A/N Hey everyone, I hope you're all doing okay so stay safe and enjoy this next chapter.


I kept my eyes open as Jack and I traveled through a mountainous region while it was misty, my eyes narrowed into a focused expression as I looked around before we came to a stop in front of bridge supports that were the size of new york city skyscrapers and I couldn't help but draw them in my sketchbook as I whistled at the impressive sight.

'Jesus...did King Kong build that?' I thought in disbelief as I put away my sketchbook, then Jack and I continued walking to the bridge that was at a normal size and went as far as the eye can see into the mist, only it looked old while I couldn't see the bottom of the abyss below the bridge as I made a face at that.

"Gee, that looks safe," I muttered sarcastically as Jack looked down at the bridge and looked back up at the misty area before us.

Taking the risk, we cautiously started to get onto the bridge and moved carefully for a short time and looked back to see that we had gone a big distance from the beginning, then we continued moving and I had no idea how long we kept crossing the bridge as it seemed to go on forever until Jack took one step onto one of the weaker planks and it broke, nearly sending him through the bridge but I quickly grabbed him to prevent the samurai from falling to his death.

"Thank you," Jack said as we looked over the side and saw the broken wood falling into the void that led god knows where before I gulped.

"No problem...shit, looks like we need to watch our step because this bridge is not stable at all," I pointed out uneasily and we continued walking, only more slowly this time since there was a good chance we might fall next time if we took one wrong step.

After that, the hours had gone by and the sun went down until Jack and I were forced to rest by sitting down with me feeling more than uncomfortable at the height we were at since there was no telling how far down it was below the bridge, then the area Jack was sitting on started cracking and he began sinking before he started falling as my eyes widened.

"Jack!" I yelped in alarm as I threw myself over to the edge of the hole and grabbed his wrist, then I pulled him up through the hole and over to the side of where I was and he sent me a nod of appreciation until we continued crossing the supposedly endless bridge.

We kept moving throughout the rest of the night and most of the morning before my ears perked up when I heard something and I stopped, Jack doing the same thing as I listened carefully with the noise getting louder until I recognized it as music.

'Is that...bagpipes?' I thought in confusion as I spotted someone in the distance getting closer.

Pretty soon, the music got loud to the point of being unbearable and I was forced to clap my hands over my ears with a pained grimace on my face while Jack had covered his ears as well and showed a look of extreme discomfort as the figure got closer, then he came into plain view and I could see that it was a man who looked like a large stereotypical Scotsman who had a machine gun for a pegleg and a sword strapped to his back as he approached us and came to a stop since we were blocking the way.

The Scotsman looked at us while he continued to play his bagpipes that was about to render me and Jack deaf until the Scotsman thankfully finished his song and I let out a sigh of relief before Jack and I removed our hands from our ears while the Scotsman grinned down at us.

"By the look on your faces, I can tell you two like the pipes, wee laddies," The Scotsman said and resumed playing, forcing me and Jack to cover our ears again before I sent the Scotsman an irritated glare and Jack held up his hand to stop the Scotsman from playing anymore.

"Please, I don't mean to interrupt, but are we close to the end of this bridge?" Jack asked as he cleared out one of his ears with his finger and the Scotsman shook his head.

"No, far from it because I've been traipsing across this bridge for days now," The Scotsman replied and I couldn't help but look annoyed at that.

"Damn, sound like we're not even halfway across yet...talk about a pain in the ass, so we should get going and thanks for telling us," I said with a nod before Jack and I took a few steps forward, only the Scotsman wasn't moving and we looked up at him.

"Um, excuse us," Jack suggested and the Scotsman arched a brow.

"What do you two expect me to do?" The Scotsman asked and I was taken aback by that.

"Uh, just scoot over slightly so that we can squeeze past," I replied awkwardly and the Scotsman scoffed.

"And risk falling over the side for two perfect strangers? Away and bow your damn heads so you scoot over!" The Scotsman retorted and I grimaced at how this was not going well while Jack was looking a little annoyed.

"Our destination lies at the opposite end of the bridge," Jack pointed out stoically.

"And you'll get there after you both back up and I reach that end of the bridge first," The Scotsman argued as he pointed behind us, causing me and Jack to look back before returning our attention to him.

"Sorry, but we're kinda in a hurry so we can't afford to waste time," I stated sheepishly and the Scotsman arched a brow.

