Realization spread across her face, as her hand, that was reaching towards me, dropped down by her side. It was an eerie and awkward silence. My hand still gripped the lab table. My pointer finger and thumb squeezed my eyebrows together with my other hand. My mind was racing. What to do now? I can't save the only reason for me to live. I can't save my best friend for god's sake! Why me? Anyone but me.. If it wasn't for years of routine, tears would be falling from my eyes. My hand gripped it even tighter. I was falling but no one could catch me. I couldn't try to give Tenten or Shikamaru my blood. If you mix different blood types the host would get very sick and die anyway. My thinking stopped as my eyes returned to her. She had not moved.
"Tenten...please." I begged. "Say something."
She shook her head but replied anyway, "There is nothing to say, Neji. " She was quiet for a moment. "It's over."
"I've not come this far to die now. The same goes for both of you!" I yelled. "I can figure something out."
"No you can't!" Tenten yelled at me, taking a slight step towards me. "You can't do everything, Neji."
I closed that space between us. My arms pulled her into a hug as I looked over her shoulder.
"I need a reason to live, Tenten." I whispered so only she heard me. "I cant live without you."
Her mouth opened to reply but a loud crash made my head shoot up. I instinctively pushed Tenten behind me, away from the possible threat. Moaning and ragged breathing was heard. Shikamaru walked over and looked out the lab window.
"They're in the building." Shikamaru said walking towards me.
"How many?" I asked picking the assault rifle up.
His head turned towards me, "Too many. We won't make it out." He sighed but the added, "Unless we do another distraction."
"Shikamaru..." I started.
"Neji I let you get gunned down by the police, you can at least let me do this." He replied as more shrieking was heard outside.
"But-" I started, but Shikamaru grabbed the neck of my jacket pulling me to him.
"I said I would follow you until the end, Neji. But this is the end. It always has been." His grip of my jacket got tighter. "Finish the journey and make it to that God forsaken lake house of mine. You complete what we started and I'll finally be with Temari again." He let go of my neck collar and grabbed the assault rifle out of my hand and slipped the lake house keys into my jacket pocket. "There is a back exit to your far right. Use it. I'll distract them." He turned his back to me and faced the infected.
"This is not like the police, Shikamaru. I had a bullet proof vest. This is a suicide mission." I tried to reason with him, but one look from his eyes told me he was not going to budge.
"Go." He simply ordered me.
"Shikamaru." I put my hand out towards him, my voice not pleading with him anymore, but more like offering a final goodbye.
He glanced at me from the corner of his eyes and then turned around and grasped mine in his. "Good luck, my friend. And goodbye."
I chuckled. "You mean see you later."
His eyebrow rose at my comment and he nodded his head as our hands dropped back down to our sides. I yanked my sidearm free and backed out of the room, pushing Tenten along with me. Shikamaru turned back towards the infected as they started to break while I went out of the back exit. And that was the last of I saw of Shikamaru Nara. My first and last friend.
Of knights. ( With Shikamaru.)
I flipped the magazine out. Shit. Only one round left. I could probably shoot for a while and then shoot myself so I wouldn't have to feel any pain. I'll have to shoot with one hand and thats not going to be easy. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Neji disappear out the back exit just as the horde broke in. Older and younger infected charged at me. I raised my gun and opened fire. Blackish-red blood spilled out of the bodies as each bullet made contact with their flesh. I backed up until my back hit the wall. There were just too many of them. As soon as I shot one, another would replace that one. A man with blackish veins coming from his throat lunged at me, but I slammed the butt of the gun on his face, causing him to double over backwards. My eyes widened as a little girl, who could not be more than three ran towards me. A bullet to her head, stopped the infected girl in her tracks.
"Jesus Christ.." I mumbled, as a familiar man came at me.
Blood covered his face, but his brown hair was still visible. His shirt was completely gone, revealing the infected starting point on his abdomen. So I guess Neji didn't kill him. I raised my gun and lined the sight with his forehead. I pulled the trigger but the gun stalled and became jammed. Throwing the the assault rifle to the ground, I picked up a piece of shattered glass in my good hand. My broken arm hurt like a son if a bitch, but I still motioned my fingers, inviting him to come to me.
"Come at me Kankuro!" I screamed at the infected man.
