Behind the Red Mermaid, five men exited out the rear. They came out smiling and laughing, genuinely enjoying their time to themselves—so much so that they decided they wanted to carry the party along the streets. 

One of them, in particular, appeared to have partied harder than the rest and stumbled as his friends watched him try to collect himself.

Concerned for him, one of his pals reached out to help, but the stumbling drunk pushed his compassionate compadre away in refusal.

“M-move! Move! I got it!” 

He then leaned against the wall to unsheathe his Excalibur.

The rest of his buds turned their attention away to let him carry out his knightly duties. 

Fortunately, no one was around to witness such a brazen resolve, leaving the rest to carry on their conversation and do business as usual.

*THUMP*

When a weird noise was heard, the four men turned to see where the source had come from. Lo and behold, they saw their buddy lying face first in his resolve and a young man standing over him with a bottle in his hand.

They looked at him, confusion written on their faces that was quickly replaced with anger. 

“Who’s next?” The young man exclaimed as the four men sized him up.

Then, one of them reached inside their coat to retrieve a small metallic object. It was compact and square in shape, but it unfolded with the flick of the wrist. 

Once held upward, clear, and in view, the end was pulled backward. The object could now be held in two hands, and one’s finger could trace the bottom to find a trigger to pull. 

The shape now resembled...

*POP-POP-POP-POP-POP-POP-POP-POP*

A rain of muzzled bullets sprayed outward towards its intended target.

Before he could react, his collar was pulled back, and a young lady with wavy hair stepped forward. Simultaneously, she pulled her umbrella up to shield them from the rain of bullets.

It was an unwavering blitz in reaction that showcased both her speed and quick thinking as she saved the young man—Elias.

The umbrellas inside suddenly illuminated, revealing a transparent screen that allowed a clear view to the other side. There, in plain sight, stood the jabroni with the gun and his companions. It enabled her to observe everything while those on the other side remained unaware. It exposed that another one of the men was now producing a similar object. He swiftly drew back his arm, unveiling the identical compact device.

“What the hell?!” Exclaimed one of the individuals. He was baffled as the bullets were having no effect. This was an unexpected change of events that startled him.

“I’m out!” He yelled. He quit before even starting—spinning on his heels and darting in the other direction. 

“Oi! Where are you going?”

“Same here!” Shouted another before following suit and high-tailed it. The man had taken his eyes off his target to look at his buddies fleeing. However, that was a mistake. For even a brief moment, it was all that was needed.

She adjusted her stance, aimed, and twisted the handle with them in full view.

Out of the tip of the umbrella, she launched a return fire. It hit the gunman square in the chest. The target shook uncontrollably from the electric shock that now threaded itself in and out of his body before making him lose consciousness.

The other turned to focus on the enemy, only to be met with the umbrella shield flying towards him. He paused his firing to dodge, but a figure appeared in the corner of his eye. 

It was too late. Peskott had thrown her umbrella and blitzed the man from his blind spot. She came in low and fast, on the immediate offensive. 

First, she went for his knees. With one swift kick, the man’s gun had misfired.

She then grabbed his open arm and used it as a fulcrum to swing her legs around his torso. The whole momentum swung the two around in such a manner that the gunman was now on the ground, one arm in the air, pinned. 

He couldn’t move. 

“Screw you—” Without hesitation, she moved to completely disarm and dislocate the man’s arm. Peskott changed gears to glance over to Elias.

“I will take care of the one that ran east. You go take care of the other one.” 

As she fully restrained the individual, she noticed Elias was still staring at her, wide-eyed and filled with hesitation. He did not know what to do. She had given him orders but was skeptical of what he could manage should he catch up to the armed individual.

“Hey, don’t overthink it.” Peskott’s words called out to him, snapping him back from a slight daze. Her tone was calm. “I will be behind you to take care of the rest.”

Tsk. Elias clicked his tongue. He didn’t want to take orders from her, but there wasn’t much choice. You were either all in or all out. And as said, you were either an asset or a liability.

Spinning on his heels, Elias took off in the direction of one of the perps, leaving Peskott with a neutered dog seething at the teeth. “You cunt, you broke my damn—”

*SNAP*

It wasn’t broken before, but it sure was now. 

She got up and dusted herself off before walking due east for the other perpetrators.

***

Elias took to rounding a corner before catching sight of his target. He ran without missing a beat.  

Every action he took was efficient and natural. His body adjusted accordingly to the environment as he traversed, closing the distance between him and his chase. 

His prey took notice and started throwing things as he passed by them in an attempt to slow Elias’s movements, but it was futile. While he had the considerable advantage of a head start, the distance between the two grew shorter. He knew it would only be a matter of time before he was caught. 

This thought prompted him to push people in his way. Nothing was working. For every obstacle thrown, Elias faced it with remarkable recovery.

He switched gears and changed directions briefly, hoping to throw a feint, but Elias immediately noticed it. 

The current target started to dash alongside one of the canals. Much like the futile efforts before this, it didn’t slow Elias even for a second. He ran as fast as he could to the bridge before jumping over the canal. A flip over the edge was all that was needed. Using his hands to dismount from the ledge, he propelled himself forward before rolling to cushion his fall as he landed on the opposite side. 

His pace remained steady, which made the pursuer nervous. He then decided in a split second to turn another corner into another alley. With an incoming gondola in view and a couple enjoying a late evening in each other’s embrace, it made for a perfect impromptu shortcut. They were startled as they noticed the young man jumping over them to cross the waters that kept them afloat.

Once on the other side, he rounded the corner to find a spray of bullets fired at him. 

Damn it.

Elias had nearly forgotten that these individuals were equipped with what he assumed to be a compact SMG.

He used the corner as cover as he tried to peek, but yet another flurry of silver sprung towards him.

Suddenly, the fire had ceased.

Elias figured there were three reasons. One was that the man had run out, hopefully. The second was that the individual was reloading. The third was that the man waited patiently for him to pop his head, which was the least hopeful option. 

Regardless, it was a break that he needed. He used the sudden stop in the fire to round the corner. With some momentum, he slid under as the guy tried to readjust his aim, but it was too late; Elias had closed the distance. 

The gunman was caught by surprise as he had one hand in his coat. His shock met with Elias’s gaze, as he wasn’t expecting his pursuer to pounce so quickly. Closing the distance that fast was a feat. It was too much, and it startled him just as his hand touched a silver metal ring of a device that he held onto as a backup.