*In Brister Le Fay had Ren tucked in bed and was reading him a bedtime story*
(Le Fay): After the toad said no, the spider then asked the duck if she could give the spider a ride across the lake. The duck said no and swam away from the spider leaving him behind. Having no other option the spider went over to the crab who was a newcomer to the lake. Seeing no harm in helping out the spider and appalled by the rudeness of the other animals, the crab agreed to help the spider cross the lake. Hopping on the crab’s back, the spider rode the crab across the lake little did the crab know it was being led into the spider’s web. When the crab realized where he was it was too late. The crab was now trapped and entangled into the spider’s web. When the crab asked why the spider would trick the spider simply replied: it’s in my nature. The end.
*Le Fay closes the book*
(Ren): Wow, that spider was mischievous.
(Le Fay): You said it.
(Ren): When he said: it’s in my nature. What did he mean?
(Le Fay): He was talking about his identity. Take a knight for example. How would you define their identity?
(Ren): Someone who always helps out others in need and protects the people.
(Le Fay): Very good. Now let’s apply this to the spider. In the animal kingdom spiders are cunning creatures. They don’t go out hunting for food. They set up traps and wait for the food to come to them. In the story, the animals knew the spider would try to eat them so they didn’t trust him. It was in his nature to deceive and eat them.
(Ren): I hope I don’t get tricked like the crab in the story.
(Le Fay): You won’t. And even if you do I know you’ll be strong enough to fight your way out. Just like your dad.
***
*Back in Bludwood, Dust was fighting against Gambit who had turned both of his hands into crab claws. Dust used his agility and speed to dodge Gambit’s attacks and used his wires to fling chairs and tables at him. Gambit would either dodge or smash the objects thrown at him. However, some objects would hit him because he wasn’t quick to act. Despite getting hit a few times and having a busted lip, Gambit continued to show ruthless tenacity in his fight with Dust*
(Dust): Come on, junior. I’m still waiting for you to take me down. You haven’t landed a hit yet.
(Gambit): The same can be said for you. All you’ve done is dodge and throw objects at me. I think over the years you’ve forgotten how to throw a punch or kick.
*Dust smirks*
(Dust): Really? Well how about I take this left foot of mine and kick you on the side of your head?
*Dust stops dodging and moves toward Gambit where he raises his left foot and Gambit prepares to block the kick. As soon as he blocked the kick he would counter Dust with a crab hammer to the head. However, the kick never came. Dust raised his foot but instead of aiming for Gambit’s head he did a thrust kick to Gambit’s right shin. This brought Gambit down to one knee and then Dust followed up with a roundhouse kick to the side of Gambit’s head just like he promised. Gambit slid across the floor on his right side clutching the side of his head in pain. After he stopped sliding, Gambit returned to his feet and charged at Dust who stood still waiting for him, luring Gambit into a trap. As Gambit closed in on Dust his foot tripped over a black wire which cut Gambit. The pain Gambit felt in his foot distracted him and Dust took advantage of this. Dust closed the gap between them and delivered a hard punch to the stomach of Gambit. The punch was so hard that it caused Gambit to vomit. Dust ignored the vomiting and delivered another punch between Gambit’s eyes with his other hand. Gambit fell backward to the floor as blood slightly poured out of his nose. Dust’s punches were the heaviest punches he had ever taken and he was about to feel more*
(Dust): Oh no. You ain’t finished yet, junior. Get your ass up, we’re going to school.
