~The Grubs, the warehouse~
It was a stupid decision. Why did he run forward to save the villain? The villain didn't need that from him, and Oxzy shouldn't even think about saving that man. The horrible person could protect himself. Why would he need Oxzy?
But the hero's body reacted on its own. It did what it wanted without warning, with no control.
The hero waved his hand toward the man, who still managed to let a shot ring out. But instead of hitting Pierce in the back, the bullet flew up and straight into the roof. The man stepped back, stunned at the ice that had formed in front of him.
When he managed to turn toward the source of the cold, the hero swung forward and used his strength to push the man back. The man crashed into other gangsters who were trying to flee from the oncoming hero.
"Fuh-" he managed to cry out before colliding with another person.
They flopped onto the floor, the man holding tightly onto his bruised chest. He shook his head, hearing screams above him. He swiped his head up, locking eyes with a dangerous-looking hero. The whole warehouse fell silent, every eye now on the man who had made his presence known.
The bruised man felt lost for words; the hero he had assaulted stood above him with a deadly glare. The hero's body looked healed, with only a few small marks lining his neck. He wore a disguised uniform, his body straight and his power restored.
They had all been talking about him, and now here he stood—in front of everyone, commanding their full attention. Mostly the villain, who wore a growing smirk. Felix couldn't understand what he was looking at, what was happening.
Not only had one of his men tried to shoot his brother, but the hero was here. The hero had saved him. Felix felt his blood boil—one of his own men had tried to harm Pierce, and now the damn hero had come to save the day.
Felix caught the look in Pierce's eye, the small smile of relief as his once-tense body completely relaxed at the mere sight of Oxzy. The young leader let out a growl, turning to the men standing motionless. All of them stared at Oxzy; a few who had assaulted him looked hesitant, almost fearful. It angered Felix even more. Fear Pierce all you want, he thought, but don't you dare fear the hero.
"Don't just stand there! FUCKING KILL THE HERO!" Felix screamed, his rage spilling out as he forced his men to draw their weapons and attack.
All attention shifted from the villain to the hero. In a split second, the men lunged forward, eyes locked on Oxzy. The hero shifted his feet, braced for an attack—but not from all of them at once. He had hoped the men's fear of Pierce might buy him enough time to find his footing.
But he was already in their sights. The young leader had redirected them, making his men ignore his brother as his fury over the embarrassment turned fully toward the hero.
Yet Oxzy wasn't defenseless anymore. He planted his feet, body and mind ready, and in a split second, a burst of light shocked through the large room. The men took a small step back, giving Oxzy just enough room to seize the moment.
The closest man became his first target. As the light faded from their vision, Oxzy was already in front of him. The man raised his hands, feeling a sharp, cold burn against his skin. It was freezing—he realized the hero had frozen his feet to the ground. He screamed, dropping his gun.
Most of the men regained their sight, and even after witnessing the hero's quick response, they surged forward in a chaotic rush. Oxzy knew he couldn't take them all at once; the numbers would easily overpower him. Still, he moved quickly, dodging the knives flying toward his chest.
As he ducked beneath a blade aimed at his head, his hand shot toward another man's legs. Ice crept from the man's feet up to his knees. Oxzy didn't have time to freeze more than that before he was nearly shot from behind. He dodged to the side, catching a knife's edge across his arm.
He clutched his bleeding shoulder, glaring at the men surrounding him. Slamming his palms onto the floor, he shook the ground—not hard enough to crack it, but enough to rattle the entire building. It wasn't a good idea; too much noise might draw the police, exposing Oxzy, the men, and the villain all at once.
The hero decided to keep his defense quieter, but he knew they needed to end this quickly.
"Fucking bitch!" a man screamed from behind him. The hero turned to see him rise from his knees and sprint forward, while two more men lunged from his left at the same time.
