Title - Written By The Victors
Chapter title - The Betrayal
Author - OblivionsGarden
Genre - Romance/Adventure/Friendship/Drama
Disclaimer - I do not own the Uncharted Series in anyway shape or form. I only own the plot points surrounding my oc's, not recognized from the games. For this chapter I own, Penny Kingsley.
Chapter Word Count - 2960 words.
A/n - Please leave a review, I'd greatly appreciate it. Hope you enjoy, xx (:
As the trio made their way through Libertalia, Penny had a permanent pink blush across her nose and cheeks. She was still smiling, even when they came across more Shoreliners and she pressed herself against the wall, Sam instructing both her and Nathan to keep their heads down.
The three of them attempted to sneak their way through but the end result was hectic scene, bullet flying in all directions and voice calling out from everywhere.
"Penny, shotgun!" Nathan shouted causing both her and Sam to turn and spot the heavily armored man walking straight at them.
Penny rolled to the side, ducking behind a crate and pulling Sam with her. As soon as he was close enough, Sam cleared the crates, grabbing the man from behind as Penny shoved his gun upwards managing to loosen his grip and take the weapon from him. Once Sam had took his helmet, Penny smashed the shotgun over his head and they quickly got back behind cover, panting and sweating.
"Hell of team." Sam smirked and she returned it.
"Guys, focus!" Nate groaned from the wall behind them and they shared a quick laugh before continuing to clear the area.
Just before they entered the tower, Sam stood on the edge of a crumbling building, staring out at the view, or so Penny thought as she approached him. When she got closer she realised he had his eyes closed and his head tilted back as the sun shone down on him, a content smile on his lips.
"Trying to catch a tan?" She teased, bumping her hip with his.
"Just enjoying it." He smiled, eyes crinkling at the corners. "Keep thinking I'm gonna wake up in Panama." Penny frowned, pinching his inner elbow. "Ah! What was that for?"
"You're not dreaming, Sam." She rubbed her fingers over the skin she'd pinched. "This is real. We're really here, in Libertalia about to find a shit ton of treasure."
"Yeah." He smiled, holding his arm outstretched in front of her face. "Kiss it better?" He asked with a shit eating grin.
Penny pressed a gentle kiss to his arm, playfully rolling her eyes before they continued on with their adventure.
"Holy crap."
"Well, I see our missing colonists."
Penny stepped carefully around the area, avoiding stepping on the remains of anyone. She stared at the piles of weapons, barrels and carts that had been formed as barricades. A frown appeared on her face as she wondered what had gone on here. What had gone so wrong in this Utopia that cause such a huge battle? She listened to the brothers theorize between themselves . As they entered the treasury building, looking up at the angelic stone carvings lining the walls, Penny once again longed for her camera.
She held her breath as the brothers forced open the doors only to release it in a huff as Sam spun in a circle looking around the barren room.
"It's empty." He stated, almost disbelieving.
She offered him a smile but he didn't notice, he was frowning at the empty shelves. As she passed him she ran a hand across his back intending to offer comfort but she notice the shiver and the smirk he gave her. She felt a flutter in her stomach, despite the circumstances, and moved away avoiding his eye.
Once Sam had found the map on the ceiling leading to New Devon, the three were once again heading through Libertalia. When they were on top of the tower looking out, Penny was awestruck.
"Can you imagine living here?" She shook her head, looking around. "This place is incredible."
"If you're that breathless up here wait 'til we get to Avery's place." Sam smiled with a laugh as he draped his arm over her shoulders. "You'll be crying that you don't have your camera that's for sure."
"Ugh, don't remind me." She groaned, lightly elbowing his side. "Let's go."
"So, how long you figure it'll take us to get to New Devon?" Sam asked as they climbed down the side of the roof.
"Well, couple hours. Depends on what or who we bump into along the way."
"Don't jinx us, Nate." Penny called up to him as she dropped down to the balcony Sam was waiting on.
Just as they hopped over the other side of it, the balcony exploded, almost causing Penny to loose her grip as Sam shouted 'RPG' to his brother who hadn't yet caught up with them.
She and Sam managed to run around to a window, calling Nathan through whilst narrowly avoiding falling rubble and debris. Penny could barely focus on Sam and Nathan shouting to each other as they tried to fight their way through the falling building. As the building fell and split, she missed Sam's outstretched hand to catch her. Her heart thudded loud in her ears for the seconds she was free falling, vaguely presuming that this was her end when she managed grab Nathan's legs as he swung from his grapple.
"Nathan, up here! Penny? PENNY?" Sam screamed above the noise.
"She's here, she's good!" Nate shouted back. "I can't climb with you on my legs, you're gonna have to climb over me!"
Penny, raised her hand, clinging to his belt and then his shoulder and then the rope, pulling herself up. Her chest felt constricted and her breath was ragged as she managed to reach the remaining structure of the building. Nathan was right behind her as they climbed up and followed Sam.
