Chapter 6: Twisted Endings

The woman sat in one of the many waiting rooms, staring out a large, double paned window. It was night out, the stars flickering in the dark sky. Clouds hovered just east of the horizon, promising rain in the near future.

She was thinking… yet again… of the conversation she had had with the captain. Haylee had left out certain parts of it. Like her being the white knightress and the triggering of memories from her past.

Her arm slid down on the table, and her right ear lay flat against the surface, her eyes glazing over. She felt so confused. There were things that didn’t add up. If only…

She sighed. Haylee said “if only” too many times. Then when she did find out things, she wished she never knew them in the first place. Her eyes started to drift closed, exhaustion of the last few weeks catching up. A giggling sound echoed…

“He did that? That’s so cute Ni Chan,” Cloe sat on her bed, across from Haylee’s looking up at her, “So… does this mean? You two? And… you forgive me as well?”

Her older sister blushed and turned away, hiding her expression from her younger sister, “I don’t know.” The words came out as a mumble.

“Say wha? Come again Ni Chan?”

But she didn’t get to repeat herself as the door to their room was flung open, “Haylee! Come quick… something’s happened, it’s… Driedell.”

A ghostly white replaced the red in her face. She scrambled out of her bed and followed her fellow classmate out of the door, Cloe trailing behind the two of them. Alarms were sounding everywhere, as if they were under attack.

Under attack…

Haylee sat up from her sleeping position on the table. The lights in the waiting room had dimmed, and red lights flashed across the window from the outside. An alarm was also sounding off.

Was it happening already? So soon?

She pushed away from her chair and headed to the door. It slid open and people moving in automated motions flooded the hall, which usually had no one in it. She caught the arm of one long enough to ask, “What’s happening?”

“Unknown. Intruders as well as large explosions were reported from the west wing. Captain Gerrald is ordering all able bodies there to put a stop before it can spread.” The young man slipped out of her grasp and ran away down the hall, Haylee watching his back disappear around a corner.

Intruders. West wall. She stepped out into the hallway and started to head in the opposite direction. There was something she needed to see. She felt confident that Driedell was doing what any would be strategizer would do. Create a distraction and attack from the back door.

She ran quickly, dodging the people and machines that headed towards her. Unsuspectingly, a hand reached out from a nearby doorway and caught her, dragging her into the room. The door slid shut and Haylee looked over at her would be captor, breathing hard.

Captain Gerrald stood there, with a few other soldiers, “I know a quicker route to the other side. Come on.”

A flicker of surprise ran through Haylee’s eyes. He’d known? Of course he would… that was the Capt’n for you. Nodding, the others started to follow the leader in charge, Haylee falling into step instinctively. He led them around a few hallways, around bends, through a few more doors, and then, they were at a dead end.

The lights had flickered down to about nothing, all power being converted to stabilize the whole structure’s shielding. Cutting and scraping sounds echoed on the other side of the wall. She walked up to it and placed a hand on the surface, closing her eyes. He was there… she could feel it.

Just in the nick of time, someone caught her by the shoulders and yanked her away, a burst of light and flying shrapnel, soared through the air, embedding into the people and objects it happened to land on. That took about half of their crew out. Captain Gerrald, who had ducked behind a corner, cursed at himself for his stupidity.

Haylee groggily got up; the force of being moved away and slammed into the floor was enough to disorient her. Humans and humanoids began to stream in through the opening. They all went to intercept those that had come to defend what had become known as their home. Screams echoed out from both sides. The sounds a mix of pain and rage.

Her hand slid down and snatched up the gun at her side. Clicking the safety off, she started to let shots off, the sounds echoing and mixing with the other noises. Soon, she found herself being pushed back, farther and farther. A door came up on her left side and she ducked into that room. As she spun back around to kill whatever followed her, a knife’s edge came into view, hovering at her throat.

She looked up, her eyes meeting that single eye.

“Hello again,” Driedell said before pushing farther into the room. The door slid closed behind him, muffling the sounds of violence. He held two swords in his hands. Both blades were covered in red, the one that he held at her throat was probably the reddest, “I could so easily… just like I could have those times before.”

“Then why don’t you?”

“Haylee, Haylee, Haylee… haven’t you figured it out by now?” He pushed forward causing her to step backwards, “I said before that I would give you a choice. But… you ran away so quickly, that I couldn’t offer it just then.”

Her gun began to tremble in her hands, the woman trying to regain her composure. Why? Why did she suddenly feel so scared? “You already k-k-know what my answer will be.”

“Are you sure it’s the answer you want to make?”

“What other reasons do I have to not answer as such to you?”

His sword began to slip to the side, “I can give you so many reasons Haylee.”

She edged to the side just a bit… a little further was all she needed. “Try them then.”

“We were meant to be together. The Black Knight cannot fight and live without his White Knightress.”

“But I thought both died in the end, so what would be the point in living out a tall tale?”

“Ah… but we can change that ending. As long as we…” his sword drifted downwards more.

“As long as we?”

