Mission 16 – Friends
Andrew woke up in the dark, realizing that he was hanging upside-down from the cave ceiling with his arms tied behind his back, a few feet from the ground. He was stripped of his shirt and equipments, only wearing his visor and a pair of slacks. He raised his head weakly, and saw Pigma and Leon in front of him. He realized that something had gone astray.
"Good morning, traitor." Leon was the first to speak. The lizard's face was emotionless, but the monkey could feel anger hidden just beneath his scales. Somehow Leon knew about what he did with the two captains. Lorenzo and Sam may be still alive, but it was doubtful, just like the fate of Andrew himself.
"W-What are you talking about?" the young monkey tried to keep calm without much success. "What happened?"
"Oh you know, my two puppies somehow escaped." Leon said with his melodious voice, kneeling down so he was facing Andrew. "And for some reason one of my hidden cameras recorded that you released them."
There was nothing that Andrew could do but curse his luck. Leon had cameras in this cave that even Andrew didn't know of. The lizard was planning well ahead, with solutions to every problem that may occur. Andrew felt his heart knocking harshly against his ribs. "W-what are you going to do?"
"I don't like traitors." Leon grinned and looked over to Pigma. "How about you Dengar, what do you think?"
"I don't like traitors either." Pigma said with a monotonous voice, "I'd say we release him from the team, for treason."
"Very well then, I will release him from the team." Leon grinned and pulled out a folding knife, flipping it open casually by pressing a small button. The lizard firmly pressed the razor sharp tip on the monkey's abdomen, "Any last words, Andrew?"
"I never liked you." Andrew said with a grin. He knew he was not going to walk out of the cave alive. Perhaps he made a mistake by releasing the two captains. But he would not live to regret it.
"That's a pity. I kind of liked you." Leon replied, a murderous grin appearing on his face. The lizard drove the knife into the monkey's stomach, near the belly button. He laughed maniacally as Andrew began to scream in pain. The lizard slowly dragged the knife downwards towards Andrew's ribs, slitting open the monkey's stomach. He was disemboweling Andrew, giving him a long and painful death.
Andrew could feel his intestines fall out of his abdomen. His screams slowly faded into moans, as he felt his own blood flowing down his bare chest. He could feel Leon reaching into his own body, ripping out vital organs, slowly killing him. He was butchered like an animal, in the hands of his own ally. He could hear Leon and Pigma laughing at his own demise. He cried, his tears mixing with blood. He finally realized that these were not friends, but it was too late.
Leon gripped Andrew's liver tightly, then ripped it out from his body, resulting a light moan from the monkey. The lizard took a step back and looked at his work of art. Andrew hung upside-down from the ceiling, his bloodied intestines and organs hanging out from the large cut. The lizard could still see that Andrew was still breathing, but barely. Leon looked at the raw liver in his hand, grinned, and took a bite.
"Leon, you are freaking sick." Pigma replied, drawing his blaster. The pig aimed it at the monkey's head and fired a single blast, killing Andrew instantly. Even though Andrew was a traitor, he was still a member of StarWolf, and Pigma did not expect Leon to kill the monkey in such a torturous way.
"Hey! You ruined my fun!" Leon threw the liver into the pig's head angrily.
Pigma tried to wipe the gore off his face, smearing the blood. It was unbelievable that Leon could do this to a teammate. Unfortunately, Leon also saved their lives twice before, and they were in his debt.
Seeing that Andrew was already dead, the chameleon frowned and picked up the liver off the blood-stained ground. He had intended to leave Andrew to die slowly and painfully, but Pigma ended it too soon. The chameleon paced over to a rocky wall, and began to smear Andrew's liver onto it, writing another message with blood. He wrote in bold capital letters: TRAITOR!
Damon's eyes opened, but everything was entirely black. Slowly things started to filter in; feeling was the first to come. He was extremely cold; it seeped through his short fur and pricked at his flesh. Sound came next, he could hear a faint murmur, a mumble every no and then. Slowly it became clearer, someone was calling his name. Slowly colors began to swirl in front of his eyes, the all melded together. Damon blinked; he was staring into Obsidian's crystalline blue eyes. He let out a soft shuddering moan.
