Hello everyone! Welcome to the new and improved, 'The Honour Code'! I loved this story when I first wrote it and since reading back through it, I knew it could be so much better. I've worked really hard on this so I hope you all like it! R&R's are always appreciated here as long as criticism is constructive. :)
I first did this over a year ago so, as a break from my other current story, I thought finally rewriting this would be a good way to gather ideas. Now that it's finished, I'm sharing it with all of you!
I will upload a chapter a week, every Saturday, until it's finished. It is a short story now instead of a one shot, that's how much I've added to it.
I think that's all for now, so I'll see you all next week!
Arby xx
His heartbeat mimicked his every step. Regular and dreary. The downpour combined with the clouded night sky was enough to keep any normal being indoors. The difference here was that he was no 'normal' person. Others found their comfort in front of a blissful, open fire while this one found a strange sense of serenity as he wandered aimlessly in the middle of a summer storm. With no plan as to where to go, he simply followed where his instincts took him.
He wouldn't admit it, but each lightning strike scared him. His façade of remaining calm covered it up well as another bolt struck the planet's surface. The split second of white light allowed him to see that he was stood on the edge of a cliff staring far out into the open ocean. The high speed winds were deafening. He took deep breaths and closed his eyes, silently allowing the storm surrounding him to halt his thoughts. For that moment, everything else was non-existent until a sudden boom from the heavens brought him back to reality.
The thoughts were still there however, the ones that had plagued him for weeks. He had never been haunted by them before, they rarely crossed his mind at all but it seemed that now they demanded his attention, even to the point of insomnia. The centre of these thoughts was his clan and his original home, Shinobi. The chameleon had left long ago because he was under orders from the Bride of Constant Vigil. Since then, he hasn't heard from them. That alone wasn't what bothered him; he knew all too well that they were secretive and that he was more than capable of operating without being checked up on. It was the fact that it had been so long which was what caused him to become nervous and unsettled. Was this homesickness? After this many years, he doubted it. It was something else and sooner or later, he was going to figure it out.
Violent shivers soon told the reptile that he had been out for long enough. He turned away from the restless waters and headed back to the Chaotix HQ.
The walk home seemed to last only five minutes when in actual fact, it had been nearly an hour. He crept across the creaky floorboards of the trio's small yet cosy house as quietly as he could to avoid waking the other two up. His mind was so focused on being silent that he didn't notice the clock on the wall which read 3am.
Once in his room, without a peep being made, his tired body crashed upon his dark, purple bedsheets. It squeaked a little from the impact and being quite worn out, but it was comfortable for the ninja nonetheless. His eyes, the two golden windows that gave the only insight into his soul, stared aimlessly at the ceiling trying desperately to close and rest, but they couldn't. His mind was still awake at the many thoughts that ran through his conscious. Soon however, those thoughts became his lullaby and it wasn't too long before he drifted off to sleep.
Espio's usual wake up time would be around 5am to meditate before the others awoke at around 9am; today was not the case however. Two purple eyelids slowly opened as the sun lit up the room and gave it a warm glow. The ceiling and carpet were both a jet black while the walls were purple to match his scales just like his bedsheets. His bed was snug in the corner with a small table next to it. Upon this table was a lamp, alarm clock (which Vector and Charmy kindly got him for his birthday) and a picture of the trio in front of the agency when they first got it. A quick glance reminded him that it was Vanilla that took the picture for them, which the green reptile dramatically thanked her for.
Espio's amber eyes met with his alarm clock which to his shock, read 3pm. His eyes widened considerably before he leapt out of bed with a rush of adrenaline.
"Why didn't anyone wake me?!" He thought in a panic before putting on his shoes and gloves and heading downstairs. Once in the living room, he tilted his head at the sight of no one else there. A note upon Vector's desk, which was at the back of the room next to the kitchen doorway, caught the ninja's attention. It had been quickly hand-written and was a bit scruffy, but readable regardless.
'Sup Espio,
I took Charmy out to get some groceries. We needed some but since the little guy wouldn't stop bugging me about getting more honey, I thought it would a good chance to get out and away from paperwork for a few hours.
