Chapter Text
“In a time long forgotten, when humans and mythical beings lived in harmony, a legendary treasure known as ‘The PLANT’ was said to exist. It was believed to possess incredible healing properties capable of mending any ailment and bestowing eternal life upon those who were worthy.
However, this precious treasure cannot be easily taken. It was guarded by two formidable beings known as “Angelus. Twins who were half human and half serpent. Their existence was shrouded in mystery, as their origins were traced back to the ancient times when the realms of humans and mythical creatures first intertwined.
The legend also speaks of the ongoing struggle between the twin guardians, their battles spanning across generations.
As time passes, the tale of "The PLANT" and the duelling guardians continues to be whispered among travelers and storytellers. Over time, people attempt to get their hands on the precious treasure, but inevitably left empty handed. Some perished along the way but there were those fortunate enough to survive to tell the tale.
“But luckily for me, I’ve got my handy dandy bodyguard by my side”. A raven-haired fellow says enthusiastically while waving an arm at the crowd he’s speaking to.
“Oh, really? You say that when your bodyguard is a girl?” The crowd began an uproar of laughter while the man standing on the stage contorts his face into a frown.
Meanwhile on the upper level of the stadium, sat a woman covered entirely in black; a long trench coat and a hat. She doesn’t like the situation they’re in, expecting the negotiation to at least be half successful. She does what she does best, quickly standing up from her seat and leaving the hall stiltedly.
“With all due respect, sir... gender doesn’t define your ability to perform a task assigned to you, and it certainly does NOT define not my bodyguard”. The previous enthusiasm this short man had finally escaped him. He glares at the man, and then the crowd.
With that, the hall became silent for a moment until murmurs and whispers start echoing all throughout. “Your beliefs are no more than blasphemy to society, Mr. Rockefell!” An old man in charge of the museum’s archives retorts with a snort.
...
Meanwhile on the other side, Ziro, the woman in black looks around the hallways and spots the room where the key for finding the PLANT is. Just was she was turning to a hallway she bumps into two people. The two were only startled and thankfully they didn’t suspect her identity so she turns around and swiftly walks away and hides behind a corner to eavesdrop.
“Are you sure they’re here, newbie? For all we know your sources aren’t reliable”. The browned haired man snorts as he inspects one of the relics that were on a display table. The short girl snatches the relic away from him and returns it to its display with a pout on her face.
“I’m sure they’re here! And my NAME is Meryl Stryfe, not newbie”. The girl, or rather Meryl, crosses her arms and glares at his senior with her big dark-blue eyes.
Apparently, these two people are from the JULY Post, and they’re here for a new scoop. Whatever brought them here might not be good for either Ziro or Ezekiel.
They have a slightly bad reputation with these people. The cause were those times where Ezekiel accidentally blew up their vehicle, then running into said vehicle, and the last straw was when he accidentally spilled water all over Meryl when she was out taking notes. That was the beginning of their chase for them.
“Sure… newbie” Roberto singsongs the last word as he grins at his companion. He only got a heavy sigh and a face palm in response. “Come now, we don’t want them to get away again” Meryl then drags her senior with her.
Ziro stopped listening in as she sees them walk further from the stairway. She quickly brought herself up the stairs. The journalists are still out there looking for them so she has to be cautious of her surroundings. As she arrived upstairs, a few guards approach her but she simply knocks them out and tosses them in a nearby cleaning closet.
Finally without any obstacles in her way, she enters the room of that key that she and Mr. Rockefell have been seeking for so long.
“Legends are legends Mr. Rockefell. There is the fact that it doesn’t hold any solid evidence and some of which you may even have fabricated”. Someone in the crowd speaks up, who is also a part of the museum’s council.
“W-well, these uh... legends have existed over time! And- AND, it’s been told by mothers to their…children… in the Amazon!” Poker sheepishly says as he scrambles to find his next words.
The museum’s head stood up, ready to leave the poor researcher. Scrambling to get any ideas from his notes, he instead opted to “wing it”. So he shouts. “All of the evidence I found are true! I never fabricated any of them and I would never lie about such things!”
“Enough is enough Mr. Rockefell, you’ve already proved your point, and that point is nothing… so if you’ll excuse me I have important matters to attend to”. The old man walks further as Poker just grunts in frustration. ‘I hope plan B becomes successful’ He thinks as he looks above the stadium, looking for someone. As the head of the museum leaves, everybody else follows.
As Ziro enters the artifact room, her eyes immediately lands on the crate that has the label “CLASSIFIED”. Assuming that inside it was the thing they’re looking for, she made her way slowly to avoid any of the researchers in the room noticing her.
