by WOTNOPOLIS 26
It was pure luck that Shiro was the one who had picked up the phone. He had heard it ringing and decided someone needed to answer it. The message had been one that he hadn’t been prepared for.
Breaking the news to the staff of the police headquarters had been really difficult for Shiro. He was still pretty new and he wasn’t nearly ready to take up such serious news. It was also hard because of how much everyone had cared about him. Teikiatsu had died.
Shiro sat inside the locker room for a while. Although he wasn’t particularly close to Teikiatsu, he had always looked up to him as a leader of the police. He respected what Teikiatsu had been trying to do. And he was personally impacted by the way Teikiatsu had cleaned up the streets. If it hadn’t been for Teikiatsu’s hard work then Shiro would of likely never made it to where he was.
As he stepped out of the locker room he was met by KarateKeyaQ who handed him a muffin. Shiro bit into it politely and nodded at KKQ. He could tell by the look on her face what she was thinking about. “Has he gotten back?” Shiro asked.
“No,” KaratekeyaQ answered. “I thought he should hear about Teikiatsu’s death in person so I am waiting for him to get back from his patrol.”
“That’s smart. I‘ll wait with you,” Shiro patted her on the shoulder. Neither of them were excited to see Amaterasu when he walked in. Shiro wasn’t even sure he remembered much of what they talked about. Shiro just remembered the pain on Amaterasu’s face as he took the news.
It was no surprise. Amaterasu had hung on Teikiatsu’s every word. Teikiatsu was a hero and a role model to Amaterasu. He gave him hope to save this city. Shiro had understood that since his first day at the police station. Amaterasu completely idolized his boss.
When Shiro saw Amaterasu the next day he was quick to wave him down and see how he was doing. “I’m doing fine. Why wouldn’t I be doing fine?” Amaterasu asked.
“I just thought with Tei-”
“That guy was a fool. The criminals of this city are nothing but criminals. This city will only be safe when we have every single one of them locked away. None of the gangs can ever be trusted. I will bring them all in if I have to,” Amaterasu said.
Shiro was stunned at Amaterasu’s declarations. “Hey, Teikiatsu was a good guy,” Shiro said. “The problem is the corruption in this city is thick. But Teikiatsu had done his best.”
“He was a fool,” Amaterasu repeated. “In fact his actions may have been questionably criminal, too.”
“You don’t mean that,” Shiro said to Amaterasu as he walked away from him. After a moment KKQ walked out of a room and sighed. He could tell she had heard everything between them.
“What do we do with him?” KKQ asked.
“We just leave him be, I guess. He’ll sort this out himself,” Shiro hoped.
****
Arashi Ryu stopped running in an empty garage and smiled. “Hey,” he waved to Knssquad who landed just beside him. “Sorry about making you chase me like that. Honest,” he said.
Knssquad got into a battle stance and shrugged. “Whatever,” she said. “Put Clair down.”
“Yeah,” Arashi said as he dropped Clair to the ground. “I had no intentions of carrying her for long. I just wanted to get us away from my boss so we wouldn‘t disturb him. I want to enjoy this.”
Knssquad slung a scoop of acidic ice cream at Arashi. Arashi dashed past Knssquad’s attack and smiled. “You’re not nearly fast enough to hit me,” Arashi said.
Knssquad leapt into the air and swung her banana bat. Arashi Ryu blocked the attack and shook his head again. “Once again you’re too slow,” he said as he kicked her into the ground.
She hit the ground with a thud and grumbled to herself as she got back up. “Good kick,” she said as she watched the man look at her from across the room. Smugness written across his face.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, the terrorist of WOTNOPOLIS,” Arashi said. “And I also know that you survived your encounter with Darnas. Let’s try to have fun with this.”
Knssquad rolled her eyes. “I was already having fun,” Knssquad said as she pointed at her broken rib. “This is what I call having a blast.”
Arashi eyed the girl standing next to her fallen partner. He decided to play some more. He disappeared before Knssquad in a flash. Knssquad realized that he had completely vanished from sight without a trace. “Wow,” she muttered. Her eyes darted all around as she waited for his attack.
She jumped up to the roof and put her fist into it. Arashi Ryu’s kick barely missed her and exploded the concrete beneath the spot she had been standing. Knssquad eyed him from the roof and smiled to herself.
Arashi glared at the girl hanging from the roof. She seemed to be mocking him as she took the stance of a monkey. He leapt up into the air and swung his fist towards her. Knssquad launched her feet off the roof and landed a punch in Arashi’s chest. Arashi felt blood spill out of his mouth as he crashed into the garage floor.
Knssquad back flipped away from him and nodded. She pulled out two banana bats while he stumbled back to his feet. His face had turned red from anger and Knssquad couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s a matter? I thought you liked playing?” Knssquad said. “Or are you upset that you’re getting beat up by a girl?”
“Whatever,” he said as he stretched his arms out. “You may have gotten a punch in. But there’s still no way you can keep up with my speed. Consider this fight over. I’ll enjoy crushing your bones.”
Arashi’s body didn’t move. Arashi attempted to kick off the ground but he still felt himself solidly locked in place. He watched as Clair leapt to her feet and gave Knssquad a thumbs up. “He’s all yours!” she shouted.
Arashi looked down and saw that his feet had been solidly frozen to the floor. “I get it,” he whispered. “Knssquad was maneuvering me into a position where Clair could ice me without me realizing she was awake.”
“Shoot,” Arashi said as he put his arms up to brace for the attack. A second later he felt the ice around his feet breaking. His body was lifted into the air and he could feel the cold steel metal of the banana bat smashing across his face.
His body smashed into a pillar holding up part of the garage. Pain wracked his body as felt himself looking up at the garage ceiling. Blood was trickling out of his mouth. “Wow,” he said to himself. He stood back to his feet and smiled. “This really will be fun.”
****
Yoyo was surprised by how much control she had over the black smoke as it lashed out at Darnas. He dodged past each slash the smoke made in his direction and sliced his sword through the air. The tunnel flashed a purple glow as Yoyo’s eyes caught a glimpse of lightning moving towards her.
Yoyo twitched. She had no way of blocking an attack by lightning and she braced herself. She could hear the explosion as the lightning smashed into something. Yoyo opened her eyes, not even aware she had closed them and stared at a wall of black smoke around her. She swiped the giant sword through the smoke and it immediately disappeared. “So, the smoke protected me from his attack?” Yoyo asked herself and stared down at her sword handle.
“That’s amazing. To be able to counter my lightning sword‘s attack,” Darnas said. “That sword truly is legendary.”
Yoyo nodded absently at Darnas. She was much less interested in what he had to say as she was figuring out how the black smoke worked. Up until then she had seen it attack in whatever direction she had pointed her sword. But when it had protected her from the lightning blast she had pointed the sword at the ground. Was there more to it than that?
“It’s willpower,” Darnas said. Yoyo looked up at him for the first time in several minutes. She hadn’t even realized their fight had been paused.
“What?” she asked.
“Your sword. It works on willpower,” Darnas said and pointed at his own sword. “Our swords are imbued with an Amp power. This is something you should already know. Weapons being imbued with Amp is nothing new, but some mixtures of Amp with some weapons create interesting results. Hence, a sword that can shoot lightning, or a sword that can give off killer smoke.”
“Yeah, I already kind of got all that,” Yoyo said. “But I am not really sure how it all works?”
“Amp resonates with the soul of the person,” Darnas said. “The weak are controlled by the power of Amp. That’s why we have a new bunch of freaks on the street every week. And a bunch dead right after. But those who are strong willed control their amp and harness it. You took that sword from Destinykil. He was strong willed, but he went down to you. Now that sword is reacting to your will. And its becoming even stronger.”
“Interesting,” Yoyo said as she felt it dawning on her. A smile spread across her face as she stared at the sword. “You know, ever since I first put this sword on my back to battle I felt it calling me to kill. And I was afraid of wielding it. I saw what it had done to Destinykil.”
Darnas got in a fighting stance. Something about the way she was standing and staring at the sword unnerved him. The calm swordsman from before seemed to be disappearing into a much more threatening form. Had the curse of the sword consumed her?
Yoyo looked over at Darnas and laughed. “It would seem the demon inside of me was stronger after all. This sword will bend to my will.”
****
Q charged at Venomu head on. The very sight of the tall gangly man made Q’s stomach churn as he rushed at him. Venomu had been the cause of more than enough of their grief. “You!” Q yelled. “If it hadn’t been for you.”
Venomu smiled as he watched Q rush at him. “Indeed, Q,” Venomu hissed as the man raced across his lab. “If it weren’t for me.”
Q’s fist floated through the air without impacting anything. He could see the vision of Venomu moving to Q’s left. He couldn’t help but get the feeling that Venomu was coiling around him like a snake. His eyes watching him like prey.
Q planted his foot solidly in front of him and turned his heel in the direction of Venomu. His other foot swiped through the air as he released a kick. Q watched as the man backed away from Q’s kick with ease.
“You have no idea how many people think that, Q,” Venomu said. “If it hadn’t been for me, TFK would of never had to divide up the city. If it weren’t for me, Mikel would of overtaken TFK. If it weren’t for me, the military couldn’t of overrun the gangs. If it weren’t for me a lot of families wouldn’t have lost their loved ones to my experiments. And yes, if it weren’t for me your gang may of never disintegrated and you may of never lost your friend.”
Venomu grabbed Q by his shirt and flung him across the room. Q’s body slammed into a row of machines and he felt the jagged bits dig into his skin. “And you know what, Q?” Venomu said. “I don’t care. About any of it. I’m interested in only two things. Running this city. And understanding everything possible. Anything else is futility. And you people and your petty problems? Your lives? They don’t matter to me.”
“Shut up! Venomu!” Q yelled as he stood up. “I’ll-”
“Q, you shut up!” Bano ordered him. Q looked over at Bano who was walking towards him. “This guy is trying to get under your skin. He’s a master of manipulation.”
Venomu’s eyes focused on Bano for a moment. He had almost forgotten the other member of Eagle was there. “That’s not true. I am not saying these things merely to irritate you, Q. I am saying them because they’re the truth.”
Bano put his hand on Q’s shoulder and shook his head. “Q, keep it together. This guy is in the same league as people like TFK. He’s a monster. But together, we’re going to stop him.”
Venomu snickered. “The rats of the city sure are talking big.”
Q took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them he smiled at Bano. “Thanks,” he said.
“Mhm,” Bano said and turned towards Venomu. “Oh, and we’re not rats, Venomu. We’re Eagles.”
****
Clair began firing ice arrows at Arashi. Arashi caught the first one and swung it through the air. Clair’s jaw dropped as he used the arrow to cut the other arrows in half. “That, wow, he’s,” Clair stuttered.
Knssquad‘s eyes narrowed. “Careful, Clair,” she said as she pulled out her banana bat and an apple. “This guy just got much more powerful.”
“That’s true,” Knssquad heard a voice say from behind her. She immediately threw the apple up and slammed her bat into it. The apple flew in the direction of the voice and exploded.
Knssquad quickly searched through the dust for any indication that she had hit Arashi. “Missed,” Knssquad realized. Arashi flashed into her vision and slammed his fist into her face. Knssquad stumbled back from the attack and yelled out in pain.
Arashi moved his arm back and twisted his body over the arrow Clair had launched at him. As his feet touched the ground he saw another arrow flying towards his position. He grabbed it with his left hand and slung back.
Clair dropped to the ground as one of her own arrows whizzed past her. She heard it thunk into the ground behind her. “Wow,” she breathed as Arashi stood imbetween herself and Knssquad.
“Where did you get all this extra power?” Knssquad asked as she touched her cheek. She winced a bit from the pain and glared at Arashi.
Arashi smiled. “I’ll admit, you girls surprised me with your strength back there. I thought I could take you on my own, but it looked like I needed Venomu’s supplements, afterall.”
Arashi held up a small pill and then tossed it into his mouth. “Venomu’s created a supplement system for me to help me in strength. My speed is the fastest but my finishing blows aren’t great. But after just one pill my power becomes unstoppable! And that was my third.”
****
Yoyo leapt towards Darnas who blocked her sword with his own. He was surprised at the sudden change in demeanor. The girl who had been carefully holding back was suddenly like an animal unleashed from its cage. Darnas grunted as he felt the immense pressure of Yoyo’s attack. His hands burned as they gripped his sword handle.
Smoke shot out of the sword like spears in Darnas’s direction. He jumped away from them and kicked his foot into the wall. A chunk of cement fell from it and blocked the path of the smoke.
Yoyo’s swords sliced through the cement block as she chased after Darnas. Her eyes scanned the dark tunnel for any sign of him. “Where are you?” she cooed.
She sensed the room getting brighter as a flash of light moved towards her. She immediately assumed a cloak of black smoke around her body that repelled the attack. Darnas groaned as he realized that attacking from behind wouldn’t do him any good.
Yoyo leapt out of the black smoke and clashed both of her swords into Darnas’s. He parlayed her attacks aside and jabbed his sword towards her. Electricity sparked in the air as Yoyo’s small sword directed Darnas’s sword away from hers. Yoyo had an opening and she brought her giant sword down on Darnas.
