The next chapter. I decided to get it up quick since that last one really wasn't that exciting. It think this is the first story where I actually have several plot lines going on at once! It's pretty cool, and I really do hope you guys are liking it! I enjoy writing action and suspense stories; it's a nice change of pace from my usual romance fanfictions. I guess I do have some flexibility in me, heheh.
Disclaimer: South Park? I do not own it. If you accuse me of owning South Park, I will refer you to this disclaimer, which says: "South Park? I do not own it. If you accuse me of owning South Park, I will refer you to this disclaimer, which says: 'South Park? I do not own it. If you accuse me of ... well hell, I'm just repeating myself now! How did that happen?!
ENJOY!
2013
Chapter 2
Hot breath fogged around his mouth as he panted into the chilled midnight air. The soft wind, much less harsh than what it had been the last few days, still managed to sting his eyes and cause the sky blue orbs tear up with glistening pearls. As they fell down his cheek, jostled by the act of him running, the droplets pierced through the dirt caked upon his face.
He skidded to a stop, his feet inches deep into the snow as he whirled his head around to find his next route. The horrible thing about snow was that it was leading a trail right to him. He had to get inside now, before the distant, far off voices turned into the all too familiar clatter of gunfire.
Blonde shocks of hair cascaded down into his face and he tried to blow them away. He shook his head, annoyed that he didn't have any time to bother with his bangs right now! Knuckles turned white as they gripped the precious packaged even tighter into his chest. The shouts were getting closer.
Finally he saw it; the door he had planned on finding five minutes ago before his jittery nerves had caused him to get lost. He bolted for it, ramming his strong shoulder into the wood and sending it flying open. With one deft kick he shut the passage behind him, but didn't waste the time to lock it. They would find a way to open it again no matter how many locks there were.
His footsteps echoed through the vacant house as he clambered up rotted, wooden stairs that creaked under the combined strain of his weight and months of disuse. He turned the corner and hopped out a window, down onto the nearby roof. Just as he landed he heard the door from the previous house being ripped from its hinges and a deep, nasally voice spouting orders.
There was no time to waste! With a grunt, he dashed for the roof top trap door and wrenched it open. He slid down inside and maneuvered his way through the maze of rooms. He went through another series of doors until ending up in a room lined with metal walls. He knew where he was now; the old abandoned barracks that the Arbiters used to be stationed in before a methane leak threatened their entire operation and forced them to relocate.
He plowed through the cold, steel doors and down dark, dank hallways made of concrete. At last he stumbled out into the open air again, welcoming the brisk wind. He took a step out but stopped immediately at the sound of a gun being cocked. He slowly turned around to find the culprit leaning idly against the grey brick of the building.
"Kenny," the arrogant attacker greeted.
"Craig," the other nodded, not even trying to hide the parcel in his grasp. "I can see by your stars and stripes that you've ranked up since the last time we met."
"And by your rag-tag clothes I can tell that you're even more poor now," Craig chuckled, totting a gun in his hand, but not necessarily aiming it at his old friend. "You know, you could have saved yourself a lot of time and taken the route I did. No need to go through all those buildings."
"Yeah, but then you would have caught me," Kenny pointed out, a fake grin spread across his lips.
"I've caught you anyway," the black haired boy shrugged.
"I'm not in chains yet, Craig."
Craig sighed and brushed a hand through his hair. "Stubborn till the very end, eh? Well, if chains will convince you to come peacefully then I'll get some chains as soon as my subordinates arrive. Will that satisfy you? I'd hate to shoot you, ya know."
"Well, too bad," Kenny laughed, taking the slightest step forward. "Cause shooting me is the only way to stop me…." The blonde boy quickly elbowed the gun out of Craig's hand, following it up with a kick to the knee. Craig stumbled, his eyes wide with surprise until he fell flat on his ass in the snow.
Kenny wasted no time as he picked up the pistol and dashed down an alleyway. Two more men, both in blue uniforms, emerged from the building in time to help Craig up. He growled and ran for the same pass Kenny had just taken. He stopped dead in his tracks as he gazed into an alley full of doorways.
"Which one did he take?" one of the Arbiters shouted, more out of frustration than inquiry.
"Each of you, pick a door!" Craig barked, his joviant demeanor from before completely washed away. "On the count of three we open, he couldn't have gone too far!"
The three men took up a station and waited for Craig's count. As soon he yelled "Three" the doors were flung wide open. Almost instantly a gunshot was fired, and the furthest Arbiter clutched his leg, screaming in agony as he fell into the snow.
"He shot me!" the man cried, rolling on his back, staining the perfectly white snow with his crimson blood. "That little bastard shot me!"
Fearlessly, Craig ran through the doorway in time to see Kenny's shadow dart away. He cursed under his breath before turning to the other two. "You! Get him back to the base. And give me your gun, I'm going after him!"
