Post by Mr. Moon on Jan 10, 2020 12:49:17 GMT -5
After leaving unconscious Hana lying on the ground in his old cell, Eric headed through that narrow, badly illuminated corridor up, to the doors, which leaded to the main prison building. He wasn´t trying to be inconspicuous as that would only draw unwanted attention to him. On the contrary. He was walking confidently as any other guard would. As he remembered, behind the door were should be stationed two guards on duty. Eric was more then aware that he would be unable to convince them, that he is one of them, when they saw Hana entering and then would see him leaving, so he prepared himself for their quiet elimination, but to his surprise, when he opened that door, there was no one standing.
Weird…
He thought for himself, as he was closing the door leaving to his old cell. Did his memory betrayed him? Or should he credit it to Hana? He didn´t know and to be completely honest, at the moment he didn´t care, as at the moment he had much more important things to worry about.
Third floor, cell 331
He reminded to himself the location of Gabriel cell, which Hana told him few days ago. He quickly looked around himself to to get oriented in the building. The doors to his isolated cell were on the left side of the building, while the staircase leading upstairs was on the right. That didn´t give him any other choice then going straight through the center of the building, where other two guards were patrolling. Fortunately, lights were toned down, to allow the prisoners to sleep. So the whole building was quite dark, leaving only small chance that the two would recognize him. With this thought Eric started to walk towards the staircase.
Fortunately, his assumption was right as he passed right next to the two other guards, yet in the darkness of the main building, they didn´t recognized him. They just exchanged military greetings and continued in their own separated ways. Thanks to that, Eric got to the staircase without much problems, swiftly climbing to the third floor, where he found Gabriel´s cell. As he recalled, his first mate was imprisoned together with a captain of the Grizzly pirates, Roland Zuber. Silently, so he wouldn´t wake up any other prisoners, Eric went to the cell 331 which was only a little bit bigger than his own, equipped only with a two beds and big tinny bucked.
“Attention officer, captain is on the board.”
Said Eric casually. He wasn´t raising his voice, yet still it was enough to wake Gabriel up as his senses were much sharper than senses of an average man.
“What the...”
Gabriel squinted on Eric from behinds the bars.
“Eric...is that you? God dam it what took you so long?”
In a second he was on his feet ready for action.
“That´s a long story, lets just say, I had a pleasant company, are you ready to go?”
Gabriel smirked.
“Do you really need to ask?”
Eric nodded.
“Good, than we will pick up Michael and get away from here, before the guards will notice anything.”
For a second, Gabriel was silent, before he asked, nodding in the Roland´s direction.
“And what about him?”
Eric looked at the sleeping captain of the Grizzly pirates. He was a good man, but they met only for a short time and Eric owed him nothing, so risking his life and the lives of his subordinates for him would be if anything unwise.
“Every man for himself.”
He decided after while and Gabriel didn´t complained. Unfortunately, another voice joined their conversation.
“Hey, and I thought that we are friends.”
Captain Grizzly was awake and now, slowly as a sleepy bear was getting up from his bed.
“Don´t worry Irongate, I don´t take it personally. I would probably do the same being on your place, but still, if possible, I don´t want to rot in this place, so...”
Obviously, Gabriel wasn´t the only one with a good hearing, as they were whispering for the whole time.
“Suit yourself, I´ll leave your cell open, if you want to join us, I won´t stop you.”
Grizzly growled.
“And my men?”
Gabriel frowned his face.
“Don´t even think about it. How many of them is here? Twenty? Thirty?”
With his big hand, Roland ruffled his beard as he was slowly counting.
“Yeah, something like that.”
“That´s around twenty cells, there is no way that the guards, won´t notice!”
“Quiet”
Eric warned Gabriel, who was dangerously rising his voice.
“Will you go without them?”
Roland shook his head.
“No.”
In his mind Eric cursed bluntly speaking he had no right to criticize Grizzly, as he himself was doing the exactly same thing, but there was a huge difference between opening two cells and opening twenty of them. But what other choice he had? If he tried to leave the other captain behind, there will be noise and the guards will notice. If he let him be, he will probably try to release his men alone, making enough noise to alert the guards, so the only real option was…
“Captain, no, please don´t even think about it.”
Gabriel warned his captain as he knew that look pretty well.
“There is a central controller that can open all of the cells at once.”
“And what then? Can you imagine that chaos? Something like that would turn this place into carnage. There is no way we could escape like this.”
Eric frowned as he was still assessing his possibilities.
“Maybe...can you fight?”
Gabriel made offended expression.
“Do you need to ask?”
“I wasn´t asking you.”
Eric corrected him with eyes fixated on the Grizzly.
“Yeah, me and my men are no strangers to battle.”
For few seconds, Eric stared into his eyes as he was trying to estimate whatever is it true or not.
“Very well. Give mi a twenty minutes, then I will open the cells, so prepare for a battle.”
Gabriel sighted, but didn´t try to argue with his captain, as he knew better than anyone else, how pointless it would be. When Eric made his mind about something, there was nothing that could change that.
“Irongate”
Roland stopped him as Eric was turning around to head upstairs.
“Yes?”
He asked silently.
“If you by any chance found there some keys to this...”
He raised up his hands cuffed in something that looked like a handcuffs made from stone.
“I would be much greater asset in upcoming battle.”
Eric nodded, but without saying anything, he headed upstairs.
With his goals clearly set, Eric started to climb the staircases one by one. As he recalled from his conversations with Hana, that central controller was located in a command center in the top floor, but before reaching that, Eric made another small stop on the fourth floor, where, in the cell 444 where Michael slept.
“Guess it wouldn´t be so easy to wake you up”
Eric muttered, when while listening to his subordinate´s snoring.
“Well, at least I hope you will find this...”
With that, he unbuckled his borrowed sword from his belt, leaving it right next to the door to Michael´s cell.
After that, he just climbed up to the last, fifth floor of the building. There were no cells only clear path leading to heavy wooden doors, enforced by a steel lines and guarded by two members of the prison guard. When they noticed Eric, who was casually walking to them, on of the guards, tall man in his early thirties with a long, horse like face sighted.
“Hey, new guy, don´t you know that coming up here is forbidden? If you need to use a toilet, use that one in main building.”
Hidden in the long shadows of the building, Eric smirked for himself. All the way up there, he was thinking about some a way how to get closer to them without causing unnecessary noise. But obviously, one of them solved his dilemma for him.
“Come on guys...it´s urgent and the other one is too far away.”
Amused by his own act, he tried to mimic walk of someone, who desperately needs to pee. Truth to be told, Eric wasn´t gifted actor by any stretch of the imagination, but with a help of the shadow and fatigue of the two guards, it was enough. The two of them looked at themselves , after which the tall one nodded.
“Fine, but make it quick O.K.? We don´t want to get into any problems, understood?”
The other guard, smaller, but muscular young man reached to his pocked, from which he drew a bunch of keys. He was searched between them for a moment, before he found the right one, unlocking and opening the door behind him with it.
Quickly, Eric headed insides, but when he was standing between the door, he turned back to them.
“Thank you guys, you are true lifesavers.”
He smiled but the guards didn´t even turn their heads to him.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever, just hurry o.k.?”
Eric nodded, after which he reached forward, grabbing head of the shorter one with both of his hands and breaking his neck with one, swift motion.
“What the...”
Stunned for a moment, the other guard instinctively tried to reach for his sword, but he was too slow. As his hands were down, Eric reached with his right arm to him. He grabbed his head, covering his mouth with his palm in the process, after which he pulled him him backwards, forcing him to bend his back and reveal his neck. With one swift strike of his fist, Eric crushed his windpipe and pulled him to himself. He was holding him, until his last breath to prevent any screaming, after which he gently laid his corpse on the ground. Turning to the dark corridor behind him. He had to act quickly, as there were many visual Den Den Mushi watching the whole prison, so it wouldn´t take long before the guards will notice death of their companions.
Swiftly, he moved through the corridor, leaving the dead bodies behind. There were nowhere to turn, so he quickly got on the other side of the corridor opening it´s doors to a medium sized room, which served as the commanding center for the local guards. Aside for a four lockers, there wasn´t much inside. Small table with some leftovers from a dinner, doors leading probably to the toilet, two chairs occupied by two guards any many small screens with images from all of these visual Den Den Mushis from the building.
“That doors behind me, than turn to your left, on the right side are showers not a toilet.”
Yawned one of the guards without even looking on Eric.
Toilet again...Eric shook his head silently, as he couldn´t believe how undisciplined majority of the guards were. He started walking slowly towards them, when the guard sitting closer to him noticed something on one of the monitors. Two dead bodies right before the doors leading to this place.
“What the f**k?”
He cursed, turning himself towards Eric, but it was already too late as the White Tiger already leaped on his pray, grabbing his neck with his Paw strike, tearing him down on the floor. Something snapped, when his head hit hard on the stone floor. The other guard who saw that reached for his gun, shooting after Eric in desperate attempt to save his life, but the murderer simply tensed his body and let the bullet bounce from it without causing any real harm.
Empty gun hit the ground and the guard tried to run, but Eric was faster. With a few steps he blocked his way, grabbed his neck and lifted him in the air with just a one hand pinning him against the wall. Unfortunately the central control had too many buttons for him to try them all out, especially now, when the gun shot probably alarmed all the guards in the building, which left him with only one option. He had to ask.
“Which one of these buttons will open all of the cells?”
The caught guard was gasping for air, squeezing Eric´s forearm with both of his hands without any real effect.
“Sc...sc**w you!”
He gasped after a moment.
With grim smile on his face, Eric punched him to the groin without holding back his considerable strength.
The guard´s face turned blue as he screamed from the shock and pain.
“Which one...”
Repeated Eric but this time he didn´t even have to finish his sentence.
“The blue one, the big blue one!”
He screamed in a pure terror.
“Thank you”
Eric nodded, after which he pulled him back from the wall, only to punch his head against it. Slowly, the now dead body slide down the wall down on the cold floor.
As the body hit the floor, something tinkled. Surprised Eric looked at the body one more time, only to discover bunch of keys in his pocket. Without knowing if the right one is among them, Eric put them in his own pocked, before turning himself towards the control panel. He heard quick footsteps. Three...no four men were on this floor quickly running towards him.
Big blue button, it wasn´t surprisingly easy to find as it was located in the upper left corner of the panel under protection of a glass cube. It had it´s own lock, which was probably protecting if from unintentional usage, but Eric wasn´t bothering with searching for the key. Instead of that, he hardened his body and shattered the glass with his palm strike, pushing the button in the process.
If they had any chance on escaping without a huge bloodshed, it disappeared right at the moment, as all of the cells started to open themselves accompanied by loud wailing of alarm siren. He would really like to watch the show trough the screens before him, but unfortunately, he had a visitors. Six guards armed with a swords burst into the room. Seeing Eric there standing between the bodies of their two friends was the only explanation of the situation they needed. With an angry battle cry, they charged at him, with their weapons prepared to turn him into minced meat.
Not expressing any emotion, Eric stepped towards them, with his hands freely on the thighs level. First guard, who got to him was a young man with long arms. Consumed by his anger, he raised his sword high and tried to cut Eric with a vertical slash. It was powerful, yet slow two handed attack and so Eric dodged it without any problems, sidestepping and punching the assailant into stomach, sending him flying out of the room, taking two others fighters together with him. But taking three in one go was hardly enough to buy him some extra space, as second later, another two guards were attacking him. One elderly man tried to stab him from the front, while another slashed from side against his feet. Eric didn´t even bothered with dodging this time. Instead, he hardened his body beyond the level of iron with his “Indestructible technique, blocking both attack with his own body. When the blades bounced away from his body, he released his technique. Quickly “Leaping” forward, he landed just a few centimeters from the elderly one, headbutting him, before he pivoted to the younger one hitting him with hammer fist from that pivot straight into his temple.