Darnas slipped past the attack and sighed. “Too close,” he said as he landed behind Yoyo.
Yoyo spun around and stared at Darnas. Her mouth was agape as she looked at him. “Yeah, that’s right,” Darnas said. “I’m faster than you.”
****
Bano sped towards Venomu. A trail of smoke followed behind him as he zigzagged across the lab. Bano moved in on Venomu from behind but backed out at the last second. Venomu could sense Bano was now coming from his left instead but he couldn’t understand his attack pattern. “What’s he up to?” Venomu asked himself as he saw Bano’s cloud of smoke thickening.
Bano launched himself into the air and flew directly over Venomu. The man watched him disappear into a curtain of cloud to his right. His visibility had greatly decreased. “You’ve got great acrobatics, Bano,” Venomu complimented. “But I don’t have all day, so if we’re doing something here can we get to it already?”
From behind he sensed a force flying out of the white smoke. Venomu reached out and blocked the kama by quickly motioning both of Bano’s hands away from him. Bano took advantage of the opportunity and locked his feet in close to Venomu’s. He tried to step away but found his arms reaching up to stop Bano’s elbow from reaching his skull.
Venomu grabbed Bano’s other hand and stopped it as the Kama blade aimed for his stomach. In that instant he realized what was going on. He looked up as Q’s fist appeared out of the smoke cloud above him. Venomu dropped to the ground and yanked Bano’s body forward.
Q threw his other hand out and pulled his fist back as Bano’s body was shoved between him and Venomu. His hand landed on Bano’s shoulder and he launched himself off of it and into a flip over the two of them. Q slammed his foot into the ground near Venomu.
Venomu’s eyes widened as he sensed a vibration shooting toward him from below the ground. Venomu quickly leapt back to his feet as the ground beneath him exploded. Bano took that opportunity and slammed his elbow into Venomu’s chest.
Venomu grunted as he fell back. His hands went up as he blocked a kick from Q. He jumped back from the two of them to a comfortable distance. The two of them quickly faded into the white smoke. He carefully moved from place to place as their shadows danced around him in all directions.
“To actually land a hit on me,” Venomu complained. He leapt into the air as a kama sliced through the spot he had been standing. A body met him in the air and he found himself blocking a series of punches from Q. As his feet touched the ground he twisted his shoulders away from Q. He narrowly dodged another kama attack.
Venomu stumbled backward away from the two of them. He was amazed at how powerful the two of them were as a team in this smoke. His eyes darted all around him as he expected their next attack. A familiar noise caught his ear as the ground exploded beneath him. “Shoot,” he said as he felt himself flying into the air from the power.
Venomu put his arms up as he came back to the ground but Bano had already jumped through the opening. Bano jabbed his kama into Venomo’s chest and stretched his arms out till he had sliced clean through him. Venomu yelled as he landed on the ground. Blood was spilling from his chest from where Bano had opened him. Blood and a green acidic substance.
He pulled himself up and put his hand to his chest. He felt the spot where the blood and green substance was and growled. “These guys are a serious threat,” Venomu said. “I can’t hold back at all or I really could lose.”
****
“Behind you,” Mikel said as Jan turned her body and slammed her fist into another attacker. The man’s skull shatted before her and she kicked his body away from them.
“To your left,” Mikel said. Jan turned to her left and elbowed a man. She had slammed her elbow straight into a tube that ended up exploding. The man’s body landed a few feet away.
“Wow!” Jan laughed.
“Stay focused,” Mikel said as he grabbed a person that was moving towards them. Jan regained control and kicked the person into a building.
“Sorry!” Jan said. “It was just kinda funny looking.”
Mikel was too exhausted to argue. He had been jumping into control of their body every time Jan missed a blind spot for hours now. Anytime the two switched control it was tiring. That and the immense amount of fighting they’d been doing was getting to him.
Jan grabbed a guy to her right and flung him into another guy. She then started slamming the body around and laughed. “Its like baseball!” she giggled.
“No,” Mikel said.
“Oh,” Jan answered. “Um, soccer?”
Mikel gave up. Jan jumped high into the air and smashed the skull of another monster. “Hey Jan,” Mikel asked.
“Yeah?” Jan answered as she kicked the monster into the ground and landed on top of him.
“How much longer can you keep this up without losing control?”
“I can keep going. I can keep going!” Jan reassured Mikel.
“I know that’s not true,” Mikel answered as he regained control and snapped the neck of an attacker with his left hand. “You ran out of energy a long time ago.”
“I can keep going!” Jan answered. “Until we’re through I promise to keep going.”
Jan grabbed a nearby guy and threw him into a car. “Goal!”
****
Yoyo blocked Darnas’s sword with her own. She had grown accustomed to the sparks flying off his attacks as their swords clashed. The smoke between them reflected each spark creating a blue aura as the two of them fought. Yoyo gripped her swords tighter as she pushed back against Darnas’s blade.
The sound of metal grating metal ricocheted across the underground catacomb as Yoyo’s other sword was blocked. The smoke gathered around Darnas and he leapt away from it. Yoyo’s eyes followed him as he attacked from above.
She stopped the attack with her larger sword and quickly aimed the smaller one for his side. His body twisted in mid air and landed on the ground away from her. She swung her larger sword out towards the man in front of him but he blocked it with a flick of his wrist. Yoyo flinched as the lightning moved towards her. The smoke caught it and stopped it but Yoyo couldn’t help feeling open every time he did it. When the smoke faded he had disappeared.
Yoyo smashed her sword into the wall next to her and slit the wall open. “You keep running away! Its frustrating!” Yoyo yelled. She noticed movement to the right of her.
Yoyo leapt towards the figure and smashed her sword into his. She slid her other sword across his chest and smiled. Yoyo landed behind him and couldn‘t help but get excited. Blood was dripping from her sword. She watched in mild amusement as the smoke gathered around it and consumed it. She had managed to get him. And if she could get him once she was sure she could get him again.
Darnas grunted as he hit the ground. That attack had caught him by surprise and her slash was amazing. If he took many more blows like that he’d truly be in trouble. He knew there was no more holding back with her. Even if she had started the fight hesitantly she had truly transformed into a monster at this point in the battle. He looked at her closely and could feel a dark aura emanating away from her.
Darnas sheathed his sword and held it out in front of him. “What the heck are you doing?” Yoyo asked. “Giving up over one cut? You’re kind of lousy.”
“No,” Darnas said as the sound of thunder filled the room. Yoyo looked at him as if he was crazy but Darnas concentrated on what he was doing. After a moment the thunder sound finished.
Darnas pulled the sword out and Yoyo was a bit surprised. The blade now reflected a deep violet color. Darnas swung the sword through the air and Yoyo watched as a powerful electric shock exploded from it. The smoke formed a ball around Yoyo to protect her from the explosion.
“Interesting!” Yoyo yelled.
“Yeah,” Darnas said as he held the sword over his head. “Venomu designed the scabbard so that if I shot lightning into it I could charge it to a whole different level.”
Yoyo crashed her sword into his. He blocked it with ease and swung his arm out. Yoyo jumped back as she realized that his sword had over powered hers. She watched him as he held his sword out away from him.
Yoyo barely had time to react as he sped toward her. Yoyo blocked his attack and then felt herself blocking another as his speed increased. She could barely keep up with his attacks as she fended each one off.
The smoke attacked Darnas at his feet and forced him back a few steps. Yoyo smiled. She could take him down. The smoke attacked Darnas again and Yoyo stepped towards him. She swung her blade down on Darnas.
He quickly cut through the smoke and blocked Yoyo’s attack blade. Yoyo stabbed her smaller blade towards him. Darnas stepped back and blocked that attack. Yoyo froze as she heard the sound of something clanking against the ground.
She pulled the handle of her smaller sword up to her face. “Not another broken sword,” Yoyo complained and threw the handle away. “Why does this keep happening to me during fights?”
Darnas laughed. “My blade has the power to cut through steel right now. Its amazing that your other blade hasn’t broken. But this is over.”
The smoke created a wall between Yoyo and Darnas. Yoyo watched as the wall exploded away from the impact of Darnas’s sword. Darnas swung his sword down on Yoyo. Yoyo blocked the attack but could barely hold onto her sword. Darnas‘s power was overwhelming her.
Yoyo screamed as she felt the tip of the warm metal slicing into her. The lightning had shot a hole through her chest. Every part of her body was itching with pain and the part where the blade had gone in was agonizing. She hit the ground with a thud. Her sword dropped noisily beside her.
She tried to catch her breath as every muscle in her body ached. “That sword of yours is pretty good,” Yoyo heard Darnas say. “I am no good with two swords, but it might be good to hold onto anyway. Maybe switch it up during battle with it.”
Yoyo’s arm grabbed the handle of her sword instinctively. She could feel its bloodlust in her hand. Darnas watched her as she pulled herself to her feet and coughed. “Yeah, right. You think this is over? Keep dreaming. You’re going to lose this. Everyone is counting on me to stop you here. And I’m going to.”
****
“Little Shiro! Little Shiro!” a cop yelled as he ran up to the man. Endless Nothing and Little Shiro turned to look at him.
“Yes?” Little Shiro asked. He could tell the urgency in the man‘s voice would probably end up bringing him trouble. “Did the army breach our line somewhere?”
“No sir, it’s not that. But according to JJDomer someone has already started an attack on Venomu,” the man said.
“Who? Is it TFK?” Little Shiro asked.
“No, its not TFK. Although Punkfilter and Draco have been sighted outside of the Tower in the last hour. But the ones fighting Venomu are the Eagle gang, sir,” the man said. “JJDomer is planning to capture whichever one survives the battle.”
Little Shiro paused for a moment. “Well, they are the ones that stopped the Fourth Mafia. Maybe they could pull it off. But Venomu is a completely different beast than Shugo and those others were. Oh, and it doesn’t matter what I tell JJDomer, he’ll do whatever he wants anyway.”
“There is someone fighting Venomu right now?” Endless Nothing asked. Both men nodded.
“Take me there at once,” Endless ordered.
“Mr. Mayor, I can’t permit you to endanger yourself by going there,” Little Shiro said. “Venomu’s lair is far too dangerous.”
Endless Nothing ignored Little Shiro. “I’m going. I can help whoever is fighting Venomu.”
****
Knssquad felt her arm twitching as she came back to. The last thing she had remembered seeing was a pillar flying towards her. Standing next to her was Clair who was covered in injuries.
Knssquad moved back to her feet. Her banana bat had been lost somewhere in battle and she had run out of apple grenades, too. She only had two weapons yet and she wasn‘t sure about either of them. Clair nodded at Knssquad. “I’ve kept him off of you while you were out of it,” she wheezed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t do more. My armor is about to crack. I keep having to remake it and its draining me.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Knssquad answered as she looked across the room at Arashi. He stood there staring at the two of them. “Is there any plan?”
“I don’t have one. I just keep getting attacked from all sides,” Clair said honestly. “He’s insane.”
“I have two experimental weapons I brought with me,” Knssquad said. “But I need a clear opening to hit him with it. It might weaken him enough so that we can finish him off.”
“Alright,” Clair said as she aimed her bow at Arashi. “I’ll cover for you.”
“Will you?” Arashi said from behind Clair. His hand smashed into her cheek and sent her sprawling across the room.
Arashi ran towards Knssquad but was stopped by a volley of arrows. He sighed as he looked over at Clair who had fired them. “Your arrows aren’t effective,” he said as he crisscrossed the room.
Clair continued firing arrows at him as he moved. She jumped back a few feet after she fired each arrow hoping she could keep some distance between Arashi and herself. Arashi continued flashing toward her as her arrows followed him. He was getting closer much faster than she had expected.
Her foot hit the wall behind her and she realized she had gone as far back as she could go. She jumped to her left as Arashi’s fist smashed into the wall behind her. She shot an arrow at him as she fell onto her back. Arashi caught the arrow with his hand and flung it back at Clair.
Clair grimaced as the arrow pierced her arm. She aimed her bow at Arashi but soon found herself being lifted into the air. Arashi had grabbed Clair by her arm and smashed her body into a wall. Clair’s armor shattered around her and she winced from the impact.
Knssquad bounced toward Arashi from a pillar inside the garage. Arashi saw Knssquad and launched Clair’s body in Knssquad’s direction. “Sorry,” Knssquad said to Clair as she kicked off of Clair‘s stomach. Clair landed on the ground with a thud and moaned.
“Geez, Knssquad,” Clair coughed.
Knssquad slammed a pie into Arashi’s face. She moved to jump away but felt her hand caught by Arashi’s. A snapping noise told her that her arm had just been broken from Arashi’s strength.
An explosion allowed Knssquad to roll away from the spot. Clair stared as the spot where Arashi sunk in and the wall behind him fell to pieces. “That was a big explosion,” Clair said.
“Yeah, apple pie,” Knssquad smiled. “Made with real apple grenades.”
