Everything would have been fine if he didnâ€™t have this chest wound to slow him down. He would have had her dead by now; instead he was feeding off of her trying desperately to recover. After taking off another chunk of her shoulder he felt the pain in his chest flare up again. It was not going to be enough to recover, no matter how much he hated to admit it. He could feel his determination slipping as he did his best to fight away the pain to no avail. Grunting in pain he rolled off of her out of reaction, willing to do anything to make the pain stop. Tears pricked the corners of his eyes as he coughed up more blood uncontrollably in spite of his body slowly trying to regenerate itself and close the wounds. It just was not enough, that bitch had dug at the wound in his chest enough to where it was not repairable by regeneration and the fact his body was trying to heal itself only brought on more discomfort than it was worth.<br/><br/>Collecting himself was becoming difficult. It was like his body refused to obey him and go after her again. She was right there, in worse condition than he was, yet the fact he could barely breathe had told him it was too late and his lung had already filled with too much blood. Coughing was painful. He felt pathetic right now but he didnâ€™t care anymore since he knew he had failed Raziel. It was either die here or die by Razielâ€™s hand; perhaps it was not honorable but he would rather die here than face the wrath of his leader.<br/><br/>------<br/><br/>After that explosion had happened the whole mood of the battle seemed to shift again and Zachariah was becoming more and more convinced that these bio-weapons were just out of control. Hearing that they had suicide bombers was not sitting well with him and he could feel his entire body tense with a mixture of anxiety and stress. Pinching the bridge of his nose he sighed and then ran a hand over his face. From where he was he could see his men were becoming nervous as well, giving him a reason not to show just how much this situation was getting to him. God would not allow such weakness to show in His soldiers and he was going to make damn sure his men were not faced with a faltering leader. His men needed him and he was going to act as if this was not bothering him. Showing any sort of falter would not be acceptable, he told himself with a silent curse. It was still too soon to place his full plan into actionâ€¦ but he might not have a choice nowâ€¦<br/><br/>The next wave was closing in fast and they were a deadly bunch from what he gathered. No longer did they seem nearly as wild and unpredictable as the others. Their movements were a lot more organized and they were able to take a few more bullets before they went down. He knew that they would not be able to hold up forever. Unlike the bio-weapons his men were not killing machines that had unnaturally high stamina and were unable to take more than a few hits; his men were beginning to become more fatigued. Himself included as he was not invincible, though right now he almost wished he was, as time passed his wounds were really starting to slow him down despite being able to hold his own fairly well against these weapons. He might be older now but he still fought like a master. Over the years, his skills have become sharper rather than dulled for he could not allow himself to weaken because of his age. His body might be aging but his spirit was still young, wild.<br/><br/>It was time for Zachariah to bring that side of him out more. Unfortunately before he could get into the zone something urgent came up.<br/><br/>When Ivan spoke to him a second time, this time about Shizu falling into her Oni form, â€œDamn it,â€ he could not help the curse that flew out of his mouth. As compoased as he could be even he was not invincible. Try as he may he couldnâ€™t hide the fact that this situation was getting to him; however what was well hidden was his growing frustration. What frustrated him was not the fact that no matter how many of these bio-weapons they cut down more popped up in their place, but the fact that they were not as powerful and were slowly beginning to get pushed back as much as he hated to admit it. He had to think of something fast otherwise he knew things might get messy. Not only because they would have an out of control preternatural creature running around but because he knew that Azrai would not be happy if she got hurt like that again. Part of him was already aware that the man was becoming more and more bloodthirsty. One of his snipers had reported in worried that Azrai might turn on them and shoot up the whole squad.<br/><br/>â€œSir, Raziel has stepped out of his car,â€ he heard another one of his men say.<br/><br/>That just made everything fucking perfect. Sooner or later he knew the man would step out, his old friend was probably irritated with how unruly his little pets were not to mention the man was impatient as all hell, but he had not expected it to be this soon. Zachariah leaned against the wall of a building, in the shade, away from the action for just a moment; he needed a quiet place to gather his thoughts. Even from his temporary hiding spot the sounds of war rang in his ears. He was becoming exhausted, but he was not going to give up just yet, â€œIvan,â€ he spoke to the man, â€œI need you to bring me that gun.