The group disembarked the former submarine of Pressure Washer, and arrived in Rapture's entertainment center, Fort Frolic.
"Okay gang, ya need to watch your step 'round Cohen." Atlas warned the group. "He's an artist, says he. He's a Section 8, says I. I've seen all kinds o' cutthroats, freaks and harcases in my life…he's a real lunatic, a dyed in the wool psychopath…."
"So he's more nuts than Steinman?" Kazuma asked.
"Oh, trust me, lad, he was nuts before he ever set foot in this place and got ADAM inta his veins." Atlas said. "Gettin' his DNA rewired just brought his real self to the surface."
"Well, as long as we can get the key to Ryan from him, we can handle whatever he's become." Ethox said. "Now, where in Fort Frolic can we find him?"
"Oh, don't worry." Johnny said. "He'll find us."
The group continued on, before their radio came to life unexpectedly.
"I see you all escaped Arcadia." the voice of Ryan came on. "You all are proving to be quite troublesome."
"Yeah, we're the stubborn kind of parasites." Grantz said.
"But I'm afraid your road to me ends here. You all may think you're doing the right thing, but you're all nothing more than slaves." Ryan said. "Slaves who can't see the one holding their chains."
"Oh, we know a chain-holder when we see one." Ultra said. "We're talking to one right now on the radio."
"You can think of me what you will, but it won't change the outcome." Ryan said. "You all are following orders perfectly, just because the one giving them is what you call a "friend". Well, allow me to break that illusion for you: would you-?"
Just then, the radio abruptly lost its signal, static and the sound of classical music taking its place, before it cut out.
"Ah, that's better." a new voice said, seemingly from all around the group, catching Atlas and Johnny's attention.
"Cohen? You cut off Ryan? Why?" Johnny asked.
"As if anyone would want to listen to the dullard. Atlas, Ryan, Atlas, Ryan, duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh… time was, you could get something decent on the radio." Cohen's voice said. "The artist has a duty to seduce the ear and delight the spirit. So say goodbye to that blowhard… and hello, to an evening with Sander Cohen!"
"Okay, I'm not sure whether to be thankful or creeped out." Rista said.
"Guys! I scouted ahead, and it looks like Cohen cut us off from Hephaestus! There's not a single way out of here!" Michiru announced.
"Then it looks like we're gettin' to Hepheastus, by goin' through Cohen." Atlas said.
"Now, barring Atlas, Peach, Johnny and those two….creatures with you, I haven't seen a sign of real life down here in months." Cohen said, as from the ceiling, a group of Spider Splicers wearing bunny masks crawled out. "So let's see if you're just like those Dark Ocean brutes… or maybe something more delicious…"
The Splicers dropped down to attack the group, unnaturally silent.
"Spiders!" Sally said.
"There's a large number of them. No Thugs, no Leadheads, no Houdinis!" Goblin Slayer said. "But there are electrical wire traps all over the room that will restrict our movement!"
"Then we need to play defense!" Ethox said, holding his Keyblade. "Get ready for melee!"
The Splicers moved in to attack, Johnny getting the first shot by firing a shotgun shell straight into one Splicer's chest. Legolia took down some from a far with her arrows, before noticing a gasoline puddle on the far corner of the room. She shot a Fire Arrow at it, making a nasty flame trap for the Splicers coming in from the Fort Frolic entrance, burning them to a crisp.
"Three! Four!" Goblin Slayer said cutting down two. "Lead them into the wires! They're not invulnerable to electricity as much as we are!"
"I got you!" Ultra said, sending out Xurkitree. "Xurkitree! Use Hypnosis!"
The Lightning Ultra Beast did as asked, enchanting all the Splicers to walk into the wires, electrocuting them.
"Ohhh, I can smell the malt vinegar in these ones." Cohen spoke. "I've waited so long for something tasty to come to this little burg, but all that pass are yokels and rubes… Where are my manners? Come in! Come in!" the artist insisted as the doors leading deeper into Fort Frolic opened. "Sander Cohen awaits you…at the Fleet Hall!"
"Yeah, more like I wanna flee from this hall…" DJ mumbled as the group walked through the doors to an area bathed in darkness.
