David struggled with Azrai as he was picked up from his seated position. Their scuffle was brief as he felt the cold steel of a barrel touch his temple. In that instant, David stiffened, halting all forms of resistance. He knew that if struggled too hard then a slip of a finger could mean half his head blown off. He was sure that Azrai would end his life and he wasn’t sure if he could willingly die just like this. No! He couldn’t think like that, he had fucked up once and if this was a part of Levi exacting his vendetta then so be it. He had promised Levi that he would never mess up again and he certainly wouldn’t, now that they were so close. They had the woman and Azrai right where they needed him, so this could still work out. Or at least that was what he was trying to to convince himself. Sure, this wasn’t ideal but beggars couldn’t be choosy. Especially not in this situation.<br/><br/>When Levi began to speak, he could hear the exhaustion and the fear of losing him. A frown touched his face and he watched to fight out of Azrai’s grasp but that would only cause more complications. “Don’t worry about me,” he muttered out in a low tone, not wanting to sound weak. His life wasn’t worth failing this mission. The more he thought about it, he knew that Levi would hand over the woman. That wasn’t how this was supposed to go! David nearly wanted to cry out in anguish, after seeing the look on Levi’s face.<br/><br/>In all these years, David had been happy to lay his life on the line just so Levi could accomplish his goals. There had been no questions as to why, it was simply how things worked between them. Now, this...this revenge had taken its toll on the both of them. Here David was ready to die for the man before him and he was having second thoughts?! The one man that who had never seemed doubtful in his plans and actions, he was now showing concern for a dog like him.<br/><br/>He supposed that he should be grateful. He supposed that he should feel elated that Levi wanted to keep him alive. Instead, he felt some sort of betrayal. Like all his work had been for nothing. What would the organization think of them now? Was it really just so easy to give up on this? He jerked his head as the gun was pressed harder on his temple. He looked at Levi searching for something, anything to tell him that he wasn’t giving up on this. “Damnit Levi, just do it already,” he snarled out. He couldn’t handle seeing the man that he idolized for years fall apart before him. “Just let me do my part and finish this.” He could hear his voice crack and he fell silent.<br/><br/>Damnit! He had no right to become so emotional in this time. That would only make Levi feel more inclined to save him. In truth, he was terrified at the prospects of dying here. He and Levi had worked so hard and for so long to get to this point. A point where they could have a better life. A point where they no longer needed to find a job to make it through the day. Despite all the conflict that comes with Levi, he was David’s one true friend. He was the man who had helped him up when he was low and reckless. He had molded him into something that could be trusted and loyal. Without Levi, David was nothing, he merely existed. David didn’t want to exist, he wanted to be something more, to show Levi that his decision all those years ago was worth it. Biting on the inside of his cheek, he resisted the urge to scream as Levi spoke of handing the woman over.<br/><br/>It seemed that Azrai was not as willing to trust Levi as David was. He could see the defeat etched in his partner’s face. He knew that he shouldn’t be mad, he should be thankful that Levi was willing to save him but the feeling didn’t easily disappear. He shifted slightly, feeling the imminent doom of the trigger being pulled. One wrong word had it was lights out for eternity. He carefully watched as Levi began to cut away the ropes that bound the woman. There was a heavy breath let out from David, knowing that they had lost this battle. Then again, Levi always had a plan, so maybe they weren’t completely lost. All he had to do was simply trust Levi’s judgement.<br/><br/>When Shizu was pushed forward, he watched her cautiously, not sure if she could take them down with her legs now free. He felt the pressure of being restrained lessen and he was shoved forward towards Levi. He stumbled slightly, rubbing his neck as it ached from being held so tightly. He eyed the woman as they walked by one another. Her eyes lifted up to meet his and he felt that familiar feeling when they had first made contact. There was a slight grin on her lips, the tip of her fangs showing. A low growl left her but she made no move to attack him. He was silently praying that she chose not to attack him now. Once they finished crossing paths, he felt his heart beat at an erratic pace.