Vincent was swung at the magician. The magician jumped backward, thinking she would be safe, but she backed into a tree. Vincent held the staff like a baseball bat and took another swing while activating his skill, wild slash. Mika stiffened and raised her staff in a last-ditch attempt to block it.
"MIKA!"
*Thud.*
A rain of blood showered Vincent as he slowly stood up straight. He steadied his breathing and stared at the rest of them with cold eyes. "Who will be the next one to fall?"
His question hung in the air. The archer rapidly shot three arrows at him. Each arrow aimed for a vital spot. Vincent calmly twirled his staff and deflected them.
"I have my next target." He took a javelin-throwing stance and launched his staff at the archer. Gina instinctively dodged to the left and looked back. She saw her archer impaled on a tree, taking his last breath.
She turned and looked at Vincent. "Y-you tricked me. You said you were going after him but aimed at me instead."
Vincent ripped the sleeves of his clothes, revealing the tonfas. "You ever heard of chopping the head of a snake to kill its body? I am surprised you didn't recognize the tactic." Carl, the guy who used a sword, yelled and charged at him. "You bastard! I will chop you to pieces!"
Vincent deflected his attack and stabbed him three times on his side. Two of his attacks hit his ribs, and the last one hit his liver. Carl faltered but swung at his head. Vincent ducked and hit his knees.
"AHHH! IT HURTS!"
Vincent dislocated both of his knees. Carl had dropped his sword. He was crawling toward it. Vincent looked at the other two.
"You're not going to try and help him? Isn't he your friend? He is clearly in a lot of pain right now."
Gina looked at the guy next to her. "Hector, go help him. I will grab Jimmy's bow and support you." Vincent shook his head.
"Hector, you must realize that she is going to leave you to die. She isn't fast enough to do that. She is sacrificing you, man."
"Hector! Do as I say. Don't let this bastard get into your head." Vincent chuckled at her. "Hector, I will make a contract with you right now. It will say that I won't kill you tonight, and I will let you go. The only thing you have to do is break one of her legs so she can't escape."
Gina laughed inwardly. 'You are too young trying to manipulate us to turn on each other. Hector doesn't have the balls to.' "FUCK!" Gina fell to the ground, holding her leg. "You freaking idiot! He is going to kill you now, too."
"On the contrary, Gina. Unlike you, I am honest." Vincent summoned a contract, rubbed his finger over the edge, and then signed his name on the bottom in blood.
He tossed it on the ground near Hector. "Read the contract, Hector, and make sure every word is as it should be."
Hector ignored Gina's screaming and read the contract. He sighed and signed it in blood. The contract went up in flames. He looked at Vincent. "That's it. The contract has been made and can't be broken." Hector gave one last look at his fallen companions and left without a second thought.
Vincent heard a puncturing noise and saw that Carl killed himself. He looked back at Gina and stopped her from doing the same. He knocked away her daggers and yanked one of her teeth out. "It seems you are all part of an organization. One that has been operating for some time."
"I'm not going to tell you shit," She spat at Vincent but he dodged it. "One of the first things I learned when I woke up on this planet was how to dismantle a human. I have never had a reason to use that knowledge; honestly, I dreaded ever having to use that knowledge. I find myself struggling to decide on the matter even now."
Vincent broke her arms and went to the other bodies to look for clues. Gina watched as the 'easy' catch scavenged. Her dead friends all had looks of disbelief and fear.
Carl was the worst of them all. He took his own life. Tears started to build in her eyes as she looked up.
"Don't." She froze at the voice of her torturer. "Your kind does not deserve to cry." Frost and ice started spreading. Gina felt the ice encase her arms and legs. 'He can use other elements!?'
Vincent found a list of names and addresses. Five of them hadn't been crossed out yet. He was just a spur-of-the-moment victim. "This will be your only chance to die a fast and painless death." A contract was summoned.
"The contract states that you empty your inventory and speak nothing but the truth about the organization you belong to."
Gina first thought about not speaking but saw her friends and chose to speak. She signed the contract and watched the ashes fly away.
"Think what you want about us. I have no right to ask or negotiate, but at least bury Mika and Carl together. We were not always like this." She spilled everything she knew about the organization. She emptied her inventory, too.
She sighed and closed her eyes. Vincent picked up one of her daggers and stabbed her in her heart. He piled everything from the other's bodies in the middle. He put everything inside of the bracelet.
He grabbed Mika's and Carl's bodies and took off with them.
He left Mika's head behind. He dumped them in front of the zeshi's. "You can eat these two. They should provide much more nutrients for your cubs." The two animals stayed on the defensive. Vincent shook his head and returned to the cave. He went inside and slept.