Tiffany was pushed inside the giant mansion through the double doors. 3 stories tall it had a spacious atrium like entrance. Fancy tile on the floor, wood staircase in front of her, expensive items all around; it was easily the nicest house she’d ever been in.
Zora was thrown to the ground next to her. “Hey you fuck. That’s my girlfriend,” Tiff blurted. Her chest pushing against the Aleksi guy she wished she had put more into strength. She was going to but with Flight she had begun to focus back on mind stats for the mana increase.
Aleksi pushed her away. Tiff didn’t fall, but she almost did. Her hands tied behind her back, this was not how she liked to be handcuffed.
“Get them upstairs with the others,” Aleksi ordered 2 men.
“Ah your little jailbird,” a man’s voice boomed. He was over 6’-6'' tall. More muscle than fat, he made an imposing figure to have to fight.
“Yes Nicolai,” Aleksi said. The handler was very scared of the big man. Tiff could easily see that by his now timid demeanor.
“And the others?” Nicolai asked lazily.
“We will find them,” Aleksi said.
The leader, she assumed, was staring them up and down. He looked at her and said, “bring her to me after the meeting.” He apparently didn’t like the disgusted look she gave him. Or her dry heaving as she was dragged upstairs. They were extra rough with her, but she could take it. Sometimes she liked it a little rough.
They were let into a room. It was overly large with bunks lining the walls. A few girls were sitting at a table talking but quieted down as the door opened. “Couple of new ones for you Polina,” the guard said.
An older woman walked up to them as the guard left. “Ah Zora. I was wondering when you’d be back. You lasted much longer this time,” the older woman said.
Her hand going to Zora’s chin, the small girl flinched. “Don’t touch her,” Tiffany yelled. Pushing her body into the older woman’s. The old lady slapped her. It was alright. But no follow through. Tiffany headbutted her in the nose. The old broad crumbled to the ground with that. You couldn’t fight the pain of a nose injury. She let out a loud yell before collapsing.
Tiff kicked her in the gut for good measure. Her eyes darted up to the other girls. “Alright you’re all my bitches now. I’m Queen Bitch 1. This is my main squeeze,” she said to Zora. “Now someone get me out of these handcuffs.” There was a small window near the ceiling. She could fly them out one by one.
A guard then came in from the commotion. He looked at the girls, then to the old lady on the ground, and walked out without a word.
“Move it people,” she said angrily. “I’ll break all your noses if you don’t move it now.” She had plenty of fun things in her spatial necklace, but never put handcuff keys in there. Very stupid of her.
As the girls began to move the door opened a second time. The guard headed for Tiff. She tried to kick and move out of the way. He soon had her by the elbow. “No, let her go,” Zora pleaded as she kicked.
The mute man simply pushed her away as he dragged Tiffany out. Her hands cuffed, she looked for anything. But there was no weapon. No window she could jump from. His grip was too tight. She could have flown away a while ago, but she wasn’t about to leave Zora behind.
“Here she is,” the guard said, throwing her into a bedroom at the end of the hall. Nicolai was there. In a suit somehow big enough for his overly large body. He sipped a clear liquid while he studied her.
“I was going to wait until tonight,” he said as the guard left. “Yet you are spirited.”
“Oh yeah?” She asked, looking around. There was a perfect balcony across from her where she could fly away. She could bring Asher there and get Zora before anything bad happened. But she needed to be smart about it, no sudden movements.
The large man looked her up and down. Her skin began to crawl. It wasn’t till he looked at her necklace that he stopped. Moving more quickly than she had expected he was in front of her.
Taking her necklace in hand he ripped it off of her.
“I know this necklace,” he said, looking it over. Then a bright light was in his hand. A water bottle appeared. “Everyone always stores water,” he said, having pulled from her necklace.
She gulped. “System User?” He nodded.
“What is your power girl?” He asked. His breath stank of vodka. She didn’t think it was a stereotype, just the truth.
She did not answer, just moved closer to the balcony. “No matter,” he said. A white light appeared in his hand. Another necklace materialized in his palm. The figure of the necklace was a circle with an X through it. She tried to move but he draped it over her head before she could get away. Then the message appeared.
| NYMPHOMANIAC SYSTEM DORMANT |
Fear coursing through her she tried to use Flight. Nothing happened. None of her skills were there. The necklace was blocking her. Bringing up her status screen her stats were all the same, but her skills were grayed out. Shaking her head around she tried to get it off. She bucked like a wild horse trying to throw a rider. It wouldn’t move. Like it was glued to her skin.
“Now. Let’s have some fun,” Nicolai said. Unzipping his pants he let his dick out.
