Kunhaussen crept up behind Alice, “I really think we shouldn’t have come here alone.”
“You’re not alone, you have me,” Alice said with a smile.
Sarcastically Kunhaussen replied, “Yeah that’s comforting,”
Alice ignored her crimson partner’s response as she made her way through the dark alleyway. Her sling shot drawn into ready position, she attempted to hide her weariness while they made their way through the rougher side of Sterling City. The streetlights illuminated the working spots for well underdressed prostitutes while the dark corners concealed the shady business of drug dealers.
“The beacon’s showing that he’s on the next block over.” Kunhaussen’s face glowed from the light of the tracker she peered into as they crossed the street. “Alice, I really think we should have called for…”
As they made their way into the next alleyway Kunhaussen was cut short when Alice threw up her arm in Kunhaussen’s path. “What now?” Kunhaussen snapped.
Alice shushed her accomplice and held her hand up to signal for Kunhaussen to stay behind. The heroine approached two figures barely lit by a dim light shining over the back door of a business. Kunhaussen watched from the distance as Alice encroached upon the two, a man who was seemingly making an exchange of cash with a young boy who she could safely assume was out past his curfew, if they even had a curfew in that part of town.
Alice shouted, “Hey, what do you think you’re doing?” The young boy was startled by Alice’s sudden appearance.
The dealer looked at Alice from the ground up admiring her scandalous apparel. “Yo baby, just wait your turn, daddy’s got enough for you too.” The dealer reached out and smacked Alice on her thigh. In a blur Alice grabbed the dealer's hand and spun him around, pinning him to the door. With his arm twisted behind him Alice applied pressure, causing the man to scream in pain. Turning to the boy, Alice demanded” Go, now.” Scared to a pale white the boy turned around and ran down the alleyway. “And say no to drugs!” Alice yelled after him.
She turned her attention to the subdued drug dealer’ “Now as for you, as if you weren’t stupid enough just selling drugs to a little kid, you have the audacity to try and mistake me for some kind of hooker?” Alice tightened her grip once again, and the man let out another cry in pain. “You wont even be able to brush your teeth once I’m through with you.” A crack echoed between the walls of the alleyway as Alice snapped the dealer’s arm.
“Sparxx!” Kunhaussen yelled at Alice as she quickly approached. Her fragile demeanor subsided by her authoritative tone. “That’s not how we do things, now release him.” The arch in her brow caused the blue orbs where her eyes would be to carry a disappointed look.
Alice released the dealer from her grasp, he stumbled over the trashcans and clutter filling the alley as he ran from his suppressor. “I’m sorry, Kay, I don’t know what came over me.”
“Let’s keep going.” Kunhaussen picked back up her tracker and kept her opinions to herself.
Alice sensed an offset tension as she felt the need to explain. “Kunhaussen, listen I should explain. I just…”
Kunhaussen turned and placed her hand on Alice’s shoulder, “Let’s just do what came here for.” Kunhaussen pointed to the warehouse at the end of the alley. “That’s the place, it has to be.”
Alice and Kunhaussen entered the building through a busted out window. “I still think we should have waited” Kunhaussen whispered as she treaded carefully behind Alice.
Alice’s paid no attention to her partner’s worries as her thoughts were still set on that young boy who ran off into the night, questioning what could have brought him into this life at such a young age. She reached into her pouch and pulled out a large marble, then while holding it in her outstretched palm, after a focused charge, it began to glow as though it were a dwarf star.
“Maybe we should have contacted Daliah, I’m sure she would have helped, we could have even called…”
“Who Alex?” Alice scrunched up her face from disappointment. “He only cares about himself.”
“Aahhh” Kunhaussen let out a muffled shriek
“What!” A panicked Alice turned around ready to defend against their attacker.
“I think a rat just ran across my boot!” Kunhaussen stiffened and closed her eyes
“Really, you’re scared of a little rat?” Alice looked down at Kunhaussen’s feet to see dozens of rats covering the floor. Alice lied to bring Kunhaussen some comfort,“There’s nothing there, it must have ran off.”
