Hanger walks over to where Kiara and Anby are–a desolate dead end. The ground is uneven with, littered with plastic bottles and food wrappers. A building leaves a dark shadow over the area. The towering brick dead end is splashed in graffiti, a forgotten piece of history.
"I'm done playing games," Hanger mutters with annoyance, clenching tightly on the serrated knife. He looks over at the dead end in front of him, turning his head, he tries to sense the two. "Please show yourselves so I can eat you."
He turns his head violently in a jagged motion. His pupils are expressionless-that of a wild animal. A trash can lid comes out of nowhere and slams into Hanger's forehead with a thud. As the assassin staggers back and feels blood trailing down his forehead, he still smirks it off.
"Oh you playing hide and seek," Hanger says with an exaggerated enthusiasm. "When I was tasked with one of my missions, my day job was that of a kindergarten teacher. Kids are masters of hiding, do you think you can escape me?"
Kindergarten teacher? Kiara's thought cuts through the tension. Her heart thunders in her chest, but she tries to keep her focus stable. That explains a lot actually.
"They were always so scared whenever they saw me coming. Thinking they were all sneaky," Hanger chuckles, reflecting on his past. "The problem was they never stay quiet. They could never hide from me-making the game more fun."
Kiara peeks her head out seeing Hanger loom over the trash bags laid on the floor. He kicks the bags and trash cans, not flinching when the rotten contents inside spray onto the ground. There is no rush or panic to his actions. With every shove of debris, the sound grew louder and more chaotic.
Hanger's expression is silent and neutral with his eyes gleaming as his prey grew closer than ever.
"This is a very small space. If you think hiding behind garbage is a smart move then you really are dumb," Hanger remarks casually. A flying glass bottle flies in the air, crashing into Hanger's forehead. The assassin staggers back, clutching his bleeding temple. He narrows his eyes seeing a foot stick out behind a trash can.
Smirking to himself, Hanger walks closer to where Kiara is.
"You know I changed my mind. I'm really having fun right now," Hanger swings his arm back, smacking it against a metal trash can revealing Kiara out in the open. "Found you." Hanger mockingly acknowledges as pieces of garbage fall onto the ground.
Pushing herself off the ground, Kiara stays low on the ground. Keeping her arms close, she jams her dagger into Hanger's Achilles tendon. Hanger's eyes widen as pain shoots out his entire body like lightning.
"I'm very sorry… about that sir," Kiara winks, her voice airy and dry. "Let me cool you off. Anby now." The young girl jumps out of her hiding spot, her hands glowing a fiery glow.
"You're going to burn me again?" Hanger coils his arm back, smacking Kiara's head onto the ground. Kiara's body bounces off the ground from the impact causing Anby to freeze up. Hanger's body turns in a snappy motion, his stance looming over Anby.
"I'm very tough you know," Hanger remarks, stepping forward with an unnatural calmness. "I'm going to have fun skinning–" Before the assassin can finish his words, Kiara splashes him with a clear colorless liquid.
"Ew. What is this?" Hanger exclaims loudly before Kiara smacks him with the glass bottle. The bottle explodes near his forehead with shards flying out in different directions. Hanger manages to get a glimpse of what Kiara splashed on him—Ethanol. The assassin's eyes widen as he slowly turns his head to stop Anby.
"Now," Kiara screams out, her voice dry and faint. Anby straightens out her arms, and the spell circle spins around in a bright blur.
"Inferno song," Anby utters, the air around her crackles like fireworks and hums with a high pitch whistle. Hanger is engulfed by ash and smoke, the heat crashing into him like a brick wall. A wild ravenous fury licks him as the fire consumes everything in his path.
"That's gotta…do a lot more damage," Kiara remarks, clutching her head. She stumbles on her feet, the effects of Harvest are still taking a toll on her.
Evander is going to be so confused why he is so lightheaded for some reason. She thinks to herself, her eyes dart to see if Anby is alright. Colors bled together in a haze as the world around her tilted slightly. She reached out to steady herself on a nearby wall.
I can't believe I actually did that. Anby leans against the alleyway wall, her shoulders stiff and her breathing rapid. Is he dead? Oh my, did I kill someone?
"You okay… Anby?" Kiara mutters, her surroundings spinning around too quickly, disorienting her.
"Yeah I'm good…I don't know about my mental state tho," Anby mutters, her voice nearly a whisper. Kiara smiles softly but she notices no faint outline of Hanger in the fire.
