Yeah...I'm freakin' brilliant.
This...just shows how amazing I really am. Seriously doods and doodettes....seriously
Chapter Nineteen: Clashing Destinies
Mount Hood Resort Building, Massachusetts
October 25th, 2006
11:44 AM
Sam and Ian found themselves standing in what used to be the lounge area of the building. But it had been cleaned out of furniture, decorations and any other objects that would be in the way. The back wall had been torn out violently and now looked out over the hill side of Mount Hood. And set right in front of that whole was the Trans-Dimensional Gateway, a little smaller than the one in the other world. The computers monitoring and controlling the gateway were put up against the side walls on either side. The gateway was turned on and the portal was open, its red wall shimmering. But it suddenly shut off, the red portal shrinking into the middle and dissipating. Rudin stepped away from the computer consoles on the right wall, holding a key in his left hand. He had stripped off his armor and was now wearing a black wife beater, showing off his huge muscles. He also had on gray pants and brown boots. He reached up and tied the key around the necklace on his neck. It fell and rested against his chest. He moved over and turned towards Ian and Sam, standing in front of the gateway. His face was stern and unemotional. They all stared at each other, silent.
Rudin cracked his neck to the left and then to the right, stretching himself out. “You made it here…how?”
Ian smirked. “Let’s just say that we’re determined to settle the deal with you.”
Rudin’s lips cracked into an evil grin. “You both are foolish. You don’t stand a prayer against me. I’m the top Elite trooper in the Empire’s army. I have killed more people than you can imagine.”
“I find that hard to believe…because I can imagine a lot.” Sam said. “You are obviously under-estimating us.”
“Watch your tone, boy. You don’t know how horrible I am. I’m one of your worst nightmares. You just don’t know it yet.” Rudin said. He reached behind his back and then brought out two large knives that looked like butcher knives. He spun them around in his hands then fell into a fighting stance, the right knife above his head aimed at Ian and the left by his side, aimed at Sam. “Let’s see how confident you are in your abilities.” He said. Ian and Sam raised their already blood-stained Judges, ready to fight. They watched Rudin, standing there unmoving and staring right at them. The moment stood still, just for a split second.
“Let’s go!” Ian yelled. Sam and Ian sprang into action, running at Rudin. They closed the gap between them quickly. Ian, who was on Rudin’s left, brought the sword down, ready to stab him through the stomach whilst Sam, who was on the right, raised his sword, preparing to swing it down into his neck. They both enacted their attack. Rudin acted quickly; he brought the knife in his right hand to the right and knocked away Sam’s blade while the left knife swung around and parried Ian’s stab away, knocking him the other way. Then Rudin quickly brought both knives up high in the air and brought them down, the blades aimed for Sam and Ian. The two recovered from their failed attacks quickly and brought their Judges around and above their heads, blocking the knives from hitting them. It became a power battle as Rudin pushed down on both of their Judges with his knives, trying to break through their defense. But Ian and Sam pushed all of their strength against the knives, keeping them from moving. They stayed like that for a few seconds, the metal weapons scratching against each other. Then Rudin grinned as he quickly brought his left leg up and landed a crushing kick into Ian’s body. He went flying back and skidded against the wooden floor, unmoving. His left hand free, he quickly brought it around and punched Sam square in the ribs with such force that he too was sent flying. He didn’t fly as far, as he crashed into the computer consoles on the left. He too didn’t move as he slid down the consoles to the floor. Rudin looked between the two boys and laughed.
“Is that all? Is that all your might army will send against me; two boys who are defeated by two blows? I think you severely over-estimated your strength, fools.” He said, as he finished laughing. “Let me do you a favor and end your lives quickly.” He started walking towards Ian, lying in the center of the room.
