AL: Hello everyone, we're back with another chapter and I know some of you all have been waiting for quite a while, but because my good Beta Writer Lucius Walker needed to study for his exams and I myself had some personal issues to settle, we had to postpone this chapter for like a month so we both could focus on our issues. Now we both had some time to continue with this chapter, and we hope we can continue this story in the future.
Also on a different note, many of you who were followers of my GATE X Naruto fanfiction, I have been really struggling about remaking it or establishing a new story, due to the massive hate I received (not the fair criticism from some), but the many anonymous reviews that just kept spamming nonstop, so if you'd like me to make the story again but differently, let me know. And if you're interested in being a Beta writer, you can message me all the time.
The bodies rained from the sky again, a cruel joke from the gods above. Bomber should've been used to the twisted miracle at this point, but every time a body crashed into the ground, the hardened man felt shivers down his spine.
Bomber's face of stone concealed one of terror and despair, a reflection of the expressions etched onto the faces of the corpses before they met their demise. He was lucky that he was wearing his mask so he doesn't have to deal with the awful stench of death in the air.
Punching a few buttons, the cremator roared to life. He turned around to the conveyor belt, where he stacked a pile of corpses that were waiting to be sent to their fiery grave. His shirt was off, but he was already beginning to sweat - the fire didn't help with the already sweltering weather.
Fanning himself with his shirt, he began walking up the conveyor belt to turn it on.
"...Help…"
The man froze in his tracks, his fingers hovering above the button. His head looking around, he began to wonder if the heat was finally getting to his brain. Shrugging, he pushed the button, and watched the belt move the bodies towards the hungry furnace.
"Somebody...help me.."
Okay, now Bomber was sure that he heard a voice. Looking around, he began to walk towards the general direction of the voice.
"Who's there?"
"Help." It was a low, raspy moan, but Bomber's eyes widened to the max. "Please, help."
"Hold on kid, I'm coming!" Bomber yelled, his body moving into a full sprint as he ran towards the sound. "Just keep talking, I'm on my way!"
Leaping over piles of bodies, he began to climb over the hills of corpses.
"Please, my mom…" That sounded close, just over another hill of bodies. Making a turn around the pile of corpses, he saw a boy weakly kneeling over a body that wore orange clothing. Getting closer, he saw that he was staring at the body of a woman, who looked to be on death's doorstep.
"Chyort..." Bomber cursed, realizing what he was looking at. The child turned around, staring at the large man with tears and despair in his eyes. He began wailing, begging for the giant's help to save his mother. Bomber could do nothing but bite his lip under his mask, knowing that it was too late for her.
"Ezra." The mother touched the boy's hand, making him turn back to her. Despite the grievous injuries she sustained, from the blaster bolt to the deadly fall that was cushioned from all the bodies, it was a miracle that she still had the strength to give her boy a trembling smile.
"M-Mom?"
"Ezra...dear." She coughed, spitting out some blood. "It's...it's going to be okay."
Her son just nodded, weeping silently as he refused to let go of her cold hands.
"Just...promise me something, my baby boy."
Ezra nodded, his lips trembling as he choked up on his words. He leaned in close so that she could say her final words to him.
…
Bomber was no stranger to death, but it didn't make it hurt any less to watch one grieve. Every single one of the poor boy's sobs cut another piece of his soul away as the child begged for his mother to come back.
It didn't take a genius to figure out that Mira Bridger had passed away, with the large man being unable to watch another person die in this shit hole.
"What a cruel world." The Undertaker of the Mines sighed. "What a cruel world."
(Level 1 - Assemble Area)
Like the other slaves before them, it took some time to bring all of the new slaves into one area, being forced to line up in rows, who were waiting for their turn to be inspected and registered, before being shoved towards their new home.
They were all miserable, hungry, and thirsty, but watching the whips and blasters in the slavers hands made them do nothing but patiently wait for their turn.
"Next." A Pyke called out, typing something in his holopad. A black human woman with a boy in her hand stepped forward. "State your names and place of birth."
"Zadia and Marcel Boodhoo." The dark skinned Earthling said, glaring at the Pyke. "Born in Lethem, Guyana."
Nodding, the alien slaver wrote their names down, before he pushed a button. A small slip of paper with printed text slowly came out of his holopad, which he gave to the new slaves. "Follow the person with this number." He ordered as they walked past them. "Next."
This time a blue male Twi'lek walked up front. "My name is Borruli, born in Roancu, Ryloth."
"Next!"
"Yusuf, Shoury. From Alexander, Egypt"
"Next!"
"Ravraa Zyr, from the Togrutan Colonies."
"Next!"
A Miralian woman stepped forward. "Hano Molina, from Mirial."
"Next!"
A graying, old human man in a black coat stepped forwards with his cane. "My name is Ismael Zagorski."
It went on and on for a while, with many different people of all races, species, and sexes being escorted, registered, and sent to work for the rest of their lives.
"Next." The register next to him had three wookies that were trying to explain their name to the bench worker, who was trying to write their names down with the help of a protocol droid.
"Tell them they'll be escorted with the rest of the wookies to the lower levels." The register told him as he worked further with an Earthling man in front of him. "State your name and place of birth."
The human man in front of him was large, his skin as dark and brown as the fertile soil found on Earth. He introduced himself with his deep, thick accent. "My name is Mugabo. I am from the Congo."
"Family name?"
"...Just Mugabo…" The man responded. This got the register to turn up and look at him suspiciously.
"What, no family name? Relatives?"
"Just...Mugabo…" The African man said to the Pyke. "I have no family, sir."
The register just shrugged, before he filled in the rest. Ripping out the paper, he threw it at the man. "Get in line with the others. You'll be shown your new home. Next!" The man nodded, before he walked past the registration booth. Meanwhile from afar, the old slaves watched the newcomers come in.
Hera looked down, scowling at Pykes and the Zygerrians. "I still don't get it - why would they willingly bring in children and the elderly? They don't tend to last very long in this kind of environment."
Zeb scoffed. "Maybe it's their way of getting their kicks. Bastards always were sick enough to see people suffer."
"I would be surprised if to think those Zygs even have hearts."
Sabine looked back at Naruto, and saw he still had a small cloth against his nose that was definitely broken. "You okay?"
The blood was drying up, which meant that the bleeding stopped. Still, it didn't mean that the pain did. "Yeah, just a bit broken, but it'll heal."
"You sure you don't want to get it checked out?" Zeb asked him.
"I just got back from the hospital, no need to go back just yet." Naruto said. That, and his nose was beginning to heal on its own, thanks to Kurama finally deciding to help, saying that he "earned his help at this point," whatever that meant. Either way, he couldn't just go back into the comfort of the infirmary when there's more people being shipped here like cargo.
