[A/N] So I saw 'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners' and it is without a doubt my favorite anime that Studio Trigger has put out to date. I ain't gonna lie, it reignited the motivation that I had when I first started writing this fic that had unfortunately started to wane in recent months. Also, funny story, when I first started writing this whole thing I originally had V getting the Sandevistan installed back in chapter one, I don't even remember why I changed it but what David does in the show is exactly what I had in mind for V. So I've gone back to previous chapters and changed it from the Kerenzikov to the Sandevistan as well as updating some dialogue. You don't have to go back and reread them if you don't want to, the story is still the same.

[UPDATE 9/27/22] Fixed the bolds and italics not showing up.

City Center, City of Vale, Sanus

5:50pm, [ERROR]_

"Hurry the fuck up kid, they're gonna be here any minute."

"I fucking know Johnny, how about you shut the hell up and let me concentrate!" V snaps back at Johnny the Unhelpful Ghost. His fingers slip again and the bobby pin breaks while the screwdriver falls out of his hands. With a none too silent swear V picks up the tools and shoves them into his bag.

"Fuck it." V says as he pulls out Malorian Arms and shoots the lock on the safe he failed to pick. The bullet passes clean through the metal like a hot knife through warm butter, destroying the internal lock and allowing the door to swing open with ease.

Grabbing the documents V quickly stashes them before closing the safe and putting the painting back on the wall, making it look like he was never here. Before he can leave the office though he hears the front door unlock and someone enter the building.

"Pelotas!" Looking around reveals V's only means of escape is the window.

"You realize we're on the fourth floor, right?" Johnny looks out the window and to the ground far below.

They can hear the footsteps on the stairs, they're a minute away from being discovered. "No choice!"

Pushing open the window and climbing out onto the ledge was the easy part, closing the window without falling and breaking his still flesh and bone legs was another thing entirely. Right as he closed the window the door to the office opens and the unfortunate sap they just robbed walks in. V hangs onto the window ledge with as much strength as his metal fingers have, which is thankfully a lot, though that doesn't make the situation suck any less.

Minutes tick by and their mark has no idea what had just transpired in their office, which is good for V's wallet. Finding a way down without killing himself, on the other hand, is bad for everything else. Johnny materializes, sitting on the window ledge, kicking his legs back and forth like a kid.

"Nova, now what, ya gonk?"

"If I can shimmy my way to the corner I'll be able to climb down the drain pipe." V starts doing as he described and it's going good.

"Kid, watch out for that-!"

"Mierda!" Or it was going good, until V grabbed onto a loose brick and fell all the way to the dumpster bellow.

"…I'm sure he's fine."

Later that day_

V limps into The Den, past the henchmen who're busy stocking and cleaning in prep for opening in a few hours. Every head turns when he walks by, though not out of awe or respect mind you, but because he looks and smells like shit. Something Junior is very helpful to remind him of when he goes up to the bar to deliver the documents he was hired to retrieve.

"I'm not even going to ask." Junior says through a plugged nose. Quickly handing him the money promised as well as the bonus for doing the job quietly.

V takes the money and glares at the clan head. "Next time tell me if the gig is low tech, I spent way too long trying to pick the lock that I had to delta without an exfil strat."

"You don't know how to pick a lock? What kind of a thief are you?" Junior says, backing away slowly from the foul smelling and ill-tempered teen.

"A damn good one! If it was something a bit more shiny I would've been in and out, no time flat!"

Junior nods. "Right. I'll remember that for next time. Now if you don't mind…you're stinking up my establishment."

Before V can get too far away, Junior calls out to him. "Oh by the way, come by later, I may have something different I think you'll find interesting! After you take a shower, of course!"

V nods, huffing at the comment as he storms out of the club, everyone giving him a wide berth to avoid accidentally smelling him. Once outside again he shoves his hands into his pockets and makes his way down the street to the old gas station he converted into a safe house. It was secluded, had minimal points of entrance, and the attached garage was great for working on his new bike.

He wastes no time jumping into the shower he was able to jury rig up in the corner. Tossing all the clothes he was wearing, none of them from home thank God, into a bag to be tossed into an incinerator at a later date. An hour later V emerges from the shower and dons the old mechanic coveralls he found getting to work on the finishing touches for the bike.

