~Captains of Lost Squads~

Infinite took a moment to realise what was going on. Sitting up wasn't going to help him, with Blizzard keeping him pressed down. The jackal instead glanced around, spotting Sandy stood by Ridge and Tawny, who both had their hands firmly tied behind their backs.

"Don't look at them," Blizzard hissed. "Look at me."

Well, this could be interesting.

Infinite turned his head, staring up at the white fox. All emotion had left his own gaze. There was no anger or worry, just emptiness. He had nothing to show this other canine at all.

"I always thought you died when the rest of your squad was killed by Shadow," Blizzard continued, "yet here you are, hiding in some cave after the whole city found out your dirty little secret. Not only are you a heartless little mongrel, but you're Infinite."

"I take offense to the mongrel comment," Tawny piped up, earning herself a glare from Blizzard.

"Be quiet," he spat. "This is between me and Zero." His eyes returned to the jackal. "If that is even your name anymore."

"What do you want?" was all Infinite asked in response. Blizzard almost looked to be in disbelief.

"What do I want?" he repeated quietly, pressing his foot harder against Infinite's chest. "I want revenge. You murdered my squad."

"At least more of you survived compared to mine," Infinite countered bluntly.

"It would have been better if I had killed yours," Blizzard shot back with venom. "And I would've made sure you weren't the only survivor. Why you? Why you and not Striker or Barrett or Kali? They were always decent. You were always cold, and you've only grown colder over the years."

"Are we allowed to say anything in his defence?" Tawny questioned, not liking the tension.

"I told you to be quiet!" Blizzard snapped. "How could you possibly defend this monster after everything he did? He attacked the city with Remnant when the civilians thought the war was over!"

"That was mind control," Ridge added.

"Of course," Blizzard huffed, shaking his head. "Were all the other times mind control, too? Were you being controlled when you killed my squad, Zero? Do you even remember their faces like I do?"

"Of course, I do," Infinite growled, glaring up at the arctic fox. "I remember everyone I have to kill. Even when I was crushing thousands upon thousands of civilians, I remembered their faces. I would never forget your squad, and I didn't enjoy killing them one bit." His eyes narrowed. "But that doesn't mean I regret my decision. I did what I had to do for money. You would have done the same."

"You're wrong," Blizzard snarled. "River was a good leader. He wouldn't have accepted a job which involved us killing you."

"He wouldn't have," Infinite agreed. "But that's because he feared us. He knew we'd defeat you." Blizzard pressed his foot down harder, and Infinite grimaced.

"Stop!" Tawny yelled suddenly. "This isn't gonna solve anything! We have bigger problems right now! Remnant's still out there!"

"Right," Blizzard nodded sarcastically. "Remnant. The fox which was transformed into a monster by the very man you worked for, Zero."

Infinite was merely silent this time, which only angered Blizzard more. He removed his foot and grabbed the jackal by his chest fur, pinning him against the bumpy cave wall with one hand.

"Is this a joke to you?!" he barked. "Is it funny that you've done so much damage?! You slaughtered thousands after your transformation and hundreds before then! The world is damaged because of you!"

"You would have done the same if given the Phantom Ruby," Infinite said quietly, remaining calm. "You mustn't act so pure, fox. You killed as many as I did back with your squad. You were raised to kill, much like I was. You only changed into a "good guy" because of what I did to you and your friends. If I hadn't done that, you'd still be a cold-blooded killer."

"You're seriously trying to justify your actions?" Blizzard reacted, surprised and irritated. "You'd be laughing in my face if I didn't have a Wispon at the ready and you at my mercy."

"I'm not justifying them, I'm stating a fact," Infinite corrected. Blizzard bared his teeth and looked ready to really hurt the former Jackal Squad leader, and the look in his eyes was recognised by Infinite. It was the look of someone who had lost everything. Someone who had watched everyone he loved die.

It was a look he was familiar with because of his own experiences.

