Hunter gagged and growled as Sanders pinned his chest to the ground with his right foot. Annika jumped at him as she tried to make a tackle but ultimately failed in her attempt as Sanders swiftly backhanded her. He then returned his attention to Hunter who tiredly writhed beneath his foot.
"You two have been persistent and effective in delaying me," The Labrador admitted, "I'll give you full credit for that. But you can't keep the human from me. You'll tire out... or I'll break you," He then shrugged nonchalantly as he looked down at Hunter with a deadpan expression, "Whichever comes first."
Hunter growled as he tried to push Sanders' foot off his chest, but he was unable. Annika rose to her feet yet again and approached Sanders cautiously. She was sure she could get him off hunter if she could catch him off guard. Annika charged Sanders and slammed herself into his backside. Sanders stumbled forward but spun 'round to grab Annika by her throat and using their momentum he slammed her against a wall where he kept her pinned. Annika was dazed by the most recent attack and as she tried to get her bearings, Hunter sprung to his feet and hurried to his sister's aid. Just before he got to Sanders though, the dog released his sister and spun around to face him. Hunter put his arms up to defend himself but was too slow as Sanders managed to get a clean hit into the side of Hunter's snout. Hunter whimpered in pain and staggered backwards before Sanders grabbed him by the sleeve of his shirt and slung him up against the wall next to his sister. He then proceeded to pin the two foxes to the wall by their necks as he scowled at them. Neither one of the two were strong enough to brute force him off. Using his claws for traction and his center of gravity for leverage meant that the siblings were both fighting individually against Sanders' raw strength, weight, and his legs' grip against the floor.
"Looks like I'll have to break you," Sanders stated, "I'd have preferred to leave you be, but I can't afford to let you off this time."
"You can't afford what's coming to you," You interjected.
Sanders smirked as he turned his head towards you, "And what are you going to do to-"
"-That!" You grunted as a loud but dull metallic clank filled the air as a metal fist struck Sanders in the side of his head. The dog was thrown off of his feet and onto the ground, sliding a few yards before coming to a stop. You straightened yourself as you glowered at the canine as he got back to his feet.
"That was unexpected," Sanders mused as he massaged his jaw, "But not unwelcome. Your new toy is exactly what Mayor Deluma wants for herself. As of yet, she has been unable to understand the technology and make it work for herself. Yet, as she predicted, you seem to have no problem making it work. That said, I'm sure that you won't come quietly so first I'm going to-"
"-Yeah, I don't care," You stated flatly. Sanders quietly growled in response. "The first time you and I met, you nearly killed me. I've had nightmares about you and your employer."
Sanders nodded, "I admit, our first meeting was... regrettable."
"Regrettable? You've literally scared me for life!" You shouted. It's only our second time meeting and now you're hurting my family." The suit whirred and hummed as you put your arms up and spaced your feet in a standard boxing stance, "I don't want to find out what happens the third time we meet."
"Are you trying to threaten m-" Sanders was cut off as you smashed into him with your shoulder. He tumbled backwards onto his back but quickly got back to his feet. "You little-" Sanders was unable to finish his thought as he cut himself off to move his head out of the way of a dangerous right cross. Sanders grabbed your outstretched arm and flipped you over his shoulder. You slammed into the ground on your back. In one swift motion Sanders dropped down on top of you pinning your wrists to the ground as he straddled your torso. He brought his face inches away from the suit's faceplate. "I'm supposed to bring you in alive and in good health," Sanders started, "The best way for me to do that is if you come willingly and quietly, so I'm giving you one chance to do that before I have get rough and you get hurt."
You snorted indignantly at his offer, "You wouldn't be trying to bargain with me if you were sure you could take me by force." You slammed your head into Sanders' snout. The lab howled in pain as he jerked his body upright and instinctively brought a paw to his nose. You took the opportunity to slug him in the face with your free arm. Sanders was in a daze, but you didn't stop there. You reached up and warped your fingers around the back of his head before pulling his head down and into the ground beside your own. Sanders whimpered in pain as you rolled him off of yourself. The suit whirred and the servos buzzed as you got back on your feet.
Sanders was finally starting to recover, he glared at you in rage. His eyes filled with hate. He charged at you with his claws extended. You readied yourself for the impact. He slammed into the suit and began driving you back. You tried to hold your ground, but your feet couldn't find any traction as they slid backwards along the ground. It wasn't until you felt your back slam into a wall that you stopped. Sanders pounded your torso with his fist before slashing four clawed digits across what would've been your face. Your head was still wringing from the impact with the wall, but somewhere in the back of your mind you knew you needed to do something. You fired one of your fists into Sanders' ribcage. Your canine attacker flinched and winced at the sudden strike. You followed up with an uppercut. Your fist connected with your opponent's chin as he reeled backwards. He quickly got his bearings though and tried for another slash across your face. You ducked underneath the attack and came back up with another uppercut. As Sander tumbled backwards you grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him towards you driving your other fist into his gut. Sanders grabbed you by the throat and began repeatedly punching you in the face as he pushed you towards a wall. His fist worked like a jackhammer as the dull sound of bone striking metal echoed throughout the building. You felt your back bump into the wall behind you as he continued you pound the armor's faceplate. Finally, in a desperate attempt to make the attack stop, you caught his fist. You could hear the metal creaking and groaning as Sanders tried to choke you with his right hand while he tried to shake his left hand out of your grasp. You grabbed Sanders' throat with your left hand and began applying pressure.
Sanders flashed you a nasty smile as you heard the servos whining and the hydraulics in the arm straining, "You don't have the strength to choke me out."
"No?" You asked as you released his throat before deftly striking it with your fist. Sanders staggered backwards clutching his throat while staring at you in shock and disbelief while Annika and Hunter watched with bated breath.
