"In an honest service there is thin commons, low wages, and hard labor; in this, plenty and satiety, pleasure and ease, liberty and power (…) A merry life and a short one, shall be my motto."
- Bartholomew "Black Bart" Roberts
"Come not between the dragon, and his wrath."
- King Lear (William Shakespeare)
Legends.
Stories scattered through time.
Songs and revelries echo through the ages, celebrating the great miracle of life and its many spoils.
Love and lust.
Joy and celebration.
Adventure and discovery.
Riches and glory.
It is said that life is short, that one should count their blessings and live knowing they had done good, leaving something behind to teach those after them.
It is an indisputable rule of life, a truth that all must come to accept.
However, is that what the heart truly desires? Is this the true extent of what life has to offer? Those with fire in their hearts and the entire world in their sights ask this, and press onward regardless.
They grab life by the horns and march through every path left unexplored.
Life is no grand trial, but a rich treasury waiting to be plundered from wall to wall.
Death is nothing to fear, only the threshold to toe.
To those who chase adventure… there is no reward greater than the raw thrills of life.
Black Bear Den, Vale
"For the last time, Edward… just work the godsdamn bar."
The only reply was a braying laugh, raking at the man's throat as he continued to slump over the counter top, a careless grin framed by messy blonde strands of hair.
The club was alive tonight, as the nightlife of Vale blossomed into its full magnificence here in this localized space. The darkness of the night continued in through the club's doors, broken up by flashing strobe lights all around the dance floor.
The venue tonight was absolutely packed, as crowds of people were seated all around the tables, drinks switching hands and bodies moving as the dance floor lit up with a life of its own, music pumping and blaring from the speakers as the DJ worked his magic.
However, not everyone was in a partying mood as groups of people congregated at the bar, shelves stocked with hundreds of bottles ensuring that the drinks were going to be flowing all night. One particular conversation was ensuing by this bar, as the establishment's proprietor drew an exhausted hand over his bearded face.
The cause was a young man, his hair the color and shape of straw hoisted by an orange bandanna wrapped around his head, his clothes tattered and weathered, a sharp contrast to the crisp black suits of the entire staff.
He slammed another empty glass onto the countertop, ice clinking as he let out a satisfied groan, directing a pair of mischievous eyes at the man currently behind the counter across from him, polishing another one of his glasses with a rag.
"Give me a proper job, old man. I'm actually going to shoot myself if I have to mix another pussy drink for your guests. They- YOU couldn't know a Calico Jack from a Strawberry Sunrise if I held you at gunpoint." He sneered with an accusatory finger, the bartender groaning in complete and utter exasperation.
"Godsdamnit, Kenway! I don't have any other jobs open right now. If you won't man the bar then come back and fuck my life over another day." He snarled, slamming a fist down onto the counter top. His top bodyguards, twin girls dressed in frilly dresses and lavish makeup blinked at his outburst, their eyes the image of icy cold.
"Deep breaths, boss." The twin in red, Militia sighed.
"Take a chill pill, Junior~" Her sister in white, Melanie drawled monotonously, her eyes unmoving from her scroll.
"Yeah, Junior~" Edward snickered.
"I swear, I will strangle you one of these days." Junior seethed further with Edward's incessant mocking, prompting the boy to explode in cackles of laughter again.
"Oh, come on, old man! If you don't have any jobs for me, then at least prove me wrong! Mix me another drink! I'm dying of thirst over here listening to your shitty music all night long!" Edward laughed, Junior sighing deeply, his entire gut exiting his breath before he reached for a bottle on the bottom shelf.
"You're real lucky the guests like your drinks. If not for that, I'd have banned you a long time ago." Junior remarked, as Edward could only grin in response, completely unbothered.
"I know you love me, old man! Why else would I swing by to visit every night even though I'm headed to Beacon soon? You'd shrivel up and die without me!" Edward laughed again, before his eyes turned deadly, a shadow casting over his face.
"Besides… could you really keep me out?" He grinned with bared teeth, his hands drifting over the twin blades hanging from his belt.
