The only thing on Cobra's mind was how he was going to destroy the person in front of him. Nothing mattered besides that. The overwhelming sensation of cold fury he hadn't experienced since Jellal–no, since the Infinity Clock Incident. He didn't think about what he would do afterward. He didn't even think about if he would enjoy it or not. All he knew was that he was going to stop at nothing to land the next hit.
Which made what he heard next all the more jarring.
A peaceful day. A rarity when you're a part of one of the most notorious dark guilds in the country. But a peaceful day nonetheless. No assignments to be done. No Brain breathing down their necks. It was even nice out, the sun warming everyone's skin and a nice cool breeze appearing whenever it got just a touch too hot. Despite people's images of a dark guild as nothing but violence and mayhem 24/7, there were days like this. Not many, but still, some. He sat against Cubellious, the snake's skin perfectly warm after being in the sun, as someone…someone he knew looked on. The scene was from her perspective. A twinge of jealousy arose looking at him basking with his partner, the kind that wished she had something like that with someone else. Sure some beings served all of them, but none in a way like that. Still, even this person found it hard to rustle up any real resentment on such a nice day. Everyone else was also at ease, quietly talking amongst themselves, or napping in one person's case. The feeling that everything was alright in the world wasn't something she personally subscribed to, but even she could pretend for a few hours every once in a while. If it was with them at least. One of the others stood up, and suddenly called out, "Ang-"
The vivid memory vanished, and Cobra stumbled like he'd been hit. What he just saw shouldn't have been possible from this man. A horrifying suspicion began to take root…
Before his next thought, Cobra's momentum took a sudden shift. His clumsy punch had been evaded, but Percy hadn't just stepped to the side. Instead, he was practically right in front of Cobra, two hands seizing his back and the part of his arm that hadn't been transformed. Despite his smaller stature, the man's grip betrayed no weakness. In an instant, Cobra was thrown to the ground. The wind knocked out of him as he lay sprawled on the hard dirt of the alleyway.