Hatred

Once there was no way to escape and the encirclement around them was almost impossible to break through, many dropped down to surrender themselves to their fate in hopes of their punishment being alienated a little.

Two figures stood together on an elevated point as they started to argue among themselves.

Milo and Fraser finally came to an understanding as their gazes became determined.

They started to shout out. "Do not give in too easily! Work together! Clear a path and anyone that helps in our escape will gain many riches! We will build a new home if we must so we cannot just lose here."

Their determination was set for them to fight it out and being others into it with them.

Their main goal was to slip past the encirclement and make their way towards the sea where they would be out of the reach of the fury of the other Minks.

They could easily start again even if it meant abandoning their homeland and trying to make somewhere else their new home.

Not everyone was as inspired as they had believed.

To so many Minks, Zou was their birth place and home that could not be replaced so easily.

They may have been involved with political battles and other plots in order to gain power but they still considered their home the place where the ancestors of their families had created the very foundation for their families.

So many had been rooted into Zou making it difficult to leave even if it meant that they would be punished or even put to death for their crimes.

So many had never stepped out of Zou so how could they be inspired by the words of some children that told them they could live somewhere else?

The answer was simple, the outside world was a place filled with too much of the unknown and the words of two children which contained no solid plan was not enough to inspire them.

Only a few less loyal or easily persuaded Minks had rose to their feet to fight back.

Among the stands, Milo was lowering his body as he looked towards those fighting.

He turned back towards a Mink dressed in a dark cloak. "Now is your time to shine. You hate her too correct? Find an opening and kill her like you always wanted."

The cloaked figure bowed and spoke coldly. "I doubt I will make it out of this alive anyways so it would please me to do this."

Upon closer inspection, his face was shown beneath his cloak which seemed a little familiar.

He may have aged a little but his features had not changed a great deal to make him unrecognisable.

The cloaked figure was the 'Sword' of Milo who had been taken in after being rejected by Pixel.

Milo had realised that the cloaked figure was someone who took insults from others and always paid them back.

The cloaked figure had killed quite a few people before coming to the Meridian family to work as a 'Sword'.

He considered that it would be a great honour for someone like Pixel who was not even qualified to inherit the family to have such a skilled 'Sword' at her side.

After he was taken in by Milo, his hatred was further nurtured towards Pixel to the point that he had been suppressing his desire to kill her for years.

If he had been given the order to do so or had the opportunity to do so then he would have but he did not feel too badly about it.

It was inevitable that the main line would clash sooner or later and then he would get his chance.

It was better to kill Pixel when it would gain him the most rewards and when there would be no way for her death to fall back onto him.

A thin sheathed sword was hidden inside his cloak which he held onto as he parted ways with Milo.

He knew that he was destined to die no matter what he did since he was connected to Milo.

The thought of taking the life of Milo had crossed his mind briefly to help turn around the situation back in his favour but he remembered that as a retainer of a noble family, a servant going against their master was just as big of a crime as what he was going to be punished for.

Even if he was going to live and was let go, nobody would accept him since he breached basic trust and loyalty between master and servant.

His life would be one where he would be forced to fend for himself again with no help from others.

It was one of the reasons why he hated Pixel so much for rejecting him.

The life he wanted to escape was a terrible one and his chance to live differently was Pixel since her position made it so that she could possibly avoid the battle between the heirs if she was careful not to stand out too much.

His dream of living a comfortable life was pushed aside dune to her rejection and what was an even bigger insult, Pixel had chosen an old man who did nothing but laze around and carve wooden figurines all day.

His hate continued to fester under the careful guidance of Milo so his hate towards Pixel had made him choose to kill her in such a situation over other available options.

He spotted an opportunity when the battle had begun to take place and he crept down low until the moment where he could see himself stabbing her with his sword.

His body launched from where he was hiding and navigated between those fighting, his sword was unsheathed and the Electro under his feet helped to propel himself forward with greater speed and power.

His aim was dead on point as the tip of the sword was close to piercing the body of Pixel who was standing back overlooking the battle calmly.

Just as he thought that he had succeeded, a small and old male raccoon Mink appeared along with a young female Fennec Mink jumped out.

Their long blades unsheathed and crossed over to meet the tip of the sword causing it to halt.

Pixel turned her gaze towards the cloaked figure. "Oh.. so it is the murderous one. Since you have come then you can no longer leave. Harley and Old Swifty, make it quick."

Dread filled the eyes of the cloaked Mink as they were stopped in place unable to proceed any further.

The two blades pushed back against his causing him to be pushed back into the crowd.

He thought it was advantageous for him for be able for blend in with the crowd but he was proven very wrong the next moment. "Huh?"

The two figures disappeared from their original positions and had already navigated through the crowd during the time he was steadying himself.

Each of them appeared at his right and left sides as they cleaved out their long single blade swords.

His body was cut deeply from both sides without a way of countering in time.

Slowly his vision began to turn around in the air when his upper body was separated and fell down to the ground.

His mind was filled with regret towards being unable to stand against those Pixel had chosen and that his sword had been unable to reach her before he died.