"Damon?" Obsidian said concerned. Damon looked around; he felt like he knew the place, but couldn't place where exactly he was. He moved his mouth, but his mind was still fuzzy, and he couldn't formulate words. All that popped out was a soft moan. Obsidian picked up Damon, and held him in his arms. Damon merely sunk into them, still disoriented.
Suddenly there was a blaring noise; Damon clasped his hands over his ears. "Attention everyone, please report to the bridge immediately." Obsidian laid Damon down and swiftly went running. Damon reached his hand out and moaned again. He wobbly stood on two legs and ran after him. When Damon got outside he saw Obsidian turn a corner, Damon scrambled after him, tripping over his feet and nearly falling over. He continued running, he got to the service elevator, but Obsidian was already using it. He listened for a moment, and tried to follow the noise up the emergency stairs. He stumbled over the spiraling metal stairs. He hugged the guard rail with both arms, trying to retain his balance. Finally he burst into the bridge, breathing heavily. He spied Obsidian and stumbled over to him, tripping he landed at the black wolf's feet. Damon crawled the rest of the way over and hugged Obsidian's legs. Everyone around him started giggling, he looked at them curiously. He looked down at himself and then everything came into focus. Staring back at him were his white briefs, he looked back at everybody horrorstruck.
Damon curled into a little ball, trying to cover his underwear, which was difficult as they clashed with his fur, causing them to stand out even more. He feebly tried to hide himself, but the damage was done. He shivered on the metal floor, embarrassed to tears. He sobbed lightly, even General Pepper was laughing at him. Then he felt someone touch his shoulder, he merely tried to curl tighter, wishing everyone would go away. He felt the subtle prod again, and finally decided to look up. Obsidian was standing over the unfortunate hybrid. The laughing stopped as he glared around the room. The large wolf knelt down and wiped away Damon's tears.
"Damon, take my sweats..." He started to pull down the grey sweat pants but someone began chuckling again. Obsidian looked up and saw Falco holding his stomach and laughing. The wolf walked up to the blue avian, "What's so funny?" but before the bird could answer Obsidian had sent a punch to his stomach, sending the bird flying. Falco hit a nearby wall, collapsing on the floor, unconscious. Obsidian went back over to Damon, kneeling by him again. Even though he was staring at Damon, he was talking to the rest of the crew. "You all should be ashamed. Poor Damon has been laughed at all his life. Look at him, he's crying, he can't stand anymore of this kind of abuse. A little while ago he was in my arms, telling me all the horrible names they used to call him. The names they used to spite him, to make him loathe himself, so that he would be too embarrassed to even look at his own body." Damon shivered on the ground, "and you call yourselves his friends..."
Obsidian picked up shivering ball of fur that was Damon. He hugged him tightly in his arms. Obsidian gave one more saddened glare around room, seeing that everyone was staring at their feet in shame. Obsidian whispered in the hybrid's large jackalish ear, "Don't worry Damon, it's going to be alright."
Damon whimpered out one word, bringing a tear to Obsidian's eye in pity for Damon. The young hybrid's word was, "...freak..."
Pepper's holographic head coughed, trying to get the attention of the crew. He was surprised at Obsidian for knocking Falco unconscious. However, he was no longer Obsidian's boss, nor was the young wolf unjust. "Alright StarFox, this will be your last mission on Corneria. Captain Lorenzo Harding and Samuel Tintorreto have successfully found StarWolf's location in an underground cavern. Your task is to infiltrate the cavern and capture StarWolf, and execute them if they retaliate."
"General, do you have any additional information?" Fox asked with his arms crossed, "Maybe a map of some sort?"
"Well, unfortunately I don't have a map with me. The underground cavern is extremely large, and I strongly suggest you to stay together during your search." Pepper continued, "Also keep in mind that this mission may quite dangerous and difficult. I suggest you sit this one out, Fox."
Fox rubbed his stomach idly. Pepper was right, since he was still recovering from his injury. He looked over to Falco, who was lying unconscious at the base of a wall. Fox smiled, "Alright, at least I won't be alone. Sirus and Peppy can lead this one."