Both men fell down unconscious before their last companion got a chance to join their fight. Being the last man standing, he desperately tried to hit Eric with a barrage of short, yet surprisingly fast cuts. Leaping few steps backward, Eric was dancing around, keeping himself just a half step away from his reach, tiring him out step by step. Than, fifteen or so attacks, the guard start to slowing down. As he noticed his opportunity, Eric swiftly lunged forward, pushing the blade away with a back of his hand only to grab his opponent arm with his own, twisting his body and throwing him against the wall.
BANG!
One of the guards who was hit by the body of his first colleague managed to pull a gun and shot, but because his arm was shaking, the bullet missed Eric by almost half meter, hitting the wall next to him instead. Eric turned to the guard and started walking towards him with a grim smile on his face, but the man didn´t waited that long. Instead of that, he got up to his feet and started running away, like if the death itself was chasing him. Given Eric´s current mood, it wasn´t so far from the truth.
Despite the fact, that his fight ended, there was no peace, nor quiet for Eric as from the lower ground were coming sounds of fighting straight to him. Without hurry, Eric walked through the corridor back to the gallery to take a look on the mayhem under him.
As expected, almost thousand or so inmates quickly took care of the few dozens of guards presented in the building at that time, after which they started to settle things between themselves with the help of stolen or improvised weapons and their own fists. Drunk by their own unexpected freedom, they weren´t able to think rationally, so they didn´t realized how short lived their freedom actually was. Maybe their killed the few presented guards, but in the Base were probably hundred of others not to mention hundreds if not a thousands marine soldiers, who probably won´t stay idly while their prisoners will be running away. If it was only up to him, Eric would just sneak out with his men and let these id**ts to kill each other, but unfortunately that wasn´t option now. No, if he wanted to get away after causing this rucks he needed an army and he needed it pretty fast. Fortunately he had more than enough potential recruit the only thing left was getting them on his side.
With his face stone cold Eric tore the upper part of his borrowed uniform from himself, leaving only the pants and boots, before he jumped from the gallery straight down into the common room, where majority of the inmates were fighting against themselves.
Fall from a height of four stores would be enough to kill someone or at least break many bones in the body of regular person, but Eric was just fine as he simply hardened his body with his “Indestructible” technique, right before landing. His feet hit the stone ground beneath him, cracking it and releasing cloud of dust and sharp stone fragments in the process.
“What the...?”
Man in his early forties cursed when the dust settled down. Seeing Eric in the middle of this mass, he rightly decided that he is the culprit so hi tried to punch him straight in the face for it. His fist hit the target, but instead of intended effect it stopped there, with loud cracking sound and even louder swearing from the attacker.
“Anyone else?”
Eric was speaking calmly yet laudly enough to be heard by everywhere in the now dead silent building. For a moment, he managed to capture everyone´s attention and he was intending to use it to it´s fullest.
“My name is Eric Irongate and I am the one who let you out from your cells. As for the way you will use your freedom, its up to you. In a few moments guards and marines will storm this place, killing anyone who will try to oppose them, so here are your choices. Follow me and fight for your freedom, or stay here and let them imprison you once again.”
The following silence was broken by a man standing on the second floor.
“So, you want us to fight and die for you?”
His voice was full of sarcasm and several other men joined him by nodding in agreement.
“No”
Eric smiled grimly.
“I want you to find your ba**s and fight for your freedom like any man should!”
Now, no one dared to interrupt the silence that followed.
“As I am seeing this, you have two options, either stay here, caged like a cattle waiting to be slaughtered, or join me and fight for your bl**dy freedom. Can you die? Yeah, sure you can, but better die as a man fighting for something that matters, than waiting here for a slow death without any purpose. So show me that you are men worth that name. Show me that you have what it takes and tell me, who you are?!”
Without knowing the right answer for his question, no one dared to raise his voice. Some muttered few words, but everyone was drowned by Gabriel and Michal´s shout.
“Slayers!”
“Who you are?!”
“Slayers!”
This time the Grizzly pirates and several dozens of others joined his men.
“WHO YOU ARE?!”
“SLAYERS!”
He could say from looking into their frenetically glowing eyes that he got them, now the only thing that reminded was to use his new army to fight their way to the freedom. Of course he knew that majority of them will die, but he didn´t cared at all. As he really believed in the words he said them. For him, life without freedom wasn´t worth living.
With that, he turned around and started to walk slowly towards the exit. All the inmates were making a way for him, letting him pass and than closing it by following him in a close proximity. Sure he had some keys with him, but he didn´t even tried to test them. Instead of it, he stopped just a few inches from the first doors, hardened his body with his “Indestructible” technique and punched them with an open palm.
Even through the doors themselves were from solid steel, their hinges weren´t able to cope with power of the Iron wall and cracked letting the door to fly few meters through the empty corridor, before they slammed on the ground.
As a first one Eric stepped inside the corridor, but nothing happened. No one was expecting them. As it was in the middle of the night and completely unexpected, the guards and marines probably didn´t gathered enough force to fight them, or rather, they didn´t wanted to fight them in a narrow corridor, where their guns would be useless.
With that thought in his mind, Eric continued through the corridor, followed by his new army. He would probably be feeling better if he had his trusted men behind him, but as for now the ones that followed him will have to be enough.
With a help of the keys he stolen from the dead guard and his strength, they manage to pass through the corridors to the front gate. Eric could feel that the lack of any action was making his men nervous. When they started they were full of adrenaline and energy but now, not so much. He knew that if something won´t happen pretty soon he will loose their loyalty. So when he pushed to the doors and their opened to reveal a whole platoon of marines waiting for them, he was more than happy. Ready to take their challenge, Eric wanted to step in the courtyard before he noticed other marines hidden in different places of that were aiming their rifles at them.
“Hmmm”
He muttered at the same time when a strong male voice addressed them.
“Criminals, this is captain Greyhound from the Marines, surrender at once and go back to your cells or we will open fire on you!”
The voice belonged to a tall and heavily muscular man in Marine´s uniform, that was standing a little bit sideways from the rifle platoon before them. He had a short black hair, dark suit with a Coat of Justice on it. He seemed to be unarmed.
Even without looking back, Eric felt how the men behind him shivered in a fear. They were ready to follow that captain´s orders but that was something he couldn´t let happen. So to pull them back on his side, he start laughing.
It wasn´t a pleasant sound as his laughter was filled with all his accumulated anger and bloodthirst.
“DEATH!”
With this warcry, he leaped forward, followed by his yelling men.
BANG!
Dozens of guns shot at once, dropping the bodies of many men on the ground a moment later, but contrary to the believe of the marines it wasn´t enough to stop them, as the men didn´t see the dead bodies falling around them. The only thing they saw was their leader from which the bullets bounced off like if his body was made from steel. They were following him and with powerful roar charged at the marines.
Eric himself landed in front of the rifle platoon and released his technique before they one with loaded guns could take their place in the formation. Their good discipline became their greatest weakness as outside of facing unpredictable situation that well trained soldiers didn´t know what to do. They hesitated and Eric exploited that opportunity. He grabbed barrel of the closest rifle and snatched it away from his gasp. Now, with frightening roar, he swung that rifle as a bludgeon, sweeping four closest marines in a one go. Ordinary rifle couldn´t withstand such treatment and shattered on several pieces, but Eric couldn´t care less as at the moment, the men who were following him clashed with the marines.
Their clash resulted in a massacre as an unarmed prisoners were tussling with the marines over their rifles, while their colleagues were shooting into the crowd from the sides. Prisoners were dying everywhere, but the marines were outnumbered by at least ten to one and so the platoon was scattered and the prisoners, still driven by their battle frenzy attacked on the nearby building, beating the marines by sheer numbers and their stolen weapons. Only one place was resisting against their assault. The gate leading to the port. It was protected by the marine captain, who threatened them before. Now he was standing there, like a single beacon in the sea of darkness, beating anyone, who was stupid enough to get close, with his inhumanly powerful fists. Single strike was strong enough to shatter bones of an adult man and to send three others flying just from the resulted wind pressure. Despite being alone, he proved himself to be an insurmountable dam that threatened to break their dream of freedom.
Seeing another worthy pray, Eric dashed through the crowd heading straight to the captain, while his men were making him enough space to run through. He knew that the time was working against them as the reinforcements were surely on their way and so he decided to finish it with a one powerful strike.
As the captain was occupied with seemingly endless waves of fanatical prisoners, he didn´t noticed Eric, who leaped forward, keeping himself just few centimeters away from the ground. As he landed in front of the fighter, the marine noticed his presence, but it was already to late. With his body hardened beyond the level of iron, Eric punched him with the full power of his Iron Wall technique, slamming the marine through the gate.
With their way to the freedom open, the inmates became even more eager to fight for his cause, but Eric knew, that their biggest obstacle to the freedom was still there. As when he hit the captain, he noticed how unusually hard and dense his body was. It wasn´t result of some technique like in his case. It felt more natural meaning, that the captain was probably the most powerful fighter he ever faced until now.
Staying true to Eric´s expectations, the marine went up again with sincere smile on his face.
“That wasn´t bad punch kid, but it was far from a great. Come, I will teach you what is real punch like!”
With that he clenched his fist striking against the prisoners who were running against him. Eric noticed how his fist turned red and than exploded in a wave of flames from the pure friction it created, sending dozen scorched inmates backward. The rest of the prisoners stopped their advance as they realized that this isn´t opponent, they can defeat by numbers alone. H**l even Eric himself doubted that he could defeat this opponent alone without proper plan.But unfortunately, there was no time for planning, as fresh marine reinforcements leaded by another few officers were heading from the fortress in their direction.
Eric cursed.
“Michael, where the h**l are you?”
With a worried smile and blade stained with a blood Michael appeared next to him only a second later.
“Yes captain?”
Eric reached to his pocket, giving him the keys, he stolen from the control room.
“Give this to the Grizzly, hopefully the one he is looking for will be among them. After that lead the men to the ships. I will take care of the things here.”
Michael frowned.
“Are you sure sir?”
“Yeah”
With that, Michael disappeared once again. In meantime, the captain didn´t move an inch, knowing that the time is on his side, he wasn´t the one who needed to hurry especially now, when the prisoners were slowly falling into despair.
With a grim smile on his face, Eric stepped forward, rising his voice, so everyone could hear him.
“It´s time to prove your worth! Show this uniformed ba**ard, that you are not the maggots he thinks you are. Show him, that you are a men. Go, take the ships and kill every fu**ing marine, that will dare to stay in your way. Who we are?!”
“SLAYERS!”
“WHO WE ARE?!”
“SLAYERS!”
With the last shout, Eric dashed forward, with his eyes fixated on the smiling marine. Seeing his opponent stepping back with a clenched fist close to his body, he realized, that he had to take his next strike head on, or else he will stop the prisoners from advancing once again.
He met that giant fairy fist head on, hardening his body only a second before impact. It was ridiculously powerful strike. As despite his hardened body it pushed him backward several steps, breaking the stone under his feet and burning him on the place of impact, but in the end, he managed to stop it.
“You think that´s enough?”
Shouted that captain, before unleashing second similar strike with his second arm. But before it could land on Eric, or the running prisoners, gigantic bear like monster hit him from the side and tossed him away like a rag doll.
“What the...”
Eric raised his eyebrow, before over overhearing Gabriel´s voice from the crowd around him.
