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06-08-2014, 12:36 AM | #51 |
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Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 486
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<Episode 51>
*Opening Theme – Smile Empty Soul – Who I Am* Outside of the occasional murmur their van was relatively quiet. Sparky and the others kept glancing back back at him with some concern. Although the chimp glances were filled with contempt. Right now he wasn’t paying them any attention. His thoughts were back at the Habitat, with Rachel. With what he did to keep her out of this one. Leaning back against the van he voiced the only thought going through his head, “She’s going to kill me.” “More than likely she’ll thank God your alive,” Sparky spoke up, “then she’ll kill you.” He was joking but nobody was laughing, although a couple of them did groan. Jack didn’t respond at all. “I know, I know shut up Sparky.” “You did what you had to do,” Arron said. “Rachel wasn’t listening to reason.” “It doesn’t make me feel any better,” Jack said softly. “Don’t worry man,” Sparky told him. “She’ll get over it sooner or later. She’ll never let you forget it but she’ll get over it.” “How much longer to the rendezvous point,” Jason barked. “About twenty minutes,” their driver announced. “How much resistance do you think we’re going to get?”, Sparky asked out loud. “I guess you’ll find out when we get there,” Arron told him. “I wasn’t really looking for an answer.” Again Jack tuned them out and his mind went back to her. *** “Uh,” Rachel grunted as she came to her senses. It took her a couple of moments to realize where she was. She was a little confused to find Jack’s jacket on top of her. Trying to sit up she felt a small patch of pain on her stomach. Putting a hand on it she remembered everything. “If he’s survives I’m going to kill him.” “I don’t think he’ll try and stop you.” She looked around to find Melissa sitting beside her. “He took the foil with him in case you’re wondering.” It took her a moment to process what she meant. Then she looked inside the hood, it was empty. “I told Jaime to find him a cap or something to hold it place when he sees him.” “So Jaime knows.” “I didn’t give him the whole story, or go into any details.” Rachel held the jacket tightly in her hands. “So have you have come back to your senses now or am I going to have to get Emily to beat some into you?” “There’s no point now is there?”, she said bitterly. “Well it’s hard to blame Jack for what he did when you weren’t giving him much of a choice. Seriously Rachel what was going through your head?” “I had to be there for him,” was all she said. “You do realize how dangerous this is going to be right?”, she asked. “Jack doesn’t need to be worrying about you getting hurt in the chaos.” “I know all right, I know,” she snapped. “I just can’t shake this feeling he’s not going to make it. And I didn’t want him to be alone if he…,” she couldn’t finish it. Melissa put a comforting arm around her and held her as the tears started to fall. *** When they got there several vans and trucks clogged the road, all of them had Drakan rebels inside of them and standing around. Peering out the window Sparky whistled, “When they said full assault they weren’t kidding.” Jamie made his way through the crowd with a couple of his men following. They opened the door to let him in, he looked around until he found Jack. “Melissa said you’d be bear headed.” Reaching into a pocket he pulled out a ski cap and handed it to him. “It’s the best I could do, sorry.” “It’s better than nothing,” he told him as he took it and started lining the inside with the foil. “And we don’t want them to know I’m coming.” Jack put it on as they piled out of the van. Jaime pulled him aside as he stepped out. “Melissa really didn’t say what happened but are you going to be all right?” “I moped on the way here,” he answered. “Don’t worry my head’s in the game. Speaking of what’s the final plan?” “They’re going to give us a thirty minute head start to get to the vent. We should be inside by the time they hit the front gate.” “That sounds a little tight,” Arron said. “Unfortunately we don’t know what type of lockdown procedures they have in case of attack. If the vents are sealed off as part of that procedure we’re screwed.” “Where’s the device?”, Jason asked. Jaime and one of the guys with behind him readjusted the backpack they were wearing. “It’s in here. We’ll make the final connections once we’re near the new Fusion. Jack it goes without saying I don’t want you anywhere near this thing when it goes off.” “I hear you, but I’m not making any promises I can’t keep in the heat of the moment,” he answered. Jaime looked like he didn’t want to hear that but he nodded. “The clock’s ticking,” Jaime said, “we better get going.” He took the lead as the crowd started honking their horns in support. None of them looked in their direction as they concentrated on their task. Jack felt eerily calm the entire time. He knew this path he was one was nearing its end, and he was ready for it. Jack just had to get to Anderson before somebody stopped him from getting there. After a twenty minute hike they found the vent they were supposed to be using. Making sure there wasn’t any sensors on it Jaime and Sparky carefully took it off. Jaime hopped in first, followed by the other guy with a backpack, Jack, Sparky, Jason, Arron and the other one. It took them eight minutes to find an opening into the base. A set of guards on the other side was the only thing keeping him from breaking it out. They could wait a couple of minutes, as long as neither of those two were Drakan and had already smelled them. Seconds felt like minutes as they ticked by. Jaime checked his watch a second time when the alarm claxon rang out. One of the guards ran leaving the one just below the vent. Jaime kicked it out and landed on top of the guy knocking him out. He looked around and saw the coast was clear before signally for the rest of them to come out. *** The security room for the complex reminded him of the control room back at World Inc. in many ways. Anderson found it comforting for some reason. Which is why he only arched an eyebrow when the alarms went off. The men around him scrambled to their station as a result calling out their station. “So they finally come,” he said to no one in particular. “They’re coming right at the front door,” Perez said. “They got a huge set. I’ll give them credit for that.” “Is Mr. Davidson with them?” “Is Davidson out there?”, he barked into a mic. After a moment he answered, “Nobody has a visual and none of the ones with a hand scanner has gotten hit.” “Strange,” Anderson said rubbing his chin, “I’d pictured he would be leading the charge.” “He has more brains then I gave him credit for,” Taylor muttered. “Perhaps he does,” Anderson agreed, but he couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. Could he have misjudged the man that much? One of the men grabbed