Here is the other chapter I told you about.
Zade and Max stared out the window as they landed in the bustling metropolis of Atlas's capital. The skyscrapers cut through the clouds as people walked throughout the streets. They quickly disembarked the airship and hurried out of the airport, not wanting to waste any time. The stepped out onto the sidewalk, and headed deep into the heart of downtown, looking for their destination.
"Should we dress up in something a little bit nicer than our normal attire?" Max asked, Titan swaying on his hip, as he looked intently on a map of the city.
"Nah, we're not here to butter him up. I think he'll get a better read of who we are while we are if we show up looking like normal." Zade answered, looking up at the massive buildings.
"This guy better be able to help us though." Max said.
"Oh I'm sure he's able to. He just better help us." Zade growled, causing some of the civilians around him to take a wider berth. They kept pushing through the crowd of people going through until they made it to financial district, where the largest of the glass skyscrapers were located.
"Ok. It should be around here somewhere." Max said, peeking up from his map. He kept turning and looking until Zade grabbed him and forced him to look up.
"You mean that?" Zade joked. The two of them staring up at the massive building with the large sign reading Lionheart.
"Yep." Max answered. The two crossed the street and started up the steps to walk into the building. As they approached the large glass revolving door, as muscular, large man stepped in front of them.
"Who are you?" He asked.
"We're here to see ." Max said.
"You do not look like those whose company he keeps." The bodyguard said.
"If you would kindly let us pass that would be most appreciated." Zade said. The bodyguard just stood there, moving his hand so it rested on the large pistol on his belt.
"How about this. Tell him that we're here about Darron." Max said, not wanting to escalate the situation any more. At the mere mention of Darron's name the bodyguards expression changed.
"Go inside and tell the receptionist why you're here." The bodyguard said, stepping out of their way. Max and Zade looked at each other and shrugged, neither surprised at how well that worked. They walked up the rest of the stairs and pushed through the revolving doors into the lobby.
"Impressive." Max noted, looking around. The wall to his right was turned into a massive waterfall which echoed out around the lobby. To his left was a large cafe where men and women in suits sat around the table, drinking coffee and conducting business. The lobby was made of a silver metal, and people kept coming in and out of elevators at the far end. Max and Zade, very aware of how strange they looked, walked up and stood in front of the receptionist's desk.
"How can I...help...you?" She asked, looking up and being suddenly confused by the two casually dressed men before her.
"Yes we are here to speak with , we are here regarding business with Darron." Max said.
"Darron?... … Oh Darron! Of course." She said, realization dawning on her face. She typed some words into the computer at her desk and a small secret drawer popped open. She reached in and pulled out a small black and gold key card.
"Please head down the alcove by the restrooms. Put the card up to the wall and you'll see where to go." She instructed. Max took the card and nodded.
"Thank you." Max said, as he and Zade hurried towards the alcove. They turned the corner and, seeing that there was no one around, placed the card on the wall. The sound of gear clicking was soft but audible, as the wall opened up, to reveal another shiny hallway. Max and Zade looked at one another curiously, and stepped through it. They couldn't help but feel a little uneasy as the wall closed behind them.
"Oh boy." Zade sighed. The two of them shrugged and decided to follow the hallway. The hallway took them through a few right, and dropped them off before a large golden elevator. Max held up the card again and the elevator opened. They stepped inside it. The interior was also gold, but had red velvet padding on the walls.
"Money money money." Max mumbled, slipping the card into a small slot.
"Well at least its not rusty and bloody like we're used too." Zade pointed out as the elevator started rising. The two of them kept themselves busy as the elevator made the long ascent to the top of the Lionheart building. They snapped back to attention as an automated female voice spoke.
"Top floor. Lionheart office." Zade and Max looked at each other, determined to face whoever this man was. The door slid open and the two of them immediately jumped to the sides of the elevator. The hallways was full of at least two dozen armed men pointing weapons at them.
"What the hell." Max mouthed over at Zade, who just shrugged. The standoff lasted for a few second before the soldiers lowered their weapons and stood to the side of the hall. Zade and Max, cautiously disembarked the elevator, and they started down the hall.
"Lots of security." Max pointed out.