"I didn't want you to come to that factory," the jackal admitted. "I wish you had figured out it was a trap. I wish you and your squad could have left the area. But you fell for it. You led them into our ambush."

"I wanted to save River," Blizzard growled, defending his actions.

"River would have told you to never trust someone giving away their hostage's location," Infinite argued. "I knew him as well as you did, Blizzard, and I made sure his death was as painless as possible."

The last sentence made Blizzard yell in rage, throwing the black-furred jackal to the ground. "Stop hiding behind excuses and face what you did!" he roared. "You didn't have to kill any of them!"

Infinite lifted his head, pushing himself up into a sitting position. His mismatched eyes were focused on Blizzard once again, and his head tilted when he spotted a scar on the fox's abdomen. Small, but noticeable.

"I did," he corrected. "We're mercenaries. Both of us. We have to kill once we accept a job, and the task of killing Squad 13 was given to us after we made our deal. It was too late to back down without consequences." His frown became firmer. "Besides, I let you live, didn't I?"

"My survival was a mistake and you know it," Blizzard snapped. Infinite shook his head, pointing towards Sandy, who still silently stood guard over Ridge and Tawny. Verbal confrontation was never the fennec's thing.

"His survival was a mistake," he said honestly. "We overlooked him and thought that he was dead once he was down."

"You didn't spare me," Blizzard denied. "You stabbed me and left me to bleed out. If I had been the last survivor, I would have died from my wound, anyway."

"Striker would have gone back for your," Infinite corrected. "He liked you. He liked Thorn. He liked Crimson. He liked Mini. He would have gone back for you once the doctor saw the others dead. I know he would have done that."

"And that's supposed to make me forgive you?" Blizzard growled. "You murdered everyone else, but sparing me was completely fine, hm?"

"It was better than killing you all," Infinite defended.

"Like hell it was," Blizzard hissed. "I've had to live with the guilt ever since."

"And I live with the guilt of letting my squad die," Infinite compared. "We're even."

"I didn't take over the world and slaughter anyone who disobeyed me," Blizzard pointed out. "Killing you here would put all of your victims to rest."

"You'd better kill yourself afterwards, because there were plenty of innocent people who died at your hands," Infinite countered. Blizzard frowned hatefully and gripped his Wispon tighter.

"Stop comparing yourself to me," he demanded through clenched teeth. "You and I are nothing alike. Not anymore. You took a dark path by choice after what happened to your squad. I took it without having the choice, until I found new reasons to live. You'll never understand that."

"Hey, hey, you can't kill him!" Tawny exclaimed almost fearfully. "He's… He's changed!"

"Tch," Blizzard almost chuckled. "Have you really? Or have you been manipulating her?"

Infinite glared silently. He didn't want to admit that he had changed. It would make him look pathetic, and it wouldn't change Blizzard's views on him.

"Why bother asking?" Blizzard asked himself. "You don't care about anyone. You never have done and you never will."

"You know that's a lie," Infinite snarled, finally growing a sense of anger towards the fox. "I killed your squad, Blizzard, but I would have done anything to protect my own."

"Clearly you didn't do enough," Blizzard shot back. "They all died. Including Kali."

Something snapped.

Infinite grabbed Blizzard's Wispon suddenly, pulling himself up to his feet as he pushed the fox again the wall with all of his strength, getting close to his face.

"Say what you want about me," he spat, "but bring in Kali and I'll finish what I started on you."

"There's the attitude I'm looking for," was all Blizzard responded with. "Do it, then, jackal. I dare you to try."

Infinite was not going to let Blizzard walk all over him. That wasn't his way. He didn't intend to kill him, especially since it would be useful to keep him around during the inevitable battle with Remnant, but he wasn't going to hold back much. He knew he wouldn't be able to do much damage in his current state, anyway, but he was going to do as much as he could.

The jackal pulled the Wispon swiftly from Blizzard's grasp and threw it to the side, keeping it away from the fox's reach. This movement caught Blizzard off-guard, giving Infinite the time to thrust his knee into his stomach.