Suddenly, Sam sprung up from his place on the floor and charged at Rudin. He brought his Judge around and swung quickly for the general’s right side. Rudin spun around quickly and deflected the attack with his right knife and then kept spinning, bringing the left one around in an attack. Sam leaned back as far as he could, the blade just barely slicing through the air above his stomach. They both quickly recovered and Sam attacked again, swinging down towards Rudin’s head. He brought both knives up and blocked them blade from the Judge. But Sam took the opening and quickly retracted the Judge, spun on one foot to the side and side kicked the general in the stomach. The large man let out a huge influx of air as the foot sunk into his stomach. He stumbled back, bringing both hands down to his belly. Sam spun and charged the wounded Rudin, hoping to quickly end it. But Rudin had other plans. He quickly threw down the knives, sticking them into the ground, and brought his body up. Before Sam had time to react, Rudin’s left fist came up into his jaw, upper cutting him. Sam’s head snapped back and he went into a backwards flip. But then Rudin brought his fist up and smashed it into Sam’s stomach as he was suspended in air. This smashed Sam into the ground hard and painfully. Rudin grinned evilly as he pulled his fist out Sam’s gut, who was lying in pain. He reached down with his left hand and grabbed Sam around his neck. He was lifted limply up to face Rudin’s malevolent face.
“Nice try, kid. But like I said you’ll have to-…” He quickly cut off and let out a loud yell of pain. His grip on Sam’s neck lessened and he quickly spun his head around to his back, where had felt the sharp pain. Ian stood there, with the blade from his Judge buried into Rudin’s back. Ian sneered and pushed it in harder, pulling another yell of pain from Rudin. Suddenly, Ian pulled the blade out and brought it up, ready to bring it down on Rudin’s neck. But Rudin reacted quickly and spun himself around and let go of Sam, aimed at Ian. Sam’s body slammed into Ian’s, causing Ian to drop his Judge to the ground, and they both flew back into the wall. Rudin groaned and put his right hand to where the large gash was. He brought his hand back and saw blood stained on his hand. He turned and glared at the two boys, struggling to get up. He marched over quickly and picked up his knives.
“You’ll pay for that, you rats!” He said angrily and stomped towards them. When he was close enough, he raised the knives high in the air and aimed them straight down towards the boys. They both looked up in horror at the weapons. He brought them down. They both covered their eyes.
THWANG
Ian and Sam sat there, waiting for the inevitable feeling of the knives sinking into their bodies. But they felt no such pain. They both let their bodies untense, as the moments passed. They heard a loud sound, like someone kicking someone else, and Rudin groaning. Then a loud crash as something heavy hit the ground. Sam was the first to open his eyes, slowly letting the world come back to him. A pair of legs stood in front of them and through them, he could see Rudin lying on the ground, looking up at the person standing in front of Ian and Sam. He let his eyes travel up and he saw a boy about his age, dressed exactly like Rudin, but he wasn’t nearly as muscled as him. The boy had short spiky blonde hair.
“Don’t you ever come near my brother, you monster.” The boy said with anger in his voice. Ian’s eyes opened immediately as he heard this and he looked up. His eyes widened.
“Garret…”
* * * * * * * * *
The room was silent as Rudin, Sam and Ian all stared at Garret, who was standing in between the general and the two boys. He held a Judge in his hand by his side, this one made of silver and the blade made of gold. It shone brightly in the dim light of the room.
“Sacco? What the hell do you think you’re doing?! You’re attacking the wrong people!” Rudin said angrily, slowly getting to his feet. “Now turn around and take care of those two rebels.”
“Sorry General, but I don’t follow your orders anymore.” Garret said slowly. He saw shock and horror hit Rudin’s face hard and he couldn’t help but smile. “I finally see where my true calling is and it’s with the rebellion.”
“What?!” Rudin roared.
“It’s really thanks to you, General. If you hadn’t shown me all the horrible things I’ve done, I never would have sat down and thought about it. But you made me realize how much of a monster I have been. All my life I wanted to join the Empire for noble reasons; to fight for a powerful and fair force and make people’s lives better. That isn’t what the Empire is; it’s just a power hungry force that is willing to sacrifice everything and everyone for their own benefit. I just wish I had seen it before…” He trailed off. He turned his head back and looked at Ian. “I know I can never repent for all the evil I have done. All I can hope for is that I can make up for it by doing the right thing from now on.”
“You traitorous bastard! How dare you turn on the mighty Empire?!” Rudin roared, his face red. “If you want to be with the rebellion so much, then you’ll have to die just like the rest of them!” And with that, he attacked.