“Grizzly my a** that´s fre**ing Arctotherium, they got extincted thousands years ago!”
As if he wanted to prove Gabriel´s words, Roland turned back into his human form with a giant smile on his hairy head.
“Wanna some help?”
Eric shook his head.
“No, we can take this, you should lead them to the ships”
“We?”
Roland raised one of his eyebrows nodded, when he noticed Michael and Gabriel making their way to Eric through the crowd.
“I see, than see you soon brother!”
With that, he transformed once again into his beast form, running on all four down from the hill, to face the advancing forces of the marines.
With a curse, the marine captain got back on his feet. Despite Roland´s considerable speed, he had more than enough time to stop him, but he chose not to. Instead of that he turned straight to the three Slayers who were the last prisoners near the gate.
“Three against one, that´s more like it.”
He said grimly while cracking his fists.
“But you know, holding me up there will change nothing. As there is another captain leading our forces down there.”
Eric tilted his head a little bit.
“Is he as strong as you?”
The man smirked.
“No, I am the strongest after our Vice-Admiral.”
Eric replied him his smirk.
“In that case, it will change a lot.”
With that the Slayers split themselves, with Michael and Gabriel, jumping to the sides, as the giant of men send a powerful wave of compressed air against them. Two of them dodged that strike, while Eric took it head on. The powerful wave hit his iron like body, dispersing itself in the process, but captain´s assault was far from over. As he noticed, that Eric isn´t moving, he jumped upwards, with his hands above his head joined together to form a giant hammer head which he swung against Eric in a powerful overhead strike.
With a silent curse, Eric released his technique and rolled away only in time as the strike descended upon the ground with such power, that it shattered the stone releasing cloud of dust and small stone shards into the air.
As if he was preparing himself for this opportunity, Michael stepped forward, using his incredible speed to slash the marine across his large chest. But despite the fact, that the blade made it through his skin, it was only shallow wound barely deep enough to made him bleed.
“What the...”
Michael turned himself back to slash the captain horizontally across his abdomen, but his sword was knocked back by the compressed air created by his fist. With his blade out of the way, that marine followed up with another strike and probably would sent him flying if not for Gabriel, who hit his arm with his Phantom spear. The spear of compressed air wasn´t strong enough to actually hurt that man´s arm but at least it managed to knock it off it´s trajectory enough for Michael to dodge.
Eric tried to use the fact, that the marine offered him his back, so he leaped forward, grabbing his neck with long Paw strike. It was like a hitting granite statue, but in the and, he managed to tear him down, smashing his head against the crumbling stones around them.
Despite hitting the ground head first, the marine didn´t even hesitate for a moment and punched Eric to the chin so fast, that the only thing Eric managed to do was hardening his body by instinct. The strike cracked against his chin and sent him flying several meters, before he hit the wall around the prison´s courtyard.
With another curse, he fell down and dashed back to help Michael and Gabriel who were struggling to keep up with that giant of man in a close quarter fight. As he was running there, he noticed the giant battle that was happening few hundreds meters away in the port. The prisoners already clashed with the guards and marines, led by the Roland who was obviously the most dominant force on the field as he was tearing every single marine who got too close to him into pieces with his powerful claws.
Forced to focus on some more imminent matters, Eric looked back on the marine right before him. He was heavily pressing on his men preventing them from using any of their techniques pushing them completely to defensive, while he himself was advancing step by step towards the battle in the port.
To prevent him from it, Eric dashed towards him with a punch ready. As the marine noticed Eric´s movement, he unleashed another powerful punch against his men to push them back, while he himself turned against Eric to accept his challenge. The two fighter clashed against each other, strength against strength. Fairy fist, against Iron wall. Their clash lasted for a second or so, before Eric was knocked back by pure strength of his opponent.
Michael wanted to use their clash to slash the captain again, but this time, the Marine was prepared. Throwing himself backwards to swift back roll he managed to dodge the incoming blade. Testament of incredible reflexes indeed.
Without loosing unnecessary time, Eric jumped back on his feet, leaping forward to the incredibly powerful marine. But the captain, who got back on his feet himself caught him in the middle of his jump, grabbing his neck and slamming him down to the ground. He managed to use his Indestructible in time, but even thought it was extremely powerful hit, making him a dizzy for a moment. If not for his Indestructible his head would be probably mashed like overcooked potato.
To help his captain out, Gabriel threw his Phantom spear on the brute, but even through it managed to pierce the skin on his backs, it didn´t caused any serious damage. Yet it was enough to disturb his concentration for a while, so Eric could release his technique, lean his legs against his chest and while holding firmly onto his arm, on the ground behind himself. Immediately after, he tried to lock him into arm bar, but as it turned out, the marine was somehow skilled in a submission fighting himself and managed to escape from his attempt back on his feet.
“You want my arm so bad?”
The marine asked with a dark grin on his face.
“Than you should have it!”
With that, he stepped back a little to prepare himself for one of his greater strikes. Eric knew, that he will be unable to dodge it, so he hardened his body with Indestructible, but before the Marine could even finish up his technique, deep cut appeared on his upper arm, as Michael cut it with his Silver Flame. Instinctively, the marine pulled back his fist interrupting his own technique in the process.
“You little, come her you small fry”
He snapped angrily, on Michael, while as the pirate stepped with one again with his blinding speed. This time he positioned himself behind the Marine in an attempt to cut of his Achilles tendons with his sword. But before his blade could land, the captain kicked him into the chest like an angry horse, sending Michael flying down from the hill leading to the port.
“You bas**rd!”
Gabriel rushed to avenge his brother. He managed to intercept first punch of that marine, leading it away from his body with a circular movements of his spear, while hitting him to the head with the other one, but it was as far as he got as the Marine used the momentum of his own counterattack to headbutt him with such force, that the second in command of the Slayers fell on the ground unable to get up for that moment.
Seeing this, Eric dashed towards their enemy to keep him occupied even if for a moment. To buy his men some time to pull themselves together. A moment later, both of the fighters were locked in a brutal boxing slugfest, trading dozens of blows in a matter of minute. Swiftly switching between the violent circular attack of the White Tiger Style and the more compacted punches of Slayer Eric was looking for any opening that he would be able to exploit, but before he could find any, that marine managed to sneak one of his techniques between his regular blows, sending Eric flying with powerful impact from a compressed air. Slightly shaken, Eric hit the ground hard, only to realize, that the Marine is in the air above him prepared to stomp on his head.
Just thanks to his amazing reflexes, Eric managed to roll away in time, only to be hit with one of that fiery punches. He managed to block it with his arm, but power of that strike was still enough to send him flying to that wall once again.
“F**k”
Eric spited some blood as he was sitting on the grass with his back leaned against the wall. It wasn´t looking really good for him. His left arm was complete mess, covered by surface burns and probably broken on more than one place he wasn´t sure. His face was bloodied from their recent brawl and he couldn´t see much on his right eye as the tissues around it was getting more swollen with every minute. His breath was heavy as if he run marathon, but he somehow managed to climb back up on his feet with a sheer power of his will.”
“Still don´t have enough?”
Asked Greyhound with a bloodied smile. Of course he didn´t get from their exchange without any injuries, but the bruises and small cuts on his face looked rather insignificant compared to Eric´s injuries.
“Hmmmm”
Eric muttered from behind clenched teeth as he was testing his left arm a little bit. In the end it wasn´t so bad as he thought it will be. It really was broken, but he was pretty confident that reinforced with his Iron Wall technique, he will be able to still use it.
This time Eric slowly walked towards his enemy, to conserve as much energy as possible. Part of his mind noticed, that the situation in the port wasn´t really ideal either, as the Marines were slowly but steadily surrounding the prisoners, but he didn´t have time to think about such things right there at the moment there was only him and the enemy, he needed to defeat.
He managed to cover only half of the distance between them, when the other fighter decided that he doesn´t want to wait anymore. Without further delay, he jumped in front of Eric, carrying powerful hook punch together with him.
Eric ducked and let the strike pass above him, only to hit the marine powerful strike of his right arm from a crouched position. The captain backed up for a bit, but without loosing much of his momentum, he swiftly bounced himself back. The two of them traded another two swift blows when Eric noticed light gray blur passing next to him. At first he thought that it´s Michael who finally regained his consciousness but instead of him, he discovered Hana standing by his side with a determined look on her face. Before any of the two men could wake up from their surprise, she swiftly slashed with the edge of her palm, against the captain, creating two shallow cuts on his chest and forcing him several steps backward.
“What the h**l are you thinking you are doing guard? Are you mad?”
The captain snapped at Hana, but she didn´t answered to him. Instead of that she turned on Eric with a faint smile.
“Run, I can not stop him for long.”
She whispered before charging at the captain with her incredible burst of speed.
Cursing, Eric followed her as fast as he could, while Hana unleashed a barrage of extremely fast slashes with the edge of her hands against him, without even carrying for her own defense. The captain obviously noticed that and instead of repelling them, he let few of them land, creating several shallow cuts on his chest and abdomen in the process, while he himself unleashed one of his most powerful punches. Eric was two steps away from them, when he hit her face with the fiery fist of his. Without proper guard, Hana wasn´t able to withstand force of that impact and so was blown away just at the moment, Eric made it to them.
Hardening his body beyond the level of iron, Eric punched the captain with an open palm to his abdomen, pushing him a back little bit, but he didn´t stop there. Keeping his body in full “Indestructible”, he was pushing on him, with series of palm strikes, while taking everything he threw at him in return, with his Indestructible. Keeping himself close, so the marine wouldn´t be able to use his extremely powerful punches against him. When the captain realized, that his regular strikes doesn´t have desired effect, he grabbed Eric´s neck, rising him up from the ground, but before he could do anything else, he screamed with pain and tossed him away. When Eric finally stopped rolling on the ground, he noticed as the big marine, reached backward, pulling Hana from behind his backs. She has big burn over half of her face and her left hand was covered by blood as she probably stabbed the marine from behind with her technique. What happened next was simply too fast for Eric to react from his distance. As she was slashing his hand to release herself from his hold, the marine gripped her with of his hand rising her up, before slamming her back against his knee. Throwing her away afterwards.
“Fu**ing traitor!”
He said angrily, spitting blood on the ground.
“Hey pirate, are you still alive?!”
Eric didn´t answered. His head was completely empty. Probably for the first time in his life, the anger that was boiling inside of him was completely gone. Replaced by a pure murderous intent and will focused on only one target. Killing the men standing in front of him.
He slowly went back up on his feet, looking directly into the captains eyes. The marine smiled grimly.
“You should have run, when you had the opportunity.”
Instead of answer, Eric leaped forward, landing only few steps away from the marine. The captain swung his fist against him, but Eric crunched, rolling forward over his left shoulder. He went under that man´s fist and slammed his shoulder to the marines abdominal, as he was going up from the roll. Following with another strike, Eric quickly tensed his body, when he noticed fist heading towards his face. The power of that strike send him to the ground, but he just swiftly rolled back on his feet dashing forward against his enemy.
His pain was gone. His fatigue was gone, everything that stayed was his immeasurable desire to kill that man even if that meant to go to the grave together with him. Clash after clash, he was trading blows with the overwhelmly strong marine. Every time, after short exchange, Eric ended up on the ground and every time, he want back, going after him with the same amount of determination as before.
“Are you some f**king zomie?”
The marine yelled on Eric with frustration, after he climbed back up on his feet, for the twelfth time or maybe more.
