"Laxus!" A barista called for his coffee. Laxus paid for his coffee and was on his way. Laxus was hoping to have a normal and relaxing day. As he left the coffee shop, he pulled out his phone to see what's going on with the world. He searched a few sites and soon hit ones of his friends posting about their relationships. There was Natsu and Lucy, Sting and Yukino, and even Gajeel was making things work with Levy. Seeing relationships like that has Laxus thinking about his own love life, but he hasn't had a real girlfriend since he ended things with his high school sweetheart: Mirajane. He just kept walking until he bumped into someone and coffee was spilled everywhere. "Aw! Damn!"
"Watch it!"
"Me?! You bumped into..." Laxus stopped when he realized he bumped into a beauty. Normally, it be a good thing. Not this time because the woman he bumped into was Kiria of Diabolos, walking around in broad daylight.
"What? Nothing to say. Are you blind or just stupid?" Kiria said just sounding rude. Laxus just stood there and stared at her. "Hypnotized by my beauty? Too bad. You're not getting anything. Now get out of my way or else I will cut you." She clearly didn't know he was Thunder Legion and just walked around him. Knowing trouble wouldn't be far with her, he quietly followed. Kiria made her way like she was regular person and then went into an alleyway. Laxus continued to follow her and saw her pull out a phone. "Got it. Dominic Burrows." Knowing that couldn't be good, Laxus had to try and stop it. He reached for his remote and quickly changed into Thunder Legion. Of course, Kiria heard a strange sound. By the time she turned around, she saw him standing there.
"Hey." Legion greeted.
"If it isn't my favorite hero." Kiria said.
"I'm your favorite? Flattering, but I'm taking you in." Legion said. "You're clearly up to no good again and I'm stopping it." He tried shooting a blast of lightning at her, but she jumped out of the way and took part in the fight. She removed her coat and threw it right at him. He tried swatting it away, but it was a decoy with her swinging her leg at his head and knocked him down.
"I love to play, but I need to get going. What a shame. I actually like playing with you." Kiria said and ran off. Legion got up and tried to chase after her. He tried to keep up with her, but he rounded a corner after her and she was gone. With her gone, he needs to find her. Diabolos is clearly up to no good again.
...
The Airship
"Diabolos is up to no good again." Laxus said as he was back on the ship and told the others what happened. "By mere chance, I saw Kiria. I followed her and it sounds like Diabolos is going after someone."
"Are you sure?" Natsu questioned.
"Positive." Laxus said. "I heard her talk about someone named Dominic Burrows. Jellal, do you have anything about this guy." Jellal did a quick look and tried to see what he has.
"Found him. Dominic Burrows..." Jellal said. "I think he's a target. Dominic Burrows is actually the witness in an upcoming embezzlement and murder trial for a man named Louis Setter. Dominic is claiming that Setter, who is a financial advisor, is embezzling money from his clients. Dominic also claims that he witnessed Setter murder a man that confronted him about the same charges."
"He's set to testify against this Setter, isn't he?" Erik said. "Setter must have hired Diabolos for an assassination job. We all know they don't have a problem with that. Take out the key witness and the trial goes up in smoke, as are the chances of putting this guy in jail."
"If that's the case, we need to make sure nothing happens to this guy." Natsu said. "Jellal, can you find where this guy is? We need to get to him first."
"He might be in witness protection, which will make it more difficult. He might even be going by a different name." Jellal said. "I could call my father and alert him of this matter. One more thing, here Laxus." He threw something at Laxus with Laxus catching it. It looked like a fancy gold belt buckle shaped like a ring with a lightning bolt in it. "I finally finished that little project. You don't need that remote anymore. There's a button on it that can tap into the same signal. It should be a lot easier to carry and you don't have to fiddle around with it."
"Seriously? This probably could help." Laxus said as he liked it.
"Now, let's find this Dominic before Diabolos does." Jellal said.
...
Later
It wasn't easy, but they might have been able to get where Dominic is. The seven of them kept a low profile, but they were watching over the safe house Dominic was staying in. They just need to keep Diabolos away.
"Well, we're outside the safe house. The trial is set for tomorrow." Salamander said as all of them were in contact with each other. "Any sign of Diabolos."