Perez’s attention and said something. He uttered a small, quiet curse. “Is there a problem Mr. Perez.?” “Maybe,” he said. “A post didn’t report in when the alarm sounded. We can’t seem to hail them either.” “Is this person usually dependable?”, Anderson asked. “Very dependable,” Perez said. “Have any of the internal scanners picked up a hit yet?” Taylor looked confused, “You don’t really think…?” “It makes sense does it not Mr. Taylor?”, Anderson replied. “We have a major rebel offensive right at our doorstep, yet Mr. Davidson is nowhere to be found. Now we have a man missing at his post. While there are probably several ways to interpret the information only one scenario seems to fit the facts, to my mind any way. With one goal I would imagine.” “They’re going to try and take out the Fusion operatives,” Taylor said in understanding. “I’ll have the guard upped around the chamber,” Perez announced. “As quietly as possible,” Mr. Perez,” Anderson told him. “Let’s not alert Mr. Davidson that we’re on to him just yet.” “I don’t think he’s stupid enough to come in alone,” Taylor said. “I’m aware the Fusion system is designed to act solo but everything has its limits.” “You’re probably right Mr. Taylor. Find General Rhodes and take some men down there. I’m sure Dr. Armstrong is already aware of what is going on.” Anderson left the security room right after Taylor. He wondered how far Davidson would get to his target. Well there was only one way to find out. *** Like when they were trying to save Friedman Jack couldn’t shake the feeling he was broadcasting their location like a lighthouse on a foggy night. So he was looking around more than everybody else to make sure nobody else was coming. Jaime made them stop once to check out a map on the wall. There was some grumbling from Sparky and Jason about it but they would have a better time finding their target if they knew where it was. “It looks like this place is only one level,” Arron commented. “That’s good for us, we won’t have to worry about getting trapped in a stairwell.” “So where is the freak at?” Jason snapped. “The big section here labeled ‘lab’ might be a good starting point,” Arron said. “How far is it?”, Jaime asked. “Down this hall a ways if I’m reading this right,” he replied. “It looks like most of the hallways connect to it.” “Then we won’t get lost,” Jack commented. “But we could still get ambushed from one of these connecting corridors,” Jaime pointed out. “So everybody keep your eyes open.” “What if I wanted to walk backwards with my eyes closed?”, Jack asked. Everybody just looked at him. “Hey I’m nervous as hell right now. So it’s either cracking crappy jokes or beating up the chimp. Take your pick.” “I’d like to see you try bug,” Jason sneered. “One more time, dead to rights twice,” Jack shot back. “Put a clamp on it you two,” Jaime ordered. “This is going to be close to impossible as it is without us making the job easier for them. Let’s go, the job’s not getting done any faster.” *** Melissa left Rachel alone when Angie came by and started talking to her. Right now they could probably help each other get through this better than she could at the moment. She was going over her own worst case scenarios as it was. And a couple of them ended up with Anderson’s troops busting down the doors in a few hours. She really needed to talk to one person in particular, fortunately she was right there in plain sight. “How are you doing child?”, Emily asked as she started walking with her. “I’ve been better,” she said truthfully. “I’m trying to keep positive in front of the others but I can’t shake the feeling I sent some good men to their deaths.” “They knew the risks when they volunteered,” she said. “I know. I haven’t felt like this since we were forced to move from the first Habitat. Or when Chris went to face Jack in the Arena.” Melissa started chuckling to herself. “Oh God Chris would be right there in the middle of it wouldn’t he? Leading the charge, trying to inspire them when they’re at their lowest. Being the biggest target out there, outside of Jack that is.” “I think that would be debatable in Anderson’s eyes child,” Emily joined in. “True,’ Melissa agreed. “Maybe if Chris was still around it would give them a better chance of survival. Of course if Chris was still here I doubt Jack would be on our side.” “Maybe not as soon as he was,” Emily said, “but Anderson would have made a mistake somewhere. The results would have been the same child. Of that I have no doubt. We all have a part in this particular drama,” she gave her a knowing look, “even after it is over.” Melissa nodded as they continued walking. *** They ran into a couple of guards in the halls but they were able to get them before they could sound any type of alarm as they continued on. Jack turned the last corner first and came to a dead stop. “I knew this was going a little too smoothly,” he muttered as the others did the same. On the other end a group of men stood in their way. Jack recognized Taylor and Armstrong in front of the group. The general beside them he’d never seen before. And the combined World Inc. and army troopers looked like it was just one big blob. Jack didn’t hesitate in activating the system, “Henshin!” While the armor formed around him Arron, Sparky and Jason reverted into their wolf, eel and monkey forms. Jaime changed into a blue badger while him men turned into a red tiger and frog. On the other end Taylor, Armstrong and the general turned into a green cougar, tarantula and rhino respectively. Snapping the staff to its full length Jack ran at them with Arron and Jaime right behind him while Jason, Sparky and the others soon followed. Jack immediately targeted the rhino as it did the same. He went low at the last second and was able to knock its leather like legs out from under it. Arron and Taylor went at it tooth and nail while Armstrong ordered the troops to get involved as he went in. Jason and the rest took them on eagerly. A couple of World Inc. troopers jumped on top of Jack that he quickly flung off. It was enough time for the rhino to pick him up and ram him into the wall, “Oof,” and he dropped the staff. Sparky came in shocked the rhino enough to get it off of him. A couple of troopers that hung back opened fired. Sparky took a shot to the shoulder while one of Jaime’s men went down dead to a shot in the head. “No!”, Jack forced himself off the wall and got in the line of fire to deflect some of the bullets. It was enough of a distraction for Jaime and Jason to break away and take out the gunmen. Taylor batted around Arron with no apparent problem. The young wolf put up a valiant fight but the cougar was too experienced and much stronger. “I’m going to deal with you personally traitor,” Taylor told him bearing his claws. Grimacing through the pain Sparky grabbed the staff on the floor and turned the dial all the way. “Arron!”, he shouted and threw it. The wolf got away from Taylor just long enough to grab it. Jamming the end into the cougar’s chest he popped the