Chapter 14: The Drama Club Arc's Climactic Conclusion! Alex and Legosi's Brawl!
The play had gone well so far. Before the start of the show, Alex went out on stage and explained why several actors had to be replaced due to medical problems, but the albino wolf subtly hinted to the audience that Louis might take the spotlight back later on. Legosi did a stunning job as the lead for Adler, even without having the mask (it wouldn't fit the wolf's head shape) and Haru did a decent job filling in for Ellen as the maiden that Adler had to protect.
Most shocking of all, though, was Legosi and Haru kissing on stage. After Legosi finished fighting off the fire and water elementals, Haru kissed him, and the entire audience gasped. The audience started screaming when Legosi got into the kiss. "OH MY GOD HE'S GONNA EAT HER!" one audience member shrieked.
As soon as Legosi heard that he instantly recoiled. "W-what?! No!" Legosi cried out.
"All right, all right, everyone calm the fuck down!" Alex ordered over the drama club stage's speaker system. This shut the audience up, and the play continued from there as normal. Now, it was approaching the final few scenes, one of which was the fight scene. Louis was standing slightly off-stage so that he could rush in at either Alex or Legosi's signal to swap places with the gray wolf.
All right. It was time for Alex to make his entrance. Legosi and Haru were rejoicing, as Adler had almost managed to reach the Eternal Source, which would make the maiden he was supposed to kill immortal. However, the reaper had one final challenge to overcome: Ryuk, the head of the Reaper Society, stood in his way, and that was the role that Alex had to act.
Alex crept onto the stage, using the large shadows that were created by the lighting system to his advantage. To the audience, it looked like Alex had just appeared out of thin air, causing them to gasp. "You have come far, Adler. But I'm afraid your little journey ends here," Alex ominously spoke.
"Ryuk? What are you doing here?" Legosi murmured, drawing his sword.
"When I first heard that you had fallen in love with a mortal maiden, I didn't believe it. But it appears that it's true. A shame for the pride of the Reaper Society," Alex mused.
"That doesn't explain what you're doing here!" Legosi repeated himself, more forcefully this time.
"I anticipated that you would come to the Eternal Source, in hopes of releasing you from the burden of having to take the life of your beloved," Alex answered. The two of them circled, preparing for the swordfight. "Give up, Adler. Your days of leading lost souls to the afterlife are over, and your maiden has lived far past her original expiration date," Alex gloated.
"Never!" Legosi cried out. The two wolves charged at each other, thus beginning the final fight.
BACKGROUND MUSIC: Hollow Knight- Gods and Glory
The two clashed wooden swords, parrying each other blow for blow. "You cannot simply just play defense, Adler. You must also be offensive!" Alex taunted. In response, Legosi growled, and with a single swing, knocked Alex's wooden sword out of his paws and into the audience. Alex grinned, easily sidestepping one of Legosi's thrusts and grabbing his weapon before tossing it into the crowd.
Legosi looked a little nervous. The two had planned to discard their weapons and brawl with their fists at some point during the fight sequence, but the gray wolf hadn't expected to switch to melee this soon. "Very well! Have it your way, Adler! We shall settle this with our fists!" Alex declared.
The two began to duke it out. Alex wasn't kidding when he said he was quick on his feet and hard to hit! Legosi couldn't manage to land a single punch on the white wolf. The same couldn't be said for Alex, though. The wolf was relentless, launching a devastating assault on Legosi. Alex unleashed a lightning quick barrage of blows, causing the wolf to grunt in slight annoyance and pain. Legosi had always had a higher pain tolerance than most other animals, due to his heritage.
Legosi threw a right hook at Alex, but the white wolf anticipated his maneuver and blocked the hit by catching Legosi's fist with his paw. As the two of them fought, Alex was pushing Legosi more and more to the side exit of the stage. The plan was for Alex to push Legosi offstage, gloat at the apparent defeat of Adler, then advance on Haru to take the maiden's life. Then Louis would burst in and continue the fight sequence from there.
