//------------------------------// // 12 - The Faceoff // Story: The Lost Connection // by A bag of plums //------------------------------// Pierce Network threw his cupboard doors open, staring inside for a second before he reached behind his various shirts, pushing a button at the back, which allowed him to slide away the cupboard’s false back panel, revealing assets he thought he would never have to touch again. In the back was his old Vigilante and Assassin coat, a brown one with a high collar and a hood attached. He had hung it up when he left the Assassins a few years ago. Alongside the coat was an old grey scarf, and strapped to the back wall, was his Assassin hidden blade, still kept in reasonable condition, and his trusty pistol. Pierce sighed. “I never thought I’d ever fish you out of my cupboard again… But times call for your return, old friend. I didn’t think the Templars would ever find me again, but Mirror Match has. I thought I could leave my old life behind, but I guess I was wrong. In this business, you can never truly leave. All you need is a gentle tug and you find yourself pulled back into the world of killing…” He pulled the scarf over his head before grabbing the coat off the wall, sliding his arms through the sleeves before buttoning the front. The computer teacher grunted as he fought to get the buttons to reach the other side. It seems years of inactivity and sugary snacks had taken their toll on him. Breathing in, Pierce got the last two buttons in before sighing with relief. It wasn’t too uncomfortable or tight, but he made a note to start exercising again when his leg healed up. Pulling at the velcro straps holding his weapons in place, Pierce took and fastened the hidden blade under his right arm and holstered his pistol in his coat. He already had his extendable baton with him, now hidden within his coat. He had started using it as a pointer in class, but he still kept it around to teach the students a lesson if they severely misbehaved in class, like that Jetstream and Lightning Rain incident a while ago. The real Principal Celestia had reprimanded him for it and reported it to the Board of Education. If he hadn’t hacked her message and stopped it from transmitting, the Templars might’ve found him much sooner. Speaking of Principal Celestia… Pierce had sent Morning Blade to the coordinates of her car earlier. The former Assassin had broken into a small building, but no one had been there, though she reported that she had found evidence of someone being held there, having found a steel chain and bars on the windows. Wherever she was now, Pierce was hoping to get that information out of Mirror Match at the quarry. He had about two hours to go before she was supposed to meet him there. Holding out his phone, Pierce checked the tracker on Principal Celestia’s car. It was now outside her own home, but that didn’t really mean anything. She was likely checking up on Vice Principal Luna, whom she had kept drugged in order to fool her. But all that was about to come to an end. Pierce knew there was no way he was walking out alive once Mirror was done with him, so this time, he was already one step ahead of her. “This is it, Mirror Match,” he said, mostly for himself to hear as he opened his home door, then locking it once he stepped out. “This is where it all comes to an end. Whether I die or you die today, the others will rescue Principal Celestia once they find out where you moved her. You thought you had everything in order? You thought you were invincible? Unkillable? All that changes today. It’s time for us to show you that even you… can die.” The site of the quarry was all quiet like it had always been since its abandonment many years ago. People had used to come here to explore, hoping to find some mythical treasure or artifact, but in the end, the stories of spirits dragging you deep underground always worked. Pierce Network didn’t believe in any of those stories. Anything he couldn’t see, he would simply shrug off as a myth, but after what he’s seen with Mirror Match and Mentor Steel Shine, maybe underground spirits weren’t such a tall tale. Though, he wasn’t likely to go down into the quarry ever, especially not with his leg like this. “Good to see you again, Morning Blade,” Keila greeted the other ex-Assassin. She now had on a tattered brown cloak, something she wasn’t wearing when Pierce had met with her. “Keila.” Morning answered, keeping it short. “It’s… It’s good to see you again, I