CHAPTER 7:

"No . . ." Reno gasped, the cameras were beginning to clear and the image of the two filled the screen. Lirael, wrapped up in the arms of the stranger and embraced in a passionate kiss far superior to any display of emotion that Knave had seen her bestow upon Reno in the time that he had known them. "No . . ." he repeated, dumbstruck.

As they watched the two broke away but she still remained in his arms, her head lolling on his shoulder as they spoke. A little way away Hakujou was standing with her mouth forming a large 'o' shape, but not saying of doing anything to stop them.

Knave glanced away from the screen to Reno, who hadn't so much as blinked since they had got a visual on the scene. The Turk's eyes were so wide that they watered, and his fists clenched so tight that they had turned white.

"NO!" the other man screamed and smashed both hands into the control panel, smashing it in a shower of sparks that sent a strange yellow glow through the dark room. Panting, he closed his eyes and tears ran freely across the man's face. Shuddering with barely controlled emotion, he repeated the word over and over again.

"Reno . . ." Knave spoke up, his voice low. The other man looked like he was on the verge of a breakdown. He knew that Lirael was important to him but had never suspected that she meant that much to him. Was this the response that an overprotective boyfriend would have? He understood that he was devastated, but there must be something going on here that he as an outsider to the group was unaware of.

"That man!" Reno spat, sheer fury in his voice, "How dare he come back now, how dare he come here and take away what's mine!"

Unsure of what to say, Knave looked up at the screen again. Hakujou, Lirael and the stranger were all speaking together now, it looked like the winged girl knew who he was as well. Tactfully, he shut off the screen and plunged the room into the semi-dark state in which they had found it.

In the dark, he could hear Reno still muttering to himself, repeating words over and over again as is working up to something in his head. Then, suddenly he stopped talking altogether and drew one of his guns, weighing it in his hands.

Reno had never liked Knave, the two of them were such vastly different people that he would have been hard pressed to get along with the stranger at the best of times. But like most things, he had done it because Lirael had wanted him to.

Before the two of them had met and he'd fallen in love, he had lived a much different life. Born and raised on the streets of Midgar, life had been cruel. The wealthy prospered on the upper levels whilst those without money were forced to scrape a meagre existence beneath the plates that blotted out the sky, it was there amidst the grime and the smog that he had been forged.

A young boy at the tender age of eleven he had been without a home or a family, alone in the world. In that bleak environment the only option had been to steel himself against the dangers and become as terrible as those who would seek to harm him. When another child had tried to steal part of his meal one evening, he had used a shard of glass to slit his throat and cast him onto the road as a warning. After that even the larger gangs had stayed away.

But the continued animosity between himself and the others also drew the attention of the Shinra Corporation, the principle power within the city and dominant force. Orders were given to capture him and bring the youth before the President, who had taken one look at him and decided that Reno would suit a life in his personal guard. A shady unit called the Turks whose jobs ranged from bodyguards to hitmen.

Then his world had been destroyed a few years later and he'd found himself on the refugee ship heading to Disney Castle. Everyone around him was scared and panicking but he remained silent and angry, eager to take his revenge upon those responsible.

It was then that she had entered his life, and he had agreed to travel with her. Keeping her safe became his main responsibility and slowly the anger and the drive to kill had been replaced with love. Or at least something like love, as close to it as someone born on the streets of Midgar and trained to kill could come to feel.

But now all of that was draining away, and as he thought about the image that had filled the monitor only a few seconds ago his blood began to run hot with pure fury and in that moment of anger a decision was made.

She belongs to me. If she will not be mine then she wouldn't be anybody's!

He would kill her. But first he would kill everyone that she had come to love, stripping away her friends and her family until nothing remained but her miserable life. And then he would take that as well.

"Reno, are you alright?" Knave asked again, his voice soft and caring.

The Turk looked up at the blue haired stranger and a smile played across his lips. He would be the first to die, after all Lirael had insisted that they bring him along despite his misgivings on the matter, evidently he was more important to her than he was.

Without even changing position, Reno raised the gun smoothly and fired.

The bullet sheered through flesh and bone and burst through the back of Knave's left shoulder, splattering crimson blood against the far wall. The second shot would have struck him clean between the eyes had the swordsman not had the presence of mind to throw himself backwards and roll behind a pillar.

The emergency lighting in the room began to flicker, casting shadows in all directions.

Knave pushed himself up against the back of the white stone pillar and clutched his shoulder tightly, shocked and bewildered at what had just happened. He called out, desperate to understand what was going on, but was greeted with another round of shots that thudded harmlessly into the other side of the pillar. Knave was already gone, dartng away into the shadows.

Reno walked to the centre of the room and began to cast his gaze around, trying to work out where the other man could be hiding. His voice taking on a mad edge as he spoke aloud, trying to goad the other into revealing himself.

"You're a strange one Knave, a real mystery. Merlin says that you're touched by the Kingdom Hearts, but it's done you a fat lot of good so far, eh?"

Ripping the sleeve away from the wound, Knave used the material to bind and stop the bleeding. Flexing the arm he felt sharp jabs of pain run the length of his left side and gritted his teeth to stop himself from crying out. He realised then that he was unarmed, his sword dropped when the first shot had been fired, was now lying on the floor a short way away from him, but in clear line of fire should he move to claim it.

"Want to know what I think?" Reno continued, "I think that it's all a load of crap! Your meeting Lirael, and the way she just happened to take a liking to you . . . it's pretty obvious that you planned it all from the start."