"What's this guy afraid of?" Zade asked, inspecting the high tech weapons the the soldiers were carrying.
"I don't know but maybe we are going to find out." Max suggested. Zade shrugged and kept his eyes forward. At the end of the hall was a large set of double mahogany doors. As they approached two attendants opened them. Max and Zade passed through into a wooden reception area.
"Oh my God!" Zade exclaimed.
"One more checkpoint and I'm gonna shoot up this place." Max whined. The young female clerk at the desk just chuckled at their dismay.
"You'd be surprised how often we hear that, but Mr. Lionheart is always strict on having tight security. If you'd be so kind as to hand me the key card, as well as your weapons and scrolls. I promise they will be returned upon your departure." She said, cheerfully. Zade and Max glanced at one another.
"Can't say this is too surprising either." Max said, placing the card, his scroll, and Titan on the desk. Zade soon followed suit. Max looked up at Zade and saw a bead of sweat roll down the side of his head.
"Are you ok?" Max asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yep, fantastic." Zade responded. Max rolled his eyes and kept watching Zade. Soon Max followed Zade line of sight down to the receptionists quite voluptuous breasts. Then it clicked.
"Oh my God! You're trying to fight your inner playboy now that you're married!" Max burst, laughing uncontrollably and slammed his hand down on the desk.
"Shut up!" Zade yelled back, before looking at the receptionist apologetically. She just winked at him and unbuttoned the top of her blouse, revealing a white lacy bra. She quickly wrote something on a piece of paper and placed it before Zade.
"What she doesn't know won't hurt her~" she said with a Wink. Zade turned bright red as Max started gasping for air he was laughing so hard. Zade picked up the paper and handed back towards the receptionist.
"I'm sorry, but I am… happily married." Zade said, the words still a little foreign on his tongue.
"You haven't even had sex!" Max pointed out, holding his side and leaning on the desk for support.
"Oh dear, your balls must be so blue. Please allow me to give them a helping hand. Service is one of our main goals here at Lionheart." The receptionist said, her voice telegraphing that she was already trying to mentally undress Zade. Max at this point had just laid down on the floor, thinking it safer than falling.
"No thank you ma'am… What the fuck is wrong with you!" Zade politely declined, before yelling at Max.
"C'mon~ I have hands like velvet." She purred, putting her hands on Zade's.
"No… those are soft." Zade admitted, unusually impressed.
"Besides, I've been told I have a way with my tongue~" The receptionist added. This definity caught Zade's attention as he pulled his and away.
"No no no." Zade insisted, swiping at the air as to brush away the unfaithful thoughts. The receptionist just chuckled and sat back down.
"Of course dear… Just a little teasing." the receptionist last. Max managed to gain control of himself and stood up, where Zade slugged him in the arm.
"Please. Mr. Lionheart?" Zade asked. The receptionist gestured for them to walk through the two more mahagony doors to her right. As they were about to open the door, the receptionist added one last remark.
"And if you ever change your mind, my names Lenina." She added with a wink. Zade just pushed Max into the room, shutting the door behind him.
The office was rather spacious, and had a nice carpet covering its floor. They stepped from a small alcove into the body of the office. The wall behind the fine wooden desk was made entirely of windows overlooking the city, and the wall next to the, facing the desked, had outcroppings with a gleaming Sword, Shield, and Armor. Sitting behind the desk was a fit, but not muscular, man who looked to be in his forties. He had a pleasant smile on his face, wore a gray suit, and had a large, golden mane surrounding his face.
"Richard Lionheart. A pleasure." The man said, as he rose from his desk and walked up to Max and Zade, giving them firm handshakes.
"Zade Branwen." Zade answered politely.
"Max...Max." Max answered shrugging a little. Lionheart gave a light laugh and gestures to the two fine chairs across his desk.
"Please have a seat." He insisted as he walked towards a small bar along the east wall. Zade and Max promptly sat down, as he poured himself a glass of whiskey.
"Thank you." Max replied for the both of them.
"Whiskey? I'm sure you're parched after your journey." Lionheart offered politely.
"None of me thank you." Zade said, waving his hand dismissively.
"Yes please." Max said. Lionheart poured him a glass and turned giving him a interesting look.