"I guess not. One Havana Grimmsbane." Junior sighed in defeat, sliding a cocktail down the bartop as Edward eagerly snatched it, his nose catching the whiff of a truly demonic blend that could only come from home, before frowning.
"Needs more spice." He deadpanned.
"Fuck you. Bite me." Junior snarled, completely out of patience as Edward cackled loudly at his expense.
Turning to the girls seated beside him, Edward then changed his game. "Make that three? Whattaya say?"
Melanie, seated right beside him, slowly shifted an eye to him, her expression remaining cold. "You footing? If not, then buzz off."
Edward sighed, twirling a gold coin between his fingers. "Aww, don't be like that. Let's make it fun! Say I flip a coin. Winner pays up. How about it?"
Both twins groaned and walked off, leaving the boy alone with the bartender. "Ugh… whatever."
"They don't like me." Edward deadpanned.
"No shit." Junior deadpanned as well.
"Maybe I haven't visited enough!"
"NO. SHUT THE FUCK UP AND DRINK." Junior replied, perhaps a little too forcefully.
"Love ya too, mate." Obliging, Edward downed his cocktail with a grin, just as he caught sight of a newcomer entering the bar.
His eyes immediately flew to her hair.
A long, cascading curtain of shimmering gold, framing her face well and trailing behind her like a halo of heavenly fire.
Bright lilac eyes scanned the room all around as she strutted down to the dance floor, her entire attitude and aura the very definition of confidence.
The air of a woman who knew she was the center of the room and commanded it as such.
Her dress did wonders to highlight that image, short and daring, revealing the upper regions of her thighs and a generous amount of cleavage above the waist.
What gave Edward the most pause however, was how young she seemed to be, no older than he himself was.
Definitely not the usual patron of a den like this.
Her eyes then traced over the room to the bar, locking onto Junior.
Oh.
That explained everything.
Edward couldn't help but grin. Looks like they were gonna have a little fun after all.
"Oi, Junior. Fifty lien says Blondie gets the Mandrake Cooler." Edward snickered, the older man raising an eyebrow before taking notice of the girl walking in their direction.
He paused.
"Hundred she gets the Strawberry Sunrise." He replied.
The girl strode up to the bar, seated beside Edward as she set an arm over the bar counter, making eye contact with Junior.
"Strawberry Sunrise. No ice."
"FUCK!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHA-!"
Edward cursed loudly, startling the girl as Junior for the first time tonight found himself laughing at his expense, unable to control himself as he held out a gloved hand.
Edward grumbled curses under his breath as he slapped a hundred lien bill onto Junior's eager hand.
"Something the matter?" She asked, leaning her head against a fist as she slouched over the countertop, watching Edward regain his bearings and collect himself.
"Lost a bet. More importantly, what's a kid like you doing in a shithole like this? It's a lovely night! Spend your lien on some hot pot instead of shitty drinks." Edward remarked, as Blondie's brow rose, offering him a discerning look before grinning.
"Maybe I'm more grown up than you realize, especially if you don't look much older. What's your excuse then?" She laughed, leaning against the bar table as Edward's grin returned to his face.
"I work here, or I would if this old bear would give me SOMETHING TO DO." Edward smiled before slamming his palm down on the countertop, yelling that last part at the club owner in question. Said owner said nothing, settling to simply flick up a middle finger at the boy who choked down a chortle, turning his attention back to the blonde.
"So then. I've made my case. What's yours, lass?" Edward asked her, leaning back against the table as he swirled his drink in his hand.
"A little birdie told me that if you need to know something, nobody knows better than black bears. Did I hear right?" She asked, tracing a finger along an empty glass.
Edward grinned. He was right after all.
Down in the underbelly of the city, word spread fast and information changed hands like hot stones. After all, anything with value was never left idle. Not here, where life was tough and those without the proper skills were left in the dust.
Out of every resource that was traded here, information was one of the most priceless. If you knew what was going on, along with who, when, and where, you had all you needed to make something happen.
