Chapter Text
A heavy haze settled over the streets of Kansai. It was late at night with the moon hanging dimly in the sky, casting a cool glow over the city. The streets were swarming with people heading home, to a bar, or just those mindlessly wandering. The distant sound of cars honking and murmur of conversation flooded the streets and it seemed to be a relaxed and peaceful night.
Blood roared in Cutthroat’s ears as he ran, his breath coming in short and exhausted huffs. He was running from the Executioners that had been pursuing him for what felt like hours now. Though he had an impressive amount of stamina, even this was beginning to wear him down.
When the chase had begun there were at least six or seven Executioners on Cutthroat’s tail. After a few careless knife throws on his part, that number had dwindled down to two. The two that were left refused to relent, and the killer was forced down a narrow alleyway dimly lit with red.
The color ignited a fire in his veins that he was doing his best to ignore for the sake of his own life. He wasn’t one to run from fights, in fact, he wanted nothing more than to turn around and drive his knife into either of their chests, but at the risk of more Executioners flooding the scene, he decided to make a break for it.
“Red… the red …” he breathed. His lungs burned as he leaped over a trash bin that had fallen over. Cutthroat could hear the Executioners calling to each other over his shoulder but couldn’t make out exactly what they were saying.
I should just turn around and kill them. He thought as he turned a sharp corner, his hand dropping to the ground for a moment to steady himself. They would bleed so much. There would be so much red. His heart pounded in his chest.
For a brief moment, a shadow appeared on the ground above him, and before Cutthroat could react he felt himself get pushed down into the concrete. He grunted in surprise as a heavy weight pressed itself into his back and a hand forced his head to the stone beneath him.
Adrenaline was still pumping through his veins. Cutthroat used a surge of strength to force himself up enough to roll over onto his back and kick at his attacker. He slid a knife out from beneath his coat and forced it forward, only to meet empty air. The weight that had forced him down jumped backward and gave Cutthroat a chance to get to his feet.
Another Executioner stood before him with a malicious glint in her eye. “You won’t escape this time.” she spat.
Cutthroat only laughed. A deep, loud laugh that shook his entire body. He opened his mouth to respond but his voice wouldn’t come, and his grin fell away. His blood felt like it was on fire. His vision was blurry, and he only noticed then that he was seeing double. All he could make out was the silhouette of the girl before him and the beautiful red from the lights. All of a sudden, his head felt like it weighed tons. He felt himself sway on his feet and begin to lose balance before collapsing to his knees, his hand letting go of the knife he was holding.
That’s when he felt the piercing pain in his side. Cutthroat glanced down to see what looked like a dart stabbed between his ribs. His eyelids grew heavy, and the last thing he saw before losing consciousness was the two other Executioners appearing behind the girl who managed to tranquilize him.