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18 - subway assault.

"Man, that guy can still keep himself sober even when he's drunk," Klein whispered, getting a nod from 7th Laura as a response.

Right at that moment, Alex blew a massive wave to push the guards away from the edge. Pointa threw a few grenades on the platform and 7th Laura leaped out, joining with Daniel to shoot all of them and blow the guards up.

"Go, go, go!" Arielle shouted as she took out a guard. As the group ran upstairs, she stayed behind with a few members of the President's army to keep others from approaching.

"You aren't coming?" Klein asked.

"These guys need a fighter to help them! You go first!"

"Alright, if you say so!"

The President stopped in front of a large group of guards the moment they stepped into one of the halls. He turned his hand around and opened a portal on the raid group's right, saying, "I'll take care of these ones. The facility is nothing more than just 3 hallways on top of each other. Get to the first and stop Cain."

As everyone ran through, Pointa (still drunk), Noelle, and Adele stood beside him.

"We'll support you, Mr. President," Noelle said, charging up her Plasma Domain.

"...Sometimes, I'm reminded that I shouldn't fight alone. Thank you."

With a smile on his face, the President led the charge against the guards.

Slashing through the ranks of enemies with blood weapons, Klein led the group as they charged through the long corridor. Numerous drones came their way, but the ranged fighters took them down.

"What's your killstreak, 7th Laura?" Daniel asked as they ran.

"2537. The Northern Amern Rebels stood no chance against me when I caught them."

"Goodness. I've hit at least a hundred targets, but never killed a single person."

"Well, you'll have to kill someone sooner or later."

"Were drones counted in that count?"

"With drones, it's about 11473." 7th Laura shot down a drone coming straight at them. "11474 now."

Wide-eyed, he readied his M4A1.

Back at the front, the electric girl blocked an attack for Justin. The last guard standing at the end of the corridor had an energy sword with him, capable of cutting through any material. He was about to slice through the girl's body when Klein wrapped the guard's arm with blood and pushed it to the ground, disarming him. Justin then came out from behind the girl and delivered a kick to the head while Vidya handed her a healing potion her mom had created before the battle.

"We can't stop here," she said. "Keep going."

Right then, Arielle appeared in front of them.

"The reinforcements arrived, and they're enough to replace me. So I came here," she said.

"Nice," Klein replied. "The trio's complete."

"What trio?"

"...Forget I said anything."

They ascended the stairs up to a door and came to a massive room nearly as big as the facility they broke into that time they rescued the girl. Every corner was empty, save for a spotlight shining on a man sitting atop a throne. Everyone there recognized the brown twin-tailed coat.

"Cain Johnson!" Alex shouted.

"Ah, I see you've found my lair. Congratulations."

"We're not here for praise," said Chizuru, stepping forward. "We're here to get you behind bars."

"I won't let you hurt other people!" Luna shouted, standing beside her.

"Too late," Cain said as he snapped his fingers. Just like that time during Operation Whitehole, both girls disappeared in an instant.

"Luna!" Arizu shouted, breaking her way to the front.

"Oh, you're the Sanraizu painter that joined their team. Unfortunately for you, I've figured out your every weakness."

With a wave of his hand, half their forces were wiped out, including Daniel, Justin, and Vidya.

"We can't hesitate now!" Klein shouted. "If you get stuck in Stasis, make sure to-"

"Too annoying."

"-use all your strength!"

"..?!"

Klein had disappeared, but only for a second. Arielle had used her A.D. Room on him and took him out right above Cain.

Smoke blew all over after the former used a Rage-Enhanced move. 7th Laura was about to shoot, but Arizu stopped her, saying, "He'll just erase your bullet. Save it."

"Good, good!"

Klein leaped back to the group as Cain swiped away all the smoke.

"Because of your efforts, I'll give you a first-hand experience of Infinity..."

"Crap! He's already finished it!" everyone thought at the same time.

"...by taking away ALL of you!"

He slammed his palm onto the floor, unleashing a wave of Fire, Ice, Light, and Wood. Part of the President's army was caught, but none were heavily injured. Arielle and the electric girl dashed in, but he took out 2 swords made of Light and Dark and started swinging them around, countering their attacks and preventing them from finding an opening. Not even Klein's sneak attack could hit him – it was already deflected before it even got close.

A wave of guards came from the door just as Cain put everyone into Stasis. He held up his arm as a signal for the guards to stay put and took away everyone in the room.

"You came to assist me, right?" he asked.

"Yes, sir."

"There's no need for that. I think-"

A guard was hit in the head by a plasma beam that grazed Cain's cheek.

"Ah, right. I forgot that the ex-President wasn't with them."

"For the last time," the President exclaimed, walking through a portal with mystic shields on his hands, "it's President, not ex-President."

"Haha, alright, ex-President, you wanna continue our fight from last time?"

"It's gonna be a 4-on-1, though."

"Who said it's a 4-on-1?"

Looking back, he saw the guards fighting with Pointa, Noelle, and Adele, leaving out the support option.

"It's a fair fight now!" the President shouted, a smile on his face as he prepared his Mystic Sorcery.

"Let's go all out, shall we?!" Cain exclaimed as he readied his Infinity.

"I haven't forgotten those days I was in hiding, Joey."

Cain had brought the President down with ease, the other 3 being stuck in Stasis.

"I didn't... think that your Infinity... would be complete."

"Hey, we're got different means of reaching our goal. You chose politics while I chose terror. Everything needs a polar opposite, doesn't it?"

"Heh... If you think I'm done..."

"Don't tell me you're gonna try a futile attack on me."

Slowly dragging his arm in a circle, the President said, "Pointa... Noelle... Adele... Save everyone."

He opened a large portal behind the three and dragged them through before closing it and falling unconscious.

"Ah, I must've been overthinking," Cain said, dismissing his guards. "The only way to beat them is by knowing their every move and countering it, while also throwing in a hint of unpredictability."

Throwing together screens that showed the entire facility he sent everyone to, he said, "You showed me a good fight, Joey Von Falkhein. If only our childhood was as fun as that."