CHAPTER 33
Alex sprinted across a rooftop and hurled himself into the air, angling towards the rattle of gunshots several blocks distant. The roars and bellows of powerful pokemon clashing echoed in the night air, and gouts of fire shot up over the tops of buildings. Police sirens screamed as the officers of the Eleventh hastened to cordon off the fighting, and panic was rising in the streets.
The clash had erupted out of nowhere. Alex and Hierro had just rendezvoused with Detective Reyes to make an arrest on a dream dust supplier when an explosion lit up the sky some ways distant. The police dispatch radio in Reyes's cruiser reported that a building belonging to one of the Baron's shell companies had been attacked, and Sin cutters were now moving on the location. Alex assumed that since Dominion had cemented her hold on the other four boroughs, she was moving on Avenbrooke and using her forces to draw the Baron into battle, where she could cripple his organization as ruthlessly and efficiently as she had the Kuromori.
There was no time to reach out to other heroes for backup. From the sound of the reports, fighting was already intense and only getting worse. Even waiting for Echo or the Phantom to cross over from Ridgewood would just give more time to fan the flames. Alex could only hope that the Ronin was somewhere nearby and willing to help, because whatever was happening needed to be nipped in the bud as soon as possible.
Alex and Hierro alighted on a rooftop that overlooked the battleground, and saw several of the Baron's cutters crouching behind vehicles and pressed into alleyways, taking potshots at the black-clad capos that were hemming them in. Julia Richelieu stood behind an armored truck, barking commands into a cellphone, her Seviper coiling around her heels. Alex ducked into the shadows and surveyed the rest of the Sin force. It didn't seem like any of the other Sins were present, and the capos Pride had brought with her seemed to be mostly from within her own organization. He didn't see any Kuromori ninjas or the tattooed muscle-bound northerners that Greed actively recruited, nor did any of Wrath's ragtag anarchists seem to be in attendance. That, at least, was a small blessing; he need not worry overmuch about bombs or incendiary devices. Perhaps Pride had pulled some of Gluttony's hired muscle to fill out her numbers, but that was nothing Alex and the Eleventh couldn't handle.
A Luxio controlled by one of the Baron's men launched a thunderbolt that arced low to the ground, crackling across the pavement and igniting a bit of spilled gasoline. Two cars nearby exploded into brilliant coronas of fire, and Pride's people hastened for cover.
Police in riot gear appeared at the edges of Pride's forces, drawing fire from her cutters, but they were hesitant to advance. Richelieu's Pyroar stalked forward and expelled a wall of fire on the eastern flank, forcing the police to scramble back as a handful of water types came forward to deal with the flames.
Hierro clacked his beak at Alex and gestured down at the street. Alex nodded and prepared to jump. As much as he didn't relish the idea of saving the Baron's men, the top priority was driving the Sin forces out of Avenbrooke. At the very least, the Baron could be counted on to maintain order in the borough, and Alex's skin crawled at the notion of the underworld falling completely under Dominion's control.
With a wordless battle cry, he and Hierro shot out over the street and came down swinging on a group of cutters closest to the Baron's men. Fire blossomed around Hierro's fists, and Alex knocked two cutters flat with a series of precise punches. A Heliolisk fanned its neck ruff as it gathered a static charge, but Alex stunned it with a hooking roundhouse kick. As the electric type staggered, a Donphan charged out from an alleyway, trampling the reptile under its bulk. The Baron's cutters charged after the ground type, holding aloft guns, machetes and knives.
A scarred man glanced at Alex as he strode by. "You going to get in our way?"
"Let's just get these bastards out of our town," Alex replied. "Those of us left alive can work out our differences afterwards."
The man nodded and whistled to his Crobat. The purple flying type darted through the air, lashing out with the tiny claws at the tip of its wings. "Giordano is on his way with backup," the capo continued as he slashed his machete across the torso of one of Pride's cutters. "If we can hold out until then, he'll kick these bastards clear out of Avenbrooke." As he pivoted on his heel, a Servine seized him in its constricting vines and held him in place long enough for its trainer to open the capo's throat with a backhanded knife slash. The capo's Crobat screamed as it dove at the Servine, only to explode into a fine mist of blood as one of Pride's machine gunners turned its fire on the poison type.
Alex swore as he danced away from the dying man and whistled to Hierro. The Hawlucha bounded over to Alex and took up position at Alex's back, where they could cover each other's blind spots. Hierro's breath came in quick gasps as the two of them fended off attacks on all sides, trying to keep the carnage at bay. Alex scanned the chaos, picking out Richelieu some ways distant. There was no guarantee that taking her out of the fight would get her men to retreat, but Alex figured it was worth the gamble.