suppose.” “Good to see you’re better than when I last saw you.” Keila slipped an arm around Morning and gave her a quick hug. “Doing okay?” “Getting there…” Morning Blade nodded. “But it’s been okay so far. I’ve started going to college.” “Hey, that’s good. Much better.” Keila grinned. “I’ve still been in Trottingham, sorting through whatever Mentor Steel Shine and the other Mentors had stocked up in her vault. They have things from so long ago, it’s like… wow. You should come see someday.” “Right, if you two are done…” Pierce limped over to them, holding a sniper rifle under one arm. “It’s almost time for the meeting. We should get into position. Now, Morning Blade. I want you to take this and head up to that hill over there.” The teacher pointed to the distance, just above the quarry, near the road. “I only have five bullets in that thing, so once you run out, come join us down here. Keila, I want you at the target spot, ready to strike as soon as I give the signal. We’ll only have one shot. If we fail today, that’s it.” “You know I’ve never used one of these, right?” Morning held the large rifle up and inspected it. “And I’m missing my right eye. What do you expect me to do?” “Try your best.” Pierce looked at his phone, linked to several cameras in the surrounding area. “That’s all I ask. That we each give our best to take down the Witch of Manehattan once and for all. Now, I know you are fond of Principal Celestia, but right now, this won’t be her. I need to know you will do what you have to when the time comes.” “I will do what I must.” Morning Blade turned and began walking to her designated spot. “Then I’ll see you all when it begins.” Pierce limped back to his spot under a lamppost. “Good luck. Don’t mess up now. We’ve come so far to finally put that witch in the ground.” Keila pulled her hood over her head and disappeared down the quarry and Morning Blade had already gone, now somewhere atop the hill with her weapon at ready. Pierce sat down atop an empty crate and closed his eyes. He knew it wasn’t going to be easy, but if he didn’t try something now, Mirror was still going to be out there, and he wasn’t going to wait for her to decide to dispose of him. No. He had to be the first to strike. With his phone in hand and weapons tucked inside his brown coat, Pierce waited and in forty minutes, his wait was over. “Pierce, I got something. It’s her,” Morning Blade’s voice came on his earpiece. “But… she’s just walking in. Did she walk all the way here…?” Something wasn’t adding up. “Keep an eye around. Eagle vision. Make sure she’s alone. I’ll see what she’s come to say.” Pierce grabbed the lamppost and hauled himself up, phone in hand, ready for whatever was coming. Soon, he spotted Principal Celestia walking towards him out of the thin night fog. “Pierce, are we sure she isn’t the real Principal Celestia?” Keila’s voice whispered in his ear. “She could be using the real one as a decoy while she watches us from somewhere.” The hacker narrowed his eyes. He didn’t think of that, but he didn’t deny that could’ve been something Mirror might’ve thought up. He shook his head. She was too close for him to voice an answer now. Whether she was the real one or not, the only way to find out now was to have a talk with her. “Good, you’re here,” Pierce said to her as she met him under the lamppost light. “So, let’s get this clear. Once you have this information, you’ll let Principal Celestia and I go in peace?” “Depends,” Celestia said, keeping her right hand in her pocket. “What have you found?” “Traces of the car that appeared at school.” Pierce kept an eye on her this time, not just his phone. “I told you, I had access to cameras in the city and I managed to find that same car traveling along a certain route. Whoever was driving that car, your queen or not, they were trying to avoid the public eye. Why is that, I don’t know, but maybe you do, but that’s not as important right now. So is that good enough for you?” “I don’t suppose you can tell me who owns that car?” Celestia said, turning her back to Pierce. “Not yet.” The computer teacher shook his head. “I need to get a good look at the car plate before I can find out. But I was hoping you can pick up their trail or something. You have a good sense of smell, do you not? I remember your skills when you fought us and all the stories from the other Assassins about you. That’s why I called you here. If you can pick up something, it’ll save me the trouble of tracking the car with