ML C10, P2- "Desperate Tactics"

"Desperate Tactics" is the second Part of "Miracula Luxia" 's final Chapter. It was released on 04.06.2020.
== Plot ==
As the enemies get closer and closer, Jared, his allies and the mayor try to think of a way to defend their city from another attack which might be potentially devastating for all of them.
Whether they will be able to survive, though, remains to be seen.
== Story ==
Jared and his allies enter the mayor's office and see that he is talking to someone.
The man has his knife pointed at him.
The mayor is clearly scared.
"Yes. Yes, I understand that. I'll stop complaining."
The man nods.
"Very well. And you should keep your mouth shut about it. You hear me?"
The mayor nods.
"I... I will! I will!"
The man smirks.
"Still, I think that it's better if I hurt you a little bit before I take my leave."
He points his knife at the mayor's chest. The man gasps.
"Please. Please, do not do that. I beg you!"
The man grins.
"Not gonna happen. There will be a new leader and it will be Xehanort!"
As he is about to stab him, John steps forward and violently shoves the man away from the mayor as Annie checks him for any visible wounds.
She and Jared see that he has been severely beaten by the man which is possibly also the explanation why is so scared.
"Are you sure about what you said earlier, scum?!"- John says and draws his sword.
The two men engage in a fight, with the mysterious man gaining a huge advantage on John and pushing him to the ground.
"Well, if I can't take him out, then I will take you out!"- He says and tries to stab him.
Before he has the chance to do so, however, Jared grabs the back of his head from behind and repeatedly slams his face in a nearby wall.
After a while, he stops and confirms that the man is dead. He kicks his corpse just to be sure.
Yes. Still dead.
He helps John stand up and checks him out for any wounds.
"I... I'm fine. He just distracted me. That's all."- He says.
Jared nods and goes back to the mayor.
"Sir, who is this man? Why did he try to hurt you?"- Annie asks him.
The mayor shivers and looks at her, unable to say anything.
"Give him a break, Annie!"- Jared scolds her- "The man just had a near-death experience. He is not in a good condition at all!"
The mayor sighs.
"No, no. It's okay. My life just flashed before my eyes again."- He says.
"This... this man was sent by some old man named Xehanort as a part of his army. He was sent as an assassin. He wanted to kill me, but I persuaded him not to do so. It worked, although... not for very long."
He looks at Jared.
"Still, if you didn't come here, I would be dead now. So, thank you once again for saving me, Jared."
Jared nods and smiles.
"You're welcome, Mayor. And I will gladly do it again."
The mayor smiles and looks at a map on his desk. It is stuck on it with a small knife.
Jared removes the knife and inspects it. From the looks of it, there is nothing special about its design, but the eerie feeling that it once belonged to an evil person is more than enough to give Jared chills down his spine.
"Only someone who is very crafty will be able to efficiently use such a weapon."- He says to himself.
The mayor notices Jared's interest in both the knife and the map.
"When he began talking to me, the man pulled this map out of his pocket and placed it on the table, sticking the knife to it. Maybe it's important for something?"
Jared shrugs.
"Well, we won't know until we check it out!"- He says.
The five of them look at the map and notice that there are red "X"s marked on random spots of it.
Jared immediately realizes that this is a small map of Paris.
"It seems like this... Xehanort's forces are planning to attack certain spots in Paris and weaken its defenses, so their real force can easily wipe out what is left of them."
The mayor raises his eyebrow.
"How do you know that?"
Jared looks at the mayor seriously.
"Well, you know what they say: "X marks the spot". And there are two explanations for this. It could either be the location of a treasure. Or the place when an attack might happen. And I am absolutely sure that this is not a treasure map."
"Maybe they left secret treasure there?"- Akari says jokingly and giggles.
Jared looks at her coldly.
"Akari."- He says- "This is not the time to say such things."
Akari looks down sadly.
"Sorry. It won't happen again."- She says.
Jared nods.
"It is okay. You don't need to be sorry."
He turns back to the map and finds out that there are five "X"s on it.
"Well then. It seems like there will be five attacks happening."
He looks at his team.
"But... there are only four of us. So, where can we find a fifth ally?"
Suddenly, the mayor stands up and searches the mysterious man's corpse. He pulls out another small knife, as well as a hood.
He also takes the other small knife from the table.
"I can help, too!"- He says as he puts on the hood- "Even though it doesn't seem like it, I am able to fight!"
Annie raises her eyebrow.
"But mayor!"- She says, worried about him- "You're still shaken from this whole encounter. Don't you want to rest first?"
The mayor shakes his head.
"And all while my people in danger? No way am I going to let that happen!"
Jared nods.
"Very well, then. The mayor will help us. If he is willing to do so, I do not mind."
He looks at the map.
"Alright, team."- He says to his allies- "Pick your spots and go there. Each one of us will defend an individual spot from the attackers. Do you understand that?"
Everyone nods.
"Excellent. Then let us choose."
Jared picks the "X" which is the farthest out all of them, despite Annie's attempts to make him reconsider.
"I know, Annie."- He says to her- "It is a very desperate tactic, but it has to be done. Not all of us can travel to locations that are far away!"
Annie sighs.
"I'm just really worried about you, but... I probably shouldn't be that much. You're not my son. Or my little brother. You're a big man and I won't interfere."
Jared smiles.
"And that is why you are such a good friend of mine. You always understand me so well!"
Annie smiles and blushes. Meanwhile, Akari shrugs, clearly annoyed that Jared is flirting with her.
John nods.
"Jared's right. He is the most capable and resistant out of all five of us."
He turns to Jared.
"You go ahead and help the people at that spot. We will handle the rest."
Jared stares at John.
"Promise?"
John smiles.
"I pinky promise."
Jared pats his best friend on the back.
"Good luck. Keep them at bay while I am gone, alright?"
John nods.
"You got it, buddy. You can count on us, just like we count on you."
Jared smiles.
"Well, it is time for us to do our job- to protect the city from our enemies. Let's not waste anymore time. Onward, my friends!"
His four allies walk towards the door.
John stops for a second.
"Good luck, Jared."- He says while smiling.
"Good luck to you as well, John."- Jared responds, also smiling.
Having said what he wanted to say, John joins his allies in going outside.
Everyone leaves to get to their assigned spot. Except for Jared.
Instead of going outside, he approaches the corpse of the man he killed earlier and kneels to look at him.
"I don't know who you were."- He says- "But I won't let your allies, or your leader to harm the people I care about. If I have to, I will kill every single one of you, just like I killed you. I will not hesitate."
"Farewell."- He says and brings his corpse outside.
There, he uses a fireball to burn it. Once the bold deed is done, he looks ahead in the direction where he is supposed to go.
He looks at the ashes and reminds himself of how they used to belong to a living man not very long ago.
"Life is truly very cruel. Sometimes, you are forced to take someone's life away. You are forced to do so in order to protect the ones that you love. But... it shouldn't have ended up like this!"
"If only those people were more diplomatic, the outcome might... no, would have been different."- He says to himself, sighs, gets up and proceeds to walk towards the spot.