Revelations of Identities

Surprisingly Natalie hits Vaughn's mask thinking she missed or something. As Natalie forces her way forward breaking Vaughn's defenses to try to unveil the truth of Ripper.

"You seriously want me dead now huh."

"I need more than your sorry ass dead body." Said Natalie.

Vaughn who's character the Ripper is now falling apart and with this he knows two things could happen. Natalie would kill him right here and now and leave, or she learns the truth about the Ripper. Vaughn's stamina isn't keeping up with a enraged Lightning seeing it for the first time that she can go full-power without noticing it.

"I'd say I'm still impressed you're standing on your own." Said Natalie.

"I'm impressed you took this long for you to realize that yourself."

"You're already dead Ripper." Said Natalie with a dead gaze on her face.

'Things never went to plan huh. I managed to destroy all of the VR machines in the process though at least. But dying here might be the biggest miscalculation I could have made.' As Vaughn think this to himself.

The fight is going on for more than half an hour now. And Natalie is just getting faster and faster by the second. No average human could keep up with the current pacing of the fight and both Vaughn and Natalie are born and raised to fight at this pace.

All the weight of Vaughn's blade is starting to show and his swings are becoming more and more sluggish and slow each minute. He gets cuts from Natalie's slashes not enough to slice him in half though.

They continued fighting and Natalie begins to chip away Vaughn's exosuit and it begins to fall apart. And his fatigue is finally showing up in the surface of his movement.

"Aren't you suppose to be a teacher?" As Vaughn tried to snap her out of that enraged state.

"How the hell would a person like you know about that?" Natalie replied.

"Something I learned of course from an informant plus a lot of people know you're a teacher now Miss Lightning."

Natalie calms a bit down as she realizes the situation but even with that seems like she hasn't faltered and slowed down now. Natalie keeps hitting and slashing Vaughn's exosuit staggering him into a defenseless position. He knows that either way he thinks what the result of his mistake he fully embraces his choice to do this.

"Is that really all you got?" Said Natalie.

"Look you already destroyed half of my suit already. I can't fight anymore." As I raise my hands in a gesture of surrendering.

"Surrendering now after all of that kind of talk?" Said Natalie.

"I thought you all have a code when a fighter loses their weapon its a sign that they already lost."

Natalie lowers her blade as she was confused on the turn of events that had occur.

"I'm no longer a threat. I can't fight anymore in this state."

"Shut up." Said Natalie.

As she quickly slashes Ripper's mask slicing it in half revealing who is behind that suit to her surprise... It was someone she know.

"Vaughn? What the hell is going on here?!" Said Natalie as she raises her blade threatening a fatigued Vaughn.

"Yes, I'm the man behind this attack and the person named Ripper. Quite surprising right?"

"Vaughn explain yourself. What's wrong with you?" Said Natalie.

"I was supposed to ask you that question myself. What the hell is wrong with YOU? Why did you even sided with the people who will turn your students into soldiers and betray you in the process."

"Vaughn you don't understand. You don't fucking understand those words you're saying." Said Natalie.

"So you sold your students to them just to survive? What happened to you. I'm just opposing them because I don't want my students becoming like me Natalie. I don't want them to take my image of becoming a child soldier."

"What's left to protect Vaughn if my students are already fucking dead!" Said Natalie.

"Who killed them?"

"The Organization of course." Said Natalie with a look of despair on her face.

"Why didn't you resist? Why did you sided with them then?"

"What choice did I have at the time. My back was on a wall during that time. I only get to watch my students die right in front of me Vaughn. I wasn't lucky to escape earlier like what your students did." Said Natalie.

Vaughn barely stands up now with his left knee down on the ground.

"Can't be helped to be in a different time and a different place. You were held, knife against your throat watching your students die in front of you. Happens on the best of us."

"What are you planning now Vaughn you lost this fight I can kill you right here right now you know." Said Natalie.

"Natalie, if you please listen. I want you to snap out of it because I know the man who used to run Null. I'm out for his head."

"For now I can't let you do that Vaughn." Said Natalie as she punches Vaughn towards the School's lake.

The now injured Vaughn struggles to stand up by the jetty of the lake where the small boats are.

"You really have lost your mind, Natalie."

"Aren't you the same Vaughn?" Said Natalie.

"Heh, I lost mine when I was 12. You do realize where we differ right Natalie? We grew up in different compounds, different living spaces, different learning techniques and you fell victim to Null and let them control you."

"I've had enough of you Vaughn!" Said Natalie as she stabs Vaughn on her lower right stomach.

"So this is where the part I die right?" As I look at Natalie's face as I get closer and closer to her sinking her sword deeper into the wound.

"No, I just need you to be out of the game board for now. It's a cover up, I'll tell them I killed Ripper and not you Vaughn. You'll still be targeted but you'll be out of my way when I do my own thing from the inside you got it?"

Natalie kicks Vaughn on the school lake sinking him deep.

"Don't worry I'll keep your students safe this time I won't let them be killed." Said Natalie as she slings off the blood on her blade before sheathing it.

'Leaving the game board for now huh. Playing your side of the big mess of a game good luck with that I guess. My consciousness is slowly fading away as I sink deeper... Until then goodbye.'