《The Bartender at the End of the Universe》Ch 213: Blood on the Pavement
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Abraham whipped around a spine. Several attackers were knocked away. He had a big grin on his face, and seemed to be truly in his element.
Then, as he flung the impromptu weapon over his head, a hand caught it. He looked up, and it was the smiling man. Obscure and grinning as always. He was hanging over a beam with his feet hooked over the top.
"Now you...there's something about you that is...quite interesting." The smiling man said as he kept his hand firmly on the spine.
Abraham laughed as he yanked down on the spine, but the smiling man held firm. Despite how strongly Abraham pulled, he didn't budge from the beam.
Abraham raised an eyebrow as he stopped yanking down on the spine, but kept a firm grip on it. "Let me guess, my smile reminds you of yourself?" He said mockingly.
Before the smiling man could reply, Abraham pulled on the spine again. But this time he wasn't trying to pull the smiling man down. Instead, he jumped up. As he pulled down with his one hand, he cooked back his other hand. With a wild grin on his face, he punched up towards the hanging man.
The smiling man chuckled as he pulled the spine up himself. He easily moved to the side of Abraham's attack, and brought down his own fist through Abraham's chest and out the other side.
As his body was pierced, Abraham Let go of the spine. For a moment he seemed to be in shock, but then a wry smirk returned to his face as he reached up and actually grabbed the smiling man's arm that was piercing his chest. He tightened his grip and threw another punch aimed at the smiling man's shoulder.
CRACK!
The smiling man faltered. His smile came down to almost a neutral expression as his arm through Abraham went limp. But, after a brief moment, an even bigger smile than before replaced it.
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"I wonder how confident you'd be without those abilities?" The smiling man mocked as he unhooked his feet and sent both of them back to the ground.
Abraham smiled as he slammed his forearm down and broke the smiling man's elbow. "And what would you be without yours?"
"A tricky thing. Hitting something you can't actually see." Azrail walked up with a walking stick in his hand. "But you've found a way around that, haven't you?"
"Shut up." Abraham sneered as he aimed another punch for the smiling man's chest.
This time however, his fist hit nothing but air.
"Do you really think that's it? That's really the trick?" The smiling man said with a maniacal laugh. "Such a shallow guess. Though I suppose I shouldn't be so disappointed in lesser beings having lesser thoughts."
Azrail sighed and picked up his stick. He shook his head as he slapped it down against his hand. "Did my story mean nothing to you? Still you refuse to heed my warning, and look at you now."
WHACK!
With a quick step, Azrail was suddenly behind Abraham. He lifted the stick and hit Abraham in the back with it. The Shock from the strike seemed to pass straight through Abraham. It went into his chest, and up through the smiling man's arm.
Still, he smiled the whole time as it ended in his chest. An explosive force ruptured out and splatters of black ichor flew out in all directions. He faltered and seemed to fall down slightly as Abraham kept ahold of his broken arm.
Abraham frowned as he glared at Azrail. "Using people as tools now?"
"I will use whatever I must to redeem people...even to redeem haughty beasts like him." Azrail said proudly as he raised his stick and struck Abraham's back again.
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"Haha....hahahahahahaha! You're so sure of yourself. I...I can't stand it!" The smiling man guffawed as another burst of his black ichor flew out of his body. "You have so little to stand on, yet you're so confident!"
Azrail sighed and shook his head. "Nothing but the last defiant words of a condemned man."
"Time's up." Abraham frowned as he pulled the smiling man's arm out from his chest.
He dropped it and stumbled slightly as he regained his footing. "Darn it. You're big mouth distracted me."
"No! You fool!" Azrail cried. "Who knows if he'll fall into such a trap ever again! This was our best chance to save him!"
Abraham didn't look back at him, and just leaped away from the two of them.
The smiling man stayed on the ground as he burst into laughter. "Hahaha! Did you really think that's what you saw? A trap closed around me, not a battle of will between men?"
Azrail gripped his stick firmly. He raised it above his head and slammed it towards the smiling man. The stick slammed into his shoulder, and sunk into his obscured body. He frowned as he tried in vain to focus his eyes on the enemy in front of him.
"You should've listened to your smarter friend. He seems to have a good sense for these things." The smiling man mocked as he just knelt there. "Seems there's an entire fight going on in his head you can't see. How's it feel to realize how blind you truly are little ant?"
Azrail's breathing increased as he tried to hold back a glare. His knuckles turned white as he tightened his grip even more. "I am so small to you, how could you even hope to comprehend my motives?"
The smiling man just started to laugh as he grinned wider and wider. A shadow fell over both of them. In the time it took for Azrail to look up, the giant body of a certain worm was being slammed down towards them. At his tail end was the hollow king slamming him down while in a full suit with the smiling man's crumpled and obscured hat upon his head.
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