Benn pnted his finger on the trigger, his heavy machine gun already locked and loaded for any bullets spewing out.

  Along with him, Johnny also pced the butt of his gun into his armpit, keeping it firm as both men stood side by side. Letting their feet trail toward the bleeding-out Doug, the chubby man still kept his hands firm on his trench gun, his feet glued deep onto the dry grass.

  His head hunched down, he stared deep into the grass, his face darkened and cmmed as blood poured forth from his eyes and nose.

  (Doug) You shark-human piece of shit…

  The bullet wounds he received only patched up, his skin and tissue regenerating and sowing it like a stitch. Letting this process regenerate repeatedly, the blood that poured from his body ceased, leading his feet and arms to move at a snail’s pace.

  Pushing all of his biceps to aim the barrel higher, he steadily and forcefully moved his finger to the mechanized trigger.

  Having it pced firm, Doug coughed out a st ball of blood, staining it onto his thin brown jacket.

  (Doug) Time to be mincemeat.

  Ignoring their fingers, Doug pulled—

  Both of them jumped opposite sides away from Doug’s aim.

  Barely avoiding the buckshot of Doug’s gun, Benn id waste again, pulling the trigger to storm out another rain of bullets. Pushing the air yet again, Doug ran to the left, his eyes letting him perceive a sandbag that looked to be coverable for his head.

  By the time he nestled himself with cover, blood gushed from his ankles and feet. Gncing down, a hot pain soared through his body, with all of his teeth gritting against one another like he was trying to chew on them.

  (Doug’s thoughts) Damn! Damn! Damn!

  Johnny couldn’t fire his gun.

  Despite his finger honed on the metal, the grip tucked in his armpit, he couldn’t find any reason to fire his weapon. Even when trials of sweat fleshed out from his temples and cheeks, he softly swayed his head quietly, without compint.

  Ignoring the hesitating Johnny, Benn got up, his body loosened and rexed. Walking very slowly, the tips of his toes and the bottoms of his heels rubbed the surface of the grass like nail polish.

  As he kept his eyes on the chubby man.

  (Benn) Give it up.

  Using his left hand, he chucked out the chamber from his gun, as he began to reload in another round of bullets. Clocking the chamber back in, his fingers flicked the switch, leading the machine gun to be secured without error.

  (Benn) Your sins have caught up with you.

  Behind the sandbag, Doug clutched his trench gun like a baby, his teeth gritting on all enamels with drool on the verge of exiting. Sucking his saliva into his throat, he peeked his head out once, but he pulled it back in when…

  Benn lit up a couple of bullets.

  Hitting the edges of the sandbag, Doug id the back of his head on the edge, his turquoise hair scrunching and spiking from the sand. With just a low gruff, he pced the butt of the gun on the floor.

  Extending and raising his hands in the air, Benn ceased his walk.

  (Benn) You’re surrendering?

  (Doug) I have no other choice, but to listen to you talk …

  (Benn) Then get up.

  Grudgingly, he pced his knees deep into the ground, letting it cushion his bones despite the pain being scorching. His nails glowing toward their eyes, Benn lowered the weapon to his waist, having the chamber knelt beside his hip.

  Having his back facing Benn, Doug had pced the entirety of his feet into the dry grass. Continuing to stare at the pair of doors at the far end of the train, Doug lowered his head.

  (Benn) Turn around.

  Using the soles of his heels, he let his body spin around, stopping once his face and chest were pinned in the direction of the shark-human. Maintaining his lowered face, Doug took two steps to the right, his legs and feet unable to be covered by the sandbag.

  Seeing him unarmed, with the trench gun sleeping still on the grass, Benn started to walk again. Step after step, his boots clinked and scratched the surface of the grass, while rubbing his lower jaw with his upper.

  Johnny did so too, but with his barrel pointing low to the ground.

  Both of them reaching the man they have hostage, Benn moved the barrel right onto Doug’s heart, pcing it firmly.

  (Benn) A vampire’s weakness is his heart, right?

