Truth And Consequence
Disclaimer: If there are any run together words or phrases within this chapter it was not my fault. I went over this several times to make sure; however, the document manager program is formatting wrong for some reason. I just wanted to let everyone know incase you wanted to lodge a complaint.
They say that when you are really young you don't remember much. Well, that isn't altogether true. I still remember the first time I fell on the cement and skinned my knee. I was three. And, I still recall, quite vividly, the first time my mom took me to get my ears pierced. I was two years old. It hurt like hell too. However, when my daddy told me how pretty I looked, in earrings, the pain had been worth it. Those brief moments aside, the worst day of my life came amidst my fourth year. The day my mother died is emblazoned in my memory like a tattoo. I remember every single detail, every movement I made, and every word that I said.
"Wow Nikkia, that is really pretty. Your mommy and daddy will love this." Mr. Lightfoot said, as he studied my paper machet flower bouquet. Mr. Lightfoot was my bus driver in kindergarten. I had the biggest crush on him when I was four years old, all the girls did. He looked like a young Denzel Washington. I always pretended that I was going to marry him when I grew up. Earlier that day, in class, my teacher had given us an assignment to create paper machet artwork for our parents. I loved art. It was my favorite subject. Who knows, had things not turned out the way that they did I might have become an artist. Anyway, I created a lovely bouquet of roses, daisies, and violets. My parents were celebrating their fifth wedding anniversary, so I decided to give it to them as a present. On the bus I sat near the front with my best friend, Danika Nyguen. We talked to Mr. Lightfoot everyday on our way home. My bus stop was the last before Mr. Lightfoot's rounds ended. Mr. Lightfoot showered my project with praise. After I got off the bus I was so excited that I skipped home.
My mom told me that she was planning to go meet someone right after I got home from school. My babysitter, Sarah Reynolds, was supposed to come over and sit for me. I did not care for Sarah that much. She would sit around and talk on the phone. Then her boyfriend, Biff,would come over. I was too naive to realize it then, but now I realize she was nothing but a big slut. She would screw a different guy everytime she sat for me. Babysitting was just an excuse to bang all the guys in the neighborhood.
Anyway, when I approached the door I was in a jubilant mood. I couldn't wait to show her my bouquet of flowers...
"Mommy I'm home!" I yelled. When I opened the door my heart almost stopped. The house looked like a tornado had gone through it, twice. The furniture was trashed, broken glass was all over the floor, and my mother stood in the corner, next to her, with blood gushing out of her forehead.
"Hey baby, how was school?" She asked, like nothing had even happened.
I looked at her and then at the other woman, and back at her. My mind raced. I couldn't comprehend what was going on. I knew it was something bad, but what? The other woman, Beatrix, scared the living shit out of me. I was only four, but I knew that my mother was just trying to keep me calm. Something was up.
I started to walk towards her. I just needed to be by my mother's side.
"Baby, don't come across the floor. There's broken glass everywhere you could cut yourself..." My mom said, with a very forced and phoney smile on her face.
"Mommy what happened to you and the TV room?" I glared at Beatrix. I could just feel the negative energy in the room. I almost choked on it.
"You know that good for nothin dog of yours? Well he got his little ass in here and acted a damn fool, that's what happened baby."
I guess my mother thought I was a retard, "Barney did this?"
That is when she introduced me to her, Beatrix.
Everytime I looked at her my heart nearly pounded out of my chest. The sensation was like a humming bird hoping to escape from a glass jar. I can't describe how much she frightened me.
She and my mother kept their hands behind their backs. In hindsight I figured they were hiding their weapons of choice. My mother walked over to me and said that she and Beatrix needed to talk. I tried to say something, but she sent me upstairs anyway. I walked upstairs to my room and kept the door cracked. I could not force myself to concentrate. I took the flowers out and put them on the bed. I contemplated taking them downstairs and giving them to her. Maybe, just maybe, I could stop something bad from happening. Even to this day I replay that decision.
Then I heard the gunshot.
That gunshot signaled the beginning of my journey...
BB and I stared each other down for several seconds. I kept my hand on the sword just to make sure she didn't snatch it.
"Please don't do this." BB pleaded, "My family and I just want to be left alone. So, leave now while you still can. You won't win. I promise you." I was taken aback by BB's self assurance. Apparently she had come across peopleattempting to kill Beatrix before. I knew not to underestimate her. But she didn't scare me.
"I'm not doing this to impress you." I said, "Now, you are going to escort me to see your mother whether you like it or not." My voice and demeanor remained calm and steady. She wasn't playing and neither was I.
BB did not relent. Her stare became all the more intense. Her face hardened like a stone, "Spare me the goddamn bravado. Right now you are treading on thin ice. Very thin ice."
I was about to speak when I heard the door behind me open. "Are you alright in here, BB?" Two very masculine voices said in unison. I turned my head ever so slightly, while keeping my peripheral vision focused on BB.
One man was older, perhaps mid-40's, and the other one looked really young, probably not much younger than BB. The older man was ruggedly handsome. His tan skin was a bit weathered, and his blonde hair had graying flecks of silver along the sides. The younger man, the teenager from the looks of it, was blonde and looked alot like the older one. He wore a white tank top that exposed his broad athletic shoulders. Both of them wore blue jeans and cowboy boots. I immediately thought of the assassin back at The Lonestar Lodge...
