Scattering petals down the road without an end…

Henry had never heard that tone of seriousness in Ellie's voice. Howie could wait.

Henry thought for a moment but nodded. "Sure. We could go to my room?"

"That would be best, yes," Ellie said. Henry, confused and now rather concerned, walked with her to the Living Quarters, and eventually his room. On the way there, he sent a quick text to Howie explaining the situation. It only took a few seconds for the understanding, if slightly bitter, text to come in return to acknowledge the sudden change in plans.

Ellie immediately sat down on his bed, eyes on her lap. Henry was beside her, almost instantly. "Henry, there's… there's something I need to tell you. And I know you're going to be mad at me. Like, really, really mad at me. But I need you to hear me out."

Henry stiffened. "Uh, I don't like where this is going."

"I know. But promise me that you'll at least hear me out?" Her statement turned up a little in the end like a question.

Henry forced himself to relax. "Yeah, Ellie. Yes. I promise I will listen to the whole story."

Ellie nodded and sat up straight. "Good. Because I didn't join the Toppats so I could be a badass criminal, or because I was already close to obtaining a record. I joined to sabotage and then take down the Toppats."

…

What.

Ellie went on quickly, "But it wasn't on my personal agenda. You know how Charles is an ace pilot? He's really good at his job."

"Yes."

"Well, one day I was just hanging out with him at the base. Captain Galeforce comes up to us, starts talking about this criminal organization that's been wreaking havoc. He said that they've been doing a lot of wrong, but there's nothing traceable, no proof, no nothing that would constitute an invasion or even a full blown, funded investigation. So, Captain Galeforce was given a small team on this 'pet project.' But rather than send a military spy, he thought of sending someone less… close to the system. When he found out Charles had some trouble-making friends, he decided to call us up. He said that he had trouble getting to you."

Henry snorted. Right, like Henry could even be tracked down like that.

"But he managed to find me," Ellie went on. "And he asked me to do this. He told me Charles and I could become partners. I didn't need to go through any special screening, because they already did that when looking for me. And when he told me about this criminal organization, the Toppat Clan, I knew it was bad. They had to be evil, it was a criminal organization. They flew over borders and took what they wanted, murdering along the way, if they felt they needed to. So, I thought that I would rather go on government missions with Charles after becoming an amazing spy then… waiting to screw up and get thrown into prison. Galeforce didn't tell me you were a Toppat! No one did! I don't even think Charles knows!"

"Then why?" Henry shot back. The shock was beginning to wear off, and now nothing could cover the fury he felt, the betrayal-fueled anger that made his blood boil, the insult to his family at the casual injection of her assumption of the Toppat Clan's absolute evil. "You knew I was a Toppat just before joining! I trusted you, Ellie!"

"I know," Ellie said, her own voice not raising like Henry's. "I felt really bad, but you made everyone trust me basically instantly. Months, years maybe, of work I needed to do, gone. You and the Chief and his right hand knew me long before I stepped foot on this airship. All I needed to do was 'break in' my position through a few jobs and… then I would be set. The raid is set to happen next week. I was told to tell you to go to the ambush site by then. You could convince your father to do that, if you knew it was important."

"And then what would happen to me? Do you think I would just let you bring government forces in here to arrest or kill my family? These people raised me, Ellie! They're my family! Dad Reginald and Dad Right and Carol saved me from an absolute hell of a childhood and offered me freedom and acceptance I got nowhere else!" He could feel the tears start to gleam in his eyes, but he didn't care. "We've been friends s-since I first went to school in Nevada, three months into my time living here. You and Charles were my first real, true, best friends! And now, to save your own skin, you used me and planned to-to do what, exactly? Would you have left me to get killed or arrested, too?"

Ellie shook her head violently. "N-no! No, of course not! You're my best friend, Henry. I wouldn't ever–I would talk to Captain Galeforce, see if there was something we could do. You could still come with me!"