Rudin charged forward, both knives ready to strike. Garret brought his Judge up, ready for the attack. Rudin swung his right arm around, knife aimed at Garret’s head. Garret swung his Judge around blocked the attack. Then he quickly eyed Rudin’s left hand coming at him. He quickly kicked the knife out of the general’s hand, sending it flying back. Rudin looked back it quickly then turned around in time to see Garret push his other knife away and jump forward, ramming his shoulder into the general’s chest. The heavy man stumbled back as Garret still pushed into him. Then Garret swung his Judge up from the left towards Rudin’s chest. Rudin just barely managed to block the incoming attack but as Garret kept pushing against him, he continued to stumble. Garret freed his left hand from holding the Judge, pulled it back then sent a punch flying straight into the general’s face. His head snapped back and he was launched backwards. He fell onto his back and skidded along the ground until he stopped, right in front of the gateway. He groaned and struggled to get himself up. Garret shook his left hand out; relieving the pain, and then quickly snapped it back into a fist.
“Is that all you got, Rudin?” He said, grinning. “I guess I can’t expect you to be at the top of your game; you haven’t fought in over two years. Whereas I spar and train everyday. So I guess I have the upper hand” He said, cocky.
Ian and Sam had finally managed to stand up and stood, staring in awe at the battle. That kid can fight better than anyone I’ve ever seen. Sam thought. We could barely lay a hand on Rudin and here’s this Garret kid standing up to him alone and winning. He broke out of his thoughts as Garret walked over to Sam’s fallen Judge. He picked it up with his other hand and then walked over to the two boys slowly.
“Are you two alright?” He asked as he handed Sam his Judge back, looking over them. They had a few bruises and cuts but nothing serious.
“Yeah, I think I’m alright.” Sam said, taking the Judge and then brushing himself off. Garret then turned and looked at Ian, who was staring at him.
“Are you alright?” He asked quietly. Ian didn’t answer, just continued to stare at him. Garret stared back, fear and hurt running through him as he realized that Ian might not have forgiven him this easily.
“Yeah…I’m fine. Thanks…for saving us.” Ian finally said slowly. He brought his hand up and held it open for Garret.
Garret looked down at Ian’s hand, looked back up to Ian. “Hey…anything for family and friends.” He said, smiling. Then he took Ian’s hand and they shook. It was finally a nice moment between brothers.
“Get ready to die!!” Rudin yelled from behind them. All three of them spun around to see Rudin on them, with both knives now. He had brought them up, ready to stab them. Garret quickly rolled off to one side while Ian side-stepped quickly to the other side as the knives came down where they just were. They stuck into the wooden floor, splintering it. But Rudin quickly pulled the left knife through the wood, cutting it as it went, up towards Ian. Ian quickly brought his Judge around and, with one hand on the back for strength, blocked the attack. He held his ground as Rudin pushed into him. Then the general turned his attention to Sam and Garret on the other side. Sam rushed in and swung his blade, aimed for the general’s neck. Rudin pulled out the other knife, showering splinters everywhere, and blocked the attack. Sam pushed into Rudin’s knife hard, trying to break through, but Rudin proved stronger and he was quickly pushed away by the general’s mighty strength. Garret burst into action, pulling his Judge up into attack position. Rudin saw this, spun his knife around and threw it at Garret. He saw this and quickly had to roll to the side again to dodge. This bought Rudin time enough to turn his attention back to Ian, who was still pushing against Rudin’s other knife. The general raised his right fist, ready to smash Ian. Ian saw the fist rise and quickly thought of a resolution. As soon as Rudin brought his fist forward towards Ian, the boy quickly dropped to the ground, making the knife and fist miss him completely. He then rolled underneath the general’s open legs and hopped back up on the other side as the general stumbled from his miss. Garret, Ian and Sam all stood up next to each other, each holding their Judges. Rudin turned around after regaining his balance to find all three of them rushing at him. We got him. Sam thought. All three of them got ready to attack.
Then suddenly, Rudin leaped into the air. He soared right over them and did a flip. All three watched, stunned. The general landed on his feet and quickly spun around his left, knife ready. He brought it forward towards the closest victim.
