A/N: So this is the last part in this story. I'm so happy that I am finishing it. It is actually kind of weird because I wrote Nooj first then Paine, the Gippal, and I got stuck on Baralai. This one was for you Ikon. I pray that I did Nooj even a little bit of justice. This was my baby and I hope you all enjoy this one.
Stripped: An Intimate Portrait of the Crimson Squad
Part IV: Nooj
He sat there under that hot water letting it pelt his tender flesh and steel. Taking off his glasses he placed them on the inlet inside the tub. He watched as the steam swirled about him fogging up the windows and glass inside the bathroom. He could hear his favorite opera playing in the background as he tilted his head back and grasped his standard issued automatic handgun which Gippal had modified to release twice as many rounds of ammunition in a fourth of the amount of time.
Yes, he would miss them. Especially Paine. He had identified with her. The young silver haired beauty's anger and aggression had always appealed to him and some how soothed him during times when he felt like he just couldn't carry on anymore. She was also part of the reason that he felt like he needed to move on to the farplane.
Though he would never admit it, Nooj had fallen desperately in love with the young warrior. But he knew in his heart of heart that she would never return his affections. At least not in the way that he wanted her too. She had always given her heart silently to the Praetor. He wondered if she knew that Baralai was a homosexual. She probably didn't because she had a way of blocking out things that she mentally didn't want to deal with or accept.
The Deathseeker is what they called him. And tonight that is what he sought. Being the immaculate person that he was he decided to have the whole incident take place in a confined area. He didn't want his housekeeper, Shelinda, to have much of a mess to clean up.
Cocking the gun he lifted it to his temple. Just as he began to pull the trigger he heard the loud shrieking of his phone penetrating his concentration and determination. He heard Gippal's voice frantically babbling out about some urgent emergency. But what really caught his attention were Paine's screams in the background. He couldn't understand anything either was saying. All he could make out was the desperation and panic in their voices. Tonight he wouldn't find death. His friends needed him. More important, Paine needed him.
Sliding the glass door open to the shower Nooj stepped one foot out. He felt the remaining foot in the shower slip on something slimy beneath him. Falling backwards he slammed his head into the shower nozzle, sending him sliding to the bottom of the tub. He heard gunshots ring out as he watched the bullets ricochet off of the wall of the marble inside the tub. He realized that he had forgotten to put the safety back on as thirty-six bullets flew in different directions around the enclosed walls.
His whole life began to flash before his eye. Things he had done. Things he hoped for. Things he regretted and wanted to atone for. This he should never have said as well and things that he wished he had said. He found himself not wanting to die as he tried to regain his balance as he scrambled up from the floor of the tub. He gasped in desperation as bullets entered his flesh and bounced off other that were made of steel. Once more he slumped to the bottom of the tub. This time there were rivers of blood escaping his lifeless body. He had finally found death at last.
