Fall Of The Empire
Rating: T (for now.)
Disclaimer: I don't own this. If I did, the second season would have been out already, and I would be all over that like white on rice.
Author's Notes:
1.) Hey guys! Another 1k increase! We're getting so close to the end, I honestly think that we'll be able to hit 15k on the final chapter. I'm super stoked.
2.) But you want to know what I'm even more excited over?! I GOT THIS SUPER AMAZING PIECE OF FANART!This lovely person: Aurelya-LB - she drew this amazing picture of Echo! (check it out on dA!) In honor of her fanart, this is Echo's new wardrobe this chapter! When you get to this chapter, Aurelya, I hope this makes you happy! I wanted a wardrobe change for this chapter, but couldn't decide what would be a good look. But then you came along with the answer: red!
Hope you don't mind the addition of the black scarf.
And let me just tell you one more time that it's absolutely gorgeous, and thank you so much for making it!
3.) Second to last chapter. I bet it didn't quite turn out the way people were expecting, did it? I hope I have you completely wondering what will happen in the final chapter!
Also, fret not. Soul Sever himself will be making an appearance, although, not in this chapter. I know, I know, I'm mean. But don't worry. You'll know what Echo's been up to!
4.) One of the shortest chapter in all of FOTE's history, but it'll live up to its name, I promise. Unfortunately, this chapter was very much necessary. You'll understand why - it actually has a plot point or two that won't be used until next chapter. I know, I know, more waiting, but don't worry, the season finale will definitely be worth it.
5.) Thanks for all the reviews, guys! Sorry I didn't reply to everyone - I'll do better this chapter, I promise. I'll just let you all know that I'm quite evil. You'll understand when you get to the end, I promise. Remember to check out Aurelya's drawing on dA to know what Echo looks like this chapter (and quite possibly the rest of the story).
But I'll let you read it now and see how you enjoy it!
Warnings: Nothing, except for stylistic things FF loves to om nom. Mild cursing. If you see anything with the first-person in it, it should be italicized. That is all. Present tense is how I transcribe eps, if you see any confusing verb tenses, tell me and I'll fix them!
. . . this text is here for a mysterious reason.
Pain was. . .
Pain was a constant.
Echo's head snapped back as a fist cracked against her nose, and with a loud snap, she heard it break. Hot blood immediately gushed down her face, and the world spun around her as she dropped to the ground, wheezing and spluttering blood. She closed her eyes, taking precious, calculated seconds to recover herself - she had to. If she didn't center her mind, the fight would be lost. Though. . . to be quite honest, it looked like she was losing. And very poorly, at that. She coughed, another glob of blood hitting the desert sand.
If there was one thing she could count on lately, it was pain. Emotional pain, physical pain, mental pain. . . There were a lot of different flavors, but there the most amazing thing about pain was the fact that it remained steady. It was a factor she could always rely on. People were unstable and strange - pain was an emotion, and she knew how it effected her. And that made it her greatest ally.
Footsteps crunched over the earth, and Echo snapped her eyes open. She forced her bruised and broken body to move, to scramble up to her feet and lash out. Her first sword had been knocked out of her hand much earlier in the fight, but she still had her second one. . . and there was no way she was going to lose that one so easily. Instead, quicker than a snake, Echo drew her short combat knife and pressed forward, her knife glittering in the twilight.
A strong hand seized her wrist and twisted, trying to force her to drop the blade.
"It doesn't have as much bite as it used to. . . Is the pet tired of fighting?"
Kaynar grinned, his teeth pearly white. Echo tried to wrench herself out of his hold, but he twisted her wrist further. Her fingers loosened, and her knife dropped to the ground uselessly. Echo gasped as pain began to override her systems, and she fell to her knees, one hand vainly trying to support the wrist that Kaynar kept bending. If. . . If he pushed any further, it was going to snap. Echo swallowed, her throat tightening, and Kaynar bent down, looming into her personal space.
"Oh, I'm sorry. . . Not a pet anymore, are you?"
Forcefully, his free hand tangled in the back of her hair and brought it crashing down, right on his kneecap. Echo felt part of her forehead and her broken nose impact on Kaynar's knee, and everything turned white. The jackalman released her, and Echo dropped to the dirt, wheezing, agony wracking her systems. His words floated through her mind, burning and etching into her brain.
Not a pet anymore. . .
A bitter, dark smile twisted her lips. The sheer rage that flooded through her gave her enough clarity to brush aside the pain and get to her hands and knees, glaring at the jackalman. For a brief, tiny moment, Echo swore she saw fear leap into his eyes as he remembered the last time he'd messed with her, and satisfaction wove through her. Good, she thought, clenching her hands into fists, recall the last time I pinned you to the ground and held you, completely helpless. . . I almost killed you, you know.
