“What, you think I’d let you go become a hero all by yourself?” he smiled until dimples showed.
“And who says I’m not shooting you right here, right now?” I arched a brow at him as I pinned him against the wall with my gun.
“Well, first off—” he started and grabbed his gun, but his eyes were locked on something behind me. A quick lift and he fired. “I just saved you, so there’s that.”
My head turned and met with the man who had scouted the room ahead of us, he had snuck closer in the hopes of taking out the both of us.
“Shit,” he spat, glaring.
“Rules are rules,” Lionel shrugged, but nothing in his expression said he was sorry. The man rubbed his brown hair, putting it back in place, before he came flying at us. Lionel spun us around, as if he intended to take the hit instead of me.
But I hoisted my gun up and sent paint flying all over the sore loser, before shoving Lionel to the side. The man spat, purple covering his face, forcing him to shut his eyes and he crashed right into the stone wall. Slowly, he hunched down and held his head in his hands, cursing low.
“I’d say we’re even,” I muttered, walking into the room.
I heard Lionel chuckle before he took a couple of quick steps and was right next to me again, his hand pulling through his wavy auburn hair as if he had won this entire game already.
“See, we need each other, to win,” he glanced down at me, smiling that wide smile to catch me off guard. “Those pink eyes of yours make you seem so innocent; let’s use that to our advantage!”
“Don’t get in my way,” I mumbled, averting my eyes from him. He snorted in response, like I had hurt his pride.
“You forget who you’re talking to.”
Lionel, he was my closest friend, we had grown up together, his parents taking me in from the streets when I was six years old. All my good memories involved him and we had trained together for this for a long time. Well,before he disappeared a year ago, I thought he had already been recruited by then.
The sound of a gunshot echoed, and we both stopped instantly. None of us were hit, but we saw shadows moving in the hallway in front of us.
“Run?” Lionel asked politely, already knowing the answer.
“Never.”
We covered one side each, crouching along some of the rubble in the room, before hurried footsteps sounded, and with them, guns fired like fireworks, spraying the room.
My eyes widened at the figure leaping through the room, the colorful ammunition missing her completely. It was her again, thebomb girl. She was extraordinary. I saw how Lionel took aim at her, but I shot a warning bullet in front of his feet. Confusion spread on his face, but he lowered his weapon all the same, letting her go.
It only took a brief moment before the sound of footsteps closed in from the same direction Bomb Girl had come from. Lionel gave me a questioning glance, silently asking for approval to attack. I nodded and we both took aim, listening closely for the sounds. Five people came into our view, and we didn’t hold back. We sprayed them until they were covered in purple and blue.
“What the—” The one in the lead gritted his teeth annoyed. “Ambushers…”
I straightened myself and strolled out from my cover, facing them. “I owed her. I consider it repaid now.”
“Walk along boys,” Lionel shot them a smile, putting his gun behind his head, resting his arms around it, looking coy.
The leader’s brown eyes sized me up and down, before they shot a quick glance backward. “Sure.”
His voice was flat, unbothered all of a sudden, as he nodded for his comrades to follow.
“Huh,” Lionel looked baffled. “I thought they’d put up a better fight.”
My eyes followed the group, and I caught the leader looking back at me again, as a smug smile spread on his lips. What?
“Ethalyn!” Lionel shouted, as he came sprinting at me, shoving me aside.
I fell to my ass, preparing for the roof to fall in or something. But a shot rang out and when I looked up I saw Lionel covered in green color along his side. My head jerked to the right, to meet with seemingly black colored eyes.
“Ah, I missed…” The man angled the gun away, looking displeased by the notion that he got Lionel and not me. His free hand scratched the back of his neck, along his black hair. “That’s new.”
I had hesitated for too long, bringing my weapon up to take a risky shot at him, but he sidestepped with ease.
