The secret side of me, I never let you see
I keep it caged but I can't control it
So stay away from me, the beast is ugly
I feel the rage and I just can't hold it
It's scratching on the walls, in the closet, in the halls
It comes awake and I can't control it
Hiding under the bed, in my body, in my head
Why won't somebody come and save me from this, make it end
I feel it deep within, it's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
Shadow got up early that morning, this time around three, and packed up her few things into her backpack and got into a new set of clothes. She walked out of the guest room in the house and in the dark made her way to her sister's room. Deciding she'd let Kairi sleep, she crept into Namine's room, knowing the layout by heart and letting her adjusted eyes keep her from running her food into anything. She would have just left a note, but Namine had taken her leaving all those years ago the hardest, so she didn't want to freak her sister out in the morning.
"Namine." She said quietly, lightly resting a hand on the sleeping girl. "Hey, I need you to wake up."
"Mm?" Her head rolled over and eyes slowly opened. "Sissy?"
Must be really out of it. "Listen, I have to head back to Radiant Garden. But I will be back in two weeks, when school ends, ok?"
"Will you call?" She asked quietly.
"My number is both of your guy's cellphones, you can call any time." She said quietly. "Now get some sleep."
"Hug first, then sleep." She replied groggily. Shadow laughed and gave her sister a light hug.
"I'll talk to you later. Call if you need anything. Tell Kairi the same thing."
"Bye Shadow."
"Later." She replied with a grin.
XXXXXX
"Your sister is so cool! She's played almost every single horror video game there is!" Sora exclaimed loudly, as they walked through the school hallways, him walking backwards so he could face the group. "Why didn't you tell us about her?" He asked accusingly.
Kairi and Namine looked at each other, the blond answered. "It, hurt, to talk about her. It made us miss her more, and we knew she wouldn't like us sad, so we just didn't."
Roxas nodded. "That's understandable."
The bell rang and they all rushed to their classes, Namine and Kairi making it in time to see their English teacher turn around to start writing down the assignments for the day. Sliding into the seats, Namine looked over and grimaced when she saw Ashley, the schools little pep leader, giggling behind her hand with her little pack as she glanced over at her and her twin. "Kairi, they're doing it again." She whispered.
Her sister looked over and saw what she was talking about. "Don't worry Namine, they just can't find anything better to do with their time." She replied just as quietly as the teacher began.
It wasn't until lunch came around that Namine was walking towards the cafeteria. She had dropped by the art room to grab a few supplies for her upcoming project, so she had about twenty minutes of lunch left. The hallways were deserted as she walked, lightly humming to herself as she held her books against her chest. She briefly wondered if she'd have time for the beach afterwords. Deciding she'd ask Kairi.
"Hey blond chick." She spun around and saw a couple guys in their senior year walk up to her. Straight from the beginning she was shy around anyone, but a pack of guys with the smirks on their faces, it was more fear.
"Um, can I help you?" she asked timidly, shifting on her feet some as they got closer.
"Me and the guys made a bet, who could get you to cave first." Her eyes widened as she felt her back connect with the lockers.
"E-Excuse me?" Not good, this is not good Namine!
"You see." Brown hair with bands in front of his eyes leaned in close, resting an arm on the locker behind her. "We want to know who can get you to cave, so basically whoever pulls off a kiss without you screaming."
She tried to shrink back, but to no avail. When she opened her mouth, this time to call for someone, anyone, a firm hand was planed over her mouth. She whimpered some as he leaned in, struggling as two of his pals held her arms down on either side of her.
Then suddenly, he was five feet awake from her, on the ground, clutching his head while his legs looked like they had been slammed into by the calves. The one on her right had his head slammed into the lockers, causing him to release her and drop down. A firm grip appeared on her upper right arm and pulled her away before a foot connected with the remaining one's stomach.
She quickly glanced up, heart pounding in her chest, and saw that she was standing behind Shadow, a very pissed off Shadow to stand corrected. How did she know this? She didn't show any emotion, while her eyes looked ready to murder someone.
She walked over to the one that threatened to kiss her and put a heavy boot on his stomach causing him to grimace and moan. "Did she give you permission." When no answer came she pressed down harder. "Did she?"
Namine had to admit, at least he wasn't stupid when death was looking him in the eyes. "I never asked." He mumbled.
"Do it again, and next time I can promise that you ain't going to be walking away with those persistent lips of yours, and it will be because of the butchers knife that I will be using to complete the job. Is that clear?"
"Yes ma'am." He replied quickly, noticing how he could have sworn he saw the glint of something just under the jacket she wore.
She looked at him one more time, spared a glance at his friends who quickly retreated, and walked up to Namine. "He hurt you?"
"No."
"Kiss you?"
"No."
"Can you give me a reasonable excuse to kill him?" She asked it like she seriously wanted her to think of one so she could carry out the act.
