I grabbed the katana, trying to slowly pull it from my shoulder, but the blade wouldn’t move. “Damn it!” I hissed. The jolting pain that coursed through my shoulder, shot down my arm, like a spider weaving its own nest. It was painful, harrowing and downright annoying.

“TILT THE CAR!” I growled, The cabbie looked back, startled by my voice with gaping eyes and a crooked mouth. Scared? He should be. I had a damn sword lodged into my shoulder.

The cab shifted to the left, and inertia struck me immediately. Not the best kind in this situation, as the blade seeped further into my shoulder, making me wince and puff steam from my lips. “NO!” I snarled. “THE OTHER WAY!”

The cab twirled a full 360°, a barrel roll to be precise, slamming into the window, shattering the glass in tiny pieces.

The wind poured into the cab angrily, like a vacuum cleaner. The flapping noise of bypassing cars made me feel as if I were about to be sucked out of the cab, but I knew better.

Relief washed over my shoulder for a second, as I lay there dazed for three heartbeats, then I saw the blade seethe through the roof five more times, trying its best to stab me once more.

Not Today.

I punched a hole through the roof, hunting for my attacker's foot, but found nothing. The blade came down right in front of me, barely missing my skull and grazed my nose.

I fell back and kicked the roof. It would’ve been nice if I had a cybernetic leg, just for this occasion I thought bitterly. “I’M STILL PAYING FOR THIS CAR!” The cabbie cried out.

“YOUR INSURANCE WILL COVER IT!” I snapped back.

The cabbie shifted through traffic, tilting and swerving, trying his best not to collide with ongoing traffic.

A loud groan of scraping metal echoed from the roof, and I pinpointed where the noise came from. My attacker had lost their balance and had their fingers dug into the trunk, feet flapping like sails. “TILT IT SOME MORE!” I roared.

The car tilted and my assailant swung to the right. With my arm primed and ready, I loosed it through the window and missed big. The assailant sent their sword melting the steel frame of the back seat as if it were butter, making me dodge it as best I could.

Fool. I kicked the back windscreen off, hoping to knock this thing off. The thing tilted its body left. Then, in its moment of aggression bared its teeth and tossed itself in the air, flipping, with its freakiest strength which made the cab dip and landed on the roof with a loud boom. “Damn it!” I hissed, “That’s a fucking Reaver!”

An electronic hiss groaned behind me, drawing my attention. In the corner of my eye, I noticed the Reaver's sword stuck in the middle of the cab, exactly where the stabilizer was located, the Reaver then another electric charge through its sword, shorting out the flight stabilizer.

This isn’t my day.

The cab began to twirl slowly, as the engine began to rumble as if pissed off with us for treating it so badly. I reached out at the Reaver’s sword, but they pulled it free. I kicked the door in response and it dangled free.

The Reaver sent its sword through the roof once more, missing me entirely, as I was on the ground huddling, trying my best to avoid being stabbed.

I was successful, for a while, but then the blade changed from silver to orange and began melting the roof away, allowing it to seep further into the roof.

The blade grazed my leg, barely, but it was still painful. Not wanting to feel

it again, I sent my cybernetic arm through the door’s hinges, ripping it free.

As the door flew off, I heard it crash into oncoming cars that flew below. I shifted towards the door as I was met with the tip of the blade, appearing in my eyes in its full glory.

The cab tilted to a side, allowing me to barely escape unscathed. “YES THAT ITS... NOW JUST KEEP THIS STEADY!” I shouted, making my way to the roof. When I finally got on top, I knew for sure this was a bad idea.

I felt my fingers stiffen from the frosty air, whilst my ears and nose itched repeatedly. The Reaver was there kneeling, body enshrouded in armour, a full cyborg, unlike me.

The Reaver’s armour was more like a bodysuit that made it appear feminine, perfectly hugging what little curves it...or she had, with light glimmers radiating from the morning sun.

The body armour was black, with sleek lines embedded into its exterior, giving it a menacing appearance. The half-faced helm she wore had a clear visor, allowing me to her defiant eyes.