The memory of that small family's massacre suddenly came back to him, making his eyes darken in hatred.
Almost as if she could feel his hatred, Sabine quickly embraced him, kissing him on the cheek. "Don't blame yourself, Naruto. There wasn't much you could've done about it."
Zeb looked down at the hole to where the mother and son fell to their doom. "At least they took a Zyg with them…"
"Sabine! Naruto!" Someone called out for them. The two turned their heads around to see it was Ibrahim.
"Ibrahim, what is it?"
"Supervisor wants you two to clean up the detention cells." He informed them. "Told me to pass it on to you guys. The mop and water's ready."
"Detention cells?" Sabine raised her eyebrow. "That's on the lower levels, shouldn't the guys down there do that?"
"Supervisor said it was another punishment for you guys fighting, I dunno." Ibrahim shrugged. "Good luck cleaning it, by the way. Heard it wasn't cleaned for weeks."
Sabine sighed as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Great. Good to know that."
…
SPLUNG!
The sound of the wet mop dropping into the floor echoed the detention hallway as Naruto continued cleaning the floor with some water and soap. Sabine was doing one of the cells so Naruto was on his own doing the two mile long hallway that was covered in spats of dried up blood, urine, and other disgusting waste that splattered the floor and walls. Judging by the lack of toilets, it was obvious what had happened.
Sighing, Naruto silently thanked the fact that his nose was broken, since it warped his sense of smell to mostly blood, which actually worked in his favor at this point.
The same could not be said for Sabine, however.
"URGH!"
Naruto turned around to see Sabine quickly walking out of the cell, gagging as she fought the desire to throw up from the smell of pure human waste.
Coughing, she quickly staggered over to cleaner air as Naruto walked up to her. He patted her on the back to try to help her as he tried to fan away the toxic smell. "You doing alright, Sabine? You want me to take over?"
"No." She stood back up, and took a deep breath. "I can handle this. Just...need a minute to brace myself for the smell…"
If she had to be honest, if she ever got the chance, she would do everything in her power to blow this section of the mine first, if only to try to get some feeling of cleanliness again.
Not being able to hold it back anymore, Naruto found himself chuckling at her. "You know what? There is a plus side to this."
"What the kriff could be the-oh." Sabine began to snap, slightly peeved at their situation until she realized what he meant. A smile quickly spread across her face as she felt her hips getting hugged by Naruto's arms. "Good point."
She slowly turned around so that she could wrap her arms around his neck. Closing their eyes, they stayed like that for a moment, slow dancing in the dark, dirty hallway.
"You know, I gotta give it to you. Even when we're in a fucked up place like this, you still somehow make me feel much better." Sabine murmured, kissing the tip of his nose.
"Just doing my best." He smiled, his heart fluttering as his forehead touched hers. He didn't know why, but after that one night in the infirmary, he felt a connection to Sabine that he couldn't quite explain. Was it because of the Force? Was it just because they gave their virginities to each other? Or was it because they finally settled their differences, and got to see each other as the warriors they were? He couldn't figure it out, but he didn't want to think about it. "You know, I still can't believe that we went from nearly killing each other to doing it in the infirmary."
"Don't remind me of that." Sabine pouted. She was still embarrassed by that moment, since she didn't expect Idel to suddenly walk into the room like that. She also wasn't expecting him to keep fucking her, which nearly got them caught red handed. The worst part, however, was that it turned out Idel knew they were having sex, and that became the new gossip amonst their little female clique. "I swear, you're a closet perv."
"Heh, guilty." He chuckled, thinking about Pervy Sage. His hands began to travel down her back, prompting her to do the same with a smirk.
"Come here." She pressed her lips against his, and they locked their lips into a kiss again.
They both lost themselves into their little world, away from the hell they were stuck in, freeing themselves into the moment. Until-
"Did you hear that?" Naruto suddenly pulled away from her, much to her disappointment.
"Hear what?" Sabine asked. While still dazed from their makeout session, she quickly snapped herself out of it, already prepared to fight or run if needed.
Naruto looked around and frowned. "Maybe it came from one of the cells."
*SNIFF*, *SNIFF*
"That sounded like sniffling." Sabine noted, her muscles relaxing. "But I thought these cells were empty." The sounds grew more apparent the closer they got to the source of the noise, especially for Sabine.
"It's from a girl…"
Naruto's feet suddenly moved faster on his own as he walked down the hallway, listening to the silent sound and figuring out where it was coming from. He then stopped by one of the doors and saw it was the only one closed. He started opening the door as the lights of the hallway descended into the room and he recoiled in horror.
Laid on the concrete floor was the redheaded girl he recognized from earlier. Tayuya...if he remembered correctly, looked...terrible, to say the least. Her arms and legs were so badly bruised, he suspected that it would hurt just to move them. Strands of her hair were scattered across the floor as if they were ripped out of her head. The small piece of fabric that was left of her clothes barely covered her lower body, which didn't stop the pool of red and white fluids that was oozing out of her.
Naruto, still standing there like Medusa's victim, barely reacted as Sabine entered the room seconds later. She too froze at the size, gasping in horror.
That gasp finally got the redhead to snap out of it. Her eyes widened as she scrambled away from them, and the duo could see the sheer terror in her blood shot eyes. Naruto was stunned to see his former adversary like this, and it honestly broke his heart to see her like the others.
Sabine took one step forward, and regretted it immediately.
"Stay away...STAY AWAY!" Tayuya screamed as she moved her body against the wall, covering her head with her bloody hands as she went from staring at them to looking away from them.
Sabine flinched by the sheer pain and terror this poor young woman was showing, her small, beaten trembling form looking quite pitiful in comparison to the strong, firey spirited she once showed.
Her eyes widened as Naruto took a step forward. "Naruto, wait."
At the mention of his name, for a moment it looked like the old redhead he knew was coming back. Then Tayuya went back into a hysterical mess as she continued to panic, her breathing out of control and coughing blood in between.
"Stay away...Stay away...Stay away!" Her eyes widened to impossible lengths as she saw the young blond taking off his shirt. Thinking that he wanted payback for her part of the Uchiha-brat's capture, she trembled as she closed her eyes, preparing to feel dirty again.
Instead, she felt something soft being gently laid on top of her bruised shoulders. Hesitating, she slowly looked up to see Naruto's weary eyes. His top was gone, and she realized that he had given her his shirt.
"Keep it." Naruto said without emotion. He stood back up, then walked away. Sabine looked at Tayuya, then at Naruto, before she left as well.
Sabine was almost out of the room when she froze. Turning her head back towards the broken woman, she slowly turned around, gingerly walking back to the girl on the floor.
Meanwhile, Tayuya was in a state of shock. She thought that the blond would've tried raping her too, or at least would've tried to kill her in revenge. Instead, he gave her his shirt, gently wrapping it around her naked body to try to comfort her.
