Wow. I think I just found a solution, right in anime episode 22. And with the biggest writer's block now overcome, I feel refreshed and ready to write again. So, here I go!

Review answer! So fast.

Blazedragon94: Well, this time it did lingers, but then I went 'whatever' and continued. I have the whole thing planned out now, and certainly, something that would work.

Godrik55: I got influenced by Arno's resourcefulness, actually. He's much more resourceful then other Assassins I've played.

Admiral: Ohhhhh...I feel like a total noob right now. Thank you very much! It's noted.

Kizuro Shirosaki: Thee? Sorry, I had to, I'm curious now.

Anyway, thank you so much! Just a day and a bunch of reviews! Thank you for pointing out my mistakes, I'm still learning so you'll have to forgive me. Unless it's direct bashing, I'll take them all!

Now, Enjoy chapter 38: Assassin Counter!

The poison wore off after 20 minutes.

Jack looked back.

Esdeath's room exploded with ice, and her crazy roar echoed in the entire city.

All at once, soldiers are wide awake, coming out of their tents.

"That didn't take long..."-Jack curses to himself as he made a right turn, heading for the armory.

He was met with Katie, bewildered as everyone else, as their eyes were on Esdeath's place.

"Sorry about the rude wake up. Bit of a misunderstanding."-Jack handed her the signed papers.

"How did you get her signature AND stamp, I can not fathom."

Time for a flashback.

"And you were wrong about the Empire has nothing to offer you."-Esdeath looked to the ceiling.

In a swift yet silent movement, Jack slided the document right before her, the paper lightly drops down right as Esdeath return her gaze at him.

"It has me."-She then proceeded to sign and stamp the documents.

...

"Well, I held my end of the bargain. You?"

"Not in a good way, but yes."-Katie handed him his old blades and bracers.-"But now that you pissed her off...I don't think my head will stay intact even if she listens."

"...Then, would you like to go with me?"

"To where?"

"To the Creed. You can be one of us."

"That's a great idea and all, but I don't think I can run like you."

"..."

There was a momment of silence.

"Don't be sorry. You held up your end. It's only that..."

"How can I not be?"-Jack sighed.

"Look, if the woman spares me, and if you create a big enough of a commotion, I can slip away."

"..."

Katie laughed as she saw that hopeful glint in his eyes.

"Got it. If a commotion is all we need, I can give you a big one."

"Then go on. I think she's heading over here."

Jack looked back, and sure enough, soldiers are scrambling, laying out orders to capture or kill him.

"Thanks. I'll make sure to help you."

"Boy, if anyone needs help in this mess, you do."

With that, they bid goodbye.

"Seriously, Jack?"-Sora and Chelsea sweatdropped, seeing the city from a view point.

Chelsea has just got back, just in time too.

"What's our plan?"

"No doubt, I know what Jack would be doing."-Sora gestured to the Assassin Den.-"He'll light the fire on the den to signal the attack. We'll position ourselves properly. Soon as he does, we'll break in and rip Jack out from the ice woman's clutches."

"Fine by me."

"Well, infiltration is your specialty, so go. With luck, one of us would find him. It's a city wide game, so it's best to split up."

"So, how do we signal if one of us found him?"

"Take this. It's a flare."

"Got it. Red color?"

"You got it."-Sora then raised her hand.

To her call, a group of Assassins reveal themselves, slowly heading through stalking zones, getting near the city wall.

"We have about 30 Assassins. Should make a great commotion."

"What happened to 'hide in plain sight'?"

"I don't know."-Sora tilted her head.

That being everything they needed to discuss, they headed down as well.

Jack climbed the city rooftops, heading for the Assassin Den.

Gunners are patroling, so he has to be careful.

Sneaking past a gunner as he turned away, using the darkness of night to slip past, he entered a building.

Meeting a guard taking a nap, Jack did not hesitate, and stabbed the guard's neck with his karambit.

His uniform should no longer be effective, so why bother.

Jack summoned the Cross of Pandemonium, and put on his Assassin Armor.

That feeling of strength and freedom returns, as he silently pulled up his hood.

The city was waking up all around Jack, all in search for him alone.

"You've better be watching, Sora."-Jack climbed out, and head for the Assassin Den.

