I'd like to give a small warning to those who read this chapter. It gets a tad graphic here and while I've always had violence in my stories, it was never quite like this. It's not too bad, you won't vomit or anything, I just wanted to forewarn the sensitive readers out there. That being said, enjoy the chapter, cause there's only one left. BTW, I always appreciate reviews.
Chapter 8: "The Killing Ends Here"
"All right, we're accelerating!" shouted Walker. He was slowly taking the Boomer to full throttle, and was flying alongside the WarTalon. While the Boomer was far larger, it was also a lot slower. The WarTalon zoomed easily beside it.
"Okay, only a few miles till we hit the mansion!" replied Chad, who was manning the WarTalon. "Make sure you guys give yourselves enough time to escape!"
"We better do this right!" shouted Numbuh 4. "It's all ready seven o' clock, South Park's on in a few hours!" He, along with Jackknife and Sector V, were aboard the WarTalon with Chad and Cree, while the other Aussies were inside the Boomer.
"T-minus ninety seconds to impact," reported Chad. "We'll jump ship at T-minus fifteen seconds, that should give us enough time to get out of the way."
"Hey, Abby, I wanted to give you something," said Jackknife.
"I'm not drinking any beer, Jackknife," replied Abby flatly.
"No, not that! I wanted to give you my e-mail address," he said, handing her a slip of paper. She eyed it and slipped it into her pocket. She gave him a smile.
"You know, you're kind of cute for a greasy, maniacal Aussie," she laughed.
"Aw, Abby, you're makin' me blush!" he joked. Numbuh 2 turned in their direction, annoyed. Stupid stupidheads, he thought to himself.
"This is Walker, coming in! I've got some bad news, Jackknife. We left the beer in the Boomer! We forgot to leave it in the treehouse!" he called.
"NOOOO!" shouted Jackknife. He jumped out of the WarTalon and shot towards the Boomer.
"Idiot," muttered Abby. "He is kinda cute though." Numbuh 2 turned away in disgust.
"Numbuh 4, there's something I need to ask you before we leave," said Kuki.
Oh, geez, not now! thought Wally. "Um, Numbuh 3, do you really need to ask me right now? I mean, come on, there's really no time to be asking questions right now, right when we're about to rescue Dizzy and Crow and–"
"Wally, do you love me?" she whispered, so no one else could hear. "Not as a friend, but as a..."
He gave a loud gulp. "Well..."
"T-minus thirty seconds!" shouted Chad. "No time for chit chat, people. Get into position! The Boomer's right behind us!" Wally quickly ran over to the door that he was jumping out of.
"Numbuh 4!" Kuki whined.
"T-minus 22, 21, 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, all right people, jump!" And jump they did. They actually only had about thirty feet to fall. They activated their jet packs and scattered as far away as they could. The WarTalon collided with the mansion, and a thunderous explosion ensued.
"Look out everyone, the Boomer's right behind us!" shouted Numbuh 1. A great gust of wind swept them back as the Boomer came charging through. The Aussies poured out of the giant airship at the last second.
"For Dizzy!" they screamed in unison. If the first explosion was thunderous, then the second was simply godlike. Debris scattered everywhere, and the teams had to do their best to avoid all the metal shooting towards them. Sector V looked in shock at the wreckage that had once been Father's mansion. It almost stung, to see a place that they knew so well completely annihilated.
"Quite a bit of debris, isn't there?" asked Numbuh 1. "How are we going to find the chamber?"
"It's beneath that water fountain in the garden. Let's get a move on!" ordered Cree.
"Father, Father!" shouted the Delightful Children. They were banging on the door of the science lab, a place even they had never entered before. "The KND have destroyed the mansion, and they've entered the underground chamber. We've sent the robots to intercept them, but who knows how long they will last! Let us in, please!"
"Oh, all right, children," sighed Father. "Come in if you wish." The door opened, and the Delightful Children burst through. They stared in awe at the laboratory. Science experiments beyond their imagination were all around the room. Dangerous looking guns, volatile chemicals, experimental robots, noxious, over powering fumes, the lab flooded the senses. Then they noticed Crow, standing in a corner. He lifted his head and stared at them, his red eye boring into them.
"W-what's happened to him?" they asked, fearful. They stared at his left arm. The contrast of his smooth, muscular upper arm and the metal jutting from his elbow looked like it was straight out of a horror flick.
"I've upgraded him," replied Father. "It's much better than just killing him, he's so useful now. Very soon he and I will rule the world."
"Not if the KND have anything to say about it!" shouted Dizzy. He grabbed the bars of his cage and rattled them with all his strength. "As soon as they get here, you're done for!" The Delightful Children jerked in surprise; they hadn't even noticed the boy until just now.
"Father, what do you mean when you say 'he and I' ? Aren't we to rule the world with you?" asked the Delightful Children, ignoring Dizzy's rants.
"I'm afraid not, children," snickered Father. "You see, only two people have ever entered this room and come out alive. That would be me and Crow. Today is no exception, I'm afraid. Crow, could you take care of these pests for me?" A malevolent grin spread across Father's face.