the clues we can find here.” “You know something?” Celestia said, slowly turning around. “I’ve had just enough of your bullcrap, Pierce Network.” Her hand came out of her pocket, holding a suppressed pistol in her grasp, its laser sight playing about on Pierce’s chest. “You don’t care about helping me find the queen in the slightest, and on top of everything else you’ve done, I think it’s fair to call this cooperation over.” “Is that what you think now?” Pierce showed no indication of fear, but this changed his plans a little. He had hoped to get her to the pit first. “Then I guess it’s the way it has to be. Good morning.” That was his signal. A loud gunshot pierced the air before a powerful bullet came whizzing through the air. Unfortunately, Mirror leaned back and the bullet just missed her by the nose. Pierce wasn’t having any of it. He pressed a button on his phone’s screen and jumped back as one of his traps sprung. It was an electrical netting on the floor, hidden under the gravel. Celestia opened her eyes wide with surprise, but was otherwise unaffected. “Electrical netting, hm? Then it’s a good thing Celestia’s shoes are all rubber soled.” But Pierce already had his pistol out, firing while she was distracted. Mirror looked up a second too late as the first bullet tore through her shoulder, then her chest as she fell back off the netting on a knee, clutching her wounds. The hacker aimed and fired again, but Mirror barged into him, knocking him down as she lifted her own pistol to his head. Before she could pull the trigger, Pierce heard the sniper rifle fire again before a bullet pinged dangerously close to his face, forcing Mirror away from him. Then Keila appeared from behind and kicked her in the gut and threw her to the side before helping the hacker up. “You,” Mirror growled. Principal Celestia’s face was twisted into a look she would never make. “I remember you. What are you doing back with Pierce? He betrayed you all. Now you have come to die alongside him?” “Not today.” Keila swiped her hands under her coat and returned with two gleaming daggers. “Today, we’re putting an end to you, once and for all.” “See, Mirror Match?” Pierce pointed his pistol at her head. “I’ve got backup. Now tell me, where is the real Principal Celestia? This time, you’re on the other end of the stick. You’re at your limit.” “That’s where you’re wrong.” Mirror cackled. “I already let Celestia go. She’s not a part of this any longer. You on the other hand… You-” Then she somersaulted back as another sniper round smashed into the dirt round where she was standing. “Enough!” Mirror screeched and fired her gun at Pierce. The hacker was pushed down by Keila, just as he clicked a button on his phone’s screen. Two harpoons fired out from the sides of the quarry road, one drilling into Mirror’s right shoulder, the other into her left side, a few inches under her arm. “Gah!” She gasped and dropped her pistol. “Now, Keila.” Pierce fired his weapon at the false principal and he would’ve hit her head if she hadn’t blocked it with her arms. “She’s still tough, but she cannot last much longer. She must already be close to her limit.” The Saddle Arabian ex-Assassin approached her with her daggers ready, but before she could strike, Mirror had ripped the harpoon points off their latches and ducked low as another shot from Morning Blade flew over her head. Then she kicked out at Keila, knocking her down before leaping on her, delivering a volley of quick punches to her. “You shouldn’t interfere!” she snarled. “But now that you have, you too, will die!” As Mirror lifted her left hand again to punch Keila, the air was filled with the sound of the final sniper bullet, cutting through a portion of Mirror’s arm. That gave Keila time to push her off with her daggers, stabbing her in the chest before rolling to the side and getting up, wiping blood off the corner of her mouth. The false principal stumbled back, cradling her arm and the wounds on her chest, a fierce growl on her face, very unlike the real Principal Celestia. “Just give up.” Pierce reloaded his gun. “It’s over for you now. There is nothing you can do. You are spent. You cannot beat all of us as you are now. You said it yourself. You don’t have enough strength to get out of this alive. In the end, you’re just like every other Templar and criminal I’ve had to put down. You all think you’re invincible, but that’s why I’m here. I’m here to show you that you’re wrong.” “Just stop talking!” Mirror