Sam had gotten no more out of Caine than before the girls left. They had spent most of the time in silence with Caine killing everyone on screen including his virtual allies and the people that needed his help. Sam had tried talking to him but Caine clearly was not very chatty today. In the end he went and got Caine the sandwich Astrid and made him in the fridge and made his own before settling it down beside of his feet. For a moment he didn't do anything but then he was moving forward and snatching up the sandwich, taking a large bight of it and dropping half of the spread down his front. He carelessly wiped it away onto the floor and cushions and continued to play the game.
After Sam had finished eating his own he put the plate aside on the table and continued to watch his twin brother play the deadly game. Perhaps the violent game was not the best idea... But then maybe he should have just gone with Diana. Astrid was better at the talking to people than he was and so much better at getting them to talk back. How was he supposed to get Caine to tell him anything when he clearly still did not trust him at all. They had never trusted one another for most of the FAYZ but after the fight with Gaia, Sam liked to think that maybe they had grown some kind of relationship he could rely on.
There had to be something that they could bond on, something that Sam could use in order to get answers even if they were only basic answers. All he needed to know was the last thing he remembered, felt, saw, smelt and anything else from when he died to when he woke up once more. If he could find a way to get him to answer just a few of them then even a few would be leading them one step closer to knowing what was happening. Of course, that was just another thing much easier said than done. Caine was more stubborn than any other person Sam knew, including all his friends, family, Astrid and even a good few others of his enemies like Drake.
"Don't you want to know what happened to you?" Sam asked, when Caine refused his offer for a drink. "Don't you want to know how or even why?"
Caine ignored him and pressed down hard on one of the buttons, pressing it painfully hard so that one of his nails broke against the controller. He winced but didn't stop pressing the button, clenching his jaw and pursing his lips in anger. He glared at the screen like he wished it was Sam's face he could see as he shot the men down.
"I just don't understand you." Sam sighed.
"I wish you'd stop trying." Caine snarled.
"At least some people can put aside differences, I mean at least when it's their lives." Sam explained. "But you don't. You don't care even when you're the one who could be in danger or on deaths door. You're pathetic and how are we supposed to help. You know what? I don't even care anymore."
Caine turned to frown at him. It was weird when Sam gave up. Normally he was so stubborn he never gave up. And then Caine wondered why he was being so stubborn at not telling him anything, especially the dream he had. Actually he knew pretty well that the reason he was not telling Sam was because he went out of his way to keep Sam in the dark and purposely make all things harder for him. While the one person that he would be willing to talk to was avoiding him and and when she wasn't she was screaming at him.
The thought took him back to how angry he was at Diana. Maybe if she had been any other girl but not only was she meant to be tough, but let's not forget that Caine was the one who died! Okay he wasn't actually as disturbed as most people because he couldn't remember any of it but what if he had? She was being selfish and so was Sam and Astrid and that girl that was with them... What was her name? Amy? Amanda? Allie? Arica? No, that started with an E. She definitely started with an A... Oh who cared! They were all being selfish.
Suddenly Caine stood up and threw the controllers down on the table hard. There was a crash that made Sam jump and Caine turned, making his way towards the front door.
"Hey!" Sam shouted. He jumped and ran after him, throwing himself in his way. "Where do you think you're going?!"
"Out," Caine growled, trying to walk around him.
"No you're not." Sam said. "For one you're not wearing shoes, and for two you're you!"
"I'm me?" Caine snorted.
"If someone sees you then we are the ones who are going to questioned and suffer because everyone knows that you are my brother! And not to mention Diana's ex boyfriend!" Sam snapped. "You have to lay low."
"I have been dead for two years." Caine hissed. "I am going out there and you are not stopping me."
"Watch me." Sam growled.
Caine and Sam stared at one another for a moment before Caine reached over and grabbed Sam by their shoulders, spinning and throwing him as best as he could with a loud crash. He had only thought of using his powers for a second before he remembered he didn't have any left, but he was strong and he was not going to let Sam boss him around. He was not one of Sam's little soldiers and so when he wanted to go outside, he was going outside! No one was going to control him. No one was going to have their hooks in him ever again. However Sam was older and bigger than him now and only fell because he was caught off guard, falling barely an inch away from Caine. It gave him time to stick out his long leg and trip Caine up before he could anywhere.