Why do I attract psychotic cowboys?
Their appearances did not matter that much to me though. The weaponry in their hands did. The older man held two enormous sickle shaped blades in each hand; while the younger one carried a huge bladed spear. I glanced back at BB who had a very smug look on her face, "Mongoose, I would like to introduce you to my dad, Patrick, and myyounger brother, Bobby."
"Oh, this is her? This is The Mongoose?"asked Bobby, sarcastically. He was underestimating me already. Good.
"I thought Valentine would have put you down for good. You're tougher than I thought you were, little girl." Patrick Gunn chimed in.
"Look Mongoose..." BB interrupted, "You have a choice. You can walk out of here, in one piece, and tell your employer that you succeeded, we will happily play along with the charade. Or, you can leave here in a bodybag. The choice is yours."
"Yeah, it would be a shame to have to see such a pretty girl die a violent death. But, we've done it before and we'll do it again. You aren't going to do a goddamn thing to my mom, bitch." said Bobby Gunn. The expression on his face was fierce. A small vein began to pulsate on his left temple, as he clinched his spear tighter. The were all on a hair trigger, and if I made the slightest move they were going to be on me like ticks on a water buffalo. BB alone didn't scare me. The three of them together did.
I immediately thought of Elle and my training. I had been through alot of shit during the past three years. I'd be damned if they were going to stop me. I breathed in and out, silently, psyching myself up.
"I work for no one." My voice was smooth and steady, betraying no emotion, "I know that you feel the need to protect her. But, if you don't turn around, and walk out of here, I promise that you will meet her in the after life." I was bluffing, but I was ready for them to call me. I slowly picked up sword and clasped it tight.
"Well, I think she's made her choice..." said BB from behind. I turned around to see her holding a glittering Chinese long sword.
"Yeah, she seems like the type who likes it rough. She is gonna be a long time dying." said Patrick Gunn.
"Any last requests?" said Bobby.
I smiled coyly, "Just one. How does it feel to have a lying murderous whore for a mother, Bobby?"
That is when the fight broke out.
Bobby charged at me like a cannonball. I easily anticipated his movement and flipped over the blade of his spear. When I came down Patrick was waiting for me with his two sickle shaped blades. He started attacking me with each blade with the speed of spinning lawn mower rotors. I blocked each attack with my sword, still inside the scabbard. I was so much faster and stronger than I was previously. I was amazed. In the past a man as strong as Patrick Gunn would have easily overpowered me, but now I easily held him at bay. He struck at me over and over, but still I defended myself. I felt him getting winded after such a full throttle attack. I easily danced around him and kicked him in the back. He flew into one of the restaurant tables. The wooden piece collapsed under the weight of his body.
Before I could even breathe Bobby and BB were on me. I only had time to use my sword as a self defense weapon. They were not allowing me an oppurtunity to unsheathe it! Unfortunately for them I was no longer little one dimensional Nikki. I was Nikkia. I knew a million and one ways to skin a bunch of snakes.
BB was excellent with a sword. Her skills parralled mine. She tried to chop me in the head with the blade, but I blocked it. She came at me low but I blocked that as well. It almost felt like everything was moving in slow motion for me. I had become so attuned to reading another warrior's movements that defense was the easiest part, like a natural reflex. BB kept up her attack, but she was making no progress trying to wound me. Bobby came at me with the spear again, and I barely dodged it as it went slamming into the dry wall. He pulled it out of the cracked drywall and attacked me again.
I have got to get this sword out! I thought
I quickly formulated a plan. Bobby wasn't that good. He was just a big brute who knew how to use a spear. When he charged at me, again,I redirected his momentum towards BB.
"Aargh!" BB screamed, loud. Bobby's spear grazed her across the side.
"BB!" He yelled. Apparently that had never happened to them before. There was a first time for everything.
While Bobby was distracted I drop kicked him in the back sending him crashing towards the front counter. BB was ailing, but the wound was superficial. Before she could attack again I hit her with a spinning roundhouse kick that sent her careening into the wall. Her sword went clanging to the ground. I quickly unsheathed my Katana. And just as I did that Patrick came running back out like a maniac. He began his attack anew. This time it was steel against Hattori Honzo steel. Patrick dropped to the ground and tried to slice open my knees. I lept into the air and hit him with a hard face kick. He spat blood and teeth.
"Die you fucking bitch!" BB cried. I turned around and blocked her attack with the stealth of a black panther. BB took the initiative and struck again, but Idefended againstit just as easily as the last. BB struck again, but I blocked and countered with diagnol slash. BB knocked it away with an equally impressive downward slash, and then attacked with a straight forward stab. I blocked it again, but our blades locked. We pushed each other back, and I staggered towards the wall. That is when Bobby came towards me again. I decided that I had had enough of his infantile bullshit. He swung the spear at me again, but this time I was ready. I blocked the blade as it came towards me. And with one powerful movement I chopped the spear tip off with my Katana. I slashed and hacked away at the blade when finally...