yelled and covered the distance between them in a blink of an eye, tackling Pierce so hard that he flew back a few inches, landing on the ground, while she knocked one of Keila’s daggers away and grabbed the ex-Assassin around the throat, lifting her off the ground. “You want to help this wretched man so much? Then you’ll be the first to die!” Green fire erupted from Mirror’s mouth as Keila tried to fight against Mirror Match’s grip, but it was like iron. Pierce got up and rubbed his chest, picking up his pistol and taking aim, but Keila was in between both of them; he might end up shooting her instead. He searched through his trap triggers on his phone, but Mirror wasn’t standing close to any of the non-lethal ones. Come on, Keila. You can beat her. From behind, Morning Blade lunged out of the darkness and tackled Mirror Match down, freeing Keila from her grip as she fell atop the false principal. “How dare you impersonate such a good person!” Morning lifted her hidden blade high. “Principal Celestia did nothing to deserve this! Where is she, witch?” “Wouldn’t you like to know!” Celestia replied in a voice that sounded like two people talking at once. In her mouth, a pair of sharp, pointed fangs made themselves known. “Where. Is. She.” Morning Blade’s frown deepened and her blade got closer to Mirror’s neck. “You’re not very good at listening, are you?” Mirror lashed out with a kick. “I already said I let her go, which is more than I can say for you.” Morning recovered and pulled her pistol from her holster, just as Mirror rolled to hers and picked it up, rising to a standing position as both of them pointed the weapons at each other. Morning Blade’s finger curled around the trigger, but Mirror swatted her arm aside, taking aim with her own pistol. Using her free hand, Morning pushed Mirror’s arm up, and the shot went above her head. Swinging her own gun around, Morning let off a shot, but it was ducked by Mirror Match who brought her gun around, aiming for a chest shot. Morning’s hand seized Mirror’s, yanking it down where the bullet flew harmlessly between her legs. Mirror Match snarled, Celestia’s face twisting into an expression of pure hatred. She raised the gun again, just as Morning Blade raised hers. They met forearm to forearm, both of them shooting off a bullet, Morning’s gun giving off an earsplitting crack while Mirror’s suppressed pistol gave off a thwip. Both of them ducked their heads to the side, avoiding each other’s bullets before Morning pushed Mirror’s hand away to fire again. The false Celestia did the same, both missing their marks once more. Pierce lay there watching, reloading his pistol. They were both shooting at each other at such close range and only one wrong move would finish the fight now. He had to do something before Mirror could get the upper hand on Morning Blade. “Keila,” he called as he struggled to his feet. Soon the Saddle Arabian was by his side, hauling him up under one shoulder. “We need to lure her over to one of the traps. Just a little more to the right.” “I’ll help her out.” Keila took one step towards the fight, but jumped back almost as quickly and bent to the left as a bullet flew by her. “No, stay back, I’ve got this,” Morning said as she and Mirror fired at each other again, both missing. “It’s too dangerous.” A bullet flew by Pierce’s face as the two women continued to shoot, deflect, and divert each other’s guns. Crack! Thwip! Crack! Thwip! Until finally, there came a different sound. Click. There was a tense moment as all the fighting stopped, and both combatants looked at their guns. Mirror Match grinned, showing off her fangs. “You’re empty.” Morning Blade’s face paled and she took an involuntary step back. “Son of a…” Bang! Mirror Match stumbled away, driven back by Pierce’s gunshot. “She might be empty,” the computer teacher said. “But I’m not. You’ve forgotten, witch, that there are three of us. We outnumber you.” “Why you little-!” The former Templar agent raised her own gun once more, but Morning Blade wrenched her arm aside at the last minute. Mirror twisted out of her grasp and fired again, only to be rewarded with a similar click. Mirror sighed. “Well shi-” Keila joined in the fight, flying in with a kick to Mirror’s head, while Morning scrambled for another magazine. The false principal brought up her arms to block, but she still fell back a step, almost close enough for Pierce to trigger one of his other traps. Close enough, Pierce decided. He fired