"Blizzard!" Sandy called with worry as Infinite brought the white fox to the ground and pinned him on his front. The young fennec was about to help, but Blizzard shot a glare at him.

"Don't," he snarled. "Let him do it. Let him show his true colours!"

"You honestly believe I'm trying to kill you, you moron?" Infinite insulted, still keeping Blizzard pinned.

"Wouldn't put it past you; you did kill everyone else in my squad," Blizzard snapped back at him.

"Orders are orders," Infinite said simply, and saying that made Blizzard finally push back with all of his strength, rolling free and shoving the jackal onto his back.

"Is that it?!" Blizzard hollered. "Is that just your excuse for everything?!"

"Yes," Infinite maintained. He was loyal to his word. There was no problem with that.

The arctic fox, further consumed by rage, slammed his fist hard into Infinite's chest, and, because of his broken ribs, Infinite saw a flash of white light as pain rippled throughout his body.

He had to do this.

The scar-faced jackal lunged at Blizzard first, watching as the fox barely even reacted to his approach. He was hesitating to fight back.

Blizzard was about to use his gauntlets to shoot from, but he was knocked down to the ground with Jackal Squad's leader on top of him, and he suddenly gasped when something cold slipped through his abdomen.

Zero's sword.

The arctic fox stared with wide eyes, horrified that this had happened. Never before had he fell so swiftly to Zero.

Zero was actually trying to kill him and his squad.

He was working for Eggman, the one who had captured River.

Blizzard was in so much shock that he tried to shakily grasp the red blade so that he could pull it out of himself, but Zero kept it held firmly in place.

"You shouldn't have come here," Zero whispered, with deadly emptiness still in his eyes. "River is gone. He's been gone for some time now."

The jackal pulled the sword out and Blizzard wailed painfully. The fox could only watch as Zero ran towards the slaughter, which Jackal Squad was dominating. It was horrifying to watch Zero swing his sword at anything he saw that wasn't a jackal. He could only watch as his squad struggled to fight back, unable to fight them as his vision began to blur. He was already dead. He was dead before the rest of his squad, when he should have been protecting them.

"Blizz!" he heard a voice yell, sounding as if he were currently underwater. Still, he was able to recognise that this voice belonged to Silk the Corsac Fox.

No…

They couldn't kill Silk…

Despite his vision being blurred, he could still see Silk as she jumped over his barely-moving body with her blonde hair still tied back and her white fur blending with her black dress. She would always fight in such an elegant, sophisticated manner, like many "classy" assassins, but she couldn't defeat seven jackals. She made a move to strike Kali while the female jackal was occupied fighting Nippy the Swift Fox, but Zero intervened to prevent his partner from being harmed. He slashed his sword as hard as he could, once he protectively threw himself in front of Kali, and that one sword slash was enough to stop Silk and send her falling to the ground, never to stand again.

Everything started to fade into black…

Infinite's pain subsided, but it was still there. Blizzard was still gazing down at him with rage in his icy eyes, and Infinite really knew what had really ticked him off.

"This is about her…" he mumbled. Blizzard's eyes widened with rage. "Silk…"

"Don't even say her name!" Blizzard interrupted. "You killed her after you tried to kill me!"

"Again, those were my orders…" Infinite reminded.

"I don't care," Blizzard stated. "All I care about is sending you underground to join the rest of your squad. Then I will have finally avenged Squad 13."

Infinite pushed Blizzard off again, pushing himself swiftly to his feet, despite the agony it caused him. Sandy was the one to then retrieve Blizzard's Lightning Wispon, which he threw to his comrade, and Blizzard caught the device. He used it to whip Infinite, electrocuting the jackal's flesh, nerves and bones so that he fell to his knees.

"Stop resisting," Blizzard murmured as he walked towards him. "It's time you faced your death."

"Enough already!" Tawny yelled. "Blizzard, he took down Remnant not long ago! How bad can he be if he fought against the prototype ruby's control to defend the city from Remnant's wrath?!"