Pulling out his throwing knives and blowpipe, Jack got ready, then sprinted across the rooftop in a free-run sequence.

"You! Stop there!"-A guard called out.

Jack quickly flung a knife that way, the well desiged blade slices the air and hit the gunner right in the neck.

Leaping across a small alley from roof to roof, Jack used the blowpipe, and shot a guard with berserk poison.

He can see walls of ice blocking streets behind him.

Good news is, she underestimated the distance between them, so he can still make it to the den, and signal the strike.

Using his Eagle sense, he can see at a distance, the cannons are pointing backwards.

He don't know who did it, but sooner or later, it's going to fire.

"No one embraces death easily."

With that mantra, Jack sprinted forward in a great burst of speed, almost creating a blur.

He was getting close to the Den.

But surrounding the Den is a wide open square, with no room for cover.

In a second, his Eagle sense picked out a route.

A high profile one, but he don't have time to sneak through 20 guards undetected at the momment.

Performing a solid base jump, he landed in the street, and halted for almost a second, before sprinting forward.

The guards roared on as they blocked his path.

Pulling out the dual cutlasses, Jack cuts through them in a killstreak Esdeath would be proud.

But his objective is not to fight.

Quickly head for the Den tower's base, he saw a lift, and quickly used it, cutting the rope, with the counter weight crashing down on some soldiers below.

Launched up and landed right where he needs to be, Jack quickly grabbed a torch and light it with a lighter he looted from the dead Templar who tried to poison him.

Lighting the signal fire, Jack crouched down, balancing on a wooden pole.

"Was I expecting something big?"

The Assassins usually work silently.

But he will admit he wanted a sign to know that the Assassins had noticed it.

However, he was met with a gigantic ice boulder flung his way.

"!"

Quckly performed a leap of faith down, Jack quickly ran as the tower took even more hits, collapsing on top of him.

Dodging the debries by getting out of the tower's way, Jack watched as Esdeath and her troops closes in.

This time, he's not stopping.

Sprinting in the opposite direction, Jack dodged ice spears and boulders, climbing up using a familiar free-run sequence.

Seeing a lamp, an opportunity to make a long jump, Jack took it.

Using the hookblade, he hooked on the lamp, then swung himself forward a great distance, followed up by a spring board that launched him forward a bit unbalanced.

Then, cannons began to roar.

Cannonballs landed all around him. Til now, he still don't know which sides they're on.

But whatever, even during this chaos, he can run.

"Hurry up...Chelsea."

Esdeath quickly sprinted after the Master Assassin.

She silently watches as he run away from her.

She can never give him that freedom.

It's ironic.

It's unfair.

This man refuses to be tied down.

As he climbed and run away, with hundreds and thousands of soldiers trying to stop him, he still looked true to himself.

He's at his best when he fight and escape.

The way he dodged an killed anything in his way, the fluid steps and jumps from years of experience powered him.

His desire, his ideal, his friends, his lover...

They pushed him faster then ever before.

He was being chased, but he had the look of a true predator.

"There's no greater freedom for an Eagle..."

Running along the rooftops...

Jack climbed to the highest watch tower.

No one can even catch up. Muskets shots, cannons and ice spears didn't even fazed him.

Only Esdeath can follow him. But she can't stop him.

"...Than that feeling of flight!"

Jack jumped off, arms spreads and legs together.

The Leap of Faith.

"..."

He truly did looked like an eagle.

The way the wind flaps his Assassin robes, that thrill in jumping from great height. The disturbed pidgeons flew along with him, and the sound of an eagle as it watches on...

This is what he is.

A free man. A predator, yet a protector.

An Assassin.

"But an Eagle flies alone."-Esdeath used the rope dart give to her by Jack himself, and threw it after the Assassin.

It caught his leg, with Esdeath satisfied with the sudden weight tugging her, proof it's well caught.

But she noticed Jack made no attempt to free himself.

"Hello there!"

Surprised by a sudden girl's voice, Esdeath turned back to find a white-haired girl in revealing black clothes sprinting towards her.

The girl quickly slided forward, jumping down. Esdeath didn't reacted because the girl had no killing intent whatsoever.

Jack skillfully catches the girl's extended hand.

"Took you long enough."

"No, you took your time."-Sora grinned as she untangle Jack leg, as they both assumed the leap of faith posture.

