[Two days ago – Payback Volants' Base – District Three – Sonas]
Baru leaned back into his couch, sipping another can of cola, watching this evening's main event on the giant video screen fixed on the wall. Davith sat to his right, polluting the room with smoke as he always did. But as long as he obeyed Baru, the Payback Volants' Captain was willing to ignore his right-hand man smoking around him—even inside the base.
"Who're you betting on?" Baru asked.
"Which privileged brat is less useless, you ask?" Davith said, snorting softly as the commentators of this evening's match gushed on about the stats of the brawlers about to fight. "My money's fine in my own pockets."
Baru sipped his drink. "If you don't spend it, it won't grow."
Davith shrugged, closing his eyes, exhaling a cloud of smoke from his nostrils as he brought down his shoulders.
"It sure ain't lively without those two," Baru said, throwing the can over his shoulder—
"Lord—!" The can Baru threw hit the head of the man who just entered.
Baru leaned back his head, the two newcomers appearing upside down. "Hm…?" Baru finally recognized both the men, returning his eyes to the screen. "Welcome back, I guess. What took you two so long to fetch some skyshards?"
"Er…" Codix said as Edden and he made their way to the couch left of Baru. "We…didn't go to the usual dealer for the skyshards."
Baru rolled his eyes to the left, making Codix and Edden unable to sit. "Then where did you get them from?"
Edden gulped, lowering his head, turning it toward Codix.
Codix slightly shoved an elbow into Edden's side.
Baru leaned away from the couch. Codix and Edden jumped slightly. Baru reached for the pack of cans beside his feet. Then…he stood. Codix and Edden started sweating visibly as Baru approached them—
Baru bumped a can of cola on the lowered heads of both of them. "Chin up."
Both of his squadmates looked up, meeting his eyes. Baru raised eyebrows towards the drinks, making the both of them accept the drinks with unsteady hands.
Codix gulped, eyeing the can. Edden looked at him, equally confused.
Baru returned to his seat, downing another can of cola, eyes on the screen. "Don't look like that, you two," he said lightly. "Drink up. That's what squads are for."
Edden's jaw loosened as Codix eyed their captain with watery eyes. "Lord Baru…" they both said.
Baru leaned back into his couch. "I can tell you two did something," he said, rolling his eyes sideways. "Something you can't tell me because you're afraid. But what're you afraid of?" Baru tossed the can over his head. "You're not cans of cola for me to toss you away. You are my squadmates. MY subordinates." Baru turned his head toward the two, gesturing at them to sit. "So tell me, Codix, Edden, where have you been?"
"We…uh…" Codix said, sitting. "We were inside one the Skybridges to District One, Lord Baru. We thought if we're going to leave the Lower Skies soon anyway, why not do it with a bang?"
Edden opened his cola can as he sat beside Codix. "We hijacked a hoverbus for its skyshards. But…" He looked at Codix. "We ran into some…trouble."
Baru raised a brow at them, his face shadowed by the hat he always had on his head. "Trouble, you say? What could possibly have been 'trouble' for MY subordinates?"
Codix gulped, lowering his eyes. "There was…someone who…um…called for skyguards before we could tear apart the hoverbus for its skyshards."
Edden nodded in agreement, but did not look toward his squad captain. "That's right, Lord Baru! But that's not all. If only we hadn't got our gas bombs stolen by that kid, we would've been able to get those skyshards." He took a sip of his cola, moving his eyes to the screen.
"Kid?" Baru said, curious. "You got done in by a…KID?"
Codix shook his head, sweating. "He wasn't just some ordinary kid, Lord Baru. He was—"
Edden spat his drink.
Codix got off the couch. "What the fluck are you doing?"
Edden simply pointed at the screen, wiping his mouth.
Codix turned to the screen, and his eyes widened. "That's…"
In the screen, the camera was panning through this evening's crowd inside Victor's Domain in District One, passing a black-haired boy pointing back at the camera with a fool's grin, sitting next to the greatest heavyweight brawler of all time.
"That's the boy, Lord Baru," Edden said, turning to his captain. "That's the boy who—" He cut himself off, seeing Baru on his feet, who stared intensely at the boy with scornful eyes.
Codix gulped, scooting toward Edden. "What…do you think is the matter?"
Edden gave a quick shrug. "No clue."
Baru crushed the can he was holding. "Tell Kymin to take care of my other subordinates and this base," he said with a grunt, expression darkening. "We're going to District One." He pointed at the screen, before the camera panned past the boy with a scar on his nose. "This kid has something he shouldn't." His eyes—maybe just his mind—lingered on the headband of the boy, even after he was gone from view.
Davith got up, cracking his neck, walking to the door. "Didn't you two hear him?"
Codix and Edden straightened up, following him.
"But first," Baru said, turning toward them. "We're getting that healer girl from the north. I don't wanna kill the kid."
"Why can't she just stay in the base," Davith said, annoyed. "Now we'll have to find her."
"Actually," Edden said, turning to Baru. "She said she'd be in the south."
Baru opened the door, exiting the room. "And how do you know that?"
