Arrival - Chapter 15

The Christmas season was in full swing at Ferris.

The pathways, school buildings and student houses were heavily decorated with lights and fake snow which made the place look more spectacular than ever. The grand highlight was that the giant oak tree just in front of the station was covered in lights and decorations, making it the 2nd tallest Christmas tree in the country.

Eric had been a little surprised that a university and a military institute like Ferris would even put so much time and effort into their Christmas decorations, but Kasmine had encouraged the students to, saying that everyone, especially Guardians, needed to enjoy themselves around this time of the year.

Still though, it’s hard to believe that it was only a month ago that we were fighting Bunny and Alexis had been a complete wreck, Eric thought.

Over the last month, thanks to the hard work of both Ajax and Ace, Alexis was finally back to her old self and seemed to have been able to accept Stephanie’s death and continue on with her life.

Eric greatly admired her courage.

Under Kaida’s guidance and enthusiasm for the season, the team’s house was superbly decorated and, with everyone’s help, it had only taken them a few hours to set everything up.

Now, Eric and the rest of his team were all in the living room of their house where Connor had asked them to gather to propose something for them all to do.

“You want to do a Secret Santa?” Evony asked and Connor nodded.

“It’s our first Christmas as a team and I think it’d be something fun for us to all do,” he said. “Are you against the idea?”

“No, but I think some of the other guys might already have plans for Christmas. Do any of you guys have plans for the holidays?”

All of them but Ajax shook their heads or said that they didn’t.

“My sis and I always spend Christmas with our family and now more than ever we need to,” Ajax said sadly. “But hey, that doesn’t mean you guys can’t do a Secret Santa without me.”

“Sounds like an improvement,” Jasmine murmured.

“Oi!”

“Well, why don’t we do it tonight?” Connor suggested.

“Tonight? Will we have enough time?” Kaida asked.

“We will if we all head over to the leisure area this evening, do our shopping within a set timeframe and budget, and then we exchange everything here later. It’s not a bad plan, is it?”

“It might be tough, but it could work,” Eric said.

Laila nodded in agreement.

“Hmm, they do have everything there, so it could work,” Kiara mused, floating above them. She spun around and smiled. “I’m all for it.”

“Likewise!” Ajax cried.

“…I’d like to do it,” Elthia whispered, looking pleadingly at Jasmine.

Jasmine let out a small sigh and smiled. “If everyone else is okay with it, then so am I.”

“Great. Then, I’ll go and make the lots,” Connor declared and he left the room.

A few minutes later, he came back with a hat filled with nine pieces of folded paper. “Everyone takes one and if you draw yourself put it back in. However! You cannot reveal who you have until after we have exchanged presents, not even to each other.”

“That could make shopping a bit more difficult, especially if you don’t know what the person would like,” Jasmine noted.

“That will just make things more interesting. So, as long as no one else objects, everyone, please pick your person, grab twenty quid and head over to the leisure centre and get shopping. Everyone will meet back up here at eleven and we’ll do the exchange then. Okay?” Everyone nodded in agreement and he grinned. “Then, let’s begin.”

***

Ace was waiting anxiously by the main plaza of the leisure area, wearing the nicest clothes he owned under a thick winter coat.

After one of the longest month’s in Ace’s life, with his and her brother’s help, Alexis had slowly recovered and began acting like her old self. Even when she seemed to be back to her old self, Ace still went over to her house every single day to make sure she was okay and he ended up asking her a week ago a question he was now slightly regretting.

“Hey, Alexis, do you have any plans around Christmas?” He asked, his cheeks a little flushed.

“Usually, I’ll be at home for the day itself but, other than that, I’m free. Why?”

“Um, well, if you wouldn’t mind- I mean, if you’d like to, would you like to go on a date with me around then?”

“Huh?”

Alexis’s cheeks also turned red and Ace turned away from her, embarrassed. “Y-You know what, forget about-”

“I would,” she whispered.

“Eh? Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Great, then, are you, um, free sometime next week?”

The current Ace looked back on his past self and cringed a little on the inside.