"Nothing, we're keeping our eyes open." Steel said.
"You really think they might try something on this poor man?" Maiden asked.
"If they're paid for it, I would say so." Cobra said. "Lots of criminals will do anything to avoid going to jail. This is why some people are afraid to speak up to them, but this guy is taking a brave step. You know what they say, snitches get stitches."
"Not if we can help it." Legion said. All of them were keeping their guard up for whenever Diabolos showed.
"Waiting for me?" Legion turned around and saw Kiria was there.
"Guys, they're here! They're know we're here!" Legion called, but Kiria threw a dagger right at the communicator and broke it.
"You'll have to do better than that if you want to get the drop on us." Kiria said. Then, she jumped at him and attacked.
...
Salamander
"Thunder Legion?! Are you still there?!" Salamander called as they lost contact with him. "Anyone see anything?"
"Yeah! Trouble!" Shadow reported. Salamander and the others looked down to the street and saw Madmole and Skullion heading straight for the safe house and plan to storm it to kill the witness, and possibly anyone else. The others hurried on down and tried to stop them. All six of them got in front of them and cut them off.
"Pretty direct for assassins." Ray said. "Are you sure you guys are professionals or whatever?"
"You again?" Skullion said. "Be smart and don't get in our way again."
"Actually, this works to our advantage." Madmole said. "We didn't finish the job where they are suppose to eliminate them."
"You're right. We can finish what we started." Skullion said as the two of them took the challenge and tried to attack the six heroes, but that left Thunder Legion to fight Kiria alone.
...
Thunder Legion
Thunder Legion tried blasting Kiria, but she rolled away and got right in front of him so she was right in his face. If this wasn't a fight, the move would almost be considered seductive.
"What? No problem fighting a woman this time?" Kiria questioned.
"I don't like it, but you're out to kill someone this time." Legion said.
"Who says we're going to kill him. The job is to keep the guy from testifying." Kiria said. "That doesn't mean we have to kill him."
"Doesn't matter." Legion said as he got his arms around him and held her. "You and your friends aren't going anywhere near him. Call it off."
"You're direct. I like it." Kiria said. "Honestly, I think I'm starting to get more and more interest in you. Still, I'm not the type of girl to let a man get between her and her job. Legion tried to hold her down, but he suddenly felt something hit him where it should be off limits. It caused him to release her and then she made her move. She swept his legs and knocked him down.
"That was a cheap shot." Legion groaned.
"You're fighting a woman. What did you expect?" Kiria said as she stood right over them. "Still, from what I just felt, you have something under there." She said as she grabbed his new buckle and threatened to rip the only article of clothing he has on. "I think it's quite bold to go around in just this, but what would happen if it came..." She slid her hand against the buckle until she hit the button that Jellal mentioned earlier. When she pressed that, Legion's body reverted to normal and she could see his real face. That wasn't good for Laxus at all. "Wait. You're the guy I saw earlier. That was you?"
"Damn." Laxus complained.
...
The Fight
Meanwhile, Salamander and the rest of the team tried to fight off Skullion and Madmole so they don't get to that witness. Skullion kept swinging his blade at Salamander, but Salamander kept backing out of the way until he jumped in the air and Sky Maiden flew in from behind with her smashing her fist against Skullion and knocked him back.
"That all you got?" SKullion taunted.
"How about this?!" Shadow said as he showed up and tried to attack him, but Skullion ducked down and kicked him back. As for Madmole he was charging at Nova Ray. Ray kept trying to blast him, but his attacks kept bouncing off of Madmole's armor. Madmole tried throwing a swing at him, but Ray jumped out of the way. Cobra tried attacking him, but Madmole was able to catch him and tossed him against a wall.
"I'm not falling for that again, but a good effort." Madmole claimed.
"Try this then!" Steel said as he went at him and gave Madmole a pretty good punch to the face.
"Kiria, come in!" Skullion said as they were somehow able to stay in contact with each other, but she wasn't responding either.
"Skullion!" Madmole called and pointed to the safehouse. They all looked and saw agents were taking Dominic Burrows away since the safehouse has been compromised.
"Forget these wannabe heroes!" Skullion called as he and Madmole retreated. "Kiria! We're pulling out! Get after that witness!"