Flipping her body so her back is to the ground, Sora fired a flare.

Landing in a bale of flowers, both Master Assassins got up immediately.

Jack got caught up there, so they lose a bit of the gained distance between the enemies.

Free-running up the rooftops again, Jack asked as he leap over an alley.

"Do you have a plan?"

"Get away from the crazy ice woman!"-Sora yelled her response.

That's an Assassin's plan, alright.

"Where's..."

"Chelsea's around here! She's getting us a way out right now!"

"So we just run around like headless chickens untils-"

"Yes! That's the plan! Got a better idea?!"

Jack slided forward, and in a graceful act of teamwork, assumed a boosting position, with Sora stepping right on his waiting hands, and so boosted up a ledge, with the girl soon offereing one of her hand to grab the other Assassin.

Esdeath watches that solid teamwork that most can't deny that it was incredibly fluent.

Is that his girlfriend?

It's highly possible...

But if they choose to die together, so be it.

"G-general!"-A soldier quickly reported-"Or supply depot was hit! The enemy slipped past us and are destroying our resources! Transportation, weapons, supplies! Even tamed danger beast was killed!"

"Assassins!"-Esdeath cursed.-"Repel the attack! Kill them!"

Watching the supply depots burn, Sora grinned.

"They've lost the ability to pursuit us far out of the city. If we loose track far enough, we'll get away!"

"Our brothers and sisters are doing a fine job. Look at this chaos! I don't think Esdeath's army had ever faced this before!"

A flare was fired a bit to their left.

"Chelsea's over there. Near the north gate!"

"Let's not keep her waiting, since that flare attracted alot of attention!"

"And what are you going to do about the pissed-off-ice-lady?"

"..."

"She won't give up chasing this time..."-Sora bit her lip.

"Then I'll..."

"Okay! I got an idea! We Assassins are familiar with the land, so if we escape to the woods, we'll have a better chance to lose them. Pietre is waiting around there anyway!"

"I'll be in your care then!"

Landed down the street, Jack found Chelsea stood in battle with a few guards.

Around them, dead guards proved how much she has improved as a fighter.

"Jack! Meet my new friends!"-Chelsea joked as she dodged a sword strike.

Waisted no time, Jack and Sora performed a sprinting assassination, helping Chelsea out.

Right after Jack got up, he and Chelsea embraced deeply, the girl pulling him into a passionate kiss.

THUMP!

However, the sound of Esdeath landing behind them cut that off.

The Empire's strongest stares at the couple dangerously, her eyes pupil narrowed like she just saw the one thing she hated most.

Well, I think she just did.

"Uh...I don't think she's very happy!"-Sora pulled out her twin dagger.

"Give me a momment!"-Apparently, Chelsea secured a carriage as a mean to escape.

But, with Esdeath staring down at them, that won't happen.

So at least they have to knock her down first.

"? Where's one of the hidden blade I gave you?"

"Ah...that girl's keeping the blade to modify it."-Chelsea laughed nervously.

Esdeath staring at her with all the evil she've got, afterall.

Jack quickly handed her one of his hiden blade, as he now goes with a hookblade-hidden blade combo.

"You."-Esdeath drew her rapier and pointed it at Chelsea.

However, her view was blocked, as two Assassins stood between them.

"I won't let you harm her, Esdeath!"-Jack declared.

The empire's strongest laughed sadistically.

Fueled by anger and hate, she's more powerful than ever.

That flying rage is going to make it tough.

But.

Jack and Sora isn't Master Assassins for nothing.

Jack pulled out the hooked axe and karambit, as both Assassins got in battle stance.

But, to everyone's surprise, Chelsea stepped forward.

Esdeath's eyes gleamed dangerously, as her gaze fell on the necklace Chelsea wore.

"My name is Chelsea. I'm Jack's girlfriend."-The headphone wearing girl declared, lolipop still in her mouth.-"He promised me that he would let go of you. And so far, he had held up to his words. So now, I won't stand behind him as he faces you. I'll face you along side him. Above anything, that proves to you I love him! And that I have the right to!"

"Chelsea..."

Esdeath created a wall of ice spears in response.

It honestly, looked like death.

She can't really saw Jack's expression.

But his voice gleamed with happiness and pride.

'So...he can even smile like that too...'