She forced a laugh looking at the thing. “I always wanted my clit to be pierced with a stud,” she roared laughing as she backed up. “That’s small enough to get the job done.”
He stared at her. Then became angry. Electricity danced across his fingers like a spiderweb.
“Is it soft? Or can it get any smaller?” She asked. He grabbed her by the throat.
“You talk big girl,” he said. His fist was now covered with electricity. “Let’s see how brave you are when we are done.”
“My boyfriend is going to kill you,” she said. Spitting at him. With that an explosion hit the building. The loud boom shook the house. A fire alarm began screaming somewhere far away. Gunshots soon erupted from outside. Then they sounded much louder as the guns were fired inside the mansion.
The 2 of them were drawn to the door as it burst open. “Sir Batman is here.”
Nicolai looked from the guard to her to back to the guard. “During the day?” He asked. The guard nodded and ran off. Then the yelling started outside the room.
“You are dating Batman?” Nicolai asked. Unbelieving he was asking the question.
Tiffany laughed. “No Batman is my boyfriend’s sidekick.”
—
Asher pulled the truck to a stop with squealing brakes. He had sped the entire way there. He thought an officer was chasing him at one point but lost him. They were literally in the middle of nowhere. Nothing but woods surrounded him, and his destination was just ahead.
His phone rang. It was in his hand instantly. “I’m here,” Batman’s deep voice said on the other line.
“You get the quest too?” Asher asked.
“Yep.”
“Good,” he said, reading the quest again.
| RED QUEST ALERT |
| Nicolai Baranov has used his System to endanger other users. |
| Assist in his subjugation/termination |
| Time Limit: N/A |
| Quest Rewards: |
| Experience Points |
| Syscos |
| Random Item |
“You got eyes on the place?” Asher asked.
“Yep. Few guards with guns out back. No one at the front.” His voice sounded mechanical. Asher could hear the engine roar in the background noise.
“Ok. Get their attention. I’ll go through the front.”
“You sure kid? We can wait. Wayne said they’re mobilizing now,” Batman asked.
“I’m sure. No more half measures. Give me 5 minutes then make a lot of noise. Good luck,” he said and cut the line. Asher needed everything in his arsenal right then.
| Roleplay Skill Activating |
He was Quinten Hardly. Professional killer. This was nothing to him. A simple extraction. He could do this in his sleep if he needed to. Russians were tricky though. They liked guns almost as much as Americans did.
Going through his inventory his finger touched the Bloodless. “Better fucking work,” he said aloud. Then he put the truck back in drive and headed toward the mansion. His ever scanning eyes caught cameras mounted on trees. There was no gate. Just a long paved road between lines of trees.
A large fountain in the front turnabout, the 3 story home towered over it. He began to breathe slowly. A part of his mind had begun counting down from 300 when he hung up the phone with Batman.
At 250 he slammed on the gas. His tires squealed as he shot forward. He really wanted a gun, but he only had a sword and daggers. They would have to do. He had to make this count. His women were on the line. He would save them. There was no die trying.
Then the explosion happened. The Bat was somewhere on the other side of the mansion. Quin barely dodged the fountain as his truck came to a halt. Out the door his long sword was in hand trailing behind him. Bullets and gunfire going off out back Quin kicked the door once. It burst open like it was made of paper.
“What the-“ somebody said beside him. He lost his head with a slash. It landed at the bottom of the stairs ahead. It had been on instinct, Quin barely had to think about it as his blade killed his first person. A big part of him said to ignore that fact. He hesitated a moment. That was deadly.
Then someone fired their gun wildly in his direction. The bullets splintered the door wood as they passed through toward him. No more hesitation. He guessed their location. With a slow exhale Quin took a step past the door throwing his blade in a smooth motion. It soared through the air impaling the man. The henchman was thrown with the thick steel until it embedded itself on the wall. His battle instincts calling him, Quin ducked. He was barely missed by a spray of bullets. The bullets embedded themselves in the door. Was his Bloodless already out?
Taking the headless man’s weapon Quin fired blindly until he heard a scream. The henchman fired in the air as he died. How cliche, Quin thought.
The room was clear. Yelling and screaming had stopped sounding from the back of the house. Quin ripped the Uzi from the man’s dead hands. His eyes always moving he caught movement ahead. 2 men tried to run across the hall under the stairs. Quin fired a spray of bullets. Both stumbled after clearing the hallway. 5 down.
Cautiously moving inside he pulled his sword out of the shishkabob. Taking the man’s gun as well he willed his own sword away. A part of him was angry with himself for not training more. He could lift 1000 pounds with ease. What could guns do to him? He should be faster than they could shoot at him. Quin would rectify this mistake as soon as possible. Tiffany had made him soft.
