The Infamous Sword

Sunday.

Maxus sat on the floor, head tucked into his arms as he recalled the look Alex gave him, right before he had delivered the finishing blow. He felt like...what was he? Did he go too far? Was Reynesh right about everything he had done?

Leah didn't know what he was. Would she still be half as nice to him is she knew?

Part of him was convinced to stop. But...every time Maxus reminded himself why he started being the Soultaker, it still haunted him. The flashes of that fateful day was still affecting him in a way he couldn't ignore. Despite the events of the previous day, Maxus knew that he had to keep going. Even if he did stop for the right reasons, he would still know that out there in the country, the Blood Lion, The Red Scorpion was still doing something to ruin the lives of many others.

For that...he knew he couldn't stop until either all his enemies or he himself is dead.

Alex's death was reported everywhere on every channel of Singapore. The polytechnic closed the day after his death to give students some time, including the weekend to cope with any potential mental stress that event caused and for police to clean up and investigate the scene.

The phones of the people he killed continued buzzing. There must be more things being done about him and even without looking at the messages, he knew he was causing the corrupt to panic. Someone out of the law was doing something about their activities and they didn't know who or how to deal with him.

Maxus' stomach growled as he looked at the time: 11am.

"Shit..." The vigilante got up, parts of his body still aching as he grabbed his wallet, leaving his house to get some food.

Oh well...maybe it's a good opportunity to get some fish ball noodles from Leah's parent's store. If he's lucky she would be helping out today and he can get to talk to her, which Maxus realized made him feel better with every conversation he had with Leah.

"It's the end of the month already! A contract is a contract!"

"Please...I still have to feed my-"

"Enough with the excuses old man."'

Maxus could hear the commotion even from a block away as he hurried his pace, reaching the coffee shop to see two tall muscular men in front of Leah's parent's noodle store, confronting Leah's Dad.

"Dude! You can't just make us spit money out of nowhere right? It's already tough enough that we are earning barely enough to sustain our frugal way of living, now you guys raise the prices and expect us to just spit out more money in return?!" Leah jumped to her father's defense.

"Shut it girl. Business is business. You don't know shit. Get out of the way." One of the debtors warned.

"Leah, go." Her dad whispered.

"No. What these guys are doing is wrong. I'm gonna report their ass." Leah hissed.

"Ha!" The debtor marched forward with his fist raised, about to strike Leah when Maxus jumped towards him, grabbing the man's punch mid air and tossed him backwards.

"Punching a girl? Didn't your mother teach you two manners or did she get so disappointed in the failures in your life that she disowned you two completely?" Maxus mocked.

"Another stupid kid." The debtor muttered, charging towards the vigilante who sidestepped him, retaliating with a punch that struck the side of the debtor's ribs before kicking his face right into the side of a table, breaking the debtor's cheekbone.

"The hell?" The second debtor didn't even comprehend what just happened.

"Come on? What are you waiting for?" Maxus baited.

"Rah!" The second debtor swung a fist forward that Maxus ducked under, landing his own combination of punches that rained down on the debtor's torso, hitting his liver, ribs, lungs and ending the series of attacks with an uppercut that sent the bigger sized opponent collapsing onto the ground in pain.

"Maxus...holy shit." Leah was stunned.

"Get out of here." Maxus warned as the two debtor's picked themselves up, frantically running out of the coffee shop.

"Young man...thank you." Leah's dad thanked him.

"Uh... you're welcome."

"Would you like some noodles? I'll get you a bowl on the house." Leah's mom offered. "I would like one but, let me pay. I didn't help you for any returns." Maxus negotiated.

"No." Leah and her parents said in unison.

"Jeez. Okay." Maxus gave in. "What would you like young man? Laksa? Fish hall noodles? Lor Mee?"

"Laksa would be great please. Thank you."

"Extra chili?"

"Extra chili, no cockles."

Leah's parents went back into the store, preparing the noodles as Leah leaned over to him:" I really cannot thank you enough. Really. I owe you a drink."

