Chapter 43: A Final Memory

Date: November 25, 3007
Time: 23:30
Location: Navasota Island

Darkness engulfed the tiny island of Navasota like a blanket of death. There was no wind anymore; everything was eerily still. The dying flames of the row of twisted and melted metal still gave off fumes of putrid, pitch black smoke. And silhouetted in front of it all, was General Nezzy, with his infamous smirk etched upon his face.

It was the very man I was killing to see. All these years of blindly serving him without cause, only to find out he was the man responsible for everything wrong with my life. All of the lies he told me to sooth my damned soul rushed back to me, fueling my anger. I could literally feel my telepathic powers envelop me like a shield of pure energy. All of my calamities fell upon one man, the man standing five hundred yards away, holding his DT-109 Dragon Tail Sub-machine gun like it was a child’s toy.

A sudden, sharp crack rang through the air. I whipped around, and saw Deirdre’s sniper rifle smoking from the barrel. Idiot… Turning my gaze back to Nezzy, I saw him walk forwards, the reverberating bluish waves dying off of his shield. And then, amidst the wreckage of the tank, Nezzy’s men sprang forwards like the ants out of a kicked anthill. The last stand.

Taking his cue, Mikhail roared for his 300 to regroup and instantly charged forwards. Taking a quick glance over at Rena, who was helping Michael’s squad recuperate, I picked up my S-36 and casually walked forwards towards death.

In front of me, I saw the first of both sides fall to a mix of Dominion and Eden bullets. The air rang with shrieks of pain and despair, exactly what I loved to hear. I could feel my lust for death explode in my heart. My finger twitched uneasily on the trigger of my rifle, but I knew now was not the time. I had the single bullet marked with a certain individual’s name on it, and nothing was going to stand in front of my way at this point.

I wouldn’t even have recognized the point of no return if it had a neon sign, but I knew there was no going back now. After the hundreds of people I had killed, there was no more room for extraneous thought. My mind was filled with the dying thoughts of each and every man I had dispatched: the only downside of being a Shadow.

As I strolled through the fight, letting bullets bounce harmlessly off of my personal shield, I thought back to the very incident that started it all: the death of my family. They had always said it was a bunch of Dominion-paid mobsters who were angry we were so rich, that my father was a chairman in the council of the Wizet Confederacy. But I knew better, I saw through the lies, because I was there when it all happened, in my home back on Orbis.

Date: November 25, 3004
Time: 12:00
Location: Orbis- The Zerra Mansion

Noon in the house. On exactly the hour, the large, ornate grandfather clock deeply clanged a dozen times its monotonous cry. I dashed down the grand staircase into the front room. A pair of double doors guarded me against the outside world, something I would never even have to experience. Turning away from the oaken doors, I strolled into the dining room, soaking up the endless sun that was pouring in through the huge windows that went from the ground all the way up to the massive ceiling.

A servant named Azin Nyfe opened another set of double doors, revealing the marble white dining room. Smiling sweetly to him, I walked in and he gently closed the doors behind me. The sunlight streamed through the gargantuan windows; all of the curtains were up. My mother, father, and older brother were already sitting at their places on the long table. Being at the head of the table, my father was the first one to spot me.

“Nova! Almost late!” he roared happily. I just realized that the last gong of the grandfather clock had echoed away, and I sighed in relief. Even though it was the day after my birthday, everything was still as elegant as ever. I took my place on the opposite side of my brother. As my father was saying grace, I managed to take a little peak at the table. But as my eyes slid up towards my brother, I saw he had his own wide open, staring at me. I quickly smiled to myself and clamped my own eyes shut, and I tried not to think about it.

The meal was delicious, like always, though the whole entire time, I felt the slightest shadow creep into my mind. Perhaps it was from that fall last night on the balcony, but I remembered that I awoke on the very same balcony exactly 56 minutes after I had fell, and there was no bloodstain or anything. I had felt completely normal, as if nothing had happened at all.

Suddenly, his voice burst into my thoughts, “Are you ok, sis?” I looked up and realized I had my head down on the table.

Gathering up my wits, I replied as casually as I could, in the most sister-like tone, “Yea, I’m fine, what do you care?”

“No you’re not.” My brother simply replied. I was bemused at this remark for a numerous amount of reasons. For one, he had never before challenged me, and usually, it was all for the wrong reasons. But this time, he was actually right.

I paused for a moment then excused myself from the table. Motioning for him to follow, I walked towards the double doors which were now open and turned to the front doors. Mr. Nyfe was there with a smile like always, and I strolled outside onto the massive front lawn. I felt my brother come up behind me, something I had never felt before.

“So what’s wrong, Nova?” he asked as he walked up behind me.

“I… I don’t know. Something is wrong with me,” I replied uncertainly.

“Like what? You gotta be more specific here, sis,” he stated with a hint of annoyance.

“I dunno, here, let me show you.” I touched his arm and suddenly felt all of his memories rush in and mingle with mine. Immediately, I let go, for a piercing shot of pain tore through my skull. I blinked for a few moments, trying to regain my composure. My brother’s eyes were fixed on me like I was crazy; he had not felt a thing.