Arashi stumbled forward a few steps. His body twitched as his hand moved toward his mouth. “One more pill,” he said. “If I take one more. I can do this.”
Knssquad raced towards Arashi and threw another weapon at him. She quickly braced herself for what was about to come. Arashi stared at Knssquad as the cup flew through the air towards him. A second later it popped. Out of it spun thousands of pieces of metal that hit him in a fury.
He fell into the ground. “Losing to girls,” Arashi whispered. “How unfun.”
Knssquad turned toward Clair. Blood was dripping out of her as the pieces of metal buried into her skin. “Shrapnel milkshake,” Knssquad whispered. “I um, haven’t really figured it out yet. I was kind of hoping not to use it.”
Knssquad collapsed. Clair rushed over to her and began to heal her wounds. “We made a good team,” Clair said to Knssquad as her body shuddered from the pain. Clair winced as she watched tears form around Knssquad‘s eyes. Knssquad closed them tight and laughed.
“Sorry I used you for a springboard there,” Knssquad said.
“Eh, it happens,” Clair said. “Well, no, it doesn’t. But it didn’t hurt.”
“Pfft,” Knssquad said doubted.
Clair’s attention drifted away from Knssquad as she heard footsteps behind them. She looked back and frowned. “Cops.”
****
Bano jumped away from the spot where he had sliced into Venomu and smiled. Their team work had done it. Even the Mafia were no match for Q and him when they were at their full strength. He could hear Venomu saying something into the air but he wasn’t sure what it was.
A wave of air hit Bano in the face and surprised him. The smoke was beginning to fade and the lab was becoming clearer. “What is this?” he asked as he pulled his Kama up. He could feel the air pressure emanating from the spot where Venomu had been knocked down. “Is this his power?” Bano questioned.
Bano felt suddenly felt the force moving towards him. Bano tried to move but he his body was frozen in place. He wasn’t sure why but his body felt like it had become glued to the ground from the intense pressure. His eyes widened as he realized Venomu was directly in front of him.
Bano’s eyes focused on Venomu‘s clawed hand. He didn’t recall Venomu having that ability before. He willed his body to move but it was still frozen in place. He did his best to embrace for what he could tell was going to be a painful attack.
A kick to Bano’s chest sent him crashing into the dirt. Q wasn’t sure why Bano had just stood there like that but he had to get him out of Venomu’s way. “You kicked me!” Bano yelled. He suddenly jumped with joy as he realized that he could move again.
“A bit rough,” Venomu said as he motioned towards Q with a thumbs up, “But well done either way, Q.”
“Well, I did it for your approval,” Q groaned. He stared at Venomu for a moment. Something about him was different. Not only in his look, but his entire feel had changed.
“You,” Q mumbled as he tried to explain what he was looking at. “You have claws?”
“Why yes, how observant of you,” Venomu said as he opened and closed his hands. Where once fingers had been there were five bladed claws on each hand. Each dripped with a green liquid. “This is my Amplified form.”
“Your what?” Q asked. Bano walked up to Q and held his kama out. His body had no trouble moving now.
“Why couldn’t I move?” Bano asked.
“Fighting before an Amplified form is immensely pressure some for someone who has no natural amp like yourself,” Venomu rolled his eyes. “Its like you two don’t know anything about Amp. And you’ve had powers all your life. Pathetic.”
He stretched his arms out and Q felt his stomach churn as he watched the arm stretch to an unrealistic length. It was as if Venomu’s arms had become whips in front of him. “What in the World?” Q asked again, horrified.
“I didn’t really intend to show this power to you guys,” Venomu began. “I had been arrogant up until this point to think I could defeat you without my full power. No more. My power is over that of poisons. I found this power out through an accidental experiment in my lab. I inhaled what should of killed me, but instead I found myself just fine from it. Since then I knew that poisons couldn’t harm me. And I found that the manipulation of some substances made me much stronger.”
“The liquid dripping from the ‘claws’ as you described them is a horrible toxin. If it so much as touches your skin you can count your hours left on a single hand. If I manage to so much as knick you though, you‘re out of the battle,” Venomu smiled.
“Yeah, that’s great, but you still haven’t explained what an Amplification form is,” Q stared at Venomu. “Nor why the heck your body is like that all of a sudden.”
Venomu glared at Q in annoyance. “I daily ingest large amounts of poison in case I am to battle. These poisons lay dormant in my system, and spread out throughout my entire body. However, when I activate my powers to their fullest the chemicals in my body allow me to control it completely at my discretion. Expanding or shrinking limbs is simple.”
Q watched in horrified fascination as Venomu expanded the size of his hand to that of a giants and smashed it towards them. Both Bano and Q dodged away from it as it smashed through the lab. In an instant Venomu’s hand became normal sized again and stretched out away from him at an impossible distance.
“This is unreal,” Bano said as he dodged the clawed hand. It expanded its size and Bano felt himself flying into the air from the impact of it hitting him. He hit a wall across the lab and felt blood dripping out of his mouth. “What the heck?”
Q dashed towards Venomu while his concentration was on Bano. He swung his fist into Venomu’s stomach. Venomu’s body rocked backward. However, Q’s fist wasn’t making the impact he expected. Instead Q felt his own body rocketing away from Venomu.
“Well that doesn’t make any sense,” Q said as he landed on his feet a distance away.
“Did you get him?” Bano asked as he stood back up. He jumped over a claw that had whipped across the lab toward him.
“I hit him,” Q said as he struggled to piece together what happened. “But it was like, hitting a trampoline?”
Q watched as a giant arm expanded and smashed into him. He planted his feet into the ground and did his best to hold off the giant hand. The power behind the swinging arm was enormous. “Or more like, fighting a giant water balloon. My attack didn‘t really impact. Sorta just deflected off of him,” Q struggled against the massively oversized hand in front of him.
“Then I’ll pop him,” Bano said as he dashed towards Venomu. Venomu’s arm snapped back into place and he swung it out towards Bano. It shrunk to the size of a small rope and coiled around Bano’s leg. “Wha?”
Bano stomped his foot onto the coil that was Venomu’s arm. The poisonous claw missed his leg by an inch. “That was too close,” Bano breathed out.
Bano yelled as the arm that had encircled his leg expanded against him. He could feel it forming a vice around him and brutally crushing his foot as it expanded. Bano fell to his knees as he felt his body go numb. “Shoot,” Bano said. “I’ll be useless like this.”
He reached out and cut off the ropelike arm that had attached itself to his leg. The pressure released as he watched Venomu’s arm snap back to him. Bano’s relief was short lived as he watched green sludge and gas pour out of the other half of his arm. “Holy,” Bano said as he crawled away from the spot. “What is this guy?”
Bano crawled behind a machine and attempted to catch his breath. He had only one good idea left. However, he wasn’t even sure if he could pull it off with his leg in this condition. Running wouldn’t exactly be easy. Bano also wasn’t too certain if this move would work. He’d only ever realized it could be done in theory. He hadn’t exactly tested it out. He was a bit afraid to because if it failed it could ruin his kama or seriously injure himself.
Bano closed his eyes for a moment. He needed to get his concentration off the pain in his leg. He had to focus on his plan. He’d wait for a moment when Q had Venomu distracted. A surprise attack was his best shot. With only one arm Venomu would be weakened. He opened his eyes.
Venomu was standing in front of him. Both of his arms attached. “Done napping, Bano?” Venomu asked. “I knew you liked to sleep but even during a battle?”
Venomu stepped on Bano’s weak leg. Bano bit his lip to keep from yelling out in pain. “Oh, you’re pretty tough, huh?” he asked as he put more pressure on it.
“Screw you,” Bano said as he stared Venomu in the eye.
“Such an eloquent sentiment,” Venomu said as he extended his right hand‘s claws towards Bano‘s face. “Cutting off my arm hurt, you know that?”
“How did-”
“How did it grow back? My body is infused with all kinds of chemicals. Some are toxic and will kill you. But other chemicals allow me to manipulate my body, as you’ve seen. Well others can allow me to instantly heal injuries. Even to the point of growing back a missing limb. Impressive, isn’t it?” Venomu asked. A drop of poison fell from his claw and touched Bano’s hair. “Oops.”
Bano’s kama sliced through the patch of hair and he rolled away from the spot.
“Too close,” he breathed as saw where the drop of poison had hit the floor. A hole had burned into the cement.
“Well that was cool,” Venomu said as he walked over to the spot Bano had rolled to. He stepped on Bano’s leg again and smiled. “But I don’t really want you to do that again, so I think I‘ll just finish you here, okay? Even though I managed to smack Q through a few walls I am guessing he’ll be back soon and I don’t want you sneaking around while I’m fighting him.”
Bano leapt onto his good foot and head butted Venomu. He rocked back from the attack and began to fall backward. Bano gripped his kama and jabbed them through Venomu’s chest. Bano screamed as poison dripped out of his body and seared itself into his skin. It was too late to worry about that. Bano had to finish Venomu with this move.
Fire burst out of his kama and he smiled to himself. Even though he’d properly gotten his Kama to super heat in battle, he’d never managed to heat it to the point that it ignited into flames. He ignored the pain in his aching body and used all the strength he had left to force the kama blades down to the ground. His kama had tore two giant gashes straight down Venomu‘s torso.
Venomu didn’t move as he stared at Bano. Both of them were in immense pain. “You Eagles,” Venomu stuttered. “I’ve been using you for a while, but even I’m surprised you guys came this far.”
Venomu’s position slouched as he shook his head. “But not far enough, kid. I can still regenerate.”
Bano dropped to his knees. His leg couldn’t hold him up any longer. “Maybe,” Bano said. “But you better regenerate fast, guy.”
Venomu turned and groaned. Q was standing behind him. “Yo Q, I injured him. Finish this loser off so we can go back to the bar. I’m pretty tired,” Bano said as he laid his head down.
“Take a nap, Bano, I got it from here,” Q said as he glared at Venomu.
“Give me that dirty face all you want, Q, but it won’t help your friend any,” Venomu said. “I don’t have time for this.”
****
Yoyo held onto her sword with both hands. It had been something that had terrified and mesmerized her before. And now it was her only shot at defeating Darnas. There was no way she was letting it go.
“Very well,” Darnas said. “I am impressed by your spirit. But if you continue I can’t promise you’ll keep your limbs. Or live.”
Yoyo held up her hand and stuck out her tongue. “Please, I’ve already lost a finger. I don’t care about that crap.”
She couldn’t charge Darnas. She didn’t have the energy. All she could do was hope that she could cut him before he cut her down. The pain from his attack was still draining her.
Darnas slammed his sword into Yoyo’s. Yoyo nearly fell back from the power of the explosion but she held firm. She slid her sword toward him and forced him to back away. She slammed her sword into his and forced him to block. His sword exploded again.
Yoyo’s eyes widened as she glimpsed the sword heading towards her. The smoke caught the blade and nullified its attack before reaching her. The explosion from it managed to knock her to the ground. She rolled backward and onto her feet with her blade ready.
Yoyo leapt forward and stabbed her blade. Darnas blocked the attack and Yoyo’s momentum continued toward him. “No! No!” Yoyo screamed inwardly. She was wide open for an attack.
Darnas’s sword entered through Yoyo’s stomach and came out her back. Yoyo’s mouth was open but no sound came out as she felt the explosion crush her body. Her muscles tensed as she fell backwards and hit the ground. Her eyes were open from the pain.
“You’re right, I will remember your name,” Yoyo whispered. “Darnas.”
Darnas stood motionless above Yoyo. His chest wide open from the attack he had taken. He hadn’t seen it at all. “Sorry about your sword, miss. Take this one,” he said as he dropped his next to her. His body dropped into the water running next to them.
Yoyo smiled despite the horrible pain. She had another sword. She looked over at it and thought for a moment. “One to protect my friends,” she said as she looked at the smoke still hanging in the air. “And one to kill anyone that gets in my way.”
****
Q dashed across the lab towards Venomu. He aimed to punch Venomu who dodged the attack. “You know,” Venomu said. “You’ve seen my amplified form, but I have yet to see yours.”
Q narrowly leapt over a claw and landed a few feet away from Venomu. “What are you talking about?” Q asked.
“Not just anyone can have an amplified form,” Venomu explained. “It takes a lot of willpower to pull it off. Yet you are one of the few in WOTNOPOLIS who have done it.”
Q leapt across the room and smashed his foot down. Venomu blocked the attack and wrapped his arm around Q’s foot. Q tried to punch Venomu through the face but was sent flying across the lab.
“I don’t really know what you’re talking about,” Q yelled as he jumped out of the pile of machines he just crashed into. He swung his foot down on Venomu again. Venomu frowned.
“You’ve done that attack already,” he said as he rammed his elbow into Q’s gut and slammed him into the floor. “It didn’t work the first time, either.”
Venomu glared down at Q. “You know, the reason I haven’t already poisoned you was because I wanted to see your amplified form. Its rare that other Amp users access it and its very important that I can study it when it does happen. Besides, my plan is already falling apart. Might as well enjoy this.”
Q stood back up and shook his head. “What do you mean my amplified form?” Q asked.