"Hold it!" Salamander called as he chased after them to try and stop them, but the compartments in Skullion's armor opened and released some smoke that they used to escape. "Damn! I hate it when they do that!"
"What about Thunder Legion?" Maiden questioned.
"Here I am." All of them looked and saw that Legion came back.
"What happened to Kiria?" Cobra questioned.
"Escaped." Legion said and just left it at that. Actually that's not what happened. Kiria had him pinned after seeing his real face, but she just let him go for some reason rather than finish him. She didn't even say a word about it, but why didn't Legion tell them that?
"They're still going after that witness. We've got to get to him before they do." Salamander said.
"We can't just wait around for them." Ray said. "They're smart, and now we've lost the element of surprise. If they were able to find him here, they'll find him somewhere else."
"Perhaps a change in direction. What we need is a way for them to come to us." Cobra said as he had something sneaky in store for them. Legion was in for it, but what is really going on in his head that he keeps thinking about Kiria.
...
A Bar
Later that night, things have been rather hectic lately. Having people out to kill you can take a toll on a person. Dominic certainly felt like he needed a drink. That's why he managed to give witness protection the slip and hit a bar. He just wanted everything to be over and it's understandable. He just sat at the bar and tried to forget the day he's been having, but he wasn't as safe as he thought. Skullion and Madmole were able to find him.
"Mr. Burrows... You do know the idea of witness protection is to protect you from the likes of us, right?" Skullion said.
"However, we're willing to make you an ultimatum." Madmole said. "You don't have to lose your life. Just agree that you will not show at the trial of Mr. Setter and you can get out of this in one piece." Dominic didn't really do anything. He just sat there and kept having a drink.
"That's it. Just have a little liquid courage. It's a difficult choice to make, but it works for everyone." Skullion claimed. "Mr. Setter stays out of jail, you can go back to your normal life, and all this tension is over. Just simply forget everything you saw."
"It's also fair to warn you that there's a third outside waiting. Even if you somehow managed to escape us, she will follow you and eliminate you." Madmole said. "Now, what do you say?"
"I say..." Dominic turned to them only to remove the wig and showed it was really Nova Ray. "You're both morons!" He fired a blast at both of them and knocked them down. That was when the others ditched their disguises as other customers and showed that they walked right into a trap.
"I almost can't believe you fell for it." Salamander said. "We only made it look like that witness ditched his protection to try and lure you guys out."
"Clever, but Kiria can just handle it while we eliminate you!" Skullion said as he threw a punch at him. The fight was on again.
...
Kiria
"Guys? What's going on in there?" Kiria said. She stood at the top of of a building and waiting to make her move.
"You walked right into our trap." She turned around and was faced with Thunder Legion again, and it was just the two of them. He held out his hand and was ready to blast her with lightning again, but he wouldn't release it. For some reason, he was holding back and couldn't bring himself to do it...and she saw that.
"Well? What's wrong? You have a clear shot at me. Aren't you going to take it?" Kiria questioned. He wants to, but he can't for some reason.
"What happened back there?" Legion questioned. "You saw my real face. You know what I look like now, and you instantly recognized me. After that, you didn't do anything. You had me at your mercy and you decided to just let me go. What was that about?"
"Maybe I just didn't want to ruin a good-looking face." Kiria teased.
"Is this some sort of game to you?" Legion questioned. "You can't flirt or seduce me. The fact is that you're still a criminal. You're actually trying to kill someone."
"You don't know that." Kiria said. "The job is just to stop that witness from testifying. We don't have to kill him if we don't want to."
"And yet you're going to resort to that." Legion said. "That's why I have to do this." He went through with it now and tried blasting her with lightning, but she rolled under the attack. She fought back as she tried to attack him directly, but he did his best to hold her off. From how it looked, it was almost like they were dancing together.
"I don't know what it is about you, but the truth is I can't seem to get you out of my mind." Kiria said. "Still, I'm not going to let a man stop me from doing my job." She shot her fist at his face, but he dodged it and grabbed her by the arm.
"And I can't let you do it." Legion said.
