After several successful raids across the region, the cause had uncovered technology as well as schematics describing the implementation of cybernetic implantation in extensive detail. Thus, the Komutkan began engineering microchips that acted to shut down specific areas of the brain linked to an individual's emotional processing. This was offered to Ekwueme, who refused it after claiming that he was “already removed from my own body.” And so, the army then proceeded to work with Ekwueme as he led his own troops into multiple skirmishes and repeatedly sustained grievous injuries. As he lost extremities, digits, and entire muscle groups, Ekwueme no longer had a choice and accepted both cybernetic replacements and a microchip that completely shut off his reception to pain while enhancing his stamina. He'd advanced from child soldier to a chief proponent of the cause, who one day avenged his family at last by personally executing the Section Leader as well as the commander who'd ordered the raid which altered the course of his destiny.
In the end, Ekwueme discovered that he could pursue a more rewarding venture by journeying to more established civilizations far removed from tribal squabbles and progressed onward in life to create a private “business” of his own. He accomplished this by choosing from amongst the men of the Komutkan who’d pledged their allegiance to him and, in turn, planned the ambush and sacking of a Citadel merchant cruiser which often visited one of the major towns in the dominion for trade reasons.
He managed to successfully claim the vessel and began constructing his legacy in the Lower-City before upgrading his operation to meet the needs of the Mid-City population. The Komutkan Army was later annihilated by another, more formidable opposing legion which had formed in response to their lessening power—completely erasing all past ties Ekwueme had possessed to his old homestead. Ekwueme swiftly rose as the most dangerous gangster in Zone D, as no one had expected his sudden arrival nor his remarkable strength. The small collective known as the High Risers found themselves at his mercy after he'd forced out other competition and plotted a complete monopoly of the Zone market, a strategy he trusted would make him nearly impervious to ruin.
One more milestone stood for him to overcome in order to propel his Blood Disciples beyond simple notoriety and into a position of power within the Citadel. He desired a seat beyond the reach and influence of the Law itself.
But first, Ekwueme planned to live up to his name.
If he wanted someone dead, it wasn't always necessary to order someone else to do the dirty work. He found himself falling into the habit of delegating his henchman to complete all tasks for him, and so for once—after a prolonged period of staying out of the action—the criminal mastermind had taken to the front lines.
-
Ekwueme patiently composed himself on the highest floor of a building overlooking the church, peering through the lens of a Blazer R93 Tactical Sniper Rifle at the boy into whom he'd just fired a round.
Isaac's son collapsed to the ground, limp and fading fast from the world. Ekwueme merely adjusted his sights to rest on the stunned figure of Tavon and prepared to take the next shot:
Focus. Take your time…
His body shook wearily as he attempted to steady his aim once more.
Fir—!
Tavon was gone. It was as if the wind had carried him away in only a second.
“My god…” Ekwueme exclaimed. “Am I losing my mind or did this man—did he jus—”
A thunderous crash resounded on the lowest floor of the building followed by swift, heavy footsteps!
“Whoever you are… you really fucked up!” Tavon's yell echoed up the stairwell leading to the room.
“An easy problem to solve.” Ekwueme quickly disassembled his rifle and carefully placed its components into the crevices belonging to a large, black suitcase that he'd brought along—and drew out the parts of another weapon: a Milkor MGL grenade launcher he'd recently acquired. Demonstrating incredible dexterity, he assembled the weapon system and backed toward an exit to his right that he eased open by pressing on the wooden body of the door with the back of his heel. He slung the suitcase to hang off his back and loaded a round before taking time to concentrate as the footsteps grew ever closer.
Just as Tavon seemed to have arrived at the door, he stopped moving and not another sound was heard. Ekwueme raised an eyebrow and thought, what is he thinking!?
He watched the door closely, awaiting any further movement.
But it began to feel too prolonged, and the gangster grew impatient with his new prey.
“What are you waiting for!?” he shouted. “I think I understand: you're too much of a coward to face another man whose back's not turned to you, huh? Don't be afraid, Mr. Tavon; I'll make things very quick… my aim is always precise.”
