Chapter Six: Struggles and Chances
It was early morning when they all again piled into the car and headed for the next town. Lee and Grant were marveling at their newfound height, and were pleased that they now looked to be the same age as Peter.
"Hey, Daddy, or should I say, Dad, can we get some doughnuts when we get to town?" Lee asked, his eyes sparkling with enthusiasm.
"Yeah, Dad, please?" Grant joined, getting a laugh from the rest of the group.
"Well, I don't see why not. What does your mother say?" Vash asked, as he drove (Wolfwood still had a little bit of a limp, so they had figured to keep him from driving for a little bit longer). The twins turned a pleading gaze to Meryl.
"All right, all right! I never could refuse that look!" Meryl said, getting a whoop from the twins for a response.
"But you always refused that look from me, Meryl!" Vash stated, with a whining tone in his voice.
"Well, I think it's pretty obvious why, Vash." Wolfwood said, with a smirk.
"Don't start with me, Wolfwood." Vash muttered, in mock anger. For the first time in a long time, Vash was clearly enjoying himself. The twins were awake, and more vibrant than ever, and feistier. When Vash had told the group about Legato and Knives, the twins had immediately jumped up and wanted to go after the men who had hurt their father.
"We'll make Knives wish his name was Spoons!" Lee said, as he smacked a fist into a palm, getting some sounds of surprise and some chuckles from the adults.
"Or Forks!" Grant added, getting a shaking of heads from everyone else.
"Feisty. They sure didn't get that from you, Tongari." Wolfwood said, with a smirk.
"Of course not! They got it from their mother!" Milly said, getting a deep red blush from Meryl as she said that. Vash had to keep himself from veering off the road for that remark.
"Milly!" Meryl yelped, turning around in the front seat to face her partner.
"Well, it's true!" Milly retorted, as the nearest town came into view.
"LR Town, straight ahead! Remember to get thirty double dollars worth of doughnuts, Mr. Vash!" Peter said, grinning at the thought of the pastries.
"Right, right. But save some for me, okay?" Vash asked, as he stopped and parked the car in front of an inn.
"Well, I'm going to go and take a look around. Care to come with me, Milly?" Wolfwood asked, winking at her as he said that. Milly beamed.
"Sure! See you all later!" Milly said, as she hopped out of the car and allowed Wolfwood to lead her away by the arm.
"Behave yourselves!" Meryl shouted, getting a look of chagrin from Wolfwood for a response.
"Don't worry, we will!" Milly replied, giggling when Wolfwood turned an exasperated look onto her.
"Where are they going?" Peter asked, curiously.
"That's for them to know. Come on, let's go take a look around. We need to get some new clothes anyway." Orchid said, as she ushered Peter into the nearest shop, leaving Vash, Meryl, and the twins standing near the car.
"I'll be right back. I'd promised to get those doughnuts for the boys." Vash said, as he was about to walk off.
"Wait, Vash." Meryl said, almost sounding stern.
"Huh……………?!" Vash trailed off when Meryl pulled him down to her level and kissed him on the lips.
"Eww! Mama! Dad! Gross!" Grant and Lee shouted, getting chuckles from their parents and a few bystanders for that.
"Wow…………………where'd you learn to do that?" Vash asked, dazedly. Meryl shrugged.
"I guess it's something that's learned on the spur of the moment." Meryl replied, with a playful grin, before releasing the gunman from her grasp.
"Sure seems that way……………I'll go and get those doughnuts." Vash said, looking as though he were walking on air all the way to the lady who was selling the pastries on the street corner. Unbeknownst to any of them, two sinister figures were watching the events unfold.
"It's almost sickening, watching them be so happy and content!" one grumbled, as he held a saxophone gently in his arms.
"I know. And those little half-breed brats are in the way as well. Yet, for some reason, Knives-sama wants them alive." The second said, as he watched the twins and their mother sit down and wait for Vash to return.
