Chapter 12: Float

*Flashback*

The sounds of swords clashing rapidly could be heard from a mile away, the regular soldiers only being able to look in awe as the two figures danced as sparks flew in every direction, every single hit their blades getting just slightly duller.

Leo jumped back suddenly, breathing heavily as he looked at Jonah, who was panting just as hard, both boys trying to catch their breath faster than the other. Time was the advantage.

"Just give up and see light!" Leo shouted as he held his sword in a reverse grip, his red eyes glowing as his long jet black hair waved in the wind from out from his hood, his gas mask covering the lower half of his face.

"I've seen the light, Leo, and you are not on the right side of this war!" Jonah shouted. "You betrayed us all! You killed grandpa!" He shouted, tears threatening to come out of the teen's eyes. Leo's eyes hardened, gripping his sword tightly.

"I did what needed to be done!"

"And so will I!"

Jonah leaped forward, slashing down at Leo, who took a few steps back as the ground that Jonah hit split as cracks began to form. Leo saw the soldiers who were just a bit too close and shouted.

"Get away from here, it's not safe!"

But he was too late, Jonah had noticed them as well and in an instant, their heads were severed from their bodies, their heads rolling on the ground, making Leo curse under his breath as he met Jonah's blade once again, pushing with all of his strength.

"I will stop you!"

"You will try!" Jonah pushed Leo back just a bit before spinning and kicking the raven-haired boy in the stomach, making him fly back several yards as he got close to hitting a scarce tree. Leo stood back up and barely ducked as Jonah's blade passed right over his head, slicing the tree cleanly in half as it fell.

Leo kneed Jonah in the stomach, spun, and used the hilt of his sword to hit Jonah in the forehead, causing the Blue Reaper to become disoriented for a split-second, but that's all Leo needed.

"I'm sorry!" Leo shouted as he slashed down, ready to cut his brother-in-arms down, but was stopped when Jonah caught his blade with his hand, it cutting deeply into his palm as his blue eyes burned brightly into Leo's crimson.

"As am I!" A pain suddenly erupted in Leo's stomach, like lava flowing through his veins. He looked down and saw a dagger a few inches deep inside of his stomach, blood slowly flowing out of the wound.

"W-What?" Was all he could get out as he looked at Jonah in shock, falling to his knees. Jonah, who was freely crying now, held his blade in the air, his eyes never meeting Leo's own.

"Goodbye, brother." He slashed down but was interrupted as two arrows pierced his shoulder, causing him to grunt in pain and whirl around, several different archers pointing their ready bows at him. He cursed and pushed the blade deeper into Leo, causing the boy to groan in pain as he writhed silently.

Jonah dashed away, disappearing from sight in just a few seconds.

"Get a medic, now!" Leo heard a voice shout before his vision went black.

Leo opened his eyes to see all white. He blinked a few different times before slowly sitting up, ignoring the dull pain in his abs, sitting up in his bed as he observed the room, which he dreaded.

He was in a hospital.

He suddenly checked his gear, still strangely dressed, his mask on and everything.

"Good morning, Red Reaper." A voice spoke up, getting him at attention. It was a woman, obviously a high ranking officer, perhaps a colonel or a captain. She wore all blue, traditional Union wear. She had a few stars on her shoulders that were pinned upon a thin black stripe. She had light green eyes and short brown hair, her eyes holding a calculating look to them.

"Who are you?" He questioned immediately. "Where am I? Are we safe?" The woman nodded.

"My name is Brister, you can refer to me as General or General Brister, either is fine. Tell me, what were you doing defending my men from that boy dressed in blue?" Leo snorted, causing her to raise an eyebrow. "Did I say something funny?"

"You called him boy, but that boy could very well kill you, shit, he almost killed me, and that's never happened before. I must've gotten soft for the last month," He whispered the last sentence, it unheard to the general.

"Then why didn't he?" Leo shrugged.

"Perhaps he was ordered to run? Perhaps he knew that the knife wouldn't have held me down for long. So, he decided to push it a tad bit deeper and effectively immobilize me so he could escape." He met the General's eyes, his tone dead serious. "He could have wiped out your entire army without so much as a sweat. The reason you still have men is because of me," General Brister rose a single eyebrow.

