*Whew!* Sry this was late! This is the most complicated chapter of the fic so now be careful. It'll be difficult to read but it was fun and if you know me by now, then you know I never make things easy haha. This is also the last countdown-themed chapter for the fic. ):
And okay, ready guys? We...recently hit halfway and the countdown to Jack and Tooth's end has started. So calculate it, and if you can't handle this shit anymore haha I totally understand, so thank you soo much for reading my fic up to this point and for even giving this a shot! *waves goodbye with a sad smile* And to those of you who've just finished crying and are pushing up your sleeves, let's do this! I hope to finish by the end of August. Can I do it? For all your sakes and mine, haha let's hope! Time to kick it up! Lol and thanx again everyone! Your response and support for this crazy story always make me smile. Kisses! (:
And to my language peeps, thank you so much for helping/offering to help me out with this chapter! It was so incredible! I honestly got goosebumps when I brought them all together and realised...well, you'll see! Haha and this was sort of my personal thank you to guys for reading this fic because I wanted you to get involved in a part of it. (: So here! Thanks to my lovelies who helped me out with: Spanish (Mind-Creator, Lovina, SomberLuminosity, Trumpet-Geek, and Jade Strider), Spanish-Argentinian (Sophsiri from tumblr), Spanish-Mexican (Rosary-Stefanys-Strigidae'31), Dutch (Springflake), Italian (Nuvola9 and Lauraenretard), German (Lovina, Shadigan Shinen, and NewLightRini), Malay (ToothianaFrost), Portuguese (cuzarobincantlivewithoutflying), Greek and Bulgarian (crywolf-girl23; I hope the Greek letters came out!), Japanese (The Dangerous One and my friend Natsumi), Mandarin (iris9093), Tagalog and Cebuano (my Uncle Benny), French (all-'round-freek, Lauraenretard again, and Love and Secrets; yay now I know how to properly address someone on the phone in French! Haha thanx!), Danish (Shadigan Shinen again!), Thai (kshep.n7), Hindi (Crisbel and Raul) and Urdu (Ali)! You guys are the best!
Okay so should anything not sound correct, I'm always here to PM. Haha you guys gave me so many different ways to say everything and even though I had to double check with most of you, like everything else, there is always space for error – but you already knew that lmao. Hopefully this HTML will copy the right text. Be sure to look out for their other phrases throughout the rest of the fic!
And here's a little legend in case this gets confusing:
Present time
Memories from previous times
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
Jack's lost memories
Enjoy! The longest A/N on the planet is now over lol.
"I'm breaking. I can't do this on my own. Can't you hear me screaming out? Am I all alone?"
21
Biggest accident–
"Hah...H–"
*panting*
20
...CHOSEN protocol...
*huffing*
18
...the death our FAIRYQUEEN and the succession of her d–
Boots. Her boots.
Running, stomping, pounding...like her heart.
A tiny, heart threatening to rip in two.
17
"J-Jack?...Jack?!"
16
"JACK!...JACK, COME ON! THIS ISN'T F–"
"Thia, go find him!"
15
She couldn't breathe.
She wanted to cry, to rage, to fall on her knees, and throw up again.
13
"Are you high?! I-I don't know this place! You should go! And you're faster than I am, I–"
"Look, princess!"
His voice was trying to be calmer for her sake.
10
She gripped her flashlight like it was the only crutch she had left in the world. Her knuckles seared.
But her boots kept running. They didn't stop.
"He's still somewhere in 'ere, I promise, sheila! The elevator's the only way into the Core and out, so just run around and try t'spot him!"
6
She really wanted him with her.
"Y-You're gonna keep trying to get that list? A-Aren't you?"
"I need to."
4
"This list is all Jack and I have left so I need to copy it somehow. B-But I'll find a way, I know I can! So you go get 'im an' I'll get you two out before this bomb blows up the facility!"
The darkness seemed endless, even with his LX rod – but his hopeful voice was the only thing that kept her running further away from the computer hall.
3
She'd placed her hand on his shoulder and gave him a light squeeze.
"G-Good luck, Edmund! Please–"
2
"Now go!"
1
"GO!"
12 minutes : 00 seconds
59
58
57
"J...J-JACK!"
A cough. A terrified sob.
"PLEASE! W-We need to GET OUT!"
One GUARDIAN core. Seven arches. Two of them sealed and one lead back to Aster – four left.
She ran to the centre of the Core and spun around.
"JACK!"
55
The faster she spun, looking around, the more the silence weighed and the cold grew.
"ANSWER ME!"
He didn't.
52
'Which archway? Which archway?!'
Four arches – but only three were lit brightly with the bomb beacons in place.
50
Pink eyes blurred, misty and painful.
49
When did he leave them? Why would Jack leave them?!
47
Was it the video?
Was it the truth about...about her?
'I-Is it even me? B-Because I...god, I-I...It...It couldn–'
44
Was it because...because of that brunette in the list? The one he'd had a–
Tooth tightened her grip on the LX.
43
42
'No! This isn't about her or anything but us right now!'
40
'I just need to find you...And that's all I want right now!'
Eyelids closed.
38
She tried again.
"Jack!"
His name left in an echo, over frosty breath and quivering lips.
He didn't answer, didn't appear.
35
"JACK!"
33
Her heart could barely keep up, breaking inside. Nerves threatened to shut down.
"Don't you dare!"
31
She was a princess. And tiny, maybe girly, and okay, too emotional.
30
But she was not weak, like what everyone seemed to think.
Like what the company seemed to think when they experimented on her.
So she spun again, throwing her hand out to the entire Core.
29
...'till I break. 'Till I'm broken.
"This is all your fault!"
28
She snapped her head right.
27
The fourth arch, the one with the broken lights.
She froze.
26
A hoodie. The shine of leather.
One flicker of light later, it was gone.
"Jack, wait! COME BACK!"
25
Her mind might be playing tricks. Her heart might be thirsty.
But Toothiana's boots didn't stop.
23
Marble meet concrete.
Skin crawled. Sweat started coming.
21
The new archway was ten times creepier up close. The emergency lights overhead wouldn't stop flickering.
She heaved a breath. Her lungs shivered.
19
No clue. She had absolutely no clue what they might've used this corridor for.
There were ten halls. Ten. On each side, fifty feet high up to the red ceiling.
Her neck muscles ached, her eyes tired.
16
"Where'd you go?!"
She shined light in the first row – Corridor 1 and 2. Empty.
15
The second row. Empty.
The third row–
"J-JACK! COME OUT!"