Ian
Everything slowed down as the knife got closer to Ian’s chest. He watched in horror as everything he had worked for, all of the sacrifices to save his friends and world, were about to end at the end of knife. His eyes shut as his life flashed before his eyes. All he could do now was wait for the blade to find its target. It was all over.
The seconds felt like hours. He stood there, waiting for knife to strike. But he felt no sharp pain anywhere. But he heard two short footsteps and he felt air move by him quickly. Then he heard the general chuckling, very softly. He opened his eyes slowly, expecting to see the general right in front of him, ready to strike. But he didn’t see that. Instead he saw the back of Garret’s head. His eyes widened and the hair on the back of his neck rose.
Oh no…
Garret stood in front of Ian now, a look of pain written over his face. His knees shook softly and his arms hung limp by his sides. He tried to open his eyes but only managed to open the right one, barely. A droplet of blood fell to the ground and red started to go through his shirt. Rudin’s blade had found a target. It was now buried deep into the right side of Garret’s chest.
Rudin finished chuckling and looked at Garret’s face, a wicked smile on his own face. “You’re a fool.” And with that, he pulled out the knife quickly, also pulling a loud groan out from Garret. Blood came with knife and it fell to the ground. Garret stood there, limp.
“Garret…why?!” Ian said softly.
Garret turned his head slowly to look at Ian. His half open right eye looked into Ian’s eyes, a small tear of pain running out. But he managed to crack a small smile. “I told you” He said hoarsely. “Anything…for family and friends.”
Then Garret fell forward on the ground and didn’t move.
* * * * * * * * *
The room was silent again as Ian and Sam stared in horror at Garret lying on the floor. Blood had started to pool on the ground around his chest. Sam shook himself out of his daze and quickly got down to check on him. He turned Garret over onto his. Garret’s eyes were closed now and blood was all over his chest. Sam put his hands to Garret’s neck to check his pulse.
“He’s still alive…but just barely…we need to get him some help.”
Ian just stared at Garret’s seemingly lifeless body, lying there in his own blood. Ian couldn’t move or speak at all. This can’t be happening…Ian thought.
Rudin began to chuckle again and Ian finally snapped out of his trance and turned his head towards Rudin. His eyes were still filled with fear and shock.
“I must say…this is quite ironic.” Rudin said, finishing his chuckle. “With I being the one to kill you and your brother. It looks like I’ll get the privilege of having killed your entire family.”
Ian’s muscles tensed up and rage ran through his veins like his blood. He felt his hands start to shake and his vision was clearly seeing red. His teeth were grinding against each other.
“What the hell do you mean by that?” Sam spoke up, having seen Ian’s reaction.
Rudin chuckled again as he reached into his pants pocket. He fumbled around in there for a second then very slowly started to withdraw. His hand emerged in a fist, obviously holding something. He brought it out and brought it up to his face. He opened his hand so only he could see it. His smile got even more wicked as he closed it again and then brought it down in front of him. He turned it upside down and finally opened his hand.
Ian’s eyes darted to the two objects in Rudin’s hands and he felt thousands of emotions hit him at once as he saw what he was holding. In his hand was a female’s wedding ring and male’s graduation ring. Ian’s entire body was shaking now and tears started to develop in his eyes.
“As Ian can well see, these are his parents. When we ran a standard blood test on Garret, we found that his DNA did not match his parents. So we found the real parent; Walter Allan. We found that he and his wife were captives of the Empire and were held in one of our prisons. I went to find them. And when I did…” He licked his lips ferociously. “I killed both of them by myself. And took these two so I could always look at Garret and see how such a strong boy came from weak parents.” He turned his hand over and dropped the jewelry on the ground, a slight ding as they both bounced and then landed next to each other.
The room fell silent as both Sam and Rudin’s eyes settled on Ian. Tears were streaming down his face now, running down to the bottom and falling, staining his shirt. His right hand somehow found its way into his pants pocket. It went through and pulled out his father’s wedding ring and his mother’s necklace. He brought it out in front of him and his stared down at them, his eyes still tearing. Looking at them brought him back to the night of the secret meeting. I had been questioning even fighting the Empire then. He thought. His hand shook slightly as two tears fell into it, almost hitting the jewelry. I swore to avenge them. To avenge everyone that has been hurt by the Empire. His hand slowly curled into a fist around his parent’s heirlooms.