But Namine quickly shook her head. "No! Shadow is OK."
Her sister rolled her eyes and motioned for Namine to follow. "What are you doing out here by yourself?"
"Art supplies." She replied. "But what are you doing here, didn't you leave?"
"I left my jacket." She replied, motioning to the black piece of clothing she wore. "Thought I'd stop by real quick. Glad I did."
"I'm glad too." She replied honestly, still trying to recover from the little incident. When they came into the cafeteria entrance she shook her head. "I'm good, I should get going."
Namine frowned some but nodded, knowing how the procedure worked. "See you soon?"
"End of the school year." She said, placing a hand on Namine's head as she walked past her, slightly messing with her hair. "See you later."
"Bye Shadow!" She called. When her sister disappeared from sight she took a breath before looking back at the doors. Got lucky, got so lucky. She let out a nervous laugh before finally pushing open the doors, the sound of the loud cafeteria quickly greeting her.
XXXXXX
"Yoru!" Shade called, walking into her simple three bedroom apartment. One room served as her bedroom, the second served as an office, and the third, well, she didn't let anyone in there. Light gray walls made up the place and were offset by the black furniture. The place was far from depressing, and this was thanks to the large windows located throughout the building. In the living room to the right a large window made up most of the wall, a large TV, at least 82", with an Xbox 360 and a PS3 sitting underneath it as it rested on it's post. The games were actually out of their cases and in large CD case books that could hold fifty at a time. Two were dedicated to movies, the third one was all games, those she played consistently.
Hearing a bark, she grinned when the large Alaskan Husky came bounding from the back rooms and launched itself at her, causing her back to slam into the door as it started to lick her furiously, black tail wagging at top speeds. She was like any other husky of pure white fur with coal black, and the most beautiful blue eyes. Yoru barked happily. "I know, I missed you too." She scratched her ears affectionately before saying, "Down." The dog immediately dropped into a sitting position, looking at her expectantly. "Let me guess, snack?" Another bark. Shadow rolled her eyes as she walked into the kitchen to her left, grabbing a treat from a jar and tossing it to Yoru who caught it half way into the air. She proceeded to grab a soda from the fridge before she walked towards the back of the house. There were to doors on each end of the hallway. On the right set side-by-side was her bedroom and the bathroom, that her bedroom could open up to, and on the right was the prohibited room along with her office. At the end of the hallway was a large closet for miscellaneous things, she normally just kept coats or pre-made outfits in here in case she was in a rush.
"Yoru, did Carter try to explore?"
A happy bark came from the dog and she laughed, taking it as a no. Yoru was one of the best pets she could ever have. She knew the boundaries, and made sure other people knew them as well, making a perfect guard dog. Shadow didn't keep a home phone, just her cellphone. She had no messages, which she grinned at, it looked like they were keeping up their end of the bargain.
She flipped open her cellphone and hit a speed dial, holding to her ear as she started to sift through paperwork on the desk. "Yellow." Was the answer.
"She smirked. "Hey Carter, thanks for watching Yoru."
"No problem, but that dog has some serious guard issues."
"No, she's just a pro." She replied, studying one piece of paper. "How's the place holding up."
"They are seriously regretting giving you the summer off. But we haven't burned the place down yet so that's good. Everyone wants to meet your siblings."
Shadow laughed, a smirk settling on her lips. "We'll see. How the hell am I going to explain my work to them? And I'd rather not bring in the reason I haven't told them about it for the bast ten years."
"We've been keeping tabs on those guys too, it looks like they are backing up some after your little stunt."
"That's good to hear, maybe I will end up bringing them over. They're staying at my place for the summer so there will be plenty of time." She heard some talking on the other line and listened for a moment.
"Tyler says hey, and that he needs you back pronto, he's missing your pancakes apparently." She grinned as Yoru barked, probably hearing the name of the food.
"Tell him to suck it up. Hey, I gotta get going, there's some work I have to get done before I can officially call it vacation."
"Later Shade."
"Cya Carter." She hung up the phone and looked with a frown at the piece of paper. "Yoru, got one last order before I can call it, can you hang tight?" The dog whined slightly and nudged her leg with her nose, and Shadow patted her head. "I know, but it's gotta get done." She smiled down at the canine and grinned. "I'll make it up to you tomorrow, we'll hit the park for a couple hours." A happy bark was her reply as she walked out of the room, dialing a number quickly.
"Josh here."
"Hey Josh, it's Shade, I'm going to need some transportation."
She could hear the grin in his voice, "You got it."
XXXXXX
The helicopter's blades spun overhead with immense speed, keeping the large machine aloft as it hovered in place. Sage stood at the edge of the machine actually standing on the bar outside as she held on to the door. She was dressed in a tight black wet suit and her hair was pulled back in a ponytail. She hit a button on the headset she was wearing. "Thanks for the ride Josh."