Suddenly, Neon Signs turned on, lighting up the space as everyone could see the Fleet Hall upstairs clearly. But all around them were signs of entertainment and pleasure.
"Welcome! To Fort Frolic!" Cohen welcomed. "There's no need to thank me for jamming the transmission of that boor Andrew Ryan. Let him blather on to himself. The artist, yes… the artist knows there is richer earth to fill."
"So what makes you different?" Goblin Slayer asked.
"I test little moths like you. For a reason." Cohen explained. "I test all my disciples. Some shine like galaxies…and some…some burn like a moth at the flame! Come now…into my home."
With little other choice, the group made their way up a massive flight of stairs to the Fleet Hall, walking through the doors and standing in a ticket room.
"So, where exactly are we supposed to go from here?" Nemo asked.
"Perhaps to the theater itself." Le Kraken said, pointing to an arrow sign. "Par ici."
The group followed the sign (dealing with a security camera on the way), until they were standing in front of a large glass door. Through the door, the sounds of a piano rang out.
"No, no, no!" Cohen complained, the music stopping.
"Mr. Cohen, please…" a voice pleaded in desperation.
"Silence! Allegro…Allegro!"
"Oh, I don't think I like where this is going…" Rista said.
The group walked into the theater, with seats filled with plaster statues, in poses of clapping and cheering. On the stage, the group saw a piano rigged with explosives, being played by a young man who looked close to a breakdown.
"Da-da-da-da-da-DA, Presto…Presto! NO! No!" Cohen yelled.
"I'm trying…please…" the young man sobbed.
"That piano… it's rigged to blow!" Michiru said.
"Once again, young Fitzpatrick." Cohen urged on.
The man called Fitzpatrick started to play once more, his fingers visibly shaking.
"Oh no… if he messes up again or loses it, I think Cohen's gonna…!" Ethox started to say.
"No, no!" Cohen yelled.
"G-G-GAAHH! Cohen, you sick bastard!" Fitzpatrick said before he whipped his head towards the group. "HELP ME! GET ME OUTTA THIS-!"
*BOOM!*
The piano exploded, blowing Fitzpatrick to pieces.
"That's just cruel…!" Darkness said.
"Come down now, little moths. Life, death….the burden of the artist is to…capture!" Cohen declared. "See what little remains of young Fitzpatrick here on the stage. Use your camera…take him as he is now… so I may remember him."
"As much as this is a bad way to honor someone, we gotta honor our host. Peach?" Ethox asked.
"Yeah, I gotcha." Peach said, taking a picture of FItzpatrick's remains.
"And now you've got Fitzpatrick, caught in his moment of glory. It seems you've got the eyes of shutterbugs, little moths!" Cohen complemented. "Now, head to the atrium, and place his photograph on my masterpiece…and so our collaboration commences."
"Are we really gonna play this nutjob's game?" Grantz asked, looking distrubed at the thought.
"It's probably the only way we can make him drop his guard and get him out in the open so we can get the key to Hepheastus." Tanya replied. "As much as I don't like being toyed with like this, we have to follow along."
"Oh, I know why you've come, little moths." Cohen said. "You've your own canvas, one you'll paint with the blood of a man I once loved… Yes, I'll send you to Ryan, but first, you all must be part of my masterpiece! Go to the atrium, and hurry now… my muse is a fickle bitch with a very short attention span…"
The group headed back down to the atrium, seeing something on the stage that wasn't there before: a configuration of several plastard statues with bunny masks, holding empty portraits.
"Do you see it? When I am dust, this is what they'll point to! My quadtych! My masterpiece. Go ahead, don't be afraid, touch it…" Cohen said.
"Hmm… four dioramas…" Necroapache said. "I suspect that alongside Fitzpatrick, there are three other men that are "disciples" of Cohen, scattered throughout this place. We must find them all, and place their photos upon this creation. Once his masterpiece is finished, then and only then will he send us on our way to Hephaestus."
"Well observed, lizard man. Yes, that is what I wish." Cohen said, before he hummed in thought, then gasped as if he had an idea. "But first, immortalize Fitzpatrick in my quadtych, and you shall be rewarded…"
Peach plastered the photo of Fitzpatrick on the rightmost diorama. As he did, a fanfare rang out, as a statue rose up on the stage, carrying a new weapon, a Crossbow loaded with steel tip arrows.