Tayuya barely noticed Sabine until she was sitting right next to her, her hand gently touching hers.
"It's okay…" Sabine spoke to Tayuya in a soothing tone, doing her best to not trigger her again. "I'm here for you, okay?"
The girl still trembled, but she slowly began to move towards Sabine's shoulder, hesitating as if testing the water. After what seemed like an eternity, Tayuya's head finally made its way to her shoulder as she continued to stare blankly at the floor.
It was then that she heard Naruto walk back into the cell with a bucket and a towel. Slowly approaching them, he knelt down to their level, slowly showing them the new, clean rag.
"We need to clean those wounds before we can tend them." He dipped the small towel into the bucket of water, before slowly wringing it out. "...If you're ready, just stand still while I clean it up."
Naruto's hand froze, trembling as he became unsure of whether or not he could proceed. Working up his nerve, he slowly pressed the towel against her bruised skin. Letting out a breath of relief, he slowly began to clean her up as he tried to ignore the whimpers of pain coming from the girl every time he passed over a bruise.
"Okay, you're doing great…" Sabine kept on talking to the girl, her hand never leaving hers. "We'll get you some help soon, and something for you to wear."
"Why not kill me?"
"Huh?"
"You know I'm talking to you….bastard." Tayuya slowly looked up at the blond with an empty glare. "We're...enemies...from different villages….My comrades, almost killed all of yours…"
Sabine looked between the two, and quickly figured out she must be from his planet.
Naruto said nothing as he motioned Sabine to turn Tayuya over. She did so with some difficulty, considering how Tayuya was glaring at Naruto suspiciously. His face remained grim as he refreshed the towel with some new, warm water.
"...We're not shinobi anymore." Naruto finally said, pausing as he put his rag down. "Right now, we're just survivors."
His tone stunned the Sound-nin, as she hadn't expected his voice to sound so defeated. In the short time that they had briefly interacted, he came off as his hyperactive idiot that would've been the first one to die had it not been for his annoying teammates.
The blond saying nothing else, Naruto kept on helping Sabine on comforting and cleaning her up. He paused when he noticed how some of her wounds were looking quite eerie, needing more serious help…
'Kurama, mind helping out with her wounds?'
'Kit, I'm literally born from the Dark Side. I couldn't heal that Mandalorian brat back then; that was all you. And this time, it'll still be all you.' Kurama responded. '...I do hope you still know how to use Force Healing.'
Ignoring that last jab, he turned back to Sabine. "Can you hold her still for a moment?"
A look of realization went through her mind as she nodded. She continued to whisper soothing words into her ear as she continued to hold her hand. Naruto then placed his hand over Tayuya's head, and closed his eyes.
In...out. In...out.
Peace. Tranquility. Comfort. Order. Calm. Relief. Healing.
Darkness. Pain. Suffering.
Naruto's concentration was suddenly thrown off as a bombardment of negative emotions began to overwhelm him.
A young boy crying out for his mother and father. Tayuya, screaming as they forced themselves onto her, jeering at her as they tore chunks of her hair out, slapping and kicking her.
A slave fell over dead asthefuckingPykesshothim, ,discardedlikethetrashweallare.
Stay away. STAY AWAY. STAY AWAY YOU DEMON BRAT!-
"KIT!"
Naruto blinked, and he realized that his hand was empty. Tayuya was whimpering in the other side of the room, barely rasping out words as she held her hands up to her head.
"What the kriff happened, Naruto?" Sabine asked him. Naruto just stared at his hand, and for a second, he thought it looked gray and shrivelled.
"I...I don't know." Naruto said helplessly, tears pooling from his eyes.
'Naruto, you were consumed by the Dark Side.' Kurama explained slowly. 'It feeds off of death and suffering, and considering that you're in a cesspool of both, I'm surprised that it actually took this long for the Dark Side to finally get to you.'
'Shit…' Naruto groaned as he sat onto the filthy floor. 'Does that mean I can't Force Heal anymore?'
'No, brat.' Kurama sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. 'That just means that you need to confront your issues head on. Whatever suffering you're feeling, figure out which one's yours, separate yours from the others, and confront your issues head on. That, or go nuts from all the suffering you're going through. Your choice.'
Prick… Naruto thought, even though he knew he was right. Closing his eyes, he began to slowly breathe in and out, trying to settle the storm that had erupted in his mind.
In...out...in-
A young boy crying out for his mother and father.
...It's okay. It's okay. It's not happening to me.
Tayuya, screaming as they forced themselves onto her, jeering at her as they tore chunks of her hair out, slapping and kicking her.
It's okay. Stay...stay in the moment.
Why don't you do anything about them? How many could you save if you went rogue?
...I'm here, I'm here, I'm here.
All of their deaths are on you. All because you, for once, decided to stick with the plan. How do you feel about that?
...Terrible. I feel terrible.
…
You're right. I could've saved them. I could've stopped that poor kid from losing his parents. From becoming like me. But, I know why they had to die. They had to die so that the plan could work. I'm not ready to lead to the rebellion yet. I'm not strong enough. But...I promise I'll avenge them. I'll make sure that their deaths, their suffering, their sacrifice, would mean something in this cruel world.
…
...It's okay. It's okay. I'm okay. I'm fine. I'm here. I'm here...to heal Tayuya. I'm here so that I can help her.
… …
...I don't know what you are. I don't know if you're something that's alive. If you want to punish me, do it. But please, let me help her first.
. . .
...I'm here. I'm here.
Naruto opened his eyes, and found himself standing over Tayuya. He discovered that she had stopped whimpering, and, much to his relief, her wounds were fading. Every broken bone began to mend itself. Every bruise shrank until it faded from sight. Her breathing became easy, her ragged breaths turning into small sighs of relief.
Taking his hand away from her head, he let out a small smile, before he fell on his rear.
(Later that night)
Naruto stared at the stone walls, barely illuminated by the torches outside of his cell. Despite the loud snoring his bunk mates were making, Naruto found himself deep in his thoughts, recalling his experience with both the light side and the dark side of the Force.
Thinking about the two sides made his head hurt, so he decided to turn his thoughts onto Tayuya.
Hopefully, she was getting the rest and treatment she needed by Idel and Bellatrix, who agreed to keep her existence a secret for now. Both he and Sabine mutually agreed to not talk about her, hoping that the Zygs would assume her to be dead, joining the ever growing pile down below, waiting to be burned away.
"..."
Naruto took a deep breath, before he raised his hand at the ground. Concentrating on the rocks on the ground, he pictured them in his mind, clear as day, and he began to picture his intent, focusing his calm determination and will.