With the Baron's capos and Pride's cutters preoccupied with killing each other, he and Hierro could fight their way through the press and distract her enough that she wouldn't be able to coordinate her men. If they managed to take her out, so much the better. Alex clicked his tongue to his partner and gestured with a flick of his chin, and that was all Hierro needed. The two of them barreled through the seething melee of humans and pokemon, vaulting over battling pokemon and dispatching Pride's cutters with quick strikes if they could.
"Hey Richelieu!" Alex shouted. Pride whipped her head around just in time to catch Alex's fist on her cheek, and the blow sent her reeling. "How about a rematch?" Her Pyroar pounced, but Alex cracked it across the snout with his baton. Hierro dropped out of the sky and slammed her Seviper's head into the pavement, stunning the poison type long enough for him to kick it into the Pyroar, and both pokemon went down in a tangle of bodies. Pride reached for her sidearm, but before she could line up a shot, Alex closed the distance between them, seized her wrist and twisted.
With a shocked gasp of pain, Richelieu dropped the gun, and Alex kicked it away, where it was crushed by a lumbering Graveller. "You insolent—" Pride hissed, and Alex tightened his grip on her wrist, feeling her bones shift beneath her black combat armor. She ground her teeth and reared back before slamming her forehead against Alex's. The hero released his grip and staggered backwards as Pride uncoiled her whip.
Alex raced in again, heedless of the ringing in his ears. Pride's whip cracked as it cut through the air between them, and Alex forced himself not to flinch. Instead, he seized the end of the whip and quickly wrapped it around his hand. "You tried this the last time we tangled," he growled. "It didn't work then, and it sure as hell won't work now!" Pride's Pyroar had managed to extricate itself from the Seviper's coils and lunged forward. Alex dragged Pride towards him and circled around her body, putting her between him and the charging fire type. He kicked Pride just below her hip and sent her sprawling forward. The Pyroar stopped just short of charging through his trainer, but the second's hesitation gave Hierro an opening to race in for a spinning double kick that laid the leonine fire type flat.
As it struggled to rise again, a pressurized gout of water shot past Alex's field of vision, and the Pyroar was hurled several meters down the street. Alex whirled around and saw Giordano and Genbu stalking through the police cordon. Giordano had traded his usual ill-fitting suit for a flak vest, and a cold fire burned in his eyes. More of the Baron's capos and enforcers flanked him on both sides, and with a roar they jumped into the fray, paying back Pride's cutters in blood.
Alex turned back to Pride, only to run up against a translucent wall of hardened light. "Not so fast, kid," Giordano barked. "You leave Pride to me. The boss said he'd pay out a million bucks to the man who brings in her head."
Pierre limped out next to the enforcer, and Alex's heart dropped. The esper's arms were lined with black veins, and his neck was similarly marked. When some of Pride's men turned on the pair of them, Pierre thrust out his hand, and another wall appeared, pushing the cutters back. "Just step out of the way, Hawlucha Man," Pierre rasped. "And then everything can go back to the way it should be."
Alex stepped in front of Pride's prone body, but not before making sure Hierro was keeping an eye on her in case she tried to stab him in the back. "You thinking killing her is going to make a difference? If you take her out, Dominion is going to throw everything she has at Avenbrooke! You'll burn the city to the ground for a million bucks?"
"Every man has his price," Giordano replied as he raised his gun. "I'm going to give you three seconds to get out my way before I shoot you too."
"I won't let you do this."
Pierre turned to his Mr. Mime. "Mimsy, if you'd be so kind."
Mimsy grimaced apologetically at Alex before flexing its fingers in front of its face, hurling Alex and Hierro backwards with a psychic shove. Alex slid across the pavement and struggled to regain his balance as Pride leapt at Giordano, a knife appearing in her hand. The hulking man fired off a few shots that went wide, and Richelieu managed to get inside his guard and drive her blade through his body armor, digging into the meat of his shoulder. Giordano bellowed in pain, but before Genbu and Mimsy could respond, the pokemon were attacked by Pride's reinforcements.
Pride herself stalked towards Pierre, who hastily erected a psychic barrier to protect himself. Richelieu flicked her whip, and the crack made Pierre flinch just enough for him to waver, and his wall to fragment. Before he could conjure another, Pride wrapped a hand around his emaciated throat and lifted his too-frail body several inches in the air. "My boss wants to have a little talk with you," she hissed. "She'll make you an offer you simply can't refuse."