"Well, at least he's courteous to provide us with a reward." Kazuma said.
Johnny took the crossbow.
"A bit less low-tech than my other choices… but I can use it." Johnny decided.
"Now that you are well-equipped, go." Cohen ordered. "The way to Poseidon Plaza is open to you now, my moths. You shall find one of my former disciples there."
"Okay, Poseidon Plaza it is." Atlas said as the group headed over there as the door opened to see a tunnel completely frozen over.
"I can see your breath…." a voice came.
"Christ…. Looks like we're dealin with someone who overdosed on Winter Blast." Atlas said.
"Hey look, there's an audio tape here!" Megumin said. "This should give us some insight to whoever's in here." she dislodged the tape from the frozen carcass it was wedged in and played it.
"You think you gonna finish me in here, you old fruit? The other saps you tossed in this meat locker all panicked like rabbits. I just watched and waited. And when they started to kick, I started to scavenge. Made myself a little Splicer cocktail, I did. If you can't come in from the cold, then you gotta grow ice over your heart. And the iceman cometh, Sander baby. The iceman fucking cometh."
"...Yeah, that's an appropriate reaction to getting locked in a freezer." Kazuma said.
The group continued down the frozen tunnel and into the main area of Poseidon Plaza. All around them, they saw frozen Splicers of every type, and ice covered every inch of the area.
It was then they saw someone at the left end of the hallway, Houdini-port away. The group went after whoever was there, only to get immediately frozen in ice. That was when the man himself appeared in front of them. He wasn't a Splicer at all, though looking at his attire,they'd say he was.
"Look at what we got here! The old grape sent quite a haul this time!" the man known as Martin Finnegan said, looking over them all before eyeing Aqua. "Son of a bitch left me to freeze… Oh yeah. I've got a pose all picked out for you…"
The man disappeared, the group immediately on the defensive as they looked around for him. He reappeared behind Aqua, ready to freeze her in place…
"Aqua, DUCK!"
The water goddess crouched down immediately, allowing a magic blast from Ethox to send their target stumbling back.
"He's targeting you, Aqua! I bet he wants to make his own masterpiece, you as his ice sculpture!" Ethox said.
"Well then deal with him! A Goddess like me should have sculptures made of them, not be made into one themselves!" Aqua said.
"Oh, just get behind us, dang it!" DJ said.
The former disciple recovered, teleporting away as he confronted the group.
"I'm gonna break you all into pieces!" the man yelled.
"No you're not." Tanya said. "You're about to experience a rapid change in temperature. Ryuuguuin?"
"100%...Hell's Fire!" Seiya called, the rest of the group behind him as he unleashed a full Hell's Fire on the hallway, hitting their target head on as they screamed.
When the attack had run its course, the entire hallway had been thawed, and the man called Martin Finnegan was standing in his final moments.
"I feel so… warm. I'd forgotten… what it felt like." Martin said as he fell over onto his back.
"That was bracing. Take a photo of him and place him in the quadtych," Cohen spoke, going through a bit of a mini-orgasm. "I'm feeling full, like an expectant mama."
"Keep it in your pants, Cohen." Peach said as he took a photo of Martin's corpse.
"Yes! Now put his picture in the frame! Let's see what we've got here!" Cohen said.
And so, the group returned to the quadtych, placing Martin's photo in one of the portraits.
"It's coming together…yes…but there will always be Doubters." Cohen said. "I could never stomach Doubters. Always looking down on me, always judging me with their looks…! Ah, but you all aren't Doubters, no… Another prize is in order, I think."
The stature from before returned, this time holding a present box containing a Plasmid with a tag on it.
"A Plasmid?" Viktoriya asked, looking at the tag. "Set traps for unsuspecting enemies. Lure your foes into deadly ambushes. Teach your enemies a lesson they'll never forget with Cyclone Trap from Ryan Industries."
"Hmm, sounds like the perfect Plasmid for a tactical mind." Gimilor noted.