Eyes scanning. He walked up the stairs. The bad guy was always upstairs. Something tickling the back of his mind he pulled up his status screen. The camera icon was there. He found 3 cameras directed at him. He cursed, they had eyes on him at all times.
Time to speed things up, he thought. But speed meant mistakes. As he came up the stairs he was met with silence. He knew they were there. He could feel them. There was a large opening at the top of the stairs into the main 2nd floor hallway. He poked his head out and was met with a bullet to the head.
Quin watched as it stopped inches from his face and dropped. His own gun firing, he killed the man who almost killed him. The Bloodless was a good buy.
No one else in the hall, he yelled, “Zora! Tiffany!”
There was some movement at the other end of the hall. A man in black jumped out firing. Another bullet was stopped in front of his chest. Quin sprayed him with bullets and he fell.
“Tiff! Zora!” He yelled again. Fishing.
Nothing took a bite. He approached a door. There were muffled voices on the other side of the door. He kicked the door in. It flew off and some girls screamed.
Quin walked in and recognized 2 of them. “Aleksi you fuck,” Quin said angrily.
The mobster held a handgun to Zora’s head. She was crying. Some girls in the back of the room huddled in fear. “You!” Aleksi said. “I almost didn’t recognize you. The porn star coming for the girl.” He spat.
“For my girl, yes,” he said. His face was cold. Sweat ran down it, but Quin was focused. He repositioned his grip on the gun in each hand.
“Drop them,” Aleksi ordered. His grip tightened on the gun at Zora’s head. His hand over her mouth she continued to cry. Her eyes were bloodshot.
“If I do, you shoot her, then me,” Quin said logically. “Now if you promise to shoot me then her, I can make these disappear.” He had to keep Aleksi’s focus on him. He didn’t want Zora to be in the equation at all when Aleksi thought of danger.
“Fine, I'll kill you first. The guns, drop now,” Aleksi said.
They disappeared in a white light as Quin ran forward. Aleksi moved his hand toward Quin. The System user pushed his strength to the max. But it wasn’t enough. They were 20 feet away, but not for long.
1 shot stopped in mid air. Aleksi didn’t notice as he fired another. Then another. He was unloading his clip. It wasn’t until the 5th shot that it hit Quin in the chest. The bullet hit at just the right angle to ricochet off his breastplate.
He wasn’t so lucky at the 6th shot. His sword appearing in hand he raised it up as the 7th and 8th shots hit him. Then the blade slid through Aleksi’s throat like butter. Quin knocked the gun away from him and kept pushing the blade forward. Blood gushed from Aleksi’s mouth and throat as he was impaled with the thick steel.
He coughed up globs of blood. Gurgled his last breath. His finger kept pulling an invisible trigger. It was the act of a dead man. One Quin had now seen many times. When he stopped moving Quin pulled his blade out. He stumbled backward. The momentum was out of him.
3 bullets somewhere inside his body he didn’t bother to look. He stumbled back again but Zora was behind him. She stopped his fall. Crying she clutched at his metal breastplate. Suddenly strength filled him as he remembered why he was there. He turned around to look at her.
Aleksi’s blood was on the side of her face. It was a stark contrast to her pale skin. “Hey beautiful,” he whispered. His hand moved blood under her cheek.
“What are you doing here?” She asked between sobs.
“Saving you. Of course.” His chest began to feel pain. It was a little hard to breathe. “You’re my girlfriend,” he said. “And I love you,” he whispered in her ear.
She sobbed more at the statement. Holding him with all of her strength. He gave her 60 seconds to get it all out, but she only cried harder. “Hey. Where’s Tiffany?” He asked.
She broke out from her sob at that. “I think Nicolai has her, his room is at the end of the hall.”
He nodded. He pulled a gun out from his ring. “Here, anyone comes in but me or Batman or the police, you shoot.”
She nodded, taking the gun. He willed his other Uzi out. Now with blade and gun in hand he headed out into the hall. One of the girls asked, “did he say Batman,” but he ignored them.
The hallway empty, he saw the double doors at the end of the hall. Boss room, he thought as he walked. More cameras on him. He knew the guy could see him. The boss could tell Quin was coming for him.
Quinten bent down in a runners pose. Lend me strength, he prayed. Then put all his power into running forward. He reached his max speed in 2 strides. The door began to be pierced by bullets a step away. Quin did not slow, he charged the door like it wasn’t there. Stings of bullets hitting him, he dive-rolled through a table. His instincts guided him to slide to the left. Another bullet pierced his skin. This time in his neck. Blood poured out as he slid behind a bed.