As she got close to her goal, she notices that the crate illuminated light from its cracks. Not having much time to investigate it any further, she gets up from under the table she was hiding under and tip toes her way to find a tool to open the crate.
As she spots a crowbar near a shelf and quickly snatches it , moving immediately to the crate. She slips in the crowbar in the slight crack in the lid and begins to pry it open. Some of the archaeologists in the room were prying open fossils themselves. She times her knocks on the crowbar with the rhythm of another researcher, avoiding suspicion and finally opening the crate. The sound that the action made was too loud, and it came off as a fart.
Another archaeologist from nearby stopped his task because of the sound. He “waved off” the “smell” and giving a weird look to his colleague, humiliating the poor researcher near Ziro and the crate.
Ziro laughs to herself as she takes the thing that was illuminating the crate. Ziro thoroughly inspects it, making sure that it was legit. When she confirms it is indeed the thing, she quickly snugs it in her coat.
She sneaks once more, carefully maneuvering herself through her previous path to reach the door. As she was about to reach for the handle, someone kicks the door open, pushing her back. She quickly slides under another table in just a split second before the people notice. She carefully listens to the commotion.
“I demand you give us the relic!” A voice of a woman rings out. A low but audible groan can be heard near the source of the sound.
Hearing this, Ziro knew she is screwed if she doesn’t get out of this room ASAP. She looks around, trying to find an escape route.
“Sorry, outsiders and little girls aren’t allowed in this room”. One of the researchers warns with a teasing tone. Other researchers give the two intruders suspicious glances.
The little girl, or rather, Meryl just huffs and looks at her senior with an irritated face. “Roberto, please tell them that we’re here for the ‘Jade Emblem’. Oh, and I am NOT a little girl!” She grumpily crosses her arms.
“Shouldn’t you be telling them that?” Roberto groans again, avoiding eye contact with her and instead looks around the room lazily. Meryl gasps but then composes herself, irritation seeping into her expression. “YOU’RE MY SENIOR, Roberto! Ait’s not like I’m the only person with a job here!”. Meryl practically screamed at him as he flinches. Knowing he’ll get an earful, he complies but not without an eye roll.
Roberto begrudgingly places himself in front of Meryl to negotiate with the researchers. Meanwhile Ziro has finally found an escape route, in the form of a window. Now she has no choice but to call Poker to her aid. Grabbing the communication device Poker had invented from her belt pocket, she turns it on and puts it near her ear.
“So? Is everything alright from there?” Poker’s voice rings from the device as Ziro sneaks her way from underneath all of the tables again to the side of the open window. “I got the key, just getting ready to get out of here.” Ziro answers in a kind-of-hurried voice as she peeks out the window. The air hits her as she’s looking at the street, estimating she was in about two stories high and spots no safe spot to land on. She curses as she looks behind her back to make sure the people in here are still distracted by the reporters.
“I’m guessing something went awry?” Poker teasingly says as he walks out of the museum. He’s now on the street trying to get a ride back to the hotel they are checked in.
“You’re one to talk. How’s your ‘speech’ by the way?” Ziro raises an eyebrow, her lips quirk in a smirk with her tone laced with mischief.
Poker flinches as soon as the question left Ziro’s mouth. “I… don’t even want to talk about it”. He winces to himself, remembering what happened earlier.
“Aw come on now, you can tell mommy what the problem is.” Ziro teases as she spots him near a lamp post.
“Could you stop with that? I’ve already had my share of embarrassment for today thank you very much” Poker leans on a lamp post.
Ziro giggles at his response but then a shout erupted from the room. Chaos ensues from behind her, and soon enough, gun shots can be heard. “INTRUDERS! INTRUDERS!” In a now rushed tone, Ziro speaks again. “Shit! Poker, I need to get out of here and it’s urgent! And I can’t jump off this window without a soft spot to land on.”
Poker sensing the urgency of the matter looks around for anything to cushion Ziro’s fall, but he could only see people and lamp posts.
“I think this will take a while… why don’t you jump off and hang off a lamp post?” Poker suggests with a hint of uncertainty. Ziro just groans in irritation as one of the pursuers spots her. “Make it quick or else you’re gonna get a hell of a beating later!”
With that, Ziro hangs up leaving Poker nervous as he frantically looks around searching for a proper landing spot for her. Meanwhile Ziro on the other hand, swiftly dodges an upcoming attack but barely avoiding it.