"So, you two think you're better than me 'cause you're in a hurry. Well, I'm in a hurry too but no, neither of you figured that out, did you? That I might be an equal? No, you both just consider yourselves superior right off so you're rude," The Scotsman lectured and Jack widened his eyes before he started looking embarrassed.

"You mistake his comment, sir," Jack reasoned, only that made things worse.

"Do I? You both think I'm dumb, too?" The Scotsman questioned with an offended look on his face.

"No, we-" I tried to say and let out a sigh before adding, "Listen, we're all in a hurry so we'll climb over to hang onto the planks and that'll give you a chance to walk right over."

"So you both get a peek up me kilt?!" The Scotsman exclaimed in disbelief, then I started rubbing my eyes to prevent a headache from happening since trying to reason with this guy was like talking to a brick wall.

"That is not what he is suggesting," Jack said, sounding slightly irritated.

"So you say, you plucky-faced hinoot," The Scotsman insulted and I stared up at him with an expression of shock since I had a friend who was Scottish and he taught me a lot on Scottish slang and other things like insults.

"W-What the fuck did you just call him?!" I sputtered in disbelief and the Scotsman started grinning.

"So, you're also deaf, you clog-tailed cutty drake and I'll tell you two what we're going to do, we'll fight for it to the finish," The Scotsman challenged and Jack looked at me while appearing uncomfortable.

"I do not think there is any need to-" Jack tried to reason and was cut off.

"Listen, you boony blithering numbthet, the only way for you two to get across this bridge is if you beat me in combat so are you both men or worthless blokes like I think you are?" The Scotsman growled as he shoved his face into ours and I began glaring at him since I was starting to had enough of him.

"I'm calling you cowards!" The Scotsman continued and Jack narrowed his eyes.

"We fear no man," Jack stated with his voice sounding dangerously low and the Scotsman widened his eyes while pretending to look scared.

"Ohh, that's some tough talk coming from a man who wears a fucking basket on his head and having a scrawny mutt for a companion. I carry me haggis in a basket and the mutt I had back home normally worn a leash and you might even make me shiver if you weren't dressed in a nightgown.

"You look like my nanny and you two call those things dangling on your hip and back as swords? Looks like butter knives and you both won't hurt anyone wielding those pieces of tin foil around, so one of you will be better off using your slippers for a weapon," The Scotsman insulted while Jack scowled at that, then the Scotsman reached for the handle of his sword and pulled out a broadsword before holding it with a grin.

"This is a sword, and it's bigger than those toothpicks you two carry so what do you think of that, Mr. pajama-wearing, basket-faced, slipper-wielding, clype-dreep-bachle, gether-uping-blate-maw, bleathering gomeril, Jessie, oaf-looking stauners, nyaff, plookies, shan, milk-drinking, soy-faced shilpits, min-moothed, sniveling, worm-eyed, hotten-blaugh, vile-stoochies, cally-breek-tatties?" The Scotsman insulted us for twenty seconds until he raised his sword and went to attack us.

It caused me and Jack to pull out our own swords before we swung up to block until the Scotsman forced our blades down as he sliced through Jack's straw hat while we managed to stop him from going any further while the large man chuckled, then Jack's hat broke apart into two pieces and fell down into the abyss before we started glaring at the Scotsman while he laughed at that and we threw his sword back.

"Aw, you two gonna weep now, and shall I pause while you both mourn the hat? I can play a melancholy tune to go with your weeping," The Scotsman mocked, then I decided to get back at him by stabbing his bagpipes with my sword and he looked like he wasn't expecting that as I pulled out the sword with a smile until the air was slowly escaping the bag with it becoming limp until the Scotsman glared at me with murder in his eyes.

"You've done it now, so I'm going to turn your heads into flour sifters!" The Scotsman snarled viciously before he threw the bagpipes away and started attacking us.

Jack and I struck his blade with ours as he swung at us with fast slashes, then we started dodging many slashes before ducking and swinging down at him before the Scotsman blocked just in time and kept blocking until he swung at us and we jumped back just as his sword smashed through a bit of plank, causing all three of us to cringe before we continued fighting.

The Scotsman forced us back with many fast and vicious attacks until we started pushing him back with two planks breaking behind us until our blades locked together and the Scotsman started smirking while Jack and I gazed at him with steely focused glares.