“Ash!” Tiffany yelled from the opposite side of the room. A balcony next to them Quinten saw the corner of a desk at the other side of the large room. Plans moved through his mind. Jumping out the balcony. Using the mattress of the bed. Nothing sounded good. A puddle of blood began to form underneath him. His status screen came up. 7 HP left.
“You ok babe?” He asked. His voice was hoarse. It hurt to breathe let alone talk. His HP dropped down to 5.
“I’m alright,” she said.
“Why didn’t you fly away my love?” He asked.
“He put some System necklace on me. Blocks my powers,” she admitted. “He’s a System User,” she said.
“Oh yeah? Very interesting….” A plan was forming at the reminder of the quest. “Mr. Nicolai I assume.” A voice grunted a reply. “I’ve come for my girlfriends. But the System has given me a quest to kill you. It deems you a danger to other users.” His health ticked down to 4. “I assume you won’t let the girl go. I’m guessing you’re using her like a shield right now. Didn’t help Aleksi. But you might get lucky. So hear me out. I challenge you to a duel. No guns. Only our fists and what the System has to offer.”
“Terms?” The man yelled.
“To death of course,” Quin spat. “No one touches my girls and lives.” Coughing up blood his health dropped down to 3. “I’ve been shot about 8 times. Should be easy.”
“Alright. Let’s make this quick dead man,” he said. Then the screen popped up.
| DUEL REQUEST |
| A User has requested a duel with you. |
| Time Limit: N/A |
| Terms |
| Only System Related Items |
| To the Death |
| Rewards |
| The loser's Syscos |
| Accept: |
| Y/N |
“What the fuck,” he said. “This is a thing? This son of a bitch System,” he added. “You get the duel request too?” Asher asked.
“Da.”
“We both click and I come out,” he said, storing his gun. Quinten waited a moment then clicked Y.
| The Duel has been Accepted by Both Parties |
| Good Luck |
He stood with a grunt. Tiffany let out a sob when she saw him. Blood poured out his throat and down his breastplate. His pants were soaked in it from the holes in his chest. There was even one in his leg that he didn’t notice.
Nicolai pointed a gun at him. “You going to challenge the System?” Quinten asked. “Dumb man.” A confident smile was on Quin’s face, most of it was bravado, he was hurting.
Nicolai looked at the gun then at Quin. His gun disappeared in a white light. “You are dead anyway.”
With that Asher’s health dropped to 2. Willing his potion to hand he drank from it deeply. He had bought this so long ago for just such an occasion. He would have done it before the duel, but when he saw System items in the duel notification he waited.
Now he watched as bullets pushed out of his skin. With a sigh he watched his HP go to full. Nicolai’s face twisted in anger. Quinten studied him then. He was bigger, taller than him. And muscular. Pulling his glasses out of his ring he read his level.
Human
Lvl 17
He willed them away. He was lower level, but Quin had title stats. Then again maybe the guy had some too.
“Shall we start?” Quinten asked as the lightning bolt shot from the foe. Tiff was still in his arms. Quin’s Battle Instincts saved him as he dodged down. Willing a dagger in hand he ran toward the balcony. When the blade fully formed he threw it. The edge hit Nicolai’s outstretched hand as another bolt shot out from his palm.
Tiff then stomped on Nicolai’s foot and ducked down. Quin lunged toward his dueling partner. His Guts’ blade in hand cut through the air as he brought it toward the big man. His sword was met by another.
They pushed their blades against one another. “What are you? A mage?” Quin asked.
Lightning began to coat Nicolai’s sword. He didn’t answer but Quin guessed he was right. Lightning then shot from the blade and hit Quin in the chest. His muscles convulsed as Nicolai pushed him back.
Pain searing through him he forced it back as he began to push toward Nicolai. They were at a standstill. Strength against strength. No one pulled back or parried. Neither really knew what they were doing with swords instead of fists or guns.
He gritted his teeth pushing hard. He was at full health but exhausted. Sweat poured down Quin’s face but he pushed. Nicolai began to lose ground until his back was knocked into a bookcase.
“Warrior I presume,” Nicolai said.
Quin shook his head. He began to will a dagger from his ring in the air next to him. “Porn Star,” he said. Letting his sword go with one hand he punched Nicolai in the nose. He grabbed the now materialized blade from the air. Casting Justice instantly, he stabbed Nicolai in the heart.
Nicolai stood there for a moment. His eyes on the blade in his chest, and then to Quin’s face. Without a fuss he dropped to the ground dead. His last breath was long. Quin would have preferred it end sooner.
