The Final Saga part 1: End of a Rivalry
By d_Galloway
The sun was slowly setting on the slums, the lowest, poorest habitats of human life. The handful of businesses closed their doors, the residents rushing inside before even lower forms of life emerged. When the sun had vanished completely, only the criminal underworld remained active.
PC Glenton emerged from the black market, his pistol carried visibly to deter attackers. The lower gangs quickly drew away, as the major organizations tipped their hats in reverence. Glenton paid no attention to them, his mind focused solely on one thing: his enemy, Valkyrie Esker. He went over every battle they had had in the past, analyzing every possible weakness. He found none. Could she really be deadlier than he was?
“Assassin, come here.”
Glenton turned to a small alley, inside of which sat a heavily-cloaked figure. Judging from the voice and figure, it was most likely a female. Curious, he entered the alley, gun still in hand. “You wanted me?”
“I know who you seek,” said the figure. “And I can help you kill her.”
Glenton scoffed at the idea. “Do you know who I am? I’ve killed hundreds, if not thousands! I can handle her!” He started to walk away.
“I know you,” said the figure. “I also know your target is a valkyrie, armed with an arsenal of magical weaponry. I know of your weakness to magic, your inability to survive even a simply Magic Missile. And I know of all your battles, she has the most victories. Sounds like you DO need my help.”
Glenton stopped and turned, his eyes narrowed. “And what’s in it for you?”
“I despise Valkyrie Esker as much as you,” said the figure. “I will just sleep better knowing she’s dead.”
Glenton thought about it for all of ten seconds, then turned back to the woman. “What’s your plan?”
It was a beautiful night at the boardwalk, complete with the annoying cheers of children, the collective smooching of couples, and the sounds of impossible carnival games. Galloway and Valkyrie Esker walked down the boardwalk, their eyes downcast.
“Explain why we’re doing this again?” asked Val.
“The counsellor said it would help our marriage,” said Galloway. “And since you already said you don’t want to be divorced, I figured we should start getting along.”
“Well, it ain’t working,” said Val. “I hate you even more than when we got here.”
“…What if I win one of the games?” said Galloway. “It’s wonder what a small, cheap stuffed toy of twenty-year-old cartoon characters does to a relationship.”
Val sighed. “If it will shut you up, fine. Go and win me a…stuffed Garfield or something.” Galloway ran off to the nearby ring-bottle booth, while Val just sat on a bench and fumed. This was the last time she did anything Galloway recommended…
An arrow flew her ear, imbedding itself on the top of the bench. A figure jumped down from the nearby booths and dissapeared into the shadows. Val instinctively knew who it was, but read the note anway:
“Bitchker, go to Pier 50, by the boardwalk. This time, it’s to the death. -The ever-handsome PC Glenton.”
Val crumpled the note into a ball and threw it in the garbage. She grabbed her nearby spear, Gungnir, and marched off.
Fifteen minutes later, Galloway came running back, holding a Garfield plushy. “Hey, Val! Look what I-” He then realized she had ditched him. Sighing, he prepared to teleport.
Val entered Pier 50, spear at the ready. She scanned the various crates and planks for traps, but saw nothing. She also didn’t see Glenton. Sighing, she took a seat on a nearby crate and waited.
Finally, Glenton stepped out of the shadows, carrying only a dart gun. “So you came, Bitchker.”
Val jumped to her feat and leveled her spear. “You’re a bigger fool than I thought, Glenton. Ready to die?”
“Not at all,” said Glenton. “In fact, I have a suprise for you…” Val prepared to throw Gungnir, but suddenly stopped, her body seized by a strange force. Glenton smiled and fired a dart at Val’s neck. The moment it imbedded itself, a massive electrical charge ran through her entire body, until she finally fell to the ground.
Glenton slowly approached her body, his pistol drawn. He kneeled before her and checked her pulse. Sure enough, she was dead. His mind raced with emotion, but it was not of joy, or victory. Rather, it was the dead certainty that this had been a trap. A trap he had blindly walked into.
Galloway suddenly appeared, still holding Val’s stuffed Garfield. He looked at Val’s body, then angrily looked back at Glenton. “You bastard.”
“Forget her!” shouted Glenton. “We’re probably in even more trouble now!”
“That’s right, my foolish ally. Thank you for delivering Esker to me.”
Glenton and Galloway both turned to the entrance of the pier, and saw the same woman from before. “And look. I see you brought another guest! Too bad I don’t have time to deal with you.”
Glenton angrily started forward, but Galloway held him back. “Let her go. Trust me, we can’t face her right now.”
“The hell we can’t!” shouted Glenton. He shoved Galloway aside and aimed his handgun. The woman glared at him, raised one hand, and blasted the thief into the crates with a wave of black lightning. She then grabbed Valkyrie Esker’s body and teleported away.
Glenton slowly, painfully, climbed back to his feet. Galloway was already glaring at him. “Get F. Galloway and Weiila. It’s time we struck back.”
THE END OF PART 1
Is this the end of Valkyrie Esker? Who is this mysterious woman? And how does Galloway know her? Stay tuned for partial excitement!
How … eerily apt.