"Are you old enough to drink?' He asked,
"Do you care?" Max countered.
"Touche." Lionheart conceded, handing Max the glass and sitting at his desk across from the two.
"Nothing for you Mr. Branwen? I'm sure a married man like yourself has found many a use for the bottle before." Lionheart joked.
"I'm fine thank you. Please call me Zade. Mr. Branwen is a my lying, cheating, deserting, bastard father." Zade comment, faking a smile.
"Ah family, what fun what fun. Though I must start off with an apology for… forcing you to expand your family, even though it was unintentional." Lionheart said.
"What do you mean?" Zade asked.
"I guess Jacques didn't like you enough to tell you the whole story did he. Not that I'm surprised, since you don't seem like someone he approves of, especially for the reasons you're probably hear, but anyway. I make my, rather fortunate, living, as the richest man on Remnant, in the quiet shadows of Atlas's financial district as you may know. I own the second largest amount of shares in the Schnee dust Co., and the Baril arms manufacturing Co. As well as many others. I refuse to be the lead shareholder, for I find the anonymity, appealing. But, those two, Jacques, and … we're unhappy with my unusual amount of control, despite still having less shares than them. They sought to get a better grasp on their power by merging the two companies, and consolidating their power to try and leave me in a tougher position to gain influence. Under Atlesian law, the quickest way for them to do that with the least possible room for any third party to try and intervene was through a union of the family. That is why, for now Mrs. Branwen, at her 18th birthday her father was so insistent upon the arranged marriage. So quite frankly, you did me a favor, by taking Weiss as your own wife and stopping their merger." Lionheart explained.
"So Jacques used Weiss as a financial pawn?" Zade asked.
"Essentially yes." Lionheart nodded.
"Not surprising." Zade admitted.
"I must say again. I do apologize for the rough situation that you were forced into." Lionheart said, leaning back in his chair.
"Don't worry about it. The outcome was more than favorable." Zade added.
"Well then. You boys said you were here regarding Darron. What a peculiar name… Any chance you perhaps tell me what your involvement with that young man is?" Lionheart suggested.
"We're his teammates." Max answered simply.
"Of course!" Lionheart exclaimed. "He did always speak fondly of his associates."
"Well we are the best of the best." Max added.
"Indeed you are. Your leader has been quite the efficient business partner. In fact I believe I'm where most of your money even came from." Lionheart laughed.
"He's in trouble, and we believe you can help us." Max said, getting straight to the point.
"I presume that this is because of the bombing that took place." Lionheart said, right on the money.
"Exactly. Darron has gone M.I.A ever since, and we were wondering if you and your vast resources had seen him, or know anything about the people who conducted it?" Zade asked. Lionheart finished his whiskey, and set the glass down, before flipping open a lighter. He took a long drag from a cigar, and let the smoke pour from his mouth before he spoke.
"Now why would I, a respectful businessman with trillions of lien in assets, have anything to do with the people who are responsible for that tragedy. I merely trade stocks, and fund business in return for a healthy cut of their profits?" Lionheart asked.
"Cut the crap. Darron told us about all of your businesses as a form of insurance." Zade said.
"Of course he would." Lionheart chuckled.
"International arms dealing, fraud, insider trading, harboring fugitives, and engaging in political and character assassination. Not to mention your, funding of militant and terrorist groups, not only but including the White Fang and a number of anti White fang splinter groups." Zade continued.
"Well you got me. So I like to conduct some business under the table, and your leader has been instrumental in… ensuring that none of these actions came to light. He's quite efficient at causing… accidents." Lionheart added, taking another drag from his cigar.
"At the least we did find this. Do you have any clue as to what it could be?" Max inquired, taking out the coin with the S on it. Lionheart looked at it for a moment and sighed.
"I'm deeply sorry, but I have no idea what this is." He said.
"Bullshit." Zade accused.
"No it's true. I do work with many reputable individuals, but this insignia is something that hasn't caught my attention at all." Lionheart added. Zade and Max both sat back in their chairs, unhappy.
"I will say this though. Since I do owe Darron for his fabulous work on the blizzard of blood, taking out 7 major CEO's on the night of a blizzard amazing, I will tell my many contacts, especially my illicit ones to keep a close eye out for that signal, and if anything should reach this desk. You'll be the first to know." he finished.