He spun, striking them in the jaw as he dodged the man beside him. But the man who had yelled lunged with outstretched hands, grabbing for the distracted hero. Oxzy growled and stumbled back as a figure intercepted the hand with fire. The flames burned the man's hand, and he collapsed to the floor, clutching it in pain.
The hero looked up to meet a mischievous grin. "Hello, Ox," Pierce said with a smile.
Oxzy's jaw dropped as he tried to process what the villain had just done. He had no time to think before another man lunged at him. Forced to turn his back on Pierce, he threw up his hands to block the man's fist—the same man he had dodged earlier. The hero rolled his eyes in annoyance.
Facing his hand downward, he sent ice climbing up the man's legs. The man yelled, stuck fast to the floor, unable to move as the hero's fist connected with his jaw. He couldn't even collapse properly—his ankle snapped from the force, still frozen in place.
"AHHH!" the man screamed in pain.
"Oh, shit..." The hero realized what he'd done as the man curled around his frozen, broken ankle.
"Oh! Nice one, Oxzy!" the villain hollered from behind him. Pierce had most of the men hesitating, trying to maneuver around him toward the hero—but he used their hesitation to his advantage.
With an outstretched hand, Pierce grabbed the nearest man and drove his elbow into his face, crushing his nose. The man dropped to the ground, but another quickly replaced him. The villain kept a bright, joyous smile on his lips as he lifted his foot and brought it down on the next man's face. Another sickening crunch echoed through the warehouse.
Oxzy, meanwhile, spent most of his energy growing ice to hold the men back, careful not to break any more bones—unlike the villain, who happily crushed arms, faces, and legs without hesitation. The sounds and screams distracted Oxzy as he dodged flying knives only to be met with fists. He lost count of how many times he was hit.
He caught a fist inches from his face. The man was massive, far stronger, and quickly overpowered the already exhausted hero. Oxzy tried to shift his focus to freeze the ground beneath them, but the man anticipated the move. Throwing his full weight onto Oxzy, he used his legs to slam the hero to the ground.
Pinned beneath him, Oxzy struggled to keep the man's fists from his face. The man above him roared, drawing the attention of a few others who began maneuvering around Pierce. The villain used his long legs to shove them back before finally noticing Oxzy pinned to the ground.
Pierce laughed, pushing his way to the hero. He moved his hand in front of the large man's face. Black dust quickly formed, going into his mouth and nose. The man flung himself up, scratching and clawing at his face.
The hero used his hands to push himself away from the man, lifting his leg and kicking him in the groin. The large man held onto his groin while his face was sucked into a black void. It went up his nose, suffocating him while he fell onto the floor.
Someone lifted the hero from the ground, a hand around his waist to steady him. He glanced to his side, finding Pierce's smile beside him. "Floor slippery, huh?"
The hero looked at him with annoyance, shoving him away as more men came forward. "Shut it—"
"Fuck, Mark!" a man yelled, jumping from behind Pierce. The villain moved left to dodge the attacking man, who fell to the floor with a scattering knife. The villain smirked, landing his foot on top of the man's head.
It crashed into the ground, a muffled scream hitting the floor. A shot rang out from behind the villain. Still, he heard it before it came, ducked, and the bullet flew past, hitting another man. With his foot still on the back of the first man's head, Pierce swung his hand at the shooter. Fire blew forward, hitting the gun. The flames spread up the man's hand before he could drop it. He screamed, trying to brush them off.
Pierce rolled his eyes, feeling the man beneath his foot squirm. With a quick look down, the villain pushed his foot harder, crushing the man's head beneath it.
The villain then moved closer to the hero, who had kicked a man away from him and thrown his hands down to freeze several others in place. Pierce punched another man who tried to use the distraction to throw a knife at the hero's exposed arm. The hero glanced at Pierce, noticing a face emerging behind him with an aimed gun.
