Warriors: The New Era.
Chapter Thirty Six: Unmasked
This will be the only chapter for a while that has NOTHING to do with Rock and The ARS. These two chapters will ONLY be the fight against the Assassin.
Also, if you hate cliffhangars, you'll hate this chapter.
Berrynose put the van in park, "Alright, we all know the drill?"
"This ain't my first rodeo kid, I know the plan," Coalstrike scowled.
"Then stick too it," Ashtooth put the clip in for his H.C.A.R, locking it in place. The gun had a scope on it, with the barrel longer then usual.
Coalstrike loaded his custom Beretta pistol. The magazine was big, and the barrel was shorter.
Poppyfrost spun her revolvers, once she loaded them, and slid them into her crossdraw holsters.
Jayfeather's eyes glowed blue, Lionblaze cracked his knuckles, and Ivypool started to mutter some spells.
Fernsong opened the van's door, and everyone piled out.
Where they stood was a warehouse by the docks of the lake.
The same warehouse where Hawkfrost tortured Jayfeather.
The same warehouse where Tigerstar killed his own son.
The same warehouse where Scourge executed Tigerstar in the original timeline.
Fernsong cracked his neck, fully prepared to take the assassin out.
Ashtooth lifted his rifle, lined up with the others.
Coalstrike held his pistol up, prepared to fire.
Jayfeather began to glow blue, and started to float in the air.
Lionblaze growled like a lion, and punched his fists together, his eyes turning golden.
Ivypool began to glow green, muttering spells of multiple sorts.
Poppyfrost drew her revolvers, her sword laid in it's sheathe.
They all moved closer to the warehouse while Ashtooth went ahead, and placed a slab of C4 on the wall to the Warehouse.
"3...2...cover your ears..." Ashtooth whispered, as he pushed the button to the detonator.
BOOM!
Everyone charged into the hole in the warehouse, weapons drawn and powers raised.
And all immediately stopped in their tracks when they quickly realized the Assassin and the hostages were nowhere to be seen.
"Uh...did we get a different warehouse?" Poppyfrost asked.
"Most likely, damned Foxleap must have gotten the wrong-"
"That was my genius."
All of them got back into a fighting stance as The Assassin stepped out of the shadows, decked in new gear, carrying his signature ARX-160, with a grenade launcher attached to ths muzzle.
His skull like helmet was replaced with a sleek, smooth, and shiny helmet that covered his whole face. Two red lines marked where the eyes should have been, and the traveled sideways to the side of the helmet, and dipped down to his neck, shoulders, and down his arms. Two rotors where on the mouth area, sucking in oxygen, and puffing out carbon dioxide like it was nothing. His neck was wrapped in a tight moving armor plate, that constantly rearranged itself to make the user comfortable. It still resembled a skull, but more robotic and cybernetic.
His chest area was more black metallic looking, with the plates moving freely and snuggly across his body. A plate of cybernetic armor covered his abs, with a long and smooth plate above, covering his chest. His back was covered in a similar fashion, except the backplates moved downward, and the lower back area was broken into three parts in order to keep the dipped down backplates snug.
His arms and legs were covered in a futuristic armor plating, with his arms plates swapped for gauntlets with sharp talons on the fingertips. His forearms had small flat areas that the group deduced were remotes and keypads.
Underneath the armor was a padded black body suit, covering everything that by some mishap wasn't protected by the armor. Elbows, kneecaps, ankles, he was protected beyond belief.
"I figured if this was going to be our final battle, I should upgrade myself to deal with any surprises, so I got rid of any factors. The hostages are in another warehouse, but I am not," the Assassin bragged, "Armor is made out of solid carbon fiber, mixed molded with titanium and platinum. The tri-weave bodysuit underneath consists of an outer and inner layer made from a titanium-dipped tri-weave fiber mesh and sandwiched in between is the MR-fluid based liquid armor system. The proprietary smart MR-fluid hardens in response to impacts, specifically designed to provide superior shock absorption, as well as enabling greater force delivery behind counterattacks. It also hardens and puts pressure on any injury that somehow gets past my armor plating. Nice, huh?"
"Berrynose you hear that? They are in a different building," Poppyfrost commed in.
"Copy."
Ashtooth raised his gun, and fired 12 bullets from his H.C.A.R, but all of them bounced off the armor.
"I'm afraid it is quite durable too," The Assassin chuckled.
