Chapter 1040: The nightingale and the trickster (1)

'There are more people in this world that wanted him to shut his mouth rather than opening it. Some of the Crime Lords knows that the Broker possess an artifact that enables him to gain information. Some of them know what is called. Some of them is ignorant. The fact is, the secrets he kept is his insurance. If he started singing like a bird, then what do you think would happen?' Loki smirks and shakes his head

Sasha is silent again. Then she sighed and said

'You do not have to sacrifice yourself this much' 

Loki look at Nathan behind him and shakes his head. Then he looks back toward Sasha. And then he said

'You do not know the internal structure of the Crime Alliance. You needed someone in the inside. I have that someone. But that is not enough. I already outlined my plan. After this, if we were to meet each other, pretend that I have gone to the dark side. I would sell information to the Shadow Guards and I would sell some information to the Crime Alliance. A small sacrifice for a lot of big fish.'

Sasha sighed and then she said

'Would nothing I say convince you to do otherwise?' Loki shakes his head. She hesitates to say something but in the end, she said it anyway

'He had married Riana'

Loki smiles and said

'I know' Sasha eyebrows raised up. Clearly she was not expecting that answer from Loki. She frowned and then she said

'They had a daughter together'

'I also know that.' Sasha began to frown. If Loki knew all this….he would still kill the Broker? She thought to herself. The more she thought about it, the more she believes that Loki would not hesitate to do what he said he would do.

He is this determined? She muttered to herself. Sighing, she said

'What will you with those two?' Those two none other referred to Riana and her daughter

Loki reply was nonchalant as ever

'They have nothing to do with this. I would protect them. Do not mistake me, Sasha. This is not personal. This is simply a necessity driven by circumstances. The Book of Secrets is necessary for me to have a firm foothold in the Crime Alliance. And killing him and revealing some things about him to the Crime Lords is important if I were to sit at the High Table. They need to believe that I am one of them'

Sasha was not ready to give up so she said

'We could fake it'

'No, it has to be real' Loki said. Even as Loki and Sasha is talking the space and time around the area is still distorted. The energy is also in disarray.

Loki then said.

'You do not know the methods of the Crime Alliance. They have a girl who could reconstruct past scene. If I know them, and I do know them, when I present the news of the Broker death, they would want details. When that times comes, they would verify it'

Sasha frowned

'Then why are you revealing it right now? If what you said is true, someone will come here to reconstruct the scene. At that time, the scene of you and me talking would also be captured' Loki smiles and said

'While I do not have the full confidence to evade all of their detections, at least right now-' and he pointed toward the air around them '-with the energy in disarray, with time and space distorting, they would not capture what we are talking about. They might see glimpses but not the full conversation.'

'Always with the tricks' Sasha said. 

'But, I could not let you do this' Loki eyebrows raised up

'Oh. Even when it benefits you?'

Sasha then said

'I know all of the things you said. I thought about it while I was flying here. I thought about all of that. The consequences of trying to save the Broker. The benefit of having him gone. It would not be hard to scrub any of his involvement with the secret ops of the Shadow Guards. But…I made a promise to myself. I would not let you be this…evil man the world believes you to be'

Loki then chuckles loudly.

'Could it be that you…. are fond of me?'

Sasha shakes her head and simply said

'Do not speak nonsense. Sina loves you. I would not let you do this. And the broker is a good man. He is a changed man'

Sasha was trying to delay time as long as she could. But the words she said is not false. What she is saying right now dos come from her emotions.

'I have killed a lot of people, Loki. I've shot them, stabbed them, suffocated them, I kill them in variety of way and I did not regret. I live in a world of darkness full of monsters. Evil men and women that ravage the world with their evil. And I'll come for them in the dark of night and rob them of the only thing they care about, their life. I have no pity or mercy toward monsters. But there is one thing that I avoided doing in my job. And that is to try not to kill innocent'

Loki smiles and said

'The Broker is far from innocent.' Sasha nodded

'But, he is trying to be good. Tell me, Loki. Out of everyone that survives the hellish landscape after the Fall, the Fake World power struggle, the Weronian War, is anyone that survives all of these events…. innocent? Those who sat at the highest seat in the world right now, from President Hirate to our very own Death Monarch, which one of them did not spill blood of innocent whether accidentally or intentionally? 

'Playing towards my emotion. You have improved Sasha'

Loki then look at his left and right. He smiles and then made a grasping motion with his finger. The moment he did that a knife appears in his hand, formed from the green mist that still exist under his feet

Even though the green mist is scarce after creating that surge of energy, it is still around the house even though it is in low concentration

'Enough talking. I said all that needs to be said. I have told you what you needed to do' Sasha eyes narrowed. With that knife in Loki hands, Sasha knew that Loki is about to end the Broker life.

This time Sasha could no longer remains calm. 

'Why wait?' finally the question that Sasha wanted to ask come out from her mouth. Loki only smiles and then he spins toward his back.

The knife held tightly in his hand. It is clear that he wanted to stab the Broker behind him. Sasha also made her move.

With her speed, she kicked the ground. 

BOOOM! A supersonic explosion occurred as the ground that she had kicked were pulverized by the force of friction and speed.

In that brief moment, Sasha moves faster than lightning. And in that brief moment, she come in between Loki knife and the Broker unconscious body. 

She is now in front of Loki and she push Loki hand that was holding the knife away. Loki strengthen his hand and while that deflection did stop his knife from reaching its target, his hand was not pushed away.

BOOOM!

A blast of shockwave exploded as both of them is in a stalemate as the flow of time around them become normal. Just now, they fight in a hyper speed environment.

Only now that they stopped that the blast that was contained during their fight in hyper speed was unleashed to the world.

Loki smirks and then using his other hand, he balls up his fist and punches toward Sasha chin. The simple movement created sonic boom that distorts the air and soundwaves.

Both of them once again moves in super speed.

Sasha evade to the right, as the punch misses its target. 

The force of that punch shoot straight toward the sky, creating a powerful blast that clear up the sky and created another sonic boom in the sky

Sasha brought out her sword in that brief moment and began slashing toward Loki. 

Her slash splits apart the air in front of her and created a tear in space. Loki hand that was holding the knife was released.

He smiles as he saw the sword intent were flying toward him

He was not panicked as he mutters

'Shield' one rune come out from his left palm and turns into an illusory shield that block all of the sword intent. 

He moves out of the way and using that other hand he will finish what he has started. His knife once again about to attack the Broker when suddenly, his sure fire attack missed

In that brief moment when Loki was defending against the shield by throwing one of his rune to the sky, Sasha uses an illusory rope to tied itself around the Broker and pull him to her.

So, as Loki was trying to stab the Broker, Sasha pull the Broker towards her causing him to miss.       

Loki smiles as he kicks the ground underneath his feet. 

The entire ground shakes before it exploded.