(A/N: To Nik: The Romantic Energies couldn't split up because they had to go through both Ayame and Rokkaku-Dai… Ayame Street basically takes the place of the garage, except it's also connected to Hikage. Eh, I'm too stupid to explain… sorry…)
Hand hurried through Ayame Street mumbling curses, most of which were directed at Wax, some of which were directed at himself.
"Hand," Blue Flame warned. She was moving as fast as he was, a few feet behind him. Star and Snap were doing their best to keep up, though Star was on a frantic lookout for the HGs.
"Here we go," Hand called. "This is to Rokkaku-Dai. Let's go, guys."
Snap whimpered, but he followed as the other three skated off.
"Come on, Snap," Blue Flame forced herself to say. "If Star can make it through Ayame, you can make it through Rokkaku-Dai. Besides, what do you really think will happen there?"
But she had the annoying feeling that her words were about to make her look stupid.
* * *
Glitch waved at Black Rose. "Hang on," he told her. "Don't go off and get yourself killed, okay? I'll just be a minute. Ya gotta trust me."
Black Rose obeyed, sitting down on a pipe. They weren't yet out of the fortified residential zone, and her new traveling partner apparently had something to do.
She watched him as he skated a few feet away and pulled a cell phone out of his oversized sweatshirt. He dialed a number, waited for a moment, then spoke: "Hello?"
He leaned against the wall, expressionless. "I need to talk to Quip. Is she there?" There was a pause. "I know. Tell her it's Glitch."
There was a moment of silence, then he continued, "Hey, sis. I need your help."
Black Rose looked up with more interest. She had never heard of anyone named Quip, but she had never heard of Glitch until that day either. Could this strange boy have a sister? She hadn't even been sure he was human.
"Yeah, he's gone. I think he was going to the sewers…" His paused to listen to something the other person was saying. "And there's this girl," he went on, turning to Black Rose. "I'm not sure what they wanted with her, but they had her tied up and all… yeah, of course I let her go. You know me better than that. She's with me now."
He laughed, surprising Black Rose. "Okay… meet me in Ayame. Don't tell the others, except Quo if you need her; I don't want them getting hurt. This is war, and it's gonna be bad. Blade and the others are armed, so remember what I told you… see ya." He hung up, then turned to Black Rose. "Let's go."
"What was that all about?" she asked. "Who were you talking to?"
"My sister Quip," he replied, skating off. Black Rose followed as he added, "She's coming to help."
"Help with what?" Black Rose inquired, feeling confused and a bit scared. "What is it? What's going on?"
Glitch did not turn as he answered, "Bloody Murder."
* * *
(A/N: Last chance to get away before my annoying made-up characters kill you…)
Quip replaced the cell phone in her pocket and looked around Sky Dinosaurian Square, her heart pounding. She glanced at her gang members, who were alternately spraying the backs of random people and racing around the roller-coaster tracks. Quip sighed and called to her best friend, who was participating in the former action. "Quo! Get over here!"
The dark-skinned girl skated over, looking annoyed at the interruption. "What?"
Quip's voice dropped to a whisper. "Remember me telling you about that gang in the fortified residential zone?"
Quo frowned. "The one your brother joined? The psychotic one?"
Rolling her black eyes, Quip replied, "Yeah, that one. They've declared war on every gang in Tokyo. Glitch said they're gonna go through the sewers to Ayame. If they can defeat Poison Jam, they'll hold each branch of the sewers. Except Kibogaoka, that is, and they'll probably head there next."
"So are ya gonna tell the others?"
"No. They'd want to come, and it's too dangerous."
"Thanks for being so concerned for my safety, but whatever. Let's go then." Quo turned and began skating off, followed by her friend. "If those jerks take the Tokyo Underground, we've got a problem on our hands…"
(A/N: Yes, I know street kids aren't likely to have cell phones. If you want to know why Quip and Glitch do, e-mail me and I'll tell you; but as of now I'm not saying anything, since it might come up at some other point in time…)
* * *
Blade shook his head down at the bloody mess that was somewhat still a member of Poison Jam lying at his feet. He mumbled several curses at the monster, then turned to Petal behind him. She was standing over the other two members of Poison Jam, both equally beaten and both unconscious. "Where's the girl?"
