Chapter 18: Riki's Kill Squad

Takabi groaned at his aching body.

He lost track of how long he had been down in the valley, but based on how long it felt since he dropped and ruined his arms and legs, he would have to guess about half an hour. The bones in his arms creaked each time he moved them, the muscles had become incredibly sore from tearing and reforming over and over. His legs felt like jello, a strong numbness settled in once he reached the waterfall of the valley.

"Nana did say the zones were separated. Makes me wonder how massive this canyon actually is."

His throat was parched and voice raspy. He refused to drink the water though, as he had no clue what it may do to his body. His fingers grasped a rock that was jutting out of the wall. Scanning it over, he picked out the specific stones that were climbable, and came to the conclusion that was the exit.

It would be a long climb back up.

As Takabi raised his foot, something itched the back of his mind. It wasn't a thought, but a feeling. A strong feeling of multiple magics closing in on him. His head turned quickly, and he threw his fist forward. It slammed into another's knuckles, the feeling of a heavy breeze rushing over him.

Takabi's eyes fell on a man dressed in a brown jumpsuit, noting the bloodstains that coated it.

"What's up, Kid," He asked, voice gruff.

Two people in black cloaks rushed around to Takabi's sides, throwing what he could notice to be needles of ice. He jumped up, wincing at the weight of his body, but kicked himself off the wall and tumbled forward, before snapping his head back and counting the bodies standing between him and the exit.

"Seven on one. That isn't exactly fair," Takabi muttered, getting to his feet. "So, what's the catch? This part of the test?"

"Nah. I'm just itching to kill ya," The man in brown said. He licked his lips, momentarily giving a view of his fanged teeth. "Get him, boys." He said, and the six in cloaks rushed at Takabi.

The boy's vision changed instantly, giving him clear mirror images of their movements. One from the left with a heavy hook, while two were going to attempt to attack from up top with kicks. He prepared his body, and blocked the punch with ease, yet never factored in his body slow response speed due to the weight and took the two kicks hard to his chest.

Air quickly left his lungs, but he managed to suck in just enough to bend back and dodge the next two fists that came at him. Reaching out, his palms grabbed the back of their cloaks and let his fire explode from his hands. Shooting back up, he flipped over the next two that came at him, and ignored the rest completely, rushing towards the one in brown. Out of them all, he could tell he was the most dangerous.

"You shouldn't rush to the final boss yet, kid." Slowly, his hand grabbed the hilt of the sword on his back and he swung it down. Takabi's eyes widened, and his body pulled back, just before the blade hit. The metal slammed into the ground, smashing it to pieces and sending dust into the air.

"Holy shit… How much does that thing weigh?!"

The man swung again, and Takabi flipped back. His body was getting used to the movement, but it was still taxing on his muscles. He needed a plan, because taking on seven at once would not go in his favor.

"Nothing personal. It's just business," The man said, cracking his neck as he pulled his sword back up on his shoulder. "When you see the Devil though, tell him Zaku sent ya."

Takabi turned his head to the six men behind him, then forward to the man called Zaku. "Any reason why me specifically? I'm sure there's plenty of guys you can hunt."

The six men rushed at him again. Takabi turned, crouching and leaping, letting his flames explode to take most of the pressure off his legs. Nosediving downwards like a missile, his head slammed into one of the six and knocked him into the river. Opening his palms against the ground, he let his fire once again explode to give him a boost. Slipping between two more, he split his legs and connected two heavy kicks to their masks. Dazed, they weakly threw another set of ice needles. One struck the pressure point on Takabi's left side, before he used his fire to explode and knock the two away, slamming into the walls opposite of the riverside.

His left arm went limp, even after he ripped out the needle. The wound closed shut in a small pocket of steam, but it would take time for his body to recover again. He didn't feel fatigued, but noticed his magic wasn't as prominent as it was before. The fire wasn't as hot or destructive. Just had enough force to move him around so his body wouldn't be as exhausted.

"Three down. Four to go."

"You look like you're running low on your tank there. Well you did put up a pretty good fight." Zaku tapped the tips of his shoes against the stone ground, stepping forward. "Boys, stand back. I want to cut this kid down myself."

Takabi swallowed the lump in his throat. The feeling in his arm slowly came back, but he kept his injured appearance. He wanted Zaku to drop his guard, just long enough so he could get a strong hit in. "I still want an answer as to why you're attacking me, and who the hell you guys are."

"Simply put. We're a Kill Squad. We basically go around and kill whoever our boss wants us to, or whoever pays us. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty as you can tell." Zaku took a couple steps forward, his shoes clicking against the ground. "It's a very fun line of work. I'd offer it to you, but I don't like the idea of working with your kind."

"My kind? It's not like I chose to be born like this ya know. I was actually pretty normal for a good while too."

"Normal doesn't fit Fallen Angels. Bloodshed does." He swung his sword down. Takabi leapt aside, barely avoiding the heavy blade as it once again slammed into the ground, rocks and dirt flying around. Zaku snapped his head towards Takabi and charged, his sword raised high in the air. "Crescent Moon Wave!" He brought the blade straight down, a wave of magic rushing at Takabi as he landed. He bent back, the spell rushing over and only nicking his chest, before bending upwards and cutting through one of the jutting out rocks on the path out.

Picking himself up, he watched Zaku with a stunned silence.

He really wanted to kill him.

"What's that look for? Is the fear finally settling in?"

Takabi grit his teeth and exhaled. "You don't have to do this, ya know. Just, walk away, before you get seriously hurt."

What a bluff. He can obviously read through us.

That voice. Again, that voice that was his, yet wasn't. You've wasted too much time playing around. Transform. Unleash your true self.

