"Fuck..." Sora said sadly looking at the broken pad, while in his head 'Don't-t despair, the-the hard drive may still be okay. Yeah, yeah, maybe Eco is still-' interrupting himself, knowing he was fooling himself "SHIT, FUCK!"
Judy seeing Sora's reaction, that he had started to swear shouting. She gripped Sora's arms tightly, with a pale face and worried expression. " He's all right, isn't he? " she asked in a high, urgent tone of voice.
Sora hesitantly to tell her the truth, "It's nothing, don't worry-" he didn't get to finish lying when suddenly.
"Bghf" he vomited a little blood, as with his hit when he landed, but now without his mask to absorb it.... falling on the broken pad, smearing much of it, even getting into the broken part of the screen....
Judy, with furrowed eyebrows and a look full of concern. "Sora, are you hurt?", quickly grabbing one of Sora's bloody hands and with her other hand checked Sora`s body looking for any wounds.
Sora wiped his mouth and affirmed to show that he was okay to the worried Judy, but quickly focused on the pad. His eyes widened hopefully when he saw a small light blinking in the corner, indicating a connection to the network.
He nervously squeezed judy's hand unintentionally, hoping his suspicions would come true.
Smiling as part of the pad's broken screen lit up again, going crazy, displaying hundreds of windows with codes quickly appearing and disappearing repeating that process until the Pad began to smoke, shutting down completely seconds later.
Not completely sure if his suspicions had come true, without wasting a second Sora, contacted .....
["Cortana!, TELL ME you got it!"]
[Yes, yes, yes! I got it, I don't know how you did it, but I got Eco. The Eco.IA file has been securely transferred over the net to the Qpc in the apartment]
When Sora found out that Eco was safe....
"FUCK, YES!" he shouted, euphoric about the good news, even without weighing it, kissing the bewildered and worried judy who still didn't know `what the hell was going on!´ before Sora's sudden happy kiss, which caught her by surprise but she didn't take long to join him, infected by the good news, which, although she didn't know... she felt it.
"Sora what happened? Eco is well?"
"Aha!" `now I can tell her´ "Judy Eco, he's been with you the whole time. He compressed himself into your pad to send me your location, if it weren't for him.... I don't think I would have made it in time."
Shocked Judy grabbed Sora's arms again as she was moved to know that through all this horrible experience, she has never been alone. "YOU'RE SURE HE'S OK, RIGHT?", Asked again seeking confirmation from Sora staring fearlessly into his completely black eyes except for his glowing pupil.
"Yes!, don't worry Cortana has confirmed to me that he has arrived safely at the apartment Qpc."
Meanwhile ["Cortana carefully decompress Eco, okay?"]
[Yes, you don't have to worry, but, Eco was currently going through the same code replacement process as me, it looks like a different version of the code you sent me, this is all happening while it was compressed so it will be a longer process, until it is operational again.
But Sora you would have to worry about the Humans that were abusing other humans on this floor. The rest I'm blocking them from going up, but I can't do anything about the ones already on the floor, 3 of them are about to enter, be careful!]
["I know!"] Ever since Sora felt the stinging spread throughout his eye, he has been able to see the holographic shading of the Tygers as they moved out of the room, but it would only appear for a few seconds before it disappeared as whatever Arc is doing he couldn't keep it.... in its current state.... knowing Sora perfectly well what he had to do.
Sora, preparing for the imminent entrance of three Tygers, picked up a piece of the debris and threw it towards the light in the room damaging it and leaving it tinkling, darkening the gloomy, dimly lit room, with some of the street light coming through the hole, which was beginning to light up now that the sun was setting.
As Sora signaled Judy to hide in the corner with most of the debris for cover, and to close her eyes so she would not see what was about to happen.
Which was answered with Judy's middle finger, as she hid in the corner Sora had pointed out, being the only thing she heeded.
Rolling his eyes at Judy's response, Sora didn't forget about the Tyger who was still immobilized, with Getsuga pinned to the ground and over his shoulder.
Who hadn't opened his mouth since he saw how Sora burst his partner's head against the wall, making him twitch every time he remembered, he didn't speak even when Sora put in piece of his dead partner's bloody shirt in his mouth to gag him... leaving him in the middle of the room pinned to the floor unable to move.... like bait...
Sora slipped quickly into the shadows of the room, ending up in the corner closest to the door, his heart pounding as he waited for the Tyger to enter. In those seconds before the chaos, his mind took a breath that allowed him to process everything that had happened.
Feeling proud and calm at the thought of Eco, grateful to Cortana and, relieved to know that he had made it in time, before they did something horrible to Judy.
Grateful and with a lighter mind, he prepared himself for what was to come, knowing that he was surrounded by valuable beings around him, and whether he wanted to or not, he had to start trusting them.