"What's stopping you from doing it now?" A quiet, feminine voice asked.
Leaping up to her feet, Echo used her hands to control her telekinesis - within moments, her punches and kicks transformed from measly human-powered attacks to devastating blows. She bodily battered Kaynar around, fueling her offense with every speck of aggression she had in her. After a vicious roundhouse to the neck, Kaynar went down like a sack of bricks, giggling softly before he drifted into unconsciousness.
Echo stood there, breathing heavily, and turned her head to the side.
There, not but five feet to her left, the shadow stood, black cloak swallowing up her features.
"How many times," Echo griped, "Do I have to tell you not to do that? You almost broke my concentration."
"I fueled it. Now get moving. Reinforcements'll be here soon."
"Yeah, yeah," Echo said, waving a hand at her, "I'm not a greenhorn. I'm tired."
Striding over to the closest lizard, Echo made short work of divesting him of his gun, and a few explosives - she carried the same procedure out on the next few lizards, instead choosing to grab their ammo packs. Checking the ammo in the gun, Echo took out the pack, and slammed it back in, satisfied. She scanned the battlefield, searching for a piece of gleaming metal given to her long, long ago, in a very different time, and spotted it, not too far off.
Hurrying over, Echo retrieved it and sheathed it, before saddling up the gun, picking up another (a girl could never have enough guns, after all), and set off. Night was quickly setting, the bite leaving the desert air, and chilly teeth nipping at her instead. Her shadow followed, quickly taking up the spot next to her side. Echo muttered to herself as she shifted, settling the guns into a more comfortable position, but cradled the rifle in her arms. She knew she'd be using it soon enough.
"Why don't you just do it?" The shadow asked, feet moving soundlessly over the land.
"Do what?" Echo asked, flicking the safety off. Where Kaynar was, Addicus and Slithe couldn't be far behind. . .
"Kill him. You've had the opportunity more than once now. What's stopping you?"
"Sentimental value." Echo bit out.
She really didn't want to get into this discussion again, and her phantom knew it. But the blacked-out girl turned her head to Echo, and despite the hood that swallowed up her face, Echo knew she was probably frowning sharply. It had been like that for a while - Echo made a lot of mistakes, and the shadow informed her which ones were the worst ones. She was a good companion like that - she would stand right next to her, point (with a very human hand - it was something Echo couldn't get over), and inform her just what she had screwed up on and how badly she'd done it. An irritating critique, but a very necessary one, considering the nature of her mission. She couldn't afford to screw up.
Echo shifted, peering around the desert. She spotted a little alcove not but a mile off - it would be hard-pressed for her to get there, but if she managed it, she would have the high ground. Her shadow looked up, and then nodded her head.
"It's the best vantage point. Let's go."
Armed to the teeth, clinking and clattering, Echo set off at a jog. Her shadow disappeared, but Echo knew she'd be back. She always came back. It was another constant she could count on nowadays - her shadow, always by her side. Pain and darkness. . . A bit stereotypical of her to know angst that way but hey, if the shoe fit. . .
Echo hightailed it, settling into a good clip, tons of lizard gear weighing her down. In the distance, she could hear hovercraft, and she knew she didn't have much time left. Another thirty seconds, and Echo made it to the outcropping of rock. Not bothering to scale it, she jumped, and using her telekinetic platforms, made it to the top. She unpacked some of her payload, going over what she had and how she'd use it. In the distance, the hovercraft grew closer, and Echo steeled herself as best as she was able.
This would be a lot easier if I had backup. . .
A painful lump formed in her chest at the thought.
Out of nowhere, a hand smacked her arm. Echo glanced up to find her shadow there, glaring at her from under the lip of her hood.
"Get your head in the game. Stop it."
Echo nodded, knowing she was right. There was nothing she could do about that now. Grabbing grenades, Echo popped the caps and pressed down with her thumb. It wouldn't go off, not for five seconds after the button had been depressed, but she'd have to time it just right. . . The hovercraft grew closer, and Echo breathed slowly and deeply to steady herself. She heard Addicus and Slithe barking orders, telling the lizards to disembark and to fan out and find her-
And Echo popped up, chucking four grenades down below. Without waiting, she swung the gun around and started firing. Most of the lizards, instead of scattering, knelt down and started returning fire - until the grenades blew. One of the hovercraft exploded, slamming into the other one, pinning it against the dirt. Lizards scurried this way and that, and Echo took her time picking them off, weeding through the reinforcements. It would be nasty to try and fight the generals with tens of lizards gunning down her backside-
A huge club came smashing down, and Echo was a beat too late in defending herself. She went flying, hurtling over the landscape, but before she smashed into the rocks, Echo used her mind to help herself flip around in the air, and slid to a stop. Addicus wasn't slow in pressing his assault, and he tried again, swinging his club, but Echo was a little more prepared this time. She brought the rifle up to her shoulder and started firing, hitting the top of Addicus's club, and sending him off balance. Flowing up to her feet, She swung the gun around and smashed the butt of it into his face.