Henry growled, "I would rather die myself or live in prison for the rest of my natural life then turn against my own family like that. I know I'm a selfish person, Ellie, but I'm not a disloyal monster."

Ellie looked him up and down, her own snarl twisting her features. "You steal for a living! You kill people! I'm here to stop this mess, I'm not the monster here! If you want to know what a real monster is, ask your dads who adopted you to use you as a tool to further their criminal gang!"

Henry shot up, bristling and curling his hands into tight fists, mostly to keep himself away from his concealed handgun. "My dads have been the most supportive parents in the world! They love me and I love them. I'm not a tool, I'm a proud member of the Toppat Clan. I will always be a Toppat."

Ellie jumped to her feet. "Being a criminal isn't something you gloat about, you idiot! You ruin lives just by 'doing your job!' I thought I was going to go down this road, Henry. If it wasn't for Charles, I would be some no name piece of shit that steals just for the thrill of it. You knew me as a kid, Henry! I would have turned out just like you! I don't know why you didn't turn out like me."

Henry shut his eyes tight. "Ellie, leave. Leave right the fuck now or I will run to the Bridge and announce over the speakers what you just said to me."

Ellie narrowed her eyes. "Why don't you do it right now?"

"We've been friends for over a decade. I'm not the kind of person who would turn around and stab his best friend in the back at the drop of a hat." The words came out as a hiss between his teeth as he opened his eyes and glared at her again. "Leave. But if you come back, if I ever see your stupid face around here again and you endanger my people, I will hunt you down and kill you myself."

The woman snorted. "Good luck with that, klepto." She got to the door, her hand hovering over the button that would open it, before stopping. She didn't look back as she spoke and neither did Henry. "I hope you know you've lost two friends today. Charles is a good guy. I never told him what you truly were because I loved you both. But now, I'm not afraid to tell him what a scummy bastard you are."

Hiss

Henry stared straight ahead, not really seeing anything. He took deep breaths, but his body still shivered as if the intense heat he felt was too much for his body to handle.

Ellie. A traitor.

He looked up at his wall. His first ever target peppered with holes from a BB gun hung there. Pictures of the trio from multiple occasions, and keepsakes from their stupid adventures, hung near it. Some covering parts of it. A picture of him and Ellie, taken moments before they ambushed Charles on his thirteenth birthday, partially covered the top left corner of the target, where a lot of the holes dwelled. Henry stalked forward and tore the picture from its place, ripping a jagged v-shaped hole through its top. He found another picture, this one of them on Halloween of 2002, where Henry had been a bank robber, Ellie a badass rogue traveler, and Charles a policeman. He tore away that picture, too. Suddenly, he was ripping memories off the wall. Pictures, objects, anything that had Ellie's memory. Another wall held more memorabilia. Since Howie's stuff was gone, there was a third.

Soon, Henry was standing amidst a hurricane of ripped paper and broken baubles. Glass twinkled on the floor in some places, dented objects huddled in others. Henry tore the hat off his head; the navy-blue top hat had been given to him when he was seventeen, when he stopped growing and was finally big enough for it. A golden 'H,' kept shiny and clean, decorated its front. Henry could see himself a little. His bright blue eyes met the slightly greener ones in the decoration. He tossed his hat onto the bed and continued his pacing. His throat was sore from screaming he had barely registered as his own, and tears and snot made damp his face.

Thirteen years of love and life.

It was true, everything he said. They had been friends ever since he went to school, three months into his new and amazing life. Charles and Ellie were more than just friends. They were like family to him. Siblings he never had and knew he would never get. But up until that point in his life, he had never cared about having siblings because he wasn't alone. He even had Howie, though the man was more a friend or roommate than a brother.

As his rage subsided, it was replaced by something even worse, something worse than the panic attacks he had gotten or the aftermath of fights he sometimes had with his friends and family. God he was hurt. The pain in his chest, his head, his damn soul was overwhelming. He couldn't speak, he had no words to say. He couldn't move, all the things that reminded him of his life lay broken on the floor. All he could do now was crumple into himself and let his grief take over.