"She got away," Petal reported. "Ellipse is chasing her. They went down that pipe."
Blade grinned. "He can handle her. Where's the little freak?"
Petal nodded sideways at Pulse, who was spraying the gang's symbol on the wall. "Finishing that graffiti there."
"Good. And Wax went on ahead to Rokkaku-Dai, right?"
"Yeh."
Blade looked around at the walls streaked in black and red paint. "We're pretty much done here. Let's wait a bit for Ellipse, then we can move on."
"I don't know," Petal murmured. "He might be awhile…"
"True," Blade agreed. "Come on, kid," he called to Pulse. "Let's get out of here." Followed by Pulse and Petal, he skated out through the pipe to Rokkaku-Dai Heights.
* * *
A loud, long series of curses echoed through Bottom Point as Cube skated like mad down the familiar pipes of her home. The boy wasn't far behind her.
He and his gang had showed up out of nowhere and attacked the members of Poison Jam. Cube had watched as her three underlings fell, powerless against the superior strength and weaponry of the mysterious gang. Then one of them, a boy who appeared about her age, had given Cube a look that made her sick to her stomach, and she had instinctively turned and skated for her life.
There are worse fates even than death…"I ain't goin' down without a fight," she muttered.
"You can't run forever," the boy called after her. "Give it up."
"You wish!" she shouted back. "Only if you can catch me!" She skated harder, desperation giving her strength.
Ellipse bit his lower lip and picked up his own pace. She was a tough one, but that wasn't going to stop him. Blade and the others could and would go on without him.
"I'll catch you soon enough," he yelled. "And when I do, I'll make you sorry!"
* * *
"What in the…?"
Hand stopped dead and stared at the grinning boy twenty feet from him, standing amidst the abandoned houses of Rokkaku-Dai Heights. He was dressed in a long-sleeved dark grey shirt and black jeans. Hand glared at him for a few seconds, then the boy spoke.
"Well, Hand, it's been awhile," Wax began, sounding as though he were giving a rehearsed speech. His gaze flickered to Blue Flame. "Why, hello there. It really has been awhile, hasn't it?"
"Shut up, Wax," Blue Flame responded sweetly. "Hand, let's go."
"I'm staying here," Hand said in a low voice. "If I don't, none of us will make it through the sewers."
Blue Flame, Snap, and Star all stared at him. "What are you talking about?" Blue Flame asked. "Let's go!"
Wax advanced toward the group.
"Get out of here!" Hand shouted, seeing Wax's movement. Blue Flame stared at him, then turned and skated off toward the sewers. Confused and frightened, Star and Snap followed.
Wax laughed, watching as they left. When they had gone he told Hand, "Ya know, the rest of my gang's in the sewers right now… those three are probably gonna run right into 'em."
Hand exploded into curses, trying to go after the rest of the Romantic Energies. Wax blocked his way, and Hand stopped five feet away from him. "You little… If any of them get hurt, I swear I'll kill you!"
Wax laughed again. "I'm so scared. You're not such a tough guy without the rest of your gang. And without my retarded sister Black Rose."
"Where is she?" Hand demanded through clenched teeth. "If she's hurt, I swear, I'm gonna kick your little—"
Wax took a wild swing at Hand, catching him off guard. Hand stumbled back, blood pouring from his nose, then charged at the other boy.
Wax dodged Hand just in time and went for him with his knife, slashing him hard across the chest. Turning, Hand grabbed Wax's wrist before it could reach him again. Twisting the captured wrist around, Hand wrestled the pocketknife from Wax's grip and jerked it up, stopping less than an inch from Wax's throat.
"Heh," Wax muttered, feeling a wall against his back. "You've gotten quicker."