She skidded to a halt.
12
Each hallway was too dark to see. Pitch black, and complete and total–
Her teeth grit.
10
"No! No, come on! Come on!"
She bit her lip defiantly and spun 360°
A reverse 180°
9
What could she do?
8
Which one to choose?
7
Was...Was she even sure that it was really Jack she s–
...But Toothie, I-I'm scared!...It's okay, BT! Remember what Uncle Tanvir always says?...T...T-Take a leap of faith?...You got it! Now, JUMP!
3
Her sigh...it was nervous.
2
Almost like his.
1
11 minutes : 00 seconds
His lungs were on fire. His mind was splitting in two.
Into three.
He just...He just needed to get away, he h–
59
Tooth's head snapped up.
Corridor 6. On the right.
56
Her bones. It was in her bones.
'Turn right!'
55
'Turn right!'
54
Her eyes – her 'accidental, anomalistic' pink eyes – narrowed. She dove in.
Panting, gasping, heaving in the dark.
Her boots were the drum and her light was the beacon. They called out the shadows, the wraiths, and desperation in her heart.
But they lit the way and pumped her adrenaline.
Something bit her.
50
Again and again.
"Ugh, stop it! Stop it! Argh!"
She slapped her hands. The bite became an itch. The itch became a prickle. The prickle became a twitch.
49
"Stop!I don't have it! I don't!"
But they wouldn't stop.
They were reacting to something. Something deeper inside the Core, the way she imagined Jack to feel the wind. Or Aster, feeling a surface crack under his fingertips.
44
Her rifles were heavy at her thighs.
43
Her stamina was running out.
42
The hall seemed to go on forever.
41
"I...I-I...J-Jack, WHERE ARE YOU?!"
40
And the floor vanished from under her.
She screamed.
39
His eyes, so blue and genetically altered, grew wide.
"...OCENCE...you done?!...'ent is now!"
A gasp – cold fire passed through his chest again.
"Stop it! Stop!"
38
But he was invisible...to everyone, to everything.
They'd flicker and appear around him, but after one would pass through him, they'd all vanish.
"Why can't any of you...Why?!"
How was he–Wh-Where was he? The room was dark, large, and alone.
He shut his eyes.
36
She tumbled and tumbled.
Terrible bangs and thuds down all the way down a short flight of concrete steps.
Her throat was sandpaper, heartbeat erratic.
When it was over, she was sprawled on the cold floor, heaving angrily.
"O-Oh crap!"
31
Did she break something? Everything ached.
A cough, a gasp for cold air. Eyes darted around.
The floor was like ice, the shadows licked her everywhere.
She trembled.
28
Pink eyes grew wet. She needed to find him.
He had a life to recover, she a family to find, Edmund had a list to copy and program to shutdown – she was not allowed to get herself injured in between all that when they needed her most!
Not even...Not even that video could distract her.
25
The red lights...The numbers.
BLOODY CHRIST, IT'S A TICKER!
22
'Get up, Tooth! G-Get up!'
"O-Oh my god..."
20
She remembered yoga.
19
She remembered spinal cords.
18
She remembered her friend from middle school. The one who wore a brace for her scoliosis.
She glared up at the darkness then shut her eyes.
14
Nice and slow...Line up your bones...pull yourself up gently.
10
When she was up, she turned.
8
The flashlight was several feet away, its radius short but blinding.
It lit up something. Something she'd never thought she'd see–
7
–frost.
6
Light moisture in the room turned the concrete to rime.
5
Or did it?
4
She wiped her mouth. The flashlight was in her hands instantly.
The ice still sugared the floor.
But–
2
Not the whole floor. Just a patch. A tiny, wispy patch.
1
A patch made in a brushstroke with a piece of cold air – in one, controlled direction.
And there was only one thing, one hand, which could do that.
Tooth's heart nearly stopped.
10 minutes : 00 seconds
59
58
57
"Edmuund!"
Her screech was indefinable. Loud and feral. Her feet danced in circles.
55
"I-I think I'm gonna find him! I think he–"
54
A hidden wire caught her boot.
53
She screamed out nervously. She shot out her hands.
She caught something.
A steel pole.
51
The princess stopped her fall. Her gasp was grateful, her heart was still unforgiving.
Everything didn't seem so scary when she'd walked around before. Maybe it was time...Maybe it was the loneliness.
Or maybe...
50
Jack shined his light on Tooth one more time, and after she waved half-heartedly, he turned right and kept on going alone.
She moved her hand higher up the bar as she pulled herself up.
48
Huuurrrrm-Druh!
Suddenly, her hand couldn't move.
47
She stopped moving.
Pink eyes looked up fearfully.
46
The pole lit up bright, turquoise.
Her grip wouldn't let go around the light. Like crazy glue, like a magnet.
Yank after yank, her arm would rip out!
42
She yelled out in distraught.
41
–Center gene identified–
40
"Wh-Wait! No! NO, I DON–"
And the floor vanished underneath her again.
"AAHH!"
39
Her heart raced. Her stomach lurched. But the pole magnetised to her palm.
37
"H-Holy M-E-Edmund, heeelp!"
36
She dangled over the circle. Boots and a flashlight precarious over the pit. The pole seemed to go down forever into the dark.
35
Her other hand clutched desperately, no upper body strength to be had.
34
Then the light in the rod moved downwards. Down deep into the circle, into the darkness, all alone.
33
It dragged her with it.
32
Toothiana screamed.
31
Jack screamed too.
30
He saw a buddy. From a broken memory.
He heard a laugh. He smelled something delicious. He tasted syrup on his tongue.
27
And for all his confusion, he kept seeing projections.
Agents...men he'd never spoke to...women he'd never met.
26
Someone gripped his arm.
25
He spun.
24
The touch felt real. The face was real.
22
He gritted his teeth. He saw a smile–
21
"Jack, come on! Let's play!"
He saw Moscow.
19
"Let's play boys."
17
She held on for dear life. Her heart was in her throat and nausea started to build.
She screamed and screamed.
15
The wind stole names and pleas from her lips.
14
Her feelings were wildfire. Goosebumps flared across her skin. From toes to scalp, she suddenly felt...unwelcomed.
13
Eyelids became bear traps. Tight and unmerciful.
Curls and wavy locks flew up like banshees.
10
Tooth wanted to cry.
The ride drove her down further and further.
7
And when the air became too thick, the cold almost unbearable–"Oh n–"
She fell through an open ceiling.
5
Thud!