The marine still had an upper hand in their fight, but the amount of injuries he sustained was starting to take some tool on his body. He was impatient, frustrated and because of that, he finally did a mistake. As he got used to Eric never changing pattern or attack, he prepared his Fiery strike, ready to sent the advancing fighter to the ground for good, but as he swung his massive fist, Eric stopped. From him, it wasn´t thoughtful decision. Just a hunch from his instinct, that forced him to change direction of his dash at the very last moment, dodging that fist at the same time.
The power of that strike was enough to twist body of that marine captain, offering his side to the Eric. Punching him into the shoulder the pirate rotated the captain even more, swiftly kicking him under the knee at the same time. As the marine fell on his knees, Eric wrapped his right arm around his neck, locking the rear neck choke with his broken arm. Not willing to give him anything for a free, the marine fought hard against him. Punching, gripping, tearing, throwing, he tried everything, but with every millimeter he won for himself, Eric tightened his choke for another two. They struggle lasted way over three minutes and when the marine finally fell, Eric fell together with him.
Eric head went completely blank as no matter how hard he tried, he couldn´t remembered what happened after he finally defeated that captain. But after he finally came back to his senses, he was walking from a steep hill, down to the port, dragging three unconscious bodies of Gabriel, Michael and Hana behind himself. His whole body was a mess, with left arm broken and his whole body covered with his own blood and burns he could hardly think, much less to move, yet he was slowly walking step by step among the countless corpses of marines and prisoners, which were lying everywhere around him. Looking down on the port, the situation wasn´t really good. Although the prisoners managed to fight their way to two smaller ships, they were surrounded by the guards and marines and couldn´t set sail as every time someone went close to the ropes or helm, he was shoot down by marine snipers. Judging according the dead bodies, Marines tried at last once to take their ships back, but led by Roland, the desperate prisoners were determined to fight to the last man and pushed them back. The situation was tensed and so no one paid much attention to the battle which happened on the hill above them. No one even noticed Eric as he was walking down from the hill until he got just few dozens of meters away from them.
“What the hell...captain look!”
One of the marines directed attention of a feminine looking captain Wraith to Eric. Asides from the captain several other marines looked in his way, surprised and disgusted by his appearance at the same time. Focusing for a shot period of time, captain Wraith cursed.
“Damn, that´s Irongate, one of the escaped prisoners?!”
Obviously, his eyesight was at least as good as his memory, because battered like he was, Eric would hardly recognize himself in the mirror.
“One of the prisoners? Should we shoot him captain?”
Other marine chuckled.
“Are you sure it´s necessary? He looks like he will die any minute by himself.”
Another one smiled.
“Yeah, someone beat him just right.”
Wraith smirked as he drew his nodachi. He raised from his cover behind some crates and slowly went to Eric. Captain Wraith wasn´t afraid that anyone from the occupied ship could shoot on him, as his men were aiming at every centimeter of the vessel. If anyone dared to move a muscle, he would be immediately shot to death.
“Hey you filthy criminal, do you hear me?”
He asked, when he finally stood before Eric with the tip of his long blade resting against his chest.
Eric stopped and looked at him, but there was no sign of understanding in his eyes.
“Thought so much”
He sighted with a slight smile on his face.
“Looks like that someone punched your brain outside of your skull, what a shame. I really wanted to repay you for what you did on Notice Island. Do you remember that? How you injured hand of one of my precious men?”
He waited second or so for a, answer, but nothing happened.
“Ah, whatever, this will have to do it...”
With that he pulled his blade backwards to be able to swing it against Eric´s neck but right at the time, the pirate moved. He released all three of his companion, stepping forward to his next pray. He was too tired to protect himself, so when the marine captain realized that he is attacked, he didn´t even try to dodge when the he quickly changed his planned slash to a stab. Instinctively, Eric hardened his body, but it wasn´t enough, the blade just pierced through his skin and body as if it was nothing. Convinced about his swift victory, captain Wraith relaxed, only to witness as Eric, still in his hardened state punched against his blade with his palms, simultaneously from both sides. The blade shattered to several pieces, leaving one big part of the blade in Eric´s abdomen.
Young captain cursed, but before he could run away, Eric leaped at him, and teared him down, like tiger, who finally caught his pray. Down there, he tore him into pieces like rabid dog, lib by a limb, piece after piece.
The marines yelled at each other, paralyzed by shock and pure terror from what they saw in front of themselves. Someone finally found enough courage to shoot at him. The bullet hit Eric right bellow his left collar bone, but if anything, it made him only even more angry.
With angry roar, he leaped forward and pulled the rifle outside of the marine´s hands. Scared, the marine screamed for help from his comrades, but before anyone could do anything, Eric turned the gun around and impaled it´s owner with it.
“F**k kill him already!”
Another marine screamed in terror as he raised his sword against Eric, but when his powerful overhead slash finally landed, Eric wasn´t there. He sidestepped to the side, twisting his body a little so he could take the sword between his arm. Pushing from the up down with his left, and from down up with his right, he pulled the sword out of the marine hands, turning it and stabbing into his neck with one, fluid movement. From there he shifted his center of mass a little kicking through the knee of another one, who tried to get him from behind.
“Monster! It´s monster!”
The marines around him started panicking. There were more than five hundreds men in front of him, but paralyzed by their own fear, they didn´t even tried to surround him.
“Somebody take him finally down!”
Another Marine got closer only to find himself on the ground with his windpipe crushed.
“Zombie! He is a zombie!”
Someone slashed him across the chest, so Eric leaped on him, tearing his neck with his teeth.
“F**k where is captain Grayhound?”
Another body fell down.
“Don´t know he was fighting on the hill near the prison gate...”
Another two down, it was right at the moment the Marines started to understand. Some of them faster, some of them slower, but eventually everyone realized, that captain Greyhound will not come to help them, because the guy who beat him was standing right in front of them. They were struck by panic and it grow even stronger with every wound on Eric´s body and with every fallen friend. Instinctively, Eric was trying to conserve his strength. Taking hits so he could hit back, focusing on killing as many of his enemies as possible, but he was already beyond his own limits. With each strike his hands were heavier and heavier, but the marines didn´t see that. They were seeing a demon. Terrifying savage beast, that wasn´t dying no matter what they do. Rational part of their brains knew, that he is just a man and as every man he can be killed, but the terrified irrational part screamed that he is monster that´s not from this word and as such cannot be killed. Scared to death, they started running when he killed the eleventh man. Throwing their weapons on the ground, they turned their back on him and start fleeing back to their fortress. He wasn´t chasing them. Instead of that, he turned back and slowly walked back to his three companions. Lifting them from the ground, he started to walking towards the ship. He wasn´t even able to go straight. Stumbling at every other step, but he was still somehow able to move forward.
“For the f**k shake, somebody go and help him!”
Someone on the taken ship finally got out of his shock and started to give orders to others. But Eric was too tired to look up to see who was it.
There was some steps up there. Slow and hesitating, like if they were not really sure if they want to go down or no.
“Are you sure he will not attack us?”
Asked someone with a mix of almost sacred fear and respect in his voice. Valid question indeed. As was Eric coming back to himself, he would like to answer him, but he was to tired to speak and his whole body felt something that was pushed to meat grinder way too many times.
“Why would he do that? It´s Irongate, the guy who let us out, so go there or move your f**king asses!”
Was that Roland? Eric wasn´t really sure as he couldn´t hear anything on his left ear and the there was that weird buzzing noise in his head that was getting in a way of every serious though he had.
Finally, someone went down to him. Eric found out because he bumped into giant men who went to him.
“Hey, Irongate that´s me Grizzly. Are you alright?”
He didn´t answered. Instead of that he tried to walk around him to take the three on the ship.
“Hey and what about the other three? Are they alive? Answer me d**m it!”
Eric noticed big hand heading towards him and without second tough, grabbed it and throw it´s owner. Big body slammed to the ground with loud cracking noise.
Someone one the upper deck cursed and few others prepared their guns.
“No, don´t you dare shoot you id**ts! Just let him pass, let him pass on the ship!”
Reluctantly, they lowered they guns, so Eric could continue, step by step. For him it was like an eternity, until he finally climbed up on the ship, where he finally collapsed, unconscious sooner than his body hit the planks under him.
After that, he had several episodes of coming back and forth, like on swing, he was coming to his consciousness, only to fall back to the darkness that was waiting on him a moment later. He realized that someone put him into bed and other people were sitting close to him. But couldn´t put together any real thought let alone say it aloud.
When he finally came back to himself for real he was lying on a bed in a small cabin and his whole body hurt as f**k. They were on the open sea, he could say that much because the floor under him was swinging back and forth on the tides.
“D**m”
He cursed as he tried to sit up, but his own body betrayed him. Somebody on his right winced as if he noticed that Eric is awake only now.
“You are alive?”
Asked Gabriel.
“Surprised?”
Eric chuckled but regretted that soon pretty soon.
“Actually yes, I am pretty sure that some of your wounds are incompatible with life”
Eric grunted as he finally managed to get himself up to sitting.
“Hmmmmm, who stitched me together?”
Gabriel sighed.
“One girl, she was among the prisoners that made it to the ship. Fortunately, she is a doctor and...god damn it Eric I am sorry.”
Surprised, Eric turned his head to his oldest friend to see his face twisted with a mix of guilt and shame.
“If I were a little bit better you wouldn´t have to go through this.”
Eric frowned.
“You fought well, better than anyone could ask you for, so cut that c**p already. How long I was out?”
Gabriel staid silent for a moment before he answered.
“For a week.”
Eric silently grumbled.
“And others?”
Gabriel shook his head.
“Michael is alright, his wounds weren´t much worse than mine. But the rest...from the thousand of prisoners or so, only ninety made it to the ships. According to the ones I spoke too, it was terrible massacre and without Zuber, they wouldn´t be able to make it that far anyway.”
Eric shook his head. The amount of dead wan´t something that bothered him right now.
“I am asking about her...how is she?”
“Her? Oh yes, you mean that girl you dragged together with us?”
Gabriel bit his lip.
“She is alive. Because of her uniform, some men wanted to hang her on the mast, but Roland beat them down, yelling that if you went so far to save her, she is someone important to you.”
Eric nodded.
“Yeah she is. She is the one who let me out from my cell.”
Gabriel sighted.
“Yeah well…she is alive, but still unconscious and the doctor said that she may never wake up again. And even if she will, she won´t be able to walk.”
Eric nodded. Without any other words, Eric got up from the bed. His legs were shaking like crazy, but after a while he managed to find his balance.
“What are you doing?”
Concerned, Gabriel tried to help him, but Eric shook his head. On his own, with his second in command two steps behind he went out of his cabin and up the stairs on the upper deck. When the men noticed him, they swiftly stood up to the attention position, saluting him as if they were in army and not on a ship full of prisoners.
“Captain on board!”
Yelled Michael before he assumed the same position as the others.
Eric looked up, on the mast of their new Caravel was pirate flag, his flag, the same flag that was on another ship, sailing hundred or so meters behind them.
“What´s that?”
No one dared to answer him except Gabriel.
“That´s Roland, he...took the other ship and declared himself to be the commander of the Slayers´s 1st division and raised our fag sir.”
Eric raised his eyebrow.
“What?”
Gabriel shrugged.
“He said that he owns you lifelong debt and that the only way how he and his men can repay it is to serve you until the end. But they will not go with us for long as they have some personal vendetta to take care about.”
Eric nodded he remembered that day on the prison ship, when Roland told him about the business partner that betrayed him.
“Alright men back to work, Michael, prepare the maps, we needs to find some port to get provisions and put ourselves together”
With that he slowly went to the infantry. He needed to say thank you to the young doctor that saved them and also to see Hana
It took him while some time, but in the end he made it there. She was lying on the bed with big burn on her left face, breathing slowly as if she were sleeping.