Addicus howled, stomping his feet in rage as blood dribbled over his lip.
"You filthy urchin!" He snarled, "How dare you!"
Echo grinned, and she could see the unsettling gleam in Addicus's eyes.
"Oh, I dare. Come on, you stupid ape! Come and get me!"
He launched himself at her a second time, and Echo used the gun, firing off a shot (and she actually knocked the helmet off his head), but Addicus wrenched it out of her hands and threw it at the closest rock, shattering the weapon. He punched her, holding nothing back, and Echo fought the notion of being sick as her entire stomach reeled in protest. Sliding back, she whipped out two combat knives and flipped them, prepping them for the fight.
Addicus was on her again in a heartbeat, but Echo pressed her own assault, slashing with her knives, drawing blood. Flipping one of the knives in her hand, she skirted underneath one of his blows and drove it through his shoulder. Addicus screamed in pain, but Echo didn't let him recover. She cracked her elbow against his temple, and like Kaynar, the general crumpled to the ground, unconscious.
Two down, one to go-
Echo bit out a harsh cry of pain as not one, not two, but three laser shots tore through her body. Her leg burned as she dropped to her knees, gritting her teeth. Echo began to push past the pain, and struggled to get back to her feet-
It didn't really matter. A foot collided with her back, and sent her sprawling in the dirt. Echo breathed choppily as she laid there, fingernails digging into the sand as she tried to get back up to her feet and move, but her body just didn't want to cooperate with her. She was at her limit and she knew it. She'd been enduring the guerrilla attacks for a solid four days now, and with little sleep and provisions, she was exhausted already.
It was a miracle she'd taken down Kaynar and Addicus.
But Slithe. . .
A gun/axe loomed in her vision, metal gleaming in the light. Echo rolled her eyes up to it lazily, blood on her lips and tongue. Slithe grinned down at her, tail flicking in the air behind him.
"You are a worthy challenge, human," Slithe spat, eyes narrowed into slits, "But even you have your limits."
The butt of his gun came down, cracking against her skull. . . and Echo hardly felt it.
She knew one moment, she was awake, and the next, she was wrapped up in the black of sleep, her mind deciding that then and now was the best time for her to check out. What consumed her wasn't irritation or fury, or any emotion even resembling that. No, Echo thought, floating in the void, what wrapped her up in its bitter embrace was guilt.
How did it. . .
How did it all turn out like this?
One and a half months earlier. . .
Echo breathed out, and she breathed in, cradling her injured knee close to her body. The tears hadn't stopped, but at least she wasn't sobbing anymore, so she had that much. But no matter how much she'd wished they'd stop, the little drips just kept falling around her. Echo closed her eyes, and massaged her tender ankle, trying to collect herself. So what if the Cats had kicked her out, had threatened to murder her, or had assumed that she was a spy?
So what if they had spurned her friendship, had thrown away her loyalty, hadn't even given her the chance to explain. . .
A strangled hiccup left her, and Echo scrubbed at her eyes, and finally bit down on her arm in order to stifle the sound. She didn't want to cry anymore. She didn't want to sob. Her throat felt like it was made of sandpaper, and her eyes felt ashen, and she didn't want to compound the problem. She knew if she kept going, she was going to have hell to pay the next day. Her throat and her eyes would be swollen, and if she didn't reign it in soon, she wasn't going to be able to talk at all.
Sitting up, Echo stared out at the desert, glad for the kiss of the cool evening air. It helped to chill her feverish skin, and the tight burning sensation on her cheeks.
But it did nothing except cement the reality that she was here, alone.
Alone.
Alone.
She couldn't even feel Omens, anymore. It felt like she was well and truly alone.
She breathed in, trying to steady herself, but it didn't work very well. She felt shaken to her very core.
Because, deep down, she knew that if she had been given a chance to explain herself, the truth would have been. . . Terrible. Yes, she and Markata were humans. Yes, she'd served under him. Yes, he had a strange fascination with her (he'd even called me his general), but she didn't know why. And that was the bottom line for a lot of things, actually: she still didn't know. After the Astral Plains debacle, she'd sworn she'd never search for the answers.
And that, in the end, had screwed her over.
Had they let me explain, though, I would have said that maybe, at one point in time, I served under him, but I haven't in almost a year. I haven't. I'd know it if I was.
But. . . But the things she'd written in her journal. . .
There was no way she could have known them.