Not thirty seconds later, Craig was tracing Kenny's steps, listening in on the echoes. He paused only moments at a crossroad in the hallway before making a sharp left. He laid his eyes on his prey as he began ganging up on the fleeing boy. He looked down to the floor as he passed a glinting silver pistol. Kenny had dropped it to make himself lighter.
"Come on, Kenny, old pal!" Craig shouted, nearly hysterical with adrenaline. "You remember gym class at least, don't ya? I was always faster than you!" Sure enough, the black haired assailant was gaining. In no time, he would catch him and the chase would be over.
Kenny pivoted on his heels, a flash of steel falling from his sleeve. He flailed his arm at Craig, throwing a knife almost at point blank range. Craig staggered into the wall, letting out a guttural cry.
"This isn't high school anymore, bastard," Kenny panted, breathlessly before jumping through another door.
Craig lifted his gun, but Kenny was out of his sights before he could pull the trigger. His chest heaved before casting his gaze down onto his left shoulder. With a grunt, he grasped the hilt of the knife and ripped it from his flesh. He clenched his teeth to keep himself from shouting and dropped the dagger onto the floor below him.
Slower than before, Craig traced Kenny's movements, erupting from the doorway with an angry kick. He stared on into a desolate plane. Heavy snow had already started to come down, and if Kenny had left footprints they were already covered. There were plenty of boulders, rubble, and collapsed buildings to hide behind, but it would take forever to search them.
Through gritted teeth, Craig begrudged himself a smile. "You think this is over?" he shouted into the distance, hoping his prey could hear him. "It's never over! This town has a serious rat problem, and we're gonna clean it up!"
He flicked a pocket in his belt and pulled out a tiny canister. He turned around, shaking the bottle until it was good and ready. Then he clicked the button, a red spray of paint shooting out of the tip. With two great swipes of his arm, he spray painted an "X" on the door he had come through.
"See that?" he shouted, turning around again. "You're marked! Every time you get away, we mark the exits! Soon you'll have no where to hide! We'll have this town so covered in cameras you won't be able to piss without us knowing! You got that, Kenny! YOU GOT THAT?!"
"Sir, did you catch him?" asked a soldier as he caught up with his officer.
"Nah," Craig sighed, sounding only slightly disappointed. "It's not a problem though. He only stole a few pounds of food." He sat down on a stoop and let out a long breath, watching it mist up into the cloudy night sky.
"How many were there tonight?" the Arbiter continued.
"I'd say about three of them, including our good friend Kenny," Craig answered, not really feeling like standing up; he was tired and bleeding and a little angry that the rebels had gotten away… again. "Each one had about twenty pounds of food. Taking into account the hundred they stole last week and adding that to god knows how many provisions they had before they started stealing from us… I'd say they won't be making another move for a while."
After another minute of absolute silence, Craig finally got to his feet. "Alright, let's report in."
Kenny listened to their footsteps, his back to a collapsed wall. He panted heavily, his body twitching with adrenaline and fear. That was way too close. Way too close. He swallowed hard, finding his legs paralyzed with exhaustion. He laid his head back and closed his eyes, feeling flakes of snow melt on his face.
"Psst!" came a whisper, and Kenny bolted upright. He instantly relaxed when he saw it was just Butters. He was crouching in a small hole in a building to Kenny's right. "Everyone else has gotten back to HQ, Kenny," he informed, his voice barely audible.
"Yeah," the other blonde acknowledged. "I just had a little run in with Craig and his lackeys."
"So I've heard," Butters simpered. "You're just lucky it wasn't Stan… or, god forbid, Kyle! You'd be dead before dawn!"
Kenny's eyes drooped low as his face grew dark. "Don't remind me."
"I just don't get it," Butters started, coming closer and wrapping a scarf around Kenny's neck. "We've got plenty of provisions and food down in the base. I don't see what's so important about stealing food from the Arbiters' barracks."
"It's not the food, Butters," Kenny smiled, coyly, as he carefully opened up the package. "It's the parcel itself!" He turned the package on its head and dumped out the canned food and pieces of bread into the piling snow.
"Our leader, Mikhail Donavich," Kenny explained, gingerly tearing at the packaging with his cold fingers. "He's got a man on the inside. He couldn't get anyone close to that asshole, Cooper, but he did the next best thing." Butters looked on in wonder as Kenny completely unfolded the thick paper.
"He got a guy into the packaging company for the Arbiters' supplies. Why do you think I ordered you guys to only steal the parcels with the number 6 on them?" Butters shrugged and Kenny flipped the paper over, revealing drawings and scribbled writing sprawled out over its entire length.
"What's that?" Butters asked in awe, his blue eyes wide with bewilderment.
"A piece of the plans to our next mission," Kenny grinned, bearing his white teeth. "Those Arbiters won't know what hit them…."