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Onychinus had many enemies, and Sylus took his time wiping them all out. After all, some he could make allies if they were convinced. Sylus took pride in Onychinus’ reputation of being the most feared and revered in the N109 zone. Still, there were times rats got under the radar and tried to create chaos for him. It was at those times, Sylus allowed himself to get angry and make a show of power to remind the people just why Onychinus was right to be feared.
When Sylus had first allowed the twins into Onychinus, he'd found this in an underground fight ring. They'd passed his test of slaughtering the men running the ring before fighting each other to prove themselves. Sylus still remembered Kieran’s screams as the crystals emerged from his face.
The N109 zone was full of different street fighters and rings, most of which operated under Sylus' command. Occasionally he'd join in a match or too when he was feeling like a good fight fight.
“Hey, Boss-Man!” Sylus looked up at Scooter from where he was working on fixing Mephisto. “Ooh, is Mephie getting another upgrade?” she poked at the mechanical crow.
Sylus sighed, setting down his screw driver. . “What do you want, Scooter? Last I checked, you were supposed to be watching the north side for that weapons deal.” He gave her a pointed look. “And get him out of here before he soaks anything.” He pointed to the sea spirit floating around behind Scooter.
“Squeegee wouldn’t damage anything!” Scooter squawked indignantly only for the small sea spirit to sneeze and get a stack of Sylus’ blueprints wet. “Okay…you might have a point,” Scooter winced, glancing back at Sylus. “Have you seen the twins? We were supposed to check out that new arcade in Linkon today, but I haven’t heard from them since you sent them out on the recon mission.”
Sylus raised an eyebrow. “Then find them. That’s your specialty, isn’t it?” He set the screwdriver down on his desk. Scooter frowned at him, crossing her arms. “Once I fix Mephisto, I will have him look for them.” Sylus trusted the twins. They were skilled fighters, and Sylus had honed their skills. If they were in danger, he’d know.
“Okay,” Scooter sighed, holding Squeegee. She didn’t care about her shirt getting wet. “I’ll be bothering the Colonel. I heard he’s in Linkon with Emcee.” She smirked mischievously and left the room, giggling like a little maniac.
Within the hour, Sylus had Mephisto fixed with a few upgrades. The crow flew up to Sylus’ shoulder. “Go find the twins,” Sylus ordered, giving the bird a shiny trinket. Mephisto cawed happily, adding the trinket to his ever growing nest of shiny things before flying out the window into the cool air. The N109 zone was in a constant state of darkness, as if it was night all the time. Neon lights lit up the zone, and drones moving through the sky were a cheap imitation of stars.
Luke grit his teeth, glaring at the men in front of him. He panted heavily, his mask broken on the floor. Behind him, Kieran was caught and held down. There wasn’t a way out, and if there was, Luke wasn’t leaving his brother behind. He winced slightly as his arms felt sore from where Kieran was being held too tight. He refused to give them any satisfaction of seeing him in pain.
“What do you want, Nox?” he snapped, glancing back at Kieran. He’d get them out, that or Sylus would find them.
“You two have been a thorn in my side for years,” Nox tsked, looking at the twins. “Ever since you two slaughtered my men in that arena for Sylus.” He circled them like a predator waiting to pounce. “But now I have you in my grasp, and you’ll pay for what you’ve cost me. I’m sure many people would pay fortunes to see Sylus’ crows fight.”
Luke clenched his jaw. “You’ll regret that. Sylus will find you and he will burn this place.” He glared at Nox, grunting as his men dragged him and his brother to cells beneath the arena. Luke and Kieran were no strangers to captivity and the inside of a cell. At least the cells in EVER had somewhat comfortable mattresses. A small blessing was the fact they were shoved in the same cell.
“Scoots is gonna kill us,” Kieran weakly joked. “We’re supposed to be in Linkon.” He grimaced, rubbing his shoulders. “Think Boss-Man knows we’re missing yet?”
“Probably,” Luke sighed, “but we’ll just have to settle down right now. Or find a way to escape like old times. Remember that guard you attacked and go thrown into confinement?”
Kieran snorted. “It was worth it.”
“Yeah right,” Luke shook his head. “We’ll probably have to fight. No matter if we escape or not.” He sighed heavily, looking down. “I’ll try to keep you safe out there.” He looked at the scars on Kieran’s face and neck from the crystals. “You don’t need anymore scars, or else you’ll be tempting for the ladies.”
“Oh, fuck off,” Kieran rolled his eyes. “You’re just jealous Mrs. O’Neil gives me more of her home baked pastries.” He smirked, ducking from Luke’s slap. “Hey! Save that energy for the arena.” Kieran’s smile faltered slightly, and he laid his head on Luke’s shoulder. “I’m sorry I got us into this,” he whispered quietly. “I shouldn’t have run in like that.”
“Don’t apologize,” Luke sighed. “We both rushed in, and we underestimated Nox.” He pulled Kieran closer. “We’ll be okay, Kieran. We’ll be okay. Boss’ll come.”
Hours passed before Nox’ men came down to drag them into the arena to fight. Luke gave Kieran an assuring nod, bracing himself for a long, tiring night. But the arena was empty. Luke blinked, sharing a confused look with Kieran. There were tons of spectators wearing different ornate masks, but no other fighters in the arena other than Luke and Kieran.
