McDougal stared down at his brother, and his eyes widened.
"Harry..."
Melfina choked a sob as silent tears glided down her cheeks. She turned away and buried her face into Gene's blood-sodden chest, trying to drown everything out.
Gene stood, unmoving and silent, still looking at Harry's lifeless body. He was without a doubt glad Harry was dead... but eventually, slowly, he rose his good arm to wrap it around Melfina for comfort. She was crying for him, and he had never seen her cry before...
But there was little time to dwell on the death, as they soon heard the click of a gun. Melfina turned to find Ron McDougal aiming for her heart.
"McDougal! What are you thinking?!" Gene growled. "You'd kill the only person your brother ever loved?!"
"I'd kill anyone and anything that would hurt you, Gene Starwind, the only person my brother ever truly hated," he growled, furious. His eyes weakened slightly, and he added in a much softer tone, "Besides... wherever cyborgs go, perhaps Harry can find Melfina there."
"McDougal, for the love of god, leave her alone! Haven't you done enough to satisfy your boss?!" Gene cried.
He shook his head. "No. It will never be enough. Once I've killed you, I'll wish I had done more. Melfina..." he said in a different voice. "I regret this. But a contract is a contract... and it's your own fault for being involved with Gene Starwind."
She clenched her eyes. Nothing would stop him this time.
"Goodbye!" he hollered, his finger moving to fire.
"NO!" Gene screamed. Hate, revenge, obsession, everything... it all surged through his mind. It was blinding him, pulsing through his blood... was he going to let McDougal have his way, his heart screamed? Was he going to let him win?!
**Never.**
But before McDougal could pull the trigger, there was a sudden blur of movement, and the gun was knocked from his hands. Stunned, his eyes followed the gun and watched it hit the ground near a bokutou lying in the grass nearby.
"Suzuka!" He growled. "Do not interfere!"
The assassin knelt on the ground at least fifty yards away, her arm still outstretched from when she had thrown her sword at the gun. She gave a small smile, and then collapsed in the same barely-conscious condition Jim was in.
"Suzuka!" Aisha yelled. "You too?!" **The shocks really hurt 'em bad since they're not Ctarl-Ctarl...**
McDougal wasted no time. He leapt to his feet and grabbed the gun, and this time, did not delay.
He fired immediately.
The blast rang out...
And then there was silence.
*********
Everything moved in slow motion.
The Scrappler shot out of the barrel of the rifle, shining even in the dark as it flew, its many askew blades gleaming dangerously as they spun.
It's done, thought McDougal the instant he pulled the trigger. Melfina wouldn't escape; her eyes were wide with horror, and her entire body was completely paralyzed in her fear. Gene would pay dearly...
It sliced through the air, growing nearer and nearer...
But the instant it had been fired, it was out of McDougal's hands. His eyes widened as Starwind moved.
Gene had only his right arm left... and he used it. Fist clenched, he reached over across his chest and swung back to the right at full speed, slamming his forearm against Melfina's body. She flew in the direction of the blow, horrified expression still frozen on her face... The metal rushed past her, its sound whispering in her ear...
And then it struck.
It pierced into Gene's flesh just below his left shoulder, striking his chest at a painful speed and ripping almost completely through to his back before stopping. An instant flood of pain seized him and his entire body jolted violently; his tightly clenched eyes were covered by the shadows of his blood red hair as his head snapped foreword with the seizure. Blood flew from the wound and Melfina's still-near face was splashed with some of it... drops trailed down her face and across her cheeks, almost as if they were tears...
She slammed against the cold, hard ground...
And time returned to normal.
********
Gene still stood, the jagged metal imbedded deeply inside of him.
The others could only stare while the torrent of emotions rushed through their minds. "A... aniki!!" Jim managed to gasp from Aisha's arms, but his voice wasn't there. Aisha and Suzuka made no sound.
McDougal stared at his shadowed figure, frozen and shocked. How could a man that wounded still move that fast? And why hadn't he fallen when he was hit?!
**Can't fall...**
A wave of pain hit Gene, and his eyes clenched even tighter.
**Not yet...!* *
A second wave, and a sound escaped his lips, not quite a gasp and not quite a yell.
**One more thing...**
Another, and he staggered backwards a little.