"Well that's a start at least." Max agreed, him and Zade standing up. "I don't think we have any further business here."
"Very well. It's been a pleasure, and based on your reputation, if you're ever in the need of work, my office is open." Lionheart offered.
"Thank you." Max said.
"And good luck to you dealing with your wife." Lionheart joked, taking another drag and patting Zade on the shoulder. Zade laughed in agreement.
'I'm gonna need it." he joked. They laughed for a moment when Lionheart got an idea.
"Oh I know." He said. "Take one of my cars down to the jewelry store on Mantle avenue. It's huge and has the most priceless gemstones one could ever imagine. Why don't you guys head on down there and pick out something for your wife, Zade, or in your case Max, a special someone."
"Yeah. A special someone." Zade added conveniently, while turning towards Max.
"That's sound advice but we simply can't afford the kind of lien they charge down there." Max pointed out, his cheeks a little flustered.
"Nonsense! Send the bill to Lenina and she'll pay for it, think of it as a thank you for Darron's service, and a proof of how well I treat those who are loyal and do their jobs well." Lionheart added.
"Will do." Zade said, as the two of them walked out of the room. Zade stared straight ahead, ignoring Lenina's catcalls as they passed. Max poked fun at him as the two of them walked through the lobby and down to the black suv in front of the building.
"That was useless." Zade said, closing the door as the two of them got inside the car. The engine roared to life and pulled into traffic.
"It was a start, but we're getting free expensive jewelry." Max pointed out.
"Silver linings, silver linings." Zade joked. The two of them looked out the windows at the city as they were driven. They hadn't even made it through the first intersection when a large Suv ran the red light and crashed into them from both sides.
"Fuck!" Zade yelled, as he and Max ducked down to protect their heads from the glass from the shattered window. Zade peaked up and saw the doors to the suv open, and through the front windshield, a man with an smg.
"Guns!" Zade added, him and Max sliding between the seats as bullets started hitting the side of the car. Max reached up and tried to feel the divers pulse, but the driver fell to the side, revealing the large bullet hole in his head.
"We need to go!" Max yelled. Zade nodded and grabbed hold of Max, teleporting both of them on top of the car. They jumped down and ran across the street, barely dodging a hail of bullets as they slid and hid behind a large concrete planter built into the sidewalk. Zade pulled out one of his SMGs, and peaked over the wall firing out. Max slapped on Titan and she appeared before him.
"What's happening!" she demanded.
"Some people are attacking us." Max answered calmly Max opened up one of Titan's .50 cal shoulder mounted machine guns and raised it over the wall, trying to suppress the advancing men.
"We've got approximately 14 no 19 men." Max told Zade as another Suv drove on the scene.
"Why us! Why always us!" Zade growled, popping out of coverage and managing to hit one of the attackers in the face. He cried out and fell to the ground. Zade slid back behind coverage and cheered to himself.
"There are too many of them." Max pointed out, shooting down two more as the majority of the attackers kept advancing.
"Well then what do we need to do?" Zade asked, laying more fire on the enemy. He quickly had to duck back down as bullets ricocheted off of the stone.
"Titan. Pull up the schematics for this building, we need to get this fight out of the streets." Max instructed.
"On it." Titan said. She pulled up her own holographic monitor, and started searching.
"Where are the police?" Zade yelled, visibly angry.
"I don't know! I don't care!" Max yelled back. He fired more rounds over the wall, catching one of the thugs in the chest. Zade looked around. By now, the street and the lobby before them were completely empty, as civilians ran to avoid being caught in the crossfire. He peeked out around the cover, and smirked as he saw four thugs using one of the crashed cars as cover. A thin but steady stream of gas leaked out from the engine. Zade lined up a shot carefully, while exposing as little of himself as possible. Zade let of a volley of shots, each flying across the battlefield. The bullets struck the metal of the car's undercarriage in rapid succession, releasing a constant shower of sparks. The sparks we're enough to ignite the gas, which traveled up the stream into the engine, and caused the car to explode, taking down 3 more enemies. Zade rolled back undercover, pleased with himself.