While I'm writing this, I gotta ask if you're alright. I've noticed your odd behaviour lately so don't try to hide it. I want to know if you're ok since I am your friend and all (and your boss of course). It's only right that I make sure my partner in crime is doing well (that was a joke Espio, Charmy told me to write that).
Anyway, if you want to talk then you know where I am (literally).
We won't be long so if you're up, we'll see you when we get back.
Vector.'
Espio couldn't help but sigh. It wasn't that he was alone that bothered him. If anything, he was thankful that the pair were gone for a while. What bothered the younger reptilian was that he had nothing to distract himself from his often overpowering thoughts. They were almost addicting. If he thought about it once, then that would be it for him for the rest of the day. He shook his head, not allowing himself to fall into another downward spiral. Upon looking around, he noticed the TV remote on the table in the centre of the room between the two couches. With nothing else, he flicked on the image box with the hope that something good would be on; his luck was not with him today. The majority of shows that were on these days were degrading reality shows, cheesy game shows and other desperate attempts to make bad actors famous. All they did was irritate the ninja before he finally turned it off.
"Dammit…" He groaned as he covered his face with his hands. In the end, he ventured into their tiny backyard which was where he practised his ninja skills and kept them as honed as possible. It was a perfect little spot as Vector and Charmy never used it, even in exquisite weather such as this, with the evidence being the horrifically overgrown weeds and stinging nettles.
Meanwhile…
Vector and Charmy had been to Vanilla's house. The croc wanted to see her and not just because he secretly liked her (not so much of a secret since Charmy and Espio knew) but also because he wanted some advice on how to approach his chameleon comrade about his unusual behaviour. Charmy on the other hand, hadn't noticed at all and just went to play games with Cream.
"Try to talk to him in a calm and quiet environment. He'll know that you're willing to listen and perhaps then he'll open up a little more. Don't push him though, I know how he is. If he doesn't want to talk, then simply let him know that you're there if he needs you. I'm sure he'll come round eventually." Her warm smile was enough to put Vector at ease. He thanked her just as he always did before eventually leaving to go to the grocery store.
That was where they were now, and had been for exactly forty-five minutes. Vector already had what he needed in his basket. Chips, soda, tea supplies (mainly for Espio) and several frozen pizzas for those 'can't be bothered to cook' days. What held him back was his younger bee friend who couldn't decide what kind of honey he wanted. His patience finally gave in.
"Can you hurry up?!" He demanded but Charmy took the honey situation very seriously and no one, not even Vector would stop him from taking his very sweet time.
"You will never understand how important this is. I don't nag you about Vanilla so don't nag me!" He complained which unfortunately silenced the head honcho there and then. With a roll of his eyes, he looked around the store to see if there was anyone he could talk to. There were a variety of people, both human and Mobian alike who either were with their families picking up dinner or alone and just grabbing a snack.
"Nobody I know." He thought, knowing he couldn't just talk to some random stranger to pass the time. He then began to think about the only one of the Chaotix who was still at home, Espio. Many questions popped up as the chameleon entered his mind once again. "Is there something wrong? If there is, why won't he tell me? Does he not trust me?"
"Got it!" Charmy suddenly sang which nearly gave the tall croc a heart attack.
"Oh, finally!" He said trying to recover from his daydreams which thankfully, the bee didn't notice. "Come on, we should get this stuff paid for and then we can go home." Vector told him.
"Sure thing, boss!" The insect chirped with as much enthusiasm as ever.
The duo made their way home with Vector carrying most of the shopping. Charmy was trying to make haste as he was excited to make himself some honey on toast. The croc thought the idea was odd but never questioned him on it.
"He likes what he likes." Vector thought. He knew it would ruin the bee's appetite before dinner but Charmy was stubborn, even more than Espio at times. There was no telling him otherwise which in a sense was good. It meant he could learn on his own and hopefully grow up to be independent.
Their walk home was accompanied by a slight chill as the sun was no longer at its highest at this time in the afternoon. It wasn't enough to spoil their mood however, they were both fairly content. They soon came to the front door which Charmy had to open since Vector had his hands full. Upon entry, their first sight was the ninja chameleon himself, who was laid upon the couch groaning quietly. For Vector at least, the sight alone was very strange. Espio was never lazy; not once since he had known the guy had he seen him behave like this. He knew instantly that something was wrong.