"Keep your hands off him!" Alex shouted. One of his batons slammed into the small of Richelieu's back while he brought the other down on the back of her neck. Pride gasped in pain and released her hold on Pierre. The esper scuttled across the ravaged pavement, where Mimsy helped him to his feet. Alex kicked Pride down and leveled his stun baton at the center of her forehead. "Don't touch him again."
"It's always got to be the hard way with you Avenbrookers, huh?" Pride raised a hand to a comm in her ear. "I have the esper, but extraction is proving difficult. Wouldn't mind a little backup."
Alex kicked Dominion's chest again, driving the wind from her lungs. "If you lay a finger on Pierre again, I'll…"
"You'll what?" Pride jeered. "I know your methods, Hawlucha Man. You don't kill. And nothing short of that is going to stop me from seeing this through."
"He won't kill you," someone growled from behind Alex. "Because that's my job." Alex felt a hand clamp down on his shoulder and hurl him backwards. "Leave this one to me, kid," the Ronin snapped as he grabbed Pride by the hair and dragged her to her feet. Richelieu's Pyroar charged at the Ronin, only to be tackled by Muramasa. The Samurott seized the fire type's neck in its powerful jaws and shook the feline back and forth before hurling it contemptuously away. When her Seviper coiled to strike, Hierro was on it, his fists blazing.
"Don't kill her!" Alex shouted to the Ronin. "It'll just make things with Dominion worse!"
"No promises," the Ronin replied, but he settled for driving an uppercut into Pride's solar plexus, rather than decapitating her out of hand.
"By Arceus, if you do, I'll take you down too."
The Ronin's eyes flicked to Alex, and Alex braced himself to fight the other vigilante. "Fine," the swordsman finally spat. "That damn esper is what they want, right? Get him the hell out of here."
Alex and Hierro sprinted towards Pierre, standing over Giordano's bleeding form. The esper's head lolled on his neck, and his eyes were vacant as he held up a shining box of hardened light in the air around him. Mimsy cowered at Pierre's heels, his face buried in his hands. "Pierre!" Alex shouted, pounding on the psychic barrier. "You need to get out of here! Pride is here for you! If you hide, she'll—"
Pierre's head slowly tracked to look at Alex, but there was no intelligence behind the esper's eyes. His gaze was a thousand miles away, and Alex realized the psychic walls around him were an instinctive panic response, rather than a conscious effort. Alex pounded on the walls as hard as he could, but they didn't so much as crack. "Pierre!" he screamed. "Listen to me! If you just come with me, I can help you! I promise, things are different now! I'll make sure no one hurts you again! I can do it! I can save you!" But the esper's mind was too far gone, addled from months with dream dust. Alex threw his entire weight behind a final punch, pouring all of his frustration into the blow, but it only rippled against the translucent wall. This should never have happened, he thought. Pierre should never have been dragged into this.
"On the contrary." A chill went down Alex's spine as he felt an oppressive weight press down on his mind. "Mr. Espalier is exactly where he's supposed to be."
Alex took a deep breath and squared his shoulders before turning around. Dominion calmly strolled through the chaos and bloodshed, the combatants veering away from her like puppets jerked on strings. She flicked her fingers at the Ronin, and he dropped Richelieu with a startled gasp. Alex shifted his weight to the balls of his feet, and saw Hierro puff out his feathers in his peripheral vision. "Leave Pierre alone," Alex said. "He doesn't deserve any of this."
Alex felt Dominion sifting through his thoughts, digging into his memories. He tried to empty his mind, to block her out like Joshua had tried to teach him, but he could tell from the esper's triumphant smirk that he hadn't been successful. "Pierre was your first failure, then?" Dominion said. "The only one you could never save. Yes, passed around from gang to gang, taking on odd jobs, and all he ever wanted was a friend. But you could never be that, could you? Because he was a villain. He was on the wrong side, and there was always some excuse why you couldn't be what he needed."
Her eyes flashed gold, and Alex was thrown backwards against Pierre's barrier. Dominion stalked forward, her hair dancing around her head. "So it was always off to asylums, institutions, and hospitals, where they confined him in small, dank cells and treated him like a monster. And you always told yourself it was justified, because he was caught in a system you couldn't fight, something too big for even an up-jumped brat like you to bring down with a few punches." The telekinetic push grew stronger with each step forward Dominion took, and Alex struggled to draw breath as the pressure built on his lungs. "Pierre belongs with me. I can finally be the kindred spirit he needs. Only I can help him out of the pit you cast him into." She snapped her fingers, and Pierre's barrier shattered into glittering dust.
