"Come on! Is that all you've got!?"
*Thump! Crack! Break!*
"Argh! Come on, what is this weak shit you're throwing at me!"
"Grr!"
*Break-Crack-Burst!*
"Ugh... You're... Argh!"
"..."
"Ugh... You're getting good at this, Zsen."
"I think I'm the one holding back now."
"Unless you're just getting weak and saying that as an excuse."
"Hmph! Yeah right. You're the one on the ground right now."
I put my arm out for Quade to pull him up.
"Alright, well we gotta get going again."
"Erm... Well."
"Yeah? What's up, Zsen?"
"I uh... I have been thinking it's about time to start moving on to the next step."
"Oh... I... Look, I don't think you're ready to-"
"Ready for what, Quade? What is there left to teach? We've only been practicing the same things now."
"..."
He sighs and looks at me.
"Fine... You're right. You are ready. Just... Just let me just teach you one last thing."
"Okay... What is it?"
"Listen... Through all of the pain, headache, stress, and depression Corruption gives you... never let it push you into being weak and hurting yourself or your loved ones. It's the last thing I need you to learn. However, I possess no way of teaching this. So when you get back, you teach yourself and train yourself. Now, more than ever, you're capable of doing it. It's all mental health and you know how to handle it."
"Yeah. I've got it."
"And, uhm, if I may have one last request."
"Okay, go on."
"Say hi to everyone for me. I miss them."
"Why don't you just tell them?"
"I... I can't go back, Zsen."
"What, why?!"
"It's too late for me. My days are to be spent here. I have nothing left back home."
"I erm."
I don't exactly know what to say. I feel like he should go, but who am I to tell him what his choice should be?
"I understand, Quade."
"Thank you. Now, let's get going."
.......
We left a while ago and have finally made it to this strange area.
It's very similar to the crater that got me here, but this one has a ton of rock formations and an enormous pit in the middle. The pit seems very deep and has a bright purple glow to it.
We go behind some rock formation that has a hidden cave going down toward the pit.
There's an entire cave system down here. It appears to be a long spiral staircase going down the open endless pit. There are rooms and hallways that all go away from the pit, along the long staircase.
He turns Corrupted...
As do I.
I follow his lead. We make our way through these rooms and hallways, turning left and right every few seconds. There are tons of Corrupted here and it's making me nervous as hell...
"Are we almost there?"
"Yeah... It should be one more left. Here-"
"Shit"
We both say in sync.
Claw... He's staring deep into my eyes... Fuck! Look at Quade, not just me! Shit, he's stepping closer to me!
"You two, fools for considering any hope. Now, you young souls are mine!"
*Clunk!*
"Quade!"
He jumped in front of me with his bone shield. Claw mauled through it with his huge right claw. Quade is vulnerable and down on the ground bleeding...
"Zsen... Go! Ack!"
"Not this time, young soul!"
Claw sweeps his claw just past me as I evade it. I run toward the edge of this murky room where the portal sits. I sprint through the portal...
Quade, he... Fuck! Another person died because of me. Damn! Tears run down my face...
I keep running... I see the base... I need to...
Argh!
I revert back to my human form. Whew... Okay, I need to get to the gate and get to the Gener-wait... The General! I forgot about the situation.
"Halt! Where is your uniform?"
"I erm... It's been torn and hasn't spawned back."
The two Steel Guards observe me for a moment...
"Wait just a minute... We know exactly who you are!"
Shit, I'm still wanted!
"Look, please don't hurt me. I have important information about the Corrupted."
"Hurt you?"
The two take off their helmets...
The two are nearly identical. They both have the same body shape, facial structure, and height of five feet, seven inches. They both have green eyes and the same hairstyle the only difference being that they have different tattoos and hair colors. Their hair is half shaved but they both have opposite sides shaved off. Their long straight hair is brushed the opposite way from their shaved side. One of the ladies has dark blue hair while the other has a bright pink. They're scary but... in a weird, attractive way.
"Yeah, we could totally kick your ass."
"But why would we?"
"Because... I'm wanted?"
"Yeah!"
They say in sync.
"That's hot as hell, not gonna lie."
"You are Zsen, right? The Corrupted Wielder?"
"Er, yeah. How do you-"
"That fight you put up with Cleaver-"
"Totally my type!"
"So like, what's the deal? Why are you here?"
"Well, I was chased into the Corrupted-"
"..."
"Actually... Could you two help me with something?"
"Yeah-"
"Oh, definitely."
"Us? Yeah, we can help."
"Only for someone like you."
"Of course, we do expect something in return."
"Yeah, pretty boy. So what is it you need?"
.......
I brief them on my objective.
