Author's Notes: This is a remake of an old fanfic I had written several years ago called "His ghost". I disclaim Gorillaz, and blah blah blah. I also disclaim the "X-rays"…(snicker), and Tekken 6.
Broken (Like a Machine)
She sat there, alone and abandoned.
All of his material possessions were there. Video games, movies, clothes, footware, furniture, and various other items one can find earthly enjoyments in.
But the owner of all of these colorful and diverse items, was gone forever.
The hollow silence of the room added to the lamenting atmosphere of the room. The room itself was decorated with horror movie-based ornaments and various video games were sprinkled all over the floor. The bed remained unmade from the night before, with the sheets curled up into a wrinkly ball and tossed into the corner of the bed.
There was no sound. The only audible thing was the sound of a tree's long, pointed branch tapping against the foggy, cracked window. The wind wisped by, like the spirit of a deceased woman looking for an entrance to Kong Studios.
Whatever soul had inhabited this place had surely vanished. No room this colorful would be abandoned so suddenly and carelessly.
Despite this, there was indeed a soul within the confines of this melancholy area. A soul that had her spirit shattered into a million pieces.
She sat in the center of his cradle, with salty, lightning-shaped tears slithering their way down her pale cheeks. Her emerald-green eyes closed gently and her head lowered, not willing to see the world anymore.
She wore an over-sized black hoodie, with the middle of the sleeves stained with blotches of the water from her tears. Her purple hair hung over her face, and her mouth in the shape of a first-quarter moon.
Her nose would twitch every now and again, and her bottom lip would quiver every time she would start crying once more.
The dark clouds that hovered over her had eaten away the glimmering sunshine that resided within her heart.
Her heart had become ill with agony, and her mind a swirling vortex of angst and depression. Her sorrow retained in her soul's grasp, and her thoughts chanted a haunting thought,
"It was my fault…"
She opened her eyes, slowly, and let the sparkling tears within her eyes begin flowing once more. They had started in her sleep, and had not stopped ever since.
Her memories constantly haunted her, reminding her of what happened, almost as if they had taken a mind of their own. It was as if they had become a psychological jury, exclaiming that she was guilty, and only her.
With a trembling hand, she reached into the front pocket of her stained sweater, and pulled out a photo, a photo of her best friend, whom she and her band mates affectionately called "2D."
He was smiling happily while holding up a copy of "Tekken 6".
She constantly saw flashes of what had happened to him, seeing him dying. A nightmare that she was forced to relive over and over again. Her subconscious had branded this horrible memory into her mind, and it would not leave.
And now, she felt those memories clawing their way into her thoughts once again, only to psychologically torture her once more…
The night before was a relatively peaceful one. Except, of course, the problem that was occurring within the geep…
"Please, Noodle," the singer begged, as he drove towards their destination, keeping his eyes on the road, "I know wot I'm tellin' yeh,' this place isn't safe feh' you!"
His pleading fell upon deaf ears.
The stubborn Japanese guitarist simply crossed her arms and glared out of the window, watching the neon lights on various stores and bars pass by in colorful blurs.
The situation was that Noodle had just become 19 years old, and she wanted to see the real world for herself. She knew she only had one life, and she wanted to have some of her own fun.
However, the festive location that Noodle had chosen is a bit notorious. Notorious in the sense that, yes, it had a reputation for being a hot spot among party-goers, but it was very dangerous.
2D did not hear about these troubles from the local news, nor from a friend. He had seen some severe troubles in this particular location with his own two eyes.
Several months ago, he and Murdoc Niccals were discussing the release of their newest musical project known as Plastic Beach.
After all the hard work and tedious stress that came with it, the two decided to get a drink at this particular spot.
When they entered this place, they noticed it was particularly dark, with repetitive and obstreperous rave music blasting through multiple speakers, and various adults, both younger and older people, were dancing like maniacs, drunk out of their minds, and throwing caution to the wind. They seemed more like wild animals than they did humans.
At first, 2D and Murdoc paid little attention to these irrelevant little peripherals that came with this place.
Once the waitress had taken their orders, the two musicians scanned the area, observing the mass hysteria that came with these nightclubs.
At first, all they did was jest about much of the ludicrous fashion that these party-goers participated in, such as sporting multi-colored Mohawks and nose rings, and many having their arms and necks engulfed with frightening tattoos.
But the vocalist noticed something.
Two men seemed to be arguing, and he could not put a number on it to assume that either one of them were intoxicated.