Sure, she'd brushed against Panthro and gained access to his memories of Grune. But the strange visions she had involving Thundera's fall, the dreams, the visions, the nightmares, her connection to Plun-Darr and Omens. . . None of it could be possible. Somehow, somewhere, she bet all of her life that she could trace every single one of the connections back to Markata. . . There was no other answer. And in the Astral Plains, he'd demonstrated that he had the same power as her.
That led her to wonder, for the very first time, that if she was connected to him, then maybe Markata could be connected to. . . to her.
And in that case, Echo could very well have been a spy.
And she never would have known it.
Echo shook her head, blinking back the rush of tears that threatened to spill again. She couldn't be thinking about this now. She just wanted to get herself together, get to a safe place, and then try to. . . to do something.
I'm just going to get to a safe place, how about that. That sounds like a good idea.
It would be difficult enough as it were. With a lame ankle, she was going to have a difficult enough time.
If Cheetara were here, if I were still there, she could heal it for me. . . Anguish poured through her, and Echo hiccuped, a sob threatening to escape again. She just needed to get herself together. She needed to stop thinking about the gaping wound where her heart and mission used to be. The only thing that had given her purpose in this world had been stripped from her. She could come back from it, couldn't she?
A small rustle sounded in the brush, and Echo jumped, her heart leaping up into her throat. Who was it? Was it one of the Cats - Tygra or Panthro, probably - who had finally come to kill her? Despite herself, she began to quiver, shaking so badly that she practically vibrated over the sand. She scanned the brush, searching for the telltale signs of a Cat, stalking her, and just waiting for her to be a beat too late in detecting it so it could kill her-
A little red ball popped out of the shrubs, and Echo, unashamed, screamed.
It wilted in her throat when she stared into the bright green eyes belonging to none other than Snarf.
"S-Snarf?" Echo asked, her voice shaky.
Snarf mewled at her, and rushed forward to meet her. He jumped into her lap, happily pawing at her. A bit shaken, Echo stroked his back, but looked at the desert, hoping and praying that this wasn't some sick prank the Cats were pulling on her, or a trap. But as the seconds ticked on, and she was left alone, Echo was left with the conclusion that Snarf had come to her on his own. Which meant that the twins had to be back with the cats. . .
Echo looked down at the tiny pet and frowned.
"What do you want, Snarf?"
Snarf mewled, and scampered out of her arms, returning to the brush. Latching onto something, he tugged, and pulled her pack out of the dirt. Echo blinked, and crawled over to Snarf, accepting the gift. She opened it, and her eyes watered. there were three water bottles, a messily-packed package of food, clumsily bound together, and her fairy tale book. Everything that she would need, and a little more. Echo looked at Snarf, and though she tried to stop herself, she started crying. Snarf had packed her bag for her.
Troublesome as it was, the nursemaid had saw that she was somehow gone, and that she would need supplies. It felt like her heart was shattering - Snarf didn't see the arguments that waged around them. He didn't hear the accusations of her being a spy. No, the small creature had merely discovered that she'd been gone, and, worried about her, he'd packed her a bag.
. . . Almost like he knew she was leaving.
Snarf butted his head against her, purring and rubbing against her. Echo pet him, running her hands over his back. She knew he'd have to go back (or else they would probably think that he was in on it too or something), but she didn't want him to. She didn't want to be alone.
But she took the bag gratefully, and threw it over her back. Snarf butted her head, as if asking her to stand, and eventually, Echo managed it. Her ankle wasn't broken, just sore and tender.
She'd be able to walk.
That came as something of an epiphany to the human. She'd injured herself, and she'd gotten up on her own two feet. She'd stood on her own.
I've done that before, in that time I can't remember.
She'd been alone, and she'd survived. Before she'd come to Thundera, she'd survived up until the very last day.
Snarf yipped up at her, a strange combination of happy and sorrowful, and before she knew it, he was running away from her, dashing over the landscape. Echo watched him go, feeling somehow. . . uplifted. Yeah, she'd been stripped wrongfully from everything that she'd known.
And now. . . Now it was up to her to find her purpose again.
One and a half months later. . .
Echo grunted as she was slammed against the ground painfully, but the gag in her mouth muffled it. Pain coursed through her, keeping her mind thoroughly occupied with the searing, burning agony taking place all over her body. It was like her blood had been placed with acid, and her head throbbed as she writhed, trying to relieve the pain, but she found that her hands and legs had been bound.
Multiple times. Up to the shoulders and the knees. They really hadn't taken any chances with her this time.
Echo closed her eyes and breathed through her nose, hoping that it would steady her.
"Lord Mumm-Ra will be less than pleased." One of the lizards snarled.
Echo couldn't help the smirk that tilted up her lips.