Tavon lay crouched by the door with a small shard of a mirror in his hand. The opening was cracked enough for him to view the reflection of Ekwueme aiming the weapon in his direction. Reckless. Effective, innovative—something I would do… but still reckless. This guy really is crazy. He patiently thought to himself.
Ekwueme shouted: “HURRY UP, T—”
The door creaked slightly, and Ekwueme instantly pulled the trigger on the MGL in half a second while pivoting on his right foot to rotate toward a path leading into scaffolding that had been structured around several incomplete apartment complexes. He sprinted up a flight of metallic stairs just as a large explosion erupted behind him and managed to draw the attention of those passing by on the lower streets.
Ekwueme flinched as a chunk of debris narrowly missed his ear and crashed deafeningly into the ground nearby. The gangster traveled up another set of stairs to the east and then turned left onto a narrow walkway bearing rusted guard rails as well as several holes dotted throughout the flooring. He hurried forward and tried to quiet his movements while avoiding the interest of an increasing number of spectators.
I've made a risky move this time… but it cannot be trusted that one like him would die when they should. They're the type to haunt one's soul.
The walkway led him into an open entrance which revealed a spacious room consisting only of a slab of concrete flooring covered in dust dispersed through the air as Ekwueme continued to distance himself from the scene.
After an explosion like that, they'll send authorities to survey from above…
Ekwueme moved toward the northeast and forced open an old, metallic door to proceed up another flight of stairs leading to a building's rooftop. He reached its heights to find two non-functioning cruisers that had been left to rot there some time ago. Ekwueme sprinted to the edge of the open area and leapt down and onto the top of the next complex. The gangster completed a combat roll before hurtling over a ventilation duct only to clumsily fall through a weak patch which had formed on the ceiling!
Ekwueme gasped and crashed into another floor so weakened by the impact that it also collapsed. He fell into a room that had been made livable by one of the squatters in the D Projects.
The machinery in his right knee issued an electrical noise, but he ignored it and used the muscles in his abdomen to spring onto his feet! An unkempt and half-naked man confronted Ekwueme; the inhabitant had put on a record emitting “Never Catch Me.” Ekwueme aimed his brass-knuckled hand at the squatter and exposed a small barrel protruding from the contraption!
The barrel fired with barely much of a sound as a bullet soared into the man's skull! The gangster quickly gained his bearings, turned the volume to its max setting on the record player, and charged through the open doorway in the room before pressing his back against the adjacent wall. He peered to his left to discover a short, empty hallway that wound into a dead end. Feeling his concentration come to its peak, he rapidly rolled his body to the right and in a one-eighty that brought his firearm to face down the path he hadn't inspected. An addict looked up from her needle and didn't have time to react as she was quickly disposed of in a flurry of bullets.
Ahead of him lurked an old elevator, which Ekwueme lunged toward with ferocious
speed as he heard more visitors congregating in the stairwell outside of the area. Once inside, he scanned a barrage of broken numbers and buttons to find one that would simply take him down to the first floor. From there, he could escape into the depths of the Citadel and set up a rendezvous with his soldiers that wouldn't appear too suspicious.
Ekwueme tightened his clothing in a manner that would better conceal the brass contraption engulfing his upper body. Whereas Magellan's device was an external invention he could take on and off, Ekwueme possessed a prototype which actually been fused to his body.
While peering at the elevator panel from the inside, he discovered and activated a button appearing to be a downward arrow and waited while pondering his next move. An old cellular phone in his pocket rang obnoxiously, and so he rejected the call and began typing in the pass code to his device to see who'd tried to contact him…
The elevator doors suddenly opened.
It took me up instead!
Tavon was leaning against a cement wall adjacent to the metallic door panels; he smiled and walked closer to stand confidently before his new target.
Ekwueme didn't skip a beat and raised his arm to fire!