"It's really fine Leah. You helped me through that Friday as well. " Maxus tells Leah who pouted:" Those bullies, they have been here raising the prices of all our ingredients by double since the start of last year. Our rent is already increasing as usual...I don't know if my parents can sustain this business much longer."

"Who's your supplier?"

"Those people? Heng Yong Foods. Why?"

"Try looking for another supplier in the meantime. " Maxus found his next target. "If only it were that easy, the supplier threatened to blacklist our store to everyone in that industry. We used to think that was impossible but...we've seen a fellow vendor who had that fate. Their threats aren't empty ones, that vendor couldn't find anyone to supply ingredients for him, resorted to doing it the hard way through buying from supermarkets but it cost him a bomb. He was forced to close down in less than half a month."

"Shit..." Maxus needed to act like he couldn't help.

"Your Laksa boy." Leah's mom handed the vigilante his meal. "Sorry that you guys are going through this. I'll come and support the business more often." Maxus tells them. "That's very kind of you. It's okay, this is our family business, we'll handle it. Thank you once again boy." Leah's mom handed him the takeaway bowl of Laksa.

Maxus returned home, smiling to himself as new purpose flooded his mind.

Monday Night. After school.

Maxus felt slightly better that day in class. Alex's death kept the class quiet and even though no one said anything about his demise, the mood was clearly still bitter. Everyone in school clearly felt differently about the environment they were in, almost like a monster was capable of striking any of them down at any moment.

Reynesh was cold towards him, their friendship now in a cold spot thanks to the Soultaker. Even though Maxus knew he was responsible for the cold vibes in the school, he didn't exactly regret taking Alex's life. Many thoughts ran wild in his head, could he have done something differently back then?

Maxus suited up as the Soultaker once more, going towards the headquarters of Heng Yong Foods. Another night of Soultaker took the lives of five more men, including the debtors that harassed Leah and her family at their store.

He had expected Red Scorpion to be there which to his relief didn't happen.

I guess even my enemies didn't know where I would hit.

Heng Yong Foods. A supplying company that brought fresh chicken, fish and noodles to the hawkers and coffee shop vendors of Singapore on the outside, laundering stacks and stacks of cash, currencies from many different countries just like his Uncle's company. It made sense the more Maxus thought about it, using food companies to have large amounts of cash. It wasn't unusual and it would be the last place people would think off while having sealed boxes to hide the money.

He broke into the office, looking through their files and records of laundering, grabbing them before escaping the building back into the safety of his house as he went through the records. There was no point giving them to the police, for all he knew the entire organization might be under the influence of the Minister. He could trust no one but himself.

Something special caught his eye. A sword shipment the next night.

Coney Island.

Tuesday Morning.

Reynesh decided to find someone who knew Maxus potentially as well as he did.

The teenager knocked on the doors of a temple he knew the vigilante visited often and to his relief, the person he wanted to meet opened the door: Tony Ang. "Yes can I help you?" Tony asks the teenager who introduced himself:" Reynesh Kaur. I'm a friend of Maxus Tan. I know you trained him when he was younger and-"

"Ahh friend of Maxus? Come on in." Tony welcomed Reynesh.

Reynesh was offered tea as the duo took a seat on the opposite ends of a table. "I'm not sure if...if you're the right person to talk about this issue but...just to confirm with you, are you aware of his recent activities?" Reynesh tested the waters.

"Recent activities? In school?"

"Outside of. Do you know what I'm talking about?" Reynesh raised an eyebrow as Tony nods, seemingly both confirming each other's knowledge about the vigilante. "How did you find out?" Tony asks the teenager.

"Found him half dead bleeding out on his living room floor. You?"

"I trained him. I taught him how to constantly get back up and keep fighting against impossible odds, but not in this way. I only taught him how to defend himself, he created his own fighting style designed to kill using my moves as a foundation. He shows up covered in bruises and cuts when he comes to visit his father's urn when reports of people mysteriously dying all over the country, of course I would know he's the one responsible."

