The redhead was woken by a light splash of cold water. Her eyes twitched and slowly opened to embrace the pitch-black surroundings, her sensitive ears picking up the constant dripping sound of the rusty water. She squirmed feebly, her wrists wiggling within the tight knot of a thick nylon rope. She tried to squeal but her sound was deflated by the duct tape firmly attached to her mouth. She began making soft, babbling noise in an attempt to catch someone's attention. A minute later, footsteps could be heard shuffling towards her direction. A pair of rough, strong hands grasped her chins, hoisting her entire body up and bringing her into the dim light. Flaky now got a clear view of her abductor. The man in navy-blue uniform stared at her with somewhat amusement. His cerulean eyes sparkled with malice. His gaze was so sharp that a glimpse of it was enough to penetrate a thousand souls. His brown hair was combed in a slick-back style, his forehead covered by the edge of his beret.
"Miss, that's a hell lot of blood you're bleeding." The man smirked, eyeing Flaky's wounded wrists. "I suggest you stop struggling. It won't help much."
"Emmm…" Flaky moved her lips, desperately trying to make a speech. The man smiled and removed the duct tape. The redhead gasped and coughed. Tears blurred her vision as she felt pain spreading all over her ravaged body.
"W-Who…are you…" She stuttered, still puffing. "Why…why did you m-make me…write that note…Why did you…take me…here…Where am I…"
"Well, you have quite a number of questions, don't you?" The man chuckled, casually sitting down on a wooden bench inside the eroded cell. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Colonel Blue Tigers. You might not have heard of me but surely, you've heard of Tiger General, right? Your boyfriend should've told you some of his war stories. Let me put it this way. Tiger General, the one your lover has killed, is my father. And I don't suppose I have to elaborate further on this subject. My reason being here is simple. It's to avenge my deceased father, the most gallant and honored fighter of the Tiger Nation. And you here, miss, are an acquaintance of Fillip Bears, our army's greatest nemesis. You wouldn't believe how many years we've been trying to hunt him down. Well, at last, we've got him in Happy Tree Town. Forgive me for holding you a hostage, but you really are a good bait to be sure."
"A-Are…you…going to kill Flippy?" Flaky stammered, straying away from the young colonel.
"Kill? Funny you should say that." Blue cackled, his sinister laugh echoing in the daunting darkness. "I'm going to send him back to hell."
"Y-You…can't kill him…" Flaky said. "You won't be able to kill him…"
"Maybe not. Who knows?" Blue snickered, standing up. "Either way, we're going to finish it with a fight. I won't let it go until I have him finally in my grab. He's going to pay for whatever he's done to our army. We've lost far too many comrades to his hands. Revenge is all we seek. His death is our justice."
"No…" The redhead shook her head in fear. The man strode towards her in silence and put the duct tape back on her mouth. "Enough talk, lady. If you're lucky, you'll survive. If your boyfriend can't save you in time, let's hope you two can meet in the hell. Haha."
Blue left the redhead shuddering in one corner and proceeded to walk out of the cell. He locked the gate and grinned for one last time. "By the way, since you asked about our location, I'll tell you we're outside the boundaries. This is an abandoned army base. If you die, I'm sure you're not going to come back tomorrow."
Flaky watched the fierce, vengeful man disappear from her sight. He had brought the candle out with him. As the only source of light was gone, the helpless girl was plunged back into absolute darkness. She continued to slither across the ground. She kicked and wriggled but both her arms and legs were tied in dead knots. The ice-cold surface of the damp floor made her shiver. Besides weeping and praying, she could only choke in her breathes.
Indeed, Flippy had shared with her some of his war stories. She had always heard of this epic, ferocious villain called Tiger General. The whole Tiger lineage was nothing but a group of aggressive invaders. A few years back, the Tiger Nation was planning to expand their territories, laying their eyes on this particular village in Happy Tree Forest. Soldiers were recruited to battle with the Tiger army and among these soldiers who were willing to bet on their life to protect their home country, there were the two boys Flaky cherished the most in her life. It was lucky the fight took place near the town's border. As the town was cursed with an inconceivable devil's spell, anyone granted immortality would die permanently once they crossed the boundaries. In that horrendous fight, Sneaky died and Flippy flipped out for the first time after unintentionally killing his comrades. He tackled the rest of the Tiger army and most of all, their leader, Tiger General. From what Flaky could gather, Tiger General's corpse was tossed outside the border so he could never be resurrected. Flippy's group, needless to say, returned with glory. They were all honored and praised for their deeds.
