Title: Extirpation

Author: snowangel

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

A/N: This story just seemed to come up out of nowhere, and has taken its course, this is an angsty, darker, post-telling fic, just so y'all are warned. I hope y'all like it! The song is Bring Me To Life, by Evanescence, I do not own it.

Extirpation: 1.To destroy totally; exterminate

A thick humidity clung to the air, its presence seeming to suffocate the earth as she stood on the bridge, her palms sweaty, her deep brown eyes staring into the darkness. She glanced down at the dark swirling waters far beneath her, the sound of rushing water filled the night.

She was acutely aware of everything, her senses heightened, she felt the warm wind against her face, could taste the salt of her tears that had dripped down her face. The sounds of traffic flooded her ears, as she breathed in deeply, and released a quivering breath. Her chest rose and fell with an uneven cadence as she clenched her hands into fists while shutting her eyes tight. She took one step closer, not daring to peer down at the tumultuous waters.

She let out another breath and laughed briefly. This is the part of the movie where the handsome man comes running to her, begging her not to jump while professing his undying love for her. Then he would help her over the railing and grasp her tightly against his body while she collapsed into tears. He'd kiss her, and they'd live happily ever after.  But it was no movie. There was no happily ever after.

She had always imagined what her life would be like when she grew up. She'd be independent, yet loving, get married, and have a couple of kids. Funny how this was never in the picture. 'How the hell did I end up here?'

It had been a month. A month since she had woken up in Hong Kong. A month since she discovered she had lost two years of her life. A month since she had found that the man she loved was married to another woman. A month since her life turned upside down.

She didn't know how to feel at first. She was so confused and felt more alone than she had ever felt in her whole life. She shut her eyes as the conversation played out in her head like a movie. Ironic how everyone was ecstatic to find out she was alive, but now she only wished she was dead.

 The truth was she didn't know how to react, so she became numb.

***Flashback***

She awoke to find him staring at her through the glass. She sat up, wondering how long he had been standing there.  She had finally fallen asleep after the doctors had given her a sedative after all the tests. She hadn't spoken to him since he that night. Since he had betrayed her. Funny how words can be so destructive. 'Syd, I'm married.' That had been a week ago.

Will, her father, Marshal and Dixon had been elated to see her. She was still in too much of a shock to process the events; she only played along, her tumultuous emotions tugging at her in countless directions.  Then the realization finally hit her. She had been robbed. Robbed of her life, her love, her spirit. She felt incredibly empty, as one of the worst feelings in the word is one of uselessness. Life had not ceased when she had disappeared, but seemed to have moved at a faster pace, she hadn't spoken for four days. She refused to eat, only pacing wildly in her cell.

She slid off the cot, tentatively stepping forward. She made no move to speak, her once dangerous anger towards him now replaced by a biting feeling of betrayal. A sudden fear ran through her body at the sight of him, with his piercing green eyes that didn't stray from her. What was once her rock was now her fear. He had hurt her so much. Her heart pounded in her chest as she finally met his eyes with her own.

She pursed her lips she heard him speak her name, "Sydney."

How can you see into my eyes
Like open doors
Leading you down into my core
Where I've become so numb?
Without a soul;
My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold,
Until you find it there and lead it back home.

Wake me up inside.
Wake me up inside.

            She said nothing, so weak inside. The only way she remain strong was her silence, and she had to be strong. She felt naked under his insistent gaze. She waited for him to speak again, she waited for him to break down, for him to confess to his undying love for her. But he didn't.

            He cleared his throat, his eyes still studying her. She shifted nervously and stared at the cement floor. "I just came to tell you that I'm leaving." He spoke calmly.

Call my name and save me from the dark.
Bid my blood to run.
Before I come undone.
Save me from the nothing I've become.
Now that I know what I'm without
you can't just leave me.
Breathe into me and make me real.

 She needed him to break down, for her own sanity, she needed him to break her out of this nightmare. But he didn't.

"I just thought you should know." He spoke again, taking in her appearance. She looked tired, haggard, she was too skinny-he had heard she wasn't eating. Her pale skin reflected a ghostly glow from the florescent lights overhead.  She looked up at him again, begging him with her eyes to stay.

I've been living a lie

There's nothing inside.
 
Frozen inside without your touch,
without your love, darling.
Only you are the life among the dead.


            "Vaughn," She started carefully, she formed words in her mind but nothing came out. She managed to look him square in the eye when she finally spoke timidly, "Where are you going?"

All of this sight
I can't believe I couldn't see
Kept in the dark
but you were there in front of me
I've been sleeping a 1000 years it seems.
I've got to open my eyes to everything.


Without a thought
Without a voice
Without a soul


Don't let me die here

There must be something more.
Bring me to life.


            He shied away from her gaze for the first time that day. He stared at the zigzagging pattern of bricks on the wall of the cell. "Syd," He spoke, turning back to her, "I have to go home."

He was leaving her. She knew when she saw the wedding band that he'd already left her, but now he was physically leaving. She was breaking. She needed him to save her. Why couldn't he see that?

She held her breath as she felt tears forming behind her eyes. She swallowed, unable to break her eyes away from his. She simply nodded in acknowledgement. He turned away, and tears spilled over her eyes, dropping to the floor with a tiny splatter. She collapsed to the floor, her tears ceasing, as she no longer let herself feel pain.

She was released later that day to go home. Wherever that was.

***Present***

She swallowed and pulled herself up straight. A million thoughts raced through her mind as suddenly everything became still.

No longer could she hear the sounds of the traffic, or the crashing tides beneath her, only the deep and rapid pounding of her heart. She couldn't feel the warm breeze against her tear-streaked face; she only felt her hot blood coursing through her veins. She couldn't taste the salt in her mouth, she could only taste fear.

Her thoughts crowded into her head, so many of them, causing her confusion. She just wanted to escape all of it. She couldn't handle it anymore.  She felt disconnected from her body as she took the last step forward and felt a thrill surge through her as her body plunged into a dark abyss. 

TBC……