Thus, the Xiong Clan became one of the most prominent syndicates in the underworld of Vale, largely owed to their generous network throughout the city, creating a busy crossroads of information that constantly and consistently pumped life into their businesses.
If one was seeking them out, then they were either deeply entrenched into the city's underbelly or they were simply desperate.
However, this girl looked nothing like a thug if that shimmer in her eyes told Edward anything. He sure as hell didn't think she looked desperate either.
What was she looking for? Edward was keen to press further.
"That depends. Whatcha wanna know? How badly you want it?" Edward asked, his tone treading a thin line as the girl eyed him just as carefully.
"It's important to me. Isn't that enough? Come on, sailor~ I'm just a poor little girl looking for her mommy~"
She trilled as she traced a finger onto one of his exposed arms, an anchor tattoo peeking from under a roll of bandages. Faux wetness appeared in her eyes as she fluttered her eyelashes at him.
Edward could only stare at her, trying to hold back an ugly chortle from escaping his trembling lips. Why wouldn't he? He could see the exact same restraint on her face.
"Alright, alright. Describe her, why don'tcha?" Edward shook his head with a grin, taking another sip from his glass.
"She… looks like me. Her name… is Raven." Blondie muttered, a hint of somber in her voice.
Edward blinked for a moment, taking a second of pause. "She's serious, huh?"
For a brief moment, Edward's mind trickled back memories. Recollections of a past he had long since buried.
Crashing waves.
Sweltering heat.
Ship to ship.
The orphanage.
Shaking his head, Edward's eye blinked back to Junior, who had long since detached from their conversation, tending to the dishes with a rag. With that, his mischievous side creeped back with a vengeance, devilish thoughts seeping into his mind as he turned back to the girl.
"Hmm… I think I might have seen someone like that around…" Edward mumbled, just loudly for the girl to hear as he deliberately rolled his eyes up, as if deep in recollection.
She reacted immediately, eyes widening wide like saucers.
"R-really? Tell me everything!" She stammered, for a brief second utterly shattering her earlier image of confidence.
Edward snickered inside. "WOW. That was quick."
Quickly, he raised a finger up to Blondie's lips, hushing her. "Upupup. No rush. You should know, that's not how we do things here. We don't give out freebies. You want something, I want a little something too!"
By this point, Edward noticed out of the corner of his eye that Junior had shifted his eye to the two of them, a hint of sweat rolling down his forehead.
Ohh… he knew.
Again, Edward snickered mentally.
Good.
"Name your price. Money? Favors? Or… something else?" Blondie asked, her voice now notably edgier, her eyes now following his with hunter-like precision.
Edward knew his next answer would have to matter, or else things would go sideways quick. "We can't have that! We're almost to the good part!"
So as always, Edward laughed out loud. "Nah, nah! Nothing like that, lass! Let's play a game! A little wager on the line to keep things interesting!"
"What… kind of game?" She asked, brow raised and her voice pausing, clearly taken aback by his answer.
By this point, Edward noticed Junior's expression morphing into that of considerable warning, wordlessly trying to beg him to knock it off.
"Fuck you. Think you can flake out on me? I'll get my fun one way or another!" Edward grinned.
Edward slid over the bar table to the other side, grabbing a shaker, two glasses, ingredients from all over the bar, and a flask he had stashed away in a drawer a couple nights ago.
Twirling it in his hands, he gave a vibrant grin. "I'll mix us a couple drinks! Finish three glasses and I'll tell you!"
Blondie stopped, eyes trained on him as he mixed together something from home, something particularly hard. Edward put the first glass together, and once the smell hit his nose, he held back a laugh as he watched Blondie's nose scrunch up, clearly taken aback by the aroma.
"I-I don't think I-" She began to stutter, as Edward only continued to hold in his amusement, taking his own glass in hand and casually sipping from it.
"What's up? Not feeling my crisp old Apple of Eden? Thought you wanted to know more~!" Edward grinned, Blondie pausing, reaching for the glass.
Edward stood still and watched as she slowly picked it up.
She brought his drink to her lips and sipped carefully.
HACK
Barely a second later, Blondie was leaning over the countertop, coughing and grasping her throat, burned by his nightmare elixir.