"Espio?" He asked, keeping his voice calm to avoid irritating the chameleon whilst clearly conveying his concern. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." The younger reptilian's voice was about as readable as paper that had been set on fire. Vector couldn't tell if he was upset, angry, both or neither. He tilted his head in suspicion while Charmy approached slowly to say hi to his friend. He stopped however, once he noticed scratches and cuts upon his body. The bee couldn't help but question it. The sight of Espio being injured was one that the child was unfamiliar with.
"What happened to you?" Charmy's voice was as much innocent as it was curious. Espio couldn't get angry at him, not that he wanted to, even if the kid got on his nerves regularly. Now was not one of those times. Upon hearing the bee's sudden questioning, Vector also moved towards him to see what he was talking about. His jaw dropped at the sight of him. It looked as if a cat had used him as a scratching post.
"Espio?! What the hell happened to you?" Vector said, forgetting that Charmy had asked already. The larger croc didn't mean to panic as much as he did. He had never known Espio be hurt and instantly thought that someone attacked him. The ninja on the other hand, wasn't comfortable with all this attention and calmed the duo immediately.
"Stop it!" He said sternly which was enough to grant him his much-wanted silence. "You are overreacting, Vector. I was merely outside when I got caught in those overgrown nettles." The smaller reptile explained. Vector didn't seem convinced.
"I don't understand. You've never been hurt by them before." He voiced his seemingly obvious thoughts which for some reason irritated the other male.
"I am fully aware of that fact. What is your point?" Now Espio's voice had an edge. If Vector was going to confront him, then now would be the time. He turned to Charmy with a softer look and told him to go play outside. Being completely unaware of the real situation, Charmy nodded happily and proceeded to dance his way out the door with a surprising amount of grace.
Now that they were both alone, Vector sat down next to the ninja who now had his arms folded and had his gaze away from him. He hoped that Espio would at least turn to look at him but it seemed that wouldn't be the case. After a few minutes of tense silence, Vector eventually began to share his concerns.
"Espio, I don't want to bother you or make you feel uncomfortable, but I have noticed your behaviour lately and this little incident is only proving my point. What is bothering you?" The chameleon remained silent and didn't move a muscle. He continued nonetheless. "You're my best friend Es and yes, I do care. Of course you don't have to tell me anything but if you do, I will listen. I promise you that." Could he tell him? Should he tell him? In all honesty, he wasn't sure if Vector would understand since everyone he cared about was either in the same building or the same city. Perhaps once he should try, he couldn't just jump to conclusions when he may be able to help. If one thing was for certain, he had to get it out otherwise it would overwhelm him yet again.
"Vector… I've been having these thoughts." He began. Why was he so nervous? He forced it aside and continued. "I didn't think they would bother me this much but over time, they have been wearing me down, hence these ridiculous scratches."
"What are these thoughts about?" Vector asked in a caring tone. He took a second before answering.
"I cannot be certain, but they are centred around my origins and my home." The croc tried to hide his confusion but Espio was quick to notice his expression. He knew he wouldn't understand.
"Your home? You are home, Espio." He let out a loud sigh in frustration. Vector grew anxious when the chameleon suddenly got up and turned to him with a face that could kill. The Chaotix leader knew he had hit a nerve, but how? And why?
"I am not talking about here." Espio began with a noticeable growl that accompanied his words. "I am talking about the Dragon Kingdom! The place I came from and the clan I left behind!" The croc was lost for words. The last thing he wanted to do was anger his friend further but sitting quietly didn't exactly calm the situation either. "You know what? It was a mistake in thinking that you could actually help me. I thought you knew me Vector, especially after the many years we have spent together. You have now proven to me that you do not." With no hesitation, he walked to the door much to Vector's panic.
"W-where are you going?!" He asked with an uprising fear.
"That is none of your concern. I will return when I have done what is needed." The door slammed shut, leaving Vector utterly motionless at Espio's outburst. His expression then saddened as he sat back down.
"I was only trying to help you…"
