Chapter 26: 26. Two v. Two I

“F-Fight?!” Zeff stammered beneath his breath. “But didn’t you just—”

“I know.” Sylvan replied low, his eyes still laser focused on the two men before him. “But now is as good a time as any for you to gain some real fighting experience.”

“‘As good a time’, he says! ‘Real fighting experience’, he says?! What do you think I’ve been doing this whole time?!”

Sylvan looked Zeff up and down again, seeing the bruises and blood that were covering his body. “There is a difference between fighting and being a punching bag, boy.”

“Sylvan, this Petticoat guy is strong, okay! And now Zayn is joining in on the battle. We need to run!” Zeff grabbed Sylvan’s arm. “And can you even see in here?!”

Sylvan seemed confused by the last question as he shook Zeff off of him, so the answer to it was obvious. Likely the Dawn Treader skill didn’t work on people he saw as allies much like Roar hadn’t worked before.

Sylvan replied, “Did I tell you the rules of combat for nothing, boy.”

It wasn’t a question.

“W-What—”

“Do you remember the four rules of combat that I taught you earlier?”

“Sylvan. This is not the time for that!” It surprised Zeff how eager he was to run now that Sylvan had showed up. It was as though he had been snapped out of a trance.

“Say them, repeat them to yourself, quickly.”

Zeff huffed with frustration.

Just across the way, Zayn had taken out a dagger from a sheath that had been hidden behind his back on his belt and unholstered his gun. The same gun that had shot Zeff in the throat nearly a week ago and he was looking straight in Zeff’s direction despite the Dawn Treader mist. Above his head was the readout “Phobia I (!)”and Zeff could only guess what that might mean.

Petticoat simply looked on with furrowed brow, his glowing eyes focused now on Sylvan. His Phobia read “(0/122) Phobia 0”.

‘D*mn…’ thought Zeff. ‘What is going on with these two?’

“Repeat them, boy.” demanded Sylvan again, interrupting Zeff’s thoughts.

Zeff inhaled deeply and let the air out nice and slow as he attempted to recall the four rules Sylvan had taught him. ‘Okay then…’

“Rule number one.” Zeff began, whispering to himself. “There’s always a way to win. Two, there is no shame in running. Three, there is no such thing as a fair fight…?”

“Yes. Go on.”

“And four… Your emotions are a great weapon when you use them properly. Stay calm.”

“Good, boy.” Sylvan said. “Now, does that fellow with the glowing eyes look calm to you?” He pointed his chin at Petticoat, who was now whispering something to Zayn.

Images of the man acting hysterical and borderline insane flashed through Zeff’s mind. Even now his eyes were furious and desperate like he was late to his own funeral. “No.” Zeff admitted, “He doesn’t.”

“Rule three, it is, then.” Said Sylvan, taking a more casual stance. “Follow my lead and no matter what happens don’t get yourself killed.”

*****

Sylvan stretched and yawned loudly. Then he said just as loud, “Are you guys gonna stand over there all day like a bunch of grandmas? Or are we gonna fight?”

“And who the h*ll are you?!” Demanded Petticoat. He obviously didn’t mean it literally. There was no doubt he remembered Sylvan only moments ago being taken away after turning himself in. It seemed to Zeff to mean, ‘Why are you acting so smug.’ or ‘Who the h*ll do you think you are?’ But Sylvan, ever the provocateur, answered, “Your mother never told you about me?”

Petticoat’s eyes grew wide with shock. “W-what did you say?”

“I imagine she wouldn’t…” Sylvan shrugged, his face bored and disinterested. “You wouldn’t have believed that her ugly *ss would be able to get a man like me, anyways…”

Petticoat began to shine even brighter as he clinched his fist and jaw for rage.

Zayn, for the first time, looked a bit nervous and even looked as though he would try to calm Petticoat, but the man had already been pulled into the depths, goaded with the least of effort like a school-yard bully.

“Do you think this is a joke!? You have broken more than just a few laws! You two are responsible for the deaths of several innocent people! Don’t you even care a little?!” His eyes, though still intense and angry, were also pained and almost pleading for Sylvan to acknowledge his alleged evil-doing.

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For a moment, for the smallest of instances, Zeff could see Sylvan hesitate as he saw that desperation in the man’s eyes.

But Zeff knew it. And Sylvan knew it. There would be no talking out of this. Petticoat had already made up his mind, despite whatever he might say now.

“Why should I care?” Sylvan chuckled devilishly. Then his voice came out low and foreboding. “When you step on a cockroach, do you ‘care’?”

Petticoat’s face at once transitions through several emotions. First, disbelief. Then, sadness, acceptance, determination, and finally settled on rage.

“But I’d guess, to a lawman such as yourself, such a notion would seem inconceivable.” Sylvan said with a wry smirk.