"Holy fuck!" Bobby let loose a blood curdling scream. He staggered backward as blood spew from the stumps of his severed forearms. He fell to the ground in shock as his body flopped around like fish on dry land. I stared at him momentarily as his blood painted my pristine outfit crimson. My adrenaline was surging. Seeing him on the ground was the boost of confidence that I needed. I ran to Bobby and thrust my blade into his solarplexus, killing him almost instantaneously.
"BOBBY?! You killed my son! I'll have your heart you little cunt!" Patrick bellowed. Patrick hurtled towards me with the intent of tearing my soul out. BB joined in as well. It was two against one. Patrick struck harder and harder with his two blades. With one blade he attacked me low, and with the other one he attacked high. That might have been effective against a lesser opponent, but not me. Not after Elle's lessons inside the sugarcane field. I pretended like I was back in giant plant fields, defending myself against the falling stalks. Patrick kept after me, and when he grew fatigued BB took over for him. BB struck me with a side-slash, but I defended. I countered with one of my own but she dodged my strike. The three of us were now drenched in sweat and fueled by adrenaline. None of us were relenting.
Patrick took over for BB again, but this time his attempts were short lived. He came after me but instead of fighting I fled. Like the Mongoose I was named for I used my agility. I dodged his wild attacks with a simply array of tucks, tumbles, and back flips. The moment I saw his defense weaken I took my chance. I speared him through the abdomen like a trout. His eyes bugged out and his jaw clinched. The fluid flowed out of his mouth in buckets. I yanked my sword out of him. His body fell to the ground, right beside Bobby's.
Then there were two.
Even though her brother and father lie dead BB stood her ground. Shewas a soldier. BB kept fighting. Our swords remained intertwined like lovers locked in an intimate embrace. We both knew the sword, and we were both fighting for the samething. However, I wanted it more than she did. When BB raised her sword instead of defending I slashed her across the abdomen. BB dropped her sword and recoiled in agony.
For me it wasn't over yet. I took a handful of BB's hair and yanked her up by the head. Iher face into the floor. She screamed.
"Where is she!" I demanded.
"Fuck you!" BB spat.
I slammed her head into the floor several times, in rapid succession. Then I turned her over and started punching her about the face and body. I don't know how long I beat her, but she finally pleaded for mercy, "I'll tell you! I'll tell you!" She cried, completely helpless.
I stood up and caught my breathe. I surveyed the room. I still couldn't believe what had just transpired. It felt like It had all been a dream. I didn't want to kill anyone, besides Beatrix, that hadn't changed. But I would if it meant defending my own well being.I watched BB struggle to get up, but she could barely move. Icaressed my knuckles. They were sore and red. As I looked upon the dead bodies of Patrick and Bobby Gunn I felt remorse. They died defending a scoundrel.
I grabbed myKatana and walked over to BB, "Get up. You are going to take me to her." I said coldly.
BB groaned.
"I said get up!" I snatched her up by the arm. BB fell limp like a rag doll, but she managed to go forward with me. I helped her to one of the chairs and sat her down. My first priority was to get the bodies out. I turned off the restauraunt lights. Thankfully no one was around to see what had gone down. The street was empty, literally. I dragged Bobby out first. I was surprised at my physical strength. The training had made me stronger than the average woman. I put him in the back of the van. Then Idragged Patrick Gunn out the same way. I finally came back to a find weeping BB. I led her out to the van. She must have been genuinely injured, because she had ample oppurtunity to retaliate. I strapped her into the front seat and got into the car.
I cranked up the van and left the restaraunt parking lot.
BB's head began to loll about like a wooden marionette. Due to the loss of blood, from sword cuts, and severe contusions to the head, I knew she would be dead within hours if not properly attended to. The only person whose life I wanted to take was Beatrix's. But lately I had to end quite a few of them just to get to this point.
"Turn here..." BB croaked, when we came to a fork in the road. She urged me to make a left, heading into the mountains. I almost did. But I got a nagging little feeling that she wasn't telling the truth. I thoughtof Sarah in The Labyrinth, and the two talking doors."Two doors. One of them leads to the castle at the center of The Labyrinth and the other one leads to...bababoom...Certain death." I don't know why that movie materialized in my head, at that moment, but the similarities in my life-as of late-were uncanny. I veered right instead, down a dusty dirt road. "Forgive me if I don't completely trust you. But if someone were going to kill my mother I'd lead them to certain death before I gave said person her whereabouts."
I looked at BB as her eyes bored into mine,
"You are smarter than I thought... you...were." she said.
I didn't say anything else the rest of the trip.
The trail soon gave way to a wide open field. In the center of it stood a huge, beautiful, Hacienda styled farmhouse. Horses stood grazing in the fields, looking up from their meal as we passed. The mansion reminded me alot of Elle's beautiful home in Texas, except it looked more like something from a western, as opposed to a fantasy.
I pulled into the lengthy cement driveway and parked the van.
"Where is the entrance?" I asked.
"T-that's it right...there..." BB said. She pointed at the large double doors. She was trembling. I figured she was going into shock. I decided to let her mother, if she was there, tend to her wounds. I wasn't a monster. I had no intention of murdering the entire family.