Sitting by her bed, Eric slightly smiled, for the first time in very very long time.
“You know what...”
He muttered.
“Maybe after all, I can try to do a better. At least on the next island I´ll try not to kill anyone, what about that?”
Weird…
He thought for himself, as he was closing the door leaving to his old cell. Did his memory betrayed him? Or should he credit it to Hana? He didn´t know and to be completely honest, at the moment he didn´t care, as at the moment he had much more important things to worry about.
Third floor, cell 331
He reminded to himself the location of Gabriel cell, which Hana told him few days ago. He quickly looked around himself to to get oriented in the building. The doors to his isolated cell were on the left side of the building, while the staircase leading upstairs was on the right. That didn´t give him any other choice then going straight through the center of the building, where other two guards were patrolling. Fortunately, lights were toned down, to allow the prisoners to sleep. So the whole building was quite dark, leaving only small chance that the two would recognize him. With this thought Eric started to walk towards the staircase.
Fortunately, his assumption was right as he passed right next to the two other guards, yet in the darkness of the main building, they didn´t recognized him. They just exchanged military greetings and continued in their own separated ways. Thanks to that, Eric got to the staircase without much problems, swiftly climbing to the third floor, where he found Gabriel´s cell. As he recalled, his first mate was imprisoned together with a captain of the Grizzly pirates, Roland Zuber. Silently, so he wouldn´t wake up any other prisoners, Eric went to the cell 331 which was only a little bit bigger than his own, equipped only with a two beds and big tinny bucked.
“Attention officer, captain is on the board.”
Said Eric casually. He wasn´t raising his voice, yet still it was enough to wake Gabriel up as his senses were much sharper than senses of an average man.
“What the...”
Gabriel squinted on Eric from behinds the bars.
“Eric...is that you? God dam it what took you so long?”
In a second he was on his feet ready for action.
“That´s a long story, lets just say, I had a pleasant company, are you ready to go?”
Gabriel smirked.
“Do you really need to ask?”
Eric nodded.
“Good, than we will pick up Michael and get away from here, before the guards will notice anything.”
For a second, Gabriel was silent, before he asked, nodding in the Roland´s direction.
“And what about him?”
Eric looked at the sleeping captain of the Grizzly pirates. He was a good man, but they met only for a short time and Eric owed him nothing, so risking his life and the lives of his subordinates for him would be if anything unwise.
“Every man for himself.”
He decided after while and Gabriel didn´t complained. Unfortunately, another voice joined their conversation.
“Hey, and I thought that we are friends.”
Captain Grizzly was awake and now, slowly as a sleepy bear was getting up from his bed.
“Don´t worry Irongate, I don´t take it personally. I would probably do the same being on your place, but still, if possible, I don´t want to rot in this place, so...”
Obviously, Gabriel wasn´t the only one with a good hearing, as they were whispering for the whole time.
“Suit yourself, I´ll leave your cell open, if you want to join us, I won´t stop you.”
Grizzly growled.
“And my men?”
Gabriel frowned his face.
“Don´t even think about it. How many of them is here? Twenty? Thirty?”
With his big hand, Roland ruffled his beard as he was slowly counting.
“Yeah, something like that.”
“That´s around twenty cells, there is no way that the guards, won´t notice!”
“Quiet”
Eric warned Gabriel, who was dangerously rising his voice.
“Will you go without them?”
Roland shook his head.
“No.”
In his mind Eric cursed bluntly speaking he had no right to criticize Grizzly, as he himself was doing the exactly same thing, but there was a huge difference between opening two cells and opening twenty of them. But what other choice he had? If he tried to leave the other captain behind, there will be noise and the guards will notice. If he let him be, he will probably try to release his men alone, making enough noise to alert the guards, so the only real option was…
“Captain, no, please don´t even think about it.”
Gabriel warned his captain as he knew that look pretty well.
“There is a central controller that can open all of the cells at once.”
“And what then? Can you imagine that chaos? Something like that would turn this place into carnage. There is no way we could escape like this.”
Eric frowned as he was still assessing his possibilities.
“Maybe...can you fight?”
Gabriel made offended expression.
“Do you need to ask?”
“I wasn´t asking you.”
Eric corrected him with eyes fixated on the Grizzly.
“Yeah, me and my men are no strangers to battle.”
For few seconds, Eric stared into his eyes as he was trying to estimate whatever is it true or not.
“Very well. Give mi a twenty minutes, then I will open the cells, so prepare for a battle.”
Gabriel sighted, but didn´t try to argue with his captain, as he knew better than anyone else, how pointless it would be. When Eric made his mind about something, there was nothing that could change that.
“Irongate”
Roland stopped him as Eric was turning around to head upstairs.
“Yes?”
He asked silently.
“If you by any chance found there some keys to this...”
He raised up his hands cuffed in something that looked like a handcuffs made from stone.
“I would be much greater asset in upcoming battle.”
Eric nodded, but without saying anything, he headed upstairs.
With his goals clearly set, Eric started to climb the staircases one by one. As he recalled from his conversations with Hana, that central controller was located in a command center in the top floor, but before reaching that, Eric made another small stop on the fourth floor, where, in the cell 444 where Michael slept.
“Guess it wouldn´t be so easy to wake you up”
Eric muttered, when while listening to his subordinate´s snoring.
“Well, at least I hope you will find this...”
With that, he unbuckled his borrowed sword from his belt, leaving it right next to the door to Michael´s cell.
After that, he just climbed up to the last, fifth floor of the building. There were no cells only clear path leading to heavy wooden doors, enforced by a steel lines and guarded by two members of the prison guard. When they noticed Eric, who was casually walking to them, on of the guards, tall man in his early thirties with a long, horse like face sighted.
“Hey, new guy, don´t you know that coming up here is forbidden? If you need to use a toilet, use that one in main building.”
Hidden in the long shadows of the building, Eric smirked for himself. All the way up there, he was thinking about some a way how to get closer to them without causing unnecessary noise. But obviously, one of them solved his dilemma for him.
“Come on guys...it´s urgent and the other one is too far away.”
Amused by his own act, he tried to mimic walk of someone, who desperately needs to pee. Truth to be told, Eric wasn´t gifted actor by any stretch of the imagination, but with a help of the shadow and fatigue of the two guards, it was enough. The two of them looked at themselves , after which the tall one nodded.
“Fine, but make it quick O.K.? We don´t want to get into any problems, understood?”
The other guard, smaller, but muscular young man reached to his pocked, from which he drew a bunch of keys. He was searched between them for a moment, before he found the right one, unlocking and opening the door behind him with it.
Quickly, Eric headed insides, but when he was standing between the door, he turned back to them.
“Thank you guys, you are true lifesavers.”
He smiled but the guards didn´t even turn their heads to him.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever, just hurry o.k.?”
Eric nodded, after which he reached forward, grabbing head of the shorter one with both of his hands and breaking his neck with one, swift motion.
“What the...”
Stunned for a moment, the other guard instinctively tried to reach for his sword, but he was too slow. As his hands were down, Eric reached with his right arm to him. He grabbed his head, covering his mouth with his palm in the process, after which he pulled him him backwards, forcing him to bend his back and reveal his neck. With one swift strike of his fist, Eric crushed his windpipe and pulled him to himself. He was holding him, until his last breath to prevent any screaming, after which he gently laid his corpse on the ground. Turning to the dark corridor behind him. He had to act quickly, as there were many visual Den Den Mushi watching the whole prison, so it wouldn´t take long before the guards will notice death of their companions.
Swiftly, he moved through the corridor, leaving the dead bodies behind. There were nowhere to turn, so he quickly got on the other side of the corridor opening it´s doors to a medium sized room, which served as the commanding center for the local guards. Aside for a four lockers, there wasn´t much inside. Small table with some leftovers from a dinner, doors leading probably to the toilet, two chairs occupied by two guards any many small screens with images from all of these visual Den Den Mushis from the building.
“That doors behind me, than turn to your left, on the right side are showers not a toilet.”
Yawned one of the guards without even looking on Eric.
Toilet again...Eric shook his head silently, as he couldn´t believe how undisciplined majority of the guards were. He started walking slowly towards them, when the guard sitting closer to him noticed something on one of the monitors. Two dead bodies right before the doors leading to this place.
“What the f**k?”
He cursed, turning himself towards Eric, but it was already too late as the White Tiger already leaped on his pray, grabbing his neck with his Paw strike, tearing him down on the floor. Something snapped, when his head hit hard on the stone floor. The other guard who saw that reached for his gun, shooting after Eric in desperate attempt to save his life, but the murderer simply tensed his body and let the bullet bounce from it without causing any real harm.
Empty gun hit the ground and the guard tried to run, but Eric was faster. With a few steps he blocked his way, grabbed his neck and lifted him in the air with just a one hand pinning him against the wall. Unfortunately the central control had too many buttons for him to try them all out, especially now, when the gun shot probably alarmed all the guards in the building, which left him with only one option. He had to ask.
“Which one of these buttons will open all of the cells?”
The caught guard was gasping for air, squeezing Eric´s forearm with both of his hands without any real effect.
“Sc...sc**w you!”
He gasped after a moment.
With grim smile on his face, Eric punched him to the groin without holding back his considerable strength.
The guard´s face turned blue as he screamed from the shock and pain.
“Which one...”
Repeated Eric but this time he didn´t even have to finish his sentence.
“The blue one, the big blue one!”
He screamed in a pure terror.
“Thank you”
Eric nodded, after which he pulled him back from the wall, only to punch his head against it. Slowly, the now dead body slide down the wall down on the cold floor.
As the body hit the floor, something tinkled. Surprised Eric looked at the body one more time, only to discover bunch of keys in his pocket. Without knowing if the right one is among them, Eric put them in his own pocked, before turning himself towards the control panel. He heard quick footsteps. Three...no four men were on this floor quickly running towards him.
Big blue button, it wasn´t surprisingly easy to find as it was located in the upper left corner of the panel under protection of a glass cube. It had it´s own lock, which was probably protecting if from unintentional usage, but Eric wasn´t bothering with searching for the key. Instead of that, he hardened his body and shattered the glass with his palm strike, pushing the button in the process.
If they had any chance on escaping without a huge bloodshed, it disappeared right at the moment, as all of the cells started to open themselves accompanied by loud wailing of alarm siren. He would really like to watch the show trough the screens before him, but unfortunately, he had a visitors. Six guards armed with a swords burst into the room. Seeing Eric there standing between the bodies of their two friends was the only explanation of the situation they needed. With an angry battle cry, they charged at him, with their weapons prepared to turn him into minced meat.
Not expressing any emotion, Eric stepped towards them, with his hands freely on the thighs level. First guard, who got to him was a young man with long arms. Consumed by his anger, he raised his sword high and tried to cut Eric with a vertical slash. It was powerful, yet slow two handed attack and so Eric dodged it without any problems, sidestepping and punching the assailant into stomach, sending him flying out of the room, taking two others fighters together with him. But taking three in one go was hardly enough to buy him some extra space, as second later, another two guards were attacking him. One elderly man tried to stab him from the front, while another slashed from side against his feet. Eric didn´t even bothered with dodging this time. Instead, he hardened his body beyond the level of iron with his “Indestructible technique, blocking both attack with his own body. When the blades bounced away from his body, he released his technique. Quickly “Leaping” forward, he landed just a few centimeters from the elderly one, headbutting him, before he pivoted to the younger one hitting him with hammer fist from that pivot straight into his temple.