Bumblebee, as the bike was originally named, was a fine piece of machinery. The tech was a bit dirty for his tastes but that was fixed easily. After buying and stealing a bunch of aftermarket parts he was able to boost the bike's performance well past what it could do before. Extra armor plating over the engine and wheels. Ceramic, double-rotor, two-wheel disk drive. Zero to sixty in under three seconds, a top speed of one hundred and eighty-nine miles per hour. Electronically controlled Anti-Lock Brakes. Built-in nav computer that can sync to both his Scroll and neural 'face. She was certainly up to his standards of shiny now, all she needed was a paint job before he was ready to take her to the streets.

"That's one helluva beast, what's her name?" Johnny crouches next to V as he tightens up some loose bolts.

"Ain't got one yet." He gets up. "Madre de Dios, she's beautiful. Panam would love her…" V stares silently at the bike for a while, his mind starts wandering before shaking those thoughts out of his head.

Johnny, being in V's head, knew exactly where his mind was wandering. "How 'bout red, for the paint?"

"Red, huh? That could work. I'll need to get some tomorrow."

"Well if you're done tinkering for the day let's head back to The Den, Junior said he had more biz for you." He's on the old couch in the corner now, feet kicked up on the crate in front of it. "You don't still smell like Pacifica, do you?"

"Pinga." V pauses for a moment, leaning down to sniff himself.

Later that day_

After applying extra deodorant and changing into his usual clothes V finds himself back outside The Den, now open for business and busy as all get out. If the criminal life didn't pan out for the Xiong clan they could still make a pretty penny on the club alone.

Walking past the long line, perks of being a regular on good terms with the boss, V heads inside with a nod to the bouncer and a variety of complaints from the patrons still forced to wait and pay for entrance. Out of the corner of his eye he can see Johnny giving the line the double bird with a cocky smirk around the cigarette in his mouth.

"You know they can't see you, right?"

"Still funny."

Once inside V makes his way over to the VIP section where Junior spends most of his time, walking right in and waiting for Junior to invite him to sit. After a nod Junior slides over his Scroll to V for him to look at.

"Take a look at this." V picks up the Scroll and sees an invitation to some sort of event; it boasted drinks, live music, and bloody battle.

"What is it?"

"In short, a favor." A henchman places a bottle and two glasses in front of them, it's good shit too, Junior must really want him to agree to what he's about to ask.

"Let's cut to the chase, what's the gig?"

Junior sighs. "Listen, it's no secret that the Xiong Clan's reputation has been sinking since the death of my father. We're still the best in the info trading business for the Kingdom of Vale, but beyond that…" He trails off. "What this is," he motions to the Scroll in V's hands. "is a chance for us to earn back what we lost."

"Okay, still don't explain what it is."

"Think of it like one of those regional tournaments that combat schools hold every year, but for criminals." Junior explained.

V didn't know what he was talking about but he could guess, so he just nodded. "And you want me to compete?"

"As the Xiong clan's 'champion', yes. You won't have to swear loyalty to me or anything like that, gangs hire mercs to fight in this thing all the time, so that's not an issue."

"Thanks for the offer, really, but I have other biz that I should be focusing on." Like finding a way back to Night City for starters.

Junior insists. "Every gang in the kingdom is expected to send someone to fight. I can't trust my boys to handle this and the twin's aren't good in a fight without the other to back them up. The rep boost you'll get, as well the cash prize, are both yours if you win. And I'll owe you one, so what do you say?"

Johnny leans against the wall off to the side. "He sounds desperate, and who knows, could be fun."

V sighs, passing the Scroll back. "Alright, fine, what do I need to do?"

Junior swipes and double taps the screen before sliding it back, having zoomed in on the picture of the showboating victor. "He's the one you have to beat, champion three years running. Not affiliated with any gang, no one knows where he comes from. He just shows up and kills every single opponent he faces without mercy." Strong looking guy, going for the old Japanese 'Ronin' type thing with his armor and kata-

"Wait…it can't be."

Johnny leans over V's shoulder to look at what V is. "I'd recognize that fucking logo anywhere."

Right there on the blade, just above tsuba, was the Arasaka logo. It was small and faded but there was no mistaking it for anything else. That was an Arasaka thermal katana. V looks back up at Junior, a fire lit behind his eyes.

"How do I sign up?"

Next day_

V sits at a table in the corner of the room smoking a cigarette, a half empty bottle of beer in front of him. A rousing cheer rings out from the crowd gathered around the makeshift cage in the center of the old warehouse at the edge of the Industrial District. The live music was blasting through the speakers but did little to drown out the clash of swords. They didn't have to worry about a noise complaint bringing the law down on their heads though, the whole area had been abandoned for years.

