All characters and content of this work belongs to their respective owners, I own nothing other than my Original Character and the plot of this story.
For the next three days, Emeraldblade and her team continued traveling across the United States on their road trip towards Louisville after their little confrontation with Striker in Amarillo, stopping only to eat, sleep and relieve themselves along the way. During that time, they passed the cities of Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Springfield.
On Wednesday morning, as the group was making their way towards St. Louis, Emeraldblade started to make small talk about her hirers.
"So Millie," Emeraldblade asked.
"Yes E?" the imp replied.
"What's your story?"
"Ooh, that's a great question gal pal," Millie answered, "It goes back to when I was a tot, I was raised by a large family of imps in the ring of Hell dedicated to the sin of Wrath. My mother and father cared about me and my siblings very well, despite the low income they were making. But that all changed when I became an adult."
"Let me guess," Vaggie piped up, "You met Moxxie?"
"That's right V," Millie continued, "We met after the two of us had broken up with the same guy we each use to date at one point."
"Wait you…dated the same guy?" Sniper pondered.
"Yeah…" Millie replied with a cringe, "His name was Chaz, he was a very perverted shark demon who tried to trick Moxxie's father to have his own son marry him. Fortunately, I managed to rescue him and Blitzo before he was forced to tie the knot."
"What happened to the ex-boyfriend of yours after that?" Emeraldblade asked.
"My dad had him executed," Moxxie spoke up behind his wife, "I heard he took great pleasure in killing him, as he mounted his jaws and teeth inside the mansion.
"Damn…" Vaggie replied in disgust.
"Now that's some shonky business love," Sniper added.
"I couldn't agree more," Emeraldblade added, "It sounds like you dad is someone we shouldn't mess with."
"Ahem," Moxxie caught everyone's attention, "As I was saying, after the necessary break up between Chaz and us, Millie and I have been in a steady marriage ever since.
The imp girl sighed, looking lovestruck in the process.
"Moxy Poo sure has a way with words, even when he's drunk."
"Yeah," Moxxie chuckled in a self-deprecated way, "Well let's not go there hon."
Emeraldblade and Vaggie looked at each other and rolled their eyes.
Later, just before Noon, the team arrived on the outskirts of the city known as the Gateway to the West. As they approached the skyline, Sniper suggested they get lunch, however this time instead of dining-in, they would use a drive-thru, that way they could reach Louisville a little quicker. The Australian spotted a McDonald's nearby, and proceeded to drive up to the speaker in the respective drive-thru lane.
"Thank you for choosing McDonald's," a man's voice said on the other side of the speaker, "Will you be using your reward's app today?"
"No!" Sniper answered sternly.
"Alright, how may I help you?"
Sniper turned to face Emeraldblade, Vaggie, and Millie, who were facing their driver with raised eyebrows.
"Aye, what do ya want mates?" Sniper asked, "We need to eat you know."
"I'll take a number 2 with cheese please, but with no onions on the sandwich and a Sprite to drink," Emeraldblade called out, ordering a Quarter Pounder meal.
"Give me a number 2 as well, also with no onions but with a Coke," Vaggie added, ordering the same thing Emeraldblade wanted.
"I'll take a number 5 with some spicy buffalo sauce and a Mello Yello to drink" Millie continued, ordering a 10-piece Chicken McNuggets meal.
"And I'll get a Number 6 with a Large Coffee," Sniper finished, ordering the Filet-O-Fish combo meal.
"Wait, what about you Moxxie?" Millie asked her husband.
Moxxie leaned up to look at the menu, it only took him a moment before he too placed his order.
"I'll take a Double Triple Bossy Deluxe on a raft, 4x4, animal-style, extra shingles with a shimmy with a squeeze, light axle grease, make it cry, burn it, and let it swim," he called out nonchalantly.
The rest of the team looked back at him dumbfounded.
"Really Mox? This shit again?" Millie ridiculed her husband.
"Hey, I have my preferences." Moxxie replied.
"So…you want a burger sir?" the man's voice asked on the speaker outside.
Moxxie became annoyed, but seeing the gestures of his allies, he relented.
"Yes…" he replied very reluctantly, "I want a "burger""
"How about a number 1 meal Mox." Millie asked him.
He huffed in frustration, "Yeah, whatever, but make sure it has a Neopolitian cappuccino with more-"
"Ahem!" Millie chastised her husband.
"Fine…a small coffee with 2 shots of cream and sugar each," he finished.
