AGAINST ALL ODDS

"Why worry about things you can't control when you can keep yourself busy controlling the things that depend on you?"

Five's mind raced. He was outmatched in strength and his body arched to even move a finger as One Thirty's fist descended.....

"BANG!!"

A shot rang out and One Thirty's fist stopped its descent, as smoke oozed from his head where he had been shot. He staggered backward trying to shake off the pain and remain conscious, but in the end, it proved futile as he fell on his back with a large thud, seconds later his badge turned red.

Five who had already given to his fate, released a breath of relief that he didn't know he was holding, he slowly stood up as his bones crackled like fire. He grunted in pain, nothing that he must have broken some bones.

"Stupid bastard," he cursed in the direction where Forty-Four should be "Couldn't you have shot him faster before he broke all my bones, you had all the time in the world to do that," he shouted.

But instead of a reply, what greeted him was complete silence, "Hey!, Come out now, I'm not gonna do anything to you, just a few slaps on your ugly face will do."

"...."

"We still have the last one to prepare for you know that right?"

"...."

(Something must be wrong, his never this quiet.)

Five thought, and then started slowly limping towards the thicket.

"Hey, if you plan on taking me out too, you don't have to make an elaborate plan, I'm already too weak to fight back, you can just use your bad breath to take me out." Fight joked, but still yet now reply and a little cautious feeling started growing in him.

He raised his hand and checked the time on his watch, which told him it was currently 5:47 pm, he pressed the side to see the survivor interface and it revealed to him to be 2.

"This isn't right, is supposed to be 3" he muttered to himself before realization started to dawn on him, but before he could make a conclusion, a figure or better still someone rushed out towards him from the the thicket and dived at him.

Five barely managed to move away, and the figure hit the sands and did a little roll before standing up again and looking at Five who was slowly getting up after narrowly dodging the human projectile.

Five looked at the figure in blue camouflage standing in front of him and then shook his head, "Not again" he sighed

"You are really tenacious, for an expendable you know that right?" He complimented, "Even though the other guy is a Neo, he didn't put up any fight, just a simple sneak at him and a little choke and he's already out for the count"

"Oh and I thought you mighty Neos, consider yourself too highly and strong to do that and here you are doing it three times, I guess there are cowards among the brave," five mocked, while secretly relieved that Forty-Four wasn't dead, but also aware that he May likely lose this fight, his dagger which which may help him was with forty-four since it was useless against one thirty.

A frown appeared on the Neo's face as he indeed hated sneak attacks, but the nature of his powers didn't offer him much choice. This is because, during the day he was almost as normal as every other expendable.

His power was teleportation, but unlike normal teleportation powers, he's only works during nighttime, as he is only able to teleport under the cover of darkness. He survived this long by relying on sneak attacks while hiding during the day, unfortunately, this being the last day he couldn't do that anymore and rushed to the north side of the island as well. As if luck was on his side, before getting there, he noticed through his watch that the number of people left was 4 including himself.

When he finally got there, he saw someone hiding out, with a rifle and utmost focus on what he was looking at through the scope, his blue camouflage informed him that he was a Neo, so he had to be careful. He carefully closed up on him making almost no sounds and after getting to him without alerting him, he quickly used his arm to choke the poor fellow out not giving in to his struggles. After making sure that he was out and his badge had turned red, he released him and pushed him to the side, he took the rifle and looked out through the scope where he saw two people engaged in a fierce fight, the two he knew. One thirty being the strongest Neo and Five the expendable who always outran everyone during morning runs. But what was surprising was that Five was holding up his own against One Thirty, even just being an expendable. He contemplated taking him out first but decided against it and decided to bid his time, eventually the expected result happened as One Thirty was able to turn everything around and hit five hard on the ground, he was about to deliver a final blow when he pressed the trigger sending a bullet to his head making him to stagger back. Thinking that he was still standing he decided to shoot him again but nothing happened, he quickly looked and found there was no bullet left. He got scared for a second, but soon let out a sigh of relief as he saw One Thirty fall down eventually, he then looked at the spent cartridge close to him on the ground, "I guess you did it after all" he said to it as if he was talking to a human. Since he couldn't shoot Five, he decided to go for a one-out sneak-out that would take him out since he was already weak and battered by One Thirty. But even then, the tenacious bastard was still able to move out of the way in his weak state and was now taunting him and taking a fighting posture as well, it was simply incredulous.

"Are we going to fight, or you are just going to stand there the whole day?"

Five broke him out of his thoughts, "You know you are not going to win this right?"

"You are not the only one that has said that" five replied with a smirk.

"So what's your power huh?"

"...."

"No response, let me take a wild guess, you can't use it right now because of the environment or is on a cool down" Five smiled when he saw the flicker in his eyes when he deduced that.

"........ And why would you say that?" He asked while trying to mask his expression.

"Well for a Neo, you seem a little scared to fight me, and you haven't used your powers to attack me immediately, which you guys are fond of doing."

"Hahahaha, you think I'm scared of you? You can barely stand"

With his right four fingers, five made a "come on" gesture as he got into a fighting stance, and so did the Neo as well.

Five could feel the weight of his injuries pressing down on him, but he had no choice but to fight. He had faced countless foes before this moment, each one leaving him more battered, more broken, but he had survived. This, however, felt different, this Neo was not just an adversary—he was the embodiment of the final challenge, the ultimate test.

Without warning, Neo moved, his speed blurring the line between man and shadow. He struck with precision, targeting Five’s injured side, forcing a pained grunt from him as he barely managed to deflect the blow. The impact sent him stumbling back, his legs struggling to hold him up. The Neo pressed the attack, a relentless series of strikes and kicks, each one finding its mark with merciless efficiency. Five was being overwhelmed, his vision narrowing as pain and exhaustion clouded his mind.

Then, as he prepared to deliver the final blow, fate intervened.

The sun, now touching the horizon, cast a blinding ray of light directly into his eyes. For a split second, he hesitated, raising a hand to shield himself. It was all the time Five needed. His hand brushed against something in the sand—a sharp, broken shell, half-buried and glinting in the fading light. With a desperate cry, Five lunged forward, thrusting the shell towards him.

Caught off guard, he flinched as the shell sliced across his face, leaving a deep, bleeding gash. The pain and the shock forced him to take a step back, his composure faltering. Seizing the moment, Five summoned every ounce of strength left in his battered body and charged. He crashed into him with the force of a wounded animal fighting for survival, driving them both to the ground.

The fight that followed was brief but brutal. Five, fueled by sheer willpower and the adrenaline coursing through his veins, rained down blows on him, not giving him a moment to recover. Blinded by punches to his face and disoriented, the Neo could not mount a defense. With a final, powerful strike, Five pinned him to the ground, his weight pressing down on his opponent as the last of his energy drained away.

For a moment, both lay there, the world around them silent except for the steady rhythm of the waves. The sun had finally disappeared beneath the horizon, leaving the beach bathed in twilight. Five, victorious but barely conscious, rolled off him and collapsed onto the sand beside him, staring up at the stars that began to emerge in the darkening sky.

He had won—against all odds, against all reason. Fate had smiled at him in that crucial moment, giving him the chance to survive. As the night enveloped the land, Five knew that this battle, though hard-won, was only one part of his journey. The road ahead was uncertain, but for now, he could rest, knowing that he had overcome the impossible.