Chapter 109 - Special Guests

Cero sat up in his infirmary bed, his eyes closed and arms crossed. Kammy tapped his fingers together before turning to the other large man in the room. Avi looked over the files before turning to Cero, who still had not opened his eyes.

Avi: It appears you're in good condition. It seems your body is finally loosening up, but the damage you took is severe. I'd recommend against fighting at the same output of your match.

Cero: I see. I was too reckless in that fight and now need to be more careful, but that's fine. However…

Cero opened his eyes, glancing over to Avi who was now filing away a clipboard.

Cero: You seem as uninterested in the state of the Eclipse as ever.

Avi: I don't care much for who is in charge and who is getting hurt. As long as I can focus on my job, and I am getting paid, I'm fine.

Avi turned to face Cero, both of them giving dead stares to one another.

Avi: Don't overexert yourself. You remember what happened the last time you did that, right?

Avi left the room, Cero closed his eyes once more as he tilted his head downwards.

Kammy: It led to the opening that Daymond used to win.

Cero: As much as I hate to admit it, Daymond was definitely the smarter of us then. But now, I will not hesitate to kill him.

The clicking of heels echoed in the hallway. A plump, darker-skinned woman hurried through the hallways holding a tray in hand with a cup of tea. Her glasses bobbed as she was noticeably out of breath. She quickly opened the door to the infirmary, rushing over to Cero before tripping over herself, throwing the tray into the air, and splashing Cero with the tea. Kammy grew a face of shock, his head on a swivel between the clumsy woman and the now drenched Cero.

???: Oh my god oh my god oh my god! I'm so sosososo sorry, Cero!

Cero opened his eyes, looking down at the woman who was now on her knees. She kept moving her head up, and down profusely; moving so quickly that it seemed like she was about to throw her head off her body. Despite her fall and constant head shaking, her glasses stayed on with only being a bit crooked.

Cero: It seems you didn't keep true to your diet, Bruna.

The darker-skinned girl shot up, her face looking like it was on the verge of tears. She quickly patted herself down, and pulled out a handkerchief. Kammy snatched it from her hand, and quickly started patting down Cero.

Bruna: I-I-I-I'm so sorry, Cero! I just saw how good you did out there and you were just so cool! I knew I just ha-ha-ha-had to bring you a drink! So I quickly rushed to make you some tea!

Cero: The tea wasn't even hot.

Noah: It wasn't meant to be.

Cero and Bruna both perked up, a male voice apparent to the both of them, but not Kammy.

Bruna: W-W-W-W-Wait! Noah, you're talking now?!

Noah: I know we're meant to use these implanted earpieces in pure emergencies, but I need to tell you something, Cero.

Cero: What could that be?

Noah: The reason Bruna is there is because Cole and Katherine are busy with Titanomachy.

Cero glanced over to the nervous Bruna. The two names that Noah mentioned were names he hadn't heard in a long time; the names of the previous members of the Dictatorship that were removed for the safety of the Arachna. The lady in front of Cero, Bruna, acting as their secretary.

Noah: You may not be aware of this, but the rank number ones of both Titanomachy and Pulsar are in that building right now. I thought I could trust Bruna with that information herself, but she seems to be a bit too excited right now.

Bruna: I'm sorryyyyyyy!

Kammy: Why are you still saying sorry? And what are both of you talking about?

The door to the infirmary flung open once again as Tico, and Mason walked in. Both of their faces made it clear that they had also heard Noah's message.

Noah: I can't keep communication on for much longer, so I'll leave you with one last message. Some unwelcome visitors are in the establishment. Be careful.

The line went quiet as the different members of the Dispensary, and the secretary of the disbanded Dictatorship stood silently in the room. Cero broke the silence when he got himself off the bed, wiping himself down with a towel that laid next to his bed.

Cero: We got an important message from Noah. From now on, stay in pairs. Though…

Cero looked at both Bruna, and Kammy who were both clearly unfit for combat.

Cero: I'll keep you two with me. I need you to update me on everything regarding the other two.

Bruna nodded as she followed Kammy, and Cero out of the room. Tico and Mason looked at one another, following closely behind.

…

Sitting outside of the morgue, Joan had her head down. Her face was left blank and soulless. Her clipboard laid on the ground, her body seemed as lifeless as the corpses inside the morgue. Three noticeable sets of footsteps came from down the hall. As well as the voices that they belonged to.

Violet: That was amazing!

Tristan: Those fights were better than I could've asked for! Not only did you put Abraham down, but Gonzalez is in no better condition!

Joseph: It's funny how things can play out, right?

Joseph was now bandaged up underneath his red shirt. He looked ahead as he finally noticed the lifeless Joan, and the clipboard that sat on the floor. He bent over to pick it up, and flipped through the pages.

Joseph: These are quite in-depth. Did you make these yourself?

