Wake up. The voice says. Marcel's eyes open from a dead sleep. He is in his room, laying in bed. He had crashed after a long training session. The voice is the clearest it has ever been, almost audible to Marcel. It echoes in his mind. To him however, it isn't a singular voice, but many smaller voices overlapping one another to create a chorus of feelings, impressions, and ideas. But now, for the first time, it is actual words.
Marcel steps out of bed, groggy but surprised enough to be alert. Outside. The voice whispers. Marcel walks over to the window he normally keeps some cut up cardboard over, pulls it down, and looks outside. He sees nothing, but feels urged to get dressed, and leave his apartment.
Once dressed, he does as the voice says, and goes outside. Rooftops. Marcel looks up, fills his body with aura, and jumps to the roof. From there, he is led by instinct, until he hears the sounds of battle. Weapons hitting flesh, orders being barked out, screams, the smell of blood in the air. Arriving at the battle, Marcel takes in the scene. Seven heroes, three monsters; big ones. The battle is happening near the wall, almost pressed against it. Marcel figures out what happened quickly. He'd heard before that hordes of monsters have been roaming near the city's walls. By the looks of it, and the sounds coming from the other side of the wall, a few must have made it over and into the city. These heroes were the ones nearby and sprang into action. A short distance away from the battle, groups of people gather to watch.
"Get them pinned down!" A familiar voice calls out, nearly freezing Marcel's blood in his veins. "And gets these civilians back!" Oasis King yells. A hero puts himself between one of the monsters and the group of citizens.
One of the three monsters, bug-like creatures with long claws and scorpion's tails, stabs through a hero, impaling him on its claw. It sheiks and the crowd screams, terrified. This draws the bug creature's attention. It tosses the hero, which was previously the only thing between it and the citizens, off its claws, and starts walking towards them.
"No! Get back! Get out of our way! Go!" Oasis King shouts, blocking an attack with his shield that had been aimed at his head.
Marcel loads a shot into his sling, and fires it off. A blue streak of aura tears through the air, punctuated by a crack of thunder. In an instant, half of the monster's body is torn off it does, saving the civilians. The battlefield freezes for a moment, and King looks up at the rooftop, locking eyes with Marcel. On his face, two emotions show one after the other. The first is realization. Not that it was Marcel who killed the monster, but that in one single attack, King was forced to face the fact that Marcel can kill with ease a creature he was struggling against. The second, is rage. King slashes at the monster, intending to kill it with a single strike, to prove he could… but his blade left only a small gash in the monster's exoskeleton, deepening Oasis King's hatred.
"Everyone! Kill these things and go after the man on the roof!" King roars. Marcel, seeing that his attack had saved the citizens and turned the tide of battle, realizes that he needs to go… now.
He turns and flees as fast as he can, racing across the rooftops and blinding speed. All the while wondering why the voice brought him here, exposing him? He doesn't go home. No, he knew this day would come, and everyone had prepared beforehand. Instead, he goes to Melodie's home. He lands on her roof, and jumps down to her balcony.
"Sara! Sara!" Marcel calls out, knocking on her window. He hears movement inside, and the curtains open. Melodie opens the window wearing her sleeping pajamas and a robe she keeps at the foot of her bed.
"What?" She asks concerned.
"It's time. King found us." Marcel says.
Her eyes widen. "I'll tell Jackson and Kevin. Go to the rally point."
"Got it."
"Marcel…"
"Yeah?"
"You can't go home." She says, sadly.
Marcel purses his lips. "I know." For two years, he's had a note on his kitchen cabinet that he only put away when he had company over. It is a note addressed to Delores and Mr. Kennedy. With only what he has on him, Marcel rushes to the rally point they all decided on years ago.
A short time later, King pulls his sword free from the newly killed monster, and looks up at the rooftops. "King, it appears the man is gone." A sidekick says.
"I know where he lives. Get the whole group, start the search for the traitor. I'm taking team one. Go." Oasis King says, and the sidekick gets to work.
Within ten minutes, Oasis King is marching up to Marcel's apartment building, and kicks in the door. "Second floor. Be on alert, he has allies." King says.
An elderly Delores screams at the sudden noise, and rushes downstairs, baseball bat in hand. "Who's there! I have a gun!" She lies.
King pushes her aside and walks past her with the rest of his team. "Move." He says simply. Wasteland General avoids eye contact with Delores.
"You need a warrant! This is illegal!"
"We're not cops." A sidekick says.
King kicks in Marcel's apartment door, and strides in. He spots a handwritten note on the counter as he looks around the apartment. Upon reading it, he scowls and leaves his sidekicks to finish the search.