She'd lost count of just how many of them she'd killed. Over the past month and a half, their little "try to capture the human" campaign had met with little success. And Echo had ensured that they would pay a very, very hefty price for trying to get her in chains. She'd lost count at fifty-something, but her body count was probably a little higher. She preferred to be a little more pessimistic with the views than most.
"Lord Mumm-Ra will be more than pleased. Our mission is complete, we've captured the human. Kaynar and Addicus were fools to allow themselves to be overtaken. What forces we lost in the process will be given full honorary rights. . . she was a worthy opponent." It sounded almost respectful. But with Slithe, Echo mused, nobody could really tell. These past one and a half months, Echo had gotten to know the three of them fairly well, considering that they had been hounding her every footstep since she'd left the Cats.
. . . God, what she would give for some ThunderCat backup. She wriggled in her bindings, but she was well and truly stuck.
"Thankfully, Lord Mumm-Ra has supplied us the best way to cripple even the most adverse of opponents."
Oh.
I don't like the sound of that.
Echo forced herself into a very awkward kneeling position, and without waiting, got started on her assault. Using her mind, she started to shove away the lizards closest to her, roughly pushing them against the rocks. It was either her, or them, and they were between her and her freedom. Her head began pounding, warning her that she was close to her limit, that she really needed to lay down and rest.
"Keep pressing the assault. To surrender the fight is to surrender your life."
Like always, her shadow appeared, a silent pillar of strength and support. The last friend that she had. Heeding her shadow's advice, Echo pressed the assault, doubling the attack. More and more lizards fell before her, and eventually, she even managed to push Slithe against the rocks. Echo, forgetting she was bound, tried to stagger up to her feet, and instead flopped over onto the ground like a useless fish. Grunting, she began to awkwardly crawl over to the closest lizard, who had a knife attached to his gun.
"Go, faster! You're wasting too much time!"
"Mmph tring toof mmphsh!" Echo snapped.
She managed to hoist herself up to the lizard, and turned around, rubbing her body up and down against the knife. She ignored the biting pain of the blade as it sliced into her skin once, twice, three times - she lost count at five. Blood stung her skin, but that sensation was nothing new. They must have put something in the rounds they'd pegged her with, because nausea and disorientation were quickly becoming her newest best friends. Echo closed her eyes and kept going, feeling the rope sawing away, little by little-
Snap.
With her arms free, she jerked around and grabbed the knife, roughly yanking it away from the gun, and set to work on her legs. Completely unrestrained, she jumped up to her feet, and reached for her swords - only to find them gone. Cursing, Echo scanned the nearby lizard forces she'd tossed around with her mind, but she saw neither hide nor hair of them. Cursing even more, Echo kicked at some dirt and reached down and grabbed two guns.
"You don't have time to find them. I'm sorry. You'll locate more somewhere else. Now go!"
Echo took off, running. Her breath rasped in her throat, and every step she took made her more and more numb, but she kept going. She had no other choice and she knew it. If Slithe was up and running, then it meant that so were Addicus and Kaynar. One general at a time - she could handle. Two or three all at once. . . She'd be captured quicker than she could say Thundera. As she ran, Echo whispered a silent prayer, hoping that today was not the day that she was captured.
Ahead of her on the trail, two rocks loomed, and just beyond that, an open expanse of desert. If she got to it, she could get the hell outta dodge. . . somehow. Just because the specifics weren't there didn't mean she couldn't do it. Echo made it past the rocks-
And a heavy spear came crashing down on the back of her neck.
Reality spun around her in sickening circles, and she laid on the ground, struggling to get up to her feet a second time.
A foot planted itself squarely in her back, and Echo wheezed as the air was pressed out of her lungs.
"Pet still has bite!" Kaynar giggled, "But not for long, not for long!"
"Use it!" The shadow hissed, "Use it now!"
Echo gathered her mind to herself, forcing her telekinesis to work, but a hand seized the back of her head, and the pain made her concentration scatter. Echo gave a short cry of pain before Kaynar shoved her head in the dirt, his hand tangling in her long, white hair.
Pain sliced into the back of her neck, and more blood coursed around her throat. Fear coursed through her - was Kaynar decapitating her? What the hell was he doing?
"We know how to take away pet's claws and teeth, we do!" Kaynar snickered.
The blade sawing away at the back of her neck left, and was replaced by something that clipped around the back of her head. Echo flinched as she felt something cold and metallic press against the tip of her spine-
And then everything was lost to her.
Echo might have screamed, she may have writhed and begged for somebody to kill her - she wasn't really sure. If she was making any noise, she didn't really hear it. All she knew was that it felt like somebody was reaching their bare hand into the back of her head and twirling their fingers around, just for fun, just to feel the texture.