"Nice." Max complimented. Zade gave Max a thumbs us, which was promptly replaced with a look of sheer contempt as a rocket roared past them and exploded inside the lobby. The two of them covered themselves from the glass raining down on them, as smoke billowed back out from the lobby.
"MAX!" Zade screeched, getting understandably fed up with this shit.
"TITAN!" Max passed on.
"They're here! Calm down ya bastards." Titan scolded as she brought up the blueprints for the building in front of them. Max flipped through them, looking for a plan.
"Oh shit!" Max exclaimed, jumping up startled as a bullet ricochet off his shoulder. Zade laughed.
"Like old times i guess." Max shrugged,going back to looking through. Max grit his teeth, desperate for a solution when he clicked to the next page and one just fell in his lap.
"Floor 58. Closed for renovations, and perfect for us." Max said, smiling.
"Good, now get us there." Zade instructed. Max nodded, a slot opened in Titan's biceps and from a piece of containment dust, a large steel cylinder emerged and rolled down her arm to her hand. Max pulled the pin on the cylinder and tossed it just over the wall, where it exploded, covering nearly the entire intersection in thick smoke. All the fire ceased for fear of friendly fire. Once the smoke cleared, all the thugs growled as they noticed Zade and Max we're gone, and a large 58 was carved into the stone of a pillar.
Max looked out a window from the abandoned 58th floor with a smile as the assassins took the bait.
"They're on their way in." Max told Zade through his scroll.
"Excellent, body count time." Zade said. Max rolled his eyes and hung up. Max engaged Titan's cloaking mechanism and hid among the drapes, tools, and generic office supplies. He kept totally silent as he watched the elevator open, and the soldiers filed out.
"Fan out, stay in pairs, and bring me their heads." The leader instructed as they started to move throughout the floor.
"Pairs won't help." Max thought to himself. Max silently counted in his head, and once he felt the time was right, hacked into the buildings systems and shut down all of the buildings electricity, as well as dropping the blizzard shutters(This is Atlas), bathing the entire floor in darkness.
"The Hell!" Max heard one of the soldiers yell as the light went out. Max chuckled to himself and started patrolling the hall.
Zade smiled as Max put the next stage of their plan into action. Zade creeped down from the cubicle divider he was hiding on, and pulled out one of his compacted scythes. Zade his just to the side of the entrance of his cubicle as he heard footsteps approaching.
"Show yourselves cowards, we'll promise to make it quick." One of the soldiers joked, as his partner laughed. Zade glanced out and sneered at the fact that they were wearing high end body armor, has expensive weaponry, with laser sights, silencers, and tactical flashlights.
"Cause the organized attack in an urban city with almost 20 men and rocket launchers wasn't enough to convince me they're well funded." Zade muttered sarcastically. Zade listened to the men talk for a moment while trying to devise away to get them alone. Zade noticed a box of screws on the table next to him and smirked.
"I'll give it these bastards, they're slippery." One soldier said to the other.
"We'll finish them off soon enough. Mutum will probably give us bonus, and maybe a promotion." the other replied. They both snapped to attention, raising their weapon as the high pitched ring of metal on metal sounded out. Both soldier chuckled maliciously. The first soldier stepped forward.
"Stay here and make sure he doesn't get away." the soldier said, approaching the cubicle. He stepped lightly, not wanting to spoke his prey. He covered his flashlight for added stealth. He burst into the cubicle, ready litter the punk with bullets, but it was empty. The thug looked down, and saw a single screw rolling on the ground.
"False alarm." He said, turning back towards his partner. He gasped, seeing his partner dead on the floor with a deep gash in his throat. The soldier didn't even have time to scream before feeling the cold steel on his own throat.
Zade stood over the body of the second soldier he had killed. He looked at his hands, and shirt and nodded impressed that he hadn't gotten any blood on his clothes at all. His blade on the other hand, had a thorough coating. Zade shrugged and holstered his weapon.
"Time to clean up. I wonder if I can find a meat grinder or wood chipper?" Zade joked to himself, dragging the bodies into one of the cubicles and shoving the corpses under the desk. Zade stood up and nodded, picking his scythe back up, ready to stalk out his next victims.