Pierre collapsed in a heap over Giordano's back, and the Baron's lieutenant groaned. Dominion walked past Alex and cupped his face in one manicured hand. "I can heal you, Pierre. Will you come with me?"
The dazed look in Pierre's eyes cleared for just a moment, and he nodded. Dominion smiled and helped him to his feet. "You poor thing. They saw you throw up your walls, but they never understood why. All this time, and no one ever realized that you were an empath. Why, I'm not even sure you did." She handed him off to Mimsy and clucked her tongue. "Even the strongest walls can't keep out all the negative thoughts when they're beating them straight into your brain, and they don't even know they're doing it."
"You signed a contract, Espalier," Giordano gasped. He heaved himself up to his knees, and Alex was amazed to see that he was even breathing after Pride's attack. "You're the Baron's man, from the time you signed that contract until the day you die! That's the deal!"
"The Baron is quickly becoming yesterday's news," Dominion replied. She drew a small sidearm and shot Giordano in the chest. The giant man collapsed again, and Dominion aimed a kick at his head. Alex noted she had traded her stilettos for combat boots. "Mr. Espalier is just trading up." She glanced across the space of calm at the heart of the raging melee and locked eyes with Pride. "Julia, follow me."
As Pride limped towards her, a second gunshot rang out. Dominion staggered as a blossom of blood appeared on her shoulder. "Not another step," Reyes said, his gun smoking. "CCPD. Put your hands in the air!" His Noctowl spread her wings on his shoulder, her eyes glowing crimson.
Dominion gritted her teeth and whirled on the detective. Alex saw Reyes's finger twitch on the trigger, but there was no second shot. "I don't have time for this," Dominion grumbled. Reyes stiffened and turned slowly towards the Ronin. The ghost of a smile played across Pride's lips as she watched Reyes's arm shake while Dominion drew out the moment. "Take your shot, detective. We both know you've wanted your chance at Avenbrooke's most notorious mass murderer for a long time. I'll even hold him still for you." Muramasa growled low in his throat and braced to attack the detective. But for all the Samurott's fearsome power, it couldn't outrun a bullet.
Alex acted without thinking. Before Dominion could give Reyes another mental shove, he tackled the detective to the ground, making the gun misfire. The sound seemed to shock the Ronin out of his trance, and he and his pokemon whirled on Dominion. "Whatever else the Ronin is," Alex said, "he's stood with the heroes. We still need him in this fight." Reyes ground his teeth, but nodded.
The Ronin and Muramasa charged, but Dominion froze them both with a contemptuous flick of her index and middle fingers. She glared at Hawlucha Man, and Alex felt the invisible weight of her gaze bearing down on him. "You," she said, "have been a thorn in my side for far too long. It is clear that Pierre harbors some small affection for you, and so I had thought to let you live this time as a kindness to him. But if you insist on interfering, then you leave me no choice." She brought her gun around and smirked. "I've killed the Hammer and forced Blaziken Man into exile. Tonight, I'll kill two more of Clarus's so-called 'heroes'. I daresay, I'm on a ro—"
Hierro slammed an uppercut into Dominion's jaw, making her teeth clack together. The esper staggered back, clutching her face. "Julia!" she shrieked. "Destroy them!"
Pride nodded. "Lyceus! Tiamat!" Her Pyroar was the first to respond, slashing out at Hierro with glittering claws. The Hawlucha danced backward, trading blow for blow until the fire type scored a clean hit across his chest. Hierro stumbled and fell backwards, and fire pooled in the back of the Pyroar's throat. Enraged as it was, and at that range, Alex knew that a fire attack would be lethal, so he moved as quickly as he could to put himself between his partner and the Pyroar.
He recalled once, it seemed like ages ago, that Jiro had told him that his suit had been designed to be fireproof. He had little occasion to put it to the test, but now was as good a time as any. He spread his arms wide and opened his wings as far as he could, shielding Hierro's body with his own. Hierro's eyes went wide with panic as fire erupted behind Alex, who gritted his teeth against the sudden painful heat on his back.
Jiro had been as good as his word, and Alex was not immediately consumed by the flames. The carbon nanofibers of his suit reflected the heat, but the Pyroar didn't relent. Already, Alex could feel patches of his back growing hotter as the material was compromised. Hierro pressed his claws to the bloodied feathers on his breast, and Alex looked beseechingly at his partner. "Run," he gasped. The edges of his wings had begun to burn, and he could feel his back blistering under the heat. It was possible that patches had already burned away. "Please."