The General, whether it be Mallory or Carter, needs to have this information I've gathered. This could alter the weight of this war to our side. I'll need the Warrior's help first...
"So you want us to sneak you in."
"Psh. No problem, cutie."
"Just let us take the lead."
"Don't worry your little head about a thing."
"Erm... Sure."
I feel myself blushing... Why?
They put their helmets on and-gah! They grab me from my left and right side and squeeze close.
"Woah! Oh shit, we're flying! Haha! Woo!"
They fly me to the now-abandoned Special Forces barracks. I enter and the two ladies leave to get the Warriors.
They'll go out to deliver a quote-on-quote urgent message to the Warriors. Really, they're getting them here, to me, where it's safe.
"Wow... This place is so empty. It feels so weird being back here. Everyone who died... Their stuff is still here... Just to sit alone in the dark rooms forever."
I go to what used to be my room. I sit down on the bed and just relax.
Claw can see everything I see. He can hear all my thoughts. He can even take control of me if I'm not strong enough. I think I've decided. I can't tell anyone he's aware of everything I'm aware of. It'll only get me killed. I think the only way to work with it, is to be stronger and defend ourselves against each attack that they'll probably bring.
.......
"Nathaniel? You really here?"
"Lizzie!"
"Nathaniel!"
We run to hug each other. Her arms wrapped around my back causing my scars to burn like hell, but I push through the pain. I missed her so much, her touch is worth the pain.
"You're alive! I thought you were dead for the past week! Thank fuck."
"Has it really been that long?"
"It's good to see you, Nathaniel."
Zander? Why is he, of all people, saying that?
"Y-Yeah... You too, Zander."
"Nathaniel!"
Lyra rushed to hug me.
Corn, Vadice, Rosalin, Marcus, Joceline, and even Riveck come in and look at me from the doorway.
Mixed reactions of smiles and straight faces, but it's all much nicer to see than that hell I was in before.
"So, what happened to you?"
"Well, I ran into the main portal, the one in the crater."
"Yeah?"
"Uhm... I actually found someone. I, uh... Fuck."
"Huh, what are you talking about, dude?"
"Zander, everyone... I found Quade."
"What?!"
Everyone is shocked!
"Where is he?"
"How is he?"
"We need to go back for him!"
Everyone starts saying things and the room quickly fills with chaos.
"Everyone, listen!"
"..."
"He... He was like me. Corrupted but not Corrupted at the same time. He seemed to understand how to control Corruption with ease."
"Haha, Of course! He was an excellent Warrior!"
"He was, Zander. He took me to where he was staying and actually trained me. He then taught me how to control my Corruption."
I began to show them a Corrupted wave flow from my right arm to the rest of my body. I Corrupt and revert my body back into its human state.
"Woah."
Pamela says in the back of the crowd.
"He taught me that this isn't just my body anymore. I'm constantly butting heads with Corruption for it. It's miserable, but I'm much stronger now and I definitely have control over it. I also learned that once you're hit by a Corrupted, that's as bad as it'll get. You can't be Corrupted by another. If another Corrupted hits you, it doesn't affect you at all. So, I'm stuck with Claw and only Claw's Corruption."
"Wow... We need to report this but, a lot has changed since you were last here, Nathaniel."
"What do you mean, Lizzie?"
"Well, for starters, Pico and Pozhar are alive. They are in the medical bay right now and have been there for almost as long as you've been gone."
"How are they, Lizzie?"
"They seem to be fine... But, more importantly, Carter Jones, the real General, has been put in solitary confinement. Mallory has taken complete control and has turned this place into a prison."
"Well, technically, it's more of a military than ever before."
"Vadice, that's not my point. We've had a system that has worked for a long time and that's not to mention The Day Of Seppuku. We don't want a repeat of that."
"The Day Of Seppuku?"
"Nathaniel... It was a day of mass suicide here in the military. People felt there was no other choice but to cause change so that's what they did. They all killed themselves in different ways in front of the General's office to send a message."
"Woah... Was it that bad?"
"Yeah, it was back when everything here was too strict and military-like. People were miserable getting drafted without any warning just to be sent out to die. A lot of things changed with the General before Carter, Henry Clay. There was a massive increase in technology and he soon took over after that incident with the suicides. He changed this military for the better. The one before him was assassinated by a guy named Yachel Longman. He killed the General because his little brother and best friend killed themselves in that protest that day. He was ordered to be executed after the assassination."
"Damn. So that's why this place is so much nicer than a military."
"Yeah, sort of. They built this idea that if you want to live, you'll fight for it. Whether it was to build technology or be an Operator or just be a soldier; finding your own way to contribute was all they needed. If you didn't, well, you'd die eventually to Corruption. No matter what, you'll end up fighting them one way or another."
