Soultaker: Guardian of Singapore

Blood for Blood

"Bring those girls in!"

Maxus could hear several voices within the school compound of Teck Ghee Primary School. They were faint till the point where people in the neighborhood would never hear them unless they were in the school's vicinity and at 2am, who the hell would be?

Maxus looked around him, ensuring that no one could see him before breaking into a sprint towards the gates of the school, latching onto them and hopping his way over the fence before landing on his toes, making as little noise as he could.

"Those bastards are late. Should we call them?"

"No point, Mr VIP ain't even here yet."

VIP... Every word he heard just made the situation seem more and more strange. Maxus knew he had to get a better angle of the men as he made his way silently towards the source of the voices, drawing out his twin blades as he heard footsteps across the hallway heading towards him. The vigilante closed his eyes, honing his senses to focus onto the approaching footsteps and confirming that only one man was here.

Maxus quickly positioned behind a wall, watching as the lone man walked towards the back of the canteen, pulling out a cigarette and about to puff a smoke when the vigilante sneaked quickly behind him, placing his knife at the man's neck before he could even notice.

"Scream and the last thing you'll feel is this blade deep in your throat." Maxus warns.

"What...who-"

"Where are the girls?" Maxus asks. 

"Upstairs....bitch!" The man moved suddenly, catching the vigilante off guard, headbutting Maxus in the nose and stunning bim temporarily. Before Maxus could recover, the man in front of him turned around and slammed a syringe right into Maxus's arm.

A sharp pain shot through his arm, Maxus gritting his teeth to work his way through the pain.

"You fucking bitch."Maxus quickly kicked the man away before the contents of the syringe could fully be pumped in, quickly sidestepping another punch, closing the distance between the man and him before shoving his knife deep into the man's throat, ensuring that the weapon did as much damage as possible as the man's voice faded out along with every last ounce of energy in his body.

What the fuck did he do to me? Maxus looked down at his arm, plucking the syringe out. The pain was still manageable, after all it was just a tiny needle that did a flesh wound but...something felt off. The wound the needle made seemed to be getting less and less painful by the second and a heavy wave of drowsiness began clouding him.

His eyes felt heavy as Maxus collapsed against a wall, taking in deep breaths and using every ounce of his energy to resist the sleepiness.

That syringe...some form of sleep inducing drug? Maxus looked around him, making sure that he still wasn't spotted as with the tip of his knife, Maxus began slitting the side of his arm, the sharp burning pain of the cut temporarily jolting his eyes open, giving him the short boost of energy he needed to keep himself awake. Maxus rubbed his finger on the wound, inflicting more pain to keep himself awake.

HM!HMM!

Those sounds...muffled voices of girls were coming from the back of the school hall. If he were to assume, it would probably be near the gym equipment room usually located beside the hall's stage. Along with those muffled voices, dozens of voices chattering, probably dozens of gangsters and... another wave of drowsiness hit Maxus as he shook his head, pressing down on the cut on his arm again to focus.

More commotion was heard as Maxus pinched himself, forcing himself to move and getting more adreleline pumping into him. The vigilante silently made his way towards the hall where most of the commotion were located.

"Hey Mr Tang! Welcome."

" I see the other gang is not here yet. Are the girls here at least? "

"Been here all night waiting just for you."

At this point it was pretty much confirmed what was going on. Prostitution...on some form at least. The vigilante whipped out his two knives, keeping his distance and peering over to see two teenage girls  and from the looks of it, around his age, 14-18? Standing nervously surrounded by four men and in front of them, a well dressed businessman approaching them.

The school hall was mostly empty accept for the makeshift set up that the Black and Reds built, a combination of school chairs, tables and lamps stacked near the stage possibly for some form of resting area or worse... a set for the businessman to do his deed.

"After this...delete the footage okay?" One of the girl demands.

"That depends on how well you do today."Mr Tang, the well dressed businessman says when the other girl begins to cry: "Please...is there any other way?"

"Shut the fuck up!"One of the Red and Blacks slapped her across the face:" You are alrwady here, you had already agreed to our terms and conditions. Shut your mouth or we'll post the video online now."