electrode. The charge went through him, Taylor backed up a couple of feet before exploding. Arron turned and ran toward Sparky who was staring at a World Inc. trooper come at him with that spike extended from his club. “No you don’t!” he said as he cracked the human in the face with the end of the staff. Arron got in front of Sparky to ward off anybody else as the eel slowly got to his feet. “Hang in there man.” “You kidding,” he grunted, “it’s only a flesh wound.” “With a whole lot of blood.” “Let me live in denial will ya.” Armstrong bit the other man in Jaime’s group and ejected his poison into him and let him drop. Jason pounced on him in the next second. Jack and the rhino pounded on each other. Jack just being able to stay one step ahead of him. Then a trooper snuck up behind him and slashed him in the arm with the spike, “Argh.” He grabbed it on instinct as he kicked the man hard in the chest. Another one came up and stabbed him in the leg. Jack grunted in pain as he dropped to a knee. “Perez finish him off now!” the rhino ordered. He raised the staff for the kill. Jaime came out of nowhere and tackled him to the ground. “If you want anything done right,” the rhino said as he hauled Jack up and pushed him away. Then it tried to run his horn through his chest armor. The armor held but he was still went flying back. “I don’t see what Anderson ever saw in you,” the Drakan sneered as Jack slowly got back to his feet. Armstrong tried to bite Jason the entire time they fought. Jason sneered, for a green this one was no fighter. Grabbing one of the soldiers he threw him into the tarantula stunning it momentarily. Jason took the opportunity to grab his head and snap his neck. “Ha!” he said relishing the fact he killed a green bastard with his own hands. He grabbed the soldier again, raised him over his head and threw him into a group of World Inc. troopers. Jack did everything to avoid that horn. The armor was holding up but he was getting battered around like crazy. The rhino charged again. He stood his ground as he grabbed him around the neck and fell back and planted it’s head into the floor. A couple of more World Inc. troopers pulled him back before he could follow up. Again Jack fought them off as the rhino got back up. Twisting the pod up he ran at the Drakan as the charged ran down his arm. Jack punched him in the chest and the rhino flew back before exploding. He held his leg trying to will the pain he was feeling away. “We got to get to the operative!” Jaime shouted. Running for the fallen packs he tossed one to Arron and one to Jason. “Me and Sparky have the rest of them, go!” “Come on Fido,” Jack said as he took the staff back. “Let’s finish this.” *** Jason didn’t have the time to register the disgust he was feeling as they ran for the door. The bug was hobbling but he was keeping up with them. The green whelp offered to help him but he turned it down. Jason had no doubt he would be playing the sympathy card as soon as this was over. The wolf opened the door and they ran in. Then they stopped. There were humans floating in tubes inside. Those tubes filled the entire room. The bug cursed under his breath as he looked at them. “I think we got a problem,” the wolf said. “A beautiful sight,” Anderson said as he walked into view, “is it not?” He stood in front of a diamond shaped device encased in glass. “I’m actually glad some of you made it this far, especially you Mr. Davidson. I wanted you to see this, the mark ones, the mark twos. I do believe there is a mark three or two in here somewhere. Those were the plans you took the other day by the way.” “I don’t really care,” the bug said. “We’re finishing this now.” “I’m sure you think so,” Anderson said. “But there is something I want to show you first.” He reached into a pocket and pulled out a remote. A press of a button and the device behind him started making a duel level sound. “What the…?”, the bug muttered. They looked at him as his armor started to phase in and out before disappearing completely. He was stunned momentarily before saying, “Ah crap.” Anderson stepped forward saying, “As I told you oh so long ago Mr. Davidson, do you really think I would have a weapon designed and not have a way to counter act it?” Eyes going cat like he changed into a green cheetah with various shades of green spots. “But you are correct about one thing. This does end today.” Before anybody could react Anderson ran in and grabbed the bug and threw him into a wall. He hit hard and slowly slid to the ground. The whelp was his next target. The wolf tried to combat him but the combination of lack of experience and the previous battle had him knocked out too. Then he turned toward him. “I’ve been waiting for this,” Jason sneered. “I’m sure you have,” Anderson said. “Although I do want to thank you. If it wasn’t for you I never would have discovered that the Fusion system would work as soon as I did. All of this,” he gestured around the room, “is the result of your action.” “Then I’ll rectify that mistake.” Jason charged at him and was able to kick him in the gut. Anderson went back a couple of steps and Jason pressed his advantage. The monkey punched and kicked with everything he had to keep Anderson on the ropes. Then the cheetah jumped up and kicked him under the chin. Jason staggered back trying to clear the stars from his vision when he realized Anderson wasn’t attacking. In fact he was he was standing there with his hands behind his back. “You smug bastard!” Jason went at him again, this time the cheetah blocked his initial attack, biding his time. Then he took it, a straight shot to the throat. Jason gagged briefly as he struggled for air. He never had another chance to regroup. Anderson pounced on him, swiping his claws on his face as he knocked him down. Picking him up he threw him at one of the tubes, it broke on impact as he and the occupant fell to the floor. “Oh well,” Anderson said, “he was only human. Plenty more where he came from.” Jason tried to get to his feet but Anderson was already there, pulling him off the human and pounding him down again. Jason was a heap on the floor as Anderson walked away. Getting to his knees Jason saw him go over to the bug’s fallen staff and picked it up. “I do believe it works like this,” he twisted the dial all the way and popped the electrode. Looking over at him and walked back over he said, “Now, renounce your little rebellion and tell me where the rest are and I might spare you.” “Go to hell,” Jason grunted, unable to move. “Have it your way then.” The next thing Jason knew the staff was being jammed into his neck. *** Turning away as the rebel exploded he studied the weapon in his hand. Just like the one they developed by twisting it near the center it retracted to its original size. He was amazed that the rebels were able to create such a variant to their design. He was even more amazed that the people under him never thought of it first. Questions would have to be asked. That was for later though. Dropping the staff he turned