"Aye, you two have got a lot of pep for wee laddies," The Scotsman grunted before he laughed in our faces, forcing me to jerk my head away with a grimace because of his bad breath.

'Christ, ever hear of a breath mint?' I thought in disgust as Jack and I knocked the Scotsman sword out of the way, only he used the momentum to spin around to swing at us and we jumped before letting out war cries until we swung down with all our strength and our blades collided with the Scotsman's with a blinding flash before we landed and Jack looked surprised as hell.

"The tremendous horse-cut technique should've destroyed your sword," Jack pointed out in confusion before the Scotsman held up his sword and pointed at a bunch of runes that were on the blade.

"Magic runes, laddie, which mean that all those fancy moves will get you and that mutt nowhere, now quit your jumping around and get to fighting!" The Scotsman snapped irritably before he attacked us and we had to defend ourselves as the fight started to drag on.


After fighting throughout the rest of the day and the entire night, all three of us were exhausted by the next morning while the Scotsman was slumped forward slightly with his sword resting onto the planks, Jack was sitting down and resting against the rope on his right with his hair looking disheveled, and I was on one knee while gripping the rope on my left while we all breathed heavily and the Scotsman laughed weakly.

"Prepare to...meet your...deaths," The Scotsman wheezed out before he struggled to lift his sword with a tired groan, but he couldn't do it and said, "I'll give you two one more chance to give up."

"We are not defeated, and we shall hold our ground," Jack refused tiredly and the Scotsman blinked at that.

"Ohh, hold your ground...you two can barely hold your swords," The Scotsman pointed out before I coughed once and stared up at him.

"Then come...get us, asshole," I rasped with a defiant glare, making the Scotsman sputter at that before he sent me a growl.

"Seeing that I'm a sportsman, I'll give you both a moment to recuperate," The Scotsman said and we just rested for a short while without saying anything.

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion and it prompted us to look and see a massive one-wheeled vehicle approaching fast while a pig was driving it, the pig dressed like a small-town sheriff while holding a shotgun in one hand.

"Yee-haw!" the pig shouted gleefully as he grinned sadistically, then there was the sound of another engine and the three of us looked back to see another one-wheeled vehicle driven by a man who looked like a stereotypical hillbilly as we quickly stood up with renewed energy.

"They're after us/me! After you/you two?! They're after us/me!" all three of us exclaimed in alarm as I heard a gunshot and looked to see two cuffs connected to a chain as it flew at us.

"Um, guys?" I spoke nervously, but Jack and the Scotsman didn't listen.

"Aku has got a price on me head," The Scotsman said tensely as he gestured at himself.

"Aku has a price on our heads," Jack stated as he also gestured at me and himself, then the cuffs attached themselves onto Jack and the Scotsman's wrists and they widened their eyes.

"Oh fuck, not good," I said nervously as the vehicles kept getting closer and I knew that we had to find a way to get away from them or we would be run over by the massive wheels.

"We are in no condition to fight these odds," Jack stated and the Scotsman looked at him.

"Especially not with a pajama-wearing daisy strapped to me wrist," The Scotsman added as he lifted his hand to emphasize it, then I looked at the side of the bridge and felt stupid for what I was about to suggest.

"Fuck it, over the side!" I shouted urgently, prompting Jack and the Scotsman to jump but they went in opposite directions and the chain on their cuffs snapped them back onto the bridge while I grimaced, then Jack and the Scotsman got up before the larger man sent a glare at the samurai.

"Leave it to a leathery basket hat to jump left instead of right, though I'm having second thoughts anyway because we have no idea how far down-" The Scotsman complained, then he was cut off when I simply sliced the boards beneath us and all three of us fell through the bridge with a collective shout of panic while I could see the two vehicles colliding into each other and exploding above us.

I quickly holstered my sword and formed wings on my back before I dove down and went to grab the Scotsman's wrist, only it was too late as we soon fell down into a bayou just as I grabbed the larger man's wrist and found myself going into the water with the other two men until my wings melted into my back and we swam up to the surface before breaching the water to take in oxygen as the Scotsman looked at me.

"Great job, laddie, now do you have any idea where the hell we are?" The Scotsman asked sarcastically, making me roll my eyes.

"No, not really," I replied dryly.

"So, what now, smartass?" The Scotsman questioned irritably before Jack looked thoughtful.