"Anyway, Lizzie, we're getting off-topic. The issue right now, Nathaniel, is that you are wanted and we need General to be back in charge. Otherwise, Mallory will just kill Nathaniel."
"You're right Vadice."
"Surely you all understand he must die?"
Zander grabs Riveck by the throat and picks him up.
"Did we not go over this before we walked in here today?"
"Erg... Yes... Let me... down!"
Zander drops him.
As Riveck catches his breath, he looks at me.
"He will kill us all. I'm just trying to keep everyone safe!"
Zander grabs his leg and pulls him into the hallway.
Riveck seemed to have some sort of metal collar and iron cuffs on himself. He seemed... weak.
What is he on about? Why does he still think I'll kill everyone?
"Okay, so what happened with Quade? Where is he?"
"He... Uhm."
I sigh.
"He's gone, Lizzie."
"What?"
Of few of them gasp.
"We ran into Claw and he sacrificed himself for good this time to get me out. He wanted me to tell you guys he says hello... and that he missed you guys. He was doing fine by the looks of it. He roamed around killing Corrupted as a pastime. He befriended a Corrupted actually. He said he knew her. It wasn't Becca though."
Everyone sits in silence.
...
"So what's first?"
"I'm not sure, Marcus."
"Well, what do we need to accomplish, Lizzie?"
"Well, we have to get Carter back as General. I don't think there's any way that Nathaniel isn't wanted."
"Well actually,-"
"We might be able to help."
"Who are y'all again?"
Lizzie asks, but I can tell she's holding back with her squinted eyes and tilted eyebrows.
"I'm Melanie."
The dark blue-haired one says.
"And I, Phoebe."
The Bright pink-haired one says.
"Mhm... Remind me, why you're helping us again?"
"Tsh! Isn't it obvious?"
"For Zsen, obviously! A total hottie."
"Yeah, I mean, who wouldn't help someone as amazing as him when he requires assistance?"
"Exactly. Just to top it off, he asked us specifically! Total luck, but I mean-"
"He definitely made the right choice."
"And how could he resist?"
"Okay, enough. Sheesh, you girls don't stop talking do y'all?"
Zander walks back in saying.
"Thank you. So I think we should assign everyone a job. We execute this, then we can move on with our military life."
"Y'know, for once I agree with Lizzie. That's probably our best bet to keeping Nathaniel safe."
"Huh? Why do you wanna help, Vadice?"
"He's a valuable asset for us to winning this war I believe. For me to argue that, would be fighting my own country. Plus Mallory needs to be put down."
"Are you all serious!? Do you guys not understand, he is a fucking Corrupted! Riveck seems to be the only sane one around here now. You all have false hopes and you're all acting childish! This is real; this is Corruption! People will die if Nathaniel loses control!"
"Rosalin, enough! He is fine-"
"No! No, Lizzie, he isn't... He's controlling you all!"
Rosalin walks away angrily and slams the doors to the cellar behind her. Lizzie gets up...
"I... I need to go get her; I need to talk to her. Stay here, okay?"
"Yeah. Just go. No worries."
Lizzie leaves...
Zander says his goodbyes and takes Riveck back to the barracks. He says he will help out as much as he can but he needs to take care of Riveck and other things first. Nobody argued with him about it and we all sit and chat about things... The two twin girls squeeze up to me on my left and right.
.......
Lizzie walks back inside...
"Sorry guys, she isn't-"
Lizzie's make-up looks like she has been crying for a bit. What happened? Wait... She's looking toward me with a pissed look! What did I do?
"Get the hell away from him!"
Lizzie marches toward me, yanks me up, turns me around, pulls me up on her back. She looks at each of them with an enraged look.
"You both stay away from him if you know what's good for you."
She says with a growl...
The two look to each other then back to Lizzie... They start to giggle...
"I'm pretty sure we just saved his life."
"And sort of helped you get back to him."
"Not only that, but we're helping y'all out with this plan."
"Y'all need us."
"But, you know. If you guys decide you don't need us-"
"Then we can just do our job and arrest each and every single one of y'all."
"Oh and if I'm not mistaken, were you not the rookie trying to get into the Steel Guard program, Lizzie?"
"Because we could easily put the good word in for you."
"Enough! I get it... Grr... Th... Thank you."
I can tell that was very hard for Lizzie to say. She seems to not have a very reasonable opinion of these two. They've been nothing but nice and understanding, so I'm not entirely sure what the deal is.
"But y'all can't be rubbing up on my boyfriend!"