“Who’s…” I gasped, “who’s Ally?”

My brother’s eyes dilated in horror, “How do you know that name?!” he asked, taking a step back in astonishment.

“I know… everything,” I gasped. The world was still a bit blurry. I found myself grope around the air for something to sit on. Then, I felt my brother’s hands wrap themselves around my shoulders and lead me to the patio. I felt a surge of affection for him, but also another surge of memories.

“Whenever I touch someone,” I tried to explain, “Their memories become mine. I suddenly know everything about them. And I know exactly who Ally is, and I advise you not to do it even though you are 18. She’s not who you think she is.” I felt his heart start to beat angrily, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”

We sat in silence, looking out into the clear afternoon sky. Finally, he mustered up the courage and asked, “So what are you like, telepathic?”

I smiled and looked down, surprised at his intelligence, “Not, ‘like telepathic’. I AM telepathic.” I felt the news swarm into his brain. He was taking it surprisingly well. I could see inside his mind, how it worked, and his brain treated the information as if it were plain and mundane schoolwork.

That’s when my sisterly side took over. I saw the opening and hit him with a jolt of mental thought. He yelped out loud and stood up, looking at me in horror. I couldn’t help but laugh, “I’m sorry, I just had to do it.” I looked away, suddenly ashamed.

I felt his eyes pierce me. Brothers could always do that, and I felt wicked. I didn’t know how he did it, but whenever he gave me a certain look, I always felt as if I had committed a terrible sin. “Let’s go inside,” I murmured, and he lifted me up.

We strolled through the garden. A cool wind blew through, ruffling my blonde hair. The air was crisp and clean up here in the clouds of Orbis. It was the perfect day, and I let my mind wander as we walked. What if I did have a boyfriend? We could sit together by the lake and just soak up this brilliant sun. It was a perfect day. If only I had someone to share it with.

And that’s when I realized my brother was feeling the same thing. I suddenly felt stupid. I had that very guy standing right beside me. It didn’t have to be a boyfriend, but just my brother, the guy I would always love the most.

Then, without warning, I felt a jolt of energy run through my mind, tearing my eyes up. “Wait,” I whispered, and my brother stopped. I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hands, trying to get rid of the tears, but another shock ran through my skull. I heard footsteps echo in my brain, and knew something was wrong. “Come on!” I pulled my brother with me as I sprinted back into the house.

The main hall was swarming with men in black suits. As I entered, someone grabbed me and tore me away from my brother. I screamed out as his hand left mine, and somehow, I felt as if I would never see him again. The man had me in his grasps, and I couldn’t get free. But then, my eyes wandered towards the center of the room, where my mother, father, and our servants were standing in a circle. There was a curious stream of red liquid running out from underneath their feet.

A man in black stepped forwards, “Back off!” he roared at my family as he waved a menacing rifle. Having no choice but to obey, they backed off and I gasped out in shock. There, on the ground, laid my servant, but ultimately my friend, Mr. Azin Nyfe. He laid spread eagle on the ground with a hole on his forehead, staring blankly out into the distance. Gone.

“Alright,” the man roared, “Who’s next?” he casually waved the rifle around as if it were a toy.

“You bast****!” my father suddenly roared out, his voice reverberating off of the ceiling like a god’s, “You’ll all pay for this. Mark my words, you will p…” The house was suddenly bereft of its commanding voice, replaced by a sharp crack that will forever haunt my memory. I knew I screamed, but I couldn’t hear it at all. All I saw, all I knew, was that my father was crumpling to the ground with a single shot to the skull. He was gone.

The world exploded. I don’t know what happened next, but everything suddenly became piercingly white. I knew I was dead, yet I was still alive. All around me, cries of pain and agony rushed into my ears. I tried to cover them, but to no avail. Then, I heard my brother’s voice cry out my name, one last time, and then disappear forever. Everything became pitch black, and I heard nothing anymore, my final memory of a long forgotten past.

Date: November 26, 3007
Time: 00:00
Location: Navasota Island

It was me that killed them all. I murdered my family without even knowing it. It was a skill I remember I vowed never to employ ever again. But now, it was the thing I loved the most. Funny how time changes everything.

Pushing all of that aside, I realized that a continuous beeping was filling my ears. Snapping back to reality, I looked on my wrist watch and saw that my shields were straining. I needed to find Nezzy fast, to end this.

That’s when I saw him, mowing down a group of Mikhail’s men like they were dogs. I shouldered my S-36 and fired a round to attract his attention. He whipped around, and I saw a gruesome smile creep across his face.

“So, the prodigal son has returned, or should I say, daughter?” he snickered.

“It ends tonight,” I replied, feeling my energy surround me even closer.

“I know it does, I’ve seen it.” His mockery only added fuel to my flames.

Immediately, I dove to the side and plugged his shield with an entire clip of my S-36. As I landed on the ground, I automatically reloaded and swiveled around to shoot at him again. But then, I felt his torrent of bullets pelt my shield to the point of fracture. It was more than my shields could take, and I heard the electrical humming die.