Apparently, back during something called the Faunus Rights Revolution, a section of the wall that protected the city was destroyed, by Faunus or humans no one knows, but it allowed Grimm to flow in and run free within the district before a defence was able to mobilize and push them back. It was a bloodbath. Ever since then the area has been considered cursed by the civilians and abandoned to rot which made it a preem location for an event like this.

"That's the match! What an upset folks, Kageneko looked to be on the ropes but pulled it out right at the last second! Let's give her a round of applause!" The crowd does as it's told and applauds the victor as the loser is carted away.

"What a fantastic first match, wouldn't you agree, wouldn't you agree? Let's bring out our next contestants!" V didn't pay it any mind, his first fight wasn't until the fourth bracket. At sixteen participants the whole event was going to go on for two days minimum, three if they give the finalists a day's rest to make sure their fight is really nova.

Finishing up his beer V heads over to the bar to buy another, keeping a literal eye on the current match via the hacked security cameras that were somehow still functioning. His new Kiroshi's were awesome, he could now split the feed between normal vision and a camera feed. It took a bit of practice to not get a headache from the influx of divided information but the payoff was definitely worth it.

Handing the bartender a Lien card V gets another cold-ish bottle of cheap swill in return. As whiny as it sounds, V was really starting to miss wireless transactions. Having to carry all his money physically on his person was cumbersome and annoying, but until he could forge a proper identity and set up some sort of account he was stuck with cold card cash.

Thinking about it, V almost wants to face palm. "Why haven't I paid Junior to set me up with a fake ID yet?

"I can think of at least eight reasons off the top of my head, chief one being you're a gonk, plain and simple."

"Gee, thanks Johnny." V sarcastically replies.

"My pleasure."

V is broken from his musings by someone walking up next to him and passing right through Johnny, annoying the Rockerboy into materializing behind the bar. "Rude."

The woman, as that figure couldn't be mistaken as anything but, silently orders a bottle of water. Handing off the money she lifts the mask that was covering the bottom half of her face in order to drink. He can't put his finger on it but V swears he's seen her before. Taking a closer look at her outfit, blacks pants with a matching black sleeveless hoodie, pale white skin, and most notably a pair of cat ears sticking out of holes cut into the hood. All in all she looked like your typical modern day mall ninja, but the aura of fuck-with-me-and-I'll-cut-your-dick-off combined with the sword strapped to her back made it very clear she was much more dangerous.

After finishing her drink she lowers the mask back into place over her mouth, her golden yellow eyes meeting his electric blue ones, though for some reason hers widens a fraction like she recognizes him. Why that is though V can't even begin to fathom and before he can even open his mouth to ask she turns and leaves, disappearing into the crowd. Before he gets a chance to follow her the announcer calls the end of the third match which means it's his turn. Putting the kunoichi out of his mind V goes to the door into the backroom and preps himself for his fight.

Since the only rule of the tournament was no firearms V decided to arm himself with a pair of knuckle dusters he klept from a pawn shop. They weren't anything special, just heavy metal that would work well with his fighting style and also make it less obvious that his arms are made of anything other than flesh and bone. He's been lucky enough so far that people just assume his visible chrome was weird tattoos and he wasn't in any rush to correct them.

"Up next folks is the fourth matchup of the preliminary rounds!" The announcer yells into his mic. "In the left corner we have the champion for the Viper gang, the assassin with a love of all things poisonous, Taipan!" Entering from the other side opposite V was a lanky man with scales, not unlike a snake. He showboated for the crowd with a strange wiggly dance, wielding a single butterfly knife that also seemed to double as a syringe. Probably filled with poison if his introduction was any indication.

Once the crowd quiets down enough the announcer continues. "And in the right corner, the champion for the Xiong Clan, a new gun-for-hire in our fair kingdom, give it up for V!"

The door in front of him opens and he steps into the pit, the cage surrounding it above him. Johnny appears outside the fence among the crowd. "Don't just stand there, give them something."

All V does is punch the air with his right arm, the spotlights shining off his brass knuckles, before 'reloading his fists' as he'd seen some Animal's do before they tried to cave his skull in. The crowd eats it up. Getting into a boxer's stance his opponent gets low to the ground, a three point stance with his knife hand raised in the air behind him. The announcer keeps talking up the crowd but V all but tunes it out, focusing on making this quick.

"-three…two…one…FIGHT!"