“The form you take when you access your amp’s power. I know you’ve accessed it. You accessed it in your battle with Destinykil, Bano, and Seshimazi, for starters,” Venomu sighed. “Haven’t you ever noticed your power increase? And here I thought you were beginning to control it.”
Q ignored Venomu and charged towards him. His fist was pulled back ready to punch. Venomu frowned as he watched Q speed towards him. “So disappointing, Q,” Venomu said. “And here I had been paying attention to you. But you really were just another termite in the foundation.”
Venomu caught Q with his hand and buried his claws into Q’s skin. Q screamed in pain as his side was ripped open by Venomu.
Venomu shook his head as he watched Q writhe in pain. “And to think that the last time you were here you told me you were going to defeat me and then defeat TFK? What an absolute joke,” Venomu said as he stepped on Q’s side.
Q grabbed Venomu’s leg and smirked. “So you want to see my amplified attack?”
Q’s fist smashed into Venomu’s chest and he watched as the man fell back. Green poison had dripped onto his hand from the attack and he bit his lip to hold back the pain. His hearing returned to him and he smiled. “Yeah, I realized that your amplified form was the same as my loss of hearing deal straight away. But I didn’t want to just go telling you, did I?”
Venomu stood back up and shook his head with a smile. “Well done, Q. You completely fooled me. But you let your friend’s sacrifice be in vain. Now my poison is coursing through your system, too.”
“Tch,” Q said as he got back into a fighting stance. “Like I was going to let Bano die dramatically all by himself. First I’m going to beat you here and now, and then Bano and I are going to survive. Somehow. I haven’t really thought it through.”
“Geez,” Venomu said. “Then let’s see whose amplified form is more powerful.”
****
“I’m sorry,” Jan said as Mikel’s body dropped to his knees. “I can’t go any farther, Mikel. I’m so sorry. If I do I‘ll lose control and well.”
“Its no big deal,” Mikel said as he took control quickly. There was still a number of Venomu’s men left but Jan had managed to destroy most of them. Mikel charged towards the group of attackers and smashed his fists into two men.
“I’m sorry, Mikel,” Jan said. “I just know how important it is that I don’t lose control again. I’m sorry, Mikel.”
“Be quiet and rest for the both of us. I’ll finish this, easy,” Mikel said as he slammed his knee into a nearby attacker. A man grabbed Mikel and slammed a punch into him.
Mikel twisted the man by his arm and threw him into the ground. Mikel crushed his skull under his foot and growled. He hated to admit it but Jan had most of their power. But he also knew that Jan worked very hard to keep from losing control and he couldn‘t let her keep going. It was too much pressure on her and if she lost control Mikel wouldn‘t be able to get it back. Mikel dodged another blow and grabbed the man by his head.
Venomu had managed to give most of Mikel’s strength to Jan. He had never fully understood how Venomu had pulled that off, but he believed it had something to do with the fact that Jan had Amp power that naturally consumed their strength. It was probably a once in a lifetime move and Venomu had used it perfectly on him.
Mikel grimaced as his body was smashed into the ground. A kick from one of Venomu’s men had taken him down. Mikel leapt up and kicked his attacker back. He jumped back into the battle. He didn’t know how much longer he could keep going, either.
****
Bano felt someone poking him in the shoulder. He didn’t bother to open his eyes. “Venomu, if its you just go ahead and finish me off. Q, if its you cry over me somewhere else,” he complained and waved his hand.
“I guess he isn’t dead, Mr. Mayor,” Shiro said.
Bano opened his eyes after hearing Shiro’s voice. He saw Endless Nothing and Little Shiro looking at him. “Eh, what do you guys want, I’m in the middle of fighting here?” Bano asked.
“Is it just me or does something about this guy tick you off?” Shiro asked as he looked down at the guy.
“Will you stop, Venomu?” Endless Nothing asked Bano. “Please. Please stop Venomu. I can’t. I’m not strong enough to fight. I’m too weak.”
“I would love to,” Bano said. “But I’m dying. And I didn’t really want to spend my last moments talking to Shiro.”
“Nice to see you, too,” Shiro grumbled.
Endless Nothing pulled a vial out of his pocket. “Drink this and you‘ll survive the poison.”
Bano grabbed the vial and looked at Endless Nothing for a moment. “You’re serious?”
“It’ll only stop the poison from killing you,” Endless said. “It won’t do anything about the pain.”
Bano swallowed the contents of the vial. “Ew, tastes disgusting, like a cherry coke or something. Do you have any others?”
“Yeah, I do,” Endless said. “Its really all I can do. I’m sorry to say that in defeating my brother, this is the best I can offer.”
Bano stood up slowly and pulled out his kama. “He‘s your brother, huh? Eh, I don‘t really care about that kind of thing. But I‘ll do my best here. Oh, and save a vial for that idiot Q, please.”
****
Seshi leapt down from the top of the building he’d been sitting on for a few hours. He landed next to the man who had been punching the same body over and over for the past ten minutes. The thumping of the man slamming his fists into the ground was driving Seshi crazy. “Hey dude,” Seshi said to the giant of a man. “Its over, guy. You finished them off.”
Seshi was surprised when the man didn’t stop punching the mangled corpse. “Hey, I said its over,” Seshi yelled. The man didn’t seem to notice Seshi’s existence.
Seshi walked over to him and looked him in the eyes for a moment. “Oh,” Seshi said. “You’re not conscious.”
“He went unconscious after he finished the last guy off. But I wouldn’t touch him or he’ll take you down in that state,” Seshi heard a man behind him say. Seshi turned toward the man unsure of what was going on.
“Who might you be?” the man smiled.
“I’m Seshimazi,” he answered. “But I had nothing to do with this stuff here. I was just watching.”
“I’m Draco,” the man said. “Nice to meet you.”
Seshi’s felt his limbs go numb. The man laughed as he saw Seshimazi’s reaction. “Oh, don’t worry. I don’t plan to attack you. But that man behind you. He is a different story.”
Seshimazi threw a fireball at Draco. He wasn’t sure what had compelled him to do it, but he felt he had to protect Mikel. “Wow, that was neat,” he heard Draco say from behind him. “So you’re a fire guy or something?”
Seshimazi turned towards Draco. Draco was standing next to Mikel. “I feel bad about killing someone in Mikel’s current state. Its not befitting someone as strong as Mikel. And I can’t just let you go after you challenged me. So how about this. I’ll attack each of you once. And then be on my way,” Draco said.
Seshimazi’s eyes couldn’t sense the attack. He was sure Draco had punched Mikel in the chest but he couldn’t comprehend it. Blood dripped from Mikel’s chest and he watched as the giant man collapsed onto his back. His earlier incessant punching ended.
“And now you,” Seshi heard a voice say. In an instant Seshi felt his eyes closing as the world around him disappeared.
****
Q kicked his foot off the ground and lifted his right fist into the air. Q punched Venomu but the blow was blocked by a hand. Q inwardly screamed as he felt his fist slam into Venomu‘s open claw. He pulled his hand back and grimaced as blood dripped from it.
“Hey Q,” Venomu said. “Before I kill you, I wanted to tell you something that I think is pretty remarkable. In your amplified state you’ve been breaking the sound barrier with your punches. I don’t really know how your body has been able to keep itself together through this feat, but I can’t wait to study you to find out.”
Q looked at Venomu in confusion. “I’ve been breaking the sound barrier?”
“Well, the force behind your punches has. Your body isn’t moving at the speed of sound but in that moment before your attack hits your arm or leg is,” Venomu explained. “During these attacks you transform your ability to hear into raw power using Amp. That's why you can't hear during it. Anyway, none of this matters for you since you’ll soon be dead. But, I guess you could say this is my way of congratulating you for being of note.”
“Thanks,” Q said as he held up his right hand. He could still form it into a fist, and that was enough for him.
“Anyway,” Venomu said slowly. “Thanks to you and Bano there is no way I can defeat TFK in this shape. Not that it matters, as my army is being crushed as we speak. To sum up, my entire plan has been ruined and you’re greatly to blame.”
Q wasn’t sure what to say. “I’m guessing you’re mad about that?” Q asked.
“Anger is such a pitiable emotion,” Venomu said and shook his head. “No, I’ve lived in this city long enough to know that this kind of thing happens. I’ve lived my entire life believing that even the giants of this city will fall. Of course, I was hoping it would be TFK and I’d be pushing him over a cliff. Still.”
Venomu shook his head again. He was having difficulty focusing on Q as a million thoughts were processing through him. His body wasn’t regenerating nearly as quickly as he had hoped. He’d been losing too much poison and blood. He was working with a lot less poison than he was used to operating on.
“What’s your point?” Q stared at Venomu. Despite the rambling Venomu was much more composed than Q would of expected someone in his state to be.
Venomu straightened up and gestured toward his ruined lab. Blood and poison stained the walls and had begun forming puddles in different parts of the lab. Almost all of the equipment had been crushed in some way. The lighting flickered and Venomu smiled.
“My grand plan has been utterly foiled, Q. You know very well I’ve been using you and I’ve been using everyone in WOTNOPOLIS. All with the intention of toppling TFK and becoming the new king of the city. Yet as I reached the precipice your group barged into my way. The last time you’d been here you were a hackney sack for Destinykil but you assured me you‘d be the strongest. Now here I am. Crushed. I have to know the answer. What is it you’re fighting for?”
Q pointed at the ceiling. “Its simple, Venomu. Bano and I decided we were going to reach the top of WOTNOPOLIS. Just like you. At the time we were just senselessly heading there. But overtime we made friends here. And we’ve lost friends here. And Venomu, I don’t want to lose another friend here. Not again. But as long as this city is under people like you. The kind of people who use others. We’ll always have that threat.”
Q grinned through the pain as he made his right hand into a fist and pointed it at Venomu. “Its simple, Venomu. We’ll reach the top. Higher than you, we’ll reach TFK and throw him off that cliff. And then when there’s no one else above us my friends will be safe.”
“Hahahaha,” Venomu grabbed his sides as he laughed. “Oh man. What an answer. What an answer.”
Venomu smiled as he charged across the room towards Q. He continued to grin as he watched Q charge forward to meet him in battle. Q leapt into the air but was caught by Venomu’s foot to his chest. Venomu smashed his foot into Q and slammed him into the ground of the lab.
Q’s fist smashed into Venomu’s leg and Venomu felt it snap from the pressure. Venomu stumbled back a few feet and Q jumped back to his feet. Q lifted his foot to move forward but quickly felt himself hitting the floor. “Ah, it seems the effects of the poison are kicking in at last. Although your Amp seems to have been keeping it at bay its over for you, Q.”
Venomu looked down at Q. His body was covered from head to toe in a disgusting mixture of green and red. “To think,” Venomu said. “A stupid rookie from the East…”
Q made a fist with his right hand and punched it into the ground. “Sorry, Venomu,” he said as his body shook. “I refuse to give in. Until I’ve taken you down with me.”
Venomu watched as Q staggered to his feet. His entire body was trembling from the pain. “I can’t imagine what that feels like,” Venomu said as he took a step back. “I’ve never felt poison before.”
Q felt the ground rising towards him and he kicked his foot out. He could barely keep his balance the pain was so intense. He found moving his limbs was becoming increasingly difficult. It was as if someone had tied heavy stones down to each of his limbs. He balled his right hand into a fist again. “Come on,” Q said.
“Yo,” Bano yelled from across the room. Venomu and Q looked over at Bano. Fire blazed from his kama. “Q you do know you shouldn‘t take a bath in poison, right?”
Q grinned as he stared at the floor. His limbs were getting heavier every second. “You know me, Bano,” Q wheezed. Each breath was getting harder to take. He winced as he realized he didn’t have the strength to finish that statement.
Venomu walked towards Bano. “You’re still alive, huh?” he said as he looked behind Bano. “I thought I smelled a rat. Endless I know you’re around here somewhere.”
“You’re dealing with me right now,” Bano waved his kama at Venomu. “The guy with the firey weapon. Chat it up with him later.”
“Fine,” Venomu said as he focused on Bano. Venomu stretched his arm out to attack and flinched. He didn’t have enough poison left in his system to make this attack as powerful as he wanted. He smashed the claw into Bano with what strength he had.
Bano didn’t bother dodging as he felt the claw dig through his chest. Bano felt himself dropping to his knees. Blood spilled out of his mouth.
Bano’s hands trembled as he lifted up the kama. His eyes blinked rapidly as he felt himself losing consciousness. “Now, Q,” he whispered as his head hit the ground.
Venomu shrieked in pain as he felt his arm detach for the second time in that fight. “He tricked me,” Venomu realized. “He took the attack on purpose so he could cut off my arm.”
Venomu felt Q’s fist smash into his chest. The blow didn’t have the strength to send his body flying. Venomu looked into Q’s eyes and saw they were nearly vacant. Q’s body no longer shook but was rigid. Q’s strength was completely sapped. “It was just enough, Q,” Venomu said as he fell face forward into the ground. “You guys did just enough.”
