A Silence, A Flash, and an Angel

"Funny… after all that talk... you ain't got that skill to back it up" A man with a southern accent scoffed to match the rhythm of the soles of his feet as he walks across the building's tiled floors.

He cracked his fingers at the beat of his feet. He carried as sadistic glee as his head swayed from left to right. He waved his revolver in hand as he tried to follow the remains of Albert's faintest footsteps with a smile.

"To be fair…" Albert's voice echoed from the end of the halls. "I really did think that I would be able to kill Mr. Cowboy with one go."

Albert had jumped in and out of the darkness leaving a trail of blood wherever he went. He did his best to lock his jaws in order to hide his ragged breath and he exerted the same pressure to keep a tight grip on his blade.

Time is running out and he's running out of space to flee upon in this game of tag between a snake and a mouse. He felt like his eyes would be on his back at the moment he was seen beneath the moonlight. He couldn't escape.

"Well at least… you'd be the first one to-"

The Cowboy pulled the trigger, the gun barrel roared and the bullet made its mark on Albert's arm. Albert grunted for a second and he jumped out of his sight before he could even make another shot.

"Sorry, I saw a good shot and took it." He tipped his hat and he followed with a hollow tone. "That makes it five...right… buddy?"

"That's four. Dumbass." His voice echoed from the floor above him. "That's two on my arm, one of my side and right thigh but you missed my head. How does that feel?"

He gritted his teeth and pushed one corner of his lips. His throat had an itch and it felt like there's a thorn lodged in between his chest. He clicked his tongue and said, "Pretty… funny"

He found himself at the bottom of the stairs right beside the fresh crimson stain that he just painted. Everything was silent so he looked around. He noticed a sign and it reminded him that he would be at the rooftop at the moment he goes through the door above him.

He smiled. He took on the flight of stairs with full confidence, he twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open. The night wind filled his nose and from a distance, he saw Albert on his knees.

He took his first steps, he looked around to see if there was someone else but there was none. It was just Albert sitting in the middle of a blood graffiti that was made as if a kid with a red crayon went wild.

"You're actually betting on your comrades, that's interesting…" The cowboy chuckled.

Albert gave back a laugh and averted his gaze. He then returned his gaze and said, "Would you believe me when I say that I actually wanted to get a jump on you but I can't quite reach that spot?"

He looked behind him to see the place that he pointed and replied, "What… ahaha.. What the hell. I thoug-"

"Well at least that I tried. I did try finding something that I can step on but to no avail, I just figured that I would stay here and look cool." Albert shrugged and tilted his head. "It's not like I could fight you anymore."

"You're kidding... So you wa-"

"Here let me show-" Albert spread his cloak to gain some cover but at the moment he stood up, a bullet ripped through on its right side and he took another shot to take care of the other. Albert pushed his mangled cloak away with a smile and he lifted his right leg but his knees got shot before he could even kick the ground. His face fell flat like a log.

"Ah… your powers are bullshit. You and your getup" He groaned and scratched his head.

"Riiighhhtt?? " He grinned and rubbed the barrel of his gun against his cheeks. "Why the hell would you use a knife on a gunfight… hell, why did ya decide to rush me down"

"Oh, you know that I was supposed to be strong myself but I took a bullet to my knee and two others on my thighs…" He replied with a sarcastic tone. He stuck a finger on his temple as he lifted the corner of his lips and followed, "And now… It's official… I can't fight you anymore and well my good sir. Will you do the honors of blowing the brains out of this head."

"Gladly…" The cowboy then tipped his hat and walked towards him.

"You know, I did make a bet since guns like yours could hold up to six shots but you managed to hit me 8 times without reloading..."

"Ahahaha… Good guess. I look at something, I pull the trigger and a bullet will hit it. No matter what. That's how it went with my shows after all."

"Yep… called it. That's bullshit. Your powers and your perceptiveness too."

"So you made your bet and lost, what have you been doing all these time then?"

"Oh you know…" He lifted his wounded knees. He coughed up a bit of blood but that didn't stop him. He raised his knife to cut the space between them and then, the sound disappeared. The cowboy stopped in his tracks, it was as if his ears were torn off before he could even notice it. He looked at Albert who remained his place, his lips were still moving and there he read… "buying some time"

He jumped back as fear finally caught up in his eyes. He felt disconnected from the world he lived on for quite some time. It was like the fear that he shoved in a box ever since he started working suddenly escaped and drowned him in a place where sound didn't exist.

He stomped the ground but it didn't come. He riddled the floor with holes but he heard nothing. He could feel the ground shaking every time he moved but none of it was able to send out a ring in his ears. He then lifted his head and looked at Albert.

He shouted on top of his lungs, he wanted to ask him what he had done but it didn't much. He just felt his chest vibrating and his throat cracking, it reminded him that at this point, he was powerless. He pointed his gun towards him as he knitted his brows. He was about to shoot but then he saw a shadow getting larger and larger.

It was just a pigment compared to what it was now and when he looked up, he saw the same entity clad in darkness and it swung his shining silver sword onto him.

Left with nothing and no time to protect himself, he raised his left arm and it took care of most of the impact. The blade went right through his arm and lodged itself in his shoulder. The cut wasn't deep enough to take him down but it forced him to move back.

He felt pain after so many years. He grunted and gritted his bloodied teeth. He raised his head to get a look at the one who did this to him and what followed his eyes were a trail of bullets accompanied by gunshots that made his right hand numb.

The bullets climbed and tore through the bones of the entity's left leg. The Cowboy took a slight pause to let his fingers rest as well as to get a good look on the forehead of his next victim but by the time their eyes had met, he saw that the entity was clutching a piece of metal in between his teeth.

All he could remember was that there were tears in his enemy's eyes and without a sound, both of their faces were engulfed with light.

The entity failed to maintain its balance so it fell onto the ground and rolled out to give way to Albert who rushed at their enemy's side.

The cowboy lowered his body and clutched his brows. It was painful but he was still able to recognize shapes and shades moving around. It was faint but in all that white, he saw a shadow moving closer and closer towards him so he aimed for its middle and pulled the trigger.

The bullet then made a hole out of Albert's right eye, it made him fall and with that, the sound came back in his ears. The cowboy then took a deep breath and laughed. He had enjoyed it and now, he decided that both of them were going to die. It was a pain that he could not fully see their faces but he had decided to end it. He raised his hand to give them the death that they deserved and then,

"MISTER TANAKA! NOW!" He heard a girl below the building screaming until her voice had cracked.

It was as if time moved so slow.

It started when his right hand severed itself from his body and flew right before his eyes. It then followed a piece of his arm, then his elbow, then his shoulder until it managed to cut through a portion of his face and make everything turn black.

The air above whistled and summoned a few invisible guillotines that cut through the floor before it disappeared with a cloud of smoke.

"Rei!" Albert lifted his head up in the air now that he's finally able to catch his breath.

The fight was finally over.