â€ There was no doubt in his mind Raziel was after Shizu and wanted to get her himself, that was how the man was. If he wanted something done and done right he would do it himself before he relied on someone else fearing they would fuck up. Heâ€™s always been like that. He gave Ivan his location and then turned his attention to Maverick, â€œWatch out, do not allow them to distract you.â€ After receiving an ok from him he dared to contact Azraiâ€¦<br/><br/>Upon seeing the explosion Azrai felt a rage build within him that made his entire body tremble. How dare they hurt herâ€¦ A low growl escaped him as he looked through his scope, satisfied when Ivan had signaled she was alright. When the next wave of weapons came at them he shot at them. It didnâ€™t take long for him to realize that these new weapons were a hell of a lot more durable and took more hits before they went down. Instead of aiming for the head he shot at their legs, shattering their kneecaps to slow them down and then hit them in the head. He enjoyed watching them crawl towards their targets once their knees had been blown out, it made finishing them off all the more satisfying and he reveled in every kill he made. A light chuckle escaped his lips as he watched Shizu take part in destroying them as well, and for a moment his gaze became transfixed upon her.<br/><br/>â€œAzrai?â€ A voice had interrupted his moment. He recognized it was Zachariah. â€œYou had better not be pulling any lone wolf stunts? What have I told you, you need to control yourself; I cannot have you slaughtering everything that moves. I was told just hit a civilian. Save as much ammunition as--â€<br/><br/>â€œHe is coming after her,â€ Azrai growled, cutting his leader off. More shots were heard soon after and the man cut off communications. It was then and there Zachariah knew he was on the verge of losing his two most valuable assets. The thought frustrated him greatly but as always he was remaining as calm as he could. He had been prepared for this to happen but had not revealed this much for a reason. What he was about to do might disgrace the organization but he was more than willing to do whatever it took to ensure that Raziel did not take Shizu or Azrai from him. From his pocket he pulled out a small vile filled with a clear red-orange liquid that looked like it might have been some kind of alcoholic drink. Too soonâ€¦ it was still too soon. Consuming this liquid was a last resort but he was starting to fold under the pressure of this battle that the temptation was calling out to him.<br/><br/>When he heard footsteps coming his way, he slipped the vial back into his pocket and confronted whoever was sneaking around. Discovering it was just one of his men, he relaxed. â€œWhatâ€™s going on?â€<br/><br/>â€œItâ€™s not looking good.â€ The messenger muttered, â€œWeâ€™ve lost some men and I really donâ€™t know how much longer we can hold out. Theyâ€™re stalling, acting as distractionsâ€¦â€<br/><br/>â€œI know. Raziel has decided to make his move early.â€<br/><br/>â€œWhat should we do?â€<br/><br/>â€œWorry about keeping Shizu and Azrai safe. Everyone is to keep vigilant and push back the enemy; we have lost too much ground already. Do I make myself clear?â€<br/><br/>â€œBut sirâ€¦â€<br/><br/>â€œDo not make me repeat myself. These new waves of bio-weapons are a lot more stable than the ones before.â€ He grabbed the man by the collar, â€œWhat part of â€˜be resilientâ€™ do you fail to understand?â€<br/><br/>â€œYes sir.â€ With that the man ran off to rejoin the others.<br/><br/>Maverick knew something was up and hearing that Zachariah was not only injured but worried was not sitting well with him. Already his nerves were at their limit. This news made him want to curl up under some of that rubble and hide until the fight was over. Shaking the thoughts away he took in a deep breath and barked out a few orders. Now that Shizu was transforming and Azrai was going Terminator mode it was up to him to pull through. It was finally clear why Zachariah had placed him in charge now; he had known he could come up with a plan to hold off the enemy. It seemed like he and Ivan were the only level-headed ones left aside from their leader. With Ivan all banged up from the explosion and Maverick not really fairing any better after that weapon punched him pretty hard in the stomach things were getting messy really fast. He really felt like hitting something and these bio-weapons, durable as they were, specifically the one he had grabbed, made for perfect punching bags. The fact the guy insisted on insulting him made this feel like one of those offensive clowns you dunk at the carnival, it was pretty refreshing.<br/><br/>â€œAlright, everyone need to keep an eye on Shizu yet keep your distance unless you want to end up dismembered. I donâ€™t want to sound repetitive but theyâ€™re getting feisty and we need to hold our ground,â€ he spoke clear into his earpiece. As soon as he did, a weapon charged him, wrapped his arms around him, and then slammed him into the nearby building. He grunted, feeling some serious damage being done to his ribs. The bio-weaponâ€™s hands moved to grasp his neck, keeping him pinned against the wall, he did all he could to keep the thing from choking him but the thing was gripping him so hard he could feel his circulation being. Lightheadedness was rapidly taking over. Just when he was starting to see double of the bio-weapon a shot was fired; the snipers had saved his ass though the shot was cutting it pretty close to taking his face off as well. He pushed the injured bio-weapon away from him and brought out his knife. â€œFine, letâ€™s dance,â€ he snarled, at which the weapon chuckled and cracked his knuckles, proceeding to lunge at him.