"Hey! Let her go!"
The words tore out of Liam before he could stop himself. His voice was hoarse, weak against the rain, but it made the three thugs freeze.
They turned slowly. Predators disturbed mid-hunt.
The one with the knife grinned, scarred lips curling back. "Oh? A little mouse wandered in." His blade twirled lazily in his hand, catching the neon glow. "Don't you know what happens to mice in Clovis?"
Liam swallowed hard, his heart hammering against his ribs.
The girl, blue hair matted across her tear-streaked face, looked up, her eyes wide with a terror that would forever haunt Liam's last moments.
And although desperate. She mouthed a single word. Run.
But Liam didn't. He couldn't. Not now that he was already in deep. His body was shaking, but his feet stayed planted. "Let her go," he said again, his voice breaking.
The thug with the knife chuckled, pointing his blade at Liam like a schoolyard dare. "Make us." he grinned.
The one pinning the girl smirked, cracked his knuckles, and stalked forward. "This'll be fun." he muttered, approaching Liam with his fist ready to strike.
Liam saw the man coming and charged in as well. He swung first out of instinct, a clumsy fist connecting with the thug's jaw. And for one shining instant, hope sparked.
But the man didn't falter. Instead he laughed, and pushed his own fist forward.
BAM!
A sledgehammer of a fist drove into Liam's gut. Air exploded from his lungs. His knees buckled.
Crack.
Another blow slammed into his chest, snapping him backward into the wall. He hit the wall hard, and collapsed to the ground. His bones screamed in agony.
"Pathetic," the thug spat, grabbing Liam by the throat. His grip was iron. He lifted Liam clean off the ground, strangling the life from him.
Liam clawed at the hand, vision flickering with spots of light. He was not going to give up that easily.
And then…
"Put him down," the thug with a scar said, "I want a piece."
The first thug threw Liam down like trash. He hit the concrete with a crunch, his head cracking against the ground. The world spun. Before he could move, a boot smashed into his ribs.
CRACK!
He heard something snap. White-hot pain ripped through him. He gasped, blood spraying from his mouth.
The second thug stomped down on his hand, grinding bone against wet pavement until Liam screamed.
"Listen to him squeal," the thug laughed. "Like a rat in a trap."
The knife-wielder crouched over Liam now, grinning. "Wanna play hero, huh?" He pressed the blade to Liam's cheek, cold and sharp. "Heroes don't last long in this world."
Then…
SLASH.
The knife slashed across Liam's face… shallow, but burning fire. Liam cried out, thrashing weakly, only to take another kick to the ribs that left him gagging on his own blood.
Somewhere above the chaos, the girl screamed again, struggling against the second thug's grip. "Stop! Please, stop!"
Liam's head lolled to the side. Her voice blurred in his ears. Something inside him roared, raw and desperate. He shoved against the ground, staggering to his feet.
His legs shook like broken branches, but he threw himself at the knife-wielder anyway, fists swinging with a power fueled by fury and determination.
BAM!
The punch landed on the man's jaw. A tooth flew, and he staggered back in shock.
And for a heartbeat, it felt like victory.
But the thug recovered quickly, gritting in rage. "Bastard! Let me show you real strength." he yelled, running towards Liam with his knife outstretched.
Liam tried to do dodge, but the thug's boot drove into his knee with a sickening crack. His leg erupted in pain as he collapsed with a howl.
The thug took that opportunity to strike, going in for a stab. And before Liam could react…
Shhhk!
The knife was plunged into his side, deep and merciless.
Liam felt a searing pain rip through his abdomen, a sudden, blossoming warmth that quickly turned to icy dread. He stumbled back, clutching at the wound, his knees giving out. He could taste blood, metallic and coppery, filling his mouth. His vision blurred, the world tilting precariously. He sank to the wet ground, a gasp tearing from his throat, air struggling to fill his collapsing lungs.
Blood poured down his shirt, mixing with the rain until he couldn't tell where one ended and the other began.
The thugs laughed as he crumpled. "Told you, little mouse," the knife-wielder hissed in his ear, yanking the blade free with a sickening sound. "This world devours heroes like you."
The girl's scream cut through the storm. She was completely terrified now, all hope lost. All she could do was surrender herself.
But the thugs didn't seem to be interested in her anymore, so instead…
Shhkk.
The knife-wielder stabbed her too. The blade slid into her stomach with a sickening sound. She buckled, eyes wide in shock, then slumped against the thug holding her.
"Stupid bitch," the man muttered, tossing her aside like trash. She hit the ground hard, blood pooling fast beneath her.
The three thugs laughed as they backed away, vanishing into the rain, leaving two broken bodies in the alley.
Liam collapsed beside the girl, body broken, lungs burning. His blood mingled with hers, rivers crossing in the gutter. His vision blurred… dark, then light, then dark again. His lungs heaved, each breath shorter than the last. He was slowly dying.
The girl lay just a few feet away, her body twisted, blood pouring out of her stomach.
Liam turned his head, every movement agony, and saw her staring back at him. Her lips trembled. Her chest rose and fell, shallow. For a second, he thought she was gone.
But then… something impossible happened.
Her bleeding slowed. The hole in her stomach began to stitch back unnaturally.
Liam blinked through his fuzzy vision, confusion piercing through the fog of death. The girl's wounds healed… skin knitting itself back together before his eyes.
She rose, her wounds now completely healed. Her eyes were glowing with an otherworldly blue light that pierced through the storm. She stepped forward and knelt beside Liam's body, staring at him with compassion.
Liam just lay there, limp, and probably hallucinating. His fading consciousness flickered, then caught a glimpse of her. But she was no longer the frail, terror-stricken victim.
A soft, ethereal glow emanated from her, outlining a silhouette of impossible grace. Her skin seemed to shimmer, her eyes, once brown and clouded with tears, now pulsed with a sapphire luminescence. Her torn clothes had vanished, replaced by what looked like flowing starlight. And there was a blue diamond-shaped crystal embedded on her forehead.
Liam was in awe. And even in his dying state, he had to admit… she was intoxicatingly beautiful. And definitely not human.
She reached out, her glowing hand resting gently on his chest. Her touch was warm, alive, burning against his fading heart.
And almost immediately… a blue light bloomed from his chest, and Liam felt a profound shift in his being, an awakening deeper than physical sense. It was as if a new chamber had been opened in his soul, brimming with a latent potential, linked to something vast and indefinable.
The girl's sapphire eyes, ancient and sorrowful, met his. There was gratitude in them, a silent acknowledgment of his futile, noble sacrifice.
"Don't die, Liam Queen," her voice whispered… not just in his ears, but inside his mind. Foreign. Resonant. Eternal.
"You are chosen."
The light emanating from their contact intensified, consuming them both. Liam felt a final, blissful sensation of falling through soft starlight, before darkness finally came.
And then… it swallowed him whole.