Disclaimer: Pittacus Lore is the man. And/or woman. Gah, pseudonyms! .
A/N: I've only read the book, sooo…no idea how much Hollywood changed it around ;P
Sucker Punch
A Lorien Legacy One-shot
The first thing Six did upon regaining full consciousness was punch Sam Goode square in the jaw.
After being stabbed for the second time via flying dagger, there wasn't much more she could do in the battle against the Mogadorians, so while Henri held them off with the assistance of Mark, Sam dragged Six off of the field and headed for the woods, and beyond that for the field his father's truck was parked in.
It was an agonizingly slow journey (Sam wasn't exactly a body-builder), and Six was losing quite a bit of blood as she was half carried and half dragged through the woods by the young man. He could still hear the terrible roars of the beasts, and the steady succession of gun shots as the battle raged on behind them. He had no idea where John was, or Sarah, or anyone anymore, but he didn't allow himself time to panic as he struggled to lift the faintly breathing Six into the back of the truck.
After settling himself by her, and checking her faint pulse, Sam swallowed hard and clutched his pistol to his chest, straining to hear any aliens who might decide to expand the perimeter.
"Come on…" he murmured, narrowing his eyes at the distant tree line. He didn't quite know who he was directing the command at, but it didn't matter. He'd have a clear shot of any Mogadorian who appeared through those trees.
Six stirred faintly beside him, groaning in pain under her breath. Sam spared a glance at her. She was at least a year older than him, but they were nearly the same height. Despite the serious gravity of the situation, and the fact that she was covered in blood—not to mention she was from a different planet entirely—he couldn't help but notice she was frikkin hot.
Shaking his head in disbelief at himself, he returned his attention to the dark woods. They'd come after her, wouldn't they? Now that the charm was broken, they wouldn't have to kill Four and Five first, so they'd try to take out both John and Six tonight. Sam's hand was surprisingly steady as he poked his pistol over the edge of the bed of the truck, keeping himself squatted mostly behind the metal, only his eyes visible next to his gun.
And then a shadow detached itself from the trees. Sam tightened his grip on the pistol as the Mogadorian slowly advanced across the field. Even from here he could just make out its sardonic grin. It was a soldier, and it had its ominously glowing sword by its side.
"Alright, Sam Goode," Sam muttered to himself through clenched teeth, his left eye closed as he aimed, "you can do this."
But then another soldier appeared, quickly followed by another one. Sam swallowed again, feeling flushed as the three stood side by side, now close enough for him to make out their merciless and soulless black eyes.
"You can do this," he hissed to himself again.
In the distance, another roar ripped through the night air. Sam ducked back down next to Six, who had fallen silent again, almost as if she could sense they were being surrounded. Accompanying the deafening roar were thunderous crashes that sent the trees in the forest creaking in protest as they were bent double and snapped. The three Mogadorians whirled around to face the woods, as another roar sounded, much closer this time.
"Shoot," Sam whispered in terror, though he didn't exactly use the word 'shoot'.
He peered back over the bed of the truck, and at the Mogadorians, who still had their backs turn. Steadying his hand, he aimed at them again. If that beast was coming after Six, and if they were going to snuff it, Sam might as well take the three down with them.
As his pistol went off with a deafening bang, the beast erupted from the trees and charged into the field in a hellish fury. The two left standing looked from their fallen comrade to their living weapon that skidded to a stop, its large chest heaving.
The beast roared again, sending the two Mogadorians' overcoat tails snapping away from their ankles by the foul gust of rotten breath the creature emitted. They raised their swords in puzzled alarm, and Sam barely had time to blink before the beast seized them and swallowed the two hold.
That left only him and Six.
He aimed his pistol, but the beast turned and disappeared back into the woods.
Breathing an immense sigh of relief, Sam sank down onto the bed of the truck, exhausted. The black sky above them was lightening, and the stars were once again visible as the Mogadorians seemed to be retreating, pursued by their liberated beasts.
Six heaved a sudden sharp intake of breath, and Sam immediately crouched down by her side. Blood was soaking through her suit, and upon further inspection he found the two stab wounds on her back and side, and also the gun wound to her thigh.