toward the young wolf. “Your father would be so disappointed in you. I should remove this disgrace to his family line.” “Anderson,” Davidson grunted as he slowly got to his feet. Ripping that ridicules cap off his head he glared at him. He sighed as he said, “Come now Mr. Davidson, is this really necessary? The day is lost, just surrender gracefully.” “Not going to happen,” he said. Like he thought Davidson ran at him. Anderson easily swatted him away. Davidson tried to sweep his legs out from under him but he easily jumped over the attempt. Davidson got up punching, he stood there and took them just to show him how futile the attempt really was. This particular human either refused or was too stubborn to notice. Again he swatted him with a back hand and Davidson went down hard. Yet he still tried to get back up. “I’m surprised you had that apparent breakdown Mr. Davidson, if you’re putting up this type of fight.” Davidson staggered to his feet and took a swing at him. Easily dodging the blow Anderson extended the claws on his right hand, if the human wanted to fight then he was going to give him one. Davidson saw it coming and tried to get out of the way. He wasn’t fast enough as he was able to slash his cheek. Four lines of blood formed as he went down. He examined his claws seeing the blood on them as well. Davidson crawled over to the staff on the ground. Anderson let him amused at the fight still in him. Grabbing it he got back on his feet and extended it back to the full length. Then he turned the ring all the way. “Do you think there’s enough of a charge in there to defeat me?” “Who says I’m going after you?” taking a moment too long to ponder that statement he didn’t react in time as he turned and ran toward the diamond device. Anderson couldn’t stop him as he smashed the glass and jammed the other end into the device. Squeezing the handle the device exploded a moment later. The charge that went through cause a feedback in the system and things in the ceiling started exploding as well as some other things. Anderson covered his eyes from the sparks. “Henshin!” He looked at Davidson as the sparks fell and the Fusion armor formed around him. *Ending theme – Linkin Park – What I’ve done* |
06-13-2014, 02:10 AM | #52 |
Member
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 486
|
<Episode 52>
*Opening Theme – Smile Empty Soul – Who I Am* His face felt like it was on fire as Anderson slashed his cheek with his claws. Jack had to check to make sure he didn’t tear his face off when he saw the staff lying there. It looked so far away it wasn’t even funny. Still it was the only idea he had at the moment so he crawled for it. Jack was expecting Anderson to pounce on him at any moment but he slowly made his way toward the staff. Jack didn’t feel anything as he grabbed it and struggled to his feet. Snapping it to its full length he twisted the ring all the way, if this didn’t work he was dead. “Do you think there’s enough of a charge in to defeat me?” Anderson taunted. “Who says I’m going after you?” Turning around he ran for the device. Swinging for the fences he broke the glass around it with the other end. Not even stopping to see where Anderson was he jammed the other end into it and popped the electrode. The device sparked a couple of seconds later. The sparks ran up the wires connecting it and then parts of the ceiling started to short out. As the sparks rained down on top of them he finally looked at Anderson. He was standing there shielding himself from the shower. Ignoring the pain in face, arm, leg and everywhere else he was feeling it Jack raised his left arm across his chest. The belt materialized around his waist a moment later. Swinging his arm to the side he raised his right arm to his face. “Henshin!”, he shouted as he slammed his hand down on top of the belt. Anderson looked at him as the belt scanned his body and covered him in the black body suit and blue insect style armor of the system. Then Anderson started clapping, momentarily reverting to his human form. Jack took a step back as he walked foreword. “An excellent job Mr. Davidson,” he said, “a truly excellent job. I must say you have performed better than I ever dreamed possible. I must say I’m feeling a little bit of pride when I look at you.” “I’m touched,” he said sarcastically. “But tell me one thing, why were you so interested in my condition a while back.” “Curiosity mainly,” Anderson answered him, “and I’ll admit a little bit of concern as well. The person I saw didn’t seem the like the type to succumb to a mental breakdown, or whatever it was that was afflicting you. But honestly I knew you wouldn’t be down forever, I knew you would be able to pull yourself back together eventually.” They looked at each other for a few more seconds, “I suppose there is only one way for this to end?” “Yup,” Jack said. In the next instant Anderson changed back into his cheetah form and Jack rushed him. He got in a punch before the Drakan could react. The cheetah stumbled back from the impact. He had a feeling Anderson was one of those warrior kings so he wasn’t going to give him any breathing room as he pressed the attack. He tried to pound Anderson down but the Drakan refused to go down. Suddenly he pressed an attack of his own swiping in claws at his chest armor. Jack was pushed back and saw Anderson come at him. Falling back Jack got his foot on his gut and was able to flip him. The cheetah hit the tube behind him hard. Jack got up and aimed a kick at his head. Anderson moved at the last second and his foot went through the glass of the tube. The blue goop inside poured through the opening as he tried to get free. He wasn’t fast enough as Anderson grabbed him and threw him to the ground. Then he picked him up and threw him through another tube. Jack freed himself from the person inside and threw a right cross as Anderson jumped at him. He connected flushed in the head and could tell he stunned him. Jack grabbed him and threw him into a tube in return. Going in his head snapped back as a foot kicked him under the chin. Trying to quickly clear the stars he didn’t see Anderson until it was too late. He grabbed Jack by the head and slammed him to the floor. Putting a foot on his throat he pressed down with all he had. Jack struggled to breath before grabbing the foot and forced it off his neck. Sucking in the air as fast as he could he backed away from Anderson. “This is most exhilarating Mr. Davidson,” he told him, “I haven’t had this type of a workout in quite some time.” Jack looked around him at the other doors. Arron was just starting to come too and they didn’t need the EMP device to get damaged. “Why don’t we take this where we’ll have a little more room?” He ran for the nearest door with Anderson right behind him. *** “Do we have a progress report?”, Melissa asked. Rachel, Emily and the others huddled around the comm. center. Their cell and the others had never had ran an operation this big before and she was amazed there was an audio connection to their forces. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing at the moment. “It just came in a couple of seconds ago,” the man at it said. “Anderson’s troops have the opening pretty well protected. They’re pretty much at a stalemate at the moment. Susan had an idea though, she sent a small group to the vent Jaime and the others used. She’s thinking they can surprise them from behind.” “At the very least,” Rachel said, “they’ll divide their attention.” Melissa squeezed her shoulder, she was doing everything to not think about were Jack was in the middle of that mess. “That should increase their odds.” “I can’t help but think Chris would have something inspirational to say here,” Melissa said. “He’d be there saying it personally but he’d still be saying it.” “They knew what the stakes were child,” Emily told her. “What if Jack takes out Anderson?”, Rachel asked suddenly. “What’s going to happen then? I mean he took over the company after killing Allen’s father. He’s going to have something in place. What if the next guy is worse than him? If that’s even possible.” She could feel Emily look at her. She knew what Chris planned to do and she really didn’t want to think about it, but she knew she had to go through with it if they had any chance of surviving. Still she told Rachel, “Let’s just say we’re going to have to act fast.” *** Somehow Davidson led them to a manufacturing lab. Yes they had more room to maneuver, but there were still some rather heavy equipment to use. A fact Davidson proved when he picked up something and threw it at him. Anderson easily ducked it and continued after him. Before he could grab something else Anderson jumped on top of him, swiping at his head on the way down. Small sparks flew as his claws scratched the metal of his helmet. Hauling him up he kicked him in the gut and kneed him in the head to get him back standing. A jumping spin kick knocked him into a table. Anderson grabbed and threw him into a series of lockers. He fell to the ground but still he tried to get back up. “I do realize you are angry that I killed the monkey before you had the chance Mr. Davidson, but really. Why continue to get up?” “Because… because,” he said between breath as he got to his knees, “I’m their champion.” Getting a foot under him he started to stand, “And thanks to you I finally figured it out.” Hunched over he looked at him, “I’m not angry you killed the monkey. I’m pissed you thought you had the right to do this to them!” Standing at his full height he finished, “I’m stopping you no matter what.” “Brave words Mr. Davidson,” Anderson told him, but he could tell he was still in pain. Despite that Davidson waved him on and he obliged. *** The last time Jack felt this exhausted was when he was fighting Melissa’s brother and his men. Like back then he knew he had to keep going, this time more than ever. Because the rebels were never going to be safe as long as this Drakan was still around. But it was strange, while he was fighting Anderson he had never felt so right about anything in his life. As he ran in with a uppercut that jacked Anderson’s jaw he knew they were right, this was his destiny and he stopped fighting it. He was able to grab the cheetah from behind and threw him over his head. The Drakan flipped in the air and landed on his feet, a backhand as he turned around floored him. Getting to a knee Jack clasped his hands together and swung for the fences again. He saw a tooth fly out of the cheetah’s mouth. Jack ran in as he stumbled back and jumped off Anderson’s leg as he kicked him in the side of the head. Running in again he grabbed him around the waist and picked him up, slamming him into the wall. Holding him there Jack slammed his fist into the Drakan’s gut repeatedly. Suddenly he grabbed his wrist and twisted. Jack went down to a knee as it felt like he was going to tear his arm right out of its socket. Anderson let go and grabbed him around the shoulders and slammed him against the wall again and again and again. On the last one the cheetah let go and walked away for some reason. Jack tried to stand up again as he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Anderson rammed some sort of drill press into the side of his head. As Jack went back down he hit with it again and again and again. He felt some sort of breeze while his heard ringing in his ears when he finally stopped. Jack felt Anderson pick him up and drag him away from the wall before getting him a seated position and standing over him. Then he felt those claws on his cheek again as he realized the helmet was cracked open. On instinct he tried to stop him as Anderson tried to rip it off of him. There were several small cracking sounds that turned into one long on before the Cheetah roared and strained as his helmet broke in half. Taking a step back to regain his footing as Jack fell backwards Anderson studied his face as the back half fell off his head. Then he looked at the front half of his helmet before dropping it to the ground. “Now it ends Mr. Davidson.” *** Emily walked away from the rest of the group for the moment. Although all of them knew her gift didn’t work that way every so often one of them would look in her direction. She could see the question in their eyes even though they never asked it. She didn’t walk away because they wanted to ask it, she walked away because she did not have an answer for them. And that hurt her more than it usually did. But occasionally she would get a flash of something, multiple images, multiple outcomes of Jack’s encounter with Anderson. And not all of them ended with Jack being victorious. But she had to have faith in Jack, they needed him to finish the fight, she just prayed he would survive the outcome. *** Even though he was now maskless Davidson still fought. Although he was trying to defend his head more now that it was exposed he didn’t change his strategy all that much. In a small way this human was actually earning his respect. A feat only Mitchell was able to accomplish up till now. Davidson was able to catch him off guard when he jumped up and caught him with an elbow strike that landed between his eyes. Anderson was momentarily stunned, enough that Davidson was able to pick him up around the waist and slam both of them down to the floor. He pounded away at him, it took everything he had to push him off and free himself. Again Davidson got to his feet fighting, the tenacity of this particular human. This time Anderson grabbed him and tried to drive him into a wall. That wall turned out to be a door as it opened a second after impact. They sprawled on the floor of a large construction bay of some kind, with multiple catwalks above them. Both of them scrambled to their feet. Davidson had reacted first as he was able to grab his head and began throwing knees into his face. He captured the human’s leg and with a grunt and a roar was able to throw him over his head. Before Davidson could get up Anderson hauled him up and hurled him into a nearby table. He was disgusted with