Maxus knew they were being threatened as the girl cried out in pain. It's now or never. Maxus shook his head again, trying to pump himself up with adreleline to counter the sleepy drug that was shot into him. Those two girls clearly aren't here by their own will. If I wait any longer...Maxus threw himself out of cover, sprinting towards the first gangster in front of him and before his opponent could even react, the vigilante jammed his knife right into his victim's back, pushing the blade down and splitting his spine open down.

The rest of the Black and Reds turned around, watching as one of their own being killed in front of them.

"Who the fuck-?"

1,2...5,10...18...18 Black and Reds along with the businessman Mr Tan.

"Kill him! Get Mr Tang away!" One of the gang members shouted, the group of gangsters drew whatever weapons they had on them, knuckle dusters, small pen knives or even machetes, glaring down at Maxus who took a fighting stance. The vigilante observed Mr Tan and the two girls being guided away into the gym equipment room beside the hall's stage.

"Who the hell are you? You have a death wish asshole?!"A gang member roared.

"I'm just the guy that will stop fucked up shits like you."Maxus growled as the first few members charged with their weapons.

The vigilante positioned himself, throwing his own body aside and dodging the first punch, using his opponent's own momentum against him as Maxus simply angled his knife for the first attacker to throw himself into, the weapon stabbing through his heart and allowing Maxus to quickly move on to the next opponent who swung his machete that Maxus quickly deflected with his free knife, raising the man's hand up with their clashed weapons and thrusting his blade right into the gangster's throat.

"Surround him!"

Maxus ducked under another gangster, slashing his blade through his opponent's stomach before quickly getting up, jumping back to barely dodge a machete strike.

Four more men in front of him with many more behind, two men on his left and right... Maxus jumped forward, faking an attack before backing up at the last second as his opponents on the right struck, swinging their weapons aggressively only for Maxus to weave between them quickly, using his two twin knives to land a series of cuts that put his two opponents on the right down. 

"You bastard!" Another man attacked Maxus, trying to jab his pen knife at the vigilante who caught his attacker's wrist with his own arms, kicking the gangster in the crotch before a consecutive kick to his knees, bringing him to the ground and finishing him off with a deadly stab into the skull.

Five men down...13 to go.

Maxus wiped his eyes, making sure to stay awake as the next wave of attacks closed in. Maxus weaved in between two men, simultaneously swinging his knives and slashing the both of them, quickly dodging sideways to kick another in the chin. Just a moment before he was overwhelmed, Maxus rushed towards one of the gangsters, kicking him and using his body to flip into the air, bringing himself some distance again.

"Those moves aren't normal!"

"Thanks captain obvious!"

Five of them charged at once as Maxus threw one of his blades towards the one in the middle, cutting down the weight of the attack and successfully making them turn their heads in horror. Using that small window of time, Maxus jumped in, slitting the throat of one open before rolling under another feet, dragging his remaining blade clean through his back.

Maxus turned around, swinging his blade to deter another charging opponent away when he was caught off guard as one gang member kicked him right in the back before another rushed at him with full speed, wrestling him to the ground at surprising speeds.

Maxus struggled to maintain his grip on his weapon, jamming it right into his attacker's neck before quickly getting up, but not in time as another gangster landed a kick that struck him across his face, knocking him back as another wildly swung a metal bar that struck the vigilante in the wrist. Maxus grit his teeth, the pain pumping more adreleline into him.

"He's down! Finish that nutcase off!"One of the eight remaining opponents yelled.

Maxus leaned upwards, determined to stand upright as he caught his breath in time for another to jab his knife forward, Maxus catching his arm mid strike before stabbing his own blade into his attacker's arm, dragging the weapon through his entire limb before ending his life with a stab right through the side of his head.

Pushing his newest kill away, Maxus lunged forward, blocking two attacks before dodging another, weaving his way between three men and using their own bodies against themselves, the vigilante begun his counter attack, skillfully avoiding every attack... or so he thought as a sharp pain shot through his shoulder, a Red and Black member successfully impaling Maxus' shoulder with a sharp piece of glass.

"Fucking-"Maxus hissed, retaliating by throwing his remaining weapon into his injurer's eye.

"He's unarmed! Come on kill him!" A hesitant member of the Black and Reds yelled as another swing his butcher's knife, Maxus stepping back, curving his arm under his opponent's and twisting it, shattering the gangster's elbow before forcefully pulling the butcher's knife out of his grip, turning around to swing the weapon down and right into the middle of another gang member's head, effectively ending his life.

