Searching for a loophole, Slicer pulled Indistructo forward by holding the back of his head. He struck him with a knee strike to the stomach. Indistructo's mouth widened in agony when his opponent's attack connected. Slicer then slammed his head against the ground.

**********

At the Skyscraper, he concentrated on disarming the bomb while determining which wire needed to be severed as he held onto a scissor.

"Let's see..."

Max looked at the blue cable with concern; he was anxious about the outcome. He feared that the blue wire would be wrong; therefore, a conflict unfolded in him, unaware of which wire was the right one to cut. He shook his head and prepared to sever it.

"No, not this one."

The captives jumped into a huddle and clutched each other tightly. The elderly uttered a prayer while the children sobbed vehemently, seeking dawn to arise from the Dark void they were in. Their situation was that of a lost adventure in the woods, vehemently chased by ruthless beasts at nightfall; since the beasts hunted at dusk and rested during the day. Now the sun was their source of hope.

"Oh, Father, have mercy on our souls."

Meanwhile, additional soldiers were shooting at Vanessa. She summoned man-eating plants from the ground. The repulsive beings jerked their jaws open, revealing their razor-sharp, rife-tipped canines. Their canines sent shivers up and down the trooper's spine.

Without warning, each plant grabbed a trooper by the skull and bit them with their vicious jaws. After that, they went so far as to pull their heads off their bodies. What was left of the esophagus burst into a bloody spray? The apathetic man-eating plants started to nibble away at their corpses mercilessly.

One plant, for instance, ripped a fellow trooper's heart to bits as its teeth pierced through it, all before swallowing it.

Max looked at the red wire and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath. After deciding what to do, he exhaled and opened his eyes. He swung through the red wire after opening the scissors; this was a disastrous mistake as the timer abruptly jumped to the thirty-second count. The hostages sobbed even more, preparing to end the final chapter of their lives. Families huddled into groups and gripped each other by the hands.

"It was nice knowing you, Jessica," muttered a fellow husband. After that, he kissed his wife on the forehead and rumpled his children's hair.

With only ten seconds left, Max
panicked even more. His heartbeat raced even faster, and his pupils dilated. He took another deep breath to appease his anxiety. He opened his eyes and looked at the blue wire once more.

Before cutting it, he halted. He exhaled and cut through the blue wire.

By the mercy of fate, the timer stopped. He sighed with relief while the hostages rejoiced. Some of them skipped around, while others shook each other's shoulders. And, of course, others enveloped each other with embraces.

************

At the Battlefield, Slicer drove the blade through Kuhn Lau's chest.

"Aah!" He yelped.

He drove the blade even further until it encountered a chain of bones. He pushed Kuhn Lau towards the nearest wall. The vindictive assassin found pleasure in his groaning.

Like a calf that has fallen victim to a lion's jaws, with its fangs locked around its neck, he struggled to liberate himself. However, he still had some amount of energy. He retaliated and pummelled him on the shoulders, which proved fatal as more blood seeped from his wound.

"So, you think this is torture, Kuhn Lau? Well, you have no idea what torture truly is? From the shadows, my people and I watched you and your people drink the finest wine while we ate from the trash! You will soon know what the true meaning of torture is."

As he was about to thrust the blade through his chest again, Pete fired a ki blast at Slicer. Slicer turned around and diverted his attention to him. He then zipped away from where he stood.

He appeared in front of Pete and attempted to impale him on the right side of his shoulder. However, what came next was something that he failed to anticipate. Pete struck him with the backside of the scythe. The impact of that attack sent him flying as he landed a few meters away from him.

Slicer held his head since his impairment was glitching after coming in contact with that powerful attack. After some time, he flipped himself til he landed on his feet. He glared at Pete, infuriated that he caused some damage.

"Well, I'll be. You landed a powerful attack."

He flipped the weapon to boast of his accomplishment as if it were his scythe, "There is more of where that came from."

"Oh, I'd like to see if you can back up your words."

Pete gestured at him, and Slicer zipped away from where he stood. He appeared above Pete and attempted to stab him on the right side of his chest. Fortunately, Pete was fast enough to block the attack. When the weapons collided, the impact of that incision repelled them apart, with their feet plowing through the tar. With incredible reaction speed, Pete fired a yellow ki blast in his direction. Although the ki blast did manage to strike him, he did not waste time and pursued the vindictive assassin. When he saw his silhouette in the haze of smoke, he directed the scythe toward the center of his chest.

However, Slicer saw the attack coming from a mile away. He grabbed the wooden frame of the scythe and pulled Pete closer to him. He intended to headbutt him. However, Pete quickly reacted by hurling another ki blast, aiming it at his head. Slicer failed to respond as the shot pushed him a further distance away.

Irritated was the word to describe him, for he had underestimated Pete. Since the ki blast drove him a further distance away. Pete ran after him and swung the scythe. He struck Slicer on the neck with it.

Although the scythe managed to pierce through his neck, it failed to decapitate him. His head was still intact.

Slicer wrinkled his face with contempt. It was a close call, had Pete applied more force to that attack, his head would be rolling on the ground by now.

Pete chuckled in humility, realizing that he had failed to decapitate Slicer.

"You idiot," snarled Slicer.

He directed his finger at Pete and struck him with a powerful lightning strike. Slicer removed the scythe from his neck and threw it on the ground.

"I underestimated that clown. And because of that, I gave him the opening he needed to capitalize," he murmured.

