The sound of heavy rain beating against the pavement filled the ears of an orange-haired girl lying on her side. She could not breathe, her eyes were too fixated on the sight before her to even take an inhale.

“What happened?” She asked herself in a weak, trembling voice, “This was supposed to be an easy mission.”

“Kaitlin!” Rico shook her around, “Kaitlin, snap out of it!”

There was a scorched red line on the cliff’s road, and the armored vehicle she rode on had been split in half.

A flash of lightning revealed two silhouettes stood atop the cliff, watching the two espers crawl out.

“This sure is powerful.” Said a blond man wearing a trilby and sunglasses. In his hands carried a black pipe-looking weapon with glowing circuit patterns.

“Told’ya. Mister Oscar’s manufacturing went swell.” Replied an orange-haired young man standing beside him.

Their attention suddenly turned toward the sliced vehicle, as a man in handcuffs suddenly got up. “You bastards sure took your time!” The man yelled.

“There he is! Lewis Shaw! The great failure of an escape artist!” The orange-haired man replied.

“Moritz, get me out of these cuffs!” Lewis demanded.

“Ever heard of the word “please?”” The jester responded. He then turned over to the blond man, “Julius?”

Julius nodded, his purple silk scarf swaying in the wind.

And then to the other side, and nodded his head to where seemingly no one stood. Raindrops fell on an unseen figure beside them.

The two figures slid down the cliff and approached the shackled criminal. As they did, a man crawled out of the halved vehicle and asked, “Rico, what happened?” Confused by what had just happened.

“They sliced through the armored truck… to get Lewis… I think that’s the guy from Maria Readman’s report. Moritz Wulfe… and that weapon… it has to be the one Mister Felix encountered.” Rico explained.

“This was supposed to be an easy mission…” Kaitlin repeated the sentiment she had, confused and distraught by their situation, “We were only supposed to take him to Cocytus…”

Rico turned to the groaning man and asked, “Harvey, can you walk?”

“I… I think so…”

“Grab Cameron and let’s get out of here.” Rico pointed towards the unconscious man still in the other half of the vehicle.

“Ah… right…”

Lewis approached the two figures, hopping along as both his arms and legs were bound by cuffs.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have any tools…” The jester shrugged.

“Then how do you—”

Suddenly, an armored hand sliced through the chains between his arms, and then the ones on his feet.

“Who… what are you?” Lewis asked.

Moritz smiled and answered the question, “This is a little friend we made…”

Suddenly, sparks and pixels suddenly lit brilliantly next to the clown, and an armored figure appeared out of thin air.

“Whoops, looks like your camo short-circuited. I guess Illusion Tech doesn’t work well in the rain.” The jester laughed as he placed his hand on the figure’s shoulder.

“Don’t touch me.” The armored figure spoke in a modulated voice, swatting away his hand.

As they conversed, Rico picked up Kaitlyn and slowly walked away, along with two others. But before he could move more than a few feet, a line of white alabaster light scorched through the ground next to him.

“Up, up, up. Where do you think you’re going?” Moritz smirked.

Rico turned his head with a frightened expression towards the criminals.

“You got who you came here for, right? Lewis is already in your custody.” Rico responded as he put on a brave front.

“True, but I’d rather not let you escape and… your lady friend is… she’s…” Moritz’s eyes met with Kaitlin’s, his voice slowed down and a wide grin formed around his face. “Those eyes…”

In the darkness of the rain, her glowing, mismatched eyes reminded Moritz of Felix.

“You… you’re like him, aren’t you? Like Blue Phantom…” He snickered.

A vicious wave of hatred shot out from Moritz’s body and snapped Kaitlin out of her stunned trance. She gasped for air and started to breathe in sharp, short intervals fueled by panic and fear.

“Such terrifying killing intent…” Harvey muttered under his breath, “Rico, can you do something about him? You’re an esper, right? Just like Felix and Anastasia, right? You should be able to deal with them.” His questions sounded more like desperate pleas.

Not intimidated by the jester’s blood lust, Rico asked, “You’re Moritz, right? Safe to say the rest of them are Jackal’s Fangs?”

“Nothing about you is safe at this very moment.” The jester responded.

Rico felt overwhelmed by this answer, but decided to stand his ground and grinned, “So which one of you bastards is the Jackal, then?”

“Let me guess, you wanna unleash righteous fury? Get revenge for all the people he’s killed and bring justice to the world? Tough luck, champ, but the boss ain’t here. Better luck next life.”

“It’s fine, as long as I get to end one of you, that will be enough… to satisfy my revenge!” Rico ran up to them, quickly closing the distance.

“Julius!” Moritz shouted.

“On it!” Julius responded, and the cannon began to light up. But before it did, Rico leapt towards them and ax-kicked the weapon to the ground.

“Kate! Harv! Run!” Rico shouted.

“Ah, that’s another two-hundred thousand…” Julius lamented as the weapon was smashed against the pavement.

