Pacifist

The phone rang.

A chilling, unnatural sound in the blood-soaked office.

Kairi, standing amid the shattered glass and the remnants of Sayuri Arakawa's final moments, narrowed her eyes. Her fingers, still damp with blood, twitched as she reached for the receiver.

The others had just finished their slaughter outside. Their footsteps were faint as they stepped over corpses, yet this single ring made everything feel still.

She picked it up. "…Who the fuck is this?"

A pause.

Then—Mariko's voice slithered through the speaker like a serpent.

"I expected you to take your time. But you're quicker than I thought… Pacifist."

Kairi's grip tightened. "Mariko Sarmiento."

A soft, breathy chuckle. "Oh? You know my name. I'm flattered."

Kairi cracked her neck. "Not hard to figure out. Only one person in that household had the balls to put up an actual fight. But I'm guessing you weren't at Mommy's side because you're busy wiping Kayd's ass, huh?"

Mariko's tone remained eerily calm. "Kayd is a god among insects. And you, little Pacifist, are a cockroach in his shadow."

Kairi snorted. "Says the glorified maid. You done? Or do you want me to list every way I'm going to kill you?"

Mariko hummed. "Oh, please do. I enjoy hearing delusions before I burn them to the ground."

Kairi's lips curled. "Fine. First, I'll carve that pretty little face open. Then, I'll break every finger on those dainty hands. After that? I'll make you beg, Mariko. Not for mercy—but for death."

Silence.

Then—Mariko sighed. "Cute. Very cute. But you made a mistake."

Kairi's fingers twitched. "Oh?"

Mariko's voice dropped to a whisper. "You answered the phone."

Kairi's eyes widened.

The moment she realized—BOOM.

The room exploded.

Glass. Flames. Debris.

Kairi was hurled backward, slamming into a desk as the force rocked the building. Smoke and fire erupted around her.

The phone—now a charred, twisted piece of metal—sizzled on the ground.

Mariko's laugh echoed from the receiver before it finally died.

Jin and the others burst into the room, weapons raised.

"Kairi!" Jin's voice was sharp. "Shit, are you—"

Kairi pushed herself up, coughing, wiping blood from her mouth. Her eyes burned with fury.

She looked at the wreckage, the shattered office, the flames licking the walls—

And then, she grinned.

"Oh… this bitch wants a war."

Kairi took a step forward, her head spinning. The rush of adrenaline was finally catching up to her—no, crashing down on her. Her vision blurred, colors bleeding into one another like a distorted painting.

The explosion had rattled her body, and now, everything felt distant.

Jin's voice. Celeste's urgent steps. The faint sounds of gunfire still echoing outside. All of it… fading.

She tried to take another step, but—her legs gave out.

The last thing she saw was Jin reaching for her.

Then, darkness.

Jin caught Kairi before she hit the ground.

"Shit!" His voice was sharp, filled with tension. "She's out—we need to move!"

Celeste and Aiko were already on edge, their eyes darting around the burning wreckage. The building groaned as its structure weakened—time was running out.

Kasumi clicked her tongue. "We'll deal with this later—Unknown, grab her other side!"

Unknown wordlessly stepped in, slinging Kairi's arm over his shoulder.

Jin took point. "Follow my lead. If you fuck up, you're dead."

They moved fast.

Darting through the collapsing hallways, dodging flaming debris, evading falling beams—every second counted.

They parkoured through the chaos, each movement precise and deadly. Aiko vaulted over a burning railing, Kasumi slid under a crumbling wall, Celeste flipped off a collapsing desk—

And then—the stairwell caved in.

Boom.

Smoke and rubble blocked their exit. No way down.

Jin's eyes scanned the room, mind racing—then he spotted it.

"We take the windows!"

Without hesitation, he smashed through the nearest window, shards of glass flying.

The city loomed below them.

The wind howled. It was a long drop—but they didn't plan on dropping.

Jin turned back. "You all ready?"

Kasumi smirked. "Born ready."

Unknown adjusted his grip on Kairi. "Let's move."

They leapt.

Glass shattered. Wind roared. The world blurred.

Jin landed first, rolling into a sprint on the rooftop below. Celeste and Aiko followed, flipping midair before touching down. Unknown carried Kairi effortlessly, barely losing speed.

