This was another chapter I really couldn't wait to write, mainly because it has a sort of spy-thriller with a touch of over-the-top action vibe imo. Mix this with the KOF characters and for me it becomes even better. Hope you'll enjoy this.
AN ABANDONED HELIPAD
It was nothing but the red lights of the surrounding buildings lighting up the skyline of L.A., with half the city already being fast asleep. This was not the case for Silber and Jyazu, who jumped from rooftop to rooftop all day to reach the designated meeting spot, where their lives could turn around depending on how the deal ends. The two arrived punctual, not wanting to give the Hizoku any reason to be upset...yet it seems someone else beat them to the punch.
"Wow...look who joined our company." Jyazu sighed.
In the distance, the smallest of the assassin clan, Chat, was shaking hands with one of the most notorious, if not particularly respected, mafia dons of Southtown, Mr Big. Behind them, silent as a statue, Sai was supervising the perimeter, pointing out to the two the presence of the other possible allies.
"You could've warned us that someone else was present." Silber shouted from the other side of the helipad.
"My apologies." Chat calmly responded. "I didn't exactly have any way to contact you."
"Perfect timing, fellows. You are witnessing the one and only Mr Big sealing the deal of the century." Big proudly claimed, only to recieve multiple awkward looks from the others...including the Hizoku's members. Generally, no criminal worth its salt wants to be in cahoots with Big, since the last decade or so he's been nothing than Geese Howard's ineffective bootlicker.
"Yeah...Big is absolutely right." Chat reluctantly explained. "The new Hizoku, like with many others before him, offered him a place in our ranks and we couldn't be more-" The little assassin had a sudden acid regurgitation at the mere thought of giving praise to Big, but had to swallow it down in order to save face. "ecstatic to benefit from his...vast connection and sheer manpower at his disposal."
"Notice how none of those supposed qualities concern Big as a person." Jyazu whispered.
"And I'm assuming you want us to be a part of this new Hizoku too?" Silber deduced.
"Precisely. Our master would make great use of your abilities in our operations."
"And exactly what is the end goal here if we do accept your invitation?" Jyazu asked, being pretty skeptical.
"Oh, we are in no need to know. Every small step in master Ron's divine vision will unite in a much clearer whole in the end. Of that you have my solemn vow."
Jyazu and Silber were understandably not convinced by the shaky premise, giving each other a look of pure disbelief.
"I have to discuss this with Jyazu first. It's gotta be an unanimous decision."
"But of course. No one wants to have a reluctant colleague in the office." Chat chuckled to himself.
"Okay, I need you to be 100% straight with me. This could be our golden chance to realize our dream, but this whole thing is sketchy at best. What do you think?"
"Well, while you were having that lovely discussion, I took the liberty to translate it from obviously false rubbish to truth." Jyazu assumed a sickeningly sweet voice, making clear from the get-go how he felt about the Hizoku's deal. "Good evening, potential sacrificial pawns. Would you like to become part of our retirement house for failed criminals and third-stringers? We are so desperate to have some obedient mutts to yank around by the chain that we've recruited Mr. Goddamn Big of all people, please take us seriously."
"Yeah, when you put it like that-"
"All in the name of an asinine plan, so vague we don't even know the basic framework of, captained by a homicidal nutjob who is notorious for throwing under the bus every organization he's ever been a part of."
"Homicidal nutjob, right...completely different from us." Silber dryly pointed out.
"I was putting emphasis on the "being untrustworthy" part, you cretin. Was I convincing enough?"
"I'd say yes. It's clear they couldn't care less about us, but where do we go from here? The Hizoku doesn't react well towards those who displease them."
"Listen here, Silber. Like hell I'm going to let them grind us into the ground doing their dirty work...Who else can we trust to bring about our ideal world beside each other?"
Silber silently nodded, as a new conviction fired up inside him. After all, this kind of high risk/high reward approach was more in his style than the boring safety of any of the evil organizations slapping each other for every scrap of power over the years. If they played their cards right, Earth would be molded to their desires, without having to share the glorious creation of a new world with anyone else.