Taipan darts forward and slashes at V's neck, who's able to lean back and avoid being cut by a few millimeters. Reaching out, V grabs onto Taipan's still extended arm and twists it behind his back before kicking him into the wall. The assassin wastes no time in turning around and charging again. His attacks are fast, fast enough to keep V from going on the offensive.

After another close call V is tempted to use the Sandevistan to end this now but he remembers how he felt after the last time he used it in his fight against that Yang woman. After finding a place to stash the bike V all but collapsed in a pool of his own blood, the cyberware taking a heavy toll on his body, his brain most of all. When he awoke he thought back to everything Doc Emmet told him about the chrome before agreeing to install it. After that he decided to only use it in the most dire of circumstances, where it would be the only thing keeping him from flatlining.

Bringing his mind back to the fight currently at hand V goes in for a counter attack. Only with tanking a few slashes and jabs against his Aura is V able to start landing hits, that doesn't count for much though when it's only one out of every ten punches that's able to actually land. "Slippery bastard, stand still!"

Unfortunately Taipan ignores his silent orders, continuing to dance around his hits. V is starting to run low on patience, very tempted to let his mantis blades loose to catch him off guard and hopefully cut the fuck in two. It's when his opponent backflips out of punching range that V is struck with inspiration, Taipan only ever dodges with his torso, or his whole body if he can't, but never once as he just side-stepped out of reach. He has a theory that requires immediate testing.

Feigning a right hook causes Taipan to lean back at the waist, which has him taking his eyes off V for just a second. A second being all V needed to go low and sweep his legs out from under him.

Shock is evident on his opponent's face but is soon replaced with pain as V goes to town on him. Before he even hits the ground V starts wailing on his stomach with a series of quick jabs that back a lot more power thanks to the servos in his arms. Not letting up for a second, V follows up with an uppercut to the jaw that has Taipan biting down on his tongue and flying end over end into the cage high up. He falls to the floor in a battered heap, unconscious.

The crowd goes nuts as Taipan is dragged out of the pit. "Holy shit, what a knockout! I wouldn't want to wish that kind of punishment on my worst enemy!" V ignores the announcer and the crowd cheering his name, exiting out the side he entered.

V straightens himself up before exiting the backroom. Not two seconds later he's mobbed by congratulations, some even try their luck at recruiting him into their gang full time. To those he tells them to fuck right off a bridge. Heading back to the bar V ordered another beer to replace the one he was unable to drink last time, his eyes scanning the crowd for the woman from before. She knows him, he doesn't know how but she recognized him and was surprised to see him. He wanted answers.

"And that ladies and gentlemen is the end of the first night's preliminaries! We'll start the second round after a short break to give those going to the next round time to prepare themselves! Enjoy the music with an ice cold beer from the bar!" The announcer signs off to go talk to their bosses, the ones who organized this whole thing and are also in charge of all bets being placed tonight as well as all gambling rackets in the city. Ignoring the advice entirely V heads outside to the old loading docks.

Thankful to be away from the crowd V leans against a pillar and lights up a cigarette. "Last one, I'll have to get more tomorrow." Blowing out a puff of smoke with a huff.

Quicker than he can react a chain is wrapped around his neck and pulled upward tight, the cigarette falling from his lips with a gasp and his feet start to kick the air uselessly. V's hands grab at the chain, trying in vain to free himself, as a figure materializes from the shadows. It's the kunoichi from the bar, the one that seems to know him. It wouldn't be until later that V would chastise himself for forgetting to use the mantis blades to cut the chain, but for now his Aura was stopping him from choking completely, though he wasn't eager to test the limit of its protection just yet.

"What are you doing, puta?!" V manages to choke out.

She doesn't respond for a moment, simply staring at him as he struggles to not die, though when she does it's not the kind of question he was expecting.

"Why do you wear the face of a dead man?"

"The fuck is she on about?"

"I don't know, but you better answer quickly."

"Let me down and I'll answer!" V's vision is starting to go spotty from all the struggling. With a nod she lets go of the chain enough for his feet to touch the ground but he's forced to stand on his toes in order to loosen the chain enough to take in deep gulps of fresh air.

"Santa mierda, mujer, you tryna zero me?"

"I let you down, now answer me." She pulls on the chain slightly to show she's still in control.

"Listen, lady, I have no idea what you're talking about, comprender?" She clearly doesn't believe him. "How about you tell me why you think I should be dead and we can go on from there, sí?"

She thinks for a moment, longer than V is comfortable with, before answering. "Because I saw you fall off a cliff with a Nevermore feather through your heart." This throws V for a loop because the only people who saw that happen were Cinder, her cronies, and-

"Blake?"