The concrete floor sent searing pain shoot up her tail bone.
4
"A-Ahh!"
3
Pain blinding and senses numb, her flashlight pointed up.
Blurry, dizzying, she shook her head.
2
The pole stopped glowing. Steel covered the ceiling, sealing her in.
1
And she was alone.
9 minutes : 00 seconds
"N-No..."
59
"No!...N-NO!"
58
Her fists slammed the walls. Her voice were feral and desperate.
"NOO! EDMUND! EDMUUUNNDD!"
57
Another smack.
"HEEELP! SOMEBODY!"
56
Another slam.
"ANYBODY!"
55
She even kicked the pole so hard her toe began to sting.
"I-I'M DOWN HERREEEE!"
54
"I-I...I..."
53
Her light fixed on the sealed door. She didn't want to see what was behind her just yet.
She gritted her teeth.
51
Her gun appeared.
Five rounds. Aim at the door.
50
Bang!
49
Bang!
"OPEN UP!"
48
Bang!
"Dammit!"
47
Bang!
46
"D-DAMMIT!"
45
Bang!
"ARGH!"
44
Clich! Empty.
She angrily pushed her knuckles to her forehead.
42
Her voice was tiny, scared but trying.
"O-One..."
41
"Two..."
40
"Thr...Three..."
She turned.
38
Lifting her light to the area, she nearly cried.
"Jack..."
37
"...where are you?!"
36
He nearly choked. He gripped his shirt more times than he could count.
34
But they wouldn't stop passing through him. Wouldn't stop the memories. Wouldn't stop the illusions.
31
Another man touched his shoulder.
He tried to shove him away, but he only caught air.
29
A little girl's laugh echoed far away.
28
When he turned, North's ELF agent was lying dead on the ground in her place.
27
He couldn't take it.
26
He clutched his head and spun–
25
Pitch was standing there.
"Time is running out."
23
He blinked.
22
21
Pitch was ten feet away.
Jack sprinted after him.
20
"Cold and dark, Jack. Cold and dark..."
He blinked again.
19
Pitch was behind him.
18
Holding another him by the throat. The other Jack, in the white dress shirt and tuxedo pants.
17
"...'y this. This shitty little toy–"
His vision then flickered.
16
The two were gone – Jack was still alone.
He bent his head into one hand.
14
He reached for his belt with the other. He had to.
13
He was chasing shadows he didn't even know.
12
Her eyes were glassy. She rubbed them and ruined her makeup slightly.
Lab rooms on the right, elevators on the right, a grandmaster hall down the middle?
10
She could only guess.
She was outside of the Core, back in a regular sector of the company.
8
"NO! I need to get back in there! I NEED TO GET BACK!"
7
But how?!
Her hands shook.
6
The flashlight dropped.
5
"Sh-Shit!"
Trembling fingers darted through the dark and touched the cold.
4
She panicked.
"Where are y-you?"
3
Teeth chattered.
2
"Wh-Where are you?!"
1
She caught it on the floor. Her beam pointed up. There were so many corridors – cold and endless.
8 minutes: 00 seconds
A flicker.
58
A shape.
57
...A letter!
56
ρασπι–
She gasped.
'What was that?!'
The light shone again.
53
52
们会
'No wait, where'd the other go?!'
50
And the light shone again.
'ilarlos–
49
Her wrists shook, her eyes grew wide. Above each corridor was a sign, a word
No, words.
'German...Malay?...W-Wait, was that Jap–'
46
She was panic-stricken. The words...the words they...were jumbled.
45
They were jumbled. They were confusing. Endless and endless.
And they were everywhere. Language upon language.
43
Beskyt...dunia... прет...ちの–
She shook her head self-consciously and squinted her eyes.
41
Corridor 1: 我们会保护这个世界...
40
Her head whipped left.
Corridor 5: Nuestro objetivo es vigilarlos...
38
To the right.
Corridor 4: Ще ги претпазиме...
'But which is...Which will lead me to him?!'
35
-ze...Proteksyon...我-
She stopped. 'P-Protection?'
34
She bit her lip – Corridor 6.
She took a wild guess.
32
"Please, be right!"
31
She dashed down the fourth above the Filipino script. Into an empty office.
29
A pole was situated in the back, disguised as a support beam or for fibre optics.
'Another pole to grab?'
26
She narrowed her eyes and ran to it. "Only one way to find out!"
It was cold in her grip, but lit up at her touch.
24
–Center gene identified–
The words sent it a spike through her heart.
22
The floor opened. Her skin was glue to the pole.
21
The pole moved sideways into a secret hall. When she came out on the other side...
18
She was back in the same hall.
17
She gasped.
She tried again.
16
'L-Let's try...'
15
Beskyt dem.
Corridor 2 on the left, this time.
14
The pole had to lead somewhere different!
10
9
It didn't.
It tossed her back into the main hall.
6
She kicked the pole and covered her eyes.
5
The words ran through her mind like dark stallions. What needed to be done?! What was she missing?!
3
"Argh! D...D-Dammit!"
She shined her light on the ground.
2
If Jack wasn't downstairs, he had to be here...he had to!
1
But there was no frost was on the floor!
7 minutes: 00 seconds
58
57
Her light moved and moved.
56
Something shimmered on the wall.
55
She turned.
54
An icy gasp left lips.
"J..."
There was a flourish of frost...
52
...in the shape of hand.
Tooth cried out.
50
She ran to it, gingerly touching it with gentle fingers.
Her palm pressed flat against it, firm and faithful.
48
Her fingers could barely reach his. She felt so small...this was the same hand that cocooned hers so many times – its cold crept into her skin. She shivered and shined the light around.
44
She saw nothing, no one. It was all cold, dead...and alone.
43
Eyelids shut and legs gave out.
Her hand smeared his handprint and her knees hit the ground.
42
Her forehead hit the wall, teeth grinding, vision red.
41
She took a breath deep, throat raw and angry. She screamed in frustration.
At everything, everyone...at herself.
39
38
"AAHHHHHH!...H-HRGH–"
She needed to breathe, to calm down, she wasn't giving up. She couldn't.
Not for herself. Not for her sisters. Not for Aster, or North...Not for Jack.
...you can look at the stars and think of me...Okay, Toothie...
35
But god, forbid she wasn't a spy! She couldn't calculate like an assassin or decode like a hacker.
And she realised, she might've been useless after all.
34
Not you, we...What are y–We need to f-figure out where he's headed...This isn't just your m-mission anymore. It's mine too, r-remember?
33
She rubbed her eye.
