North City

Steel impaled flesh.

A large shulk was heard followed by the sound of blood spilling.

Abel slowly opened his eyes to see a dismembered arm pool the ground with blood, with which the bow swam along. Looking up, Abel found the bow-wielder to be missing her left arm from the elbow forward. She was speechless, and could only watch her arm in fear as vast amounts of blood fell from its open depths. Then, once the feeling of pain overtook the initial shock that numbed this, she screamed in agony.

Abel looked to his left and saw Axel who stood there catching his breath. He looked in the direction Axel was staring. Past the bow-wielder, Axel's hatchet was sinked into the ground, smothered in blood.

"You need to pay attention," Axel frustratedly said.

Just earlier, in the instant that Abel looked away, the bow-wielder tried at a last-second attempt in killing him using her bow. Luckily, Axel threw his hatchet across, slicing her arm off. Just a second longer, and Abel's face would've been impaled by an arrow.

The screaming continued as Abel stood over, watching her clutch her arm in pain. Axel walked over and stood with him.

"Y-YOU MONSTER!" The bow-wielder yelled.

Axel stood there watching. "What did you expect?"

Her eyes darted between Axel and Abel, grunting through pain to formulate a sentence.

"I-I just n-needed a pair!"

"Hmm... Your other pair died?" Axel asked.

The bow-wielder continued to grunt aggressively. "Yes... B-But as long as I took one of y-you as my pair, I'd p-pass Phase 2..."

Axel understood. The bow-wielder tried killing off one of them so she could take the other as a pair to complete Phase 2. He checked his device, and the timer was actually down to about an hour left. Whether a contender lost their initial pair during the time or not, as long as they finished with a pair, they'd pass. That's what the bow-wielder intended to do.

"Nice try," Axel scoffed. He looked over to Abel who watched the bow-wielder slowly bleed out. Her eyes began to roll up as her darkened blood flowed down. Her held-up arm fell limp and her head cocked back.

The bow-wielder had bled to death.

Abel took deep breaths trying to cool off. He looked over and saw Axel starting to walk off.

"Let's go," he said.

Abel went and picked up Axel's hatchet. "You forgot this."

Axel turned around, and Abel passed him the weapon. They then left the area.

It was dark by now had set, and a cool breeze picked up. The evening glow shone on the nature that surrounded the two.

"You held your ground quite well, seeing as you had the advantage at the end there," Axel said.

"I guess…" Abel let out a heavy sigh. The memory of his fight was somewhat jaded. The last thing he could clearly remember was nearly being stabbed in the throat.

The two carried on and eventually out of the woods. Whatever weary feeling Abel had felt beforehand was now gone. Though it was night, he couldn't feel the sense in wanting to sleep. Even after all that he'd gone through in this one day since his awakening.

Abel pulled his device out to check the timer. It had just passed the 1 hour mark. Phase 2 was nearly over.

"Are we still gonna remain pairs after Phase 2 finishes?" Abel asked.

Axel continued to look forward. "It's not necessary." His reply was rather delayed.

"Even if I wanna help you take down the Sins?" Abel persisted.

"This job is supposed to be exclusive to Virtues you know." Axel paused. "Whether you tag along or not isn't up to me."

Abel remained silent, and the two continued along. They stopped by a small river where Abel went to wash his hands. He decided he'd wash the open wound on his palm, but it was nowhere to be found.

"Huh?" All that was left were the dry markings of blood.

Confusion aside, the pause gave him a chance to check his legs for injuries but there were no more than some simple bruises. By this time, the sky began to glow a dark orange. The sun was starting to emerge. At the same time, Phase 2 was ticking down to its last few minutes.

The two continued forth with the intention of travelling up north. This way they could encounter more contenders, one of which could possibly be a Sin. Eventually, the sun was at its peak, and a loud beep echoed in the distance.

"Phase 2 complete. Current contender count: 52 remaining. Incoming Specialized Phase D: For 30 minutes, a zone control will be activated at the indicated region sent to your maps. The last remaining contender holding the zone will receive a special ability. Use any means necessary."

