Disclaimer: I don't own any of the J&D characters. I do own Ezra, Ardal and any other characters that may come in later chapters.
Thanks to Reviewers:
Hellmouth2: Ezra has always been a name I've liked, mostly because it's unusual and not used all that often.
Krin: 'Note to self: Quit writing things in my A/R's that I don't put in my stories.' Thank you much for the review. ::Glomps you::
Snowecat: Most if not all of my OC's are male, my female OC's just don't turn out so well and they get tossed back into my pile of half-baked ideas to perhaps one day get a second chance at a fan fic or renamed and made into a male character (the latter usually being the case.)
YunieYuna: Thanks for reviewing ::huggles::
Ezra: Ya know if you guys keep giving her praise like that, her head may explode. 'Thinks for a moment and decides that that may not be a bad thing.' On second thought keep it up; it'll be funny when it happens. ::snickers::
Krimzon: ::rolls eyes:: Oh God, I've created a monster.
Ezra: ::Grins:: Yes you have.
Krimzon: Anyway, on with the story.
Torn stood watching Ezra from the doorway of Erol's room, which had been locked up after the accident. Not that that had stopped the hybrid. Ezra had simply torn through the lock like it was nothing.
Ezra now wore a black cloth tank top and matching pants, modified to accommodate his tail. His hair had been cut the way it had been before, like Erol's but with long strands in front that hung in his face.
Ezra sat cross-legged in the middle of a room, piles of things around him. He had 'broken' into his brother's room after he had gotten cleaned up, and now he was going through boxes of Erol's things. His tail casually flicked back and forth as he flipped through a stack of pictures Erol had just thrown in a box, along with some other things. He smirked when he found a picture of him and Erol when they were much younger, 16 if Ezra remembered correctly. Erol had just gotten his first racing zoomer and had talked Ezra into going for a ride with him. The end result was Ezra clinging to his brother's waist for dear life while Erol was flying down the streets like a madman. A friend of theirs had taken the picture when they shot by.
"There are few things I blame my brother for, but my dislike for zoomers is one of them." Ezra said holding the picture over his shoulder for Torn to see. The Commander jumped, he didn't think that Ezra had known that he was there.
"With the way Erol drove, I wouldn't be surprised." Torn said glancing around the room. It seemed that the only things Erol had bothered to unpack, besides his clothing, were his racing trophies, which covered most all-available wall space. A few posters and Erol's shock rod rifle, which hadn't been used since Erol had first started in the guard, hung on the rest of the available space. Every thing else was still packed up in boxes. "If you don't mind me asking, what are you looking for?"
Ezra jerked his thumb towards a stack of twenty or so boxes near the door. "My stuff."
"I see." Torn said, lifting the lid of one box and peeked in. It was full to the top with knives of various sizes and styles. "So how many of these boxes have blades in them?"
Ezra glanced over his shoulder his eyes quickly scanning over the stack. "Over half." He shrugged.
"That's…quite a few." Torn said closing the lid of the box. "So why exactly do you favor knives over guns?"
"Why?" Ezra repeated as he stood. He seemed to ponder the question for a moment before finally answering. "I dunno, I guess they're more appealing than a gun." He said removing the lid off the box Torn had been in just moments before and lifting a long slim dagger from it. "They're easer to conceal, and make little to no noise when used." He looked the weapon over as he spoke; checking for any blemishes that may have appeared during his absence. "And in all honesty, they're works of art, many taking weeks to create."
"But wouldn't using a gun be easer?"
"I suppose so, but where's the fun in aiming and pulling a trigger?"
"I didn't think it was supposed to be fun."
"Oh come on, wouldn't you rather be up-close-and-personal with you opponent, then blowing his head off from a distance?"
"No, not really." Torn's response earned him a snicker from the hybrid. "You need to learn to live a little."
Ezra put the blade back with the others, changing the subject as he did so. "Why was Erol's stuff moved to the palace?" He asked going back to the box with the pictures in it.