<br/><br/>How could such a woman cause that much fear? He felt as if he just went through a lifetime of hell just by looking at her. That was probably why her kind was dangerous. She looked so innocent and fragile but underneath she was a monster, waiting ever so patiently for her time to strike. Strike she did as he felt nauseous once back beside Levi. He gave Levi a look that spoke volumes of gratitude and mild anger. He knew that Levi wouldn’t care that he was angry, surely the man had something else. Anything to make this all worth it. Letting out ragged breaths of air, he tried to calm himself down after that close call from death.<br/><br/>What was going to happen now?<br/><br/>-------------<br/><br/>She was truly glad to see Ivan and Azrai, she had been worried about them since the video stream. As much as she wanted to run over to them, with her legs bound it was difficult to move. She stiffened as she looked between the men, wondering what would happen next. In all honesty, she hope that they would plant a nice hole in David and Levi's head that way they could get out of here. Instead it seemed that Ivan wanted to handle this in a civil manner which seemed very like the Russian. She Ivan to be the one with the calm mind during these types of ordeals, still she wished he had some sense of urgency.<br/><br/>She watched with wary eyes as Levi shifted and moved slightly, unsure what else he had in store for them. She felt the tension in her shoulders build, ready to attack if it was necessary. She looked between Azrai and Levi as they spoke, she knew that she would have to wait before she tried anything. Everyone was on thin ice, one move and the whole thing would collapse. She could sense that Azrai was on the edge, extremely on the edge as well as Ivan. It was strange to feel their emotions so easily this time around, perhaps things hadn’t been going smoothly while she was away between them. She could understand why tensions were high but she knew that Azrai could slip out of their grasp at any moment. Would she be able to reach him or was she too far gone herself?<br/><br/>She liked to think that she had herself under control but she knew that would be a lie. She had easily taken a life of another person without hesitation. It went without question that it delighted her to take said life. While back in her village, she had never killed anyone, she had never experienced the addictive qualities of blood lust. Ever since leaving there, she had killed far too many people and that was not something that she was proud of but it was in order for her to survive. Was killing Tyler in order to survive as well? He had been practically harmless, she could have probably threatened him and he would have come undone. Instead, she killed him, simple as that.<br/><br/>That was what terrified her. It had been so simple, she barely batted an eye when she had done it. No, she had smiled like a madwoman. She had the taste of blood linger on her tongue, wafting in her nostrils, the residual stench of old blood was enough to distract her from all that was happening. She needed to reign in her composure but it was becoming increasingly difficult each minute that ticked on by. She had been so lost in finding the sane portion of her mind that the sudden tightness in her scalp caused her to cry out in surprise and mild pain. With fangs bared in a defensive fashion, she breathed heavily as the blade was pressed into her neck. She struggled slightly trying to move away but the blade nicked her skin, causing as slight hiss to leave her.<br/><br/>Rather than being reckless with her restraints, she settled down, yellow eyes glared up at the man holding her in such an uncomfortable position before they went searching for Azrai. There before her, their eyes met and she felt calmed, if not for a brief moment, she knew that he would save her from this, as he always had. However, instead of returning the knowing look, she tried to make out some sort of warning. Her chest rose up and down harshly, the move she moved around the more excited her Oni nature became. Instinct coursed through her veins, telling her to fight and kill. Clenching her teeth together, she prayed she had enough time left before she lost it.<br/><br/>Calm. That was all she had to do was to remain calm. Breathing slowly through her nose, she tried her best to simply focus on her breathing. She tried her best to not pay too much attention to those around her. But it seemed that it wasn't working. She listened to Levi and Azrai argue about the past and Cassandra. She honestly felt pity for Levi. Was this all just to get even with Azrai? She and Azrai were not close like he had been to Cassandra, that she was sure of. Beside this was the first time they had seen each other in over half a year.<br/><br/>Then again, she presumed she had been the only other woman that Azrai had ever made a notion for caring about. Truly, she felt pity for the man holding her hostage but that don't deter from the fact that she wanted to shred him to pieces. She wanted to see his face in fear and terror as she exacted her wrath upon him. Closing her eyes, she could almost imagine it and what it would feel like. Before she went too far off in her own demented fantasies, the scuffle between Azrai and David caught her attention.