His eyes still burning a hole in Sylvan’s smug face, Petticoat at once reached up, grabbed his badge and ripped it from his shirt, tossing it into the lake. “I’ll show you first hand what I—”

*Bam!* Before Petticoat could finish his sentence, before he had even realized, something had hit him in the face knocking him down to the ground.

“What’s wrong?” said Sylvan with a look of (seemingly) genuine concern. “Weren’t you about to say something?”

Of the three other men, only Zayn knew at once what had happened thanks to his gift. Zeff and Petticoat, on the other hand, were completely flabbergasted and bewildered.

For a split second, it looked to Zeff as if Sylvan had been in two places at once. One moment he had been standing confidently next to Zeff, he had flinched or flickered and then, the next thing Zeff knew, Petticoat was falling to the ground from being hit in the face.

Zeff had hit Petticoat several times, and not once was he able to knock him to the ground. But there he was, splayed out like a yoga instructor.

“H-How did you…?” asked Zeff in disbelief.

Sylvan smiled and said, “I’ll tell you exactly how later. But for now, just know that, for the first time since I got these powers, I’m in top form.”

‘Top form’ was the understatement of the year. Zeff had known Sylvan was fast. He knew he was strong, too. But the display of speed and control Sylvan had just demonstrated was unreal to the point of being surreal.

Zeff was about to comment again, but suddenly Petticoat’s furious voice roared out as he threw him self off of the ground, standing to his feet. “I’ll kill you!! All of you!” He then ripped his shirt completely off revealing his chiseled and battle hardened body.

Sylvan lowered his voice so that only Zeff could hear him, “From here on out, watch me when you can. Here is your task: Before their reinforcements get here you have to land a blow on Zayn. Then, I have a plan for us to escape.”

That confused Zeff for many reasons. Surely that wouldn’t be a problem… He knew Zayn was a skilled fighter that had been able to hurt Sylvan before, though Sylvan had always been a bit weakened thanks to the DracoRex malfunctioning. But Zayn wouldn’t even be able to see Zeff coming thanks to the mist. And even if he could, how hard could it be to hit the guy, no matter what his gift was…

*Boom* Petticoat shot across the distance, quick as a yellow bolt of lightning. His form was tight and controlled, despite his rage, as he threw punch after punch at Sylvan, completely ignoring Zeff. His punches, however, hit nothing but air as Sylvan expertly dodged each one.

“Dodge where possible.” He said to Zeff as though he was teaching a lesson during a sparring session. “Counter when convenient.” he added as Petticoat through a wide punch. He slipped under the punch, grabbing his arm and using Petticoat’s own momentum against him to pull him in where he struck him firmly in the gut with his knee. “Only block when a counter isn’t convenient and a dodge would force you to give up good positioning.” At that Petticoat threw a round-house kick at the side of Sylvan’s head.

Sylvan, however, blocked the kick with no effort, catching it on his arm. “Lastly, focus on your opponent, boy!”

“Hmm?” Zeff had been so totally focused on Sylvan that he had taken his eyes off of Zayn.

As he turned around to see what Zayn was doing he was shocked to find the barrel of a gun in his face, pointed directly at his head. Behind the gun was Zayn, smiling his tender yet maniacal smile.

*Bang* A bullet caught Zeff right between his eyebrows, jostling his brain and sending a throbbing and shooting pain through his skull.

Zeff didn’t even have time to react as Zayn laid his foot on his torso and then put his full weight on him while Zeff was off balance, shoving him backwards. Just as Zeff began to fall, he entered into a somersault and attempted to counter by raising his foot up into Zayn’s chin as he fell backwards. ‘Counter when convenient.’ He thought.

Zayn, however, as smooth and graceful as a figure skater across a frozen lake, merely slid to the side so that Zeff’s foot sailed harmlessly past the side of his head, repositioned his gun so that it was pointing at Zeff’s throat and *Bang* fired again.

Crippling pain shot up Zeff’s neck as he half-fell, half-rolled, across the ground. If not for the recently leveled up Armored Hide IV, Zeff might have had a hole in his throat right now.

“Ach!” He coughed, holding his neck. “What is it with you and shooting people it the throat. Use your fists like a real man!” Zeff demanded in a ham-fisted attempt to draw Zayn into a fist fight.

Zayn chuckled,. “Why would I punch a man who could take a sniper bullet to the chest?”

Zeff flinched. Zayn had a good point. ‘And how can this b*stard still fight so well with the mist here?!” But then he remembered, Sylvan had told him days ago that Zayn had the ability to read minds. ‘He’s reading my mind!’ Zeff thought. ‘That’s how he knows where I am and what I’m thinking!—’

“That’s about right, mate.” Zayn grinned. “You’re as good as an open book to me. Now if you could be so kind, I wanna speak to the guy inside.”
“The guy inside?”
“Yeah, bruv. Gimme the dragon.”

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