"He became Commander about a year after you disappeared."
Ezra snorted. "You're kidding?" He glanced over his shoulder at Torn who shook his head. "How in the hell did that happen?" He knew his brother never wanted to be Commander, so what could have changed his mind?
"Erol changed after he found out you were 'dead'." Torn said leaning against a desk. "For a few days he never even left his room. When a couple of guards went in to try to get him out, he all but killed them. He finally left his room by himself." Torn paused to see if Ezra had anything to say; when nothing was said he continued. "The Baron made him Commander after he had seen the way Erol handled out-of-line civvies and Metal Heads."
"You were demoted?" Ezra asked sounding a little surprised.
"No. I left the guard."
"Glad to see someone made it without getting caught." Ezra muttered bitterly as he picked up a small bundle from the bottom of the box, and began to unwrap it.
Torn decided not to respond to the comment. "Ashelin wanted to know if you wanted to rejoin the guard, she's willing to let the incident at the hospital go if you can keep yourself under control." It had taken Torn two hours to talk Ashelin into letting Ezra stay, despite what he had done. Ashelin finally gave in, although she despised the fact that she would have to deal with Count Veger when he caught wind of the incident. Unfortunately Torn was left with the task of keeping an eye on the hybrid.
"Asheiln wanted to know or you wanted to know?" Ezra asked looking over his shoulder with a smirk. He chuckled when Torn just glared at him. Ezra shrugged. "What else is there for me to do? The Barons dead, so that ruins my plans for getting back at him for what he did to me."
"I don't think Ashelin would've a liked you stalking her father anyway."
"Oh, like he really care about her." Ezra said, his voice practically dripping with sarcasm. "Besides, I wasn't planning on stalking him; I was planning on killing him." Ezra's gaze shifted to the now unwrapped object in his hand.
"That's not the point…" Torn started, but was interrupted.
"Who gave this to Erol?" Ezra asked holding up the object for Torn to see.
Torn glance at the broken blade Ezra held in his hand. "Hm…Oh that. I think Lieutenant Ardal gave it to him. "Why?"
"And did he tell everyone that I was dead?"
"Well yes, both the Baron and Ardal did."
"Is he still with the Guard?" Ezra sniffed at the blade picking up his, Erol's and Ardal's scent on it.
"Yes…he's head of Beta squad."
"Good." Ezra said heading towards the door, a scowl set on his face.
"Where are you going?" Torn hollered after Ezra's retreating form. "Damn it!" He hissed when Ezra didn't respond. "You wouldn't think he was left to die in a prison cell for three years with the way he's acting." He muttered to himself as he took off after the hybrid.
A lone figure made his way through the fortress, his heavy footsteps echoing off the steel walls. He wore simple body armor, nothing like armor worn by other guards, and his military uniform beneath it. His pure white shoulder blade length hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, a few stray strands falling across his tattooed forehead.
Since the disappearance/death of his commanding officer four years ago, Ardal had been promoted to his position by the Baron. He had never been too fond of Ezra, mostly because it never settled well with him that Ezra held a higher rank, even though Ardal had been in the guard longer. So when he found out that Ezra was leaving the guard he jumped on the chance to eliminate him.
A loud clank brought the Lieutenant back to his senses and he spun on his heal, his violet eyes scanning the area. Seeing nothing he slowly turned back to continue on his way when he noticed something lying in the middle of the hallway. Ardal cocked his head to one side and approached the object. He knelt and lifted it from the walkway and almost dropped it when he realized that it was the broken dagger that he had given to Erol. An uneasy feeling crept over Ardal as he stood and looked around again.
"Hello Ardal." A cold voice whispered in his ear.
Ardal froze, he knew that voice. Slowly he looked up, only to come eye to eye with Ezra. Ardal screamed and stumbled backwards falling to the ground, his gun falling from his grasp and sliding across the floor.