Later that night, Marcel, Crasher, Melodie, and HotJack all meet in an alleyway near the city gates. "Everyone made it. Good" HotJack says.
"You guys know you don't have to come with me." Marcel says.
"Yes we do." Melodie says.
"Here he comes." Crasher says, looking around the corner of the alleyway. A small transport, a rebuilt microbus, pulls up. Out of it steps Oasis Prince, Johnny.
"Everyone here?" He asks.
"Yeah." Marcel says. Johnny tosses the keys to Jackson, HotJack, and gives Marcel a hug.
"I wish I could come."
"I know."
"It's fully loaded. Gas, supplies, even new sets of armor and weapons for everyone. I've had this prepared for over a year now. Just in case." Johnny says.
"Thank you."
"Some fake IDs are in the glove box. They'll get you past the gate. Listen, are you sure about this? There are a lot of monsters around these days. Almost all the outer farms have been pulled in. The only things out there now are monsters and gangs."
"Oasis King will find us if we stay in the city. Doesn't matter where. If we want to lose him, we can't do it in here." Melodie says.
"I know… I'm just worried. You guys better go. I heard the announcement. They checked your apartment already. He'll have your trail soon."
"Thanks, Johnny." Marcel says, hugs him again, and climbs into the transport with everyone. They all say their goodbyes, and drive away, leaving Johnny alone in the alley.
The group of four arrive at the gate, each changing into the armor Johnny prepared for them in the transport. Now they look like heroes again. HotJack opens the glovebox, hands the gate guards the fake IDs, and they open the gate for them. Moment later, they are speeding into the dark night of the wastelands.
A few miles behind them, two transports are following their tire marks. Onboard the lead transport is Oasis King. "How long are we going to follow them for? Shouldn't we stay near the city?" Wasteland General asks King.
"For as long as we have to. This chase has gone on too long. That traitor needs to be caught." King says. General sighs, but says nothing. They have a radio in the transport, should the worst happen, they can be contacted through it, as long as they stay within range of the city's towers. That itself isn't an issue, no one has ever gone outside the range of the city's towers and returned, and so everyone, even King, knows not to try.
Marcel's group pulls up to an old, abandoned train station that HotJack and Crasher know about. They stop off their transport, except for HotJack, who decided to find a place to hide it for a while.
"This place used to be a monster's nest, but we cleared it out years ago. Should be safe. Their sent lingers and keeps away smaller monsters. Mind the smell though." Crasher says. They walk down the stairs, the sign above that once held the name is unreadable and mostly turned to rust.
"Let me check it out." Melodie says, and walks down. She lets out a sharp shriek, then listens intently. "All clear."
"Then let's find a safe spot to hide and get some rest." Crasher says.
"Sleepy Kevin?" Melodie asks. "All this excitement not enough to wake you up?"
"I was having a great dream before Jackson banged on my door. I'd like to finish it." He jokes.
"I'll keep watch for Jackson. You guys rest." Marcel says, leaning against the stairwell. Half an hour later, HotJack, Jackson, walks down the stars. Just as Marcel tells him to get some rest, and that he will keep an eye out for the night, they both spot two sets of headlights driving their direction.
"I'll tell the others. This line leads pretty far. Hopefully we can get away if it hasn't collapsed." Jackson says, and rushes down the stairs.
"What about the transport?" Marcel asks.
"It's hidden. We can come back for it later." He yells back. Marcel watches the headlights grow closer, and finally stop nearby. Realizing that they are in fact aware of the station, he runs down the stairs, towards where Jackson and the rest already went. He fills his eyes with aura, allowing him to see in the dark a bit better. Eventually, he catches up with the other three, who are using a flashlight but seem to be making slow progress.
"They're probably down here by now. What stopping… oh." Marcel says, and sees why they are all but stopped. The tunnel has collapsed ahead, and they are digging their way out. They hear shouting from down the tunnel, and all decide to hide and make the darkness work for them. Each finds a spot. Melodie hides under a train, and lodges herself between the gears in the undercarriage. HotJack buries himself in rubble completely. Crasher and Marcel jump to the top of the tunnel, and pin themselves between debris.
"This place looks good." A voice calls out. It's Wasteland General's.
"Fine, but only two hours. After that, we're back on the trail. The tire tracks continued past here. If they get too far, we'll lose them." Oasis King's voice rings clear in the station. He's speaking loudly, clearly upset.
"The men need more than two hours. They just had a big battle, and then we dragged them into the wastes. If they try and fight in this state, there will be casualties." General says. King says nothing in response, but there is a loud clang, like metal being crushed. Then he speaks.