“Urgh, why’d I’d have to ask her like that?” He groaned, becoming more and more embarrassed the more he thought about it. “I was acting like I’d never talked to a girl before.”

He was close to walking away out of pure embarrassment and a small part of him though that Alexis wouldn’t show anyway.

“Good evening.”

Ace turned to look at her and his jaw dropped.

Alexis looked stunning.

She was wearing a knitted pink sweater with black jeans under a black parker coat, and she was wearing a woolly beanie. While Ace was no expert in makeup, he could tell that she had used something on her cheeks and lips because they seemed more beautiful than ever.

When Ace realised that he was staring at her, he shook his head a little and looked to the side. “Good evening.” His voice shook slightly.

“Hmm, why aren’t you looking me in the eyes?” She asked, titling her head a little, making her look even cuter to Ace.

“Um, it’s just, you look great and…I didn’t know how to tell you.”

“Hmm? What was that last part?”

“Does it matter? I think you look great and it’s cold out here, so let’s go inside.”

As he began to walk away, Alexis cried, “Ah, wait a minute! You’re deflecting!”, running after him.

“No, I’m not!”

“Liar! What was that last part you said? Ace!”

She grabbed his arm tightly and Ace blushed a little. “Alexis?”

“Do you really think I look cute?” She asked with a puppy-dog expression on her face.

“Y-Yeah,” he whispered.

She smiled brightly and gripped his arm more tightly. “In that case, it’s fine.”

“Um, Alexis, could you please let go of me? People are staring at us?”

“Ah, sorry.” She quickly let go and instead grabbed his hand softly. “This is okay though, right?”

“Yeah.” Ace smiled, his cheeks slightly flushed. “So, where do you want to go first?”

***

Eric let out a low hum as he checked out the shirts in the men’s department of the clothing shop.

He had never had to buy clothes for another guy before and it was proving more difficult than he had imagined.

“Struggling?” Laila asked.

“A little, yeah,” Eric admitted. He picked off from the rack an iron pressed smart white shirt. “Do you think this is a nice shirt?” Laila nodded. “Then, I’ll get him this. What are you getting for yours, Laila?”

“I will know soon enough.” She pulled a nice blue shirt off a rack near them and held it up against Eric.

“Um, what are you doing?”

She titled her head. “I’m seeing if this shirt would look good on you. You’re my Secret Santa after all.”

“If you tell the person then it’s not really a Secret Santa.”

Laila handed it to him. “Try it on.”

“You want me to try it on now?”

“I want to make sure that it’s a good fit before I buy it, otherwise it would be a waste of time and money.”

“…I guess.”

“Come on.” She began pushing him over to the changing rooms. “Try it on.”

Laila pushed Eric behind the curtain and passed him the shirt.

“I’m trying on a Secret Santa present before I’ve even been given it?” Eric mumbled, letting out a small laugh.

He changed into the shirt and checked himself out in the mirror, but Eric had no idea if it looked good on him or not.

“Done?”

“Yeah,” Eric said and Laila threw open the curtain. “Laila?”

She looked him up and down in deep thought, then nodded. “It’s a good look.”

“R-really?”

“Take it off and I’ll buy it.”

Laila shut the curtain and Eric let out a small sigh.

So, I know my Secret Santa present before we even exchange them?

He took the shirt off and handed back to Laila who then promptly bought it. Once they had left the shop, Eric stopped walking and his eyes turned to the large Christmas tree that had been erected in the centre.

“What’s wrong?”

Eric’s eyes narrowed and his hands curled into fists. “Laila…that night, when we fought Bunny…I…killed Stephanie. S-?”

“No.”

Eric closed his eyes and smiled sadly. “You already knew what I was going to ask, right?”

Laila nodded. “If you told either of them, they’d only be hurt. And.” Laila took his hand and smiled at him. “You didn’t do anything wrong. Trust me.”

Eric smiled weakly back and said, “Thank you. Also.” His cheeks turned slightly red. “People will misunderstand.”

Laila shrugged and dragged Eric off into the shopping centre, keeping his hand firmly in hers.

***

“Thanks for waiting,” Evony said with a smile, as she exited the department store carrying a large carrier bag.

