Jacob's gaze sweeps the room, his eyes darting between the walls, windows, and doors like trapped animal. "How many people do you have present in this mansion?" He asks, his voice laced with urgency. "About 30, sir," Terri replies, his voice trembling.
Nina materializes behind him like a ghost. "Master, I'm done," she whispers, her voice silks.
Jacob's head snaps towards her. "Good. Terri!" He calls.
Terri scurries closer, his eyes fixed on the floor. "Gather your people, quickly. We have no time. Follow her, she'll lead you to safety."
Terri shouts. "Sophie!" She rushes towards him. Her eyes wide with fear. "Quickly gather your sisters and the maidens. Go! Quick!"
Shamu strides up to Terri and Jacob, his massive frame towering over them. "Good. You guys will Follow this woman, time's not on our side," Jacob says. He points to Terri. "And you too, as well." Terri bows his head, his eyes filled with a mix of fear and determination.
As they hurry away with Nina, Jacob's voice is a low growl. "Shion, Maxwell, follow." Maxwell frowns, his eyes flashing with rebellion. "But boss, I can–"
Jacob cuts him off, his voice a snarl. "Don't be reckless, you fool. You're here to protect Shion, not to fight."
Maxwell's face darkens, but he nods curtly. "Roger."
Shion's countenance reads sadism, her eyes clouded with uncertainty. "Shion, what's the matter?" Jacob's voice softening.
"Boss, I hate to be a liability. I am already–"
Jacob's hands close around her shoulders, his grip warm and reassuring. A comforting grin plays on his face. "The air whispers war, every shaking tree is a suspect. Leave."
She nods, as she strides away with Maxwell following the others.
A veil of smoke wafts through the air, shrouding the scene in mystery. The men stand frozen, their faces etched with surprise, as a figure coalesces from the mist. Slowly, his shape takes form, like a ghostly shadow. He stands tall, his eyes burning with a fierce intensity.
"I am the devouring leopard," he growls, his voice low and menacing. "Waiting to destroy..."
King Pin strides closer, his eyes narrowing. "Who the hell are you?"
A mocking smile playing on his lips. "Samuel... The pleasure is mine."
A man rushes closer, sword raised, aiming for his neck. Samuel stands smiling, his eyes shining with amusement. In the blink of an eye, the man falls, lifeless, unable to move.
More steps forward. Samuel blinks, his Speed is a blur. His bullets strike multiple times. The men fall.
He stands still, smiling. like he is waiting for their movement.
"I know Terri doesn't have such a formidable fighter like this. Tell us who you are? Are you an accomplice to the Crocodile?" King Pin asks.
Samuel laughs sarcastically. "You don't get to know who I am fellow.. let's dance and see who owns the jungle man..."
More fighters advance forward. In rage, Mercenaries shoot. Samuel's speed is hard to follow, he moves like a shadow in the day. King Pin and Venus stand guard, watchful eyes. They try to follow his movements with their eyes.
"Venus, are you sure that this fighter is not a comrade to the C-S woman?" King Pin asks.
"I'm not certain. The warrior is skilled. And if he's with the crocodile woman, let's pray the fighter that saved her in the fortress, isn't here either."
Figures lay dead to the ground, unconscious. The mercenaries keep shooting. Samuel's bullets strike like meteor, undetectable, fast. More keeps dropping.
"Omagu!" King Pin calls.
A huge man steps forward. "Boss"
"Now it's time we fight for real."
"Roger."
King Pin appears in front of Samuel. Samuel's eyes widen in shock. "But how–" Samuel tries to shoot, Behind him, King Pin manifests. Samuel immediately leaps away. Venus rushes in, his fist slices close to Samuel's face. Samuel twists opposite, the fist meets air.
King Pin revs a Chakabula. The sound like thunder as he unleashes a blast. Samuel vanishes in a flash, reappearing with guns blazing, muzzles pointing straight at King Pin. The air erupts with bullet blasts as the two exchange fire, Venus joining in with his pistol, the trio locking in a deadly dance.
Omagu swings a sword from behind. Samuel ducks low, Venus closes the distance. His fist crashes into Samuel's face with a sickening crunch. He stumbles back, Venus firing rapid shots, but Samuel's gone, vanishes into thin air.
King Pin vanishes too, the two blinking in and out of existence, appearing and disappearing with deadly intent. King Pin closes in, Samuel dodges with hair's breadth precision, his movements a blur.
Samuel materializes for a split second, Omagu seizes the moment, sword flashing. Samuel weaves like a ghost, his gun firing point-blank into Omagu's forehead. The giant drops like a felled tree.
Venus tries to grab Samuel's sleeves, closing in for the kill. Samuel twists free. But a punch is already flying towards him. He tries to dodge, too late. The blow hits his neck. Sending him crashing to the ground.