Edward couldn't hold back anymore.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"OH MATE, THE LOOK ON YOUR FACE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"What the hell- *COUGH" Blondie could barely form words, stunned by the sheer strength of his cocktail.
"Man, I should've known you couldn't handle it! Even if I mixed you a pussy drink like Strawberry Sunrise what the hell would I know about your m-"
"-urk."
Then, Edward was flying.
KABLAM!
Edward saw stars and a woefully blurry world as his head rang like bells at church. Shattered fragments of glass and concrete surrounded his limp body, now crumpled against a particularly massive crater in the wall of the club.
He heard screaming from the dance floor, catching sight of the guests all filing out in a chaotic mess as soon as the carnage began.
Clasping a palm over his face, Edward shook his head as his senses returned to him. Peering through, he caught sight of his attacker, striding in a straight line towards him as her hands rose to her chest, cracking her knuckles so loudly he could hear the noise echo chillingly all around the bar through the blaring music.
Her hair was dancing behind her, golden flames licking at each strand as if her simmering rage was boiling to the surface. Edward had never seen such a sight in all his life and he could only cackle at the absurdity of it.
"I'm gonna tear out that smartass tongue of yours and feed it to you."
Her words leaked with venom, veins pulsing on her forehead and along her bulging muscles. As she approached, her golden bracelets changed their shape, expanding and unfolding to form large gauntlets, each one lined with a barrel of shotgun shells.
Edward could tell, he had just poked a truly furious and temperamental bear. One that would not let him walk away without a pound of flesh and then some.
Was it better than mixing more garden-variety cocktails behind Junior's bar?
Absolutely.
"I'D LIKE TO SEE YOU TRY!" Edward's face twisted into a maniacal smile as he drew both blades from his belt, each one a long, curved blade built with pistol barrels and grips.
Bonny and Read fit in Edward's hands like a dream as he broke into a sprint, jumping to his feet in a split-second.
Blondie took off running, demolishing the ground under her boots with every step, kicking up shrapnel and dust with each slam against the floor. Hers was a mad dash, fueled by the fire of her unfiltered rage.
His excitement spiking to record heights, Edward scrambled to meet her, his blades wound back to swing as they met in the middle.
Blondie made the first move, leaping high in the air with a fist wound back, her gauntlet crackling with a flaming power that radiated from her Aura.
Edward reacted, jumping as well.
"RRAAAAGHHHH!"
*KABLAM!
A burst of flame covered the dance floor as the ground quaked under the might of her fist, rippling like ocean waves. Coming down like a meteor, the woefully outmatched bouncers now beginning to file in were sent flying off to the waysides in heaps of shock.
In the air, Edward dodged her strike and made his play.
He flicked the swords down, as their blades ejected from their hilts, a powerful chain trailing behind them. Planting themselves on the ground on either side of Blondie, Edward reeled in his catch with a wide grin.
"EYAAAGGHH!"
His body rocketed back down as he yanked on the chains, pulling himself back down to the ground at rapid speed, his boots slamming into Blondie with jarring force, striking her in the chest before she could evade, sending them both tumbling along the dance floor in a tangle of limbs.
Rolling back to his feet, Edward giggled as he snapped his head up and locked eyes with his opponent, who dug her fingers into the dance floor, tearing a trail into the ground as she stared murderous eyes directly at his.
"HHAAAAAGHHH!"
Both fighters yelled out guttural roars, sprinting in a mad dash for each other, their minds both completely empty of rational thought or reason, their enemy the only thing left in their red-tinted sights.
They met in the middle.
CLANGGG
Edward's swords crossed against Blondie's gauntlet, an explosion of Aura going off from the harshness of their impact as their faces met.
One of smoldering, murderous hatred.
The other of hysterical, unrestrained excitement.
One thought linked them, bringing their minds in complete sync.
"YOU'RE GOING DOWN!"
The blows began trading, both flailing wildly with enough force to easily kill a lesser man. Edward's swords slashed and ripped through the air at blitzing speed, all while he made a modest effort to evade Blondie's bone-shattering punches.