I surmised it was a Magnetic suit after I noticed, she wasn’t holding onto anything. This is a bad idea.

The Reaver’s sword penetrated the driver’s side. The cab driver groaned out and the Reaver yanked it free, blood seeping from its tip. She stood tall, eyes matching her stance. “WHY ARE YOU AFTER ME?” I growled but got no answer, only the sounds of the rumbling engines of floating cars passing us by.

The Reaver sprung onto me like a cat does a mouse. I ducked, sinking my hand into the roof, keeping the wind from blowing me away, then spun violently, kicking the Reaver in the chest. She huffed back, two steps. I couldn’t see her face, but I could tell she was smiling devilishly behind that mask of hers. But so was I.

The Skyscrapers of Bridge City disappeared in the blink of an eye, and I felt the Cab descend. We were now surrounded by two large pillars with the initials E.L.T, marked in red blinking lights, intense as ever.

Emergency Landing Tower.

The Reaver dashed towards me with her arm extended, blade outstretched to the fullest. I swerved right, barely avoiding and sank my knee into hers. I screamed internally. I tried sliding my hand across the room, giving myself leverage to spin around her, but it was no use.

The Reaver’s blade was now pointing at my chin as if she read my thoughts and knew what I had planned to do next. I flashed a grim smile and watched her cold blue eyes. She didn’t say anything, but as soon as her mouth moved I felt a red flash pulse into my eyes.

Motion Sensor.

I released my grip from holding the roof and felt G-Force from the howling winds push me off the cab, saving me from the Reaver’s fury.

I tasted the stale air of the ELT before it rushed through my lungs, filling it with dust and grime as I fell towards the landing strip. It’d been ages since I free dived from such heights, also my first without a parachute.

I was surrounded by red bricks, motion sensors and railings. The journey down was far longer than I hoped, but with the stale scent of the entire area penetrating my nose like a surgeon, I was over this fall, but my main concern was if the ELT had been serviced recently, As I’ve heard, some of them never even worked.

A string of red lights flared into my eyes once more. Then, a hiss of compressed air groaned beneath me. I peered down, watching an airbag explode from the panels beneath me and expanded quickly. Saved!

I landed smack dab in the middle of the airbag, with a loud buff of wind moaning through my ears. The airbag decompressed whilst smothering me whole.

Once the airbag settled, I caught sight of the cab trailing off to the left. I saw the Reaver standing at the back of the cab watching me. Possibly angry too.

The cab crashed into the wall with a loud boom. Purple foam exploded from the walls, wrapping itself around the cab, softening its blow on impact. Compact Foam.

Now that my worry for the cab driver was relieved, it was my next concern.

The Reaver walked away from the wreckage unscathed. She scraped her sword against the ground, sparks flying as she strutted towards me with such vigorous anger.

You’d swear I’d done something to her. Hell, I wanted nothing to do with something like her.

She stopped a few meters from me, and a wicked smile flashed against her face. She licked the blood that poured from her lips and tilted her head.

Menacing, I thought ruefully, but I’d fought worse things.

I sent my cybernetic arm through the airbag, deflating it in one go. Once it deflated, I pushed myself up from the ground, looking left and right, hoping to find some form of weapon to use to battle this monster.

On the right, were crumbled red bricks, with withering wet sand sitting next to untrimmed grass. On my left, was a pool of water, from the unleveled stature of the floor. Nothing I groaned to myself.

“We don’t have to do this Reaver!” I told the Cyborg.

“The Mangol would like a word, Kaiden Cypher,” The Reaver countered, in a vocoder-tone voice.

The Mangol? I thought flustered. Are you shitting me?

The Reaver’s helm was completely shattered. Her left sleeve was tattered, showing her pale white skin. Her eyes were blue but held a low white glow…demon-like. They also lacked emotion, which made my skin crawl, indefinitely. I’d seen fully enhanced Cyborgs before, but never a Reaver. Frightening.