However, Alex knew that it was too soon for him to force Legosi off the stage. No, that wouldn't do at all! Both he and Louis wanted to make sure Legosi got his time in the spotlight, and so far things were going splendidly. While he was thinking about the situation, Legosi took advantage of Alex's distracted state and punched him in the chest, sending the white wolf backwards a little bit.
Alex groaned as he reeled from the blow. It was a good thing this fight wasn't for real. If this was an actual brawl, and Legosi wasn't holding back, Alex's medical future would be in dire trouble. The gray wolf was big and bulky, and he hit like a freaking miniature elephant. Plus, he wasn't fazed too much by Alex's attacks. With the proper training, Legosi would likely be able to best Alex in paw to paw combat.
The albino wolf darted around Legosi, getting behind him and delivering a flurry of punches to the wolf's backside. "Ohh, that feels nice! Like a chiropractor!" Legosi thought as Alex peppered his back with punches. Alex wasn't satisfied, though. He wanted to feel all of Legosi's raw, unrestrained power. "Come on, Adler! Is that the best you can do?!" Alex roared.
"You want to see my full strength?! Then fine! I shall show you the strength of my love for this maiden!" Legosi replied. Legosi slugged Alex in the shoulder, then shoved him using both of his arms. Alex was sent flying backwards, landing offstage. Legosi gasped, praying that he hadn't hurt Alex too badly.
But to Legosi's surprise, he heard laughter coming from the white wolf as he rose up from his spot on the ground. "Yes! YES! That was a good demonstration of your abilities, Adler. But I'm afraid it's too little, too late. Since you indulged me by showing your potential, I shall deign to show you some of my true strength!" Alex declared.
Alex backed up a few steps, then charged forward. It was time for the wolf to unleash a personal favorite technique of his- the flying roundhouse kick. This move was taught to him by his partner, who was quite prominent with her legs and fought like a beast when she was in the air. Though Alex couldn't mirror her fighting style, he could mimic a few of her moves with astounding accuracy.
The wolf charged forward at Legosi, jumping up into the air and bending one of his legs back so that his right leg would hit Legosi in the center of his chest with maximum force. Unfortunately Legosi took one step backwards as Alex flew through the air towards him, throwing his calculations off. The point of impact was the lower abdomen area of Legosi's stomach as well as the upper area of his crotch.
Legosi yelped in surprise and pain, his groin being extremely sensitive. The wolf stumbled backwards, collapsing on the ground. Now was the perfect time for the swap. Alex signaled for the lights to be cut, casting Legosi's body in shadow. The gray wolf crawled offstage, still in considerable pain from Alex's attack. Louis took the opportunity to place himself lying down on the ground, in the same spot that Legosi was when the lights were turned on.
Alex began to walk towards Haru, exuding a menacing and threatening aura. Even though Haru knew that the wolf didn't have it in his heart to even think about hurting her, the white dwarf rabbit still felt a pang of fear as the albino wolf got closer and closer to her. "It's over, Adler. You've been defeated. And now, your maiden's life is forfeit!" Alex snarled.
The lights turned back on, showing Louis slowly standing back up. "Never! I will fight you for all eternity if that is what it takes for me to prolong the life of my beloved!" Louis cried out.
Alex turned to face Louis, growling playfully at the red deer. "Very well. Come back to me, my faithful blade Notung!" Alex howled. He looked out towards the audience. "Spirits! One of you caught my sword! Return it to me!" Alex prompted.
The audience-actor interaction was a stroke of brilliance on Alex's part. He knew that it felt satisfying to be a part of the show, and this was why he had wanted the swords to be thrown into the crowd. "Alex, catch!" one audience member called out. A gray rabbit jumped up and threw the wooden sword at him. Alex leapt up and caught it by the handle, then looked out to see who had thrown it to him.