**I've gotta do.**
He braced his feet, steady. His eyes snapped open, and he focused on McDougal.
**To play the game...**
His hand became a blur.
**...To win.**
A shot echoed against the night.
McDougal's eyes snapped open, and his body froze. His mouth opened slightly, a small, gagged sound escaping his tongue.
"W... what...?!" he managed, and his free hand shot to his stomach, his other arm still aimed, still holding the rifle.
"N... no... im... possible..."
McDougal clutched tightly, but no matter how strongly he kept his grip, he was unable to hold in the gush of blood that flowed over his hand and poured to the ground. He was rushed with cold, then hot, then cold again, and his arm aiming the rifle slowly fell to his side... his hand did not let the weapon fall, though, refusing to loosen its grip on the hilt.
He sank slowly to his knees, and the instant he hit the ground he bent foreword slightly in a slouch, eyes clenched in pain. He had been holding his breath, and he now gasped for air desperately.
He saw something out of the corner of his eye, and his vision traveled to his brother's body, lying not too far away from him.
"Harry... I'll be following you shortly, it seems..."
After a moment, a smile formed on his lips, the result of irony realized.
"So... I'm to die... at the outlaw's hands..."
The world slowly faded into a blur, and as the blackness began to close in on his eyes, his voice whispered one final sound:
"Gene... Starwind..."
And then it was all black, and Ron McDougal became still forever... kneeling in the grass, with a gun clutched in one hand and his wound in the other.
Gene allowed himself a smile before collapsing to the ground.
****************
...*takes a deep breath* That... was painful. Please, please, PLEASE review this chapter before going on to the next one... I spent a lot of time here, and I wanna know what you liked, what you didn't, if it sucked, rocked, whatever. PLEASE. And feel free to review the next chapter too...
NOTE: this is *not* the Sailor Moon reality, and besides, I don't like the whole "the power of love is able to heal physical wounds" cliché at all. So don't even THINK about it.
SECOND NOTE: I like SM, so don't hate me for not liking it, because it's not true.
... *blinks* ...sales pitch time! OH NO, WILL GENE BE OKAY?! KEEP READING TO FIND OUT IF HE CAN SURVIVE THIS NEW BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL!!!
"Harry..."
Melfina choked a sob as silent tears glided down her cheeks. She turned away and buried her face into Gene's blood-sodden chest, trying to drown everything out.
Gene stood, unmoving and silent, still looking at Harry's lifeless body. He was without a doubt glad Harry was dead... but eventually, slowly, he rose his good arm to wrap it around Melfina for comfort. She was crying for him, and he had never seen her cry before...
But there was little time to dwell on the death, as they soon heard the click of a gun. Melfina turned to find Ron McDougal aiming for her heart.
"McDougal! What are you thinking?!" Gene growled. "You'd kill the only person your brother ever loved?!"
"I'd kill anyone and anything that would hurt you, Gene Starwind, the only person my brother ever truly hated," he growled, furious. His eyes weakened slightly, and he added in a much softer tone, "Besides... wherever cyborgs go, perhaps Harry can find Melfina there."
"McDougal, for the love of god, leave her alone! Haven't you done enough to satisfy your boss?!" Gene cried.
He shook his head. "No. It will never be enough. Once I've killed you, I'll wish I had done more. Melfina..." he said in a different voice. "I regret this. But a contract is a contract... and it's your own fault for being involved with Gene Starwind."
She clenched her eyes. Nothing would stop him this time.
"Goodbye!" he hollered, his finger moving to fire.
"NO!" Gene screamed. Hate, revenge, obsession, everything... it all surged through his mind. It was blinding him, pulsing through his blood... was he going to let McDougal have his way, his heart screamed? Was he going to let him win?!
**Never.**
But before McDougal could pull the trigger, there was a sudden blur of movement, and the gun was knocked from his hands. Stunned, his eyes followed the gun and watched it hit the ground near a bokutou lying in the grass nearby.
"Suzuka!" He growled. "Do not interfere!"
The assassin knelt on the ground at least fifty yards away, her arm still outstretched from when she had thrown her sword at the gun. She gave a small smile, and then collapsed in the same barely-conscious condition Jim was in.
"Suzuka!" Aisha yelled. "You too?!" **The shocks really hurt 'em bad since they're not Ctarl-Ctarl...**
McDougal wasted no time. He leapt to his feet and grabbed the gun, and this time, did not delay.