To be fair, it wasn't like she was making much of an effort to dodge either. Their blows clashed over and over, four hands tearing through the air at breakneck speed and force, not caring if they were deflected, only that they hit something.
This was no dance. At least a dance implied a kind of elegance that was simply nowhere to be seen here.
A swing was blocked, followed by a barrage of punches to his chest.
He ate the hits and unloaded a clip into her stomach.
She flipped back, only to fire a slug behind her, shooting her right back into him.
He spun in a roundhouse kick, nailing her in the stomach, causing her to violently cough, but not before she grabbed onto his leg, twisting it and dragging him to the floor with her.
They got up. Blondie got the drop on him, decking him across the face with a shotgun-fueled punch, dazing him.
She grabbed his arm and reeled him in.
BANG!
Ow.
*BANG!
Ow.
*BANG!
She uppercutted him into the air, fist trailing fire.
Two fists then blasted him into the air.
*BA-BANG!
Edward's eyes sprung open and snapped to Blondie as he spun in the air, firing a blade at her. Blondie remembered this trick, grabbing the blade and wrapping the chain around her gauntlet as Edward returned to the ground, running around her.
She yanked on the chain, just as he did.
Her fist met his boot with a sickening crack, their Auras violently clashing.
She was stronger. Almost frighteningly so.
*KABLAM!
"WHAAAAAaaaa-"
CRASH!
Edward was shot back over the bar, cracking his back over the counter and flipping over to the other side in a heap, broken glasses shattering over him as Edward flipped back on his feet.
"Get them! Go! Go!"
Shouts echoed all around Edward as he vaulted back over the bar table, his blades drawn back as he scanned the situation now.
The bouncers had begun to file in, gangsters dressed head to toe in black rushing in bearing bright red blades. Blondie was completely surrounded, fending off hordes of thugs and shrugging them off as she continued to march towards him.
Before her, a large group was running straight at him, and Edward simply grinned once again.
"You lads want some too? I've got something special for ya!" He yelled, grabbing bottles of liquor from the shelves and throwing them up in the air.
Bonny and Read contracted in his hands, assuming a smaller pistol form as Edward took aim and fired.
*BANG!
*BANG!
*BANG!
Edward's shots trailed flame with Dust, striking several bottles through, shattering them in an instant while igniting their contents, sending sprays of fire raining down on the bouncers, leading many to drop to the ground, trying to douse their burning clothes.
Having the time of his life, Edward cackled loudly and rushed back into the chaos, his eyes scanning the battlefield as he fired shot after shot, felling each of his targets in a single bullet to the head.
Several goons swung at him, and Edward moved in turn, retracting one of his pistols into its sword form to deflect their slashes, spinning around with his second gun to dome them one by one.
"C'mere!" Blondie was on top of him once again, punches thrown at rapid speed as she pounded the ground where he once stood, blowing apart everything in her wake.
Several thugs went behind her and tried to attack her while she was distracted with Edward. Blondie was no slouch, eyes immediately snapping behind her.
Flipping into the air launched by a shotgun blast, she pounded another fist into the ground, sending the men high into the air.
Using the blast to propel herself back, she wound back several charged fists.
*BANG!
*BANG!
*BANG!
*BANG!
She launched the men back, their bodies hurtling straight at Edward. Completely taken aback by her play, Edward laughed again, doing his best to swerve out of the way as their bodies bounced off of the ground, cracking in a way that sent chills down his spine.
A thug tried to grab onto her.
Big mistake.
She slammed him to the ground, bouncing him into the air and winding back a shotgun fist.
"HAGH!"
*BANG!
He too, was sent flying in a straight line to Edward.
Edward grinned, leaping up and firing a chain blade at the thug's body, digging into his leg and pulling taut.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Edward cackled maniacally and pulled, swinging the man's body around like a flail as he batted away droves of bouncers, sending them sprawling on the ground with his improvised weapon.
Winding up another swing, Edward aimed at Blondie. He smacked her once, twice.