himself for taking the fight to this level but in battle you had to do what you had to do. Davidson tried to use the table for support, so he kicked his leg out from under him. Picking him up again he threw him into a wall. Davidson grunted in pain as he fell to all fours. “A valiant effort Mr. Davidson, a truly valiant effort,” he grunted trying to compose himself as he walked toward him. Davidson was staying on the ground this time. “But unfortunately for you this day was already decided.” Davidson was able to get to a kneeling position but his face showed he was still in pain. “A long time ago I went to see the seer like so many others. She told me two things. My decisions would change our world. And no human could truly hurt me. So while I admire your fighting spirit this was over before it really ever begun. Goodbye Mr. Davidson, I will honor and respect your memory.” He raised his right fist at his exposed head, one quick killing blow to end it. Davidson caught it with his left hand so he tried it again with his other hand. Again he caught it. Holding on to his fist he stood. When he picked up his head Anderson couldn’t hide his disbelief, there was a fire in his eyes that wasn’t there before. “Then start shaking,” he growled right before letting go and hitting him with a right cross. “Because thanks,” he followed up with a left, “to you” again with the right, “I’m not,” a left, “exactly,” a right, “human,” a left, “any,” a right, “more!” another left. Anderson fell back, Davidson picked him up and started throwing him into the various pieces of equipment in the room. Leaning against a table Davidson came up behind him. Swinging an elbow back out of desperation he was able to get a glancing blow. It was enough to cut open the side of his forehead as he went down. Picking him up again he threw him on top of the table and held him there. “You may be an enhanced human but you are still human Davidson.” He had his claws out for a killing strike. Davidson was able to knee him in the side, distracting him long enough to get away. *** Jack knew this was going to be tough but damn. And he was really hoping he didn’t miss that opening Emily told him about. He couldn’t think about it, he had to concentrate on stopping Anderson. Jack jumped on a table and rolled to the other side as the Drakan tried to claw his face off again. Looking around he saw an impact hammer and threw it at him. Anderson jumped up to avoid it grabbing one of the catwalk above them. Pulling himself up he balanced himself on the railing before jumping to a higher level. “No you don’t,” Jack grunted as he ran for the nearest set of stairs to chase after him. When he reached the same level he was on Jack fell to a knee and held his gut, not able to ignore it anymore. His helmet may be off but he was positive the meter was one continuous flash right now. He had to end this now. Getting back to his feet he stared at Anderson on the other end and he stared right back. Through his teeth he said, “Rider kick,” and ran at him. *** Anderson knew what he was going to do before he announced it. So he ran at him in return, claws out intending to rip out his jugular like he did the senior Allen. Davidson twisted the pod down as he ran. He could see the massive charge go down his leg, he grunted in pain as it did but still he came at him. A warrior to the end, he would break with tradition just this one time to herald him into the afterlife. Both of them jumped up. Davidson positioned himself for the kick. He was ready for the killing blow. Suddenly Anderson remembered a time from his youth. He was seeing the seer, as tradition demanded. She told him, like she told so many others, his apparent destiny. It went exactly like he remembered it until one moment. She said, “No ordinary human will be able to hurt you.” That wasn’t what she said, she said no human not no ordinary human. That brief distraction was enough that Davidson kicked him in the chest. The charge he absorbed threw him back hard as he felt himself being ripped apart on the inside. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He was supposed to change their… *** Jack landed as Anderson flew back and hit the other end of the catwalk. He exploded and Jack went down and clutched at his leg, damn it he did it again. But he did it, he actually did it. Part of him was expecting a hoard of World Inc. Shock troops to bust in and surround him but none where coming. Slowly getting back up he limped down the stairs, he had to find out what happened to the others. Finding his way back to the main lab and the other Fusions he found what was left of their particular unit who were in their human forms. Sparky shoulder had a makeshift bandage around it. Both him and Jaime looked worse for wear but they were still moving. Arron was sporting a few new bruises but he was still alive as well. He was working on the EMP device when he looked up and saw him. “Damn man, you look like hell.” Jack grinned a bit, “You should see the other guy Fido.” He’s been waiting a long time to say that. “Are we ready to blow that thing or what?” “We hit a little snag,” Jaime said. “The timer got busted during the fight. Me and Arron we able to hook up a hand trigger, so one of us is going to have to stay behind. I imagine whatever troops are left will be barging in here after it happens.” “Yeah but is it going to be big enough?”, Jack asked as he gestured around the room. “We think that controls the life support system,” Jaime pointed to a computer room behind a glass wall on the other side. “We’re going to set it off in there.” “Hopefully it works,” Sparky winced. “Same here,” Arron said. “I was able to look at some of these tubes. I think there might be an internal back up in case of a massive power failure. I really couldn’t tell for sure.” “We got to risk it,” Jaime told him. “We’re not going to be safe as long as long as even one of these Fusion operatives are around.” “Yeah,” Jack said absentmindedly. Sparky saw the look on his face and started to say something before Arron announced. “We’re ready to go. Somebody just has to hit the trigger right here.” As he stood up Jack punched him out. “Jack what the hell?!”, Jaime demanded. Grabbing the device he headed for the computer room, “Get out of here while you can. This might be your only chance.” “Jack stop,” Sparky cried out. “You of all people can’t be the one who does this,” Jaime tried to tell him. Jack stopped and looked at them, “You said it yourself Jaime. You’re not going to be safe until all the Fusions are gone. That includes me, because who knows how long before somebody tries to use me against you. Guys it’s been real and it’s been fun. I guess that means it’s been real fun.” He headed back toward the computer room. They didn’t try to stop him as he hit the control on the glass door. Putting the device down in the center of the room he hit the top of the belt, he wanted to look like a man when this went down. What was left of his armor faded away as the pain he was