I grabbed ahold of my sword and opened the door. I walked to the passenger's side and opened the door for BB, "Get up." I said. I took her by the arm and gently guided her out of the car. She wrapped her arm around my neck and we gingerly ambled towards the front door.
"My keys are in my p--pocket..." she said. I reached into her pants and found the house keys. I placed the correct one into the latch. My hand trembled ever so slightly. Feelings of anxiety, apprehension, and sheer nervousness flowed through me like a wild river. As the door gently swung open I looked at BB. "You go in first. Call her too us." I tried my best to maintain a stiff upper lip. But, I felt myself tensing up. I had finally reached the one place that I had been trying to get to practically my entire life. There were no more body guards, no more wild goose chases, and no more extended hiatuses. I was here, finally. At last, my mother would have justice. Or, she and I might meet again in heaven.
I unsheathed my Katana and made BB walked in infront of me. She slowly staggered in, "M-Mom...we're home!" she yelled. Her voice was weak and trembly.
"Well, it's about time! What took you guys so long?" I heard a female voice ring out from the second floor. I huge lump formed in my throat. I forced it down. It had been years since I heard that voice, but I remembered it. I never forgot it in the first place.
BB looked back at me. Her eyes pleaded with me.I paid her no mind and urged her forward. As we walked into the foyer I quickly surveyed the beautiful design of the house. On the outside it looked very Western, but inside it was done in the tradition of old Spain. Each room was decorated with the culture in mind. I was impressed. The hallway that we walked through was my favorite part. Antique portraits lined the walls as candles lit the way. It was very romantic.
"Mom, can you c-come downstairs for a second?" BB gasped. She was growing weaker and weaker by the second. I walked close behind her until I finally came towards the circular courtyard styled living area. It was absolutely fantastic. It looked like the Cistine chapel. At the very top was a glass skylight, and in the center sat all the furniture and decor. But, there was one item that stood out from the rest. My eyes rested upon the gold lined scabbard of Beatrix's Hattori Honzo sword. The same sword that slew the Crazy 88, and O-Ren Ishii, now sat in the house as a relic.
I slowly stepped back into the shadows. I felt a thin sheen of perspiration envelope my body like a blanket. I tightened my grip on the sword. Suddenly, frantic footsteps came padding down the winding Spanish style staircase, "BB, is something the matter?" she asked.
BB gasped and then collapsed to the ground.
"BB, what happened!" she yelled.
I slowly stepped out of the shadows. I froze. She did not see me, but I saw her. I cannot begin to describe theway I felt. Beatrix Kiddo still looked exactly the same. Her hair was longer, gradually turning white. Her face had noticeable laugh lines and crows' feet, but nevertheless it was the same woman. The same woman who had killed my mother in cold blood. She cradled her beaten daughter in her arms. She didn't notice that I was even there...
"Who did this to you? Where are Bobby and Patrick?" she asked. BB could do nothing but weep, "Just hold on baby, I am going to get you to a hospital--"
"You aren't going anywhere." I said. As I moved into full view I felt my temperature rise. It was like being inside of a sauna. I was anger and anxiety personified.
Beatrix looked up at me. Our eyes locked. We held each other's gaze. I felt like I was four years old again. I wanted to run, I wanted to hide, but I couldn't move. I was rooted in that spot, frozen in time. There was so much that I wanted to say, so much that I needed to say, but I could not form the words.
"Mongoose." she said, coldly. Her glare turned intense. Her cold blue eyes glazed over with rage. I had made her angry beyond comprehension. Now she knew how I felt for most of my life.
My gaze did not yield. Her's did. She looked to her left. I knew she was going to try and make a move for her sword, "Don't...Even...Think about it. I can get to you faster than you can reach it." I threatened.
She began to push the matted tendrils of hair out of BB's face, gently cradling her. "Who sent you? I don't suppose you're one of Bill's sleeper agents."
"I work alone."
"Where are my son and husband?"
"In the car."
Silence filled the room. The hallway became a vacuum. Beatrix knew what I meant. Still, she maintained her composure. There are no words that can articulate what was between us. The two of us were cosmically linked, and now everything had come full circle. Yet and still she was oblivious to it. I was just another nameless assassin to her.
"If you don't work for Bill then why are you here?"
That one statement brought on an emotional tsunami. Ashard as I tried to be the stout hearted warrior I couldn't stifle the emotion. The tears began to fall from my eyes unbidden,
"Because....I still feel raw about it."
At that pronoucement Beatrix's eyes grew as wide as saucers. She remembered, "Nikkia?" she whispered.
I nodded my head up and down. I maintained my grip on the sword even as my body trembled.
"BB has nothing to do with this. Please, allow me to--"
"Don't worry. I'll allow you to tend to her wounds," I said, finally regaining my composure, "But, this is for her, not you."
"Thank you." Beatrix picked up BB's still form and turned her back. I followed them, with my sword pointed at Beatrix from behind. I could have just as easily killed her then. I knew it and so did she. Part of me wanted to. But I didn't. There was so much that I needed for her to know, so many questions that I wanted to ask.