"Well, just sort it out yourselves." General Pepper continued. "Keep in mind that StarWolf may have already escaped. If so, collect as much evidence as you can. Good luck and be careful, StarFox." The projector turned off, and Pepper's face disappeared.
A military transport hovercraft stopped near the entrance of the underground catacomb. The door slid opened, and five black figures dismounted from the vehicle. It was Sirus, Peppy, Slippy, Obsidian and Damon. Their blasters were equipped with flashlights, along with a few other standard military gadgets such as intercoms. Other equipment were stored in their backpacks, which may prove to be useful if things went astray, or if they were trapped underground.
Sirus took the lead and entered the cave, followed by Peppy, Slippy and Damon. Obsidian volunteered to guard the others and took the last position. The small squad entered the cave in a single file formation. Damon stayed close to Obsidian, who was taking the mission casually. This was the young hybrid's first mission, and he was slightly nervous.
"Wow, this place is a maze!" Slippy exclaimed, after they have explored the tunnels for over twenty minutes without finding anything significant. Obsidian marked the paths they traveled with a long roll florescent thread, a way to prevent themselves from getting lost in the gigantic catacomb. How Lorenzo and Sam managed to escape was a mystery, or a miracle.
"No kidding Slip." Peppy commented as he shone his flashlight around the large spacious chamber they just entered.
Obsidian casually sniffed the air. His enhanced olfactory cells captured a few unique scent particles. It was the scent of blood. The young wolf left his position for a short distance, discovering the source of the smell. "Hey guys! Over here!"
The rest of the group scuttled towards Obsidian, who was standing under a cave opening. Inside was another chamber, artificially carved into a room. Broken glass and computers littered the room, along with a few disfigured metal table and stools. This was obviously a part of Leon's complex. The broken screens were once part of Leon's security system, each linked to a hidden camera.
"They left a while ago." Slippy said, looking around the chamber, trying to find something useful. "And they trashed everything too."
"It looks like the left in a hurry." Damon commented.
"Don't let your guard down." Sirus commented, knowing all too well that Leon may have left some traps on his way out.
Obsidian drew his sword and entered another chamber, leaving the rest of his company. In the middle of the room was a water tank, and on the bottom of the bank was a set of shackles. This was obviously where Leon drowned his prisoners. The young wolf glazed around the room with his enhanced vision, discovering other torture devices hanging on the walls, many of them stained with dried blood. This was not the source of the bloody smell, but Obsidian knew he was getting closer.
Damon followed the young wolf, and gasped as he saw all the tools hanging around. This room was similar to the one in Venom, the one he had spent his nightmarish days in. The young hybrid couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine. He hurried and followed the young wolf, gazing around nervously. He could smell the blood too, and he knew the source was what Obsidian was looking for. The young hybrid beckoned the others to follow.
The next room they entered smelled of rancid blood death. Obsidian used his sleeve to cover his sensitive nose. He could see that a shadow was dangling in the middle of the room, off the ceiling. The wolf raised his flashlight at the dark shape, his eyes widened in the horrific sight. It was the disfigured body of Andrew. The disemboweled monkey hung from the ceiling like a carcass in a butcher's stall. The whole room was reeking from Andrew's lifeless body. A message was clearly written on the wall with his blood.
TRAITOR!
Damon was stunned from the gory sight. The young hybrid threw up, emptying his breakfast on the floor. Immediately the hybrid let out a horrifying scream, alerting everyone. Obsidian placed an arm around the cadet, trying to comfort him. Sirus, Peppy and Slippy rushed into the room, all gasping at the demise of Andrew.
Damon whimpered in Obsidian's arms, while the rest of the team stood speechlessly in front of Andrew's carcass. Slippy Toad couldn't help but sigh at the sight. Andrew was once his nemesis, a great pilot. To see the man die in such a gruesome death was almost sad. But for the most part, it was shocking.
"Guys, do you hear that?" Obsidian's voice broke the silence. The assassin was already alerted by a rhythmical beeping in the background, a sound too small to be noticed by the others.
