EX0L8: The Experiment

Chapter 26: Wrecking Ball of Pain

Chapter 26: Wrecking Ball of Pain

"I'm Sabrina Teris, in downtown L.A., where a showdown between General Gunther is raging. He seems to be fighting - WOAH!" She screams as a truck and its cargo gets sent flying over her head, courtesty of Sara.

Sara lunges forward, fist raised to strike, when Gunther slams his knee into her stomach. He quickly follows up with a devastating blow to her back. She gasps, coughing up blood. Her breath grows slow and ragged, having been fighting like this for a straight ten minutes, with the same results.

Sara scrambles back, coughing up even more blood onto her shirt. After recovering a bit, she snarls in frusteration and slams her fist into the ground.

This guy... he's a regular human, not as strong as me, yet he easily counters and goes on the offensive without any struggle, while I can't lay a hand on him!

How is he countering me? I should be faster than him!

Gunther looks down at her with strict, unwavering eyes.

"You ARE stronger than me, one punch would probably finish me off. However..."

As soon as Sara tries to get up, he knocks her legs out from underneath her, making her fall on her face.

"It's because I have many years of battle experience. That's all there is to it. I'm simply used to the rigors of combat, and your movements have become almost like a routine predictable as making a cake in the hands of a master. The truth is you're not used to it, are you? Fighting to the death and surviving takes real skills, real experience. You rely on brute strength and you expect that to carry you to victory. You're not as strong as me in this case. All you do is throw your fists like a fool!"

Sara clenches her teeth in anger.

"A fool am I? Even so, I'll never give up... not till I return home! No matter what..." Gunther's eyes widen as she tries to rise, but Gunther forces her head down with his foot.

"...I will never give up, I'll never go back to that hellhole! That terrible place, ever again!" She roars, using her remaining strength to lift him off her, and grabs him by the arm.

"I never should have let you live, that was a mistake! You just-" She throws him in the air, "A fool who...!" She jumps in the air after him, soaring right next to him. Gunther gasps in a moment of fear, and tries to protect himself. "...Follows orders and never questions them, if what your doing is right or wrong!!!" She slams her leg on his spine, and sends him plummeting into the ground, cracking the concrete.

She lands on her feet gracefully, with only a faint tap annoucing she'd even landed on the ground.

Gunther groans, somehow alive, which didn't concern her. She runs to Racheal, and asks breathlessly,

"Are... are you alright?" She pants, out of breath.

Racheal smiles weakily. "Yeah I'm alright, it's just..." She lets a big grin cross her face.

"How did you do that? That was cool!"

Sara smiles faintly. "Maybe later."

Gunther growls from behind them,

"No, not ever. This ends now."

A sharp click goes off, and Sara instinctively tackles Racheal to the ground just as a massive roar of flames rushes over their heads. Sara turns her head to see Gunther armed with a roaring flamethrower. His face and arms are bleeding badly from cuts, and one of his legs seem to have a limp.

"I'M ONLY JUST GETTING STARTED!" He yells, firing again.

"What the hell is wrong with this guy?!" Sara growls, and they roll away from his fire again. Racheal runs for cover in the alley again.

Gunther narrows his eyes in anger. "Don't get cocky, EX0L8. You may have immunity to bullets, but you are NOT immune to fire!" He blocks off Sara from manuvering to the left, and then the right.

Sara grimaces, seeing only one way, forward. She rushes forward, trying to get to him before he can fire.

"Sara! Be careful!" Racheal yells, concerned greatly for her safety.

"Too slow!" Gunther yells, hitting Sara directly this time. Sara collapes onto the ground, screaming in pain.

"NO! Sara!" Racheal yells, rushing forward with inhuman speed. She throws multiple punches with great speed at Gunther's face. At first, he manages to dodge them with realitive ease, but then she gives him a left hook square in the jaw sending him into the air and onto his back. He groans, getting back up.

She rushes forward again, and slams her fist into his stomach, making him cough up blood. She takes his flamethrower and tosses it aside. She frantically looks for a store with a fire extinguisher, once she finds one, she hurries to Sara's side and puts out the fires.

For a few minutes, Sara remains unresponisve even as Racheal cries for her to answer her.

Finally, Sara weakily responds, "Racheal, relax. I hurt like hell, but I'll be fine... Thank you." She coughs for a moment, then looks up at Racheal.

"Racheal?" She asks weakily.

"What?"

"I want you to take the train alone. You won't stand out to security, I'd only create problems." Before Racheal can interupt her, she holds up a hand. "It's not a request, now do it." She gets up, and takes off at high speed onto the highway, drawing attention from Racheal's location.

Gunther snarls, trying to get up again. Racheal walks up to him with quiet anger, and decks him square in the face, and knocks him out.

She glares at him.

"I could so kill you. However, unlike Sara, I don't have the strength." She walks off to the train station, praying that Sara would be ok herself.