Fisherman's Luck

A Stray Dog (III)

Luc didn't want to see what happened. He had had enough of this violence. All he wanted to do was go home. But still, he couldn't resist peeking out of the corner of his eye. To his complete and utter surprise, Xian had blocked the hammer with his left hand, which was now unnaturally bent and had white things sticking out the back.

Xian whipped his right hand, holding his sword, across the air, severing Jimmy's hand from the arm in an instant. Jimmy raised to stump to his face and stared at it for a moment. Then he began to wail, a horrible sound very similar to the mating call of a whale.

Xian staggered to his feet, heavily favoring his left side. He shoved the little girl behind his back and raised his blade at the goons.

"H-how?" Jimmy roared, clutching his stump to his chest.

"It's like in every story," said Xian. "You can hit me, cut me, beat me all you want. I don't care. But the moment you lay a hand on someone I care about...that's the moment you know you're going to die!"

"Noble words!" Jimmy spat. "Get him!"

The remaining goons charged forward at Xian, fully expecting an easy victory. To their surprise, Xian had been completely revitalized. He whirled through the air, slicing two opponents down in the blink of an eye. The next two goons attacked at the same time, hacking and slashing and forcing Xian into the corner. Xian, making sure the girl was behind him, weathered the blows, receiving countless gashes across his entire body. But when the two goons stepped back to admire their handiwork, Xian pounced forth once more, quick as a cat, decapitating one opponent and disemboweling the other.

Only Jimmy and one other Syndicate member remained. However, Xian already seemed spent. His eyes were already unfocused and blood covered his entire body. It seemed as though he was using all of his energy to simply stand.

Jimmy's last goon charged forward and drove his sword right at Xian's midsection. Xian raised his own sword weakly. The goon's blade pierced Xian through the midsection, driving him backwards towards the end of the cave. Right before the tip of the blade reached the little girl standing behind him, Xian dug his feet into the ground and willed his body to stop moving.

"What are you doing?" Jimmy roared. "Kill the girl too!"

"I...I can't!" said the goon.

"You...will not...ever touch...her again..." Xian whispered, blood leaking out the corners of his mouth.

The girl collapsed to her knees and began to sob. Jimmy cursed and drew a knife from his belt. He lurched forward and cut down his own man.

"If you can't do it, I will!" Jimmy growled, shoving Xian aside. The broken man collapsed to the ground, reaching weakly to stop Jimmy.

"I won't touch her again?" Jimmy roared. "You're going to personally watch me cut off every one of her limbs before I kill her!"

Xian's arms and legs trembled as he tried to lift himself up but to no avail. Jimmy laughed and turned to face the sobbing girl in the corner of the cave.

"What are you going to do?" a voice asked in Luc's ear, making him jump. "What does a gentleman's promise mean to you?"

Luc swallowed, narrowing his eyes. He might have been a coward, but even cowards had to grow up someday. This would be the moment that marked the transition between boyhood and manhood. He was ready to start living his life again.