"Shhh," The shadow said, voice whispering into her mind. Echo vaguely felt the phantom sensation of fingers running over her face, and gradually, the pain began to fade. "It's alright. It's a neuron scrambler. You're not used to it yet, but it's okay. Just relax. Rest."
Like a light switch, Echo was out, glad to have an escape from the pain.
One and a half months earlier. . .
Dog City had actually been a fairly easy place to make money.
Places were always looking to hire help, and being that Dog City was one of the only places to get rest and refreshments before hitting the desert, well. . . it was an easy place to draw in tourists and travelers alike. Somehow, through the luck of the draw, Echo had managed to pull a pretty good gig as a waitress. Being on the road so much had made her a decent cook, and after a day's worth of training, she was off, earning a steady (albeit small) paycheck, and made a. . . passable amount of tips.
She knew she'd get more, but concessions had to be made.
So, concessions were made.
Though it pained Echo, she stayed in her tiny apartment (lent to her by her boss for a cheaper price in exchange for a cheaper serving wage) on evening, and she reformed herself. She stripped herself down completely, made peace with the strange markings on her arms, and even the tattoo declaring her designation in the Black Pyramid. She ran her hands over her scars, committed them all to memory, and swore that she'd lost only one facet of herself, and nothing more.
She allowed herself an entire night to mourn the loss of everything she'd held dear. Sunny. The twins. Panthro, Cheetara, Tygra, Lion-O. . . Hell, even Pumyra. In order to fully accept that she'd had to expel the past, she had to make peace with it, first. It felt like sticking a band-aid onto a gaping wound in her soul, but Echo knew time would heal it better than anything else could. And time was definitely on her side at the moment.
Next, she'd made major alterations to her outfit. If she was going to be her own person, no Cats there to support her, she needed a new identity. The look she'd been handed in Thundera had been a trademark for her over the course of the past year, but no longer. To stand on her own feet, she'd need her own look.
She kept her arm and shin guards, necessary and vital in case there was a fight, but she adopted a new form of shoe, trading out her worn-out ones for a much newer and sturdier pair. Once done, she took her tunic, and though it felt like severing a part of her soul, she sliced off a decent amount of it, freeing up more movement for her legs. And finally, stained with blood and tattered as it was, Echo dyed it entirely, trading the blue for red.
And finally, she purchased a decent amount of black fabric, and turned it into an incredibly long scarf. She wrapped a majority of it around her face, her head, and let the ends hang over her shoulders.
And it worked.
She felt like an entirely new person. Over the course of the night, Echo had lost her old identity of, "Echo, outcasted by the only race that had ever taken her in" and chose instead, "Echo, rogue nomad human." It gave her power to think like that, to claim a brand-new identity. Sure, she still worried that one of the Cats would eventually track her down and try to kill her, but at least she'd just be known as "Echo" and not as "Offical ThunderCat pet."
Nobody batted her a second glance, her tips improved considerably, and within the span of two weeks, she was making a fairly decent living. Almost entirely covered up, nobody assumed she had the rot, and she looked like any other swordsman in town. In just two weeks, Echo had more than enough to hit the road again, but she hadn't stopped there, however - not entirely. Sure, overhauling her appearance had been one thing, but Echo knew she needed to keep in top shape. So, without telling her boss, she'd enrolled herself into the cage matches, and within just a few nights, Echo had made a killing. None of the dogs knew she had telekinesis, and it was frighteningly easy to slip under a dog's guard, knock him down with a kick, and enhance the blow with her mind to ensure a knock-out.
The money she had stashed everywhere provided a comfortable security blanket for her to fall back on.
But she wasn't entirely sure where the hell she would go after she left Dog City. What was her purpose in this world?
Before, she'd been entirely committed to Lion-O and his cause.
And, as time wore on, Echo realized she still was.
Just because Lion-O and the Cats weren't in the picture anymore didn't mean she should stop. Mumm-Ra was the worst person possible to gain dominion over Third Earth, and she knew it. Shortly after realizing this, her shadow had miraculously come into being. For a week or two it had plagued her, constantly popping into existence here and there, but Echo sensed no malicious intent from it. Instead, it crept closer to closer, as if pushing Echo's boundaries, and finally, the human was too tired to snap at it to go away.
And for some entirely unknown reason, Echo felt a sense of kinship with it. It wasn't sarcastic or biting as it had been before, but the girl had merely sat with her, asked her questions, and provided advice on her intentions. In some strange way, the pair had become. . . almost friends.
"What do you plan to do now?" It had asked her one evening.
Echo unwound her scarf off of her head, deposited it onto the floor, and made short work of slipping into something slightly more comfortable. She'd seated herself next to the phantom and smirked, shrugging.