The small rocks trembled, before they slowly began to rise. The gravel began to float in the air, and Naruto had to keep himself from whooping in joy and childish wonder.
Taking another deep breath, he willed them to come to him, and it did just that. It fell back towards the ground a few times, almost hitting the ground more times than he would care to admit, but before he knew it, the gravel was floating just a foot away from him, hovering like miniature moons in front of him.
His face full of wonder slowly melted away as they formed into one full of determination. Turning into a scowl, he began to focus on his pain - on the pain of everyone who was condemned to this hell. Rage, pain, suffering coursed through his mind, body, and soul, as he clenched his hand into a fist.
Crunch.
The gravel imploded on itself, crushed by an invisible force, reducing it into mere sand and dust. Naruto stared at the remains of the gravel for a moment, before he relaxed his fist. The dust fell onto the floor, making a soft noise as it returned to where it came from. Laying his head back onto his hard bed, he let out a small, weary sigh, the feelings of the dark side fading away.
It was exhausting to use the dark side. Sure, it was one hell of a rush, and it felt good to use it, but once he was done, all he felt was...emptiness. Bitter, drained emptiness.
Still, the power he felt while using it to crush that puny rock-
Naruto shook his head. It didn't take a genius to figure out that getting addicted to using the dark side was bad, and that he should keep it under control, else it would control him.
Still, though, the powers the dark side offers is pretty tempting. He heard stories from Sabine about just some of the things both the Jedi and the Sith were capable of, and how the Mandalorians had to learn how to adapt in order to be able to take them down.
Impressed at the stories, he found himself disappointed at the modern Jedi, since Sabine said that they were basically the watered down version of their former selves, with only a handful of the Jedi being worthy enough to be compared to the Jedi of the Old Republic.
After hearing about how weak they are, a part of him was considering choosing the dark side primarily instead of the light, choosing the path of the Sith to be able to rain death on his enemies, and to everyone that wronged them.
His thoughts were interrupted when he realized that Tarik was shifting endlessly nearby. Even without his connection to the Force, he could feel the man's distress as he groaned and whimpered in his sleep.
Sitting up from his bed, Naruto looked around at his cellmates. He gave up on the idea of sleeping in this hellhole; it was too hot, too humid, and too noisy. He tried taking off his shirt, which only helped to dampen his bed even quicker. Plus, the events of today still haunted him, particularly with his encounter of the dark side.
Meanwhile, the others somehow seem to be sleeping well. Maybe it was due to most of them coming from a naturally warm climate, with two of them from the Middle East and another being from Mexico. Except for the only Russian, who didn't seem to care about it anyways.
Russians were sure a strange kind of people, that's what he could say for sure.
*Groan*
His thoughts were snapped back to the present as he heard Tarik groan again. Naruto wondered if he was the only one aware of his nightmares, This has been happening for weeks, and nobody seemed to bring it up.
Naruto looked at the man's writhing form, before looking at his hands. Saying nothing, he slowly got up, walking towards the man. Kneeling down, he slowly placed his hand over his sweating forehead.
'Its okay...Tarik….Just breathe…' He spoke through his mind, hoping to help his friend through the Force. 'It's okay...just let me help.'
WAAAHHHH!
A young boy was seen wailing over the dead body of a woman, who laid in a pool of her own blood after being shot in the back of the head by another woman, who waited for her outside the local Walmart while everyone surrounded them, paralyzed by horror at this woman's murder. Two bystanders took the gun from the woman, and pinned her down as she screeched like a banshee.
"TERRORISTS! INFILTRATORS! MURDERERS!" The woman screeched as two police officers finally made it to the scene. "THAT WAS FOR NEW YORK! NEVER FORGET, NEVER FORGET!"
"Ma'am you're under arrest, don't resist."
"DON'T ARREST ME! ARREST THESE TERRORISTS! THEY DESERVE IT, THEY DESERVE IT!" She was pulled up and brought to the police car as the Sheriff approached the young Tarik, who was still weeping over his dead mother.
The Sheriff knelt down to the young boy, and tried to calm him down. "Look at me, kid. Just don't look."
The only thing the young boy could do was stare at his mother, whose head was leaking blood and brain matter from her headscarf while the paramedics tried to check on her.
Naruto opened his eyes after seeing that awful memory, gasping as he stumbled backwards.
Tears falling like raindrops, he turned back to Tarik and saw the Urzik man sweating even harder as his whimpers grew even worse.
'Kit what the hell are you doing?'
"Stay out of this, Kurama.' Naruto spoke back in his mind. 'I'm trying to help Tarik out, he's hurting.'
'He's having a nightmare about his dead mother, nothing else.' The Fox snorted 'Besides, why do you care? It's his problem he's got to deal with. Stay out of it and don't try to be a hero like you did for that Sound bitch.'
'First of all, you're the one who told me to learn how to use the Force, with minimal help from you, you overgrown furball.'
'Watch it, boy.'
'Second, her name is Tayuya, not Sound bitch. I already told you, we're not shinobi anymore. Only survivors, and we gotta stick together. And lastly, I'm not going to abandon my friends if I can help them. So either back off or help me out, because I'm not gonna quit.' Naruto snapped back at the Kyuubi fearlessly.
'Urgh, you little fucking brat. You always gotta do shit like this, huh? Fuck, it's too early for this shit,' The Fox grumbled. 'Fine, focus on the guy's mind again, I'll help you out.'
'Oh, and I thought you couldn't help out.'
"I can't, you little shit. However, like Force Healing, I can help you out with this problem. However, you're not gonna like it."
'First of all, fuck you. You know, maybe i'm growing to dislike you more for being an asshole then being a Tailed Demon.'
'Then we're making progress, kit.'
'Second, why am I not going to like it?'
"...Cause you'll be using the Dark Side to do it."
…
Ooo-kay, here we go. Naruto sighed, trying to calm himself down. The minute the Kyuubi was done explaining the (theoretical) technique to him, he was feeling more nervous than ever.
"Kit, just because we're using the Dark Side to heal him it doesn't mean that you have to be a nervous wreck to do it."
'I know, shut the hell up.' Naruto snapped back, before he began to meditate, trying to calm his mind down.
'In...out…In...out...in...out…in...out'
...It's okay, Tarik. I'm here - just let me in.
And suddenly, he was back in the grocery store, standing next to a young, weeping Tarik.
"TERRORISTS! INFILTRATORS! MURDERERS!" The woman screeched as two police officers finally made it to the scene. "THAT WAS FOR NEW YORK! NEVER FORGET, NEVER FORGET!"
'...Forgive me, Tarik. But please hold on a bit longer.'
And with that, Naruto raised his arms, his outstretched hand slowly clenching into a fist as the bright, sunny day suddenly turned into night, the full moon glowing crimson.
