by Max Jager
That's his most powerful technique! thought one of Victor's remaining men.
None of them will be able to bypass it!
But still…that power takes up too much of his strength!
Has he really been pushed so far?
Despite Victor's new transformation, Bandit stepped in front of his friends as he created a spear of ice and held it in his hands.
Some of Victor's men gasped in surprise, while others snickered in amusement.
What is this guy thinking?
He's about to make the biggest mistake of his life.
He's an ice wielder, for crying out loud!
"You're just a glutton for punishment, aren't you?" asked Victor, "But you should know: I'm not the same person I was back then. My blue fire has grown to be even hotter than before. Nothing you, an ice wielder, can do is going to hurt me this time around."
You should listen to him, kid, thought his men, It's not too late. Just give yourself up before you do something you'll regret.
"Bandit," said Mary with concern, "…what are you going to do…?"
"You're not really gonna try to fight him, are you?" asked Rachel worriedly, "He uses the polar opposite element you do!"
"Hey, Bandit," said Abe as he closed his eyes, "This isn't a good idea."
"Bandit," said Brayne as sweat dripped down his face, "Uh, you might want to reconsider engaging him in battle. You do remember that scar he gave you before, right?"
"Brayne, a fourth of my body is already covered in scar tissue," said Bandit as he raised his spear up and took aim at Victor, "What difference would another scar make? After all, if I really cared all that much about my body, I wouldn't bother smoking when I have one lung."
"You may have been able to defeat Zor," said Victor as he cracked his knuckles, "but that doesn't mean you'll be able to do anything to me, especially if you intend to fight me alone. I'll tell you what, though: since you're so determined to fight me, I'll allow you to try to strike me one time. When you fail…I will proceed to annihilate you and your friends, but I warn you, before I kill you, I will make you watch as I "infiltrate the barriers" of your beloved female associates."
Brayne and Abe gritted their teeth in anger, while Mary gasped in shock and took a step back.
What is he talking about? thought Brayne, What is wrong with him?
Holy…thought Mary as she trembled a bit, This guy is…pure evil…
…What does he mean by "infiltrate the barriers"? thought Rachel, confused, I don't have any barriers…do I…?
…Oh…!
Bandit glared at Victor with incredulous fury as Victor spoke once more.
"In the Land of Power, my men and I were the weakest of the weak, the poorest of the poor. I have worked inconceivably hard to obtain power and influence, and I will not allow you to take those things away from me. However, you do have two options. You and your friends can leave the Ice Lands for good…or…you can attempt to strike me. Those are your choices, and needless to say, if you choose the latter…I will show no mercy as soon as that first attack of yours fails."
Victor smirked at Bandit as Bandit cracked his neck.
"Whatever you say," he remarked.
All was silent in the next moment.
Brayne and the others were at a loss for words. They knew full well what Bandit's decision would be, which left them with no other alternative but to hope for the best, and prepare for the worst.
Brayne and Abe pulled the girls behind them so they could protect them, and Mary nervously gritted her teeth as she held onto Rachel.
Well, Lane? thought Victor as he looked at his adversary confidently, What decision will you make? Will you do the smart thing and flee this land for good…or will you sacrifice your life, the lives of your friends, and the purity of your women? In any case, it does not matter what you decide…
I will be victorious nonetheless.
Bandit threw the spear of ice he held in his hand at Victor, and Victor smirked as it flew in his direction.
So that's the choice you've decided to make, eh, Bandit Lane? You fool. You're no match for me. You just made the biggest mistake of your life, and as soon as that spear is melted away upon making contact with my flames, I'm going to make you pay for it, and the end result will not be pretty.
How will you feel, Lane…watching as I kill your friends, as I rob your women of their purity? Will you feel upset? Will you feel sad? Or will you feel regret because you could have prevented it all?
He cracked his knuckles as the ice spear closed in on him.
You are a truly foolish man… I will enjoy destroying you.
It happened so fast.
One moment, Victor was smirking at Bandit, amused by his decision, and excited at the prospect of making him suffer, and the next moment…
…the spear of ice Bandit Lane had thrown at him bypassed his armor of fire, and impaled his stomach.
What the hell? thought his men as their jaws dropped as low as they possibly could in complete surprise.
Victor screamed in great anguish as blood sprayed from his lips. He stumbled back a bit, and panted heavily as he looked down to see the spear of ice sticking out of his stomach. He watched in horror as the blood that fell from his lips dripped onto the spear, and sweat appeared upon his brow as he looked up to see Bandit Lane slowly walking towards him.