The others stood awestruck in their place, unable to reply.
"You guys are hopeless." Obsidian rolled his eyes. His sword flashed, cutting the chain on the ceiling Andrew's body fell to the ground with a sickening thump. The other's immediately snapped out of their trance. "You guys, get his body out of here. Slippy, come with me."
Slippy didn't know why Obsidian was leading the team all of a sudden. The toad silently hurried to the young wolf's side. Sirus on the other hand pulled out a military issued blanket and wrapped it around Andrew. Damon knew Sirus was saddened by the death of his old teammate. The young hybrid knelt by the monkey's gory body, helping Sirus while Peppy watched. The old hare was still in a dreamy state, but it was reasonable.
"Guys, get out of here now!" Obsidian shouted. Slippy and the young wolf were in a corner of the room. The toad knelt on the ground, working on some unknown device. It was a timed bomb, and it was about to go off in five minutes. The wolf barked again, "Grab Andrew's body and get out of here!"
"I can't stop it!" Slippy's high pitched voice echoed through the cave, "This place is going to blow!"
"Five minutes should be enough to get out of here, if we run." Obsidian said calmly. The young wolf took off his backpack and dropped his blaster. The young wolf ran back to the others. Without wasting a second, the assassin threw Andrew's body on his shoulders and began to run, followed by the others. A dead body was an unbelievable burden, if carried by a normal person. However, Obsidian could run a mile without stopping with the monkey's body on his back.
They ran, following the florescent thread that marked their way in. Obsidian led the way, followed by Sirus, Slippy and Peppy. Damon was last, panic and fear clouding his mind. Soon the young hybrid fell behind the team, but everyone was too busy to save their own hides.
"We are almost there!" Obsidian shouted, his agile body running along the damp tunnel with freakish speed. Sirus never knew his "brother's" true abilities until that moment. Even with a burden close to two hundred pounds on his shoulders, the young wolf still ran with ease. Peppy and Slippy didn't even register the fact that Obsidian was leading them in their panicking state, only following Sirus as quickly as their legs could carry them. Soon, they saw the light. It was the exit.
"We have about a minute to spare." Obsidian said with a satisfied smile, putting down the dead body as the others exited. They were no longer in the bomb's blast range. The young wolf noticed that Damon was missing from the group. "Where's Damon?"
"I-I don't know!" Slippy exclaimed, "I thought I was last!"
"Oh no . . ." Obsidian said, looking back into the cave. The young hybrid was left behind. Without a second thought, the wolf tore the blood soaked blanket off Andrew's body and ran into the cave with it. He had less then forty-five seconds before the bomb would explode.
"Obsidian, come back!" Sirus shouted into the cave. It was too late, the young wolf was gone.
Obsidian ran madly in the dark, trying to find Damon. He cursed himself for not paying more attention to the hybrid, just to save a dead body. His senses seemed to sharpen under the stress, as he twisted and turned through the tunnels.
Thirty seconds . . . Twenty-five seconds . . . Twenty seconds.
At last, he found Damon lying on the ground, his arms flailing around. The hybrid was having a seizure, and the only way out was for Obsidian to carry him. Unfortunately, they would never make it in fifteen seconds. The young wolf picked Damon off the ground and began to run as fast as he could towards the exit, while his mind raced to find a solution. He found one, but one of them would suffer, and most likely dead.
Ten seconds . . . Seven . . . Six . . .
The exit came into his view, a small opening at least fifty meters away. There was no way they could make it. The wolf eyed the shivering hybrid in his arms.
"Sorry Damon, but I'll have to do this." Holding the hybrid by the collar, Obsidian spun Damon around twice before releasing him, sending the young hybrid airborne. Obsidian smiled as he watched Damon sail through the exit. The young wolf had enough time to think about joining a football team before the bomb exploded, engulfing everything in flames, including Obsidian himself.
"NOOOO!" Sirus screamed as he saw the flames exit after Damon, not Obsidian. It took a few seconds for the flames to disperse, replaced by a thick cloud of smoke. Sirus fell to his knees. Obsidian was gone.