"I won't let you have Jack!"-Esdeath declared.-"I'll have you return him to me! That heart belongs with me, whether he likes it or not!"

"..."

Jack disapointedly lowered his head.

Chelsea just opens a smug grin.

Sora shooked her head with a slight smile.

Everyone gets it!

What was it? What is it that she is missing?

Even that white haired Assassin was mocking her!

With that, Esdeath roared, the wall of ice spears launched forward.

"Shamshir!"

Esdeath leaped to her side, dodging the swords blades as it cuts through a part of her ice spears wall.

"Well, it's a fine blade indeed."-Sora grinned as she held Shamshir.

"Reinforcement's coming in. Let's not stick around too long."-Jack voiced.

The two other girls nodded.

Sora started first, strafing forward with a vertical blow.

Esdeath blocked it deftly, the two quickly engaged in super speed sword fight.

'The girl's good. As fast as Jack.'

As Sora bended down to dodge her blow, Esdeath was surprised by Jack, as the male Assassin rolled over Sora's back, his hooked axe swinging down.

Leaped back to dodge the blow, Esdeath quickly raised herself up an ice ramp.

But Jack altered his grip, and at that point, Esdeath found she made a mistake.

That metal cestus!

The gloves collided with the ramp, shattering it, with Esdeath leaped back further.

Right as she landed, she was met with Chelsea, the girl wielding two hidden blades to fight her.

Although slower than Jack and Sora, Chelsea is much more accurate, and the use of her Gaea Foundation meant she can transform into things in order to dodge Esdeath's attack.

The Empire's strongest noticed that although Jack was looking for an opening, his eyes seemed to fill with pride.

Esdeath had no idea why she can see his eyes as they are under his menacing hood, but she just knew it.

A part of her was angered that she can't make him express that.

But a greater part was asking who should she blame for that.

Summoning ice spikes from the ground, she bit her lip as Chelsea gracefully performed a summersault backwards, landing in a crouching posture with one of her legs stretching out.

Jack would have complimented, if not for the tense atmostphere.

"She's too tough to take on like this...and we don't have time."-Chelsea panted slightly.

"..."-Jack quickly used his Eagle sense to locate opportunities.

Then, he nodded.

Sora and Chelsea acknowledge that.

All three strafed forward.

Esdeath clashes blades with Chelsea, creating an ice wall to block Sora off.

The Empire's strongest then kicked Chelsea away, the girl yelled out as the high heel boot hit a her stomach.

Right as the ice wall breaks, Esdeath prepared to counter kill Jack, but was met with...

A counter steal.

Jack used the hook blade, dodging Esdeath's rapier, and grabbed the ropedart with the hook.

Ripping the rope dart from her belt, it also loosen her skirt, but that's trivial.

Jack quickly flung the rope slightly, catching Esdeath's neck, with Sora quickly understanding his intention, and aid him by adding a few more turn to the rope.

"No one embraces death easily."

Jack quickly used his overide exceed, dodged Esdeath rapier, as she is getting tangled in the rope dart, as Sora kept throwing the loose rope at her.

The male Assassin leapt up a lift, quickly slung the rope dart over the pulleys, then tied the dart to the weight.

"Chelsea!"

The girl quickly recovered, and used the hidden blade to cut the rope securing the weigth.

All that in a sequence of only a few second.

And we all knows what happens.

Jack and the counter weight falls to the earth, and at the same time, Esdeath is lifted up, hang by the neck.

But, she's still thrashing about and will certainly get out in only a few seconds.

Not to mention she can still threw ice boulders at them.

Quickly recovering from the swift fall, Jack sweeped Chelsea off her feet and dashed for the carriage, Sora quickly following.

"That won't hold her long."

That roar from the ice queen proved his point.

"Then let's move!"-Sora and Jack quickly position themselves at the back, while Chelsea held the rein.

"!"

Esdeath threw an ice boulder at them.

Jack quickly punched the boulder with his metal cestus, destroying the threat, but then , the horses spurred, and the male Assassin fell off the carriage as it lunged forward.

"Jack!"-Both Chelsea and Sora cried out.

"I'm fine!"

They noticed he was hanging on a rope attached to the carriage.

"Watch out! Rocky roads!"

Jack hit a slight bump, and almost lost his grip, but he quickly regained his grip.