"TERRORISTS! TERRORISTS! TERRORISTS! TERRORISTS!"
An army of the murderer suddenly appeared around Tarik, screaming and shouting the same words that she spat before she was shoved into the car. Only this time, there was no car. There was no police, no more bystanders to try to help. Just a lonely, helpless Tarik being crushed by the overwhelming hate and despair he felt that day.
"NEW YORK! NEW YORK! NEW YORK! NEVER FORGET, NEVER FORGET!"
Naruto took a deep breath, before he aimed his hands at the screeching woman. Her mouth opened to spit another round of verbal torment at the poor boy, but nothing came out. The women began to gag as something began to choke them.
Terrified, the women clawed at their throats as they began floating in the air. And suddenly, there was just one woman - one, cowardly woman who robbed an innocent boy of his mother.
She could say no words, but her eyes were pleading for mercy - for the sweet, breath of air that everyone took for granted, until it was their turn to die.
"You're pathetic, you stupid, bitch." Naruto growled, his eyes glowing yellow as his fists clenched even tighter. "How dare you rob a boy of his mother. You're a mother too - how could you do such a thing?"
When he would look back to this moment, he realized that he wasn't sure just how he knew this murderer was a mother. Maybe the Force told him, who knows?
Whether or not the woman heard him, it didn't matter. Naruto's wrist jerked, and the lady's neck twisted with a loud CRUNCH!
Just like that, after so many years of tormenting him, Tarik's worst nightmare was finally defeated.
Throwing away the body with a lazy flick of the wrist, he looked down and saw that the boy was looking around, confused at the sudden change of scenery. He then looked at the tall, blond boy standing a few feet away from him, the cool, now-pale moonlight illuminating his form.
Despite the dark aura the boy - no, man?, possessed, despite his demonic, yellow eyes, he felt strangely comforted at the man.
"It's okay, Tarik. It's okay, now." Naruto smiled reassuringly. His glowing eyes dimmed back to its regular blue. "The bad lady's gone, now. She won't bother you ever again?"
"B-but, she always comes back!" Tarik stammered, his eyes on the verge of tears again. "W-will you be there again?"
"No," Naruto confessed, "but it'll be okay, kid. You're stronger than you think. No one can undo what happened, no matter how hard we try. Trust me, kid, don't blame yourself for what happened. She made her choice, and life keeps moving forward. It's time for you to move on."
"But...Mom…"
"I know, Tarik. It sucks not having a mom anymore, I get it. But being stuck in the past won't change the fact that it still happened. All you can do is get up, get stronger, and move on. All I did for you was make this easier - it's up to you to get up and get stronger. The next time she appears, you stand up, and you tell her that she has no right to be in your head. Next time she shows her ugly face again, put your foot through it and tell her to piss off!"
Tarik giggled at that, his form finally relaxing.
"...Okay." It was a simple word, but Naruto knew that he had done his job - at least for now.
"...Go in peace, Tarik." He said, closing his eyes as he swiped his hands. The scenery around them began to change, the night turning to day and the setting warping to a better time.
A young Tarik was seen standing in front of the gates of the local elementary school, where he was visibly nervous toddler wearing the same soccer t-shirt of his favourite team with a backpack on his back.
"Something wrong, Tarik?"
The boy turned to his mother, an Arab woman who had long brown hair that was put in a braid. She had the beautiful smile that could speak for itself as a kind and helpful person. Emigrating to the US in 95' just when he was born, her name was Fatima Karim, a Urzik national who fled like many of her fellow countrymen from the war in Urzikstan, and finally managed to get refugee status to the United States.
"I'm scared, mama," the young Tarik said, clutching to his mother's pants that she wore for her work as a teacher. "What if they don't like me?"
His mother went down to her little son, and held his shoulders as she gave him her assuring smile, like she was going to lecture him again, something she was prone to do.
"Listen, I know things haven't been easy for us ever since 'what happened' in New York." It was almost a year since the Twin Towers came down, ever since then, anyone from a Muslim background or anything related to being Arabic began to feel like a curse for those people. "but don't let that think you're less than anyone else, and do not be afraid to befriend other people."
"But you know what happened at uncle Hamza's shop that was burned down? Or the neighbor next door Raja who got her headscarf ripped off by that meanie, or how we found a pig's head on the front of the mosque?" He brought up incidents that he witnessed himself happen to other people. "Did we do something bad?"
Little Tarik then asked, "Is it wrong being a Muslim?"
The mother's face turned grim as her son reminded her of those incidents, incidents that she never wanted to let her son see. Putting back her reassuring smile, she answered her son's question by pulling something out of her pocket.
It was a small pin with the American flag on it. "Did you remember the story I told you? About how a nice lady at the airport gave me this pin as a welcome gesture?"
Young Tarik nodded.
"That's the point, Tarik. Here." She pinned the little flag on the boy's shirt, straightening it out. "I want you to wear it."
"Why?" Tarik asked, looking down on his shirt. "It's just a pin."
She points her finger at the pinent and said, "That, my little angel, is part of your identity. You're an American. An American with Urzik roots."
"What's so special about being an American, mama?" Tarik asked, confused. "We don't do the same things like the other neighbors. Or even go to the same Mosque."
The mother chuckled at her little son's confusion. "No, no, my boy. An American is not being from a certain religion, or having a skin color, or coming from one background. We live in a country that is made up of people like us; people coming from different parts of the world and living next to other people. Like Mr. Singh, who came from India, or the shop owner Mr. Cho, who is from South Korea, or like that nice old mister Schmetzel who comes from Israel."
"But why do we still get angry looks from people?" Tarik still didn't understand his mother. "It feels like we aren't welcome here…"
"That's because they're afraid, my child." She told him. "Don't worry, one day they'll see you for who you are." she closed the button of her boy's jacket that he wore over his soccer shirt. "One day, you will prove yourself that while you are an Urzik man, you are as just American as they are. Because you ARE an American. Got it?"
The young Tarik scrunched up his eyebrows as he looked at the pin. "I think so."
RIIIIIIING!
The school bell went off, and one of the teachers came out, saying, "Everybody come inside!"
Fatima turned to her son and kissed him on the forehead. "Go and make a lot of friends, my little lion."
"Okay, mama." he kissed her on the cheek and ran for his class. "Love you mama!"
"Love you too!"
…
Naruto's eyes opened as Tarik's memory finally ended. Slumping down onto the dirty ground, he took a minute to take in some deep breaths to settle his mind and heart. After finishing his break, he looked back up.
Tarik was sleeping soundly, with no more nightmares haunting the poor man. He was no longer shaking, and his breathing was calm and even. A tear ran down his eye, but this time, it was from a sweet memory.
A weary smile made its way onto the blond shinobi's face as he crawled back to his bed.