“No worries,” Connor replied, putting his phone away and offering up his hand. “Get what you wanted?”

“I was lucky that they hadn’t sold out.” She handed Connor her bag and asked, “Don’t you need to pick up something for your Secret Santa?”

“Ah, I’ve already done that.”

“Really? When? And, more importantly, where’s what you bought?”

“Right here.” Connor tapped his back pocket with a grin on his face.

“All that’s in your back pocket is…” Evony let out a small sigh. “Really?”

“What?”

“It’s not exactly a present.”

“I think a hundred pounds is a good present.”

“A hundred?”

“My family’s a bit on the rich side.”

“We set a price limit at twenty pounds.” Connor shrugged. “Honestly, sometimes I’m amazed by you.”

“Why, thank you.”

She glared at him. “That wasn’t a compliment.”

Connor laughed. “If you think this is something, you haven’t seen anything yet, Evony.”

“I can’t wait,” she said in monotone.

“At least fake the enthusiasm.”

“Sorry, but I don’t do that.”

Connor sighed. “You’re no fun tonight.”

“I’d be in a better mood if you put a little more effort into this. It was your idea, after all.”

“Fine, fine. I’ll do that when you start sounding more enthusiastic.”

“That sounds great!” She cried with overly exaggerated gestures.

“I didn’t mean right now,” Connor said.

She smiled and put her hands behind her back. “You should’ve been more specific then.”

Evony and Connor smiled at each other and continued walking around the shopping centre, a comfortable silence between them.

***

“Why couldn’t I get one of the girls?” Ajax whispered, staring off towards the lingerie section of the clothes shop.

He let out a heavy sigh with his Secret Santa present in hand and checked his phone. He still had time before they were meant to meet back up at the house.

“What to do?”

Ajax left the shop and walked up to one of the shopping centre’s maps, looking for places where he could window shop. Once he’d found a shop on the upper floor, he turned around and saw two people who he hadn’t expected to see tonight together.

“Alexis?” He asked, as she and Ace walked in his direction holding hands.

“Ajax? W-what are you doing here?”

Ajax looked at the pair linking hands and glared at Ace. “I could ask him the same thing.”

Ace quickly let go of Alexis’s hand and nervously rubbed the back of his head, laughing a little. “Ajax, fancy seeing you here! What’s up, my dear friend?”

“What are you doing with my sister?”

“Um, I-”

“Ajax, don’t pick on him,” Alexis said, smiling and retaking Ace’s hand in hers.

“Ah man, I got scolded by my little sis.” Ajax laughed. “Ace, did you really think I’d be an overprotective brother when it comes to her love life?”

Ace looked anxiously at Ajax. “Really? You’re not going to be like that?”

“Hell no. I know you’re a decent enough guy and you’re no longer the annoy piece of shit you were when I first met you.”

“Um, thank you?”

“You’re very welcome. To think that the year’s biggest, most annoying piece of shit would be dating my perfect, and beautiful, little sister.”

“Ajax,” Alexis said coldly, shooting daggers at him

“It-It was just a joke, Alexis! Right, Ace?”

“Yeah, what he said. It’s okay,” Ace reassured them. “I know how much of a pain I was back then, but I was happy to hear that you don’t think I’m like that anymore.”

“Dude, don’t talk about it like it was ancient history. It was only a few months ago-” A cold look from his sister shut Ajax up. “Oh, would you look at the time?” He checked a non-existent watch on his jumper’s sleeve. “I best be going. Have fun, you guys.”

“Actually, could I have a quick word, Ajax?” Ace asked and Alexis looked at him with a confused expression on her face. “I just wanted to ask him about something in private and now’s a good time. It will only take a minute.”

“Okay.” Alexis stepped away from the two of them.

“What’s up?” Ajax asked, slightly worried.

“You don’t have to make that face,” Ace replied. “I was just wondering if I could ask you for a small favour?”

***

After purchasing their presents for Secret Santa, Jasmine and Elthia decided to kill time at the shopping centre walking around, hand in hand, window shopping.

“Hey, Elthia, is there anywhere you want to go?” Jasmine asked but Elthia shook her head in response. “Okay. If you do spot somewhere you want to go, just let me know.”