Andrew woke up in the dark, realizing that he was hanging upside-down from the cave ceiling with his arms tied behind his back, a few feet from the ground. He was stripped of his shirt and equipments, only wearing his visor and a pair of slacks. He raised his head weakly, and saw Pigma and Leon in front of him. He realized that something had gone astray.
"Good morning, traitor." Leon was the first to speak. The lizard's face was emotionless, but the monkey could feel anger hidden just beneath his scales. Somehow Leon knew about what he did with the two captains. Lorenzo and Sam may be still alive, but it was doubtful, just like the fate of Andrew himself.
"W-What are you talking about?" the young monkey tried to keep calm without much success. "What happened?"
"Oh you know, my two puppies somehow escaped." Leon said with his melodious voice, kneeling down so he was facing Andrew. "And for some reason one of my hidden cameras recorded that you released them."
There was nothing that Andrew could do but curse his luck. Leon had cameras in this cave that even Andrew didn't know of. The lizard was planning well ahead, with solutions to every problem that may occur. Andrew felt his heart knocking harshly against his ribs. "W-what are you going to do?"
"I don't like traitors." Leon grinned and looked over to Pigma. "How about you Dengar, what do you think?"
"I don't like traitors either." Pigma said with a monotonous voice, "I'd say we release him from the team, for treason."
"Very well then, I will release him from the team." Leon grinned and pulled out a folding knife, flipping it open casually by pressing a small button. The lizard firmly pressed the razor sharp tip on the monkey's abdomen, "Any last words, Andrew?"
"I never liked you." Andrew said with a grin. He knew he was not going to walk out of the cave alive. Perhaps he made a mistake by releasing the two captains. But he would not live to regret it.
"That's a pity. I kind of liked you." Leon replied, a murderous grin appearing on his face. The lizard drove the knife into the monkey's stomach, near the belly button. He laughed maniacally as Andrew began to scream in pain. The lizard slowly dragged the knife downwards towards Andrew's ribs, slitting open the monkey's stomach. He was disemboweling Andrew, giving him a long and painful death.
Andrew could feel his intestines fall out of his abdomen. His screams slowly faded into moans, as he felt his own blood flowing down his bare chest. He could feel Leon reaching into his own body, ripping out vital organs, slowly killing him. He was butchered like an animal, in the hands of his own ally. He could hear Leon and Pigma laughing at his own demise. He cried, his tears mixing with blood. He finally realized that these were not friends, but it was too late.
Leon gripped Andrew's liver tightly, then ripped it out from his body, resulting a light moan from the monkey. The lizard took a step back and looked at his work of art. Andrew hung upside-down from the ceiling, his bloodied intestines and organs hanging out from the large cut. The lizard could still see that Andrew was still breathing, but barely. Leon looked at the raw liver in his hand, grinned, and took a bite.
"Leon, you are freaking sick." Pigma replied, drawing his blaster. The pig aimed it at the monkey's head and fired a single blast, killing Andrew instantly. Even though Andrew was a traitor, he was still a member of StarWolf, and Pigma did not expect Leon to kill the monkey in such a torturous way.
"Hey! You ruined my fun!" Leon threw the liver into the pig's head angrily.
Pigma tried to wipe the gore off his face, smearing the blood. It was unbelievable that Leon could do this to a teammate. Unfortunately, Leon also saved their lives twice before, and they were in his debt.
Seeing that Andrew was already dead, the chameleon frowned and picked up the liver off the blood-stained ground. He had intended to leave Andrew to die slowly and painfully, but Pigma ended it too soon. The chameleon paced over to a rocky wall, and began to smear Andrew's liver onto it, writing another message with blood. He wrote in bold capital letters: TRAITOR!
Damon's eyes opened, but everything was entirely black. Slowly things started to filter in; feeling was the first to come. He was extremely cold; it seeped through his short fur and pricked at his flesh. Sound came next, he could hear a faint murmur, a mumble every no and then. Slowly it became clearer, someone was calling his name. Slowly colors began to swirl in front of his eyes, the all melded together. Damon blinked; he was staring into Obsidian's crystalline blue eyes. He let out a soft shuddering moan.
