28Guess who's baacckkk~!
Yup, it was my last day today so that means you guys get the next chapter! Squee! This summer is going to be interesting and a blast! Hope we can enjoy it together. Funny how I planned to say more words here and now I forgot.
Reviews
Christian Ape99: Um, from my memory no I don't think so. I'm sorry, I just couldn't find a place for them. As for the sequel, I could probably find something.. Won't know till we get there, right? And you, you keep up your kind fanship and friendship. Thank you.
And now, your featured...chapter presentation? Lolz.
Chapter 25: We're All Going To Die
This might have been the hardest decision a man must have to make in his life. No, not asking the girl of his dreams to have her hands in marriage, not trying to name and raise the kids, not how to handle the boss and the housing situation. No. This was something much, much worse.
Whether or not he should knock on the bedroom door.
It might not have seemed like the scariest thing in the world, but to Zeren it was either life or death.
"Either I wait now, or come back later." It was a risk he had to take. Now: He had the perfect time to talk with her, but he wasn't exactly 'self-prepared'. Later: He might have been a bit more prepared than he was at this moment, but something might happen and he might never find the right time or chance ever again. What was he going to do.
Before he even knew what happened, he heard someone speak. "Stop that knocking and go away." It was Shadow, which he was angry about, but it melted away quickly. Had he knocked? Huh, guess his body must of moved without him realizing it. Oh well, that just meant he had to keep pushing on. He couldn't back down now.
"Shadow, I need to come in. I have to speak with Zera." When Zeren stopped staring at his shoes and looked back to the door, he was face to chin with Shadow.
"You.." Shadow said it so slowly and coldly it made the younger boy shrink. Shadow had his full attention, and him in fear. "We may be friends Zeren, but I don't want you around here for quite some time. Do you understand me?" Shadow really looked serious. But guess what?
So was Zeren.
"I do. And I don't. Shadow, you know I have to go in there. This can not be left alone. I hope you would understand out of all of our friends here." Zeren said, knowing fully well what Shadow would do. Which was being in a moment of reminiscent. It gave Zeren a perfect opportunity to tip toe to look in the bedroom. He nearly shrieked.
The red on the bed and the floor only meant the guys blood. But when he saw that shiny gold dripping in certain places, he knew the girl was in trouble.
He didn't even hesitate to push Shadow down to the floorboards like an older brother would do to his little sister. But in a fun loving teasing way. This wasn't like that what so ever.
This was when the younger brother had enough of the older brother's crap and pretty much did the 'move bitch, get out my damn way' shove just to get to his goal. Shadow was staring at Zeren one moment, glaring at the ceiling the next.
"Zera. Zera! I know you don't want to speak with me right now, but we might not find another way time to even speak." Zeren whispered. He didn't know if she was ignoring him or actually sleeping but she needed to talk to him whether she wanted to or not.
"Zeren!" Was all it took to make him stop moving. But with that shout also came the hardest tackle that Zeren ever dealt with in his life. He swore he broke a tooth or two when his face met with the floor. Shadow had completely wrapped himself around the orange echidna. "Why would you do something so idiotic that it would likely get us both killed! You should-"
Flash! A light erupted from the doorway. Both males slowly turned their heads around to be horrified. A sight of a sneaky bat giggling with a blush and a phone. She had just taken a picture of them in a bit of a suggestive angle.
"I sometimes love being me. Be ready to pay me back when the time comes boys~" She snickered. Shadow didn't hesitate this time. He got off the kid and after his best friend.
"YOU SLIMY LITTLE-" Uh oh. Shadow just realized his own mistake. He had gotten off of Zeren. He left Zeren alone with Zera.
He let him get away.
"Zeren, don't you-" Too late. The door closed (more like slammed) in Shadow's face, and was locked instantly. "Chaos damn it..."
"I hate you sometimes, you know that bat?" Shadow sighed out as he looked at her. She just smiled back at his happy face.
"It's easy to hate me, hard to love me. You seem to change your mind a lot about me... It's quite cute to be honest." She started to chuckle when she saw the dark hedgehog's face. More importantly, his eyes. Her smiled vanished quickly. "Don't worry Hun, I'm sure nothing will happen in there." She tried to comfort her friend and even pat his shoulder. He shrugged her hand off of him.
"Be surprised bat, for that isn't what is concerning me at the moment..." He said quietly, now walking away from his best friend and headed for the others. Rouge slowly followed.
"Pay up kiddies, Rouge has won the bet, yet again." She took a dramatic bow in front of her male audience. Knuckles had a blank face while Joey looked frustrated.
"You couldn't have won already! What just happened in the last 10 minutes?" Joey pretty much didn't believe that the albino bat could have won so quickly. She grinned wickedly.
"Well~," She started, gaining everyone's attention. "I guess my boy here and Zeren were having a dispute. When I came to check on them, it was... a scene." She didn't have to look at Shadow to know that he was giving her quite the evil stare. She did love to mess with him and get away with it. "He chased after me only to realize that he just let the kid have a room, all to himself. With Zera."