Coalstrike raised his gun.
The Assassin sighed "Did you not pay att-"
BANG!
Coalstrike fired one bullet, and said bullet covered the assassin in fire and explosions' making the cybernetic warrior stumble back. It didn't break his armor plates, but it did pack a punch and cause him to stumble back.
"Titanium composite hollow point bullets with a C4 kicker," Coalstrike took his turn to brag, "The fastest-"
"-most explosive ammo in the world," The Assassin finished, "Damn. You know your stuff."
"I aim to please," Coalstrike smirked, as everyone widened their eyes at Coalstrike's ingenuity.
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
The Assassin spun out of the way of the bullets, and raised his ARX-160, spraying the gun in order to get them all.
Coalstrike dove to the ground, ducking under the spray of bullets, while Lionblaze stepped in front of Ashtooth, who fired under Lionblaze's arms.
When Coalstrike fired back, the Assassin dove behind a assortment of concrete pipes.
Ashtooth snarled, "WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE GIVEN ME SOME OF THOSE BULLETS?!"
"I DID! CHECK YOUR POCKETS!"
"WHICH POCKET?!"
Jayfeather's glowed bright blue as everyone minus Lionblaze and Fernsong dove for cover. Poppyfrost ducked behind a row of wooden crates, peeking her head out and firing in The Assassin's direction. Ashtooth was still behind Lionblaze, who was being his personal bulletproof shield.
Ivypool glowed green, and with her super speed, she sped over to the other side of the warehouse, dodging all of The Assassin's bullets with ease. She launched off the wall, and shot towards the assassin, aiming a kick.
The Assassin ducked, and Ivypool landed and pushed off of the concrete pipe, backflipping onto her feet. The Assassin lifted his ARX-160, firing all the bullets he could muster.
Ivypool dodged every bullet, and zoomed forward, removing the clip from the gun, and waving it tauntingly at The Assassin, "Oops, is this yours?"
"Here, I'll trade ya," he tossed a flashbang up.
Ivypool wasn't fast enough to process the blinding light, and The Assassin swept her legs out from under her, and when she hit the ground, he moved into a handstand, and dropped his knee onto her forehead, knocking her out.
Jayfeather floated to the other side, blasting blue lightning at The Assassin, who rolled out of the way and shot a grenade at Jayfeather. He put up a wall of psychic energy, protecting him from the blast, but not from the momentum, sending him flying the other way.
Meanwhile, Ashtooth had finally found the bullets Coalstrike left for him, and smacked Lionblaze at the side of his head, getting the brute's attention. "PUSH UP!"
Lionblaze nodded, slowly stomping forward.
The Assassin rolled a grenade out into the field, to which Lionblaze reflexively leaped on, absorbing the blast.
Unfortunately, Ashtooth was now exposed, as The Assassin took the shot.
Ashtooth took the hit to his gut, but before the Assassin could shoot anymore, Poppyfrost moved out of cover, pinning the Assassin down with shots.
"I'M HIT!" Ashtooth roared.
"COVER HIM!" Coalstrike screamed at Poppyfrost as Fernsong and Lionblaze took their opportunity to attack. Coalstrike fired several shots and when he realized he was out of ammo, he ran out and grabbed Ashtooth, dragging him to safety.
Jayfeather scowled, using his powers to lift The Assassin's cover away, and tried to slam the concrete pipes down on The Assassin, but the Assassin rolled out of the way just in time.
He tossed his ARX-160 to the ground, and drew his taser, aiming it at Lionblaze. Before he could shoot, one of Coalstrike's bullets hit him in the shoulder, breaking his concentration. Lionblaze grabbed the Asassin by his head and his crotch, lifting him up and slamming him back down on the ground. He picked him up again, twirled in a circle and sent him flying to the wall.
Meanwhile, Coalstrike pulled the bullet out of Ashtooth's military vest, and smirked, "Thank God you had your vest on."
"Still felt like a train," Ashtooth grunted.
The Assassin grunted, and when he looked up, Lionblaze had sunk his fist into the Asassin's helmet, and sent him through the wall, crashing onto the docks. The Assassin stumbled up, and while Lionblaze charged at him again, The Assassin grabbed his stun gun, shooting Lionblaze.