The kunoichi pulls down the mask and hood to reveal the woman from the train back in the forest of Forever Fall. Her hair is different, tied into a single braid that's draped over her shoulder, and her bow is gone to reveal the cat ears underneath. All in all though, it's still the same woman.

"Huh." Johnny walks up to the woman and starts poking the ears, though they don't react to his presence at all. "Shoulda guessed there was something more going on with the bow, just didn't expect this."

Obviously not hearing the Rockerboy, Blake speaks. "I went to the base of the cliff to find your body, I looked for hours, but couldn't find anything. By sunset I assumed you had sunk to the bottom of the lake, there was nothing I could do." Her eyes drift downward, her ears mirroring her mood. She looks back up at him. "But now I see you, wearing the same clothes, having the same face, the same tattoos, the same everything. Yet you can't be him, the man I met in the woods that day died, and I couldn't do anything to save him."

Deciding to save her from her mental spiral, V tries to joke. "Well, maybe I'm a ghost, ooooh~" Her glare proves she's not impressed. "But actually though, it is me, someone saved me before you were able to. A traveler and her associates." He's intentionally vague, Cinder was a dangerous woman and he didn't want to risk anything when it came to her.

"That doesn't explain how you're alive."

"She activated my Aura." True, but not the whole truth, if it wasn't for his Second Heart then he would've been dead before Cinder even had a chance. "Got me feeling good as new in no time."

She's thinking. "Even so, no amount of Aura is that good, you were skewered through the heart."

Yes, though thinking about it now, he really should figure out if his first heart is even still functioning or is just a punctured sack of flesh sitting in his chest cavity. The thought gives him chills. "Guess I'm just built different." Is all V responds with.

She stares into his eyes for a good long while before sighing and releasing the chain. V sinks to his knees, quickly untangling it from around his neck. Looking up he sees Blake wrapping the chain up and hanging it off her belt, a kunai dangling off one end. Looking down V see's his, now ruined, cigarette floating in a dirty puddle of old rainwater. He levels an accusatory finger at Blake.

"You owe me a pack of smokes."

She has the good grace to look ashamed which quickly morphs into embarrassed. "I…don't have any money, it's kind of the reason I'm here…"

"Right, the prize money."

"I'm not just gonna fold for her. I need answers, and beating Oni is the only way I can guarantee he'll give them to me."

"Just so you know, the way the bracket is laid out for tonight you and I will probably end up going head to head for a spot in the finals. I won't take it easy on you just because you saved my life once." Not counting the fact that he almost died not two minutes later.

Her eyes harden with resolve. "I wouldn't want you to, and don't feel bad if you lose."

V smirks. "We'll see." He gestures back to the door with his head. "We oughta get back in there before the next round starts."

She pulls the hood and mask back up, hiding her identity from the criminal world around her, and they step back inside. Their timing couldn't have been more perfect as the announcer picks up their mic and calls out the start of the first night's second rounds. "I hope y'all are nice and drunk because betting for round two ends in five minutes, so make your way over and waste your life savings~!"

"I should get going, I'll be up soon." Blake says.

"And after that it's me, then I'll kick you into the dirt for that spot in the final round." V snarks back.

"We'll see about that." Blake says as she turns and walks away.

Johnny appears next to him. "Didn't think we'd be seeing her again."

"Small world I guess. C'mon, let's go watch her fight." He grabs another beer before pushing his way to the front of the crowd surrounding the cage, inside Blake is already standing ready to face her opponent.

"Jesus Christ, someone's been eating their Wheaties."

Inside the pit was an eight foot behemoth of a man. His bulging muscles are almost as impressive as his gut that protrudes out from underneath the leather apron he wore. In his meaty fists are two massive cleavers stained red from blood, man or animal he couldn't tell.

"In the left corner we have the infamous serial killer, the scourge of Vale's back alleyways, the Butcher himself, Barry the Chopper!" The crowd gives a much more muted applause for the Butcher than they have for every other contestant, three guesses as to why.

Ignoring the less than enthused reaction the announcer continues. "And in the right corner, she comes from the far off misty mountains in the eastern lands of Anima, the very shadow of death itself that's claimed many a bandit's lives, Kageneko!"

Blake looks at him, disguising it as scanning the crowd, and shakes her head slightly. "Of course she lied to get in, makes a great cover for why no one knows who you are, especially if there's no one left alive to verify your claim." Johnny says from his spot by V.