Kunhaussen opened her eyes and continued to walk carefully behind Alice. “I’m just saying I would be a little less worried if we would have brought some extra muscle.”
“As you should be” A voice came from the darkness. The lights of the warehouse flew on, momentarily blinding the two women. As their blurry sight became clear they saw a pale, shirtless man standing in the open of what the women could now figure to be an industrial warehouse full of old rusted factory equipment. Massive hooks hung from the ceiling and tall standing pyramids of varied sized metal rods were stacked up creating a miniature labyrinth.
Kunhaussen could now see that the floor was covered in rodents. “Eww, gross,” she shrieked
Alice’s eyes were set on the mystery man. His creped appearance unsettled her stomach as his boney arms and protruding ribcage gave him the appearance of death. Surrounded by dark circles his soulless eyes that were blacker than coal and through black lined lips contrasting his pale white skin, the man said “Welcome Public Defenders, how nice of you to come knocking on death’s door.”
“What have you done with Vetis?” Alice demanded.
With one hand grasping tightly to the metal handle of a large scythe, the man reached out his free hand and dropped a small blinking tracking device to the ground. “Looking for this?” He exposed a disturbing smile with his unnaturally sharp incisors.
Alice drew back her sling shot and charged a marble inside. “I’ll ask you once more, where is Vetis.”
The man began to walk towards the women, dragging his scythe’s oversized blade that was at least three feet across at the base. “Don’t you wanna know where you boyfriend is first?”
Alice tried to hide her confusion about the statement. “Stay where you are, I have no problem with blasting you into yesterday.”
“That’s right, we know who you are, Miss. Alice Marlowe and we have your precious boyfriend as well.”
“Keep your head Sparxx,” Kunhaussen interceded.
“She’s right, I’m gonna need you in top shape for when you face off against us.” The skeleton like man said.
“For I am the Reaper, and I’ve come to take your souls.” Reaper leapt into the air holding high above his head the nightmarish scythe.
“Move” Kunhaussen shouted as she pushed Alice out of the way and dived in the opposite direction. Tumbling to safety, Kunhaussen unsheathed her sabre. The alien engravings glistened as the sword’s hidden beauty had once again been exposed to the light. A blue marble handle housed the silver colored alien metal, the curvature of the blade seemed to wrap it’s self around back towards it’s bearer.
Reaper followed up with an attack against Kunhaussen, the metal of their weapon’s met as the small woman put up her blade to parry Reaper’s blow. Sparks flew as their weapons collided repeatedly with such an astonishing force that it left Kunhaussen doubting her ability to guard against each following attack.
Suddenly Reaper lunged back and spaced himself from his wavering opponent, then waived his scythe in the air while chanting an unfamiliar language, “Vawe fo doshaws, I leraese ouy.” Reaper then struck the ground, creating a small chasm that quickly traveled towards Kunhaussen erupting from it a rushing wave of specters that engulfed the crimson hero. She screamed as they reached inside of her and pulled at her from within.
With his attention focused on Kunhaussen, reaper was then struck in the side of his face by a small explosion. Alice filled back up her slingshot and fired again at her now off balance target striking him in the center of his chest. The cloud of specters surrounding Kunhaussen began to dissipate and Alice ran to Kunhaussen’s aid.
“You good?”
“It felt like, like they were reaching in and pulling out my essence.” The shaken up Kunhaussen struggled to catch her breath.
Alice noticed Reaper rising back to his feet, she stood and reached into her pouch.
Reaper looked up to notice the approaching balls of light rolling in his direction. Then the sudden explosion marbles like a dozen tiny grenades caused him to cover his eyes.
Acknowledging their chance to live and fight another day, Alice aided Kunhaussen to her feet and the two girls made their way to the large factory doors. Reaper remained shrouded in smoke as the girls arrived at the metal doors. Alice and Kunhaussen pushed to open them but to no avail.
Alice shook the door in frustration and could hear the metal chains clanking outside the door that hindered their escape. Kunhaussen turned back towards their opponent and peered into the smoke that had begun to settle, she then unsheathed her sword once again.
