The Tale of Gregory (Part 5)

Balance

Caught:

I didn't dare make a noise or even bother to breathe as Shadow began to wonder around the yard.. I wouldn't stand a chance against Shadow and his guns. Soon, his footsteps fell silent and an eerie wind blocked out any other noise. Suddenly, a strong gust of wind hit me, causing me to lose my footing against the tree for only a split-second. My foot dragged across the ground loud enough to make my heart skip a beat. Suddenly, the sound of wind was broken by Shadow's menacing voice. "Gregory!" he yelled. "I was wondering if you'd show up, did you miss that little tussle between Tm and I?" I remained quiet, just in case Shadow was just bluffing that he saw me. "He hardly put up a fight," Shadow laughed. "Boy did he fall from grace." I became immediately frustrated. How was Tim supposed to stand up against Shadow and his weapons? "I would suggest coming out, don't worry, I'll give you a fair fight. Lets just see what the son of George has in'em." I still refrained from moving. "I would suggest coming out now, Gregory. Unless you want me to fight dirty." In an effort to see if he was really telling the truth, I peaked from behind the tree, only to find Shadow standing a few mere feet away, staring directly at me! I stepped out from behind the tree, trying to seem as strong and menacing as ever. Shadow dropped his guns and knife o the side and stood tall. "I expect a good fight here Gregory... Tim would want it that way." With rage coursing through my body, I attacked him.

Gregory Vs. Shadow:

With speed that I didn't even know I had in me, I sprinted towards Shadow and kneed him in the stomach with all my strength. As I prepared to kick him back, Shadow agilely leaped backwards and in my sudden confusion, he sent himself barreling towards me like a rocket. His fist hit me hard and I fell onto my back. Shadow ran at me again, but I managed to roll out of the way and trip him while I was at it. Before Shadow could react, I tackled him back onto the ground and trapped his arms beneath my legs. With all the strength I could muster, I delivered five strong left and right hooks to his chest and face. Shadow remained calm and quickly shifted his weight forward so that he could knock me off. It worked, and I soon found myself on the ground again. Shadow took me by the throat, and delivered to strong punches to my stomach; knocking the wind out of me. "I'm not impressed," Shadow said as he threw me back. I couldn't seem to find the words to speak to him, my mind was blank and all I could do was keep fighting. Shadow cam running at me as if he were going to tackle me, leaving me enough time to get up, outstretch my hand, and at the last minute, catch his face within the palm of my hand. Shadow now seemed surprised as I used this time to pick him up and hold him above my head. The wind now picked up, causing me to stumble a bit and lose grip of him, sending Shadow falling to the ground against my efforts. While lying there, Shadow spun his legs around and tripped me. I fell hard on my side and my walkie-talkie shattered instantly. He suddenly grabbed my shirt and yelled over the wind. "Thanks to you, Scythe is attacking the S.S.C early... TODAY! The only way you can save them before the attack is to kill me!" Shadow got me in a headlock and continued to speak, "But you won't do that will you?! You won't dive down to our level!" His headlock became tighter and all my attempts and breaking free were futile. I attempted to kick Shadow, but they were to week to any real damage. My punches were also to weak to cause harm. I became drowsy and could only hope that Negative was watching and could help me one last time, but there was no sign of him. I could hardly breathe as I began to remember Danson, my father, Spike, Luke, Chris, and everyone else who believed in me. Could it really end here. "No," I answered to myself out loud, and before Shadow could see it coming, I bent my legs and shot myself up, off the ground, sending my head right into his face. Shadow stumbled back, holding his head in his hands, with haste, I sprinted away with all my might. I didn't dare look back, I could only hope that I wasn't to late.

The Race:

As I raced to the S.S.C base, my mind was flooding with questions and my heart was still heavy with regret. But I could make up for my wrongful doings by saving the S.S.C. As I was running, I decided to take out my binoculars and look around for enemies, I was soon drawn to the general direction of Father Base where I was stunned to see multiple Scythe members leaving their base, and heading towards ours! A black van soon pulled up to them and the members piled in as the car continued its course. I put down the binoculars and began to sprint. "The S.S.C base is right around this hill," I kept thinking to myself. "You are almost there, you can save everyone, not much longer!" Eventually I arrived at the base and all was eerily calm. Fearing the worst, I broke down the door shouting for Luke. I was then relieved to see Hawk and a few other S.S.C members waiting for my arrival. I caught myself tearing up for a moment, I had made it in time.

Warning:

"Whats going on?" Spike asked in surprise. "Are they really going to attack?" "Yes," I replied quickly. "I have already spotted a black van carrying about 8 to 10 Scythe members." Spike punched the wall in fury as the members began to talk amongst themselves in fear. "Everyone out!" Spike demanded at once. "Go back to your homes as quickly as you can! Find a place to hide or a loved one to protect you; go go go!" No-one even bothered bringing their stuff with them, in mere seconds, everyone had evacuated the base. At first I thought is was only Spike and I who remained. But Luke soon stepped out of the darkness and threw me a new walkie talkie. Chris followed shortly behind him. "What are you guys still doing here?" I asked. "Spike has already prepared us for what needs to be done if an attack were to happen today," Chris said. Spike soon cut in, "Yes, we will need to capture Trigger or Henry in order for them to leave us alone... and we have to do it today... We simply can't risk anyone getting hurt or... killed." As I was about to explain the situation with Tim, we all jumped at the sound of a car coming to s stop in front of our base. "Everyone hide," Luke whispered in a shaky voice, and we all split up at once.