She looked up.
31
She rose – shaky legs, unsteady posture – and gritted her teeth.
30
'Try again! Tr-Try again, Tooth!'
Her light shined on the signs again.
29
Eyes fluttered. Irises dilating and growing with each turn. Her Incredibly Advanced Language Comprehension was kicking in.
28
Ще ги претпазиме...
26
She read it slow and careful. Exhaling with each translation and inhaling with every thought.
25
"K-Keep who safe?" she mumbled.
Ще ги претпазиме...Εμείς Θα τους υπερασπιστούμε...
23
"Safe for who?"
22
"Defend what?"
And then...
20
Her head tilted. Her breath hitched.
19
She moved her flashlight above each corridor, one by one, mumbling under her breath.
18
She read left to right.
17
16
Jack's memories were nails driving themselves into his head.
15
The images, the senses, the words...the voices.
"Domo gret skrakya?"
He looked up.
14
That voice wasn't violent. Wasn't cold. Wasn't over.
It was–
12
His arctic blues grew wide.
Two blue outlines of shoes were at his feet.
11
Jack pulled his head up.
10
So did she.
9
The sign...the signs, altogether they...
"Unser Ziel ist zu schützen...私たちの目標は反故するです。Nuestro objetivo es vigilarlos, Ще ги претпазиме...Εμείς Θα τους υπερασπιστούμε, Beskyt dem, Bewaak ze...Proteksyon, 我们会保护这个世界, lindungi dunia."
7
"Jeen skrakya..."
He squinted his eyes.
She squinted again.
"Unser Ziel ist..."
6
And again...
"Unser goal ist..."
Jewel-pink eyes narrowed. The sign melted away.
"Unser goal ist zu schützen...私たちの目標は反故するです。Nuestro objetivo watch over, Ще ги претпазиме...Εμείς will υπερασπιστούμε, Protect dem, Bewaak them...Protektion, 我们会保护 this 世界, lindungi world."
"Our goal is to schützen...Our目標は反故するis. Nuestro goal is to watch over, Ще ги defend them...Εμείς will defend, Protect them, Bewaak them...Protection, 我们会 protect this 世界, lindungi world."
"Our goal is to schützen...Our 目標は反故する is. Nuestro goal is to watch over, Ще ги defend them...Εμείς will defend, Protect them, Bewaak them...Protection, 我们会 protect this 世界, lindungi world."
"Our goal is to guard...our goal is to protect. Our goal is to watch over, we will keep them safe...We will defend them, protect them, guard them...Protection, we will protect this world, protect this world."
"Guard."
3
2
She gasped.
1
6 minutes: 00 seconds
It was one supposed to read all at once...It was a sentence, a tenet!
"That word's bolded out! But–"
59
Biting her lip she looked around at the others. They weren't the same.
That was it!
But...why?
58
"–me to the Gunner division, boys!"
Jack turned his head. Another voice appeared.
"...'on't disappear!"
He blinked. Another agent flicker into view. Then another.
"–ta wa kesshite–Aran meeny-ya–"
And another.
"...'ostra missi–"
56
He narrowed his eyes worriedly. Their words were supposed to make sense but–
55
She took the chance.
54
She nervously walked into Corridor 3 with 'Bewaak Ze' written over it.
Another pole was there in an tiny alcove. She clutched it.
"Please be right...Please!"
It lit up. It took her, and when she landed...she wasn't in the same hallway.
She stumbled off.
51
"What is this..."
50
"...like Level two?"
She didn't know what to think...Except one thought: Keep going.
49
48
Jack stood up. He turned and spun in his stand.
Bangs whipping, eyes roving, he frowned with upset.
46
He shut his eyes.
Too much. They w–
"...stop running! They're getting aw–TAYONGLAHAT! (We are united!)...W-What the hell?! Where'd they all come fro–"
He grabbed his head.
44
She shined her light.
43
Toothiana gaped.
These signs were different.
"Foren, blijf samen. Estamos nisto juntos, noi siamouniti. Kita sepasukan, hum sab ek saath hai, Είμαστε ενωμένοι...Един екип сме, wir sind vereint. 我们是团结的。Magkaisa, Umoja, l'union fait la force."
41
40
She wiped her mouth, eyes alight.
"Un...U-Unite, st-stand together. We are in this together...we are united." Tooth stood a little taller, getting goosebumps.
39
38
"W-We are one team," she continued. "We are all one toge-together...we are united. We are one team...We are united, we are united...Unity, unity, unity makes the strength."
...We are united
36
"We are united!"
35
The criminals kept chanting them, throwing his team off-guard, he'd remembered that. They swarmed in tens, against a Gunner team of five–
'Vereint'...'United.'
The hallway engraved 'wir sind vereint'...Corridor 4 had to be–
She sprinted under the German text. A pole ride later...
Level 3
"Yes!" Tooth cried.
27
26
The pole was right! The hall was different!
She couldn't believe it. It somehow made sense!
'They all...they all come together...they're messages to the agents! And I just need to read it all to find the right. Because I can...'
She swallowed a choke.
24
"Because I can read every language. A-And the doctors never understood why..."
23
Ask any regular doctor in the hospital, they cannot find it. Ask any scientist not of our work, they will not see it.
'I have to keep going...I-I have to keep going!'
She gritted her teeth. "Everyone can suck it."
19
18
A new level, a new hallway. New signs were labelled above the corridors.
"Solider," she read flit her eyes back and forth steadily. "You choose this life, it does not choose you. We...We are men of our own conviction. We are not warriors, we are not soldiers, we are not assassins...You choose this path, it does not choose you. You are not an assassin...not an assassin...not a soldier...not a soldier. We are not soldiers."
12
11
"군인, Tu escolhes esta vida, não é ela que te escolhe a ti, Ние сме хора на нашите възгледи, เราไม่ใช่นักรบ, Hum sipahi nahim hai, Noi non siamo assassini, 走这条路是你所选择的，路从不选你。Du er ikke en snigmorder, Du bist nicht ein Mörder, Jij bent geen soldaat, Engkau bukannya tentera, Εμείς δεν είμαστε στρατιώτες."
"Assassini...Assassin! Corridor 3!"
She dashed under the Italian script grabbed onto the pole.
And when she went up, she was successful again. The cold was persistent, creeping under her coat.
Level 4!
8
His heartbeat was thunderous.
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
7
But doubt started to creep in.
Was this even right? Even if she followed the halls to the right words, would...would Jack even be here?
'What if he went off course? What if he...And how would I–'
Her light shined again.