Without thinking, Oxzy ducked under Pierce's outstretched hand, swinging his own hand up and knocking the gun from the man's grip. A bullet fired upward as the gun hit the ground. Oxzy crushed it underfoot, striking the man in the process. The villain smiled, kicking away a knife that had been aimed at the hero's chest from the side.
The two worked together without even noticing. It became clear that they were guarding one another against the continuing barrage of knives and the occasional gun, bullets spiraling past them. Neither realized what they were doing—both simply tried to avoid the weapons.
Felix found his feet wobbling beneath him. His eyes strained forward, watching the villain and hero dodge every attack. Pierce moved back, his back crashing into the hero's. They kept themselves grounded, using each other's weight to stay upright. Oxzy flung ice at the men with guns, striking them in the face. It hit hard, sending them to the floor. Their guns were soon lost, giving Oxzy the chance to focus more on the men with close-range weapons.
His arms felt limp, his mind slowly fading from the extensive use of his powers. He ducked again, running under Pierce's arm as the villain smashed another man's face with his fist. The villain seemed to carry on without hardship, clearly enjoying himself if his expression was any indication.
The hero glanced at Felix while Pierce handled the rest of the men. Felix glared daggers at him, his face deep red. His fists shook with rage as he kept yelling, directing his men to kill Oxzy. It was becoming futile—the men grew too hesitant. Some even ran away, which only made the little leader fume harder.
"What the hell are you men doing!?" Felix shouted, scanning the ground for a spare gun. He growled, stomping forward and snatching one up.
With a click, he reloaded it, turning toward Pierce and Oxzy. The barrel moved to the hero's head. Since Pierce was distracted—or rather, busy handling the men surrounding them—Oxzy was the one who noticed the little leader closing in.
The gun fired twice. Oxzy dodged the flying bullets, ducking his head as Felix yelled in anger. Pierce looked up, sensing a cold, menacing aura behind him. The hero tried to block the bullets that followed one after another, but it was too much—with each shot, Felix stepped closer.
Pierce turned around, kicking a knife up into his own hand. His brother was close now, close enough for the villain to grab hold of his wrist. Felix stopped shooting, eyes wide at the sight of his brother.
"Tell your men to stop," the villain said in a low voice.
Without a moment's hesitation, Felix dropped the gun. "Drop everything!" he yelled. The men responded by stopping, though they still held their weapons. The leader shouted once more, glaring at them all. "NOW!"
The clatter of falling guns filled the warehouse, followed by heavy panting. The hero hunched over, his head faint, energy draining from his bones like melted butter. His whole body was ready to collapse, but this was no place to appear so vulnerable.
Oxzy pulled himself upright, glancing around the room. He soon realized that the men lying on the floor with crushed faces were familiar to him—most of them were the same men who had assaulted him.
The little leader began to sob, apologizing to his older brother. He fell to the floor, clutching Pierce's leg. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, brother! My men should've known better than to attack you—"
"That's not why I'm mad," Pierce said, shaking his head. "You did something I can't forgive—touching my man."
Felix looked up, eyes filled with tears. A rush of rage and confusion shot through his head. He couldn't have heard that right. What had the brother he loved and admired just said?
"What…?" His voice was quiet, almost pleading.
Pierce whistled, casting a glance behind him to where the hero stood a few feet away, his face flushed red with annoyance.
Felix watched, everything hitting him at once. "Him... You and him—"
"Are you that stupid?" The villain couldn't help but roll his eyes. The young man clinging to him was nothing but an annoyance. "Yes, the hero is my man. Mine. And all of your filthy little boys touched him."
Pierce knelt down as his brother went still. "You touched him..."
"I—I didn't know... Brother, brother, please! I didn't know!" Felix began to apologize, guilt churning in his stomach until it made him sick—sick at the thought, sick at the realization of what he'd done.
Was that why Pierce was acting like this? Why the villain was so angry, wanting to bring down vengeance upon him?
It made sense. It also made Felix want to throw up.
"I'm... sorry..." Felix said, knowing it meant nothing to Pierce. Pierce never accepted apologies.
