The plane finally landed. Typhon made it out of the plane and through the arrival lounge and into the terminal in record time. He move quickly and efficiently, he had no luggage to pick up, his carry-on the only thing he had boarded the plane with. He was worried and despite his best efforts it showed on his face.
On the plane ride home he had played and replayed various scenarios in which he could outsmart Deici to the point that his head hurt, someone always died and sometimes it was him. Deici had been too quiet. No unnecessary calls or complaints, no bothering him about Ayla's continued breathing, no boasting of successful jobs, nothing. That rattled him more than he wanted to admit. Even as he made his way to the exit, his tension increased to the point that his knuckles had turned white as he squeezed the handle of the suitcase, he prayed the girl had not done anything stupid, he knew Deici was waiting for an excuse to kill her and his absence might have provided the perfect opportunity. He was so wrapped up in his thought that the ping of his phone startled him, making his forehead bead with sweat. He pulled it from his pocket and walked over to a nearby bench to sit and compose himself, it would not be in his best interest to leave the airport in his current state of mind, especially if the alarm meant what he thought it did.
He tuned the phone on and opened the app that had pinged and now had an exclamation mark hovering over the logo. His eyes widened as he realized that one of Ayla's trackers had disappeared from the locator and the other was miles away from the apartment. He quickly typed in a command and the last transmitted location of the now dead tracker popped up, his heart skipped a beat as he recognized the address. Had she managed to escape him, no, he would never allow it. He checked the address of the other tracker and decided to go there first, he stood and mentally shook himself, hailed a taxi and gave the address. He told himself that this was the logical choice but he knew he was stalling, he knew he would not find her there, but fear was an illogical beast and he feared Deici whether he would admitted it to himself or not.
He arrived at a cul-de-sac with beautifully manicured lawns and almost identical houses. He paid the cabby and walked up to a beige house with green trimming, there was a car in the driveway and the rich aroma of food wafting from the open kitchen window. As he approached the house the transmitted indicated that it was located inside the home. "Great," he muttered under his breath. He activated his facial implant which was able to make subtle changes to his features, remarkably making him look like a completely different person. It changed his eye color, his hair color, filled out his lips and sunk his cheeks, he looked like a male model. He knocked at the door and smiled, he felt like an idiot. No one answered. He knocked again with the same result. The hair on the back of his neck bristled, something was off and his instincts screamed at him to leave, so he turned around and made his way down the driveway, then quickly walked to the next house over. He walked up to the door and knocked. A young woman answered with a baby half asleep in her arms, "Hi, can I help you," she asked a smile on her face as she looked him up and down.
"Hi, My name in Jason and I am…." His voice trailed off as police cruiser sped down the road and screeched to a halt in front of the house he had just fled from. Officers leaped from the cars and ran to positions around the house, one officer knocked at the door announcing their intent to enter the property, like before there was no answer. He kicked the door down and four officers rushed in. Typhon gently guided the young mother into the house, " Let's observe from inside, we don't want any stray bullets or anything to hit us do we," she was so shocked that she simply stepped aside and let him close the door. He played the part of curious neighbor and they both watched from the window. The police exited the home, some looking noticeably sick, one even throwing up in the grass. "Who lives there?" Typhon asked.
"Keala and her husband, they have a three year old boy." Her voice was shaking and tears were forming in her eyes. "What could have happened?" she asked. Typhon stepped forward and took the baby from her and led her to the couch, he placed the baby in the nearby car seat, strapped it in and place the seat next to her.
"What's your name?" That seemed to snap her from her trance and she looked scared to have a stranger in her home, especially with all the commotion outside. He backed away and held up his hand showing that he was not a threat. "I never got to finish introducing myself, sorry, I'm Jason and I am looking for this vacation home." He turned his phone towards her and she relaxed recognizing the place.
"You're in the wrong cul-de-sac, you need to go back to Plum Close and make a left at Tangerine Street, you can't miss it." She relaxed and tears spilled from her eyes as she looked over her shoulder. He turned to see a van clearly make coroner pull into the drive. That son of a bitch had struck again and he had clearly intended for Typhon to be caught at the scene of his latest murder, but how? That thought shocked him to his core. How had he known? He visibly paled and the woman stepped forward and led him to the seat, "I'll get both of us a glass of water," she said walking away. He had researched the area in the taxi and decided to use the nearby vacation home as cover, a lost tourist was always more trustworthy than a salesman. This development was however more than he was expecting, and the realization that Deici had been ten steps ahead of him was terrifying. He needed to be more careful, treat this as any other job. "Here you go." He took the water, drank it, thanked the lady and let himself out of the house, he never got her name.
He looked closely at the home as he passed, never attempting to hide his face as he walked by the policemen. When he was out of sight he pulled out his phone and checked the status of the transmitter, it was dead. He called a cab and planned his next move as he waited.
He felt like himself again, as he dressed, loaded his weapon and prepared to go hunting. After leaving the cul-de-sac he had asked the cab driver to drop him off at a hotel. He had been granted access after showing his credentials to the men at the front desk and entered his room on the second floor. He had showered and carefully went over his plans to end this nightmare he had found himself an unwilling participant in.