"That's what you get for acting so high and mighty," he said coldly.
Victor grunted in pain as he looked at Bandit angrily, while Bandit's allies looked at him with pure shock and awe.
The blue flames that had engulfed Victor before quickly disappeared, for under the extreme pain his body was experiencing, he could no longer maintain his transformation. He wanted to flee, but the pain he was under would only allow him to take a few steps back. He gritted his teeth as he watched Bandit exhale a puff of smoke from his mouth.
What the…? he thought as he trembled furiously, My blue flames are…supposed to extinguish…anything that comes into contact with them…but…he just broke through that shield…!
Bandit gritted his teeth angrily as he walked closer to Victor.
"You underestimated me, Victor," he said coldly, "You had no idea that the angrier I am, the stronger my ice becomes…and you made me inconceivably angry when you threatened the girls."
Everyone in the area gasped in shock at the unexpected revelation, and Victor grunted as he looked at Bandit irritably.
"I do feel sorry for you, considering what you've told me about your past. However…that doesn't mean I'm going to let you rule this land. In a moment, it won't even matter how bad you've had it in the past..."
Victor gasped as Bandit created another spear of ice and held it in his hand.
"…because it won't compare to what I'm about to do to you."
He charged at Victor, and Victor grunted as he tried to run. When he did so, however, he coughed up blood, and ended up falling to his knees. He slowly turned around, and watched as Bandit came closer and closer to him.
Damn it…he thought as he tried to stand up, I can't get away…!
"It's over!" yelled Bandit as he closed in on him.
Shit!
Without hesitating for a second, Bandit quickly lifted his spear into the air, and drove it right through Victor's head. Victor did not even have time to scream when he felt the spear impale his head and make its way through his brain and throat.
Bandit drove the spear as deep into Victor as he possibly could, and his friends gasped as they watched him do so.
Holy shit…! thought Brayne in complete awe, I've never seen him do something like that before…! Man… Looks like he's just as brutal as ever!
Oh my God! thought Mary with widened eyes, I've never seen him act so…merciless…towards a single opponent… I mean, I know he was trying to protect us, but…I can't help but feel kinda…sorry for the guy he killed… Bandit… It must have been hard for him to listen to what Victor had said about "infiltrating" me and Rachel'
s "barriers"…
Bandit…thought Rachel as she closed her eyes, You did what you had to do.
Bandit slowly pulled his spear from Victor's body, and despite the brutality he had just displayed, he calmly exhaled a puff of smoke from his mouth, and balled up his fists as he looked at the damage he had done with only slight disconcertion.
…Maybe I went a little too far…
…Maybe…
Meanwhile, Abe, Brayne, Rachel, and Mary turned around to look at Victor's men, causing them to gasp in fear.
"Sorry," said Abe with a devilish grin as he pointed his sword at them, "but it doesn't matter if you just lie there or not."
"Your lives are going to end here," asserted Rachel as she cracked her knuckles.
The men gasped again as Mary tightened her grip on her dagger.
"Even if you aren't trying to fight us, there's still the matter of the people, and more specifically, the women you've hurt."
The men gasped once more, and began to sweat as Brayne lazily yawned and covered his mouth.
"It's a pain in the ass…" said Brayne when he uncovered his mouth and began to discharge electricity from his body, "…but…a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. Prepare your anuses..."
"…because we're about to show you…" continued Mary with eyes filled of hatred.
"…what it really means…" continued Rachel through gritted teeth.
"… to be raped," finished Abe with a disturbing grin.
Victor's men shook in extreme consternation as the four slowly walked towards them.
God, help us all! they thought as they screamed in terror
If only their screams could have saved their asses from being annihilated.
The people of the Ice Lands had been forced to deal with the tyranny of the one thousand rogue Landians for three full months, but with the arrival of Bandit and his friends, they had been effectively liberated in less than three hours.
Now, for the first time in three months, peace would finally return to the land.
The Return
July 29, 1848
Somewhere near the edge of the city of Lax was a small, two-floor diner known as Lane's. The diner was on the bottom floor, while the upper level acted as an apartment for the owner of the diner and her son.
The son, a handsome red-haired waiter, walked over to a table of three tennage girls, Teresa, Grace, and Kim, with a notepad and a pen.
"Hello," he greeted with a charming smile, "Welcome to Lane's. What would you like to have today?"