“Okay.”

The two of them continued walking down one of the floors when, excitedly, Elthia spotted an arcade and pulled on Jasmine’s hand.

“Can we see what games they have?”

“Of course,” Jasmine replied and Elthia smiled happily.

She dragged Jasmine into the arcade, let go of her hand, and immediately ran over to one of the claw machines, staring intently at a cushion in the shape of a cartoon cat’s head.

Jasmine felt the blood drain from her face when she saw it.

It reminded her off that day, of a man holding a gun to her head, the sound of two bullets echoing through a dark room, and the body of a small girl and, in her hands, that exact same plushie, dyed crimson.

“Jasmine?” Elthia tugged on Jasmine’s skirt. “What’s wrong?”

Jasmine shook her head and smiled, and said, “Nothing. Do you want that one?” Elthia nodded enthusiastically. “Okay, I’ll try to get it for you.”

Jasmine put her bags beside the machine, inserted a coin and began the game.

Carefully, Jasmine lined up on the exact one that Elthia had been staring at, dropped the claw on it and picked it up in an instant.

“Come on,” she whispered as the claw brought it over to the prize box.

It started to slip through the claws but, because of how Jasmine had picked it up, it fell out right into the box before the claws fully opened.

“Yes!”

Elthia quickly retrieved the cushion and hugged it tightly. “Thank you, Jasmine.” She rubbed her face against the pillow.

“You’re very welcome.”

Jasmine couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Elthia fawning over her prize.

Jasmine’s expression became pained. It’s…not okay. She can’t keep acting like a child for all of her life. But…

Jasmine bit down on her lip hard.

I don’t know how to tell her that and…I don’t know if I could bring myself to tell her that.

***

After finishing up their date at the shopping centre, Ace and Alexis started to head home, cutting through the lake’s paths which, unlike most nights, had a lot of people around it, most of whom were couples.

“Look at that,” Alexis said, stopping and gazing off to look at the water.

Even with the lighting around it, parts of the water still reflected the stars in the sky and the moon, making the lake look even more beautiful that it usually did.

“It’s amazing.”

Ace looked over at Alexis again, his heart raced and he felt blood flow to his cheeks. He cleared his throat quietly and turned to face her.

“Hey, Alexis, there’s, um, something I want to give you,” Ace stuttered, reaching into his coat pocket. He pulled out a long, cushioned box and offered it to her. “I know it’s a bit early, but, Merry Christmas.”

“Oh, wow,” Alexis said, a blissful smile on her face. She took it and knew just by looking that it was some sort of jewellery piece. “Can I open it now?”

“Yeah.”

Excitedly, Alexis popped open the box and found a silver locket in the shape of a heart inside. “It’s beautiful.”

Alexis popped it open and took in a sharp breath when she saw the photo on the inside.

“I…I asked Ajax earlier if he had any photos of the two of you, because I wanted to get you something to always remind you of the happy times you had with her,” Ace said, looking away from her. “I was a bit scared to get you something like this because I didn’t know if it was too soon or insensitive, or if it was none of my business to-”

“I love it,” Alexis whispered, a sad, but gentle, smile on her lips.

She felt a strong warmth in her chest when she saw the picture of herself and Stephanie, both smiling happily at the camera as they took a picture together.

They had taken it at Stephanie’s last birthday party.

“You don’t have to worry so much about me anymore, Ace.” Alexis closed the locket. “Even if I’ll never be used to the idea of living without Stephanie, I know that I can’t let it hold me back for the rest of my life.” She put it on her neck. “Even now, it still hurts whenever I think that I won’t ever see her again, but.” She smiled and looked Ace in the eyes. “I know that she’d be angry with me if all I ever did was mope.”

“I see.” Ace smiled back and Alexis blushed a little.

She skipped over to Ace and threw her arms around him, catching the boy off guard. “Thank you, Ace.”

Ace closed his eyes and embraced her back. “You’re very welcome.”

***

After a long evening of shopping, Eric and his team returned home, wrapped their presents, put whose present it was on tags attached to them, and hid them in carrier bags.