"Can't you slow down?!"

His question was answered by a few pursuiting carriage, with Esdeath on one of them.

Slowing down is not an option.

Jack quickly reeled the rope in as much as he could.

"Small stream!"

The male Assassin braces himself, as he is dragged through the stream.

"I'm fine! Worry about Esdeath!"

True enough, the general was throwing ice of all sort and size at them, creating spikes and the likes.

After reeled the rope in good enough, Jack grabbed onto the carriage again, with Sora offering him a hand.

Wordlessly, Jack pulled out his revolvers, as Sora uses a crossbow, as well as throwing knives.

"Hang on!"-Sora stopped him.-"Use these!"-She handed him a bunch of bombs.

"I don't think a smoke bomb would-"

"Join the next generation, southern Assassins!"-Sora threw the bomb, and it exploded on contact, letting loose an array of caltrops.

And, the line of carriage and horses behind them disperse.

"A hobby I've taken liking to."-Sora handed him some.-"Chelsea, make a hard left!"

Chelsea noticed a dirt road on the side, and steered the carriage in.

Jack threw a smoke bomb to make it hard for the enemies to follow them in. Some crashed into the treelines.

"...I think we lost them."-Sora saw no other pursuer.-"Becareful. This is a small dirt road along a cliff."

"...Un-?!"

Suddenly, huge shadow swooped in and grabbed Jack.

It was Esdeath and her dragon.

Ignoring the girls' cries, Esdeath lifted him high in the air and out the cliffs.

"Give it up, Es!"-Jack called out, but received no answer other than the dragon's grip tighten around him.

The Assassin quickly used his Eagle sense.

He saw something, and quickly whistled loudly.

Esdeath tensed up, as a great power seemed to have released itself as Jack whistled.

Bolting up, a dark fire griffin screeched as it heads for them.

Pietre. Jack's griffin.

The Dragon senses its enemy, as both creature stares at each other with killing intent.

An airborne battle is not the time to hold on to something.

As such, Pietre collided head on with the dragon, the dark creature stumbled and loosen it's grip on Jack.

"Holy-!"-The shock from it throws the Assassin abit off balance.

The griffin and the dragon began exchanging claws and bites.

Even Esdeath felt it was hard to maintain balance on top of this battle.

Then, Pietre clawed the dragon's neck, an effective attack that made it released Jack.

Getting the upperhand, Pietre rammed the dragon, knocking it into the cliffside.

Esdeath flung an ice boulder at the creature, that managed to halt it from it's track.

But her dragon has lost to much strength in the battle, and she was forced to land it.

Even more unexpected, the griffin did not try to reach it's owner, but flew away.

"Smart one."-It understands that Esdeath would try to follow it to it's master. Most tamed beasts can't do that.

Still, that means Jack is still in this western forest.

Esdeath opens a sadistic grin.

...

...

...

"I saw him fell down. We have to find him! The way he landed wasn't smooth."

"He's injured?"

"Likely."-Sora bit her lip.

When Jack was releashed, he was mommentary stunned, but quickly assess his position.

Below him is the dense forest, almost no way to perfom a leap of faith landing. And the trees make it impossible to perform a base jump.

So, he flipped to his back, and braces himself.

Chances of survival are low...

But like hell he is going to die here.

Crashing down, he broke several hard branches, then collided with a tough tree-trunk that cracked something in him.

But he continued to collied with branches before landing down a steep hillside, back first and into a tough yet, luckily, flat rock.

The first thing he did was cough.

He tasted iron in his mouth.

'This is a tough one...'

The pain was enormous, and after the adrenaline gives way, as the only thing surrounding him is the dark forest at night, that pain multiplies.

He didn't held it in and yelled out in pain, the groans and screams filled the silent night for a good 10 minutes before he can contain it.

He can still moved his body, so his spine was safe, thank god. The Pandemonium Cross took the blunt of that tree trunk and the landing.

But his left shoulder is dislocated, he felt a few ribs moving around painfully as he breathes in gasps. Fearing the ribs poking his lung, Jack tried to control his breathing, and coughed as lightly as he could. He also had a head injury, one he only felt later, as he saw blood seeping down his eyelids.

And he felt bruises all over his body, his heels felt like they may have cracked.