Both men fell down unconscious before their last companion got a chance to join their fight. Being the last man standing, he desperately tried to hit Eric with a barrage of short, yet surprisingly fast cuts. Leaping few steps backward, Eric was dancing around, keeping himself just a half step away from his reach, tiring him out step by step. Than, fifteen or so attacks, the guard start to slowing down. As he noticed his opportunity, Eric swiftly lunged forward, pushing the blade away with a back of his hand only to grab his opponent arm with his own, twisting his body and throwing him against the wall.
BANG!
One of the guards who was hit by the body of his first colleague managed to pull a gun and shot, but because his arm was shaking, the bullet missed Eric by almost half meter, hitting the wall next to him instead. Eric turned to the guard and started walking towards him with a grim smile on his face, but the man didn´t waited that long. Instead of that, he got up to his feet and started running away, like if the death itself was chasing him. Given Eric´s current mood, it wasn´t so far from the truth.
Despite the fact, that his fight ended, there was no peace, nor quiet for Eric as from the lower ground were coming sounds of fighting straight to him. Without hurry, Eric walked through the corridor back to the gallery to take a look on the mayhem under him.
As expected, almost thousand or so inmates quickly took care of the few dozens of guards presented in the building at that time, after which they started to settle things between themselves with the help of stolen or improvised weapons and their own fists. Drunk by their own unexpected freedom, they weren´t able to think rationally, so they didn´t realized how short lived their freedom actually was. Maybe their killed the few presented guards, but in the Base were probably hundred of others not to mention hundreds if not a thousands marine soldiers, who probably won´t stay idly while their prisoners will be running away. If it was only up to him, Eric would just sneak out with his men and let these id**ts to kill each other, but unfortunately that wasn´t option now. No, if he wanted to get away after causing this rucks he needed an army and he needed it pretty fast. Fortunately he had more than enough potential recruit the only thing left was getting them on his side.
With his face stone cold Eric tore the upper part of his borrowed uniform from himself, leaving only the pants and boots, before he jumped from the gallery straight down into the common room, where majority of the inmates were fighting against themselves.
Fall from a height of four stores would be enough to kill someone or at least break many bones in the body of regular person, but Eric was just fine as he simply hardened his body with his “Indestructible” technique, right before landing. His feet hit the stone ground beneath him, cracking it and releasing cloud of dust and sharp stone fragments in the process.
“What the...?”
Man in his early forties cursed when the dust settled down. Seeing Eric in the middle of this mass, he rightly decided that he is the culprit so hi tried to punch him straight in the face for it. His fist hit the target, but instead of intended effect it stopped there, with loud cracking sound and even louder swearing from the attacker.
“Anyone else?”
Eric was speaking calmly yet laudly enough to be heard by everywhere in the now dead silent building. For a moment, he managed to capture everyone´s attention and he was intending to use it to it´s fullest.
“My name is Eric Irongate and I am the one who let you out from your cells. As for the way you will use your freedom, its up to you. In a few moments guards and marines will storm this place, killing anyone who will try to oppose them, so here are your choices. Follow me and fight for your freedom, or stay here and let them imprison you once again.”
The following silence was broken by a man standing on the second floor.
“So, you want us to fight and die for you?”
His voice was full of sarcasm and several other men joined him by nodding in agreement.
“No”
Eric smiled grimly.
“I want you to find your ba**s and fight for your freedom like any man should!”
Now, no one dared to interrupt the silence that followed.
“As I am seeing this, you have two options, either stay here, caged like a cattle waiting to be slaughtered, or join me and fight for your bl**dy freedom. Can you die? Yeah, sure you can, but better die as a man fighting for something that matters, than waiting here for a slow death without any purpose. So show me that you are men worth that name. Show me that you have what it takes and tell me, who you are?!”
Without knowing the right answer for his question, no one dared to raise his voice. Some muttered few words, but everyone was drowned by Gabriel and Michal´s shout.
“Slayers!”
“Who you are?!”
“Slayers!”
This time the Grizzly pirates and several dozens of others joined his men.
“WHO YOU ARE?!”
“SLAYERS!”
He could say from looking into their frenetically glowing eyes that he got them, now the only thing that reminded was to use his new army to fight their way to the freedom. Of course he knew that majority of them will die, but he didn´t cared at all. As he really believed in the words he said them. For him, life without freedom wasn´t worth living.
With that, he turned around and started to walk slowly towards the exit. All the inmates were making a way for him, letting him pass and than closing it by following him in a close proximity. Sure he had some keys with him, but he didn´t even tried to test them. Instead of it, he stopped just a few inches from the first doors, hardened his body with his “Indestructible” technique and punched them with an open palm.
Even through the doors themselves were from solid steel, their hinges weren´t able to cope with power of the Iron wall and cracked letting the door to fly few meters through the empty corridor, before they slammed on the ground.
As a first one Eric stepped inside the corridor, but nothing happened. No one was expecting them. As it was in the middle of the night and completely unexpected, the guards and marines probably didn´t gathered enough force to fight them, or rather, they didn´t wanted to fight them in a narrow corridor, where their guns would be useless.
With that thought in his mind, Eric continued through the corridor, followed by his new army. He would probably be feeling better if he had his trusted men behind him, but as for now the ones that followed him will have to be enough.
With a help of the keys he stolen from the dead guard and his strength, they manage to pass through the corridors to the front gate. Eric could feel that the lack of any action was making his men nervous. When they started they were full of adrenaline and energy but now, not so much. He knew that if something won´t happen pretty soon he will loose their loyalty. So when he pushed to the doors and their opened to reveal a whole platoon of marines waiting for them, he was more than happy. Ready to take their challenge, Eric wanted to step in the courtyard before he noticed other marines hidden in different places of that were aiming their rifles at them.
“Hmmm”
He muttered at the same time when a strong male voice addressed them.
“Criminals, this is captain Greyhound from the Marines, surrender at once and go back to your cells or we will open fire on you!”
The voice belonged to a tall and heavily muscular man in Marine´s uniform, that was standing a little bit sideways from the rifle platoon before them. He had a short black hair, dark suit with a Coat of Justice on it. He seemed to be unarmed.
Even without looking back, Eric felt how the men behind him shivered in a fear. They were ready to follow that captain´s orders but that was something he couldn´t let happen. So to pull them back on his side, he start laughing.
It wasn´t a pleasant sound as his laughter was filled with all his accumulated anger and bloodthirst.
“DEATH!”
With this warcry, he leaped forward, followed by his yelling men.
BANG!
Dozens of guns shot at once, dropping the bodies of many men on the ground a moment later, but contrary to the believe of the marines it wasn´t enough to stop them, as the men didn´t see the dead bodies falling around them. The only thing they saw was their leader from which the bullets bounced off like if his body was made from steel. They were following him and with powerful roar charged at the marines.
Eric himself landed in front of the rifle platoon and released his technique before they one with loaded guns could take their place in the formation. Their good discipline became their greatest weakness as outside of facing unpredictable situation that well trained soldiers didn´t know what to do. They hesitated and Eric exploited that opportunity. He grabbed barrel of the closest rifle and snatched it away from his gasp. Now, with frightening roar, he swung that rifle as a bludgeon, sweeping four closest marines in a one go. Ordinary rifle couldn´t withstand such treatment and shattered on several pieces, but Eric couldn´t care less as at the moment, the men who were following him clashed with the marines.
Their clash resulted in a massacre as an unarmed prisoners were tussling with the marines over their rifles, while their colleagues were shooting into the crowd from the sides. Prisoners were dying everywhere, but the marines were outnumbered by at least ten to one and so the platoon was scattered and the prisoners, still driven by their battle frenzy attacked on the nearby building, beating the marines by sheer numbers and their stolen weapons. Only one place was resisting against their assault. The gate leading to the port. It was protected by the marine captain, who threatened them before. Now he was standing there, like a single beacon in the sea of darkness, beating anyone, who was stupid enough to get close, with his inhumanly powerful fists. Single strike was strong enough to shatter bones of an adult man and to send three others flying just from the resulted wind pressure. Despite being alone, he proved himself to be an insurmountable dam that threatened to break their dream of freedom.
Seeing another worthy pray, Eric dashed through the crowd heading straight to the captain, while his men were making him enough space to run through. He knew that the time was working against them as the reinforcements were surely on their way and so he decided to finish it with a one powerful strike.
As the captain was occupied with seemingly endless waves of fanatical prisoners, he didn´t noticed Eric, who leaped forward, keeping himself just few centimeters away from the ground. As he landed in front of the fighter, the marine noticed his presence, but it was already to late. With his body hardened beyond the level of iron, Eric punched him with the full power of his Iron Wall technique, slamming the marine through the gate.
With their way to the freedom open, the inmates became even more eager to fight for his cause, but Eric knew, that their biggest obstacle to the freedom was still there. As when he hit the captain, he noticed how unusually hard and dense his body was. It wasn´t result of some technique like in his case. It felt more natural meaning, that the captain was probably the most powerful fighter he ever faced until now.
Staying true to Eric´s expectations, the marine went up again with sincere smile on his face.
“That wasn´t bad punch kid, but it was far from a great. Come, I will teach you what is real punch like!”
With that he clenched his fist striking against the prisoners who were running against him. Eric noticed how his fist turned red and than exploded in a wave of flames from the pure friction it created, sending dozen scorched inmates backward. The rest of the prisoners stopped their advance as they realized that this isn´t opponent, they can defeat by numbers alone. H**l even Eric himself doubted that he could defeat this opponent alone without proper plan.But unfortunately, there was no time for planning, as fresh marine reinforcements leaded by another few officers were heading from the fortress in their direction.
Eric cursed.
“Michael, where the h**l are you?”
With a worried smile and blade stained with a blood Michael appeared next to him only a second later.
“Yes captain?”
Eric reached to his pocket, giving him the keys, he stolen from the control room.
“Give this to the Grizzly, hopefully the one he is looking for will be among them. After that lead the men to the ships. I will take care of the things here.”
Michael frowned.
“Are you sure sir?”
“Yeah”
With that, Michael disappeared once again. In meantime, the captain didn´t move an inch, knowing that the time is on his side, he wasn´t the one who needed to hurry especially now, when the prisoners were slowly falling into despair.
With a grim smile on his face, Eric stepped forward, rising his voice, so everyone could hear him.
“It´s time to prove your worth! Show this uniformed ba**ard, that you are not the maggots he thinks you are. Show him, that you are a men. Go, take the ships and kill every fu**ing marine, that will dare to stay in your way. Who we are?!”
“SLAYERS!”
“WHO WE ARE?!”
“SLAYERS!”
With the last shout, Eric dashed forward, with his eyes fixated on the smiling marine. Seeing his opponent stepping back with a clenched fist close to his body, he realized, that he had to take his next strike head on, or else he will stop the prisoners from advancing once again.
He met that giant fairy fist head on, hardening his body only a second before impact. It was ridiculously powerful strike. As despite his hardened body it pushed him backward several steps, breaking the stone under his feet and burning him on the place of impact, but in the end, he managed to stop it.
“You think that´s enough?”
Shouted that captain, before unleashing second similar strike with his second arm. But before it could land on Eric, or the running prisoners, gigantic bear like monster hit him from the side and tossed him away like a rag doll.
“What the...”
Eric raised his eyebrow, before over overhearing Gabriel´s voice from the crowd around him.
“Grizzly my a** that´s fre**ing Arctotherium, they got extincted thousands years ago!”
As if he wanted to prove Gabriel´s words, Roland turned back into his human form with a giant smile on his hairy head.
“Wanna some help?”
Eric shook his head.
“No, we can take this, you should lead them to the ships”
“We?”