"No problem Shade, I'll be waiting around." She lifted her hand in a wave before she tossed the headset aside and looked back below her at the trench that surrounded the large building. She undid the clip at her waist and tossed it aside as well before she knelt slightly, then jumped.
Executing a perfect dive, she curved her body as it entered the water, going at least a good twenty feet, and that's what she needed. Opening her eyes in the clear liquid she started swimming quickly under the water and to the sewer located at the bottom. She grabbed the covering and pulled, the metal easily slipping out. She swam through, working her way through the murky sewers and a minute later resurfaced. Taking a deep breath she quickly got her bearings before pulling herself up and out of the water on the side. She quickly stripped off the wetsuit and was dressed in a pair of shorts and tight shirt that left no extra cloth to hang loose. She quickly started to make her way to through the maze before coming up to the ladder she needed located at the end of the space. And with it a guard standing lazily in place, a gun loosely in his hands.
She took a knife from the sheath hugging her thigh. Balanced lightly in her hands, she spun the corner and and threw it, not giving the guard enough time to react as it slid cleanly into his throat. The body slid to the ground and she quickly made her way over, taking the knife and wiping it against his shirt to clean it before placing it back in its holder, and also taking his gun, bringing the sling over her and letting the machine gun rest on her back.
Quickly scaling the ladder she gently pushed aside the trap door and looked around. When she saw the coast was clear she went through and closed the metal tile again.
The laboratory was large, and completely white. Throughout the floor plan were tables, computers, various tubes and paperwork that she could care less about at at the moment. She didn't care about any of this at the moment as she made her way to the large and main computer at the far end of the room. Opening the small pouch on the side of her waist she slid out a flash drive and started typing, working her way through the various documents quickly. When she found the one centered around information on the Maryola family, she copied it to the drive and watched as the screen worked through her progress. A door opened and she spun around.
A lab worker walked in, looking at the clipboard in his hands. Glancing up through a pair of glasses, he saw the computer at work and frowned, walking over to it. Looking at the file his frown deepened. "What's-"
Something slammed into the back of his knees, causing him to drop while a hand covered his mouth, keeping from any sound coming from him. "Wrong place, wrong time." Shadow murmured, while pressing a pressure point, and watching as the body went limp. She dragged it over to one of the chairs and sat him up in front of a table, making it look like he was sleeping. The computer let off a ring and she glanced up to see that it had completed its task. Pulling out the drive she proceeded to delete all information on the computer concerning the subject before walking back to the lab worker.
Minutes later she walked out of the room through the main door, hair pulled back halfway now while the bottom half now fell down, dressed in a white coat that covered most of her legs while she wore the stolen blue shirt underneath, bringing it back just enough to where it looked like it fit her properly. The outfit was professional, considering the fact it wasn't her size clothes and they were stolen from a guy. Her footwear didn't bring much attention as she made her way to the elevator. When the doors slid open she smiled at the scientist inside, who glanced up at her before his eyes returned to the file in his hands. She stepped in and hit the first floor, which would actually cause the elevator to go up since the lab had been in the lower part of the building.
When his eyes did go down he noticed her tennis shoes and glanced back up. She looked over before looking ahead again. "My shift is done, I prefer spending the rest of the night in comfort." He simply nodded as he brought his cellphone out.
When he was about to bring it to his ear her hand came down and cracked his arm before the second one slammed his back against the wall, his head hitting it hard. She didn't have to do much after that, he was a weakling and was out in five seconds. "This is the guard station, what is it?" The phonecal remained unanswered. When the doors opened she stepped out before reaching in and sending him to the basement, which would be a quick trip because it was right below them and made no stops.
It wasn't until she hit the exit to the building that the alarms went off. The worker must have woken up, so she continued her pace to the doors. "Freeze!" She smirked, then picked up a run, slamming through the door as she made her way through the elegant courtyard, hearing the sound of pursuit behind her. When gunshots sounded she ducked behind a stone wall and quickly shed the lab coat and shirt, back in her usual outfit, the information safely stored in the pouch at her waist. She waited until there was a brief pause in the firing before spinning around from the safety of wall.
A guard to her right found her foot connecting with the side of his head while his gun was wretched free from his hand. The second guard jumped back and raised his gun to fire, but she ducked and brought her leg around, slamming it into his own and watching him fall. Someone came up from behind her and as she felt his arm wrap around her neck she brought her elbow back hard, hitting him in the stomach before taking her head and bringing it back, feeling it hit her attackers and his grip loosen so she could break out of it. When the sound of the helicopter came into earshot she glanced over and saw it now getting ready lower.
The final guard had a grin on his face as he pointed the gun at her. "I'm sure to get a raise for this."