She gasped.
2
Another frosted handprint.
And that was enough for her.
1
5 minutes: 00 seconds
'Go Tooth, GO!'
She sprinted and sprinted. Her skill had never been used so much in one moment and as she ran, her brain read the signs frivolously.
57
"Strength...Strength in is in you," she whispered, her boots echoing on the concrete. "Keep fighting, keep fighting. You must stay strong, don't give up. Survive. When things get hard, you must push, you must fight, you must rise...You get up, rise up, and together...w-we fight."
"Force est en vous, Продалжи да се бориш, ฮึดสู้ต่อ. Je moet sterk blijven, giv ikke op, Lagpasan. Quando as coisas se complicam, nós esforçamo-nos mais, Πρέπει να παλέψεις, devi sorgere. Du must dich erheben, bangkit, tumayo ka! Y Luchamos juntos."
Bangkit...Rise up.
She turned down Corridor 5 with the Malay script over it.
A grab, a zip, and stumble later–
49
48
Level 5
"That's right...keep going, keep fighting," her breath icy like the corridors. She thought of her sisters, she thought of the ELFs – she felt Jack's arms around hers back in the Wales hotel penthouse. It all surged her and turned her vigour fiery.
Her breath was ragged but her voice was coming back. Earlier anxiety of the computer was being pushed down as she thought about the Jack, thought about Aster, thought about the bomb ready to blow.
42
"我々は名誉を示す必要があります。Πρέπει να μείνεις πιστός, restez loyaux..."
"We must demonstrate honor!" Tooth read. She clenched her fist and danced on her feet, shining her light so firmly. "You must be loyal, remain loyal..."
39
Jack was still several floors up. Eyes wide and head dizzy.
38
"Defend yourself, defend your team, d-defend the people," she recited taking more confident steps forward, ever prevalent for any signs of Jack's strange frost prints again.
"...Pertahankan diri, pertahankan pasukan kamu, epagtangol mo ang tao, Остани верен..."
"Stay true..."
37
He was alone on the outside–
36
"...Habe Ehrgefühl..."
"Have honor..."
35
–but smothered on the inside.
34
...我们一定要守护对方。Dobbiamo difendere questo mondo, defende este mundo com honra...
"We must defend each other, we must defend this world, defend this world with honor."
Her boots stopped short of Corridor 7 labelled in Mandarin.
"...Respecteer deze eed."
"R-Respect this oath."
守护...shou hu...Defend.
She continued to trust herself. She kept getting it right.
Level 6
Her breath caught.
"Ти си защитник. Engkau adalah wira, Είστε όλοι ήρωες, tayo ay bayani. Je bent een beschermer, du er en helt. Nós somos os Guardiões. Somos protectores, 我々は英雄です, เราคือผู้พิทักษ์."
Her eyes were quick, her lips near blue but undying.
28
27
"You..." and she thought every agent, every loved one, and every GUARDIAN who'd walked into her life and looked out for her. "You are a protector..." she mumbled to herself.
26
Jack's heart raced. The illusions returned. He stumbled backwards, unsure of what to do.
"I..." he stuttered. "Why are y–"
25
"You are a...Y-You are a hero. You are all heroes, we are heroes..." her flashlight moved higher. "You are a protector...a hero. We are protectors..."
24
Jack looked around the circular doom, made of concrete, iron and Guardian inscriptions. He shook his head. 'How did I get her–'
23
"We are protectors, we are heroes...we are the guardians."
The last one made her heart twinge. It was so reminiscent of Punjam, and all the Thai was swirled around the palace.
"ปกป้องเหล่าประชา!" the guards used to recite. "Protect the people!"
She gripped tightened her scarf and rushed forward – but froze just above Corridor 3 labelled with Spanish.
Protectores was scratched out when her LX light shined on it. She caught another word bolded beside it.
Protectores Iodovo.
Another language, another word – but it meant Protector too!
But why replace protector with a new translation like iodovo?
20
19
She frowned. It was probably the same one, written for Project GUARDIAN.
Her heart stopped.
"W-Wait..." She lifted her head.
Guard...Unity...Assassins...Rise...Defend...Iodovo...
G...U...A...R...D...I–
She nearly dropped her flashlight. She dashed into the hall.
15
His head seared. His knuckles were white with pain. He was grinding his teeth.
But still, they wouldn't leave. The voices wouldn't stop–
13
Tooth gasped.
Level 7
The pole stopped abruptly as usual. She landed gracefully on her feet. Tooth dashed forward.
Her chest was on fire. Her fingers were shaking. But she was more determined than ever.
"นี่คือภารกิจของเรา, Това е целта ни, este é o nosso projeto, Ye hamara fraz hai, Ito ang ating tongkulim, Das ist unsere Mission, Questa è la nostra missione, これは私たちの使命です。"
"This is our mission, t-this is our goal," she nearly gasped. "This is our project, this is our duty...o-our duty, our mission...Our mission."
Projeto was replaced with anyano. Another word from the Guardian language.
6
She rushed into Corridor 9, the written above in Portuguese.
4
She sprinted into the corridor, less afraid and more desperate, thinking of dark clothes, blue eyes and scowl.
"Argh, you are not gonna pull a gunner me!" she gritted past her teeth. "Not after what you put me through!"
The pole threw her up to a new floor.
It sent her up–
Level 8
1
4 minutes: 00 seconds
The last of eight. Eight like her sisters.
Why it had to this, for what purpose, she didn't care. As long as it would bring her back to the Core, back to Jack – another handprint promised her that.
57
56–
BOOM!
She yelped and was thrown off her feet by a shockwave.
It came from the somewhere way above her.
And she knew.
"JACK! HANG ON! I'M–"
She stopped when she read the halls, one last time – her ability singing in her bones.
"E non devi mai cedere, jangan berhenti. Vores styrke ligger forskelligt men selv om de ikke er ens kan vi begge hjælpe, あなたは決して諦めない必要があります。We will endure. Stap nooit uit het gevecht, nunca abandonen la lucha, 我们会坚持战斗下去。At hindi tayo titigil, Δεν θα σταματήσουμε ποτέ."
"And you must never quit," she breathed past a smokescreen of her own breath. How many floors away was she from...from everyone?
She thought of Edmund a mile down working on that computer as she continued to recite the scripts.
51
"Never stop..."
She thought of how helpless she could feel at any moment but still refused to for the sake of surviving.
"Our strengths lie differently but even if they aren't alike, the both of us are still able to help..."
