"Oh this is too funny. It's even better then I had planned," Knives said with a laugh.
"He shot her," Legato said as he and Wolfwood stared at them.
"No…. Rem, No!" Vash yelled as he crawled over to Rem, who lay only a few feet away.
"Vash," Rem said softly as Vash leaned over her. "I'm sorry, Vash," Rem said begging to cry.
"He shot her, he killed her," Legato said with an amused look on his cold face.
"No, he didn't mean to," Wolfwood said as they continued to watch. He didn't want Legato's taunting to get to Vash. If it did, he wasn't sure what would happen. Would Vash just snap and kill them all? Or would he be consumed by grief and easily killed?
"Who cares wither he did or not? He still shot her," Legato replied, planning his mind games with Vas yet again. His goal was to get Vash to believe he killed Rem intentionally.
"Hey, he didn't kill her. She's still alive and she'll be fine, you'll see," Wolfwood said and ran over to Vash and Rem. Dragging his leg behind him, almost tripping but catching himself before he did.
"Wolfwood, I shot her… I shot Rem," Vash said still in shock.
"She'll be fine. It's ok Vash," Wolfwood replied trying to comfort them.
"Vash, I'm sorry," Rem said again.
"No Rem, you shouldn't be sorry, I'm the ones who's sorry. I shot you."
"No, not about that," Rem said quietly.
"What?" Vash asked.
"I'm sorry, Vash. I left you; I left you and Knives all alone."
"Don't worry about that. I don't care, Rem. You're here now and that's what's important," Vash said as he held Rem in his arms. Her blood making his red coat appear a dark red. It was no longer bright and vibrate, but dull and gloomy.
"Vash, we need to get a doctor and quick," Wolfwood said as he looked at all the blood that was coming from Rem's chest.
"I don't want to leave," Vash said.
"It's ok, Vash. Go I'll still be here I'll be waiting for you," Rem said.
"But I want to stay. I don't want to go. I love you Rem," Vash said he too was now in tears.
"Oh wait dammit. You can't go. You're about as bad as she is and there is no way I'm leaving you two alone with Knives and Legato here," Wolfwood said not knowing what to do now.
"Wolfwood, please go get a doctor. Please, we have to save Rem," Vash said and looked up at Wolfwood.
"I'm not leaving. They'll kill you while I'm gone," Wolfwood replied. How could one bullet do so much damage? he asked himself as he looked at Rem's wound.
"You're smarter than I thought, Wolfwood," Knives said. "It's a shame really. If I would of known you could have fought like that I would of made better use of you."
"What?" Vash asked and looked at Wolfwood. "You're on their side?" he asked.
"No, I'm not" Wolfwood replied.
"Liar" Knives replied. He wanted to see the look on Vash's face when he found out he had just shot Rem and then come to find that his best friend is on the enemies' side.
"Wolfwood?" Vash asked. He wanted to know the truth. He wasn't sure how he would react, but he wanted to know.
"I used to be, but that was before I met you" Wolfwood replied.
"Wolfwood, why didn't you tell me?" Vash asked still holding Rem.
"Because I didn't want you to know," Wolfwood replied.
"But why not?" Vash asked.
"Because I just didn't, ok?" Wolfwood said.
Wolfwood..." Vash said trying to decide wither he should be angry or not. Anger was beginning to show on his face.
"Vash…" Rem said weakly.
"Yes, what's wrong, Rem?" Vash asked as concern rushed over his face.
"Please, don't do this, Vash. Don't hate Wolfwood. I think I know why he didn't say anything to you. Because he was afraid. He was afraid that if you knew the truth, if you knew who he really was, then you'd reject him. That you'd hate him. Please don't hate him, Vash. He only did it because he's your friend."
"I see," Vash said. When he thought about it the way Rem did, all his anger was gone. Wolfwood really was his friend wither he was on the other side or not, "Wolfwood, please go get a doctor. If you don't Rem will die," Vash said.
"This is so great. I wish I had my camera," Knives said and continued to laugh.
"Knives, how could you laugh? She loved you too," Vash said as he held Rem. "She is getting very cold, Wolfwood, please hurry."
"But Vash, they'll kill you and finish off Rem," Wolfwood said.
"No, we won't," Knives said with a smile, "We'd let Rem die, yes. We'd take her away from Vash, but we'd beat her to death while Vash watched then we would kill him as well."
"How could you," Wolfwood said angrily.
"I don't care."