"Okay. At least I know he's not alone." Reynesh looked around them, making sure that no one else would hear their conversation as he began:" You saw the news? That student he killed in the middle of the school?"

"I was about to confront him about that the next time he visits." Tony shared the same mindset.

"I think he's going too far. At first I tried to convince myself that he was doing this because he needed to. I hated the idea of him killing anyone he wished like a mindless murderer who is only responding to his own emotions. I know about his past and as much as it somewhat justified his murders, it didn't make it the right thing to do regardless." Reynesh tells Tony who agreed.

"I told him that as well. Violence was never the answer I taught him. To be fair...I chose not to stop him because of the positive changes he has been making. I knew about the crime community and for some time I was thinking about doing something myself in fact...I didn't really know or how to. I told myself that Maxus was the answer, a solution that was the best but..." Tony paused.

"Maybe it is. But at this rate, I'm afraid that even if he doesn't die or gets killed by someone, his blood lust will turn him into something else. Something more dangerous than the Soulaker."

"I've noticed the anger in him growing as well. How is he in school?"

"Angry. Unfocused. He's treating school as a side thing, only using his student identity to hide anyone else from suspecting him. Most of the time he's barely passing most of the modules, studying only to get past the year and nothing else." Reynesh taught about their school life.

"Did he not even make any new friends?"

"He...he did talk to others, we have somewhat of a friend group but...there's a girl. She lives near him, Leah. He seems to listen to her. I think she's the only thing keeping him from becoming a full blown monster at this point." Reynesh revealed. Tony smiled to himself:" A girl? Someone he's interested in?"

"I don't know...? Maybe? Point is she is doing something right. I don't know what else we can do for him. He's losing himself day by day."

Tony nods, understanding what needed to be done. "Okay. I guess we'll go talk to him one day."

Tuesday Night.

Coney Island, Northeast of Singapore.

Maxus crossed the bridge linking the island to the mainland in the evening, hiding in the bushes for over an hour to wait for security to pass and finally when 7pm hit, the island was closed off to the public. The corrupt authorities had set up the perfect hideout.

The vigilante waited for further activities before he took action.

A sword shipment...? What were they going to do?

His patience finally paid off when the first signs of movement appeared. Maxus could hear several men walking through the dark nature trails of the island with flashlights lighting up their path. Maxus took a peek: Five men all in dark clothing, sunglasses and each of them, equipped with a utility belt.

Not long after, Maxus could hear the sound of a motorboat cutting through the ocean waters of the night towards the island. "There it is. Shine your light." One of the men said.

Maxus got up from the bushes, making his way silently towards them, getting cover behind a tree that was closer in order to eavesdrop anything potentially interesting. " Is Eden here? I thought he was supposed to meet us around 9."

"You already said so man. Nine. It's eight thirty."

Eden?

"All this work just because Eden can't kill the Soultaker. So much money paid to him and yet he didn't seem to fair better than any of us." Another man complained.

"Hey, put some respect to him. We all know his reputation. There must be a reason why he's so feared among the assassin community. If he didn't have at least some level of skill he wouldn't be able to kill all the big names that are now under his resume. Also, even if he did fail to kill the Soultaker, he's the first person ever who fought the vigilante and made it out alive."

Eden...the only person who had actually posed a challenge to him. Eden was the Red Scorpion whatever his full name was.

The vessel soon arrived, driven by only one man who parked the boat on the coast of the island. "Okay. There's your package. When can I expect payment?"

"You'll get your payment when the Blood Lion confirms the quality of the product." One of the men answered the boat operator, carrying a fairly lengthy wooden crate out of the boat. "Why did he need the five of us? This is like a what one to two man job at best?"

"I guess it is very rare. Is Eden here yet?"

Maxus jumped out of the bushes with both his knives drawn, making a mad dash towards the first man who was stabbed through the skull , becoming the first victim of the night.

