Elites Chapter II: Blackguard

Chapter IX: The Decision

11:30pm

Bluestone looked at the clock as Stone arrived and Ruby returned with Guardian. The three walked towards the building and were greeted by Jay as he was headed out. "I have something to take care of right now. I'll be back soon." He then jumped in his car, and sped off. "Umm. Is he always like this?" Wade asked. Little did he know that Bluestone had finally figured it out. Somebody was planning to defect from the team. And he had to stop it before it was too late.

In the night, Amber stood atop a tall building, waiting for her new partner to arrive. When she looked at the phone, she saw a red dot at a building in the outskirts of the city. It was a restaurant, and one Amber had visited repeatedly with her family. She quickly went in pursuit on foot. Inside the restaurant, a bunch of men were talking. They were sitting around a table, drinking and talking. But, in the center of the table, a man was tied to the ceiling. "The old man tried to make our deal go sour. So before he could give me the boot, I put one right between his eyes, and some more in his chest. The entire fortune became mine. The money, the business, everything. Now, Reg sure had guts, all over the sofa! And he definitely had brains, on the ceiling and the walls!" There was an uproar of laughter came from the man's entourage. They all cheered on the man murdering his own boss and taking over his business. Suddenly, the Night Shadow appeared in front of them. The man asked "Who the hell are you?" Onyx responded "I am your entertainment for the evening." On his wrists, a knife slid out and into his hands. "May I have a volunteer from the audience for this demonstration?" All the men suddenly pulled guns on the shadow. But before they could pull the trigger, the two closest men to Onyx were lying on the ground in bloody masses. Onyx then dodged each bullet fired and decided to take out more of these thugs using only his fists. Not a moment too soon, a smoke bomb went off and a flash of orange took out even more. As they fired on Amber, she opened a shield and kept pushing forward hitting each one with everything she had. Onyx however, was cutting each one down and moving towards the next. After not even a full minute, each crook was lying on the floor in pools of blood. Amber then walked towards the man tied above the table. She threw a single fireball at the rope, setting him down on the table. "Leave now." She said. Amber then walked towards the last one. As she ran a facial scan on him, Amber saw that he was a crime boss and a drug dealer. She walked up to him, and started kicking him repeatedly. "This is for the lives you've ended!" Amber than punched him in the face "And the more that you've ruined with your drugs!" Onyx then gave Amber a silver and blue knife and said "Finish him." Amber replied "There's already enough evidence here to put him behind bars permanently. At this point, it would just be gratuitous." "Just finish him!" Onyx yelled. Amber gave him a final kick and said "He's already finished." As the two walked away, the crime boss coughed up blood as he said "You've got quite the hit with your build and size. Weren't you the Elites' little brat?" Amber kicked him in the face and replied "Not anymore."

Atop a building towards the center of the city, Amber and Onyx began speaking more in detail. "So why me of all people in the Elites? Why not somebody like Stone, or Ruby? They're both more skilled than I am." Onyx responded "Simple. You have a more rebellious spirit than your restrictive friends. Not to mention the firepower you pack." Amber replied "Half the time, my offensive isn't even guaranteed to work. The only things I can always do are create defenses. What do you even want from me." Onyx hesitated for a moment, and then replied "When I was young, I was found by this secret society. They trained me to be a lethal assassin. And now, I am ready to train a prodigy. A successor. What they did for me, I would like to do for you." A third voice responded "You've done just enough." When they turned around, they saw Bluestone wearing his stealth suit. "How did you find us?" Amber asked. Bluestone replied in a steady tone. "It wasn't too hard. After you snuck out the first time, Ruby took the initiative and placed a tracer on your mask. Not to mention the bloody trail you left a few blocks away." He then looked at Onyx. "And you must be the prodigal son of The Rogues." Onyx replied "Bluestone. It's an honor to meet you in person." Bluestone quickly cut him off and said "What do you want? And what's with this new uniform Sapphire? I miss the old one. The white, silver, and blue." Onyx replied "I have no quarrel with your team Bluestone. I simply want this girl to be my successor. Here's a tip of advice. Let us go. Do not follow us." Onyx then turned to Amber and said "This is where you choose sides, for good." He then leaped from building to building, until he was nowhere to be seen.

Bluestone pulled out a grappling hook and began talking towards the edge of the roof, but Amber stepped in his way. Bluestone said in a stern voice "Amber, you don't understand. Sapphire's part of a bigger deal. He's using you, so he can get to us." Amber replied "Right. It's always about the wonderful Elites! Well for the record, he sees something in me that you don't want to see!" Bluestone then said "That's what I'm afraid of. He's changed you. How can you be so sure that he'll keep you around once you've served your purpose? I don't have time for this. Step aside or..." Before Bluestone could walk away and follow Onyx, Amber pulled a gold knife from a holster in front of him and said. "Or what?" Bluestone then said "Sapphire was right about one thing. The decision you make now will define you for the rest of your life." Bluestone then moved her off to the side, fired the hook, and was off the ground when Amber threw the knife and cut the cable. As Bluestone got back up, Amber was already punching him repeatedly. But she was holding back. But some of the hits were painful. Bluestone eventually regained his balance and pushed her back. She then tossed a smoke grenade and tried to get more hits. Suddenly, she was blindsided from all directions. Bluestone grabbed her arm and kicked her out of the smoke. He then continued to get some hard hits. "You're holding back." Amber said. "Big mistake." Amber then rushed at Bluestone, and they both fell from the building onto another roof. Bluestone managed to keep his balance and landed safely on his feet, while Amber was on the receiving end of her own blow. Bluestone took that opportunity and pulled out a tactical knife. Before Amber got back up, he pinned her cloak to the cement. After a few more hits, Amber decided to remove the cloak and stick to her regular gear. Amber quickly threw more punches, but Bluestone's quick reflexes and timing kept her from laying a hand on him. But after a few moments, Amber finally kicked Bluestone right in the face and removed his mask. "Look at you." She said. "You've gotten soft... I suppose we should keep things even." Amber removed her mask to reveal her face, and her hair flowed in the wind. "Nat. It doesn't have to end like this. It's not too late to turn back. I will give you one last chance to come back." Nat had an indifferent look on her face. She replied "Let me guess. You're doing this to ease your conscience. You think that Onyx's guidance has turned me sour. Or is this just the real me?" She tossed Jay his mask back, and kicked her own to him as well. As the mask reached Bluestone's feet, Amber then launched an energy sphere at it, and Bluestone was caught in the blast. The two continued to fight, punching and slashing repeatedly, until the glass roof caved in, sending both of them plummeting down. The two kept fighting, but as they got closer to the ground. Bluestone grabbed Amber, and created a shield around his back. He then fell onto a statue and then the floor. Bluestone had just saved Amber's life, but that wasn't gonna stop her from finishing the job. And Bluestone could hardly move. Amber kept punching him repeatedly. She finally generated an orange energy sphere around her hands, to finish Bluestone off. "If this is the only way to end this, then do it! I'd rather die than live in a world where you turned on us. Turned on all of us. If this is who you are, then finish me!" Bluestone was a mess. His entire mask was torn at the mouth and eyes. And he was coughing blood. Amber took a deep breath, and finished the job in a flash of light. As she looked up, she saw Onyx climbing a building.

Amber followed Onyx to a large room. But when she got to the room behind him, he was gone. All that was left, was a note. You made the right choice. I'll be back later.