Alice noticed Kunhaussen putting up hear guard. “What are doing?” Alice turned to see Reaper emerge from the smoke. “Son of a…” Alice started as she reached at her hip for her sling shot.
Kunhaussen held up her hand, “No, we need an exit, I’ll hold him off.”
“What am I supposed to do?”
“Charge the door,” Kunhaussen demaded.
“I could blow the entire building.”
“Come on!” Kunhaussen yelled at Reaper as she charged towards him.
Alice looked at the door and breathed deeply. Okay, just give it a little juice, Alice rubbed her hands together and breathed deeply once again. Charging small marbles is one thing but charging a door without the rest of the building was a different story, especially with her being in it.
Kunhaussen swung her blade through the air at Reaper, his slim physique was quite limber as he nimbly evaded Kunhaussen’s strikes. Reaper taunted the heroine, “Such fury from what would seem to be a timid little creature, I’m almost in admiration.”
Becoming frustrated Kunhaussen screamed, “Shut up and fight back!”
Kunhaussen took another thrust at Reaper but instead of evading the blow, he caught the sword by it’s blade. Kunhaussen attempted to jerk her blade away but it was steadfast in Reaper’s grasp. Blood dripped from his hand as he tightly grasped the sharp alien blade, Reaper cocked his head to the side and with a fiendish grin he said, “Alright then, let’s fight.” Reaper released Kunhaussen’s blade as she made one last jerk at the blade. The heroine stumbled backwards onto the ground and looked up to see Reaper’s scythe bearing down on her, she dived out of the way, narrowly escaping the razor tip of Reaper’s weapon.
Alice held her hands firmly against the door as energy sparked around her point of contact with the cold steel. “Not too much, not too little,” Alice closed her eyes and her face contorted as she forced the destructive energy from her body into the door. The wave of energy could be seen as it crept through the steel. Alice opened her eyes to see her progress and suddenly developed a worried expression as he looked up the wall, “Oh shit.”
Kunhaussen’s heels dug into the ground as she tried to keep balance after being knocked back by Reaper’s blow. “Is that your best?” Reaper asked.
Kunhaussen breathed heavily and fast as she tried to catch her breath. “Not…Quite” Kunhaussen’s eyes became consumed by a yellow light and she raised her hand towards Reaper. As Reaper stood with a confident smirk he was struck in the face by one of Alice’s charged marbles.
Alice ran to Kunhaussen’s side and fired two more shots in rapid succession then grabbed Kunhaussen’s raised hand. “Hold that thought,” Alice said. The yellow in Kunhaussen’s eyes faded. Both the girls turned their weary heads back towards the door which was glowing brightly from the energy but to their dismay so was the entire wall, two stories of aluminum and steel shrapnel charged and preparing to explode.
“What did you do?”
Alice defended, “Don’t blame this on me, I knew it was a bad idea.”
Kunhaussen’s eyes began to glow again and she pulled Alice close and embraced her. The wall exploded in a bright and fiery light. Metal shards went flying and the steel beams stacked high tumbled down as the girls were engulfed in flames.
The sound of the heavy explosion echoed throughout the night shattering the windows of adjacent buildings. Through the blazing flames a figure could be seen. The fire began to die down slowly and revealed the figure to be not one but the two girls holding each other tightly. Alice held her eyes shut tightly as Kunhaussen was entranced with glowing eyes while maintaining her shield that covered Alice and she.
Alice opened one eye and looked to see a clear path where the fire had receeded. “Alright Kay, you can let go now.” Kunhaussen remained silent and Alice pulled against Kunhaussen’s tight embrace. Alice raised her voice, “Kay, you can let me go now!”
Kunhaussen’s eyes returned to their normal blue. “Oh, sorry, I was concentrating.” She scanned the wreckage, “Woah, this is intense.” Kunhaussen stood in awe at the devastation caused by Alice’s powers, she knew they packed a punch, but this was more than she had ever imagined.
“Come on,” Alice pulled at Kunhaussen’s arm.
“What about that Reaper guy, did he make it?” Kunhaussen questioned.
“I’m not sticking around to find out.”
No comments:
Post a Comment