48
She thought of her broken family.
I-I'm–NO! HELP! T–Mfhmm! MFHMM!
"You must never give up...We will endure..."
47
She thought of her elusive nanny. A pain shot through her heart.
Choose love over fear, and you will always win.
"Never quit the fight, never quit fight..."
46
She thought of the ELFs.
Your highness, keep going!
"We will never quit fighting..."
45
Of North.
Men, move! IDTI!
"...And we will never stop..."
44
Of Aster.
This list is all Jack and I have left so I need to copy it somehow. B-But I'll find a way, I know I can!
"...we will never stop."
And the Greek was scratched out with another Guardian word.
σταματήσουμε ποτέ...Nash Yano.
She dove in. Corridor 8. The pole was in a fake elevator and it shot her up...to the final floor.
42
41
His breath grew ragged. Her curls flew behind her.
Tooth grew nervous.
39
She was met with stairs – no hallways, no corridors, no more signs to read. Just a smooth set of stairs going up to a semi-circular platform.
She jumped by the twos, she cheered at the last one–
A pause.
Her light flew upwards around the crescent-shaped room.
The Antechamber.
And there, in the centre of the opposite wall, above a steel plaque...was a message.
"La fuerza es siempre mejor cuando se muestra mentalmente."
Her little hummingbird-like heart shuddered.
"Str-Strength," she mumbled. "...is always in its best when it's shown mentally?"
She frowned all jittery and tired.
Strength is best mentally? Was it a show of gratitude for making it this far? Or another riddle?
Her beam was sporadic.
'But he's not here! H-He's not here!'
20
She wasn't sure what she was looking for.
The plaque was empty.
Pink darted everywhere.
19
The plaque was blank. It was incomplete...it was waiting for something...
Wasn't it?
She remembered the corridors, what each word translated to...
Her teeth grazed her lip.
"W...W-What was the first hallway again?"
17
Her curls jerked. Her eyes narrowed and ready at the plaque.
Her breath billowed forward.
"The sign was...was Bewaak ze..."
Blood pressures rose high.
"Bewaak ze!" she couldn't even believe she remembered the Dutch word.
...But nothing happened.
She tried again.
"B-Bewaak ze!"
12
Still nothing.
"BEWAAK ZE!"
Nothing, nothing, was happening!
It mocked her. Mocked her like the projections surrounding Jack.
10
"Leave me alone...Leave me alone!"
9
"Bew...Bewaak...I-I don't understand what you want! I..."
Her boot stopped assaulting the concrete.
An illustrious, fearful pink hit the floor. The signs floating up to the front of her head.
"... skyt dem, Bewaak ze, Prot..."
No, wait.
"...tect them, guard them...Prote–"
"Guard...you wanted the translation...Guard..."
Fervour returned with the snap of her neck. She cried.
"Guard! It's guard!"
A sound accepted her word and a new one lit up, burning neon green on the plaque.
Accepted...GREENYA.
Her face lit up. His grew dark.
2
Fists found themselves at his sides. A violent blast of air hit the floor at his feet.
1
Brown bangs flew up to the ceiling. He glared at ghosts, at his mental demons.
3 minutes: 00 seconds
"Leave me the hell alone!"
He raised his fists.
59
She gasped.
'Again, Tooth! AGAIN!'
The next one. Hallway 2...twelve reminders... Ενωμένοι.
Her lip quivered.
"United!"
Another splash of neon green.
Accepted...UNDOVO.
56
Jack screamed.
Another torrent.
Another scream.
The blue projections kept on standing there, representing everything he thought he'd once stood for.
54
"Assassini! Y-You are not an assassin!"
Accepted...AEYT.
53
He was fed up.
He wanted out.
He wanted home.
He wanted to fall on his knees, curl up and vanish.
52
"B...Bangkit! Rise up!"
REMSKA.
She wouldn't quit. But neither would Jack's memories.
"...have always been my founding principles for the GUA-protection, defe-"
51
She remembered Hallway 7. A tongue she didn't even understand, left her lips.
"I...I-Io...Iodovo!"
The protectors.
DET.
"A-Anyano!"
Our project.
IENOVEEN.
She licked her chapped lips.
"A-And...And we will never stop...Nash yano!"
ANA NUASKVO.
Her boot backpedaled with an audible thunk!
47
46
'GREENYA UNDOVO AEYT REMSKA DET IENOVEEN ANA NUASKVO'
"There is a Hero Hidden Within, When Your Gifts Awaken and Hearts Akin"
A heart fluttered and a spirit was uplifted.
Tooth's mouth fell open.
She'd never felt more infinite, so transcendental. To know such an ubiquitous oath, to say it...to understand what agents like Jack Frost had to live by...
Her head nodded for no one but herself.
So simple yet powerful, like moonlight coming out in darkness or a ripple in the ocean.
40
Small but enough force to affect, to make change. 'Like I can...like anyone can.'
She tightened her fist – and parted her lips.
38
"Th-Th...There is a hero h-hidden within...when your gifts awaken...a-and your hearts akin."
37
The wall behind it opened.
Knees, a heart full of vigour, and knees bent slightly. This princess was ready to run.
She knew who would be behind there.
35
He pulled up again. His heart going into overdrive.
His senses was mangled, his gene was suffering and now he was seeing double.
He saw the little girl. Long brown hair, face blurred out.
"...TU-Tu–I...Shh, come here...You are my su–"
31
She ran away. She split into three.
"WAIT!"
Then he saw Tsar Lunar. No, two of them. No, eight–
"–til ya get that sorted out, I can't blame 'er. Yer a walkin' number."
He turned.
Toothiana's handmaidens–
28
She couldn't wait, she squeezed through the door.
Something suddenly felt wrong. Something...something in her heart–
"JACK!"
25
He snapped his head up.
Tooth's clones, so tiny and so real, were suddenly grabbed sideways.
One by one, they were carried away by North's ELFs. They each dematerialised into the air.
"W-We weren't nor...*sob* n-normal–"
His chest tightened. He reached for Tiana. She turned blue and ghostly, passing through him like a cold splash of water.
"No...No!"
Tooth ran.
22
She tripped again.
"A-AH!"
Her chin smacked against the long, dark flight of concrete stairs.
Hum sab ek saath hai...We are all one together.
"J...Jack! Don't leave! DON'T LEAVE!"
20
"...DON'T LEAVE!"
His head twitched. His vision blurred in protest.
A head shake. Maybe two.
"T...T–"
He didn't want to see her.