Using his bloody right hand, Jack reaches into the Pandemonium Cross and stumbly took out some medicines.

Taking the pain killers and sniffed the disgusting smelling salt, he found that it dulls the pain a bit. But he was coughing blood, so he was bleeding internally. If someone don't find him soon, and gives him proper medical aid...

He'll die.

That word hung over him.

He'll die...

He don't want to regret. Nor he felt like he should.

He had led a great life. He met great people, and lived for a great goal.

He saw things, good and bad, beautiful and ugly.

He met with soldiers, who cheered and laughed, enjoying their last gulp of beer together, before heading to their deaths.

He met great people who offered him salvation.

He met a young sailor that now, became a great man at sea.

He met a team of great people, great ideals, and they laughed together in peaceful times and cried like humans should when one is gone.

He met a country bumpkin who stepped up, and become a great hero.

And...he met a girl that he loves for no paticular reason. She's just that good of a fit for him.

"Chelsea..."

His vision blurs.

He tried to keep himself awake. Losing conciousness means death here.

He saw a blurry image of Chelsea face.

Jack smiled slightly.

He heard someone crying.

'I...can't...'

Tack.

'E-eh?'

He was seeing things right?

He was only thinking how Chelsea would be disappointed if he dies, right?

The bloodlost is getting to him, right?

So why...is it raining?

He stupidly used his Eagle Vision to check.

Chelsea face glowed in blue.

Another sound entered his ear.

"Don't...die out on me..."

"Eh...?!"-Suddenly, his strength returned, and he spat out a reply.

His vision clears.

He wanted to check!

"Chel...sea?"

She is.

She really is here.

Not an illusion, not his dying feelings...

"Seems like the wolf still hounds."-Sora snickered from the side.

"JACK!"-Chelsea pulled him into a deep hug, crying.-"I almost thought we lost you again! Idiot!"

"..."-Jack was forming a reply when...-"ARRRRRAGGHHH!"

He was still heavily injured.

"Sorry!"-Chelsea quickly, but gently releashed him.-"I'll heal you as best I can, so hang on!"

"..."

"Okay! Okay! Don't speak! Just stay awake! This is going to hurt, but endure it."

"Thanks..."

"..."

...

...

"Here. Drink this."-Sora offered.-"There's a stream near here. Esdeath and her troops are searching for us. So it's best we get out soon."

"Everytime I run away from that woman..."-Jack curses himself...-"How our brothers and sisters?"

"I don't know. We immediately went looking for you. The right decision, apparently."-Sora offered him a hand.-"Can you walk?"

"..."-Jack took it, and got to his feet.

He was being held standing by pain killers and band aids. It's obvious that he won't be doing anything acrobatic, but he can walk, with Chelsea and Sora aiding him.

"Don't move around too much. Your ribs won't heal so easily."

"I'll keep it in mind. Thanks, Chels."

"Okay, we're near a road, so it's best we move on. The search parties hasn't shown up here yet, but they soon will."

"Is Pietre coming?"

The sound of the griffin circling the skies can be heard.

All three smiled lightly.

But then, Sora's senses picked up something.

"An enemy!"-She unshealthed Shamshir.

"Wait wait! I mean you no harm!"

Sora had a good look at her...

She was in Imperial Army's uniform...

"Katie?"-Jack stumbly asked, lack of breath.

"Thanks for that. Your girlfriend would've made me into a pretty bloodstain if not."

"Ah...she's...here."-Jack weakly pointed at Chelsea.-"You escaped? It's not easy betraying Esdeath."

"Imagine the woman's fury when I explain it. Thankfully, her mind was busy hating someone else that she didn't have time to kill me. So I slipped away."

"...The Assassins could use some one like you. Would you care to join us?"-Sora asked.

"It's not like I was given a choice..."-Katie smiled-"But I'll be glad to be an Assassin."

Seeing everyone smiling lighten Jack's heart, even more so when Pietre came down, offering a sense of salvation and relief to him.

"Verana Viranetta falls. A neutral city destroyed, ravaged and raped. We have to end the empire before they kill more."-Sora sighed.

"We'll stop them. We must."-Jack nodded.

With this. He had severed his last ties with Esdeath.

He can regret all he can, but it was needed.

'The next time we face will be as enemies. And I won't take the name Edward into it.'

...