He complied and ran at me his mouth open so wide, it looked as if he could devour me whole. When he got close enough, I slammed the glass shard into his throat. With my other hand I punched him in the stomach, sending him flying back a few inches. Blood spilled out of his throat where the glass was. One hand gripped his bleeding throat while the other reached out towards me. His legs buckled and he fell over onto the ground dead.
"I have always wanted to do that. That's for kissing Temari, you jackass!" I yelled at the body, as my adrenaline continued to pump throughout my veins.
The infected horde didn't stop. All at once they charged at me. Another glass shard found it's way into my hand. It soon was lodged into the head of an infected. My foot and fist made contact with the infecteds' flesh as I struggled to defend myself. A younger infected came out of nowhere behind me and dug his teeth into my shoulder, causing me to yell out in pain. As if planned young and old infected alike bit into my arms, legs, and any flesh they could find on me. I still struggled however. The pain was intense, but I soon lost all feeling. My vision darkened as the infected started to rip out my guts. They were literally tearing me to pieces. The last thought that I could process before I slipped under the darkness was, I'm coming Temari..
Lost Kings. ( Moments before with Neji )
My pistol raised in front of me as we continued outside. Gunshots were heard in side the building. We started to run as our feet made contact with the grass outside. Infected outside were too concentrated on the man shooting to notice us slip by him. We were a block away but I still heard the painful silence of cease fire.
"Shikamaru.." I murmured.
Blocks away we took a right out of the little town and slowed down to a power walk. The landscape was beautiful at one of the worst times. Like Heaven right in the middle of Hell. Hills rose up and down the country side. But still the grass was brown. Everything was pretty much dead. Two hundred miles and we were finally almost there.
Coughing broke my train of thought as Tenten leaned over and started to cough up blood. Like Temari. I turned around and caught her before she fell to the ground. She mumbled words of 'Im sorry.'
"It's ok Tenten." I spoke softly. "Grab around my neck, I'll carry you the rest of the way."
She nodded and hugged my neck as I picked her up. She was in the last stage of infection. It would all be over soon. As much as I wanted to, I could not save her. I've never felt so useless in my entire life. My mind left my body as I remembered a time that I took for granted.
Flashback
"Yo Neji!" A voice awoke me from my sleep.
"What could it possibly be this time Kiba?" I moaned, annoyed.
"It's not my fault you fagged out early." He replied in a matter if fact.
"What?" I asked confused with his ignorance. "Never mind. What did I miss?" I asked, just realizing we were still in class.
"Some boring talk about diseases. Like we will ever need to know about that." He chuckled. "You should really ask Tenten out before it's too late you know."
I turned away from him, "How does everyone know about my personal life?" I asked to no one in preticular. "Who told you?"
"Dude no one has to tell me, it's right out there in front of everyone. But if you have to know... Shikamaru." He replied smiling.
"That son of a-" I started but the teacher interrupted me.
"You, Mr. Hyuuga whats the answer?" He asked, a smirk appearing behind his face because he knew I was not listening.
"Viruses have no cure. So when you get sick with the Flu or H1N1 per say, they can not kill the virus. They can only treat the symptoms of the virus. So the body has to fight off the attacking cell and most of the time our cells win. If not, the virus wins, and you die." I replied calmly.
He looked at me astonished and went back to reading from his textbook.
"Dude how the Hell did you-?" Kiba asked looking at me wide eyed.
"I can multi-task." I simply answered. "Now back to Shikamaru telling you."
I should of took his advice back then. Now of course when I do, it's too late. I placed my hand on Tenten's forehead. She was burning up with fever. I stopped walking on the road. To my left was a dirt road leading to the lake house. About a five minute walk, I assumed. Taking in a deep breath I continued towards our destination. Tenten's head rested on my shoulder and shook a little with each step. I rested my chin on her shoulder as I walked. My mind wandered to everything I have gone through to finally get here. Getting out of town and losing my cousin. I wonder if she ever made in. Then running into the first infected and freaking out. I chuckled slightly at the thought. Getting gas, running through the cornfields and finding Kankuro. He was dead now. Somehow I was sure he was dead and was not cursed to walk the land as an infected thing. Getting shot down by the police was what happened next. If the infection didn't exist, I'd have to admit what I did was pretty cool. And reaching the warehouse, saving Tenten from a rapist. Finally getting on that helicopter and losing Temari and Kiba. We had gone through so much in the past few days. But sadly it was still not over. As a final pain, I found out I was immune and Shikamaru, my best friend, and Tenten, my now girlfriend, were infected. I stopped at a metal gate with the name 'Nara' engraved on it. With one arm supporting Tenten, I unhooked the gate and pushed it open with my other hand.