*Dust grabs the collar of Gambit’s shirt, picks him up, and throws him back first into the nearby wall. Dust closed in on Gambit and began to deliver forearm shots repeatedly to the right side of Gambit’s head. The repeated shots drove Gambit to the ground with his back against the wall. Dust gave himself some space between him and Gambit and was planning to deliver a dropkick that would drive Gambit through the wall and take him out. As Dust charged at Gambit, Gambit quickly returned to his feet and ran toward Dust where he delivered a spear to wipe him out. Rising to his knees, Gambit let out a roar and began raining down crab hammer strikes around Dust’s head. Dust used his arms to cover his head and protect himself from the repeated shots. While he was still feeling pain from the attacks he at least minimized the damage as best he could. Returning to his feet, Gambit picked up Dust and wrapped his claw hand around Dust’s neck to bring him into a vice grip. Gambit’s plan was to snap Dust’s neck with his vice grip but Dust managed to pull out of the vice grip with his hands using his strength. Gambit was shocked by this but quickly countered by kicking Dust in the stomach. Taking a few steps back, Gambit was going to deliver a lariat with his crab arm, but Dust recovered from the kick and used his wires to grab Gambit and pull him in. Dust then delivered a knee to Gambit’s stomach and held on to him to keep him from falling. Grabbing the back of Gambit’s head, Dust threw Gambit into a stack of folded chairs. A loud noise could be heard as the chairs scattered everywhere from the impact and Dust was forming an idea of what he wanted to do next. Picking up a chair and unfolding it, Dust placed the chair on the floor, picked up Gambit and sat him in the chair. Dust delivered ten forearm shots to the side of Gambit’s head before running away to create some distance and then running back to Gambit where he jumped and delivered a dropkick. He even made sure he got some hangtime in the air to make the impact more devastating. Gambit flew backward as he crashed through three tables that were standing up nearby. Gambit was barely conscious and crawling on the floor struggling to get back up. The multiple attacks from Dust had left him beaten up and exhausted*
(Dust): Come on! Get up! Show me your pride in the organization! Hit me! Hit me!
*Dust continued to taunt Gambit until he managed to pull himself up. Stumbling over to Dust he delivered four weak forearm shots that barely registered with Dust. Disappointed, Dust delivered an open-handed slap to Gambit that instantly made him fall to the floor. To add insult to injury Dust began to nudge Gambit’s head with his shoe.
(Dust): Pathetic. Are you truly one of the Syndicate’s best men? What a disgrace. If Suzuki saw this he’d be rolling in his grave. Don’t get me wrong, the guy was a crazy bastard and I didn’t agree with his ways, but he was a man. He wanted to make the Syndicate stronger. He saw the value of the syndicate and believed that he could make it greater. When I look at you, I don’t sense that same passion. You don’t care about the syndicate. You don’t care about Lloyd. Hell, you don’t even care about yourself. So what drives you? What keeps you going?
*As Dust continues to berate him, Gambit started to remember his past*
(Gambit): *Inner monolog* What keeps me going? That’s an easy one. Growing up I was a snot nose kid who was on the wrong side of town. No mom and a dad who pretty much didn’t care for me. I’ll give the jackass some credit and say he at least taught me how to pickpocket and crack a safe. The man would split town around my tenth birthday and left me behind when he got in too deep with Bludwood’s underworld. Even to this day, I have no idea where the guy is. Hell, I doubt he’s even alive. Left to defend for myself, I knew I had to find protection and what better way to do that than to join one of the big mob families in town. Unfortunately, I was a kid and knew they wouldn’t accept me into their ranks willingly, so I lied. I got lucky and came across the dead body of a Noetia grunt. I stole his emblem and started wearing it around town in order to intimidate and protect myself from some of the smaller thugs in town. I had everyone believing that I was a member of the Syndicate and with that came privileges. Guys would stay out of my way and never cross me. And every now and then I could get a free room or meal just by flashing that emblem. Everything was going my way. But, the good times don’t last forever. I got cocky and tried to pickpocket a high-ranking member of the Vikingo Family. Naturally, I got caught and was in deep shit. Thanks to my big mouth my lie made its way to their ears and they called the Syndicate demanding compensation. As I waited I prepared myself for the worst. If I was lucky they would just beat me within an inch of my life. If I was unlucky then death was all that awaited. Finally, a member of the Syndicate came and it was none other than Sae herself. Everything about her was beautiful. Her eyes, her tattoos, her dress. Even her smell was beautiful. As soon as she saw me she had a puzzled look on her face. She could have left me there to die and I wouldn’t have blamed her, but to my shock, she apologized to the Vikingo members, sat down a small briefcase saying that this should cover any indiscretions I might have caused. The Vikingos were pleased with this and allowed us to leave. As soon as we were out their door, Sae smacked me and called me a little shit for causing trouble. Can’t say I blame her. She then told me to follow her. I was going to work off the debt I had made by being her lapdog. It was on that day that I became the youngest member of the Syndicate. When I was sixteen I officially became a grunt for them but I wasn’t satisfied. I wanted to stand by her side. I wanted to be someone who she could depend on. I wanted her to acknowledge me more than Lloyd himself. There was no other way around it, I was in love with her.
