Time To Die 2

"Heh, it's me alright. No need to yell about it." Smirking at the both of them, Cyrus felt especially comfortable inside. He would repay the multitude of times he felt sullen in a nice and slow manner. Putting his feeling aside, he charged towards them with their death being the only conclusion he would accept.

Furious and wanting to fight back, the changing situation left them no time to respond when another four spears rapidly approached from the nearby underbrush. Shocked and afraid, with Cyrus restarting his assault, they did the only logical thing, run.

Yelling from behind, "Its funny, I never went searching for you and we just so happened to bump into each other. You know what I call this, Jared? Retribution, and running like a dog won't help you escape, hahahaha!"

Jared almost lost all rationality, wanting to fight to the death. It truly was the worst coincidence possible for his group. Just thinking about the randomness of their encounter, and how he was stupidly led by the nose, walking into this trap, cracked his fragile confidence.

Only the sharp pain from his fingernails stabbing deeply into his palms awoke him from that soaring madness. While hastily leaving he raged inwardly, "This kid better hope I die, or I swear I wil-".

Interrupted with that, oh so annoying voice, Cyrus continued to poke at him. "I bet you're swearing some ominous oath about getting revenge right about now, right? After that, you'll probably think, 'Just you wait, little kid'. It's a reoccurring theme in all those books my mom read to me now that I think about it. It leads' me to doubt your level of intelligence if I'm being honest."

Unbelievably frustrated, Jared started cursing savagely. "Fuck you, you little bastard, and that whore of a mother who raised you!" He had previously run a short distance away, but now he turned around, preparing to put his life on the line. This kid was way too aggravating and needed to die.

"You dare insult my mother!!!" Although outwardly mature, he still had some childish tendencies and could barely contain his current anger. Before he could continue though, the twins, Don, and Jacob all bursted out of hiding, which reminded him of his original intentions.

"It's your lucky day, we're going to have a lot of time to hang out after this friend." Cyrus's emotions were frighteningly calm now as his eyes chilled. Getting mad now was useless, and only the end result would matter.

Manny and Tina, however, continued fleeing as fast as possible without even sparing Jared a second glance, despite them seeing him stop. Considering that they were already surrounded, slowing down for even a second could lead to their demise.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Tina, who only a short while ago stepped into a low-lying bush, cried out in shock and despair. Hidden vines, with thorns, tore through her clothes viciously before tripping her up. Flustered, she tried to brace her fall only to find her hand pierced by a sharp wooden stick.

Tina realized the severity of the situation and called out to her only other companion. "Manny, help me up!"

"Save yourself!" Leaving her with no more words, he kept rushing ahead while diverting most of his attention to the ground.

"You IDIOT!" Clenching her teeth from the pain and struggling to remove the thorns. This fool completely forgot that one of Cyrus's people had come from that direction. Without two people to force him back, Manny would be held up and stuck all the same. She realized it was a hopeless situation and resigned herself to the foregone conclusion.

Jacob had already positioned himself in front of Manny with his arms crossed. Stating casually, "Just give up, there's nowhere for you to go anymore." Back then, Cyrus had specifically placed these traps in optimal positions that left little room for escaping. With the whole incident ending, it had proved effective now that everyone was caught.

Over on Jared's side, they had already clashed multiple times as the battle intensified. "You might want to protect your third leg," Cyrus suddenly shouted. Any normal man would flinch from that abrupt warning, and with Jared's little combat experience, he quickly twisted his hips to evade the attack.

That kick quickly turned out to be a feint and caught him off guard. Exposed, Cyrus capitalized on the multiple openings, raining down strikes. Two fast left hooks, a left kick to the shin, and a direct blow with his sword left Jared stuck on the defense.

Struggling to defend as the accumulated sweat clouded his vision, he scowled viciously and prepared to go all out. "Things won't end so simply if I don't tear a piece off of you," Jared thought deeply!