"Maybe," Hand replied, breathing hard. His collar was getting soaked in red, turning the upper part of his green shirt to brown. "Or maybe you've gotten slower."
"Or maybe," Wax returned, "you've just gotten stupider…" He brought his knee up into Hand's stomach, knocking him to the ground. The knife, moving upward, cut Wax from his chin to his lower lip before it clattered to the ground at his feet. Wiping the blood from his face with the back of his hand, Wax grabbed his knife and stood over Hand, who seemed to have gotten the wind knocked out of him.
"So much for that," Wax sneered down at him. "You deserve this…" He kicked Hand hard in the side. Hand groaned and rolled over. Wax kicked him again, laughing. "Get up and fight me, Hand. If you can."
He waited as Hand pushed himself up, green eyes darkened with hatred. He again went after Wax, who stepped out of the way, his knife ripping once more through the front of Hand's shirt. Hand staggered and fell to the side, clutching his wounded chest. Warm red liquid enveloped his fingers as he hit the dusty ground.
I'm gonna die. I'm gonna die and then Black Rose will be on her own, and Blue Flame and Snap and Star will be too, and I'll never see Black Rose again, and I can't even tell her goodbye, and… Hand closed his eyes.
And maybe worst of all… Wax will win…
* * *
The skates scraped along the bottom of the sewer pipe. Star forced herself to stay completely still inside the small pipe. Already claustrophobia was setting in, and the metal was cold through her jeans and against her bare arms. Snap had crawled into the pipe before her, and she could hear him breathing.
I hope Blue Flame hid in time, Star thought. Her own breathing sounded loud in her ears, like it always did in books and lame fanfiction. The noises stopped and her heart danced faster, then an unfamiliar female voice spoke.
"Is it just me, or—"
A curse bit the air in the voice of a boy. "Petal, do you mind? We can't go twenty feet without you complaining that there's someone here."
A pair of skates stopped in front of the pipe. Star heard Snap whimper behind her. There was a pause, and Star resisted the urge to kick Snap in the face.
"If no one's here, then what was that?"
Another curse. "Nothing, Petal, now let's go! Wax isn't near smart or strong enough to handle anyone, no matter what he says. Come on, before I—"
"Leave her alone," another boy interrupted.
The first boy laughed. "What're you gonna do about it, kid? You know what happens when you mess with me once, so shut up and move unless you want to find out what happens the second time."
"Blade, you got no right to—"
Star winced at the echoing smack, most likely of someone's hand meeting someone else's cheek—but hard. Skates slipped on the wet ground, and Star shrank back from the pipe opening when a boy landed just in front of it. To her relief, he scrambled back up, but not before a few drops of blood had spilled where he had been.
"Learn some respect, kid," Blade laughed. "That's a warning. Let's go."
The confident tone of his voice made Star bite her lower lip as the skates moved on. Neither she nor Snap dared to move until the noises faded. They remained motionless until Blue Flame's voice shouted, "Guys! Quick!"
Star wriggled out of the pipe, Snap crawling out after her. Both gasped when they saw their friend.
Blue Flame was kneeling beside one of the fallen members of Poison Jam. He was splattered with blood, and it took her a moment to find any sign of life. "He's okay," she told Snap and Star, who were standing over her with open mouths and wide eyes. "At least, he's alive… for now." She glanced at the other two battered monsters, both of whom appeared to be breathing.
A sudden thought occurred to her and she stood up, concern crossing her face. "Oh, no," she murmured. "Snap, Star, come on." She skated toward one of the larger, open sewer pipes, hoping she wasn't too late.
"What?" Snap asked, completely confused.
"There's a girl who's the leader of this gang," Blue Flame told her, her voice grim. "She's not here, which means that whoever did… this… either caught her or killed her; or she's on the run somewhere, probably in here. We should take a look around…"
* * *
Black Rose took a deep breath. "Glitch?" she asked.
"What?" her shadowy companion responded, not slowing his quick pace. They weren't yet out of the residential zone, but the sewers were in sight.
"Why'd ya let me go?"