  The question being directed not to Doug, but to Johnny, his lips quivered once. Raising both of his eyebrows, he used his left hand to wield his gun, while his right cmped onto Benn’s shoulder. By just touching the shark-human, Johnny let a cold shiver run course through his body, his sweat breathing and hardening his body like ice.

  (Johnny) What are you pnning on doing?

  (Benn) We can’t let him live.

  Doug’s eyes widened, and his body froze like a deer in headlights.

  Johnny’s fingers dug deep into Benn’s colrbone, leading him to gnce to the left of him. Seeing his teeth cttering, as well as his throat quivering frantically, Benn’s eyes narrowed at the young man.

  Whilst keeping the barrel on Doug’s heart.

  (Benn) You want me to spare him?

  (Johnny) Just think about this …

  (Benn) Think about what?

  (Johnny) This grudge you hold …I know what he did, and his sins …

  Benn thrusted his left hand onto Johnny’s wrist, letting his fingers and palm wrap around his frail bone like a bnket. Keeping it there, he put just enough pressure for Johnny to scrunch up his eyes, his cheeks wrinkled from the strain he endured.

  But he didn’t let go of Benn.

  Digging his fingers into Benn’s colrbone evermore, his nails swam into his skin, letting a trail of blood flow from it. His scleras began to strain red—no, both their eyes were already red.

  (Benn) Do you still think he deserves to live?

  (Johnny) Killing him won’t solve anything.

  (Benn) Killing him would put a lot of people at ease.

  (Johnny) Are you going through with this…

  His lips quivered while allowing his gun to drop loudly on the grass. His nails and fingers rustled with the fake air around him, the brunt of it smmed onto his boot, but he didn’t quake.

  Using his other hand, he thrust it to Benn’s elbow, but unlike his other hand, he didn’t curl his fingers into the tissue. Instead, he used the butt of his palm to jab it into pce, causing Benn to take a step back.

  (Johnny) Killing him would only put your friends, and especially yourself into a whole other world of danger. Think about what you’re doing.

  (Benn) Then what do you want me to do with him? Spare him and hope he backs off. Making me take a half-measure?

  Benn’s voice growled like a general motor, leaving Johnny to let his hand free from his colrbone. As Johnny kept his palm on Benn’s elbow, he let his head flow down and clenched down all of his teeth.

  His body now trembling, both men had no signs of rage within their hands. Benn dropped his machine gun as well, his bluish-gray hand roaming the fake air. His palm ft, he couldn’t curl his fingers in, he couldn’t …

  (Benn) Just what do you see in that man? A man full of sins that could only deserve the punishment of death?

  (Johnny) I’m not a man who holds grudges.

  Johnny pulled his hand away from Benn’s elbow, whilst Benn did the same from Johnny’s wrists. His reddened eyes fading away, he let his hands hover over his crotch, clutching them together while lowering his head.

  Keeping his eyes staring at the shark-human, Johnny gulped down any saliva lingering in his mouth, moistening his throat and stomach.

  (Johnny) Revenge, grudges, it’s all too complicated and sterile. Instead…

  Johnny gnced at his palm, his hand which blistered and hardened from wielding his gun. Calluses growing underneath his fingers, he let his fingers wiggle repeatedly, as his palm dried under the fake sun above him.

  Raising his head, he pushed a half-hearted smile, a smile brittle yet hardened like a penny.

  (Johnny) Toppling his empire would be a fate worse than death for him—

  Johnny’s eyes widened.

  As if the whole world went pale, Johnny grabbed a hold of Benn’s arms, his fingers trenching into his skin like anchors. Pressuring all of his strength into the bottoms of his feet, and bulging every atom of muscle within his biceps and shoulders, he pushed Benn.

  Unable to speak, no voice uttering in the void of white, Benn let his short burly body be thrown by the weak man. As soon as Benn extended his hand out to him, Johnny…

  Johnny tumbled backward, as a sea of blood poured from his stomach.

  Clutching his stomach, he failed to cover his head before he hit the grass. Smming hard, cracking parts of his skull, every nerve acted as if his blood was repced by va. Hot, hot, hot, stinging, stinging, stinging; his entire face wrinkled like an old man having a heart attack.

  Widening his mouth, he let the blood gush out from his open-holed stomach.