“I wonder who got who,” Evony said.

“I can’t wait for the person I got to see what I got them,” Kiara purred with a soft giggle.

“Why did I just get chills?” Eric asked.

“Come on! Can we exchange presents yet?” Kaida burst out, unable to hold back her excitement any longer.

“Jeez, you have so much energy for stuff like this,” Jasmine mused with a small smile. “I wish you could give me some of that, sometimes.”

“Agreed,” Laila mumbled.

“…I think it’s wonderful, but…I’m a little jealous,” Elthia whispered.

“Well, without any further ado, and, more importantly, before we all get headaches because of Kaida, let’s begin,” Connor said. “If everyone would close their eyes, I’ll take everyone’s presents out and leave the name tags face up so people can find theirs.”

Everyone nodded in agreement and did as he said.

After a few moments, Connor had laid out all eight presents in the middle of everyone else, a large smirk on his face.

“Okay, open your eyes.”

Excitedly, everyone opened their eyes and looked over the presents but, very quickly, their expressions turned from ecstatic to confused.

Six of the presents had Eric’s name on them and two had Connor’s.

“Huh?” Kaida asked.

“Um, what?” Ajax followed, dumbfounded.

“Eric, pinch me real quick,” Jasmine said and he lightly grabbed the skin on her arm. “Thank you. I’m not dreaming then.”

“Guys, am I seeing double, or sixple?” Kiara asked with a small smile.

Eric let out a heavy sigh and shot a frustrated look at Connor.

You son of a bitch.

Evony closed her eyes and frowned. “So, that’s what you meant by I hadn’t seen anything yet?” She inhaled sharply and glared at Connor. “Eric, even though I know the answer, I have to ask. You didn’t rig the drawing, did you?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“Then, Connor, would you care to explain this?”

Everyone turned to look at him but Connor wasn’t facing them. He was leaning nonchalantly into the sofa, looking off to the side and trying to hold back a smile.

He smirked, turned to face them all and said, “I just want to say that this.” He gave them a thumbs-up. “It was totally worth it.”

He leapt over the sofa and ran towards the front door in an instant.

“You bastard!” Jasmine yelled in close pursuit.

“You idiot! Why did you have to do something like this again?” Kaida cried, quick behind Jasmine.

“Again?” Kiara burst out.

Evony let out another sigh and closed her eyes. “Why are two of the boys on our team idiots?”

“Yeah, Eric,” Ajax said. The other girls looked at him and, defeated, Ajax walked into the kitchen, his head held low.

“I should’ve seen this coming,” Eric mumbled, rubbing his brow. “It’s Connor, it’s a chance to embarrass me, and he could easily trick us all.”

“Is it bad that I think it’s sort of ingenious?” Kiara added, floating upside down in front of Eric’s face.

“Yes,” he replied, gently pushing her to one side and she floated away.

“We’ll have a good story to tell,” Laila said.

“That may be, but that’s not what you want to really go away with from a Secret Santa,” Evony said.

“Well, how about we do this instead? We have another Secret Santa, a real one this time, and do it on New Year’s Eve,” Eric offered.

“Excluding Connor?” Kiara asked.

“Excluding Connor.”

“Sounds great.”

“Understood,” Laila agreed with a nod.

Elthia nodded and smiled a little.

“Who will do the lots?” Ajax called from the kitchen.

“I will,” Eric answered.

“Then, can I ask for a small favour? Can you make it so I get one of the girls please?”

The girls frowned and Ajax stepped back a few paces.

“Can we exclude Ajax as well?” Kiara suggested.

“Majority decides,” Eric said.

“I don’t think you’ll have a problem there.”

“Hey!” Ajax cried.

Evony let out a small sigh and leant back further into the sofa. “Connor put himself on everyone’s shit list for a stupid joke, and Ajax openly asks for a girl with no doubt nothing but ill intentions.”

“Hey! Don’t lump me in with Connor this time. I didn’t do anything wrong this time.”

“Key words: this time,” Laila chipped in.

Connor burst back into the house, locked the door behind him, ran into the living room, said, “Hi guys!” and then darted up to his room.