We ascended the staircase and headed towards the bathroom. I stood outside the door as Beatrix attended her daughter's wounds. She disinfected the gaping cuts and stitched them back together. I was amazed at her proficiency. A regular Jack Of All Trades she was. After she was done with her cuts Beatrix ran a bath for BB, and hydrated her with bottled water. Neither I nor Beatrix uttered a word to one another. I kept constant vigil. When she was finally done she took BB to her room and tucked her into bed. I remembered my mother doing the samething for me at a very young age. Beatrix turned off the lights and slowly walked towards me. As I stood in the doorway entrance she placed herself in front of me. She looked at me with a stare so intense that it could haveshattered glass. Beatrix remained emotionless. I am sure that she had been trained to keep such things hidden. But I knew beneath that stoic veneer she was screaming inside.
"Before we end this night in a duel to the death I suppose a little girl talk is in order." she said.
"You suppose correctly." I replied, mimicking her the day she killed my mother.
We descended the stairs and wound up back in her lavish living room.
I eased into a plush lounge chair that sat right infront of Beatrix's Katana blade. She sat across from me in a seat of the same design. For several moments we said nothing. I didn't know what to talk about. In a strange way it was rather funny.
"You sure can hold a grudge." she said.
"I learned from the best." I mumbled.
"Touche."
We continued to stare each other down. I would have given a mint to know what she was thinking.
"Your codename is very clever." She said, nonchalantly.
"Thank you."
"Did you choose it yourself?"
"No. Elle Driver chose it for me. She hates you almost as much as I do." I spat. Silence lingered between us once again.
Beatrix allowed a faint smile to alight upon her lips,
"How did you meet Elle?"
"It's a really long story."
"We have time, or do you plan to kill me right this instant?"
"Don't get cheeky with me--"
"I wasn't. It was a legitimate question." Beatrix's words were filled with sarcasm. I didn't care.
"Why did you kill my mother?" I was tired of the banter. I wanted answers. And I wanted her to know that I was in charge, "How could you be so cold, cruel, and callous? She was just minding her own--"
"Your mother wasn't Claire Huxtable, Nikki." said Beatrix.
"She wasn't Joan Crawford either. Just a woman, like you, who made mistakes." I retorted.
Beatrix shifted her position. She crossed her legs beneath her flowing flower patterned sundress, "It truly was not my intention for you to see that--"
"But I saw it." I interrupted, "I just want to know why you did it."
"I'm sure by now you've heard everything regarding the Two Pines Wedding Chapel Massacre?"
"Yes. Elle told me."
"Well, I think I need to give you the unedited version, not just the Cliff's notes," said Beatrix, very facetiously, "I left the deadly vipers when I discovered I was six weeks pregnant, with my first born child, BB. My job had been a way of life for me. It was more than just a steady paycheck. I enjoyed it. However, when the pregnancy test came back positive I had an epiphany. "How could I continue taking life when I was about to create one of my own?" I didn't even have to debate it. I quit right then, right there, in that hotel room, that I was staking out my next target in." Beatrix paused and looked me dead in the eye. The expression on her face was one of sheer intensity. Everything she was saying to me was authentic. After that brief moment she continued, "Even when I had the oppurtunity to take out the assassin that had been sent to kill me, I didn't. Even while she was in my womb I didn't want that life for my child."
"Then why did you teach her how to fight?" I hurled the question at her like a spear. It was more of an accusation, "More importantly, if you were so dedicated to providing a "better" life for her then why did you hire trained assassins to kill anyone who even mentioned your name?"
"Because of people like you. The operatives were insurance for she and I. I could not provide her, or myself, with an adequate civilian life without some form of protection. I taught her to fight should the day ever come that she might need to. I didn't want her to be a victim. Surely, you can understand that?"
I nodded my head in agreeance, "It was because of you that I never wanted to be a victim."
Silence, once again, shrouded the foyer like a cloak.
"Besides, your insurance traps didn't stop me." I reminded her.
"I realize that. You are a woman of great ability and determination. I am truly impressed. Who taught you?"
"Alot of people...Elle included."
"You seem to trust Elle alot. Believe me, her motives are completely self serving--"
"You said that you never wanted to kill again, once you found out you were pregnant, right?" I quickly changed the subject. My voice cracked, as I started the conversation anew. Just sitting in front of her made me emotional. For so long I had envisioned this moment, and now I was here, "You said that you could no longer take life...But here we are, right now. All because you took the life of my mother. What changed your mind?"
"Bill." she said.
"Your employer."
"My former employer, teacher, lover, and the father of my child."
I paused momentarily, confused, "Wait, BB--"
"Was Bill's daughter. She is why I did what I did."
My eyes began to mist as I fumbled to coagulate my words,
"B-but, I-I thought the child you had with him died in the attack?"
Elle lied to me.
"Did Elle tell you that?"
I didn't utter a word.
"It figures. She probably didn't think you would do it if you knew my true mot--"
"Just answer my question, Black Mamba." I hissed.
"No, my BB is one tough cookie, like her mother."
"So, that's why Bill did to you what he did? Because you kept his child from him?"
"Precisely. That, and I left him for another man. A man that I loved dearly."
"I-I don't understand," tears started to trickle from my eyes, slowly dribbling down my cheeks, "You managed to survive and get your daughter back. Why couldn't you just let bygones be bygones?"
Beatrix stared at me like I had grown a second head,
"I could ask you the same question."
