High Fantasy In Death

[Primrosette]

((Hiro Hayes-Honda continued from One Last Confrontation With The Devil))

Hiro didn't like that he was all alone again. He really had failed Soledad. He should have tried harder against Ilya. God, why was he such a lousy shot?

He glanced at the bridges that were just before him and he didn't bother to move forward yet.

"Should I try to lure him here?" He muttered to himself thoughtfully.

He had to think about it.

[AnimeNerd]

“Depends - anything else in that plan?”

[[She revealed herself to the “Hero” boy]], one arm across her chest while the other held her gun at her hip.

“‘Cause if that’s all you’ve got, you’re probably gonna get yourself killed.”

[Primrosette]

Hiro heard the girl's voice behind him and he turned his head sharply to look at her. Trying to keep up the "hero" facade was just so tiring. But he couldn't let himself fall into a dark depression. He noticed that it was Marnie Cross and he glanced down slightly, staring at the gun for a second and then looking back up at the girls' face.

"Well, I seem to be very lucky when it comes to Ilya. Twice!" He gave the girl an uncomfortable-looking smile and then he glanced back at the bridges briefly. "He just keeps on killing other people in front of me. To be fair, the last time he stabbed a girl repeatedly in front of me.... He threatened me with a grenade launcher. Isn't that just crazy as hell?"

He shook his head a little.

"If I have to die while taking him out...." He cracked a knuckle. "Then so be it."

[AnimeNerd]

"That's...stupid."

A beat.

"Brave, but still stupid."

She took a few steps closer to the 'Hero' boy.

"But I guess I can't say I've done much better."

Rather than stopping in front of him, she walked pass him, looking towards the bridge.

"Three chances to do something, and all I've got to show for it is Ray missing an ear."

The shoulder her bag was hanging from rolled, getting a little sore.

Taking a glance over her shoulder, she looked the 'Hero' boy in the eyes once more.

"Was it just him you saw? Or was anyone with him?"

[Primrosette]

Hiro let out an awkward laugh. He really wasn't thinking things through with a clear, smart mind at all, was he? Marnie was right. He was in a stupid mode. He wasn't sure if it was very brave of him, but well, heroes were normally known for being over braveness and mostly being stupid and reckless. Man, it has not been a good time at all. It has been draining the life out of him more and more.

He just had to keep up the fakeness. He couldn't stop now. He just couldn't.

Hiro was pretty such that he had heard Ray's name on the announcement too. Even if he had been obsessed with getting his hands on Ilya. God, he should just try to catch the other boy at his own game. Just get him off-guard. But how?

"Well, at least you managed to damage the guy." He said with a soft, tired sigh. "I had many chances to shoot Ilya and all I could do was be the most lousy shooter ever. God, I need to get him unexpectedly. Otherwise, I feel like there is no way that I can beat him.... Well, stop him from killing more people."

Hiro looked right back at Marnie with serious eyes, thinking about Ilya again.

"Soledad was the girl that he had attacked not that long ago. We.... We wanted to trap him, but..." He paused and there was a cloud of sadness in his dullen eyes. "We failed. I failed her. I failed Julia too. I need to make up for my failures, otherwise, I can't really be called a hero at all."

He glanced at the bridge himself for a few moments and then he looked back at Marnie once more.

"I didn't see Ilya with anyone else actually. Was someone trying to team up with him?"

[AnimeNerd]

For a few moments, she didn't speak.

Her eyes only stared as the rest of her face remained hidden under a mask of neutrality.

The moment stood strong for nearly a minute, before she once more averted her eyes from the 'Hero' boy's gaze.

"I think," a sigh escaped her lips before continuing."We both failed Julia. So you're still not alone in that."

She kept her gaze pinned to the bridge, rather than looking back at him.

"Someone did team up with him. Because apparently he has a soft spot for guys who shoot girls in the head."

He could put two and two together on his own.

[Primrosette]

"I... I'm sorry, Marnie. I failed you too." Hiro's memories had been a bit fuzzy after what had happened with Soledad and Ilya and he shook his head a little, feeling a bit mad at himself. "God, I think my mind is trying to block some things out. God, I wish I could keep myself so... stable and sane right now."

He touched the back of his head and winced a little. Forgetting for a moment that he had injured his head. Maybe that was also why he felt like that there a few gaps in his mind here and there?

He paused when he thought about who might have paired up with Ilya.

His eyes widened a little in realization.

"Son of a bitch...." He muttered under his breath.

He moved to step closer to Marnie.

"Ray... He allied with Ray, didn't he? No, of course, he did. Killers always got to stick together, I guess." He huffed in disgust.

[AnimeNerd]

"Stop saying that."

Her voice was hard as she spoke, turning back to stare at the 'Hero' boy.

"You sound like a broken record."

Then, after another moment.

"And you still tried. That's what's important, isn't it?"

She pulled in a breath, then puffed it back out of her nostrils, turning back to look at the bridge.

"Saw it happen right before I started shooting at them, yeah. Thought I killed Ray at first, but..."

Shoulders lifted and fell.

"Turns out, that guy's a lot harder to kill then he looks."