Flashback
A carriage pulled by two tired looking Thomases groans to a stop before a huge gate. Before it stands a man with a Cross Punisher, but it isn't Wolfwood. Silently, the two occupants of the carriage emerge, revealing that they were none other than Legato and a Gung-Ho Gun by the name of Midvalley the Hornfreak.
"That's good. Just the man I wanted to see. I'm sure you would be happy to know that Nicholas D. Wolfwood is alive and well." Legato said, coldly. The man with the Cross Punisher stiffens in surprise.
"You lie! I filled him with enough lead to have killed a small brigade! How could he have survived?!" the man asked, breathlessly.
"Two half-breed children used their powers to remove the bullets and heal the wounds. But that is not important. You're part in this is over, Chapel the Evergreen." Legato said, mentally twisting the other man into a painful position. Chapel screamed as he felt several vertebrae in his back shatter under the pressure, knowing that, even if he were released from this position, he would be paralyzed for life. While Legato was doing that, Midvalley was raising his saxophone to his lips; stopping when the gate opened. Legato bowed as a tall man with cream colored blond hair stepped towards them, his blue eyes lifeless and completely lacking in sanity.
"I would like to ask you, why have you come here? Isn't that worthless student of yours' still alive?" the man asked, with the same coldness as Legato.
"I thought there was no where else to go. I didn't know Wolfwood was still alive!" Chapel replied, painfully.
"That's strange. Animals usually run when they sense danger, yet your behavior has no meaning." The man, Knives, said, then turned to Legato.
"What news of Vash?" Knives asked, as an orb of darkness formed over Chapel.
"He has children, Knives-sama. A pair of twin sons." Legato answered, quietly. For a moment, something flickered behind Knives' eyes; a flash of something almost human.
"Twins? How could that be? Vash and I are the only ones of our kind on this world!" Knives mused, ignoring the final death cries of Chapel, and the shudder of revulsion from Midvalley in response.
"Their mother, regrettably, is human. They are half-breeds." Legato said, never once meeting his master's gaze. But this didn't spare him from his master's outrage.
"Human?! Vash had children with a human?! When did this happen? When?!" Knives roared, pinning Legato to the wall by his right shoulder with a spike of stone.
"Two years ago…………………….before the Fifth Moon incident, Knives-sama." Legato choked, the pain overwhelming, even for him, since he'd been caught off guard.
"Is there anything more you have to tell me?" Knives asked, his voice underlined with ice.
"They…………………..they have some sort of power. Healing power. But it seems that they can only use it when they are together." Legato said, as blood stained his white coat.
"Is that so? Then maybe they can be redeemed, after all. Bring them, and Vash, to me alive. Do what you want with the others." Knives said, as he turned his back on Legato and walked back into the place beyond the gate. When the gate had closed, Midvalley rushed over to Legato and pulled the stone spike out of the latter's shoulder.
"What do we do now? Wait for them to come to us?" Midvalley asked, as he put pressure on Legato's shoulder wound to stop the bleeding.
"It's about all we can do. They will be arriving in LR Town tomorrow afternoon. When they get there, all we'll have to do is wait for our chance to strike." Legato said, closing his eyes and setting his jaw when Midvalley removed what was left of the shoulderguard and the coat and wrapped some bandages firmly around the shoulder, arm, and chest.
"Yet, how do you intend to face Vash, with the way your shoulder is now? Even with your powers, you won't heal that fast! If anything, Vash actually will fight back, if his children are involved!" Midvalley reasoned. But he got no response from Legato, since his superior was already in a trance-like state, attempting to heal himself.
End Flashback
When Vash returned with the doughnuts, Milly and Wolfwood had already returned, both of them looking rather pleased with themselves.
"What's up?" Vash asked, knowing that there was something behind the smiles from both of them.
"Oh, we just stopped by the nearest church and said some vows, that's all." Wolfwood said, nonchalantly.
"You two got married?! Congratulations!" Vash said, looking, for once, genuinely happy for his friends. Milly smiled, still giddy from all that had happened.
"You could have at least invited us to the ceremony! Honestly!" Orchid said, in exasperation.