"Huh? Rem? Rem, please. Please don't talk. You have to save your strength," Vash said as he started down at Rem who could barley keep her eyes open.
This is crazy. She'll kill herself if she doesn't calm down, Wolfwood thought to himself as he started into Rem's brown eyes, She's more than have dead, but her eyes, such a strong look of determination in her eyes.
"Rem, please be still," Vash said as Rem tried to get up.
"Let me go, Vash," Rem said as she pushed Vash's arms away and stood up as straight as she could. "Do it then, Knives. I will let you kill me, but you have to let Vash and Wolfwood go in return."
"Rem, no!" Vash yelled.
"Leave me alone, Vash. I have to do this," Rem said.
"Rem, this is a complete waste of your life. Even if they let us go and kill you they could always kill us after you're dead," Wolfwood said as he stared at Rem. Her white shirt was torn where the bullet had entered and a dark red had engulfed most of her shirt. Her breathing was very heavy, the bullet had probably entered her lung and blood was filling it right at that very moment.
"I don't believe that," Rem replied and looked at Knives.
"She is right, Wolfwood. My word is my word. But that doesn't mean I won't try and kill them later on," Knives said.
"Vash, if you're healed could you fight Knives?" Rem asked.
"Yes but…." Vash began as he sat on the ground and looked up at Rem. He had that same look he had when he was a little boy, innocent and seeking guidance.
"Then I'll do it, I'll die," Rem said.
"Rem, no you can't be serious," Wolfwood said as Rem walked over toward Legato and Knives. Her walk was abnormal from loss of blood. She stumbled a few times and couldn't walk in a straight line.
"I am dead serious," Rem said and stopped in front of Knives.
"Delightful," Knives said with an evil smile.
"Rem… no…" Vash said and tried to get up and go after her.
"No, Vash, there's no way I'm letting you kill yourself:" Wolfwood said and held him back.
"But Wolfwood, I have to help her, let me go!" Vash yelled as tears started running down his face.
"I don't like it either, but this is her choice," Wolfwood replied.
"But Wolfwood, she doesn't have to make this choice!" Vash yelled.
"She doesn't, but she did," Wolfwood said as Legato and Knives started to beat Rem, knocking her to the ground and pushing her face down in the sand.
"Rem no," Vash said again, "Let me go, Wolfwood!"
"I can't," Wolfwood replied.
"Why not, it's not too late yet. We can still save her," Vash said as he watched in horror at what they were doing to her.
"No," Wolfwood replied, "We can't save her."
"But why?" Vash asked.
"Because she saved us," Wolfwood replied sadly, "She is doing this for us, Vash. She doesn't have to but, she is and do you know why? It's because she loves you so much."
"What does that have to do with her dying?" Vash asked as Wolfwood held him on the ground.
"A lot, she loved you so much she came and found you and is now dying for you. You thought you had to save her. Well, she had to show you how much she loved you, Needle Noggin. She is showing you that love with her own life. So you see, this is her choice. We can't stop her, even if we saved her today Knives and Legato would be back tomorrow and we still won't be healed enough to protect her. She knows this, Vash. That's why she's doing this. She doesn't want you to go through the pain everyday."
"What pain? The pain of being shot? I don't care about that," Vash replied as Rem let out a little scream. She was doing her best not to scream. She knew it hurt Vash, but Legato had kicked her in her wound and the pain was unbearable, she couldn't help it.
"No not that, something much worse. The pain of knowing she will never be safe, and the pain she has of knowing you will never be happy. All you'll do is worry about her. We all know it's true. She wants you to live your life happy not worry. So you see we have to let this happen."
"Vash…" Rem said quietly as she lie on the ground tears streaming down her face from the pain.
"Rem!" Vash yelled again.
"Vash, please, Wolfwood speaks the truth. You must understand this. It has to be this way. It's the only way to save you."
"But Rem…" Vash said.
"No buts, Vash. Please don't worry about me. I'll be ok. I'm going to the land of the angel's. I'm going to Heaven, Vash. I'll be fine there and I'll get to see Alex again. Please don't be sad for me. I want you to be happy."
"But Rem, I don't want you to die," Vash said.