"WHAT?! SHADOW HOW COULD YOU?!"
"Joey...If you yell at me just one more time, I will not hesitate to kill you." Was all Shadow said as he made his way to the kitchen for a drink. He really does love to drink things at the most random times, doesn't he...
"So Zeren..." Sonic decided to take the heat off of his obvious stressed out black and red hedgie friend. "is in there...alone, with the Zera that probably isn't well enough to confront him.. Something bad is going to happen, isn't it?" He asked innocently, but his eyes had full concern drinking in them.
"Pretty much." Everyone chorused. "Anything else blue dude?" Rouge tried getting a laugh from him, but 'blue dude' wasn't having none of that. She smirked cutely and snuggled her Knuckles.
"But I know I'll end up winning the bet. I never lose, Joey~." She called out sweetly that made Joey pale out. That woman was sick, everywhere.
"I guess it's just up to them what happens next." Espio mumbled to himself, but everyone around him heard it. Maybe he wanted them to... He glanced over his shoulder to look at where the hall was. Where the rooms were.
Where his student was.
XxX
"Why won't I do anything? I got what I needed didn't I?..." The poor teen echidna was lost. He was confused as to why his back was pressed against the door. He was finally alone with Zera again, and it looked for a good long while at that too. The perfect everything really.
Then why was he still on the other side of the room from the one he longed to be with?
"Because she can kill me within minutes, maybe even seconds... I sometimes don't know how I get myself in these type of situations..." He chuckled to himself, hoping if not praying that Zera really was asleep and couldn't hear him.
"You."Okay, so that goal was not accomplished. His head shot up to look at Zera. He regretted it automatically. She looked like a possessed zombie somehow. Wth the whole huge bandage on her side and her quills looking she dried them through a tornado. But it wasn't that that made her look like a servant of the undead.
It was her eyes. They were swirling with red... and black?
"You have some nerve showing... that face of yours to me..." Though her voice sounded like hell created it, it was slow...drugged... They must of drugged her to fix...what ever happened to her...
"Zera..." He actually stood straight with no fear in his body and started walking towards her. With every step he took she growled, louder and louder until he was at the foot of the bed. "Please, listen to me."
"Listen? LISTEN?! No! We're tired of listening to your stories. You keep lying...you keep making excuses to us... We don't like it, not at all...Every time we try getting close to you, something always happens and we get farther away from each other. I am one of those things. The rest is your stupidity."Why did this feel like deja vu to him? It should. This had happened before between the two. The dark voice that spoke out to him before...
You're that voice!" Zeren blurted out. Zera smiled...if Zera was even in there anymore...
"I still...find you amusing...and slow..." She chuckled, which honestly scared the crap out of him.
"I don't think you should be talkin' there hun. You can barely say a full sentence without slurring your words."
"You can laugh at us now...bu juss chu wai..." Zera suddenly looked more tired than a few seconds ago. What exactly did Shadow do to her? He inched closer, thinking it was the best if not the safest thing to do at this very moment.
"Wait until what my dear?" He tried to tease her, inching even closer towards her. Of course, he suddenly remembered how stupid his decisions were and where he usually ended up in them.
Right about now he was being choked to death by two hands that were surprisingly soft. Of course that wasn't the main idea here.
"Until we get out." Was the last thing she said before she slumped over into Zeren's lap. His breath caught in his throat. Face...Lap. He had to pray just to make sure that he didn't get a boner to poke at Zera's sweet innocent face. That would really screw his chances over with her. Gently he held her up so he could scoot his back against the wall so this wouldn't be so awkward for him. Then he laid her back on his lap, this time her face looking at him and her body in a more comfortable position for the both of them.
"Zera...Zera, are you alright?" Zeren said, using his thumb and for-finger to stroke the female the female hedgehog's cheek. Why was she so soft on the outside, yet so hardcore on the inside? But, he loved her that way anyway. "Zera, please be okay... I'm sorry that I upset you... I know I said some things that led to this, and I should be a man to own up to it. I will fix this in any and every way I can... I would do anything for you... Because I-" The words caught in his throat which made him cease all motions. He couldn't say it, could he? Those 3 special words can't just be said out loud so freely. They are not only sweet, but also dangerous. He knew he felt it, but he just couldn't say it...
"Do you...mean it?..." A groggy female voice spoke out Zeren's eyes froze over as he looked down. The silver eyes had returned. He couldn't help it and he still won't admit to it; he squealed and held the girl tightly in his arms.
"Oh Zera thank goodness you're okay! I won't let anything else happen between us or happen to you! I swear to you this!" He squeezed her even more then. She sounded like she couldn't breathe. Ohh... He released her, letting her head be back in its original place.
"Thanks... I guess..." She mumbled. She sounded fine now, though still faded. Did she remember what she, or that thing said to him?