Cyrus, on the opposite side, picked up on the faint changes in his facial expressions. That wild, crazy light in his eyes gave him an uncanny feeling even though he had the present advantage. "Hmph, it doesn't matter what you do, nothing can change the inevitable."

Pressing forward with even more vigor, Cyrus merged his sword and fist technique in a dance like manner. Each step, flawless and exquisite, left nothing to critique. But out of everyone's expectations, a conceited fellow like Jared threw himself into the path of Cyrus's next sword strike.

"Hahahaha, if I'm to die today, your coming with me to the underworld, Cyrus!" Jared's face contorted like he was possessed, leaving behind any semblance of sanity. Blood repeatedly spurted out of his chest in copious amounts, but that did little to effect his mobility.

Gripping the blade as a crazed smile formed on his thin lips, he dragged it further into his chest while swinging his sword horizontally, attempting to take Cyrus's head. Knowing that something was off beforehand, even though he was slightly startled, he instantly released his sword to create some separation.

As soon as he released his weapon, the world seemed to move in slow motion as that glaring edge grew even brighter. Cyrus could swear he heard that sword calling for him to embrace death. Panicking, his reaction was late by half a breath as a sharp pain covered his chest.

That sluggish feeling did not stop when that sword cut him, inch by inch, until bone a bone deep wound was clearly visible. His entire body felt a burning sensation that dragged his mind into an all-encompassing darkness.

"Arghhhhh!" Fury ignited in his heart when that blazing battle intent clouded his mind. Every cell in Cyrus's body awakened from the intense pain and danger signals bombarding his mental faculties. His heart started pumping vigorously as the blood in his body circulated rapidly. The surroundings twisted indistinctly from the rising heat that emitted from his body.

Throwing caution to the wind, Cyrus launched a series of attacks with wild abandon. The fear in Jared's eyes magnified as the attacks followed in a wavelike fashion. Each strike was harder and faster than the last, leaving him with no breathing room.

Overwhelmed by Cyrus's barbaric style, a flying knee crashed into his nose, resulting in a sharp pain spreading across his face. "Let's just die together then!"

Riled up, Jared matched Cyrus's craziness and exchanged an injury for injury. Blood splashed and pain racked both of their bodies. In the end, the outcome still did not change but only grew worse for Jared. Like steel plating, the attacks barely left a mark on Cyrus's physique.

Jared recognized his precarious situation while a deep feeling of despair welled up. Distracted, Cyrus landed a vicious blow to his stomach, before tackling him to the ground.

Roaring to the sky in victory, those blood-shot eyes that radiated massive amounts of killing intent seemed to squint with delight. Like a beast, Cyrus's instincts would not stop until they saw enough blood. That deep, hideous wound on his chest did little to inhibit the dismantling of Jared's body.

Cries of fear and pain resounded in the clearing while Manny, already panicking, tried to hurriedly extricate himself from Jacob. The passing minutes and these new agonizing screams only added to his anxiety. It felt like death was only a moment away, breathing down his neck.

Tina, on the other hand, was forcibly subdued by the twins and could only yell a few times while putting up a token struggle. The previous injury hampered any actions she could take. Don's current gaze could not leave the horrific sequence of events happening with Cyrus. Only shock and fear could describe his current feelings.

Each banging sound from fists hitting flesh left him mentally paralyzed. He had never thought Cyrus would go berserk like this and was extremely worried for his friend. However, he had no idea what to do as his chest heaved up in down rapidly. Scarring memories flashed across his mind in an intermittent loop.

Those very same punches felt like they were striking his own body. The smell of alcohol covered his nostrils as flashes of phantom pain covered his body and clouded his mind.

"NOOOOO, things are different now! That's Cyrus, your friend. Get yourself together!" Don's face was red to the point of almost turning blue. The dripping sweat cascaded down his forehead as he struggled to stabilize himself.

Growing up with only a drunkard for a father, whenever he flew up in a rage, letting him vent until he passed out usually resolved the issue. With only this little experience to rely on, he firmed his will before stumbling in Jacob's direction to offer his help. Now was not the time to worry about Cyrus.