The man did not realize it, but as soon as the women laid their eyes on him, they were instantly infatuated with him.
Hello, handsome… thought Kim as she playfully bit her lip.
Ooh, thought Grace as her pupils dilated, He's…so hot…
I'm gonna have to ask him for some water, thought Teresa as she gulped.
After several seconds of staring at him, Teresa gasped when she realized that he wanted to take her order, and cleared her throat as she looked at her menu. Her friends, however, continued to look at the man like he was the most amazing man they had ever laid their eyes upon.
"Y-Yes…" she stammered as her cheeks turned red, "I-I'll have the…uh… I'll have the…"
Unfortunately for her, she could not take her eyes off the man's muscular arms.
The man raised an eyebrow in confusion as he spoke.
"Would you like some more time to think?" he asked.
Teresa cleared her throat again when she realized she was staring at him again, and put her hand on her forehead in embarrassment.
"I'll just have some ice water for now," she said, flustered.
"No problem," said the man as he wrote down the poor girl's order.
Grace smiled when she saw Teresa lower her head.
Looks like she's out, she thought with amusement.
Now it's just me and Grace, thought Kim with a grin.
The man smiled as he looked at Grace, causing Grace to gasp and blush instantly.
Oh no! she thought nervously, He's looking at me…!
"What would you like?" he asked with his ever-so-charming smile.
.Unlike Teresa, Grace could not even begin to try to give him her order. All she could think of was giving him a certain something else.
"Excuse me," she said nervously as she stood up from her seat, "I… I need to…"
Excessively anxious, Grace quickly walked towards the women's restroom, and Kim smiled and raised an eyebrow in amusement.
Damn, girl, she thought, You couldn't even stick around! Hm… Oh well… I guess that means it's just him and me…
"You'll have to excuse my friend," she said as she smiled at the waiter, "She doesn't know how to speak to…handsome men like yourself."
The man raised his eyebrows in surprise at the compliment.
"I…see…" he said, unaware of how to treat the compliment, "Anyway, what can I get for you?"
"Hm," said Kim as she playfully bit her lip and looked at her menu, "That's a hard decision. After all, everything I see looks so good…"
She looked at the man from the corner of her eye, and was slightly disappointed when she saw that his facial expression gave no indication that he understood any of the innuendo she was providing.
Looks like I'll have to try a little…harder…she thought.
"I think I'll have the crisp Icelandic salad…" she requested with a seductive smile.
The oblivious man wrote down her order as she continued.
"…and if you'd be so kind…I'd also like to…spend some time with you tonight."
Surprised, the man stopped writing, and looked at her in surprise.
"That sounds nice," he lied, "but I'm busy tonight."
Kim raised her eyebrows in surprise.
"Is that everything?" he asked indifferently.
"…Uh…yes..." responded Kim, "That's…everything…"
"Okay, then," said the man, "That's one ice water and one crisp Icelandic salad. I'll bring your food to you as soon as possible."
The man turned around to walk away, when Kim called out to him.
"Would you happen to be free tomorrow night?" she asked.
The man turned around and furrowed his eyebrows as he spoke.
"I'm afraid not," he lied, causing Kim to look at him like he was insane.
"Okay…" she said, confused, "How about two nights from now?"
"No," lied the man as he walked away.
"Sometime next week?" asked Kim desperately.
"No."
"Two weeks from now?"
"No."
"Next month?"
"No."
"Next year?"
"No."
"Oh, come on!" exclaimed Kim, frustrated at the man's refusal to spend time with her, "How do you if you won't be free next year?"
"I don't," responded the man, "but that doesn't mean I'm gonna waste a free night with you."
Kim blushed in embarrassment as she looked around. At this point, several other people in the restaurant were looking at her, so she buried her face in her hands, and lowered her head in shame.
All the while, the red-haired manager of the diner had her hand over her mouth to keep her laughter from attracting any attention.
Oh, man! she thought, highly amused, That just never gets old! My son really couldn't care less about women, could he? Hahaha! What a heartbreaker!
August 8, 1854
In Lane's, the red-haired manager of the diner, who sat at the counter, smiled as she finished remembering an amusing memory of her son.
Oh, man, she thought to herself, That was too funny! My son is something else. He didn't care at all that the girl was trying to get with him. Hahahaha! Oh…
The woman gradually became quiet, and reflected on her son as she rubbed her chin.
I wonder how he's doing… It has been so long… I wish he hadn't left…
She took a deep breath and sighed as she continued to reflect.