"Damon?" Obsidian said concerned. Damon looked around; he felt like he knew the place, but couldn't place where exactly he was. He moved his mouth, but his mind was still fuzzy, and he couldn't formulate words. All that popped out was a soft moan. Obsidian picked up Damon, and held him in his arms. Damon merely sunk into them, still disoriented.
Suddenly there was a blaring noise; Damon clasped his hands over his ears. "Attention everyone, please report to the bridge immediately." Obsidian laid Damon down and swiftly went running. Damon reached his hand out and moaned again. He wobbly stood on two legs and ran after him. When Damon got outside he saw Obsidian turn a corner, Damon scrambled after him, tripping over his feet and nearly falling over. He continued running, he got to the service elevator, but Obsidian was already using it. He listened for a moment, and tried to follow the noise up the emergency stairs. He stumbled over the spiraling metal stairs. He hugged the guard rail with both arms, trying to retain his balance. Finally he burst into the bridge, breathing heavily. He spied Obsidian and stumbled over to him, tripping he landed at the black wolf's feet. Damon crawled the rest of the way over and hugged Obsidian's legs. Everyone around him started giggling, he looked at them curiously. He looked down at himself and then everything came into focus. Staring back at him were his white briefs, he looked back at everybody horrorstruck.
Damon curled into a little ball, trying to cover his underwear, which was difficult as they clashed with his fur, causing them to stand out even more. He feebly tried to hide himself, but the damage was done. He shivered on the metal floor, embarrassed to tears. He sobbed lightly, even General Pepper was laughing at him. Then he felt someone touch his shoulder, he merely tried to curl tighter, wishing everyone would go away. He felt the subtle prod again, and finally decided to look up. Obsidian was standing over the unfortunate hybrid. The laughing stopped as he glared around the room. The large wolf knelt down and wiped away Damon's tears.
"Damon, take my sweats..." He started to pull down the grey sweat pants but someone began chuckling again. Obsidian looked up and saw Falco holding his stomach and laughing. The wolf walked up to the blue avian, "What's so funny?" but before the bird could answer Obsidian had sent a punch to his stomach, sending the bird flying. Falco hit a nearby wall, collapsing on the floor, unconscious. Obsidian went back over to Damon, kneeling by him again. Even though he was staring at Damon, he was talking to the rest of the crew. "You all should be ashamed. Poor Damon has been laughed at all his life. Look at him, he's crying, he can't stand anymore of this kind of abuse. A little while ago he was in my arms, telling me all the horrible names they used to call him. The names they used to spite him, to make him loathe himself, so that he would be too embarrassed to even look at his own body." Damon shivered on the ground, "and you call yourselves his friends..."
Obsidian picked up shivering ball of fur that was Damon. He hugged him tightly in his arms. Obsidian gave one more saddened glare around room, seeing that everyone was staring at their feet in shame. Obsidian whispered in the hybrid's large jackalish ear, "Don't worry Damon, it's going to be alright."
Damon whimpered out one word, bringing a tear to Obsidian's eye in pity for Damon. The young hybrid's word was, "...freak..."
Pepper's holographic head coughed, trying to get the attention of the crew. He was surprised at Obsidian for knocking Falco unconscious. However, he was no longer Obsidian's boss, nor was the young wolf unjust. "Alright StarFox, this will be your last mission on Corneria. Captain Lorenzo Harding and Samuel Tintorreto have successfully found StarWolf's location in an underground cavern. Your task is to infiltrate the cavern and capture StarWolf, and execute them if they retaliate."
"General, do you have any additional information?" Fox asked with his arms crossed, "Maybe a map of some sort?"
"Well, unfortunately I don't have a map with me. The underground cavern is extremely large, and I strongly suggest you to stay together during your search." Pepper continued, "Also keep in mind that this mission may quite dangerous and difficult. I suggest you sit this one out, Fox."
Fox rubbed his stomach idly. Pepper was right, since he was still recovering from his injury. He looked over to Falco, who was lying unconscious at the base of a wall. Fox smiled, "Alright, at least I won't be alone. Sirus and Peppy can lead this one."