"It's Soultaker!"

Maxus kicked the first assailant away, dodging another when the men surrounded him, landing a kick that knocked Soultaker off his feet. "We got him! Come on!" Maxus leapt back up on his feet, hurling one of his blade towards the boat and bursting it's float, causing water to leak into the craft and causing it to start to sink.

The men drew their weapons, each of them armed with a variety of blades, slashing at Maxus who used the Kevlar sewed between his sleeves and chest piece to tank the slashes and stabbings, each knife deflecting off the hardened surface of his suit, allowing Maxus to close the distance between them, jamming his blade into the belly of the first man, dodging the knife swing of another before rolling aside to jam his blade right into another man's leg, pulling him right towards his free hand as Maxus pulled the blade out, impaling the gullet of his next victim.

Two left. Easy.

"Put down your weapons and tell me everything I want to know and you may survive to see tomorrow's sunrise." Soultaker warned.

"Eden's a fucking fraud. We can take you ourselves!" The first man hyped himself up only for Maxus to pounce towards him, shoving his knife into the man's lips and cutting his cheek in half, using his leg to kick the man off his balance just in time to dodge another knife stab from the final man, grabbing his last opponent by the collar and plunging his weapon into the man's throat.

Blood dripped down Maxus' gloves as he pulled the knife out before yanking it towards the man on the ground, stabbing him right in the back of the head and ending his life. All five men. Dead.

"Ugh....uh..."

Maxus watched as the vessel's operator swam up shore, right towards him.

The operator didn't even seem to notice Maxus until it was too late, the vigilante lifting him out of the water, pinning him towards the ground, smashing his back down hard against the concrete floor. "Tell me everything you know about the Red Scorpion and The Blood Lion."

"Huh...? I don't know-"

Maxus shot his blade down, slicing off one of the operator's finger.

"AHHH! I'll tell you! I'll tell you! Just...just stop!"

"SPEAK!" Maxus roared.

"The Red Scorpion...he's an assassin, one of the most deadly and feared reputations with the whole of Southeast Asia. I don't know much but...I heard he's some sort of failed martial artist who wants to redeem himself, that's all about him. I swear..." The operator begged, his limbs shaking badly.

"Blood Lion. Speak."

"I don't know much about him either, I just know that he's the leader, someone with a ton of power. Probably some super rich guy that's running all this illegal shit right under the government's noses, with policemen, fire fighters, lawyers and bankers all under his thumb. That's all I know I promise you...I swear on my life."

Minister Kenneth is the Blood Lion. That's pretty much confirmed.

"Hm." Maxus lifted his boot above the man's skull, stomping as hard as he could down, knocking the operator out cold. The vigilante checked his breathing, ensuring that the man was still alive to leave stories behind about the encounter. If all worked as well as he hoped, the Soultaker would become a more terrifying and bigger presence among the underworld community, hopefully preventing more crime at night due to fear...of the Soultaker.

8:45pm. Maxus knew Eden was on his way.

The vigilante checked the crate they were transporting, cracking the wooden panels of it open with several kicks and true enough, his sources were right. There it was: The rumored Black Moon Sword. It spanned a meter in length, the thin shape of a katana yet completely straight with one side fully bladed and the other edge slightly more dull. The hilt of the sword, bandages up in combat black cloth and it's hilt, circular and decorated in a combination of an obsidian like rock and gold.

The weapon lit up beautifully in against the moonlight.

There must be a reason why the Red Scorpion has been chosen to yield this weapon. Judging just by the number of men needed for just one weapon, it shows a lot. Whatever the Black Moon Sword was, it looked expensive and it definitely isn't just any ordinary weapon.

The vigilante wrapped his fingers around the sword, fishing around the crate to find the sword's sheath behind a packing of hay, decorated with gold tainted symbols of dragons, clouds and a giant half moon that was aesthetically positioned.

