Ch. 7: Breaking Point
"You are going to kill Bakuryu.
"His name is Kenji."
"I don't care. You are going to kill him."
"No."
"Yes you will, if you value your freedom. You want that, don't you?"
"I don't care."
"Don't hide behind false bravado. You long to see your friends, your family again, don't you?"
"..."
"You will escape with him. Run away with him. You will gain his trust, his friendship, and love. And when he finally says it, when he admits he loves you, you will put a bullet through his heart. He will beg, plead, professing his undying love for you. But his pleas will fall on deaf ears, won't they?"
With that, ShenLong handed her the gun, and a small tape recorder to preserve Kenji Ohgami's final moments.
And now, he had professed his love for her. She had to kill him. One shot would be all it took. One shot between her and freedom.
But she couldn't do it. As much as she prepared herself for the moment of betrayal, as much as she tried to tell herself that she was just using him to gain her own freedom, she had genuinely come to care about this man.
"ShenLong put you up to this, didn't he? He told you that if you betray me, he would free you." Kenji knelt. "If you think he will, if you put your faith in ShenLong's word, then pull the trigger. I will offer no resistance, and accept my fate with grace and dignity."
Tears began to flow down Uriko's eyes. "Your suppose to beg! You can't just kneel and die! Beg for mercy! Beg! Please!"
Kenji said nothing. Uriko quivered, and started to pull the trigger. Breaking at the last moment, she threw the gun aside, and threw herself on Kenji. "I... I can't..."
"I know you can't. You're not like ShenLong and I. You have a good heart."
"You're not like ShenLong. You..."
Kenji stood up, and stared at his hands. "Ten years I killed without remorse. My hands are stained with the blood of too many people. Gado was right, I'm nothing but a cold-blooded murderer."
"Youre not..." Uriko choked out.
"Yes he is." A woman's voice called from the shadows. Fox, Jenny, Bakuryu. The three Merciless Angels of the ZLF. All three responsible for the deaths of hundreds."
"Shina?" Uriko uttered.
"No."
"You recognize me, of course. Ten years we killed, with a song in our hearts, as you would say. A pity Fox had to die in the trap to ensnare you, but all good things must end."
"You don't have to do this, Jenny."
"Yes I do, Bakuryu." Without another word, Jenny shot Uriko, straight in the neck. Before Kenji could even move, her aim flew true to Kenji's. The world faded to black. With his last vestiges of sight, he could see Jenny and a larger man picking up Uriko.
Kenji's eyes shot open and he sat straight up. He frantically searched the room, spotting Uriko, Jenny, and the man from earlier. He has blueish skin, and wore a pair of tan slacks and a white tank top concealing a massive frame. His face had small, sullen eyes and mandibles.
"You're awake. Good," he said. "I apologize for the whiff of ammonia, but I had to bring you around soon."
"That shot... tranquilizer?"
"Of course," Jenny said. "After all we've been through, you didn't think I'd actually sell you out to ShenLong, did you? Anyway, that's not important. Shina's sure to be on her way." Jenny sighed.
"But, I saw ShenLong's men execute you..."
"No, you saw them execute a replica made by Dr. Goldberg here."
"A by-product of my humanoid-insectoid physiology," he muttered.
"Ok, I'll buy that. You've been a help, but Uriko and I..."
"... can't keep running forever," Jenny finished.
Kenji sighed. "I know, but what else can we do?"
Jenny tossed a Floppy Disk to Kenji, which he caught with ease. "Fight them. I got my hands on the layout of ZLF HQ. Passcodes, secret areas, tunnels, the works. With these, we can."
"Sssssssh," Kenji motioned. Everyone's hair stood on end, Jenny's eyes widened.
"It cant be..." she mouthed. As if in response, the far wall of the room flew off, revealing a half-naked and very irate Shina Gado.
"I've come for the traitor and his woman. If you two leave, you'll live just that much longer!" she shouted. Dr. Goldberg walked up.
"I'm afraid I..." He never finished his sentence. In the blink of an eye Shina thrust her arm towards him. He jerked, twitched, and gurgled some incoherent words. She stayed expressionless as she drew her arm back, letting the man once known as Stun hit the ground. She stood, holding his pulsating heart in her hand.
"Kenji, Uriko, get out of here!" Kenji grabbed Uriko's arm, and led her out into a large warehouse filled with vats of molten metal. Kenji looked back, watching as Jenny emptied her gun into Shina. Shina stormed up, ad grabbed Jenny's sholder with her left hand. With an evil sneer, she used her right arm to grab Jenny's throat and tore her head off her shoulders in one swift, bloody motion. Uriko turned and threw up as Shina began to walk towards them.
"What do we do now?" She looked up, and saw Kenji enveloped in what appeared to be lightning.
"We stay and fight." Kenji replied, turning into his Zoanthrope form. "Shina or I, one of us won't leave here under our own power."