“DON’T LET HER ESCAPE!” Moritz ordered.

Rico then kicked the blond man to the side and pointed his thumb towards himself, proudly declaring, “She’s not the only one you have to worry—!”

Suddenly, the armored figure struck his spine.

“GRYAAAAH!!” Rico let out an agonized scream as his body was flung across the ground.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“Rico!” Kaitlin cried out while Harvey tried desperately to pull her to safety.

Moritz slowly approached, “And am I supposed to be worried about you, too?”

“Be careful with him. I’m certain that he’s also an enhanced human. An esper.” The armored figure remarked.

Rico shakily got up and raised his fists.

“Oh, this is gonna be good…” The orange jester giggled.

They started trading blows.

As an enhanced human, there should have been a clear superiority in Rico’s speed and strength, but his mobility was clearly hampered by the damage he had already accumulated. Moritz, on the other hand, took him lightly and taunted him with every missed shot.

Though the jester’s fists did little damage, each blow was an attack to both his body and his spirit.

With an arrogant grin, Moritz reeled back his arm, ready for a big swing. But before it could land, the sound of gunfire caught both of their attention.

The orange jester turned his head and saw the two men standing behind Kaitlin, nervously aiming at him. They fired a second time, this time grazing his clenched fist.

“I TOLD YOU TO RUN!” Rico shouted at the two men.

But as a third bullet was shot, the armored figure jumped in the way to protect the jester. The fragment of lead bounced off the obsidian black armor, and the armored figure then lunged towards the three agents.

Both Harvey and Cameron unloaded every round they had against the armored figure, hoping it would have some effect, but the armored figure was not fazed.

With a high-pitched yelp, Kaitlin placed her hands on the road and pulled up the rubble, forming a concrete shield glued together by her crystalline red energy.

But that didn’t slow down the armored figure, who punched through the concrete standing in the way. Before the freckled esper could even react, the armored hand grabbed her face and pulled her against her own shield.

Rico noticed as her shield collapsed, he then struck his knee against Moritz’s face and rushed towards her.

“Hey! I’m still here!” He yelled as he punched the armored figure’s head into the ground. A pained groan escapes his mouth as his knuckles bled.

“Not a bad punch, kid…” The armored figure remarked as they slowly got back up.

“How about taking this seriously?” They raised their arms, and the armor began to radiate with bright white circuitry, similar to the cannon.

Rico nervously raised his own, a second round of fisticuffs.

Julius walked over to Moritz and asked, “Are you alright?”

“The fucking brat knee’d my fucking nose.” The orange-haired man answered as he blew out blood from his nose.

“If you’re alright, then can we leave here yet?” Lewis whined.

“No, not yet.” Moritz hissed, glaring at Kaitlin, “Not until we have that girl.”

Rico and the armored figure exchanged a barrage of blows.

Every hit left a crack on the pavement that they stood on. Little by little, his stained white shirt was torn off, and the skin on his fists gradually turned to a darker color, all while the armored figure kept the same pace, never missing a beat.

Aware of his approaching defeat, Rico firmly planted his feet, grit his teeth, and put all of his strength into his right arm. With his whole body, he swung.

A shockwave could be felt in the air as it struck the armored figure, “A good punch. An admirable final stand.”

The armored figure pulled out a combat knife, “Sorry kid, but it’s time to end this.”

With a sharp swing, the figure struck, followed by the squelching sound of flesh. But their armored arms rattled as Rico caught the blade through his palm. Even as blood gushed out of his palm, he pushed back the knife and clutched his enemy’s hand.

“I’ll make you all pay.” Blood started streaming from Rico’s nose as he declared, “I’ll make you all pay! For my friends, for my family. For all of the destruction, and everyone you’ve ever slaughtered in the Fallen—!”

Gunfire echoed through the air, and blood spewed out of Rico’s mouth.

“Ri… Rico?” Kaitlin weakly mumbled.

Rico clutched his bleeding chest and immediately realized that there were two holes that formed on him, “the… Fallen… Sun…” He muttered weakly before promptly falling to the ground.

The armored figure pulled back their knife and grabbed Rico’s arm.

Moritz blew the smoke coming from his gun, and picked up the black cannon on the ground, “Well, this is gonna cost us another hundred grand.”

“I’m sorry that this was the outcome, but I too, have something… someone to fight for.” The armored figure said as they gently placed Rico’s convulsing body on the pavement. Though the voice was modulated, there was sincerity in every word spoken.

When the jester reached the armored figure, he smiled and spoke, “So, what do you think of the new powered suit? It’s based on—”

“I don’t care.” The figure quickly cut him off.

“Hmph… now… for the girl.” He passed by the figure and continued to head to the red-eyed girl on the ground. Blood lust emanated from the jester’s glare, stunning the three figures.

“Rico! RICO!” Kaitlin desperately cried. Her body crackled with crimson lightning.

“Huh?” The jester stepped back as he saw flames with crystalline patterns forming around her body.