His sword was finally far enough away! Her gun came up and she fired, nailing him in his right shoulder and forcing him to drop the redder of two swords. As he spun away from the impacting shot, his left hand came up with the other sword, the blade just long enough to catch the barrel of her gun and knock it out of her hands. As that flew through the air, he dodged down to the left, Haylee heading on instinct to the right. She dived for the fallen sword as Driedell swung around to try to catch her as he had before.

She rolled under his blade, scooping up the other sword and bringing it up. There was a large clang and both paused, staring at each other.

Haylee sat crouched on the floor, both hands gripping the handle, her knuckles sheet white from the force she was exerting to hold back Driedell’s blade. He stood on both feet, looking down at her, a dismayed expression on his face, “Is there nothing that I can do to persuade you?”

In the matter of a few seconds, Haylee felt a deja vu scene spread before her senses. She had been split up from the others. Running constantly, she spun around a corner. Driedell was there, standing by the training rooms. Her sister… Cloe stood near him. She was crying and grabbing at his arm to get his attention. He jerked away from her, right before snapping his arm and sending her crashing into the side of the wall.

She came back to herself, as Driedell of now repeated himself, “Is there nothing?”

She gritted her teeth, “No, there is nothing!” She dodged to the left, the blade of his sword sliding off hers, both spun around and metal clang against metal, each deafening sound bringing back more of a memory…

“What’s going on here?”

“Nothing, Haylee,” Driedell said coming up even with her and lifting a hand to touch her face, “I missed you.”

“What are you talking about? What happened to your eye?” Her hand lifted up to touch an eye patch that covered his left eye, but he caught her fingers before she could.

“Don’t worry about it, love.”

A younger voice interrupted both, “NNNOOO! Don’t! I won’t let it!!” Cloe had stood back up and was now flinging herself at Driedell, shoving Haylee away. Suddenly, her small form flew through the wall and then slumped over, brick piling up on her. The older sister breathed hard and looked from the wall to the one that she thought she loved. His eye patch was flipped up and he was smiling… smiling?

The two’s swords clanged together again, each opponent breathing harder, Haylee’s facial expression going from pure concentration to an angry scowl.

“Why are you smiling? What have you just done?” She went to run to where the wall had buried Cloe. Driedell caught her arm and pulled her back to him.

“Don’t… don’t worry about it, she’ll be just fine.”

She spun back towards him, “Fine? Excuse me, but… how can someone be fine buried under bricks and cement?”

“Well then don’t bother, she’s already dead.”

The two paused in their sword clanging. Haylee had Driedell up against a wall. The only thing keeping her from slicing through his throat was the blade he held between the two of them. “Why the scowl, love?”

“I am not your love. Especially not the love that would kill my sister.”

There was an indescribable expression on his face, and his voice became harsh and bitter, “You would cling to the past? And not consider what I offer you because of a transgression? If only you knew what OMNI has done to you! TO US!” He pushed his arms up, shoving her away from him. She fell backwards, catching herself with her left hand and barely parried the next swing of Driedell’s sword.

The blows came heavier and heavier, Haylee’s arm growing more tired by the second as she blocked. Now it was she against the wall.

“S-s-she’s dead?” She looked over at him, her heart falling into the bottom of her stomach, her eyes locking with his and freezing there. His eye patch still up Driedell walked towards her.

“Yes, dead.” He frowned as he lifted a hand to touch her shoulder, “Haylee… what’s wrong?”

She couldn’t move. She couldn’t speak. Just like now, the blades forming an X against her heaving chest. Driedell was still angry and he looked at her, pushing harder with his blade. “Why? Why does it have to be this way?”

“Why… anything?” Haylee managed to gasp aloud.

“Maybe… maybe…” His hand came up to his face and flipped his eye patch up. Again, she found herself staring into its abnormal depths. The red eye pierced her soul, searching and searching. “If I command it, you will. You will.”

Her teeth gritted and she fought against its influence, “No. I. Won’t.” She shoved hard, breaking free of the silvery cave. Fire flew at her next, streaking through the air and catching her in a pyrokinetic grip. She was thrown into the room’s walls. Her body slid down the side to lie on the floor.

“Why? WHY? WHY? WHY?” His hand dropped his sword and then both snaked up his sides to grasp the sides of his head. He forced his hands down and then walked towards her. Haylee struggled to regain the air that had been knocked out of her, her hand searching to regain her sword as well.

“WHY Haylee? Why? Can’t you see?”

He lifted a hand, preparing to grip her form again. Her hand grasped the sword and began to move up. Just as he was going to hike her into the air, the tip of her blade passed through him.

Driedell gasped and slumped downwards towards her. Haylee scrambled to try to stand. She did not like the idea of being buried under his weight. He fell to the ground at her feet, sliding off the end of her sword. He choked a grasping word, “Why?” His arm reached up to brush part of her fallen hair away from her scorched face and then his eyes widened, “Not real… not my…” his arm fell away and hit the ground as he said his last words, “real love.”