Slicer then turned around, and when he did that, Ace appeared out of nowhere and punched Slicer in the forefront of his face. The force of that punch caused a shockwave that repelled the assassin a further distance from him.

Ace crouched on the ground and grabbed his scythe. He caressed it with love.

Although he looked fine, the same couldn't be about his physical condition. After Slicer struck him with the lightning bolt in the previous chapter, it burnt the flesh on his right arm to a crisp. The upper part of his suit was incinerated, exposing his bulgy pectoral muscles and six-pack.

Then after, he made a tremendous leap to Slicer when the vindictive assassin recovered from his shock wave punch. He made an effort to cut off his head. Slicer deflected the blow by bringing the blade up before his neck. When the weapons came in contact with each other, sparks flashed out.

"I struck you with a full-blown attack. You were supposed to be unconscious. How did you recover so quickly?!" Slicer inquired.

"I enhanced my qi tenfold, giving my body more resistance toward your lightning attack!"

"I see, however, if I strike you again. It would be the end for you. Seeing as how my lighting attack has devoured your flesh!"

Ace knew using the scythe for a prolonged time for protection wouldn't be ineffective. However, he didn't care and chose to prepare for another attack instead.

With his left arm occupied with Ace's scythe, he directed his right hand at Ace, with his finger emitting blue sparks. He prepared to launch another lightning strike when a bark of wood suddenly tangled around him. The bark had enough momentum to pull his finger away from Ace due to its powerful force.

"What is the meaning of this?!" A frustrated Slicer inquired.

The perpetrator of this attack appeared to be none other than Viper. Slicer lifted his head and sent another lightning bolt to break free of this unliberal coil. He was freed from this coil by the lightning strike. It devoured the wood and set it ablaze. 

Viper's eyes grew enormously large as she whispered, "No way."

Slicer diverted his attention away from Ace and zipped away. He went after Viper, moving in her direction with incredible speed. He directed his left arm at her to launch the blade. Then, with the same properties of a bullet, he shot the dreaded weapon toward her, sending it flying with incredible speed.

Suddenly the blade halted; it would seem that some force had stopped it from reaching her. It turns out that Max was the individual who stopped the sword. She then sighed with relief.

"You!" Slicer snarled.

His cold, sharp eyes pierced through him. If looks could kill, Max would've been dead the second he tended his gaze at him.

Slicer pursued him, and as he did that, his legs remained station. He tried to take a step forward but couldn't.

"What the?" He grunted, cocked his head up, and realized Max had stretched his hand at him. A colorless orb coated his hands, allowing him to immobilize himself.

"You insect, I always knew you'd be a thorn in my neck."

"And you're a pain in the ass," stated Max.

Then, Ace came from the side and swung the scythe toward his neck. As soon as the scythe severed his head from his neck, his skull hit the ground and rolled down the street like a can.

As a result, Ace began to breathe sharply and grinned to himself with pleasure. 

***********

A short while later, All the Guardians, including Max, integrated after overcoming what seemed to be an impossible challenge.

They wounded; for instance, Yung Fu placed his hand against his chest, preventing more blood from seeping out. Viper, in turn, ripped out her right sleeve and bandaged his chest.

"I do not usually do this...However, consider this as a gift from me."

"Thank you," said Yung Fu.

Ace put his hand on Nicholas's right shoulder and looked at him, perplexed by his current features. Nicholas was covered with a field of grazes while his garments were torn.

"Damn, you look like hell."

"I could say the same about you," replied Nicholas.

Kuhn Lau then sat down and untied his hair, letting a large tuft loose as it cascaded past his shoulder regions.

"I need a vacation." Pete chuckled and sat beside him.

"I agree."

Yung Fu exhaled and spoke after that.

"Good job, everyone! In all honesty, if it weren't for all of our efforts, none of us would be here. I believe the time has come for us all to return to our lives."

"I'm with you on that. I need a glass of whiskey," said Ace.

Kuhn Lau gently shook his head and commented, "You should focus on healing first."

"Chill, man, I'm not a child anymore. I'm sure my body wouldn't mind if I nab a drink or two."

"Wait! Does that mean that I can return to my darling Nina?" Indistructo Inquired

"Yes, you may," replied Yung Fu.

"This is it; now I can finally focus on rebuilding my life," stated Pete.

"Anew?" Kuhn Lau asked.

"Yeah, man. Just like how I rebuilt my self-esteem. Now I will do that with my life, Independent of someone."

Kuhn Lau rubbed his back and continued, "I'm proud of you, Peter, continue believing in yourself. In the end, you'll move mountains."

Viper approached Max and shook his hand, "Thank you for everything, Max. We are truly grateful for your contribution."

"Pssh, don't sweat it, guys. We are a team, after all."

"Well, everyone let's go home," suggested Indistructo.

Suddenly the dark clouds integrated and canopied the sky, plaguing it with darkness. The dark clouds increased in size while thunder cracked the sky. The seven turned around, and much to their dismay, a lightning bolt struck Slicer's remains.

"Oh no!" Muttered Kuhn Lau.

"Home? Who said anything about going back home," uttered a smooth yet terrifying voice.

The sound of his footprints paralyzed them with distress. Slicer then stepped out of the haze of smoke, renewed by the lightning bolt.

They all were jaw-dropped, failing to speak to no avail.

"As a matter of fact. Our battle has just started."

To Be Continued