one bullet, watching as it hit Mirror in the right thigh, sending her back and down on a knee. Wasting no time, Pierce flipped the page of his phone’s screen and pressed one of the activation buttons, watching as the button’s color changed from red to green. From under the gravel, a bear trap-like device activated, its jaws flipping up and ensnaring Mirror Match’s left leg, its metal teeth biting deep into her calf, drawing blood and cracking bone. Pierce and Morning took the chance to shoot at her, punching bullets into her chest before Mirror lifted her arms to block them, but she was still getting hurt. Some bounced off her chest, but Pierce could still see a spread of blood in multiple parts of her body, spreading across her clothes. When their magazines clicked empty, Pierce and the others watched on, looking to see if they had finally done it. Mirror wasn’t dead yet, but she looked like she was having trouble breathing. It was unsettling for Morning Blade especially. To see what appeared to be Principal Celestia covered in gunshot wounds and bleeding struck a chord of wrongness in the former Assassin, a chord of wrongness that was dispelled when Mirror Match spoke, her dual-toned voice wavering. “Haah… haah… You think that’s enough… to kill me?” Mirror reached down and pried off the bear trap, throwing the entire thing aside as she struggled to her feet. On hand went into her bloodstained jacket and pulled out her black dagger, its length glowing green with toxin. “How is she still getting up?” Keila looked at the witch unbelievingly. “That trap must’ve broken her leg.” “She’s not human, remember?” Pierce said. “But she should be losing it. She’s weakened. She can’t possibly keep this up.” Mirror Match swiped at the air with her dagger, sending drops of green venom across the ground where little plumes of smoke rose from where they touched the gravel. “I thought I’d never have to use this technique again…” she growled, tightly grasping her dagger. “But you leave me no choice, you cretins!” “Don’t kid yourself,” Pierce scoffed and reloaded his gun. “You were planning on using that blade on me, just like all the others. You’re not one to give up easily, but so are we. That poison dagger has to go. You’ve caused too much pain with that weapon over time. It’s time we put an end to it and you.” “I’m not talking about the dagger,” Mirror Match said sinisterly, holding both her arms close to her body, then flinging them out again. There was a sudden wave of heat as bright green flames engulfed her body, lighting up the night. But not every part of her body. The flames were patchy and some of them died out upon reaching her chest and parts of her arms and legs, though both her feet, hands, and head remained shrouded in roaring fire. As the flames slowly flickered and faded, the three former Assassins were able to see what had transpired. Standing where there had been a likeness of Principal Celestia, now stood a tall, thin and blackened entity with royal purple hair reaching down to her feet, each of which had grown talons, the shoes having burned off. The creature raised its hands, each finger of which was also tipped with a three-inch long talon, one of which was still gripping the toxic dagger. The scorched remains of Celestia’s jacket and pants clung to its lithe form, and sooty flakes drifted off as it took a step toward Pierce and the others. Through the thick curtain of hair, a pair of enormous fangs could be seen, with a pair of slit-pupiled eyes above them. Morning Blade was horror-struck. “W-What are you, Mirror Match?” The creature gave a laughing cough, spitting out some bullets before speaking in a more pronounced version of her dual voice. “You keep calling me that. That, is not my name.” The thing that was now standing where Principal Celestia or Mirror Match was took a step forward, only for Pierce to activate the electrical net trap again. They watched as blue electricity began to arc up the creature. She spasmed once, but then looked straight at Pierce and tore the trap from the ground, tossing it over her shoulder. The computer teacher had heard stories of this monstrous form from other Assassins, but he had dismissed them as hallucinations or misinterpretation. Obviously, he had been wrong. “You think your simple tricks will work on me now?” Mirror Match’s, or whatever her name was, voice had returned to a singular sound, though it was different from her voice Pierce knew. “I’m going to enjoy tearing you