“Excuse me.” Laila fell into her own shadow and appeared behind Connor.

Connor screamed and leapt over her into his room, bolting the door shut behind him. “Hey! Don’t pull a dagger on someone like that!”

“Alright, where’s the idiot gone?” Jasmine demanded as she and Kaida returned to the house.

“In his room,” Evony called back. “He’s probably not coming out for the rest of the night either.”

“Seriously?” Ajax moaned, lowering his head. “Where the hell am I meant to sleep?” Jasmine shot daggers at him and Ajax laughed nervously. “I’m okay with the sofa.”

“There’s some spare bedding in the sofa’s storage,” Kaida told him.

As the rest of the evening played out, Eric watched on with a small smile on his face.

Even though they had their ups and downs, and the lengths which people would go to tease and annoy him was extreme at times, Eric was truly beginning to enjoy his time at Ferris.

After everything that had happened to him over the last few months, he was glad that he could enjoy moments like these with some good friends.

***

Kasmine closed her book and placed it gently onto her desk.

Her cat leapt up onto her lap and Kasmine patted it softly, causing it to purr happily. Kasmine spun in her chair and looked out of her window, a small smile on her lips.

“Beautiful night tonight, isn’t it?” She mused. When no one replied, she sighed and asked, “How long are you going to just stand in the dark for?”

Her crow squawked and flapped its wings angrily at a far corner and her cat jumped onto her desk, hissing at the same corner.

“Silence,” Kasmine said and her animals calmed down. “Merchant, come out.”

A man walked out from the shadows and bowed slightly to her. He was dressed in grey leather armour, with an ebony quiver and bow strapped to his back. He had a katana running down beside the quiver and a dagger tied to his lower back in a sheathe. A gold-leaf scarf covered the bottom half of his face and he wore gloves embroidered with golden silk.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t know that you were there?”

“Of course not,” The Merchant answered. “I was merely making sure that your instincts hadn’t dimmed since the last time I’d seen you.”

“Satisfied?”

“Very.”

“Good. Now, what have you found out?”

“Only what we already knew, I’m afraid. Michael Angelson is, indeed, the leader of Phantom, The Archangel.”

“Nothing new at all to report?”

“I was able to learn more about his most powerful followers and they are very strong indeed.”

“How strong?”

“Weaker than you and Ares easily, but I don’t know if any member of the Ferris staff could best them.”

“So, nothing to fear then,” Kasmine purred.

The Merchant chuckled softly. “If only it was that easy.”

***

Felix Arc quickly locked all five locks to the door as he entered his gang’s base.

“Honestly, why do we need so many locks?” He complained, straightening his suit.

While Felix had never understood why his gang had chosen an old and abandoned office building as their safe house, he had to admit that it was, at least, secure.

That said, Felix hated the place.

It was rundown, covered in mould and damp, and it was miles from the heart of Imperial, making travelling from his flat in the richer part of the city to here a long and unnecessary one. Unfortunately, they couldn’t renovate the place without drawing attention to their operations so Felix put up with it, even if he constantly complained about it.

He went to his office and found his righthand man, Tai, standing by his desk, his back turned to him.

“Tai, thank God,” Felix cried in relief. “I was worried that you were caught up on the attack on the main base.”

Felix closed the door behind him and Tai fell backwards onto the floor, two holes in his chest where his heart had been.

“Tai!”

“Honestly, Felix, I’m disappointed,” a voice taunted. “He was the best you had?”

Felix’s chair spun around and a man wearing black overcoat and a hat hiding his face was sitting in it, a pistol in his hand, the barrel aimed at Felix’s heart.

“T-T?” Felix stuttered, slowly walking backwards but he slipped in a puddle of blood and drenched his white suit in it. “Wh-What are you-?”

T grunted and slammed his bloodied boots onto Felix’s desk.

“I told you not to fuck with me. If you want to be the sole survivor of your gang, I suggest that you tell me where she is. And quickly.”

“Sole…survivor?”

A drop of blood landed on his head and Felix looked up. He screamed wildly as he saw the heads of every member of his gang nailed to the ceiling; there were forty exactly, all forty remaining members of his crew.