"Alright so I have two Number 2 Quarter Pounder meals with one Sprite and one Coke, a Number 5 10-piece Chicken McNugget meal with a Mello Yello, a Number 6 Filet-O-Fish with a Large Black Coffee, and a Number 1 Big Mac with a small coffee with 2 creams and 2 sugars. Is there anything else you would like today?"
"Nah, we're good mate." Sniper answered.
"Alright, please pulled up to the first window."
After getting their food, Sniper proceeded to hand the bags to each of his teammates before speeding away from the drive thru. Emeraldblade proceeded to hand each item to her friends, complete with their respective drinks and an order of fries that came with each combo. Sniper then pulled up into a park across the river from the iconic Gateway Arch so that he and the team could enjoy a meal while overlooking the famous landmark that the city was known for.
"Oh man, it's been a long time since I've had something from McDonald's," Millie commented.
"Mmm, delisico." Vaggie smiled.
"I must say Sniper," Emeraldblade commented, "You picked a great spot for a picnic."
"Thanks mate," Sniper replied, "At least that wanker we encountered back in Texas isn't here to ruin it this time."
"You said it." Moxxie added.
The group spent a little over half an hour enjoying their lunch. Afterwards, the team agreed to spend some more time at the scenic sight, they had made a lot of progress in the three days they had been travelling, so they decided to take a much-needed break for a short while longer before heading out once more.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the river, Striker was searching for where his old foes and their friends were lurking about. He was exploring the streets on his trusty steed Bombproof.
"Shit, three days and no sign of those bastards." He cursed to himself, "Where could those imbeciles be?"
As he continued exploring the waterfront next to the Gateway Arch National Park, he spotted a small green blip on the horizon, he took out his binoculars to gaze upon the strange oddity, upon concentrating on the object in question, he recognized it as the camper van that Emeraldblade's team was using to travel cross-country towards Louisville.
"Bingo," he smirked, "Come on Bombproof, let's catch them off guard while we have a chance."
Back at the overlook on the Illinois side of the river, the team was relaxing in the park. Millie and Moxxie were sitting at a nearby bench snuggling at the beautiful sight before them.
" *Sigh* isn't the Gateway Arch beautiful MoxMox?" Millie asked her husband.
"Yeah," he replied, "For a city with such a ridiculously high crime rate, the Arch sure acts like a beacon of hope for those sinners lurking about there."
"Such poetry to my ears," Millie flirted.
At the same time, Emeraldblade and Vaggie were seated at the picnic table they ate lunch at earlier.
"It's nice of Sniper to give us a break from all the pandemonium we've been through during the past few days." Emeraldblade told her friend.
"I agree hon," Vaggie replied, "But keep in mind we're on a mission to free those mercenaries Verosika is holding captive, so don't let you're guard down."
"I know," Emeraldblade commented, "We still have two more states to travel through before we reach Kentucky, plus there's the threat of Striker."
Meanwhile, back at the camper van, Sniper was sitting on top of the roof of the vehicle, sipping on his cup of coffee, as he was enjoying his refreshment, he noticed something moving unusually fast across the nearby bridge connecting the overlook to the national park on the other side.
"What's this now?" he wondered.
He took out his Sniper Rifle and gazed through the scope as though it was a telescope, it took only a moment for him to realize that the entity he was seeing was none other than Striker, riding on his hell born horse.
"Ah piss," he whispered to himself, before getting up and calling out to his friends, "Aye mates, we've got company!"
The team looked up towards Sniper, who pointed them in the direction he saw the imp-demon, sure enough, the sight of their would-be assassin was approaching them directly with a sinister look in his eyes.
"SHIT!" Moxxie shouted, "Everyone, back to the van NOW!"
The team heard Moxxie's plea of retreat and sprinted towards the van and climbed in without haste.
Sniper turned the ignition, and pulled the van back in reverse, but just as he switched the gear to drive forward, he heard gunshots ringing out from outside the van.
"Hurry Sniper! Striker's approaching fast!" Emeraldblade shouted.
Without further questioning, Sniper floored the gas pedal and zipped the van forward as fast as he could. He carefully drove the van north in the direction from which Striker was approaching from, throwing the imp-demon off-guard as he started galloping behind the van.
The result led to an intense pursuit through the streets of East St. Louis, before turning east towards Interstate 55, as the van continued speeding down the interstate, Moxxie looked back and saw Striker and Bombproof approaching them fast.
"H-He's gaining on us!" he shouted.
Sniper handed Vaggie his sniper rifle he had with him, and instructed her to hand it to Moxxie. The ex-exorcist nodded and turned back towards Millie.
