Chapter Eight: Decisions and Final Encounters
The next day, Meryl found herself watching as Vash prepared to leave. Beside him the whole way were the twins. They were dressed in their identical red coats, now repaired from the damage the Angel Arms had done on them eleven days before.
"So, you're really going." Meryl said, as the trio walked out of the house they had been staying in.
"Yeah." Vash said, quietly.
"Don't worry, Mama, we'll be back." Lee said, then turned and hugged his mother, burying his face in her clothing and breathing deeply.
"Oh Lee, you and your brother have grown up so fast! Be careful out there, and obey your father!" Meryl said, as tears came to her eyes.
"We will, Mama." Grant said, as he joined in the hug. Then they reluctantly let go of her and returned to their father's side.
"Vash, you be careful, too. I want you to return and be a true father to your sons." Meryl said, trying to sound stern despite her tears.
"I will. When I return, I will fulfill my role as father to Lee and Grant………….and as a husband to you." Vash said, smiling gently when he saw Meryl's look of surprise, and held her close when she embraced him.
"I promise I will return. But I must go now, if I am going to face Knives and get the peace we want." Vash said, as he gently broke the embrace, placing a kiss on Meryl's forehead as he went.
"Hey, Tongari, take this with you." Wolfwood said, as he handed the Cross Punisher to Vash.
"But what will you use if you all are attacked?" Vash asked, as Wolfwood gave him a rather impatient look.
"We'll manage. Besides, it's not like the girls are unarmed." Wolfwood said, as Milly hefted her huge gun and Meryl checked her coat for her derringers.
"And I can still handle a gun." Legato added, as he leaned against the doorway.
"As though we'd actually trust you with one." Wolfwood said, dryly, as he and Legato exchanged dirty looks again. Vash, Meryl, the twins, and Milly rolled their eyes.
"Let's just hope you two aren't related." Vash muttered, then picked up the Cross Punisher, his eyes widening with surprise when he felt how heavy it was.
"It's so heavy!" Vash commented, voicing his surprise.
"That's because it's filled with mercy!" Milly said, before Wolfwood could say anything. It took Vash a few moments to think of what to say next.
"Thanks, Wolfwood. Everyone. I guess we'd better get going. See ya later." Vash said, as he ushered the twins away, carrying the Cross Punisher as he went. When they were a good distance away from the town, Lee looked up at his father, his expression questioning.
"Dad, where was Orchid? Why didn't she come out to say goodbye?" Lee asked, curiously.
"I don't know. I didn't see her anywhere inside the house before we left. I wonder where she is?" Vash mused, as the three of them walked along, the desert wind blowing their long coats about as they moved.
"Maybe she went to the store. She'd mentioned going to get some groceries last night." Grant suggested.
"That could be it. Now, save your strength, it's a long walk to where Knives is. And cover your mouths so you don't end up with sand in them." Vash said, watching proudly as his sons obeyed and covered their noses and mouths. Little did they realize that they had obtained a shadow…………….
Knives looked up when he sensed his brother's presence, and those of the twins. To his surprise, he found himself wondering what the twins' personalities were like; were they anything like him and Vash? Or were they completely different?
"Well, I guess I will find out when they get here." Knives thought, as he tried to sit patiently at his verandah table and sip his wine. As the sun climbed in the sky, he could almost imagine the twins; one with his creamy blond hair and sapphire eyes, and the other with Vash's golden hair and aquamarine eyes, and both with the 'needle-noggin' hairstyles.
"Quite a pair they must look! I can hardly wait to meet them!" Knives thought, despite himself, despite the hatred he had for their human blood. As the sun started to sink, he found himself looking out across the desert, eagerly awaiting the arrival of his long estranged brother, and the nephews he'd never met.
Vash paused for a moment to allow the boys a much needed sip of water, and turned just in time to catch sight of someone else on one side of them.
"Who're you? Why are you following us?" Vash asked, feeling for his gun, as the robed figure walked up to them. To his and the twins shock, it was Orchid!
"Orchid, what're you doin' out here?! I thought you had stayed in town to do some grocery shopping!" Vash yelped, voicing his surprise, as well as that of Grant and Lee.