"For the moment, we are safe from those bounty hunters so we must find shelter before they find us because we are defenseless in this lagoon," Jack said just before one of the pieces of his hat drifts by us.

We stared at it for a few moments before the Scotsman broke out laughing, causing me and Jack to glower at him unamusingly while I felt like hitting the guy in the face until the Scotsman shut up when he saw his broken bagpipes being the next object to float by us, then Jack and I smiled as the Scotsman glared at us and I stifled a chuckle.

"Shut it!" The Scotsman snapped irritably.

"We didn't say anything," I said with a smirk.

"But you two were thinking of it, so shut it!" The Scotsman retorted, causing me to shrug as the mist around us cleared up a little and Jack pointed in a direction that led to the shore.

"There, we'll be safer on land," Jack said as we moved through the water until we finally reached the shore, then I flung my arms to get the water off when my ears perked up at the faint sound of an engine and I tensed up.

"Hide, now!" I hissed in alarm before we all darted into the bushes and hid just as a hovercraft with machine guns showed up with the same pig driving it while other bounty hunters began searching the area for us, just as the hillbilly started drinking from a bottle of moonshine and the pig blasted it to pieces with his shotgun.

The pig started shouting at the hillbilly, only I couldn't understand a word he was saying since it sounded like gibberish to me as the hillbilly sent him an unamused look for shooting his drink before they all left, then we peered out of the bushes and cautiously left the area while I was glaring at nothing in particular.

'Goddammit, am I in Deliverance or something? I seriously hate that redneck shit because it pisses me off,' I thought irritably as we continued through the bayou, Jack and the Scotsman using their swords to slice through any branches or vines that were in the way while I had my bow out just in case.

"What I didn't understand is why Aku is after you two since I have a huge price on me head. Oh yeah, huge so I'm the most wanted man on the planet with bounty hunters of all types after me arse, my face plastered on wanted posters in every town in seven countries, so I'm infamous," The Scotsman said proudly as he grinned at us, only I sent him an irritated look since he wouldn't shut up and would draw unwanted attention just before he sliced through a vine and paused with a look of shock once he saw what was ahead of us.

"No...I don't fucking believe it," The Scotsman gasped softly in disbelief while Jack smiled humbly and I scratched the back of my head as I looked away in embarrassment, two worn wanted posters of me and Jack staring right back at us while they were plastered to a metal wall.

Jack holstered his sword while the Scotsman growled in frustration before he ripped the wanted posters off the wall, then he sliced through it in a circular motion before kicking the piece of the wall inwards and left a hole for us to enter.


We moved through what appeared to be a town that seemed abandoned, being cautious since we had no idea where the bounty hunters were or if they were hiding in the town and just waiting to ambush us until I heard the roar of engines starting to approach and signaled for us to hide.

Jack and the Scotsman took cover in an outhouse, only there wasn't enough room for me to fit and I simply ducked under a house before melting into a puddle of black slime and used the shadows to conceal myself as hover vehicles showed up with bounty hunters manning them as the pig shouted incoherently in the same gibberish language before they all drove away.

I waited for a short time before slowly flowing out and shaping my head so that I could look around, not seeing anything as I heard Jack and the Scotsman whispering to each other about how the bounty hunters might be gone, and just as they talked about that, missiles were fired at the outhouse and my eyes bugged out.

I reacted quickly by reforming the rest of my body and bolted to the front of the outhouse, forming a large dome to cover the outhouse and myself before the missiles struck the dome and exploded, prompting Jack and the Scotsman to quickly exit the outhouse as the dome shrank and shaped back into my hand while we were surrounded by the bounty hunters until the pig shouted at the others and they all readied their weapons.

"Jump now!" Jack instructed loudly, prompting all of us to jump so that we could avoid the gunfire as I readied my bow with Jack and the Scotsman pulling out their swords when we landed and the two swordsmen went to attack the bounty hunters, only I had forgotten how they were chained together and the cuffs yanked them back into each other while I grimaced.

"Guys, this isn't going to work while you two are cuffed together," I reminded them tensely, only the Scotsman frowned.

"Of course it'll work, we're a lethal trio," The Scotsman argued just as an alligator bounty hunter was about to shoot him from behind.

"Behind you!" Jack alerted the large man, who proceeded to swing the samurai at the bounty hunter and Jack kicked him to knock the humanoid animal down.

