Crackle (Part 2)

[tweezers 1,034]

Crackle (Part 1)

 *

 

James opened his eyes.

‘Urrggh....Ben?...Alice?’

‘Alice? Are yo-‘ James blacked out again

 

When he woke up again, everything was dark. He tried to turn his head but pain spiked through his entire body. He lay where he was for a long time, until the sun came up. It seemed brighter than usual, the rays seeking him out, forcing him to move. When he eventually dragged himself to a darker place, he sat up and surveyed the ground around him.

 

They had been ambushed. That much was plain to see. His Hornet lay in the middle of the clearing, it's rear completely torn open, the turret drooping over the front of it. How he had survived that hit, he had no idea. The Dictator was nowhere to be seen, but a set of tracks leading away indicated that they at least had managed to get away. He sighed in relief.

 

Then he saw the shed.

 

It had been completely razed, the remains scattered. The poor Wasp had been dragged out and set alight, the blackened metal still smoking. A feeling of dread overcame James. He struggled to get up, and succeeded with the help of a convenient branch. He considered for a moment, then broke it off and used it as a cane as he hobbled off down the tracks left by the fleeing Dictator.

 

He walked on, past the spring they had used for water, past the dead Hunter that they had stripped of all parts. Something bright lay ahead. Eagerly expecting to see Ben and Alice, he hurried forward, only to find a jagged piece of metal embedded in a tree.

 

And it was still flecked with Bens’ favourite shade of pastel blue paint.

 

‘Oh no. No. No..’ The words tumbled out of his mouth as he burst through the bushes, fear giving him strength.

The Dictator lay on it's side between two trees, engine compartment torn open, tracks damaged and turret torn off. The escape hatch was open, and a trail of blood told its own story. Now shivering, James’ eyes followed it over to the bottom of a pine tree, where two blobs of colour stood out against the green and brown of the ground. James staggered towards them, terrified of what he might find.

 

It was Alice and Ben. Their arms were wrapped around each other, their faces peaceful. Alice still had a spanner in her pocket, end covered in oil, Ben still wearing his welding gloves.

 

 And they were gone.

 

Gone where James couldn't punch Ben and tell him to stop kidding, gone where he couldn’t hug Alice when she made them dinner, gone where they couldn't hear his broken sobs as he knelt before them, tears running down his cheeks.

Gone, and James was left alone.

 

He didn’t know how long he stayed there, rocking back and forth, half wanting to join them, half being afraid that the attackers would come back. He decided he couldn’t leave them there like that,  decided to give them the send off they deserved. He moved them tenderly into the Dictator, gathered all the parts scattered about, and then fired the fuel tank. The Dictator roared into flames, and the fire rose higher and higher.

 

A proper send off, he thought. A send off they wouldn’t have needed if he hadn’t messed up.

 

James turned, Alice's screwdriver clenched in his fist, and a metal fist clenched around his heart.

Hurting. Hurting so badly that he wanted to go back and wait for the ones who did it, go back and wait for them to put an end to his misery, so that he could be with them again. But he couldn’t. He knew that he had to keep going on, no matter how much his body ached, no matter how many tears ran down his face, no matter how many times he wished that they would come back. He knew it wasn’t what they would have wanted him to do.

Without even knowing it, he had reached the wrecked Hornet. A cold wind rustled through the trees, an eerie sound in the loneliness. He walked over to it and pulled out a short barreled, black pistol. It had never been fired before, since it was part of their pact that they would not kill in cold blood if they could help it.

That pact was over now.

He straightened up, looking over his shoulder as he did. The sight of the remains of their home, their haven, steeled him to his task.

He crossed over to the crest of the hill. A quick look around again. He didn’t intend to return.

James left. Leaves crunched beneath his still slow and painful footsteps as he walked towards the one other place he knew that was safe.

 

The Blacksmiths’ headquarters.

                                                                                    *

 

Advancing (Part 3)

[Night-Sisters 2,139]

Hats off, ok. You can certainly tell a story.  ^_^ A pleasure to read. 

[greyat 2,972]

I rarely check the AWC, and even more rarely find anything worth reading, but by the powers, this is an excellent piece!

[Quarks 2,255]

I rarely check the AWC, and even more rarely find anything worth reading, but by the powers, this is an excellent piece!

Sniff, sniff

 

Wow, that was fantastic. You can really tell a story.

[tweezers 1,034]

Hats off, ok. You can certainly tell a story.  ^_^ A pleasure to read. 

 

 

I rarely check the AWC, and even more rarely find anything worth reading, but by the powers, this is an excellent piece!

 

 

Sniff, sniff

 

Wow, that was fantastic. You can really tell a story.

Thanks you guys!  :) Will try to keep 'em coming, next bit might take a while since I plan to make it a bit longer  :P

[Quarks 2,255]

Thanks you guys!  :) Will try to keep 'em coming, next bit might take a while since I plan to make it a bit longer  :P

Great, even more to read.

[NERF836 202]

Nice :D