*Breaking away from his inner thoughts, Gambit rose back to his feet*
(Dust): Well look who’s back on his feet? Here to give me another weak-ass slap. No thanks. I’d rather fight a real man instead of some weak cub playing mobster.
*Without warning, Gambit punched Dust and he staggered backward. Rather than be upset, Dust just smiled and laughed*
(Dust): Looks like there’s fight left in you after all, eh junior? You must really love the Syndictate.
(Gambit): You’re wrong. I honestly don’t give two shits about the Syndicate. They could be destroyed tomorrow and I wouldn’t shed a tear. The only thing that matters to me is keeping the woman I love safe.
(Dust): Ohh? And who might that be?
(Gambit): You know her. Sae. I don’t care how many years there are between us. I love that woman more than anyone or anything in the world. You want to know what drives me? Seeing her smile and knowing I got her praise. So get ready, Dust. Because I’m coming at you, and I won’t back down.
(Dust): You know that I’ve been going easy on you. You don’t stand a chance when I get serious.
(Gambit): Perhaps. But a wound on a man’s back is a mark of shame.
*Dust smiles*
(Dust): Well said, Gambit.
*Dust and Gambit punched each other. Gambit using his crab hand for more damage and gaining the advantage in the exchange. Using his regular hand, Gambit delivered an upward palm strike to Dust’s chin to deliver more damage. Feeling the momentum shifting in his favor, Gambit wound up his crab arm to deliver a clubbing blow, but Dust recovered quickly from the previous attacks and delivered a powerful slap to right side of Gambit’s face to daze him. Dust then got behind Gambit and wrapped his wires around Gambit’s neck and began to choke him. Gambit could feel his consciousness fading away as his body went limp and he fell to his knees. Bent over on the ground Gambit was defenseless and Dust loosened his grip to stand back up to finish him. Dust finished Gambit by delivering a curb stomp to Gambit’s head making it crash to the floor with a sickening thud and slightly denting the floor when the head made contact with it. Gambit lay on the floor unconscious as Dust slipped a piece of paper into his jacket*
(Dust): You did good, junior. But it’s two hundred years too soon for you to be challenging me when I’m serious. You’ve still got a lot to learn about the Shadow Beast technique so keep training. Who knows, you might have what it takes to be a third-rank Shadow Beast user. Second-rank if you try hard enough. Well, I’ve gotta go. Evil mob bosses to slay and snarky remarks to make. Make sure to take care of that special lady you love so much and live a happy life.
*Dust leaves the room hoping to make it down to The Golem before it’s too late*
***
*Lloyd was in an elevator making his way down to The Golem’s lab. Along the way he had taken out multiple guards who stood in his way to reach his destination. The guards all had a hole in their heads to confirm their death*
(Lloyd): At last. I’ve made it.
*The elevator stops on the bottom floor. As soon as Lloyd steps out of the elevator, he spots the mobile iron fortress and rushes over to the control panel. The years of being dormant had yet to rust up the mecha from Lloyd’s perspective*
(Lloyd): Magnificent. You’re as beautiful as the day I first saw you.
*Lloyd began booting up the control panel and readied himself to input the passcodes as soon as the screen came on*
(Lloyd): Enter the passcodes. The first one is: A butler’s ears are always listening. A chef’s plate is always full. A maid’s duty is always fair. A cleaner’s clothes are always neat. A bartender’s glass is always full.
*Lloyd puts in the last code and the screen on the control panel turns green to verify that these passcodes were correct*
(Control Panel): Passcodes accepted. Beginning boot up sequence of The Golem.
*The cables connecting to The Golem began to glow yellow signaling power being transferred to The Golem. Lloyd looked up with anticipation. Finally, after years of waiting he would have the power he needed to bring Bludwood under his control and crush his foes. As he waited with anticipation a pop-up showing a flashing red cautionary sign appears on the monitor*
(Control Panel): Error. Error. Insufficient power core for The Golem. The Golem cannot be started at this time.