At a complete loss for what to do, he took off his shirt and started to rip it into thin strips. After that was done, he moved as if to tie a piece around her seeping gunshot wound, but before he could, her fist flew out of nowhere and socked him in the jaw, snapping his head sideways.
Six gasped in pain, and Sam rubbed his aching jaw as he slowly looked at her.
"Ow?" he said, looking more surprised than anything else.
"What do you…think…you're doing?" she demanded, breathing raggedly, her face white and screwed up in pain.
"You've lost a lot of blood," Sam explained awkwardly. "I was, er, going to wrap this around…" he gestured to her leg. With a surge of strength she snatched the strips of cloth out of his hand and tied it herself.
"How did I…get here?" she then asked, her breaths laboring as she examined the wounds in her side and back.
"I carried you."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "You carried me," she repeated flatly.
He narrowed his eyes. "A thank you would suffice!"
She merely grimaced as she struggled to bandage up the other wounds.
"Come on, let me help you," he said impatiently, reaching for the cloth strips.
She glared at him for a split second before shoving them back into his hands.
"So, I'm Sam, nice to meet you," he said with a lopsided grin as he began to dress her wounds, which, for the most part, had stopped bleeding.
"Six," she said simply, glaring at him suspiciously.
"Tone down the nasty looks, would you? I'm one of the good guys."
"You're human."
"You're Loric."
"How do you…know about us?"
"Friend of John's. Er, Four, I mean."
"Does he tell all of his human friends about us?"
"It sure seems that way, doesn't it?" he said wryly.
They fell silent, and Sam finished tying the strips of cloth around Six's waist and lower back.
"Where are the others?" she then asked, fixing him with a hard stare that made him feel as if she were staring into the very depths of his mind.
Sam's expression turned back into one of worry as he glanced back over the field and at the woods, freeing himself from her staring. "I dunno. Everything went really quiet all of a sudden."
Six pulled herself up into a more comfortable sitting position.
They sat quietly once more, listening to the faint wind blowing through the distant trees. There were no other sounds.
"You smell," Six informed him, breaking the tense silence.
"So do you."
She cracked a faint smile, and so did he, but neither looked at the other.
"They took my dad," Sam told her after a while, though he wasn't sure what compelled him to say it. "That's one of the reasons I came tonight."
Six looked at him. "Why would they—"
"—take him?" he finished for her. She nodded. Sam shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "I don't know, I just…I just know it was the Mogadorians."
Six pursed her lips, and he suddenly found himself staring at them, but when she turned to look at him again, he quickly met her gaze. "If they do have him, Sam Goode, we'll do everything we can to help you get him back."
He looked at her. "I want to go with you."
She raised a single eyebrow questioningly.
"You and John," he elaborated, and he found he couldn't look at her anymore. He stared straight ahead determinedly. "The two of you will have to find the others now, right? I want to come, I want to help."
"Sam…"
"I know everything. You can't just expect me to sit here in Paradise and wait around for the end or whatever. Besides, there's nothing here for me anymore."
"It will be dangerous," she told him, looking pointedly at him and gesturing to herself. "And there's no guarantee that we'll even survive."
"It's worth the risk," he said firmly. "The Mogadorians need to be stopped, Six, you know that more than anyone. I can help."
His voice was so sincere, she couldn't possibly say no.
"Well…" she winced slightly as she scooted into a better sitting position. She narrowed her eyes at him as she thought.
"Come on, you owe me!"
When she looked confused, he gestured to his bruising jaw.
"You punched me after I saved your life."
"Sorry about that."
"I forgive you."
She took a deep, steadying breath. "Alright, Sam Goode, you can come with us, but I want something from you."
He grinned. "What?"
She grinned, too, but it was malicious, unlike his happy one. His face fell as he stared at her warily.
"What?" he repeated nervously now. And when she didn't immediately answer, he became more nervous still. "Six?"
"Sam Goode," she chuckled, "you have much to learn."
He had no idea what she meant by that, which he made abundantly clear.
Six merely continued to smile.
E/N: I'm nearly about to rip my hair out, so I shall end it here! Wonky ending, I know T.T Review anyway! :D