Crow turned towards the children, a bored, dull look on his face. "Yes, Father," he replied, extending the metal claws out of his fingers. The children stood stunned. For a few moments, they didn't even scream.
Meanwhile, the KND and teenagers were being held back by a swarm of spider robots. They weren't terribly hard to beat, but they just kept coming, and they knew time was running out.
"We're wasting time!" shouted Numbuh 4. "I'm going to charge through them! Anyone want to come with me?"
"Chad and I will go with you!" answered Cree. They activated their jet packs and burst through the swarm of spider robots, leaving the others behind. "Don't worry, they'll be all right!" assured Cree.
They found the laboratory. To their surprise, the door was wide open. They entered swiftly, then stopped in horror once they saw what was on the floor.
"Jesus Christ!" shouted Chad. The Delightful Children were sprawled on the ground, soaked in blood. They looked like they had been mauled to death. Their faces were locked in an expression of pure horror.
"Oh, oh god," whispered Cree. She started shivering uncontrollably, and let out a soft moan. Wally was too shocked to even say anything. He just stood there with his mouth wide open. Only once in his life had he ever wanted to kill anybody. But this...this was more than murder. This was just plain sick.
"Wally, Wally, over here!" came a voice. Wally turned his head to the source of the voice, and found Dizzy caged in a corner. He ran to him.
"Dizzy! Thank god you're alive!" cried Wally. He grabbed one of the knives on the closest table. He hacked away the bars with ease, it was as if they were made out of butter. He pocketed it after he had freed Dizzy; this knife was too good to let go.
"Christ, that was awful," shuddered Dizzy, his face pale with shock. "He just, he just ripped them apart. Didn't even act like it was nothing. Acted like he was just hoeing some weeds. And Father just kept laughing the entire time, laughing like a maniac. Those kids were screaming for their lives and he just kept laughing."
"Are you saying Crow killed them?" asked Wally.
"NO!" shouted Cree. "Crow would never do this, never! He's not like that!"
"Look, sheila, I saw it happen. Now, I ain't sayin' he was in his right mind, 'cause Father was controlling him with that device. But he murdered them nonetheless. Tore the poor bastards apart."
"Where are they, Dizzy?" asked Chad. "Where did they go?"
"I dunno, they just left. I guess they were going in the direction you guys were headed." He stumbled and fell to the ground, moaning weakly. It had been days since Father had bothered to feed him.
"Okay, Cree, Wally, you guys go after Father and Crow. I'll take care of Dizzy and make sure the others don't come in here. Lord knows they don't need to see this," muttered Chad.
"All right, then. God, I don't like the sound of this. Crow's going to give us everything he's got. And then there's Father we have to worry about!" exclaimed Cree.
"No point in worrying now. We've got to go!" Cree nodded at Wally's words, and they took off, trying not to look at the dead bodies displayed before them. They both bit back sobs as they passed the corpses. They turned on their jetpacks and zoomed through the hall, praying that they were in the right direction.
"Number 4, there's something I need to ask you. Why is it that you don't hate Crow anymore?" asked Cree.
Wally gulped. "Has he ever told you about his past?" he asked in reply.
"No, not really."
"Well then, I can't tell you. Ask him about his past, if we all get through this alive. It should be up to him whether you know or not."
Cree decided not to argue. Now wasn't the time. "All right, have it your way."
After half a minute, they approached some large steel double doors. Whatever was on the other side must have been pretty big.
"Oh no," moaned Cree.
"What's wrong?" asked Wally.
"I just realized something. These are the doors to the furnace that powers the entire mansion. There's nothing else past this furnace."
"So we've got them cornered," said Wally. "What's so bad about that?"
"It means that they're not trying to escape. They want us to come here. They're going to try to kill us. What's worse is that we'll be fighting in a very dangerous place. If we hit the furnace hard enough, this entire place will go up in flames. And I think that might be just what Father wants."
Wally paled. "So if even if we're winning, Father might say to hell with it all and blow the furnace up."
"I think he's going to blow this place up no matter what, even if he kills us first. Which means we need to take them out before he gets a chance. Wally, I'm not sure if we can pull this off."
"Well, it's not like we can just run," pointed out Wally, tightening the grip on his freeze ray. "And besides, we've got to get Crow back."
Cree nodded. "All right then, let's go." They pushed through the double doors and entered the furnace. Wally gave a small gasp; the air here was strangely acrid, almost hard to breathe. He gazed around. The furnace room was vast, and there would be plenty room to fight. But it was also dim, lit only by the flame of the giant furnace. He gazed over at some stone columns that connected to the ceiling. That's probably the only cover in this room, he noted. He was about to point that out when a voice interrupted him.
"Well, if it isn't Cree and Wally. How nice of you to visit," drawled Father, stepping out of the shadows. "Did you see the nice furnace?"
Wally and Cree turned to the large furnace, and their mouths dropped. The thing was covered in C4. They were going to blow this place up after all.
"Yes, I'm afraid that I have little use for this mansion anymore, so I'll be blowing it up as soon as this battle is over."
"You'll die too, Father," said Cree.