"Guys... we... we..." The gangsters were clearly losing morale as they looked at the blood covered vigilante, holding the red stained butcher's knife, glaring down at them with a cold spine shivering stare.

" What's the matter...? Didn't you want to kill me...? Be. My. Fucking Guest." Maxus limped forward.

"He's already injured...there's five of us still able to fight...come on!"The five gang members nervously closed in as Maxus took in a deep breath, trying to keep himself going as the first attacks came in, strikes from multiple directions that forced Maxus back, the vigilante trying to read any openings between the attacks of the amateurs he was facing.

There.

Maxus marched forward and with a wide swung, his butcher's blade slashing the arm of one member off, the vigilante getting behind another gangster, using him as hostage which temporarily stopped the other's advance. Before they could figure out any plans, Maxus hurled the butcher knife right into the chest of the nearest gang member before using the back of his palm to fatally strike his hostage at the back of his neck, paralyzing him for life in one strike.

Three men left.

Maxus rolled towards a body, pulling his own knife out as one of the three remaining gangsters attacked, swinging a baseball bat at Maxus who jumped back only for another to flank him from the side, delivering a punch using his knuckle duster that greatly swelled the side of Maxus' face. The vigilante roared, the pain making his retaliate further as he ducked again, slicing a chunk off the baseball wielder's leg.

The knuckle duster armed gangster swung another punch that Maxus caught with his blade, the gangster's fist going straight into the tip of the weapon as the blade protruded deep between two of his fingers. Maxus quickly pulled the knife out before grabbing his opponent by the collar, pulling him in right into the weapon and piercing his throat, ending his life.

"AHHH!HELP!" The baseball wielding gangster cried out as the last remaining Black and Red threw down his penknife:" Fuck this man...! I'm out!"

Maxus watched as the gangster turned around to flee and without hesitation, the vigilante hurled his blade forward as hard as he humanly could, the blade landing itself through the back of the fleeing gangster's skull.

"No...please..." The baseball bat gang member begged as Maxus got up, picking up the butcher's knife and bringing it down onto his opponent, decapitating him in one clean swing.

Hoooo....Maxus exhaled, drenched in fresh blood and sweat. His heart was beating unusually fast, the pain in his jaw, the sharp swelling sensation in his shoulder and the cracking soreness of his legs starting to get to him as the adreleline slowly faded. 

Focus...Maxus.

" Please...just let me go man..." The gangster that wielded the butcher's knife begged, his arm broken and bleeding. "I let you go and then what... months or years later after you have healed you go back to this disgusting gang activities of yours...I know drugs are involved and now, blackmailing teenage girls, using their bodies for rich clients? Scum like you don't deserve to continue living."Maxus says, grabbing both his blades from the corpses around him.

"PLEASE NO-"

-

Mr Tang hid in the gym equipment room with the two girls, locking the door.

The two terrified girls looked at each other, one of confusion and pure fear as the businessman pushed them aside, grabbing a metal pole to act as a weapon."The two of you better keep your mouths shut or I won't hesitate to hit you with this."

The two girls backed up in fear as the fighting outside stopped. The battle cries, the screaming and punching all fading into the sound of the empty night school.

A loud slam was heard against the door as Mr Tang tightened the grip on the metal bar, ready to swing it as another slam hit the door and this time, crumbles of dust began to fall around the entrance. A third and fourth slam began loosening the door as Mr Tan roared out in anger :" Don't you fucking dare come in...if you do...I will fucking kill this bitch!"

Mr Tang grabbed the arm of one of the girls, pulling her towards him and pushing her to the ground. The other girl tried to help out but was kicked aside as Mr Tang positioned the bar above her head, intent on striking her down. The door's lock broke apart as Maxus kicked open the doors.

All the girls saw was a dark masked man armed with two blades, drenched in blood. Almost like a wild beast looking at it's prey...and in this case, they felt like the prey.

"Stay back!" Mr Tang warns.

The vigilante shot his blade forward, stabbing Mr Tang in the chest as the businessman collapsed onto the ground, holding onto the hole in his chest trying to stop the bleeding. Mr Tang crawled backwards, holding his palm up trying to beg for mercy as Maxus turned to the two girls: "Leave. Now."