<br/><br/>She could feel her heart rate increase with the excitement in the air. She struggled once more though Levi was not letting her go. With a huff of frustration she stared at David. She wasn't sure if he was panicked or coming to terms that his life may end soon. Her eyes move back to meet Azrai's gaze, a look of concern came to her face. She had seen that look before and she knew what it could lead to soon. She knew that she really needed to keep herself in line, Azrai's aggression was starting to surface and she knew that if she lost control...well there was no telling what may happen.<br/><br/>So they waited as this new event changed the situation drastically. It was either they died or they didn't. It sounded simple but it really wasn't. Biting her lower lip, she wondered if Levi would hand her over. If he did, could she trust herself not to attack him or anyone else? She simply had to believe that all would go well or else things would definitely reach an unwanted climax.<br/><br/>When Levi spoke again, she could tell that he was on the verge of giving up. David must have meant a lot to him if that was the case. It seemed as if his partner caught on as well as was protesting Levi's decision. It was almost romantic in a sense. The bond between the two was strong enough to end this little vendetta, for now at least. When he spoke to Ivan, she wasn't sure what was going to happen. Was Levi trying to understand why he was doing all of this? Shizu really didn't understand his motive then again she had never had someone he lived ripped away from her life. She glanced back over at Azrai, a frown settling on her lips. She has been close once….no...twice but she had been fortunate not to lose them. She thought back to those times, a fear that haunted her in her dreams came to life. She never wanted to be in that kind of situation again. She would allow Levi or anyone else try either.<br/><br/>She would kill them before they could become a threat....<br/><br/>She let out a slight snarl as the blade pressed harder into her neck. She looked at Azrai ten briefly up towards Levi. This was the deciding moment, wasn't it? She wasn't sure if Levo would let this opportunity go especially since David was more than willingly to die for this mission, this moment. It felt like an eternity as time went by before Levi spoke in a subdued tone to Azrai. She knew that Azrai was a man of his word, but then again.....Levi was the enemy and they only needed to bring him back to Zachariah not David.<br/><br/>She looked at Azrai who spoke with such anger that it cause her to wonder if they weren't too late. The look in his eye and the scowl on his face told her that he was almost gone. She tried to show that she was fine, looking at him with earnest eyes but she knew that she couldn't pretend for much longer. She could feel her resolve weaken by the second. She needed to get away from the body and the excitement. She needed to hide away by herself and meditate, let her carnal feelings pass. When it felt like Levo wasn't going to answer Azrai, she stiffened as he let go of her hair.<br/><br/>Watching him with cautious eyes, she could feel the blood in her legs circulate properly once more. There was no longer this ache in her body and she felt free again, well almost. He finished cutting off the ropes that bound her legs but her arms were still tied. A smirk came to his face, so he was afraid of her after all or he was just being smart. She would have probably done the same thing. She looked slightly surprised then looked at Azrai, who told Levi to move first. She was moved to a standing position, her legs feeling like jelly as she hadn't moved them in a while. She struggled to gain her bearings before she was pushed forward. She stumbled slightly before she began to move towards Azrai and Ivan.<br/><br/>She crossed paths with a shaken David and a grin came to her face. She really wasn't sure why she felt the need to intimidate him further but she was nearly free. He should be more cautious around her. She watched as he involuntarily shivered and moved back towards Levi. The grin left her as she looked back at Azrai. She wasn't sure if she wanted to cry from relief or from shame. He had seen something done to her that had haunted her from her past. He had seen something that she never wanted him to and yet he still was here to save her.<br/><br/>Nearing Azrai, she opened her mouth to say something until her foot landed in something warm. Glancing down, her bare foot was covered in blood, the beating that Levi had done to Tyler's corpse had caused blood to pool in different areas on the floor. Inhaling deeply, the sweet aroma intoxicated her and she felt her body begin to tremble. Her pupils began to dilate erratically and she was sure that she was about to lose it enforce a hand reach out and pulled her away from the blood. Looking up she saw the concerned face of Ivan, upon recognition she gasped for air frantically. He shook his head slightly, as if telling her it wasn't the time to lose herself. She nodded her head understanding what she was supposed to do now.