“Then…the warehouse attack was your doing as well?” Felix whimpered, struggling to hold back the urge to vomit.

“Like I said.” T slowly walked over to Felix. “Don’t try to fuck with me. Now.” He pointed the gun at Felix again. “Information.”

“O-Okay! What do you want to know?”

“Jasmine Dalena. Where is she?”

“Who?”

T dropped his pistol and pulled a snub nose revolver from his boot. He unloaded a round into Felix’s shoulder, ripping it wide open. Felix howled in pain and rolled on the ground, putting as much pressure as he could onto the wound.

“Someone…Someone help me!”

T snorted. “Pathetic.” He smashed his boot into Felix’s ribs and cracked two of them. “If you get medical attention soon, you’ll live. If not.”

T pointed his gun up at the ceiling and Felix’s body became paralysed with fear.

“O-Okay, right, I understand!”

“One last time. Jasmine Dalena. Where is she?”

“If…If I can get to my laptop-”

T snapped his revolver to Felix’s head and fired three shots into his skull, smashing the bone and tearing his brain into pieces. T holstered the revolver back into his boot, picked up his discarded pistol and went over to Felix’s desk where his laptop was.

Upon turning it on, T discovered that it was protected by a password. He plugged in a device into the USB port and, in seconds, the lock screen opened onto Felix’s desktop.

T grinned and closed the laptop, placing it in his suitcase which he had brought with him.

“Is this really the state of the underworld right now?” T grunted, looking at Felix’s body with disdain. “Pathetic, but it doesn’t matter to me anymore.” He heard the faint sounds of sirens and grinned.

T quickly made his exit from the building via the fire escape, walking off into the night.

“Soon, Jasmine. Soon.”

***

Spike tossed a stone and it skimmed across the water, sending the fish scattering away in the moonlight.

He grinned at the sight and picked up another smooth stone, rubbing it against his cheek. Satisfied with his choice, he threw it across the water and it bounced further across the surface of the water. Lares kicked an empty can behind him frustration.

“Someone’s impatient.”

“You said that he’d be here,” Lares growled. “Where is he?”

“Chill, Lares.” Spike picked up another rock and put is against his cheek. “My boss is a man of his word and if he says he’ll be here, he’ll be here.”

“He’d better be.”

“Heh, what are you going to do to him if he don’t show?” Spike threw his rock and it sunk to the bottom of the river. “Honestly, I don’t know why you have such a low opinion of the boss.”

“Well, I wonder why,” Lares mockingly cried. “Oh, sure he’s a nice guy who keeps to his word. I mean, remember when he said he’d start up a conflict in the African Territories and he did? Good times. Such a good man.”

“He’s not like that. Sure, he has a dark side, but we all do.”

“Most people’s dark sides don’t make them start a war just to enjoy watching people kill each other. How typical of his bitch to defend him.”

Spike felt a vein pop in his head and he glared at Lares.

A satanical laugh was carried by the breeze and Lares gritted his teeth together. “You’re finally here, Lich.”

A black shroud dropped down from the bridge and landed beside Lares. Spike dropped onto his knees and prostrated himself before Lich, whereas Lares stood firmly in front of him, glaring at him.

“It’s great to see you again, Captain Agrim. It’s been far too long,” the shroud greeted him, bowing slightly. Lares snorted. “Is something the matter?”

“I can’t talk to someone unless I can see their face.”

“You don’t tell my Master what to do!”

“Spike!” Lich hissed and Spike immediately dropped back onto his knees. “If you speak again to Captain Agrim like that, I will make you go through that Hell again.”

Spike whimpered slightly and bowed to Lich, putting his forehead onto the rocks.

“I do apologise for my servant’s actions,” Lich said, the shroud around him collapsing in on itself and materialising into a single piece of clothing.

A long, hooded black cloak formed around his body, tied around his neck, and reached down to the end of Lich’s back. Even with the hood up, Lares could still make out his skeleton face and the orange orbs which glowed in empty eye sockets. Not a single part of Lich’s body was covered in skin, but he still had his muscles which were ripped and well-built.