"I understand it's a pretty difficult choice, so please take your time." Chat assured.
"Look, I'm pretty much in. Can I go now?" Big asked, like a bored child at the supermarket with his mom. "I was planning to hit the town and see how are the L.A. beauties."
"Yeah, go and do...exactly that. Whatever you said, it was riveting." Chat boringly dismissed him, with failing to catch on the barely hidden contempt towards him as he walked to the fire escape.
"Okay...ready on your signal, Jyazu."
"Oh, this is going to be hysterical." The crow giggled.
In the distance, Chat could only see the two mountains of muscles going for a hug.
"Ah, truly touching. I gather you reached an agreemen-"
In the next femtosecond, the only thing the little Hizoku could see was the night sky...followed by a searing pain the likes he rarely felt during his assassin career. As Jyazu 's arm went down, he unsheathed his golden claws, throwing a large, air-cutting chi slash towards Chat, who didn't have nearly enough to dodge or self-crumble into dust as members of the Hizoku are want to do. It was more enough to break Sai from his stoic shell.
"CHAT! By the gods, stay with me!"
Sai was cradling him in his arms, helpless and overwhelmed, as Chat wriggling in agony more and more, smoke rising up from his face and his right arm being reduced to a dangling piece of meat. But Jyazu wasn't going to give them any time to breathe, jumping from Silber's shoulders and proceeding to spin in the air like some sort of flaming death-wheel, cleanly dividing in two 's chopper, with the front part ending up crashing down on the empty building site below. Now Sai was as good as surrounded, one false move and he would have perished togheter with his friend.
The bald criminal "mastermind" didn't left the scene yet, leaving him to have front-row view of the brutal attack of the crow man. Scared shitless, justified in not wanting to end up like his precious helicopter, was more than ready to leave his associates to possibly die.
"WHERE IN HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING, BIG? Chat needs our help!" Sai screamed, like he was possessed by a demon. Big stopped dead in his tracks and slowly turned around, crying profusely.
"The guy's right, new entry." Silber sarcastically agreed. "Isn't this the perfect time to prove your loyality or something?"
A-another time, maybe...no hard feelings here, okay guys? Still expecting my call from Ron, of course."
Big stumbled his way out of that damn helipad, as if a pack of rabid dogs were coming after him, even though from his perspective, it was actually fairly accurate. Jyazu and Silber surely would've been able to run him down in a matter of seconds, but why on Earth would they waste the energy on someone so pathetically beneath them?
"Worthless coward..." Sai muttered.
"Hope our answer was to your liking, freak. I have the distinct feeling no one is going to miss the two of you." The crow man cackled, as he charged up his wrist-mounted gun.
"Tch...I told Master we shouldn't have bothered with underworld trash of your kind." Sai cursed. "Do not presume this affront will go unpunished. No corner of the world will be safe from the shadow of our new world...Pray that you will already be dead when Ron himself begins his purge."
After proclaiming such, Sai dissolved until not even a particle of his body remained. Jyazu immediately shooted at them with his near-perfect reflexes, but it doesn't serve much of a purpose when your target isn't solid anymore. The only thing the crow man hit was the huge H letter on the roof.
"Should we go after them?" Silber asked.
"What would be the point? Our targets grew bigger enough as it is. No sense in poking the beehive any longer."
"Right. And this place is about to be swarming with cops anyway. In that case...does that mean we the rest of the night free?"
"I suppose we do. There's still an entire day before our tournament begins. What do you say we "refill our stock and remain on the New Horizon grounds? You never know what kind of useful information you can stumble upon." Jyazu proposed, satisfied in a night well spent.
"I'm right behind you...partner."
Don't worry, I'm sure Chat will be juuuuuuust fine. For those of you wondering why all this Big bashing...I don't dislike him, I feel pretty neutral towards the guy. But he really has "ETERNAL SECOND FIDDLE" written in capital letters all over him, so it's just fun for me to write him as this laughably inept dumbass who no one on the planet takes seriously.
NEXT TIME: Lyzer is condemned to remember what NESTS did to her and tries to distract herself from the painful memories.