"Penny? You ok?" Sam shouted but she couldn't answer, she had to focus on breathing and not getting shot or blown up. Answering questions wasn't on the top of her list in that moment.
When they found Nate trapped beneath Nadine's boot, Sam wasn't hesitant to dive straight onto her, knocking the gun from her hands. Penny followed with the intent to help but Nadine knocked Nathan straight out of the window. Again she and Sam followed, the three of them circling her. Penny was sure this wouldn't last long but even with her training, they were no match for Nadine Ross. Penny was barely contributing to the fight, with her breathing still difficult and Sam pushing her back to keep her from getting hit, she only managed to land a few punches before they were falling from the building yet again.
As they landed on the cliff side, Sam was quick to grab the gun as Penny and Nate climbed to their feet.
"You're fast, but you're not that fast."
"Hey, forget about her." Nathan panted, clutching his side. "C'mon we gotta get out of here before they-"
He cut himself off as Rafe and three men rounded the corner. Sam grabbed Nadine, holding the gun to the side of her head. Penny braced her hands on her knees, willing her breathing to return to normal but the situation wasn't helping. Her vision was blurring and she closed her eyes to try and clear it. Her head was swimming as they spoke, unable to hear the conversation. All she could think of was how close she'd been to that explosion, how close she'd come to falling to her death from that building. She gulped, her throat dry and scratchy.
She knew what was happening despite having only been through it once. When she and Sully were looking for the Dismas cross she had back in England, they were chased by a group of police. She was certain they were about to get thrown into a jail cell and never heard from again. They got away by the skin of their teeth but in the dark alley they hid down, Penny lost her breath, her vision, her coherence and her calm. She had a panic attack and Sully nearly had a heart attack when he saw her. It took a while but she managed to calm herself when Sully tried to get her to breath in time with him.
She thought on that now, placing a hand on her stomach and one on her chest. She forced her shoulders to relax, breathing in on a count of five, holding for three and then out for five. She repeated this over and over, and over again when she heard a gun shot until she could hear the conversation properly. When she opened her eyes she could see Nadine back by Rafe, Sam looking worriedly at her. She gave him a reassuring smile and a nod, realizing that a gun had gone off whilst she was breathing. She looked around but everyone seemed fine.
"Samuel, you okay?" She watched with caution as Rafe approached Sam, brushing off his shoulders. "I guess you knew this moment was coming, huh?" Rafe raised his gun, smacking it into the side of Sam's face. Both Penny and Nate moved forward only for him to point the weapon at them.
"You already got us, take it easy."
"Sam?" Penny murmured. "You ok?" He didn't answer and she had to force herself not to panic again. He was still breathing, at least.
"C'mon now, you're a businessman. Let's just... work out a deal."
"Oh, a deal. Oh yeah, I'd love to hear what you have in mind." Rafe stomped his boot on Sam's head and this time Penny ignored his raised weapon, dropping to her knees beside Sam.
"Shit." She panicked, her shaky hands running over his face.
"I'm alright, honey." Sam smiled, rolling onto his knees.
Nate helped Sam up and Penny climbed back to her feet as she listened to Nate try and persuade Rafe that he needed them and they only needed a small cut, for Alcazar. Penny stood close to Sam's side, hand gripping his forearm in a vice like grip.
"The guy who broke him out, Hector Alcazar... he owes him alot of money."
"Whoa, what the hell are you talking about, Nate?" Rafe waved his hand, gesturing for Nate to slow down, a frown on his face. For a moment, Penny thought Rafe would remember when they used to work together and agree to Nate's terms. Agree to help an old friend. "Hector Alcazar died in a shootout in Argentina like six months ago." Rafe laughed as he looked between the brothers. "I'm the one that got Samuel out."
Penny dropped her hand from Sam's arm, a blank expression on his face. She stepped back, darting her tongue out to dry her lips with a shake of head, not wanting to believe that it was true.
"Wow. What did he tell you? Sam, what kind of story did you cook up? Alcazar? Really? You lied? You lied to your baby brother? And you're new little girlfriend?" Rafe mocked.
Sam looked from Nate to Penny but she wouldn't, couldn't look at him. Penny usually managed to contain her anger with a few exceptions; Arrogant people who rubbed her the wrong way, like Rafe and liars.
All this time Sam had let them believe that without this treasure, without the money from it, Alcazar would kill him. He had let her leave her home, her job and her parents behind for this goose chase knowing that he was in no such hurry. He let her risk her life for him. She was shaking again, not with panic this time.
"You're wasting time." Nadine called.