The armored figure then leapt to where Moritz stood, preparing to guard him for whatever was coming.

A drop of hot, boiling blood slid down the young woman’s nose as a crystalline crimson dome formed around her, her arm glowing a bright, hot red, and started cracking and deteriorating.

Her other eye started to shift back and forth between dark brown and radiant red.

But before anything could happen, the freckled girl’s arm flew into the air with one clean slice, struck by an alabaster white beam that easily tore through her crimson dome.

“I’m not dealing with this shit a second time.” Moritz’s voice dripped with animosity. Though the armored figure’s face was hidden behind a metal mask, it was clear that they were stunned by the jester’s cruelty and indifference.

“Huh?” Kaitlin slowly turned her head to the side and saw the drone floating in the distance, meters above her.

She fell to the cold ground with a wet thud. Her eye shifted its color to match the other, becoming a bright red in the process.

Her arms crackled with crimson electricity, and an agonized scream rushed out her throat, clawing at her lungs, begging to escape as her regeneration began.

Kaitlin’s new bones pierced through the burnt stumps and formed twig-like branches that spread out into several directions, and her veins and muscles came out like bent wires, following the trail of lightning that her body was producing.

“Her regeneration… it’s…” The armored figure spoke in horror as the freckled girl’s own body twisted and malformed.

Her shrill cries made both Julius and the armored figure uncomfortable, but the Moritz stared without pity, not looking away, but rather with blank contempt.

The jester ordered in a cold tone, “We take her back with us.”

“Mhm.” The armored figure nodded and approached the red-eyed girl.

“Somebody… anybody… Felix… help us…” She weakly as her own arms grew back in a misshapen form, her flesh contorted and wrung like wet cloth, wrapped over branching bones.

The figure knelt down beside her, and a raindrop ran across the helmet’s black metal cheek, “I’m sorry… if only Felix could help me, too.”

Rico’s voice suddenly boomed, “Harvey… take her and run, DAMN IT!”

He could barely raise his head as he pulled out the bullets from his chest.

As he crawled, he placed his palm on the ground, and with a creaking screech, the two halves of the armored vehicle were suddenly pulled together by an invisible force, sealing Harvey, Kaitlin, and the other agent inside, and nearly slicing the armored figure’s head off.

“What happened? How did he do that?!” Moritz mumbled as he watched.

Rico balled his hand into a fist and tightened it as hard as he could, “If I die here… then I might as well… use every last drop of psychic energy… to save them.”

Blood burst out of his nose and eyes as he struck the pavement.

As it made impact, his arm exploded into nothing but blood and viscera, with nothing remaining of his hand but the shattered remains of his bones.

The road snapped in half, and the whole area around him shook.

“What?!” Moritz growled as he looked back at Rico, but his enraged expression turned to shock as he felt the rumbling in the ground.

Suddenly, the cliff above them began to crumble, and an avalanche of dirt soil spilled forth in their direction.

Julius and Lewis found themselves just a few feet fortunate enough to not have to deal with Rico’s final attack. But Moritz and the armored figure were at its dead center.

The jester aimed his cannon at the earthen tidal wave, and split it in half with the beam of light, while the coursing mud swept the armored vehicle downwards into the cliff.

“Urk! Hurk, gr!” He growled as the mud and rain on the pavement made him lose footing, and the energy cannon sizzled with streams of electricity, burning his already wounded hands.

His eyes narrowed with determination and anger, the drizzle dripped on his face.

But he and the weapon could not stop all of it, and he was swept away. For a total of two seconds just before it ended.

The jester huffed with exhaustion as he looked at the crescent moon above him.

“Looks like the rain’s over.” The armored figure remarked with an open palm.

Moritz got up from the mudflow with an enraged look and shouted, “AFTER ALL THAT, AND I DIDN’T EVEN GET HER!” He glanced over to Rico’s leg, while the rest of his body was still underneath the soil and rubble.

“ALL BECAUSE THIS… bastard…” He slowly turned his head to the armored figure and asked, “Earlier, you said that this guy is also an enhanced human, right?”

There was a momentary pause.

“I’m not sure…” The armored figure sounded as if they wanted to deny their own words.

He clicked his tongue in response, “Help me get his body.”

“There’s no way his body is still intact.”

Despite his burnt and damaged arms, Moritz still had the strength to pull out Rico’s body from underneath the mud. The wet soil made it easier than it should be.

Moritz grinned and remarked, “Enhanced humans sure are something else. I didn’t get the glowing eyed girl, but you’ll have to do, Rico.”

“Tsk.” The figure clicked their tongue.

The two other criminals then approached.

Julius placed his hand on the armored figure’s shoulder and commented, “I must admit, this new ally of yours is really strong… where’d you find them?”

The figure then slapped away his hand out of disgust.

“That’s a secret.” Moritz grinned as he lifted up Rico’s corpse, “For now, Lewis, help me bring this back. We’re headed to the base.”

~