"Convenient, good for a short term event like this." While they were talking the announcer started the fight.

Down in the pit Barry's cleavers cut into the ground as he tries and fails to end the fight quickly. Blake dances around his strikes, sometimes shadow stepping in for a slash as her after image takes the blow. Barry is bleeding, having no Aura to protect him, but he doesn't even seem to notice. What's worse is that he seems to wisen up to her tricks, getting lucky and grabbing her by the legs when she shadow steps and slamming her into the ground.

Dazed by the blow she cuts at the sausage fingers still gripping her legs, causing him to let go in a shout of pain. Before he can cut her in two she throws out the kunai, wrapping it around one of the support poles of the cage and pulling on the chain, yanking herself out of harm's way to lick her wounds and assess the situation.

"That bastardo gordo sure can take some punishment."

"She's trying not to kill him, that's why he's not going down. All her strikes have been non-lethal."

Jumping back into the fight she goes low, darting between his legs and cutting both of his Achilles tendons on the way by. Roaring in pain the Butcher goes down onto his knees, unable to stand anymore. Now he's striking wildly trying to hit her, but this works in her favor as she can easily dodge his attacks without him thinking to predict her movements. During one such wild swing she ducks under the cleaver and slashes the tendons on his wrist, making him drop the car door he called a knife. She does the same to the other hand. Unable to move or grab onto anything, Barry the Chopper is down for the count.

"What a wonderous display of articulate swordsmanship ladies and gentlemen! The Butcher is unable to continue the fight, meaning that Kageneko is the winner!" Blake's shoulders sag in barely visible relief while the crowd chants her fake name.

V meets her in the backroom as she leaves the pit, walking past him as they swap places. "Don't die again, okay. You promised me a fight."

He can almost hear the ghost of a smile hidden under the mask so he returns it with a smirk of his own, arms spread wide. "Just make sure you're paying attention, because it'll be over just like-" He snaps his finger. "-that. Then, it'll just be you and I." He doesn't stay to hear what she has to retort, if she had anything to say at all, turning to walk through the doors into the pit. The crowd's cheering hammers his ears once more, but as always V ignores it, focusing instead on his opponent.

"He looks like a prick."

He's nothing noteworthy, not at a first glance at least. Average build, average height, simple rapier held in his left hand. Probably well trained with it, like any merc worth their scratch. The fancy suit is a bit much though if he's being honest, yes he did away with the jacket and rolled the sleeves but still. Maybe the announcer can provide some more helpful insight into who he's facing.

"In the left corner, representing himself, master duelist and head of House Argent, last of the noble houses of Old Vale, Sir Athel Argent!"

"Oh, so an uppity prick with a fancy title. That's so much better." V can't tell if he's being sarcastic or just excited to watch him put the beat down on this smarmy jackass.

"And in the right corner, the backstreet brawler, the merc with the moxie, got a job and he'll get it done, it's V!"

V 'reloads' his fists again for the benefit of the crowd while Sir Fuckface swishes his rapier from side to side, one arm behind his back. The announcer starts the countdown. "Three…two…one…FI-" But V doesn't even give him a chance to finish, activating the Sandevistan he runs forward, grabs the rapier from his hand, kicks the back of his legs forcing him to his knees. By the time the world returns to normal V is gripping Athel's hair tight and holding his own sword to his throat.

"-GHT! Wait what?! What just happened?!" The announcer, as well as the crowd, is going crazy.

Looking up at the crowd V finds Blake, her eyes wide in shock and despite her mask he knows she's slack jawed at the display. After sending her a cocky wink he returns his attention back to the man in front of him. "Stop moving or I'll paint the floor with your blood."

Athel stops struggling, sighing. "I yield…"

"Amazing, that's gotta be some kinda record! Fastest fight ever! Let's give it up for V!" V let's go of his hair before dropping the rapier and walking out of the pit. Up in the stands Blake is seriously starting to consider backing out and getting a part time job at MgRonald's.

Soundtrack: [N/A]

Inspiration Music: Gladiator - Zayde Wolf

[A/N] I just want to take a quick moment to say thank you to everyone who reading my silly little plot bunny, and an extra special thank you from the bottom of my heart to the reviewers. I'm embarrassed to admit how many times I've reread your reviews, knowing that you like my writing enough to take the time to leave me a little message makes me happy. To show you my appreciation I'm going to be answering any questions you have (as best as I can without spoiling plot points, of course) in the author's note at the beginning of the next chapter, so don't hesitate to ask if you have a question. Again, thank you and have a good day.