He tries to rise. King Pin closes in. Grabs him by the neck, raising him to the air. squeezing tight.
Samuel's world narrows, vision fading. A bullet zips past, King Pin ducks. Samuel falls to the ground, shaking. More bullets zip through the air, Venus and King Pin dodging with acrobatic ease.
Spike materializes in front of Samuel, gun still smoking. Samuel's eyes crack open, a weak grin twisting his lips. "What took you so long, man...?"
Spike chuckles." You can't even hold on a little longer till I get here. But anyways, you did well."
The Mercenaries and assassins approach fully, no holding back. King Pin and Venus follow. Spike's bullets drop Many to the ground. A woman jumps closer, flashing her sword. Spike weaves, the sword whistling past his ears.
Venus closes the distance, shooting. Spike weaves, appears before him. His foot going for Venus's head. He ducks back.
King Pin lunges. Catching Spike off balance. He slams him to the ground, pinning him down. Spike thrushes and kicks, but King Pin's grip tightly. The crowd closes in, a wall of noise. King Pin springs up, his face twisted in fury. Boots connect with Spike's ribs, again and again, as he curls into a ball.
A hand descends like a thunderbolt, landing on the fighter's neck and head with a blur of motion. The fighters drops like a stone, King Pin's gun firing wildly as he spins to face the new threat. The bullet zips harmlessly like they were changing directions.
Jacob stands. His eyes heavy-lidded, hooded with boredom. "No battle intended," he growls, his brows furrowing in annoyance. "I only came for a negotiation."
Venus recovers first, blinking in front of Jacob with a speed. But Jacob is faster. In a split second, his hand snaps out. Grabbing Venus by the shirt. With a fluid motion, he hoists Venus into the air and slams him down with a crushing force. The impact sends shockwaves through the ground, and Venus lies still, unconscious.
The air is heavy with tension as Jacob stands over Venus, his eyes cold as stone. King Pin's gun is still trained on Jacob, but he's clearly unsure of what to do next.
Jacob coalesces in front of King Pin. His fist explodes onto King Pin's jaw, sending him floating through the air before crashing to the ground. The remaining fighters stumble back, fear etched across their faces.
"I told you," Jacob says, his voice low and even. "No battle intended. I'm not here to fight you."
King Pin scrambles to his feet, his eyes blazing with rage. "Who are you then...?" he asks, his voice trembling with suppressed fury.
"You can call me the Alligator," Jacob says, his expression unreadable.
King Pin's eyes widen in shock. "The Alligator? I've never heard of you."
"If you do me the pleasure of not attacking, then I'll do the same as not hurting you."
"What do you want?" King Pin growls.
"First off, are you Silas's warlords?" Jacob asks, his gaze piercing.
King Pin nods, a hint of wariness creeping into his voice. "Yes. I am. Why are you protecting Terri's fortress? Where is the crocodile woman?"
Jacob's expression shifts, a glimpse of understanding flickering across his face. "Oh... I see now. You're that enemy that battled Shion in King Pin's fortress, is it?"
"No, I'm King Pin," the warlord says, a snarl creeping into his voice.
Jacob's lips quirk. "That solves issues. There's a woman I'm looking for. Clary, Clary Pintosa. Have you, or any of your associates heard of her?"
King Pin's eyes narrow. "Wait, why are you protecting Terri's fortress?"
"I came to Terri as kind as I came to you," Jacob says, his voice smooth. "Seeking Intel about the abducted girl."
King Pin's expression twists in anger. "But it is known that Terri only invited the crocodile woman via the letter."
"Yes... that Crocodile woman, is my subordinate."
The group gasps, shock rippling through them like a wave.
"Your subordinate?" King Pin's voice is barely above a whisper. "What a very terrifying world."
Jacob's gaze is unyielding. "So... what's the information? Know anything about Pintosa?"
King Pin's face darkens. "Your subordinate destroyed my fortress... killed Venus's men... she came to kill, not to discuss."
Jacob bows his head. "My apologies for her rudeness. I'm to blame for that."
"She deserves punishment," King Pin spits. "I'm not giving you any information. It's the punishment you get."
Jacob raises his head, a hint of steel in his eyes. "Fine. I accept your punishment. Nevertheless, I never came here to fight you anyway. So I'll be taking my leave. K.B.!"
K.B materializes from thin air, standing at attention beside Jacob. "Boss."
"Take Spike and Samuel. We leave," Jacob says, his voice is calm.
King Pin's mind reeled. "Ooa! When.. how, he was here all this while? But how?.. I didn't even notice him,"
K.B strides forward, scooping up Samuel and Spike from the ground. With a man on each shoulder, he turns and vanishes along with Jacob leaving the tense standoff behind.