"True self? What the hell are you talking about now," Takabi muttered to himself.

He felt a sudden pain in his chest. He coughed, covering his mouth and holding in the blood. The taste of copper filled his mouth, and his eyes felt like they were beginning to burn.

"Something… In my chest… It hurts so much!"

If you won't transform… We shall lend us some more power.

Steam began rising from Takabi's body. Hot and vigilante, so thick that even the ground around him slowly began to melt.

Zaku watched closely, unsure of what to make of the situation. Gripping his chest, he smiled widely, welcoming what he felt could be an actual challenge. "Yes… Yes, that's it! Let out that Fallen Angel power! Release it so I can kill you in your true form!"

Takabi roared, the steam erupting as his body was swallowed in a violet fire. These flames were much more intense, and flared wildly into the air. Takabi felt his own skin beginning to burn away, but he snapped his eyes shut and screamed, "No! This… This is MY body!" The fire dimmed, yet remained visible.

Zaku craned his head, "Oh?"

The cackling fire danced in a thick swirl, the rocks and soil practically crawling away from him. That's when his body was visible. The right side of his face had blackness. Tattoo markings in a wild flame design coating around his right eye and neck, yet they weren't tattoos. It was his skin, altered darker than previously as if he had been burned with evil. A fang, which had grown larger, and the pressure of magic was almost as intense as the magic of the valley.

Zaku gripped his sword tighter. "What a change… Kid, you've got something special in you, that's for sure."

Exhaling, Takabi took a step forward, the remaining members of the kill squad moving between him and Zaku, before rushing ahead with cries of battle.

Kill.

Takabi's eyes widened. In a flash, he was behind the squad, standing before and looking up at Zaku. The Kill Squad stopped moving, shaking before dropping to the ground, intestines and stomachs falling out in front of each one.

"My lord." Zaku jumped back, yet Takabi gave chase. The violet flames ripped the ground apart when he jumped, his fist slamming into Zaku's sword. The impact cracked the sword a bit, and sent Zaku flying back.

Flipping, he landed on the wall and let himself slide down, throwing multiple magic blades. Takabi dodged and weaved in the air, before raising his palms high and bringing them down with a heavy, echoed roar. Slices of violet fire ripped at the wall Zaku was on, rocks dropping around but missing him completely.

As Zaku landed, Takabi appeared behind him, wrapping his arms around his throat and squeezing tightly. Up close, the heat he was emitting was unbearable, so much that Zaku screamed upon contact. The flames gave shape to multiple blades, each one ripping through Zaku's stomach. The man coughed up blood as each one pierced, until a total of seven sharp fire tips were seen jutting out of his belly.

Takabi released his grip and jumped back, kicking off the wall and across the river bend. When he landed, he clapped his palms together, violet fire beginning to swirl around him.

"That power is evil incarnate.." Zaku muttered, dropping to his hands. "He was right to… put a hit on you… You're too dangerous. Too unstable.."

"Just shut up and die." The fire began to build in a ring in front of Takabi, his violet eyes glowing brightly. The brighter the light in his eyes, the more a hint of violet began to appear on the right side of his face.

"You're right to fear my kind. We are the coming of the end of days." The flames danced wildly, violet markings becoming fully visible within the black. "Turn to ash. Violent Destroyer Flame." The fire rushed forward, concentrated at first until it expanded and shaped itself as a beast with jagged teeth. Zaku's eyes widened, raising his sword with a shaking hand.

"B-Barrier!" A bubble of blue swallowed Zaku's body.

The flames connected, ripping the rocks apart and slamming into the wall across. It reached up, crawling higher and higher until it reached the top of the canyon. A shattering sound filled Takabi's ears, yet no screams of pain came.

When the fire died down, he narrowed his eyes. Zaku's body, while badly burnt, remained intact, and his consciousness was weak.

Takabi hopped over, landing softly and approaching him, flames coating his right fist. The image was terrifying.

Evil.

This boy's repressed emotions, repressed anger.

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Shink bit his lip, and Raia watched with wide eyes.

Beowulf blinked, speechless at the image on the screen. "What… What is he doing? He'll kill him!" He yelled, standing from his chair.

Raia looked aside to comment, then raising an eyebrow asked, "Where's Nana?"

Shink looked to where she was supposed to be sitting, and wasn't surprised to see she had left, chair slowing to a stop from its spin. "That fool!"

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Takabi raised his fist.

He hesitated, watching Zaku look up at him with cold and callous eyes. "Well…" He began weakly. "Do it… KILL me. It's all your kind is… good for."

In a rage at his words, Takabi brought his fist down fast. A gust of wind rushed between them, snuffing out the fire. A small hand caught his knuckles, ignoring the heat difference and cry of pain. "Enough, Takabi!"

His eyes widened, the glow slowly fading as the markings did.

Nana stood in front of him, her palm smoking and sizzling from the heat. She winced, lowering his hand and taking a step forward. "This isn't you. Remember? You're not a killer. Don't turn into one."

He stood there, dumbfounded for a moment, but opened his mouth to speak. When no words came to mind, he looked away in shame, avoiding all eye contact.

Nana looked back at Zaku. "I don't know what came over you or who paid you to do this, Zaku, but you've got a lot of explaining to do. We're taking you back and interrogating you, after we help you recover." She paused a moment to make sure he was still alive, then continued, "You'll be lucky if you're not kicked out of here."

He wheezed, and closed his eyes.

Takabi snatched his hand away and turned.

It didn't even register that the weight of the valley magic no longer affected him as bad as it did before. He didn't say anything, to Nana or Zaku. Just hopped across the river and began ascending the wall, leaving Nana there to clean up his mess. Lucky for him, she was already planning to in the first place.