Henry cried.

Henry, exhausted, took a shower. The cold water refused to warm, perhaps because Henry hadn't told it to do so. He had no time to be miserable, not right now. He could curl up and cry like a little baby later. Right now, the Toppat Clan was in danger. Henry didn't know how much longer they had, so he must assume the worse.

Henry raced through the hallway, down toward the Warehouse. Someone shouted as he rushed past them, but he didn't pay attention nor care. A few failed card reads later, he was moving through the Warehouse, his mission loud and clear in his mind.

When he entered the Bridge, Dad Reginald and Dad Right were talking. Thomas and Oldmin examined paperwork. Warm afternoon sunlight glowed through the massive windows.

"Chief," said Henry, his voice too weary and rough to be of any clear use.

Dad Reginald and Dad Right turned on him instantly.

"Henry!" Dad Reginald got to his feet to meet him. "What happened?"

"There's an attack planned," Henry explained. "I don't know the details, but something is going to happen in a week. We need to be prepared. I don't know exactly what, but the government means to take us all down."

Dad Reginald glanced at Dad Right, the man's expression unreadable, before turning to Henry. "How do you know this?"

"Ellie told me," Henry said. "She admitted she found out about the attack while eavesdropping on a couple of drunk soldiers. But rather than stand and fight, she's decided to flee. She abandoned us, Dad Reginald."

Now a hard look came across them both. Dad Reginald stated, "You are certain of this, Henry?"

"She told me herself. Asked me to come with."

"Well, if Ellie Rose spoke the truth and the Toppat Clan is attacked, she will be treated as any other enemy. Henry, if she does become an enemy–"

"I won't hesitate," Henry stated firmly, cutting him off. "She was my friend but decided to throw us to the wolves to save herself. If I see her again, I'll make her pay."

Dad Reginald nodded. "I won't stop you, Henry. But remember: revenge is a secondary priority. Be it a choice between helping a member of the Clan or enacting revenge, prioritize the Clan."

"Yes, Dad Reginald."

Henry took his message to Sven, who sat at the microphone. After listening to what Henry had to say, he stated over the intercom, "All Clan members, prepare for a future attack. The government is planning a raid, set to next week. Our Clan member, Ellie Rose, has abandoned the Toppats. If she is found on the ship, bring her to the Brig and report to the chief immediately."

Dad Right came up behind Henry. "Kid, you did the right thing."

Henry sighed and bowed his head. "I hope so. I can't believe… we've known each other for thirteen years, Dad Right! Thirteen years! Ever since middle school! Even though Charles had parents in the government, and Ellie's mother was, too, I didn't care. But she does, it seems. I'm just some thug in her eyes." He swallowed, the tightness of his throat making it hard to breathe. "…Dad Right, I was planning my next mission with Howie. But that's not happening. Is there something else I need to do? An–"

WOOOOOMP!

The airship shuddered. An alarm blared through the ship. Sven called over the intercom system, "We're under attack! Prepare for a fight!"

Henry sucked in his breath and then glared at the door. "That liar! Erg, why did I think she was telling the truth? Now is the perfect time to betray us!"

Dad Reginald turned to Henry. "Henry, go to the infirmary!"

"Yes, Dad!" Putting down the irritation he felt at being given such a ludicrously safe job, Henry pushed himself out of the Bridge and darted across the room. He went down a few halls and entered a large, white room. Stretchers littered the area near the entrance with plenty of medical beds in the north. Machinery and cabinets of medicine lined the walls. Chairs clustered together somewhere in the southern corner. A man in a white top hat stood near one of the beds, while two others were beside the stretchers. A handgun was strapped to the waist of the doctor. While both paramedics were armed, their guns were seconded to their readiness near the stretcher.

Henry stood near the door, his back to the wall and a gun now close to his chest.