Tavon reacted by quickly darting under his sights and forced his open palm upward into the underside of his opponent's bicep as a bullet rang out. He felt a blunt resistance but continued to sweep under Ekwueme's right leg with his other arm to grasp behind the bend of his knee! He then alternated his grip and moved to secure a hold around the man's back before stepping forward first and subsequently leaning back on his heels as he threw his enemy over him!
The gangster collided with the roof with impact causing a fracture in its structure. He scurried to his knees in shock and was taken by surprise even more so once he came to his feet. Tavon stepped around him just as Ekwueme recovered and took hold of the suitcase affixed to the crime lord's back. The assassin flexed and uttered a loud grunt as he spun using the suitcase as leverage and threw his new target against a series of air ducts—which broke open as Ekwueme's chest smashed into cold, brittle material.
In a sudden fury, Ekwueme leapt to his feet and used both hands to fire round after round at Tavon in a rapid succession!
Tavon sidestepped and dashed before tucking into a roll that brought him nearer to his target. He rushed forward in a half crouch before recovering and used his body's momentum to focus an uppercut into the chest-plate of the gangster's body armor! With his energy entirely focused on that one strike, contact broke the once sturdy plate protecting the enemy's torso, and Ekwueme staggered back while spitting in contempt: “Disrespectful scum!”
His glare bored into Tavon.
“Don't tell me that you've already reached your limit?” The assassin scratched his head and scoffed. “As much as I’d like to get back at you, you're making this way too easy for me.”
Ekwueme snorted, “I knew you weren't normal the moment we met! –I've seen that look before.” He appeared solemn. “But it doesn't matter; I'll finish the contract myself…”
Ekwueme began removing his broken body armor, which collapsed to the ground while sounding with a heavy thud. “High Rise was my problem to begin with. No need to waste time putting one of my soldiers in danger of being arrested for a fool like that! Where I was born, disagreements meant bloodshed. It proved difficult to catch him alone… Besides…” He untied and removed his beret to reveal a short haircut partially divided by a wide scar dominating his scalp. “When it comes to mosquitoes like that, it's better for Angelos to send a lackey to handle it.” Ekwueme removed his top to expose a gash across his abdomen created by the chest-plate having broken inward from Tavon's previous attack.
“The High Risers are still fond of the bug; involvement in his death couldn't be made too obvious. However, my good friend,” he offered Tavon a cheeky smile, “I realized that I've always been a man of my word… a warrior.” His eyes glowed with the fire fueled by his spirit. “Angelos took too much time, and I would ensure the job was done at the risk of losing the High Risers' loyalty—but you arrived at the perfect time, my friend.”
“What are you babbling about?”
“I have a scapegoat now! A treacherous “Angelos Henchman” killing the Blood Disciples' old leader! It’s reasonable, don't you think?”
Tavon sneered. “All that money but no time for a dentist… it’s a shame.”
His opponent scowled, but Tavon continued taunting him, “Maybe you wouldn’t be so angry if you brushed your teeth every now and then—”
Ekwueme sprinted toward the assassin and assaulted with a wide hook! Demonstrating incredible reflexes, Tavon ducked and moved his forearm under and inside of the attack to speedily push his opponent's fist back out and to the right. At the same time, a bullet fired off from the deflected arm, and Tavon stepped in to launch a strong punch into the man's solar plexus.
However, he felt his extremity virtually rebound back against his enemy's toughened skin and quickly lost his balance. Tavon's surprise had taken him off guard completely. Ekwueme took advantage of this and turned before shooting his target in the shoulder!
Tavon cried out in agony and tried to cover what were now large puncture wounds made from both the entry and exit of the round’s trajectory. He then managed to recover enough to step into the battle once more and stubbornly launched a more powerful strike at the same area—!
—But Ekwueme deflected his arm rapidly and followed up by bringing his other balled fist down onto his opponent's injured shoulder. Tavon cringed from the pain and spotted another strike coming his way in the same instant!
Too slow—fuc—!