He laughed. "Why do you care?"
"It's just a little… odd, that's all. I mean, it was your gang that captured me."
"'My gang.'" Glitch laughed again, a short, sarcastic laugh that was really starting to annoy Black Rose. "The only reason I joined Bloody Murder," he continued, "was to get a chance to take care of an old debt."
Black Rose was confused, something that was happening more often that she was happy with. "Which means what?"
"Which means that now would be a good time for you to figure out that I don't want to talk about it, no offense," Glitch answered coolly. "When I use that tone, it means that that's a past event that I'm not happy about."
"But… you joined the gang?" Black Rose prodded. "If you've got some problem with one of the members or something, why'd ya join?"
"Well, if I wasn't part of Bloody Murder, you'd be sitting up in that house right now. Either that, or you'd be dead."
Black Rose shuddered. "True." She thought a moment. "Hey, what's with Pulse? He seemed okay to me."
Glitch shrugged. "I only just joined 'em this morning; I don't know. But don't let Pulse fool you. Did you see the glove on his left hand?"
"No, why?"
"Because it's got claws attached to it, that's why. I didn't get a good enough look to tell if he did it himself or had someone else do it. But those things are sharp and dangerous. Pulse isn't as harmless as he seems, I don't think. He carries a weapon just like the rest of the gang." He stopped moving as well as talking, and Black Rose realized that they were ten feet from the pipe leading to the sewers. "You ready?" he asked.
She nodded.
He sighed. "I hate to have to say this, but I mean… well, if your gang really did come after you, and ran into Blade and the others… they're probably dead. And if they are, I don't think you'll want to see it."
Black Rose wondered if hearts were capable of jumping. If so, it would explain what had just happened. "Yeah, I'm ready," she stated. It's not a lie if I don't know, is it? Okay, probably it is.
The look he gave her made it clear that he didn't believe it, but he just nodded. "Then let's go."
* * *
Quip swore not-so-softly to herself as she skated through 99th Street. Quo swatted her on the arm. "What would your brother say if he heard you talking like that?" she scolded.
Despite the unpleasant situation, Quip laughed. "He'd probably congratulate me and say he's taught me well." She stopped for a moment. "Well, here's Ayame Street. Ready?"
Quo nodded, and the two friends skated forward.
* * *
I would really, really like to just die right now. Make it fast and all that…
Not gonna happen.
Wax was grinning. "To be honest," he informed Hand, "I never thought I'd get the chance to do this. I guess I'm just luckier than I thought." He gave Hand yet another kick, this time in the head. Hand made a pained sound and closed his eyes, but did not move.
What would Black Rose think of me now…? he wondered, wincing at the throbbing pain in his head. To see me get beat by her half-brother?
Hand growled something rather unkind and forced his eyes open. With a strength he did not realize he had, he grabbed Wax's right skate and jerked it hard. Unable to keep his balance, the stunned boy slipped and fell, joining Hand on the ground.
Hand snatched the knife from Wax's fist and, eyes narrowing, brought it down across the younger boy's arm, slitting the sleeve from the upper arm to the cuff. Wax yelped and tried to roll away, but Hand caught his right ankle and twisted it, causing him to cry out again. Hand's vengeful expression did not change as he let the knife slice through the lower leg of Wax's pants into his flesh.
"I'll kill you!" Wax hissed in a strained voice, kicking unsuccessfully at Hand. "Get off me, you sick freak!"
His words became another pained cry as his own knife again cut into his leg. "All right!" he gasped. "All right! Let me go, and I'll tell you where Black Rose is, I swear!"
Hand paused, watching the blood seep through Wax's black pants. "Liar," he decided after a moment, and pulled Wax further down toward him.
"Get away from me!" Wax screamed, trying to brace his hands against the ground. It did no good; they only slid through the dust, leaving him staring up into Hand's green eyes.
"Where is she?!" Hand snarled, raising the knife over Wax's throat.