"You are going to kill Bakuryu.
"His name is Kenji."
"I don't care. You are going to kill him."
"No."
"Yes you will, if you value your freedom. You want that, don't you?"
"I don't care."
"Don't hide behind false bravado. You long to see your friends, your family again, don't you?"
"..."
"You will escape with him. Run away with him. You will gain his trust, his friendship, and love. And when he finally says it, when he admits he loves you, you will put a bullet through his heart. He will beg, plead, professing his undying love for you. But his pleas will fall on deaf ears, won't they?"
With that, ShenLong handed her the gun, and a small tape recorder to preserve Kenji Ohgami's final moments.
And now, he had professed his love for her. She had to kill him. One shot would be all it took. One shot between her and freedom.
But she couldn't do it. As much as she prepared herself for the moment of betrayal, as much as she tried to tell herself that she was just using him to gain her own freedom, she had genuinely come to care about this man.
"ShenLong put you up to this, didn't he? He told you that if you betray me, he would free you." Kenji knelt. "If you think he will, if you put your faith in ShenLong's word, then pull the trigger. I will offer no resistance, and accept my fate with grace and dignity."
Tears began to flow down Uriko's eyes. "Your suppose to beg! You can't just kneel and die! Beg for mercy! Beg! Please!"
Kenji said nothing. Uriko quivered, and started to pull the trigger. Breaking at the last moment, she threw the gun aside, and threw herself on Kenji. "I... I can't..."
"I know you can't. You're not like ShenLong and I. You have a good heart."
"You're not like ShenLong. You..."
Kenji stood up, and stared at his hands. "Ten years I killed without remorse. My hands are stained with the blood of too many people. Gado was right, I'm nothing but a cold-blooded murderer."
"Youre not..." Uriko choked out.
"Yes he is." A woman's voice called from the shadows. Fox, Jenny, Bakuryu. The three Merciless Angels of the ZLF. All three responsible for the deaths of hundreds."
"Shina?" Uriko uttered.
"No."
"You recognize me, of course. Ten years we killed, with a song in our hearts, as you would say. A pity Fox had to die in the trap to ensnare you, but all good things must end."
"You don't have to do this, Jenny."
"Yes I do, Bakuryu." Without another word, Jenny shot Uriko, straight in the neck. Before Kenji could even move, her aim flew true to Kenji's. The world faded to black. With his last vestiges of sight, he could see Jenny and a larger man picking up Uriko.
Kenji's eyes shot open and he sat straight up. He frantically searched the room, spotting Uriko, Jenny, and the man from earlier. He has blueish skin, and wore a pair of tan slacks and a white tank top concealing a massive frame. His face had small, sullen eyes and mandibles.
"You're awake. Good," he said. "I apologize for the whiff of ammonia, but I had to bring you around soon."
"That shot... tranquilizer?"
"Of course," Jenny said. "After all we've been through, you didn't think I'd actually sell you out to ShenLong, did you? Anyway, that's not important. Shina's sure to be on her way." Jenny sighed.
"But, I saw ShenLong's men execute you..."
"No, you saw them execute a replica made by Dr. Goldberg here."
"A by-product of my humanoid-insectoid physiology," he muttered.
"Ok, I'll buy that. You've been a help, but Uriko and I..."
"... can't keep running forever," Jenny finished.
Kenji sighed. "I know, but what else can we do?"
Jenny tossed a Floppy Disk to Kenji, which he caught with ease. "Fight them. I got my hands on the layout of ZLF HQ. Passcodes, secret areas, tunnels, the works. With these, we can."
"Sssssssh," Kenji motioned. Everyone's hair stood on end, Jenny's eyes widened.
"It cant be..." she mouthed. As if in response, the far wall of the room flew off, revealing a half-naked and very irate Shina Gado.
"I've come for the traitor and his woman. If you two leave, you'll live just that much longer!" she shouted. Dr. Goldberg walked up.
"I'm afraid I..." He never finished his sentence. In the blink of an eye Shina thrust her arm towards him. He jerked, twitched, and gurgled some incoherent words. She stayed expressionless as she drew her arm back, letting the man once known as Stun hit the ground. She stood, holding his pulsating heart in her hand.
"Kenji, Uriko, get out of here!" Kenji grabbed Uriko's arm, and led her out into a large warehouse filled with vats of molten metal. Kenji looked back, watching as Jenny emptied her gun into Shina. Shina stormed up, ad grabbed Jenny's sholder with her left hand. With an evil sneer, she used her right arm to grab Jenny's throat and tore her head off her shoulders in one swift, bloody motion. Uriko turned and threw up as Shina began to walk towards them.
"What do we do now?" She looked up, and saw Kenji enveloped in what appeared to be lightning.
"We stay and fight." Kenji replied, turning into his Zoanthrope form. "Shina or I, one of us won't leave here under our own power."