Tiffany was pushed inside the giant mansion through the double doors. 3 stories tall it had a spacious atrium like entrance. Fancy tile on the floor, wood staircase in front of her, expensive items all around; it was easily the nicest house she’d ever been in.
Zora was thrown to the ground next to her. “Hey you fuck. That’s my girlfriend,” Tiff blurted. Her chest pushing against the Aleksi guy she wished she had put more into strength. She was going to but with Flight she had begun to focus back on mind stats for the mana increase.
Aleksi pushed her away. Tiff didn’t fall, but she almost did. Her hands tied behind her back, this was not how she liked to be handcuffed.
“Get them upstairs with the others,” Aleksi ordered 2 men.
“Ah your little jailbird,” a man’s voice boomed. He was over 6’-6'' tall. More muscle than fat, he made an imposing figure to have to fight.
“Yes Nicolai,” Aleksi said. The handler was very scared of the big man. Tiff could easily see that by his now timid demeanor.
“And the others?” Nicolai asked lazily.
“We will find them,” Aleksi said.
The leader, she assumed, was staring them up and down. He looked at her and said, “bring her to me after the meeting.” He apparently didn’t like the disgusted look she gave him. Or her dry heaving as she was dragged upstairs. They were extra rough with her, but she could take it. Sometimes she liked it a little rough.
They were let into a room. It was overly large with bunks lining the walls. A few girls were sitting at a table talking but quieted down as the door opened. “Couple of new ones for you Polina,” the guard said.
An older woman walked up to them as the guard left. “Ah Zora. I was wondering when you’d be back. You lasted much longer this time,” the older woman said.
Her hand going to Zora’s chin, the small girl flinched. “Don’t touch her,” Tiffany yelled. Pushing her body into the older woman’s. The old lady slapped her. It was alright. But no follow through. Tiffany headbutted her in the nose. The old broad crumbled to the ground with that. You couldn’t fight the pain of a nose injury. She let out a loud yell before collapsing.
Tiff kicked her in the gut for good measure. Her eyes darted up to the other girls. “Alright you’re all my bitches now. I’m Queen Bitch 1. This is my main squeeze,” she said to Zora. “Now someone get me out of these handcuffs.” There was a small window near the ceiling. She could fly them out one by one.
A guard then came in from the commotion. He looked at the girls, then to the old lady on the ground, and walked out without a word.
“Move it people,” she said angrily. “I’ll break all your noses if you don’t move it now.” She had plenty of fun things in her spatial necklace, but never put handcuff keys in there. Very stupid of her.
As the girls began to move the door opened a second time. The guard headed for Tiff. She tried to kick and move out of the way. He soon had her by the elbow. “No, let her go,” Zora pleaded as she kicked.
The mute man simply pushed her away as he dragged Tiffany out. Her hands cuffed, she looked for anything. But there was no weapon. No window she could jump from. His grip was too tight. She could have flown away a while ago, but she wasn’t about to leave Zora behind.
“Here she is,” the guard said, throwing her into a bedroom at the end of the hall. Nicolai was there. In a suit somehow big enough for his overly large body. He sipped a clear liquid while he studied her.
“I was going to wait until tonight,” he said as the guard left. “Yet you are spirited.”
“Oh yeah?” She asked, looking around. There was a perfect balcony across from her where she could fly away. She could bring Asher there and get Zora before anything bad happened. But she needed to be smart about it, no sudden movements.
The large man looked her up and down. Her skin began to crawl. It wasn’t till he looked at her necklace that he stopped. Moving more quickly than she had expected he was in front of her.
Taking her necklace in hand he ripped it off of her.
“I know this necklace,” he said, looking it over. Then a bright light was in his hand. A water bottle appeared. “Everyone always stores water,” he said, having pulled from her necklace.
She gulped. “System User?” He nodded.
“What is your power girl?” He asked. His breath stank of vodka. She didn’t think it was a stereotype, just the truth.
She did not answer, just moved closer to the balcony. “No matter,” he said. A white light appeared in his hand. Another necklace materialized in his palm. The figure of the necklace was a circle with an X through it. She tried to move but he draped it over her head before she could get away. Then the message appeared.
| NYMPHOMANIAC SYSTEM DORMANT |
Fear coursing through her she tried to use Flight. Nothing happened. None of her skills were there. The necklace was blocking her. Bringing up her status screen her stats were all the same, but her skills were grayed out. Shaking her head around she tried to get it off. She bucked like a wild horse trying to throw a rider. It wouldn’t move. Like it was glued to her skin.
“Now. Let’s have some fun,” Nicolai said. Unzipping his pants he let his dick out.