Max was almost bored. This was too easy. He had barely a scratch on him, but the trail of 7 dead men behind him were all deformed and filled with lead. Max felt like a ghost, seeing the horror on those soldiers faces as they were gunned down by some invisible force they couldn't fight back against. Max was currently hunting the one who had managed to escape. Using Titan's enhanced hearing and focus, Max could hear and follow every step the soldier took. Max rotated through his weapon selection, indecisive about which one to use. Sniper rifle, assault rifle, pistol, dust rifle, grenade? Max continued to ponder the decision when the footsteps stopped entirely. Max raced around the corner and sighed. His prey was lying on the floor, not breathing with a number of gashed down to the bone in his back. Zade standing above him.
"You dick." Max complained.
"Don't be so slow." Zade shot back.
"How many have you killed?" Max asked.
"With this guy...8" Zade answered.
"That means there's only one left." Max announced.
"Oh well that's-" Zade's remark was cut off as a man dashed out of the cubicle and tackled Zade. The two rolled across the floor as Max leaned against the wall, watching the fight. The leader flipped them so that he pinned Zade down, and landed a straight punch across his face. Zade's head jerked to the side and he teleported behind the leader, grabbing him in a chokehold. The leader stamped on Zade's leg, and elbowed him in the stomach. Zade stepped back and the leader turned, punching across Zade's face again. Zade turned and landed a side kick onto the leader's gut. Zade followed with a roundhouse kick to his temple. The man grunted as his head collided with the hard glass of the window.
"Max open the shutters." Zade called out. Max quickly complied. Light flooded the room, and Zade smirked at his opponent. The leader let out a cry and tried to hit Zade with a solid left hook. Zade casually blocked the hit, and landed a series of kicks up his body. Zade pulled the leader in close and kneed his stomach. He clasped his hands behind the leader's head and ended with a knee to his nose. The man groaned out as blood ran down his face. He staggered back and glared angrily at Zade.
"You punk." The leader growled, unsheathing a large knife.
"Uh huh. I think this chapter has enough words don't you Max? Zade said.
"For trying to hold a 5000 word average yeah." Max agreed. Zade nodded as the leader kept looking on angrily. Zade leaned forward and mockingly beckoned him forward, a smug look plastered on his face. The leader yelled and rushed Zade, hoping to get a quick stab or swipe. Zade took hold of the leader's wrist, and stepped in, smashing his elbow into the leaders already broken nose. He screamed out, giving Zade ample opportunity to wrestle the blade from his hand. Zade slammed the leader's hand against the cubicle wall and used the knife to pin his hand to it. The leader groaned but punched Zade across the face. Zade hadn't been expecting the sudden blow and stepped back, tripping over a coil of rope. Zade quickly tied the rope to the bottom of a heavy desk, as the leader ripped the knife from his hand. The leader tried to sit on Zade, and stab him to death. Zade used his legs to hold the man up, and used one hand to press against his wrist. All this while expertly using one hand to tie a tight knot around the leader's neck. Before the leader could register Zade's thought process, he was being lifted in the air by Max.
"Going down." Max said, throwing the man through the window. He screamed as he fell 49 stories, his neck making a sickening snap just before his head popped off his shoulders. The corpse hit the street as the bloody rope lazily swung.
"This really was like old times." Zade commented.
"Uh huh. Get us out of here before more press show up." Max demanded. Zade rolled his eyes and put a hand on Max, teleporting the two far away form the building, just as police (god damn that response time) arrived on the scene.
From his office across the way, Richard watched as the final soldier met his grimm fate. He sighed, and put out his cigar.
"What the fuck is she thinking?" He asked out loud to himself. Richard reached over and clicked on his phone, connecting him to Lenina.
"Lenina dear, please have my airship ready. I must go on some official business." He said.
"Of course . Where will you be heading?" Lenina asked.
"This is one of those… that shouldn't even make it on the books. Ok?" Lionheart explained.
"Of course. They're bringing it up now." She answered. Lionheart smiled and walked up to the armor and weapons hanging on the wall. He stared at his reflection in the blade for a moment before finally dawning the gear and making his way to the roof. Lionheart locked himself in the cockpit of his personal ship and started to lift off.
"I don't know what you're psychotic plan is, but I'll find out." Lionheart sword, as he flew off into the horizon.