"Well..." Maxus grabbed the sheath which had a strap, slinging it across his torso before grabbing the sword, taking the weapon as his own.

"Gang. Anyone copy? Did you receive the package?" One of the fallen assassin's radio buzzed.

Should I wait here? Ambush Eden?

"Abdul? Cheng Meng? Anyone?"

Maxus clenched his fist, debating in his heart the next decision he needed to make when the person on the other side of the radio helped him confirm his answer:" I'm sending two units in. Whoever you are...you cannot escape."

Watch me. Maxus knew that heading back towards the bridge connecting the mainland would just be throwing himself towards the enemy. Fortunately...he took swimming lessons as a kid. The vigilante took a deep breath, bracing himself as he leapt into the water, embracing the cold dark waters of the ocean.

Coney Island...the next nearest land he could head to...Sengkang Riverside. He could surface back up there.

"Fuck." Maxus muttered to himself as he heard the wailing sirens.

Police vessel.

Maxus took an additional breath, taking in as much air as he could before diving under the surface of the water, hoping that his dark clothing would blend in well with the dark waters. "He could be anywhere on the island. If he isn't, check the waters."

Maxus looked around him, doing his best to swim as far away as he could from the island in one breath, determined to take as little of those as possible in order to prevent surfacing. "There's a ground team going into the island. Search the waters."

Maxus quickly went upwards, getting a quick breath of water before diving down again.

"Shoot to kill. Command center, we have confirmation that it's the Soultaker."

Are these corrupt men or just more officers having no choice but to do their jobs? Maxus wasn't risking it, his eyes barely able to see more than a meter in front of him and each action he took, causing his oxygen levels to go down rapidly.

Shit...shit...just more...

Maxus' breath was running out, his vision was getting blurry and his movements, slowing down.

The vigilante surfaced, instantly getting spotted as bright lights shone onto him. "There! Open fire!"

Maxus dived again as the officers opened fire, military grade rifles unloading dozens of shots in seconds. To his relief, the bullets slowed down upon touching water, allowing Maxus to get several meters further when the police vessel gave chase, catching up to him in just moments and hovering above him, waiting for him to resurface.

Maxus stopped. He had nowhere else to go.

Let's see what see this sword can do then.

Maxus unsheathed his weapon, swimming towards the surface with no option left as the vigilante caught his first breath, the officers instantly spotting him and pointing their rifles at him, firing. The vigilante raised his sword instinctively before trying to dive back then when he felt the impact on the sword.

The Black Moon Sword deflected the projectiles away, defending Maxus from any real damage as the vigilante dived back down.

What the hell?

Did the sword just deflect bullets? It's integrity must be off the charts.

A stupidly bad idea struck Maxus, but knowing his current situation he didn't have much choice. Maxus dived beneath the water, swimming towards the bottom of the boat before leaping up as high up into the air as he could, bringing the sword down towards the nearest officer, aiming to slice his weapon.

The sword did it's job, slicing through the officer's rifle like a hot knife through butter as Maxus dived back down when to his surprise, the sword continued going. He didn't even really swing the weapon, but it sliced through the side of the boat effortlessly, causing a leakage to occur to the vessel, water pouring towards the officer and successfully distracting them.

"Shit! We're sinking!"

How powerful is this sword?

It...sliced through a vehicle, tons of metal like nothing. Maxus finally understood why the weapon was so heavily guarded and was about to be entrusted to the Red Scorpion. He was just lucky he got his hands on the weapon before the ninja could get his hands on it and use it against him. For some reason, he felt that his armor despite being equipped with Kevlar may still take major damage if the sword even managed to hit him.

But things were different now. The weapon was now under his possession.

Maxus surfaced again, taking in another breath and watching the police vessel behind him sink. It would take some time before another vessel would be deployed to his location, giving him the perfect window of time to swim back towards the mainland to make his escape.

The Black Moon Sword. I will learn how to use you as my own.

Next Chapter- The Unrecognized Talent