CRASH!!! Rete's body flew into a nearby wall.
"AA-" Rete abruptly stopped.
He turned quickly, slamming his left shoulder into the wall as he struggled to get a good foothold, dodging a spiked shoe that landed where his head would have been if he had continued that shout. Once again, he clawed his way to his feet quickly and lept forwards. BOOM!!! A powerful explosion went off against the wall as the man responsible stood from a far, ripping the barrel off the rifle that fired the destructive bullet.
"WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!!!!" Rete shouted to his left.
"I think- I think it's better if one takes the beating of two rather than two taking the entire beating." Tielmo shivered.
His feet wobbled uncontrollably as he struggled to keep the food in his stomach. The nails on his right hand had already been chewed off in anxiousness, now his left hand had been queued up.
"Besides, we'll need someone to report to tell Avecii what happened, THAT'S RIGHT!!" Tielmo hit his palm with his fist as if he had an epiphany, "I'll be your cheerleader!"
"I REFUSE, ONLY CUTE GIRLS ARE ALLOWED TO CHEER ME ON!!" Rete shouted back.
"WHY ONLY CUTE GIRLS!?!?!? AM I NOT GOOD ENOUGH!!!!" Tielmo yelled in protest.
"HAVE YOU LOOKED IN A MIRROR!!!!" Rete fumed.
Terzo and Quarto looked at each other in shock and awe as they stared at the argument taking place before them, both of them too stunned to do anything.
"Fine!" Rete gave up in frustration, "You're free to do what you want, it's not like Avecii forces us to do anything in the first place."
"And I'll do what I want!" he smiled, turning around to face the two warriors.
He clenched his teeth and charged forwards, keeping an eye on Terzo as he closed in on Quarto. He dropped to the floor, putting all the weight onto his hands as he spun around bringing his left heel around. Suddenly there was sharp movement near Terzo. He pulled the kick upwards, lifting him off the ground slightly. BOOOM!!! He felt a large amount of heat and shrapnel fly upwards from under his hand as a giant crack now replaces the smooth concrete. He turned his attention back towards Quarto who was also in the air with him. Quarto pulled his left hip forwards bringing, slowly extending his bent leg as reached closer and closer to Rete. TAAAANGGG!!! The heavy metal sole slammed into Rete's ribs sending him flying into the opposite side wall as he coughed blood.
COUH! COUH! ACK-! COUH!! He struggled to breathe as his body forced him to cough out the blood. He slowly turned his head towards Terzo and Quarto, the blood still dripping from his mouth, down his chin. His attention sharpened as he saw Quarto landing onto the ground but Terzo missing. He looked around himself but couldn't see Terzo, then saw a shadow moving near Tielmo, who was still shivering and chewing his nails. Rete dug his hands into the tough, cold concrete beneath him as he willed himself to get up and move.
Tielmo stared in horror at the brutal beating Rete was taking, he wanted to do something but his legs wouldn't move, it felt like they had been glued down. His body wouldn't listen, no matter how much he willed it to move, it stood frozen only allowing him to shiver as he fought for control.
"The battlefield isn't a place for cowards!" Terzo hissed.
Tielmo wildly spun around being met by a crow mask and two modified revolvers, their barrels staring him dead in the eye. Suddenly another body appeared in front of him. BANG! BANG! The twins fired as the new body in front of him flew backwards a little before hitting the cold pavement.
"Tch!" Terzo clicked his tongue as he pulled the hammers back on the revolver again as aimed at Tielmo once again.
Tielmo stood, frozen in place, still trying to understand what had just happened, convincing himself that it wasn't Rete on the floor in front of him. His body started trembling as panic started building up inside him. It started feeling as if someone was sitting on his chest. His breaths increasingly became harder to take in as the pressure in his chest built up. His vision started to darken and narrow down as he saw Terzo's mouth move but heard no sound.
"Family… first… the mission… second..." he heard Rete's faint whisper.
The world around him disappeared into darkness, only leaving him and Rete in the moment, a white light shining on both of them.
"Don't… worry… " Rete gave a faint, mischievous smile, the same one he wore around town.
BANG! BANG! Tielmo felt a sharp pain on both sides of his chest. While the world started moving slower as he slumped to the ground, next to Rete.
"Listen… *Cough* Tielmo… cowards wouldn't even have made it to the battlefield, let alone jump off a three story building..." Rete said as he struggled to get up.
"What's important is that we never thought of you as a coward… at least Avecii didn't initially..." Rete smiled, "So… I think it's about time you stop crying… besides… he only managed to shoot your refill cartridges right?"
"Talk about luck… it's something that wouldn't be on the side of a coward." Rete managed to stand up.
Tielmo stayed on the ground, letting the stream of tears continue down his face. He couldn't look at Rete or Avecii, despite being the oldest member here he couldn't even protect Rete, let alone work up the courage to support him. He felt ashamed, embarrassed and guilt-ridden to the point where he wondered why the two bullets hadn't just killed him.
"Listen pal… 'Your first reaction is who you were trained to be… Your second is who you actually are...'" Rete giggled.
Tielmo's head shot up, the tears still flowing. His lower lip was quivering as he stared at the gentle smile and laughter of Rete.
"Wanna know who said that?" Rete asked.
Tielmo though already knew the answer, it was one of the first things Avecii had said to him when they had met.
"Your first reaction was just so powerful that you couldn't let your second one out..." Rete bent over and extended his hand, "So how about you let your second one out this time?"
Tielmo took a shaky breath and clenched his teeth. He started rubbing his eyes and cheeks furiously before looking back at Rete. There was a strange glimmer in his eyes as he grabbed Rete's hand and the two stood up to face Terzo and Quarto who had their backs turned whispering something to each other.
"Thanks..." Tielmo whispered.
"What are you saying… a problem is a problem, it doesn't matter whose it is or who created it," Rete looked towards Tielmo with a dirty smirk, "but as a family we solve it together..."
Tielmo snorted feeling as though a strange weight had been lifted off his heart.
"Now then… shall we get this started..." Tielmo asked.
"Whenever you're ready." Rete smiled back.