Kasumi, the last one, landed with a perfect slide—just as the building behind them collapsed into an inferno.

The force of the explosion nearly knocked them off their feet.

Jin didn't look back. They had made it.

They reached the next rooftop, finally stopping.

Jin and Unknown gently laid Kairi down.

Celeste checked her pulse. "She's alive. Just out cold."

Kasumi exhaled, hands on her hips. "Well, that was a fucking mess."

Aiko let out a laugh, slightly breathless. "What? You didn't enjoy the exercise?"

Unknown simply cracked his neck. "We need to move before more of them show up."

Jin knelt beside Kairi, studying her unconscious face.

He had seen her fight through worse injuries and still keep going. But this?

This wasn't just exhaustion. This was different.

His expression darkened.

"She's gonna be pissed when she wakes up."

The rooftop was silent—but only for a moment.

Then came the sound of heels clicking against concrete.

Slow. Deliberate. Merciless.

Jin's body tensed. Celeste's fingers inched toward her gun. Kasumi licked her lips—anticipation curling into a dangerous smile. Unknown simply gripped his sword, his knuckles white against the hilt.

And there she was—Mariko Sarmiento.

Draped in a sleek, black maid uniform—stained only by a single streak of blood down her sleeve.

Behind her stood the remaining maid assassins—silent, like shadows brought to life. Their blank expressions were a perfect contrast to the wicked smirk on Mariko's face.

She stopped a few feet away, her cold, calculating eyes sweeping over the group.

Then, her gaze dropped to Kairi's unconscious body.

The smirk grew wider.

"How tragic," Mariko said softly, her voice like silk laced with venom. "The great Pacifist… reduced to dead weight."

Jin stepped forward, placing himself between Mariko and Kairi. His voice was calm—too calm.

"You want her?" His blade gleamed in the dim light. "You'll have to go through us first."

Mariko chuckled—a soft, lilting sound that didn't match the death in her eyes.

"Oh, Jin…" she purred. "I wasn't asking."

And then she moved.

Fast.

Too fast.

One second, she was standing still—the next, she was in front of Jin.

He barely blocked her dagger as it slashed toward his throat—their blades scraping with a screech of steel.

The force of her strike sent him skidding back.

Celeste fired—once, twice—but Mariko twisted midair, dodging the bullets effortlessly.

She landed beside Celeste and slammed an open palm into her ribs.

A Bajiquan technique.

Celeste staggered back, coughing blood.

"Shit!" Celeste gasped, clutching her side.

Kasumi lunged next, her katana a blur—aimed for Mariko's head.

But Mariko ducked at the last second, grabbing Kasumi's wrist and twisting it.

CRACK.

Kasumi grunted as Mariko's foot slammed into her stomach, sending her flying back.

Aiko darted in, daggers flashing—a blur of unpredictable, chaotic strikes.

But Mariko danced through the storm, countering every attack with surgical precision.

She caught Aiko's wrist mid-strike—then used her own momentum to spin her around and slam her face-first into the concrete.

Blood smeared across the rooftop.

Aiko's vision blurred for a second, her mouth filled with the taste of iron.

"What the hell—" she growled, staggering to her feet.

Mariko smiled. "Is this really the best Phantom Veil has to offer?"

Unknown finally moved—silent as a shadow.

He appeared behind Mariko—sword aimed at her neck.

But she anticipated it.

Mariko sidestepped, grabbing his wrist—using his momentum against him—and disarmed him in a blink.

His blade clattered to the ground.

Before he could react, Mariko's dagger was pressed against his throat.

The others froze—their strongest fighter, overpowered in seconds.

Mariko leaned in, her voice a whisper.

"You're quick."

Her smile sharpened.

"But I'm quicker."

Blood trickled from Unknown's neck as the blade nicked his skin.

Jin's voice cut through the tension.

"Let him go."

Mariko's eyes flicked to him—then to Kairi, still unconscious on the ground.

"Why would I?" she mused. "When I could kill all of you right now… and bring her head back to Kayd?"

Her voice dropped lower.

"Maybe I'll kill her first—make you watch."

The air grew heavier.

Jin's grip on his weapon tightened.

"Try it."

{END EPISODE}