Joan didn't respond, her gaze was locked to the floor.

Tristan: I think they forgot to put one of the bodies in the morgue.

Violet: We should do the job for them!

The Kaisuto siblings laughed, Joseph ignoring their unfunny joke. He kneeled next to Joan to grab her chin with his thumb, and index finger, and made her face him. Her eyes were lifeless, yet Joseph didn't care.

Joseph: I see. You're disheartened because Alexander died. You must have been close for his death to leave you like this.

Joan's eyes twitched as Joseph's lips began to curl.

Joseph: I can see it in you. You despise that human-animal that did it to him. No. You hate the entire group that the human-animal belongs to. How about I make you an offer? If you help me, I'll give you the capability of removing him permanently.

Life slowly came back to Joan's eyes, but her face was still pale.

Joan: Remove him?

Joseph: I'm part of something bigger, bigger than the Collective, bigger than the Eclipse, something that can change the world. I'll let you be part of that, if you join me.

Joan twitched before giving a weak nod, yet her mind was still gone.

Joseph: Perfect…

Joseph snapped his fingers, for a figure to slowly appear around the corner behind them. The figure slowly crept up behind the siblings, Joan seeing it just barely behind Joseph. Fear shot into her body, and her eyes quivering. Hands laid on the siblings' shoulders with their laughs finally gone. They turned around to face a tall man with upward spiky hair. His face was obscured by a face mask and goggles.

Joseph: I knew you were nearby, Blake.

…

Gonzalez slowly came back to consciousness, but his vision was dark. He could hardly see anything, yet his body and mind were calm. He wasn't sure if he was calm normally, or if his exhaustion made him calm. His hand twitched, trying to explain his blindness.

Theodore: You're simply wearing your blindfold, don't worry.

Eve: And please try not to move. It might make things a bit harder.

Standing all around Gonzalez were the other members of the Imperium. Ziyad, Theresa, and Daniel all stood in the corner furthest from Gonzalez. The others all sat around Gonzalez who laid with his arms, and torso entirely wrapped up with blood turning them red.

Eve: These are pretty grave injuries, I'm surprised you're fine right now.

Gonzalez: I was lucky I prevented him from hitting anything vital. He was close to my organs with that stab to the side, but I'm fine for the most part.

Angel: I don't even know if I can call you human, heh.

Remy: Gonzalez is too amazing to die! I mean, what would we do if he did?

Gonzalez: There's a replacement rule if I did.

Theodore: Don't consider that, Gonzalez. You aren't going to die and I would never replace you.

Gonzalez: Are you sure? I'm hurt, bloodied like this. Do you really want me to keep fighting?

Carrie: Are you kidding me? You're too strong to replace, silly.

Theodore: Carrie is right. You may be hurt, but this proves one thing: You still have room to improve.

Gonzalez: Improve, huh? Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.

A smile grew on Gonzalez's face before his body twitched, everyone looking over at Eve who was messing with the bandages to his arm.

Eve: What? They're getting bloody so I was planning on changing them.

Daniel watched everyone cheering on Gonzalez, his head drooping as he let out a whimper like a dog. Theresa held him close before Ziyad spoke.

Ziyad: You're sad he's being praised while you're not, right?

Daniel looked at Ziyad, who met him with a smile.

Ziyad: It's because you value fighting like an animal above fighting like a martial artist, so why don't you try the same? Try fighting like Theodore a bit, eh?

Daniel took a few moments to understand before perking up, his sharp teeth forming a smile.

Daniel: Ya ya! Daniel will be best fighter!

Theresa: That's the spirit, sweetie. You're going to do great next round! Just… don't hurt anyone, okay?

Daniel: Okay mama!

Daniel hopped off of Theresa's lap before leaving the infirmary, a pep in his step.

Ziyad: It looks like he came to a conclusion.

Theresa: What a sweet boy.

…

Hours passed as the night slowly moved over the horizon. Daymond and Shizu sat in an office, utterly in silence. Daymond had changed to a more formal suit with a purple hue. While Shizu changed into a flattering black dress, her hands interlocked. The silence was disturbed when Dianshi opened the door with a clipboard in hand.

Dianshi: The bodies of the guards from Gary's rampage have been cleaned up, and moved to the morgue. A funeral will be held for them, and Alexander in the morning.

Daymond: Thank you, Dianshi.

Dianshi: You're welcome. I can't say we're done, however Nisham has seemingly disappeared. I had set Arthur, Nupan, and Yussuf to go looking for him as well as the other guards. And it seems the dinner is coming soon, big names will be there.

Shizu: Which will those be?

Dianshi: I think it's obvious to say that the political leaders will all be there, but there are two guests of note. Rank number one of Pulsar, Villum Ulrich, and rank number one of Titanomachy, Junko Yagami.

Daymond: So the candidate and the queen arrive.