Illusions of the Mind
Chapter 5
"If you love something, set it free. If it doesn't come back, hunt
it down and kill it,"
-Anonymous
Mirage exploded. In his father's sick, twisted mind, he actually
thought that he was doing his brother good by turning him into a
cyber-assassin.
"Improved!? Have you lost your damn mind?! Your killing him! How
could you do that to your own son?!" he screamed.
"It's a privilage to be improved, my son. I'm doing this to your
brother because i love him," the leader replied calmly.
Mirage frowned. "So i guess that means you don't love me?"
The leader sat up straight. "That's where your wrong, son." he
said, and snapped his fingers. Pyro, Havoc, and the three cybers moved
toward Mirage. "I do,"
Mirage backed up a few feet as the ninjas came at him and dropped
into a defensive stance. The temerature around him began to rise, until the
rippling effect of the heat was all around him. What started out as smoke
coming from his fists sparked into a tiny flame, and then his entire fist
was burning. A ray of fire suddunly shot from Mirage's fists toward the
ground, and a tidal wave of flames was created and rushed toward its rivals.
Pyro reacted immediately, stepping in front of his companions and
creating a wall of flames between them and Mirage's wave of fire. Pyro's
palms continued to burn as he kept the shield alive. Mirage's attack merged
with his fellow Fire Ninja's wall, and became just more fire inside of it.
"There are five of you and one of him!" the leader suddunly shrieked
as he stood. "Hurry up and get him to the lab!" He then turned to leave.
Mirage followed his father with his eyes until he was gone from the
room, then turned back to his rivals. If he could get rid of Pyro, he might
stand a chance of gettin out of there alive. His control of fire was no good
against a ninja with the same ability, and to add to the pressure, Pyro was
a good eight to ten years older than Mirage, and had been studying the
contol of flames that much longer.
Pyro snuffed out his burning shield, keeping only his right hand
lit. Then the group moved toward Mirage.
Mirage opened his palm that was closest to his foes, his right, and
a suddun feeling of pulling overtook the group. Without moving, Sektor began
to slide across the floor toward Mirage, somehow unable to fire a projectile
of any kind. Havoc reached out to pull the cyber back, but his sliding speed
increased greatly, and he was within Mirage's reach in a second.
When the ninja was close enough to him, Mirage spun into a
roundhouse, hitting the assassin in the jaw with enough force to send him
back, and ramming into Havoc. Both ninjas were sent sliding backwards, and
hit the nearest wall.
The un-known cyber rushed at Mirage suddunly, prepared to launch an
attack. Mirage held out a palm again, and the cyber was pulled toward him.
As the assassin got close, Mirage stepped to the side and shifted the pull
to a push, sending the cyborg into the wall right behind him. As soon as he
hit the wall, the ear-shattering sound of the impact was followed by a
squishing sound as the ninja was smashed from the center out. His body
exploded in all directions, sending computer parts and oil flying. What was
left was barely recognizable.
Mirage turned around just in time to see the head of Smoke's harpoon
speeding at him. Insted of latching into his jugular, the spear was shifted
into a turning motion and wrapped around the ninja's thin waist.
Smoke then retacted his harpoon, pulling Mirage quickly toward him.
Pyro grabbed the young ninja by the throat as Smoke's spear was sucked back
into his chest.
"Your fate awaits you," Pyro said, his gold eyes sparkling with an
evil glint.
Mirage shot a glance at Smoke's face, and he could of sworn he saw a
look of pain.
* * * *
Mirage was led to the automation lab, and when they got there, the
guards were still trying to sadate Eclipse. The ninja cursed loudly,
profanities that would send nuns into a frenzy, struggling to break free.
Mirage suddunly thought that they might get out of this. He had
taken down one cyber, and Havoc was knocked out cold from his meeting with a
cyber and the wall. The cyberninja projectile was unfunctioning at the
moment, which lowered the courts down to two. The two ninjas holding
Mirage's brother could put up a fight, but the enginneer was known as a
ninja who could hardly take care of himself. He was only a automater and
doctor, barely a fighter, the exact oppisite of Sage.