Hunter looked over at Annika, "How powerful is that armor? I mean, there's no way Kiba should be able to stand up to that guy, right? We couldn't... and there were two of us."
"Maybe," Annika agreed as she stood up, "But Luna spent a lot of time training him. He was already fairly agile and had decent stamina before that, even by our standards. The armor is definitely a factor, but I don't think it's the only reason Kiba is doing as well as he is."
Sanders tried to pierce your chest piece with his claws. You jumped backwards to avoid his claw tips. However, Sanders followed you to smash his fist into your faceplate. You were dazed, but aware that a follow up attack would be coming. You quickly put your arms up to guard your face and sure enough, you felt a powerful strike against your forearms. You got your bearings soon after and slipped behind Sanders. You put the Labrador in a chokehold as you attempted to incapacitate him.
Hunter's eyes widened slightly as he watched you, "That's the same move he used on Luna."
Annika nodded, "But now he has the strength to make it more effective. That suit of his has evened the odds."
"But his training from Luna puts him out ahead of her goon," Hunter added with a pleased smirk.
"Without the advantage in strength or agility, Sanders doesn't really have a lot going for him anymore," Annika commented.
Sanders writhed, twisted, and shuddered as he tried to throw you off of his back before he passed out. Your feet were able to reach the ground, but only by your toes. It seemed that somehow, despite his panicked state he realized this. Sanders threw both of you off balance, smashing you between his back and the ground. The impact stunned you, forcing you to let go of his throat. Silvia's agent gasped for air as he gagged and hacked. You were able to recover in time to see Sanders coming at you with death in his eyes. He tried a combination attack; he threw a right cross. You dodged it. He slashed at your face, but you ducked. And then he leapt higher than you would have expected and kicked you square in the chest. You were knocked off your feet and onto your side. The sound of metal scraping against concrete echoed throughout the warehouse.
"You're giving me a real workout," Sanders admitted, "But it won't change the end result. How long do you honestly think you can keep this up?"
"Longer than you," You returned as you tried to stand but faltered. You noticed that you had a low battery warning flashing out of the corner of your left eye. That certainly explained why the suit was feeling heavier. Not to mention the fact that you were simply tired as well.
Sanders grinned at you, "Your body seems to be telling a different story human."
"I was worse off the first time we met, and I still got away. Without the suit I might add," You grunted as you tried to stand once more. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Annika and Hunter were creeping up on Sanders. Hunter made eye contact with you and nodded to Sanders as he approached him from behind.
"That may be," Sanders agreed, "But I think you'll agree that the situation is a bit different this time around. And this time, I'm going to hand deliver you to the mayor personally." He then took a couple of steps toward you, "You had a good run, but it's time to face the truth. It's over."
You grunted as you finally stood up, "Let's agree to disagree." Sanders glared at you and took two steps forward like a father who was going to throw his son beatdown of his life. But midway into his third step, Hunter jumped onto his back and locked his arms around his neck. Sanders began gagging once more and staggering backwards. Annika also jumped onto his back and pushed him forward so that he landed face first on the ground. You quickly joined the fray as well, making sure to keep his legs restricted while Annika focused on his arms. Unable to move or breathe, the canine finally passed out.
"That was pretty rough," Hunter sighed as he stood up.
Annika nodded, "It was no walk in the park, but that could have ended much worse for us."
"Yeah, don't think we would've pulled that off without you," Hunter agreed as he looked over at you.
You shrugged, "Let's call it even. I wouldn't have been around to help you if you hadn't helped me first."
Hunter grinned, "True."
"So?" Annika asked, "How is it?"
You looked down at yourself and shifted your arms experimentally, "It's... strange. But not in a bad way."
Hunter cocked his head, "Strange how?"
Before you could answer the sound of a slow clap reached your ears. All three of you turned to face the source of the noise. Your blood ran cold. Standing before you was Silvia Deluma.
"Well done," She congratulated, "Excellent teamwork. Though I'll admit, I'm particularly impressed with the human solo act. Honestly, I expected Sanders to crush you." The vixen shrugged, "Though I suppose I haven't quite learned to stop underestimating you yet. And lately, agent Sanders hasn't really been living up to expectations."
"Where's Luna?" You demanded.
Silvia shrugged, "She's occupied at the moment. I made sure that she, my brother and our cousin would be kept out of the way so that I could... collect my asset. After all, I saw you first."
As Silvia began stepping towards you a new presence revealed itself, "I'm sorry Mayor Deluma, but I'm afraid you have no claim here."
Silvia turned to her left to see a lion wearing a police vest and a navy-blue police uniform step out. His mane was neatly groomed while his eyes were shielded behind clear safety glasses. His form was... familiar.
"Russel?" You asked.
Hunter and Annika turned to you, "You know him?!" They asked in unison.
Silvia put a hand to her chin in thought, "I believe the initial pursuit report from the human's first night in my city mentioned something about an 'irate gym patron,'" She recalled, "That wouldn't have happened to be you, would it?"
Russel nodded, "I'm afraid so."
Silvia smiled, "I thought so. Tell me, how does a regular gym goer in my city end up as a special law enforcement team member in my brother's?"
Russel shrugged, "The details really don't concern you ma'am."
Silvia shrugged, "Perhaps you're right, but the human does."
Russel shook his head as he positioned himself in front of you, Hunter and Annika. "I respectfully ask that you withdraw and take your personnel with you."
Silvia placed a hand on her hip and cocked an eyebrow, "And if I don't?"
Russel frowned, "Then with the authority of mayor Malcolm Deluma and under the orders of Commander Luna Barker; I will have no choice but to arrest you, process you and escort you out of the city."