The assassin extends both arms out in front of him, palms facing outward, pushing away the smoke wrapping around him. His expression is a mixture of determination and struggle.
"You two are really interesting characters," Hanger's voice cuts through the thick smoke covering his face. He gently waves his hand around, pushing the ash away from him. "Prey is always evolving, adapting, and putting up a better fight, making the hunt even more thrilling. The more you fight back…the more clear you're struggling."
"Is he not fazed?" Kiara's thoughts race trying to comprehend the situation. She clutches her daggers tightly, getting into a defensive position. How tough is this guy?
With a neutral cold expression, Hanger appears in front of Anby, punching her directly in the gut. The force sends her crashing into a wall and falling onto the ground with a thud. Kiara, not reacting in time, sees Hanger swinging his cleaver in her peripheral vision.
Pushing back the lightheadedness, Kiara steps by nearly being grazed by a metal blur. Hanger, reacting to this, throws his cleaver into the air, spinning around, glistening in the sunlight. Kiara's eyes dart to the weapon in the air, Hanger slices a crimson line on Kiara's arm.
As she winces, the assassin grabs his cleaver and smacks her in the side of the head with the handle. A ringing sound pops in her head.
She barely registers the scraping of her knees on the cold pavement.
I can't let Anby die. What should I do? Kiara worries as she tries to lift herself off the ground. Hanger's footsteps on her body, and sends her crashing back onto the ground.
"Maybe Thomas was right–Weaklings don't have potential. They're just wasted space," Hanger remarks, his eyes narrow with a cold predatory gaze. "For a granddaughter of Edward Meitner, you are just really boring."
Kiara stays silent as she tries to get up off the floor but Hanger pushes her down with a mocking deliverance.
I can't do anything. Kiara's mind races trying to solve her situation. Her hands lay flat on the floor but she couldn't get up due to Hanger's weight. I need to do something.
"You should be savoring this moment," Hanger stomps on Kiara's spin causing her to scream out in pain through her clenched teeth. "I'm going to kill your friend then I'm going to bring your skinned body to your grandfather. He will be so crushed that I'm interested in that ending."
Kiara's eyes widened, clenching her teeth. She claws her fingers on the ground trying to get up. She couldn't let this be the end. The thought pulsed in her head as her spiritual energy started to flare up. Hanger steps off of Kiara's back and walks over to Anby's unconscious body.
Yesterday in the middle of the night, the stars were stretched far as the eye can see, with time frozen in the stillness. The air felt weightless as if the earth held its breath.
"You really think Kiara's going to be fine out there tomorrow?" Evander wonders, leaning his head lazily on his arm. "Dealing with trained assassins is not an easy task. You think she's ready?" He turned his head, his expression skeptical.
"Well she is getting better every day," Edward acknowledges though a flicker of doubt shows in his expression. He cleans the dirty dishes with clear diligence. "I still don't trust this scouting mission but she has potential. The problem is that I'm worried that she hasn't faced truly lethal situations."
Evander chuckles to himself knowing about him and Kiara fighting the high end Elusive in the distortion zone. Edward still does not have the full details about the threat they faced in there.
"I think this is her time to show her best," Edward smiles to himself, drying his hands with a washcloth. "You don't know…true potential can never be tethered."
As time catches back up, it pulls Kiara back into the present. The world around her seemed to hold its breath for just a moment. Hanger stops mid-step, turning around to see Kiara standing tall and defiant. Her body is partially engulfed in a pink mist-like energy. A familiar yet foreign energy surges through her as the air crackles with an intensity.
What's with this strange feeling– Hanger wonders before Kiara suddenly appears in front of him, kicking him in the face.
A blur shot out towards him, faster than he expected. It was all a smear before her foot made contact with his head. The sharp crack of contact sent shockwaves through his face as his body collided against the unforgiving wall. Anby slowly regains consciousness, seeing Kiara landing the blow.
"I won't let you hurt the people I care about," Kiara declares with a cold defiance. Hanger spits out blood, a cold metallic taste lingers in his mouth as his body aches. Every breath he took hurt as his lungs struggled to expand and breathe. It felt like someone screwed a nail in his head, making it harder to think.
A deep sense of rage starts to settle in. Hanger's body retaliates remembering the pain but is driven by an intense desire to retaliate.