Sam scrambled to get back up and threw himself on top of Caine, knocking him back to the ground just as he was climbing up again stopping his chance to open the door and get out quick. They collapsed to the ground on the wooden floor and struggled for a moment. Sam tried to pin Caine's arms to the ground but he couldn't get a strong enough grip on his wrists before he pulled free and was pushing back at his shoulders and chest. They struggled like that for a moment before Caine managed to knee Sam in the side and rolled him off, jumping and racing for the door. It was a lucky hit and any further seconds then he might have been pinned down.
Sam struggled for a minute, he managed to stand just as Caine opened the door. He chased him from the room and they both ran down the steps. Now Caine was getting the upper hand. Even a tiny bit smaller and he was faster, and while Sam had strong legs the turns of the stairs were slowing him down.
"Yeah!" Caine shouted in between puffs of breath as he jumped three steps at a time in his rush. "Like this won't draw attention!"
Sam cursed. He was right, that was just all the more reason not to let him out into the street.
The door smacked him in the face before he even finished the last word in his head. He was knocked backwards as Caine continued to run down the stairs and out of the building. The smack not only knocked him off of his feet, but it sent a trickle of blood down his nose and left him stunned for a few seconds before he was able to climb back up again.
"Watch where ya going! Slamming around like brats!" A woman snarled before she slammed the door shut again.
Sam moaned in pain. He rolled and began to slowly crawl down the stairs as best as he could while his head was still ringing in between his ears. By the time he somehow made it outside the building, it was clear from looking around that Caine was long gone.
"Damn it!" Sam cursed.
G*O*N*E
He twisted his right ankle on the very last step before he managed to stager outside. Caine didn't like running away, especially not from Sam. Too often before had he run away after a fight but he didn't have many choices unless he wanted to stay stuck in that stupid room all day. Caine needed to get out, to go about and live. Even if Sam was against it, and Sam was against most things anyway so what did it matter. But now his ankle hurt with every step and it was getting harder and harder to run away. In the end he had to hobble and hide around the corner before he knew Sam would give up on him. Either that or he would guess which way to go. Just in case he guessed right Caine hurried down until he was walking down a street and he was able to hurry inside one of the small corner shops.
Inside it was nearly empty. There was the shop keeper behind the tills and a teenage kid in the corner looking at the sweets and the cokes. Caine hurried over to the magazines section and buried his face in a gossip magazine with a beautiful soap couple on the front. He didn't notice Sam at all but that could mean he passed when he wasn't looking.
His feet were still bare, they both hurt along the sole and his ankle was still making him limp but otherwise he was feeling good now. The fresh air was nice, the wind was calming and any aching bones he had left were long gone completely now. Caine grinned at the feeling of being so great and happy again. It had been a while. It had been so long since he had felt this good. And Sam had wanted to keep him locked up in his home. What an idiot. Now he could explore, maybe he could even find some fitting clothes though he didn't actually have any money on him... Damn, should have taken some when Sam wasn't looking. Then he could have at least gotten some chocolate or a drink.
Just as he thought this he noticed just how busy it was now. Everyone had left school and their work place and were heading home. The streets were slowly getting crowded, more and more people wandered passed the shop windows. Quite a few teenagers and kids were running back and forth with chips in their hands and riding bikes with their friends. No one came into the shop though it was clear the teenager was stealing but it was none of Caine's business.
Now that he was out he knew what a bad idea this was. His clothes were too big, he had no shoes or socks, his ankle twisted and his face so recognisable. They were going to see him and a few would know who he was... Caine knew he was wrong but he wasn't going to be heading back to admit it. The day Caine admitted to Sam that he was wrong was the day Drake came back as an angel and apologised to everyone for the pain he caused. But he would have to do something...
Caine put the magazine back and headed for the door just as the shop clerk caught the boy stealing. He walked quickly down the street and towards the nearest clothing store. It was a second hand charity shop but that was actually better than a high running brand name store. Once inside he glanced around but the woman behind the desk was so engrossed in a book she didn't even glance his way. Caine hurried to the corner, waited and then snatched a thick brown coat before he left the building as quickly as he could. He wasn't seen and after quickly ripping off the price tag then pulling on the coat. He guessed more than he knew that no one would glance at him with the hood up, though it left him hot and stuffy in the warm weather. Now he needed shoes. The shoe shop was far too watchful, three store clerks kept eyes on the door and every other part of the store. Plus all the shoes had tags on that would give off an alarm and seriously give him away. But outside they had shoes in baskets for people to see and Caine somehow managed to slip out two shoes. They were odd shoes. One was dark brown and the other was black and they were both left shoes but Caine could suffer in silence.
