We Are All Sinners

An Unfortunate Turn of Events

⠀⠀King Pheles snarled as the life drained from his eyes. "You were always..a disappointment to your..mother and I." King Pheles was dead.
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⠀⠀As the prince, in shock, knelt to the ground and began to weep, Teiboku came up behind, leaping onto Kenshin's shoulders with incredible speed. His legs wrapped around his necks swiftly, ready to end this. "It's over, playboy. Now die!"
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⠀⠀The prince's weeping continued, until he was suddenly snapped back into reality. The aforementioned thirteen year old assassin came up behind Kenshin, and leaped onto his shoulders, before wrapping his legs around his neck. Kenshin immediately resisted out of instinct, but he quickly lost balance, inevitably forcing him to the ground. A substantial amount of pressure was on his neck as it was being twisted. He wanted to cry out, because it hurt like hell, but he didn't. The pressure on his neck prevented him from doing so. Nonetheless, tears continued flowing down his face. Out of simple desperation, Kenshin began tapping the boy's leg furiously to show that he was surrendering, but it was a sad attempt to save his life.
He then shut his eyes tightly, preparing for the pain that would be death.
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⠀⠀Teiboku was ready to snap the prince's neck, ready to end the suffering.
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⠀⠀Storm pulled the boy off of their last target. "Hold on, Teiboku," the sorcerer cut in, holding on to the back of Teiboku's shirt.
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⠀⠀"Storm, what the hell?" The boy shook his comrade off. "He's a goner! He should die like the rest!"
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⠀⠀"What is it Storm?" Reikan asked, coldly looking at the sorcerer. "Are you betraying us?"
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⠀⠀"Please, Storm wouldn't betray us," Illusion cut in, confronting the swordsman. Those two never truly got along well.
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⠀⠀"I am not going to witness another death. We will spare the prince's life." Storm ignore the angry protests of his comrades.
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⠀⠀"He's just as guilty as anyone else! Why are you stopping now?" Teiboku asked, still wishing her could snap the bratty kid's neck. "This is ridiculous."
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⠀⠀"I refuse to see that animal alive," Reikan inquired, giving the prince a stone cold glare.
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⠀⠀"I'm with the other two. Why can't we just end him?" Illusion asked, curious as to why Storm refused to kill the second main target.
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⠀⠀"I hesitated in joining you for this assassination squad in the first place. I won't witness another death take place. We will spare him, and nothing otherwise." Storm got several looks, but the others wouldn't challenge the strongest of their team. Reikan might have a chance sword wise, but mix the sorcery and he would be a goner.
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⠀⠀"You're lucky I didn't snap your damn neck," Teiboku hissed. "Just wait. I don't care if you don't die, I'll beat you till you can't talk."
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⠀⠀Kenshin despised all of them. However, he was too afraid and saddened to do anything against them. He glanced up for a moment to then receive numerous glares accompanied by threats, inevitably making the prince even more terrified. "What do you want from me?" He asked quietly. He sounded depressed, hurt, and mortified. "You've already taken everything from me." He said quietly. "Why do you want to make me suffer more? What did I do to deserve this!?"
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⠀⠀Teiboku scoffed when Kenshin asked what he'd done to deserve the torture of living. "Trust me pal, I'd kill you in a heartbeat if it weren't for Mr. Mercy over here." The boy was sure to make it loud enough so the sorcerer would hear.
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⠀⠀Reikan growled. "I don't trust that brat one bit, Storm. What are we going to do with him?"
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⠀⠀"I swear I'll make you pay. I lost my son to you, you little son of a bitch." Illusion snarled and brushed her daggers across the prince's neck, imagining her blades cutting into flesh.
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⠀⠀Storm face palmed. "You people know why I joined you idiots in this fight." The other three nodded hesitantly. "It's King Pheles' fault Fennel suffers," Storm whispered softly to himself. The other assassins didn't hear, but they knew what he was probably saying. "The king deserved to die."
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⠀⠀Suddenly, something inside Kenshin snapped, emotionally speaking. His fear and sadness suddenly transferred into utter fury. He quickly shot up, and tackled Storm to the ground with surprising speed that would easily catch anyone off guard. "It's because of you!" Kenshin shouted furiously as his hands wrapped around the sorcerer's neck, attempting to strangle him. His crimson eyes were still filled with tears.
"You're the reason my father is dead!"
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⠀⠀The sorcerer didn't know if Kenshin had heard him or not, but soon enough he felt the prince tackle him to the group, wrapping his hands around his neck. Storm, in shock, feebly grabbed at the prince's wrists and pulled. He wasn't usually jumped like this. He forgot what to do for a moment.
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⠀⠀Reikan and Teiboku didn't move. They already knew what would happen next.
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⠀⠀Daggers flashed, and three marks appeared on Kenshin's left cheek. A swift kick to the back immobilized him, and Illusion ripped the teenager off of Storm. She then punched him in the face, sending him flying. "That was for your damn father killing my Blitz!" She threw a dagger that sliced through the side of his head. "That was for strangling the idiot that showed you mercy." She finished with a slam to the head. "And that was because you're you, you dirtbag!" Illusion spat at the prince as Teiboku helped Storm to his feet. The sorcerer coughed, trying to catch his breath.
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⠀⠀"Now can we kill him?" Reikan asked coldly, adding a bit of a "told-you-so" within his tone.
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⠀⠀Teiboku glared at the prince. "I wish Illusion ripped your head off." He stated quite blatantly.
