So, I apologize in advance for what you're about to witness. Too many feels, too many emotions.
But I had to post this.
Chapter 1: Gone
"Goodbyes are not forever.
Goodbyes are not the end.
It only means, 'I'll miss you
Until we meet again.'"
We sat with our backs pressed against the rock, our breath coming fast. The shots resounded through the air, and I felt my teammates cringe after every shot. I squeezed Jay's shoulder reassuringly, and slung my arm around Kai as if protecting him.
But, we were safe. For now. The gun shots weren't being fired at us, but at Kai's sister. Well, at her giant, metal, robotic samurai suit. She was controlling it from the inside, so the bullets wouldn't reach her.
I waited for the silencing of gun shots, but it didn't come. Nya was supposed to be taking down gunmen, but apparently the bullets kept coming, and they weren't in any means quiet. They clanked off the samurai armor. It was a deafening roar.
Kai's body was tense. He wanted to move. He wanted to help his sister. I pressed down on his shoulders with the one arm around him, willing him to stay put. He didn't have a giant suit of armor. If he went out now, he wouldn't be doing himself any good, nor the rest of us. We couldn't afford to lose a member of this team. It would destroy us.
But, Kai was impatient. And protective. I knew he felt a huge responsibility to protect his sister, since he had been doing it since they were young kids. Kai had told me briefly that his and Nya's parents had died when he was around 7, but I could tell he held back many details. He didn't tell me how they died, or how he found out they had died. Something was hidden inside his head. A memory he didn't want to uncover. So, I didn't push it.
"Kai," I said, now, glancing at him.
"Yeah?" His reply was clipped.
"Stay put, okay? She'll be fine." He seemed to settle down for a moment, but then moved away from the rock in a crouched position.
He didn't move further, but I placed a forceful hand on his shoulder, bringing his back to the rock. He shot an angry glare at me, but I ignored it. In fact, I almost rolled my eyes. Kai was such a hothead. An impulsive hothead. But, still I felt the need to explain. I was the leader. I had to be a good example for him, maybe more than the others. I had to be solid and steady and strong. And smart... Maybe Kai could learn from that.
"Hey, you don't have an invincible suit of armor, Kai," I mentioned. "And you're not doing anyone any good if you get shot."
I was careful to say "you're not doing anyone good" rather than "you're not doing yourself good". Because if Kai was only putting himself in danger, then he wouldn't listen to my word. But, if I told him others could be at risk, he would stay put. I wasn't sure if that was the most leader-like example to set, but it was the only thing keeping Kai safe. That had to be worth something, right?
Plus, it wasn't lying. We couldn't lose Kai. He helped bring our team together. Without him, we wouldn't connect. We'd fall apart. The same way we'd fall apart if we lost anyone of us on the ninja team. And that included Kai's sister, Nya.
It hit us hard. No one saw it coming. How could we? How could you be prepared for a teammate's death? How could you watch another teammate running out wildly towards his sister? His sister whose samurai suit had malfunctioned and opened, leaving her without armor.
A bullet had lodged itself in the control panel on the back of the samurai suit. It had caused Nya's invincible armor to open up, and she was left in the middle of a desert, with three, deadly gunmen surrounding her. And it had allowed a bullet to imbed itself in her flesh.
Kai heard the impact before anyone else. I guess he could tell something was different - the sound was different than the noise a bullet made against metal. He could tell it had hit someone. A person. His sister.
There was a moment of silence. Five seconds where time seemed to move in slow motion. I watched Kai dart away from the rock - our hiding place. He moved too fast for my mind to process. I couldn't stop him. I didn't stop him.
But, I did follow him. After five seconds that seemed like infinity, I snapped out of my daze. I ran after Kai, shouting his name, and trying my hardest not to curse. Jay was on my tail, now, with Zane, the nindroid of ice, following close behind.
Bullets shot over our heads instantly as we revealed ourselves. Kai twisted into a spin move and a flip, dodging the deadly projectile like an expert. But, he evidently didn't care about his own life because he kept running. Towards his sister. Not unaware of the danger around him, but indifferent.
Another shower of bullets spun towards us. They flew past Kai's head, his shoulders, barely missing. I thrust out my hand, and a jut of land shot up near the closest shooter. He flew threw the air and landed on the hard, desert ground with a thump. He wasn't dead, just unconscious.
My breath caught in my throat as I saw one bullet rip the sleeve on Kai's ninja gi. But it didn't pierce his skin.
