Larnos met the duo midway and struck D in the ribs with enough force to send her into a wall albeit at the cost of his entire left fist. K was momentarily stunned and he drove his shoulder into her torso and forced her into the wall behind her.
D recovered quickly and charged at him once more, her speed having increased exponentially. He tried to move out of the way but she closed the gap and drove her fist into his mid section. The fight came to a screeching halt as his brain began processing what had just transpired.
She twisted her embedded fist and to call the sensation excruciating would be an understatement. Pulling her fist back, she tore out her fist and blood began covering the immediate area. He stumbled back for a moment before muscle memory kicked in. Tearing off the right sleeve of the jacket he plunged it deep into the wound. The pain was intense but dwindled in intensity and there was a squelching sound as he forced it in.
He felt light-headed but a quick head shake took care of it. The duo had ceased their assault and he thought of attempting to take advantage of that but his body refused to move. Looking at the already drenched piece of cloth which stuck out from the wound meant time was not on his side.
" Well this is something," he commented as he leaned against the wall. " I'm guessing this is going to bite me in the ass. "
" Just give up, " D spoke. Her voice was barely above a whisper. " You can't keep fighting. "
Larnos looked at his wound once more. A slight movement sent pangs of pain through his body. He considered her offer, fighting two humanoid killing machines seemed to be an uphill battle but add in a wound of this kind and it turns into a battle that had a chance of winning equal to that of a first time gambler winning the much coveted national jackpot.
" Larnos, " Marquis called out. " You can't keep going on like this, just give up. "
He glanced at the younger man who wore a look of abject horror. Unfortunately a factor of things wouldn't let him concede so easily. He was a human going against a duo of futuristic technology that greatly outclassed anything he knew but even that wouldn't stop him from grasping at the sliver of victory that dangled in front of him.
Clenching his still good fist he began analyzing the scene with only a single thought running through his mind.
' Fuck it we ball. '
D was closer to him with her axe in her left hand while her other hand hanged limply to the side courtesy of him while K stood a few feet behind her, her demeanor giving off a relaxed aura. The pain emanating from his mid section revealed itself once more as a subtle sign of the limited time he had before his body would succumb and he would concede the fight. The knuckle dusters he wore had speckles of blood which most likely came from the duo and that brought him joy, even if it was fleeting.
He took a deep breath and launched himself from his position, making a beeline straight for the axe wielding woman and D reacted immediately. Her axe cut through the air before her hand let go of the weapon and suddenly opted to use her fists which drew dangerously close to his face in mere moments but a slight shift to side allowed him to avoid what would have been a knockout blow.
Grabbing the arm which the closest fist was connected to, he pulled her towards a raised heel which connected with her skull and charged at K who was already in a stance. Using the knuckle-dusters he scrapped off part of the wall nearest to him and flung a handful of debris at her face. The axe lay nearby and his battered fingers wrapped around its handle instinctively right before she did and drove it into the side of K with whatever ounce of force his body would relinquish. . It had considerable weight to it but he could manage, even with his current situation.
He did not let her react as he drove his shoulder into her torso with enough force to push her back and tear the axe out as telltale signs of tearing flesh and fabric emanated from the region the blade was embedded in and grabbed it with both hands before hurling it at D who caught it with both hands which left her open and that allowed him to deliver a combo towards her midriff before finishing it with an uppercut with his still good fist which was increasingly nearing the same state as the other one.
The adrenaline kept the pain at bay for the time being and he utilized the time he had left before the pain would most likely paralyze him by controlling his breathing as it started becoming irregular. D came in from behind and wrapped her arm around his neck and began to apply pressure. K rushed in and began hitting the wound with just enough force to keep him from moving as her counterpart continued to choke him.
Elbowing D in the face proved to be ineffective as her bright red irises maintained their vigil on him. His movement now had to be extremely deliberate as K continued to deliver well placed jabs that were intended to immobilize him and they did just that. Each jab forced more air out him and intake was greatly reduced due to the vice grip D had over his neck.
There was a slight ringing in his ear. It steadily began to grow and the corners of his vision slowly darkened. Struggle was inevitable as D's grip was ironclad and his make shift rag had popped out partially and blood slowly began to leak out.
' I am not going out like this, ' he thought as he kept looking for an escape. ' There has to be a way out of this. '
The duo charged at him and it was clear they intended to end this fight once and for all. Their near perfect approach left no room for any counter. Any conventional counter that is. With gritted teeth he pierced his wound and drew blood. The pair flinched for a moment and he flung a handful of blood at them and dashed towards Marquis, grabbed him by the scuff of his neck and hurled him through a door and followed suit.