She smirked, and as his finger went to pull the trigger she dodged to the left and tackled him to the ground, feeling the round graze her shoulder as she took him by the head and slammed it into the ground, hearing the crack before she quickly got up and turned to the helicopter as it settled down and walked towards it, grinning at Josh. He returned it, but when she saw shock cross his eyes she spun around and saw the guards barely holding on to consciousness as they aimed the gun.
The gun came up, and fired.
However, it was the guard who dropped dead, the gun falling from his grasp. Shadow lowered the one in her hand and continued on to the chopper, quickly climbing in and settling into the seat as he brought it up again. "Glad to see you made it out alive." He commented.
"That's always a plus." She agreed, taking a piece of cloth from him and holding it against the bleeding cut.
"Want me to drop you off at the shop or take you straight home?"
"I think a helicopter at two in the morning would freak people out, the shop is fine." She smirked. "Besides, my ride is there."
"True, but I could always let it be subjected to one of my many successful experiments."
"Touch it and I will rip your head from your shoulders with my bare hands." she growled. "I love that motorcycle. Best one yet."
"Besides it's the only one that you haven't crashed yet." He laughed.
"Yes, I like it enough to not crash it."
"What about the truck? I thought you like it enough to not kill it." He asked.
Shadow groaned, "Damn, I did love that truck. But that one was an accident, caught up in a firefight on a way back from a mission and it resulted in the engine exploding, taking the rest of the vehicle with it."
"Ouch."
XXXXXX
Dear Miss Shade,
My name is John Maryola and I am in dire need of your services. Your reputation proceeds you, and I pray that you will be willing to help me. I'm the Governor of my hometown here in Delthern, and with a family of three. My wife, and two daughters. Lately there have been threats towards my family that have steadily getting worse. The agency that claims that they will carry out their threats soon, but haven't found anything to help the matters.
With this note are the letters themselves and the name of the people that they call themselves by. I realize that you are going on a vacation soon for three months, everyone has made it clear that these are rare for you to do and that you don't take any jobs during the time. I beg of you, if this letter makes it in time, find these people and any information they have on my family so that way I may know how to strengthen the defense network to keep them safe.
Thank you for your time and sondieration.
John Maryola.
XXXXXX
The Governor lived in one of those mini mansions, and she could tell that he valued security of looks. Instead of splurging on displays, he did so on keeping his household safe, which made her even more pleased that she took on the job, seeing as it showed she hadn't just wasted her time. When she made it to the outside gates the guards stopped her. "Name."
"Shade."
"I'm going to need a last name Miss."
"Don't got one, call up the Governor and let him know I'm here."
"I'm sorry ma'am, but you don't get in without clearance, and I'm going to need a name, a full name."
Shade instead just pulled out her cellphone and dialed a number as the guard continued insisting upon a name. "Hello?"
"Governor Maryola, would you like this information or not?" She asked, then held the phone just out enough so he could hear the guard.
"Wait wait wait!" He said frantically. "Give me a second." The guards office phone rang and he walked over to pick it up. "Yes?" She watched as he paled some, then started to stutter. A mere minute later he simply hit a button, the gates opened, and he waved her in. "Sorry for the trouble." He muttered.
She drove through the gates, her hair staying behind her as she pulled her motorcycle to a stop. It was now pushing five in the morning, and the household was still asleep.
She climbed up the steps and before she even made it to the large double doors they opened to reveal the Governor of Delthern. Brown hair neatly cut and somewhat short, at least a few inches shorter than her, and was slightly older, maybe pushing his high forties.
"You took the job?" He said, somewhat disbelieving. She only called to let people know she refused the job, if she took it, she didn't bother. Instead of answering she just looked at him before he seemed to realize something. "Oh yes, yes. Please, come in here, we can speak privately."
A minute later she was in a large study, nothing over the top but still doable. The Governor sat down and was about to speak but she held up a hand for silence. "They've got pictures of you and your family so they will be able to verify targets. Your patrols are mapped out and they have structure layout, with the target's rooms marked. They have your guards profile information as well, just for extra measure, and know who does what around here, including staff routines and switch outs. By the sounds of it they plan on striking soon, so you better get started on your defensive strategies." With this said she tossed the flash drive to him, letting it land on the desk before him as he stared down at it .
He gulped and looked up at her. "Thank you, thank you so much." His eyes widened like he just remembered something. "Ah! Right." Ripping open a drawer he took out an envelope and presented it to her. "Thank you for your services, they are much appreciated."
She took the envelope and sifted through it's contents quickly. "You overpaid."
"I insist." He said. "This information is invaluable."
She ripped out the extra thousand and put it on his desk. "You pay what you say you will, nothing more, nothing less."
"But-"
"Goodbye." She said, turning around to leave the premises, just with ten thousand on her hands.