lot apart. Especially you, Pierce.” “It’s not going to be easy, witch!” Keila lunged for her, daggers thrusting towards Mirror’s chest. Suddenly, it was like Mirror Match had teleported. She appeared beside Keila, slashing at her arm with her sharp claws, tearing into skin and knocking the Saddle Arabian down, her blood trailing on the floor as she slid on the gravel. “Agh!” Keila grasped for her arm, not getting up from the ground. “Keila!” Morning tried to get to her, but Mirror was already on her, swinging her claws at her. The ex-Assassin reached into her coat and pulled out her katana, blocking Mirror with it. Mirror instead stepped down on Morning’s foot, the talons on her feet piercing the former Assassin’s shoe and biting deep. The black dagger swiped dangerously close to Morning’s face, and she backpedaled to avoid the deadly weapon. Pierce unsheathed his hidden blade and made a stab at Mirror. Mirror grabbed his hidden blade with her hand and squeezed, and there was a splintering noise as the blade broke in her grip. “Your Assassin tricks won’t work on me,” she gloated, thrusting her dagger at Pierce, who leapt away, almost falling on his feet, barely missing the tiny droplets of poison as they jumped off the blade. “Then try this on for size, witch,” Pierce said, bringing up his gun and shooting Mirror in the chest, aiming for her heart. The bullet struck Mirror square in the chest and bounced off, pinging on the ground. “What?” “Hehe… hahaha.” Mirror surged forward, her dagger held high. Pierce was pushed against a wall, using his left hand to keep the dagger from falling. His right hand squeezed the trigger, the gun pressed against Mirror’s heart. “How are you…?” Mirror smirked, pushing the dagger down toward his shoulder. “Bulletproof underwear. Never leave home without it.” Green flames flickered in her mouth as she pushed the dagger down. “Now die.” “Not yet!” Both Morning Blade and Keila jammed a blade in Mirror Match’s sides, one on the left, the other on the right. They pulled her to the side, allowing Pierce to stumble away, falling on his side and reloading his pistol. “You dare interfere with me!” Mirror screeched in her dual-tone voice, claws flashing as she opened a line of blood on Morning Blade’s arm. “Do you know who I am?” “No, and I don’t care,” Pierce said, pointing his gun and firing, this time hitting Mirror in the abdomen, and was rewarded with a spray of red. Morning and Keila backed off as he emptied his magazine into Mirror’s body, causing her to stagger away from them, still clutching her dagger as if it were a lifeline. “Haah… haah…” Mirror panted, holding her arms close to her body as more green flames licked up at her wounds. But then, the fire seemed to peter out and die, leaving Mirror with a look of dismay and shock on her face. “No… not now…” she gasped, falling to her knees. “I’m not done yet…” “It is over.” Morning Blade unsheathed her katana and held it close to Mirror Match’s neck. “You’ve run out now, witch.” Pierce limped closer, pointing his pistol at her head. “You thought you could beat us, but you were already lacking when you came to find me. It was only a matter of time before you finally ran out of juice. You should’ve left in peace. That way, none of us would have to go through all this.” “It would seem that I’ve underestimated you, Network,” Mirror Match groaned, blood running from the corner of her mouth. “A man more deserving of an execution I wouldn’t think of.” “Look who’s talking!” Morning raised her katana until it was just under Mirror Match’s neck, the steel touching her flesh. “I… suppose you’re going to kill me now…” Mirror said ruefully. “Winner take all and all that…” “It’s over,” Keila said, brandishing her daggers. “Game, set and match.” “Over?” A new, female voice boomed from above. “Why, if you’ll forgive me for being cliched, I think it’s just getting started.” The three former Assassins looked up. Silhouetted against the moon, standing on the top of a crane, was a dark figure with long, flowing hair. The figure dropped down, landing in a crouch between Mirror Match and the former Assassins, transitioning her motion into a low spinning sweep kick that ignited a circle of green flames around herself and Mirror Match, forcing the former Assassins to step back to avoid the fire. As the ring of fire slowly crackled its way into oblivion, the figure stood up, illuminated by the moonlight. It wasn’t one of their old enemies. It wasn’t even a Templar.