"Hmm, I'd rather not stick myself with that ADAM." Tanya noted before she turned towards Viktoriya. "First Lieutenant, you are welcome to have this one if you wish."
"Me?" Viktoriya asked, before considering it. "Hmm… Legolia, could that spell you used back in the Farmer's Market work on other projectiles than arrows?"
"I could try. Lay down a few bullets." Legolia said as the soldier did so, placing the Plasmid in front of them. "Okay, fortunately I can use this spell three times a day, so let's do this."
Legolia recited the spell, allowing the Plasmid to be infused into the bullets. When the spell was finished, the bullets were white, the slightest touch of breeze emanating from them.
"Yes! Cyclone bullets!" Victoriya said, claiming them. "Okay. Now let's move on to the next disciple."
"There are two more. You'll find dear Silas Cobb in Rapture Records, and Hector Rodriguez in Eve's Garden. Ghastly place, that garden." Cohen said.
"We'd better split up to cover both locations." Ethox said. "Some of us will head to Rapture Records, and the rest of us will go to Eve's Garden. Whichever group doesn't have Peach with them, call the others and they'll come to you."
And so, the group split into halves to cover both Rapture Records and Eve's Garden.
Meanwhile, in Cohen's office…
Soran popped his head in, looking for any sign of the man who this room belonged to.
"Hmm, not here." Soran noted. "He must be watching the Fatebreakers from a security station of some sort. Ah well, his carelessness is Dark Ocean's gain."
The sub-commander entered the office and started picking up several items, including a green-glowing, Plasmid-like object.
"Ah, another of those Gene Tonics. It's a good thing the Fatebreakers haven't been collecting these, they've been so helpful to us." Soran remarked. "A shame that group we sent here wasn't given one before they left, perhaps it might have saved them from becoming an art piece."
Soran remembered the sight he saw in Cohen's Collections and shivered, quickly banishing the thought.
"Now, let's see what he has in his desk…" the fisherman thought as he opened one of its drawers, revealing multiple long pieces of paper. "Receipts…hmm, perhaps they'll tell us where we can find some of his works." he guessed as he picked up one of them and started scanning it. "Surely someone on the surface would appreciate his…his…"
Soran stopped dead in his tracks when he saw what the receipt he was holding was for, his eyes widening in a horrified realization.
"No…no, it can't be…" Soran muttered as he re-read and re-re-read the slip to make sure he was reading it right. "...Oh gods…Oh dear Color Gods…what kind of sick, demented man would do such a thing?!"
Rapture Records….
The first group, consisting of Ethox, Mirror Match, Atlas, Peach, Seiya & Rista, and the World of Dice group, headed into the record store, when they heard a voice talking to itself.
"My collection's almost complete. Then we'll see who the REAL artist is down here." the voice said.
"Silas Cobb?" Ethox called out.
"Huh? Did Cohen send you?" Silas asked. "Well, you can tell the old crow his music cooks better than it sounds!"
"I am afraid we are not messengers." Necroapache informed. "All we can offer you is a painless end to your suffering, but we offer it sincerely."
"I ain't given up on getting back at that old bird!" Cobb said. "You want me, come and get me!"
The group moved deeper into the store, spotting what looked to be a man sitting down on a lower floor.
"We're sorry about this." Legolia said as she fired an arrow into the back of the man's head. However, right as the head tipped down, an explosion went off, allowing the group to realize that it was, in fact, a corpse.
"Ah, damn it! Should've known you'd be too smart for that!" Cobb complained as he finally appeared, carrying some explosives.
"You suck at making traps, bro." Seiya said. "Just give up and get owned."
"...I don't understand half of what you just said, but I ain't quitting!" Cobb said as multiple, flaming Spider Splicers jumped out from the darkness. "Y'all can play with my kittens!"
"We aren't scared of Spider Splicers!" Ethox said as he and Mirror Match combated them. Already taking damage from the flames, the Splicers were no match for the two, who defeated them easily.
"My kittens!" Cobbs cried. "Don't ya'll get it?! It's all a game to those old coots! Cohen, Ryan, all of 'em! Just old birds pullin' on each other's milk sticks!"