She forced a laugh looking at the thing. “I always wanted my clit to be pierced with a stud,” she roared laughing as she backed up. “That’s small enough to get the job done.”
He stared at her. Then became angry. Electricity danced across his fingers like a spiderweb.
“Is it soft? Or can it get any smaller?” She asked. He grabbed her by the throat.
“You talk big girl,” he said. His fist was now covered with electricity. “Let’s see how brave you are when we are done.”
“My boyfriend is going to kill you,” she said. Spitting at him. With that an explosion hit the building. The loud boom shook the house. A fire alarm began screaming somewhere far away. Gunshots soon erupted from outside. Then they sounded much louder as the guns were fired inside the mansion.
The 2 of them were drawn to the door as it burst open. “Sir Batman is here.”
Nicolai looked from the guard to her to back to the guard. “During the day?” He asked. The guard nodded and ran off. Then the yelling started outside the room.
“You are dating Batman?” Nicolai asked. Unbelieving he was asking the question.
Tiffany laughed. “No Batman is my boyfriend’s sidekick.”
—
Asher pulled the truck to a stop with squealing brakes. He had sped the entire way there. He thought an officer was chasing him at one point but lost him. They were literally in the middle of nowhere. Nothing but woods surrounded him, and his destination was just ahead.
His phone rang. It was in his hand instantly. “I’m here,” Batman’s deep voice said on the other line.
“You get the quest too?” Asher asked.
“Yep.”
“Good,” he said, reading the quest again.
| RED QUEST ALERT |
| Nicolai Baranov has used his System to endanger other users. |
| Assist in his subjugation/termination |
| Time Limit: N/A |
| Quest Rewards: |
| Experience Points |
| Syscos |
| Random Item |
“You got eyes on the place?” Asher asked.
“Yep. Few guards with guns out back. No one at the front.” His voice sounded mechanical. Asher could hear the engine roar in the background noise.
“Ok. Get their attention. I’ll go through the front.”
“You sure kid? We can wait. Wayne said they’re mobilizing now,” Batman asked.
“I’m sure. No more half measures. Give me 5 minutes then make a lot of noise. Good luck,” he said and cut the line. Asher needed everything in his arsenal right then.
| Roleplay Skill Activating |
He was Quinten Hardly. Professional killer. This was nothing to him. A simple extraction. He could do this in his sleep if he needed to. Russians were tricky though. They liked guns almost as much as Americans did.
Going through his inventory his finger touched the Bloodless. “Better fucking work,” he said aloud. Then he put the truck back in drive and headed toward the mansion. His ever scanning eyes caught cameras mounted on trees. There was no gate. Just a long paved road between lines of trees.
A large fountain in the front turnabout, the 3 story home towered over it. He began to breathe slowly. A part of his mind had begun counting down from 300 when he hung up the phone with Batman.
At 250 he slammed on the gas. His tires squealed as he shot forward. He really wanted a gun, but he only had a sword and daggers. They would have to do. He had to make this count. His women were on the line. He would save them. There was no die trying.
Then the explosion happened. The Bat was somewhere on the other side of the mansion. Quin barely dodged the fountain as his truck came to a halt. Out the door his long sword was in hand trailing behind him. Bullets and gunfire going off out back Quin kicked the door once. It burst open like it was made of paper.
“What the-“ somebody said beside him. He lost his head with a slash. It landed at the bottom of the stairs ahead. It had been on instinct, Quin barely had to think about it as his blade killed his first person. A big part of him said to ignore that fact. He hesitated a moment. That was deadly.
Then someone fired their gun wildly in his direction. The bullets splintered the door wood as they passed through toward him. No more hesitation. He guessed their location. With a slow exhale Quin took a step past the door throwing his blade in a smooth motion. It soared through the air impaling the man. The henchman was thrown with the thick steel until it embedded itself on the wall. His battle instincts calling him, Quin ducked. He was barely missed by a spray of bullets. The bullets embedded themselves in the door. Was his Bloodless already out?
Taking the headless man’s weapon Quin fired blindly until he heard a scream. The henchman fired in the air as he died. How cliche, Quin thought.
The room was clear. Yelling and screaming had stopped sounding from the back of the house. Quin ripped the Uzi from the man’s dead hands. His eyes always moving he caught movement ahead. 2 men tried to run across the hall under the stairs. Quin fired a spray of bullets. Both stumbled after clearing the hallway. 5 down.
Cautiously moving inside he pulled his sword out of the shishkabob. Taking the man’s gun as well he willed his own sword away. A part of him was angry with himself for not training more. He could lift 1000 pounds with ease. What could guns do to him? He should be faster than they could shoot at him. Quin would rectify this mistake as soon as possible. Tiffany had made him soft.