"Here, tell your hubby to fend off that bastard with this," she told her.
Millie nodded and grabbed the rifle before turning to her husband and tapping his shoulder.
"Here Mox, use this."
Moxxie smiled, before taking Sniper's signature firearm and opening the back door, as he stood his ground, he carefully aimed the rifle and open-fired at his enemy. He took several potshots at Striker, all the while the imp-demon attempted to dodge the bullets by swerving his steed side to side in an evasive manner. When he noticed this, Moxxie adjusted his aim so that he fired in front of a nearby vehicle that was dodging the road rage that was going on. He fired a shot in front of the car, causing it to turn sharply in Striker's direction, causing him to rein his horse to a stop, only to suddenly launch him in the direction of Moxxie. The imp's eyes widen as he suddenly realized that Striker was heading in his direction, whether accidently or intentionally, it seemed to be working in Striker's favor, causing the assassin to smirk to his luck.
Striker held out his arms in order to lunge at his enemy. Moxxie tried to shut the door in his face, but Striker managed to avoid this and tackle Moxxie, causing him to drop Sniper's weapon on the floor and causing the two of them to crash into the nearby wall, causing the van to rocked forward momentarily.
Striker began punching Moxxie relentlessly with incredible force. He then reached holds his holster and pulling out a specially made revolver and pointing it towards him.
"Verosika told me not to kill your fucking friends," he commented, "But she never said I couldn't kill you hehehe."
Just then, before he could pull the trigger and end Moxxie's life, a strong force struck him across the head, knocking him off from the smaller demon he was overpowering. As he rubbed his temple, he looked down and saw a yellow liquid covered across the palm of his hands, it was blood. He became infuriated and looked up to his attacker, sure enough, it was none other than Moxxie's loyal wife Mille, with her trusty battle-axe in her hands.
"Leave my MoxMox alone you bastard." she insulted him.
Millie began swinging her axe in an attempt to gouge her adversary, but Striker had quicker reflexes and was able to dodge her swings with relative ease.
"Ha! Missed me girly!" he taunted her.
Eventually, one too many failed swings caught the female imp off-guard long enough that Striker managed to counter her with a swift kick to her back, pushing her towards the back door of the camper van, and causing her to fall out of the van. Millie grabbed on to the inner knob of the door, delaying her inevitable doom as she clung on for dear life.
"So much for you twats," Striker chuckled, "Once I'm done with you two, Verosika will definitely give me a raise."
He drew his revolver once more in an attempt to fire directly at Millie's fingers. Millie closed her eyes, about to accept her death.
"Hasta la vista…bitch!" Strtiker laughed.
But just before he could pull the trigger, a bright green bolt struck the revolver, disarming the gun from his hands, startling Striker, before causing him to turn in the direction of where the bolt came from. There, he saw Lady Emeraldblade standing on his side of the camper van.
"Don't lay another hand on my friends," warned him.
Striker gritted his teeth, "You again? Listen here girlfriend, you may have gotten lucky against me before, but this time I'll make sure you regret trifling with me."
Striker then launched his tail forward at Emeraldblade in an attempt to impale her, but her sword suddenly began glowing and absorbed the strike of his tail, causing him to recoil. Emeraldblade took advantage and launched several bolts a Striker, the first few struck him dead on, while the latter half he managed to block after regaining his composure. He then tried rushing at the warrior, only to feel something grab his ankle, causing him to slip and fall. When he turned back to see who stopped him, he noticed that Moxxie was none other than the culprit.
"AUGH, you just fucked with me for the last time kid!" Striker yelled at Moxxie.
But before Striker could attack him, Emeraldblade managed to launch another green bolt at Striker's chest, before a strong kick to his backside launched him in the direction of the door.
"Oh that's FUCKING IT!" he ranted angrily as he regained his composure.
Soon enough he began fighting Emeraldblade recklessly with his bare fists, but his incompetence resulted in him failing to land a single hit. Emeraldblade countered with a backhand to his face, causing him to stagger once more. She then finished him off by launching him out of the van with a powerful swing of her sword. Striker made one last ditch effort to kill at least one member of I.M.P by grabbing onto Millie's leg and clung on furiously.
"If I'm going down, then so are you slut," Striker told the female imp.
Millie tried wrestling her leg by swinging it relentlessly, but no matter what Striker continued to cling on like a crab stuck to its handler.
As Emeraldblade and Moxxie tried to rescue Millie from falling out of the van, Vaggie turned to Sniper.
"Quick, do something so that shithead won't succeed!" she demanded, "I'll try to rescue Millie."
