"My father was a part of the Group of 9? Impossible! I would have known something like that long before now!" protested Ashelin.
Torn smirked before releasing her from his grasp. He slowly shook his head, in total disbelief. He crossed in arms as he began to circle before leaning in towards her. She moved away, unsure she wanted to hear anymore lies.
"You honestly don't remember them, do you? The other Group members would often go the palace to see your father when you were younger. Besides, I knew he had plans to tell you when you turned 25," Torn replied.
Water began to form in Ashelin's eyes as she closed them. She placed her hands over her ears as if trying not to hear the voices already stuck in her head.
"It can't be the truth!" she cried out.
"But it is Ashelin. If you looked in our archives, you would know the truth behind the subtleties. Your father is the reason I stayed in the Guard for so long! I could have blown his cover long ago but I knew he had something on me but enough about the past, I have some business to do," Torn told her.
He grabbed her and pushed her towards the ground. An unnerving fear began to well up in Ashelin, which scared her more than anything she had ever felt before.
00000
"I can't believe this! How did they ever infiltrate that far into the Headquarters?" Sig demanded.
Tryce calmly watched him as Jak paced back and forth with Daxter perched on his shoulder. He glanced around his house, hoping that Torn would walk right through the door any second.
"Have patience. There is not much we can do right now," Tryce calmly said.
"Easy for you to say, you're a criminal just like them," Daxter snorted.
The next thing the ottsel knew, he was being choked and held against the nearby wall. He gasped for air as Tryce growled at him.
"Be careful what you say for none of you know half of what we did for the city. We do terrorize the people but when push comes to shove, we are not letting anyone take over it, something the Group has tried to do countless times," Tryce told him. "We wait here until Torn returns and then figure out what to do from there."
He freed Daxter, who crawled over to Jak as he gasped for air. Sig gave a silent gulp before backing off the Clan member's back.
00000
Jinx watched Moten as he hunched over the main computer console. Cargo studied the information on another console as Veger scurried about trying to relay information between them. Rand quietly stood near the window as Anthar and Razer stood behind him.
"So where do we start from?" wondered Razer.
"We immediately start our takeover. Try to implement the rules and the curfew. Just remember though that we agreed that no one touches those few certain areas," Rand told them.
"Right, no one goes after the hospital and Onin. I still don't understand why they protect that old witch and her crazy bird," Anthar replied with a sigh.
Razer laughed as he turned to face Anthar. He shook his head before returning his stare back to Rand.
"They protect her for she's been their main ally for years. I believe they feel she shouldn't be involved in this, even though she is. Now go!" Rand explained.
Anthar and Razer nodded before heading towards the door, grabbing Jinx by his injured arm along the way.
"Hey, be careful! My arm ain't good enough just yet for you to be yankin' it," Jinx protested.
"I know but we need your help to liberate this city from these 'Freedom Guards'. We have to make them see that our way is the only way. The plan is the have them do all the hard work for us. Your explosive expertise is just the way to do it. Cargo, come for we'll need your help," explained Anthar.
Jinx rolled his eyes as he was pulled from the room. As Cargo quickly joined them, Jinx glanced back at the other three members before the door shut before his face.
00000
Ashelin shivered as she watched Torn clip his dagger back onto his back. She could feel the anger begin to well up inside her in reaction to what he had just done to her.
"You're despicable," she managed to snarl.
Torn laughed before he turned around and grabbed her by the throat. Ashelin gasped for air as he held her within his death grip.
"I may still love you Ashelin but you know now that we can never be together, between your legacy and mine. I was born to do this kind of thing and I've completely embraced it," Torn retorted.
He dropped her to the ground and began to walk out the door, pausing for a moment before leaving completely.
"I have made my choice Ashelin. What's yours?" Torn asked her.
He left the room, a still shaking Ashelin lying in the middle of the floor. Several thoughts ran through her mind and wondered which one would be the best one to listen to. Which idea was the best one to follow through with?
She uneasily climbed to her feet and moved enough to stare in the direction Torn disappeared into. She knew what she had to do now.
00000
Torn carefully stepped out the door and began to head down the street when he felt his shoulder start to ache again.
"Why does it have to ache now? I hope this isn't going to be an interference to clean up whatever the Group has planned," he muttered to himself.