Wax swallowed nervously and with some difficulty. "She's in the fortified residential zone! We left one of our gang to guard her! I didn't hurt her, I swear it! Please don't hurt me!" He had closed his eyes, waiting for Hand to strike.
The next thing he heard was a shocked grunt. Lowering his arms, he looked up and was relieved to see Blade, twisting Hand's right arm behind his back. Petal and Pulse stood on either side of their leader, grim expressions on their faces.
"I don't know who you are, or how you two know each other," Blade told Hand in his dangerously quiet voice, "but you'd better get away from my friend here, or people will hear you scream all the way across Tokyo."
Hand bit his lip as Blade dragged him up, still twisting his arm. The leader of Bloody Murder took the weapon from Hand with no trouble, then glanced down at Wax, shaking his head.
"Good thing we decided to come," he remarked. "Get up."
Wax struggled to his feet, holding his leg. Blade nodded at his injury. "This kid cut you or somethin'?"
Wax nodded painfully, and Blade again addressed Hand, using his other hand to grab his captive's hair and pull his head back until their eyes locked. "Listen, kid. Like I said, I don't know who you are, and I don't care much for Wax here. But he's part of my gang, and now we're gonna teach ya what we do to people who mess with us." He glanced at Wax and tossed him the pocketknife. "You can decide what to do with him."
Catching the knife, Wax stood up straighter and stared at Hand, a sadistic smile spreading over his face.
Hand flinched as Wax's index finger lifted his bloody chin. His nose continued to gush the red fluid, spreading it further down his shirt. Blade pinned Hand's arms back, holding him as Wax laughed and took a step backward, then punched Hand in the stomach. Hand's body jerked forward and he groaned. Wax hit him again, harder this time, leaving Hand choking as blood flooded from his mouth.
At a nod from Wax, Blade let Hand fall to the ground. Wax grabbed him by the back of his collar and dragged him up, pulling him toward the nearby abandoned house. He smashed Hand's upper body into it face-first, bouncing him back a good two feet. Again Hand's face collided with the building, a slight indent left in the wall from the impact.
"What do ya think you're doin'?!"
Wax let Hand collapse to the ground, unconscious. He looked up just as two girls jumped down from the rooftop above him.
Blade's knife seemed to materialize in his left hand as two more girls landed near him, then three more surrounded Pulse and Petal. Petal drew her gun and backed up until she bumped into Blade, who pushed her away. Pulse's body tensed, but otherwise he made no move.
The four present members of Bloody Murder looked the new girls over. Each one was dressed identically, in white tank tops with daisies on them and pink capris.
"So you're the Prissy Girls," Blade greeted them, grinning. "I've heard of you."
"How flattering," the leader replied sarcastically. "Who are you?"
The grin never left Blade's face. "We," he answered, his voice strangely calm, "are Bloody Murder."
The leader's blue eyes narrowed. "And who are you, yourself?"
He raised an eyebrow at her. "Blade."
"Well, Blade, you have precisely thirty seconds to get outta my turf," she told him. "And leave that kid there," she added, nodding at Hand.
Blade glanced at Wax. "All right," he agreed, astonishing his three underlings. "Let's go, guys." And with that, he skated off toward the Shibuya Terminal, followed by a very confused Petal and Pulse. After giving Hand one last sharp kick with his better leg, Wax reluctantly obeyed as well.
"I'll find you again, Hand," he muttered as he skated after the rest of his gang. "And when I do, I'll finish what I started."
* * *
"What the…? Spark, what's wrong?"
Spark had stopped so suddenly that Speed almost ran into her.
"Listen, there's someone here. It sounds like they're just inside Bottom Point."
Speed listened, then took off so quickly through the pipe leading to Bottom Point that Spark had to skate hard to catch up with him. "I heard," he said. "And—oh, man."
Spark halted next to him, staring down at the three bloody members of Poison Jam. "Oh, man," she echoed.
An alarmed sound came from down a nearby pipe. Speed looked up.
"These guys'll have to wait," he decided, skating toward the noise. "Whoever's in here, they're in trouble…"