But he saw one man throw a devastating haymaker to the other, sending him sprawling to the floor, then the attacker reached for a green empty beer bottle sitting on a table left over from a previous guest.
He sprang like a frog on top of his sucker-punched opponent, and clutching the bottle by it's neck, he lifted it up over his head, to bash it on his enemy's skull and end this quickly.
But the opponent was no fool, either. He had pulled out a pocket-knife, just as the other was preparing to strike with his own weapon.
The knife-man had tried to stab his opponent by thrusting it towards his stomach , but missed as the bottle-wielder leapt out of the way in the nick of time.
But he swung his knife at the man once again, and left a bloody cut on the side of his stomach. The other man grew furious, and he vertically swung his weapon at the man's head. The other man raised his arm like a shield and guarded his head against the melee attack, but it smashed on top of his hand, leaving a bloody stain on his bare knuckles.
Before the fight could continue, staff and security came and broke it up. Some of the other party-goers alerted the authorities before things could get any worse.
As 2D later found out on the local news channel, the two men were actually 21-year-old university students, and they were dueling because one thought the other was flirting with their girlfriend. A perfect example of how a misunderstanding can be extremely violent, especially while drunk and intoxicated.
It was there that the vocalist considered just how dangerous this local party location actually was, and decided to never return to that fatal accident waiting to happen again.
However, the problem arose when Noodle began making plans among friends. Since she was 19 years old and having recently graduated, she had wanted to have some fun with her graduating classmates.
Ironically enough, the very nightclub where Noodle and her friends had set up reservations to, was the same exact one 2D promised himself to never return to.
Noodle was indeed a grown woman, and she most definitely could make her own decisions, but the vocalist had known her since she was very young. Because of this, the blue-haired man and the Japanese woman had developed an emotional bond, as a brother and sister would.
2D had seen Noodle grow from an cheeky and adorably precious little guitarist who mysteriously appeared out of nowhere in a FedEx box in front of their studio, to a grown woman who had beaten the odds and became a world-renowned musician and singer.
They had both seen each other grow older, and 2D being the older gentleman, he considered it his duty to watch out for his "younger sister".
This was the very reason why 2D begged Noodle not to enter into that hellhole. He could not bear to hear news about an incident involving Noodle. No, he wouldn't dare. He'd die before that would happen.
Once more, the singer began begging, "Please Noods, I know wot it's like in the'eh, please, jus' come 'ome!"
It wasn't exactly an award-winning speech, but he needed to convince the Axe Princess, one way or another.
But Noodle remained stiff-necked. While still staring out the window, she said "No, 2D! I won't call it off! I've had this planned for weeks, and I'm not abandoning my friends because you're a worry-wart!"
Why was she so stiff-necked, like a rebellious teenager? This question repeated itself in 2D's mind over and over again, like a broken record.
While it is true that Noodle had had this planned weeks before, and she did explain this to the singer, he assumed that she was still a little overly-excited about graduating and hadn't yet thought about it. He assumed she'd mature a little and begin searching for colleges rather than go with party-animals.
But now, considering the very suggestive way she was dressed, she looked as if she were ready to do something insane, and her eyes contained so much eye shadow that she looked like she were attending a Halloween party.
The vocalist's eyes consistently shifted towards Noodle from the corners of his Onyx-eyes, trying to devise a technique to use to convince her to change her mind.
But he had to do it quickly. Time was not on his side, and this nightclub was just around the corner.
For the final time, the singer tried his best shot at convincing his friend to come home safe and sound. "Noodle, please!" he begged, "I'm beggin' yeh'! Don't do this! Yeh' so young, y-yeh've got so much tah' live fo'! I-I-I jus' don't wanna see yeh' get 'urt tha's all!" The vocalist put his heart and soul into those words. So much stress would have nearly given him gray hairs.
But sadly, Noodle hardened her heart once more, swung her head over to 2D and replied calmly, "2D…I'm not going to get hurt. My friends and I will stick together."
She reached into her pocketbook, began fumbling around with the objects inside, and pulled out her new iphone. "Look, see?" she said, holding it up for him to see the brightly-lit screen. "I'll text you if anything at all happens. I promise...OK?"
Noodle gave a reassuring look to the keyboardist. He began grinding his teeth, and his grip on the wheel tightened as he turned it, which revealed his "dreaded and infamous" nightclub.
He felt his palms get sticky and warm with his own sweat on the wheel.
He observed the party-goers outside as he drove closer to it.