The Beginning of the End:

I hid myself between a cabinet and a wall and proceeded to cover myself in old files and newspapers so as to make it look like I was a mere pile of garbage... I already felt that way. I peered out for only a second to see what was going on, Spike, Luke, and Chris were already hiding and footsteps drew near the entrance. "Take a look around," an unknown voice muttered. "All we have to do is find one." The footsteps would grow louder and quieter as the Scythe members continued their search. Suddenly, my attention was drawn to my new walkie-talkie. This one was far more advanced and was blinking for some reason. I soon found that a message had been sent to it by Chris. It simply read: "3 have guns, the rest do not." Chris must of had a better view than me, which I was a bit jealous of. This was cut short by a Scythe member coming closely over to my direction. His footsteps stopped and he opened up the very cabinet I was hiding beside. Finding nothing of interest, he closed it and began to walk away. I caught a glimpse of him for a second, attached to his waist was a gun. I became conflicted with sudden thoughts of attacking him and retrieving his weapon, we would have more of a chance at defeating them then. But this could also risk the safety of the others, who might come out of their hiding places to help me. Before I could come to either decision, and loud crash was heard and someone screamed, "I found one, get in he-" Another crash was heard as all the Scythe members poured into a nearby room. My heart skipped a beat or two as Luke came barreling out of the room, with a gun in his hands. He must have been thinking the same thing as me. The un-armed Scythe members stood with their hands up as Luke kept a steady aim on them. Suddenly, I saw a figure silently sneaking towards Luke as he was distracted. It was one of the other armed Scythe members and he was about to aim at Luke! Suddenly, I remembered the "gun" Chris had given to me! Before I was even sure what I was doing, I pulled out the fake gun and leaped from my hiding spot. I was now aiming directly at the attackers head. Luke smiled as he realized that I was holding a fake. "Drop your weapon now!" I ordered, trying to sound threatening. With no other option, the attacker dropped his weapon on the ground where I picked it up. I was still sweating bullets however; the other armed Scythe member was still un-accounted for. We ordered everyone from Scythe into a pack and cornered them to prevent any escape. I didn't want to leave Luke alone with these guys too long, but we had to locate this last guy. Suddenly, a scuffle was heard around the corner. "Spike," I caught myself muttering. Surely enough, Spike was wrestling the last attacker to the ground. I was relieved until I noticed that the Scythe member was still holding onto his weapon! A stray gunshot suddenly rang out as the bullet hit the ceiling. I drew my weapon at the last Scythe member, and realizing he was over-powered; he dropped his weapon. This one move was our downfall though. As soon as I turned my back one of the Scythe members tackled Luke and sent his gun flying backwards. Commander Spike reacted to this in a split-second and caught it before anyone else even knew what was happening. Before I knew it, They were coming for me to retrieve my weapon! Without thinking, I pulled the trigger and shot one of them in the head with the BB gun. Chris hadn't lied, the shots were indeed powerful, the unlucky Scythe member fell back in pain as I backed up and shot two more; with similar reactions. Scythe members were now confused and scared for their lives and descended into chaos as some fled from the building and others chased Spike into another room. I followed closely behind and shot two more in their backs while they were being distracted. It took more shots to hurt them, but it got the job done. Suddenly, a large hand came down on my shoulder and forced me to turn around. A beefy Scythe member began to fight me for the weapon! He had sheer strength on his side as he threw me about the room. Luckily I kept hold of the gun and managed to empty it of every "marble" before dropping it on purpose. The beefy teen leaped for the gun and (while still on the ground) attempted to shoot me. When nothing happened, he became enraged, but only for a second as I quickly kicked him in the side of his head, where he quickly went un-consious. Only then did I feel incredibly tired and weak. I had just gotten done running and fighting with Shadow. And now I was trying to take down an entire platoon of Scythe members!? My legs began to shake as I became even weaker. Suddenly, Spike bolted out of a room, still holding the guns and proceeded to slide them under a cabinet to prevent anyone else from stealing them. The Scythe members came barreling out of the room and suddenly began to stumble as the front-runner stepped on the "marbles" I had emptied out. Soon, our attackers were clumsily falling over each other is a desperate attempt to catch us. Luckily, everyone was without a gun now, or so it seemed, seeing as the third one had "magically" vanished. As I neared a corner in a frantic search for Luke, I ran into two more Scythe members who pushed me against the wall and struck my ribs with piercing blows. Spike tackled one and managed to toss me an M-Stick. I swung at my attacker and knocked him back long enough to whack more in-coming attackers. Luke soon appeared behind me with his M-Stick as we knocked down the incoming waves. Unfortunately, one member managed to catch my M-Stick and yank it out of my hands in a second. Luke and I were now being cornered as the Scythe members carefully closed in on us. There were still about six left and I was becoming even more weakened by my injuries and sleepiness. A fist suddenly nailed me in the side and I couldn't help but fall to the ground in pain. Suddenly, three of our attackers were shot down. At first I thought it was by a bullet, but it turned out to be Chris and the newly reloaded BB gun. As he attempted a forth shot, the gun jammed and he was forced to hit an incoming Scythe member with his bare fist. And then kick him down. Luke managed to kneel beside me "Get up Gregory!" he shouted. "Some are waking up!" "I can't do it!" I yelled over the chaos, ''"I don't have any fight left in me." I sunk down further into my corner of despair as the thoughts of Danson and Tim floated through my head like ghosts that refused to rest.  '

The New Plan:

All was quiet and I thought for a moment that Luke had left me, but he soon replied furiously, "Gregory! Do you see Chris over there!?" I didn't bother looking up, all I could utter was "I can't do it... I can't do it anymore." "DO YOU SEE CHRIS!?" he yelled once more. "He's fighting with all he's got, the guy who creates weapons and uploaded documents to our servers is fighting off Scythe members with his bare hands!" Luke continued, "Chris may think that it is all over too, but he is out their fighting till the end... We need your help Gregory, we can't do this without you..." Realizing that Luke was right, I stood up and stumbled towards Chris who was still in the heat of battle. I could hardly feel anything, but upon opening my weary eyes once more, I found my fist had already made contact with one of The Scythe members. It was almost as if my body were fighting on its own, or perhaps that my soul still had some fight left in it. Either way, by the time Luke jumped in to help, all of the attackers were taken out. Only 2 remained and they were beating Commander Spike like a dog. We quickly jumped in to aid him and managed to take out the final two with almost no resistance. I managed to take a breath and gaze around the room littered with knocked out Scythe members. "They will wake up soon," Spike said sourly as he wiped his face of blood. "We need to get out of here." "And then what?" I caught myself saying out loud. "If we just run away, Scythe will just come back with more troops and a whole lot more weapons... we can't continue to fight like this..." "What are you trying to say Gregory?" asked Chris. "We need to end this NOW before anyone else gets hurt... or worse... we need to find Big H." "That's practically a suicide mission!" Luke yelled. "Not if we we sneak in... I know my way around Father Base, we will be fine as long as you all listen to me." Chris and Luke began to throw more questions and retorts in my direction as Spike stood quietly aside from us. "Everyone stop!" he yelled. "Gregory is right, if we want to end this thing, we need to stop running... I don't know about you, but I'm going with Gregory on this mission." Chris straightened up, I can give you information and support over walkie talkies, but there is no way I can sneak into Father Base, I have no training on that." "Understood," Spike replied as he looked in Luke's direction. Luke seemed conflicted at first, but eventually shook his head in a silent acceptance. "Take these," Chris said as he handed us each a tiny camera. "Hide them around Father Base so that I can have some eyes in there and warn you if there are incoming troops... don't break them, I really don't have the money to buy anymore. We each took a camera and Chris departed to the old base. "Go on, Gregory," Luke said. "Lead us to victory."

Fighting Back:

As we made our way closer to "the blind side" of Father Base, I tried to cheer myself up with hopes and lies. "They probably think we are dead now, anyways, they can't see us coming from this side, we already took out some of their members, so there wont be many..." But these could hardly keep me from sweating up a storm as we neared the first few trees. We traveled through the thick brush but stayed near an abandoned path so as not to get lost. The path diverged and I decided the quickest way to get to Big H would be to go down the path with a fallen tree at the forefront... not necessarily a good sign. We followed this eerie path for a while as I realized I had never actually walked down this way. Too late to turn back now, I could only hope we were getting closer. Suddenly, the path gave way to a clearing where light shone from the heavens upon an ancient oak tree which touched the sky in all of its ancient glory. "Specter's Tree," Spike mumbled. We gave him a distant look of confusion as he elaborated. "Before it was abandoned and later taken over by Scythe, these woods surrounded an old S.S.C base at Specter's Tree. I've never seen it myself." We didn't have much time to marvel at the relic, for soon Luke spotted a distant light and we were drawn near a second shack which I had never seen so closely before. It was Big H's place and by the looks of it, he was still inside. We carefully crept up a steep hill and Luke placed his camera not far from the tree. Suddenly, another shuffle was heard that didn't seem to fit in with the motions we were already making, before I could give any orders, Scythe members dashed out from the brush, we were trapped.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Confrontation:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">We were soon surrounded by 5 big looking Scythe members, none had any visible firearms, but one did carry a hunting knife at his side. No-one moved for an uncomfortable amount of time until one member pulled an un-seen gun out of his jacket. Before he even had time to aim at us, Spike leaped into action and kicked the weapon out of his hands with incredible force. The gun flew into the distant brush, and would be nearly impossible to find now. This was the least of our worries as the Scythe members closed in on us and one hit me in my back. Soon, we were all in a frenzy, rolling through the wet grass and falling into trees. I managed to kick one in the face and proceeded to punch him hard in the stomach. I was soon in a headlock as one member attempted to pin me against a tree. Luckily, Luke did a spin-trip and the attacker was forced to let me go. Commander Spike was close to Specter’s Tree, fighting against two of the bigger attackers. He was holding his own quite well, but I suddenly spotted the Scythe member with the knife closing in behind him. I slid down-hill and yelled at the top of my lungs for Spike to watch out. Spike managed to turn around just as the Scythe member lunged at him. I winced as Spike cried out in pain. When my eyes opened again, Spike was on the ground and the three attackers were coming towards me! Luke was busy fighting the other two at the top of the hill, with little success. I backed up and then attempted to run, but I tripped over a root of a tree and was now at their mercy. I could do nothing now but wait for the end.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Mirror:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Suddenly, an un-seen figure dashed out of the brush and knocked out the knife-carrying Scythe member with a large stick. He proceeded to throw the fallen Scythe member at the other two as they fell back in surprise. To my astonishment, there stood Negative! He wore his white jacket and I wondered to myself how I hadn’t spotted him. As I sat, awestruck by his fighting skill, I felt something touch my legs. Startled, I looked behind me, only to find an unconscious Scythe member lying at my feet. “He must have rolled down-hill,” I muttered. Upon looking up, to check Luke’s progress, my jaw nearly dropped to the floor. For there, helping Luke fight was… another Negative! This one woe a black jacket and fought with the same prowess and skill as the one fighting for me! When the attackers were knocked unconscious, the Negative in the black jacket and Luke came sliding down the hill-side to meet us. “Friends of yours?” Luke asked with a snicker. I could hardly speak as it occurred to me that my dream about Negative made sense with the two masks. The two of them were helping me from the start! My mind then jumped to something far different, Spike! Spike was still lying on the ground, making a few movements. Luke and I ran to him, nearly in tears. Upon checking him, Spike had managed to avoid a stab to the heart but had been stabbed on his right side. “I’ll take him back to base for Chris to give him some medical attention,” Luke said quickly. Spike mumbled that he was fine, but Luke picked him up anyways. “Good luck,” he said before departing. I would need more than luck to stop this crisis, but the two Negatives helping me would be a start. “I don’t suppose you two are go-“ I was cut off before I could speak any more when one of the Negatives put his hand over my mouth. More rustling in the bushes could be hear nearby. “Get out of here,” one of them whispered. “We will take this fight, just find Big H!” Without questioning them, I ran away, narrowly avoiding being caught by two patrolling Scythe members. Soon, I had my back back against the shack and slowly eased my way around the corner to get a good look around, no-one was around the building and now that darkness was creeping in, I would have a fighting chance at coming out victorious. I quietly slipped through the door and with trembling hands and feet, made my way to a place where I could hide for a moment and plot this out. It was a smart move seeing as a Scythe member with a large shotgun appeared out of nowhere before leaving the shack. Hearing no further footsteps I began to walk towards a rickety old staircase that looked as if it was at least 100 years old. A sudden noise nearby made me jump in fear and hide myself once more. At first I didn't know what it was, but I soon realized it was my walkie talkie. Chris's voice lightly shot up on the other line. "Gregory, just calling to tell you that Spike is going to be alright, the wound just needs some medication and some stitches is all, Luke wants to know if he can come back." I thought upon this briefly but decided against it. "I'll be fine Chris," I said. "I'll be... fine." Chris tried to speak once more, but the door suddenly flung open, only to reveal Trigger and Shadow who talked as they went up the stairs. "You know what to do," Trigger said threateningly towards Shadow. "This shouldn't take long," he continued. They soon went upstairs with me closely behind. "If Shadow was here instead of fighting, that must mean that our little scuffle with the guards didn't arouse any attention right?" I thought to myself. Trigger and Shadow entered the first room to the right and I could only catch a glimpse of Big H waiting for them. My eyes were suddenly drawn to a hole in the wall that would allow me to peep in and see what was happening. With darkness growing, they would never suspect a thing.