She wouldn't be real. She wouldn't be–
16
"I'm r...right here!"
Her knees were unsteady, her flashlight quivered.
But her boots were a drum. Higher and higher she'd climb.
Nothing more, nothing less.
"I-I'm RIGHT HER–"
14
"...I-I'm RIGHT H–"
"AAAAAHHH!"
He spun in circles. He heard a high-pitched ringing...but it turned into–
He covered his ears.
The sisters, the ELFs, the blue spies, everyone...they all looked up and screamed.
"GET OUT!"
He looked. Blue arms moving and pointing away. The ceiling flickered into the night sky.
The moon shone down...then yellow goggles...dark clothes...
7
Pitch's Nightmares...and illusions of spies from other government agencies – all solid and dark against the sea of blue.
And they attacked his memories...they attacked the projections.
Attacked the ELFs, Tooth's sisters, and the other GUARDIANs.
"K.O.S!"
"CHOSEN Protoc–"
6
The stairs were endless. Her side stitched in pain and her sweat was cold.
"Please be there! Please be there!"
She could hear nothing but silence at the top – Jack's head was everything but.
"–INE SECONDS!"
"EIGHT!"
5
Horror. Cold horror.
–her hair in the wind and a dot on her ch–
It was stroking, grasping, clutching, and squeezing his heart.
"...will see...the world will turn Pitch B–"
'No!'
He watched one GUARDIAN get a bag over his head, an ELFs' throat slit from behind. He watched as they all were terminated until one by one the illusions fell and vanished.
–smell of hot asphalt from the tires–
3
ELFs, GUARDIANs...Tiana...BT...the others. Taken and taken down.
"FIND HIM! FIND HIM AND THIA–"
–leaped from the shadows and twisted his leg around–
His eyes grew glassy. His throat was dry. He felt stripped of everything he was.
"–ack! You promi–YOU PROMISED!"
He tightened his fists, wind trying to meander through his fingers.
2
"Stop it–"
Bang!–pulled his staff out of the man–
1
"STOP IT!"
2 minutes: 00 seconds
She heard him. Like a breath of frigid air in her lungs.
"J-JACK!"
She pushed harder.
"JACK!"
58
He turned and turned. The wind from the vents picked up.
She stopped, ears straining.
57
The air shifted, a crescendo coming.
56
"DON'T DO ANYTHING!"
55
"...'O ANYTHING!"
He flexed his fingers so violently, he thought they'd bend out of shape. The memories were blurry, the visions were fake. But her voice was clear.
"T...Tooth don't–"
She heard her name. She jumped the last two steps.
54
"JACK!"
53
Her body ached. His muscles felt bruised – and he saw...
His blue irises swiveled like mad.
She was there.
52
In her sari.
51
In her dress.
50
In her coat.
In her sweater.
In his dream.
And all these versions of her were running, running toward him. Running to save him – and he panicked.
"No! N-NO!"
48
She climbed up and saw him.
She ran too and then there were nine.
Nine Thias, nine Toothianas, nine Tooths, and he couldn't...he couldn't–
'She's not here, they're all fake...All of them.'
45
His breath was a like a fish caught on a hook. Savagely snagged and gasping for life.
44
She saw him fall on his knees. He clutched his head.
Alone and in the dark, a flourish of frost brushed around him.
The wind grew stronger, her severity worsened.
"JACK, DON'T!"
42
41
She was so close, he watched her raise her hand for him – they all did.
40
Something burned in his chest and a deep cold passed through him.
39
Down his arms, to his fingers.
And Tooth saw.
38
His face grew dark. His teeth were bared. And in her final scream, he shut her out.
37
"JACK–"
36
"TOOTH–"
35
"NOOOO!"
"NOOOO!"
His vision turned red...he threw down his fists to the floor.
And the wind ripped apart.
He pushed it all away – the wind, the others Tooths, everything.
She screamed and rocketed away.
31
A concrete wall met her back.
She coughed violently and heaved in a breath.
"J...Ja–"
The wind blew away all the visions, the ghosts, the fighting, the memories. Only howling, and an unbearable cold in his heart he could hear.
He choked back a gasp, grinded his teeth. His eyes shut tight and he clutched his hair.
28
The frost spread like wildfire, the room lit neon blue with his gene.
27
She watched him through the high pressure. His head bent in all his destruction. He hit the floor – a powerful flourish of cold air froze the water vapour around his knees, creating more rime.
She cried, eyes wet, body trembling.
"J-JAAACK!"
The wind snatched his name from her lips.
'He can't hear me! He can't see me!'
23
She fell to the floor and crawled frantically.
Crawled against the wind. Against her fear. She'd be damned if she couldn't–
"I-I'm here! JACK, I'M RIGHT HERE! ST-STAY WITH ME!"
20
ST-STAY WITH M–"Que...Que-Quedate conmigo!"
He couldn't breathe. His muscles tensed and with every rush of air a shooting pain sliced through his brain.
He couldn't abate his emotions. Couldn't banish the memories. Couldn't swallow his fear.
"How am I–Th-This can't b–"
His eyes blurred to the brink of tears and he squeezed them shut.
"compromise...I can't even...No!"
He kept ignoring the voices.
She kept ignoring the wind.
Inch by inch. Metre by metre. She dragged her body across the frigid concrete.
"JACK!"
16
The wind stole his name from her lips.
His bangs flew skyward and his hood fluttered by his ear, his excess energy wouldn't let him.
He heard her again – but she wasn't there!
"I...H-H–"
Another shockwave was itching ready at his fingertips.
12
She kept her eyes on him.
Je moet sterk blijven...Keep fighting...keep fighting!
10
She needed to hurry.
"JACK! STOP IT, ALREADY! STOP!"
"...'hat good is that, to inflict harm on something so defenceless and innocent?"
9
'Only five more metres, Tooth!'
"Gah, I...I-I..."
Three more metres–
"Nous sommes unis!"
Two more!
"T...Ta–"
One–
He choked out slightly.
She panicked.
"JACK!"
6
And when he dropped his hand for a split second to kill the wind, she lifted herself off the ground.
She jumped.
5
She caught his sleeve–
4
–before the wind blew her away.
"NOO!"
3
She dragged him with her and in her tug, he lost focus.
She wrapped her arms around his middle – he unconsciously did the same – and she took the brunt of the hit.
A concrete wall hit her tailbone again, her pain immeasurable.
"H-HAAH!"
Stars and red clouded her eyes.
She collapsed into Jack as they slumped to the ground.