But he couldn't help the words. Or the tears.
The hero watched in confusion. His face felt hot; Pierce's words should have brought him nothing but disgust, yet he couldn't stop the growing redness spreading across his cheeks. It was a stupid feeling, and the hero turned his head away.
His guard was still up—he remained surrounded by strangers who wanted him dead. He kept his eyes moving, scanning the room, but he couldn't stop himself from glancing back at Pierce and his brother. It had never occurred to him that the two were siblings. That Pierce had any siblings at all.
Even though this was new information, nothing had changed yet. The way Pierce mocked the young man, looking down on him as he pleaded for forgiveness—Oxzy couldn't help the smug feeling that rose in him. It felt good to see the man who'd ruined his body brought to his knees, begging. It felt good, but it shouldn't have.
The villain always had a way of stirring something inside the hero. It wasn't right to feel this way. He was a hero, not a madman.
"Do you really think I would forgive you? Forgive anyone in this room?" Pierce shook his head. "I've only just started on you guys. I'm far from finished…"
His words were followed by a chuckle, and a silent, fearful chill swept through the room. Oxzy rolled his eyes and looked back at the pair. That was when he noticed a man getting closer—one who always stood behind Felix. The man walked forward with his hands cupped together, as though holding something.
The hero felt a strange pull, an urge to step forward. He took a step, wanting to shout and push the villain away. The man drew closer, taking small, silent steps, then pulled his hand back.
Oxzy realized what the man held—a moment too late, as he hurled it forward. The hero had never been good at making fast decisions. It never got him anywhere; it only ever led to something stupid.
Like now. Jumping forward, he took the hit meant for Pierce's back. The man had thrown blue dust at the villain, but the hero stepped into its path, catching the full force of the aggressive throw. It smashed across the hero's face, sending him to his knees as he clawed at his own skin.
"Couh—" Oxzy shut his eyes tightly, clutching his face as the dust slipped through his fingers.
Pierce moved forward, forcing his younger brother to stand in shock.
"Alex, what the fuck are you trying to do to my brother?!" Felix shouted at his most trusted man.
Pierce ignored them both, staring down at the fallen hero. His eyes flashed with rage as he watched the blue poison sparkle and fall from Oxzy's face. Behind him, Alex tried to defend himself, dropping what remained in his hands as he stumbled back.
The villain didn't think. He simply acted.
His hand closed around Alex's neck, lifting him into the air with a crushing grip. The man cried out, clawing at the fingers wrapped around his throat. His face reddened as Pierce slowly tightened his hold.
"No—wait, please—!"
"I don't take pleas," Pierce said, his voice low. His face remained expressionless as he stared up at the man dangling from his grip.
"No—you, Rosamee—I can tell y—" Alex's face drained of color, tears streaming from his eyes. Pierce raised an eyebrow and loosened his grip slightly, letting the man speak. Alex gasped out words in desperation while his boss stood by, powerless to help. "Felix, he did it! He killed her too—set fire to the school, killed her for you!"
The man cried and begged, avoiding Pierce's eyes. Pierce remained silent, weighing the words. It could be nothing more than desperation talking—anything said in hopes of survival. Still, his grip loosened further.
Alex managed a small, hopeful smile through his bloodshot eyes. "He did it, not us. Please, let me go—"
His voice cut short with a loud crack. The villain had snapped his neck, the strength surging through his hand so fast that he hadn't even allowed the man a slow death.
The body hung limp from Pierce's grip, suspended above the ground for the entire warehouse to witness. Pierce sighed and released him, letting the body thud to the floor. He turned, his eyes finding Felix, who had already begun backing away behind his men.
The two locked eyes, understanding passing silently between them.
Felix was now afraid for his life.
The room seemed to spin. Pierce saw fire creeping along the walls, his whole body burning from within. He couldn't focus on anything—the silence pressed against his chest as he moved forward, his body acting on its own, tension coiling tighter with every step.