More bullets. More gun shots aimed to kill us. But, Kai was way ahead. He would be shot before the rest.
A spray of ice shot past my head. Zane's ice. It engulfed the hands of the second gunmen, who had been preparing to shoot his target. Of course that target was Kai. And he would've gotten him too if it hadn't been for Zane. The ninja of ice...
"Kai!" I screamed.
I had to catch up to him. I had to pull him back. Get us out of here.
But, there was no way out, and there was no time to think of one. The shots were coming at a steady pace. Only one gunman was left. It was one against four. And the one had a gun. But, the four had elemental powers.
"Lightning!" Jay shrieked from somewhere behind me. A bolt of electricity struck the leg of the last gunmen. He collapsed in a strange convulsing spasm. But, he wasn't dead either.
The gunmen were gone. At least, they were temporarily taken down.
But, Nya...
I watched as Kai threw himself on the ground beside her. I could hardly look at the girl. She lay still, but breathing faintly. Her eyes were open, but flickering softly.
"Nya! Nya, no, please," Kai pleaded, sobbing.
Tears streamed down his cheeks. He ripped a large portion of fabric off his sleeve frantically and was about to press down on the wound in Nya's stomach. Her soft voice stopped him.
"Kai. Kai, don't. It's okay." She pushed his hand away. "It's going to be alright."
"You're right, you're right." Kai nodded several times. "You're going to be just fine." I could tell he was panicking. He felt helpless.
A lump rose in my throat. I felt the tears stinging my eyes. We couldn't lose Nya.
Kai couldn't lose Nya. He'd already lost so much. His parents. His childhood (he'd had to grow up so fast, carrying the responsibility of caring for Nya). And now the one thing he had left (besides this team), was dying. It was going to crush him.
I briefly shot a glance back at the silent pair behind me, Jay and Zane. Jay had his head buried in Zane's shoulder, crying, and the nindroid was embracing him, sympathetically.
I turned back to Kai and Nya.
"Kai, it's okay," Nya whispered again. Her body shuddered. "I'm going to a better place. I'll get to see...get to see Mom and Dad." She coughed, spitting up a trickle of blood. Kai shook his head, disbelieving.
"Please, Nya." His voice was so low it was barely audible. "I was supposed to protect you."
The tears streamed down my cheeks.
"You have Kai," Nya said, shaking and gasping. "But, sometimes..." She shut her eyes tightly, groaning.
Kai squeezed her hand, and I saw his knuckles go white. His face was whiter. He shook almost as badly as his sister. The tears were streaming down his cheeks endlessly.
This couldn't be happening. Kai shouldn't have to go through this. He couldn't lose Nya. Couldn't, couldn't. It would break him. Was breaking him. But, there was nothing we could do. Nya's wound was fatal.
"Sometimes you have to let the little bird fly from it's nest, Kai. Let it fend for itself and fly, even if it's dangerous," Nya finally managed to get out.
"But, I can't...I can't..." Kai muttered.
"Don't cry, Kai. Mother always told us not to cry."
Everything froze. Myself. Kai. The world. It all froze for just a moment, like the earth was taking a giant, sighing breath. Then, it spun on.
The tears on Kai's cheeks were miraculously gone now. He was trying to be strong. Be strong for her. And appease his sister's dying wish. I couldn't take it. I didn't know how Kai could take. But, then I thought...he couldn't. He was barely holding in the agony, the shattering of his heart, his...
"Take care of them, okay, Cole?" The question was directed at me. "Kai and Jay," Nya said. "Keep them out of trouble for me." She managed a weak smile that turned into a cough and another terrible groan.
I nodded, the lump growing thicker in my throat.
"Y...yeah," I managed. Stupid, stupid. That's all I could say - when she was dying? Pathetic.
"Love you, Kai." She looked at her brother one last time, and he replied in a choked voice.
"Love you too, Nya." His final words to her. She fell limp in his arms.
I watched in a daze, as Kai's trembling hand reached out to shut his sister's eyes. He couldn't do it. His hand hovered over Nya's wide, dead eyes.
That's when I made myself move forward. I pushed Kai's hand down gently, helping him use two fingers to close his sister's eyes. And she was gone.
Once again, I'm sorry.
Or maybe it's more of a "sorry, not sorry" sort of deal.
Anyway, let me know what you think in the reviews.
Thanks for reading and probably bawling your eyes out.