The Black Hound members, the host, and the guests remained frozen in place, not knowing what to do. The person who had been threatening them all, the man who had held every soul in the building under his thumb, was now lying broken on the floor.
Evon had been beaten so hard that his body refused to obey him. He was no longer standing up, and every time he tried to push himself off the canvas, his muscles gave out. Maybe if he had been wearing an exoskeleton on his legs, he could have found the mechanical support to stand, but the prototype he was wearing only covered his arms. After all, Evon was primarily there to test the offensive capabilities of the product. Finally, as Evon’s eyesight began to return, he found himself staring up at the bright, buzzing arena lights. He knew in his gut that he was unable to move.
He was barely able to lift his head as he watched Aron walking toward him, the sound of the baton dragging against the floor echoing in the silence.
"Damn it... Damn it!" Evon spat, blood bubbling at the corner of his mouth. "You were right... my teacher stopped teaching me. But I proved to myself that I could get this far on my own! I can best him. If I just had the entire exoskeleton, I would have been able to take you out, him, and everyone else!"
When Aron walked over, he didn’t immediately strike. He stood right over Evon, looking down at him with an unreadable expression for a few moments before looking back up at the crowd and the guards.
"Let everyone leave!" Aron shouted, his voice booming through the speakers. "The Black Hounds are no longer in charge of this venue. This venue will be shut down from today. So, it’s best if you want to avoid spending the rest of your lives in a prison for what you have done here, that all of you go now. Quickly!"
The Black Hound members didn’t know why, but they believed his words instantly. There was a weight to Aron’s presence that felt more authoritative than any boss they had served. Especially since they weren’t even supposed to be working for Evon in the first place, they saw no reason to stay and fight. The heavy doors were pushed open, and the guests began scurrying out of the room like rats fleeing a sinking ship.
The staff members left, the other fighters disappeared into the back, and soon, there was just Sheri and Na left in the room. Na looked toward the ring, his breathing heavy, and he saw Aron give a small, firm nod in his direction.
"Come on, let’s go," Na said, placing a hand on Sheri’s shoulder and pushing her toward the exit.
"Wait, but what about Aron?" Sheri asked, her voice trembling. "Shouldn’t we wait for him and leave together?"
"He will handle the situation," Na said, his voice low and serious. "But we don’t know what might happen here next, so let’s get out of here. We did what we needed to do. You completed your task, so let him do what he needs to do. Let’s go."
Na had a strong feeling that something was going to happen once they were gone, something brutal that Sheri didn’t need to see or carry in her memories.
When everyone had finally filtered out, the large arena felt hollow. Now it was just Evon and Aron who stood in the ring, staring at each other in the oppressive silence.
"You are part of the Gilt Rats, an organization that is even larger than that of the Black Hounds, correct?" Aron asked, his voice calm.
"Ha!" Evon laughed, a wet, hacking sound. "So now you’re concerned about what organization I’m from? You’re starting to realize how badly you might have actually messed up by touching me?"
"I’m assessing the risk," Aron answered. "From the look of things and how you acted today within the Black Hounds, it appears as if even they didn’t know you were here. You were acting on your own. So, I put it that you were the only person who came from your group. Which means if you were left alive and went back to your people, you would tell them exactly what happened."
Aron took a step closer. "You would go on and search for us."
Evon wanted to say something, but he remained silent. He could see a particular look in Aron’s eyes, a cold, professional detachment, and he was starting to figure out exactly where this conversation was going.
"You are the type of person who, as you said, if you were to live, would try to get stronger," Aron said. "You would search for a better exoskeleton and then come back to get your revenge against me and everyone I care about. Unfortunately, I can’t allow that to happen."
Aron reached into his jacket and pulled out a length of specialized wire.
"I have killed before. I have done dirty work before. If I need to do it again for the sake of Max, then I will happily do it a hundred times over. To me, you are a threat."
Now there was just nervous, hysterical laughter coming from Evon because he knew his fate was sealed. He knew Aron was deadly serious.
"It’s probably the right decision to make," Evon said, his eyes wide. "But I’ll tell you now, it will only buy you time."
Aron knelt down, ready to finish the job.
"Time is all we need," Aron answered. "Time to grow and get stronger so no one can get in our way."
"In the Gilt Rats, there is one person you should look out for... my teacher! He is in the Gilt Rats!" Evon shouted, laughing one last time before Aron quickly placed the wire behind the man’s neck.
Moments later, it was finished.
Evon’s body lay lifeless on the ground, but Aron wasn’t going to leave it at that. He stood up, took off his own jacket, and began the grisly work of dismantling the exoskeleton from the corpse.
"The spoils of battle," Aron claimed, looking at the high-tech metal. "Someone in the Bloodline group could use these. Especially if we’re going to have to go up against the Gilt Rats one day."