<br/><br/>Zachariah and Maverick were not the only ones drained by this situation. Azrai, now almost completely in that mindset of his, was also feeling it. They were coming after her, he knew it, he could somehow feel it in his bones, and it would not be long before they came for him as well. He was prepared for them to come. When he heard something behind him he knew that they indeed had made their move earlier than Zachariah had anticipated. They had already snuffed out the snipers and were now after him. If they thought they were going to have an easy time getting him they had another thing coming. It was not often he used knives but his military training has made him fairly skilled in melee combat and he knew how to defend himself pretty damn well.<br/><br/>When the first weapon came at him he was ready. Even though his injuries were hindering his movements, some of them beginning to bleed again, he was going to fight to the death. He knew this weapon was not going to go down easily, but as Zachariah said and from what he has seen if they bleed they die, he knew they were not invincible. With that thought in mind he concentrated hard. A punch here, a kick there, he had even gotten in some nasty stab wounds with his knife on the weapon. Everything was going pretty smoothly until the weapon tackled him off the building that is, then things began to get rough. The impact from the fall had left him a dazed, fighting the threat of unconsciousness. For the most part he was intact from what he could tell aside from everything feeling like it was spinning. He groaned when he felt something hard hit him in the ribs, the weapon dragging him to his feet then slamming him against the wall.<br/><br/>Something in Azrai snapped no sooner had he been slammed against the buildingâ€™s wall, pain hitting him like a ton of bricks. Pun intended even. It was what everyone had feared since before the battle began, that dark side of him was coming out now and it could not be stopped. He grabbed the weapon by the neck and squeezed as hard as he could. Somehow through being wounded and still somewhat dazed his strength had returned to him. He pushed the weapon back against the opposite wall in the alley, ramming him with his shoulder. His knife had fallen from his person during the fall. While the weapon was busy recovering he moved to grab it, plunging it inside of the manâ€™s abdomen when he came to grab him again. A horrifying scream came from the weapon as the knifeâ€™s blade cut through vital organs, the feeling of a hand inside of him was not pleasant at all. Azrai pushed the weapon against the wall again, twisting the blade around to ensure he was doing as much damage as possible to it. The weapon still had a lot of fight left in him though and fought back.<br/><br/>Azrai was not in the condition to fight but he didnâ€™t care, he wanted this thing dead and he was not going to stop until it was. The bio-weapon had a knife of his own, upon noticing he snarled. But the weapon was not going to last long with a hole like that, losing blood as quickly as it was, he knew, after all they were still technically human. It was only a matter of time before the weapon has lost too much blood; he was going to finish that fight before that happened.<br/><br/>Like a madman he charged for the bio-weapon, barely managing to dodge the knife, which had gotten his arm pretty good, and he thrust his knife into one of the eyes. With a malicious grin, he pulled the knife out and the eye came with it. The weapon cried out in pain again and ran into the wall, covering his wound with his hands. He was amazed at Azrai for having pulled that off and to be honest so was he, these weapons, even in the state of mind he was in right now, were pretty terrifying. Had he been more aware of himself at this moment he probably would not have done something to reckless. He didnâ€™t stop there either. Again he came for the man, plunging the knife in his chest several more times. Some weapon this was. When the weapon had stopped crying out in pain he stood over it, covered in blood, grip so tight on the knifeâ€™s hilt that his knuckles were white. His older and new wounds caused him a lot of pain but killing that weapon had made it worth it.<br/><br/>Instead of cringing from the pain he welcomed it.<br/><br/>He let out a satisfied sigh and chuckled, a grin stretching across his face. The smell of blood, the adrenaline running through his veins, the burning pain engulfing his entire body, it made him feel so alive. He was done playing sniper, it was time to get into the action. The first thing he needed to do was find Shizu and make sure she was alright, he knew that her Oni form was awakening more and more, she was probably in full transformation by now. Whatever bio-weapons decided to stand in his were going to inevitably be slaughteredâ€¦ If Shizu fell into the hands of the enemy everyone was going to be in a world of hurt.