It was then that he heard the rasp of scales over pavement, and Hierro forced himself to his feet. The Pyroar's flames stopped, and Alex turned his head just enough to see Pride's Seviper poised to strike, its violet fangs dripping with venom. Hierro shoved Alex aside and ignited his fists as the serpent lunged, burying its fangs in Hierro's shoulder. The Hawlucha seized up as the poison surged into his bloodstream, but he managed to land one explosive punch that forced the Seviper to recoil. Hierro staggered, and before he could brace himself to fight, the Seviper had brought its poisonous tail around, driving the spiked blade through Hierro's abdomen and wrenching it out. Alex was too shocked to even scream.
Hierro fell to his knees, blood pouring from the wound. His gaze locked on Alex's, and his eyes were wild with panic. "No," Alex whispered. "No, no, no. Hang in there. It's going to… we can… oh Arceus, Hierro, I'm so sorry, I…"
The Seviper drew back again, and Alex knew it was his turn now. His back screamed in pain, but he forced himself to draw his batons and face the poison type. "Bring it on.
A golden blade made of coral pinned the Seviper to the pavement, piercing it all the way through. The Seviper shrieked in pain and tried to sink its fangs into Muramasa, but the Ronin cut off its head as he swept by, felling the beast in a spray of venomous blood. The swordsman swung his sword around and slashed Pride's Pyroar along its flank, making the beast howl.
Alex rushed to Hierro, but a sudden pain bloomed in his chest. He looked down to see a red spot of blood spreading against his dark suit. "What?" Dominion smirked as she lined up her gun for another shot, and the sudden flash of pain came again. Alex dropped to his knees and clutched his chest, trying to staunch the blood. Dominion walked forward and leveled her gun at Alex's forehead.
"Stop," the Ronin snarled. "If you so much as twitch, it's her head." He had his sword leveled at Pride's neck. "I just tempered this blade in Seviper venom. I could kill her with a tiny cut."
"You know I could stop you."
"Not before I moved a fraction of an inch, you psychic bitch."
Dominion glared at him. "You think I give a damn about Julia?"
"I think you care about her manpower. If she goes down, how many of her capos are going to break ranks and take their cutters with them? They fear you, but they respect her."
"It would mean your death, Ronin."
"Yeah, and the Baron would have to drop a fortune on my funeral." The Ronin smiled ruefully. "It's not a bad way to go."
"Marinette," Pride whispered. "You promised me power if I served you. I've kept my end of the bargain."
Dominion's eyes flicked between Alex and Pride. The Ronin shifted his blade. "Leave the boy alone. I'll give you to the count of three. Two…"
Dominion slowly lowered her gun, but Alex barely noticed. His vision was darkening, and his breath was coming in shallow gasps. A small, rational part of his brain knew he was going into shock, but he couldn't remember what he was supposed to do. He couldn't even feel his limbs.
A gunshot sounded behind Alex as Giordano heaved himself up. "Get the hell out of my town." Dominion staggered as a wound appeared on her left leg.
"You insolent—"
Another bang, and a second gunshot wound appeared on Dominion's right leg. She buckled, and a Goethite appeared beside her. As quickly as it appeared, it vanished, taking Dominion along. It reappeared a second later, this time whisking away Pierre, Pride and her Pyroar. Pride's cutters began to retreat, disengaging from the Baron's men as best they could.
Alex fell forward onto the pavement, but his hand reached out towards Hierro. He felt the Hawlucha's claw and closed his fingers around the talons. He heard heavy footfalls rush over to him, nicotine-scented hands feeling for his pulse. "Damn it, detective, call the fucking EMTs!" the Ronin shouted. The vigilante's hands patted around Alex's belt and removed Hierro's pokeball, and Alex felt Hierro's claw disappear from his hands.
"Is the Hawlucha stable enough to transport that way?" Reyes asked.
"It's better than carrying it in my damn hands!" the Ronin snapped back. Alex was lifted up, and he dimly registered the smell of blood, sweat and stale cigarettes in the Ronin's coat. "Hang in there, kid," the older man said softly. "I won't let you go. I'm not losing another one."
Alex must have blacked out, because when he rose to consciousness again, he was strapped down to a gurney in the back of an ambulance with EMTs hovering over him. Everything hurt, but he saw the Ronin sitting just beyond them, his face grim. He tried to reach out a hand, to strain against the straps, but the pain was overwhelming. "H-Hierro," he gasped.
"He's awake!" one of the EMTs said. "Get me a sedative! We can't let him damage himself more!"
"Hierro!" Alex tried to shout as the needle went into his arm. He strained against the restraints, digging gouges into his wrists. "Please, you need to… he's my… Hierro…"
And then everything went black.