"Well answer mine!" I commanded.
"You don't know what it feels like, yet, to have a life growing inside of your body. You cannot even begin to comprehend having another human beingdependent upon you, living because you live. Until you know that sensation then it is utterly impossible to fathom why I acted as I did. When that innocent, blameless, life was stolen from my womb all I felt was grief. The anguish was ten thousand times as horrific as the beating I endured, and the bullet to my brain. I would never wish that kind of pain on my worst enemy, yet I had to suffer it. And when that subsided rage consumed me. Many mothers would have suffered in silence and accepted the loss of their children. I was not one of them. What they did to me deserved retaliation. That is why I took revenge on them the way that I did, your mother included."
As she told the tale tears continued to fall. I wiped them away feverishly.But still theytrickled down my cheekslike a leaky water faucet. "So, your sole motive was revenge...All of the bloodshed and psychological torcher was all about your need to get even?" I asked.
"It was my only reason. Why is that so hard for you to grasp? There is nothing more tangible than a mother's love for her child--"
"Fuck you!" I screamed, "Nothing more tangible than a mother's love for her child? How about a child's love for her mother?! There is nothing more absolute than that!"
Beatrix was shocked by my reaction. She sat still and said nothing.
My tears metamorphosed into sobs. I could no longer compose myself, and I didn't care.
"That day, in your quest for revenge, you killed me too. In your little anecdote, about how a fetus is completely dependant upon it's mother for survival, you left out the part about a child needing parents to love and nuture her, after leaving the womb. That day I was a little girl, an innocent little four-year-old, girl. My parents gave me something that I took for granted, something that I long for now, safety. Safety in the knowledge that I was loved and protected without a single caveat. Before you walked into my life everyday had been the same: I woke up, I took a bath, my mother dressed me, and I ate a bowl of Kaboom cereal. I was so well adjusted, so healthy. I guess I have you to thank for my appreciation of those idiosyncracies.
As you said, the bond between a mother and child is the most primal of all things. But, when you came into the picture you killed me by severing that tie. It wasn't a physical death, but it may as well have been.It was the death of all things my four year old psyche was capable of comprehending. In one fell swoop you stole my innocence, my naivete. At four years old I watched my mother die tragically, something..." I fought back more tears. But I failed in my effort. I broke. I sobbed for several seconds. Then I continued, "That was something that no one, especially a child, should ever witness. For the rest of that year I slept in bed with my father, afraid that you would come and kill him too. I even prayed to god that you would die, just so you couldn't hurt us anymore. What kind of prayer is that for a child to pray? True, I don't know what it is like to be pregnant with a child. Perhaps I'll never know. But, I do know loss and misery. That day you took a piece of my heart when you killed her..." I wept, as my voice rose into an angry crescendo, "So spare me your psuedo philosophical bullshit...Until you know what it's like to fear someone, to fear them so completely that it drives you to the brink of insanity...Then you can't possibly know my hurt either."
"I did not think it would effect you so strongly."
I couldn't believe she even said. My face contorted into an expression of sheer exasperation, "I can't believe you had the audacity to ask that question. How in the hell was I supposed to feel?"
Beatrix sat stonefaced, "I apologize for undermining your feelings. But, how is what you are doing, right now, any different than what I did?"
"What do you mean?" I was curious, "I am nothing like you."
"So, you coming here to kill me is not revenge?"
"No it isn't..."
"Then enlighten me on how it isn't, please."
"At what point in your mission did you find out BB was still alive? Don't lie either. It won't do you any good. I am all out of forgiveness and remorse when it comes to you."
"When I met Bill for the final time." She responded.
"So, you found your daughter and you still killed her father, anyway?"
"Yes--"
"See, that is the difference between me and you. I am here because someone has to pay for my mother's murder. The police could not find her killer, so I took it upon myself to do so. My mother deserves justice."
"Your justice won't ressurrect her..."
"I know that...But how long did you think you would get away with it? How long did you think you could murder people in cold blood before it came back to you?"
Beatrix started to reply, but I cut her off, "Right now, this minute, the daughter that you said you fought for is upstairs, alive. You got her back from him, without so much as a scratch on her head, right?" I started tearing up again.
"Yes, but..."
"Answer the question!"
"I did."
"And then you remarried, gained another child, and moved into a beautiful House on the hill...am I correct?"
By then I couldn't stop crying.
"Nikki, you don't understand. It was because of their actions that they had to suffer the consequences--"
"Yes, they suffered. You gave them all "Justice." Bravo for you. But you also left behind an innocent victim that didn't do a goddamn thing to you. I suffered and agonized more than you can ever know. I was the true victim of your consequences, not my mother! All because you wanted revenge you ruined my fucking life! I was robbed. Do you understand that, Or are you such a monster that it means absolutely nothing to you?"
"I don't know what to say to assuage your feelings, Nikki--"
"Did you know that my daddy killed himself shortly after that?"
"No, I didn't." Suddenly, a pitiful look tookshape on her face. I wondered whether she felt sorry for me or herself.
"Did you also know that I had to see psychiatrists, just so they could calm me down enough to makeout a composite description of you?"
