The Venom

Vendetta

     Tiger watched as Panther left with the other Venom assassins, and Tiger was left pinned to the ground. Tiger reached towards the sword, and tried to pull it out of his stomach. Tiger tried as hard as possible, and the sword began to slowly slide out. The sword ripped out of Tiger, and a wave of dizziness overcame Tiger, as he pulled himself to his feet. Tiger stumbled down the path, away from the foundry, as smoke was rising into the air. "I need to get out of here." Tiger thought. "I am going to hunt the Venom down, and I will not stop fighting until they are dead. I'll make sure of it." Tiger muttered to himself. 

     Tiger felt pain in his legs, and lowered himself down to one knee, and a flash of lightning appeared in front of him. "Devon." Tiger breathlessly said, before falling to the ground. Tiger's vision faded, and he fell into a deep dream. 

     Tiger walked around his dream world, sword in hand, and looked into the distance at a figure. As Tiger got closer, the figure stepped closer as well. Tiger noticed it was Panther in the distance, and started sprinting over to him. The dreamland was an open grassy field, with a bright blue sky up above, and trees in the distance. Tiger and Panther clashed swords, and rapidly exchanged attacks at each other. Tiger dodged under Panther's attacks, then jumped over a low attack. Tiger rushed forwards, quickly kicking Panther in the stomach. Tiger slashed Panther across the throat, before stabbing him in the stomach. 

     Panther's corpse fell to the ground, but disappeared in a cloud of smoke. The smoke obstructed Tiger's vision, and footsteps were heard all around him. Tiger swung his sword with enough force to disperse the smoke, only to see he was now surrounded in the burning field. Tiger looked around as the sky filled with smoke, and fire raged on. Tiger turned to see two Venom assassins rushing towards him, as Panther paced around him. "Tiger, you must accept that you are no better than I am." Panther said, as Tiger started fighting with the two assassins. Tiger blocked the attack from one assassin, and swiftly evaded the next assassin's attack. Tiger stabbed one of the Venom assassins in the side, before dodging another attack from the other assassin. Tiger kicked the assassin to the ground, before stabbing him on the ground. 

    The assassin corpses disappeared in smoke, and the field became more barren and scorched. Two more assassins appeared on one side, and a pair of Insurrectionists appeared on the other side, rushing towards him. "You cannot hope that your envy towards me will lead you on the right track. Your obsession will get you killed one day." Panther said. "Shut your mouth!" Tiger yelled. The two factions met with Tiger. Tiger deflected the attack of a Venom assassin, before kicking an Insurrectionist in the side of the head. Tiger leaped towards the Insurrectionist, and stabbed his sword into the Insurrectionist's neck. Tiger ripped his sword from the corpse's neck, slamming the pommel into the Venom assassin's face, before slashing the assassin up his body. Tiger turned to see an incoming sword strike, and Tiger used his vambrace to take the impact. Tiger grabbed the other Insurrectionist's arm, and stabbed his sword into the insurrectionist's gut. 

     The final Venom assassin swung at Tiger, and Tiger deflected the attack to the side. Tiger punched the assassin in the face. Tiger dropped his sword, and flew into a rage, grabbing the assassin by the throat, and slamming him into the ground. Tiger got onto the assassin, and began smashing his head into the ground with each angered punch. When Tiger was done, Panther unsheathed his sword. "Come on. You have no chance." Panther said. Tiger grabbed his sword, and rushed at Panther. The dreamland morphed, twisting and deformed. Tiger and Panther were now fighting inside of a giant cathedral. As Tiger and Panther fought, the light shone through the stained glass windows, giving vibrant color around them. Tiger clashed swords with Panther three times, before dodging under Panther's next punch. Tiger swung twice, and both attacks were blocked. Tiger stepped to the side of Panther's sword swing, and elbowed Panther in the face. Tiger rushed in with his sword, but Panther dodged. As soon as Panther's sword pierced Tiger's stomach, Tiger jolted awake.

     Tiger woke up to see he was in the recovery room, in the Skulls hideout. Tiger sat up, with a newfound energy, and looked around. Tiger was shirtless, with bandages around his torso. Tiger rushed over to his gear, putting on his uniform shirt, and mounted his armor pieces. Tiger quickly put on his sheathes, and picked up his bag. Tiger noticed that the strap of his bag was cut from Panther's sword. Tiger noticed that he now had his sword, and Panther's sword as well. Tiger put both swords into the sheathes on either side of his hips, and rushed to the armory. Tiger quickly attached two pouches on the back side of his uniform, before stashing a couple smoke bombs into it. Tiger attached a utility pouch to his thigh, and sheathed a knife on the side of his boot. "If he really wanted to piss me off, he has, and I will best him in combat. No matter what it takes." Tiger thought to himself, as he put on another Skulls mask. 

     Tiger turned to leave, when he saw Reaper standing at the room entrance. "You seem energetic, and eager to fight, after almost dying in combat." Reaper said. "I've found my new mission, and I've set a goal for myself." Tiger said. "Oh really?" Reaper said. "I am going to dismantle the Venom, and kill King Cobra and Panther." Tiger said. Reaper's smile faded quickly. 'You what?" Reaper asked in disbelief. "You are not going out there, only to die in an instant." Reaper said. "I intend to die after my mission's complete, not before." Tiger said, before trying to leave. "Oh no you don't!" Reaper yelled, grabbing Tiger by the shoulder, and pulled him back into the armory. "You aren't ready to take on your personal vendetta." Reaper said. "You don't have the skill, or the conditioning required to take on such a task. You'd be running straight into a grave if you continue what you're doing." Reaper said. "Then teach me. Teach me to fight efficiently, and effectively." Tiger said. "No, I don't think you'd handle the Venom, even after just training. You need experience. You need to get better at swordsmanship to even have a chance." Reaper said. 

     Tiger sighed. "I want to go and prove myself. Teach me, and give me all the experience and training as possible. I'm sick of being told that I'm not good enough for something. I will assure you that I'd make a valuable asset to the Skulls. Just give me something to work with." Tiger said. Reaper fell silent for a moment. "Your willpower and determination is strong. I can't change your mind, but since you insist on following your own path, I suppose I could teach you the necessary skills needed for your expedition." Reaper said. "Thank you." Tiger said, walking out of the room. "I expect you to meet me on the roof of this building at sunrise. No later." Reaper said. "Will do." Tiger said.