feeling increased but he ignored it. Looking out the glass at the people in the tubes he said to them, “Trust me I’m doing you a favor.” He started to hit the trigger but he hesitated. Tears forming and starting to fall he closed his eyes, “I’m sorry Rachel.” He hit the trigger. *** There was a commotion going on around her. People were praying. People working communications were shouting out updates about what was going on. But right now Rachel wasn’t paying attention to any of it. For some reason she felt suddenly cold and alone. Her eyes started to water as a word escaped her lips, “Jack.” *** “Get that tube working now!” “I can’t get it to come on!” “Don’t you do this to her Jack, do you hear me? Do not do this to her!” *** Five months, it had been five months since Anderson died. And like she told Rachel they had to act quickly the moment they found out. Emily told her once that Chris never planned to take over World Inc. after they took Anderson out of power. He was going to give it to her thinking she could have done a better job than he ever could. In those five months she tried to prove him right. They were able to use a fairly common rule of family succession to take over. Since her cousin never had any children of his own and she was the closest thing he had to family in the area she was able to claim the company as hers. Fortunately any of the Drakan under him that was powerful enough to challenge her claim were lost months ago. That still didn’t stop those who remained from voicing their displeasure or leaving outright. Looking back Melissa realized that was the easy part. No the hard part was coming up, and she was dreading this to no end. They were in no shape to defend themselves if the other pacts decided to push the matter through force. Still she had to try, they fought for the right to live they wanted for so long Melissa was not going to let it slip through their fingers. The door opened and she stood up from behind her desk, and it was her desk. She had just about everything in the office removed a couple of days after she took over. Not out of any need to make this hers, but his presence seemed to come off as a vibe from just about everything in there, and that made her feel uncomfortable. Walking around the glass desk that replaced his wooden one she greeted the group that came in. Arron and his father Thomas, a few other pact Alphas from nearby cities, and of course Emily. “Please, why don’t you have a seat.” She took her chair behind the desk as Arron stood behind his father as he and the others took the offered chairs. She didn’t fail to notice that Emily sat on the couch. “I’m grateful you could take the time for this meeting. “We’re just trying to see what crap you’re trying to pull,” one of them said. “Trying having some sort of beacon for ‘equality’ between the classes and stirring up trouble.” Arron started to say something but a look from her and his father kept him quiet. “We’re not trying to pull or stir up anything,” she told him. Addressing the group she said, “What we want is what we always wanted, to live our lives in peace. No more and no less.” “Why should we believe that?”, another demanded. “You’re actions up till now weren’t all that peaceful.” She didn’t need her gift to see the contempt and arrogance in most of them. “While I freely admit that some individuals own actions were more violent than any of us would have liked, they were a minority. The rest of the time we were acting in self-defense, seeing how some refused to let us live peacefully and actively hunted us down.” A couple of them shifted in their seats uncomfortably, unfortunately the rest held firm. “So what are you planning on doing now?”, the first one asked. “Are you going to turn this city into a staging ground to alter our very way of life?” “It was never our intent to force our way of life onto others,” Melissa answered. “If anybody wants to drop the old ways behind and live with us peacefully we will welcome them with open arms. But,” she leaned forward slightly, “if we ever find out that somebody was sent in to disrupt what we’re trying to do we will fight back.” She looked at each of them. A few were impressed with her conviction, still the others… “That sounded like a threat,” one said standing up. “Sit down,” Arron’s father said. “But Thomas,” a look from him silenced him and made him sit down. Melissa held her breath. Arron’s father was a very powerful alpha. Their future may very well depend on him. They studied each other for a moment. Finally he said, “All right, we’ll leave you alone.” Like she expected most of them protested. Another look silenced all of them. “Let them live in their little fairy world. Sooner or later this little experiment will fail.” They nodded in silent agreement. Melissa just arched an eyebrow. They left only leaving herself, Emily, Arron and his father. “I studied that file about Anderson activities you released to us,” Thomas said after awhile, “especially the ones dealing with the Drakan Killer. Although that file seemed a tad incomplete.” “It didn’t seem like a good idea to just give out the information on how to build one,” she told him. Thomas nodded, “I would have done the same. You know your cousin tried to tell me he was a creation by you rebels, a concoction to get people on your side.” Before she could say anything he continued, “My son told me about the man behind this particular myth. What was your take of him?” “We had a rough start but I eventually considered him my friend.” “A pity he’s no longer around. I was hoping I could thank him for sparing my son.” Looking at Arron he said, “I’ll be downstairs, I’ll give you a few minutes.” He stopped at the door mumbling, “Thank you for looking after my boy,” then left. Left speechless she saw Emily started to leave as well, “I do believe that worked out better than you thought. But it was just one step child, one of many.” As she left she said something confusing as well, “I told him he would change our world.” While she pondered that particular statement she turned her attention to Arron, “So what are you planning on doing now?” “I’m still working it out,” he admitted. “I want to help you guys out here but my dad needs me too. Maybe I can direct some guys this way while I working on making some changes on my own. I guess we’ll find out how it goes in the long run.” “You’re always welcomed here Arron,” she told him, “I hope you know that.” “I do,” he said gratefully. His mood changed a bit, “How is she?” “Still the same,” Melissa said. “I was planning on heading over and seeing them today. Dusty said she could use the company.” *** She looked out at the lake as she sat on a crate at the end of the docks. The chilly air made her tighten the jacket around her, his jacket. After all this time she could still smell him when she wore it. She remembered a long time ago when she tried to get him to give her this jacket during a cold night stakeout. “Rachel!” she looked behind her and saw Dusty standing at the entrance of the