“Ladies and Gentleman,” Nox’s voice echoed over the loud speaker. “I welcome you all the watch the fight of a lifetime. We’ve managed to capture the Onychinus Crows, and you’ll be able to watch them fight each other. Only one can walk away. Place your bets, and enjoy the show!”
Luke and Kieran shared a horrified look. They hadn’t purposely fought each since joining Onychinus. They didn’t need to self-punish anymore. Sylus had given them a home, a safety net they’d never had before. Kieran trembled, swallowing thickly. He couldn’t fight Luke. At one point, they’d been willing to die with each other. That hadn’t changed. He wouldn’t fight his brother.
Nox glared at the two brothers in the arena. “Fight each other. Make it worth our while, or I’ll save you the trouble and shoot one of you right here and now,” he threatened, nodding to one of his men. Luke stood in front of Kieran as a gun was aimed.
“Trust me,” Luke whispered to Kieran before slamming his elbow into Kieran’s stomach. Kieran doubled over with a wheeze and Luke fought not to follow. If they fought each other, it could give time for Sylus to show up. If not…Luke didn’t want to think about it. Kieran grunted and swept his leg to throw Luke off balance, punching his side. Luke grit his teeth and blocked another punch.
Kieran jabbed and swung at Luke, pushing him back. Luke couldn’t block all of them, grimacing as a jab broke his nose. He could see Kieran’s jaw clench, his brows furrowing in pain. At least Nox didn’t know they shared feeling.
In the center of the arena was a pile of different weapons ranging from kitchen knifes to rifles. Both twins bolted for the pile. Kieran grabbed throwing knives while Luke grabbed a switchblade. The crowd watched and cheered. Many bets were place on both twins. Both tried to block out the horrible cries of what they should do to the other.
Kieran threw a knife at Luke that Luke blocked. Another knife nicked Luke’s cheek. Luke lunged, swiping his blade at Kieran’s bicep. The two focused on each other, focused on making the fight look real without hurting each other too badly. For each cut, the crowd go wilder. Both twins panted heavily, blood dripping from their many flesh wounds.
They immediately looked up at the sound of a crow. Above in the rafters Mephisto stared down at them. Relief flooded their veins, and Luke smirked at Kieran. “I told you so,” he panted.
“Shut up,” Kieran grumbled.
Nox growled as the twins stopped fighting each other. His eyes widened as red mist filled the arena. Sylus had arrived, looking furious. Nox’s men fell into the arena, their bodies twisted and distorted in unnatural positions, all of them dead.
“You have something of mine that I want back,” Sylus drawled. He glared at the spectators, making a note to look into all of them. “I’ll be taking them back.” He saw the blood and bruises on the twins. “I was considering letting you live, but seeing what you’ve made my boys do, I think I’ll use you to send a message.”
Nox didn’t get far as he tried to escape. He screamed as his body was engulfed by Sylus’ evol. “Mr. Sylus, please, I didn’t know,” he lied, trying to beg and plead for his life. “I was paid to do this. I didn’t want to.”
“I don’t care,” Sylus narrowed his eyes, his aether core glowing. The twins watched as Nox’s neck snapped and his body was dropped onto the floor. Sylus turned to them. “I’ll have the others clean this up. Are you okay?” his voice softened as he appeared in front of them. He gently checked them over, expression darkening at each wound he found. “Come on, I’ll take you to get these properly taken care of.”
At Akso Hospital, Sylus didn’t hesitate to appear with the twins in Zayne’s office. He raised an eyebrow as Caleb and Zayne pushed apart from each other, panting and flushed. Both of his hands were covering the twins’ eyes. “Am I interrupting something?” he smirked sarcastically.
“Fuck off, Sylus,” Caleb scoffed. “I’ve had enough of your little hoard today.” Sylus noticed the way he looked alert and exhausted, almost sensing the hell Scooter had put him through. Caleb saw the twins and frowned. “What happened?”
Zayne adjusted his tie and lab coat. His glasses were askew and his face was flushed red. “Let me see them,” he said, returning to his doctor mode. The only signs he’d been flustered were the fact his face was still red. Sylus nodded and removed his hands from their eyes. “As already asked, what happened?”
“Some bastard caught them and made them fight each other,” Sylus scoffed. “He’s been taken care of,” he added, noticing Caleb’s eyes darken. “I just need our dear doctor to make sure they’ll be okay. After what happened, I’m not taking any risks with N109 zone doctors, and Philip is on a well-deserved vacation.”
Zayne raised an eyebrow and apologetically smiled when both twins hissed as he cleaned Kieran’s wounds first. “Do you want anesthesia?” he asked gently.
“No drugs,” Luke bristled. “We’re fine.”
“Okay,” Zayne nodded, grabbing a stitch kit. “Feel free to grab onto something or yell.” He started on Kieran first, stitching up the worst of his cuts. Kieran grit his teeth and grabbed the arm of the couch tightly.
“Where’s the seal pup?” Sylus asked, glancing at Caleb.
Caleb scoffed. “She’s fine. A bit occupied but she’s fine.” He glanced at the window with a smirk. Sylus followed his gaze and saw Scooter outside in the stuck in hospital’s pond because of Caleb’s evol, glowering. At least Squeegee seemed happy to be stuck in the pond.
Sylus chuckled. “She’s plotting your murder, puppy. I’d be careful if I were you.”