"I had to follow you, Vash. I thought I might be able to heal Knives! There must be a way to resolve the fighting between you without bloodshed! And without involving the twins!" Orchid said, desperately. Vash gave her a grim look.
"Orchid, I know you mean well, but this is my fight. If anything, I will try to keep the twins out of it, but, knowing them, they won't stay out of it." Vash said, calmly, and with a sternness neither of the twins had ever heard before.
"You're right about that, Dad." Grant said, grimly, determined to see it through, even though the outcome was still uncertain.
"Still, I want to help you. I'm like you, thus, this is also my fight. I may not be able to handle a weapon, but I can still do something." Orchid said, stubbornly. Vash sighed and put a hand to his face in exasperation.
"Fine, then, Orchid. Come on." Vash said, finally relenting to the stubborn female Plant. Orchid smiled, and joined them in their silent march to where destiny waited.
Knives smiled when he saw Vash emerge from the heat haze with two boys on either side of him, his eyes widening in surprise when he saw a woman walking alongside them. When they were within five feet of him, they stopped and stood gazing at him.
"Well, it looks like you've had fun living as a human." Knives said, as he eyed the twins with some distaste. Both of them were wearing red coats, identical to the one their father wore, and they were gazing back at him with unreadable expressions on their faces, as though they didn't know what to think of him. Then one stepped forward, stopped when he was an even distance between him and Vash, and looked back at his brother. He looked from him to the cream-haired twin, and back again, several times, before said twin spoke up.
"Don't say it, Grant. Don't even think it." The cream-haired twin muttered, with a deadpan expression on his face as he said that.
"But he does look an awful lot like you, Lee." Grant replied, getting a look of chagrin from his brother.
"At least they have personality. Unlike humans." Knives said, sensing when some anger radiated from his brother.
"Humans have personality too, you just don't know where to look." Lee said, matter-of-factly, bravely looking his blood-uncle in the eye when rage boiled up into Knives' eyes.
"Humans are animals that need to be eradicated!" Knives snarled, whipping out his gun and aiming it at Lee.
"No you don't!" Vash shouted, as he leaped in front of his son, his gun aimed at Knives, determined to protect his children. Within seconds, a fight for survival had begun. Filled with the daring that ten-year-olds are said to have, both Lee and Grant taunted the enraged Knives as they shot at him, seemingly from all sides.
"Nyah, nyah! Can't hit a Thomas in the butt!" Lee chortled, as he ducked behind some rocks at the far end of Knives' self-made oasis.
"Vash, your brats are not worth having around! They are a stain on our kind! You know this to be true!" Knives ranted.
"I don't think so. You know why? They remind me of what we could have been, had I understood you better! They work together because they understand one another! I know because I have seen them do this! They saved Wolfwood's life because they worked together, and they freed Legato by working together as well!" Vash replied, from his shelter behind a rock. With a growl, Knives emptied his gun, gathered the bullets into his hand, and threw them. He then reloaded his gun and fired, making the thrown bullets explode over Vash's head. Grant watched helplessly as Knives used that moment to move in, and shot at Vash, in the same instant that Vash shot at him. From where Lee was, he could see the guns land together, and saw his father and Knives leap for the weapons, watching as a standoff ensued. Twice, Vash and Knives mirrored one another, panting heavily as they did so. But the standoff ended when a gunshot sounded, and Vash fell to the ground, clutching his right shoulder.
"Dad!" Lee and Grant yelped, forgetting to remain hidden and rushing to their father's side.
"No……………….go back…………………..he'll kill you!" Vash gasped, as Lee struggled to stanch the heavy bleeding with his hands.
"It's really amazing, Vash. They inherited your softness, that weakness Rem gave you." Knives said, coldly.
"How could you be so cruel? He's your brother!" Grant shouted, greatly disturbed by Knives' apparent lack of feeling.
"I know, child. I am merely punishing him for hurting me." Knives replied, patronizingly, as he aimed his black gun at Vash.
"But that's crazy!" Lee cried, eyes widening when he saw Knives' gun and arm begin to change.