Ezra hung suspended by his tail from and overhead pipe. He watched the Lieutenant for a moment; a sadistic smirk crossed his face as he dropped to the ground. "What's wrong Ardal?" Ezra purred. "You look as though you've seen a ghost".
"….." Ardal's mouth gapped open as he scrambled away from the advancing half-breed.
"Cat got your tongue?"
"The Baron said you were dead." Ardal whimpered.
"The Baron said a lot of things." Ezra sneered. "How much of it do you think was true?"
"You're not going to kill me, are you?" Ardal looked about ready to cry, or piss his pants, which ever came first.
Ezra grinned, when it came down to it, Ardal was little more than a coward. "The thought had crossed my mind."
Ardal visibly blanched and managed to get to his feet, but rather than face Ezra he turned and broke into a run.
Ezra chuckled. "Run all you want." He murmured. "You won't get far."
By the time Torn had found the rampaging half-breed, Ezra had found Lieutenant Ardal and had him trapped beneath a large set of pipes that ran along the wall. If it wasn't for the fact that it was Ezra attacking the Lieutenant, Torn could've sworn it was a Metal Head Grunt trying to get at Ardal.
Torn then did something that, when he thought back on it, was probably one of the dumbest things he would ever do. He ran forward and wrapped one arm around Ezra's waist and the other around his left leg and tugged sharply, pulling Ezra away from Ardal. The hybrid shot a surprised glace over his shoulder before Torn sent him tumbling to the ground.
"Back off!" Torn barked aiming his pistol at Ezra's head.
Ezra whipped around and snarled at the Commander, fangs bared. He could tell Torn was afraid it was evident in his scent and his movements, but he made no move to attack the Commander. Ezra knew he could survive a gun shot to the body; he wasn't so sure about a point-blank shot to the head though. He shifted his gaze from Torn to his pray, who was currently being helped from his hiding place by two fellow guards. "Get out of my way Torn." Ezra growled as he looked back at the Commander.
Torn glared back not willing to back down, despite the danger he was in. "Not until you tell me what's wrong."
"This is what's wrong." Ezra held up the broken dagger. "This was mine, and that bastard took it from me and used it as proof of my murder. He's the reason I am the way I am, he's the one who turned me over the Baron and the one who lied to Erol and everyone else."
"Yeah, but killing him won't fix anything."
"Maybe not, but it'll make me feel better."
"Don't you think you've done enough killing?"
Ezra's scowl faded, and for a moment he almost seemed confuse. It was almost as if reality had just struck, and it left Ezra reeling from the blow. He let out a noise that sounded somewhere between a whine and a growl and turned away from the Commander, running a frustrated hand through his hair. He paced the hallway for a few moments before stopping at the wall and leaning against it. "He fucked up my life Torn." He murmured.
"I know." Torn placed his gun back in its holster. "But we're trying to get this city back together, and we don't need you going out and slaughtering everyone who wronged you." Ezra dug his talons into the wall, scraping small gouges in the steel. "He'll be turned over to the Council for judgment, and they'll decide what will be done with him." Torn continued.
When Ardal heard this he began to protest. "What!? You can't do that!"
Torn turned, glaring at the Lieutenant. "Get him out of here." He ordered. "I'll deal with him later."
Ardal was dragged from the room, kicking and screaming the whole way.
When Torn turned back Ezra was calmly watching him.
"Come on, I'll buy you a drink."
Ezra smirked. "You're getting soft Torn; you've never bought anyone a drink."
Torn gave Ezra a not-so-convincing glare. "Get going before I change my mind."
"Alright, if you insist."
Author's Rant: I still say I write Torn out of character, oh well. You'll have to forgive my lack of military knowledge, but I did my best. Feel free to correct me if I screwed up though, and I'll fix it. And don't be fooled by Ardal's hair color, he's only 30 years old and he was born with it that color. Anyway, next chapter Ezra and Jak finally meet. R&R please, I love feedback.