Eyes scanning. He walked up the stairs. The bad guy was always upstairs. Something tickling the back of his mind he pulled up his status screen. The camera icon was there. He found 3 cameras directed at him. He cursed, they had eyes on him at all times.
Time to speed things up, he thought. But speed meant mistakes. As he came up the stairs he was met with silence. He knew they were there. He could feel them. There was a large opening at the top of the stairs into the main 2nd floor hallway. He poked his head out and was met with a bullet to the head.
Quin watched as it stopped inches from his face and dropped. His own gun firing, he killed the man who almost killed him. The Bloodless was a good buy.
No one else in the hall, he yelled, “Zora! Tiffany!”
There was some movement at the other end of the hall. A man in black jumped out firing. Another bullet was stopped in front of his chest. Quin sprayed him with bullets and he fell.
“Tiff! Zora!” He yelled again. Fishing.
Nothing took a bite. He approached a door. There were muffled voices on the other side of the door. He kicked the door in. It flew off and some girls screamed.
Quin walked in and recognized 2 of them. “Aleksi you fuck,” Quin said angrily.
The mobster held a handgun to Zora’s head. She was crying. Some girls in the back of the room huddled in fear. “You!” Aleksi said. “I almost didn’t recognize you. The porn star coming for the girl.” He spat.
“For my girl, yes,” he said. His face was cold. Sweat ran down it, but Quin was focused. He repositioned his grip on the gun in each hand.
“Drop them,” Aleksi ordered. His grip tightened on the gun at Zora’s head. His hand over her mouth she continued to cry. Her eyes were bloodshot.
“If I do, you shoot her, then me,” Quin said logically. “Now if you promise to shoot me then her, I can make these disappear.” He had to keep Aleksi’s focus on him. He didn’t want Zora to be in the equation at all when Aleksi thought of danger.
“Fine, I'll kill you first. The guns, drop now,” Aleksi said.
They disappeared in a white light as Quin ran forward. Aleksi moved his hand toward Quin. The System user pushed his strength to the max. But it wasn’t enough. They were 20 feet away, but not for long.
1 shot stopped in mid air. Aleksi didn’t notice as he fired another. Then another. He was unloading his clip. It wasn’t until the 5th shot that it hit Quin in the chest. The bullet hit at just the right angle to ricochet off his breastplate.
He wasn’t so lucky at the 6th shot. His sword appearing in hand he raised it up as the 7th and 8th shots hit him. Then the blade slid through Aleksi’s throat like butter. Quin knocked the gun away from him and kept pushing the blade forward. Blood gushed from Aleksi’s mouth and throat as he was impaled with the thick steel.
He coughed up globs of blood. Gurgled his last breath. His finger kept pulling an invisible trigger. It was the act of a dead man. One Quin had now seen many times. When he stopped moving Quin pulled his blade out. He stumbled backward. The momentum was out of him.
3 bullets somewhere inside his body he didn’t bother to look. He stumbled back again but Zora was behind him. She stopped his fall. Crying she clutched at his metal breastplate. Suddenly strength filled him as he remembered why he was there. He turned around to look at her.
Aleksi’s blood was on the side of her face. It was a stark contrast to her pale skin. “Hey beautiful,” he whispered. His hand moved blood under her cheek.
“What are you doing here?” She asked between sobs.
“Saving you. Of course.” His chest began to feel pain. It was a little hard to breathe. “You’re my girlfriend,” he said. “And I love you,” he whispered in her ear.
She sobbed more at the statement. Holding him with all of her strength. He gave her 60 seconds to get it all out, but she only cried harder. “Hey. Where’s Tiffany?” He asked.
She broke out from her sob at that. “I think Nicolai has her, his room is at the end of the hall.”
He nodded. He pulled a gun out from his ring. “Here, anyone comes in but me or Batman or the police, you shoot.”
She nodded, taking the gun. He willed his other Uzi out. Now with blade and gun in hand he headed out into the hall. One of the girls asked, “did he say Batman,” but he ignored them.
The hallway empty, he saw the double doors at the end of the hall. Boss room, he thought as he walked. More cameras on him. He knew the guy could see him. The boss could tell Quin was coming for him.
Quinten bent down in a runners pose. Lend me strength, he prayed. Then put all his power into running forward. He reached his max speed in 2 strides. The door began to be pierced by bullets a step away. Quin did not slow, he charged the door like it wasn’t there. Stings of bullets hitting him, he dive-rolled through a table. His instincts guided him to slide to the left. Another bullet pierced his skin. This time in his neck. Blood poured out as he slid behind a bed.