(Lloyd): What!
*Lloyd closed the pop-up and did a full scan of The Golem which showed that the power core could not be detected. The heart of The Golem was gone*
(Lloyd): No!
*Lloyd slams the keyboard with his fist*
(Lloyd): This isn’t possible!
(Amarti): Oh but it is.
*Lloyd turns around to see Amarti, Zia, Ryuuji, Alita and Jin exit the elevator*
(Amarti): I really was hoping to reach you before you discovered this tragic secret.
(Lloyd): You. Tell me what you did to The Golem this instant or I’ll-
(Amarti): Woah, calm down. We had nothing to do with this. If there’s anyone to blame here it’s the king. Have you ever wondered where they got the money to fund their Unagi research lab? I’m sure it didn’t come from you or any of the other mobsters. This money came from outside the kingdom who wanted only one thing, the power core.
(Lloyd): That’s madness. There’s no way they could have done this without my knowledge or consultation.
(Amarti): And yet they did it. Just like you’ve got your secrets so too did the royal family. Our informant had to dig deep to find this information. It turns out the king sold the power core to an outsider and used that money to begin funding research to find the Unagi. This was a top-secret deal. So secret that only the king, head scientist, and head engineer knew about it.
(Lloyd): Who? Who did they sell it to?
(Amarti): Unknown. Whoever brought the power core hid their identity from the king and covered their tracks to make sure nobody could trace the deal back to them. Try as hard as our informant did not even they could find the buyer. To make a long story short your Golem plan is a bust. You’re finished. Your top men are defeated and the royal guards will be here to apprehend you. This is the end of Noetia Syndicate.
*At first, Lloyd stood there stunned but then he began to laugh hysterically*
(Alita): He’s taking this a lot better than I anticipated.
(Jin): That’s not a laugh of joy.
(Lloyd): Me? Finished? That will never happen.
*Lloyd reaches into his pocket and pulls out a coin*
(Lloyd): I am the Noetia Syndicate. Bludwood is mine. The lives of these people are mine. Even if this kingdom were to fall, I alone will be the one left standing to rule it. And if I have to burn this kingdom to the ground to get what I want.
*Lloyd flips the coin into the air and holds out his right hand making his fingers look like a gun. Sparks of electricity surround his body as the coin falls down and reaches his finger*
(Lloyd): Then so be it.
*Lloyd fired a concentrated beam of lightning at the members of Shadow Eye who quickly scrambled out of the way. Everyone avoided the lightning shot but Lloyd was far from finished. Taking out another coin, he gripped it into his left hand to create a fist. Once again, lightning gathered around his left arm and he fired off another lightning shot from his left fist. This one was way stronger than the previous shot as Jin and Zia quickly dove out of the way to avoid getting shot. Taking out 20 bronze coins, he put ten of them in each hand and balls up his fist as electricity gathered around his arms. He then began to fire rapid shots at everyone who hid behind desks and walls to avoid getting hit*
(Ryuuji): Looks like the head of the Noetia Syndicate isn’t all talk.
(Zia): The ones who fight the least are usually the most dangerous.
(Alita): Fascinating. He uses the coins as a conduit and as a bullet for his lightning attacks. The attacks get stronger depending on what type of metal coin he uses.
(Amarti): Impressive analysis, Alita.
(Zia): Hit the deck!
*Just as a shot of lightning was about to strike Alita, Jin jumped in front of her and opened his umbrella to shield himself and her from the shot. Lloyd fired more shots at Jin but he blocked them with his umbrella*
(Jin): I’ve got you covered. Let’s take this guy down, Alita.
*Alita nods and gets set to jump out with Jin while Ryuuji, Amarti, and Zia watched on proudly. The two knights that they took under their wings were taking the initiative and had grown so much since they first met them. When Lloyd stopped firing to recharge and pull out more coins Jin and Alita jumped out to face him themselves. Lloyd saw the two young upstarts and got ready to fire at them*
(Jin): Gatling mode!