It was a long shot, but Mirage thought he might be able to pull it
off. All he needed was to distract Pyro and Smoke for a second............
The blast that followed was unlike anything Mirage had ever heard.
The crashing and collasping of the wall behind the Lin Kuei enginneer was
combined with the sound of screaming of a falcon and the screaching of a
high speed projectile.
An oddly shaped red flame came through the wall, the cause of the
building caving in. It didn't stop moving there, and tore through the
enginneer, seperating his top half from the bottom and sending large amounts
of gore in all directions. It then continued on its path, taking off the
head of one of Eclipse's captures, allowing the ninja to backhand the one
that was left.
Pyro let go of Mirage and stepped into defensive stance, and his
hands burst into flames, his body ready to counteract the seeminly alive
fireball. Before he could, the fireball stopped in midflight, and the ninjas
got a good look at the projectile. A shriek rang through Pyro's ears, and
the red eyes of the fireball glared into him. It WAS a bird. The flaming
bird then swerved in the other direction and flew that way. It all happened
in the blink of an eye.
Pyro's look of shock was replaced with anger, and he prepared to
fire a stream of flames at the bird. Before he could, a masculine war cry
rang through the air, although not as impressive as the falcon's screaming.
A figure appeared in the hole in the wall, completing three full somersaults
in the air before bashing Pyro on the top of the head with both his heels.
Pyro fell back, unconscious, and hit the ground, while the figure landed
gracefully in a squat. Only Smoke and the other guard remained.
Mirage laughed. The situation was almost humerous. "Omega," he said.
"Quite an enterance,"
Omega grinned.
Smoke reacted at this time, ready to attack, but hit off guard by
the force of a two hundred pound muscular body landing on his shoulders.
Eclipse smiled devilishly, pounding the cyber in the head with two fists.
Smoke fell to the ground, temporarily out of function. Eclipse left the
guard staggering after the backhand he recieved.
From outside the room, the screaming of the bird was heard again,
only now it was perched upon the shoulder of a silver and black clad ninja.
"What a mess," eNIX grumbled as he stepped over rubble into the
room. He walked closer to the reeling guard, who stared at him from behind
his hand, which was holding his bleeding nose.
The ninja's hand dropped, and he attacked eNIX with a side punch.
The silver ninja reached up and grabbed his fist, then his other hand shot
up and grabbed his throat. The bird screached and flew upwards, its clamness
disturbed. eNIX twisted his wrist and snapped the ninja's neck. He slumped
dead to the floor.
"We'd better get outta here," Omega said, turning his attention from
eNIX to Mirage and Eclipse.
"'We?'" Mirage mused, ing an eyebrow.
Omega nodded. "You guys are leaving, and I'm coming with you," he
said, his voice serious.
Mirage smiled. "I'd be glad to have you along," he replied.
eNIX stepped forward, stepping over the body of his dead foe. "I'll
distract your father's assassins while you guys get out of here," he said.
"Your life is in danger, too," Mirage said, glancing at eNIX.
eNIX looked around at the room. "Whose going to say anything?" he
said sarcastically.
"Good point," Eclipse added.
"Don't worry," eNIX continued. "I'll make sure you get out of here
alive. I'll distract them as long as I can,"
The ninjas then turned to leave, eNIX behind them. As they
dissappeared into the woods, Mirage turned back to eNIX.
"I owe you," he said, smiling.
eNIX grinned. "I know,"
* * * *
Twenty minutes later, Mirage, Eclipse, and Omega were still
wandering through the forest, getting as far from the clan as possible, with
no sign of guards.
As he continued to truge through the woods, Mirage picked up a faint
yet familiar sound. His brain registered this as a danger, and he naturally
spun around.
The sharp point of an arrow head tore through the flesh of his upper
left arm and imbedded itself there. Mirage grabbed his now bleeding arm,
cussing under his breath, the stinging pain shooting through his body. He
looked around to find his attacker.
Eclipse and Omega turned around, their attention drawn by Mirage's
cursing.
Omega turned around just in time, to see another arrow heading right
for his throat.....
End of Chapter 5
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