Roland raised one of his eyebrows nodded, when he noticed Michael and Gabriel making their way to Eric through the crowd.
“I see, than see you soon brother!”
With that, he transformed once again into his beast form, running on all four down from the hill, to face the advancing forces of the marines.
With a curse, the marine captain got back on his feet. Despite Roland´s considerable speed, he had more than enough time to stop him, but he chose not to. Instead of that he turned straight to the three Slayers who were the last prisoners near the gate.
“Three against one, that´s more like it.”
He said grimly while cracking his fists.
“But you know, holding me up there will change nothing. As there is another captain leading our forces down there.”
Eric tilted his head a little bit.
“Is he as strong as you?”
The man smirked.
“No, I am the strongest after our Vice-Admiral.”
Eric replied him his smirk.
“In that case, it will change a lot.”
With that the Slayers split themselves, with Michael and Gabriel, jumping to the sides, as the giant of men send a powerful wave of compressed air against them. Two of them dodged that strike, while Eric took it head on. The powerful wave hit his iron like body, dispersing itself in the process, but captain´s assault was far from over. As he noticed, that Eric isn´t moving, he jumped upwards, with his hands above his head joined together to form a giant hammer head which he swung against Eric in a powerful overhead strike.
With a silent curse, Eric released his technique and rolled away only in time as the strike descended upon the ground with such power, that it shattered the stone releasing cloud of dust and small stone shards into the air.
As if he was preparing himself for this opportunity, Michael stepped forward, using his incredible speed to slash the marine across his large chest. But despite the fact, that the blade made it through his skin, it was only shallow wound barely deep enough to made him bleed.
“What the...”
Michael turned himself back to slash the captain horizontally across his abdomen, but his sword was knocked back by the compressed air created by his fist. With his blade out of the way, that marine followed up with another strike and probably would sent him flying if not for Gabriel, who hit his arm with his Phantom spear. The spear of compressed air wasn´t strong enough to actually hurt that man´s arm but at least it managed to knock it off it´s trajectory enough for Michael to dodge.
Eric tried to use the fact, that the marine offered him his back, so he leaped forward, grabbing his neck with long Paw strike. It was like a hitting granite statue, but in the and, he managed to tear him down, smashing his head against the crumbling stones around them.
Despite hitting the ground head first, the marine didn´t even hesitate for a moment and punched Eric to the chin so fast, that the only thing Eric managed to do was hardening his body by instinct. The strike cracked against his chin and sent him flying several meters, before he hit the wall around the prison´s courtyard.
With another curse, he fell down and dashed back to help Michael and Gabriel who were struggling to keep up with that giant of man in a close quarter fight. As he was running there, he noticed the giant battle that was happening few hundreds meters away in the port. The prisoners already clashed with the guards and marines, led by the Roland who was obviously the most dominant force on the field as he was tearing every single marine who got too close to him into pieces with his powerful claws.
Forced to focus on some more imminent matters, Eric looked back on the marine right before him. He was heavily pressing on his men preventing them from using any of their techniques pushing them completely to defensive, while he himself was advancing step by step towards the battle in the port.
To prevent him from it, Eric dashed towards him with a punch ready. As the marine noticed Eric´s movement, he unleashed another powerful punch against his men to push them back, while he himself turned against Eric to accept his challenge. The two fighter clashed against each other, strength against strength. Fairy fist, against Iron wall. Their clash lasted for a second or so, before Eric was knocked back by pure strength of his opponent.
Michael wanted to use their clash to slash the captain again, but this time, the Marine was prepared. Throwing himself backwards to swift back roll he managed to dodge the incoming blade. Testament of incredible reflexes indeed.
Without loosing unnecessary time, Eric jumped back on his feet, leaping forward to the incredibly powerful marine. But the captain, who got back on his feet himself caught him in the middle of his jump, grabbing his neck and slamming him down to the ground. He managed to use his Indestructible in time, but even thought it was extremely powerful hit, making him a dizzy for a moment. If not for his Indestructible his head would be probably mashed like overcooked potato.
To help his captain out, Gabriel threw his Phantom spear on the brute, but even through it managed to pierce the skin on his backs, it didn´t caused any serious damage. Yet it was enough to disturb his concentration for a while, so Eric could release his technique, lean his legs against his chest and while holding firmly onto his arm, on the ground behind himself. Immediately after, he tried to lock him into arm bar, but as it turned out, the marine was somehow skilled in a submission fighting himself and managed to escape from his attempt back on his feet.
“You want my arm so bad?”
The marine asked with a dark grin on his face.
“Than you should have it!”
With that, he stepped back a little to prepare himself for one of his greater strikes. Eric knew, that he will be unable to dodge it, so he hardened his body with Indestructible, but before the Marine could even finish up his technique, deep cut appeared on his upper arm, as Michael cut it with his Silver Flame. Instinctively, the marine pulled back his fist interrupting his own technique in the process.
“You little, come her you small fry”
He snapped angrily, on Michael, while as the pirate stepped with one again with his blinding speed. This time he positioned himself behind the Marine in an attempt to cut of his Achilles tendons with his sword. But before his blade could land, the captain kicked him into the chest like an angry horse, sending Michael flying down from the hill leading to the port.
“You bas**rd!”
Gabriel rushed to avenge his brother. He managed to intercept first punch of that marine, leading it away from his body with a circular movements of his spear, while hitting him to the head with the other one, but it was as far as he got as the Marine used the momentum of his own counterattack to headbutt him with such force, that the second in command of the Slayers fell on the ground unable to get up for that moment.
Seeing this, Eric dashed towards their enemy to keep him occupied even if for a moment. To buy his men some time to pull themselves together. A moment later, both of the fighters were locked in a brutal boxing slugfest, trading dozens of blows in a matter of minute. Swiftly switching between the violent circular attack of the White Tiger Style and the more compacted punches of Slayer Eric was looking for any opening that he would be able to exploit, but before he could find any, that marine managed to sneak one of his techniques between his regular blows, sending Eric flying with powerful impact from a compressed air. Slightly shaken, Eric hit the ground hard, only to realize, that the Marine is in the air above him prepared to stomp on his head.
Just thanks to his amazing reflexes, Eric managed to roll away in time, only to be hit with one of that fiery punches. He managed to block it with his arm, but power of that strike was still enough to send him flying to that wall once again.
“F**k”
Eric spited some blood as he was sitting on the grass with his back leaned against the wall. It wasn´t looking really good for him. His left arm was complete mess, covered by surface burns and probably broken on more than one place he wasn´t sure. His face was bloodied from their recent brawl and he couldn´t see much on his right eye as the tissues around it was getting more swollen with every minute. His breath was heavy as if he run marathon, but he somehow managed to climb back up on his feet with a sheer power of his will.”
“Still don´t have enough?”
Asked Greyhound with a bloodied smile. Of course he didn´t get from their exchange without any injuries, but the bruises and small cuts on his face looked rather insignificant compared to Eric´s injuries.
“Hmmmm”
Eric muttered from behind clenched teeth as he was testing his left arm a little bit. In the end it wasn´t so bad as he thought it will be. It really was broken, but he was pretty confident that reinforced with his Iron Wall technique, he will be able to still use it.
This time Eric slowly walked towards his enemy, to conserve as much energy as possible. Part of his mind noticed, that the situation in the port wasn´t really ideal either, as the Marines were slowly but steadily surrounding the prisoners, but he didn´t have time to think about such things right there at the moment there was only him and the enemy, he needed to defeat.
He managed to cover only half of the distance between them, when the other fighter decided that he doesn´t want to wait anymore. Without further delay, he jumped in front of Eric, carrying powerful hook punch together with him.
Eric ducked and let the strike pass above him, only to hit the marine powerful strike of his right arm from a crouched position. The captain backed up for a bit, but without loosing much of his momentum, he swiftly bounced himself back. The two of them traded another two swift blows when Eric noticed light gray blur passing next to him. At first he thought that it´s Michael who finally regained his consciousness but instead of him, he discovered Hana standing by his side with a determined look on her face. Before any of the two men could wake up from their surprise, she swiftly slashed with the edge of her palm, against the captain, creating two shallow cuts on his chest and forcing him several steps backward.
“What the h**l are you thinking you are doing guard? Are you mad?”
The captain snapped at Hana, but she didn´t answered to him. Instead of that she turned on Eric with a faint smile.
“Run, I can not stop him for long.”
She whispered before charging at the captain with her incredible burst of speed.
Cursing, Eric followed her as fast as he could, while Hana unleashed a barrage of extremely fast slashes with the edge of her hands against him, without even carrying for her own defense. The captain obviously noticed that and instead of repelling them, he let few of them land, creating several shallow cuts on his chest and abdomen in the process, while he himself unleashed one of his most powerful punches. Eric was two steps away from them, when he hit her face with the fiery fist of his. Without proper guard, Hana wasn´t able to withstand force of that impact and so was blown away just at the moment, Eric made it to them.
Hardening his body beyond the level of iron, Eric punched the captain with an open palm to his abdomen, pushing him a back little bit, but he didn´t stop there. Keeping his body in full “Indestructible”, he was pushing on him, with series of palm strikes, while taking everything he threw at him in return, with his Indestructible. Keeping himself close, so the marine wouldn´t be able to use his extremely powerful punches against him. When the captain realized, that his regular strikes doesn´t have desired effect, he grabbed Eric´s neck, rising him up from the ground, but before he could do anything else, he screamed with pain and tossed him away. When Eric finally stopped rolling on the ground, he noticed as the big marine, reached backward, pulling Hana from behind his backs. She has big burn over half of her face and her left hand was covered by blood as she probably stabbed the marine from behind with her technique. What happened next was simply too fast for Eric to react from his distance. As she was slashing his hand to release herself from his hold, the marine gripped her with of his hand rising her up, before slamming her back against his knee. Throwing her away afterwards.
“Fu**ing traitor!”
He said angrily, spitting blood on the ground.
“Hey pirate, are you still alive?!”
Eric didn´t answered. His head was completely empty. Probably for the first time in his life, the anger that was boiling inside of him was completely gone. Replaced by a pure murderous intent and will focused on only one target. Killing the men standing in front of him.
He slowly went back up on his feet, looking directly into the captains eyes. The marine smiled grimly.
“You should have run, when you had the opportunity.”
Instead of answer, Eric leaped forward, landing only few steps away from the marine. The captain swung his fist against him, but Eric crunched, rolling forward over his left shoulder. He went under that man´s fist and slammed his shoulder to the marines abdominal, as he was going up from the roll. Following with another strike, Eric quickly tensed his body, when he noticed fist heading towards his face. The power of that strike send him to the ground, but he just swiftly rolled back on his feet dashing forward against his enemy.
His pain was gone. His fatigue was gone, everything that stayed was his immeasurable desire to kill that man even if that meant to go to the grave together with him. Clash after clash, he was trading blows with the overwhelmly strong marine. Every time, after short exchange, Eric ended up on the ground and every time, he want back, going after him with the same amount of determination as before.
“Are you some f**king zomie?”
The marine yelled on Eric with frustration, after he climbed back up on his feet, for the twelfth time or maybe more.
The marine still had an upper hand in their fight, but the amount of injuries he sustained was starting to take some tool on his body. He was impatient, frustrated and because of that, he finally did a mistake. As he got used to Eric never changing pattern or attack, he prepared his Fiery strike, ready to sent the advancing fighter to the ground for good, but as he swung his massive fist, Eric stopped. From him, it wasn´t thoughtful decision. Just a hunch from his instinct, that forced him to change direction of his dash at the very last moment, dodging that fist at the same time.