"Just a second." Rafe took a step forward as Penny breathed heavily through her nose. "Thing is, Nate, I never stopped looking for Avery's treasure. I just kept running into these dead ends. You know? And then I hear that our dear ol' Samuel Drake, an authority on Avery, is alive and somewhat well. There was no breakout... I bribed the prison warden and your brother, your lover," He smirked at Penny. "He just waltzed right out the front gate. He spent the last two years tracking down the second Saint Dismas cross. And you know what? He did it all with me."
"No." Nate shook his head in disbelief. "No, that's bullshit."
"Sam, care to refute?"
Penny and Nate finally looked to Sam who had shame written all over his face as blood ran from his split nose.
"Nate..."
"Aw, Sam. Ah, Jesus no, no..."
Sam moved forward as Penny stared, biting her lip and clenching her hands into fists. She could feel her nails digging into her palms but if she released them she'd break and she wasn't about to do that in front of Rafe and Nadine. And definitely not Sam.
"Listen, Avery's treasure was ours, it was always ours."
"No! I left my life for you!" Nathan shoved his older brother back, anger burning in his eyes as Rafe laughed.
"Princess..." Sam tried, turning to Penny.
"Fuck you." She spat. "Fuck you and fuck Avery." She side stepped him when he moved closer. "You were lying this whole time Sam! After how long I've been away I could loose my job! My dad is not above that... My dad, Jesus fucking christ! He's already beyond pissed at me for going to Italy. I had planned to have something to take back to him, or at least be able to tell him that it was for a good cause... That if I hadn't come with you then a man would be dead... A man I thought was one of the good guys." She shook her head as Sam tried again to reach to her, his eyes wide, wet and broken. "Don't you fucking dare, Sam." She unfurled her hand, bringing it down hard across his cheek as she finally let a few of her tears fall. "Fuck you." Finally her voice was broken, defeated. She'd had enough.
"Hey look, look, guys, if it's any consolation, he duped me too. He pulled a Houdini on me. He brought you two and that old man back into the mix. And I cannot lie Sam, that really pissed me off. But you know, all behind us now."
"You don't deserve it." Sam's voice caught when he finally spoke again.
"You do? Last I checked we're all a bunch of thieves digging around where we shouldn't."
"Rafe?" Nadine approached the group with a stony expression. "One way or another end it, or I will."
"Well, you heard the lady." Rafe nodded and turned back to the group, pointing his gun at Sam's head and despite her rage, Penny's heart lurched up to her throat and she inched forward.
"Hey, you miss one clue and you can kiss that treasure goodbye. You said it yourself, you keep running into dead ends... Why don't you face it, Rafe. You need us."
"Yeah you're right." Rafe lowered the gun and Penny released the breath she was holding. "You're half right... I just need Sam."
The next few seconds went by in a blur as Rafe turned his aim to Nate, Sam jumping in front as he squeezed the trigger. Penny's scream was guttural as she launched herself to the edge of the cliff, crying out Nathan's name, trying to see where he'd fell. She could hear Sam's cries behind her as her tears blurred her vision.
"Shit, shit, shit." She began hyperventilating, unable to move from her place peering over the edge. She heard Rafe instructing Sam to move, lead them on.
"Penny, c'mon." He called and finally she stood, cheeks wet with tears.
"Uh uh." Rafe held up a hand to stop her. "I don't want Sam distracted or trying anything stupid." He made to aim his pistol at her but on a second thought turned to one of his men. "You know what, she's been through alot. She's barely standing at this point, what with the shock, right Sam?" He laughed, slapping Sam on the shoulder. Penny refused to look up from the ground. "Look at her she's pathetic. Finish her off and then catch up."
Rafe, Nadine and two of the three men left. And Penny knew that this was it. She had no fight left in her. Nate was dead, Sam betrayed them and as soon as he got Rafe to the treasure he'd be dead too, she had no phone to call Sully, if by some miracle she did get home her parents would be livid. Her grandfather would probably hug her, tell her not to worry like he always did but she knew, she knew she had nothing left now. Even if she did have the energy for a fight the guy had an assault rifle. She was done.
"Not even gonna throw a punch?" He taunted, lowering his gun as she stood, limp armed, face downcast. "Pity, I was expecting this to be fun."
She didn't look up, waiting for the gun shot but none came. When she felt him standing close to her she finally lifted her head only for the wind to be forced out of her as she felt a strong force hit the side of her stomach. Looking back down she saw a knife, now stuck into her flesh. He pulled the blade back and Penny dropped to her knees hard. Her blood was thick and dark as it oozed out of the wound. Her vision blurred once more as her head felt dizzy and she slumped onto her face, watching him walk away.
She wanted to cry, to scream, to call someones name... Anything. But no noise would come from her throat except a dry rasping gasp for breath. She rolled onto her side, hand over the wound trying to stop the bleeding until she could crawl into the shade. But it was a pointless waste of effort. Again she slumped, dirt from the floor being inhaled with her deep, shuddering breaths until she gave up, eyes fluttering closed, alone and scared in Paradise.