"Sleep well, Tarik...You deserve it." Naruto began to close his eyes as he tried to get some rest.
'You keep mingling into others' affairs, brat…' Kurama spoke through the boy's head. 'One day that's gonna be a huge mistake.'
'Oh, quit your complaining. I bet you'd like that anyways, seeing as how you're gonna finally get out of my body that way.'.'
'Yeah, but I'd still rather you didn't eat it just yet. You-...you're becoming less of a nuisance right now.' Kurama grumbled, his loud but gentle tone vibrating in his head. 'So do us a favor and try not to die yet.'
A chuckle escaped through Naruto's mouth as he nodded. 'Sure, I'll try. Good night.'
'...Good night, kid.'
The two ended their conversation with a mutual and unusual non-hostile tone that almost sounded friendly-like. And with that, he closed his eyes.
The next day was a day like any other. The sun was blazing on their backs, the tunnels were hard to breath in, another slave died on his feet, and Naruto was forced to dig for some more spice.
Come on, what the hell's with the guards these days? Naruto glared as he smashed the pickaxe into the cave walls. He glanced at the other slaves around him, his eyes falling onto one of the men with a large towel around his head. His nose was bandaged up behind his cloth mask, due to a fight that had occured a while back, making him sound funny every time he talked.
Ibrahim, any second now… He muttered internally. He was sweating from the anticipation, which was not helping with his anxiety.
BOOM!
An explosion caught everyone's attention, including the Sentinel Pyke that was watching over them. Apparently a drilling machine had overheated, exploding loudly as large chunks of broken bits flew everywhere.
"The Hell?" The Sentinel muttered as he ran towards the source of the explosion. That was the distraction Naruto needed as he walked up to the toweled slave. The slave smiled from underneath his mask, before ripping it off alongside his towel.
"Go, we'll cover you."
Naruto nodded in thanks as he put on the towel and the mask, before giving him his clothing. The switch, which had been done and practiced so many times, had been quick, and Naruto was already running down the tunnels towards his destination.
…
Walking down the dark tunnels, Naruto couldn't help but admire the Earthlings' ingenuity as he stared at the crudely made candles and lights. They took what little they were given/found, and created an entire system of lighting that only they knew how to use.
For all their high tech that the Zyggerians and the Pykes used to enslave them, they sure had no clue on how to work with basic technology such as this.
Naruto came to a sudden stop near some rubble. Taking the time to knock on a couple of them, he found the rock he was looking for and gently pushed it out of the way. For one to look at it, it would seem like he was trying to cause another cave-in, but this rock rolled away with minimal effort, revealing a hidden tunnel. It led to a very old mine shaft that he and Tarik discovered with Adrik, which served as just one of many of their secret headquarters for the rebellion.
Crawling into the secret lair, he couldn't help but look back on where it all started.
Few months ago
"Next!" One of the cooks threw a pile of white goop onto Naruto's tray. He looked at the goop with some unease, unsure of what the hell this was supposed to be.
"Got a problem, kid?"
Naruto looked up at the cook, the light in his eyes extinguished like the lives of his previous cell mates, who had died from exhaustion and from blaster fire after they were unable to move any further, collapsing from a heatstroke.
Furthermore, some of his other former cellmates got into a fight over a piece of bread after a Zygerrian threw one in there for fun. The slaves scrambled for it, fighting and biting at each other for the chance to fill in their empty stomachs. After watching in amusement for a few minutes, they finally stepped in to "keep the peace," which ended with most of them getting electrocuted to death to set an example.
"No, it's fine." Naruto sighed before he left, the other slaves behind him becoming impatient at him just standing around. Sitting down, he was about to take a bite of the nasty sludge when someone pulled on his sleeve.
Turning around, he blushed a little when he looked at a green Twi'lek, a race he learned that was filled with beautiful humanoids with tentacle-like appendages that was apparently very commonly picked to become slaves.
"Follow me," the Twi-lek simply said as she turned around, walking to another table. Raising his eyebrows, he decided to go along with it to avoid any immediate hostilities. Going through the many rows of slaves eating their meals in peace, he noticed that some were eying him with caution or envy.
The green beauty eventually sat down on an empty seat, which was evidently hers from the beginning, judging by the lack of suspicious looks from the other slaves.
"Sit," she said without looking at him, immediately getting back to her meal. "Eat while we're talking - it'll attract less attention from the guards should they happen to walk in here.
Taking her advice, he quickly sat down next to her as he dug right in. His face twitched at how disgustingly plain it tasted, despite having tasted this particular slop a few times already.
It was a full minute before the woman finally spoke to him.
"So you're the new kid from Elementia, right?" the Twi'lek asked, a welcoming smile on her face. "The name's Hera Syndulla, but you can just call me Hera."
"U-Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto quickly corrected himself. During his time here so far, he picked up on the fact that not many people here introduced their last names first, which was a cultural habit he had to break in order to avoid unnecessary confusion. "And yeah, you're right. How'd you know?"
"Word travels fast here, kid," this time it was a dark-skinned human man that spoke, grabbing Naruto's attention. "After three people get beaten to death for a loaf of bread and the only survivor of the cell being you, you tend to stand out like a sore thumb."
Naruto turned to the darked skinned man. "Who are you?"
"Name's Tarik Karim, kid." He introduced himself as he turned to the others. "The ruskie next to me is Adrik Yahontov. We wanted to talk to you about your apparent background."
Naruto observed the two men and noticed the "Ruskie" wasn't even paying attention, and was busy eating his food while the guy named Tarik was still waiting for an answer from him.
"My background?" Naruto asked with suspicion. "What about it?"
"You're from Elementia, right?" Hera asked bluntly.
"...Yes."
"Then you must be one of those so called 'Shinobi' warriors." Adrik guessed as he turned his head to the blond kid. "The ones who can walk up to walls and disguise themselves like chameleons."
"I don't know what you're talking about-"
"Listen, kid. There's no need for any hostility in here," Hera spoke, coming in between. "We know you're from that planet, and we need to know what your intentions are."
"My intentions?"
"Stop with this bullshit act boy, and answer the damn question." Adrik grunted.
Naruto was not having it and wanted to leave, but then he noticed that he was being stared at from multiple directions and that alarmed him that he was caught in the middle, so he kept his calm and sat down.
Hera decided to calm the tension down and reached for Naruto's shoulder, and said, "We don't want to hurt you, but there's a lot at stake. So hear us out."
"...Okay." Naruto reluctantly lowered his guard, and asked Tarik, "Then why all the fuss if I gotta ask."
"Because you weren't the last person of Elementia to be brought here," Adrik responded to him with the story. "Some idiot started running up the wall and tried to escape, but before he could reach the top, his collar electrocuted him and the Zygs kept shooting at his body for the following day as target practice."