He stopped on a bench and pulled the two shoes on his bare feet, tying them quickly before he stood up and pulled the hood further over his face. Now his limp was more noticable with the left shoe on the right foot but you couldn't be picky.
Now if he could only find some money, he might be able to buy real shoes or even some food or drink. He passed a chip shop and his mouth watered but he had nothing on him. He considered bullying some of the younger kids to give him their money but he was worried they would run home and tell their parents...
... Then he remembered they had no idea who he was and he would be long gone by the time they found him again.
Caine was careful to select two children that were extremely young and wore clothes their parents obviously picked out for them. They were already heading to the chip shop as Caine walked over and grabbed the two of them from behind, pushing them around a corner where they would not be seen. Both of them shouted, startled before they were slammed against a wall into silence.
"Listen up!" Caine snarled. "I'm hungry! I need money! You have money! Give it if you want to keep your faces intact."
They shared a look, gulped and then held out their money. They each had a two pound each and Caine happily accepted. When he had their money he pushed the two aside and shot them a nasty look that sent them running home. Five minutes later Caine left the shop with a large bag of chips in his hand, eating them covered in salt and vinegar with a coke can in his new coat pocket. The chips tasted fantastic and Caine let out a moan of satisfaction as he limped down the street, rounding the corners at random just to walk away from all the people. With the coat on quite a few people caught glimpse of him but after a quick glance they didn't look again, even when he was wearing clothes that didn't match the weather.
Caine had no idea where he was going and after only a few steps he was completely lost but he didn't mind. He would be happier if he was lost completely. Then Sam couldn't find him and neither could the screaming Diana or the smart mouth Astrid. It was better to be away from them because then he could think and then he could make sense of his own mind rather than have to answer all their questions that he didn't know the answers to in the first place.
Caine continued eating his chips until he was full, then he threw the bag down on the ground, not caring about littering. He pulled out his can, opened it and took several gulps of the cool drink. It was lovely! He was loving it! Caine grinned and drank half of it in only three more gulps when something caused him to pull to a stop.
A house, badly burnt down with people roping it off and slowly breaking it down because it was going to fall anyway. It was pitch black and barely standing. A group of men were slowly dragging the rubble away and throwing it out of their way into large trucks and bins. The whole place was a mess and Caine was shocked by how badly it was burned, still smoking slightly. Caine had no idea what had caused the fire but something from the corner of his eye told him it wasn't over yet. There was a gentle flame on an old wrapper.
Caine walked over and stamped on it hard to put it out.
It was like steps. Step one, he started to wandered around, step two he saw the house, step three he saw the fire, and step four he heard a scuttling that caught his interest. Turning, still with the coke in hand, Caine made his way into the alley, frowning. No idea, apart from common curiosity, what was drawing him further.
He heard the scuttling sound again and squinted into the shadows beside of a large dirty bin and saw something...
It was a lizard. Well it looked like one. Caine hadn't seen very many lizards in his time, mostly the ones he had seen were green and in zoos but this one had a similar shape to a lizard only with four toes on it's front hands and five toes on it's back. It had a long tail, short nose, large black eyes and a black body only with yellow spots covering it, much like a dalmatian. So it was a black lizard with yellow polka dots. Because that was normal. Not!
Caine blinked and shook his head. Where the hell had Sam claimed a home? What kind of country had weird lizards?
He made to turn and head off again when something else caused him to turn. And he turned just in time to see the lizard open it's mouth and send a whirlwind of fire towards him. Caine roared and threw the coke at the fire in a weak attempt at protection before he threw himself down to the side, a splash of mud hitting his torso. Caine scrambled onto all fours and looked over as the lizard turned to face him and actually glared. It actually glared at him. And then it was opening it's mouth and shrieking like... Like a little girl? A yellow polka dot lizard who shot fire from its mouth and sounded like a girl? What the hell was wrong with this place?!
The lizard made another scream like a girl and more fire shot from it's mouth in laser beams much like Sam's old light attack. It was aimed right at him!
Caine shouted and scrambled on his hands and knees towards the mouth of the alley way. He barely avoided the burn marks that did catch the back of his coat. He heard more than felt the flames burning and ripped off his coat, throwing it behind him because he didn't have time to stamp the flames out. He just scrambled out of the alleyway when he heard the roar of flames coming from behind him again. Caine lay down and rolled out of the way of the flames, stumbling and falling into the road in his rush to run away.