And yet…misfortune never left them alone…Bad luck was another component of the town's curse. As much as everyone strove to lead a peaceful, happy life, they found themselves caught in endless hardship and predicament. They could never escape the hands of devils or the invitations of hell.
This time, a brand new enemy was chasing after Flippy. Flaky wondered if her note had been read by the boys yet. She had a feeling that both Flippy and Sneaky would show up. Blue would be surprised but considering his callous nature, he might actually fight as brilliantly and brutally as his father.
Years of hunting him down…
It seemed to the redhead that the young colonel had been bearing more grudge than any words could describe.
In the deepest corner of the cell, Flaky could only wish for the best to come.
The two greenettes ventured deep into the forest. They had crossed the boundaries but they couldn't care less. All that flashed across their mind was the hopeful anticipation that their lover would come back to them.
"Flaky!" They screeched but the sound of her name only bounced off from the trees and reverberated loudly in the groves.
"Damn it." Flippy whined. "Where's she?"
"Flip…don't you think there's something wrong with the note?" Sneaky said skeptically. Now that they both paused to contemplate, they found the whole incident increasingly suspicious and peculiar. "Say, I don't think Flaky would've done something so…impulsive. Yea, we might have gotten her worrying sick but she would never think of fleeing…Even if she wants to avoid us, she could've just gone without a word. Leaving a note asking us not to come after her is simply atypical."
Flippy brooded over Sneaky's speech. He couldn't deny his friend, being a talented tracker, always had a cautious brain and a lucid mind. His words caught Flippy, rendering him more befuddled.
Nonetheless, there was no turning back now. They had both gotten out of the town unarmed. If anything should occur, they had at least each other to cling to.
"I agree with you." Flippy said. "I don't know whose trick it is but I'm sure she's somewhere around. What do you think?"
"I think you're probably right." Sneaky replied. "We'll have to find her."
The duo continued pelting between bushes, their mind growing more muddled as time ticked by. Their worries were intensified when they heard unknown rattling noise looming towards them. Someone…was hiding behind the hedge. They were waiting for a signal to hop out and start their mission.
"Shit. This isn't right…Someone's watching us." Flippy whispered, his pupils dilating in defense.
"Ten of them." Sneaky answered swiftly. "Two in the front, three on the left, one on the right, four behind our back."
At times, Flippy had to admire Sneaky's incredible skills of tracking people but again it wasn't the right moment to acknowledge his competence. They had far worse issue to combat with.
"What the…"
Before Flippy could finish his utterance, the two boys found themselves completely ambushed. The said ten soldiers all leaped out and surrounded them. The mere sight of rifles was enough to set Flippy off. His eyes flickered to a sickening yellow. As he turned back to wink at his comrade, a smirk crept over his face.
"So long for now." He snickered in his deep, hoarse voice. "Show me what you've still got, Sneaky. I'll go for the left. Haha."
With that, the boys split their paths, each taking a side to batter their attackers. The soldiers fired but the bullets could only swish through the air. A wicked turn knocked off a poor assailant's shotgun. He pulled out a dagger but his wrist was immediately clasped by the malevolent opponent. With a forcible twist, Fliqpy wrung the socket out of the man's wrist. The soldier shrieked in agony as the steamed sergeant kneaded his elbows and fractured his spine, finally shoving a bowie knife down his throat. Things were going just as brilliantly on Sneaky's side. The boy did an excellent job in dodging from the gun shots. As retaliation, he managed to snatch a rifle from his foe and slaughtered the team in one flash. The unexpected outbreak left the two boys breathless and alerted. When all ten enemies were at last thrashed to death in the most excruciating way, the duo let their guards down a little to ponder over their current situation.
"Fuck…where did they all come from?" Fliqpy cussed. "They're all wearing Tiger Army's uniform!"