"Fine. But we leave at sunrise." The group hears footsteps, lots of them, like people all finding places to sleep on the other end of the tunnel. Marcel peaks out from his hiding spot, and finds King all alone. He'd apparently decided to rest deepest in the tunnel, away from his group.
"He's alone." Kevin, Crasher, says. "We'll never have a better chance than this. You have to kill him. If he dies, the hunt ends."
Marcel squints, closes his eyes, and nods in agreement. "You're right. This ends. Tonight."
"We just have to wait for him to fall asleep." Kevin says.
An hour passes before they hear the sounds of snoring coming from below. Marcel drops down, leaving Crasher in the hiding space. He slowly crawls over to King, worried that the sound of his heart beating could wake him up. But soon, he stands over Oasis King, staff in hand, filled with aura. A single strike is all it will take. He raises the staff…
NO! The voice stops him, causing Marcel to freeze, surprised. His grip is tight on the staff. Suddenly, images flash in Marcel's mind; memories. Not his own, but someone's. Marcel watches the memories. They are of a young boy, living in squalor. Through the eyes of someone, Marcel watches as that someone reaches a hand out to the boy. The scene changes, and now the boy is older, holding a sword, and training under the guidance of the owner of the memories. The scene changes again, and the owner of the memories places a hand on the boy's head. A familiar light flows from the owner to the boy. The scene changes again, and Marcel realizes the boy is Oasis King.
"Omar… gave you his aura too?" As the memories flowed, Marcel felt the emotions: love, joy, pride, hope.
Spare him. The voice said. Marcel, still tightly gripping his staff, lowers his hand. He knows an opportunity like this won't come again, but over the last two years, he's come to trust that voice. But he can't let this opportunity pass without using it in some way. He looks down at King, and spots his sword beside him. Slowly, he picks up the sword, and unsheathes it. Then, Marcel takes a handful of King's Shendyt, a decretive leg wrapping that hangs loosely around the waist, and cuts it off with the sword. Once he has it, he places the sword to King's neck, and wakes him up.
King wakes with a jolt, and realizes what's happening. His eyes narrow, hatefully. "I knew it." Marcel says nothing, and watching King, thinking of what to say. "What? You want me to beg? Not going to happen. Just do it already."
"I could have killed you in your sleep." Marcel says, and throws the cut fabric at King's chest. It hits him, and it takes a moment, but King realizes what it is, then checks his Shendyt. "But I didn't." Marcel keeps the blade to King's neck, and kneels down, getting himself eye-level with King. "Why?"
"Because you want me to apologize?" King smirks.
"No… why did you do it?" Marcel asks intensely. King's smile drops. "I looked up to you. I saved you. I wanted to be just like you. So why?"
"I don't know."
"Don't give me that!" Marcel whispers fiercely. "Why?!"
"Because… because…" King closes his eyes, and for a moment, looks remorseful. "I was jealous. Because you had power, like I did. Because people were treating you like they used to treat me. I wanted it… what you had. But I couldn't, and watching you…"
"I would have done anything for you."
"I know. But you were going to take what I had."
"No. I wasn't. I never wanted what you had. I just wanted to help people. To help you. To be your sidekick. To be a hero. And I had it, everything I wanted, and you took it away." Marcel raises the blade to King's throat, positioning it so that a single thrust would pierce his spine. A killing blow. As he speaks, King closes his eyes, hearing him, his sincerity. Tears well up in King's eyes, but he says nothing. Marcel pulls the sword away from King's neck, and lets it fall to the side slightly. "I'm not going to take what you had. I just… want to help people."
King takes a rattling deep breath as tears trickle down his cheeks. For the first time since Omar took his power, he feels shame for what he's done. "I-I'm sorry. I just… I'm sorry. But I can't give it up. If I do… I won't have anything. I'm sorry, Marcel, I am. Kill me… because I can't give it all up."
"…I can't." Marcel repeats. He lowers the sword fully, and stands up. "Go. Stop hunting me."
"If I do… they'll realize everything. I can't call them off…" King stands up, meeting Marcel's eye level again. "But I don't have to push them anymore. I wanted to be the best, but with you around, I can't be." He starts to walk away, leaving his sword with Marcel. "You won't see me again, Marcel." With that, Oasis King walks away, gathers his men, and takes them outside.
Wasteland General walks up to King. "You said the men could rest until morning."
"I'm calling off the search." King says. "We have more important things to do. Let's head back to the city."
Wasteland General looks surprised, then happy. "Good. That's a good idea."
Back in the tunnel, Marcel gathers his group, and escapes from the tunnel once King's men leave. He places the sword and scabbard on his hip, then drive off in their own transport to find somewhere safe.