  (Benn’s thoughts) W…

  His palms holding his upper body up, the world of white soon faded, leading the two women who fought to gaze upon…

  Elizabeth froze.

  Betty raised her hands to her mouth, covering it as even her curse began to loosen its hold on the cat-girl. Returning her vision to her, Elizabeth’s pupils shook immensely, her nose trailing blood she ingrained in her mind—

  She saw a hole.

  (Elizabeth) a-a…

  Unable to quiver a voice, unable to mutter the simplest of vowels from her tongue, she stood with just her glued two feet. Betty did the same, the corners of her lips churning down to unleash a frail frown.

  As for Benn…

  He crawled to Johnny, whose body turned cold the more blood he stained the grass. With his rge hand, he pced the bottom of his palm where the wound was, letting his skin be painted crimson red.

  (Benn’s thoughts) No medicine could save him … and it’ll take a minute before he’ll die …

  Raising the barrel of his trench gun to the ceiling, Doug’s breathing hardened, allowing his throat to succumb to a coursing wheeze. Tilting his head and eyes down, his lower body wobbled, all the while unable to look up at his dying son.

  A son he gave to the world, but quickly took it back.

  (Doug’s thoughts) I’m a fool…

  ______________________________________________________________________________

  (Reverence 6, 59 / 8:08PM)

  She regained her senses.

  Using every atom of muscle within her heels, soles, and toes, she leaped through the air to get to the dying young man. Unable to hear, unable to smell, and thanks to Betty’s guard being down, her sense of sight sharpened.

  As if their brawl was in intermission, everyone had their weapons dropped to the ground, including Doug’s. Letting his right hand wield the trench gun, he lowered the weapon to the ground, the barrel barely grazing the surface of the floor.

  (Doug’s thoughts) Was this part of your pn … Lazaros …

  Reaching Johnny, Elizabeth immediately pced both of her palms onto the wide-opened hole. Without saying Veil Delirium, she tried to push whatever cloud from her palms, trying to summon just a single one—

  His hand reached to her wrist.

  Stopping whatever she was doing, she gazed at Johnny with quivering eyes, as she felt his fingers begin to run cold.

  (Johnny) Listen Elizabeth …

  His face continued to wrinkle from the pain, just the sight of seeing Elizabeth was enough to push his lips up. Smiling through the pain, while his hearing bred like the world’s loudest timpani, his fingers rubbed her tan skin repeatedly.

  (Johnny) I don’t … gasps … have a lot of time … but …

  Blood seeking exit from the corners of his lips, and the crevices of his eyes held bloody tears soaked with salt. Stinging and exasperating his eyes, they strained a hellish red, all the while his body ceased the anguished pain. Halting his thumb, he hovered it over her wrist by a nanometer gap.

  (Johnny) Whenever you feel cold, could you … cough cough … wear my jacket like a bnket?

  Without sniffling, without gasping for air, two long streaks of tears ran down her cheeks.

  Two days prior, Johnny gave her his jacket to keep her warm. A dispy of love, an act of kindness, she remembered the scene like she was watching the end of a romance tragedy movie.

  Keeping her palms firm on his wound, he pulled out from her wrist.

  (Johnny) Don’t you ever get sad …

  Her face wrinkled.

  Unable to hold back, she slowly lowered her head to his chest, as exasperated gasps plowed back and forth from her throat. Squeezing her lungs, pushing all the air out like how a donkey would, she repeated this breathless action without showing her face.

  Her arms wrapped around his id body, and a couple of tears sprang out from his eyes.

  (Johnny) Find someone … who’ll take better care of you …

  She continued her relentless wheezing.

  Benn, his body pushed up by the soles of his feet, walked toward Johnny. Casting a dark shadow over him, his face darkened, as he bent down on one knee with his hands enclosed in his pockets.

  While Benn did this, Johnny bulged his right arm forward, extending it right on top of Elizabeth’s hand. Plopping his palm down, he rubbed her hair, her head scorching his already cold hand.

  Benn took out a tiny bottle, uncasping the lid which dispyed a small storage of water.

  (Benn) Hold still.

