Fortnite: ALTER EGO (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter 2: Coming To AID

8-Ball dashed through Weeping Woods away from Scratch. The other henchmen had all turned back after receiving something on their phones. Had Rippley and the others found the Mythic Goldfish? They must have taken down Toxin and Chic. He had to keep Scratch away from them so they could return it to Midas.
This meant that Rippley, Turk and Journey were fine and dandy, but would he be?
Right now, it was just him and Scratch. It was like fighting himself. But 8-Ball didn't know himself. Could fighting himself be his downfall?
Not looking where he was going, 8-Ball tripped over a tree root and plummeted down a mountain, making him cry out.
Scratch took his chance and slid down the mountain. Before 8-Ball could regain his bearings, Scratch pushed him into the river nearby.
The river was cold and the current dragged 8-Ball downstream until he encountered a bridge support he clung on to. His limbs were almost frozen, but he was able to climb out of the water and he was able to jump to land.
8-Ball's clothes were all soggy and they rubbed his skin and made him feel sore, but he had to keep going. It wouldn't be long until Scratch caught up to his position.
He eventually came across a hill and climbed up it to find a small house. 8-Ball felt too exposed out in the open, almost waiting for an attacked to appear, so he sat inside instead. He folded his arms around his belly, and waited for a while, giving his muscles a rest after a long run and a dunk in the water. Everything felt like it was too much effort. 8-Ball eventually closed his eyes and waited for night to roll around.

"Hello? You are 8-Ball, yes?" Bush Ranger said to an unconscious 8-Ball.
"Wh- Ah!" 8-Ball shouted. He had forgotten he had fallen asleep, and felt embarrassed that this... thing was staring at him all this time. He backed up against a wall.
"Woah! There's no need to be afraid. I'm Bush Ranger, a fairy that works for Ghost. Aren't you Ghost?"
"Yes, I am. And I have all authority to be afraid, because you have staring at me for a whole 5 minutes! That's what us non-fairies would consider to be wierd."
"Oh, it's not that I'm a fairy, I'm an animal. The leaves are my clothes, and they are very useful in my job of supporting AID."
8-Ball had to admit that the leaves were very convenient.
"What's AID?"
"Agents In Distress. We are another division of agents, like you are EGO and Midas' group is Subterfuge, with Skye and Brutus etc. One of our division is in every group, like Maya in Subterfuge and Remedy in yours."
It crossed 8-Ball's mind that he had heard Remedy talk about AID before.
"Huh."
Bush Ranger waited outside for 8-Ball before he appeared as good as new. He put his hands on his hips to make him seem stronger and braver than he was.
"Hey, Bush Ranger, you OK?" 8-Ball said. Bush Ranger was staring at the watch tower in the distance.
"Did you happen to see a man who looks similar to you, but is wearing white?"
"You mean Scratch? That - (8-Ball said a word that made Bush Ranger feel uncomfortable) - has he been bothering you? That's the reason I'm here. He pushed me into the water and I ended up here. I went in the hut to take cover in case Scratch found me. Imagine if the others saw me outside like that."
"You mean Turk, Journey and Rippley, right? You know, Journey actually got me a job at The Agency. Very nice woman, she is. I've seen Rippley on my travels after he was first turned into Slurp Juice, too. I know who Turk is but I've never seen him in person."
"Oh, right. Anyway, about Scratch...?"
"Oh yeah! He engaged in combat with me so I knocked him out and placed him in the watch tower. That's when I saw you arriving at the hut. I thought you were in trouble, so I came over to help, and here we are!" Bush Ranger giggled.
A creature that could knock out Scratch? They would be perfect to help 8-Ball!
"You see, Bush Ranger, Scratch is a Shadow operative. If we let him escape, he could deliver vital information on me and you, and eventually use it to kill us. We could take him captive, and gain information on him on the other hand."
"I'm not sure if he's awake yet, but we could have a look right now."
"OK, but let me go in front."
8-Ball and Bush Ranger departed for the watch tower. There was a boat nearby, so they took it through the water. Cold water splashed up in their faces as they sped along. They continued to move until they reached the watchtower's shadow.
"We're here," 8-Ball said.
"I'll wait here. Go check on him, 8-Ball," Bush Ranger replied.
8-Ball nodded in agreement, before beginning to climb the steps. He felt alone and scared. Nothing was as it seemed. The moon lit up the steps in front of him in an eerie white light.
Once 8-Ball reached the top, he froze. The watchtower had everything a park Ranger would need, like a bed and a sofa. It was quite a nice place, but there was no Scratch. He was gone.
"Damn. Bush Ranger, he's not there."
"What? But that's where I left him."
"He must have run off."
8-Ball felt a tug on his belt, so he looked down and found a grappling hook on it. He followed the line down to a figure in white, and before 8-Ball could put two and two together, he was grappled off the side of the tower.
He felt himself lift off the ground and through the air. He felt like he was flying. 8-Ball liked the feeling, but now wasn't a good time. He fell into the river, but because he was in shallow water, he was able to get back up again.
To her right, Bush Ranger heard metal hit metal as 8-Ball and Scratch engaged in combat. All she could do was watch in horror.
The two ninjas fought off each other's attacks, and 8-Ball seized an opportunity to thrust his knife into Scratch's arm. His perfectly white outfit became blood red, as he clutched hold of it in pain. Scratch didn't get up. He was in too much pain.
"Do you surrender now, and let me take you captive?" 8-Ball asked.
"Y-yes...!" Scratch stuttered.
8-Ball edged towards Scratch cautiously, until he was certain that Scratch wasn't lying. That was where he was wrong.
Scratch thrust his knife into the area beneath 8-Ball's ribcage. 8-Ball held onto the knife and desperately tried to remove it. But Scratch's grip was firm, and when 8-Ball went down to his knees, Scratch removed the knife and kicked 8-Ball to the ground.
"I'm sorry, did I say surrender? I never surrender."
"Scratch... w-why?"
"Because there can only be one. It's me or you, ALTER or EGO, and it had to be me."
"No it didn't. I-I didn't want t-to kill you."
"You stabbed my arm, I stabbed your stomach. It's only fair."
"Lying your way to victory is not fair."
"Is it?"
Scratch pushed 8-Ball down by the river to die.
"Have fun dying. Ha ha!"
8-Ball put his head on the ground. How could he be saved? He had accepted his death, and he hoped the others would too.
"8-Ball!" Bush Ranger screamed, rushing over to help. She inspected the wound before shouting for help.

"Blorg..." Rippley blorged sorrowfully.
"It's OK, Rippley, he's around here somewhere," Turk said, piloting the Choppa.
"Wait, what's that?" Journey asked. She could hear someone shouting for help in the distance.
Without a second thought, Journey hopped out the Choppa and dashed towards the screaming. Rippley followed within seconds.
"Guys, wait! I have to land the - oh I don't even care!" Turk said, hopping out the Choppa and letting it fall out the sky.

"8-Ball!" Journey cried. He had a knife  in his chest, sending blood soaking into the shirt. All traces of white were already red. None other than Bush Ranger was standing above him.
"Journey, please help!" Bush Ranger sobbed.
As soon as Turk saw the scene, he turned around to get the Choppa.
"BLORG!" Rippley screamed.
"R-Rippley...!" 8-Ball croaked. He was so happy to see everyone one last time.
Everything afterwards was a blur. A Choppa appeared in the sky, and he lifted 8-Ball and the others away.
His eyes closed and he went unconscious. This was the end.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Word Count: 1500