"Vash, let me tell you something," Rem said as Knives stopped beating Rem for the moment so he could hear what she had to say. "When SEEDS blew up, there where some men there. They had woken up somehow. They where so bright I could hardly see their faces. They told me I had to live, because there where two boys that needed my help. They would need me or they would both be swallowed up, one by death and the other by darkness. They said I had to live because I had to save them. Their faces were so bright I could hardly see them. They put me in an escapes pod then just vanished. I had thought they had run back to the control panel and died when the ship blew up, but I have given this a lot of thought these past few days. I don't think they were men at all. There is no possible way they could have woken up and their faces were so bright. I started to think; maybe they didn't die on SEEDS maybe when they vanished. They didn't run back to the control room. That they had made sure I was safe and then returned to the land, Heaven. That they knew my time wasn't over yet. That they knew I had to be here to protect you."
"That's the biggest load of lies I've ever heard, its crazy. This wench is crazier than I thought," Knives said with a laugh.
"Rem, why do you think they were angels?" Vash asked.
"Because the one that carried me to the pods. He looked just like Alex; he even smiled and sounded like him. He wanted me to be here to save you," Rem said.
"That's it, I've heard enough!" Knives yelled and pulled out a gun and pointed it at Rem.
"No don't!" Vash yelled at Knives.
"Rem, what did you mean by," if I wasn't here one would be swallowed by death and the other darkness"?" Wolfwood asked.
"That Vash would die and with Vash gone there'd be no one to save Knives," Rem replied as loud as she could. She couldn't talk loud because she was so weak.
"Save him from what?" Legato asked.
"From himself," Rem replied as Knives put the gun by her head.
"Shut up!" Knives yelled angrily.
"Vash please, please remember killing is wrong. That no one has the right to kill another. Please save Knives, please I beg you," Rem said as tears fell down her cheeks even faster than before.
"The only one who needs saving is you!" Knives yelled.
"No!' Vash yelled as Knives pulled the trigger.
"Rem…" Wolfwood said sadly as he stared at Rem's lifeless body that lay just 20 feet away.
"Rem, no…" Vash said and Wolfwood let him go. "Rem, Rem!" he yelled as he held Rem's body in his arms.
"Sir, do you want me to finish them?" Legato asked.
"No, I can't do this now, I have to go. Come on," Knives said as he walked away.
"Yes, Sir," Legato replied and gave Wolfwood a cold stare. "This isn't the end you know."
"Whose knows, on one knows when our time is over," Wolfwood replied as he watched Legato use his powers to teleport himself and Knives to a different location.
"Wolfwood?" Vash said sadly.
"Yeah?" Wolfwood asked.
"Do you think what Rem said about the angels is true?" Vash asked as he lied her down.
"Yeah, I do," Wolfwood said as he stood over Rem. "I believe angels saved her that day and I also believe the same angel just took her off to Heaven. I also think that people like Rem aren't supposed to be here for along period of time. People like Rem aren't angels and they aren't normal people. They are visitors from Heaven."
"Visitors?" Vash asked.
"Yes," Wolfwood replied, "They are only here for a short time. They do what they were meant to do, such as Rem saving you, and then they go back to Heaven. Visitors like Rem, it hurts so much to let them go, but you're so glad they came."
"But why didn't the angels save her like they did back then, on SEEDS?" Vash asked.
"Because her mission was done and it was time for her to go back," Wolfwood replied.
"Is that why the angels didn't help her?" Vash asked.
"Well they did help her. They saved her from the pain; they took her away from this world and back to Heaven. That's why you should cherish all the people you meet, especially people like Rem. Because you never know when their job will be done and the visits over and they go back to Heaven."
"I see," Vash replied as he stared down at Rem.
"Yup, no one knows when they're going to die, no one but the angels, and like Rem they'll help you every step of the way," Wolfwood said as Vash stared down at Rem.
"Where are you going?" Vash yelled to Wolfwood who was already a few hundred feet away.
"I'm going to live, finish my journey because you never know when your life is completely finished and the angels come to take you up to Heaven. But first I'm going to get a doctor."
"Yeah, we have to live our lives to the fullest and be as happy when we can be!" Vash yelled then looked back down at Rem, I will live my life to the fullest, but I can't wait for that day when the angel's come and take me away. I won't ever forget you, Rem. I'll remember you and I'll remember all that you taught me. I'll be as happy as I can be until the day the angel's come down and take me away. Take me back to you. Goodbye for now, Rem. It might be awhile, but I'll see you again and don't worry as long as we're happy it won't seem like that long at all. And it's just as Wolfwood said about the visitors from Heaven. It did hurt to see you go, but I am so glad you came… Vash said to himself and followed Wolfwood, ready to complete his journey.