Chapter 42: Slam
Dreddvayne: “Can we at least get ready to fight first? We’re tired of you punks leaping out and ambushing us!”
Henry: “Yeah, because we want you two dead!”
Dreddvayne: “You all can try as much as you’d like, but until we defuse, we’re practically immortal.”
Mythril: “When do you two defuse?”
Dreddvayne: “We don’t know, but we also don’t believe that we’ll be like this forever, at least Dredd doesn’t want to be.”
Ana: “You can still think independently?”
Dreddvayne: “Yes. Vayne has done most of the speaking thus far, but they sound better due to Dredd’s intelligence.”
Jace: “Yeah, that checks out.”
Dreddvayne: “But finally, enough talk.”
Dreddvayne lowers themself to the group and crosses their arms once again. They close their eyes.
Dreddvayne: “Have at you!”
With their arms still crossed, they dash out towards the group with their chest facing the ceiling. Henry notices the shiny obstacle and gets ready to stab it with an Aura stinger. When he thrusts his arm out, Dreddvayne simply glides above and over Henry, refusing to uncross their arms. They land behind the group and remain stagnant.
Henry: “I had you!”
Mythril: “Henry, let’s strike at the same time.”
Henry: “It better work this time.”
The two rush towards Dreddvayne and split in opposite directions again. they circle them in an attempt to confuse them. The faster they circle them, the more afterimages appear within the circle.
Mythril: “Find the real one!”
Dreddvayne tilts their body and extends one leg away from the other. They leap up and extend both legs into a split. Their legs suddenly spring out right into the circles, clotheslining the both of them. They return their legs to normal before settling on the ground again.
Ana: “Mythril! Henry! Are you two alright?!”
Henry: “Damn, they hurt…”
Mythril: “ I thought Dredd was the strongest...now they're even stronger...”
Jace: “Ana, do we go next?”
Ana: “We can’t just rush in like they did.”
Jace: "Remember what we did to Ben?”
Ana: “That was easier because he was a dumb blonde. These two are tougher and smarter than him.”
Jace: “Only Dredd’s smarter.”
Ana: “Whatever. What do you suggest?”
Jace: “All I have to do is run around and charge my arm. I have no idea what to do yet, but if I can mix the elements again, I may have a clean shot for you to layup.”
Ana: “I can buy you time. Aftershock’s got one hell of a punch to it.”
Jace: “Yeah, I know.”
Ana smiles and pats Jace on the back, motioning for him to follow her. They begin their assault on Dreddvayne while the other two recover. Jace swaps his arm to Burst and propels himself into the air. He then swaps to Bolt and prepares to bring down a thunder punch similar to the one he gave Ana. Before his fist can strike, he notices that he’s been suspended in the air. He looks down as his vision begins to blur. The overwhelming pain takes over as Jace grits his teeth. He’s been impaled by Dreddvayne.
Dreddvayne: “So, so close. It’s okay though, you can regenerate.”
Jace: “I won’t have to.”
He grabs the blade with his left hand and sharply inhales. Quickly, he pulls the blade towards him, impaling him further.
Henry: “What the hell are you doing, man!?”
Mythril: “Even your Shiftium won’t be able to take this! You’re turning this into a fatal blow!”
Jace: “I don’t care.”
He lets go of the blade and raises his left fist behind him. The crackle of Bolt begins to enter the air around his fist before he successfully lands the punch from earlier. The stun knocks Dreddvayne back a few steps and makes them retract their blade. Jace falls down and lands on one knee, spitting up any remaining blood as the Shiftium begins to do its job.
Ana: “Not the cleanest shot, but thanks for the layup!”
Dreddvayne: “What?!”
They turn around, only to be greeted by Ana’s Pulse-covered fist. The impact makes them shuffle back towards Jace, but is stopped by Ana who is now standing in front of them.
Dreddvayne: “How!?”
Ana: “Flashstep.”
She punches Dreddvayne straight in the gut before performing another flashstep to appear behind them. She punches them again and disappears when they turn around. She continues her assault as she steps and punches the same way she did to Jace. Dreddvayne is only able to watch as the impact points hold them in place with Pulse. Ana stops in front of them and winds back her fist one last time.
Henry: “She might defeat them right here and now.”
Jace: “Don’t jinx it!”
Mythril: “Destroy those motherfuckers!”
Ana: “Kiss your ass goodbye!”
With a roar, she punches Dreddvayne right in the forehead. At once, all impacts of Pulse detonate. Ana laughs and crosses her arms.
Ana: “Ah, that was almost too easy.”
Dreddvayne: “Are you sure about that?”
The group watches the magenta dust settle as Dreddvayne remains standing.
Dreddvayne: “Our turn.”
Dreddvayne rockets towards Ana and morphs their arm into a curved blade. Ana raises her arms in defense, but Dreddvayne aims lower. They thrust their blade towards her stomach as she braces for impact. After a few seconds, she opens her eyes and looks down.
Mythril: “You’re not dying today.”
Within a split-second, Mythril was able to grab the blade with his Aura arm before it impaled Ana. He pushes the blade back and stands in front of her.