It was pure luck that Shiro was the one who had picked up the phone. He had heard it ringing and decided someone needed to answer it. The message had been one that he hadn’t been prepared for.
Breaking the news to the staff of the police headquarters had been really difficult for Shiro. He was still pretty new and he wasn’t nearly ready to take up such serious news. It was also hard because of how much everyone had cared about him. Teikiatsu had died.
Shiro sat inside the locker room for a while. Although he wasn’t particularly close to Teikiatsu, he had always looked up to him as a leader of the police. He respected what Teikiatsu had been trying to do. And he was personally impacted by the way Teikiatsu had cleaned up the streets. If it hadn’t been for Teikiatsu’s hard work then Shiro would of likely never made it to where he was.
As he stepped out of the locker room he was met by KarateKeyaQ who handed him a muffin. Shiro bit into it politely and nodded at KKQ. He could tell by the look on her face what she was thinking about. “Has he gotten back?” Shiro asked.
“No,” KaratekeyaQ answered. “I thought he should hear about Teikiatsu’s death in person so I am waiting for him to get back from his patrol.”
“That’s smart. I‘ll wait with you,” Shiro patted her on the shoulder. Neither of them were excited to see Amaterasu when he walked in. Shiro wasn’t even sure he remembered much of what they talked about. Shiro just remembered the pain on Amaterasu’s face as he took the news.
It was no surprise. Amaterasu had hung on Teikiatsu’s every word. Teikiatsu was a hero and a role model to Amaterasu. He gave him hope to save this city. Shiro had understood that since his first day at the police station. Amaterasu completely idolized his boss.
When Shiro saw Amaterasu the next day he was quick to wave him down and see how he was doing. “I’m doing fine. Why wouldn’t I be doing fine?” Amaterasu asked.
“I just thought with Tei-”
“That guy was a fool. The criminals of this city are nothing but criminals. This city will only be safe when we have every single one of them locked away. None of the gangs can ever be trusted. I will bring them all in if I have to,” Amaterasu said.
Shiro was stunned at Amaterasu’s declarations. “Hey, Teikiatsu was a good guy,” Shiro said. “The problem is the corruption in this city is thick. But Teikiatsu had done his best.”
“He was a fool,” Amaterasu repeated. “In fact his actions may have been questionably criminal, too.”
“You don’t mean that,” Shiro said to Amaterasu as he walked away from him. After a moment KKQ walked out of a room and sighed. He could tell she had heard everything between them.
“What do we do with him?” KKQ asked.
“We just leave him be, I guess. He’ll sort this out himself,” Shiro hoped.
****
Arashi Ryu stopped running in an empty garage and smiled. “Hey,” he waved to Knssquad who landed just beside him. “Sorry about making you chase me like that. Honest,” he said.
Knssquad got into a battle stance and shrugged. “Whatever,” she said. “Put Clair down.”
“Yeah,” Arashi said as he dropped Clair to the ground. “I had no intentions of carrying her for long. I just wanted to get us away from my boss so we wouldn‘t disturb him. I want to enjoy this.”
Knssquad slung a scoop of acidic ice cream at Arashi. Arashi dashed past Knssquad’s attack and smiled. “You’re not nearly fast enough to hit me,” Arashi said.
Knssquad leapt into the air and swung her banana bat. Arashi Ryu blocked the attack and shook his head again. “Once again you’re too slow,” he said as he kicked her into the ground.
She hit the ground with a thud and grumbled to herself as she got back up. “Good kick,” she said as she watched the man look at her from across the room. Smugness written across his face.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, the terrorist of WOTNOPOLIS,” Arashi said. “And I also know that you survived your encounter with Darnas. Let’s try to have fun with this.”
Knssquad rolled her eyes. “I was already having fun,” Knssquad said as she pointed at her broken rib. “This is what I call having a blast.”
Arashi eyed the girl standing next to her fallen partner. He decided to play some more. He disappeared before Knssquad in a flash. Knssquad realized that he had completely vanished from sight without a trace. “Wow,” she muttered. Her eyes darted all around as she waited for his attack.
She jumped up to the roof and put her fist into it. Arashi Ryu’s kick barely missed her and exploded the concrete beneath the spot she had been standing. Knssquad eyed him from the roof and smiled to herself.
Arashi glared at the girl hanging from the roof. She seemed to be mocking him as she took the stance of a monkey. He leapt up into the air and swung his fist towards her. Knssquad launched her feet off the roof and landed a punch in Arashi’s chest. Arashi felt blood spill out of his mouth as he crashed into the garage floor.
Knssquad back flipped away from him and nodded. She pulled out two banana bats while he stumbled back to his feet. His face had turned red from anger and Knssquad couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s a matter? I thought you liked playing?” Knssquad said. “Or are you upset that you’re getting beat up by a girl?”
“Whatever,” he said as he stretched his arms out. “You may have gotten a punch in. But there’s still no way you can keep up with my speed. Consider this fight over. I’ll enjoy crushing your bones.”
Arashi’s body didn’t move. Arashi attempted to kick off the ground but he still felt himself solidly locked in place. He watched as Clair leapt to her feet and gave Knssquad a thumbs up. “He’s all yours!” she shouted.
Arashi looked down and saw that his feet had been solidly frozen to the floor. “I get it,” he whispered. “Knssquad was maneuvering me into a position where Clair could ice me without me realizing she was awake.”
“Shoot,” Arashi said as he put his arms up to brace for the attack. A second later he felt the ice around his feet breaking. His body was lifted into the air and he could feel the cold steel metal of the banana bat smashing across his face.
His body smashed into a pillar holding up part of the garage. Pain wracked his body as felt himself looking up at the garage ceiling. Blood was trickling out of his mouth. “Wow,” he said to himself. He stood back to his feet and smiled. “This really will be fun.”
****
Yoyo was surprised by how much control she had over the black smoke as it lashed out at Darnas. He dodged past each slash the smoke made in his direction and sliced his sword through the air. The tunnel flashed a purple glow as Yoyo’s eyes caught a glimpse of lightning moving towards her.
Yoyo twitched. She had no way of blocking an attack by lightning and she braced herself. She could hear the explosion as the lightning smashed into something. Yoyo opened her eyes, not even aware she had closed them and stared at a wall of black smoke around her. She swiped the giant sword through the smoke and it immediately disappeared. “So, the smoke protected me from his attack?” Yoyo asked herself and stared down at her sword handle.
“That’s amazing. To be able to counter my lightning sword‘s attack,” Darnas said. “That sword truly is legendary.”
Yoyo nodded absently at Darnas. She was much less interested in what he had to say as she was figuring out how the black smoke worked. Up until then she had seen it attack in whatever direction she had pointed her sword. But when it had protected her from the lightning blast she had pointed the sword at the ground. Was there more to it than that?
“It’s willpower,” Darnas said. Yoyo looked up at him for the first time in several minutes. She hadn’t even realized their fight had been paused.
“What?” she asked.
“Your sword. It works on willpower,” Darnas said and pointed at his own sword. “Our swords are imbued with an Amp power. This is something you should already know. Weapons being imbued with Amp is nothing new, but some mixtures of Amp with some weapons create interesting results. Hence, a sword that can shoot lightning, or a sword that can give off killer smoke.”
“Yeah, I already kind of got all that,” Yoyo said. “But I am not really sure how it all works?”
“Amp resonates with the soul of the person,” Darnas said. “The weak are controlled by the power of Amp. That’s why we have a new bunch of freaks on the street every week. And a bunch dead right after. But those who are strong willed control their amp and harness it. You took that sword from Destinykil. He was strong willed, but he went down to you. Now that sword is reacting to your will. And its becoming even stronger.”
“Interesting,” Yoyo said as she felt it dawning on her. A smile spread across her face as she stared at the sword. “You know, ever since I first put this sword on my back to battle I felt it calling me to kill. And I was afraid of wielding it. I saw what it had done to Destinykil.”
Darnas got in a fighting stance. Something about the way she was standing and staring at the sword unnerved him. The calm swordsman from before seemed to be disappearing into a much more threatening form. Had the curse of the sword consumed her?
Yoyo looked over at Darnas and laughed. “It would seem the demon inside of me was stronger after all. This sword will bend to my will.”
****
Q charged at Venomu head on. The very sight of the tall gangly man made Q’s stomach churn as he rushed at him. Venomu had been the cause of more than enough of their grief. “You!” Q yelled. “If it hadn’t been for you.”
Venomu smiled as he watched Q rush at him. “Indeed, Q,” Venomu hissed as the man raced across his lab. “If it weren’t for me.”
Q’s fist floated through the air without impacting anything. He could see the vision of Venomu moving to Q’s left. He couldn’t help but get the feeling that Venomu was coiling around him like a snake. His eyes watching him like prey.
Q planted his foot solidly in front of him and turned his heel in the direction of Venomu. His other foot swiped through the air as he released a kick. Q watched as the man backed away from Q’s kick with ease.
“You have no idea how many people think that, Q,” Venomu said. “If it hadn’t been for me, TFK would of never had to divide up the city. If it weren’t for me, Mikel would of overtaken TFK. If it weren’t for me, the military couldn’t of overrun the gangs. If it weren’t for me a lot of families wouldn’t have lost their loved ones to my experiments. And yes, if it weren’t for me your gang may of never disintegrated and you may of never lost your friend.”
Venomu grabbed Q by his shirt and flung him across the room. Q’s body slammed into a row of machines and he felt the jagged bits dig into his skin. “And you know what, Q?” Venomu said. “I don’t care. About any of it. I’m interested in only two things. Running this city. And understanding everything possible. Anything else is futility. And you people and your petty problems? Your lives? They don’t matter to me.”
“Shut up! Venomu!” Q yelled as he stood up. “I’ll-”
“Q, you shut up!” Bano ordered him. Q looked over at Bano who was walking towards him. “This guy is trying to get under your skin. He’s a master of manipulation.”
Venomu’s eyes focused on Bano for a moment. He had almost forgotten the other member of Eagle was there. “That’s not true. I am not saying these things merely to irritate you, Q. I am saying them because they’re the truth.”
Bano put his hand on Q’s shoulder and shook his head. “Q, keep it together. This guy is in the same league as people like TFK. He’s a monster. But together, we’re going to stop him.”
Venomu snickered. “The rats of the city sure are talking big.”
Q took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them he smiled at Bano. “Thanks,” he said.
“Mhm,” Bano said and turned towards Venomu. “Oh, and we’re not rats, Venomu. We’re Eagles.”
****
Clair began firing ice arrows at Arashi. Arashi caught the first one and swung it through the air. Clair’s jaw dropped as he used the arrow to cut the other arrows in half. “That, wow, he’s,” Clair stuttered.
Knssquad‘s eyes narrowed. “Careful, Clair,” she said as she pulled out her banana bat and an apple. “This guy just got much more powerful.”
“That’s true,” Knssquad heard a voice say from behind her. She immediately threw the apple up and slammed her bat into it. The apple flew in the direction of the voice and exploded.
Knssquad quickly searched through the dust for any indication that she had hit Arashi. “Missed,” Knssquad realized. Arashi flashed into her vision and slammed his fist into her face. Knssquad stumbled back from the attack and yelled out in pain.
Arashi moved his arm back and twisted his body over the arrow Clair had launched at him. As his feet touched the ground he saw another arrow flying towards his position. He grabbed it with his left hand and slung back.
Clair dropped to the ground as one of her own arrows whizzed past her. She heard it thunk into the ground behind her. “Wow,” she breathed as Arashi stood imbetween herself and Knssquad.
“Where did you get all this extra power?” Knssquad asked as she touched her cheek. She winced a bit from the pain and glared at Arashi.
Arashi smiled. “I’ll admit, you girls surprised me with your strength back there. I thought I could take you on my own, but it looked like I needed Venomu’s supplements, afterall.”
Arashi held up a small pill and then tossed it into his mouth. “Venomu’s created a supplement system for me to help me in strength. My speed is the fastest but my finishing blows aren’t great. But after just one pill my power becomes unstoppable! And that was my third.”
****
Yoyo leapt towards Darnas who blocked her sword with his own. He was surprised at the sudden change in demeanor. The girl who had been carefully holding back was suddenly like an animal unleashed from its cage. Darnas grunted as he felt the immense pressure of Yoyo’s attack. His hands burned as they gripped his sword handle.
Smoke shot out of the sword like spears in Darnas’s direction. He jumped away from them and kicked his foot into the wall. A chunk of cement fell from it and blocked the path of the smoke.
Yoyo’s swords sliced through the cement block as she chased after Darnas. Her eyes scanned the dark tunnel for any sign of him. “Where are you?” she cooed.
She sensed the room getting brighter as a flash of light moved towards her. She immediately assumed a cloak of black smoke around her body that repelled the attack. Darnas groaned as he realized that attacking from behind wouldn’t do him any good.
Yoyo leapt out of the black smoke and clashed both of her swords into Darnas’s. He parlayed her attacks aside and jabbed his sword towards her. Electricity sparked in the air as Yoyo’s small sword directed Darnas’s sword away from hers. Yoyo had an opening and she brought her giant sword down on Darnas.