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Betrayel:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Putting my eye up to the hole, I got a good look at Big H's office; or whatever was left of one. The room was a mess; with guns, papers, and food thrown about the place. Big H sat at a make-shift desk that was actually just a long plank being held up by a stump. There was another hols to the left of me that was big enough for the mini camera to see out of. I set it in place so that Chris could watch this as well. "Brother there seems to be a problem..." Trigger said as he walked closer to the desk. "I already know..." Big H said frustrated. "A hound called me earlier and told me about the S.S.C's evasion and the defeat of our unit." Shadow stood by Big H's side as he continued to grow angrier. "The S.S.C has no weapons, no leader, and certainly no place to hide and yet you still failed to take them out! God knows when well have another chance at making them pay! I expect more out of you my little brother, DO NOT fail me a second time!" Big H's yelling could certainly be heard from a distance as I heard birds fly away in fear of his ghostly voice. Without a word, Trigger turned around and began to head to the door, as I was about to make my way to a new hiding spot, I noted that Trigger was reaching into his front pocket which upon further surveillance, was a gun! My entire body froze, how could he have known I was there. My brain told me to run, but it was as if all my muscles had been frozen in place, leaving me standing there, breathless. There was a short pause and then Trigger swung around, only to point the gun at his own brother's heart! Shadow made no movements, neither did Big H. The only difference between the two was that Shadow was smiling, while Big H looked as if he had already been shot. "W-hat the-" he stammered, only to be cut off by Trigger. "Shadow and I have had just about enough of your leadership Henry," he said smoothly. " We are also aware that Scythe's half of the stolen money is beginning to run low." "Rumors!" Big H yelled, "Only rumors!" "Shut up!" Trigger retorted. "What did you think would happen when you ran out of money Henry? What did you think would happen?" There was only silence as Trigger continued. "Shadow and I are TAKING the rest of that cash for ourselves and only for ourselves, we won't have to worry about saving the others or giving them new lives, all we will have to worry about... is ourselves." Big H seemed utterly heartbroken now as I wondered if I was about to witness a murder. "Where is Scythe's half located?" Trigger asked sourly. "We have almost got the S.S.C's half!" Big H screamed, "Just wait!" "I'm sick of waiting," Trigger replied as he moved closer to the former Big H. With no options left, Big H blurted it out. "Its buried by the big oak tree in the clearing... it is near a uplifted root pointing this way." Big H fell onto his "desk" and began to weep. Trigger tossed his gun to Shadow. "Keep watching him!" he said. "He may be lying... and if he is..." Trigger gave a crooked grin and quickly fled. I began to debate with myself, wondering if I should try and capture Big H now, or follow Trigger and get the money back. I didn't have long to think though, the moment I heard Shadow make a swift clicking noise with the gun, I knew it would be safer to capture Trigger instead. With that, I left the life of Big H in Shadow's hands... did I care? I wasn't sure.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Gregory Vs. Trigger:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">By the time I got outside and snuck back to Specter's Tree, it was pitch black outside. Perhaps it was merely my nerves, but I could have sworn that this was the darkest day of the year. Almost no sounds could be heard, and I wondered for a moment if Trigger had already dug up the money. But upon listening closer, the muffled sound of dirt being lightly thrown to the ground, met my ears. I took a quick glance at my watch, it was 12:04, most Scythe members would be preparing to go to sleep by now. The sound soon became louder and I took this to my advantage in order to run to the side of the freezing cold dinosaur tree. The shoveling stopped and for a split-second, Trigger peered around the tree. My dark shirt helped me blend into the tree and he went back to work. I gently withdrew my M-Stick and prepared for a quick knock out. With the speed of a cheetah, I swung the M-Stick with amazing force towards Trigger. My smile at an early job well done never came to fruition, for my M-Stick was countered with Trigger's shovel! The loud clang could was muffled by the shrubs around us, leaving just the two of us, staring at each other in surprise. "For a spy," Trigger said smiling, "you're not very sneaky." With that, Trigger jammed his shovel forward, into my chest. Although painful and distracting, I managed to rip it away from him. Trigger tackled me and tried to make a few hits at my face. I swiftly countered these with the M-Stick. Trigger, now furious, ripped it from my hands, as well as the shovel and threw them into the thick blanket of darkness. I used both of my legs to kick him off of me, and then managed to stand my ground once more. Trigger looked at me in an odd mixture of disdain and joy. He then proceeded to back away from me and enter the darkness. Now out of sight, Trigger spoke to me. "Your really somethin ya know that?" I remained quiet, if I couldn't see him, he couldn't see me. "Ya let your buddy Danson die, ya let Tim get a new house underground, and your gonna try and ruin everyone in Scythes' lives." I was confused and made my way behind a bush, where I crouched down. "Thats right Gregory, when I get away with this money, by brother wont be able to tell the others that it was me who did it. How would that reflect on him? So who else would take all the blame huh? You. I heald in my rage and opened my eyes as wide as I could to see something besides the darkness. Suddenly, a foot stepped a distance away from me. Upon examining it, the foot was connected to a leg, the leg connected to a body. I recognized it as Trigger, and before I knew what I was doing, I had leaped from the bushes and gotten Trigger in the tightest headlock I could muster. His hand slowly rose from his side awkwardly. I did a double-take, for sitting in his hand was a gun! Trigger had spun it arount and was about to pull the trigger with his thumb! Without hesitation, I pushed Trigger away from me with such great force and speed, the bullet hit miles off target. Trigger was already picking himself up now, and my entire body screamed for me to run. I headed to a densely packed group of trees, where the mud began to pull at my feet, and the branches harshly poked me from all angles. Trigger pushed his way through the brush, making as much noise as he wanted, for a mere second, something near me moved, a shot was fired, all I could here was ringing in my ears, but I was otherwise unharmed. “C’mon out Gregory,” Trigger whispered. “If you come out now, I’ll put away the gun.” For a while, I wasn’t sure what to do; could I beat Trigger either way? And could someone like him be trusted? Not wanting to try either approach, I began to back up more and more, while still remaining silent. Trigger began to do the same and we were soon feeling our way through the trees, distinguishing what was a threat, and what wasn’t. Twice, I thought I had bumped into Trigger, only to find out it was simply a tree. Unseen bugs flew at my face aggressively but I continued my long trek backwards. Finally, the sounds of angels met my ears. It was actually just the sound of the wind blowing, but that meant that I was nearly out of Father Base. Perhaps, if time permitted, I could race back to base and pick up Hawk, Luke, or even Patch to help get the money back. Then my walkie-talkie made a light beep, prompting another stray gunshot from the seemingly distant Trigger. “What?” I whispered as quietly as possible. “Gregory, that camera you left in Big H’s room…” it was Chris. “What about it?” “Shadow just suddenly left Big H behind!” Chris replied. “What do you mean?” I asked. “He just put the gun away and left without a word.” I turned off the walkie talkie as I made up my mind that Trigger had called Shadow, and now they were both coming after me. At long last, I stepped out of Father Base and began to sprint. Just when I thought it was all over, I heard a shot and dirt to my close left side, was blown up into the air. The moonlight made things much easier to see, and now Trigger had me right in his sights. I didn’t even look back at him, instead I leaped to my right to dodge a not-yet fired bullet. It worked, as more dirt to my left was uplifted from the ground. I had now reached the top of a small hill, and decided to roll down it for a faster escape. Once on the other side, the lights of my town appeared from a distance! I began to sprint even more, as Trigger followed closely behind. He had trouble running and shooting at the same time, so he just began sprinting after me. I held my breath, thinking that every moment could be my last. What would my dad do without me, what would happen to Scythe, what would become of the S.S.C? I pushed these thought aside and focused on the bright lights, I was so close now, I could hear a car driving through. “Just a little bit longer,” I said to myself, “just a little bit longer.