"Zera, what is going on with us? With me and you?" He asked suddenly. He hadn't meant to say I cause he knew it might upset her, but things had to be said, or there would never be peace between them. He heard Zera groan lowly.
"I don't...I don't know..." He smiled slightly. She was using his excuse. He was so tempted to hug her and kiss her with a tease.
"Well, let's try to figure this out together. And we'll be truthful to each other, right? Not gonna stop short?" He asked her gently. She closed her eyes as if she was trying to think things over on the subject then opened her eyes with a frown.
"I'm sorry Zeren, but I'm not allowed to... I am forbidden.." Now the male echidna was frowning. She was what? Who or what said so?
"Zera this is me, and you know that I won't let this stand. Who said you can't speak?" He asked, being a bit more stern. He wasn't trying to scare her or make the situation worse, but they had to get to the bottom of this!
"Zeren, I want to tell you...but, I just can't do it..."
"Zera, yes you can! You are in control of you!"
"No, I'm not in control! Did you just not witness what had happened?! That wasn't me, that was-" She choked when she stopped. He wasn't letting her off so easily.
"Just say it Zera, say it out loud! Say who controls you." He demanded. Her face flushed with anger. How could he upset her with just those simple...ohh~
"Voice doesn't control me, no one does! He just says things to me and I don't follow through with it!" She blurted out, then instantly covered her mouth with her right hand. She tried getting up, but Zeren instantly pinned her down. He didn't care how bad it looked, they were finally starting to get somewhere. She tried struggling out of his hold, but it was useless. She was still weak and this gave him the best advantage ever.
"You thought I was going to let you get away so easily? Heh, how foolish of you..." He said it in such a way that the female blushed all over again. Why was it only him that made her do this type of crap?
"I-I wasn't-"
"Shhh." His breath fell at her lips. She was tempted to moan, but held everything in. "You can't lie to me any more Zera. I've got you now. So, let's answer some quick and painless questions, alright?"
She wanted to snap back at him, to say at least something, but she couldn't... She was stunned by how... luring his voice was towards her as she described it in the best was she could. She was under his spell as she nodded blankly.
"Good. First question: What is Voice exactly? Is he a soul trapped within your body?" Why was this happening to her? She kept hearing Voice whisper weird nothings. What did it want her to say and do? Besides losing control and leaving Zeren.
"Well,... and I'm not lying to you when I say this, but I don't exactly know what it is. Voice isn't a soul... I don't even know where he came from... It's just there to give me advice... I don't listen to it though, which leaves us in very... harsh arguments... Somehow, when my emotions are unstable, it can have a hold of me... That's what you saw. Voice and me combined... This is why you must not upset me. If I'm upset, then it gets upset, my little demonic guardian angel. Voice... hardly likes you, Zeren. And he especially doesn't want you to share this information with anyone else. Understand?" Zera said. Zeren didn't say anything for a good five minutes. She figured that he was done and tried getting up, but she was forced back down again.
"Oh no no sweetheart, I said questions not question. We are far from done here." He said huskily. She bit her bottom lip. What the hell was this side of Zeren? She was scared... yet oddly felt attracted to it. But she grunted in reply just to show that she wasn't being mushy here.
"Fine, continue."
"Excellent. Next question: What do you think Voice wants from you?"
"Easy. It wants me to lose control. It said there was a greater power in me that could do anything. I just need to lose myself and it will emerge. But I can't... I don't remember why, but I know that I can't let that happen and let let Voice get what it wants from me... You understand right?" She asked innocently. Zeren looked into those eyes he loved so much. He was searching through them. He cracked a smile when he saw what he wanted.
"I understand more than you can possibly imagine..." He said quietly, his head moving closer to hers. She held his gaze for a moment before glancing at his lips. She didn't even know why she did, but she did. Then her eyes looked at his chest. Since he always wore shirts, she never saw what was underneath. For a skinny guy, he was kind of muscular. Even his arms, had some build. She didn't realize she was staring so intently until Zeren chuckled.
"What?" She asked, blushing furiously. He chuckled again and shook his head.
"Nothing important. Next question: What did Voice mean by 'when we get out'? Are there more of those things like it inside of you?" Silence only greeted him. Zera had formed a frown. It would usually be a frown of sadness or anger, but it wasn't any of those: It was her confused frown.
"Voice said that? Really?..." She said it slowly, as if the medicine and the confusion were really trying to get her to sleep. She grunted a little, and suddenly Zeren felt guilty. He removed himself from above Zera and sat at her feet.
"Perhaps...you should get some more rest. I'm sorry if I pushed you too far... I'll come back later then, hopefully with the answer." He glanced over at Zera. She was curled up in a ball just like a tired kitten. She practically was. He chuckled a little as he stood up and leaned over her face.