Darnas slipped past the attack and sighed. “Too close,” he said as he landed behind Yoyo.
Yoyo spun around and stared at Darnas. Her mouth was agape as she looked at him. “Yeah, that’s right,” Darnas said. “I’m faster than you.”
****
Bano sped towards Venomu. A trail of smoke followed behind him as he zigzagged across the lab. Bano moved in on Venomu from behind but backed out at the last second. Venomu could sense Bano was now coming from his left instead but he couldn’t understand his attack pattern. “What’s he up to?” Venomu asked himself as he saw Bano’s cloud of smoke thickening.
Bano launched himself into the air and flew directly over Venomu. The man watched him disappear into a curtain of cloud to his right. His visibility had greatly decreased. “You’ve got great acrobatics, Bano,” Venomu complimented. “But I don’t have all day, so if we’re doing something here can we get to it already?”
From behind he sensed a force flying out of the white smoke. Venomu reached out and blocked the kama by quickly motioning both of Bano’s hands away from him. Bano took advantage of the opportunity and locked his feet in close to Venomu’s. He tried to step away but found his arms reaching up to stop Bano’s elbow from reaching his skull.
Venomu grabbed Bano’s other hand and stopped it as the Kama blade aimed for his stomach. In that instant he realized what was going on. He looked up as Q’s fist appeared out of the smoke cloud above him. Venomu dropped to the ground and yanked Bano’s body forward.
Q threw his other hand out and pulled his fist back as Bano’s body was shoved between him and Venomu. His hand landed on Bano’s shoulder and he launched himself off of it and into a flip over the two of them. Q slammed his foot into the ground near Venomu.
Venomu’s eyes widened as he sensed a vibration shooting toward him from below the ground. Venomu quickly leapt back to his feet as the ground beneath him exploded. Bano took that opportunity and slammed his elbow into Venomu’s chest.
Venomu grunted as he fell back. His hands went up as he blocked a kick from Q. He jumped back from the two of them to a comfortable distance. The two of them quickly faded into the white smoke. He carefully moved from place to place as their shadows danced around him in all directions.
“To actually land a hit on me,” Venomu complained. He leapt into the air as a kama sliced through the spot he had been standing. A body met him in the air and he found himself blocking a series of punches from Q. As his feet touched the ground he twisted his shoulders away from Q. He narrowly dodged another kama attack.
Venomu stumbled backward away from the two of them. He was amazed at how powerful the two of them were as a team in this smoke. His eyes darted all around him as he expected their next attack. A familiar noise caught his ear as the ground exploded beneath him. “Shoot,” he said as he felt himself flying into the air from the power.
Venomu put his arms up as he came back to the ground but Bano had already jumped through the opening. Bano jabbed his kama into Venomo’s chest and stretched his arms out till he had sliced clean through him. Venomu yelled as he landed on the ground. Blood was spilling from his chest from where Bano had opened him. Blood and a green acidic substance.
He pulled himself up and put his hand to his chest. He felt the spot where the blood and green substance was and growled. “These guys are a serious threat,” Venomu said. “I can’t hold back at all or I really could lose.”
****
“Behind you,” Mikel said as Jan turned her body and slammed her fist into another attacker. The man’s skull shatted before her and she kicked his body away from them.
“To your left,” Mikel said. Jan turned to her left and elbowed a man. She had slammed her elbow straight into a tube that ended up exploding. The man’s body landed a few feet away.
“Wow!” Jan laughed.
“Stay focused,” Mikel said as he grabbed a person that was moving towards them. Jan regained control and kicked the person into a building.
“Sorry!” Jan said. “It was just kinda funny looking.”
Mikel was too exhausted to argue. He had been jumping into control of their body every time Jan missed a blind spot for hours now. Anytime the two switched control it was tiring. That and the immense amount of fighting they’d been doing was getting to him.
Jan grabbed a guy to her right and flung him into another guy. She then started slamming the body around and laughed. “Its like baseball!” she giggled.
“No,” Mikel said.
“Oh,” Jan answered. “Um, soccer?”
Mikel gave up. Jan jumped high into the air and smashed the skull of another monster. “Hey Jan,” Mikel asked.
“Yeah?” Jan answered as she kicked the monster into the ground and landed on top of him.
“How much longer can you keep this up without losing control?”
“I can keep going. I can keep going!” Jan reassured Mikel.
“I know that’s not true,” Mikel answered as he regained control and snapped the neck of an attacker with his left hand. “You ran out of energy a long time ago.”
“I can keep going!” Jan answered. “Until we’re through I promise to keep going.”
Jan grabbed a nearby guy and threw him into a car. “Goal!”
****
Yoyo blocked Darnas’s sword with her own. She had grown accustomed to the sparks flying off his attacks as their swords clashed. The smoke between them reflected each spark creating a blue aura as the two of them fought. Yoyo gripped her swords tighter as she pushed back against Darnas’s blade.
The sound of metal grating metal ricocheted across the underground catacomb as Yoyo’s other sword was blocked. The smoke gathered around Darnas and he leapt away from it. Yoyo’s eyes followed him as he attacked from above.
She stopped the attack with her larger sword and quickly aimed the smaller one for his side. His body twisted in mid air and landed on the ground away from her. She swung her larger sword out towards the man in front of him but he blocked it with a flick of his wrist. Yoyo flinched as the lightning moved towards her. The smoke caught it and stopped it but Yoyo couldn’t help feeling open every time he did it. When the smoke faded he had disappeared.
Yoyo smashed her sword into the wall next to her and slit the wall open. “You keep running away! Its frustrating!” Yoyo yelled. She noticed movement to the right of her.
Yoyo leapt towards the figure and smashed her sword into his. She slid her other sword across his chest and smiled. Yoyo landed behind him and couldn‘t help but get excited. Blood was dripping from her sword. She watched in mild amusement as the smoke gathered around it and consumed it. She had managed to get him. And if she could get him once she was sure she could get him again.
Darnas grunted as he hit the ground. That attack had caught him by surprise and her slash was amazing. If he took many more blows like that he’d truly be in trouble. He knew there was no more holding back with her. Even if she had started the fight hesitantly she had truly transformed into a monster at this point in the battle. He looked at her closely and could feel a dark aura emanating away from her.
Darnas sheathed his sword and held it out in front of him. “What the heck are you doing?” Yoyo asked. “Giving up over one cut? You’re kind of lousy.”
“No,” Darnas said as the sound of thunder filled the room. Yoyo looked at him as if he was crazy but Darnas concentrated on what he was doing. After a moment the thunder sound finished.
Darnas pulled the sword out and Yoyo was a bit surprised. The blade now reflected a deep violet color. Darnas swung the sword through the air and Yoyo watched as a powerful electric shock exploded from it. The smoke formed a ball around Yoyo to protect her from the explosion.
“Interesting!” Yoyo yelled.
“Yeah,” Darnas said as he held the sword over his head. “Venomu designed the scabbard so that if I shot lightning into it I could charge it to a whole different level.”
Yoyo crashed her sword into his. He blocked it with ease and swung his arm out. Yoyo jumped back as she realized that his sword had over powered hers. She watched him as he held his sword out away from him.
Yoyo barely had time to react as he sped toward her. Yoyo blocked his attack and then felt herself blocking another as his speed increased. She could barely keep up with his attacks as she fended each one off.
The smoke attacked Darnas at his feet and forced him back a few steps. Yoyo smiled. She could take him down. The smoke attacked Darnas again and Yoyo stepped towards him. She swung her blade down on Darnas.
He quickly cut through the smoke and blocked Yoyo’s attack blade. Yoyo stabbed her smaller blade towards him. Darnas stepped back and blocked that attack. Yoyo froze as she heard the sound of something clanking against the ground.
She pulled the handle of her smaller sword up to her face. “Not another broken sword,” Yoyo complained and threw the handle away. “Why does this keep happening to me during fights?”
Darnas laughed. “My blade has the power to cut through steel right now. Its amazing that your other blade hasn’t broken. But this is over.”
The smoke created a wall between Yoyo and Darnas. Yoyo watched as the wall exploded away from the impact of Darnas’s sword. Darnas swung his sword down on Yoyo. Yoyo blocked the attack but could barely hold onto her sword. Darnas‘s power was overwhelming her.
Yoyo screamed as she felt the tip of the warm metal slicing into her. The lightning had shot a hole through her chest. Every part of her body was itching with pain and the part where the blade had gone in was agonizing. She hit the ground with a thud. Her sword dropped noisily beside her.
She tried to catch her breath as every muscle in her body ached. “That sword of yours is pretty good,” Yoyo heard Darnas say. “I am no good with two swords, but it might be good to hold onto anyway. Maybe switch it up during battle with it.”
Yoyo’s arm grabbed the handle of her sword instinctively. She could feel its bloodlust in her hand. Darnas watched her as she pulled herself to her feet and coughed. “Yeah, right. You think this is over? Keep dreaming. You’re going to lose this. Everyone is counting on me to stop you here. And I’m going to.”
****
“Little Shiro! Little Shiro!” a cop yelled as he ran up to the man. Endless Nothing and Little Shiro turned to look at him.
“Yes?” Little Shiro asked. He could tell the urgency in the man‘s voice would probably end up bringing him trouble. “Did the army breach our line somewhere?”
“No sir, it’s not that. But according to JJDomer someone has already started an attack on Venomu,” the man said.
“Who? Is it TFK?” Little Shiro asked.
“No, its not TFK. Although Punkfilter and Draco have been sighted outside of the Tower in the last hour. But the ones fighting Venomu are the Eagle gang, sir,” the man said. “JJDomer is planning to capture whichever one survives the battle.”
Little Shiro paused for a moment. “Well, they are the ones that stopped the Fourth Mafia. Maybe they could pull it off. But Venomu is a completely different beast than Shugo and those others were. Oh, and it doesn’t matter what I tell JJDomer, he’ll do whatever he wants anyway.”
“There is someone fighting Venomu right now?” Endless Nothing asked. Both men nodded.
“Take me there at once,” Endless ordered.
“Mr. Mayor, I can’t permit you to endanger yourself by going there,” Little Shiro said. “Venomu’s lair is far too dangerous.”
Endless Nothing ignored Little Shiro. “I’m going. I can help whoever is fighting Venomu.”
****
Knssquad felt her arm twitching as she came back to. The last thing she had remembered seeing was a pillar flying towards her. Standing next to her was Clair who was covered in injuries.
Knssquad moved back to her feet. Her banana bat had been lost somewhere in battle and she had run out of apple grenades, too. She only had two weapons yet and she wasn‘t sure about either of them. Clair nodded at Knssquad. “I’ve kept him off of you while you were out of it,” she wheezed. “I’m sorry I couldn’t do more. My armor is about to crack. I keep having to remake it and its draining me.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Knssquad answered as she looked across the room at Arashi. He stood there staring at the two of them. “Is there any plan?”
“I don’t have one. I just keep getting attacked from all sides,” Clair said honestly. “He’s insane.”
“I have two experimental weapons I brought with me,” Knssquad said. “But I need a clear opening to hit him with it. It might weaken him enough so that we can finish him off.”
“Alright,” Clair said as she aimed her bow at Arashi. “I’ll cover for you.”
“Will you?” Arashi said from behind Clair. His hand smashed into her cheek and sent her sprawling across the room.
Arashi ran towards Knssquad but was stopped by a volley of arrows. He sighed as he looked over at Clair who had fired them. “Your arrows aren’t effective,” he said as he crisscrossed the room.
Clair continued firing arrows at him as he moved. She jumped back a few feet after she fired each arrow hoping she could keep some distance between Arashi and herself. Arashi continued flashing toward her as her arrows followed him. He was getting closer much faster than she had expected.
Her foot hit the wall behind her and she realized she had gone as far back as she could go. She jumped to her left as Arashi’s fist smashed into the wall behind her. She shot an arrow at him as she fell onto her back. Arashi caught the arrow with his hand and flung it back at Clair.
Clair grimaced as the arrow pierced her arm. She aimed her bow at Arashi but soon found herself being lifted into the air. Arashi had grabbed Clair by her arm and smashed her body into a wall. Clair’s armor shattered around her and she winced from the impact.
Knssquad bounced toward Arashi from a pillar inside the garage. Arashi saw Knssquad and launched Clair’s body in Knssquad’s direction. “Sorry,” Knssquad said to Clair as she kicked off of Clair‘s stomach. Clair landed on the ground with a thud and moaned.
“Geez, Knssquad,” Clair coughed.
Knssquad slammed a pie into Arashi’s face. She moved to jump away but felt her hand caught by Arashi’s. A snapping noise told her that her arm had just been broken from Arashi’s strength.
An explosion allowed Knssquad to roll away from the spot. Clair stared as the spot where Arashi sunk in and the wall behind him fell to pieces. “That was a big explosion,” Clair said.
“Yeah, apple pie,” Knssquad smiled. “Made with real apple grenades.”
Arashi stumbled forward a few steps. His body twitched as his hand moved toward his mouth. “One more pill,” he said. “If I take one more. I can do this.”
