Chapter 61
After the chip was installed, the mech would be able to activate a unique chassis ability, which could be a powerful attack, defense, or auxiliary function, depending on the role of the chip.
Ajax was familiar with most of the accessories, however, he wasn't so familiar with the chip itself, as this technology had previously been beyond his reach. After doing a little bit of research on the net, Ajax discovered that the chip in his possession was a Herald Force Field Chip of excellent grade that was valued at 2.1 million eddies on the market.
The effect of the chip once activated was to turn on a force field that would intercept and resist all missile attacks for five seconds. It had a cooldown of six hours. The value of the chip had left Ajax astonished and he decided to install it on his mech immediately.
Going over his previous battles, Ajax noticed that the Reaper had a major vulnerability to missile attacks, particularly homing missiles, which were difficult to evade once they locked onto you unless you found cover.
Installing this chip would basically give Ajax the ability to save his life when he finds himself under heavy fire, significantly enhancing his combat effectiveness. After thoroughly searching through the physical assets, Ajax turned his attention to Bach's bank account. He was disappointed by the fact that such a prominent leader had only saved about a million eddies.
Bach remained silent the entire time, his demeanor akin to a man who had already accepted death.
Erica approached Ajax and informed him that no information had been obtained from back, but given the right amount of time, she would be able to extract it from him. Ajax let her do as she pleased, he had already promised to hand Bach over to her once he'd caught him.
With a knife strapped to her leg, Erica dragged the tied Bach into the ruins of a house, calling Lily over when she noticed her trying to get a peek at what she was doing. Ajax had an idea of what she would do, but he couldn't care less. It wasn't long before he heard Bach's screams coming from the room. The torture session lasted for over three hours.
When his screams finally stopped, Ajax decided to go in and see what was happening. Upon opening the door, he found that most of the epidermis(outer layer of the skin) on Bach's body had been separated from his body, his face had been disfigured with cuts, but the wide eyes that showed pure panic were a hint to his state before death.
Lily had a blank stare that was betrayed by the fear seen in her eyes. When Ajax asked her what was wrong, she just shook her head without saying anything. It would be long before the way Lily looked at Erica would change from that of fear...
Erica had found out all of Bach's bank account details and had transferred more than 3.5 million eddies to Ajax after logging into his account through the net. Ajax was very happy with this and generously distributed half of it to Erica and gave Lily 200,000 eddies. This was all done in accordance with the rules Bomen had established: the dividends would be distributed according to contribution.
However, Erica only took back the 80,000 eddies she had originally loaned Ajax and returned the rest. For her, being able to personally kill Bach through her own means was enough. He had killed her father and had brought upon the Four Tribes, this was a favor that money could not buy.
Lily also wanted to return the money, but Ajax didn't want to accept it. This was mainly due to the fact that she didn't know where the money should be spent at all. Giving her 200,000 eddies was not as tempting as giving her food.
Ajax could only smile wryly at this; he seemed to have been surrounded by two idiots and decided to inform them that if they ever needed anything, all they had to do was ask. Erica nodded indifferently, she trusted him, especially after these few days when they had each other's backs and lives.
As for Lily, Ajax had decided to formally give her the mech she had been piloting all this time. It was useless for Ajax to keep it and Lily had the ability to pilot it and could be considered more than qualified to own this mech. Lily was overjoyed when she heard him.
***
For the following days, Ajax rested during the day and led his men to attack their enemies at night. They attacked the occupied Four Tribes camp, the business district, their original camp, and the plantation area. Although the remnants of the Hell's League in these places were on guard, they weren't able to defend against Ajax's advances, and withing 5 days, the entirety of the Hell's League had been erased from the face of the planet.
Dead bodies were transported away truck after truck and burned. These fires burned for a long time, their black smoke tainting the blue sky black. The air in the area responsible for burning the corpses was filled with the disgusting smell of burning flesh, it was a smell that would seep into the ground and not go away for a long time.
A thick layer of ash permeated the ground as it piled up, parts of it scattered everywhere once the wind blew. The people of the border came to call this place the Gate to Hell, as a testament of what organization had been burned to a crisp.
The rumors had spread and with the rumors came fame. Ajax became an infamous legend as the final version of the rumor was that Ajax skillfully piloted his Warlock-Level mech and single-handedly slaughtered the Hell's League, ensuring that not a single one of them was spared and not a single one of them had a gravesite...
Ajax, who was now regarded as a legend by everyone on the border, had finally returned to the camp of the Lazoole Society, bringing with him the operators who had once fled their homes in desperation. The entire place was in ruins, rubble was everywhere, buildings had collapsed, houses had burned, and the sand, through blood, had been stained.
The corpses of the operators and the civilians who had been killed that night had long been burned by the Hell's League. The operators, who missed their families and had finally returned to where it all began seven days ago, couldn't help but mourn their dead. The air was filled with a mix of sadness, contempt, and celebration, as they had exacted their revenge. Each of them had killed at least five members of the Hell's League, refusing to let the deaths of their loved ones be in vain.
Ajax dragged Alex, who had been detained this entire time, to the epicenter of Bomen's self-detonation. Operators surrounded the small pit, the ground below them shone as the sand that had been turned to glass reflected the sun. They started with hate in their eyes. Erica dragged Lily along as operators made way for her to stand in the front of the circle.