Many of them looked from Noodle's age to their late thirties. Some of the men there appeared gruff and mean, with beards that made them look like they rode in motorcycle gangs and drank gallons of alcohol all day, every day.
Others looked like insane punk rockers, sporting multi-colored Mohawks, long greasy ponytails, and chains around their black, tight, skinny jeans. Some wore wristbands that were covered in spikes, or had some kind of heavy-metal reference on it. Either way, it was nothing good.
2D felt tension embrace his bones. "Noodle…please…I know wot it's like in there," he practically poured his guts out towards her, "yeh'll 'ave nightmares for years if yeh' go in there, please, jus' come 'ome!"
It looked almost pathetic to see a thirty-two year old man, begging for a grown woman to come back home. But he didn't care about how pathetic he looked. He just wanted her to come home, safe and sound. Noodle yanked her wrist out of his grip, and he gave her a forlorn look, like a pup does when it's scolded by it's master to not over-eat.
This made her a bit irritated, and she explained for a final time,"2D! Please, you've got to relax! I'll be home in two hours, and then you'll see me again! Nothing will happen!"
2D just stared at her, still with that forlorn expression. He blinked twice, and then, his face came out crooked, strained, and emotionally hurt. "I…jus' don't want anything to 'appen to yeh, Noods…yeh teh' greatest thing tha's 'appen tah' me…yeh always the' one the'eh' fo' me…I'd die if somefink 'appened to yeh'…"
Noodle suddenly was touched by these words, touched somewhere special in her heart. She ran her fingers through his spiky, blue hair. A weak, but tender smile grew across his lips.
"2D…I'll…I'll be alright! I promise I'll be home soon…"
For a bizarre reason, that not even he could explain, he grew a bit furious and offensive.
"Then why don't yeh' come 'ome, eh? I jus' wanna keep yeh' safe, but all yeh' doin' is getting me worried!" he snarled. It was as if though he had taken the role of a fatherly figure rather than a brotherly one in that moment.
Noodle, at first, had a startled face. She was so startled, in fact, that she felt herself get a little dizzy. But then, she grew defensive and argued right back, "I just wanna have a little fun! Is there something wrong with that!"
"Yea', there is! Yeh' idea of fun is goin' to some trash place an' 'ang out with people yeh' 'ardly know, and party with a bunch a drunken arse'oles!"
"…you know what?" she said dangerously lowering her voice and slowly darkening her look to an aggressive stare, like a wolf does when it feels agitated, and suddenly she shot her index finger at him.
"I don't need you to tell me how to run my life! I'm nineteen years old!"
With that, she flung open the door to the geep, and stormed outside.
2D suddenly forgot about his anger, and his face suddenly eased up. His eyebrows raised and his mouth hung opened slightly.
She whirled around, still with a furious face, grabbed the edge of the car door, and slammed it in his face. She turned around once more, not even taking a second to look back.
The Axe Princess began walking towards a group of beautiful young women around her age, with her fists clenched into fists by her sides and her (bare) shoulders raised up in frustration, not moving her arms as she strode over to them.
While gazing at her as she walked away from the geep, 2D realized something. Perhaps something that he should have realized a long time ago.
She has grown up.
She was no longer that innocent soul with large headphones, a guitar, and a burning passion for music.
No longer that teenager who made her fame by dancing to pop music in a purple room filled with spotlights with a massive singing head in "DARE".
No longer that beautiful piece of innocence on the floating windmill island.
No, no longer any of that…nor ever again.
She was only…grown up.
All the love and tenderness he had given her. Was it meaningless? He had given her everything. He would've given her his soul if possible.
She was a major piece of his heart, and a very fragile one. Now, that major, fragile piece of his heart just shattered like delicate glass tipped over by a powerful gust of wind.
Tears began sparkling in his eyes like diamonds in sunlight, and they began streaming down his cheeks. A loud gasp escaped his lips, and he rested his hand on top of his mouth.
Through his blurred vision, he saw one of her friends point back to the geep. He witnessed her turn around, roll her eyes, and shake her head in an annoyed fashion.
It was there that 2D realized that she was gone. She was part of the "independent ones" now. No longer the girl he once knew. Now she was her own person.
She don't need me no mo', he thought, as he put the geep in reverse, I'm useless tah' 'er now.
As 2D pulled away, preparing to enter the long and depressing freeway home, Noodle's eyes swung over to the geep.
She let out a sigh of relief, thinking that 2D may have come to his senses and realized that she would be fine.