<br/><br/>It was only a few more moments before they were in the clear. She just had to wait. She just had to be calm.<br/><br/>Calm.<br/><br/>------------------<br/><br/>It always went back to Cassandra with the two although it wasn’t like Ivan had any room to speak. The former beau of Azrai had meant more than everything to the both of them. Ivan could understand the need to find revenge, he had been there before. It wasn’t exactly a place that he ever wanted to find himself again and he sure that he had been fairly close before. Back in Israel, he had almost gone back on the field at the prospects of losing Azrai. He had chosen the correct path to monitor both his friend and Shizu, instead of risking the chance of himself of dying as well. So in a way, he could sympathize with Levi, even if he wouldn’t have gone this far. Losing someone precious was like having a someone rip out your soul. It left a feeling of emptiness and it could never be repaired. Someone could try to fill the void but it would never be the same.<br/><br/>The Russian was on standby as Azrai spoke with Levi, this was not how the plan was supposed to do but it seemed that Levi had no interest in him, so he figured he would look after Shizu. His eyes looked at the woman, she seemed to be in state of limbo, if that was a correct way to describe it. She looked like she was floating in between staying that woman that they all knew and care for, but there was something hiding beneath the surface. Something that Ivan was sure that no one wanted to deal with. How would they even be able to deal with it, anyways? He glanced over at Azrai, who also looked like he was about to go into that state of mind of his. Shit, this was bad. Did they not know what they were dealing with?<br/><br/>He sucked in a deep breath as Levi pressed the blade of his knife into Shizu’s neck. It would only take a blink of an eye to place a bullet in Levi’s skull, should he decide to take action and slit her throat. Even if Shizu wasn’t able to heal, surely he wouldn’t cut too deep. How could they fix that inability of hers? There had to be something suppressing her. He gazed over her mutilated body, trying to ignore the fact that she was in worse condition that he had thought from watching the video. Hell, he was doubtful that she would recover in a day. What did Levi have up their sleeve that they didn’t know about? It bothered him. Were there reinforcements coming in?<br/><br/>He suddenly tensed as Azrai grabbed David as a hostage. He was almost positive that he had lost Azrai but he had faith in his friend. He had put all his faith and trust in him, especially since he was on thin ice with Zachariah. Azrai had promised that he had everything under control and Ivan wanted to believe in him. Biting on the inside of his cheek, he let out a steady breath. Should things go straight to Hell, he would incapacitate Levi and David would be killed. That was how the plan would go for now. However, things were slowly reaching a breaking point. Ivan was ever patient when dealing with people like this but he could tell Azrai was becoming impatient and Shizu looked like she could kill them all without hesitation.<br/><br/>It was rather terrifying, actually. There were these moments where he could practically feel the blood lust roll of the petite woman before it would disappear. He could feel it in the air, it caused his bones to quiver and his heart race. It felt like there was a dark cloud hanging in the rain, just waiting to let droplets of chaos fall upon their shoulders. Ivan was sure that Shizu was fighting harder than anyone right now. He had done his research while they had been apart. That blood lust was far worse than Azrai’s aggression. To think that she suffered through it all these years was amazing but still...how much could she handle? With the prospects of being attacked and fending for herself, her true nature must be excited. It must be clawing beneath the surface. He worried that once they had her, she really wouldn’t be there.<br/><br/>He gave a look to Azrai, signalling that he should move things along faster. They were running out of time.<br/><br/>As things began to fall into their hands, Ivan felt somewhat relieved. It seemed as if Levi’s resolve was wavering now that David’s life was on the line. A frown touched his lips as Levi finally decided to speak to him once more. He shook his head, as if that was enough to satisfy the irate man. Azrai spoke as well, telling Levi that he knew. Of course, he knew. Ivan always knew what was happening, regardless if Azrai chose to tell him. He could clearly see what was happening, he liked to think that he was rather perspective to those around him. It was a quality that he picked up from Zachariah, being able to judge the situation without having to be told. It was sad really, to see someone fall apart like this.