"Well, just sort it out yourselves." General Pepper continued. "Keep in mind that StarWolf may have already escaped. If so, collect as much evidence as you can. Good luck and be careful, StarFox." The projector turned off, and Pepper's face disappeared.
A military transport hovercraft stopped near the entrance of the underground catacomb. The door slid opened, and five black figures dismounted from the vehicle. It was Sirus, Peppy, Slippy, Obsidian and Damon. Their blasters were equipped with flashlights, along with a few other standard military gadgets such as intercoms. Other equipment were stored in their backpacks, which may prove to be useful if things went astray, or if they were trapped underground.
Sirus took the lead and entered the cave, followed by Peppy, Slippy and Damon. Obsidian volunteered to guard the others and took the last position. The small squad entered the cave in a single file formation. Damon stayed close to Obsidian, who was taking the mission casually. This was the young hybrid's first mission, and he was slightly nervous.
"Wow, this place is a maze!" Slippy exclaimed, after they have explored the tunnels for over twenty minutes without finding anything significant. Obsidian marked the paths they traveled with a long roll florescent thread, a way to prevent themselves from getting lost in the gigantic catacomb. How Lorenzo and Sam managed to escape was a mystery, or a miracle.
"No kidding Slip." Peppy commented as he shone his flashlight around the large spacious chamber they just entered.
Obsidian casually sniffed the air. His enhanced olfactory cells captured a few unique scent particles. It was the scent of blood. The young wolf left his position for a short distance, discovering the source of the smell. "Hey guys! Over here!"
The rest of the group scuttled towards Obsidian, who was standing under a cave opening. Inside was another chamber, artificially carved into a room. Broken glass and computers littered the room, along with a few disfigured metal table and stools. This was obviously a part of Leon's complex. The broken screens were once part of Leon's security system, each linked to a hidden camera.
"They left a while ago." Slippy said, looking around the chamber, trying to find something useful. "And they trashed everything too."
"It looks like the left in a hurry." Damon commented.
"Don't let your guard down." Sirus commented, knowing all too well that Leon may have left some traps on his way out.
Obsidian drew his sword and entered another chamber, leaving the rest of his company. In the middle of the room was a water tank, and on the bottom of the bank was a set of shackles. This was obviously where Leon drowned his prisoners. The young wolf glazed around the room with his enhanced vision, discovering other torture devices hanging on the walls, many of them stained with dried blood. This was not the source of the bloody smell, but Obsidian knew he was getting closer.
Damon followed the young wolf, and gasped as he saw all the tools hanging around. This room was similar to the one in Venom, the one he had spent his nightmarish days in. The young hybrid couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine. He hurried and followed the young wolf, gazing around nervously. He could smell the blood too, and he knew the source was what Obsidian was looking for. The young hybrid beckoned the others to follow.
The next room they entered smelled of rancid blood death. Obsidian used his sleeve to cover his sensitive nose. He could see that a shadow was dangling in the middle of the room, off the ceiling. The wolf raised his flashlight at the dark shape, his eyes widened in the horrific sight. It was the disfigured body of Andrew. The disemboweled monkey hung from the ceiling like a carcass in a butcher's stall. The whole room was reeking from Andrew's lifeless body. A message was clearly written on the wall with his blood.
TRAITOR!
Damon was stunned from the gory sight. The young hybrid threw up, emptying his breakfast on the floor. Immediately the hybrid let out a horrifying scream, alerting everyone. Obsidian placed an arm around the cadet, trying to comfort him. Sirus, Peppy and Slippy rushed into the room, all gasping at the demise of Andrew.
Damon whimpered in Obsidian's arms, while the rest of the team stood speechlessly in front of Andrew's carcass. Slippy Toad couldn't help but sigh at the sight. Andrew was once his nemesis, a great pilot. To see the man die in such a gruesome death was almost sad. But for the most part, it was shocking.
"Guys, do you hear that?" Obsidian's voice broke the silence. The assassin was already alerted by a rhythmical beeping in the background, a sound too small to be noticed by the others.