"Sleep well, little one." And placed a small kiss on both of her cheeks, and finally her aching forehead. He got up, wiping himself down when he saw he was covered in a small coat of sweat. Hmm, guess that struggle session with Zera made him work more than he thought. He looked back at Zera just one more time once he reached the door. She looked asleep, so he closed the door gently.
Of course, the female hedgehog was anything but sleeping.
She was awake. Ok she was very tired, but what just happened kept her awake. She felt those... gestures that Zeren did on her face... But it wasn't the fact that it didn't disturb her as much as it did the first time.
It was the fact that where he did it, she suddenly felt...better. She suddenly coughed as she dug herself into the blankets and flipped over so she could now see the door.
"What... are you Zeren?" She barely whispered as her body decided to give out on her and lids shut to lock out eyes to the world in stressful sleep.
XxX
"So? How did it go? Be surprised, we actually couldn't hear what went on in there. It was quiet in a way... Too quiet..." Joey immediately zoomed in on his little brother. Don't be surprised that Joey had sniffed his brother like he was a chocolate cake. After a minute, he stopped the circling and sniffing. "Well, you don't smell like sex so-"
"DUDE!" Zeren exclaimed, himself blushing like an idiot. "I told you I would never take advantage of Zera like that. I'm not as stupid as you are or you'll all presume I am." Luckily, Shadow wasn't there to give Zeren a good talking to... or worse.
"That's cute and all, but I know that's not what you mean." Rouge said, her voice a bit... different than the usual sly and mocking tone. Zeren looked at her, but she was looking over at the door. "But, I also know who won that bet! So you really have to pay me now Joe!" Rouge smiled when she saw Joey's unhappy face.
"Oh wow would you look at that, I think my wallet was left in my other pants." He grumbled. Rouge smiled even more evilly.
"My my but dearie, you aren't even wearing pants. And I know that you never leave your sweet little wallet all by her lonesome self. So, what's up then kiddie?"
"Shut your pie hole bat! I get it, I get it." The dark red echidna said, reaching into his dreadlocks. He dug around for a moment, and came up with nothing. "What the-? Where's my-"
"Oh yea, I already took the liberty of paying myself. Here's your wallet back Hun." She threw him his wallet, which was little to nothing.
"Rouge... We agreed 10 bucks did we not? So why is my wallet half as empty to when it was full?" He tried not to attack Rouge right then and there.
"I remembered that you owed me money. You're welcome, by the way!" Rouge said, waving her bills away.
"Wait a minute... Were you guys betting on my life again? You guys are suppose to care about me last time I checked! It's in the job description!" Zeren yelled. That caused the game Rouge and Joey were in to be paused.
"Bro, of course we care about you!"
"We just want what's best for you; for you to be happy." Rouge joined in. Zeren was still frowning away. He sat on the couch with Tails and Sonic, now ignoring his only sibling and his friend. What else could be said about the situation?
"Um...Is Zera feeling well Zeren?" Tails tried. Zeren looked at Tails and nodded slowly.
"Yea... She's fine. I don't know what kind of antibiotics or drugs they gave Zera, but she's doing great. She's resting now, so we should leave her alone." He said, now remembering all the mixed blood on the floor and bed. He was still a bit confused at how he didn't get any blood on his body.
"You are still in deep trouble for disobeying me, Zeren." Shadow's voice came up behind Zeren. He wanted to scream but decided against it. He didn't want to wake up Zera and Voice after all. He would ask those two questions that now dug into his brain.
"Um, sorry Shadow. But you know that it had to be-"
"I honestly don't care. I told everyone here to not go into Zera's room for any reason, and they did. But you, I warned you and you didn't listen to me..." Shadow said. It came out more like a growl. "Should this happen again, you will be punished. Do I make myself clear?" Shadow asked. Zeren dared to look back at Shadow dead in the eyes.
"Crystal." Was all he said. "Knuckles, let's go." His gaze never broke from Shadow's. Knuckles look at them in confusion.
"Me? Why?" He asked.
"You know why, should I be reminding you about the conversation we had earlier?" Now Zeren looked away from Shadow and at the elder echidna. Knuckles didn't like this situation. He glanced at Shadow, who only gave a short nod before walking back into the kitchen. He's always in the kitchen. "Oh, alright...Let's get going then..." Knuckles sounded tired and defeated as he left Rouge's side. Zeren got up as well and the duo walked out the door.
"We'll be back in a few hours. Should there be a problem with the female hedgehog or trouble... give me the best damn shout or whistle you could make..." And the guardian shut the door without any other words.
"Everyone is creating secrets around each other... And I, if not all of us know the cause of all this: Zera..."
XxX
"Get up you worthless creature!" Zera felt Voice's headache making yelling shake within her. No no... now was the time for sleep. Zera crushed the pillow on top of her head. "Foolish child! I'm not teasing you this time! This is serious! Wake up!" Zera may not like this thing, but it does know when things are wrong. She slowly opened her eyes and removed the pillow. How long had she been out? A couple minutes? An hour? When she started to look around the area, she was surprised to see the blood wave washed away on the floor and even some new sheets on the bed. Even her clothes were new! What exactly happened while she was out?