"I'm glad we missed it. At least we didn't see any more yucky kissing. Blech!" Lee commented, looking every bit as disgusted as he felt. Grant and Peter only shuddered; even imagining kissing was disgusting!
"That wasn't a very nice thing to say, Lee. Now you won't be getting any doughnuts." Vash said, as groans of protest rose from the three boys. Meryl smiled and shook her head; she felt happy for Milly and Wolfwood, but she also felt a little envious. She looked at Vash with longing as he eventually gave in to the boys pleas for the pastries, and wondered if they ever would have a life together. Then, suddenly, the entire town went silent.
"Vash, what's going on?" Meryl asked, as she gathered the twins in close to her.
"Someone's here." Vash muttered, as he handed Peter the bag of doughnuts and cautiously looked around. All around them, people were lying unconscious.
"What happened to them all?" Grant asked, as he stared at the fallen people.
"That, little one, is my doing." A voice said, coolly. Immediately, Wolfwood and Vash rushed for their weapons, returning with equal quickness to stand in front of their loved ones.
"Uncle Nick, who is that guy?" Lee asked, as he and Grant peered around the two men.
"Legato………….." Wolfwood and Vash muttered, their eyes hard and angry. This caused a shudder to travel down the spines of both twins.
"I have come for the twins. Knives-sama wants to see them." Legato said, fixing his unsettling gaze onto the two boys who were peeking out at him from around the men.
"Over my dead body." Vash growled, with a fierceness he didn't even know he had.
"As you wish. If you survive, meet me on that hill. I will be waiting for you there. And bring the twins." Legato said, as he turned and left, but not before Grant noticed something about him.
"Dad, his right shoulder, it had bloody bandages on it!" Grant whispered, as they all watched Legato leave.
"Grant's right. Knives must have kicked the dog." Wolfwood muttered, with some sarcasm laced into his voice.
"I almost feel sorry for him. Having to do the bidding of that evil man, even while he's hurt!" Milly said, with pity in her eyes for the retreating figure.
"He doesn't deserve much pity, Milly. He's ordered a lot of deaths over the years, without showing a single iota of remorse for any of them. He's a monster, plain and simple." Wolfwood said, as he eased up, and Vash did the same.
"That may be so, but Vash the Stampede is the same kind of monster, underneath!" another voice said, from behind them. They all turned to see another man standing there.
"Who're you?!" Vash asked, as he and Wolfwood changed positions.
"Allow me to introduce myself; I am Gung-Ho Gun Number Eleven: Midvalley the Hornfreak. I am the one with the best music. Let me play a song for you, Vash the Stampede!" the man said, his words causing a stir in the townsfolk.
"Vash the Stampede?! Run!" one man shouted, as the people began evacuating the town. When the dust settled, there were only Vash and his group, and Midvalley, standing in the street. With a smile, Midvalley raised the saxophone to his lips.
"Move!" Wolfwood shouted, as he shoved the rest of the group out of the way, before a blast of controlled air roared past them, hitting the ground where they had been standing.
"Damn!" Vash shouted, as he leaped to avoid another attack, and blocked one with his body when one was aimed at Meryl.
"Vash!" Meryl cried, in alarm, when Vash collapsed to one knee.
"I'm fine, Meryl. See if you can get to the car and get everyone out of here. I don't want to involve the twins or Wolfwood." Vash said, quietly, as a thin rivulet of blood slid down his face.
"But you're crazy! You can't face this guy alone!" Meryl argued, as Vash stopped yet another attack with his body, this one aimed at Orchid and Peter.
"Go………………….Get out of here! Now!" Vash ordered, wincing when Wolfwood fired a missile at Midvalley and cursed when it was stopped in midair.
"There's gotta be a way to stop him! But how?" Lee muttered, as he, his mother, 'aunt', Orchid, and Peter took shelter in a storm shelter (Wolfwood had refused to hide and was still fighting).
"Waitaminute! That instrument! Every time he attacked, he played some notes on it! He must be manipulatin' the air somehow!" Grant said, as the sounds of battle intensified.