Swinging thrice, Blondie's eyes snapped open as she grabbed onto the poor man's now unconscious body, grabbing ahold of Edward's chain and whipping it violently.
*CCRACK
"YAGH!" Edward yelped as his weapon cracked in the air like a whip, violently snapping at his arm and bringing him down to the ground in a mess of limbs.
Edward blinked himself back to lucidity, rolling to the side as Blondie once again jumped in, utterly demolishing the ground where he once was.
Once again, they were back at it, rushing each other with adrenaline leaking from every inch of their Auras.
*WOOSH
Edward's eyes snapped to his side and he reacted immediately, grabbing ahold of Blondie and raising his blades to secure her in place.
"H-HEY!"
The rockets drew closer, but Edward was still woefully unprepared for Blondie lifting him off of the ground and flinging him over her shoulder with a loud yell, slamming him into the floor as his back landed with a sickening crack.
BLAM
Edward ate half the rockets while Blondie swatted away the other half, both blondes now turning up to face the three remaining staff.
"You're paying for this! Both of you!" Junior pointed a harsh finger at the two of them, while his other arm heaved a large rocket launcher over his shoulder.
Standing at the ready beside him, the Malachite twins glared at the two as well, Militia bearing sharp claws while her sister's long heels shone with a razor's edge.
"Ugh, Melanie, who is this bimbo?" The younger sister clad in dark asked.
"Dunno. Don't care. Let's get her and Edward outta our hair already." The elder sister in white replied, both of them squaring up and rushing into battle.
Edward turned to Blondie, who for once wasn't trying to grind his face into paste.
"Pick your dance partner?" He asked with a cheeky grin, while her only response was to pop a vein with a twitching eye before groaning loudly, clearly dissatisfied with breaking up their bout, however temporary. Regardless, she retrieved new belts of ammo colored a bright red, slotting them into her gauntlets after ejecting the empty casings.
"Red."
"Deal!" Edward grinned, sprinting straight for Melanie while Blondie made a break for Militia.
Melanie's heels ground sparks against the floor as she wound up several kicks, unleashing a flurry at Edward as he attempted to deflect what he could. He exchanged blows with her, the clinking of metal clashing ringing through the air as they fought.
He slashed, then shot. Melanie slid his blade off her boot and swung her body around to strike him across the face then pointed a heel at his chest, knocking Edward back.
Edward flipped to the side, dodging another set of rockets fired by Junior, providing cover fire from the back while the sisters got up close to engage them one by one.
At least that was until Blondie very quickly got the upper hand on the younger Malachite, sending her soaring into the air and crashing through another pillar, the poor girl screaming as her body fell limp, completely out cold as her sister was left alone.
Now with two opponents to face, Melanie quickly turned her attention to Blondie, whose pugilist fighting style quickly left her on the defense against Melanie's precise footwork as she attempted feint after feint, baiting her into making a move.
However, she was no fool and chose her moment well.
Now-
A chain wrapped around her arm.
"ARE YOU SERIOUS-"
She screamed mentally, her eyes flashing a bright red before she was yanked into the air, just as another barrage of rockets blanketed the entire dance floor, Edward whipping out his pistol and shooting down as many as he could as he towed Blondie through the air in his other arm.
In the air, Blondie locked onto her target, not keen on letting her go. Catching sight of Melanie flipping back to evade the rockets, Edward smiled wickedly, swinging his chain down allowing the blonde girl to grab her by the frill of her dress and yank her into the air, winding up for a pitch.
"YAAAAGHHH!"
Junior removed his eye from his bazooka's sights only to see his bodyguard flying straight at him at record speed.
"SHIT-"
*THWACK
Melanie crashed into him head-first, sending him reeling as his head spun and the girl crumpled to the ground, out of commission. Before he could regain his senses, a shadow appeared overhead, backlit by golden fire.
*BLAM!
Blondie smashed a fist down over the back of his skull, driving Junior's head below ground as the rest of his body went slack.
She turned around to face Edward, standing still and striding up to the dance floor, her boots shoving aside the unconscious and prone bodies of the club staff without a care in the world as her eyes focused solely on the cause of all this in the first place.
