Avatara

Byte and Qwerty were the last line of defense. Knightmare-Grimm stepped over Yi's dead body. He walked towards them slowly, savouring the moment.

"Do you know what I love most boys?" he said. "It's the look of fear. The way you both look at me now gives me great joy. I too experienced feat the way both of you are now when I was a boy and I did not miss the lesson. Fear is the most motivating force in the world and those who create fear in others have the power."

"I don't fear you," Byte said. His voice shaking. The boy breathed unsteadily and looked faint.

"Byte, don't give in," said Qwerty. "We always knew something like this might happen when we formed Escape Key."

"Ah the denial, the fear of fear itself," said Knightmare-Grimm. "Even better."

**

Jazz's eyes opened. Everything looked a blur for a second. He could hear someone talking. Knightmare-Grimm. But he struggled to move. He'd been lucky to survive a direct blow from the monster probably because he was hit with low effort. The second time had face the enhanced Knightmare-Grimm and survived. Still, he was severely injured. He heaved himself over onto his back for a second to relieve pressure on his right side. He stared up at the ceiling as if hoping from divine guidance from above.

'I can barely move! But I must, I must save Grace. I can't fail her again.'

He gathered some strength again and exerted a burst of effort to push himself onto his injured left side. The pain on his left side, channeled through his neck and back, making him seize up. he grunted, he grimaced and gasped for breath. He took a second to compose himself but noticed one of Snow Globe's men looking at him.

It was the one who had been side kicked by Knighmare-Grimm several metres across the room. He laid on the ground on his side unable to move at all. He looked at Jazz as if he had been waiting an age for the policeman to turn over. His eyes had an intent but also a state of calm resignation. He knew he was going to die. He tried to talk to Jazz but blood seeped from his mouth instead.

"Hang in there," Jazz said, probably more as final comforting words for the man rather than any hope that he might survive. Jazz noticed something in the man's outstretched hand. The reason for his intent stare. He was trying to give Jazz something. The policeman took the object from him. It was a grenade. Glancing back at the man's face he noticed it had slackened, the eyes no longer moving and head tilted to the ground.

"Rest in peace mate. I'll be joining you on the other side soon if I try to use this," said Jazz.

He had never held a grenade before in his life but he knew the basic mechanics. Pull the safety pin which releases the main lever. He gripped the object in his hand, pushing against the floor hoping no to affect the safety pin as he applied force to the ground to push himself up. He wished he had stronger legs, but they had also been maimed as a result of Knightmare-Grimm's attack. This was all about heart now; how badly he wanted to stop Knightmare-Grimm. Courageous? Maybe. Either he gave a final stand now or all was lost. His companions would die. He could become another body for a Sheldrake experiment. Grace would die or be taken as a lifetime captive by Grimm. Maybe they would all die at this stage now anyway but if Grimm got his way, many more lives would be at risk. This was about the greater good now.

**

Knightmare-Grimm reached out to grab Grace but Qwerty drew her further back. In comparison, to his previous explosive movements, dispatching Jazz and Snow Globe's men with ease, he looked much more laboured now. He breathed heavily.

"Give her to me," he said with urgency.

"No," said Qwerty and Byte in unison. The first time the boys agreed on anything for a while.

Byte stood in front of Grace's body in the way.

"Byte, what are you doing!?" said Qwerty.

"You're going to have to kill me if you want to kill my friends," Byte said to Knightmare-Grimm.

Knightmare-Grimm laughed wearily.

"I have no time to waste, very well." He raised his left arm to hit Byte with a punch.

But suddenly he gripped his head with both hands afflicted with agonizing pain.

"Impossible," he said. "Impossible," he repeated. He staggered back. "This can't be happening, it's the monk doing this. Get out of my head," he said. "Nothing can stop me. I am in control here."

"What's going on?" said Byte to Qwerty.

"Don't know," said Qwerty. "Maybe he can't handle his body anymore. It is foreign tissue. It might be rejecting him."

"But he mentioned Yi," said Byte.

Knightmare-Grimm staggered a further few metres back.

"Let me go," he said. Except he sounded like he had the voice of a fifteen year old boy.

"That must be the personality of the kid called Knightmare that is also inside his personality," said Qwerty. Byte looked confused.

"Quick. Let's move their bodies further away, he's still close to us."

"You stupid boy," Knightmare-Grimm screamed. His shouting and clutching his head indicated an internal battle that neither Qwerty or Byte understood. But they did not hesitate, dragging Grace and Pixel's bodies further away.

Knightmare-Grimm smacked his own head several times. Except he was hitting his helmet, which was definitely a futile move. The monster pulled the helmet off and threw it on the ground, revealing that the skin and other tissue on the face of his host were falling off. Knightmare-Grimm continued to hit his own face and pulled some of the skin off. He turned to his right.

"Ahhh, I see you," he said. Pointing at Qwerty and Byte.

"Let's keep dragging them," said qwerty. "See how slow he is moving. If we drag them fast he won't catch us."

"But we might hurt their bodies," Byte said as he strained.

"There's nothing else we can do," said Qwerty. "We just have to hope that Grace and Pixel can still get out somehow."

"Look," said Byte. "Look across. That's Jazz."

"Damn that is Jazz," said Qwerty. "He's alive but he's gonna get himself killed."

"I think he is going to try to do the right thing. Keeping that monster distracted for longer," said Byte.

Knightmare-Grimm staggered in the direction of Qwerty and Byte with his arms out in front of him to help him maintain balance. Now more than ever, he looked like a Frankensteinian monster. The muscles of his head as well as the skull exposed beneath the flaps of skin hanging by a strip.

"You can't escape me," he screamed. "I am Knightmare---."

"Hey, hey, over here!"

Knightmare-Grimm turned to find Jazz stood opposite him several yards away.

"I thought I had killed you," Knightmare-Grimm mumbled.

Jazz looked broken. The left side looked like it could hardly move and he was leant more to his right side even though he was standing.

"I won't let you win Grimm," said Jazz.

"You sound very confident Jazz. But do you know what is happening right now in the Avatara system? Arrrrgh…" Knightmare-Grimm winced again from the pain in his head but then gathered himself again with heavy breathing.

"I'm taking over the soul of your beloved Grace. I will have her body altered to suit my d.e.s.i.r.es. Maybe I will make her b.o.o.b.s even bigger. Haha! And then I will consume what is left of the others. And--, and I will just have to finish you off now."

Jazz steadied himself. "Can't you see what I have in my hands mate?" he said.

Knightmare-Grimm's eyes widened with alarm.

"Yep," said Jazz. "That's a grenade. And you aren't wearing your helmet."

Knightmare-Grimm tried to run away but Jazz was too quick. He removed the safety pin with his left hand and held the lever fast with his right thumb. Realising due to his injury that he was going to fall over, he took aim quickly and threw the grenade.

The weapon flew through the air. Jazz did indeed fall over as he threw it but his years of being a sporty, athletic kid in school paid off, and his aim was true. The grenade was at the back of Knightmare-Grimm's head at the moment it exploded.