The one-story house sat a few car lengths away. The gravel made a crunching sound as I walked over it. The dark blue of the lake came into view as I stopped on the porch.
"We made it Tenten. It has been two days but we finally made it." I crouched down with her in my arms.
Nine of us. Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, Kankuro, Shikamaru, Kiba, Temari.. All gone. Only two of us made it. But we would've never got this far if it wasn't for them. I was always the one who hid his emotions. I however never took their friendship for granted. How I miss them. Ending that thought, my eyes returned to Tenten.
"Tenten?" I asked.
Her eyes were closed but when I shook her she slowly opened them.
"You promised you would get me here." She smiled slightly, her eyes losing the brilliant color she always had. "But we're not home, Neji. Do you know the difference between a house and a home?"
"No. It's the same thing." I replied, thinking the fever was messing her thoughts up.
"A house is a physical place, it's main purpose is a shelter. While a home is a place you call home. Like surround by your friends and family. Neji, our whole goal was to get to this house. But we didn't realize we all were already home. We had a home together." She finished looking into my eyes.
Her hand reached up to hold my face, as my left hand grabbed ahold of it. " What are you saying Tenten?"
"I'm trying to tell you I want to go home." She sighed.
"You are home.." I replied my eyes closing.
"No Neji, but soon I will be." She told me her voice sincere.
"Tenten.." I pleaded with her again.
"I love you Neji..." She added, her voice becoming weak, her fingers tracing the jawline of my face.
"No, Tenten, I cant do this without you." I pleaded, my face turning away from her; trying not to show her my weakness.
"Don't let me become one of them." She told me, forcing me to look at her. "I want me to be me until the very end."
She didn't want to become one of the infected. She wanted me to shoot her before she turned. We made it this far only to die now..
My body tore in two. Everything I've fought for, I was about to lose. This infection, my body shuttered at the thought of that word, has destroyed me. But then again, if this never happened, Tenten and I would have never known our feelings for one another. A thought of what could of been popped into my mind. Slowly, my hand shook a little as I rose the sidearm to her head. She closed her eyes and smiled, finally looking at peace. Dear God.. Give me the strength to end this and pull the fucking trigger.
"I'm not going to make you go away, Tenten." I spoke with pained frustration.
I don't know why I said that. It just slipped out. As if my heart was fighting against my brain. But in the end your heart always breaks. My grip tightened on the gun. Before I could think. Before I could make second thoughts about what I was about to do, I pulled the trigger.
Blood splattered onto the ground and my face. My hand that held her up, slowly set her body down on the pavement. A puddle of blood already started to pool around her head. In that short time of pulling the trigger, I've became cold. So cold, it even surprised me. Emotionless, I stood up, not even taking a second glance at her. My sidearm remained gripped in my right hand.
I killed her. In fact I killed all my friends by leading them on this mission. It shouldn't have ended this way. There has to be a happy ending. Its not like a video game where you can start everything over, right? What now? I am immune. Therefore carry the cure, but with a twist. Only those of O blood type can live. I can't be the only immune carrier out there. Better yet, why did this all happen in the first place? Everything happens for a reason right? Our race has been mocking the world for years now. Stem-cell research and what not. Evil and power have consumed the world but people so easily cover it up or look past it. Murder for greed. What if this infection is not a bad thing? What if we deserved this?
Even if I wanted to save the world, how would I start? Rebuild a dying world? Impossible. I have only one gun, I wouldn't make it past the town we came in through. Pushing the eject button on the gun cartilage, it revealed a empty magazine. Chuckling to myself, I started to dig into my pocket. Shikamaru tried to do the same to me like I did him. I wonder when he managed to do that while I wasn't looking? He usually was the smart one, but this time I can finally call checkmate. Because I was one step ahead of him. I removed a single bullet from my pocket and loaded it into the gun. I leaned back against one of the wooden poles. I knew from the moment I left Shikamaru. My plan was already decided. I knew I'd see him again because I planned on dying that soon. So I corrected him by saying I would see him later. I remember when I told him not to kill himself after he killed Temari. That she would not have wanted that. That somehow even after losing someone you cared deeply about, you could still be of use to the world.