However, behind the vocalist's geep, a very reckless driver came speeding as fast as they could. They were in a hood, and their face wasn't visible at all. The engine roared loudly, and they, literally, stepped on the gas pedal.
2D wiped the remaining tears dripping from his eyes with the back of his hand, and as he rested his foot on the gas, he heard the car behind him's engine roaring furiously.
The singer heard this, and he arched his eyebrow and gazed into the rearview mirror. He could see the other vehicle tearing up the road. He gasped and tried to step on the gas…but it was far too late. All he could see was a blinding bright light…
X-Ray crash, slow-motion
The car struck the back of the geep so badly, that 2D actually went flying forward into the windshield. His eyes were round and wide in fright. The crash sounded like a thunder clap, and also like an extremely loud but muffled "thump".
He slowly went flying towards the windshield, and the impact was devastating. He turned his head just as he was about to slam into it.
(slow-motion)
His face smashed against the glass, and as soon as he hit it, his head ricocheted off of it, developing massive cracks along the side of his skull, and blood gushed out of his mouth, along with breaking many of his side and lower teeth.
His neck also twisted to a dangerous angle, almost making it turn 360 degrees, not breaking it, but twisting it badly.
Also, right before smashing his face and cracking his mid-to-lower skull, he also hurt his back. The force of the impact was so hard, that his back wasn't ready for it. The seat pressed itself so powerfully and so quickly against his spine, that it instantly damaged it, leaving him paralyzed.
If that damage wasn't enough, the geep also flipped over wildly, more than three times.
Among one of the rotations, 2D went flying upwards, and slammed the back of his head unto the roof of the geep, not cracking his skull again, but leaving a severe scar on the back of his head. (As if the two-dents weren't enough.)
As he was about to land on the car seat, the shift stick dented, and 2D landed right on top of it with his bare chest.
(slow-motion)
As the metallic shift stick shoved itself into his chest, it broke a few ribs, leaving cracks within his bones. As he felt his bones cracking along his chest, he grimaced and let out a shrill groan.
The geep flipped menacingly, undeniably anything inside would've survived…
Noodle and the party-goers all heard the massive explosions and crashes, and they whirled around, wide-eyed and amazed at the destruction of the geep.
The driver in the other car, did not even stop. They, remarkably, only had a few severe dents in the car. But they sped off, just as mysteriously as they came.
Groups of people began gathering around the geep. The geep was a wreck. The doors were dented, glass was shattered, the car was flipped on it's side, and there was a bloody driver gasping for air. His fingers were hanging through a hole in the windshield, twitching lifelessly.
Noodle sprinted towards the car, shoving the repulsively-dressed people out of her way.
To her horror, the vehicle belonged to 2D. She put her hands on her cheeks, and her pupils shrunk in terror.
She almost felt faint come to her. She suddenly felt very, very dizzy. Her vision blurred and suddenly things began moving slower. The people clamoring around her suddenly sounded very faint, as if they were in a tunnel, and their voices echoed.
She also heard a soft beating…the beating of her own heart. It drowned out the clamoring of the people for a second.
For a moment, she could've sworn she also heard some kind of glass break, and felt a sharp pain in her chest, almost as if a piece of her heart had shattered.
After that very bizarre and brief experience, her vision de-blurred and the people's muttering came back within earshot.
Noodle slapped the side of her head, knocking herself out of it, and began kicking the windshield with the heel of her boot to pull 2D out.
Not caring about the blood or glass, she yanked him out as fast as she could, with tears streaming down her face as her fingers felt the blood on his clothes.
Finally, she managed to pull him out completely.
What she saw next, was the most horrible thing she'd ever seen.
The blue-haired singer was now drenched in blood, with bruises and cuts all over his face and hands, and his lips were severely blistered and swollen. One of his arms was clearly broken, as it was shaped like the letter Z.
The worst part, however, was on the side of his stomach.
A massive piece of glass had pierced him on the side, and he was losing a lot of blood.
Noodle cried out, and grabbed 2D's head, and set it on her lap, despite the blood all over him. She didn't care anymore. All she cared about was her beloved 2D.
"2D…" she whispered, "2D…please…answer me…" Tears began flowing from her eyes once more, like two powerful waterfalls on her face.
A gurgled gasp escaped the wounded singer's mouth. He gasped for breath, but instantly cried out in pain on account of the broken ribs. But then, a hoarse, hissing whisper came out of the vocalist's mouth. "Nood…Noodle…where….where are yeh'…?"