It was probably best to cloak, but where was the dignity in that? I faced him and squeezed the trigger again. As the chamber spit out the last bullet casing, I dove behind a boulder just as his machine gun opened up again. I could feel it chewing away at my boulder as if it were made of foam. Waiting for the ping of his empty clip, I slammed another magazine home.

Then, the magnificent metallic sound of a dry gun reverberated through the air. I smiled wickedly and dashed out, firing at him. I knew his shield was weakening; I could feel his panic slowly start to rise. But suddenly, I felt his finger squeeze his trigger and before I could stop it, a bullet had dug itself into my leg.

I stumbled but quickly recovered and emptied the remainder of the clip into his shields. Then, I heard the welcoming noise of his own shields powering down. However, as I reached down for the last clip to finish him off, my hands touched an empty belt. I was dry. Looking up at him, he already had his magazine inserted. I tried to dash forwards but he quickly pointed his weapon down and hit my leg with another round. I knelt down, wincing in pain. No amount of training could prepare me for the real thing.

Nezzy was directly in front of me; I could smell his horrid breath. The clicking of a bullet sliding into place in the breach made my head jolt up. I was looking into the barrel of a gun, a bullet waiting in its quivering nest, ready to blow my head off. But then, I heard the whizzing another bullet. I suddenly felt a spray of warm blood splatter on my face. Nezzy dropped his gun onto the ground and clutched his arm. The both of us whipped around and saw Rena with her own S-36, smirking triumphantly.

“You alright, Nova?” she asked as she continued to point her rifle at Nezzy’s head. I nodded, straining to keep my focus. The blood loss was getting ridiculous.

“Rena…” Nezzy smiled and opened his arms as if wanting to give her an embrace, “My old apprentice. Put the gun down now, we both know you can’t do it.” I suddenly felt Rena’s bravery disappear. Looking back up, she looked like a frail little girl holding a weapon that was too big in her hands. “Come now, Rena. Who are you kidding? You couldn’t do it even if you tried.”

Rena’s entire body started to shake. Her finger twitched on the trigger, but she reluctantly lowered her rifle. “Good,” Nezzy laughed, “now do what you were sent here to do.” To my horror, she raised her S-36 and pointed it at my head.

I saw her, felt her squeeze the trigger, and suddenly I dove to the side. As the bullet screamed nearer, everything slowed down to a snail’s crawl. Something white hot grazed my cheek, and I knew the bullet had miraculously missed me. Tumbling to the ground, I blocked myself from her sight behind Nezzy’s own body. Then, everything whizzed back to normal, I could see clearly now, hear clearly, and think clearly.

“Rena!” I shouted amidst the battlefield, “What the f*** are you doing!” I forced myself into her mind and pried her fingers off of the triggers. Being an MP-10, she was the hardest mind for me to dig into. But somehow, I was in, and saw only confusion. Her mind was being twisted by both mine and Nezzy’s intrusions. Don’t do it, Rena, I’m your friend. I saw a synapse in her mind snap into place. Rena, this man is responsible for your pain and suffering, not me. Another nerve twitched.

But then, my physical self pulled my mind back. In the brief second that I was inside of Rena’s mind, Nezzy had made his move. He seemed to know he was losing control of Rena. I suddenly found him holding Rena from behind, cutting off her airway with his arm, holding a deadly blade to her throat.

“Nova…” Rena whispered. It was the most deathlike voice I had ever heard.

“Nova, look what you’ve done.” With a single motion, Nezzy brought the knife across her throat, and Rena gracefully fell down onto the blood stained field, adding her own portion of the crimson portrait. I felt myself being torn from her, both physically and mentally. Her presence was gone, and in that millisecond, I knew what to do and took the opening. Nezzy’s laughter had not even died from his face when he realized what had happened.

I was kneeling on the ground, pointing a smoking DT-109 Dragon Tail Sub-machine gun directly at his chest. Though it was night, the flames all around us revealed a dark red stain spreading across his chest. There was a look of shock on his eyes as we stared at each other.

I squeezed the trigger again, sending another lone bullet shrieking into his stomach. He fell down to his knees. I strolled forwards and jabbed the muzzle of the gun onto his forehead.

“Nova, don’t do it,” he pleaded hoarsely, “You can still stop. I can still help you. I can make you rich and powerful again, just like your family once was. I can make you wealthy once more…”

“Don’t talk to me about my family god dammit!” I screamed at him. Tears started to flow out of my emerald eyes as memories of my mother, father, and most of all, my brother flooded back to me from the abyss of my brain.

“Nova listen to me, if you let me live, I can make you the most feared warrior in the entire world. You will be the deadliest assassin on the face of the planet. Do you know how much you will be respected? Do you know…” I had heard enough. I pulled the trigger and ended his endless babble of meaningless words and final memories. And that was it. General Nezzy was dead, the vendetta in my heart slowly started to ease away into the night.