Closing my eyes, I leaned my head all the way back and brought the gun so it was in line with my head.
"God I'm such a fucking hypocrite." I spoke out loud.
Memories of the past flashed through my mind. While one thought lingered. Breathing out slowly, I forced her face from out of my head.
Bang.
His hand dropped to the cement as the metal gun clattered to the ground. His head rolled to the side, hanging limply. Blood ran down his face and dripped onto the ground. A small breeze blew the man's hair covering his eyes. It was quiet for a few minutes before the swishing of helicopter wings broke the silence. Three airforce jets flew over the house. Missiles were shot out and landed miles away, no doubt taking out the lab. Huge air force carriers shook the ground as they flew over. The sky was full of aircrafts. Their engines making a loud roar as they flew over. Helicopters flew lower and stopped about three stories above ground. A military helicopter stopped above the house. The doors on either side slid open. Ropes were lowered to the ground, as soldiers slid down them.
"Move. Move! Search for tangos. Identify and destroy!" The commander yelled as he landed on the ground.
Soldiers landed and started to run in different directions. Some knelt where they landed and waited for the others to get on ground. Once all troops were off the helicopter, one of the pilots cut the ropes, dropping them onto the ground. The helicopter then continued forward and started to provide air support to cover the ground units.
"Private! Search those civilians!" A older man barked and continued down the dirt road.
Dressed in military attire and armed with an TAR-21, a soldier approached a man with black hair. His head covered with a combat helmet, he bent down to the man against the pole. Removing his sunglasses he took a closer look, surprised at the man's age. The soldier placed his pointer and middle finger to the side of his neck, checking for a pulse. The soldier rose and called out to his comrade.
"Civilian down." He conformed.
"Same here." A deeper voice replied, moving his fingers from the girl's neck.
"Appears to be suicide." A third soldier added, standing by the private.
"Start a fire and burn the bodies. They killed themselves for a reason." The commander yelled and started to call orders out to other soldiers.
"Yes, sir!" The soldiers replied and grabbed the man by his arms and dragged him over by the girl.
"It's a damn shame they died so young." An officer replied, tossing a container full of gasoline to another man.
The soldier who checked the man's body, started to pour gasoline onto the bodies. The soldier then walked off as an older man approached. The older man, commander of the regiment, walked by smoking a cigarette, finishing part of it, he tossed the burning tobacco onto the bodies. As soon as the tobacco made contact with the bodies the fire lit the gas and covered the two teens.
"Strange.. How their both smiling." A younger soldier remarked.
"Lets focus on the mission at hand, son." His captain told him and walked away from the burning flesh without a second glance.
As the man's body burned, his hand unclenched. A piece of paper caught on fire, but was unnoticed to the soldier's eyes. It was a single word scribbled on it. 'Immune' was the word as the fire engulfed the 'I'.
Death is Only the Beginning.
The darkness became darker as soon as I flexed my finger, ending my seventeen years of life. The blackness clouding my vision was replaced by a brilliant light. So bright, yet it did not hurt my eyes. I could finally see everything. My old vision was so limited, I realized. Indescribable with mere words. The physical and emotional pain was gone. I felt nothing. I did not feel my legs, but I knew I was moving. A group of people, teens, faced me in a single line. They said nothing, but somehow I knew they were happy to see me. Their faces so different but yet so familiar. A girl pushed her way out of the crowd and stood in front of me. No scars covered her features. As if every detail was perfect. A transparent glow extended out from behind her. Almost like wings, but you could see through them. She smiled at me grabbed my hand, and pulled it up so it was in front of me. I was like her. My past scars on my body were gone. I flexed my muscles. No pain. As if I never was hurt. I was perfect in a way. Tilting her head slightly she spoke to me. She talked out loud, but it felt as if she could of said nothing and I would of still heard her.
"Welcome home, ...Neji." She said as the seven teens behind her smiled at me.
"Eventually the world will start over new, but I can't image a world without you."
AN
Sorry it had to end that way, but it was planned from the beginning. Hope you liked it. I made that quote up one day, I thought it would match perfectly for the story. My goal was to make anyone who read this cry. Did I succeed? My editor gets mad when I end stories like this, but I specialize in writing tragedies.
But I have a question for you. If you were Neji, what would you do differently? Would you have a different plan than he did from the beginning?