The paramedics grabbed their walkie talkies as they began to hiss. Instructions were given and the duo ran off, both dragging a stretcher behind themselves. They were back within a few minutes, a new Toppat member for each so that they were being held by two. Grievously injured crewmates lay in the stretcher, and then on the beds. The doctor quickly went to work, barking orders at the two others with experience.

Henry gestured to the door. "I have this. Sammy, Jim, go."

He got a salute as the two left.

Henry listened to the sounds of the doctor treating wounds and giving orders and the pained moans and wheezes of their patients. Said noises started to taper off after administering pain medicine. The clink of bloody bullets hitting the bottom of a metal can now accompanied them.

The call went out for another and so out one went, and then a second. The doctor quieted as he finished his work alone and covered sanitized wounds with gauze.

Then, Henry's walkie talkie hissed. He picked up the equipment in his pocket and held. "Check, check! This is Charles!" Charles' voice barely came through.

"Charles, I'm on the ship. The Chief is in the Bridge. How do I get there alone?" Ellie's voice came in.

"There are a few turns you need to make, but once you get to the Living Quarters it should be a straight shot to the Bridge. With fighting taking place in the Bay, the halls should be empty."

Henry listened to their conversation, a sick feeling twisted up in his stomach. How long had they been planning this? Did Ellie already tell Charles, or did Charles not know Henry was amongst the ones he was planning on killing or capturing? That the one they now targeted was Henry's dad? No, Charles couldn't know.

"Charles, I'm at a bri–hey! Right Hand Man!"

"Is he a bad guy?"

"Very!"

Henry narrowed his eyes. He heard gunshots, he heard the voices of his former best friend and dad.

"Agk!" Henry heard Ellie's pained cry come from the device. "Dammit, I think–errg!"

Henry gritted his teeth and shut his eyes. The sound of her pain…

"Ha! Haha! Got him!"

Henry's blood turned to ice.

"Now that Chief bastard."

"Capture him, Ellie," Charles warned.

"I know. Now that his right hand husband's dead, should be easy."

The paramedics came back with two more injured. Henry looked up. "I'm going out. Harry, Floyd, you stay here!" Without looking to see if they had listened to him, Henry turned and rushed down the corridors. Of course, getting from the infirmary to the Bridge was famously long. Anyone who intended to hurt the Chief would have a hard time getting to their injured or vice versa. That is why Henry was sent there after all; the safest place in the ship outside of one of the safe rooms.

Henry hit the Warehouse.

"I'm almost there, Ch–Henry?!" Henry's walkie talkie activated.

He spun around. Ellie, blood smearing her white shoes and her side where a bullet hit her, stood before him, the door to the Warehouse busted in. Her hat was nowhere to be seen.

"Henry!" Charles called. "What are you doing here, man? Glad to see you're okay!"

Ellie blinked. "How do you have our signal?"

"Because," Henry said, his finger on the button. "–I gave you the damn thing, Ellie. Maybe you should have had your Captain friend give you another."

"Uh, Henry? Ellie? What's going on?" asked Charles.

Ellie stated, "Henry's a traitor, he's trying to bar me from getting the Chief."

"Ellie's the traitor!" Henry spat. "She used me to get to my parents! What happened to Dad Right, Ellie? What did you do?"

Ellie said, "I killed him. He was in my way. You are, too."

"Wait, guys, I don't understand!" Charles' voice was raised in a panic, now. "What's happening?! Are your parents there, Henry? Why would Ellie hurt them? Ellie?"

"Because Henry's a Toppat goon!" Ellie spat. "He's been living with the Toppats for years, helping them and protecting them."

"What?" Charles' voice grew small. "Henry?"

"Yes, I am a Toppat. The chief and his right hand are my parents. The Toppat Clan is my home and family. I'm sorry, Charles. You're my friend, but this traitorous bitch will regret the day she was born."

"Not if I kill you first!" Ellie exclaimed, her gun in her hand.