The car appeared before Caine had a chance to hear it. He could still hear, smell and feel the flames around of him and was distracted. He only notice the BMW when it was crushing his ribs and smacking his head against the glass hard enough for it to crack under the pressure. He felt the blood and dizziness rocked his mind, he squinted long enough to see the lizard running down the path at an incredibly speed for such a little creature. Then he blacked out.
G*O*N*E
"He is so obviously crazy." Diana snorted, climbing into the car and slamming the door angrily behind of her. The doctor had asked her so many questions even some that didn't have to do with her injury, the hospital stunk of medicines and the feel of the atmosphere was awkward. She hated hospitals so much.
"I don't think so..." Astrid whispered, she had squeezed in the back so that they could talk quietly but Diana wasn't bothering to keep her voice down.
"He was burned beyond recognition!" Diana snapped. "He just lost his daughters! Of course he was losing his mind."
"Anna, what do you think?" Astrid argued.
Anna glanced up from where she had been sandwiched in the middle and tried to shrink down in her seat so they could not ask her that very question. Now she had no choice but to voice her opinion. And either way, one of the girls pressed against her was going to be pissed with her.
"Um..." Anna swallowed. "Well... He did just lose his daughters. Maybe he wasn't thinking clearly. Or maybe he thought he saw something that he didn't. Maybe he thought it was a lizard when instead it was a..." She fell silent.
"A what?" Astrid snapped, annoyed Anna wasn't backing her up. "A cat with a flame thrower? A dog with a lighter? Or how about a penguin with a match stick?!"
"No need to lose it just because not everyone agrees with your delusional conspiracy theories!" Diana snapped.
Astrid scowled and leaned close. "And what about You-Know-Who? You think it's a coincident that he shows up just as that man gets attacked by something like a monster fire breathing creature that resembles a reptile?" She leaned back and crossed her arms stubbornly. "Fine if you don't believe me then I'll ask Sam what he thinks!"
"Good luck with that." Diana snorted.
"Uh, well it's late." Anna said, leaning forward before either of them could start fighting again. "Mrs Haddle? Could you drop me off home? I don't want my family to worry..." She leaned back and couldn't resist mumbling; "And I'd rather not be there if Sam doesn't immediately agree with you."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Astrid snapped.
Anna chose this point to pretend not to hear and look out the window on Diana's side. It was a slow ride but Astrid gave up pestering her. She at least was satisfied that Sam would surely believe her. Maybe another day and they might both be unsure but after Caine just dropped out of nowhere, Astrid was sure these things were related. She was sure that this was something to do with that and she needed some kind of support on the matter.
By the time they dropped off Anna, Astrid was building frustration. Diana kept rubbing her stitches gently with her finger which seemed to grate Astrid's nerves even more. It irritated her more than she realised and she couldn't wait to get home to Sam and see how far he got with Caine. Maybe he got some more answers out of him in some way that would help them or at least get Astrid thinking long enough to forget her anger.
Mrs Haddle was friendly for the whole time. She didn't even ask any questions and clearly tried hard to ignore their obviously suspicious conversation. She smiled, asked Diana if she was okay, made sure Astrid was okay, waited for Anna to enter her door before she drove off and for the rest of the drive she let them think in silence. When she dropped them up to their home, she offered to wait for them to go inside too.
"It's okay. We need to talk outside for a moment before we go in." Astrid said. "Thanks again, if you need any help then just let me know and I'll do anything as a thank you. I'll even scrub toilets."
Mrs Haddle laughed. "I'll remember that. You may regret it."
Astrid watched her go before she turned to Diana. "Right. Now we need to talk about your attitude."
"My what?" Diana growled, getting ready to explode.
"You are the only person he is going to talk to. You are the only one he trusts and the only one who he will really explain it all to in the first place. So even if you are angry or scared or any of the above you need to control yourself so that we can work out what is going on and hopefully stop it." Astrid explained. "Please, for me, just-"
"Hello, ladies."
Both Astrid and Diana shut their eyes and winced. They knew that voice all too well. It was much more familiar than either of them wanted it to be. It spoke to them at least once a day and they saw the owner of the voice prowling around at least twice a day outside their apartment watching them. For all the events they forgot about him and hoped he wouldn't show up. Now here he was, bugging them all over again.
"Ripley." Astrid sighed.
"Long time no see." Diana chimed, all but glaring at him.
14) Someone in the books hit Caine. Who?
15) What character would you want to be in Light?
