm so sorry, for all the things I did. Please tell that to everyone who I wronged, I know I saw one of them here." he said, referencing to what happened when he kidnapped Azule's friends; "Thank you for being my best friend, or only true friend. You changed my life for the better, and I'll forever be grateful for what you did to make sure I had a second chance. Keep your chin up, lad...I have a final wish that needs to granted, will you listen?"
Fuchsia's face dropped in a cold sweat, her heart aching in realization of what is about to be asked. Getting up, she turns away and brings a fist up to her mouth, trying her hardest not to let her voice escape with tears rolling down her fighting face. Azule's devastated, knowing what will come next. Wiping his face with a frustrated look, he nods his head and forces, "I'll grant it."
Spyke's lifeless eyes are filled with resolve now that he found peace, "Please...kill me."
Azule couldn't breathe after hearing the words, but he knew he had to do it. It was Spyke's last request, and it was a kill out of mercy. Even though he agreed to do it, his body was reluctant to carry out the commands, especially when he saw the urchin laying down with lifeless eyes had already lost his will to continue. He was nothing more than just a trapped soul in that corpse. Azule takes one long final glance at his friend and took a deep breath; he understood why Spyke made such a request. .
"When she died in my arms, I knew my end was a given. I was gifted a second chance with my life, my prime reason for fighting being that I can do it all by her side, that one day I could walk again. One day, I could open a successful shop right back in Inkopolis after spending years selling all around the world. Together we were going to make something special. When we learned we were having kids, it was the greatest feeling ever-one I can't describe. Months ago, I didn't know what I'd do with my life or if I'd ever live to have kids, and that news washed away those fears. I'd have kids of my own, children I can vow will never live the way I did. I was ready to take the kindness you showed me and make something of it. Have a family, and live a fulfilling life." Azule's soft gaze on Spyke was blinded by his own tears, his heartbreaking the more he listened to Spyke's final words. He might be young, but he understood the message immediately while looking into the eyes of a man who desperately wanted to reunite with the woman he loved. Spyke smiles weakly, and wipes away the boy's tears. With Azule almost on top of him, he knew the death he's about to receive will be swift and painless. "Don't shed tears, boy. I'll be a happy man on the other side."
Azule gives a tearful nod, then wrapping his arms around Spyke's head like a headlock-pricked by his needles. His eyes closed, he channels Midnight once more for what will be the only way he can carry out such a kill, as the strength he currently had wasn't enough; Fuchsia continues to look the other way. With one final whisper of gratitude from Spyke, Azule snaps his neck. The urchin's body drops to the floor with the last bit of life he had gone in an instant; Azule drops out of midnight and sat emotionless, the light gone from his eyes. It's the first time he's experienced the loss of a friend, especially one he built a close bond with in such a short amount of time. To Azule, it felt like it was all his fault. He could've avoided this nightmare if he'd gone a different route, but the moment Fuchsia wraps her arms around him crying, he was brought back from that negative mentality. How was he supposed to know about Kida's arrival? Was the memories he made with Spyke better off if he ended up in a worse situation? Of course not. Instead of thinking of their deaths, he should celebrate their lives. Thankful to have her by his side at a time like this, he embraces Fuchsia, amazed that she's so emotional about a man she barely knew. Cobalt and Tangie arrive moments later to see the pair sharing a hug and decide to give them their space. As the children mourn the loss of a couple lives, out in a world beyond the strings of time where there is nothing but an endless sight of sand and darkness, Spyke wakes up to see that the black sky from earlier turned a light blue, the dead air now full of life with wind blowing peacefully-the sand that once buried his feet now replaced with a lush green meadow instead. It felt serene, a sensation of lightness that affected his body too. He's so engrossed in the marvelous environment that he doesn't notice someone tapping on his shoulder. Surprised, he turns around to see a jovial Annie flash him a radiant smile, holding out her hand and point out to the horizon with enthusiasm. Spyke gives her a warm smile and realizes his heaven is with her, taking her hand and walking beside her. There is no destination in mind, and for all they know, this was an endless walk, but it was fine for the loving couple. As long as they have each other, their love defeats the isolation.