Chapter 25:
Twist
The dragon roared at Percy, but he was completely unfazed by its attempt at intimidation. The policemen who'd seen his helicopter arrive shouted at him in Japanese, but he simply raised a hand and flashed his Twisthunter Task Force badge at them. The dragon continued roaring at him, though it didn't move from its spot coiled around its egg and Ramon.
Percy sighed and retrieved a megaphone from the helicopter he'd arrived on, flicked its switch, and spoke into it clearly.
"Ramon Cortez, this is Percival Johnson. Is it possible for you to remove the dragon Twister from the premises yourself, or is the Tokyo police force supposed to apply lethal force to this Twister itself?"
The dragon roared and snapped at Percy, but he was far enough from its mouth that it couldn't reach him without uncoiling from around its egg, and it didn't want to expose it for even a moment to all the policemen and their weapons. It growled at him and coiled itself up even tighter.
After a few moments, Ramon Cortez climbed out from the dragon's coils quietly, and before the dragon could snap at him for his rude appearance, he jumped off its body and landed on the ground next to Percy. Junnosuke snapped at him angrily and nearly snagged his leg, but once he was next to Percy, it lost interest and returned to protecting its egg.
The Japanese police force focused on Ramon, even as his face and stomach were covered in blood and his appearance was completely haggard. Percy ran to him and helped him walk over to the helicopter, where he sat him down and began tending to his wounds while they spoke.
"While I tend to your most grievous injuries, explain what has happened while I was tracking you." He said curtly.
Ramon winced as he took off his shirt and exposed his ragged bandages. Percy clicked his tongue and deftly opened a first aid kit that was on the helicopter, applying alcohol and cleaning Ramon's numerous wounds without a word.
The Japanese police force were confused about what to do. They continued pointing their guns at the black-scaled dragon, but several officers were staring at the sight of Ramon receiving medical treatment. While Percy and Ramon caught up, those officers called their superiors and asked them about what they should do in response.
"So there was this girl. She's a Twister with super speed, and she found me and the kid. She told the police which way we were going, and they set up an ambush at some bridge, not this one though, and almost captured the kid and killed me."
He winced as Percy applied rubbing alcohol to the wound in his lower left abdomen, which was still bleeding.
"Instead of shooting me, they sent the Twister girl after me. She wasn't used to Twisthunters, so I put the gun to my stomach and shot myself in order to hit her, since she would've seen me coming if I aimed the gun straight at her."
"Of course you would do something along those lines." Percy muttered as he wiped away the last of Ramon's blood. "You are completely idiotic on occasion. Continue."
"After that, we got away and kept going until we got ambushed here. The girl didn't die, and she helped the police make another ambush against us. She tore off Junnosuke's head."
Percy glanced up at Ramon, then back at the dragon.
"Yeah so you know how the human head can survive detached from the body for eleven or so seconds?"
"I'm aware of that fact."
"So the kid used his Twist as he was dying, and when he does that, the giant dragon barfs up an egg that has his body in it. I think," Ramon sounded unsure of himself, "that as long as the kid stays in the egg, he'll keep healing. He might be able to get his head back on. You know how crazy Twist is."
"I suppose that killing the dragon immediately is out of the question, as is moving the egg."
"That's a safe bet."
Percy finished treating Ramon's major wound and moved on to treating the various bruises on his head.
The policemen received orders from their higher ups to shoot both Ramon and Percy, as well as the dragon and anything it was hiding, in order that the Japanese government might cover it all up under the guise of Handler Kanto and his charge going completely insane and killing everyone who'd been involved in a tragic accident.
As the Japanese policemen raised their revolvers towards Percy, several brilliantly bright searchlights suddenly turned on and bathed the entire bridge over the Iruma river in light. The policemen looked up to see several more helicopters high above them.
Percy stepped away from Ramon and picked up his megaphone, then spoke Japanese into it with succinct clarity.
"To all Japanese law enforcement personnel in the area; be aware that there are several Twisthunter Task Force members managing spotlights and cameras above us at this moment. If you were to end the lives of anyone here, Twister or non-, prematurely, it would be recorded and broadcast to UN headquarters. Do with this information what you will."
The Japanese policemen who had begun raising their weapons towards Percy and Ramon faltered, and the senior officers reported what had been said to their superiors. While they did so, Ramon nodded at Percy.
"To be honest, if the roles were reversed, I wouldn't have thought that far ahead."
"Is that supposed to surprise me?"
"Whatever, man." He said with a shake of his head. "So about the Twister girl and Junnosuke; I think that if he survives this whole thing, we should give him the Twist Removal Surgery. I'm worried about what the lasting effects on his mental health will be after he was forced to use his Twist in a life-or-death scenario."
Percy appeared pensive for a moment.
"Ordinarily, such operations are considered outside our jurisdiction," he spared a glance at the bristling dragon, "however, in this particular case, with a Twister that is dangerous but is currently very able to be subdued, I think we will be able to work things out in an optimal fashion."
Ramon smiled, but then stared at the dragon very seriously.
"There's also that girl. I knocked her out, and she's next to the egg in there. She's obviously used her Twist a lot, and I'm hoping that we can do the same for her."
"You don't know her name?"
"Nope. She showed up, and there was this weird guy in a white suit who looked like he was in charge of the whole operation that wanted to kill her and capture Junnosuke. If you ask me, I think he was part of Japan's secret Twister weaponization strategy."
"Which we haven't proven exists," Percy stated firmly, "and is it safe for me to assume that you killed him?"
Ramon nodded, and moments later appeared crestfallen.
"I killed our only potential lead into the investigation, didn't I?"
Percy sighed and shook his head.
"Yes. Now, get in the helicopter. I'll telephone for a surgeon and get a tent set up here for when Junnosuke finishes being a dragon. How long do you think it will be until it is safe to defeat the dragon and retrieved Junnosuke from his egg?"
Ramon stepped into the helicopter's seat and adjusted himself.
"From how much he improved while I was sitting next to him, I'd say by noon tomorrow he should be ready to come out. To be extra safe, I'd give him until tomorrow night." He winced as the bandages Percy had applied to his head constrained him slightly.
"Of course. I will also attempt to have the girl's Twist removed."
Ramon smiled at Percy.
The Japanese police force seethed as the two men spoke calmly.
"Thanks again Percy."
"Think nothing of it Ramon. I shall see you later."
The helicopter Ramon was in slowly began rising into the sky, and Ramon Cortez watched as all the people, vehicles, and even the dragon, became smaller and smaller as he flew away.
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