"That kinda sucks."
"Not only that," Tarik spoke without raising his voice, "they also randomly picked fifty slaves and killed them, leaving their hanging bodies on the entrances of the cells as a reminder…" That memory still haunted him like it happened yesterday. One of the main reasons was because one of those victims was a person he knew was among the first to be hanged...alive.
Hera took it over from there. "That's why we need to know if you're planning on escaping. We cannot afford for any more people to die…"
Carefully, Naruto responded, "Well, I got news for you."
He reached for his shirt and pulled it up to show some red patterned tattoo on his chest.
"I don't know how, but they sealed off my chakra - the source of our powers," Naruto explained to them grimly. "Meaning they've already got someone from my planet to work here for cases like me. So for the meanwhile, my abilities are useless." He put his shirt down in contemplative silence; he didn't know who it was that put the seal on him, but there were two facts that comforted him: he could still somehow talk to AND interact with the damned Fox, and secondly, he still felt his chakra flow. Maybe it was due to his connection to the Fox, but either way, he had no way of accessing his chakra - for now. "So what is it that you called me in here for, besides for accusing me of something I can't even do."
Tarik took a moment to first look at Adrik, who nodded to him, before then he turned towards Hera. "Go on."
She turned back to the kid. "We're planning on something big, and we need good people with experience in anything that can be helpful here."
It took a moment for Naruto to realize by what she meant. Putting his spoon down, he turned towards the Twi'lek and looked her right in the eyes.
"You're talking about a breakout, aren't you?"
"Yes, yes we are." Tarik nodded. "We heard that you shinobi are hardened warriors, you think you can be useful to us?"
Naruto nodded. "What do you need?"
"You know how to make bombs?" Adrik asked. "Like flammables or smoke or anything like that?"
Luckily for the struggling rebellion, this prankster actually close attention to when the academy taught them on how to make traps and explosives, especially ones that didn't require chakra.
"When can I get started?
Naruto put down a few empty bottles onto the ground as he laid down various materials, like the alcohol that came from the kitchen detail, who managed to smuggle it into the underground, and some pieces of cloth that would later be dipped into the incendiary substance.
"Okay, these are the last ones." Naruto grabbed an empty bottle and a small can of alcohol, and began pouring the substance into the bottle, before he then went on to put the small piece of cloth on the side of the bottle with some tape so it could be stored for later with the other small devices that were already prepared.
Hearing footsteps approaching him, he looked up to see that it was Sabine, who came in with a box of materials.
" I see you're busy."
"I've just finished the last bottle," Naruto put all the molotovs into a box, before passing it to another slave. "That's my part for today. What about you?"
"Adrik told me to build more of those roller bombs." she put the box down and tried to find the right word. "I think those Earthlings called them 'Pipe bombs?'"
Naruto cleaned his hands. "That's it alright, those Earthlings sure know how to create lots of scary weapons." Naruto heard that Ibrahim was busy helping build what he remembered was called 'Napalm explosives' that are being kept in various levels on Ölüm.
She placed the box on the ground. "Mind helping me out here? Could use the help."
"No problem." Naruto knelt down to help her place the parts on the ground for her to set apart. "Come on, I wanna get this done before supper begins."
"You tell me," she said, recoiling at the bad stench of alcohol. "I really don't like that smell, but it sure beats the kitchen food, honestly."
"Funny, Bomber even said he even drinks this stuff," Naruto said with a snicker. "He said it was a thing his grandfather made him do back in his country as part of a tradition."
"Really." Sabine chuckled, pulling some parts together. "I'll need to visit that place once we're out of here."
The two continued their work for the remainder of the time as they, like anybody else in the secret mine, were busy with the preparations for the big event that was to come very soon. But if you could feel the emotions in the air, it was not those of happiness, but rather bitterness, fear, and some even a deep desire for revenge.
Revenge, for the daily humiliations, exhaustion, and death for those who survive every day to see the next day. Hoping one day they can repay back the favor, with blood...
[?]
As the night had fallen yet again over Kessel, two men in hazmat suits were seen walking out of a newly built white facility. They walked over to the entrance of the newly built tunnel that connected the Ölüm mine with the new lab.
"The latest experiment has been a success." The first man said as they both walked through the decontamination chamber. "If we continue with these new subjects, Doctor Vindi will be very happy with our continuing progress. This project must succeed."
"The revival and weaponization of a deadly plague. The Blue Shadow Virus, absolutely magnificent." his colleague spoke in a sense of pride. "Have the men in Area 3 madeany progress with their project?"
"You mean about the T-Virus?" The 1st man said. "Possibly; I heard that they brought their batch to Area 6, but they'll need new test subjects...just like us, to be honest." the two scientistswalked up to the Sentinels standing guard at the tunnel entrance.
The two Sentinel Pykes saw the two scientists walk up to them, and one of them asked, "What is it that you need, gentlemen?"
"We'll need a group of test subjects. The last ones have just been used, and we need some new ones for continuing experimentation."
One of the sentinels looked at the two men with suspicion. "On whose orders?" In response, one of the scientists pulled out a holopad.
"From the Umbrella Corporation, who is paying your funds at this moment, Mr. Pykes." the scientist stated. "A request to transfer about fifty new slaves to be brought in here."
The Pykes guard accepted the written order, but still had one more question. "Okay, but what is this facility called? I'm new here."
"Sector 12 - The Red Paw."
(Next Morning)
Naruto laid on his bunk bed, staring at the red ceiling as he tried to get some sleep. Sleeping below him was Joseph, who was now sleeping with a cross in his hand. Naruto noted how much more religious the man was becoming, even giving small sermons to those who asked in between labor and in lunch breaks.
Laying on the other bunk beds were Tarik on the bottom and Adrik taking top. Naruto smiled when he saw Tarik cough a few times, but aside from that, was sleeping just fine. Adrik, on the other hand, was not sleeping, but was instead writing something in a small notebook, which he later learned was a log about the amount of weaponry that was being made and stockpiled.
He quickly finished up, and put the small notebook in an open spot in the wall, before he slid a brick into it. It was just one of many many hiding spots he and Jimmy made.
Speaking of Jimmy, the Mexican digger was seen rolling up somel cigarette papers. Officially, they were to smoke spices and tobacco, which the slavers didn't really mind too much so long as it didn't interfere with their work (and even encouraged it to try to create dependence), but in actuality, in those small papers were written messages that would later be given to other slaves from different cell blocks. He had already written about fifty 'kites' with each having different messages and instructions for every level of this God-forsaken place.
Ibrahim, meanwhile, was seen actually smoking one of his cigarettes, which was made from smuggled tobacco "How did you learn to write so small?"
"Done," Jimmy finished his last roll, and put them inside his pocket. "I did some time in a US Jail in Arizona; got to learn how to make them before getting deported back South."