"I can't die!" roared Father, madness in his voice. "I'm a god, you silly girl! I choose who lives and who dies!"
"Shut up! I've had enough of your stupid rants!" shouted Wally. He fired his freezing ray at Father and almost hit him. Father jumped back, furious.
"How dare you disrespect a god! Crow, dispose of these heretics! Kill them, my son!" ordered Father. He leapt back into the shadows, his flames expiring.
"Crap! Where is he?" whispered Wally.
"We should be more worried about Crow," advised Cree. They both looked into the shadows, wondering where he could possibly be. Wally lifted his head and saw a faint red light coming from the ceiling.
"There!" shouted Wally, pointing at the ceiling. Before they could do much else, Crow dropped from the ceiling and executed a split kick, quieter than a ghost, just as he had back on the Mantra. Wally had been expecting this, so he was able dodge it in time. Cree managed to block it, but the force of the kick was so strong it nearly broke her arm. Before they could even react, Crow leapt back into the shadows.
"Damn, he's fast!" remarked Wally. "I don't see how we're going to stop him, especially without killing him."
"We've got to try to get through to him," said Cree. "Crow! Stop, please. We don't want to hurt you. Break free, you can do it!"
"Oh yeah, that's going to work," scoffed Wally.
"Have you got a better idea?" asked Cree, shrilly. She didn't want to admit it, but Wally was right. A few kind words weren't going to break through that mind control device. He's murdered children, Cree thought, shivering.
Crow's next attack came even swifter than the first, and this time he went in for the kill. He charged straight at them, dodging the freeze rays they shot at him. He head butted Wally and knocked him into a stone pillar. Cree started fighting hand to hand, her limbs a blur as she launched into him with everything she had. Half of the moves she was using would have been fatal, had they managed to hit him.
But Crow was dodging them all, moving faster than Cree had ever seen him. He caught her wrists and kneed her in the stomach. His right hand grasped her throat and pinned her to the ground. He raised his robotic left hand, extending the sharp claws from his fingers. Before he could kill her, Wally jumped at him and nailed him in the head with a powerful kick. Crow fell back, raised his left palm and fired a powerful laser bolt at Wally. Cree pulled Wally to the ground before it hit him, and the laser crashed into one of the stone pillars, breaking it apart. Part of the ceiling broke off and fell to the ground.
"Crow, stop this, now!" shouted Cree. Crow got up from the ground and stood still, staring at them for a moment. Then he ignited and his body became surrounded in black fire. He raised right arm and sent a giant burst of flame at them. Cree and Wally dodged out of the way, using their jet packs. The battle turned aerial, with Cree and Wally on the defensive, dodging the fire.
"What's wrong with his aim?" asked Wally. "He was a lot better just a second ago."
"That mind control device must be hindering his abilities. It's starting to put a strain on him. Wally, now's our chance! We've got to charge him now!" she exclaimed.
"Okay. One final charge!" He prayed that it would work. They flew straight at him at full speed. He turned off his flame and was now firing with just the laser in his hand. They dodged his laser fire, and just as they were about to reach him, he leapt towards them, clotheslining both of them, knocking their freeze rays from them. He raised his claw, about to swipe both of them, when Cree kicked him in the crotch. Crow gave a short gasp. Cree tried to sock him in the face, but he grabbed her hand, pulled her towards him, and punched her back several feet. She was unconscious before she hit the ground.
Desperate, Wally pulled the knife from the lab out of his pocket and stabbed Crow in the back, thrusting it as far as it would go. Crow eyes widened, and he fell to ground, face down. Wally stared at him for a second, not quite comprehending what he had just done. He walked over to his ray gun and picked it up. His arm shaking, he raised his freeze ray and froze the mind control device on the back of Crow's head.
Tears sprang to his eyes. Of all the pointless, worthless victories. He'd disabled the mind control device, but killed Crow before it could make any difference. He sank to his knees, crying softly. Then a fist clenched his throat from behind, stopping his breathing.
"Not bad, Wally, not bad. I see you've carried out your purpose after all. No matter what you say or think, you can't stop fate. You were created to kill Crow if he became too powerful, and what a fine job you've done." Father grabbed the freezing ray from Wally and threw it aside. The he tossed Wally several feet, and flared up. He stepped over Crow's limp body.
"And now that you've fulfilled your purpose, there's really no reason for you to live.
I think it's high time I killed you, child." He raised his arm, preparing to fire a blast. Then a pair of hands grasped his head, wrenching him back.
"ARGHH!" cried Father, feeling is skull cave in.
"Crow!" exclaimed Wally. Crow wasn't dead, at least not yet. The knife was still sticking through him, but he didn't seem to notice. The black flames around his body mixed with those of Father, and their struggle looked like a portrait of hell.
Crow was screaming loudly, twisting Father's head back with all his might. Father struggled valiantly, but Crow refused to let go. Then, with a final tug, Crow ripped Father's head right off. His decapitated body collapsed onto the ground, the flames extinguished. Crow dropped the head and kneeled on the ground, exhausted.
"No, Father," he panted. "The killing ends here. For both of us."