warehouse. She jumped off the crate and ran toward him not able to read his face. Trying not to get her hopes up for nothing. She looked inside and her heart jumped. Inside the same make shift labs that housed his friend Angie, Sparky and Friedman were trying to get him to calm down. Dusty went over to help them saying, “Harry was he this much trouble the first time you pulled him out or is this a recent development?” “He was sleeping like a baby the first time.” “Calm down son,” Dusty said as they continued struggling with him. “WHY?!” he demanded. “Jack,” Rachel said. He stopped struggling and looked at her. They let him go and backed away. She reached out to him. He backed away from her. He backed away and his eyes held noting but hurt and betrayal. “Jack,” she said again, he wouldn’t look at her. Her heart being torn in two she ran out of there. Tears freely falling she put a hand to her mouth, “Oh God what did I do?” Angie and Sparky was at her side in the next moment. She said, “He’s just a little disorientated right now. Give him some time to get his head together.” “Yeah,” Sparky agreed, “we’ll be bugging you guys to go on double dates before you know it.” Rachel ignored them as she stood there crying to herself. *** “I can officially say I wasn’t expecting this,” Melissa said as she sat across from Jack. Emily stood beside her. He was wearing some sweats and a T-shirt but he looked really uncomfortable. “But I can honestly say it’s a pleasant surprise.” He said nothing. “It took some doing but we were able to clear your and Rachel’s name. We even ended the government involvement in the company so you don’t have to worry there. This one Senator made some noise but he quieted down eventually. But you didn’t want to listen to me talk about business.” Still he said nothing. “Dusty and Friedman were able to figure out how to counter act the smell of Drakan blood. I had them make exactly two full treatments and destroy the formula. There no need for that to get in the wrong hands. I owed you two at least that much. Your system is still active though,” she waited for any type of reaction and still got nothing. “It would have involved a major redesign of the system but we think we were able to stop you from activating the armor. Friedman is still working on it though, he sees it more as a medical thing than a military thing. And before I forget we unfroze your bank account so you should be set for awhile. Actually I pulled some strings and doubled the amount inside. I felt you deserved it after everything you did for us.” Finally he said, “Whose idea was this?” “I think you know who,” Melissa told him. He closed his eyes, “Jack…” “My road was supposed to end when I faced Anderson,” he said. “No, you were told that this part of your journey would end,” Emily spoke up. “No one said it would end permanently. I did tell you that your choices would decide your destiny.” “So if I didn’t become a mass murderer I would have stayed dead?”, he spat. “Jack listen to me,” Melissa said. “You did what you had to do. I don’t know why you thought you had to sacrifice yourself but it’s a little late to wonder about it now.” “I should have stayed dead.” “Jack you just got a second chance at a normal life,” she told him. “Don’t waste it acting like this.” *** He stood at the end of the peer looking out at the sun starting to set. Standing there in a black tee, jeans and sneakers he was starting to feel the chill in the air. In his hands was the front half of his helmet. Why they decided to save this piece of junk was beyond him. He reared back to throw it into the lake but stopped. Looking at it he brushed his fingers lightly over it. Was it actually over? He still couldn’t believe it. Hearing footsteps behind him Jack looked back and saw Rachel standing a few feet away holding his jacket. She let her hair grow out, how did he not notice that until now? “It looks like you might need this.” She held it out to him. Looking back out at the lake he told her, “Keep it.” That came out harsher than he wanted. He added, “It looks better on you anyway.” “How are you feeling?” “I don’t know,” he answered. And he didn’t. They told him so much about what happened in the past five months he was still trying to process it all. For some reason he wanted to ask, “Where have you been staying?” “At Dusty’s when I wasn’t here,” her voice cracked a bit. “He says he wants you there too. I can take the couch this time if it helps. I want to talk to you about why…” “I was fine with the idea that I wasn’t coming back,” he blurted. “I wasn’t,” she told him. He couldn’t say anything so she eventually started to walk away. He tried to convince himself it was for the best. Yeah he was shocked she went to this length but he was over the initial shock. Jack wanted desperately to go to her but deep down he knew she deserved better than him. Why would she want to be with somebody like him? Why would she want to waste her time with somebody as screwed up as he is? Why would she put herself through that? Why was he hearing Richie threaten to come back and kick his ass if he let her walk away? “Rachel,” he said. She stopped and looked at him. Oh God what was he going to say to her? “I… I used to go to this café pretty regular before all of this started. I was wondering if it was still open after all of this time.” He gulped a bit, “I think I saw jambalaya on the menu once. It might have been a onetime special, I don’t really remember.” “I guess there’s only one way to find out,” she said starting to smile. One step by both of them quickly turned into a run. The moment they were within reach they wrapped their arms around each other. Both of them cried as they held on to the other for a long time. “God I was being a jerk,” he said thinking about how he was acting. “That’s because you are a jerk,” she told him. Looking at him she added, “But you’re my jerk. I’m still willing to sleep on the couch if you do want to stay with Dusty for a while.” “I really don’t want to be alone tonight,” he told her as he kissed her. Taking the jacket from her he helped her put it on. Reaching behind her he pulled the hood over her head, “It’s getting cold out here. I don’t want you catching anything.” About then both of them noticed he was still holding the front half of his helmet. “What are you going to do with that?”, she asked. “It might sound a little strange but I was thinking about keeping it. Kinda as a memento of where we started.” She smiled and agreed with him. Looking at her he said what was in his heart, “I love you Rachel Haily.” “I love you too you big lug.” Taking his hand she led him away from the dock. “Come on, the others have been planning a welcome back party for you since you woke up. But afterwards you are all mine Jack Davidson.” “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” The sun set as they walked, ready to face whatever this new road was going to take them. *Ending Theme – Linkin Park – What I’ve Done* |
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