"Then how do we get close enough to destroy that horn? He'll blast us if we get too close!" Lee said, knowingly.
"Then we'll have to sneak up on 'im! He's making too much noise to notice anything else!" Grant said, as he felt for his gun.
"This is crazy, but this time it's your idea. I'm not at fault this time." Lee muttered, as they looked towards the door, seeing that their mother was sitting against it, making sure that her children didn't escape this time. Before Lee could even ask, Grant led him to another door for the storm shelter, and sneaked out. They came upon the two men struggling to stand up, and they could see Midvalley standing with his back to them, gloating over what he was doing.
"We can't miss. We can't risk hitting him." Grant muttered, as he took aim. His brother did the same, getting into a kneeling position in front of his brother so that his aim was lower. With an unspoken signal, the twins fired their guns at the same time, making it sound like one shot. One bullet hit the mouthpiece of the saxophone, and the other hit the base of it. All Midvalley could do was stare in shock at his ruined saxophone while the twins rushed over and stood in front of the stunned Wolfwood and Vash, their eyes glinting with determination.
"I've never seen such a look in children's eyes before……………..these half-breeds are truly remarkable! So, just for them, I will play my song of death. It is my fate." Midvalley muttered, as he pressed a hidden button on the saxophone and revealed the hidden guns in the instrument. To the horror of the twins and Vash, the guns were facing Midvalley!
"No! Don't do it!" Vash cried, his words echoed by the twins. Midvalley sneered, and pressed the triggers. Time slowed to a crawl as the guns discharged into Midvalley's body, and it resumed normal pace when the body hit the ground.
"He………………….he killed himself…………………but why? Why?" Grant asked, his voice soft with shock, as his brother sobbed brokenly beside him.
"That's what happens to all Gung-Ho Guns that fail Knives. They are either killed by their own teammates, or they commit suicide. It's a cruel fate, but they see no other way out of it." Wolfwood muttered, solemnly.
"Is that what's gonna happen to Legato? Is Knives going to dispose of him too?" Lee asked, as he wiped the tears from his eyes.
"I don't know, but, knowing how my brother disrespects life, that might be the likely scenario. As much as I dislike Legato, I don't want to see him die." Vash said, as he painfully stood up and looked towards the hill.
"Dad, we're coming with you. You might need us up there." Grant said, determinedly.
"No, you two stay here and protect your mother." Vash argued, getting stubborn looks from his sons as a response.
"I don't think you're going to get out of that so easily, Vash." Wolfwood said, when he'd seen the twin looks of determination that were directed at the gunman.
"B-but, they can't………………." Vash started, but was cut off by Wolfwood shaking his head.
"Those two heard the conditions Legato set out for you earlier. If you don't bring the twins, you'll not only have to worry about what Legato might do to the townsfolk and those we care about, but you'll also have to worry about them sneaking off behind you." Wolfwood said, seriously.
"Will you be staying behind, Wolfwood?" Vash asked. Wolfwood nodded.
"Somebody's got to keep an eye on the girls and Peter. You three just be sure to come back." Wolfwood asked, with some concern for the twins' safety in his voice.
" We will." Vash said, then looked down at his sons; they had been forced to grow up so quickly, not just in a physical sense, but also in an emotional sense, as well. They now looked back at him with grim understanding in their eyes. Yet, besides all that, there was still the love of children towards their father in their eyes, and the hope that they would live quietly afterward.
"Let's go. Legato's waiting." Vash murmured, getting a nodded agreement from the twins. As they walked off, Wolfwood leaned on his Cross Punisher and watched, wondering if that would be the last he saw of Vash the Stampede and sons.
"The Humanoid Typhoon………………….and his Twin Tornadoes." Wolfwood thought, as he stuck a cigarette into his mouth and lit it, watching as the smoke wafted up and dissipated into the cool evening air.
Legato waited patiently for Vash on the hill. He winced when his shoulder protested against any movement, and felt the fluid warmth in the bandages, signaling that he was bleeding again. His face betrayed no emotion as he watched Vash and the twins' approach, but he arched an eyebrow when he saw how much Lee looked like Knives.