Lich had the body of a boxer but Lares knew that he was far stronger than that when he threw a punch.

He had no flesh left on his body apart from his muscles. He didn’t feel pain or need to eat or drink, nor could he die from old age or being killed in combat. It was the price that he had paid when he had become a Lich, a Necromancer so powerful that even death itself couldn’t claim his life.

“Is this more to your liking?” Lich asked and Lares nodded. “Excellent. Now, Captain, Spike tells me that you have some questions you’d like to ask me. Please, ask away.”

“Why the Bunny case? Why did you insist on Eric? How did you convince Kasmine to let that mission happen?”

“Hmm, is that all?” Lich sounded disappointed. He walked over to the riverside and stared at the other side. “Bunny is one of the most dangerous killers on the planet, perhaps even on the level of Cu Sith. Your nephew has one of the strongest, possibly the strongest, God Armours on the planet and the Guardians need that power if they are to survive against Phantom.

“As for how I convinced Kasmine to get Eric involved, the answer is simple.” He turned around and had a malicious grin on his face. “I told her that it was necessary and that if he battled her and faced his fears, he would grow stronger.”

Lares’s face twisted in anger. “You bastard! You sent him there knowing that he’d been attacked when he was younger!” He tried to hit Lich, but Spike grabbed his arm holding him back. “Spike, why are you stopping me? You said you disagreed with sending Eric as well, didn’t you?”

“I did, but look at the results, Lares. Eric got stronger, he now has experience and he’s faced his past demons. There isn’t a single downside because of this.”

“None of that was certain and he still sent Eric against her knowing that he couldn’t do a thing! Even if you think we need Eric to win against Phantom, you didn’t have to do this to make him stronger.”

Lich chuckled slightly and Lares freed his arm from Spike’s grasp.

“Oh Lares, Kas really doesn’t tell you anything, does she?” He mused, smiling sinisterly. “I wonder, did she even mention what the tournament’s winning teams will be doing this year?”

“What do you mean?” Lares demanded.

“Who knows?” The Necromancer shrugged. “Maybe someone informed Kasmine and the United Nations that some of the strongest new Guardians would be joining this year and, maybe, maybe, someone suggested that the team tournament this year would be a good way of determining who the strongest fighters among the students are, and that, maybe, they could be used to fight Phantom.” Lich snickered. “Maybe.”

“You’re sending them into war?! Spike, how can you agree with what he’s doing?”

“Lares, he’s right,” Spike said.

“How can you say that?”

“Think about it, Captain,” Lich interjected. “Eric is, as of this moment, a candidate to become one of the most powerful people in the world and that’s brought with him a gigantic target on his back. Would you honestly prefer that Eric didn’t get more and more combat experience so that he could be at the stage where he could hold back or even defeat those who come after him?”

Lares snorted and glared at him. “It’s all for Eric? What kind of bullshit is that? What are you really planning, Lich?”

“All I want is to ensure the boy’s safety and growth. That is all. Why? Well, of course.” Lich grinned at Lares again and slowly turned back into a mist. “Because it will be interesting to see how this all plays out.”

Lich fully transformed into a black shadow and floated away into the night’s sky, leaving an angry Lares and an exhausted Spike on the riverbed.

“Lares, I know you and I will always butt heads, but why can’t you trust the boss’s word that he does actually want to help Eric?”

“Spike, it’s Lich. There’s always another angle,” Lares answered.

“If you tell him.” Lares stopped in his tracks. “He won’t be able to handle it.”

“I know that,” Lares hissed quietly, before storming off.

***

Michael replayed the footage again for the hundredth time.

He needed to confirm the rumours that had escaped Ferris and what he saw on the news that night.

The news helicopters which had been circling the block of flats that Bunny attacked had recorded the entire fight between her and the Guardians on the rooftop. It wasn’t the best quality of an image and, for the most part, the camera was shaking wildly but Michael saw what he needed.

After the girl in clockwork was stabbed and kicked away, Michael’s eyes narrowed upon seeing Eric’s Armour evolve.

“He’s finally shown himself, and he’s weak,” Michael whispered, a slight smile on his lips.