"I thought we've defeated the Tiger Army long ago…" Sneaky puffed. "How did they-"
"I'll answer for you." A gruff voice said. Instinctively, the boys turned to face their ultimate rival. Blue emerged from the bushes, hands behind his back. The colonel was guarded by a dozen more young soldiers, all preparing to fire at the two trespassers.
"Who the hell are you?" Fliqpy interrogated, growing wary of the amount of soldiers Blue had brought along with him. There was no way he and Sneaky could tackle so many assailants without any weapons of their own.
"I'm Blue, the son of someone you've killed four years ago." Blue said. "You shouldn't have forgotten it."
"Really." Fliqpy quipped. "I don't remember so. There're tons of trash I've killed."
"You!" The blue-uniformed colonel howled. "Mind your speech because later you'll need it to beseech for mercy, haha! And I'll tell you, your lady is in my hands. You had better do as I say."
"What? You kidnapped Flaky?" Sneaky bawled, glaring at the man before him.
"Ah, I remember you. Sneaky, right? My father did warn me about this extraordinary, mindful tracker. It's actually quite hilarious when you got killed by your own best friend last time, haha." Blue laughed hysterically. "We're only asking for Flippy but again, a company won't hurt much. We'll kill you both in one time. How gracious."
"Ugh, you make me sick." Fliqpy growled, clenching his fists sternly.
"Ready to fight huh?" Blue smiled. "Ay, not yet. Remember, I have your treasure. Or should I say, both of your treasure. I can see some tension here. Perhaps you guys should settle your own issues first before turning against me."
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Fliqpy bellowed. "WHERE IS SHE?"
"Somewhere, in the dark, on the brink of death, I suppose." The colonel taunted. "How about we have our duel first? We'll see if you can save your precious lady. She's so frail that for once I did consider breaking her."
"What…What did you do to her?" Sneaky roared.
"Nothing much. Threatening her to some point. She's just the bait anyway. But I can kill her together with you guys."
"Not a chance!" Fliqpy squeaked. He made an advance but instantly stopped when all the guns pointed at him.
"Careful, Flip." Sneaky held his comrade back.
"We need a better place to finish our unfinished business." Blue beckoned to the boys with a sly grin. "Follow me. And you'll find your lost lady."
Left no choice, Fliqpy and Sneaky did as instructed. The soldiers kept their guns pointing in their direction. Any rebellion from the duo would result in immediate death. They couldn't afford to perish just yet. They still had to seek for Flaky. Before they could free her from the jeopardy, the boys would have to struggle to survive till the very end.
"Surely, you didn't expect me, right?" Blue muttered as the group marched towards a special destination. "I was there when you killed my father. I watched you rip open his abdomen and tear out his intestines. I was a member of the army. He brought me to fight alongside him. I was young then, too afraid to make a move and I regretted so. All the time, I stood behind the tree and saw you and my father fall off the cliff. You killed him. You crushed him with a log. You smashed his body into a gory mess. You might be able to forget that but hell no, I would never ever get rid of that scene. You'll have to pay for it, Flippy. I'm here to avenge my father and to make him proud."
Blue hushed when he heard a crack of laughter behind him. He turned around and scowled at Fliqpy.
"What's so funny!"
"Nothing." Fliqpy sneered. "It's just…I'm not sure if you can make him proud this way. You're going to die, Blue. So very badly of which I'm so damn sure. I'll slice you into half just like how I did to your father. Let me grant you a wonderful reunion with your little daddy."
"You're still pretty young, aren't you?" Sneaky added. "And you're a colonel?"
"I was sixteen when I first entered the battlefield with my father. For years, I trained myself so hard just to wait for this opportune moment to appear in my whole damn life!" Blue shouted. "It's not me who's going to die. It's you. Both of you! Screw you! Screw you all!"
"I think he's gone insane." Fliqpy whispered to his friend. "He doesn't know whom he's dealing with."
"I can't agree more." Sneaky nodded and murmured back. "I just feel like pitying him 'cause he sure as hell is going to die young. Even younger than us."
"Hey, I heard that!" Blue snorted. "And I swear I'm going to scotch those spiteful mouths of yours as well!"
"Bring it on, Blue." Fliqpy sniggered.
"We won't hold back either." Sneaky smiled.