*Channeling his metal manipulation, Jin’s umbrella turned into a gatling gun and he began open on Lloyd. His bullets managing to shatter Lloyd’s lightning shots when they collided. When the two of them stopped firing at each other, Alita flew up above them. Her chest was glowing pink as light magic was gathering in her chest. Lloyd saw this and immediately pulled out two gold coins from his pockets. Putting them in each hand, he fired his shots at Jin and Alita. Jin used his metal manipulation and turned the gatling gun into a tank rifle. He loaded the chamber with a coin and fired at Lloyd. Alita also fired her light beam at Lloyd. As the four attacks collided, Jin’s bullet managed to slice through Llody’s beam and Alita’s beam overpowered his. Jin’s bullet managed to strike Lloyd in the left shoulder while Alita’s beam struck him in the chest and sent him flying backwards. Lloyd fell to the ground and attempted to get back up but was met with a kick from Jin and dropkick from Alita to knock him out.
(Ryuuji and Amarti): Taught him/her everything I know.
(Zia): Impressive work you two. Jin, what kind of silver bullet did you use to beat his gold coin?
(Jin): Well it wasn’t silver. It was actually platinum.
(Ryuuji): Platinum?
(Jin): I figured out that the strength and speed of his shots depended on the density of the coins he used. Low density meant faster shots. However, high density meant stronger shots. Platinum is actually denser than gold. So I knew that if I use platinum I would win.
(Amarti): Nice. Did you figure that out as well Alita?
(Alita): I had my theories, but I see Jin came to the conclusion sooner than me. I decided to trust him with the final shot as I calculated a 91% chance that he would use the correct metal to win. When he fired his bullet and I saw the traces of platinum, I realized he came to the same conclusion as me and that my calculations were correct.
(Jin): What was the other 9%?
(Alita): You would have guessed wrong, came to the conclusion afterward, and used your counter dial in the hopes of deflecting the attack back at Lloyd to protect yourself.
(Ryuuji): Wow. She thinks of everything.
(Zia): Just like we taught her.
(Alita): Affirmative. However, I am still trying to calculate a way for us to escape this floor now that the elevator is broken.
*Everyone was confused by this statement. So they turned around and saw that the cable holding the elevator had been cut*
(Jin): Oh man. It must have gotten shot from Lloyd’s rapid firing.
(Ryuuji): This is bad. The Bludwood knights will be here soon. If they find out we’re Brister knights it’ll cause a whole international crisis that could possibly lead to war. We’ve got to find a way out of here.
*All of a sudden a hole opens up in the ceiling above them and Dust’s head pops over it*
(Dust): What are you standing around for? Don’t you know an escape route when you see one? Come on! They’re almost here!
*Ryuuji grabbed Amarti and Zia while Alita grabbed Jin and flew up to Dust’s hole to make it back into the palace. As Ryuuji set Amarti and Zia down he glanced over to see five knights knocked out and on the ground behind him*
(Ryuuji): Nooo~! Why’d you knock them out!? We’re on their side.
(Dust): I’ll send them a card. Now move!
*Running down the hall and making their way to a window, they all jump out of the window to make it down to the garden below. They all landed safely on the ground below and quickly ran away from the palace and into the town for safety where they would reunite with Chief and the others and escape. While the Bludwood knights wanted to pursue them, their numbers were thin and they had to focus on rounding up the Syndicate members who had attacked the palace and bring them in for questioning*
Author’s Note: This was a fun chapter to write. Usually, when I do battles, I try to make them even and showcase the prowess of both fighters, so to actually go all in and just make Dust completely dominate was easy. This fight was inspired by Zoro vs Mihawk from One Piece. It’s a sad and brutal scene, because up until this point, we’ve seen Zoro be this unbeatable badass swordsman, only to see him get completely crushed by another swordsman who is stronger than him in every way. It served as a reminder of how even though Zoro is strong, he still has a lot to learn. And that’s what this fight is all about for Gambit. Dust is his Mihawk. A wall he is not ready to beat. Aside from I also had fun coming up with writing his past and showing how is loyalty isn’t to syndicate but rather to Sae and what she did for him. The final fight with Lloyd may have been short but gave Jin a chance to shine and play around with his new weapon. The payoff of The Golem being inoperable might be disappointing, but it builds up a mystery around who took the power source and why? We’ll be finishing up this arc next week. With Shadow Eye’s mission completed and the Noetia Syndicate weakened, they’re perfect picking for a certain clan. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.