"Then it's game over for you." Seiya said as he drew his sword. "Phoenix Thrust!"
The Cautious Hero pierced the young man with the tip of his blade, then pulled it out of him, letting Silas Cobb fall to the ground.
"D-Damn it… I'm going out before that old coot…? F-Fine. Tell Cohen I'll…see him… in Hell…" Silas choked out before he died.
"He was a nasty one…and my favorite. But I like him better this way. Take his damn photo, chop chop." Cohen said.
Peach did as instructed, taking the picture of Cobb's corpse.
"You flutter all throughout the Fort, taking life so easily, yet so heavily it weighs on you." Cohen said. "You're not moths…you're angels. I've never painted an angel…maybe I should…"
"Atlas sure called it with him being deranged…" Legolia said.
"Yeah… but he's our only ticket to Ryan, so we have to appease him." Goblin Slayer said. "Peach, go meet the others in Eve's Garden. We'll wait for you in the Atrium."
"If you say so." Peach said. "(Can't believe it. That ticket outta this joint is getting less and less surefire by the second. Even if that kid healed my mind, I ain't sure I can stick around for much longer…)"
Peach made his way to Eve's Garden, where he found the everyone except Visha, Megumin, Johnny, Sally and Mr. B waiting outside. "Hey, what're you palooka's doin' just standing out here?"
"The major decided that too many of us would ruin a stealthy entry, so only a select few went in to confront Hector Rodriguez." Matheus explained. "You have the camera, so you should go join them."
"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya…" Peach said as he walked into Eve's Garden, seeing that most of its security was already cleared, and the remains of a Bouncer Big Daddy were at the center of the room. "Guess they already rescued one of those little tykes…"
The smuggler made his way through the strip club until he walked downstairs, seeing the small group looking at the walkway and pole. "What, waiting for a show or something? Don't think you're getting some tonight, Johnny boy."
"Ha-ha, very funny." Johnny deadpanned. "No…I think I saw another ghost vision."
"Oh, is that so?" Peach asked. "Well, was she a looker?"
"Wilkins, I'm serious." Johnny said. "There was something…different about this one. I…I think I knew her."
Johnny then got up onto the walkway, then walked through the door leading into the backroom.
"Johnny, wait up!" Megumin called out as she, Visha, Peach, and Sally climbed up after him, Mr. B too big to do the same.
"Hey, Peach." Johnny asked. "Have you ever heard about someone named Jasmine?"
"Who, Jasmine Jolene?" Peach answered. "Oh yeah, everyone knew her. She was Ryan's dame, the one woman in Rapture who he had the hots for, as far as I know. Every Tom, Dick, and Harry knew she was off-limits."
"Jasmine Jolene…" Johnny repeated until he stopped, as if he was listening to a conversation, his expression turning from confused, to shocked, to horrified in a matter of moments.
"Johnny, what's wrong?" Visha asked.
"S-She…" Johnny spoke until he rushed to the door and threw it open, the group seeing a grizzly sight on the other side:
A rotting corpse, tied to a bed, a metal pipe and bloody footprints on the floor.
"N-No…" Johnny spoke, sounding devastated. "Ryan… he killed her. She loved him, and… he killed her."
"Damn, that's tragic." Peach noted, before he looked at Johnny, who seemed close to tears. "What're you getting so worked up for?"
"I…I don't know." Johnny admitted. "For some reason, I… I just feel sad."
Sally grabbed Johnny's hand, a gesture of comfort. "I know that bad feeling… I felt it too, when Lizzie fell asleep."
"...Thanks, Sally." Johnny smiled at the girl.
Just then, the group heard Mr. B roar from the main room, accompanied by the sounds of glass bottles breaking, and angry yelling.
"Hector!" Visha realized as the group hurried back to the main room, seeing Mr. B charging towards the former disciple, who lept out of the way.
"Who does that bastard Cohen think he is?! Now he's sending a Big Daddy after me?! After the things he made me do?!" Hector shouted in rage as he flung a molotov cocktail at the Bouncer, setting him aflame. "F*** HIM!"
"Mr. Bubbles!" Sally cried in alarm, allowing Hector to realize the rest of the group's presence.