He fired immediately.
The blast rang out...
And then there was silence.
*********
Everything moved in slow motion.
The Scrappler shot out of the barrel of the rifle, shining even in the dark as it flew, its many askew blades gleaming dangerously as they spun.
It's done, thought McDougal the instant he pulled the trigger. Melfina wouldn't escape; her eyes were wide with horror, and her entire body was completely paralyzed in her fear. Gene would pay dearly...
It sliced through the air, growing nearer and nearer...
But the instant it had been fired, it was out of McDougal's hands. His eyes widened as Starwind moved.
Gene had only his right arm left... and he used it. Fist clenched, he reached over across his chest and swung back to the right at full speed, slamming his forearm against Melfina's body. She flew in the direction of the blow, horrified expression still frozen on her face... The metal rushed past her, its sound whispering in her ear...
And then it struck.
It pierced into Gene's flesh just below his left shoulder, striking his chest at a painful speed and ripping almost completely through to his back before stopping. An instant flood of pain seized him and his entire body jolted violently; his tightly clenched eyes were covered by the shadows of his blood red hair as his head snapped foreword with the seizure. Blood flew from the wound and Melfina's still-near face was splashed with some of it... drops trailed down her face and across her cheeks, almost as if they were tears...
She slammed against the cold, hard ground...
And time returned to normal.
********
Gene still stood, the jagged metal imbedded deeply inside of him.
The others could only stare while the torrent of emotions rushed through their minds. "A... aniki!!" Jim managed to gasp from Aisha's arms, but his voice wasn't there. Aisha and Suzuka made no sound.
McDougal stared at his shadowed figure, frozen and shocked. How could a man that wounded still move that fast? And why hadn't he fallen when he was hit?!
**Can't fall...**
A wave of pain hit Gene, and his eyes clenched even tighter.
**Not yet...!* *
A second wave, and a sound escaped his lips, not quite a gasp and not quite a yell.
**One more thing...**
Another, and he staggered backwards a little.
**I've gotta do.**
He braced his feet, steady. His eyes snapped open, and he focused on McDougal.
**To play the game...**
His hand became a blur.
**...To win.**
A shot echoed against the night.
McDougal's eyes snapped open, and his body froze. His mouth opened slightly, a small, gagged sound escaping his tongue.
"W... what...?!" he managed, and his free hand shot to his stomach, his other arm still aimed, still holding the rifle.
"N... no... im... possible..."
McDougal clutched tightly, but no matter how strongly he kept his grip, he was unable to hold in the gush of blood that flowed over his hand and poured to the ground. He was rushed with cold, then hot, then cold again, and his arm aiming the rifle slowly fell to his side... his hand did not let the weapon fall, though, refusing to loosen its grip on the hilt.
He sank slowly to his knees, and the instant he hit the ground he bent foreword slightly in a slouch, eyes clenched in pain. He had been holding his breath, and he now gasped for air desperately.
He saw something out of the corner of his eye, and his vision traveled to his brother's body, lying not too far away from him.
"Harry... I'll be following you shortly, it seems..."
After a moment, a smile formed on his lips, the result of irony realized.
"So... I'm to die... at the outlaw's hands..."
The world slowly faded into a blur, and as the blackness began to close in on his eyes, his voice whispered one final sound:
"Gene... Starwind..."
And then it was all black, and Ron McDougal became still forever... kneeling in the grass, with a gun clutched in one hand and his wound in the other.
Gene allowed himself a smile before collapsing to the ground.
****************
...*takes a deep breath* That... was painful. Please, please, PLEASE review this chapter before going on to the next one... I spent a lot of time here, and I wanna know what you liked, what you didn't, if it sucked, rocked, whatever. PLEASE. And feel free to review the next chapter too...
NOTE: this is *not* the Sailor Moon reality, and besides, I don't like the whole "the power of love is able to heal physical wounds" cliché at all. So don't even THINK about it.
SECOND NOTE: I like SM, so don't hate me for not liking it, because it's not true.
... *blinks* ...sales pitch time! OH NO, WILL GENE BE OKAY?! KEEP READING TO FIND OUT IF HE CAN SURVIVE THIS NEW BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL!!!
