“Worthless men. If you do not die to the two spies, then you will die by my hand instead.” The visored man declared as he sheathed back his katana.

Even his employer was unnerved by what he did, but responded. But Lewis, trying to save face, loudly ordered,“Th-that’s right! Now go find and kill them!”

They all reluctantly complied and searched through the labyrinth of crates and cargo.

The sounds of their struggles reverberated through the steel corridors, often ending by the sound of his bodies dropping to the ground. His men were all picked off one-by-one. With his back close to the wall, Lewis reached into his inner pockets and pulled out his own pistol, forced to act on his own.

Maria showed herself, on her arm was the unconscious body of his last henchmen, as she dropped him to the ground for Lewis to see personally. On her other arm, the briefcase of the other man who was trading with him.

As she dropped the body, she let out a peppy exhale, “Phew.”

“It appears we’re up against the Twelve Agencies, sir.” The last of Lewis’s employ, the visored man, grinned and pointed his gun towards Maria.

Felix grabbed one of the unconscious men’s guns and aimed from the spaces between. Without hesitation, he cocked his gun and fired at the two men, but the visored man responded by pulling Lewis’s head down.

The man jumped back as Felix’s shots struck the ground.

Maria then slithered from the darkness and swung her knife at the visored man, but he slid underneath her attack and grabbed her arm, throwing her towards where Felix was firing.

Felix ceased his attack, and Maria leapt to his side.

“This guy’s a tough nut.” She remarked as Felix walked out from the shadows between the large metal cranes.

“He knew where I was firing from…” Felix remarked as he gazed at his opponent “That insignia…” , commenting on the mark on the visored man’s outfit. A green fire trapped in a diamond. “A Cinderash.”

Lewis took a step back, pulling the briefcase closer to his chest, but as he walked away slowly, he felt the cold metal press against his back. “That’s right, bitch boys. I have a professional assassin working for me. Your lives are as good as over!”

A wave of intimidation shot through the two agent’s bodies as the visored man took a single step forward.

“Bloodlust…” Felix’s eyes narrowed, “V.V., get behind me.”

“You think I’m intimidated by some little assassin? Bring the whole Cinderash clan for all I care, I’ll kill them all!” She boasted.

“Come on, then!” The visored assassin of the Cinderash clan yelled out with an excited grin.

He began shooting at Felix, who dashed away, avoiding the bullets and firing back using the energy gun, Ion.

Transparent, concentric waves of energy struck the assassin’s arms, he suddenly felt numbed and struggled to move his hand.

Lewis ran through the crates behind him with the briefcase in his arms.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“What kind of weapon is that?” The Cinderash assassin shuddered as a feeling of numbness crept into his arms.

“V.V., just capture Lewis!” Felix yelled out as he kicked the Cinderash against the cold steel wall. The visored man groaned and aimed at Felix once again.

The bullet grazed against the top of his blue eye. He pressed his hand against the aching wound, only to be kicked down by the assassin.

A battle between the two gunslingers ensued. Exchanging shot after shot in close proximity, while evading each other’s blows. But one was equipped to kill, while the other could only incapacitate.

He can keep up with me. Am I too weak... or is this just the level of a true professional?

Either way, he’s not just a fool with guns. But still… he’s weaker than Harbinger.

And if he’s weaker than Harbinger, then I can beat him, I can—!

“GRAHG!—”

Spit scattered into the air as the assassin buried his foot into the agent’s gut with enough intensity to fling him towards the metal wall. The sharp pain from the explosion earlier radiated throughout his back.

“Wh-what?” The blue-eyed agent wiped his chin, grumbling as he shakily got back up.

A whirring sound coming from the visored man’s legs.

He grinned and lifted the cuff of his pants, showing a chrome, mechanical leg hidden beneath.

“Combat prosthetics. Makes my kicks more explosive.”

“Military grade exoskeleton, the Cinderash specialty.” The blue-eyed agent huffed as he smugly retorted.

“Well-informed, I see. I was hoping to have some fun, so I didn’t want to use it, but since you’re stronger than I expected, it’s time I stopped holding back.”

Felix spat at the ground and lifted his gun, ready for round two.

Through the steel corridors, Lewis frantically ran in search of a way out, holding the briefcase tightly. But as he stopped to catch his breath, he felt a finger tapping on his shoulder.

He turned around and aimed his gun haphazardly, but a voice from behind whispered in his ear, “No escape.”

As soon as he turned around, he saw no one there.

The dark-haired woman slithered back into the corridors, playing with her food.

His breath turned ragged as he grew frightened. A drop of sweat slid down his cheek as he once again started running.

But before he could get anywhere, she made him trip and fall with a swift leg sweep from beneath him.

She squatted down in front of him with both her palms on her face. From the ground, he looked up and saw her with a wide, wry smile, like a predator playing with its prey.

He slowly got back up, and so did Maria.

“Hands in the air.” She sweetly stated.

Lewis slowly raised his hands in response, only to reveal in his hand a stun grenade. With a bright burst of light, he grabbed the briefcase and made his escape.

Blinded by the flash, Maria shielded her eyes and pulled out her grappling hook, “No, you don’t!”

As she fired, Lewis quickly pulled out a stun gun and struck the wire. The agent let out a sharp scream as the electricity surged through the grappling hook.

Lewis watched as his pursuer fell to the ground, before resuming his escape with a relieved grin.

“Marie!” Felix yelled out, still in the middle of his own battle.

He avoided the visored man’s explosive kicks that dented the metal crates, but his movements were sloppy. The strain from the explosion earlier took its toll on his back and gradually got worse as their battle progressed.

But as he aimed his gun to counter, his opponent kicked his hands upwards, and then spin kicked him into the metal crates. Felix fell to his knees.

“You were good, kid.” The visored man aimed his gun at Felix’s head, “But worrying over your partner, and getting distracted… What a rookie mistake.”

But before he pulled the trigger, a blue outline formed around the agent’s body.

“What the hell?” The visored man mumbled out in an alarmed manner.

Like a coiled spring, Felix sprung towards him.

The assassin aimed frantically, only to realize his gun was pointed at a blue silhouette. The agent had maneuvered under him and kicked his firearm into the sky.

In a last-ditch effort, he threw in a powerful kick at the agent, and the agent responded in kind.

The machine let out a deafening whir as it revved up, gradually getting louder as they pushed each other further. But Felix’s expression intensified with rage, and a stream of blue electricity crackled around his leg.

With a loud snap and a burst of blue light, the exoskeleton fractured and shattered into black shards in the air, leaving the assassin stunned. Before he could completely comprehend what was happening, Felix followed with a spin kick that sent him slamming against the metal crate.

The assassin’s body grumbled, aching in the steel crater.

Felix stood proudly on his feet and let out an excited smile, “It worked…” The blue glow around his body had dissipated.

~