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Alone:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">At last, I stepped upon freshly trimmed grass and the smells of exhaust fuel and wet paint met me. Never had I been so happy to smell such things. All the lights for the shops were off now. Leaving me with no place to run inside and hide. I spotted a nearby parked car and (with the doors being locked) hid underneath it. Everything was dead now, not a soul walked through those streets or peered out the windows. I was still alone. But at least I was alone in my element. Streetlights vaguely lit up a few corners, leaving me with an impression that Trigger would come out of the darkness instead. To my surprise however, I spotted Trigger standing menacingly under one of the lights. What did he have to fear? He was the one with the weapons. Worried that I might be visible, I began to scoot back while still remaining beneath the car. I tried to reach for my walkie talkie, but it was gone! It had to of fallen out of my pocket during the run. Suddenly, I felt something pulling at my back; my belt had become stuck to something underneath the car. Unable to roll over, I attempted to free it blindly. Then, as quickly as it had become stuck, the belt whipped back onto me, making a loud clang as it detached from the car’s underbelly! I looked up in utter horror and shock, only to find Trigger peering beneath the car, and laughing silently at me. The hunter had found its prey.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Savior:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">I could do nothing now but wait for the end, Trigger, who was apparently running out of bullets, freed me from the car by dragging me by the arm. He couldn’t risk a stray shot hitting the car. Before I could stand, Trigger clamped his foot down on my back. Now lying in front of him, with no help or weapons, I felt so small, so insignificant. As I waited for the end, Trigger’s foot was suddenly lifted from my back. I looked up only in time to see his body being tossed towards a large hill. “Spike!” I yelled gleefully before my vision cleared. Standing before me was not Spike, nor was it Luke or Chris, but Negative! This Negative was the one who wore black and as soon as he saw me look at him with confusion, he gave me a slight nod, and held up his hand, telling me to wait there. Shadow dashed from the spot, pouncing on Trigger just before he could stand. Trigger’s gun remained firmly in his hand as he kicked Negative off of him and began to retreat uphill. Soon, they were both out of my sight, all I could do was listen has a few angry cries and punches could be heard. This went on for a few minutes as I prayed that Negative would come out victorious… two shots rang out… silence.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Final Confrontation:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">I no longer cared what would happen to me. All I could think about was saving Negative and the rest of the S.S.C. I reached the hill, only to find what I had already come to suspect. Negative was lying face-down in the dirt. While Trigger stood over him happily. Negative had snagged the gun from Trigger, right after the two shots were made. He now had a death grip on it, so strong that even with a crowbar, Trigger wouldn’t have got it back. Before Trigger could try to rip it from Negative’s dying hands anymore, I tackled him and began to widly punch at his face. Similarly to his short scuffle with Negative, Trigger kicked me off and sent me down on my back. Then, with a sudden kick, I found myself tumbling down the hill, into the road. Trigger began to run at me once more, and with the added speed of going downhill, he clotheslined me with such force, I practically was flung to the other side of the street. Trigger tried the same trick a second time. But I was more concourse than he had presumed. I grabbed his arm as he ran towards me. I twisted his arm behind his back and followed this up by kicking his legs out from under him. I attempted to move this into a headlock, but Trigger pulled away to fast. Before he could turn around to face me once more, I kneed him in the stomach and elbowed the side of his head as he bent over in recoiling pain. His fist came out of nowhere with a swift uppercut. I fell to the ground and saw stars dancing above me. I soon found I was in the middle of the road. There were still no signs of life around, and anyone who did happen to see us would have surely run away. Trigger came sprinting at me as I managed to stand up. This was a bad move however, for he soon fell into a streamlined position and kicked my gut. I was about to throw up, but Trigger wasn’t done torturing me yet. With one hand, he lifted me into the air and began to take random shots at my face and stomach. With my remaining strength, I used my legs to kick myself away and succeeded in knocking Trigger down as well. He shot up faster than I did and pinned me to the ground with his foot. My arms were the only things free from his grip, and I could only think to lift myself up with my arms only. I began to rise and Trigger exerted more force down on me. I did not cease and continued to rise. Trigger now hit the back of my head. My forehead hit the ground with great force, but I didn’t give in. I continued by decent upwards as Trigger used his other leg to kick one of my arms. I had expected this, for this fall on one side allowed me to rotate my entire body so that it was my back against the ground. For the first time, I saw actual fear in Trigger’s eyes as I sat up and gave him a swift uppercut. Trigger staggered back and I wasted no time running into him and repeatedly hitting his chest. Trigger coughed in pain and managed to punch my throat in his struggle. I coughed and momentarily ran out of air, giving Trigger enough time to pick me up above his head and throw me against a car on the other end of the street! The force of his throw knocked him over and knocked all air out of my lungs. We both struggled to stand as Trigger had hit his head and was dizzy and I had no strength left in me. Then I heard it, the sound of an engine growing close to us! I saw a car round the corner at high speeds; it had only one working headlight, and was heading in our direction now! The car drove madly in the middle of the road, and I noticed my legs would be in its path. I quickly grabbed hold of the car near me and tried to pull me legs out of the way. But by now, my muscles were aching, I could hardly stand, and I couldn’t move! Trigger was in the way of the car as well, I tried to yell out to him, but no noise left my mouth! I was truly weak. Then I heard a sudden moan, it was Negative up on the hill above. He was not dead, and I would not let him die. With all the strength I could muster, I began to move as the car’s color could now be seen. I stood and stumbled in the sudden breeze as I watched the car lights grow closer. For a moment, it was like I was a deer in the headlights. I couldn’t move, I couldn’t even think to move. Then a voice called out “G-Gregory…”I awoke from this daze and leaped out of the road just as the car flashed by. Trigger was not so lucky; he was flung into the air with dizzying heights, before crashing back down with great force. The car stopped for only a moment, then drove off even faster than before. I had saved my own life. But could I save Negative’s?