"Guys, wait! It doesn't have to come to this! Please, let's talk this out! Ellie? Henry? Can you hear me? Check, check! Hello? He–" Charles' voice was cut off as Henry smashed the device to the ground.

Ellie's gun went off.

Suddenly, the two were no longer standing still. They engaged in a dance, dodging and hiding and shooting. Wood splintered and metal dented, and the fire of guns boomed. Henry could faintly hear Charles' voice coming from Ellie's walkie talkie, but only if he got close. It seems Ellie heard Charles just as well as Henry as they kept up this dangerous dance.

Henry's eyes flicked to a giant crate. With a last few shots that forced Ellie behind the crane, Henry darted to the crate and forced himself inside, slipping into a hard, small place. The wood of the crate splintered upon being shot. The machine he was within snarled. He heard wood splinter and snap, and gunshots hit metal that refused to yield. Henry popped his head out enough to see where he was going. Ellie stared at him with wide eyes and an open mouth. Although she fired off a few more shots, Henry's tank roared forward. Ellie dodged the incoming machine and ran toward the Bridge.

BOOM

The tank fired. The crane groaned as it was hit, and its arm fell.

Wind forced itself inside.

Henry popped his head out of the hatch. The crane's arm snapped and tore a hole through the side of the airship. Its ladder crushed the door to the Bridge, effectively blocking it from both sides.

Knowing the tank would do him no more good, Henry hopped out of the tank and vaulted over some of the wreckage. He had just gotten to the gaping wound in the side of his flying home when something rammed into him.

He fell back, losing his gun in the process. He felt the chilly wind rush past him, filling his ears and tugging his clothes. He violently clawed at anything near, finally finding a grip in the metal. Despite the sharp ends of the metal digging into his fingers, he held on. His hat fell off, tumbling into the harsh wind. Henry looked up, finding Ellie kneeling above him, leaning on the metal as she scrambled to regain her balance. Behind him, a jungle green helicopter split off from where others swarmed around the lower end.

Ellie's bright green eyes met Henry's icy blue ones. For a moment, neither spoke. Both breathed heavily, both weak from the chase and the fight, both bruised and bloody.

"Guys!" Charles' voice boomed from a speaker. "I-I see you! Hang on, Henry! I can let down a ladder or something? Ellie, Henry, we can talk about this. Come on, guys! I-I know it's bad, okay? But we can talk this through. Right?"

For a moment, neither Ellie nor Henry talked. Then…

"Henry," rasped Ellie. "–I know that you're a Toppat. I thought I could do it. I thought I could kill you, but I can't."

Henry stared right back at her. His anger started to melt under the whipping winds and roaring helicopter and the sharp pain in his fingers. "I…"

Ellie gritted her teeth and held out her hand. "Henry, I'm sorry."

Henry gulped and nodded. He let go with one hand and took hers. "Ellie, I'm not."

Henry let go of the ship.

Ellie screamed as Henry's weight and the tug of the wind pulled her out. Although she tried to let go, Henry's nails dug into the skin of her hand and he grabbed onto her wrist with the other, his blood smearing over her skin and merging with the blood dribbling from an abrasion on her arm.

Henry heard a sickening pop and he stopped falling! Ellie grunted in pain, but she held onto whatever machine now coiled around her other arm. She glared down at Henry with watery eyes, the tears that warmed her cheeks flying off in the turbulent wind.

Henry gasped as a sharp pain cut through his back. Behind them, another helicopter buzzed at their height, someone manning a sniper rifle.

Henry's mutilated fingers slipped.

Down, down, down he fell. Below him, he could see the choppy waves of a near frozen ocean. The airship would head for a water landing if things went sour. Well, sourer than they were. The massive hole in the Warehouse wouldn't help, and they would drown. Henry watched as a helicopter near the end of the airship exploded. Another, and then a third and fourth were gunned down either by missiles or guns that took out the helicopters or the pilots themselves.

BWOOOOOOSSSSSHHHH!