"It doesn't matter," Blizzard answered. "All that matters now is my revenge."

"Then you're no different to Remnant!" Tawny opposed. "Look where wanting revenge got him! He changed his identity and gave in to power just so he could finish off you and Sandy! He craves destruction and despair!"

Blizzard scowled at her. "Remnant was broken by this monster," he reminded her coldly. "Don't let him fool you. He's a killer who can never be redeemed."

"If he was so heartless, then I would already be dead," Tawny countered, which silenced the fox and even the jackal.

"C'mon, kids, we can settle this like adults," Ridge added in. "We don't need to fight."

"Tell that to him," Blizzard responded, gesturing to the collapsed Infinite. "Tell him that he doesn't need to fight." A silence followed, and Blizzard spoke up again. "Right. You won't. You know he's just a violent killer."

"Nah, we just kinda like fighting ourselves, actually," Ridge admitted with a smug grin before donning a more serious expression. "Still, don't kill him. I used to kill for revenge back when I was as young as you lot, and it never made me feel any better. It just made me angrier because they weren't around anymore. They were somewhere else, while I was still dealing with whatever they put me through."

Tawny looked at him oddly, silently questioning what kind of youth the older canine had, but now wasn't the time to strike up that kind of conversation.

Blizzard glared at Ridge, then at Infinite. He was silent yet still clearly hateful, but he lowered his Wispon. It was a moment of relief, but that relief quickly returned to being tension. "I'll never forgive you for what you did to my squad," the white fox stated, "but I don't want to be anything like you. I'm not going to kill you like how you killed my squad."

Infinite would have said something witty about how Blizzard would always be like him, knowing their similar pasts, but he said nothing. It would only make the situation worse, and he'd rather not suffer from anymore wounds.

The arctic fox nodded to Sandy, gesturing for him to untie both Ridge and Tawny, which the small fennec fox did without question. Blizzard then glared down at Infinite with nothing but hatred in his eyes. "You've fallen," he said to him quietly. "I can see that. You lost everything, then lost even more when the war ended. Perhaps it's better to see you struggling like this, with nobody to give a damn about you. You might even die fighting Remnant. Now, that would be poetic."

"Knock it off," Tawny cut in as she stood up, rubbing her wrists. "We care about him. I know you're enemies, and I know he's done some terrible things, but nobody's perfect, and we're not gonna stand by and let you talk down to him in such a way." She turned to look at Ridge. "Right?"

"Eh, you care about him more than I do," Ridge shrugged. "I don't mind him." Tawny frowned in response, not pleased at the lack of support.

"Don't involve yourself in this," Infinite commanded, keeping his eyes on Blizzard. "This is between us. His insults don't bother me."

"I'm gonna defend you whether you like it or not," Tawny refused stubbornly, pointing a warning finger at the jackal.

"Tch," Blizzard tutted, shaking his head as he folded his arms. "I'm surprised you're sticking up for him. Didn't you tell me that you were Remnant's girlfriend before his transformation?"

"Yeah, so?" Tawny replied nonchalantly. "We broke up and went our separate ways when he joined your squad. He said he would hand me over to the fur trade if he saw me again. I just think his new identity is what he was hiding from us all for so long."

"You don't hate Zero at all for what he did?" Blizzard interrogated.

"Not really," Tawny answered, looking back at the jackal for a moment before returning her focus to Blizzard. "I like him. He's grown on me."

"How?" Blizzard reacted. "How can you like him?" Tawny shrugged again.

"I dunno," she mumbled. "I just like him."

Blizzard stared at her, but then frowned. "He'll never care about you, or anyone, for that matter. He's a monster, and he always will be."

"Well, I guess he's my monster," Tawny decided, walking to Infinite's side and standing by him in a firm way. Her eyes were still on Blizzard. "And when Remnant does come back, I'll fight him beside this "monster". And I'll continue to remind this "monster" that he ain't alone. He does have people who care about him. He may've fallen, but he's risen back up."