He gave a sigh before pulling a hood over his head, giving glances towards the nearby people. He wondered how he was going to explain to his brother what he had done. It seemed to him that betrayal was in his blood after all that he had done in the past few years.
"Come on guys, you mean to tell me that I'm gonna have to start convincin' these guys that we mean business?" a familiar voice snorted.
Torn glanced to see Jinx and a few of his fellow Group members standing within the mouth of a nearby alleyway. He stopped at a nearby stall, hoping to overhear anything that might be of value.
"It's a good thing those idiots are out of our way. When do we get to finish 'em off for good?" Anthar muttered.
"Patience is always the key. Right now, we have to get these people's attention," Razer replied.
The four stepped out more into the open as Jinx pulled out a small grenade. Torn's eyes widened once he saw it, knowing it was one of Jinx's specials. The Clan member quickly made his way behind the stall before pulling out a gun. He aimed it towards the quartet and fired twice.
The bullets ricocheted off the wall sitting directly behind Jinx. He gasped before Anther others lifted his gun and returned fire, making the other elves in the area scream and run. After the dust settled, everyone growled, immediately having an idea who fired at them.
"It's got to be Torn," Cargo smirked.
"Of course it has to be. Who else can it be? We have to find him," Razer snarled.
"Razer, you and Jinx go on ahead. Cargo and I will deal with Torn," Anthar quietly said.
Razer and Cargo nodded before Jinx had to be pulled away from the scene. He took notice of Torn hiding close to a nearby building. The Clan member took notice of Jinx before he disappeared into thin air.
'Good luck Torn. You're gonna need it,' Jinx thought.
Anthar and Cargo stealthily began to scout the area, hoping that Torn would make a mistake to his current whereabouts.
"Where could he have gotten so fast?" remarked Cargo.
"They aren't called the 'Clan of Invisibility' for nothing you know. He's nearby, we just can't see him," replied Anthar.
The two continued their search as Torn watched them from a nearby alley. He sat on a ledge several feet off the ground, fully knowing they wouldn't see him. The pain in his shoulder throbbed intensely, never noticing the support beneath his one foot beginning to give away.
He felt it suddenly drop and it fell to the ground with a dull thud. His stare immediately went to Anthar and Cargo, who took notice of the unexpected sound.
"There he is!" cried Cargo.
They began to shoot as Torn began to scale the wall. He climbed over the side, unsure if they had hit him in the end.
"Blast, he got away! We will defeat you this time!" Anthar yelled.
"Do not worry, my friend for they have no where to hide," Cargo assured him.
00000
To Moten, his eyes began to feel the strain as though he had stared at the screen for many days instead of a few hours.
"Rand, it might be a while before we find what we're looking for," Moten mentioned.
"Trust me, everyone and everything's in there that we need. I've seen them enough times to know," Veger told him.
Rand remained silent, curious as to how the ground troops faired when he heard numerous footsteps just outside the room. Without bothering to turn around, he smirked as he heard the door open.
"It's about time. What took the four of you so long? Did they get our message?" Rand called out.
"I wouldn't be able to tell you but I think I would be able to help one way or another," a strangely familiar voice wondered.
Rand appeared surprised as he turned around to stare at the figure who stepped into the room.
"My, my, my, what do we have here? What brings you here?" Rand said with a smile.
"You want to take over the city? Count me in!" the figure told them.
Veger and Moten looked at each other, equally surprised with the help they were receiving.
00000
Razer and Jinx stepped up to the doors of the Freedom HQ, unable to fulfill the mission Rand entrusted them with. Razer growled as Anthar and Cargo walked up to them.
"We lost him but not without opening fire before he got away," Cargo told them.
The four headed into the main room, prepared to be severely reprimanded. They walked up to Rand, Moten and Veger, who were all standing around the main console.
"We didn't get our chance to get our point across. Torn decided to throw a wrench into our plans," Razer told them.
"That will not be a problem," Rand quietly replied.
The four were greatly surprised, glancing at each other before turning back to the trio. Rand twisted around to face the quartet.
"We have someone who can help us. Someone who is able to get our message across to these people," explained Rand.
"And who would that be? Not many people with that kind of power" demanded Cargo.
"She does," Rand replied.
He lifted a hand to the area behind his comrades. The four slowly moved their heads enough to see a familiar face standing behind them. Ashelin stepped up to them, arms crossed.
"Nice to see everyone again," Ashelin told them.
TBC…