Using his good hand Knave began to work at the clasp on his belt, unfastening it and waiting a moment before throwing it as hard as he could against the far wall. The metal clasp and tough leather made a slapping sound as they struck the cement, and Reno spun on the spot to send another three shots sailing off into the darkness.

Whilst his back was turned the swordsman made a dash for the sword, scooping it up with his good hand and throwing himself behind another pillar just as Reno realised what was happening and almost nailed him at the last moment.

"Clever boy." Reno shouted, ensuring that he was heard, "I didn't think you had it in you to pull a stunt like that, but I stand corrected."

Clasping the sword to his chest, Knave peered around the pillar to get a look at his enemy before pulling back into the shadows. How many bullets had he fired so far? Ten? Eleven? How many in a clip?

There was no way that he could take Reno on head to head with just a sword. He had to find some way to make the other man reload, and then try to use that momentary lapse to his advantage. Trouble was that it meant giving him more of a target than Knave would have liked.

---

Lirael broke free of the kiss and stared up at the silver-haired vision before her. Strong arms held her close but gave her room to stand on her own, supporting instead of trapping her small form.

Then she drew back her hand and slapped him across the face, a loud ringing blow. He didn't flinch away from it, simply turning his head to one side and letting her strike him. A large red mark slowly formed where she had struck over one cheek.

He rubbed it lightly with one hand. "I guess that I deserve that," the man commented without much remorse and he let go of her, stepping away.

Meeting her eyes for only a few seconds, he blinked slowly and then turned around and vanished from the room, taking the stairs up onto the rooftop and away. Leaving Lirael and Hakujou alone in the silence of the room.

Slowly Lirael's hand traced her lips where he had kissed her as if in a dream.

"Him." Hakujou commented dryly and turned to follow the direction through which he had left. Evidently he was heading to the roof for a reason and it made sense to investigate it for themselves. After all he had never been known to waste their time before, if he was there the chances were good that so was their goal.

"Lirael?" She called softly without response, and then again in a louder voice. "Lirael, come on, we need to check out the roof too."

The raven haired girl blinked as if waking from a dream and nodded once

"Yes," she added quickly to cover her slip, "let's go."

---

Seeing a blur of movement to his left, Reno spun and fired once before losing sight of his target in the darkness. Again behind him and another two bullets sprayed out aimlessly, striking the controls and sending a shower of sparks that illuminated that side of the room long enough for him to see that his former ally wasn't there any more.

Another blur almost had him fire, but he paused and held back. Realisation dawned and that slow smile returned to his face as he finally understood the other's tactics.

"I know you're counting shots Knave!" he called jovially, and began to stalk up the length of the room, peeking behind one pillar after another. "And it won't work. Sooner or later you'll have to come out of hiding and face me."

Reno checked behind another pillar, sweeping the area with his gun outstretched before him ready to fire as soon as he found his quary. Yet as he lent around another, Knave's sword slammed around the edge towards him and forced him to jump backwards at speed. The sharp metal severed his tie and caught a strand of red hair but failed to harm him in any way.

Knave brought the sword around again quickly and caught his gun-arm, sending the weapon spinning out into the darkness. Then he twisted the grip and struck him across the face with the pummel, using a blunt weapon in the hopes of avoiding a death.

Three swift blows to the Turk's face sent him sprawling to the round, where he swept away Knave's legs and the other man fell atop of him. Clutching at each other they rolled the length of the room, grappling and trying to gain the upper hand. Reno was smaller than Knave, less toned or agile, but the swordsman was wounded and could only use one arm properly. Together they struck the far wall and it was only a few seconds difference in speed between them that saw Knave pin Reno against the wall with his good hand, his other hanging loosely to one side.

"Get off of me!" Reno spat and tried to kick out, but Knave lifted him higher and applied pressure to his throat that quelled his actions.

"What the hell are you doing?" Knave blurted out, his face a mixture of shock and disbelief but clouded by the pain he was feeling in his left side. Despite his best efforts, the wound continued to bleed, and he was beginning to feel woozy.

Tears streamed Reno's face, "I love her!" he yelled savagely, "but she refuses the see it! She'd rather be swept into the arms of that bastard than look at me." The tears were flowing steadily now, and Knave began to lower him to the ground.

"Reno, I'm sorry . . ." the other man started, but no sooner did his grip loosen than Reno broke free and grabbed him by the throat, squeezing with both hands with all his might.

"Too caring Knave! You'd make a terribly Turk!" he squeezed harder still and the blue haired swordsman began to gasp and hack as he tried to breathe. "First I'll kill you, and then I'll kill her!" Reno shouted like a mantra, over and over again.

He's mad, Knave thought, and there's nothing I can do to stop him.

As things began to take on a dreamy edge, he realised that he was passing out. Somewhere at the edge of his consciousness, an image of fire and intense heat bubbled to the surface, and he wondered idly where it had come from. Then his strength left him and he passed out.

Standing over his unconscious form, Reno lifted him like a rag doll and threw him through the monitor, which shattered in a spectacular array of sparks and glass. Knave's body fell downwards before striking a walkway and finally landing with a splash in the fountain within the main hall below. Face down, he floated there.

Reno threw his sword after him, which clattered to the ground and stuck upright instead of breaking like he had hoped it would. Watching Knave's body for a moment, he took in the moment before turning and sweeping from the room.

First Knave . . . next Lirael.