00 : 59
Blue, arctic eyes were unfocused and dull. Eyelids fluttered. Body temperature fell dangerously. He was in a trance.
00 : 58
Tiny hands moved up to lean shoulders. She pictured a hospital bed, a pan full of needles, the bloodied cloth in his mouth. "J...J-Jack!"
00 : 57
He was so tired, so numb...suddenly so weak.
He couldn't see her face.
00 : 56
He saw something else...something else...
A tree.
A tall tree...
00 : 55
Tall trees, snow capped rooftops, lush green grass–"JACK! Jaaaack!"
"E..."
00 : 54
"...Jack!"
"E...Emma."
She stopped. "W-What?"
00 : 53
"Emma...E-Emma, where..."
"W-Who's Emma?!"
Another girl? Another?!
"Jack, stop it! W-Wake up!"
00 : 51
"E–"
"JACK!"
A blink.
Then two.
And a whiff of peppermint.
The arctic was clear again. His lips fell open. Gasping, panting.
She was solid, she was real...she was so close.
"T...Toothia–Wh...You..."
00 : 49
He didn't even think – he gripped her tight for a moment, body trembling while blue irises flit nervously around the empty darkness.
He saw his calamity, his destruction. Dying wind and frozen water vapours slashing the concrete...H-He could do that?
Eyelids shut, he gasped. She nearly cried and gritted her teeth.
00 : 47
"Why did you leave?! Wh-Who are you–"
"...'dgment roo–ro...will d-decide w–"
00 : 46
He opened his mouth–she wouldn't have it.
"We have to go! FOLLOW ME!"
Her body motioned for the door. He looked back one more time.
He grabbed her hand unsteadily.
"N-No! This way!"
"But y–"
"No, trust me!"
"...'ACK–You can't–"
He gritted his teeth.
Boots stomped, lungs struggled, and hearts nearly giving out in their chests. But it wasn't over.
He knew of one more pole at the end of the room.
They both clutched it, locking their palms onto the light.
–Center gene identified–
He gripped her waist, she hooked under his arm.
It catapulted them up.
00 : 42
The speed was too much, the air too thin.
我们会坚持战斗下去。Wo men hui jian chi zhan dou xia qu...We will never quit fighting.
Tooth bit down on her lip. Jack shut his eyes in frustration.
"...'reak her heart–What's wrong is...y...you...y-you almost died!"
His chin met her hair.
But it was worth the trip – it tossed them back into the Core.
00 : 40
She helped him (and his ailing heart faster) up than he thought.
Another set of boots came.
Six feet of hella pissed gawked at the two of them.
"THIA! Bloody hell, princess! Y-You found him! I almos–"
"I-I know!"
He relieved her load by helping the bloke.
"I've got the list!"
"Thank g–"
"Let's get out 'ere!"
00 : 38
00 : 37
More stomping, more panting, all near to tears with a thousand questions.
But they didn't stop.
Jangan berhenti...Never stop.
Not after they left the Core, SI, or the grandmaster hall for the last time.
"Th-The elevator's so far! Will it even open?!"
"Hang on!"
Aster unhooked another weapon under his coat and in his belt. He whipped it and let it go ahead of them.
Pink, green, and blue irises watched it spin and zip down to the elevator. When it neared, it made a sharp turn back toward him after releasing three program rewriters onto the elevator door. The door opened the weapon came back to Aster.
The princess' mouth fell open.
00 : 30
"A-A boomerang?"
"Feelin' better about the door now, princess?"
"Much!"
"–proud I was of each one I have selectively chosen and given codenames for."
There was red everywhere.
Flashing, blinking, blaring.
When the Core would be destroyed, so would everything else.
"Remember this moment, frostbite!"
00 : 28
"This is th' last time you'll ever get t' see this place!"
00 : 27
"I'm counting on it."
They rushed in.
It sealed shut and shot up just as fast as it had lowered them down before.
Her boots bounced more than humanely possible. His eyes blinked repeatedly. Their gloves would split if they didn't stop squeezing so tightly.
"Please..."
00 : 24
"...please!"
00 : 23
Shiiick!
"Get out now!"
The boys performed a easy wall climb. Tooth backed up and made a daring climb herself. They both caught of her arms and hauled her up.
Then they sprinted.
00 : 20
Sprinted for their lives.
"Devi sorgere!"
00 : 19
"The snow's too thick!"
"Porque lo que más importa–"
00 : 18
"We're never gonna–"
"Oy, you two, grab on!"
Aster's arms swooped around both of them. They held his shoulders tightly unsure of what he was planning.
Umoja...Unity.
He picked up speed.
"When I count to three, jump! Ready?!"
Jack barely understood. Tooth's lip quivered.
"Y-Yeah!"
"Alrigh', one!"
00 : 16
"Two!"
00 : 15
"THREE!"
They both jumped. So did the hacker with his gene's second gift.
Snow blew away as their feet left the ground.
And he shot them off like a bullet. A mile away from the field.
00 : 14
00 : 13
Snow bit into their skin, ice plunged into their cores, air left their chests.
Their hearts slipping into their stomachs. The ground left their feet. The wind caught their clothes.
Jack narrowed his eyes, ready for the fall. Tooth curled in closer to Edmund.
"H-H–Oh my god!"
Gravity took over, hard and fast and hard like stones. A voice came gruff and angrily.
00 : 12
"Climb on my back, you two!"
00 : 11
"I can absorb the fall on my own but y–"
"–is more impor–'n here..."
The wind picked up.
00 : 10
Aster and Tooth turned.
Jack's eyes were hard and focused. He moved out his hand and flexed the fingers in the wind.
00 : 09
"What's he–"
Tooth felt the wind caress her face.
"'ot giving on..."
00 : 08
A bitter howl, a rush of cold. She lost her vision to tears. The wind swirled up at Jack's command.
"...an't...I CAN'T!"
00 : 07
In a powerful surge, it lifted them up slightly. Absorbing the speed, waning the impact – they bounced on an invisible cushion.
00 : 06
It saved their lives, and in a violent flurry of snowflakes and dirt, it tossed them into the soft snow.
00 : 05
A grunt, a squeal, a brutal tumble.
00 : 04
Bones rattled, lungs shuddered.
00 : 03
Snow caked their hair.
00 : 02
Their hands were shaky and they coughed out violently.
00 : 01
And a second later...
00 : 00
The bomb went off.
Chapter's soundtrack: "Take It All Away" – RED Tooth and Jack's desperation song. Thanks again you guys and as always, everything will be explained in the long run!