"Well…" Edden said, scratching his cheek. "She's the one who got us out from that District One Skybridge."
"She even healed us—" Codix added, only to be elbowed in the side by Edden. The blond man rubbed the back of his head. "I'll…ah…go tell Kymin that we're leaving."
Baru had too much in his mind to pay attention to the talks of these two. He could only focus on the headband that the kid was wearing. If it was what he thought it to be…his hatred for that white-haired bastard fueled even more.
###
[Same evening – southern streets – District Three – Sonas]
"Did they really think they could stop us?" Davith said, lighting a smokestick, sitting on the back of the fallen Platoon Commander of Legion 89. "It would've taken at least a strong Combat Force Legion to slow us down."
Baru stood in the middle of all the fallen bodies on the ground, patches of purple flames scorching the streets. He looked distractedly at the Legion Master of Legion 89—the man he just defeated. 'We won't make it now. Fluck!'
"We've contacted other Legions, you criminal," the Legion Master said, his voice but a groan. "We'll take you down—!" He fell.
"It's like they sent most of their platoons here," Codix said, helping Edden off the ground, both of them wounded. "They caught onto our trail real fast."
"They weren't tough…" Edden said, breathing heavily. "But the numbers…"
Both of them navigated their way through the several bodies of skyguards lying in agony around their squad captain and his right-hand man—a beautiful sight—who took out most of them with their Skills—Shardskill and Etherskill.
"We should hurry," Davith said to Baru, "if you want to get that boy today only."
Baru sighed. "I shouldn't have lost control," he said softly. "I definitely attracted more attention than needed." But that headband! How the fluck could a brat like that have THAT headband?
"Why're you being this stealthy, Baru?" a familiar voice said sarcastically. "It's almost like you aren't in a hurry to get somewhere."
Baru turned to the voice, only to be faced by the healer girl. "You saved me some time by just showing up."
"It's Lord Baru, you brat!" Codix said loudly, Edden backing him up.
The healer girl approached them. "By now everyone in District Three is positively aware of this little mess," she said. "Seriously, how rash can you be? You remember the deal we made, right? You can't let yourself be captured before finishing your end of it."
"Don't try to teach me how the world works, girl," Baru said, snorting underneath his words. "I've seen things you can't dream of."
The healer girl folded her arms. "We're in the tamest part of Highplexia, underneath the Lower Skies. What could've you possibly seen in these parts that's so out of this world?"
Baru wanted to reply, but troubling words echoed in his mind. He told them to shut up. But they were too strong to suppress.
'Never walk the easy path.'
"Anyway," the healer girl said. "Where are we going?"
"District One," Davith said, getting up from the back of the platoon commander, walking behind Baru. "We're after a certain boy."
"Is this the same boy who—"
Codix and Edden let out an agonizing yell—almost too dramatically. "It hurts!" they said in unison.
"Can you please heal us up, kind healer?" Codix said, walking closer to the pink-haired girl.
"Beautiful miss," Edden said, walking beside Codix. "Can you kindly take away our pain and fix up our wounds?"
The healer girl cocked back her head. "Hm? Why the fluck do you have to make it so creepy?"
"PLEASE!" They surrounded her, keeping her occupied.
"Alright," she said. "100k splinters for every limb."
Baru turned away from the unnecessary noise, walking closer to the kineticar in which they rode here, looking over its condition.
"They sure stranded us here," Davith pointed, referring to their destroyed vehicle. "Do we have to hijack something now?"
"We can't let that boy get away," Baru said. "This may be the only chance for me to get him."
"That's not the case."
"How?"
Davith showed Baru his handphone.
Baru shifted his eyes onto the small screen. "So that's how it is, eh?" The handphone showed that the bidding for the next day's match was open, along with the tickets being on sale. "So we can assume that the boy'll be in the crowd of Domain tomorrow as well."
"He'll be for sure," Davith said. "This is not a match that happens every day. But of course, Maxvil's gonna crush that lil Hystryk tomorrow."
"So tomorrow evening," Baru said with a grin, "is the day I'll finally get that headband!"
###
[Next evening – East of Victor's Domain – District One – Sonas]
"Go faster," Baru said as they approached the intersection. "I don't wanna miss him."
Davith stomped on the accelerator, making the large truck race at its max speed. "Got it."
"Don't be so rash," the healer girl said. "You'll lose control if you go this fast—"
Davith's eyes fumed with rage as he turned the wheel aggressively. "How'd you look so good against Maxvil, Hystryk!" The truck swerved out of control, going to the lane on the right, breaking the divider between the two roads.
"See!" the healer girl shouted. "I told you!"
"Well done, Davith!"
"Hm?" the healer girl said, baffled.
Baru smiled. "Finally!"
They crashed sideways into a bike, crushing the two-wheeled vehicle, but not the two riding on top of it.
Baru approached the back door. "Don't interfere. I'll deal with the boy myself." He opened the door, the black-haired boy with a scar on his nose coming into view.
The headband around his forehead.
'I'll show you what trouble looks like!'