Edward retracted his chain sword, causing the blade to return to its hilt as he heaved it over his shoulder and laughed out loud, his excitement venting from his Aura in droves.
"Hahahahaha… wow! That was fun! You're something else, y'know that, Blondie? Wanna keep going? Drinks are on me if you win!"
"Shut up and put 'em up. I'm not done with you, you prick." Blondie snarled at him, her eyes shifting colors to a menacing blood red from their usual lilac as she took purposeful steps his way, each boot on the ground seeming to trail smoke.
Edward tilted his head as he gave her a cautious stare. "Oh, I'm aware. Back on the Rook Islands, you'd be a damn fool to cross anyone and expect to be forgiven so easily. You'd fit right in!"
As Edward laughed, Blondie's fists tightened. "You think I'm anything like you? Don't get it twisted. You got one thing right, though. You started this fight, and I'm making damn sure we settle it."
"Right here." She cracked a knuckle.
"Right now." The other followed.
"Couldn't have said it better." Edward sneered, twirling his swords in his hands as he assumed a stance, Blondie squaring up and raising her own fists, prepared for a final round.
The pair stood on opposite sides of the dance floor, staring each other down and waiting for the other to make a move, for something to give and break the tense air between them.
One second passed.
Two.
"Strawberry Sunrise is still a pussy drink, y'know-"
"RRRAAAAAGGHHHH!"
Then, chaos erupted once again.
The two blondes clashed in the center of the dance floor, all alone surrounded by the ruin and devastation they wreaked upon the entire club and its staff, shards of broken glass, debris, and the broken bodies of bouncers surrounding them as they continued to wail on each other without mercy.
Blondie's strikes were getting faster and more heated, her strength leaving smoldering craters in every hole she punched into the floor as Edward dodged and swerved, evading the strikes as they went his way, striking back with his blades and bullets, melding both forms seamlessly as he pressed a clean and manic counter-assault.
All the while, Edward's eyes shifted ever so slightly, his vision blurring and focusing as everything went dark. Everything except for his opponent, glowing red hot with her rage aimed solely at him.
His eyes shifted to her gauntlets and began to focus. While this happened, his Aura surged with power as Edward prepared to activate his trump card.
10.
The girl swatted away his swings with her gauntlets, each slash followed up by a shot from their pistol attachments.
9.
Edward swung down, violently slamming his swords against her guard as she held her arms together in a cross guard, holding back his strength with her superior prowess.
8.
The girl pushed off, sending Edward's arms flying back, leaving him open once again. The girl grinned and moved in.
7.
A powerful punch sent Edward reeling back, shooting behind him at blinding speed, but Edward refused to divert his eyes from her, not even blinking his eyes for a moment as he grinned again and fired his chain swords at the ground behind her.
6.
Reeling himself back in, Blondie defended herself against a relentless assault as Edward slashed rapidly and savagely with his blades, each swing ripping through the air and colliding against her arms with jarring force.
5.
He swung his swords together, batting her arms to the side. He swung up with one blade and fired a bullet with the other, knocking the girl back with a charged Dust bullet flying into her skull right between her eyes.
4.
Edward watched as she rose to her feet, smiling with intrigue as her the fire in her hair flowed all throughout her Aura, surging in power as her eyes flew to him- Wait no, that wasn't right.
3.
Edward watched her eyes peering right above him as he followed her gaze to find an odd sight. Several strands of bright golden hair, sliced clean from his strike earlier.
2.
Edward turned back to the girl and saw that her entire aura had shifted drastically. Her fire now spread throughout her entire body in a raging inferno, her hair, weapons, and the air around her seeming to superheat like a burning sun.
1.
Throwing her arms out with an expression of pure fury, Edward could only continue to watch as her Aura quite literally exploded with fiery rage, the dance floor around her blown apart in her wake as she burst in his direction, leaving behind a trail of hungry flames.
0.
Her gauntlets glowed in his Eagle Eyes with a bright yellow color.
NOW!
*BA-BANG!
