ACHILLES' HEEL

Warning: Violence, Angst galore etc.

NB: I'm not one for writing SPC humour. I like to find the serious sides of their characters and expose them to the world. Lol. Also, don't expect each chapter to be too long.

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Chapter One: Speedy Cerviche

"Where am I?"

The words seemed to echo on forever. Speedy blinked as he took in his surroundings. It looked like Little Tokyo, but not the Little Tokyo he remembered. Not the colourful, happy city that was always bubbling over with life. This Little Tokyo echoed with the silence of death and all the colours was gone, replaced with differing shades of grey.

Speedy took a step forward, morbidly curious to see more of the lifeless world that was spread out before his eyes. He already hated what he was seeing and it only became more and more horrific as he continued. The streets of Little Tokyo were thick with the lifeless bodies of its inhabitants. A horrible, tight knot began to form in Speedy's stomach and a haunting, whispery voice began to fill his mind with thoughts that, horrible as they were, Speedy knew to be true.

You know, they're all dead because of you. It's *all* because of you. They had to die because, this time, you did the unthinkable. You failed Little Tokyo and because of your failure, they died at the hands of the Ninja Crows.

"Mister! Mister! Help me!"

A sweet voice, like the tinkling of a tiny bell, broke the eerie, morbid silence. Speedy turned his head, and saw a small she-cat running towards him, her long brown hair trailing behind her in the breeze.

"Mister! Please help me! The mean old crows killed my Mummy and I can't find my Daddy! Will you please help me look for him, Mister? Please?" She was so tiny, she barely came up to his waist. She couldn't have been any older than five.

"Sure, I'll help you, sweetie." Speedy smiled as he put a hand on the shoulder of the little girl, but inside, he could feel his heart and mind being torn apart as the voice continued to mock him.

Don't be foolish, Speedy. How can you help this little girl? Her Daddy's probably dead too, and all because of you. You're no help to anybody, and you know that. Why should you even still be alive if you're so useless? You couldn't even stop that stupid robot today, yet Guido took it down in one go. What kind of heroic leader are you supposed to be if even your student is capable of feats that you aren't? Useless, useless, USELESS!!!

"STOP IT! GET OUT OF MY HEAD! GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT!!!" He screamed as a flash of white-hot fury took over his body and mind. He reached for his Ginzu sword, his two swords in their movements with the intentions of creating a blast of energy to end his own life. He must have done something wrong in his motions, because the blast never went near him. Instead, the energy hit the little girl with full-force, sending her flying through the air before she hit the ground on her back, several feet away.

"No. Oh God, no!" Speedy's voice was barely above a whisper as he ran towards where the little girl lay. She was completely motionless and her brown eyes, which were beginning to cloud over in grey to match her surroundings, stared blankly through him, unblinking. He took her left wrist, hoping to feel the faint beat of a pulse underneath the fur and skin. It wasn't there.

His breathing became more and more erratic as each second passed by, then, without warning, Speedy collapsed onto his knees and began to shriek in a mixture of fury and terror…

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A jolt of shock ran through Speedy Cerviche as he sat up in bed, pyjama shirt sweat-soaked and clinging to him like a second skin. He kicked the blankets away and peeled off his shirt, needing the fresh air to fully revive and relax him once more. He doubted he would fall asleep again for awhile. This nightmare, while not frequent, always came to him when least expected. It was the worst nightmare of them all, after all, it exposed his weak spots, his greatest fears.

Speedy sighed as he left his bedroom to go downstairs to the parlour for a drink to calm his nerves.