Then the samurai stabbed his sword into the ground and used the momentum to swing the Scotsman into a few bounty hunters, smashing them into a couple of buildings before the two men got up with Jack pulling his sword out of the ground while I regrouped with them and did a flying kick at a bounty hunter that attempted to ambush them from behind.

"The arrow relies on the bow, the bow relies on the arrow, but they are not tied together," Jack said while I was using what he taught me to study our current enemies for any weaknesses.

"That would be pointless now, wouldn't it?" The Scotsman questioned, then I nodded at him.

"Exactly, we need to work together if we want to survive but you two won't be able to fight efficiently as long as you both are shackled, so those cuffs need to come off," I stated as I saw the robot gators charging at us until the Scotsman grinned.

"Aye, and we'll take them together," The Scotsman declared while Jack smiled and I smirked, just before a massive cannon rolled up and the pig chuckled sadistically before spouting more gibberish when he pushed a button on a remote that caused the cannon to fire.

I saw the massive missile heading right for us and we nodded at each other as I slung my bow, then we jumped out of the way of the missile and I pulled my sword out before slashing at the chain connected to the cuffs and freeing the two men while the bounty hunters jumped up and fired their guns.

The missile collided with a building and caused a large explosion as the bounty hunters continued to fire at us, only we began slicing our way through them in mid-air while tentacles sprouted from my body and impaled the rest.

The bodies exploded as we landed on the ground and smirked at each other before separating to end the fight quicker, then I fired black arrows from my body that hit some of the bounty hunters and they exploded while I slashed through the others, one bounty hunter trying to kill me by shooting me in the back with an assault rifle as the bullets struck me in the back and my body jerked from the multiple impacts.

I fell onto one knee and grimaced from the pain of getting shot, only I stood back up and turned to stare at the alligator in annoyance as the bullets were pushed out of my back and the holes sealed up with my hoodie and shirt repairing, causing the bounty hunter to widen his eyes in alarm at seeing the bullets hitting the ground and I gave him no time to react as my free hand shot forward with my arm extending like elastic and the hand shaping into a blade.

I impaled the bounty hunter and sliced him in half before turning my attention to the rest that started looking terrified and attempting to flee while shooting at me, only I chased after them and showed no mercy while I could hear the Scotsman having the time of his life while he laughed and killed the robots.

Pretty soon, I was finished with my attackers and regrouped with Jack and the Scotsman before we all proceeded to let out warcries as we charged at the remaining bounty hunters, slashing and shooting our way through them with explosions breaking out all over town until the robots were all dead and the town collapsed from the intense fighting.

After that, we all breathed heavily while standing back to back with our swords ready but no one else tried to attack us, so we holstered our swords and I let out an impressed whistle as I looked at the destruction all around us.

"I'd say we wiped out our bounty hunter problem," The Scotsman said before I nodded dumbly.

"No shit, even if there were survivors, I doubt they would attack us again after what we did," I agreed in disbelief, still stunned that we managed to survive such an onslaught.

"Even so, there will be more eventually so we are safe, for now," Jack pointed out, then the Scotsman smiled at him.

"Aye, for now," The Scotsman agreed.

At that moment, we all broke out laughing at the fact that we survived and that we were going to be okay now that we weren't at each other's throats anymore, then we eventually calmed down and I relaxed as I let out a sigh of relief.

"I was wrong about you two," The Scotsman said warmly before we smiled at him.

"We acted foolishly as well," Jack replied.

"No hard feelings, aye? I'll buy you both a refreshment," The Scotsman asked, and I chuckled.

"There's no need for that because we'll buy to make up for the misunderstanding and don't try to talk us out of it because our minds are made up," I said wryly as we went to leave the ruins, chatting to each other and laughing at times while I felt better at the knowledge that Jack and I have a new ally in this hellish world.


A/N Hey everyone, I know it took a while but I was busy with my other stories and I caught a cold, which is a surprise since I hadn't gotten sick in years and the cold made me feel like crap for a few days but I'm feeling better now so hopefully I don't have to go through that again.

Well, Jack and Brad got to meet the Scotsman but unknown to them, it will be the start of a friendship that will go on for fifty years as the two struggle to survive in that twisted world they're in so hope they make it.

Well, let me know what you think and stay tuned.