Mythril: “Your fight is with me now.”
Henry: “Who said you can have all the fun?”
Jace: “So, we’re all jumpin' them?”
Ana: “Sounds good to me!”
From numerous angles, the four begin to charge at Dreddvayne. They close their eyes and leap upwards again.
Henry: “Don’t you dare kick us again!”
Dreddvayne: “Okay.”
Suddenly, all of their limbs extend outwards towards the four, one limb for each. As they shift downwards, they begin to sprout all sorts of sharp weapons. Knives, machetes, saws, all of it. They begin to twist and glide across the air like some sort of morbid interpretive dance. Their limbs drag around the arena, creating four certain death obstacles.
Jace: “What kind of bullshit is that?!”
Mythril: “Jace! We need to think of a plan!”
Henry: “We need to save our asses first!”
The four try their best to dodge any oncoming limbs. Jace slides under one, but feels a few strands of his hair being shaved off. Mythril vaults over another, but receives a small cut on the arm.
Henry: “Any ideas over there, chucklefucks?”
Jace: “Obviously, do you know who you’re talking to?”
Henry: “Yeah, I do. I’m talking to the same person THAT TELLS US THE PLAN!”
Jace: “We’re ripping this bastard in two!”
Dreddvayne: “Excuse me?”
Jace: “You’re two bodies in one. What’s to say we can’t just rip you two out of the fusion?”
Dreddvayne: “That’s impossible.”
Mythril: “There has to be a way to defuse without having to wait it out.”
Dreddvayne: “Not that we’re aware of.”
Ana: “That changes now!”
Ana leaps up from behind Dreddvayne and puts them in a headlock. They both crash to the ground as she continues to hold on.
Ana: “If you’re gonna rip and tear, do it now!”
Jace: “Henry! Mythril! Let’s go!”
The three nod and charge at Dreddvayne.
Jace: “Remember what we did to Ana?”
Mythril: “The triple strike?”
Jace: “Yup. We’re doing that again, but we’re aiming for the ribs. Once you have a hold, use everything you’ve got to see if we truly can rip them in two.”
Henry: “Rip and tear until it’s done, got it.”
Mythril: “Wait, Jace. You only have one powerful arm.”
Jace: “Oh, I have my own plans. Get in there, Ana!”
Ana: “On it!”
She rotates her body to face Dreddvayne as she charges up her fists. She strikes Dreddvayne and grabs their sides. She begins to pull on the fusion. Within seconds, Henry and Mythril join the fight. They both also grab onto Dreddvayne’s sides and begin to pull.
Henry: “Wait a minute, it’s working!”
Dreddvayne: “You…punks!”
Dreddvayne tries to raise an arm and turn it into an ax.
Jace: “I wouldn’t try that!”
They look up and over at Jace.
Jace: “Everybody! MOVE!”
Jace fires off another blast of charged up elemental energy straight for Dreddvayne. The three let go and dodge out of the way. Instead of fusing back together, Dreddvayne successfully splits apart as both androids luckily also dodge the attack. It pierces through the wall again, creating another hole.
Henry: “The ol’ scare tactic, nice.”
Jace: “Learned it from you, buddy.”
Henry: “Huh?”
Jace: “I’ll tell you later.”
The four walk towards the androids and look down upon them.
Vayne: “Fuck you. Fuck you! FUCK YOU!”
Ana: “Aww, throwing a tantrum because we won?”
Dredd: “Our Creator will not be pleased about this.”
Jace: “Now, hang on.”
The two androids look over in confusion.
Jace: “Leave. I plan on killing that son of a bitch tonight. You will no longer have anyone to serve under. You can be free.”
Mythril: “Jace, didn’t these two kill your father?”
Jace: “They ultimately were pawns forced to do someone else’s dirty work. I never thought I’d be doing this, but there’s someone above you two that needs to go. For good.”
Henry: “You’re really serious about this killing thing, aren’t you?”
Henry looks over at Jace. His demeanor has changed within the past minute. He’s focused and certainly not happy. The two androids stand up.
Vayne: “You’re a weird lil’ shit, you know that?”
Dredd: “Vayne. Let’s go.”
Vayne: “Yeah, yeah. I just…don’t know how to feel about this.”
Jace: “Feel good about it and live a good life because the next time we see each other…”
Jace & Vayne: “We’re gonna run it the fuck back.”
They both smirk at each other as the two leave down the elevator. When it returns, Jace looks back to the three.
Jace: “I’m going alone.”
Henry: “Like hell you are!”
Jace: “I refuse to let anything happen to you all again! If someone else is dying tonight, it’s gonna be me.”
Ana: “Jace…”
Jace: “Go to the Server Room and find Ren. I’ll hopefully meet you all at the bottom of the building.”
Mythril: “Good luck.”
Jace: “Thank you. Good luck to you all too.”
Henry: “We’re willing to help!”
Jace: “Finding Ren is the biggest help you can give me. Now go.”
​Henry nods as the three turn around and walk towards the Server Room. Jace turns around and sighs before getting back on the elevator. Next stop: The Finale