<br/><br/>He had met Levi a few times in the past and he had to say that he rather liked the man then. He was full of fire and life then even if he was a bit...strange. He could see how much Cassandra meant to him and he was sure that they would get along. Now, he should have known that something like this would happen. Levi had never thought highly of Azrai to begin with and who could blame him? Azrai was rough around the edges but Cassandra had been good for him. In turn, Azrai had always done right by her, even if their relationship was a bit shaky., considering the lifestyle Azrai chose. In the end, Ivan still believed that he had done right by Cassandra, despite her passing. It was choice they had both made and even if it had destroyed Azrai, he did all that he could for her. Perhaps Levi was angry at the fact that AZrai had found another person to care for.<br/><br/>It wasn’t like Azrai had abandoned his feelings for Cassandra, it held him back when it came to opening up to the woman being held hostage. They had bonded somehow, Ivan was still unsure how it happened but it did. Ivan would be damned if he watched Azrai fall apart again because he lost another person he cared for. He didn’t want to see Azrai like that again and he would do anything in his power to make sure it didn’t happen. Ivan had already made the mistake of separating them once and he knew that he couldn’t do again. Just look at the situation it got them in. Did he blame himself for this? Of course, if Shizu had been in his and Azrai’s protection then this would have never happened. But...it had been the best decision at the time. Or that was what he kept telling himself.<br/><br/>Letting out a steady breath as Levi began to cut away the restraints on Shizu’s legs, he was relieved to know that there was still some human in the man. To think that David was so precious to him was a Godsend. They had truly needed some kind of leverage between them or else they wouldn’t have succeeded. When Shizu was pulled to her feet, he had his gun aimed at the back of David’s head. Should they decide to open fire, he would be sure that Levi regretted the action. It was tense as the hostages crossed the room, back to their respective sides. He watched as Shizu slowly made her way to them, his heart pounding in his chest. Was she all there? Would she attack David now that she had some kind of movement? It was an intense moment for him as they passed one another, he felt as if his heart would give out on him.<br/><br/>Surely, Levi didn’t understand just what exactly he had been dealing with, but they did. They had seen what was beneath her skin in Israel. It...it was simply a relief that they moved passed one another and nothing seemed to come from it. He felt the tension in his shoulder alleviate. She was close enough to be safe with them now and he could see a weary smile coming to her face and as she readied to speak to Azrai, all the color from her face drained. He glanced down as soon as she had and he almost felt like cursing. There was a puddle of blood around her pale foot, her toes flexing into the liquid. He could foresee all the disaster that could happen should she be consumed by it.<br/><br/>There it was again. That uncontrollable need for destruction and blood. It filled the air, sizzling like an electric current. When she breathed in deep, it was almost like he could hear the demonic whispers that shrouded her mind. She was at her breaking point. There was no chance to think as he took hold of her arm, yanking her over to him. He would apologize for being rough her later but now was not the time to be lost in her own madness. When she looked up at him, he wondered if she would attack him and he merely shook his head, trying to deter her from making such a grave mistake. There was recognition in those eyes of hers and he was secretly relieved. She was still with them, for the most part. Now that she was safely in their hands, they could end this.<br/><br/>“I do believe that this would be a good time to finish this, Azrai,” he murmured lowly. He put Shizu between the two of them. Azrai as a shield in the front and he in the back. He was still cautious of Levi. He was a man with many plans and he knew that they couldn’t simply ignore him now that they had Shizu again. He glanced at Shizu, who was trembling, trying to last until they were far away from here. “We don’t have much time,” he whispered harshly. They were dealing with a time bomb, one that was whittling away faster than he wanted to admit.<br/><br/>They still needed to get Levi and bring him back to Zachariah. He trusted that Azrai understood the severity of the situation. They needed to end this.<br/><br/>Now.