"KNEEL!" Ajax roared angrily. Alex trembled in fright, his legs went limp, and he knelt down on the hot glass. Ajax retrieved the box of cigars that Bomen had left in the safe and lit one. He took a puff and couldn't help but cough due to the choking smell, yet it also evoked a sense of familiarity, reminding him of his encounter with Bomen. Though his acquaintance with Bomen was brief, the man had imparted some valuable lessons, earning Ajax's admiration.
Ajax then squatted down and gently placed the cigar in the pit. "Bomen... Just like I promised you, the Hell's League has been completely eradicated... and here I am, bringing you the one who wronged you... who wronged us all... On that fateful night, I made a promise to you..." Ajax paused as he looked up to the sky.
"I promised you that I'd ensure the lives of our brethren... that I'd ensure the lives of their families... that I'd protect them and lay down my life if need be... Well, I've done what I promised, but I'm not done yet. I'll do more, much more than I promised you... Lazoole, the name you gave this organization... no, this family, for your love of the color blue... It truly was a beautiful name..." Ajax sighed.
"A name that has been stained by the blood of our brethren, by the blood of their families, by the blood of their children, by the blood of their lovers, and by the blood of our enemies.... You handed me this family, you entrusted me with them, but I can't assure you that they will never be hurt again..."
"What happens when the color blue gets stained by so much blood? Well, at some point it becomes black... and there is only one creature that thrives in the darkness... From today onwards we shall no longer be called the Lazoole Society... The day has come for our name to strike fear into the hearts of our enemies. A name that lets them know that their only outcome for messing with us.....is death!"
"You can rest in peace brother, for the Lazoole Society needs you.... It needs you to guide them in the afterlife, I'll make sure that those who remain today will live on and remember those we've lost... Today marks the day of the rebirth of the Lazoole Society. We shall no longer go by that name... TODAY MARKS THE BIRTH OF THE REAPERS!!!!!"
As Ajax announced this murmurs started to spread. Then all of a sudden, Monkey chimed up "REAPERS!" and this was all that was needed for everyone to join in chanting their new name.
"REAPERS!"
"REAPERS!"
"REAPERS!"
"REAPERS!"
After about a minute of chanting, Ajax raised his hand, and everyone settled down. "I want you all to accompany me and do a bow to our Leader Bomen, for his love, for his dedication, for his sacrifice. After this, we will hold a minute of silence in commemorance of the ones we lost on that fateful night." After speaking, Ajax bowed, a gesture that was mirrored by all the operators beside him.
They then held a minute of silence, concluding the ceremony. Ajax then retrieved a tactical knife he had and held it with his right hand. He approached Alex and instructed one of the operators to cover his head and gestured for another to come and help hold Alex up. He then started punching Alex across the face.
"Woo!" Alex was gagged and unable to scream, but his body convulsed in a struggle.
Ajax then motioned for the operators holding him to hold out his hands and motioned for a stool to be brought over.
"These are the fingers you used to count the money you would get." Ajax said this as he chopped them off one by one.
"These are the hands you used to kill Bomen" Ajax quipped as he took multiple swings to sever them. "Get a tourniquet on those arms, don't want him dying early on us." The operators moved quickly and put tourniquets by Alex's biceps, stopping the blood flow to his arms.
Ajax then took off the cloth bag that was covering Alex's head. "Look at your hands, you did this to yourself. Put his feet on the stool." Ajax quickly ordered the operators and continued once they did.
"These are the feet that walked to the enemy to betray Bomen." Ajax then took multiple swings and chopped off both his feet. "Get a tourniquet on his legs." The operators moved quickly and put tourniquets by Alex's thighs.
"With these eyes, you coveted what Bomen had and the eddies of the people of the Lazoole Society," Ajax said as he proceeded to grab Alex by the hair and used his knife to carve out Alex's eyeballs. He then took the cloth out of Alex's mouth and his screams rang out
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD JUST KILL ME ALREADY!!!" Alex cried.
"As you wish... Death shall be granted to you, but who said it would be a quick one. I heard of this ancient death method that really punished those who were being killed. I heard it was called..... death by a thousand cuts." Ajax said this as he slashed Alex's chest.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
"This is for Bomen!"
Second slash.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
"And this is for the men who fell that night!"
The third slash.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
"For the families you sacrificed!"
Fourth thrust.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
"Your betrayal!"
Fifth slash.
"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"
"Your injustice."
The sixth slash.
Ajax continued to deliver over 100 slashes, each accompanied by a reason until he ceased when further explanations proved elusive. By this point, Alex was overwhelmed, his response reduced to involuntary twitches, his pain evident yet voiceless after having screamed for so long.
Alex was almost dead by the 327th slash, so Ajax briefly stopped and grabbed Alex's chin.
"When you get to hell, tell them Reaper sent ya."
Alex bled out by the 357th slash, but Ajax, feeling a mixture of relief and somberness, continued. He would pay, even in life or in death, he would pay his dues and get the thousand cuts. By the time he reached 1000 slashes, the sun had started to go down, Ajax stepped back, the deed was done, the score settled, but the scars of their shared history would linger, a testament to the price of betrayal and the cost of justice.
"You....weakling....unable to endure a thousand cuts like a man. You better get ready....because this is just the beginning... When I get to hell, you'll regret crossing paths with me for eternity."
*TN: Ok, let me know how you guys liked this ending for Alex. The Original Author had barely given a satisfactory death, stabbing him a dozen times and letting him bleed out. It was lackluster at best. I took a lot of creative liberties for this chapter, hope y'all enjoyed.
PS: The Viper line of "when you get to hell..." was an idea given to me by my friend, props to him on that one.*