The others stood awestruck in their place, unable to reply.
"You guys are hopeless." Obsidian rolled his eyes. His sword flashed, cutting the chain on the ceiling Andrew's body fell to the ground with a sickening thump. The other's immediately snapped out of their trance. "You guys, get his body out of here. Slippy, come with me."
Slippy didn't know why Obsidian was leading the team all of a sudden. The toad silently hurried to the young wolf's side. Sirus on the other hand pulled out a military issued blanket and wrapped it around Andrew. Damon knew Sirus was saddened by the death of his old teammate. The young hybrid knelt by the monkey's gory body, helping Sirus while Peppy watched. The old hare was still in a dreamy state, but it was reasonable.
"Guys, get out of here now!" Obsidian shouted. Slippy and the young wolf were in a corner of the room. The toad knelt on the ground, working on some unknown device. It was a timed bomb, and it was about to go off in five minutes. The wolf barked again, "Grab Andrew's body and get out of here!"
"I can't stop it!" Slippy's high pitched voice echoed through the cave, "This place is going to blow!"
"Five minutes should be enough to get out of here, if we run." Obsidian said calmly. The young wolf took off his backpack and dropped his blaster. The young wolf ran back to the others. Without wasting a second, the assassin threw Andrew's body on his shoulders and began to run, followed by the others. A dead body was an unbelievable burden, if carried by a normal person. However, Obsidian could run a mile without stopping with the monkey's body on his back.
They ran, following the florescent thread that marked their way in. Obsidian led the way, followed by Sirus, Slippy and Peppy. Damon was last, panic and fear clouding his mind. Soon the young hybrid fell behind the team, but everyone was too busy to save their own hides.
"We are almost there!" Obsidian shouted, his agile body running along the damp tunnel with freakish speed. Sirus never knew his "brother's" true abilities until that moment. Even with a burden close to two hundred pounds on his shoulders, the young wolf still ran with ease. Peppy and Slippy didn't even register the fact that Obsidian was leading them in their panicking state, only following Sirus as quickly as their legs could carry them. Soon, they saw the light. It was the exit.
"We have about a minute to spare." Obsidian said with a satisfied smile, putting down the dead body as the others exited. They were no longer in the bomb's blast range. The young wolf noticed that Damon was missing from the group. "Where's Damon?"
"I-I don't know!" Slippy exclaimed, "I thought I was last!"
"Oh no . . ." Obsidian said, looking back into the cave. The young hybrid was left behind. Without a second thought, the wolf tore the blood soaked blanket off Andrew's body and ran into the cave with it. He had less then forty-five seconds before the bomb would explode.
"Obsidian, come back!" Sirus shouted into the cave. It was too late, the young wolf was gone.
Obsidian ran madly in the dark, trying to find Damon. He cursed himself for not paying more attention to the hybrid, just to save a dead body. His senses seemed to sharpen under the stress, as he twisted and turned through the tunnels.
Thirty seconds . . . Twenty-five seconds . . . Twenty seconds.
At last, he found Damon lying on the ground, his arms flailing around. The hybrid was having a seizure, and the only way out was for Obsidian to carry him. Unfortunately, they would never make it in fifteen seconds. The young wolf picked Damon off the ground and began to run as fast as he could towards the exit, while his mind raced to find a solution. He found one, but one of them would suffer, and most likely dead.
Ten seconds . . . Seven . . . Six . . .
The exit came into his view, a small opening at least fifty meters away. There was no way they could make it. The wolf eyed the shivering hybrid in his arms.
"Sorry Damon, but I'll have to do this." Holding the hybrid by the collar, Obsidian spun Damon around twice before releasing him, sending the young hybrid airborne. Obsidian smiled as he watched Damon sail through the exit. The young wolf had enough time to think about joining a football team before the bomb exploded, engulfing everything in flames, including Obsidian himself.
"NOOOO!" Sirus screamed as he saw the flames exit after Damon, not Obsidian. It took a few seconds for the flames to disperse, replaced by a thick cloud of smoke. Sirus fell to his knees. Obsidian was gone.