"How ironic it is that the gentler of the twins looks almost exactly like Knives-sama. Still, that can be remedied." Legato thought, then privately wondered why Knives would even bother to want the half-breed children in the first place.
"We're here, Legato." Vash said, his voice hard.
"Then I suppose this is it. The final confrontation. Children, were you ever told what the Fifth Moon incident was all about?" Legato asked, quietly.
"No, and it has nothing to do with us. It happened before we were born." Grant replied.
"Oh, but it has plenty to do with you. And it has everything to do with your father." Legato said, as he clenched his left fist. The twins jumped when the top of their father's gun popped off, and golden light emanated from it.
"W-what is that?!" the twins yelped, frightened by this development.
"The power your father possesses. The power that put the hole in the Fifth Moon." Legato said, as Vash's arm started transforming. Lee and Grant watched in horrified silence as the light changed their father's arm into a powerful weapon. All the while, Vash was screaming in pain. With great effort, he got it to change back into his arm again.
"Dad!" Grant yelped, when Vash had reversed the transformation and fallen to his knees from the effort.
" I'm all right………………Damn………………it almost happened again." Vash muttered, breathlessly. Lee glared balefully at Legato.
"How could you do that?! How did you control his arm?!" Lee asked, angrily.
"Hmph. Simple child. It is because I have your father's left arm. That is what connects me to him." Legato said, with a sinister sneer. Both children froze, once again having horror and disbelief settle onto their features.
"So that's what happened to his arm! You monster!" Grant shouted, as he fired a shot at Legato. Legato dodged the shot easily, and started walking slowly towards them.
"We've gotta do something! We can't let him take us!" Lee telepathically said.
"I know. But how can we stop him? He'll just dodge our shots!" Grant replied, as he nervously eyed the approaching leader of the Gung-Ho Guns.
"Grant, we've gotta see if we can use our power again! It's our only hope!" Lee said, as they started to back up. When they had gone back as far as they could, Lee and Grant hatched their last ditch plan. They stood their ground, and Lee held out a clenched left fist, with which Grant covered it with his right hand. Then they closed their eyes and concentrated. Vash watched in amazement and horror as the light that had shown over his arm suddenly emerged over his sons' arms! Both twins gritted their teeth as their arms melded into one and formed the gun they had seen on their father's arm.
"No! Don't use it! You won't be able to control its power!" Vash cried, but his sons' couldn't hear him, the roar of the power was so great. Legato watched as the light grew in the gun, and his eyes widened when they fired it. The powerful blast ripped through the air, and disintegrated Legato's left arm. Legato fell back with a gasp, landing on his right shoulder in the process. Now that the arm was gone, Legato had no control over the pain, and he passed out from it. With much effort, the twins brought down the power levels on their own, and their arms separated afterwards. Vash was stunned; the twins had controlled their power when he couldn't!
"Unbelievable…………………….Absolutely unbelievable!" Vash muttered, as his sons turned and grinned tiredly at him.
"Sorry about your arm, Dad." Lee said, looking a little guilty about destroying it.
"That's all right. I don't miss it. I'm glad you two are safe." Vash murmured, as he hugged the twins, relieved that the fight had ended without death.
"We're glad too, Dad." Grant said, then looked wonderingly at Legato.
"What're we going to do with him? Knives'll probably kill him if we leave him here." Lee said. Vash sighed and shook his head; they were his sons, all right.
"Let's get him back into town. He'll be in a world of hurt when he wakes up." Vash said, as he picked up the unconscious assassin and carried him back to town, with the twins trailing behind him as he did so.
Not so far away, Knives could sense when the connection between himself and Legato was severed. Instead of feeling sorrow, he merely sneered.
"Fool. May he rot in oblivion. Vash, I will be waiting. Come to me, and bring my nephews with you." Knives thought, with a wicked grin, as he gazed down on the desert below him with insanity in his eyes.