"Hah—Pierce—" Oxzy looked up. He had finished wiping the dust from his face, careful not to inhale any of it. He drew in a breath and lifted his gaze, his eyes meeting the villain's.
They were wide open, his face unreadable. Oxzy stared back in confusion, struggling to stand. He felt light-headed—the seconds without breath had taken their toll on his already battered body.
Then Pierce's expression finally shifted, though not into anything normal. A smile curved his lips, while something deadly lingered in his eyes.
The hero found himself trembling as he looked up at him. A confident man approached Pierce's side while his gaze stayed fixed on Oxzy. Without a flicker of reaction, Pierce reached out his hand. It landed on the man's head, his eyes never leaving the hero as he crushed the man's skull in his grip, smiling the entire time.
The hero flinched, watching the villain, who didn't even spare a glance at the man he'd just killed with one hand. The body went still, collapsing limp with its head still caught in Pierce's grasp.
Pierce let go, dropping the lifeless body. Blood dripped from the man's mouth and nose, his face unrecognizable, the skin caved inward. His final moments had been etched into his features as pure agony.
The hero could no longer summon the strength to stand. He watched, wide-eyed, as the villain continued forward.
The hero watched Pierce commit massacre after massacre. The man moved as though in a trance, his body acting on its own—throwing out his hands, crushing skulls. Fire licked along his fingertips, setting everything in his path alight.
The stench of burnt flesh and scorched clothing filled the air. Smoke thickened around them, blood and shredded fabric littering the floor. The rush of displaced air mingled with the sound of crushing bone as the villain flung bodies around like discarded dolls.
Oxzy found himself shaking, his legs barely holding his weight, his vision blurring at the edges. He didn't want to watch this—the death, the brutal ease with which Pierce slaughtered everyone in sight. The fact that some part of him didn't want to stop it.
Oxzy swallowed hard, his hands trembling, legs shaking as he stood and watched. He did nothing but watch.
The villain was drenched in blood and sweat, the toll of his powers finally catching up to his body. Exhaustion and light-headedness crept in, yet he couldn't feel any of it. It was as though his body ran on pure, endless energy.
Rage consumed him—rage at the revelation, rage at the attack on Oxzy. It controlled him, driving his hands to smash skulls, to vanish through space before igniting the clothes on his victims. Flames consumed them, reducing them to ash as smoke piled high in the cavernous room. Screams and cries echoed off the walls, music to his ears.
It wasn't until he'd killed nearly everyone that Pierce became aware of his energy draining away. He stopped, hovering above a body with a hole blown through its chest. Somehow, someone nearby was still alive, whimpering and shifting on the ground.
Without realizing it, Pierce had saved his younger brother for last. The young leader knelt near a wall, looking up at his blood-soaked brother.
"B-Brother…" Felix cried, staring at the man looming over him. Blood dripped from Pierce's fingertips, his eyes shadowed as he looked down. Felix gazed up at him as though he were looking upon a god.
The villain held the young man by his legs, gripping tightly. Desperation flickered in Felix's eyes—love and fear tangled with something like resignation.
"Please…"
Pierce sighed, a flicker of emotion breaking through. He offered a soft smile, running a blood-soaked hand along the side of Felix's face. The touch was gentle, almost tender, though his eyes remained clouded with shadow.
"Hk—"
Felix's small voice cut off as Pierce's grip tightened around his head. With both hands clasped firmly, his face blank, Pierce pulled forward with alarming strength.
Felix's eyes widened, his mouth falling open at the sudden burst of pain. Then—
Then there was nothing. The pain vanished, replaced by emptiness.
The villain had torn his brother's head from his body, the snap and tear of muscle silencing the warehouse. Flesh and bone separated completely, falling away. Pierce had spent his last ounce of strength to grant his brother one final, twisted comfort—
Before his decapitation.