"I can only imagine--"
"Yes, that is all you can do is imagine! You've had the perfect life. Everything fell into goddamn place for you! On top of that you got your revenge. I wonder, in all of those years since, did you ever stop to think about me? Did you even care? My life, as we speak, is in shambles because of your vendetta! Because of you my mother and father will never see me walk down the aisle on my wedding day. Because of you they will never see their grandchildren. I never knew what it was like to have parents who encouraged me to reach for the stars. They didn't even get to see me grow up! You had that privilege, yet you denied it to me. No matter what my mother did to you, you could have found it in your cold black heart to forgive her, for my sake! I didn't do a goddamn thing to you, yet you crushed me! You ripped my heart out. Then you had the fucking audacity to challenge me to a fight! How could you? How could you be so callous, to a little girl?! You fucking crush--"
I couldn't utter another word. Although the wounds were old they were still fresh.The emotional damage I endured finally surfaced. I cried like I never cried before in my entire life. For the first time I felt like I was truly morning my mother, and my father. All of those years I pent up my anger and rage, exerting it in the gymnasium instead of allowing myself to feel. As the tears flowed I felt an emotional catharsis. It was an exorcism. I needed it.
"Well, I guess this makes us even now. I killed your mother, and you killed my husband, and stepson..." said Beatrix. I looked up at her, and I saw tears forming in her eyes. There was no turning back now. Our paths in the universe were bound. Only one of us could undo them, permanantly.
I looked at her for a moment. Then, I unsheathed my sword and sprang from my chair. Beatrix didn't have a chance to move before my Katana blade was at her throat. Beatrix remained still, her breathing quickened, as she stared up at me. I pressed the katana as close as I could, just enough to draw a thin trickle of blood from the side of her neck, " I could crush you like a cockroach right now..." I said quietly, "And there would be nothing you could do about it."
The room grew deathly silent. I could only hear my own heartbeat, and Beatrix breathing.
"How does it feel?" I asked, "How does it feel to fear someone who has the power to take your life, just because she feels like it?" I teared up again. My lips began to tremble.
"What is stopping you then?" She muttered, clasping tightly to the arms of the chair.
I slowly pulled the sword away and stepped back, "Honor. I won't kill you while you are unarmed." I continued, "The last time I saw you you bullied me. You bullied me into being afraid. You could have easily killed me, and that is what I feared. I wanted you to know my fear." I slowly backed away until I reached her Katana blade, resting on the shelf. I picked it up, walked back toward her, and gently dropped it in her lap, "Get up. All of this ends, tonight."
Beatrix gently fondled her sword like a long lost lover. She slowly stood up from her chair."Imagine the irony of this situation, Nikkia. Are you going to do to BB what I did to you?"
I pontificated on what she said, "You did it to me. You stole my mother away like a thief in the night..." I paused, "BB will just have to manage without you....Like I had to." I said coldly, as I wiped away the excess tears.
"Where should we do this?" Beatrix asked.
"Your choice. This is your house."
Beatrix looked out of her window, and into her expansive backyard, "The sun should be rising any moment now. If you like we can do this traditionally, like in the old days of Feudal Japan."
"Alright."
Beatrix opened the glass double doors that led outside. Her back yard was beautiful. The inside resembled Mexico, but the outside mimicked Ancient Japan. There was even a lovely Koi pond in the center. I looked into the horizon as the rays of the sun slowly peeked from behind mountains. Whichever one of us was going to die would do so in paradise.
As the cool desert breeze slowly danced across my face I kept my eyes fastened to her. The last time I saw her I beheld a monster. A cruel and evil being whom I could not relate to. Now, Igazed upona lovely, yet powerful, vision of elegance and grace. Beatrix was dressed in a silken blue sundress with a floral pattern. Her long flowing blonde--now slightly gray--hair danced about in the wind like wind-swept sand. She slowly brought her sword before her and removed the scabbard with great care. She dropped it to the ground and clasped both hands around the end.
"Are you ready?" She asked.
The question was simple, but the enormity of it struck me like a bolt of lightning. I brought my sword into a fighting stance,
"Almost my entire life..." I whispered.
We stared at each other. Then Beatrix ground her feet into the grass and ran towards me. Then I ran to her, screaming as loud as I could. Then our swords clashed, like the iron hammer of god banging dents out of steel. We stood so close that I could feel the warmth of her breath on my face. Our katanas were locked. I struggled to break free, and she held on so that I couldn't. With all my strength I managed to push her away. I attacked her with diagnol slash, but she defended with a side cross whip. She hoisted her sword up and attacked with a downward slash, but I blocked her. Each time we clashed I trembled. The blows we traded were earth shattering. But still we remained at a stalemate. Neither of us had succeeded in injuring the other. Beatrix stood back, as she fought to catch her breath.
As I peered over her shoulder I saw the first light of the newborn day rising over the mountain tops. I can't explain it but I felt more alive than I ever had. I wanted this. More than anything else in the world, live or die, I knew I was where I wanted to be. I charged at Beatrix again as I sent my blade screaming towards her. We clashed again. Beatrix dropped to the ground and tried to sweep me off my feet. However, I anticipated the move and lept into the air to avoid it. In midair I did a summersault and landed in back of her. Finally I had an opening. I went to strike her in the back, but as quick as a whip she found my sword and averted my strike. We were face to face again, burning hatred peeped out from behind our eyes. Hatred for each other. Hatred for what we had done to one another. In a single move Beatrix swung her sword like an axe, at my neck. Inside of a second I was able to duck the blow and...