The voice resonated.

Abel was shocked that only 52 contenders remained. Phase 2 alone eliminated half the contenders it started with. Things were truly starting to cut down to tighter circumstances, and now was a new Specialized Phase; Specialized Phase D.

"A zone control…" Axel pulled his device out. The indicated region was found up north where they were already heading. But they were quite some distance away.

"The zone control's being held in one of the North Cities," Axel said. "A Sin's gotta be there."

"But how're we gonna make it in 30 minutes?" Abel asked.

Axel turned and faced Abel. "If you wanna stay by my side and hunt the Sins, then don't fall behind!" Axel began to sprint.

Abel, sort of stunned in the moment, began bolting after him.

Past the nature that beheld them, they ran out into an open field that separated the contrary regions. The North Cities could be seen up ahead. Towering buildings that seemed kempt lined in repetitive rows. Fluffy clouds overtook the blue skies that blocked the sun's vivid rays. The two were sprinting faster than ever could be. The earlier they made it, the larger the chance they would have in possibly encountering a Sin.

Approaching the roads that stretched from within the city, population could be heard. The clashes of metal and shouts of pain echoed from a distance within. Abel quickly checked his device and the timer was just past 20 minutes through. They now had less than 10 minutes remaining.

"It should be just up ahead!" Axel yelled, pointing to a building separated in levels. The indicated region seemed to be placed on top of an elevated parking lot. Getting closer, they were approaching the presumed noises of fighting. Surrounding the structure, were the dead bodies of other contenders that were assumed to have fallen off the roof. Their limbs, twisted in directions unintended.

Ignoring the disturbance, Abel and Axel sprinted up the ramps rising through each level of parking in the entire lot building. By now the time was ticking down to its final remaining seconds.

"Specialized Phase D has been completed. The last contender holding the zone has received a special ability," the voice echoed.

In a panic, the two rushed up the final ramps leading to the roof. They finally arrived, but too late. A single man stood there, surrounded by fallen contenders whom attempted to remain alive. His back faced Abel and Axel.

"Fuck! We didn't make it in time," Axel said frustrated.

Abel was catching his breath. He was too lightheaded to observe the man they approached. As they got closer, the man suddenly raised his arm towards them.

"Halt," he said.

The two came to a defensive stop. Axel spoke up.

"Did you hold this down on your own? Or did you just so happen to be the last one standing after everyone else killed each other?"

"Don't underestimate me," the man giggled.

Offended, Axel began re-approaching with Abel following behind.

"Come any closer and you enter MY personal bubble." His back still faced the two.

The two paused.

"Come again?" Axel asked.

"MY personal bubble, and I'M the only one worthy of being in it."

Axel and Abel froze, sort of confused but annoyed.

"What's this guy's deal?" Abel asked Axel.

"I don't know. But be cautious, we're in the unknown."

They started to walk forward again.

The man made a noise of disgust. "Get your filthy selves AWAY from me!" A gust of wind blew against Axel and Abel.

Stunned, the two stopped walking. The man turned around to face them. He wore a loosely buttoned white dress shirt, tucked into his black jeans. A gold chain hung from his belt, and his gold earrings shimmered in the sunlight. His hair was curly, remaining frizzy to an extent. He looked towards them with sickening eyes.

"Ugh, disgusting," he began brushing himself off. "First, you underestimate me. Second, you imbeciles nearly walk into my own personal space. What downright degenerates..."

"Stop being so caught up on yourself. We'll show you you're not as high up as you see," Axel states.

The man scoffs, and begins to laugh hysterically. Axel and Abel watch in confusion but remain defensive.

His laughing slows to a sudden serious tone. "Do you even know who I am?" He arrogantly asks.

"One annoying fuck—"

"Quiet. I didn't say you could answer," the man interrupts Abel.

"I am Venus, the Sin of Pride. You can call me the strongest Sin of them all.