Just before he entered the room that was now filled with screams from the inhabitants he glanced at the duo who seemed to be in shock and uttered a single sentence with a grin plastered on his face;
" Consider that a souvenir. "
He knew they would catch up sooner or later but damn did he have a good run and why stop the chase here? The inhabitants were a group of teenagers who were huddled around some kind of device that looked futuristic and Marquis was rising to his feet near a window sill. The blood loss began to take effect and he felt light headed but was able to shake off the effect of blood loss once more but for how long can he keep his body going?
' Fuck it we ball, ' he thought as he grabbed Marquis by the arm and mumbled an apology to the group before moving out the room and entering another hallway.
This one was crowded with people who were going about their day. A few stared at the pair, Larnos in particular and subconsciously began backing away while others acted as if a bloody man coming out of a random room with a younger man in tow was part of the everyday norm.
" Got any other place you can go? " He asked Marquis.
" We can't escape them, " Marquis muttered under his breath. " It would be better to just surrender. "
Larnos stopped, composed himself and turned to face him. Marquis was right but Larnos's stubborn attitude wouldn't let him simply let that happen.
" Look at you. " He gestured at Larnos. " You're covered in blood with a fist sized whole in your side which you stuffed with a piece of clothing that is almost about to fall out. "
Larnos tried to speak but went quiet as he realized just how much damage he had taken. He let out a sigh before leaning against a wall. The hallway had cleared out during the time Marquis was speaking, and with such low level of disturbance that is was a bit concerning.
" So you're just going to give up? You know whoever sent those two will make sure you disappear. All records of your existence will be wiped from every single data bank. " He countered.
Marquis sat down next to him and let out a tired sigh. The ringing in Larnos's ear had gotten a tad better but unfortunately the fatigue and latent pain began to rear their heads forcing him to slide down the wall and take a seat.
" I'm just some random office worker. " Marquis spoke. " I thought if I worked hard enough perhaps I could prove to my mom that I was someone worth her time. Seems I failed even at that. "
" You're alive kid, you got a fighting chance."
" But not against hot killer robots, " Marquis countered. " Sometimes there are things you can just win against. "
" But you gotta put up one hell of a fight, like a honey badger. Those things are tough. "
" What's a honey badger? " Marquis asked.
" Balls of sheer chaos that give animals bigger than them a run for their money. Those things just don't know when to call it quits. " Larnos answered.
Marquis simply nodded. The duo sat in silence in the dingy hallway and waited. He asked if Larnos still had the data disk and he fished in his pocket and pulled it partly. Somehow it had survived the onslaught.
" The hell is thing made out of? " He asked Marquis.
" An experimental compound I happened to find online, " he explained.
" This would make great armor if it could survive all that without any visible damage. " Larnos said as he pushed it back into his jacket.
" I'm scared," Marquis admitted.
Larnos placed a hand on his shoulder for a brief moment before speaking.
" Being scared is normal kid. Hell even I get scared most of the time." He let out a chuckle as he recalled experiences that brought fear into him. " But you did something about it at least. "
" Oh yeah? Like what? " The youngest of the two responded in a sarcastic tone.
" You got dirt on pretty powerful people and tried to go from there. "
Marquis looked at him with a deadpan expression and Larnos shrugged.
" I'm a soldier kid, " he spoke. " Emotional stuff isn't really my strong suite. "
The sounds of footsteps came from down the hall. Larnos was about to get up once more but this time Marquis held his hand and kept him in place. His expression was firm and his grip stronger than it looked. This was it, no more fighting, no more trying to escape.
D and K appeared and made their way towards the two. Both women had telltale signs of injury although he was certain it was superficial.
' Screw it I made them bleed. ' He thought as a smirk found its way onto his face.
" Evening ladies, " he greeted. " Seems we've come to the end. "
" Seems it has, " K spoke. " That was quite the performance on your part Larnos. "
" I aim to please." He did an interpretation as best as he could.
" Guess these are yours," he said as he began taking off the knuckle-dusters but K gestured for him to stop.
" You keep em, " she said. " Think of them as a souvenir."
" They are pretty good. " He admitted as he gave them a once over.
D merely watched him, a small patch of dried blood on her dress and her axe was in a custom made holder on her back.
Marquis got up and stood behind the two but not before giving Larnos a handshake.
" Stay safe old man, " he said as the duo led him away.
" I'm not old, " he called out. " Just aged. "