"Who... did all of this?" She questioned Voice. It huffed at her in annoyance.
"If you could see what lays on the object next to this bed, you'll know who."She frowned at how hostile Voice was snapping at her. So rude when someone just wakes up from a nap. She leaned over to see a small note next to a tray pilled up with fruit. Her stomach grumbled when her eyes saw the food.
Dear Zera,
I couldn't stand to see all that blood around you so I decided to clean it all up. And I figured that you would want to nibble on something once you wake up, so me and Knuckles went to go look for some food for you. Just shout out if you need me. Get better.
From, Zeren.
"His boyish handwriting is most unpleasant for a man his age, don't you agree Zera?" Voice said in full mockery. Zera didn't even hear it. She was to busy smiling slightly. He does care, he really really does care about her!
"You were wrong Voice... he does care about me, he would never betray me or hurt me on purpose... He's alright.." She said meekly. Voice hissed in anger.
"Fool! He is still hiding things from you! Have you forgotten how that made you feel?" Voice played back the memory of how it felt when the act came down. Zera could still grin through it all.
"And I'm hiding things from him. Some things can be said, some things can't be. It only makes it fair if both people are like this in a way, doesn't it?" Her classic smirk was on her face.
"Just wait and see what happens between you two. Mark my words." Voice said menacingly as it disappeared. Zera rolled her eyes as she grabbed a green apple as she tried to get up. She slowly walked to the door and set foot in the hall.
"Why is it so quiet out here?" Zera thought. The eeriness of the silence took toll. It was as if everyone had deserted the house of the guardian. "Voice did warn me...but, I have that small circle of faith..." She grew nervous with every step she took. It was only when she reached the living room that she let out a sigh of relief.
Espio had been sitting on the floor meditating peacefully. She almost felt like hugging him. Almost did when she walked and sat next to him. Almost. He opened his eyes to be a bit shocked at the site of his student.
"Zera! You're awake!" He studied her quickly with a swift motion of his eyes. "How are you feeling?"
"Better actually." She took another big bite out of the sweet apple. "I don't want to risk any damage to myself so I won't heal myself until I'm 100% positive that I'm in full power." She then studied the room more clearly. It was a dark shade of blue outside. She must of slept longer than she thought. The kitchen was a mess, void of any sign of recovery. It was also void of people. "Where are the others?" She asked her sensei as she munched on her dinner.
"To be honest, I wasn't even paying close attention as to what they were discussing. All I know is that I was here to watch over you, Zeren and Knuckles went back out again to do... echidna things I presume, and Sonic and Shadow went out to race. I have no idea what or where the others are and doing."
"Tell him it's time to go! We must leave!" Voice sounded frantic. Zera finally finished her apple. Great, so Voice still had to be a worry wart.
"Do you know when the others will return?" She said instead. She did that to not only piss Voice off, but she actually wanted to talk to Zeren, and Shadow. Espio shrugged.
"Who knows. This is a very big island after all. You can never tell." He glanced at her. "Why would you ask? Are you sure you're alright? Do I need to get you something?" He started to edge her towards the one couch. "I think you should lay down on the couch and-"
"Espio, Espio, I'm fine really." She chuckled. "Espio sure is worried about me, and nothing bad has even happened to us! He's acting like a... um, what's the word... he's acting like..." She glanced at him with sad eyes when realization struck her. "Like a father...The one I never had and or possibly met nor remember..."
As if on cue, Knuckles burst through the door making Zera jump slightly.
"Knuckles, what's wrong? Where's-"
"Outside, waiting for us. Come on, we have to get going." He clasped Zera's hand into his. Espio, of course, needed more information before actually moving. He held Zera's other hand quickly before Knuckles could run.
"Why? Knuckles, what is going on?" That was when a gunshot rang around them. Knuckles hissed in anger.
"Damn it they did follow us. We need to go, now!" Knuckles grabbed Zera full on his arms. "Zera, follow me, quickly. Espio, bring Zeren inside. He doesn't need a bullet through him anytime soon." Espio, now knowing that this isn't the time for questions. He rushed to the door, opened it, and pulled a tired looking orange echidna in with him.
"What is going on Knuckles? Why-oi!" Knuckles got a better hold on Zera as he forced them to walk past the rooms and at the end of the hall.
"I'll explain on the way. We just need to get out of here." He looked her in her eyes. "We mainly need to get you out of here." And lifted the wall to reveal a secret tunnel. "Go down now, we'll meet you down over there in a second." Knuckles gave her a gentle push down the few steps that led to the tunnel. She looked at him, but he had already left to get the others.