"Really?" Kiria said. She reached for the belt buckle. Legion grabbed her arm, but she was able to grab the buckle. "All it takes is for me to press a button on here and you don't have your powers anymore. They're turned off. That's how it works, does it? Once I do that, I could easily do what I like with you. I do mean anything." She said as she licked her lips from some thoughts.
"You're not going to seduce me just to get out of here." Legion said.
"And what makes you so sure that's just it?" Kiria said.
"What? Are you saying you like me?" Legion questioned.
"Maybe. I see you as a strong one, but you've got a weak heart." Kiria claimed. "I'm not sure why, but I find it alluring."
"You can see that?" Legion questioned. Things were starting to get a little tense between them. It did seem like she was starting to drop her guard. Legion used that as he pushed and had them down on the ground. He tried to keep her pinned down and kept her there. "You're just using seduction as a weapon. You're just trying to get under my skin so I'll let you go, but it's not going to work."
"I'm not." Kiria said. "In fact, I don't do anything that cheap. If I didn't like you, I would have sliced you into ribbons a long time ago. Think about what happened earlier? I had no idea you were Thunder Legion, but I was rude."
"I had nothing you wanted." Legion claimed.
"But you were rather hot. The type of body women would love to get with." Kiria said. From past experience, she was right about that. "If you really think I'm lying, go right ahead." She said as she released her hold on the buckle. "Do what you think you should. Of course, it's no lie when I say that I'm starting to like you." Legion couldn't tell. Was she lying or not? The tension between the two was strong, the body language was speaking volumes. What is Legion really going to do?
...
The Bar
Meanwhile, the others were still fighting the others and they were starting to win. Madmole was hit hard across the face and knocked against the wall. That was it for him and he was knocked out by Black Steel. Skullion kept fighting. He jumped at Cobra and tried to kick him down, but that was when Sky Maiden blasted him with some wind and he hit the ceiling. Cobra finished it by kicking him away and knocked him down.
"Got him!" Salamander said as he and Shadow grabbed a hold of him and held him down so he wouldn't go anywhere. "We got two of them, but what about Kiria?"
"Thunder Legion should be with her." Shadow said. "Maiden and I will go check." Shadow and Maiden hurried as fast as they could up to the roof. Once they got there, they saw Legion just standing there and he was alone. "Thunder Legion, what happened to Kiria?"
"Sorry, guys. She escaped." Legion claimed.
"She did?" Maiden questioned.
"Yeah. She's a slippery one." Legion said, but that was all he was saying about it.
"Well, we managed to get her teammates. Let's just keep an eye on things in case she came back." Shadow said. It seemed like that was that, but Legion is hoping he didn't make a mistake.
...
The Next Day
"Unbelievable!" Sting complained as all of them were on the airship. After a long couple days, something has finally happened. "Skullion and Madmole made bail! They're already back out there!"
"Diabolos clearly has connections and money, but it doesn't matter now." Jellal said. "The trial is over. Setter was found guilty and is going away for a long time. They failed their job and there's really nothing more they can do about it."
"At least there's some good news." Gajeel said. "By the way, where's Laxus? He's been acting weird since the fight last night."
"I guess he's still a little upset he let Kiria go." Wendy said.
"Maybe, but at least we did what had to. If Diabolos shows again, we'll be ready." Natsu said. All of them thought everything was fine and normal, but they have no idea what's really going on.
...
Laxus
Rather than going home, Laxus was at a nice hotel. He had a great view and was gazing at the setting sun in just underwear. After the day he's been having, he wanted something to take his mind off his troubles. He can't stop feeling like he made a mistake, but it was like he couldn't fight was going on with him. There is a price that will be paid for this, but he wants to see what's going to happen.
"Wouldn't you rather stare at me?" He turned around and saw Kiria standing there, but she was wearing a robe.
"You know if they find out about this, we're both going to be in a lot of trouble." Laxus said.
"Maybe, but that's what makes it fun." Kiria said as she walked over to them. "Until that does happen, let's just have some fun." She said and in a couple swift movements, she removed the robe and Laxus' boxers, and then jumped right into his arms and kissed him. He knows he's going to pay for this, but he's just going along with it as he carried her straight to bed and the two of them unleashed some passion towards each other. This could go badly in the future.