"Oh, so he sent a whole damn party after me! Well, that's just fine! I'll f***ing kill you all!" Hector roared as he flung another molotov at the group.
Vicktoria then acted fast, loading up one of her Cyclone Bullets and firing it, blasting it back towards Hector, who wasn't able to act fast enough, and it set him ablaze.
"AAAHHH! DAMNIT!" Hector yelled as he tried to put himself out, then realized it was in vain. "Just you wait until Cohen pulls the rug out from under you! You'll see! And when you do…you'll all be joining me in Mictlán!"
Hector Rodriguez fell to his knees and then collapsed, the fire having done its work.
"He was a lout. But he was vigorous." Cohen recalled. "Get the photo before he completely dries up."
Peach took the photo of Hector's corpse. After which, everyone met back up at the Atrium to put the final two pictures up on the quadtych.
"Okay. First is Cobb's photo." Ethox said as they plastered it on there.
"Then we put on Rodriguez's, and…" Kazuma said, putting it on. "Presto, one complete, very unique art piece."
As soon as all four pictures were placed on the quadtych, all the lights in Fort Frolic shut off, except for a spotlight shining at the top of the stairs. In that spotlight, a man wearing makeup spotted through a rabbit mask and a tuxedo appeared in a manner like a Houdini Splicer.
"It…is…accomplished!" Sander Cohen declared in joy, walking down the stairs as confetti shot out and automated cheers played. "Let me see it!" he took off his mask, revealing his real face as he walked down the stairs, two actual Houdini splicers appearing, beginning to dance beside him.
"Sheesh, talk about making an entrance…" DJ said.
"My God…My God…My God…My God…My God.…My God…" Cohen marveled as he looked at his masterpiece. "It's… it's BEAUTIFUL!"
"Well, it's, uh, carefully crafted!" Aqua said, smiling awkwardly.
"You have done well, and helped me with my masterpiece. Now, as promised, I help you craft yours." Cohen said, pulling out a keycard. "This shall offer you passage to Ryan. Please, tell him I said 'hello'."
"Uh… we will do that, thanks." Ethox said. "Y'know, despite the fact you had us kill… you've been a pretty nice guy to us. I mean, giving us access to Hephaestus without fighting us and all. Guess you aren't a complete-"
"HOLD UP!" a voice from the top floor shouted. The people below looked up to see Soran, looking absolutely pissed as he marched down the stairs..
"Ah, you are one of those Dark Ocean brutes." Cohen said, walking towards him. "Have you come to see my-?"
That was as far as he got before Soran punched Cohen square in the face, sending him flying…. Right into his quadtych, completely wrecking it.
"So, I just popped by to find that group we sent here, saw the sculpture you made out of them, and I decided to see if there was anything worth taking in your office." Soran started, his tone full of venom. "I was looking through your desk when I stumbled upon a few dozen receipts. Care to guess what I saw on them?!"
"Hey, what's the big idea?!" Aqua asked. "We have to slave ourselves to help complete that crazy thing, and you go and wreck it?!"
"YOU! QUIET!" Soran roared at her, making the goddess jump at the rage in his voice. "So, tell me Cohen…why were you selling Little Sisters to grown men?"
That question stopped the group cold, letting the implications wash over them.
"He's a slave trader…?!" Lily asked
"That's right. On the surface, Cohen is an eccentric artist who cooks up these nutso pieces… but under the surface, he's the one responsible for trading away Little Sisters to all corners of Rapture… and not always for the reasons they were made for." Soran said in disgust. "Not even Dark Garden offers those kinds of slaves! BASTARD!"
"You mean they were…?!" Michiru asked in dawning horror.
"...You son of a bitch!" Johnny yelled at Cohen, who was just getting up. "Guys, we're putting our Hephaestus trip on hold! This guy dies, NOW!"
Cohen opened his eyes from the punch, and saw his life's work ruined. At this, he let out a roar of anger as the debris blasted away.
"YOU!" Cohen yelled at Soran. "You did this! Destroyed my masterpiece, and made my moths doubters! I see the looks in all your eyes! You didn't like it, did you!? I don't need to be judged by all of you… by anyone…. Screw you! Screw all you fucking doubters! Here's what I say to all of you!"