Just then, Vaggie opened up the passenger side door in an attempt to leap from the moving vehicle.
"What! Are you crazy?!" Sniper questioned.
"Trust me, I know what I'm doing."
Suddenly, Vaggie jumped out the camper van, but before hitting the moving asphalt below her, two large wings emerged from her back, before she suddenly took flight towards the back of the van.
Sniper's face was shocked from everything that was happening within the last several minutes, but he tried his best to shrug it off and turned his focus back onto the highway in front of him. Suddenly, he saw a sign showing a turnoff for Interstate 64 towards Louisville. He smirked, knowing that an idea just popped into his mind.
Suddenly, as Sniper approached the exit, he began turning the wheel sharply, this action caused the van to shake on one side, and made Striker lose his grip on Millie, launching him several hundred feet off of the overpass onto the ground below. Sniper, who was watching the event unfold on his side-view mirror snickered to his delight.
"You had a good run mongrel," he commented smugly under his breath.
Just then, Millie's fingers began slipping from the doorknob.
"Moxxie, Emerald, I'm slipping!" She cried out.
Suddenly, she lost her grip entirely and began plummeting towards the ground below the overpass.
"MILLIE!" Moxxie shouted in agony.
Just before Millie hit the ground however, a strange red-and-white blur scooped the imp up.
"What the?!" Moxxie's agony turned to confusion.
Suddenly, the blur carrying Millie flew in the direction of the back door of the van, before leveling out at the landing of the moving vehicle.
Millie was relieved that she had somehow survived and turned to thank whoever had saved her live.
"Thanks for the help…VAGGIE?!" Millie responded in shock.
Both Millie and Moxxie gasped upon seeing that Vaggie had managed to save the former's life, but were more astonished by the fact that she had a pair of large angelic wings protruding from her back. Their surprise however soon turned to utter suspicion.
"Wait a minute, those aren't normal wings I've seen in Hell before," Millie pondered, "What kind of demon are you?!"
Vaggie huffed in guilt.
"I have a confession to make," she answered, "I'm not actually a demon, well not originally. You see, I'm actually an angel from Heaven, or at least I was before I was casted out."
"Wait, Heaven?" Moxxie question, "So you're saying you worked for our enemies before?"
"Yes…but not anymore," she responded, "I was once an exorcist sent to exterminate Hell's inhabitants, but several years ago I made the fateful decision of letting a demon child escape to safety, it infuriated my colleague at the time, and I was banished to Hell for my actions."
"You…you killed demons like us?!" Moxxie question, before suddenly boiling over, "Why I fucking oughta-"
"Don't Moxxie…" Emeraldblade stopped him, "I knew about her secret before we met you two, but there's more to the story than meets your eyes."
"What do you mean?" Millie raised her eyebrow.
Emeraldblade turned her gaze back up to Vaggie.
"Go on, continue your story," she gestured her friend.
Vaggie managed to wrestle a small smile before getting the courage to continue her story.
"Anyways, my actions are the reason I lost my eye…and my original pair of wings. I languished in Hell for quite some time before I came across my future girlfriend Charlie in an alleyway, she nursed me back to health, and regained my self-esteem afterwards thanks to her. I met Verosika Mayday sometime after that, but after she betrayed me, I turned a new leaf and decided I would try to help Charlie out with her plan of redeeming Hell's sinners."
Moxxie and Millie were now confused. Vaggie took note of this before continuing to speak.
"Look, I know my actual origin was a bit of a deception towards you two and Blitzo, but what's important is that I am on YOUR side, Verosika betrayed me in the past and we need your help trying to stop her.
The two imps turned to Emeraldblade for confirmation, and she nodded, letting them know that the ex-exorcist standing before them was telling the truth. They then turned towards each other, nodded, and then turned back once more to Vaggie.
"I should really put a bullet into you and your friend's heads for deceiving us…" Moxxie groaned in frustration, "But seeing how well you two managed to defeat Striker, as well as the fact you saved Millie's life, I guess I'm willing to give you a second chance."
"Same here angel girl." Millie added.
Vaggie smiled, "Thank you, you won't regret it, I can assure you."
She then turned her gaze back to Emeraldblade.
"Let's get back to the cab with Sniper, we still have two more states to drive through before we reach Louisville."
Lady Emeraldblade nodded, and the four of them returned to their seats to continue their road trip to Derby City. When the two ladies climbed through the window, they saw Sniper smiling rather smugly.
"Heard the whole thing lassies."
Again, my apologies for not posting this sooner. Also, see if you can catch the reference(s).