"Okay...this is really strange..." Zera thought as she walked. It was dark, but thanks to her eyes she was okay. It was musky, as if the that path hasn't been used in awhile. "I know who Knuckles is talking about now: The Guardian Unit of Nations. So they did find me... I realized what Voice meant. How foolish of me..." She rounded a corner and stopped. More like froze. "They're all out there... I can't... face them... Guys, you better get down here now."
"Zera!" Speak of the devil, Zeren ran over to Zera and scooped her up in his arms. "I'm so glad that you're alright... You feel well, right?" He placed his forehead against hers, which made her blush. "Good, you don't have a fever. We need to get going. Knuckles and Es are right behind us. Follow me." He took her hand and they ran down the tunnels together. Zera couldn't help but feel nervous.
"G.U.N is here, and we're all split up. We're traveling right below their feet, that I can sense. Our chances of winning this battle... is a very large zero. They're going to die, we're going to die, I'm going to die... But as always, not without a good damn fight..." Her grip on Zeren's hand tightened, which he returned a heartbeat later.
"Okay we're at the exit. We need to be careful for we don't know if they're up there waiting for us." He saw Zera give him a look. "Okay, so we sense that they're up there...Just...please wait here... I'm going to go scout the area." And he crouched down to meet the hole which was guarded by some bushes. He moved one of them as he crawled out of the hole and into the darkness of the evening. Zera was pacing back and forth until Knuckles and Espio joined her side.
"Good you two made-wait, where's Zeren?" Knuckles said once he caught his breath.
"He just left to search the area for clearance... Of course, that was 2 minutes ago..." Her voice was stained with worry and she couldn't wash it off. It was humiliating. Thankfully, Espio noticed and decided not to push it any further.
A bird like whistle soon filled their ears.
"Zeren's signal. We're in the clear, let's go." Zera crawled out first, starting to feel weird in a small corner though there was an opening. She saw only trees, darkness, and Zeren.
"And what, pray tell, is our plan of action?" Zera said as she joined to Zeren's side. He just kept looking out into the distance. Like he was watching something, waiting for something to happen. "Maybe I can sense what he's trying to see." Then again, she didn't want to waste what grave amount of energy she had left.
"LOOK OUT!" Zeren pushed her down just in time before it rained bullets on them. Zera made it out without a scratch. Zeren...
"ZEREN!" She couldn't help but scream. She didn't care if the enemy was shooting them down and surrounding them. Zeren was down. She dragged him into her hiding place, the firing now ceased. She scanned him over in panic and bit her lip when she saw where he was shot.
2 holes in his leg, and one in his lower torso.
"Oh chaos Zeren, why did you have to go and be a hero for me?" She whispered with sadness as she stroked his face. He was so soft...yet so cold. "Zeren, you idiot... You said you wouldn't leave me, especially like this..." She saw Espio and Knuckles sitting uncomfortably on the ground near the hole. Eyes wide and full of the feeling she was feeling right about now.
"I warned you child, your attachment to him has doomed us all... More of him than us thankfully, but was still right."Voice was mocking her. She was use to it by now so it barely phased her. But to mock Zeren's death, more or less anyone's death was absolute.
"BULLSHIT!" Zera screamed. She placed Zeren on the ground before going back into the opening. It was obvious to everyone that she was pissed beyond compare. But her eyes have gone past that.
They were as black as the night.
"You all have some nerve coming after me like this, killing an innocent teenage boy in the process." Her loud chuckle didn't even sound like a chuckle at all. "And you all call me a monster. Now I may act like one from time to time, but you all have true hearts of monsters, no care or mercy in your dark and hollow hearts."
"Project 203, please turn yourself in. If you don't, we will have no other choice but to use force." Her ear twitched at the familiarity of that voice. Where has she heard...this voice..?
"Oh, dear Merlinda, it's you. You should not worry, I won't hurt you. I know what your intentions are and how you feel about me. The others won't allow me too either even if I wanted to." She paused. "But the rest of you." She growled, looking about ready to pounce like a cougar and its prey. "Need to be eliminated. I know what you just did and I did not like it!" She shouted just as she jumped right at the soldiers and Merlinda hiding amongst the bushes and trees. She ripped the gun out of the soldier's hand, along with his arms. Blood poured out everywhere, screams now filling the empty island.
"DAMN IT!" Espio cursed as he and Knuckles crawled over to the limp body of Zeren.
"Is he really?..." Knuckles couldn't say what they were thinking. Chaos knows what Joey would do if he caught wind of this and the Lord knows how Jackie would feel.
"No...he's alive! Just rarely, but he will live to care for Zera another day..." He looked away from Zeren's pale face to Knuckles' relieved one. "You don't think..." Knuckles caught on quickly.
"Espio, your guess is as good as mine. If Zeren will allow to show us it, then we'll know. Until then, we need to get him help."
