Roadside

This was it, her last chance. They'd made it perfectly clear, if she couldn't get her act together, she was going to be in big trouble. Berserk snorted and spat, glaring down her opponent. Whatever happened, she had to make sure this plan went off without a hitch. The Oppressor was sure they were close to a breakthrough, something that could tip the scales in their favor, to the point that not even...not even Akio could stand in their way.

"Give it up Berserk, you know you can't beat me," Bass jeered, crossing his arms and peering at her through his long bangs. His stupid fucking bangs and their stupid fucking blue dye. Why did she always have to fight this emo twat?

Berserk's lips twitched and her nose scrunched. He wasn't wrong though, she'd never beaten him in a fight. Winning wasn't important though, all that mattered was she kept him distracted while the others took care of their part, "Whatever, you aren't even worth the effort," she spat back. To prove her point, she brushed her jacket off and turned away from him, preparing to fly back to the others.

He took the bait, "Don't run from me, you witch!" he barked, appearing next to her in a flash. She managed to block the first few attacks, but as he got into a rhythm they started coming faster and harder. With a grunt, she caught his fist and held it back. The next blow wouldn't be so forgiving. She swore he was going to throw a hook. As she ducked to avoid it, she came face to fist with a devastating uppercut, sending her flying into the air. There was a boom as he shot ahead of her and brought his fists down, sending her careening toward the ground.

She slammed into the pavement, coughing and sputtering a small stream of blood. The Powerpunk managed to get out of the crater, just as the hero's feet came down, splitting the street open. He growled and dove at her. Again, she just managed to avoid the punch. This time, she came back with a wallop of her own, a wicked haymaker that caught him at the peak of his momentum, sending him tearing through the street.

Bass sat up, coughing and rubbing his cheek. He hadn't expected her to pull off something that abrupt. Berserk was known for her temper tantrums and being a slacker, not for her keen strategizing. He glared and shot toward her at full speed. She wouldn't get lucky again!

His aim was slightly off though, and she managed to dodge the punch. He came to an abrupt halt, sending a sonic boom in his wake, tearing up street signs and sending benches and even cars flying behind him.

Berserk's eyes widened. In a flash she was gone.

Bass looked around, his jaw dropping slightly when he saw her. Somehow, Berserk had shot by, faster than he ever expected, and caught the car he'd kicked up with his attack. She was holding it up on her back, like Atlas holding the world, glaring at the dog cowering on the ground in front of her. The dog blinked and looked up and around. His eyes locked with Berserk's and he screamed.

"B-b-b-Berserk! Y-you...you save…" the dog muttered.

Berserk growled and heaved the car to the side, "Get lost before you get hurt," she hissed. The dog nodded and took off running at full speed. Berserk brushed her jacket off and turned around, glaring at Bass. "Are we doing this, or you just gonna stare at my ass?"

"You just saved that dog. What, I thought you liked kicking puppies and drowning kittens?" Bass taunted, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

Berserk glanced at the dog. She swallowed, suddenly feeling a sharp pain in the back of her mind. Why had she saved the dog? She glanced at the ground. She hadn't really thought it through. She just...noticed he was in trouble, so she had to save him. It's what...she swallowed and clenched her eyes, shaking her head. She couldn't think about that.

She couldn't think about how it's what he would have done.

"I don't know, okay? I thought it was something important, it doesn't matter. Aren't you supposed to be fighting me?" Berserk brought her fists up in a half-hearted fighting stance.

Bass snorted, "What? You wanna fight now? I thought I wasn't worth the time?" He slapped his forehead, gasping, "Are you serious? You're just a distraction, aren't you?"

Berserk blinked, eyes widening, "What? No, no I'm not! I'm a serious threat, so fight me or I'll burn the city down!" Taking a deep breath, Berserk spun around, spraying the streets with fire. She had to admit, seeing things burn, hearing the crackle of the flames, it brought a grin to her face. It made it harder to feel her headache.

Bass growled, bringing his fists up. Before he could charge, he noticed two streaks of light approaching. Berserk's fists lowered and her gaze shifted skyward. His brothers appeared. Beat was beyond irritated and Blast was...well...sputtering with anger.

"It was a trick! The whole thing was a trick!" Blast spat, landing roughly beside Bass. He thrust his finger at Berserk, his eyes narrowed dangerously, "While we were wasting time fighting these stupid girls, the Oppressor managed to invade Jomo's lair! We lost the Anti-X Ray! We lost everything!"

Berserk smirked; that meant they won! She took a step back. Her eyes widened, she glanced over her shoulder. Beat was pressed up against her, his lips pulled back in a scowl.

"Where do you think you're going?" he muttered.

Berserk shrugged, backing away from him. She glanced over her shoulder at his brothers and swallowed the nervous lump in her throat. Her sisters would show up to bail her out, right? That was the plan...separate them, sack the lab, then group up again and kick their asses like they always did. So...where were her sisters?

"We lost everything...but at least we got a punk out of the deal," Blast spat, closing in on her from the other side.

Berserk spun to face him, her fists close to her chest. Where were her sisters? This wasn't part of the plan! "Back off loser, once my sisters get here, we're going to crush you fuckers like we always do," she hissed.

"Well, it looks like they're running late," Bass muttered, "Guess we'll just have to start without them,"

Berserk blinked. She shot into the air, narrowly avoiding Beat's charge. She spun to avoid a heat ray from Blast, only have Bass's fist collide with her cheek. She went sailing through the air and a knee crashed into her back, sending her plummeting toward the ground.

She spat out a stream of blood, her eyes wide. Where were her sisters? She couldn't beat them all at once! The Oppressor's words flashed in her mind, his sly grin, the dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Your loyalty is already in question, Berserk. Your behavior around my family's nemesis is deplorable. I want to know I can trust you. After this mission, I expect you'll never disappoint me again,"

She shivered, climbing to her feet and looking around at the boys as they circled her. She swallowed and brought her fists up. Was that his plan all along?

Did he mean for her to...for them to…

Her hands dropped and her jaw clenched. She could feel the heat burning in her eyes. The boys wasted little time closing in on her. She wanted to fight back, but why even try? He'd planned this from the beginning. This was what she deserved for getting close to Akio, for betraying the Oppressor. She was less than garbage, a miserable little traitor. She deserved to d-

Berserk tried to hold back the scream, tried to keep herself from crying. Bass had his arms linked through hers, holding her like a punching bag while Blast and Beat took turns kicking the shit out of her. Blast brought his fist down on at her face; her mouth filled up with blood. Beat's fist collided with her stomach; the blood sprayed out, splattering on his shirt.

"Great, just great. I liked this shirt!" Beat complained, trying his best to wipe off the stain.

Bass grimaced, shoving the broken Powerpunk to the ground when she stopped fighting against him, "Guys this is messed up, let's just bail. We need to get the lab fixed,"

"What? There isn't a lab, Bass! They wrecked everything!" Blast insisted, still seething.

"Yeah, well she didn't," Bass pointed out, "She's been fighting me this whole time. She didn't do anything. She never does anything, she's just a distraction! We're wasting time, just like the Oppressor and the other two want us to!"

"Yeah, yeah, you're right…" Beat sighed, scratching his head. He glanced down at Berserk and grimaced, looking away sheepishly, "Ugh, we really screwed up this time."

Blast growled, taking a step toward Berserk.

Her head was swimming, Even though it was starting to get later in the day, the lights around her felt blinding. Berserk forced her eyes open and glanced up.

There was a boot coming at her face.