The Time

Chapter seventeen

Taking one of the swords from my back, I stood and readied myself for their hostility.
"Who the fuck are you?" The leader growled, taking out a gun of their own.
"Ace. I'm a hitman after Velvet. He has someone close to me. Let me and my friends go and we'll kill him." I stated.
It was common knowledge that most people either hated Velvet or didn't know him - though the latter rarely happened - so I assumed the same could be said for the dirty humans before me.
"I'm half inclined to join you." A scruffy man with a beard sneered from the right of the leader.
He looked like Tom Hanks from Cast Away just with darker hair and more clothes. And a big ol' knife. And a face I'd known for years.
In reply to this comment the leader shot him a deadly glare and asked of his group "So what do you say gang?"
Oh the smile they gave me...
"I'm sorry," The leader turned back to me. "But I do believe, and my friends here agree with me, that going against Velvet is a very bad idea. We like our lives here where he doesn't know about us. And anyway, what's he even done to warrant so many enemies? Nothing. And so I digress; you're the one who needs to die."
But before they could charge, the beardy man suddenly interjected "Can I say something?"
"Wait! Who the fuck are you?" The leader yelled, rousing my friends upstairs. "You're not Francis!"
"Nope, the names Stitch." He grinned, sticking out a hand for them to shake.
When no one took it, he swung round with the other hand and punched the leader in the face, his nose exploding, and the battle commenced.
I unsheathed the other sword and ran to meet my attackers, no idea how to professionally use the weapons in my hands. Swiping and blocking seemed to have some effect though. And then the sword shot through a woman's stomach and she died, balanced on the end of it.
This was a God Killers sword.
She was going to die.

I'd killed people many a time before. I'd killed people who hadn't respawned before.
But we made eye contact as she passed and she knew she wasn't coming back...
In a movie, this would be the moment I give up on violence, let my sword clatter dramatically to the floor and walk off defiantly into the distance, heroically trading my life for Destiny's. But this ain't a movie and, as I say, I've killed before. Also, she was chill with killing me! So why shouldn't I feel the same? As they say in the movies, I'm no hero...

One more person came at me as revenge for the death of the woman, the rest engaged in extreme hand-to-hand combat with my squad. And we were winning.
The man was tall and skinny and, judging from his skin complexion, not from England. He wore a denim jacket with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows revealing his dark haired arms. Under the jacket he wore a white top with long grey sleeves and black trousers matching the tiny black studs he had in his ears. He was fairly handsome with his short curly black hair, caramel skin, dark chocolate eyes and neat designer stubble. He also wore black high top trainers, one of which was heading for my side. I didn't let his kick hit home though, spinning and slashing.
I knew my attack had connected at least from the initial scream and the blood which followed. It leaked thick and bright, the moon glinting off it and it continued to pour even after I'd taken off his beautiful head. The screams had stopped there.

"What the hell are you doing here Stitch?" I grinned at the sight of him, wiping sweat from my brow with one bloody hand and shaking his hand with the other.
"Well I heard from one of my many connections that a group of wayward youths had dismantled the Triangle black market which was a very important location which I used to do business at - and it was you, my friends, who took that away from me. From there, I'd been told by Tyler - another old friend if mine - that you were heading for Velvet. Then all I needed to do was follow the sounds of chaos and mischief - and Jeremy 's bloody farting."
"You know Tyler?" I frowned.
"Sure. Old friend. We go wayyy back." Stitch flapped.
"You just met her, didn't you?" I sighed with a smile, expecting no less.
"Maybe... She had a nice liver though."
He was joking... maybe.
"I figured I'd come and help. You, Ace, skipped out on me you old cotton headed ninny muggins! But I haven't got anything against Destiny, the old bean, so after hearing he'd been nabbed, I considered it my duty in lending a hand with returning him to you. Like a lost puppy. Or a sandwich."
"I have no idea what any of that meant but we're glad to have you." Wayne said happily from behind me.