"But where and how? G.U.N might as well have this island completely surrounded. They may have raided your house by now. Face it, we're trapped. We can't get Zeren help and Zera..." They looked over at the girl who was viciously murdering the flood of G.U.N soldiers. "has lost it... I'm going to be honest with you here Guardian. I think we have-"
Suddenly a roar bellowed. It wasn't that far away from them. If anything...The thundering foot steps told them that whatever had roared was coming, and was coming pretty darn fast. The creature came. Made of water and eyes that glowed with hatred. It roared again as it used its hand to smack down and crush the remaining men. Merlinda stood there, mouth agape, and still unharmed.
"Won?"
"Chaos? What are you doing here? How are you here? Is Tikal with you?" The guardian asked the creature of water. Of course he didn't get a verbal response since Chaos doesn't really speak. He pointed to Zera where a glowing orange ball was floating around her. He sighed. Leave it to Tikal to be curious. Chaos then looked at Zeren. Knuckles followed his gaze. "Oh yea, he's not dead... Just badly wounded. Maybe Tikal could heal him."
'What can I do?" The ball had just joined in with the others. Zera stumbled alongside her. Blood was splattered on most of her body. Her eyes weren't as dark as they were before. "Oh dear, poor Zeren. Is he-"
"He's dead... There isn't anything you can do, more or less than we could have tried to do for him..." Zera grumbled as she came to Zeren's side, stroking the soft cold face yet again. "We should just keep going to hopefully save the others from the same horrid fate as him... Especially since Merlinda probably ran to warn the others of us and my capture failing..." Zera stumbled as she tried to move forward, somehow Chaos walking behind her.
"Espio, why didn't you tell Zera about Zeren still being on the living plain?!" Knuckles said, once Zera and Chaos was a bit ahead of them. He was still whispering just in case. Espio glanced at the red echidna.
"It may not sound like it, but it just might have been a safer place if we hadn't told Zera about Zeren's health. You saw how she acted when she thought he had died. Now imagine her embarrassed if she found out he is still alive. She'd be ten times worse than what just happened. She could destroy all of Angel Island if she wanted to..." Espio's eyes laid onto the girl that walked along side... the water being. "By the way Tikal, how did you two come to find us? I'm quite curious."
"Oh, really? Well that's funny you should ask. Me and Chaos were bored sitting in the Master Emerald so we came out for a stretch. And when we did, I felt a child of Chaos calling to me for help. Unable to ignore the call, we headed towards it. As we approached closer, Chaos saw all of the unwelcomed guests on the island and took action. He still isn't happy about it. That's when we found you guys."
"But... I didn't call for you guys... And if it wasn't me then- Shadow was right..."
"what are you talking about Knuckles? What was Shadow right about?"
"Zera... She's connected like Sonic, Shadow, and I are... When we tried fixing back up, Shadow said he sensed Chaos energy deep inside her. It was faint yet powerful. Like it was just locked away and fading away..."
"Locked...away?" Espio remembered Zera saying something like this to him before. But he knew that now wasn't the best time to ask. Now was the time for survival.
"FREEZE!" Cause so far, they are terrible at surviving their own mini apocalypse. Soldiers had spotted them and had quickly surrounded them. There's even a fricking tank? That didn't settle with Chaos well as he let out a low growl. Zera couldn't agree more. How the hell did they get a tank up here in the first place? "Roger that Sir, we have her sighted, soon to be apprehended."
"That's Ivy, isn't it?" Zera took a couple steps closer to the crowd. Some stepped away, others held their ground while shivering like the silly cowards they were. "I want you to deliver a message to her if her best friend hasn't already gotten to her yet." The man that had been talking to Ivy clenched his jaw. Zera didn't wait for an answer from him. "Listen here Ivy, you're making it hard for the both of us here. You just let some of your guys kill one of my friends that I needed alive. So in return, I killed some of your men. I will not stop doing so either as long as you tell your boys to stop killing off the others and just set your weapons to stun." She may have been shouting across the field, but she said it in an unbelievably calm voice when she felt so out of place and unstable. Everyone had stood quietly then, unsure of how to take this news and hot to deal with the situation.
"Um...d-did you hear that Sir?" The soldier stuttered to the woman who was leading them. Silence greeted them for another dramatic pause. "Sir, do I have to-"
"I heard her." Comes Ivy's grim reply. The soldier was startled out of his wits. "I accept this offer. Zera, if you can hear me I shall grant you this wish. It will be kept if and only if you keep your promise. Do we have a deal?" Ivy asked. The dark smirk on her face said it all.
"I can do that." The smirk faded. "Now call off the kill order." Zera demanded, her arms settling at her sides. They heard Ivy chuckle to herself.
"Sir, you actually not trusting her are-"
"Yes. Do as the project said men. Only set to stun. We don't need anymore unnecessary fatalities." Ivy said calmly enough. The men were stunned as to how their captain was taking this, these orders from a mere rodent! But, they did as they were told, changing their weapons to tranquilizers, stun guns...whatever else they could think of.