The archive room was now bathed in dim, dusty light as Ziro found herself cornered by two of the bandits. They had their sights set on the valuable artifact she hid under her coat. They knew that she’s also after the treasure. The bandits, a motley crew of hardened criminals, circled around her, their eyes gleaming with greed. They all stood there for a minute, until they all parted to make way for someone.
Their leader, a tall man with blue hair and dressed in white, sneered as he signals his man to grab both of Ziro’s arms. "Hand it over, ‘Crimson Blade’" he growled, although his voice was eerily calm. "We don't want to hurt you, but we will if you don’t give it to us."
Ziro's eyes narrowed and her lips curled into a defiant smile. She knew there was no chance of reasoning with these bandits. Without a word, she took a deep breath, her senses honed and focused. She was ready for whatever they’re going to throw at her.
With lightning-fast reflexes, Ziro sidestepped as the scar-faced bandit lunged forward, his blade slicing through the air where she had just been standing. She spun on her heel, narrowly avoiding the attack, her long, two toned hair swirling around her.
Seizing the opportunity, Ziro struck back with a swift and calculated kick, catching her assailant off guard. Her foot connected with the bandit's knee, causing him to stagger and drop his weapon. Before he could recover, Ziro executed a series of graceful and precise movements, delivering a flurry of blows that sent the bandit sprawling to the ground, groaning in pain.
The remaining bandits hesitated for a moment, taken aback by Ziro's display of skill. But their hesitation was short-lived, and they lunged at her from all sides, their crude weapons aimed at her vulnerable form.
Ziro's eyes glinted with determination as she ducked and weaved through the onslaught, her body moving like a dancer's. With each evasive maneuver, she countered with swift strikes and well-placed kicks, incapacitating her attackers one by one. She moved with a grace and precision that seemed almost supernatural, her movements an intricate dance of combat.
As the bandits fell, Ziro's attention never wavered from the two reporters who were tucked in a corner. The short lady, Meryl, had eye contact with her and recognition was immediately lit up her eyes. Her senior meanwhile, groans and just conveniently lit up a cigarette in frustration. “We have to help her”. Meryl turns to Roberto as he nonchalantly takes a drag of his cigarette. “You do know we’re just journalists right?”
It’s like Roberto’s words passes like the wind, Meryl grunts as she crawls her way towards a wooden shelf. As she was coming out of their hiding spot, Ziro accidentally knocks one of the bandits near a large shelf, causing it to slowly fall down.
“Look out!” Ziro shouts as Meryl looks behind her. Frozen in place, she stares up wide eyed as the wooden shelf falls from above her. She almost got crushed but luckily Ziro was quick enough to save her. She lays her down behind a large table to hide and keep her out of trouble.
“Stay here if you want to live”. She instructed firmly at Meryl. As she stood up, the bandits nearby attacks her on the spot. But she just avoids them and lands some punches here and there to decapitate them.
Despite her best efforts, Ziro could feel her energy waning. The bandits were relentless, and her muscles burned with exertion. She glanced towards the window, irritation and a slight headache started to form as she sees Poker, struggling to find anything to help her escape. He needed more time, and she had to buy it for him, albeit begrudgingly.
Summoning every ounce of strength and skill, Ziro fought on, her movements becoming a blur. She parried and countered, her strikes connecting with deadly accuracy, each blow delivered with a purpose. Her body ached, but she refused to back down.
Finally, as the last bandit crumpled to the ground, Ziro stood in the middle of the archive room, panting heavily. Her clothes were a little torn, and sweat dripped down her brow, but she hadn't let go of the artifact for a moment. Breathing a sigh of relief, she glanced out the window to see Poker waving urgently. He had miraculously stopped a double-decker bus, and escape was within reach.
With a determined look and relieved sigh, Ziro sprinted towards the open window, leaping through it with the key in hand.
As soon as Ziro landed safely from above, Poker signals the bus driver to go, clinging on to the hand railing on the bottom level of the bus. “Hello…” Ziro waves at one of the passengers which is a little girl, who giggled at her as a response.
Poker instinctively looks up on the window. His gaze locked onto the woman— Meryl. The woman blinked a few times, and rubs her eyes as she stares at him. “Hey.” Poker mouthed as he sheepishly waves at her.
”YOU… ” She utters as she slowly and cautiously gets her head out the window, scratching her short and dark-blue hair out of irritation. Poker smiled wryly as the bus moves away.
Meryl’s knuckles turned white as she shakes in anger, still eyeing the bus. “Just wait ‘til I get my hands on you, Ezekiel Rockefell!”