Chapter 8
By shadows/of/flame
Warning - a slight yaoi touch in here - if you want to look at it THAT way...
Smoke, fire and ash clogged the streets. Dead bodies were everywhere, and the remaining Krimzon Guard were running rampant trying to keep the Metal Heads under control.
"I can't believe the Palace was just rebuilt, and it'll have to be renovated!" One of them said.
Another guard agreed "And the Slums! Governer Ashelin just rebuilt that as well!"
Keira coughed and spluttered as she entered the streets, and fell to her knees.
Fire was consuming a large amount of buildings, and shattered glass was coating the walkways. Citizens cowered in their houses, afraid to come out, even though houses were falling all around them.
Keira tried to get some fresh air, and knew she had limited time before the whole city was consumed in flames.
She helped any way she could - helping extingush fires, killing metal heads, and helping save the townspeople that were too dumb to save themselves.
The town was still a huge mess, and there was still so much to be done!
'I hope Ashelin has plenty of money to clean this town up!' Keira smirked to herself, and then coughed up a lot of blood again.
A numbing sensation started spreading up Keiras arm, and she knew the bullet wound was the cause of most of her pain.
But it was too late to comtemplate it, as her senses were weaking, and she couldn't help anymore.
'Is this what its like to finally die?' she wondered as she fell to her knees in final defeat.
'Erol was right... he would be the one to kill me... At least the towns safe, and Erols dead..."
Keira fell forward onto her face, unconcious, maybe even dead, hitting all sorts of debry on her way down...
"Keira!"
Torn didn't think he could scream anymore, but he did, his throat burning from the excessive effort.
"Keira! Please! Come on! I'm worried about you! I l..."
Torn stopped, and buried his grimy, blood stained face in his equally dirty hands.
He continued looking anyway, and through a cloud of smoke and a mixture of sand and ash, he saw the outline of a girl, lying half buried in a pile of rubble.
A silvery green gun was lying in her limp grasp.
"Keira!" Torn yelled, tripping over piles of junk, until he reached her.
He dug her out of the rubble, and cradled her in his arms.
Keira opened one of her eyes, and even though her vision was blurry she could see Torns outline shadowed against one of the crispy buildings.
"Torn..."
She was bleeding profusely, and she was as pale as a ghost.
"I don't think... I am going to live through this war, Torn..."
Torn closed his eyes, and held her even closer.
"Keira... please... don't die... I have so much more to say..."
He took off his red bandana from his neck, and tore it into strips, which he then tied tightly around some of Keiras worse wounds like a tourniquet.
She smiled weakly at him, loosening her grip on him.
"I am sorry that... I wasn't the right hero material"
She coughed up more blood, and Torn began to panic.
The only person he had actually ever cared about, more than himself.
... Was dying?
Torn started to cry, sobbing.
"Please... Keira!"
She smiled faintly, becoming limper than ever, and even more pale than when he first found her.
"I love you Torn..." she whispered, "I'm just sorry that I wasn't good enough to be by your side again..."
Torn smiled weakly. "I love you too Keira."
She went still, and Torn struggled back through the rubble, her in his arms, to find Samos.
Samos found them first, and screamed not bloody, but GIRLY murder.
He grabbed his daughter in a fit of rage and worry, straight out of Torns arms, and went with Tess to heal her as best they could.
Torn realised he had made his way to Freedom HQ, and he slowly collapsed onto the couch, locating a first aid kit, and trying as best he could to tend to his minor wounds.
Ashelin and Jak entered in a slamming of doors, and the screeching of the HellCat cruisiers they were using.
Ashelin grabbed Torn by the collar, and started shaking his already ravaged body to and fro as though he were a ragdoll.
"STOP!" Jak yelled, but it was to no avail, as Ashelin was convinced it was Torns fault.
"WHERE IS SHE? WHERES KEIRA!"
Torn was slammed repeatedly against the back of the couch, until he had the strength to point in the direction Samos and Tess had taken Keira.
Ashelin ran down to her room, and Jak gave Torn some painkillers, and some blankets and pillows so he could sleep on the couch.
"Shes been in a horrible mood lately, so don't dwell on it OK Torn?" Jak smiled, and hugged his friend.
Torn closed his eyes and leaned into his friends embrace, as thoug staying sheltered in his arms would make all his problems go away.
But he knew it wouldn't as he fell asleep.
'Shes not going to make it, is she?'
'You'd better wake Torn up... tell him the bad news... so he can see her one last time?'
'But how will he cope...?'
Torn started yelling his head off, and woke up by being shaken, covered in sweat from his horrible dream.
Or was it a nightmare? Or was it true?
Torns sea blue eyes adjusted to the sudden change of light, and when the mist of sleep was driven away, he couldn't believe who was sitting on the end of his bed.
She had a sling, and a few stitches here and there, but she was alive, and crushing the blood supply to his feet.
"I think you were having a nightmare... are you OK?" she asked worriedly, placing some more painkillers and a glass of water on the table by the couch.
Torn stripped the blankets off him, careful not to disturb her, and got changed into some 'recovery robes' that would help heal the wounds, because the material had magical properties.
Keira also had them on, except she had a womans type, and she was looking as beautiful as ever.
"Surprised to see me alive? Especially after we were both convinced I was going to die?" she smiled, taking Torns battered hands into her good one.
Torn nodded. "I thought you were going to die... I have never been so worried in my whole life..."
He bowed his head in shame, and Keira hugged him.
"We have a lot to talk about..." she murmured into his shoulder.
"Oh hell... we do. Sig being a traitor, your promotion..."
She softly grinned.
"We have to talk about us as well."
He smirked.
"Lets start at the start, shall we?"