"AARGH!" Beatrix gasped. She staggered backwards. She started to wheeze as she clutched her abdomen. Beatrix slowly regained her posture and looked at me, her mouth opened in surprise. Her hand was the color of a red rose. In a single stroke I had managed to slash her across the stomach. The blow was not fatal, but it would slow her down considerably. I took no pride in it, however. I looked at her as the tears fell anew. I could take no pity on her. Everytime I looked at her I saw my mother falling at her feet. I saw my father on the bed, empty jar of sleeping pills in hand. I saw my aunt DeeDee, keeping secrets from me. I saw Kenny, the love that I had lost. More than anything I mourned the little girl inside me that had died.
Beatrix clasped her sword once again, "Are you ready?" She asked.
I blinked the tears away, "Yes..." I whispered.
This time we slowly approached one another. We held up our Katanas and placed them together, side by side. We had been dueling for several minutes. Beatrix was wounded and I was getting tired. I knew that the final cut would decide our fate. We locked eyes once more. The battle began again. We battled and clashed for god knows how long. We chased each other around the huge hacienda property. Beatrix came at me with a sideslash from my left, but I defended with a low block. Each time she struck I dodged. When I wasn't dodging I was striking back. Beatrix was strong, powerful, and fast, but I was The Mongoose...quick and tenacious. We dueled for what seemed like an eternity. Each of us trading blows, but neither of us making any head way. This fight, this war, was more extreme than anything Elle Driver had ever taught me. Beatrix was a warrior beyond my comprehension, and for that I truly respected her.
As our collective energies began to wind down the two of us went for broke. We ran toward each other, and the rest of the battle went on with the two of us locked together in close proximity. Beatrix tried to stab me with a forward thrust, but I dodged her again. I countered with a downward slash. And in that instant Beatrix waned. She had grown weary, and I took my chance to strike. I slashed her across the chest. She staggered. Warm blood splattered in my face.
Beatrix collapsed to the ground.
I relaxed my fighting stance. It had ended. It was finally over.
I slowlymeandered towards her fallen body. Beatrix lie there, completely helpless and bleeding to death. Her blood painted the ground like spilled red paint. Her mouth was bleeding and her skin had turned deathly pale.
I stood over her, weeping. She looked up at me, sorrowfully. "I....am....so sorry...for what...I did to....you..."
I looked at her for a moment. Then I hoisted my sword into the air and sent it whistling down into her heart. The bladeseared through her chest,into the vital organ, and came out of her back. Beatrix gasped for breathe, coughing up blood and phlegm as she did so. I twisted the sword around and yanked it back out. Beatrix Kiddo died immediately thereafter.
"I forgive you...now."
As I walked back into the house the sun had finally taken it's rightful place in the stratosphere. I didn't know where I would go or what I would do next. My purpose in life had been fulfilled. And I was glad. I felt no regret whatsoever. My mother, my father, and I had been vindicated.
I walked into the foyer and gently placed Beatrix's katana back in it's place, as a sign of respect. Even though she was my mother's killer she deserved it for the warrior she had been. I knelt down to pick up my sword scabbard, when suddenly...
KAPOW!
A gunshot went off. I looked up at the second story of the house, and there stood BB. She was preparing to fire off another round from the gun. With all of my might I hurled my katana blade at her like a projectile. The blade landed in her forehead with a 'thunk.' BB fell to the floor asa stray bullet went off and shattered the skylight. I hid in the corner to avoid the falling debris. When I was certain that BB was dead I walked up the stairs and yanked my sword out of her head. An overwhelming feeling of pity swept me. Pity for those who had stood in my way and lost their lives. It wasn't BB's fault that she had been into this life. It wasn't mine either. We were both just victims of circumstance.
As I left the house more tears fell. I was joyful and sad, all at once.
"I did it mommy. I love you...So much."
THE END
Author's Note: Don't fret my friends, this is the last installment on Nikkia's quest for bloody revenge; however, it is not the last chapter.
Will Nikki mend her relationship with Aunt Dee Dee?
Will she and Kenny run off and live happily ever after?
Or will she run off and marry Cutlass?
Will Nikki go to college?
Or will she and Elle Driver hang out and exchange makeup tips?
Stay tuned for the epilogue entitled, "The Aftermath"
On a more serious note. I hope that you enjoyed it and I feel that it was a fitting ending. If the death of BB looked familiar it was completely intentional. I used it as a sort of tragic irony. I debated about killing off BB, but I decided that the cycle of revenge should end somewhere. Whether or not Nikkia uses this oppurtunity to pursue a normal life remains to be seen.
Anyway, thank you all for taking the time to read my story and give me valuable feedback. I am honored that it was accepted the way that it was. After I write the Epilogue I am going to sit back and read everyone else's stuff before I jump into another full length story. Well thanks a bunch. It was fun. I am actually going to miss writing for these characters after the final chapter is completed. sniffle
Oh...Happy New Year!