The brute's muscles stiffened, and he collapsed in shock. Fernsong stepped out of the hole Lionblaze made. Fernsong grabbed a nearby crate, and threw it at the Assassin, who dodged perfectly. He lifted his stun gun, but then the Asassin felt locked in place.
Above him Jayfeather, lifted him into the sky, and sent him back into the warehouse, crashing through the roof.
Where Coalstrike was waiting for him, lifting Ashtooth's H.C.A.R, and fired all of his explosive rounds at The Assassin.
He grunted and roared in pain, and when the last of Coalstrike's volley of fire was done, his chestplate was demolished. The Assassin gripped it by it's side, and ripped it off, revealing the bodysuit underneath. He flung it like a frisbee at a charging Fernsong, who took the hit directly in the head, making the brute stagger back.
He turned around, only to get lit up in the chest by bullets from Poppyfrost, who fired all twelve rounds of her two revolvers.
The Assassin grunted, as the bullets penetrated his suit and went through his body, or what was left of it. He stood his ground and growled.
"Is that the best you can do?!"
Jayfeather flew back in, lobbing Lightning bolts at the Asassin, who managed to roll and dodge out of the way.
"DOES THIS GUY FEEL PAIN, AT ALL?!" Coalstrike yelled.
Poppyfrost reloaded her guns, "WHERE IS YOUR EXPLOSIVE ROUNDS?!"
"I'M ALL OUT!" Coalstrike hollered back.
Poppyfrost groaned and growled, peeking her head up to see the Assassin scoop up his ARX-160, and pepper Jayfeather with a volley of bullets. The gray haired hero, flew out of the way, and gripped the gun with his powers, sending it flying out of The Assassin's hands and right in front of Jayfeather.
The gun snapped in half as Jayfeather grinned, "What's wrong?! Not so tough without your guns?!"
"I still have these guns," The Assassin smirked, rasing his fists.
"Cute," Jayfeather smirked.
He cast another volley of lightning, only for the Assassin to grab his gauntlet, and a foldable riot shield extended out of the gauntlet, protecting him.
"YOU INFINITE WARFARE PLAYING BASTARD!" Jayfeather raged, and flew around him, trying again.
But The Assassin had drawn a pistol, and fired at Jayfeather keeping him busy, and before Jayfeather could use his powers, The Assassin tossed a flashbang in Jayfeather's direction.
Jayfeather felt the light blind him, getting PTSD from his blind days, and fell to the floor with a thud.
"POPPYFROST! WE HAVE A SITUATION!" Berrynose screamed over the radio.
Poppyfrost growled, not in the mood, "WHAT?! WHAT THE HELL IS IT?!"
"Sparkpelt is coming you way with a shotgun! Seems she doesn't like being left behin-"
Poppyfrost slammed her radio down on the ground in anger.
The Assassin felt a crushing blow to his head, and as he stumbled down, he began to worry if he didn't deal with Fernsong in time.
When he looked up, he saw Ashtooth, fists raised, and teeth snarling, revealing a chipped canine.
The Assassin climbed up and raised his fists, as Ashtooth began to furious combo of jabs and swings. The Assassin elbow blocked most of them, but Ashtooth, drew his hand back and slammed his hand into the Assassin's helmet, feeling the smooth surface crack under the pressure of the blow.
The Assassin staggered back, and Ashtooth raced forward, and suplexed him, sending the man rolling across the ground, as Ashtooth shot up and slammed his boot down on the Assassin's back. Ashtooth pulled out a long bowie knife and stabbed it into the Assassin's back. He twisted and turned the knife around, until one of the armor plates came loose. He grabbed his back plate, and slammed it down on the Assassin's already seeing stars head.
Ashtooth felt the Assassin grab his leg, and the Assassin slammed his palm on Ashtooth's knee, causing him to buckle. The Assassin sunk his fist into the soldier's jaw, sending him to the ground. The Assassin chuckled as he climbed on top off him.
"MY turn asshole!"
The Assassin repeatedly punched Ashtooth's face, drawing his hand back and slamming them as hard as he could. Blood coated his fists with each pound...
Until Ashtooth caught the punch, slowly pushing him off of him with the strength of a bull, growling, "You picked the wrong guy to mess with."
Ashtooth shoved the man off, and sprinted up, tackling the man to the wall.
Poppyfrost groaned in frustration as Ashtooth and the Assassin continued their duel, "I CAN'T GET A SHOT, ASHTOOTH'S IN THE WAY! JAYFEATHER!"