"Ah, what did you get caught for?"
"I was caught with no visa, that's all." Jimmy answered, sealing the kites up. "Gringos thought I was a gang member or something, deported me back across the border. Not a nice experience for me….Also, I was drinking and crashed my truck right into a deputy's car."
"Ah," Ibrahim chuckled. "Now that makes sense…"
Suddenly the lights turned on, followed by a loud shouting. Learning from experience about the consequences of not getting up, everyone who was asleep shot straight up immediately.
"The hell?!"
"Is it day already?"
"Motherfucker-!" The doors opened, causing Ibrahim to put out his smoke and Jimmy to hide the message kites.
One of the Zygerrian slavers yelled out in the hallway, "Everyone in this row, out, now!"
Naruto jumped off his bunk bed and rubbed his eyes, before following suit with the others in the flow of slaves getting out of their cells. Glancing at the dark sky, he and the rest couldn't help but wonder what was going on.
…
Everyone was now standing on the ground level, with the vast majority of the slaves talking to one another nervously. The fact that some of them - Naruto included - was a crucial part of the rebellion got them sweating hard.
It took a lot out of Naruto to not try to run, with the blond having to meditate to settle his fears.
I can't afford to get lost in the dark side now, Naruto thought to himself. If we panic, then the entire thing is definitely over.
Still, Naruto couldn't shake off the feeling that something terrible was going to happen soon. Shaking his head, he decided to try to distract himself by taking to his friends. Even talking about bad new was better than letting anxiety chew at his nerves.
"How bad…" Tarik started to ask Naruto.
"I only briefly spoke to Bellatrix when we brought her here. But she was in a pretty bad shape after Sabine and I found her." Naruto told them with a frown. "...So what now?"
"We'll need to keep this a secret." Tarik stated. "We'll have to bring her to the secret caves if we want to keep her safe. Plus, she needs all the medical and mental help we can give."
"But Idel and Bellatrix aren't allowed to leave the infirmary," Adrik reminded him of the fact the medical personnel were restricted in movement. "So letting them come in is impossible."
"Sabine can help her," Naruto suggested. "She's got some medical experience, so she can help. Plus, she's the only other person that can be close to her without being frightened by her presence."
"Yes, and we can let some of the supplies for her be smuggled through our usual routes. That's for you to do, Ibrahim."
"No problem." The Libyan nodded while chewing on a stick. "But we gotta think how we need to close ranks when it comes to incidents like this against the other women. Try and cover them from such actions."
"That's where we'll talk to Hera once we see her." Adrik told them, since she'll know what to do already.
"Formation!"
The loud shout from the Zygerrian slaver got all the slaves to run into formation, with the disorganized crowd turning into rows of people within seconds. It was normal protocol if they wanted to make an example, or if they wanted to do a mass killing. But then came the slavers. D'Nar was seen walking up front with a few of his Pykes Sentinels, but they also were accompanied by a few men in white robes that looked like scientists - people they've never seen before.
"My slaves from the Terran sector!" D'Nar spoke in glee at his personal collection. "I came here, to congratulate you all!" This earned him some uncomfortable/anxious looks, which he visibly relished. "Because of your hard work, my mines have shown excellent profit and investment!"
If one looked between the lines, they would realize that he was referring to the fact that the human race was surprisingly more durable on this planet, with the other species tending to die out much faster due to their biology. This led to D'Nar needing to replace slaves a lot less over the past few months.
"As a reward, I will allow you to take a break from all this spice mining by allowing you to be chosen as participants of a new project!"
Naruto's glare turned into a look of confusion and uncertain fear. What the hell could he be planning now?
"I like to introduce you to these gentlemen of science!" D'Nar pointed to the men in white lab coats. "These men are from the Umbrella Corporation, a well known organisation for those Earthlings from the Western Atmosphere."
"Umbrella Corporation? What the hell are these guys doing here? I heard they're supposed to be pharma-guys…"
More whispers like that began to spread like wildfire. Evidently, these guys are pretty well known back in Earth, making Naruto wonder just how much pull they have.
"Silence!" D'Nar barked as his men moved towards them with the scientists. "They'll handpick the finest of you lot for the upcoming task of supporting them in their findings."
Soon after he said that, the scientists wasted no time checking and picking various people they thought were good for whatever twisted project they had in mind, and were forced to wait in a separate area as another group.
"Her too," One of the two scientists said, picking an African woman who was pushed forward by a Sentinel.
Naruto began to sweat. They were picking subjects rather quickly, and he was dangerously close to being next.
*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*
Suddenly Tarik's coughing started to rile up. The man fell onto his knees as he began gasping for air, holding his chest.
"Tarik, get up!" Adrik hissed/yelled, but it was too late. The second scientist turned his head towards the source of the coughs, and quickly walked up to him, brushing past Adrik.
"We'll take him too. Might as well put him to some use before he kicks it." The scientist pointed at Tarik, prompting the Sentinel grab him by the arm to drag him away.
Adrik was about to intervene when-
"Wait!"
The scientist and Sentinel turned around to see one of the bigger slaves walk up to them, making the Sentinels raise their blasters in warning. The large man raised his hands, and Naruto instantly recognized him as Bomber
"Let me take his place. He's obviously not well." Bomber said, looking down at both the Sentinel and the scientists. This caused the Pykes to walk up to him, pointing their guns and staffs at him in a threatening manner.
"Get back in line before I-" The Pyke got cut off by the hand of the scientist, who took a good look at the operator of the burning unit, and thought about it.
"Sure. Go over there." the scientist ordered. "Forget the other one."
The sentinel holding Tarik dropped him carelessly, telling him to get back in line as they escorted Bomber towards the other group. The Urzik man was being helped up by Adrik, who looked at him in concern "What the fuck man, you sick?"
"The...coughing...sorry." Tarik looked down and saw that droplets of blood were on his hand. "I need to….go back to Idel…*Cough!*"
"ATTENTION!"
They all turned back forwards as D'Nar was on the word again. He eyed his remaining slaves, frowning at how many he was going to lose, before turning back to the group of chosen "participants". All the slaves watched as the chosen slaves were all put in formation, with Bomber being at the front.
"Psst, Naruto."
Naruto tried turning to the person next to him, but felt something shoved right into his pocket, and the mystery man told him, "Bomber gave me this, told me to pass it to you. Told me you'd understand."
Naruto looked over at his large friend in concern, and saw how the large Russian was looking at his direction, nodding to him to tell him that he was going to be alright.
As they began walking right towards the new, white tunnel, these chosen participants grew worried as they looked at the sunlight for the last time, not knowing if they'll ever see it again
That's for today, folks, hope you all like it. Leave reviews if you like.
Good day!