He was shocked to see a familiar face in the crowd, the face of a female gray bunny who he knew all too well. He shook his head and continued with the role. "Thank you, spirit! Now, to deal with this rapscallion who would upset the very balance of nature!" Alex roared. The white wolf turned back to face Louis. "Too bad you're unarmed, Adler," Alex gloated. "Who says I'm unarmed?!" Louis smirked.
The red deer then reached for his antlers, pulling them off and wielding one in each of his paws. Shedding his horns had turned out to be advantageous for him, as Louis could use his antlers as replacement for his sword. Louis was upon Alex in an instant, slashing wildly with his antlers. Alex struggled to parry his blows, having to block against two weapons with one sword.
Alex still had lots of stamina to go, but he wanted to get this over with. "Impossible! This is the power of love that you hold so dear?!" Alex shouted in shock. He fell down to the ground.
"You shall not oppose me! My love for this woman- and her life- will last to the end of eternity!" Louis declared.
Alex rose back on his feet, faking exhaustion and weariness. "Adler-sama, you cannot change the natural balance of things. Not even the Eternal Source can make a mortal's life eternal," Alex tiredly explained to Louis.
"So that means that everything I've done is for nothing? She will eventually die?!" Louis sobbed.
Alex shook his head. "No… there is another way. Such powerful love for one, and the lengths you've gone to extend her life… they will not be for naught," Alex said.
"Then what will you do?" Haru asked.
"Adler will take your life, but your soul shall become a member of our Reaper's society. The two of you will guide couples' souls to the afterlife," Alex told them.
"But she still has to die?" Louis asked. Alex nodded.
"Such is the natural order of things. No mortal creature lives forever. She will die, but she will live on as a Reaper, and her love for you will remain intact," Alex answered.
Louis then kissed Haru, much to the audience and Alex's shock. The way he kissed her showed intimacy, as if… he was not only in love with Haru, but he had also slept with the white dwarf rabbit as well. Haru seemed taken aback by Louis's sudden gesture of affection, even a little uncomfortable with it. The deer then gently poked Haru in the chest with his antlers, and Haru faked dying. The stage curtains closed, and the audience cheered and clapped wildly. Alex stuck his head out of the curtains so he could narrate the concluding lines of the play.
"And so, the maiden and Adler guided the souls of couples who had died together to the afterlife. They lived an undead existence together, until the end of eternity, happily ever after. The end," Alex narrated. The entire audience went wild, and the three other main cast- Louis, Legosi, and Haru- came back onstage for a final bow. Legosi and Louis each held one of Haru's paws in theirs, and Alex could tell they might become rivals for Haru's heart.
For Legosi, it was one of the happiest moments of his life. He had gotten his fair share of the spotlight, and he even got to share it with Louis, not take it away from him. He was glad that Louis had miraculously recovered enough to be on the stage and perform the final scene. He grinned at Louis euphorically, and his smile spread to Louis like a virus.
As the audience left their seats, Alex snuck his way into joining them. He felt the familiar presence right behind him, then on top of him. He felt legs lock around his neck, and someone's paw on his head. "That way, mister!" the familiar voice ordered. Alex slowly walked out of the school and went to the most secluded place he could think of in the school, which was the gardening club. No one would be here at night, except for Haru, but Haru was busy backstage. Plus, the white dwarf rabbit had both Louis and Legosi to deal with.
When they were away from prying eyes, the rabbit hopped off of him and stared directly into his eyes. "Well, howdy, partner," that sweet lavender voice greeted him. Alex felt his heart melting. His girlfriend from the Zootopia police force, somehow, had found him here.
"Judy? Is that really you?" Alex asked nervously. The bunny giggled.
"Officer Judy Hopps, at your service," she announced, bowing to him playfully.
What?! Alex knows Judy Hopps? How? And what impact will this heroine have on our storyline? You won't want to miss the Meteor Festival arc, as Alex will discover the terrifying horrors of the Black Market as he attempts to uncover the truth about who murdered Tem! Be here for the next chapter of BEASTARS: The Divergent Variable!
Chapter 15: Passionate Relationship Rekindled! Haru Meets Her Idol!