Tavon endured a heavy hit to the side of his head that sent his body sliding across the floor but reacted promptly by stopping himself with his right hand and using the right side of his body to pivot and effected a hard kick into a Ekwueme's right knee as the mob boss attempted to charge toward him.
Tavon gasped and rolled away before noticing sparks were now shooting out from his opponent's damaged meniscus. He watched as the man narrowly avoided falling to the side and merely inquired:
“Trouble?”
“Synthetic kneecap.” Ekwueme replied angrily. “The result of far too much running…”
Ekwueme tried to sprint again but suddenly felt his right leg collapse underneath him. He allowed himself to fall forward but lifted his body to fire at Tavon, who’d been astonished upon witnessing the malfunction. One of the bullets grazed Tavon's outer thigh as he rolled his body to the side and then rotated to compose himself before charging at his enemy with an attack he believed would decide the final outcome.
Ekwueme fired at him once, but Tavon had already jumped and grasped both of his arms as he swung his torso back and brought his heel up to strike the man's chin!
The mob boss reeled back but swiftly turned to the side and up as Tavon's foot soared downward, just missing Ekwueme’s forehead, and breaking through the roofing structure. This, in effect, caused the assassin to remain stuck in the same spot for a brief moment. Despite this, instead of freeing himself, Tavon drew a pistol without hesitation and began firing at the crime lord, who yelled incomprehensibly with little time to act.
Bullets hit and barely pierced the modified body of Ekwueme, who laughed before Tavon became frustrated and unexpectedly tossed his gun into the man’s face!
Tavon forced his foot through the roof and retrieved a piece of debris that he then hurled at his target. The chunk of material struck his enemy, temporarily burying its way partly into Ekwueme's chest before falling away, and he found himself stunned as Tavon continued with his relentless assault. Tavon summoned his energy before channeling it and slightly expanded his arms as he began punching his opponent with great speed while overtaken with a blind rage!
This time, his strikes caused the crime lord's figure to be forced backward as Tavon's fists rained down across Ekwueme. Realizing that further attacks might damage the hardware embedded in his makeup, the gangster began deflecting Tav
on's blows with increasing accuracy. Upon noticing openings of his own and exploiting the assassin's growing exhaustion, he raised his left knee to strike at Tavon's abdomen—and it was quickly halted. Ekwueme used his remaining moment to mightily jab his opponent in the face twice.
Tavon struggled to keep himself from falling forward, blood streaming from his bottom lip, and followed by raising his head only to view the barrel of Ekwueme's contraption pointed at the bridge of his nose.
“Got you.” Ekwueme said with a sly grin.
*Click*
The crime lord's eyes grew wide in disbelief, and he attempted to shoot again!
*Click*
Tavon sighed with relief. I thought that was it for me—
Tavon's right arm expanded to three times its ordinary size and pulsated with renewed power. Tavon swung up and straight into the jaw of Ekwueme, shattering teeth as the crime lord’s mouth partially collapsed inward.
Ekwueme fell onto his ass and tried desperately to wipe the oozing blood away from his mouth.
“D-devil!” He uttered. “I’ll make you feel every injury twice over—I promise you this! Not even your family will be spared!”
Ekwueme struggled to return to his feet and stood again with crooked posture. Tavon, however, closed the distance and sent a strong hook his way. It was caught in place by his opponent! Tavon launched another strike with his opposing fist, which was caught as well—consecutively leading to Ekwueme using all of his remaining strength so that he could toss the assassin off the edge of the building!
Tavon battled against his opponent’s incredible power and fought to maintain his stance before suddenly losing his own balance! But as a last-ditch attempt to keep himself from being hurled to his death, he forced his knee toward his target's exposed stomach.
Despite his agile reaction, Tavon's attack was blocked as Ekwueme raised his right leg to shield himself. Seeing a new opportunity, Tavon forced his strength into his lower body and issued a series of kicks into the damaged knee joint. An electrical spark was abruptly released through the mob boss’s torn skin, and Ekwueme let go of his enemy as he tumbled the ground!
Angelos Odyssey Page 12