Infinite stared up at Tawny oddly, still kneeling on the ground. This defensive side hadn't really been seen before. She had defended him a few times, but not like this. He honestly wasn't used to this serious side of hers. It was weird.

Why was it bothering her so much that Blizzard was trash-talking him? It was no big deal.

"Whatever," Blizzard murmured. "Come on, Sandy." The two foxes started walking, heading out of the cave, but Blizzard came to a halt and looked back at the trio. "I'll tell the soldiers that we found nothing here, but you should move along soon before Sonic runs through for fun and spots you all camped out here. Go to the Mystic Jungle or something." And with that said, Blizzard left, which left the cave in an awkward silence for a moment.

Tawny held her hand down to Infinite, helping the jackal to his feet. "You okay?" she asked him. "That Wispon strike didn't look too good. And man, I practically felt it when he punched you in the ribs."

"I've had far worse," Infinite assured her, pulling his hand away from hers. "Why did you defend me with such passion? That was unusual." Tawny laughed nervously and scratched behind her ear.

"It doesn't matter," she chuckled awkwardly. "I'm just glad that he didn't do too much damage."

"Well, verbally, he destroyed you," Ridge added with a small laugh. Infinite glared at him, but found himself distracted when Tawny hugged him, cautious of his ribs. The act was a surprise to him, and even surprised Ridge a little.

"You're okay," the coyote-hybrid mumbled into his shoulder. "I don't know what I would have done if… if things went south, if you know what I mean."

He knew what she meant: if Blizzard killed him. Why did she seem so bothered?

…Perhaps she was nervous about the upcoming battle with Remnant, whenever that would take place.

"I'm fine," Infinite assured her, pushing her back slightly. The female canine stared up at him, and the pair met eyes. The look Tawny gave him was somewhat familiar…

It was the same look Kali used to give him.

The jackal tilted his head curiously, his gaze somewhat empty. What was that look? What did it mean? Those eyes of interest, the small smile of pure happiness…

Wait, was Infinite looking back at her the way he used to look back at Kali? It felt like it, with the way he saw his reflection in her bright blue eyes…

The hybrid with light-brown fur seemed to snap out of some kind of trance and pulled herself away from the jackal, laughing strangely. "Well, I'm gonna go fishing," she announced. "We need some kinda food." She gave neither jackal any time to respond to her as she dashed off, which left the remaining two in confusion.

Ridge seemed to understand Tawny's reaction more than Infinite did, and he looked at the younger jackal with a raised brow. Infinite looked back at him, and then glared.

"What?" he growled.

"Nothing," Ridge responded with an almost-sly smile. "You sure you're not blind outta that eye of yours?"

"Why?" Infinite queried. Ridge shook his head.

"It doesn't matter," he replied, much to Infinite's irritation. He wanted to know what was so amusing that he couldn't see, but the older jackal continued to speak. "Why don't you get some water from that waterhole we came out from? Or bathe yourself? It should help with those electricity burns and maybe help with any rib pain you have."

"I'll be fine," Infinite snapped, not in the best of moods now that he felt as if he was missing out on something, but he did go and sit himself in the shallow part of the waterhole, anyway. He closed his eyes, letting the cold water soothe his pain as much as it could, but he just couldn't help but think about the strange behaviour from Tawny.

"I know you're enemies, and I know he's done some terrible things, but nobody's perfect, and we're not gonna stand by and let you talk down to him in such a way."

"I'm gonna defend you whether you like it or not."

"I like him. He's grown on me."

"Well, I guess he's my monster. And when Remnant does come back, I'll fight him beside this "monster". And I'll continue to remind this "monster" that he ain't alone. He does have people who care about him. He may've fallen, but he's risen back up."

"You're okay. I don't know what I would have done if… if things went south, if you know what I mean."

It was… weird. The way she defended him, the way she looked at him and held onto him, the way she nervously dodged the question…

Just what was wrong with her?

~End of Chapter~