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⠀⠀Storm stared at the prince with both disappointment and anger. "It's nice to know that-you truly do want to die," he said between coughs. "I leave this-rebel to y-you."
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⠀⠀The other three assassins stood over the prince with menacing glares. "It's about time."
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⠀⠀Hearing this made Kenshin turn his head with his eyes wide, and he quickly forced himself onto his back. He then began crawling backwards in a futile and desperate attempt to escape his opponents. "Please don't kill me!" He shouted as a plea for mercy. "P-Please! I'll do anything! I'll give you anything you want!" However, it seemed like a fact that the only thing his foes wanted was for him to be dead, and in the back of his mind, Kenshin knew that. His pleas didn't stop, however. "Please! I don't want to die!" He added on, while obvious tears streamed down his face. He looked, and sounded afraid and pathetic at best. Finally, he stopped crawling back, and shut his eyes, turning his head away. He raised an arm up, expecting some sort of horrifying death. "I'm sorry..." He whispered those last two words out of desperation, but he sounded sincere. The significance of those two words was fascinatingly brilliant. Kenshin, the ruthless prince of Ainsteille, had said 'I'm sorry'. He had apologized, which was something completely unheard of from him, much less anyone that had been in the royal family, not including his late mother. The prince was being apologetic. The rarity of this event was extravagant.
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⠀⠀Illusion spat as the prince began sobbing again. She scoffed as bloody tears ran down his face.
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⠀⠀Reikan heard him plead for mercy, and almost struck him. "Damn you..you want mercy!? You had mercy just before, and instead you tried to strangle the only idiot that gave it!!"
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⠀⠀Teiboku sighed. "You look really pathetic right now, you know that, right?" He watched as Kenshin crawled away feebly, pleading not to kill him, that he'd do or give anything, and that he didn't want to die. "No one wants to die, idiot," he said in an annoyed matter. "But sometimes..they truly deserve it." There he went again. Teiboku had those moments where he sounded young and innocent, and then went to scary sadist.
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⠀⠀Storm stared at the ground. He'd caught his breath again, and he said he'd leave the child to his comrades. They'd probably kill him once he left. Still, something didn't sit right with the sorcerer. He knew there was good deep down. Perhaps deep, deep, deep, deep, deep down. Don't worry, he could say 'deep' for a while. But still, he truly saw a sort of good in the prince. "Perhaps we—"
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⠀⠀"Oh, don't even Storm!" Illusion snarled, losing patience. "We came here to kill this guy, so why can't we do it? You tried showing mercy and to repay it, he tried strangling you. Isn't that enough to sway your opinion?"
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⠀⠀Reikan nodded. His "white" attire was no longer that. It was like a wet, crimson cover now.
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⠀⠀The three began to argue with one another while Teiboku raised his head and looked at the entrance to the ball. "Uh. Hey guys?"
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⠀⠀As his foes began bickering, he opened his eyes, listening intently. Kenshin wasn't listening to them; rather to the noise of approached armored soldiers outside.
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⠀⠀"This is total crap! We are not showing any mercy whatsoever!"
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⠀⠀"What happened to being humane, Illusion?"
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⠀⠀"You came and technically assassinated the king, Storm. What part of humane are you?"
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⠀⠀"Guys?"
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⠀⠀"Quiet yourself, Reikan."
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⠀⠀"Don't "quiet yourself" me!"
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⠀⠀"Guys!?"
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⠀⠀"Ugh, can I just kill the guy already!? I could tell in his mind he wanted to do things with me before I revealed myself. He's a total creep!"
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⠀⠀"Hey you idiots!" That definitely got their attention. "I hear somethi—" Teiboku's voice was cut off as loud banging erupted from the ballroom entrance. The doors came crashing down, and when the dust settled, about one hundred soldiers armed at the ready stood in front of the assassins. "This is why we should've done the job and left!" Teiboku screeched as a gun went off, and then multiple. They were all rifles. One or two would've been fine, but an army? That was just perfect. The assassins took cover from the tables as the bullets came flying.
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⠀⠀Illusion hissed and leapt out, grabbing Kenshin by the neck. Her dagger to his throat, she screeched, "Oi idiots, you want your prince alive? Then you'll quit shooting fricking bullets at us!" A loud snap echoed. The female assailant couldn't feel her arm. A sharp bullet pierced through the flesh, both entering and then exiting. A howl filled the air, and Illusion dropped both Kenshin and her dagger. "Damn you!" She screeched.
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⠀⠀Teiboku rushed in and shoved Illusion to the ground, dragging her behind a flipped table. "I'll kill them all," he spat under his breath.
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⠀⠀"Retreat!" Storm's voice rose above the echoing chaos. "Grab the prince and retreat!"
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⠀⠀Teiboku clenched his teeth together. He wanted to attack, but Storm was right. They couldn't all deflect a hundred bullets a minute. He jumped from table to table and dragged Kenshin behind it. Giving a karate chop to the nape of his neck, Teiboku knocked the prince unconscious with a special pressure point he knew.
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⠀⠀Reikan scowled and grabbed the prince, ready to flee.
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⠀⠀Teiboku looked over at Illusion and could tell she was fine, despite her gunshot wound. She looked ready to rip off some heads anyways.
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⠀⠀"Escewa: Willow Forest!" Immediately, a glow surrounded the assailants and the prince. They disappeared into the thin air, confusing the soldiers. They reappeared in the forest.