The two girls slowly got up, clearly scared out of their wits as both of them were shivering visibly bad.

"NOW!"

The two girls screamed, sprinting out of the gym equipment room, past Maxus and away to safety.

"Who...are...you..."Mr Tang struggled, blood spilling out of his mouth uncontrollably as Maxus limped towards him, fully resembling a zombie. Torn clothes, scarred and covered in blood, Maxus pressed his boot onto Mr Tang's chest, pointing his other knife down: " Tell me everything you know about the arson at Lao Hawker Center."

"What...?Why-"

The businessman froze as he noticed Maxus' relentless stare. "I...the only thing I know, I swear...something about an official ordering it." Mr Tang looked up, hoping that Maxus would spare him as the vigilante dragged him by the collar, punching him back onto the ground as Mr Tang cried out in pain.

"You're a lawyer...I saw your briefcase outside. I saw files regarding gangs around the country, there must be something else you know. Which gang was ordered to commit the arson? Details about the official who ordered it, anything you know you better spill or I will slice off your fingers one by one until you tell me everything."

"I...Look...I wasn't involved so there's no way I can know much but...I've heard rumors, people in my line of work...something about a minister trying to cover up the arson, the person in charge is known by the Blood Lion...that's it...I swear."Mr Tan spilled out everything he had regarding the question.

"I told you everything...you can leave me now...please..."

"I never said I would let you live, just that I won't cut your fingers off if you tell me everything."Maxus slammed his knife between the eyes of Mr Tan, pushing the blade through his skull which began crumbling as Maxus twisted his weapon before pulling it back out, a gush of blood splashing onto him in the wake of his latest kill.

A minister...involved in cover ups...

Information about the arson. Finally, he had another source to work off on. Maxus barely had any re collation of whatever happened next, almost like his body went on auto-pilot, moving himself out of the school without detection and making his way back home on foot...a walk that took over 3 hours. Finally, the vigilante made his way home, climbing the side of his HDB block, trying to avoid the blood stains from leaving marks and climbing his way to the 4th floor window of his apartment.

Minister...cover up.

That was the only thing occupying Maxus' mind. The teenager limped over to his first aid kit, grabbing himself a bottle of saline, pouring it over the wound on his shoulder, biting onto a piece of wet cloth as the pain intensely spread through his body. 

His eyes were heavy, every thought in his head shifting to an overwhelming desire to sleep. Maxus wasn't even sure if it was part of the drug effect or simply his exhaustion as he slowly set himself down on the ground, passing out from the pure fatigue setting in. Fortunately for him...it was still a Saturday night, giving him one more day before the first actual day of school began.

- 2pm. The Next Day.

Of all things, it was his neighbor's door being slammed shut that woke him up. Maxus opened his eyes, his entire body sore, he had barely any strength to even try to stand. Looking onto his right, Maxus grabbed onto him phone- Missed alarms for 10am and 10:30am and along with those notifications, a message from his Aunt.

Aunt Tan, his legal guardian: Morning Maxus, do you need any more money for the month? Poly is starting next week right?

Maxus smiled, knowing that he isn't alone. If wasn't for his aunt, who knew where he would be now? Probably under the care of some shady ass organization which would take away his freedom to live alone or even...put him under restrictions simply for being an orphan below the age of 18. 

I'm okay on cash Aunty. Thank you though.

Leaning back on his sofa slowly, Maxus looked through his phone which to his horror...the latest breaking news in his country: 20 Bodies found in Teck Ghee Primary School. I didn't leave any tracks behind right...? All that blood mixed around, there's little to no chance that it'll be traced back to him. After all, this was the first time his acts of vigilantism made it to the headlines.

Police have been alerted to a huge number of bodies found within the hall of Olympia Primary School including that of a lawyer. The police have reason to believe that a deadly gang fight of sorts took place. Maxus let out of breath of relief. 

Yeah...gang fight, let them think that.

Closing his eyes, Maxus leaned back onto his sofa, falling back asleep after the previous night of injuries lying on the cold hard ground.

The Blood Lion...? I'll find him...I'll kill him.

 

Next Chapter- Outclassing The Cohort