Hector sneered, and a low rumble rose forth from the belly of his beast. He waited for the pain of the building shift, but it never came. “I will fight you, will even kill you if I must to get past you. I’ll tell you where theOppressionis and you can have everything that was once mine if you just walk away.”
Hysterian pushed away from the wall. “What fucking happened to you Cyborg?”
“Everything,” Hector snapped, stepping forward. “Everything happened to me.”
“I feel bad for you—” Hysterian stopped as the sound of footsteps moving closer. Hector heard the door slowly open behind him.
Janet’s presence filled the room as swiftly as her smell. The muscles of his arms bulged as the door closed with athump. “Go back inside,” he commanded. “It’s not safe.”
He heard Janet pause, consider, and then ultimately ignore his orders as she scurried forward. It took everything in his will to keep his gaze on Hysterian, whose eyes he couldn’t see under his mask.Don’t fucking look at her.“She’s mine,” he said, almost too low to hear. “Janet, this isn’t the time.”
She ignored him but stepped into the periphery of his sight. The sour stench of fear wafted off her in plumes. “I can’t do this anymore. I can’t.”
“I know. Go back to Lily and I’ll take care of him,” he said as Hysterian chuckled.
“No, Zeph. I can’tdothis anymore,” she said, a hitch in her voice. The fresh scent of budding tears joined the fear in the air. “Lily is…”
He wanted to grab her and wrap her up into his embrace but she was standing just out of his reach. The only reason he let her get his close was because he knew Hysterian had no intention of hurting her. The Cyborg would’ve never let her go back to him otherwise.
“Is Lily okay?” he asked.
“She’s… I can’t.” Janet’s voice hardened. “We can’t. We want to go home.”
His brow furrowed. “I promise—”
Hector stopped as Janet stepped forward, placing herself closer to Hysterian. The other Cyborg moved closer to her, and Hector reached for his gun.
“Well, well, well, so you do need my help?” Hysterian said.
Janet nodded just as Hector aimed his weapon at the other Cyborg and fired. Her screams filled the room. He jolted forward, grabbed her, and threw her back behind him. She flounced on the nearby sofa as Hysterian charged him, ramming into his side.
Hector fell back. Hysterian grabbed his arm and twisted, trying to disarm him. He shifted his hands to claws and swiped out at the Cyborg. The razor edges of his nails connected with Hysterian’s fabric and shredded several gaps across his face and neck.
He just barely managed to retain his gun.
There were two pyrizian bullets left. Both were strong enough to pierce the pyrizian metal frame of a Cyborg, both were worth a small fortune.
Hysterian slammed a fist into Hector’s face, making his head knock back. They were both up on their feet within the next second.
Somewhere, far off, Janet’s terrified shouts sounded. He felt the croc hungering to break free from the meat of his humanoid body. Hector swung his gun into Hysterian’s face, feeling the weak layer of his skin slosh off from the impact to reveal a glint of metal underneath. He drew his weapon back for another hit when Hysterian jumped back straight across the room.
Hector aimed his gun, his visual feed shifting to track his target, as Hysterian dodged across the room, taking cover behind one of the statues. He took the shot, shattering the piece, but the bullet didn’t connect. The other Cyborg jumped across the room at the last second.
“Gunner!” Janet yelled out at the top of her lungs. “Mr. Heartface. GUNNER!”
He didn’t have time to look at Janet as he was suddenly knocked onto to his back, Hysterian grabbing his head. Hector pressed his legs together and felt the skin draw back as the metal underneath hooked his thighs together despite the clothing between. Pain erupted through him as his tail came forth to strike at the other Cyborg.
Hysterian wrapped his limbs around Hector’s and held onto him using his strength to trap him. Hector slammed his heavy tail again and again into the other Cyborg’s frame but couldn’t dislodge the fucker.
His eyes flashed, illuminating the room. He switched off his targeting visuals just as Hysterian grasped his head tighter. Hector’s snout shifted out to snap at him.
He met Hysterian’s wild eyes and noticed the gushing green blood coming from under his latex suit.What the fuck?Hector snapped his jaw again, hitting Hysterian with the full force of his tail. The other Cyborg only tightened his hold.
“Hector!” Janet screamed.
She came up behind Hysterian with a rod in her hand and slammed it into the other Cyborg with all her might. Unfazed, Hysterian drew back, and then, to everyone’s abrupt shock…kissed him.
Warm lips pressed across his snout, jostled to slide over the long, rigid bridge of his nose. Hector tensed as a bunch of the green blood from where he sliced Hysterian’s face fell upon him. Janet’s expletives rang out as she kept hitting Hysterian across the back.
