Chapter 6: Iron Juggernaut

(//) - flashback dialogue

The Juggernaut struggled break free from it's chains but then Crowe noticed there was one part of the chain that's almost broken. It then broke and with his right hand free, it knocked the guards to the wall in a sweep and the guard slid down with blood marking the wall.

The Juggernaut proceeds to crush the second chain on his left arm and crushed the guard firing electricity from rifle into a paste. It now turned to face the reaper.

Crowe narrowed his eyes, gripped the scythe with two hands and readied his stance against the Juggernaut.

"OK, Let's do this!"

The Juggernaut roared before Crowe runs to it. It threw a left hook which he ducked then it slammed down which he side-roll out of the way, then he hopped on its arm then jump to its head level and struck its head before landing. He looked up to see there's no effect so he rolled forward away the the incoming danger, creating distance between two combatants.

He ran around in a circle while coming up a new plan. He dash forward and strike his knee ,which have no effect, and landed behind it then high-jumped backflip while spinning the air and struck the Juggernaut, no effect again, he landed on his feet then back hand spring to create distance again. But the Juggernaut was front of him before he backhanded Crowe.

Crowe landed on his knees and hand but when he recovered, the Juggernaut grabbed him and lift him up to the air. Crowe was struggling when it was squeezing him but he saw there was a hole on its arm which a piece of the armor was missing, so he raised his scythe overhead and pierced the flesh in the hole. The Juggernaut roared in pain until it let go of him.

Crowe then noticed there was something glowing in it's chest so he dug his blade in the flesh part of its chest then cleaved it open, inside looked like an orange crystal that powers the Juggernaut. He looked at it for a moment before failing to notice it recovered and grabbed Crowe then threw him into the ground which he bounced and punched him so hard he slammed to the wall.

Crowe landed on his stomach then slowly looked up with his teeth clenched in pain as the Juggernaut slowly walked towards him. It would seem that orange crystal is its heart, kill the heart, the whole thing dies. With that plan in mind, he clenched his fist and then quickly got up and start running. He picked up his scythe he dropped after the punch and leap into the air with his scythe overhead, he slammed the blade on its shoulder but it wasn't intended to do damage, rather it was intended to boost him into the air, doing a front flip before landing and doing the roll.

He picked up an electric rifle that on the ground, once used by the guards, then dashed sideways and leaping to the air once more. The Juggernaut attempted to punch Crowe in mid-air but he used his scythe to bounce from fist and maneuver himself over it before stabbing the barrel end of the rifle into the flesh in the armor hole and squeezed the trigger.

The Juggernaut spasmed in the pain of electrocution as Crowe landed on his two feet. For good measure, he picked up another rifle and stabbed it in the opening of its leg. With the Juggernaut now immobilized, he took this opportunity to use his scythe to pick the crystal and pulled it out with his strength. When he finally pulled the crystal a size of a beach ball out, with all his might he struck the crystal so hard it splits in two.

Crowe looked back at the Juggernaut and it writhe in pain, He remembered what Shinonome told him about the demons' death.

/Keep in mind that according to legends, demons turn to ash when they die. You kill them, destroy the lab and they won't have anything to salvage. That's why killing the demons is our only solution./

He watch as the Juggernaut indeed disintegrate into ash, now all it's left is to destroy the place. He places the second charge on the center the room and exited through the lab, not even bothering to save the scientists. He made his way to the elevators up to the surface, once he got outside he finds himself surrounded with guards with their guns trained at him.

"We have you surrounded, Surrender and put your hands in the air!!!"

Crowe did not move and the standoff felt like an minute as he slowly brought his hands up while the men's kept their guns trained on him, ready to fire at moment. But one of his hands held a detonator, he immediately pulled the trigger and suddenly a powerful tremor shook all whose stood in the vicinity. The ground began crack until before they realize what was happening, the ground begins to collapse along with the men.

Akindele was right, the bombs are powerful and he needs to get out here. He broke into a full sprint while avoiding the collapsing pieces of the ground, he stopped when the front crumbled blocking his path. He looked around and saw the shipping container by the wall which he can jump over, he began to climb the box and jump on to the shipping container then over the wall. As he jumps, the warehouse explodes behind him and the blast sent Crowe flying into a wall of another building. His body hits that wall so hard then crashed into a garbage dumpster and flopped into the ground.

It took him a while to recover with the pain surging in his right shoulder, he slowly brought himself up and saw his right arm dislocated. So he walked to a nearby wall and used it to bash his dislocated shoulder with all his willpower to relocate it. He let out a short scream before slumping himself to that wall, he slowly moved his fingers a few times before clenching into a fist, it may be painful but at least it's fixed.

He pushed himself off the wall and started walking deep into that alley. Two minutes he has been walking until he heard a girl's voice crying for help, he followed the cry until he stumbled upon two thugs ganging up on a teenage girl in school uniform. The girl has black short bob-cut hair, fair skin, brown eyes, and uniform consists of black blazer, white shirt with red ribbon, black skirt with black socks and shoes. Due to her situation, she's is nearly stripped, exposing her underwear, before the thugs go any further she kept eyes shut until nothing happened, all she heard was sound of screams until it stopped.

When she opened her eyes, the thugs were gone, she looked around until she saw a figure with a cloak wearing a hood, standing with his back turned. The stood there for what felt like an eternity before she asked "Are you the one that saved me?"

the figure stood there said nothing until he began to walk away until he leaps so high then disappear into the rooftops.

"Wait!!!.....Who are you?!!!" the girl called out.

Seeing as her hero might not hear her, she gives up and proceeded to fix her clothes. Once she's finished, she turn around and saw the bodies of the thugs lying by the dumpster, bloodied, bruised, and dead. She should normally be scared at a sight of a dead body, but how could she? knowing she was saved. She once again looked at the direction where he disappeared into and gave a silent thanks before heading off.

The cloaked figure, AKA Crowe, is seen standing on the edge of the rooftop, with a crow perching on his shoulder, watching the girl leave. In his mind, he wasn't usually one to play saviour, all he did was to get rid of the nuisance, but for once it felt....nice. Seeing as he can't linger any longer, he turned around while the crow flies off his shoulder before running and jumping roof to roof on the way back to the hideout.