"Grant!" Lee yelped. He got a nod of understanding from his twin, and they again clasped hands, determined to protect their wounded father. Now it was Knives' turn to be surprised, as he watched the twins arms meld into one, and form the Angel Arm gun without the use of a base gun.
"How could this be?! They are only half-Plant! They shouldn't be able to do this at all!" Knives thought, as he watched the energy pulsate around the twins.
"Never underestimate us, Knives. We're stronger than we look!" Grant telepathically said, as his young eyes narrowed in determination.
"We're stronger than you are! We're gonna kick your butt because we know how to work together! And we're stronger because of the people we've had around us; Aunt Milly, Mama, Dad, Uncle Nick, Orchid, and Peter! We're gonna protect them from you, no matter what!" Lee said, as the Angel Arm evolved into a mightier weapon than it had been before; glistening white with a wing on each twin's back. Seconds later, the whole area was engulfed in energy; one blast from Knives, and the other from the twins. When the dust had settled, they stood in a crater where the oasis had been; both twins were unconscious from having used so much energy, and now rested side by side. Orchid hovered nearby, worried about the twins, but even more worried about Vash, who now stood in front of the twins, ready for a fight, since his Angel Arm was now engaged.
"They canceled me out. Very impressive display, for children so young." Knives commented, then leveled his Angel Arm at Vash.
"You know you're not a human; you're a Plant." Knives telepathically said, coldly.
"I know." Vash replied, in kind.
"You'll lose everything, even those twins." Knives said.
"I think not." Vash said, determinedly.
"You're wrong." Knives stated, referring to Vash's way of life.
"I won't be wrong a second time." Vash replied, as they both fired their guns. Orchid covered the twins as the vortex of power whirled around them, determined to protect them, even if it meant giving up her own life. Luckily for her, that option never comes, for, almost as soon as the vortex had come upon them, it was gone, leaving Vash and Knives standing in front of one another, panting in exhaustion.
"Wha' happened? Orchid, did we miss anything?" Lee asked, sleepily.
"It looks like the fight is over." Orchid said, as she, Lee and Grant looked over at the two men. But Orchid was wrong, for, almost as soon as Vash had collapsed to his knees in exhaustion, Knives refilled his gun and fired, grazing both of Vash's shoulders and his thigh. With a gasp, Vash fell forward. Knives smiled wickedly, walked forward, kicked Vash in the stomach, and picked up Vash's gun. Without a thought, Knives started transforming both of his arms, ignoring the twins cries and pleas for him to stop.
"Vash! The Cross Punisher! Use it!" Orchid shouted, reminding Vash of the one weapon he had left in his arsenal. With a wince, Vash reached into the sand beside him, brought out Wolfwood's Cross Punisher, and fired at the Angel Arms. Knives cried out as bullets imbedded themselves into the Angel Arms, the pain forcing him to transform the arms back into their normal forms. When this had happened, Knives had let go of both guns, and Vash rushed forward, reclaimed his silver gun, reloaded, and fired. He hit Knives in both shoulders and thighs, and even once in the stomach. Silence descended onto the scene as the twins and Orchid approached, coming close just in time to see Knives mouth something to Vash, then pass out from the pain.
"Is he……………..?" Lee asked, afraid that he'd just witnessed another death. Vash shook his head.
"He's still alive. But I think he understands now. Will you three help me with his wounds?" Vash asked. He got nods from all three. Within a few hours, they had bandaged Knives' wounds, then Orchid moved to his side again and placed both hands on his head.
"What're you doing, Orchid?" Vash asked, as the twins struggled to get his shoulder bandaged (it wasn't going very well).
"A little mental healing. He should be in a better frame of mind when he wakes up." Orchid said, as a glow appeared briefly around her, then faded.
"Ready to go?" Vash asked.
"Yeah. Let's go home, Dad." Grant said, sounding like he was looking forward to seeing his mother again. Without another word, Vash stood, slung Knives over his shoulder, then started walking, with his sons and Orchid at his side.
And when I pass by, don't lead me astray. Don't try to stop me, don't stand in my way. I'm bound for the hills, where cool waters flow. When this road finally takes me home.