He always knew his partnership with Deici would end with one of them dead and had at first thought he had the experience and know how to ensure it was not going to be him. Then he had seen the monster in action and knew that he would have to fight for his life, he had always planned on running, not fighting. This job had changed that. Any questions about what had happened during his absence had been answered shortly after he arrived at the hotel. He had turned the television on hoping to find out about the family from the cul-de-sac and had gotten more than he bargained for. The news station had not one but three top stories which they were alternating between. A woman had been found bound, brutally tortured and murdered at a cabin in a popular but remote area of the Vale, a picture of the woman smiling in a summer dress before her death confirmed that the victim was Arcadia.
The second report was of the murder of a woman he didn't recognize, but he knew the address, she had been found with her throat cut in her bedroom. The door was locked from the inside and her son had been found lying outside the door unconscious, he had been drugged but not hurt. He would bet any amount of money that it was the master bedroom with a tiled bathroom, at least the bastard had spared the child.
The last report hurt more than he thought it would. A woman had found her sister's lifeless body in the woods surrounding her home this morning. The reporter said that the sisters hadn't spoken to each other in years and the family had no idea that she was visiting. She had been shot in the head, he hadn't needed to see the picture to know it was Ayla.
He pushed his feelings aside and felt himself settle into the calm resolve he always felt before a kill.
....
Deici teleported to the apartment he shared with Typhon. He had thoroughly burned the contents of Ayla's bag before heading for the location of the other tracker that she had so foolishly given or placed on someone. It hadn't mattered which, the person was as good as dead. He killed her without hesitation but had spared her kid. He was not heartless after all, and the kid was too young to be a threat. He had laid a trap but he knew Typhon would not he caught so easily. He poured himself a glass of wine and waited for the hunter to enter the lion's den.
....
Typhon entered the building's elevator, taking his gun out almost immediately as the doors closed. His eye augmentations would give him an advantage, allowing him to track his target no matter how fast they were, like built-in radar in a way, perfect for sniping on other jobs, a necessity for tracking the teleporting psycho.
He exited the elevator two floors below the apartment, the loud ding would be a dead giveaway, Deici would hear him arrive. He entered the stairwell and slowly began to ascend. In his hands he held his modified high-powered precision handgun, a lot more advanced and deadlier than anyone who was not in the Underground could get their hands on, in a sheath on his chest he carried his combat knife in case he was disarmed. He had seen Deici shoot and knew he was a quick draw and the way he moved indicated that he would be fast and lethal in hand-to-hand combat. Typhon was stronger and had years of training. He wanted to use the element of surprise to his advantage and put a bullet in him before it came to that. He hated to admit it, but with the girls dead his job would be much easier, no friendlies to worry about.
Taking the stairs gave him time to think, Typhon racked his mind, 'What in the world could have happened while was gone for not only Ayla but Arcadia to be killed? Did she threaten him? He doubted she did, she could barely stand being in the same room as him and most definitely did not provoke him...at least not intentionally. He should have known better than to leave him with her. The grip on his gun tightened and he had to concentrate on loosening it. This was not the time for thinking about past mistakes, he needed to focus on the job at hand. He exited the stairwell and walked to the door, took a deep breath, slipped his card into the access panel and stepped inside. The television was blaring, the reports of the dead women playing, and silhouette against the glare was the monster he had been ordered to exterminate.
.....
The door to the apartment opened and Typhon slipped silently inside, Deici smiled, happy to play along with his watchdog one last time.
The television was muted and Deici's voice broke the silence. "So, as you can see, the girl is no longer here," he sat patiently not turning to face his would-be executioner, who started to walk behind him, obviously looking for the advantage. "I know I know; we were supposed to keep her alive until we found a....less public solution but she was just...so annoying."
Typhon was clearly surprised but he remained stoic. "You couldn't have done it somewhere else at least, or made it look like an accident?"
"Why?" His voice devoid of emotion.
"Fuck!" Typhon was already locked on so activated his leg augmentation increasing his speed by fifty percent. Quickly advancing Typhon pulled the trigger. Deici teleported reappearing behind the bar aiming his own gun, Typhon ducked, twisting around and pulling his trigger. Again, Deici teleported trying to find a blind spot, knowing he couldn't shake Typhon's glowing purple gaze. Typhon fired again, he had to end this quickly before Deici was able to get too close.
He would not get the chance though.
Deici teleported directly in front of Typhon, gun pointed at his head. Typhon reacted instantly, grabbing his arm and crushing it with his augmented strength. Deici winced and feinted right and Typhon brought his gun up to finish him off. Deici brought his left arm up slicing across Typhon's eyes.
The pain was intense and Typhon fell to his knees firing wildly hoping to hit Deici. The blade had cut deeply and he knew he was blind. He has made a foolish mistake, underestimated his enemy and now he would pay for it.
Deici approached Typhon, stopping at a safe distance. "You could have walked away, why sacrifice yourself like this?"
"Because you need to die, you're a stain on humanity, you don't deserve to live."
"Yet, here I am."
Deici raised his gun and put a bullet between Typhon's eyes.