Chapter 21

The Cristiano duo combat Mikhail's fighting prowess and Loretta is forced into action. Worick sends up a flare and when Nic finally intervenes, he is surprised by who he finds.

Full Synopsis
Chatter of "Bastard" being attacked goes on as Nic races to the establishment. As he is moving he notes the disgusting smell of Twilights blood with a devious grin. Meanwhile, outside of "Bastard", Erica finishes off a group of Twilights whilst inside, Marco and Galahad seriously pressure Mikhail in their fight. Mikhail then complains childishly for them to give him the tags back but Galahad says they were theirs to begin with. Mikhail then grins sinisterly and attacks Galahad but, blocking the attack, Marco intercedes, then uses his wrist wires and his greater experience to attempt to take the child down.

In another section of "Bastard" Loretta decides to take matters into her own hands, first retrieving a loaded gun and handing it to Alex for self-protection before moving to check on the current situation. When she sees her mutilated Twilight guards, of B and C ranks, Loretta comes to the conclusion that Mikhail was not working alone. Loretta hurries away and tells Alex to escape but Alex, reminded of her little brother as she watches Loretta run off, follows Loretta anyway.

Mikhail, having avoided Marco's attack, lands away on a ledge and Galahad frustratedly leaps upwards to attack with a double-fisted overhead smash. Despite the powerful strike not landing, Mikhail dodges his way directly into Marco's wires and is pinned to the ground with a knife held to his neck. As the Cristiano duo are about to deal with Mikhail, Erica arrives much to the child's delight. Mikhail tells on them to her and she agrees to help him, launching in to attack Marco.

Elsewhere Worick runs up to the top of a building and fires off a flare into the sky. Back inside "Bastard", Marco blocks Erica's sword with his wires but they are eventually cut through and he narrowly avoids being slashed. Galahad, noticing that Mikhail was now free to move, quickly dives in and takes a strong kick meant for Marco, sending him flying. Marco, distracted by Galahad being hit, is suddenly attacked by Erica, who cuts off the ring around his neck causing Marco to reach for it while Erica prepares to strike him down. Meanwhile different important residents of Ergastulum react to the flare that was sent up. Inside "Bastard" Mikhail picks up the ring, noticing it wasn't a tag and then realising that Marco wasn't a Twilight but actually a normal. An injured Marco angrily swipes the ring from Mikhail's fingers, cutting them in the process, causing the child to go psycho. However before Mikhail can strike Marco, he is swiped out of the way by Erica, who also deflects a series of bullets fired by Loretta. Erica immediately goes to cut Loretta down but Alex instinctively stands in front of the Cristiano Family leader to protect her. Just then, Nic makes a dynamic entrance, kicking Erica out of the way, pinning her to the ground and readying to stab her but stops when he realises that he recognises her.

In the Monroe Family mansion, Delico stares out of the window into the night.