“Ash!” Tiffany yelled from the opposite side of the room. A balcony next to them Quinten saw the corner of a desk at the other side of the large room. Plans moved through his mind. Jumping out the balcony. Using the mattress of the bed. Nothing sounded good. A puddle of blood began to form underneath him. His status screen came up. 7 HP left.
“You ok babe?” He asked. His voice was hoarse. It hurt to breathe let alone talk. His HP dropped down to 5.
“I’m alright,” she said.
“Why didn’t you fly away my love?” He asked.
“He put some System necklace on me. Blocks my powers,” she admitted. “He’s a System User,” she said.
“Oh yeah? Very interesting….” A plan was forming at the reminder of the quest. “Mr. Nicolai I assume.” A voice grunted a reply. “I’ve come for my girlfriends. But the System has given me a quest to kill you. It deems you a danger to other users.” His health ticked down to 4. “I assume you won’t let the girl go. I’m guessing you’re using her like a shield right now. Didn’t help Aleksi. But you might get lucky. So hear me out. I challenge you to a duel. No guns. Only our fists and what the System has to offer.”
“Terms?” The man yelled.
“To death of course,” Quin spat. “No one touches my girls and lives.” Coughing up blood his health dropped down to 3. “I’ve been shot about 8 times. Should be easy.”
“Alright. Let’s make this quick dead man,” he said. Then the screen popped up.
| DUEL REQUEST |
| A User has requested a duel with you. |
| Time Limit: N/A |
| Terms |
| Only System Related Items |
| To the Death |
| Rewards |
| The loser's Syscos |
| Accept: |
| Y/N |
“What the fuck,” he said. “This is a thing? This son of a bitch System,” he added. “You get the duel request too?” Asher asked.
“Da.”
“We both click and I come out,” he said, storing his gun. Quinten waited a moment then clicked Y.
| The Duel has been Accepted by Both Parties |
| Good Luck |
He stood with a grunt. Tiffany let out a sob when she saw him. Blood poured out his throat and down his breastplate. His pants were soaked in it from the holes in his chest. There was even one in his leg that he didn’t notice.
Nicolai pointed a gun at him. “You going to challenge the System?” Quinten asked. “Dumb man.” A confident smile was on Quin’s face, most of it was bravado, he was hurting.
Nicolai looked at the gun then at Quin. His gun disappeared in a white light. “You are dead anyway.”
With that Asher’s health dropped to 2. Willing his potion to hand he drank from it deeply. He had bought this so long ago for just such an occasion. He would have done it before the duel, but when he saw System items in the duel notification he waited.
Now he watched as bullets pushed out of his skin. With a sigh he watched his HP go to full. Nicolai’s face twisted in anger. Quinten studied him then. He was bigger, taller than him. And muscular. Pulling his glasses out of his ring he read his level.
Human
Lvl 17
He willed them away. He was lower level, but Quin had title stats. Then again maybe the guy had some too.
“Shall we start?” Quinten asked as the lightning bolt shot from the foe. Tiff was still in his arms. Quin’s Battle Instincts saved him as he dodged down. Willing a dagger in hand he ran toward the balcony. When the blade fully formed he threw it. The edge hit Nicolai’s outstretched hand as another bolt shot out from his palm.
Tiff then stomped on Nicolai’s foot and ducked down. Quin lunged toward his dueling partner. His Guts’ blade in hand cut through the air as he brought it toward the big man. His sword was met by another.
They pushed their blades against one another. “What are you? A mage?” Quin asked.
Lightning began to coat Nicolai’s sword. He didn’t answer but Quin guessed he was right. Lightning then shot from the blade and hit Quin in the chest. His muscles convulsed as Nicolai pushed him back.
Pain searing through him he forced it back as he began to push toward Nicolai. They were at a standstill. Strength against strength. No one pulled back or parried. Neither really knew what they were doing with swords instead of fists or guns.
He gritted his teeth pushing hard. He was at full health but exhausted. Sweat poured down Quin’s face but he pushed. Nicolai began to lose ground until his back was knocked into a bookcase.
“Warrior I presume,” Nicolai said.
Quin shook his head. He began to will a dagger from his ring in the air next to him. “Porn Star,” he said. Letting his sword go with one hand he punched Nicolai in the nose. He grabbed the now materialized blade from the air. Casting Justice instantly, he stabbed Nicolai in the heart.
Nicolai stood there for a moment. His eyes on the blade in his chest, and then to Quin’s face. Without a fuss he dropped to the ground dead. His last breath was long. Quin would have preferred it end sooner.