I'm right here 2D! I'm here with you!" Tears began sparkling her eyes, and they slowly dripped onto his bleeding face.
"Noodle…are yeh'…ok?" he gently opened his eyes. It pained even to do that.
"I'm…I'm…" her answer was blocked out by sobs and gasps. The people behind her gave each other looks of surprise and sadness. "Noodle…don't…be sad Noods…its ok…don't cry…tha's…teh' least thing… I want yeh' tah' do…"
She tenderly rubbed his blood-soaked forehead. "Noodle…don't…worry…" he whispered, "its jus' me…it's not like anyone important is dyin'…" Noodle suddenly gasped and scolded him for one last time, "Don't say that! You'll live! You won't die! You won't die!"
Noods…I….love…yeh'…" and with that…his eyes shut…and never opened again. Noodle just stared at the lifeless singer for a moment…and then she whispered…"2D…?"
No answer.
"2D…!
Still no answer.
"2D!" she was now practically screaming, "2D! ANSWER ME! YOU CAN'T DIE! YOU CAN'T! 2D!"
No matter how much she screamed for him to come back...he wouldn't come back. She dropped his corpse's head, and shot up with her hands over her face, sobbing and bawling extremely hard. Her cries echoed for miles. The people gently pattered her shoulders and said soothing words to her. She couldn't believe it. Her beloved 2D was gone…no more 2D.
Never again. Her memories were the only time she could see his face again. It was over…
Noodle opened her eyes, as tears gushed out like a waterfall, once more.
She stared at the empty room once more. The haunting memory always following her, like a shadow. It had begun raining. The rain came down like her tears.
With the rain, it felt like the heavens were crying along with her.
She stood up, and wiped her salty tears with the sleeve of her hoodie. She stared down at the photo once more.
Suddenly, she felt that strange dizziness from that fateful night. That same sudden dizziness she felt when she witnessed 2D's car accident.
Her vision blurred again, and the sound of the beating heart returned. She began walking around drunkenly, unable to hold her legs steady, and she managed to run towards the restroom, where she charged towards the sink and began splashing water on her face.
With every splash, the dizziness seemed to lower just a tad. But still, she felt weak, and she looked up at her reflection.
Her reflection seemed to be smiling at her, similarly to how she smiled in DARE.
She tilted her head, and arched her eyebrow. To make things even stranger, she suddenly had the urge to look down at her hand. The Axe Princess lifted up her arm and stared at the back of her hand, and noticed the blurry vision was making it "skip frames", almost like a bad flash animation.
She looked back at her reflection once more, only to see it pointing to the right (left). She raised her eyebrow once again, and looked to the right, and to her astonishment, she saw 2D!
He looked so forlorn and depressed, and he was soaked as if he had been walking in the pounding rain. He was wearing the same clothes the night he died, everything single little detail was correct. He beckoned her to approach him, and then he began walking away.
Noodle, almost hypnotically, obeyed and began following him. She still heard the heart beats, and her vision was still blurred.
She followed him all around the place. Neither Murdoc nor Russel were home.
Finally, he led her outdoors, into the rain.
The landfill appeared strangely more ominous than usual tonight. The sky seemed to be glowing a crimson red, and thunder rumbled in the distance. Noodle paused at the door way, and watched 2D standing some distance away from her.
He just stood there, like a statue. After what seemed like an hour, he pointed to the sky.
Noodle's gaze shifted to the sky for a moment, and then, when she wanted to stare at him again…he was gone.
But she heard a faint voice. It uttered, "…..it was not yo' fault…"
Suddenly, the heart beats and the blurry vision vanished again, and her dizziness disappeared just as mysteriously as it came. She began looking left and right for 2D, wherever he may have went.
Just as she was searching, a massive lightning light bolt lit up the sky like a firework, and she saw massive bright light. The lightning came right at her, and she lifted up her arms to shield herself from it's intense shock.
She heard nothing. She saw nothing…and before she knew it…it was all over…
Author's Notes: Yes, this is the remake of an old story I had written. It had received some moderate critical-acclaim, and I personally liked it too, despite all the spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. I considered it my best tragedy fic (not to blow my own trumpet). I deleted my original version of this fic. I had it up for three years. This story definitely has a more "creepy" feel to it. The other one had Noodle accidentally running towards a hallucination of 2D asking her for a hug, but she wound up running through a window and plummeted to her death by a large metal spike at the bottom. This one had her get struck by lightning. I hope you liked it. Please review.