The power of that strike was enough to twist body of that marine captain, offering his side to the Eric. Punching him into the shoulder the pirate rotated the captain even more, swiftly kicking him under the knee at the same time. As the marine fell on his knees, Eric wrapped his right arm around his neck, locking the rear neck choke with his broken arm. Not willing to give him anything for a free, the marine fought hard against him. Punching, gripping, tearing, throwing, he tried everything, but with every millimeter he won for himself, Eric tightened his choke for another two. They struggle lasted way over three minutes and when the marine finally fell, Eric fell together with him.
Eric head went completely blank as no matter how hard he tried, he couldn´t remembered what happened after he finally defeated that captain. But after he finally came back to his senses, he was walking from a steep hill, down to the port, dragging three unconscious bodies of Gabriel, Michael and Hana behind himself. His whole body was a mess, with left arm broken and his whole body covered with his own blood and burns he could hardly think, much less to move, yet he was slowly walking step by step among the countless corpses of marines and prisoners, which were lying everywhere around him. Looking down on the port, the situation wasn´t really good. Although the prisoners managed to fight their way to two smaller ships, they were surrounded by the guards and marines and couldn´t set sail as every time someone went close to the ropes or helm, he was shoot down by marine snipers. Judging according the dead bodies, Marines tried at last once to take their ships back, but led by Roland, the desperate prisoners were determined to fight to the last man and pushed them back. The situation was tensed and so no one paid much attention to the battle which happened on the hill above them. No one even noticed Eric as he was walking down from the hill until he got just few dozens of meters away from them.
“What the hell...captain look!”
One of the marines directed attention of a feminine looking captain Wraith to Eric. Asides from the captain several other marines looked in his way, surprised and disgusted by his appearance at the same time. Focusing for a shot period of time, captain Wraith cursed.
“Damn, that´s Irongate, one of the escaped prisoners?!”
Obviously, his eyesight was at least as good as his memory, because battered like he was, Eric would hardly recognize himself in the mirror.
“One of the prisoners? Should we shoot him captain?”
Other marine chuckled.
“Are you sure it´s necessary? He looks like he will die any minute by himself.”
Another one smiled.
“Yeah, someone beat him just right.”
Wraith smirked as he drew his nodachi. He raised from his cover behind some crates and slowly went to Eric. Captain Wraith wasn´t afraid that anyone from the occupied ship could shoot on him, as his men were aiming at every centimeter of the vessel. If anyone dared to move a muscle, he would be immediately shot to death.
“Hey you filthy criminal, do you hear me?”
He asked, when he finally stood before Eric with the tip of his long blade resting against his chest.
Eric stopped and looked at him, but there was no sign of understanding in his eyes.
“Thought so much”
He sighted with a slight smile on his face.
“Looks like that someone punched your brain outside of your skull, what a shame. I really wanted to repay you for what you did on Notice Island. Do you remember that? How you injured hand of one of my precious men?”
He waited second or so for a, answer, but nothing happened.
“Ah, whatever, this will have to do it...”
With that he pulled his blade backwards to be able to swing it against Eric´s neck but right at the time, the pirate moved. He released all three of his companion, stepping forward to his next pray. He was too tired to protect himself, so when the marine captain realized that he is attacked, he didn´t even try to dodge when the he quickly changed his planned slash to a stab. Instinctively, Eric hardened his body, but it wasn´t enough, the blade just pierced through his skin and body as if it was nothing. Convinced about his swift victory, captain Wraith relaxed, only to witness as Eric, still in his hardened state punched against his blade with his palms, simultaneously from both sides. The blade shattered to several pieces, leaving one big part of the blade in Eric´s abdomen.
Young captain cursed, but before he could run away, Eric leaped at him, and teared him down, like tiger, who finally caught his pray. Down there, he tore him into pieces like rabid dog, lib by a limb, piece after piece.
The marines yelled at each other, paralyzed by shock and pure terror from what they saw in front of themselves. Someone finally found enough courage to shoot at him. The bullet hit Eric right bellow his left collar bone, but if anything, it made him only even more angry.
With angry roar, he leaped forward and pulled the rifle outside of the marine´s hands. Scared, the marine screamed for help from his comrades, but before anyone could do anything, Eric turned the gun around and impaled it´s owner with it.
“F**k kill him already!”
Another marine screamed in terror as he raised his sword against Eric, but when his powerful overhead slash finally landed, Eric wasn´t there. He sidestepped to the side, twisting his body a little so he could take the sword between his arm. Pushing from the up down with his left, and from down up with his right, he pulled the sword out of the marine hands, turning it and stabbing into his neck with one, fluid movement. From there he shifted his center of mass a little kicking through the knee of another one, who tried to get him from behind.
“Monster! It´s monster!”
The marines around him started panicking. There were more than five hundreds men in front of him, but paralyzed by their own fear, they didn´t even tried to surround him.
“Somebody take him finally down!”
Another Marine got closer only to find himself on the ground with his windpipe crushed.
“Zombie! He is a zombie!”
Someone slashed him across the chest, so Eric leaped on him, tearing his neck with his teeth.
“F**k where is captain Grayhound?”
Another body fell down.
“Don´t know he was fighting on the hill near the prison gate...”
Another two down, it was right at the moment the Marines started to understand. Some of them faster, some of them slower, but eventually everyone realized, that captain Greyhound will not come to help them, because the guy who beat him was standing right in front of them. They were struck by panic and it grow even stronger with every wound on Eric´s body and with every fallen friend. Instinctively, Eric was trying to conserve his strength. Taking hits so he could hit back, focusing on killing as many of his enemies as possible, but he was already beyond his own limits. With each strike his hands were heavier and heavier, but the marines didn´t see that. They were seeing a demon. Terrifying savage beast, that wasn´t dying no matter what they do. Rational part of their brains knew, that he is just a man and as every man he can be killed, but the terrified irrational part screamed that he is monster that´s not from this word and as such cannot be killed. Scared to death, they started running when he killed the eleventh man. Throwing their weapons on the ground, they turned their back on him and start fleeing back to their fortress. He wasn´t chasing them. Instead of that, he turned back and slowly walked back to his three companions. Lifting them from the ground, he started to walking towards the ship. He wasn´t even able to go straight. Stumbling at every other step, but he was still somehow able to move forward.
“For the f**k shake, somebody go and help him!”
Someone on the taken ship finally got out of his shock and started to give orders to others. But Eric was too tired to look up to see who was it.
There was some steps up there. Slow and hesitating, like if they were not really sure if they want to go down or no.
“Are you sure he will not attack us?”
Asked someone with a mix of almost sacred fear and respect in his voice. Valid question indeed. As was Eric coming back to himself, he would like to answer him, but he was to tired to speak and his whole body felt something that was pushed to meat grinder way too many times.
“Why would he do that? It´s Irongate, the guy who let us out, so go there or move your f**king asses!”
Was that Roland? Eric wasn´t really sure as he couldn´t hear anything on his left ear and the there was that weird buzzing noise in his head that was getting in a way of every serious though he had.
Finally, someone went down to him. Eric found out because he bumped into giant men who went to him.
“Hey, Irongate that´s me Grizzly. Are you alright?”
He didn´t answered. Instead of that he tried to walk around him to take the three on the ship.
“Hey and what about the other three? Are they alive? Answer me d**m it!”
Eric noticed big hand heading towards him and without second tough, grabbed it and throw it´s owner. Big body slammed to the ground with loud cracking noise.
Someone one the upper deck cursed and few others prepared their guns.
“No, don´t you dare shoot you id**ts! Just let him pass, let him pass on the ship!”
Reluctantly, they lowered they guns, so Eric could continue, step by step. For him it was like an eternity, until he finally climbed up on the ship, where he finally collapsed, unconscious sooner than his body hit the planks under him.
After that, he had several episodes of coming back and forth, like on swing, he was coming to his consciousness, only to fall back to the darkness that was waiting on him a moment later. He realized that someone put him into bed and other people were sitting close to him. But couldn´t put together any real thought let alone say it aloud.
When he finally came back to himself for real he was lying on a bed in a small cabin and his whole body hurt as f**k. They were on the open sea, he could say that much because the floor under him was swinging back and forth on the tides.
“D**m”
He cursed as he tried to sit up, but his own body betrayed him. Somebody on his right winced as if he noticed that Eric is awake only now.
“You are alive?”
Asked Gabriel.
“Surprised?”
Eric chuckled but regretted that soon pretty soon.
“Actually yes, I am pretty sure that some of your wounds are incompatible with life”
Eric grunted as he finally managed to get himself up to sitting.
“Hmmmmm, who stitched me together?”
Gabriel sighed.
“One girl, she was among the prisoners that made it to the ship. Fortunately, she is a doctor and...god damn it Eric I am sorry.”
Surprised, Eric turned his head to his oldest friend to see his face twisted with a mix of guilt and shame.
“If I were a little bit better you wouldn´t have to go through this.”
Eric frowned.
“You fought well, better than anyone could ask you for, so cut that c**p already. How long I was out?”
Gabriel staid silent for a moment before he answered.
“For a week.”
Eric silently grumbled.
“And others?”
Gabriel shook his head.
“Michael is alright, his wounds weren´t much worse than mine. But the rest...from the thousand of prisoners or so, only ninety made it to the ships. According to the ones I spoke too, it was terrible massacre and without Zuber, they wouldn´t be able to make it that far anyway.”
Eric shook his head. The amount of dead wan´t something that bothered him right now.
“I am asking about her...how is she?”
“Her? Oh yes, you mean that girl you dragged together with us?”
Gabriel bit his lip.
“She is alive. Because of her uniform, some men wanted to hang her on the mast, but Roland beat them down, yelling that if you went so far to save her, she is someone important to you.”
Eric nodded.
“Yeah she is. She is the one who let me out from my cell.”
Gabriel sighted.
“Yeah well…she is alive, but still unconscious and the doctor said that she may never wake up again. And even if she will, she won´t be able to walk.”
Eric nodded. Without any other words, Eric got up from the bed. His legs were shaking like crazy, but after a while he managed to find his balance.
“What are you doing?”
Concerned, Gabriel tried to help him, but Eric shook his head. On his own, with his second in command two steps behind he went out of his cabin and up the stairs on the upper deck. When the men noticed him, they swiftly stood up to the attention position, saluting him as if they were in army and not on a ship full of prisoners.
“Captain on board!”
Yelled Michael before he assumed the same position as the others.
Eric looked up, on the mast of their new Caravel was pirate flag, his flag, the same flag that was on another ship, sailing hundred or so meters behind them.
“What´s that?”
No one dared to answer him except Gabriel.
“That´s Roland, he...took the other ship and declared himself to be the commander of the Slayers´s 1st division and raised our fag sir.”
Eric raised his eyebrow.
“What?”
Gabriel shrugged.
“He said that he owns you lifelong debt and that the only way how he and his men can repay it is to serve you until the end. But they will not go with us for long as they have some personal vendetta to take care about.”
Eric nodded he remembered that day on the prison ship, when Roland told him about the business partner that betrayed him.
“Alright men back to work, Michael, prepare the maps, we needs to find some port to get provisions and put ourselves together”
With that he slowly went to the infantry. He needed to say thank you to the young doctor that saved them and also to see Hana
It took him while some time, but in the end he made it there. She was lying on the bed with big burn on her left face, breathing slowly as if she were sleeping.
Sitting by her bed, Eric slightly smiled, for the first time in very very long time.
“You know what...”
He muttered.
“Maybe after all, I can try to do a better. At least on the next island I´ll try not to kill anyone, what about that?”