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">An Unexpected Hero:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">With all the strength I had left in me, I climbed the hilside and found Negative still lying face-down. He made no noises, nor did he seem to be breathing. But with haste, I rolled him ver, only to find him still alive. The darkness made his wounds difficult to see. Though his armm constantly lingered closely by his chest. Negative's mask was broken near the bottom, revealing only part of his chin. Somehow, through the night, I could see Negative's dark eyes telling me to remove it. Being as gentle as I could, I removed the mask to see who my hero was. Under the mask... was Shadow. "Y-you?" I said in utter shock.I fell to my knees as my legs began to give out from exhaustion. My mind felt about the same way. "Surprised huh?" Shadow replied in a whisper. "Why would you save my life?" I pleaded. "B-because Gregory," Shadow replied. "You saved mine..."

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Truth:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">The look of confusion of my face was obviously notable in the dark. Shadow fought through the pain and elaborated. "Gregory, no one is born evil... no one is born a villain.... I was born to a pair of loving parents... parents who strived to keep me happy... to k-keep me safe." Shadow coughed and continued. "I loved my parents... but I never respected them... I n-never... knew how fortunate I... was. When I was 12, my parents were driving me to Blue Point for a day of sledding... they hit a patch of ice around a sharp turn... and just like that... they were... they were gone." Shadow's eyes filled with tears and his breathing became more of a struggle. I attempted to stand and help him, but Shadow shooed me back to the ground. "With no other family members to turn to, I was put up for adoption. That is when m-my outlook on life changed... I sat there, and watched as every younger child was taken by loving parents... just l-like mine... but I was not taken... I stayed there... for over three years... I grew to despise the younger children and the adults who always... p-picked them... everything was so unfair... so... imbalenced... When I decided I could take no more, I ran... and in the cold fury of winter... I met Big H. Big H knew what it was like to lose everything, he took me in and created... this." Shadow pointed to himself with a wobbly hand and then began to cough wildly. I began to hear sirens in the distance. "I came to the conclusion that if no one else was going to add balence to life... then I-I would... I neve questioned Scythe's actions... not until the robbery that s... not until I watched my "brothers" shoot and kill innocent people and make off with the cash... I knew then, that Scythe was becoming to powerful... b-balence h-had to be made... I soon met Negative, the f-first Negative that is... who was also attempting to stop Scythe... knowing that this was my chance to restore order, I demanded that I join him." Suddenly a question popped into my head that could not be stored. "Why kill Tim then? He was only trying to help! And you killed him for it!?" Shadow remained silent for a while, "Tim is not dead," he said at last. "What?" I replied. "Tim's death was staged. I knew that if I didn't pretend to kill Tim, then Scythe eventually would. The being who was with me while we dragged "Tim's body" out of the house, was actually Negative, everyone was in on it... that includes Tim." I briefly recalled seeing the guy in the ski mas, and felt like an idiot that I had never questioned it. My thoughts were broken by the sounds of the police sirens and paramedic sirens stoppingwhere Trigger had fallen. Negative made no movement to escape, he wanted to tell me what needed to be said. "G-gregory..." Shadow whispered. "There was one problem with my plan of bringing balence... you would defeat Trigger and destroy Scythe... but at the cost... of your life..." I shook my head in scared confusion. "You couldn't have known that!" I said defiently. "Oh but I did," Shadow replied. "Trigger had a fully loaded gun, a knife, and darkness as his allies..." Shadow opened up his hand, revealing a knife he had snatched from Trigger during their scuffel. I could only sit in silence. "I n-never intended to break the balence..." Shadow said weakly. "But after seeing all you went through, the pain you endured, the utter darkness and isolation that would break any other S.S.C member… I-I couldn’t let you die… I couldn’t… I couldn’t…” Shadow began to shiver and cough louder. The paramedics and police were directly below, a part of me wanted them to find us, but another part of me said that Shadow didn’t want it to end that way. Words began to fly around in my head, what could I say to the person who had my back for so long? All I could find room for was, “Thank you, Shadow.” “Don’t… call me that,” he retorted quickly.” Remembering our having this conversation before, I saluted and repeated, “Thank you, SIR.” There was a silence and Shadow mumbled, “No… I mean… call me by my real name… Brian Ward…” “Where do I go from here?” I asked teary-eyed. “That decision rests upon y-you…” Brian mumbled. Then he continued while trying to hold back tears and coughing of his own. “G-gregory… I don’t know about y-you… but I want to live in a world worth fighting for… but I also want to live in a world… that doesn’t NEED to be fought for…” And with those final words, Brian was gone.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">The Meeting:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">It had taken guts to be in the position I was in now. I had called for a meeting in which every S.S.C enacting S.S.C member had to attend. We were not hidden within a base, but rather, outside. We were no longer afraid of the forces which threatened us. Trigger had not died upon the impact with the car, but although he didn’t lose his life, he lost nearly all of his memory… and a large portion of himself too. He would never be able to fend for himself again, a fact that, believe it or not, still sickens me to this day. Shadow’s body was found a day after his demise. The media and police came to the conclusion that the two were a part of a nasty turf war that ended with Trigger killing Shadow, and then being hit by an enemy car. As for the money, when I returned to Father Base to find it, no trace of the loot could be found. My theory was that Trigger had hidden it, or perhaps another Scythe member had stumbled across the fortune. Big H… or, Henry as I should now call him, saddened by the betrayal of his brother, disbanded Scythe, leaving its remaining members to seek help from places that would not endanger their lives, or anyone else’s. As such, Specter’s Tree and its surroundings were claimed once more by the S.S.C. In fact, Specter’s Tree was our meeting place today. I had already told my father what I would be saying, Commander Spike, Luke, and Chris knew as well. But everyone else was oblivious to what I was going to say. I was called up and stood, leaning against the old oak as a gentle breeze swept our way. Everyone, even Patch, stood at attention. I only wished that the other Negative, whoever he was, had been there to witness it as well. “Hello S.S.C,” I began with a delicate smile and smooth hand gestures. “I will not waste your time with another victory speech over the defeat of Scythe. Nor will I stand here before you as a “hero”. “For honestly, I come with news that may be surprising. As you all know, in the beginning, THEM turned against the S.S.C when it believed that at one point, it would become so powerful, it would put its members’ lives at risk. Has this tiding come to fruition as it was premeditated to be? Yes, yes it has. I nearly lost my life at the hands of Scythe, as did many of you. And while I refuse to blame anyone S.S.C member, I firmly believe that the S.S.C’s power has grown at a frightening rate… and will continue to do so unless…” My voice trailed off and tears filled my eyes as I looked upon the S.S.C, it looked so healthy again, so strong. “Let me just say it now…” I continued. “I… am quitting the S.S.C…” A look of alarm spread throughout the crowd like wildfire. Soon, everyone was talking and blasting questions at me from all sides, I could not speak loud enough to answer. Surprisingly, Patch and Hawk calmed everyone down, and motioned for me to continue. “This is not because I disagree with the S.S.C’s purpose, nor am I angry with any of you… this reason is simply that, as long as I am here, as long as the story of me and my “incredible heroics” continues to circulate, more and more people will join the S.S.C… and more and more peoples’ lives will be on the line… I ask of you all only one thing. After I am gone, do not spread the stories of me. Do not treat me like a legend or a hero. Make your own destinies, make your own choices. Maybe then… we can prove THEM wrong and live up to what our founders wanted us to be. What did they want us to be you ask? I dream that in time, you will all find out.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">New S.S.C:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">The crowd’s reaction to my speech greatly varied from person to person. While some thought I was crazy, others applauded my humbleness. Either way, as I was leaving to hand my gear to Spike, the other members of Team Ice swarmed me. “You didn’t think you were gonna leave without saying goodbye to us did you?” Patch said with a rare smile. “Take these back,” Spike said gently as he handed me back the gear, “Just a little something to remember us by. “Thank you Spike,” I replied. “Thank you all.” I then noticed Green, approaching Spike. “You called, master?” he asked diligently. “Yes, one minute Green,” Spike replied. It was then clear to me that Spike was afraid to have an apprentice while still be threatened by Scythe, not that our enemy had been eliminated, Spike would pass on his skills to another potential hero. “Now that Scythe is gone,” Spike interjected, nearly reading my mind, there is nothing holding me back from becoming leader of the S.S.C and whipping it back into shape. I will lead with all of your intentions at heart Gregory.” Guppy stepped forward to shake my hand, while Chris and Luke talked amongst themselves in a frenzy. Finally Luke shouted, “Does this mean I am commander of Team Ice now?!” Spike sighed, “Yes, it does, I expect big things out of you guys.” All attention was then drawn back to me, Chris broke the incoming silence with a salute. I grinned and nearly began to leave, when suddenly Spike raised his hand in a salute as well, this was followed by Luke, then Guppy, then any other S.S.C members who were still left over from the meeting. And of course, always one step behind, even Patch saluted me for a brief second. I may not have followed in my father’s footsteps, or Tim’s or Brett’s. But I knew in my heart that they agreed with my decision as well. And with that, I left.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">An Unexpected Visitor:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">I was about half-way home when a voice called out to me. I knew who the voice belonged to before even looking, it was Negative. My suspicions were correct, leaning against a tree was the white jacket Negative. “You have a knack for showing up out of nowhere.” I said with a laugh. “Guess I’ve gotten pretty good at it.” Negative replied. “If you want answers, I would suggest following me.” With that, Negative walked leisurely into the woods behind him, with me close behind. When we reached a clearing, Negative asked, “I suppose you want to know who I am?” “I do,” I replied honestly. “But if you would rather keep that a secret, I would understand.” “You’ve become wise, Gregory,” Negative replied. “Let’s see if you are wise enough to see this coming.” With that, Negative untied the back of his mask and removed it. I had many theories as to who Negative was, but nothing could have prepared me for his true identity. “Justin?” I asked as if speaking to an alien. Standing before me was indeed Justin, the very last person who I would have expected. This was only the beginning of my confusion as he spoke once more. “My name is not Justin. My name is Marcus. Marcus Blakley.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">The Price of Balance:

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">“Wait, but… but you said…” my voice trailed off as I recalled “Justin’s” story of losing his father. “It was a lie,” Marcus said. “I suppose I owe you an explanation. My father Brett did in fact join the military, as a matter of fact, Tim was correct in everything he said to you. Your visions didn’t lie either.” I would have asked how he knew of my dreams, but I kept quiet. “But then my father did something that no-one could have saw coming. He purposefully went MIA.” “B-but… why?” I stammered. “My Father finally realized the very same thing you did, that you couldn’t spend your whole life fighting. He wanted to live, and to live, meant to stop fighting. But when my father caught wind of the Scythe robbery, he decided to call the S.S.C to stop them. Fearing that they would keep some of the money for themselves, my father sent me to retrieve it and bring it back to him so it could be returned. Everything went according to plan until I was caught with the money by Shadow. Shadow had lost faith in Scythe as well and demanded that I hand over half the money, so that it could be distributed to Scythe as well; in order to “keep the balance.” The other half went straight to my father, but he was unable to return any of it until the other half could be recovered. This turned out to be a smart move, as Shadow told all of Scythe that the S.S.C contacted him, saying that they would only give them the other half if their attack was delayed to a certain point. While you fought Trigger, I took the money to my father. He is already trying to find ways to return the cash with as little questions asked as possible.” “Why didn’t you just get the other half from Trigger if you knew all along?” I asked. “Shadow claimed I was so well trained, the fight wouldn’t be balanced enough for me to participate. So I was forced to join Scythe and adopt a fake name so I could keep tabs on Trigger and keep you in line. Shadow threatened to kill my father and I if either of us diverged from his plot. Shadow ran the whole show and played the rest of us like pawns. But his plan came further into play when you joined the S.S.C. He found you to be one of the only people strong enough to bring the perfect balance.” “But… he saved me,” I replied while gazing at the beautiful water-color sunset. “Not only did he save you, he saved himself, and countless others. You did something that even Shadow couldn’t have saw coming… you brought Marcus back to life.” With that, Marcus patted me on the back and said. “Now that all this is over, I am considering joining the S.S.C… if it’s alright by you.” “Alright by me?” I asked. “You would care for my opinion?” “Of course,” Marcus replied. “Shadow may have been wrong about one thing, and that was about me being better trained than you. You are a real S.S.C member, and weather your story is spread or not, that is what you will always be to me. We saluted each other. “Fight for a cause you believe in,” I told him. “Fight for a cause you believe in.”