Edward fired Bonny and Read, a single bullet each.
The bullets sailed through the air, meeting his opponent just before she could reach him. It seemed she read what he had done and wound an arm back to deflect his shots.
Swinging the arm out, her gauntlet caught the bullets.
*CCRACK
Only for the gauntlet to shatter to pieces from the force of the bullets that hit it, the force of his Semblance.
Edward's eyes bulged at the sight, realizing that her stride had not been slowed at all and instead her Aura glowed even brighter, as if his shots had simply multiplied her strength tenfold. She continued to barrel forward, winding a fist back and roaring with blazing, primal fury.
"RRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAGGHHHHHHHH!"
A meteor struck his skull.
*KABLAMMM!
Edward's face met her fist, which drove his head and body crashing straight through the floor with earth-shattering force. On impact, a massive shockwave rang out, annihilating the very ground underneath him as the dance floor rippled out and exploded in the wake of their impact.
Everything flew upwards, a great tremor exploding from her punch as Edward's Aura shattered like glass under her strength.
Edward could barely twitch a finger as his body refused to obey his command to stand up and keep fighting, all while the blonde brawler that defeated him strode up to his broken body, leaning down and squatting to meet his eye.
"Let that be a lesson to you. Don't pick fights you can't win. Also, you owe me a Strawberry Sunrise." She grinned, her face the image of smug victory. The kind that twisted the knife into his wound in the way that created the sorest of losers.
Edward clenched his fists, mustering the strength to speak as he felt his vision slowly fade to black, gathering everything within him to manage a few final words.
"N-name."
"Hm?" She asked, turning back to him and leaning closer.
"What's… your name?" He gasped out hoarsely, causing the girl to stand up, flipping her long, golden hair behind her with a radiant grin of absolute pride.
"Yang. Yang Xiao Long. Don't you forget it. The name of the girl who kicked your ass!" She declared loudly, causing Edward to grin, his head leaning back as he raised a weak, jittery finger to her, bearing an expression of absolute determination.
"Yang… I'll see you again. I swear it… Edward Kenway… always gets… what he's owed. A-always…"
Those were Edward's last words before everything faded to black, as he faded to unconsciousness. Before he blacked out entirely, his head filled with the name of the girl who defeated him completely. The girl who he had to get even with, no matter what.
His heart burned with fire.
"Yang Xiao Long..."
"If I ever see you again..."
As she walked out the doors of the club, leaving the ruined establishment in tatters from their massive clash, Yang strutted up to her motorcycle parked outside. Her eyes stared dead ahead as her mind raced a million miles an hour.
She thought back to that insufferable boy, a veritable maniac who had mocked her and her personal quest, egged her on and relentlessly joked with her all for shits and giggles.
Her eyes twitched at the memory of him, her gloved hands clenched tightly around Bumblebee's handlebars as she mounted the vehicle and started the engine.
She thought about his fighting style, how he seemed to flail around the battlefield with no sense of rhythm or order, a savage and manic swordsmanship she had rarely ever seen before. A style that derived from no school of techniques or the mentorship of a veteran, but purely off of the strain of life and its many challenges.
The style of a true drifter.
"Strangely familiar, though. Why is that?" Yang noted to herself, just as the cawing of a raven overhead filled her ears, a dark shape soaring to the skies.
Yang gritted her teeth as she continued to dwell on the memory of him. Of his brainless sense of humor, of his empty-headed sense of tact. Her eye drifted down to one of her Ember Celica gauntlets, shattered to pieces from just two bullets.
With luck and a little bit of help from Ruby, she would be able to replicate the gauntlet before the Beacon initiation would begin, but Yang could only dwell on how exactly he was able to do such a thing.
"Was that his Semblance?"
Yang shook her head, starting her bike and riding off down the road and into the night, her mind focusing on one thing.
"Edward Kenway… huh?"
She revved her bike and clenched the handlebars in a death grip as her eyes narrowed down the road.
"If I ever see you again…"
On that night, two warriors forged a rivalry through fire.
"I'll crush you twice as hard!"
AECE