"Where the hell are they?!?!"
Pheo shouted out in frustration. He didn't care that someone would hear him, he's been waiting for so long now that his hair could turn white.
"Mmm…"
Ryu made a mumbling sound as he turned around. Pheo covered his mouth, remembering that Ryu was in the same room resting. "How long does it take to deal with a dog and some generic thug?" He whispered out loud.
Pheo looked out of the room, the pathways were still empty. The explosion that signaled everyone to group up happened practically half an hour from now, it made Pheo's mind wander.
Did something happen to them?
Thoughts clouded his mind, he knew he had to act but he couldn't decide on exactly what to do. His body was alert, he actively paced around trying to find a way to be productive.
"Pheo?"
A weak familiar voice called out to him.
"Ryu?" Pheo turned to see that he was awake. Ryu was trying to stay as his usual self, but his actions proved that his energetic self was too much to ask for.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" Pheo got to him, wanting to do something to help him. "Not really sunshine and rainbows," He told him. "Why does the room look like it's been scavenged for diamonds?"
Pheo chuckled, "Some things happened while you were asleep." His mind clicked with a thought. With Ryu now awake, they could start moving towards the exit instead of waiting for the others.
"Ryu, wanna get out of here?" Pheo brought the topic back up.
He had to convince Ryu for his own good. "Not really," He told him while wiping the morning dew off his eyes, "It's not like I feel like going for a walk."
"I didn't know Warhound's claws had poison in them." Ryu pulled his shirt up, revealing a wound on his waist that was now healed up. "How did I not notice that?" Pheo said as he looked at it, "Looks like you're stronger than I thought."
"Of course I am!" Ryu shouted proudly.
Pheo was feeling more concerned however, feeling the pressure of time weigh on him more than it ever did. Another thought came to his mind when he was looking at Ryu's wound.
What if he had more than one sickness?
It's entirely possible, a big open wound in the mines basically invites viruses to enter the body. If a wound already slipped past him, it wouldn't be off if a symptom did too.
"Hey, I really, really think we should get out of here." Pheo tried to convince Ryu "But I'm fine," He told Pheo. "Trust me." He put on a fake smile to convince him.
"Ryu, it's not about that," Pheo tried a different approach. "I want to practice somewhere more open next time we fight."
"We could just mine out an area." Ryu proposed a solution. Pheo shook his head, "The walls won't let me use my secret move though."
"Secret move?" His eyes lit up, "Well, how much space do you need?"
"The thing is, I don't need space." He told him. He whistled, "I need the wind." He got out a piece of cloth and dropped it, showing that there was no draft that made it move around.
"You can beat me all you want down here, but up there?" Pheo pointed up. "You won't stand a chance." He smirked, confidence smeared all over his face.
Ryu thought for a bit, "Alright." He tried to get himself up, using both of his hands to push him off the ground. Pheo reached out and grabbed him just before he fell, helping him get up.
"Oh, oh, Woah!" Ryu wobbled as he tried keeping himself up, eventually leaning on Pheo for support.
Thank God this guy's an idiot.
Pheo found it a bit concerning how easy it was to trick him, but also found it useful. "Oh, right." He reached down his pocket and got out the necklaces Don gave him. "Is that the rock?" Ryu asked, getting a nod from Pheo.
"Here." He said, putting it on Ryu, then himself.
"Now we can split it together," He told him "Now let's go." Pheo said, leading Ryu out of the room and towards the corridor. Ryu took a closer look at his, then at the one Pheo wore.
"Well, I'm fine with splitting as long as mine's the bigger one."
They're the same size though.
Pheo didn't want to talk back, because then they would waste time arguing. "Who decided to wreck the place by the way?" Ryu glanced around, seeing the scattered mess the hallway was.
Pheo tried kicking the rocks that were on the way, helping Ryu move faster.
"Before you woke up an explosion happened." He began to explain. "Wait, an explosion happened and I didn't wake up?" Ryu said with a surprised tone.
Pheo giggled, "Yeah, do you even know how long you slept?"
"How long?"
"Weeks," He told him. "Maybe months already!" The two of them talked casually, catching up on the days they've missed hanging out with each other.
They talked and laughed with each other as they moved. In those moments, they forgot the situation they were in, only paying attention to each other.
"What happened to you!"
A loud voice broke the conversation Pheo and Ryu were in. They went quiet when they heard the mysterious voice. Both of them began to move silently, leaning to the wall as they went to the edge of a wall and began eavesdropping on what was happening.
"Do you realize that I can only cover up so much for you?" Someone spoke out.
Pheo took a peek, seeing a young man. He wore white clothes that were stained red, with pants full of pockets.
Horrible outfit to wear in a mine.
Pheo thought as he looked at the state of his clothes. The stains of blood in his shirt also made him cautious of him.
He leaned in further to see who he was talking to.
"I have never asked you to do anything, Wing." Don responded to him. "So, have you been doing well?" He tried to start up a new conversation. He looked at Pheo, startling him. It made Pheo quickly pull himself out of view.
He turned to Ryu and whispered, "There's some new guy there with Don." Ryu's eyes glistened after hearing this, "So do we fight them both?"
"I'll let you pick who to take."
"No!" Pheo said as loud as he could while whispering, "We wait for an opportunity to get past them."
"Wouldn't it be faster if we just beat the both of them up though?" He whined out.
Pheo looked at him with an angry face. He pulled Ryu's shirt and punched his recently healed wound.
"Ow, ow, ow, ow!" Ryu curled up, holding the wound with both of his hands. "You're in no condition to fight." Pheo reminded him both physically and verbally, making him quiet down.
"Now help me listen to find the right time to go past them." The both of them sat down, hiding themselves as they waited for the right time to slip away.
"You can't skim past this with a question, Don." Wing told him
"You took a step too far," He told him. "Not only did you enforce slavery but also held the mayor of The Free City's son hostage."
"I only do what I must," Don told him. "Although I don't know who exactly you are referring to."
Wing was annoyed, countless times he tried to convince others that Don wasn't in his right mind. He knew that Don was a good person, they worked countless days and nights together as private military contractors.
They talked again and again on how much they hated the criminals they dealt with.
So why did he become one of them?
He took a deep breath, "Then what is it you must do? Don."
"Continue to pursue wealth with a serial killer and a psychopath?" He asked. "On my way here, did you know how many children I saw Warhound slaughter?"
Don's eyes twitched, "Slaughter?"
"He isn't someone who would enjoy such an act," He told him. "He'll regret it the moment he realizes."
"If he isn't then whose blood stained my shirt?" Wing's voice trembled as he spoke. He showed a bloodstain of a child's hand on his shirt, further proving his point.
"You know, I chose to lead the task force for this. I rushed straight down here, past children who desperately called for me to help them…"
"Just to meet you."
Wing cracked his neck, a habit that Don knew well. "I came here to fix my old partner's mistakes." He held his hand out, and from it a blue light shone. An outline of a revolver formed, slowly condensing itself to form a physical object.
"I never realized that my time was worth so much that you would blind yourself to murder." Don told Wing.
"If you went through such lengths to get to me, I might as well make it worth your time." Don unsheathed a long blade, thin and sharp. He flaunted it with his right hand, displaying the skillfulness and the blade's craftsmanship.
"I'll let you have the honors." He said, waiting patiently in his stance. Wing was disappointed in the way he acted.
"No other way, huh?" He looked at his gun, resolving himself to face the person he fought side by side with. "I'll make sure you live to regret your mistakes."
As soon as those words left his mouth, the fight began.