Knssquad raced towards Arashi and threw another weapon at him. She quickly braced herself for what was about to come. Arashi stared at Knssquad as the cup flew through the air towards him. A second later it popped. Out of it spun thousands of pieces of metal that hit him in a fury.
He fell into the ground. “Losing to girls,” Arashi whispered. “How unfun.”
Knssquad turned toward Clair. Blood was dripping out of her as the pieces of metal buried into her skin. “Shrapnel milkshake,” Knssquad whispered. “I um, haven’t really figured it out yet. I was kind of hoping not to use it.”
Knssquad collapsed. Clair rushed over to her and began to heal her wounds. “We made a good team,” Clair said to Knssquad as her body shuddered from the pain. Clair winced as she watched tears form around Knssquad‘s eyes. Knssquad closed them tight and laughed.
“Sorry I used you for a springboard there,” Knssquad said.
“Eh, it happens,” Clair said. “Well, no, it doesn’t. But it didn’t hurt.”
“Pfft,” Knssquad said doubted.
Clair’s attention drifted away from Knssquad as she heard footsteps behind them. She looked back and frowned. “Cops.”
****
Bano jumped away from the spot where he had sliced into Venomu and smiled. Their team work had done it. Even the Mafia were no match for Q and him when they were at their full strength. He could hear Venomu saying something into the air but he wasn’t sure what it was.
A wave of air hit Bano in the face and surprised him. The smoke was beginning to fade and the lab was becoming clearer. “What is this?” he asked as he pulled his Kama up. He could feel the air pressure emanating from the spot where Venomu had been knocked down. “Is this his power?” Bano questioned.
Bano felt suddenly felt the force moving towards him. Bano tried to move but he his body was frozen in place. He wasn’t sure why but his body felt like it had become glued to the ground from the intense pressure. His eyes widened as he realized Venomu was directly in front of him.
Bano’s eyes focused on Venomu‘s clawed hand. He didn’t recall Venomu having that ability before. He willed his body to move but it was still frozen in place. He did his best to embrace for what he could tell was going to be a painful attack.
A kick to Bano’s chest sent him crashing into the dirt. Q wasn’t sure why Bano had just stood there like that but he had to get him out of Venomu’s way. “You kicked me!” Bano yelled. He suddenly jumped with joy as he realized that he could move again.
“A bit rough,” Venomu said as he motioned towards Q with a thumbs up, “But well done either way, Q.”
“Well, I did it for your approval,” Q groaned. He stared at Venomu for a moment. Something about him was different. Not only in his look, but his entire feel had changed.
“You,” Q mumbled as he tried to explain what he was looking at. “You have claws?”
“Why yes, how observant of you,” Venomu said as he opened and closed his hands. Where once fingers had been there were five bladed claws on each hand. Each dripped with a green liquid. “This is my Amplified form.”
“Your what?” Q asked. Bano walked up to Q and held his kama out. His body had no trouble moving now.
“Why couldn’t I move?” Bano asked.
“Fighting before an Amplified form is immensely pressure some for someone who has no natural amp like yourself,” Venomu rolled his eyes. “Its like you two don’t know anything about Amp. And you’ve had powers all your life. Pathetic.”
He stretched his arms out and Q felt his stomach churn as he watched the arm stretch to an unrealistic length. It was as if Venomu’s arms had become whips in front of him. “What in the World?” Q asked again, horrified.
“I didn’t really intend to show this power to you guys,” Venomu began. “I had been arrogant up until this point to think I could defeat you without my full power. No more. My power is over that of poisons. I found this power out through an accidental experiment in my lab. I inhaled what should of killed me, but instead I found myself just fine from it. Since then I knew that poisons couldn’t harm me. And I found that the manipulation of some substances made me much stronger.”
“The liquid dripping from the ‘claws’ as you described them is a horrible toxin. If it so much as touches your skin you can count your hours left on a single hand. If I manage to so much as knick you though, you‘re out of the battle,” Venomu smiled.
“Yeah, that’s great, but you still haven’t explained what an Amplification form is,” Q stared at Venomu. “Nor why the heck your body is like that all of a sudden.”
Venomu glared at Q in annoyance. “I daily ingest large amounts of poison in case I am to battle. These poisons lay dormant in my system, and spread out throughout my entire body. However, when I activate my powers to their fullest the chemicals in my body allow me to control it completely at my discretion. Expanding or shrinking limbs is simple.”
Q watched in horrified fascination as Venomu expanded the size of his hand to that of a giants and smashed it towards them. Both Bano and Q dodged away from it as it smashed through the lab. In an instant Venomu’s hand became normal sized again and stretched out away from him at an impossible distance.
“This is unreal,” Bano said as he dodged the clawed hand. It expanded its size and Bano felt himself flying into the air from the impact of it hitting him. He hit a wall across the lab and felt blood dripping out of his mouth. “What the heck?”
Q dashed towards Venomu while his concentration was on Bano. He swung his fist into Venomu’s stomach. Venomu’s body rocked backward. However, Q’s fist wasn’t making the impact he expected. Instead Q felt his own body rocketing away from Venomu.
“Well that doesn’t make any sense,” Q said as he landed on his feet a distance away.
“Did you get him?” Bano asked as he stood back up. He jumped over a claw that had whipped across the lab toward him.
“I hit him,” Q said as he struggled to piece together what happened. “But it was like, hitting a trampoline?”
Q watched as a giant arm expanded and smashed into him. He planted his feet into the ground and did his best to hold off the giant hand. The power behind the swinging arm was enormous. “Or more like, fighting a giant water balloon. My attack didn‘t really impact. Sorta just deflected off of him,” Q struggled against the massively oversized hand in front of him.
“Then I’ll pop him,” Bano said as he dashed towards Venomu. Venomu’s arm snapped back into place and he swung it out towards Bano. It shrunk to the size of a small rope and coiled around Bano’s leg. “Wha?”
Bano stomped his foot onto the coil that was Venomu’s arm. The poisonous claw missed his leg by an inch. “That was too close,” Bano breathed out.
Bano yelled as the arm that had encircled his leg expanded against him. He could feel it forming a vice around him and brutally crushing his foot as it expanded. Bano fell to his knees as he felt his body go numb. “Shoot,” Bano said. “I’ll be useless like this.”
He reached out and cut off the ropelike arm that had attached itself to his leg. The pressure released as he watched Venomu’s arm snap back to him. Bano’s relief was short lived as he watched green sludge and gas pour out of the other half of his arm. “Holy,” Bano said as he crawled away from the spot. “What is this guy?”
Bano crawled behind a machine and attempted to catch his breath. He had only one good idea left. However, he wasn’t even sure if he could pull it off with his leg in this condition. Running wouldn’t exactly be easy. Bano also wasn’t too certain if this move would work. He’d only ever realized it could be done in theory. He hadn’t exactly tested it out. He was a bit afraid to because if it failed it could ruin his kama or seriously injure himself.
Bano closed his eyes for a moment. He needed to get his concentration off the pain in his leg. He had to focus on his plan. He’d wait for a moment when Q had Venomu distracted. A surprise attack was his best shot. With only one arm Venomu would be weakened. He opened his eyes.
Venomu was standing in front of him. Both of his arms attached. “Done napping, Bano?” Venomu asked. “I knew you liked to sleep but even during a battle?”
Venomu stepped on Bano’s weak leg. Bano bit his lip to keep from yelling out in pain. “Oh, you’re pretty tough, huh?” he asked as he put more pressure on it.
“Screw you,” Bano said as he stared Venomu in the eye.
“Such an eloquent sentiment,” Venomu said as he extended his right hand‘s claws towards Bano‘s face. “Cutting off my arm hurt, you know that?”
“How did-”
“How did it grow back? My body is infused with all kinds of chemicals. Some are toxic and will kill you. But other chemicals allow me to manipulate my body, as you’ve seen. Well others can allow me to instantly heal injuries. Even to the point of growing back a missing limb. Impressive, isn’t it?” Venomu asked. A drop of poison fell from his claw and touched Bano’s hair. “Oops.”
Bano’s kama sliced through the patch of hair and he rolled away from the spot.
“Too close,” he breathed as saw where the drop of poison had hit the floor. A hole had burned into the cement.
“Well that was cool,” Venomu said as he walked over to the spot Bano had rolled to. He stepped on Bano’s leg again and smiled. “But I don’t really want you to do that again, so I think I‘ll just finish you here, okay? Even though I managed to smack Q through a few walls I am guessing he’ll be back soon and I don’t want you sneaking around while I’m fighting him.”
Bano leapt onto his good foot and head butted Venomu. He rocked back from the attack and began to fall backward. Bano gripped his kama and jabbed them through Venomu’s chest. Bano screamed as poison dripped out of his body and seared itself into his skin. It was too late to worry about that. Bano had to finish Venomu with this move.
Fire burst out of his kama and he smiled to himself. Even though he’d properly gotten his Kama to super heat in battle, he’d never managed to heat it to the point that it ignited into flames. He ignored the pain in his aching body and used all the strength he had left to force the kama blades down to the ground. His kama had tore two giant gashes straight down Venomu‘s torso.
Venomu didn’t move as he stared at Bano. Both of them were in immense pain. “You Eagles,” Venomu stuttered. “I’ve been using you for a while, but even I’m surprised you guys came this far.”
Venomu’s position slouched as he shook his head. “But not far enough, kid. I can still regenerate.”
Bano dropped to his knees. His leg couldn’t hold him up any longer. “Maybe,” Bano said. “But you better regenerate fast, guy.”
Venomu turned and groaned. Q was standing behind him. “Yo Q, I injured him. Finish this loser off so we can go back to the bar. I’m pretty tired,” Bano said as he laid his head down.
“Take a nap, Bano, I got it from here,” Q said as he glared at Venomu.
“Give me that dirty face all you want, Q, but it won’t help your friend any,” Venomu said. “I don’t have time for this.”
****
Yoyo held onto her sword with both hands. It had been something that had terrified and mesmerized her before. And now it was her only shot at defeating Darnas. There was no way she was letting it go.
“Very well,” Darnas said. “I am impressed by your spirit. But if you continue I can’t promise you’ll keep your limbs. Or live.”
Yoyo held up her hand and stuck out her tongue. “Please, I’ve already lost a finger. I don’t care about that crap.”
She couldn’t charge Darnas. She didn’t have the energy. All she could do was hope that she could cut him before he cut her down. The pain from his attack was still draining her.
Darnas slammed his sword into Yoyo’s. Yoyo nearly fell back from the power of the explosion but she held firm. She slid her sword toward him and forced him to back away. She slammed her sword into his and forced him to block. His sword exploded again.
Yoyo’s eyes widened as she glimpsed the sword heading towards her. The smoke caught the blade and nullified its attack before reaching her. The explosion from it managed to knock her to the ground. She rolled backward and onto her feet with her blade ready.
Yoyo leapt forward and stabbed her blade. Darnas blocked the attack and Yoyo’s momentum continued toward him. “No! No!” Yoyo screamed inwardly. She was wide open for an attack.
Darnas’s sword entered through Yoyo’s stomach and came out her back. Yoyo’s mouth was open but no sound came out as she felt the explosion crush her body. Her muscles tensed as she fell backwards and hit the ground. Her eyes were open from the pain.
“You’re right, I will remember your name,” Yoyo whispered. “Darnas.”
Darnas stood motionless above Yoyo. His chest wide open from the attack he had taken. He hadn’t seen it at all. “Sorry about your sword, miss. Take this one,” he said as he dropped his next to her. His body dropped into the water running next to them.
Yoyo smiled despite the horrible pain. She had another sword. She looked over at it and thought for a moment. “One to protect my friends,” she said as she looked at the smoke still hanging in the air. “And one to kill anyone that gets in my way.”
****
Q dashed across the lab towards Venomu. He aimed to punch Venomu who dodged the attack. “You know,” Venomu said. “You’ve seen my amplified form, but I have yet to see yours.”
Q narrowly leapt over a claw and landed a few feet away from Venomu. “What are you talking about?” Q asked.
“Not just anyone can have an amplified form,” Venomu explained. “It takes a lot of willpower to pull it off. Yet you are one of the few in WOTNOPOLIS who have done it.”
Q leapt across the room and smashed his foot down. Venomu blocked the attack and wrapped his arm around Q’s foot. Q tried to punch Venomu through the face but was sent flying across the lab.
“I don’t really know what you’re talking about,” Q yelled as he jumped out of the pile of machines he just crashed into. He swung his foot down on Venomu again. Venomu frowned.
“You’ve done that attack already,” he said as he rammed his elbow into Q’s gut and slammed him into the floor. “It didn’t work the first time, either.”
Venomu glared down at Q. “You know, the reason I haven’t already poisoned you was because I wanted to see your amplified form. Its rare that other Amp users access it and its very important that I can study it when it does happen. Besides, my plan is already falling apart. Might as well enjoy this.”
Q stood back up and shook his head. “What do you mean my amplified form?” Q asked.