"Oh, is that so?" He nodded.

"Sadly," He whispered as he stood up. "But, I have to go. My little brother just turned two-months-old, I need to see him again. He needs his family," He whispered as he stood up, marveling at how his wound was healed so quickly. "How long was I out?" He asked.

"Two days, three hours, and thirty-two minutes." Leo nodded.

"Good, then we still have time. Get your men out of here, relocate. He'll come back with reinforcements. They aren't on our level, but they far surpass any of your men I can give you that." He spoke.

"Ordering me after I saved your life is rude you know," He rolled his eyes at the comment.

"I don't care, if it saves lives, I won't mind." He walked out of the hospital room, followed by the General.

"Can you give us any information on him? He was demolishing our men before you showed up! What is he?" Leo shrugged.

"A monster, demon, devil, whatever you like to call people like us." The General rose her eyebrow.

"Us?" Leo nodded.

"We're the same, he and I, we grew up together, we're brothers in arms, and a couple of years ago we became brothers by blood. We're the first and last genetically enhanced humans."

"Genetically enhanced? What does that mean?" The General questioned.

"I'm stronger, faster, can think quicker, can take more damage, and have better reflexes than any of your men. Why do you think he got away so quickly?" The General formed an 'O' with her mouth before smirking.

"Care to test that out?" Leo glanced at her and shrugged.

"If you can show me the way out after, sure."

Leo stood in front of five different men, each holding a sword or a knife, and the one who held a crossbow. They were in a stadium like setting, a couple hundred different soldiers and scientists watching from above, studying the boy who claimed to be a genetically enhanced human.

General Brister stood at the side, her smirk not leaving her lips as she held up two fingers.

"Two rules, no crippling, and no killing. The last one standing wins," The five men grinned.

"Going against a kid is kinda cruel, eh Barnes?" One of the soldiers asked, nudging his friend Barnes.

"I guess, but orders are orders. We're the creme of the crop, we can't lose to a brat," The General began the fight as she waved her hand. The crossbow from the one on the far right fired at Leo's shoulder, but the boy teen easily evaded the shot, just moving his body to the left a little bit.

"C' mon, I wanna leave already," Leo said as he began walking forward, not even drawing his sword, something the five men noticed.

"Don't you need your weapon?" Leo shook his head.

"Won't need it, now fight or lose like cowards, I'm fine with either choice." The men decided they had no qualms with fighting the thirteen-year-old now. They charged at him simultaneously while the man with the crossbow stayed back, trying to get a clear shot.

Leo dodged to the right, the sword swipe going right by him before ducking, a knife slicing the air above him. He stood up quickly and grabbed the knife wielder's wrist, twisting it and elbowing him twice in the ribs, grabbing the knife from his hand and twirling over his back, stabbing one of the men in the thigh, kicking their leg out from under them as he suddenly flipped over the man again, using him as a body shield as an arrow hit him in the shoulder.

Two down. Three more to go.

He grabbed the fallen man's sword and blocked a swipe from the other sword user, twirling around and kicking him in the ribs, knocking him back a few feet before catching the other soldier's sword in mid-air with his two fingers, enjoying the look of hopelessness on the man's face before he plucked the sword out of his hands and used the hilt to knock him out, hitting him in the temple.

He engaged the man he had kicked again, sliding in between his wide-open legs, and simply smashed the blunt side of the sword against his temple, knocking him unconscious as well.

Leo spun around suddenly, wielding the sword with such grace as he cut the arrow that was hurling towards him in half before he disappeared in a burst of speed and reappeared behind the crossbow user, the two blades on each side of his neck.

"Yield please," He said happily, his eyes closed.

"This was child's play for you, wasn't it?" The man asked. Leo nodded.

"Yep, I won't ask again." The man closed his eyes and nodded.

"I concede."

There were no cheers, there was no sudden outburst, only the never-ending silence.

General Brister decided to end that silence by announcing that Leo was the winner.

"How? How are you so good?" She asked, completely bewildered by the boy's prowess. Leo shrugged.

"Training for all your life will do that. Can I leave now?" She nodded.

"You were always free to leave, this isn't a prison, but I do have a question for you?" He rose his eyebrow.

"And that is?"

"How would you like to help us end the war?"