(Cue: Waltz of the Flowers- The Nutcracker)
Cohen vanished before their eyes as music began to play, the spotlights on the ceiling coming to life, shining down on everyone present. Cohen then reappeared at the top of the stairs as an army of Splicers, 20 strong, charged into the room.
"Fly away, little moths! FLY!" Cohen yelled.
"Now do y'see why I called this guy a bloody Section 8?!" Atlas asked as he ducked to avoid a Splicer's wrench. "Let's kill this dastard and be done with it!"
"Now this guy, none of us have any problems putting six feet under!" Kazuma said as he froze a Splicer solid. "Hey Cohen, we're gonna paint Fort Frolic red with you! Sound good?"
The group engaged the Splicers, each member doing their part to take them down.
"Smile! SMILE!" Cohen screamed, jumping into battle himself and fighting just like a Houdini Splicer.
"Smile in Hell, you Van Gogh wannabe!" DJ said as he cut into Cohen's arm with one of his saws.
Cohen yelled incoherently as he lept back, throwing fire and iceballs at the group in a frenzy.
"Dokkoisho, Dokkoisho!" Soran chanted as he stabbed at the projectiles with his harpoon, dispelling them. "You are a plague on the sea, even worse than Ryan. So… I will end your life myself!"
"Not if I claim yours first, defiler! Burn! Freeze! Be reborn as beautiful art, you ugly PEASANT!" Cohen charged at Soram, fire and ice in both hands like Todoroki as he prepared for a Flashfreeze Heatwave-esque attack.
Soran then assumed a Harpoon throwing position as he prepared for a strike. "Anti-Fishman Art: Whale Burial!"
The Dark Ocean sub-commander hurled the harpoon, the weapon sailing through the air before it hit the mad artist, sending him flying and pinning him to a pillar.
"It hurts, doesn't it?" Soran asked, walking towards Cohen. "Feel that pain. That is a fraction of the pain you caused others to feel."
"N-No, no, no…" Cohen groaned. "It can't end like this… not with my masterpiece destroyed. My life's work… can't have been for nothing. I… I won't be remembered… by anyone…"
Soran looked at the man, looked at the harpoon, then at Cohen again, before uttering a single, solitary word:
"Good."
He then grabbed the harpoon and pulled it out of the pillar, letting Sander Cohen fall, before swinging it around and taking the man's head off his shoulders.
(end song)
The rest of the Fatebreakers finished off the last of the Splicers, everyone catching their breaths after the battle.
"Yeah… that's what you get… for exploiting kids like that…" Ultra said.
"Good riddance." Atlas said before looking to Soran. "So… y'gonna off us too?"
"No." Soran said. "Dark Garden employee I may be, but I abide by the rules. You have no reason to suspect I will attack you, because I am not going to. You are people we do not engage. Thus….I will not fight you. The only person you should be attentive to fight is Pressure Washer. He is obsessed with taking you down ever since he failed in Arcadia. He's probably being ferried to the rest of us in Apollo Square as we speak. Heh, can't wait to see Admiral Whirlpool read him the riot act for disobeying orders."
"Okay, so… we're just leaving now?" Nemo asked.
"Wait. Before you go, there are two Power to the People machines here." Soran informed the group. "One in Le Marquis D'Epoque, and the other in the basement of Sinclair Spirits. The latter was guarded by several grotesque plastered Splicers, but I have already dealt with them."
"Wait, why are you telling us this?" Grantz asked.
"Because, the further you go, the more likely it is that you will arrive at Apollo Square." Soran explained, starting to smile. "If you do, Admiral Whirlpool will see that as the time to engage you. Then… I can fight your aquatic Beastmen members, with no repercussions."
"Ah, so you are eager to fight, no?" Le Kraken asked. "Well then, if we do make it there… Nous ne décevrons pas."
"I will hold you to that." Soran promised as he leapt up to the top floor. "Farewell, Fatebreakers! May we meet again!" he departed out of view.
"Well then, it wasn't pretty, but we got what we needed. It's time to head to Hepheastus. And confront Ryan. We end this, once and for all." Ethox said.