I knock on the door.
"Fragrance? You in there?"
I can hear the deadbolt unlock from the other side. The door cracks open.
"What do you want?"
"Just to talk."
"... Get the fuck out of here."
Fragrance slams the door shut. I pound on the door.
"I brought Dew!"
Silence, then the sound of a chain lock taken off its hook and tapping against the door frame. The door opens.
"Get in here."
I walk inside. Fragrance pokes his head out, making sure the streets are empty before shutting the door and setting all the locks.
"You're fucking crazy coming here! Everyone in town is looking for you!"
"I know. I won't stay long."
I drop the six-pack of Dew on the table and toss Fragrance a can. I pull out a Coke from my jacket pocket, pop off the bottle cap and sit down on the sofa.
"So... What do you want to talk about?"
"This town. Everyone here is a dolt."
"Yeah. The way they vote, it's like they're just asking to get killed off. Shame you're next on their shit-list."
"No, it's not that. They'd come after me either way."
I chuckle to myself.
"I'm surprised I lasted as long as I did. What do you think it is? Am I just that unlikable?"
"I think they're giving you too much credit. Remember that time you botched being Arbiter?"
"Counter shot me that time."
"Oh yeah, that's right... Oh well, you still fucked up."
"Fuck you."
We laugh. I let out a deep sigh.
"So what are you going to do now?"
"I dunno. Probably punch Penguin in the face when the mob finds me. He has a very punchable face."
"Sounds like a good plan to me."
"I just don't understand why they have to go after me. The evidence is right in their face. It's obviously-"
A sudden pounding at the door. Neo shouts out over the microphone.[HEADING=3][color]"WE KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE RANDM! COME OUT OR WE'LL COME IN!"[/color][/HEADING][sub][sub][sub]If you don't laugh at this, you're dead inside.[/sub][/sub][/sub]
I look out the window. The gang's all there.
"Shit! How did they know I was here?"
"Go through the backdoor."
I get up and rush to the back of the house. I barely have a chance to leave before hearing a crash in the living room. Fragrance shouts at me.
"I got this! Just go!"
He picks up a fire hydrant and sprays Ynnek and Schizzy as they climb through the window, bashing Schizzy in the head when he gets too close. He pulls down a bookshelf and seals off the window.
I step out back, but Sonora and Berenzen are already there waiting for me. I grab a cheap bottle of VODKA and take a swig. Berenzen rushes toward me. I smash the bottle over his head, covering him and Sonora in 80-proof. I hold up my lighter. They run. I toss a few more bottles and engulf the backyard in flames.
Diablo is crying in his grave.
I head back inside. Neo and element have bashed through the front door, but the cheap chain lock holds them out. I follow Fragrance as we run upstairs.
"I thought you were leaving!"
"I can't leave on high spirits!"
Nouw bursts through the wall. Penguin rushes up the stairs and slams me into the wall. My head bashes against a window, cracking the glass-pane. Link, Trilby, and Nouw are right behind him. Fragrance cracks Link in the gut with a baseball bat. He doubles over and crashes into Trilby and Nouw. They fall down the stairs.
I throw a wild right hook, but Penguin ducks and grabs me by the waist. I turn him around and set him up.
"This is for you!"
I smash Penguin's jaw with a right uppercut, sending him flying through the window.
Fragrance lights up a roll of firecrackers and throws them down the stairs. Flashes of light and loud noise drive everyone outside. I laugh at the carnage.
"I think we might just live through this!"
Like black ink, a ninja drops down from the shadows and sinks a knife into my heart. In one swift movement, he rips the dagger out of my ribcage and throws it at Fragrance.