"Good. Glad that you see things my way." The dark smirk and voice came back as she charged at them, ripping at the men. She had turned back to the serious Zera. She tore out the arm of the man who spoke with Ivy, who let out a blood curdling scream. Zera was bathed in blood once again, and she enjoyed every moment of it.
"Zera, what is the meaning of-"
"Rule number one about me Ivy: You can trust me, but you can't trust the rest of me!" She cackled into the comm link of a dead soldier near her. She left Ivy speechless as she ran after the others, causing mass hysteria. "Oh come come now, my prey, don't make this any harder on yourselves~." she sing songed in such a horrifyingly sweet voice, it even caused her friends to shiver. Except Chaos of course. He looked like he would be pleased in helping Zera terminating the enemy.
"To how Zeren fell in love with her, I could never understand..." Knuckles whispered meekly to Espio as they watched Zera literally eat a man. She ate his feet first, licking her lips seductively in a way as she gently let her mouth chew on some bone as she started stripping away the poor man's clothes. Hey, she didn't want to choke on anything. Once the man was in the nude she placed his fingers in her mouth. She gave cute little giggles as he continued to scream, cry, and yell in mercy. She grinned once she broke off his finger like they were just simple French fries.
"You guys never gave us any mercy...Why should I give any to you?" She said in a whisper as she gave the man a slight love bit on his neck just before she bit down hard on his neck; choking him as his blood flowed. Little by little she ate every single part of him, bones and all. She smirked as she lapped up the remaining blood and finally stood up, facing her new audience. Her grin grew wickedly. "Ivy! You did come to see us!" She laughed as she watched Ivy's eyes went to where the dead man once laid. It was truly a horrid and broken sight. She finally locked dark eyes with Zera. There was no telling as to what Ivy was thinking or planning.
"I came to get you...her." Ivy said strongly, looking more than serious. "You killed innocent people. They may have not been good to you and maybe even to me, but they had families; people that loved them. They now won't ever have that chance again. You've cut them out of life." Zera frowned, but it didn't even seem like a frown which upset Ivy further.
"Now they get to feel the pain we did. Now, we all might be even." She let out another cackle only it was soft. Ivy's lips formed a thin line.
"If that's how it's going to be then: Misky, NOW!" Ivy shouted. Zera yelped as tens, if not hundreds of draining darts clung to her back, injecting their 'happy juice' into her body. Those blood vessels. She growled, trying to still stand her ground. Ivy started walking towards her, now having nothing to fear. "Raldo, if you may." Zera lazily looked over her shoulder as Raldo stepped out of the dark and was holding something that Zera very much detested. A chaos net. The female hedgehog spun around at her own risk. Her weakening body couldn't handle it.
"Raldo...Don't do that to us..." She barely got that out as she passed out on the ground. His eyes were sullen. It looked like he had no emotion, which made him look all the more cruel and evil as he placed the net over her body. The group hiding in the back could do nothing but watch. Well, Espio tried to do something to kill Raldo, but Knuckles held him back. Raldo carefully carried the net into the chopper that had approached them. Miskit and Merlinda popped out of the bushes to get on the machine of transportation. Ivy let her fellow teammates get on board before her. She looked back at the small group. A dark smirk commenced.
"It would be wise that you guys shall not get involved any further than you already have," Ivy shouted over the roar of the chopper. " Don't want to end up like your friend there whom I am glad isn't an 'official hero'." She pointed to the shallow form of Zeren as she hopped onto the chopper, still facing them. She smiled in a certain way that Espio already knew the meaning of. "Don't worry, I shall not hurt her. High Commander Jade, on the other hand, has plans... Good luck. She said just as the door shut. And with that, G.U.N was gone.
Zera was gone.
And there you have it, the chapter we have all been waiting for. I hope you enjoyed this really wack chapter, since it took me about the whole weekend and this Monday morning to do since I kept going places. (Side note:*starts playing Jurassic Park's song* If you already haven't seen Jurassic World, DO IT! It's so worth watching!)
That's the thing I wanted to ask: Do you think I'm getting way too wild or...unorganized with my chapters? When I was typing this one I was like "oh gosh that was so random, even for me" and "oh, me of a couple months ago, what were you thinking?..." Feel free to say something, cuz I really want to improve my skills.
Well, I won't tell you the page count cuz I figure that again, no one cares, but I like seeing my word count so I know how far I'm getting.
Word count: 8,786 (yea, we'll be getting to longer chapters very very soon, so these numbers will go up to mine and hopefully your satisfaction)
Well, I hope we can see each other real soon! I forgot to mention this since I'll be a senior next year (hurray I passed a bit of life!) I need to do a grad project. I'm doing 50 hours of community servie (workin at my library) so my timing on actually working on my book is very slim. Don't worry, I'm almost done! Just a half a chapter and another chapter till I finish this story! Yea, if you saw my notebook, you would get this.
Aight, I'm outta here. Peacez!