My face immediately fills up with a red hot blush. Everyone looks to Lizzie shocked... I guess it hasn't really spread around that she likes me or that we are together. Pamela and Lyra seem less surprised but it definitely was a shock for Lizzie to just blatantly say that.
Lizzie seems to become rosy red as silence fills the air. The twins both smile and look to Lizzie.
"Totally understandable."
"Yeah, totally. If I had a man like that, I'd wanna selfishly keep him all to myself as well."
"Totally."
"Totally."
Lizzie somewhat eases up...
"Anyway... We need to assign everyone a job. Melanie and Phoebe, you guys start protests and make sure you guys don't get caught by guards. Also if y'all can, try to get some guards to turn against Mallory and be our undercover muscle."
"Yes, sir!"
The twins say in sync...
"Holly, Joceline, you guys help be the image for the protest. Make sure that once we have a sort of security, you guys stay behind them at all times and give your speeches. Make sure y'all have strong language and sentences that you can quote; sentences that will have an impact on people's opinions."
"I can try." "No, problem."
Lyra then Joceline says...
"Vadice... I need you to stick with me. We need to figure out how we are going to get Carter out and how we will convince the higher-ups, he should be General. We also gotta go through files and get the information on the higher-ups, so we will need RJ to hack into that shit... We will worry about it later."
"Yeah. We got it, girl."
"What about me?"
"Corn! Right... Erm... You have a very special job. You will stay with, Nathan!"
"To protect him?"
"Uh... Yeah sure. And to keep him sane because he will have to stay down here until we get things going."
"What the... Really?"
He seems disappointed. Maybe he feels unvalued...
I really don't want to intervene and say he could do something more because, honestly, I don't want to be stuck down here alone...
"Yes. I will inform the rest of their jobs back at our barracks. For now, everyone, get to it. Vadice, you too. Corn, you go get whatever you need to hang out here for the time being. I'll meet you at the barracks before you head back in here so I can explain how we will keep you unnoticed when you're missing."
"Alright, I guess."
As everyone leaves, Lizzie and I sit on the edge of the bed together...
"..."
"We... We need to talk, Nathan."
"Uhm, yes? Yes, Lizzie."
"Look at me."
I look at her face but it's hard to keep my eyes on her as my face burns hot red each time I stare. She grabs my face and pushes it so I'm facing her.
"Seriously, look at me."
I push through me embarrassed mood and keep my eyes locked in with hers.
"I love you. If we are going to make this work, I need you to protect yourself."
"Of course."
"You don't get it. Those girls are going to use you... They are gonna get close to you and make you do something you'll regret."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you need to protect yourself from other girls' influence! If you truly care about me as you say, you wouldn't let those girls do that to you. When you're in a relationship, you can't just let girls get close. I get how love works and I know you... You have lots of love to give. Yes, you may want to make a friend happy because you care about them and you don't want them to be lonely or sad. But, eventually, it builds up a close bond, and things, no matter what, become a bit more than just a friendship."
"..."
"Are you listening?"
"Yeah, I just... I haven't really been in a relationship before. I'm still not even used to us yet. It just hasn't really settled. Things I don't think much about are now things that are super important."
She sighs and looks into my eyes...
"Yeah... And maybe I could be a little more understanding with you... It just hurts me to see you around girls, especially like that. That's three girls now that have gotten that close to you physically. I just don't like it."
"I understand... Wait, three?"
"Holly."
"Oh, right. I mean we're just friends though."
"Nathan, I just went over this."
"Yeah, sorry."
"Hell, it really doesn't make it any better that you ditched me for her on our date."
"To be fair I was supposed to be with her for the night. I just asked for help-"
"I am just saying, it doesn't make me feel better!"
"..."
"I... Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry. I'm new to this... I'll do better for you. I'll set my boundaries from now on."
"Thank you."
She squeezes me with a warmful hug. I put my arms around her, my hands on her lower back...
It's so exhilarating and stimulating with every touch of her. My body feels a jolt every time she touches me or even when I touch her...
She gently pushes away and looks at me. She lets out another sigh of relief and snuggles on my chest...
"I'm just glad you're alive; I missed you so much."
I nervously laugh as we hug...
"..."
"Alright, I have to go get with the group. We will get things back to normal, okay? I love you."
"I-I love you too!"
I watch as she smiles and walks outside...
Well...
Now I'm alone...
Again...
I lay down and sigh. I just hope things get settled. I'm more worried about everyone else... I don't want any one of us to get or put in custody. This whole situation seems ridiculous. So what the General-erm... Carter... So what he's a steliac. I don't see the issue in it at all if he is a good leader, which he was...
I hate being stuck alone...