"Honestly? I don't know. I have an idea, but it sounds entirely crazy. And I don't think I like it."
"Tell me."
Echo cut her a sharp stare. "Seriously? After all our past history, you just expect me to up and forgive you?"
"I had my reasons, and I still do," The girl replied, "You'll learn them soon enough in time. I promise. I'm not here to hurt you."
After a long moment of silence, Echo lifted her shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. What the hell else could she do? She was all alone in the world. Without the shadow to distract her, Echo was fairly certain she would collapse in on herself in depression and sorrow. Call her co-dependent, but she needed someone by her side. After nearly a year of forging her existence by making memories with someone by her side, Echo couldn't handle an empty companionship.
The shadow, she decided, would have to do.
"I think. . . I want to take a hit out on Mumm-Ra. Being a waitress doesn't suit me - I mean, look at me. My skin literally crawled with the need to pick up and fight with a sword. I supplement my income with fighting."
"Once a soldier, always a soldier. You can take a warrior from the war, but you can't take the war from the warrior. It's alright. It's perfectly normal to feel that way. And I say why not? What's stopping you?"
"It's Lion-O's destiny to kill Mumm-Ra. Not mine."
The shadow shrugged. "Prophecy, destiny, visions of the future - who cares about them? So long as he ends up dead, you can tell the people who write the history books to say it was Lion-O. But if that is your purpose, I say go forth."
"You don't disapprove?"
"No. I encourage it. He's a tyrant."
And so, Echo had found her mission.
Whether it meant murdering Mumm-Ra before the Cats got to him, or teaming up with the Cats to kill him, Echo didn't know.
But she'd told the kind dog that had taken her in that she was very sorry, but it was time for her to depart. The dog had understood, and as a token for her hard work, had baked her a tiny piece of bread in the shape of a dog. Echo had packed it up, intent on eating it at some point or another, and departed. As she was about to leave Dog City, however, a small, furry raccoon had collided with her. Echo had blinked down at the creature, familiarity tugging at her.
"Hey. We ran into each other once before!"
"Ah? Oh, why yes we did my young miss! I'm terribly sorry, but I seem to have a habit of running into people. Forgive me, my dear, but have I introduced myself?"
"No. I don't remember if you did, sorry." It was so long ago, a whole other lifetime, in fact.
"Ah, how rude of me. My name is Tookit, young miss. And what is your name, lovely creature?"
"Echo." The human replied, smiling. She had no idea if the raccoon was trying to pawn her into something, but there was no way flattery was going to get to her. At her name, Tookit's eyes narrowed, as though he were recalling something, and then they widened.
"Oh! Yes! The kittens spoke so much of you, young miss. Echo, the white-haired human from another time, and another place. They told me many fascinating stories about the ThunderCats and their adventures."
"You knew the kittens?"
"WilyKat and WilyKit, yes! Spectacular, magnificent kittens. You've raised them into quite the fine pair."
Echo felt a small blush creep onto her cheeks. Okay. . . So many flattery will work a little.
"But yes, I digress, I must be leaving, but before I do, here. I feel I owe you a small favor."
"A favor? For what?"
"Why, you dropped something last time you were here, and were gone before I could return it! But I believe this will excuse my debt, for I no longer have this item. Here. You equip it to your wrist, and it delivers a shocking blow to whomever you strike."
Tookit passed an electronic doodad into her hand, and Echo stared down at it, utterly confused. "How did you know I fight-"
"I'm afraid I must be going my dear, but fret not, I know our paths will collide soon! Until then, ta-ta!"
And he was off.
Echo shook her head, furrowing her brow together. What did I drop on the ground?
She looked at the new toy in her hand, and as she started walking again, and eventually, found the correct way that it fit over a person's hand. A small button near the backside of the fiber contraption tempted Echo too much not to push it - so she did, and jumped, startled, when electricity crackled to life in her hand. Pressing the switch before she accidentally smacked herself with the current, Echo flexed her fingers and watched as the electrified fibers stretched with them.
"That'd be a damn dirty trick to use in combat. . ." She said, turning her head up to the desert, "But I think Markata would love getting a little zap when I punched his face."
Setting out, she'd made it a good distance from Dog City, and planning a route for the Black Pyramid, hit the mines of Mt. Plun-Darr by nightfall. As she'd scavenged for supplies through the remains of the rat encampment, and then bedded down for the night, Echo had awoken to a very strange noise.
As she pushed back the tent flap, she'd found the leering face of Kaynar waiting for her in giddy glee.
That had marked the first of many encounters over the span of a month and a half, and Echo had thoroughly grown exhausted as all three generals pursued her, endlessly, claiming that Mumm-Ra wanted her captive. That knowledge had been enough to keep her out of their clutches. If Mumm-Ra wanted her now, there was no way in any hell that existed that she was going to wind up in one of his force-field cages again.