“The form you take when you access your amp’s power. I know you’ve accessed it. You accessed it in your battle with Destinykil, Bano, and Seshimazi, for starters,” Venomu sighed. “Haven’t you ever noticed your power increase? And here I thought you were beginning to control it.”
Q ignored Venomu and charged towards him. His fist was pulled back ready to punch. Venomu frowned as he watched Q speed towards him. “So disappointing, Q,” Venomu said. “And here I had been paying attention to you. But you really were just another termite in the foundation.”
Venomu caught Q with his hand and buried his claws into Q’s skin. Q screamed in pain as his side was ripped open by Venomu.
Venomu shook his head as he watched Q writhe in pain. “And to think that the last time you were here you told me you were going to defeat me and then defeat TFK? What an absolute joke,” Venomu said as he stepped on Q’s side.
Q grabbed Venomu’s leg and smirked. “So you want to see my amplified attack?”
Q’s fist smashed into Venomu’s chest and he watched as the man fell back. Green poison had dripped onto his hand from the attack and he bit his lip to hold back the pain. His hearing returned to him and he smiled. “Yeah, I realized that your amplified form was the same as my loss of hearing deal straight away. But I didn’t want to just go telling you, did I?”
Venomu stood back up and shook his head with a smile. “Well done, Q. You completely fooled me. But you let your friend’s sacrifice be in vain. Now my poison is coursing through your system, too.”
“Tch,” Q said as he got back into a fighting stance. “Like I was going to let Bano die dramatically all by himself. First I’m going to beat you here and now, and then Bano and I are going to survive. Somehow. I haven’t really thought it through.”
“Geez,” Venomu said. “Then let’s see whose amplified form is more powerful.”
****
“I’m sorry,” Jan said as Mikel’s body dropped to his knees. “I can’t go any farther, Mikel. I’m so sorry. If I do I‘ll lose control and well.”
“Its no big deal,” Mikel said as he took control quickly. There was still a number of Venomu’s men left but Jan had managed to destroy most of them. Mikel charged towards the group of attackers and smashed his fists into two men.
“I’m sorry, Mikel,” Jan said. “I just know how important it is that I don’t lose control again. I’m sorry, Mikel.”
“Be quiet and rest for the both of us. I’ll finish this, easy,” Mikel said as he slammed his knee into a nearby attacker. A man grabbed Mikel and slammed a punch into him.
Mikel twisted the man by his arm and threw him into the ground. Mikel crushed his skull under his foot and growled. He hated to admit it but Jan had most of their power. But he also knew that Jan worked very hard to keep from losing control and he couldn‘t let her keep going. It was too much pressure on her and if she lost control Mikel wouldn‘t be able to get it back. Mikel dodged another blow and grabbed the man by his head.
Venomu had managed to give most of Mikel’s strength to Jan. He had never fully understood how Venomu had pulled that off, but he believed it had something to do with the fact that Jan had Amp power that naturally consumed their strength. It was probably a once in a lifetime move and Venomu had used it perfectly on him.
Mikel grimaced as his body was smashed into the ground. A kick from one of Venomu’s men had taken him down. Mikel leapt up and kicked his attacker back. He jumped back into the battle. He didn’t know how much longer he could keep going, either.
****
Bano felt someone poking him in the shoulder. He didn’t bother to open his eyes. “Venomu, if its you just go ahead and finish me off. Q, if its you cry over me somewhere else,” he complained and waved his hand.
“I guess he isn’t dead, Mr. Mayor,” Shiro said.
Bano opened his eyes after hearing Shiro’s voice. He saw Endless Nothing and Little Shiro looking at him. “Eh, what do you guys want, I’m in the middle of fighting here?” Bano asked.
“Is it just me or does something about this guy tick you off?” Shiro asked as he looked down at the guy.
“Will you stop, Venomu?” Endless Nothing asked Bano. “Please. Please stop Venomu. I can’t. I’m not strong enough to fight. I’m too weak.”
“I would love to,” Bano said. “But I’m dying. And I didn’t really want to spend my last moments talking to Shiro.”
“Nice to see you, too,” Shiro grumbled.
Endless Nothing pulled a vial out of his pocket. “Drink this and you‘ll survive the poison.”
Bano grabbed the vial and looked at Endless Nothing for a moment. “You’re serious?”
“It’ll only stop the poison from killing you,” Endless said. “It won’t do anything about the pain.”
Bano swallowed the contents of the vial. “Ew, tastes disgusting, like a cherry coke or something. Do you have any others?”
“Yeah, I do,” Endless said. “Its really all I can do. I’m sorry to say that in defeating my brother, this is the best I can offer.”
Bano stood up slowly and pulled out his kama. “He‘s your brother, huh? Eh, I don‘t really care about that kind of thing. But I‘ll do my best here. Oh, and save a vial for that idiot Q, please.”
****
Seshi leapt down from the top of the building he’d been sitting on for a few hours. He landed next to the man who had been punching the same body over and over for the past ten minutes. The thumping of the man slamming his fists into the ground was driving Seshi crazy. “Hey dude,” Seshi said to the giant of a man. “Its over, guy. You finished them off.”
Seshi was surprised when the man didn’t stop punching the mangled corpse. “Hey, I said its over,” Seshi yelled. The man didn’t seem to notice Seshi’s existence.
Seshi walked over to him and looked him in the eyes for a moment. “Oh,” Seshi said. “You’re not conscious.”
“He went unconscious after he finished the last guy off. But I wouldn’t touch him or he’ll take you down in that state,” Seshi heard a man behind him say. Seshi turned toward the man unsure of what was going on.
“Who might you be?” the man smiled.
“I’m Seshimazi,” he answered. “But I had nothing to do with this stuff here. I was just watching.”
“I’m Draco,” the man said. “Nice to meet you.”
Seshi’s felt his limbs go numb. The man laughed as he saw Seshimazi’s reaction. “Oh, don’t worry. I don’t plan to attack you. But that man behind you. He is a different story.”
Seshimazi threw a fireball at Draco. He wasn’t sure what had compelled him to do it, but he felt he had to protect Mikel. “Wow, that was neat,” he heard Draco say from behind him. “So you’re a fire guy or something?”
Seshimazi turned towards Draco. Draco was standing next to Mikel. “I feel bad about killing someone in Mikel’s current state. Its not befitting someone as strong as Mikel. And I can’t just let you go after you challenged me. So how about this. I’ll attack each of you once. And then be on my way,” Draco said.
Seshimazi’s eyes couldn’t sense the attack. He was sure Draco had punched Mikel in the chest but he couldn’t comprehend it. Blood dripped from Mikel’s chest and he watched as the giant man collapsed onto his back. His earlier incessant punching ended.
“And now you,” Seshi heard a voice say. In an instant Seshi felt his eyes closing as the world around him disappeared.
****
Q kicked his foot off the ground and lifted his right fist into the air. Q punched Venomu but the blow was blocked by a hand. Q inwardly screamed as he felt his fist slam into Venomu‘s open claw. He pulled his hand back and grimaced as blood dripped from it.
“Hey Q,” Venomu said. “Before I kill you, I wanted to tell you something that I think is pretty remarkable. In your amplified state you’ve been breaking the sound barrier with your punches. I don’t really know how your body has been able to keep itself together through this feat, but I can’t wait to study you to find out.”
Q looked at Venomu in confusion. “I’ve been breaking the sound barrier?”
“Well, the force behind your punches has. Your body isn’t moving at the speed of sound but in that moment before your attack hits your arm or leg is,” Venomu explained. “During these attacks you transform your ability to hear into raw power using Amp. That's why you can't hear during it. Anyway, none of this matters for you since you’ll soon be dead. But, I guess you could say this is my way of congratulating you for being of note.”
“Thanks,” Q said as he held up his right hand. He could still form it into a fist, and that was enough for him.
“Anyway,” Venomu said slowly. “Thanks to you and Bano there is no way I can defeat TFK in this shape. Not that it matters, as my army is being crushed as we speak. To sum up, my entire plan has been ruined and you’re greatly to blame.”
Q wasn’t sure what to say. “I’m guessing you’re mad about that?” Q asked.
“Anger is such a pitiable emotion,” Venomu said and shook his head. “No, I’ve lived in this city long enough to know that this kind of thing happens. I’ve lived my entire life believing that even the giants of this city will fall. Of course, I was hoping it would be TFK and I’d be pushing him over a cliff. Still.”
Venomu shook his head again. He was having difficulty focusing on Q as a million thoughts were processing through him. His body wasn’t regenerating nearly as quickly as he had hoped. He’d been losing too much poison and blood. He was working with a lot less poison than he was used to operating on.
“What’s your point?” Q stared at Venomu. Despite the rambling Venomu was much more composed than Q would of expected someone in his state to be.
Venomu straightened up and gestured toward his ruined lab. Blood and poison stained the walls and had begun forming puddles in different parts of the lab. Almost all of the equipment had been crushed in some way. The lighting flickered and Venomu smiled.
“My grand plan has been utterly foiled, Q. You know very well I’ve been using you and I’ve been using everyone in WOTNOPOLIS. All with the intention of toppling TFK and becoming the new king of the city. Yet as I reached the precipice your group barged into my way. The last time you’d been here you were a hackney sack for Destinykil but you assured me you‘d be the strongest. Now here I am. Crushed. I have to know the answer. What is it you’re fighting for?”
Q pointed at the ceiling. “Its simple, Venomu. Bano and I decided we were going to reach the top of WOTNOPOLIS. Just like you. At the time we were just senselessly heading there. But overtime we made friends here. And we’ve lost friends here. And Venomu, I don’t want to lose another friend here. Not again. But as long as this city is under people like you. The kind of people who use others. We’ll always have that threat.”
Q grinned through the pain as he made his right hand into a fist and pointed it at Venomu. “Its simple, Venomu. We’ll reach the top. Higher than you, we’ll reach TFK and throw him off that cliff. And then when there’s no one else above us my friends will be safe.”
“Hahahaha,” Venomu grabbed his sides as he laughed. “Oh man. What an answer. What an answer.”
Venomu smiled as he charged across the room towards Q. He continued to grin as he watched Q charge forward to meet him in battle. Q leapt into the air but was caught by Venomu’s foot to his chest. Venomu smashed his foot into Q and slammed him into the ground of the lab.
Q’s fist smashed into Venomu’s leg and Venomu felt it snap from the pressure. Venomu stumbled back a few feet and Q jumped back to his feet. Q lifted his foot to move forward but quickly felt himself hitting the floor. “Ah, it seems the effects of the poison are kicking in at last. Although your Amp seems to have been keeping it at bay its over for you, Q.”
Venomu looked down at Q. His body was covered from head to toe in a disgusting mixture of green and red. “To think,” Venomu said. “A stupid rookie from the East…”
Q made a fist with his right hand and punched it into the ground. “Sorry, Venomu,” he said as his body shook. “I refuse to give in. Until I’ve taken you down with me.”
Venomu watched as Q staggered to his feet. His entire body was trembling from the pain. “I can’t imagine what that feels like,” Venomu said as he took a step back. “I’ve never felt poison before.”
Q felt the ground rising towards him and he kicked his foot out. He could barely keep his balance the pain was so intense. He found moving his limbs was becoming increasingly difficult. It was as if someone had tied heavy stones down to each of his limbs. He balled his right hand into a fist again. “Come on,” Q said.
“Yo,” Bano yelled from across the room. Venomu and Q looked over at Bano. Fire blazed from his kama. “Q you do know you shouldn‘t take a bath in poison, right?”
Q grinned as he stared at the floor. His limbs were getting heavier every second. “You know me, Bano,” Q wheezed. Each breath was getting harder to take. He winced as he realized he didn’t have the strength to finish that statement.
Venomu walked towards Bano. “You’re still alive, huh?” he said as he looked behind Bano. “I thought I smelled a rat. Endless I know you’re around here somewhere.”
“You’re dealing with me right now,” Bano waved his kama at Venomu. “The guy with the firey weapon. Chat it up with him later.”
“Fine,” Venomu said as he focused on Bano. Venomu stretched his arm out to attack and flinched. He didn’t have enough poison left in his system to make this attack as powerful as he wanted. He smashed the claw into Bano with what strength he had.
Bano didn’t bother dodging as he felt the claw dig through his chest. Bano felt himself dropping to his knees. Blood spilled out of his mouth.
Bano’s hands trembled as he lifted up the kama. His eyes blinked rapidly as he felt himself losing consciousness. “Now, Q,” he whispered as his head hit the ground.
Venomu shrieked in pain as he felt his arm detach for the second time in that fight. “He tricked me,” Venomu realized. “He took the attack on purpose so he could cut off my arm.”
Venomu felt Q’s fist smash into his chest. The blow didn’t have the strength to send his body flying. Venomu looked into Q’s eyes and saw they were nearly vacant. Q’s body no longer shook but was rigid. Q’s strength was completely sapped. “It was just enough, Q,” Venomu said as he fell face forward into the ground. “You guys did just enough.”
Last edited by quater on Sun May 15, 2011 1:14 am; edited 2 times in total