But Jayfeather was still holding his head, collapsed on the floor.
"I got this," Coalstrike stood up, sprinting over to Ashtooth's aid.
Ashtooth rammed his fists into the Assassin's exposed gut, and several shots at his head, despite the pain in his knuckles.
"ASH! MOVE!"
Ashtooth grinned and dropped down, just as Coalstrike soared above him and planted his feet down on the Assassin's chest, slamming him down into the cinderblock wall. The mechanical and cybernetic Assassin's head bounced off the wall, and he collapsed to his knees.
"Uh...foul? I call foul?"
Coalstrike grinned, before Ashtooth drew his hand back and superman punched the Assassin down.
The Assassin groaned, clearly done with the fight at the moment.
"I think we won!" Coalstrike hollered to them, as Lionblaze came to, and Fernsong made his way back in the building.
Ashtooth looked around, "He wasn't so tough. Not with all of us."
"If you start singing about the power of friendship, I will gut-punch you," Coalstrike scowled.
Fernsong picked Ivypool up, and dragged her over to them.
Jayfeather joined with Poppyfrost as the two of them walked ahead.
"Is he out?"
"He ain't getting up anytime soon," Coalstrike smirked.
The Assassin groaned, and tried to plant his hands down on the ground to push himself up, but he automatically stumbled, sinking back to the ground.
"Pathetic," Poppyfrost spat.
Jayfeather sighed, "You were a friend, once Alderheart…"
The Assassin growled, as Jayfeather said the magic words. He stumbled up, as everyone took a step back.
"Alderheart...is..." The Assassin stood up towereing over them "DEAD!"
BLAM!
The Assassin flew sideways at the shot gun blast, whom Sparkpelt fired in rage.
"SPARKPELT WHAT ARE YO-" Poppyfrost started but Sparkpelt aimed the gun at Poppyfrost, "Sparkpelt w-"
"Just shut up," Sparkpelt hissed, and aimed the vgun back at the Assassin's whose face was cracked, so he turned his back to them in order to hide his face.
"Turn around, so I can see the face of my brother..."
The Assassin stood in silence...
"YoUR brOther is DEAd," He solemnly whispered, his voice overlapping with the mechanical voice.
"I refuse to believe that, Alder," Sparkpelt nodded, "I know I wasn't there, and I'm sorry for that, but I-"
She was cut off by a sharp and maniacal laughter...
Coming from the Assassin.
He hollered in laughter, throwing his body backwards as he clutched his gut in pain from so much laughter.
"YOUR NOT LISTENING!" He howled "ALDERHEART IS DEAD! DEAD! THE BOY YOU KNEW, IS GONE?! A shell without a soul! HE IS DEAD! Let me prove it to you..."
He pushed a button on his gauntlet.
Above him, a young man tied in chains dropped down from the ceiling, stopping 10 feet above the ground.
Alderheart. His emotionless face still drooling.
"Wait...what?!" Sparkpelt asked in wonder.
The Assassin grabbed his helmet, lifting it off, while laughing, "You truly didn't figure it out? Well. then you'll love this..."
Jayfeather gasped in surprise.
Fernsong dropped his jaw, "Holy shit!"
"Wait...YOU?!" Poppyfrost screamed.
Lionblaze shook his head "Impossible!"
Sparkpelt dropped the shotgun surprise.
The Assassin turned around, to reveal a sunen and sundried face, with pale skin, and hollow dark amber eyes. His hair was messy and oily, and was a dark brown.
But what struck out the most...
Was the tattoo of a Tiger on his neck.
"Hello...Granddaughter..." Tigerstar grinned evilly.
Hehehe...
Hahahahahaha...
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
YOU FELL FOR IT!
YOU FELL FOR IT AGAIN!
ALL THE FALSE CLUES, AND THE FALSE TRAILS, ALL OF THEM SENT YOU TO THE CONCLUSION I WANTED YOU TO FIND!
I'll have you know, I didn't switch up the identity last second just so I could have the last laugh1 This was PLANNED FROM THE START! Look at the name of the chapter where the Assassin first shows up! it's called THE MAD KING'S RETURN! BRUH, I SCREAMED THAT CLUE FROM THE TOP OF MY LUNGS!
And no one heard a thing...
Tune in next chapter for the explanation of his survival, as well as all the false clues.
Adios.