Who the hell knew what he wanted her for, she just knew that she had to stay away from him.
Until one night, when she thought she'd been in the clear, and Kaynar had surprised her again. Echo had picked up a gun, bemoaned the loss of a sword, and had headed for a rocky outcropping to get to the high ground. . .
Present day. . .
Echo swung, a useless rag doll, blood dripping from multiple wounds all over her body. Worst of all, however, was her head. It felt like somebody had ripped out her brain and shoved cotton inside of it. It was incredibly hard to concentrate, and even harder to stay awake. But she tried, she tried hard. She was so out of it, Echo hardly noticed when somebody threw her onto the deck of a hovercraft, and she laid there, still and silent, as it moved.
"It looks dead. Did we break the pet?"
"No, Lord Mumm-Ra said it would have adverse side effects."
"Enough talking. Let us get back to Lord Mumm-Ra. He says it has been far too long."
Echo closed her eyes, and for a while, she slept.
The feeling of cold wind brushing over her was actually fairly nice, and her poor bruised, aching, and battered body was grateful for it. But, as time wore on, the novelty wore off, and she began to get cold. Too cold. She shivered, and woke herself up. Blearily, she opened her eyes, and stared at her palm, which looked sickeningly blue.
"You've lost a lot of blood," The shadow said, kneeling next to her. Human fingertips touched her own, and where they did, Echo felt her skin tingle. "You need to get help. You might die before you can reach Mumm-Ra."
Well.
That wasn't good.
That meant she had to do something about her current situation. . . but what could she do? She could barely move as it was, and with the. . . the neuron scrambler or whatever it was around her head, she could barely even form a coherent thought. Her telekinesis? Yeah, that was a joke. Maybe if she were well-rested and not suffering from a severe case of cottony head. Echo laid there, and despite her situation, tears began to crawl into her eyes.
If she were still with the Cats, she'd already be saved. Lion-O would have fought tooth and nail to get her back, and Cheetara would have healed her wounds, Tygra would have ribbed her, and Panthro would have grumbled over how rusty her form was. But she would have been safe and sound, and in one piece, if not a little bruised. Tears dripped out of the corners of her eyes, and her eyes blinked wide open when she felt the shadow give her a light smack on the cheek.
"They're not here anymore. Stand on your own goddamn feet for once. Quit whining! You've been in worse situations - so just get your head in the game!"
The girl had stood up and moved away, and Echo saw the object of her salvation right behind her: a generator.
More importantly, the generator the fueled the entire hovercraft. She flexed her right hand, and there, laying just on her skin, was the electrical shocker-thing that Tookit had given her. If. . . If she could get to it, she could shove her hand in the electrical relays. . . and make a very big boom.
"That's it. Now you're thinking!' The shadow praised.
Despite the numbness plaguing her body, and the acid still raging on the inside, Echo forced herself to crawl, each baby movement taking an eternity to complete. Cold spread from her fingertips to her arms quite rapidly, and before long, she was shaking, feeling as though the acid for her blood was spiked with ice cubes, and it was their mission in life to freeze her from the inside out. It felt like days before Echo had finally made it over to the generator, and she giggled, losing herself in a delirious stupor.
How the hell had they not noticed her?
Oh, hubris, strike down those that keep your words like a gospel.
She heard a shout behind her, alerting others, but it was too late.
Echo let her body fall, plunging her hand into the electrical current of the generator, and her glove sparked to life.
She smiled, even when heat and force carried her through the air, and deposited her roughly onto the ground.
Darkness clouded around her, threatening to completely consume her, but through the snippets of lucidness, Echo could see blurred shapes rushing past. She heard voices, worriedly barking orders, her name, and then. . . silence.
Blissful, blessed silence.
She laid there, eyes gradually closing more and more, and through the gloom, another shadow loomed.
So furry. . . Echo thought as unconsciousness dug its talons into her mind, my furry godmother.
Had she been awake, she would have laughed. Furry godmother. Only she could think of something that funny.
But the more she looked, the more the shadows kept morphing into other images. One shadow turned into two, and then four. And each of those shadows had familiar, glowing eyes she knew. She'd looked at them for years. Oh, Lion-O, it's you. Do you know how sorry I am? About how this all turned out? Because I am. I'm very sorry.
Before her eyes, those eyes changed, turning red and blue, and swatches of fire surrounded those four friends she'd known so well. The demons leered down at her, smiling and laughing at her misfortunes.
Her wounds were too much, and at that moment, Echo finally closed her eyes, the darkness overtaking her.
The last image she saw was an old, calloused hand reaching down for her.