In particular...
`I.....Arc....I'm sorry..... been denying that feeling I had inside, fighting it.... because I was afraid..... but like I said that night.... I'm glad to have you partner! I'm not saying that out of fear of what's going to happen.... I... even though I hate that word, but... I am thankful.... thank you for saving Eco... thanks, for freeing Cortana by allowing her to help.... thanks, for supporting me so that I can get here in time, without losing my life run over....
With Judy´s words, I've realized that you.... are a part of me too... so it's silly to keep fighting against myself.... I just want to say one more time..... thanks partner!' thought Sora as he stopped fighting against the strange feeling in his brain for the first time since it appeared... as if giving him permission to be there.... as if giving permission to..... the next stage.
Without taking too long for an answer.... Sora "Ho-ho here we go!" he thrilled as he noticed the strange feeling in his brain spread, with the same burning he felt in his eyes as they changed, causing Sora to revert back to that more childlike Sora, who imagined himself growing claws or something incredible, growing his expectations of what Arc would be doing moments before the Tygers entered. When Sora noticed that the burning ended and his expectations reached their limit...
"Eh!?"
His entire vision darkened
Leaving Sora being unable to understand of what was just happened, causing him to unconsciously tilt his head confused by Arc's actions that had blinded him in a situation like this
In which Sora, crouched blind in the shadows of the room.... `Fuck!, fuck!, fuck! ARC!!!! Damn it fucker!, give me back my sight' he shouted nervously to himself as he heard the door begin to open.
Meanwhile, Sora shouted to himself hiding in the shadows.
The 3 Tygers entered a dark room in which they could barely see anything due to the lack of light between the continuous tinkling. The first thing they encountered was one of their companions, who was staring desperately at them with a sword stuck in his shoulder and making noises with his gagged mouth, as if trying to warn them of something. The companion cocked his head several times pointing to one side of the room.
The Tigers, confused, following the directions, were able to see between the continuous tinkling of light, a wall covered in blood and the headless body of another of their companions, making them nervous about what they were seeing. In the last moments before the light tinkled again, in the corner they thought they saw a young man with a black mask, no lights and closed eyes. However, when the light went out and came back on, the young man had disappeared.
Confusing the Tygers, except for one of them, the one behind the two.
When suddenly, at the next tinkle of light, Sora appeared in front of him again, smiling with his mask now illuminated and synchronized with the same expression that made his eyes totally black with the pupils also illuminated.
As Sora smiled at the Tygers, being able to see again, he remembered when his grandfather asked him what the armed martial art they had created should be called, to which Sora could only reply with.....
"CQC"
Close Quarters Combat (CQC) Something that even Sora had to admit that they had created something very similar to what he remembered seeing in the videogames. with movements taken from judo as well as from jujitsu. along with all the experience of his grandfather and uncle.
And that's what he used, as he quickly pulled out his Tsunami Nue from arm holder, striking the surprised Tyger in the neck with the butt of the gun, stopping his movements, while Sora, like a snake, grabbed the Tyger by the neck as he reached behind him pulling out a combat knife with his other hand, sticking it into the same shoulder the Tyger had his gun, causing him to fire his automatic weapon uncontrollably.
One of the stray bullets hit the only source of light, plunging the room into darkness, except for the sudden flashes of gunfire, alarming the two remaining Tygers. With their nerves on edge from the tense situation,the tygers unhesitatingly returned fire... at their partner.
Sora, seeing that the Tygers were about to fire, kicked with all his force at the Tyger he was holding, throwing it towards one of his companions who were about to fire, while at will he slowed down time, dashing towards the darkest part of the room, to attack again from there.
Throwing his knife at the free Tyger, who had managed to follow his movements, while the other in panic and in the dark shot desperately killing his companion, who came flying towards him propelled by Sora's kick.
With the knife stuck in the Tyger's arm interrupting his attempt to open fire, Sora took advantage of those moments to throw himself towards him, managing to put his pistol under his jaw, shooting as soon as he placed it, blowing the Tygers´s head off. Next, he picked up the knife stuck in the arm before the corpse fell and threw it at the head of the Tyger that had collided with his dead companion, killing it.
When Sora was done, he bent down to pick up the knife from the dead Tyger's head and turned to the only surviving, the one with Getsuga nailed to it. "What's the matter, little noisemaker, you look like you're dying to warn your comrades, don't you?...let me help you" he said as he grabbed Getsuga's hilt.
The Tyger, the sole survivor again, was trembling, a puddle forming under him as he anticipated the young madman's intentions, with a wicked smile in his mask. Aware that whatever that deranged individual had in mind, it would not be good for him.