  His vision blurring, Johnny stared up at the metal ceiling, unable to see the early night stars. Despite one of his wishes ungranted, he had another one wrapped around his freezing body. But in the snap of a match, every pore from his body was drenched in a burning sweat.

  As if all the body heat in his body was exiting from his body all at once, Elizabeth raised her head.

  (Johnny) Take my jacket off, please…

  Slowly, she reached out to his sleeves, taking off the thin brown jacket he had worn for most of his life. While she did this, Benn pced his right thumb into the water, his bluish skin soaking it in like a sponge.

  Extending his right arm and hand, he traced the line of water onto Johnny’s forehead, making a cross.

  Being blessed, Johnny exhaled a huge breath of air from both his nostrils and throat. Continuing to sweat, his jacket was taken off, followed by his vision soon fading away into obscurity.

  (Benn) Like my father, I do pertain my faith.

  Both beast-humans pushed their wobbled knees and legs to stand, as his pupils began to diminish the st spark of humanity within his body. Every muscle, organ, and bone all id to rest, with the exception for his lips and ears.

  Seeing nothing but bck, he trailed a whisper against the void.

  (Johnny) It’s ok … I’m going to be … ok …

  The st exhale of air breached from his cold mouth.

  Witnessing the st spark of humanity seething out from him, both beast-humans continued to stare at the newly made corpse. Elizabeth, whose fingers remained still, had her nails grip the fabric of his brown jacket.

  Unable to shake, her knuckles feeling the fake air breeze against her skin, she bent down without smming her knee on the ground.

  As she bnketed Johnny with his jacket.

  His body was cold, and she didn’t want him to shiver under the eyes of death. Letting him rest, her eyelids slowly started to puncture bck, along with her head tilted upward to stare at the ceiling.

  Doug took a step back, his throat quivering as he raised both of his hands to his shoulder. Meanwhile, Betty had her knees trenched on the ground, her palms firm on it while widening her eyes.

  (Betty) What … did you …

  Benn and Elizabeth turned toward Doug.

  Doug quickly picked up his trench gun, gritting his back mors once he took a whiff of a fury of anger seething from both of them. Swallowing whatever saliva stuck in his gums, he had his finger on the trigger, his face pale like he had seen a ghost.

  (Doug) Betty, back me up…

  Too focused on her son, she couldn’t hear the command given to her. Seeing she couldn’t be brought to her senses, his voice growled out of pure fear, as a high-pitched voice crack shambled his windpipe.

  (Doug) Betty!

  Doug turned toward a fastening blur.

  Flitching, he pushed all of his body to lunge back, firing his trench gun upon pure instinct. The barrel scalded under the heat of the buckshot, it spread far and wide, but for some reason…

  His stomach felt like it was smmed by a sledgehammer.

  Knuckles hard as iron, Elizabeth drove her fist into the deepest parts of his stomach. Squeezing out whatever saliva and drool situated inside his mouth and throat, he gawked his mouth wide open.

  (Doug) Gah!

  His body flew in the air, before tumbling like a rollie pollie through the old grass. Stopping on the opposite side of the train cart, he bnkly stared at the wall, his mouth panting and wheezing from the heavy punch.

  Elizabeth straightened her back, pulling her knuckle to her waist as she opened her palms. Pointing them toward the ceiling, the bottom of her palms soon formed and cultivated full bck clouds, clouds drenched in a magnetism of electricity.

  The air cotton touching the ceiling above, it began to stretch and thin, leading a wave of fluffy bck to bnket over them.

  (Elizabeth) I couldn’t protect him…

  Her voice boomed to a hideous low, trembling and pulsating her vocals the more she stared at the id-out Doug. Her eyes formed a death gre, her scleras tainted a crimson red, her knuckles on the border of shattering…

  Her eyes widened like a madwoman.

  Hunching her body forward, she curled her fingers into her palms, letting her nails dig deep into her skin. Withdrawing her blood, it stained the grass, as her body arched like a bullet train waiting to unch.

  Turning on a switch, her throat pierced out a scream, cwing and tearing her vocals out like a rabid tiger.

  (Elizabeth) I COULDN’T PROTECT HIM!!