“Now let’s finish this now. I’m getting bored with you two-….” Rudin started to say. He brought his knives forward.
“No!” Ian said loudly. It caused both Sam and Rudin to jump from its intensity. Ian slowly bent down and picked up Garret’s Judge in his right hand. He straightened back up, never looking up. Then slowly he raised his head, his glare aimed at Rudin. Rudin’s eyes opened slowly in shock as he stared into this boy’s eyes. He could practically see the rage in them, roaring and threatening to tear him apart. Ian’s soul was on fire and there was no stopping him.
“You’re the one that is going to be finished!!” He yelled in rage as he sprang forward. Rudin was caught completely off guard and Ian’s fist slammed right into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Then Ian’s other fist, holding the Judge, slammed into him, not threatening with the blade though. Then the other one came back. Ian delivered punch after punch into Rudin. It was so powerful that Rudin felt himself being lifted off the ground. Then Ian’s left hand hooked up and uppercut him. Rudin was lifted a little higher, his eyes wide in shock. Then Ian spun around and delivered a kick straight into the man’s chin. Rudin’s head snapped back and he flipped backwards. He hit the ground hard on his chest and he let out a yell of pain. But he wasn’t ready to give up just yet. With all his strength, he brought his right hand around and threw the knife at Ian, aimed at the boy’s head. Ian saw it moving the entire way and knocked it away with the Judge, his eyes never leaving Rudin. Rudin let out a roar of anger and tried to push himself up. Suddenly a sharp object stuck itself into his right shoulder, pinning him down. He yelled in pain and he looked up to see Sam holding his Judge, stuck into Rudin. He groaned and turned his vision back to Ian in time to see the barrel of the gun from the Judge aimed right at his face. Ian’s face was emotionless, even though Rudin could still see the rage in his eyes. He bared his teeth and spit at the boy’s gun.
“It doesn’t matter. You’ll never stop us. Nobody ever will! You’re an idiot for even trying!” He yelled.
Ian narrowed his eyes at him. He opened his left hand, which now held the jewelry and also the other two rings that Rudin had. He looked at them. Then he looked back at Rudin. He bent down close, still holding the Judge aimed at him and reached around Rudin’s neck. He violently pulled the necklace that Rudin wore, holding the key to the gateway, emitting a grown from Rudin. Then he straightened up again.
“That’s what you think.” He said softly. Then he steadied his aim. Rudin’s eyes opened wide and he tried to open his mouth to speak. But no words came out. Ian growled.
“This is for my parents.”
And he pulled the trigger.
Chapter Nineteen: Clashing Destinies
Mount Hood Resort Building, Massachusetts
October 25th, 2006
11:44 AM
Sam and Ian found themselves standing in what used to be the lounge area of the building. But it had been cleaned out of furniture, decorations and any other objects that would be in the way. The back wall had been torn out violently and now looked out over the hill side of Mount Hood. And set right in front of that whole was the Trans-Dimensional Gateway, a little smaller than the one in the other world. The computers monitoring and controlling the gateway were put up against the side walls on either side. The gateway was turned on and the portal was open, its red wall shimmering. But it suddenly shut off, the red portal shrinking into the middle and dissipating. Rudin stepped away from the computer consoles on the right wall, holding a key in his left hand. He had stripped off his armor and was now wearing a black wife beater, showing off his huge muscles. He also had on gray pants and brown boots. He reached up and tied the key around the necklace on his neck. It fell and rested against his chest. He moved over and turned towards Ian and Sam, standing in front of the gateway. His face was stern and unemotional. They all stared at each other, silent.
Rudin cracked his neck to the left and then to the right, stretching himself out. “You made it here…how?”
Ian smirked. “Let’s just say that we’re determined to settle the deal with you.”
Rudin’s lips cracked into an evil grin. “You both are foolish. You don’t stand a prayer against me. I’m the top Elite trooper in the Empire’s army. I have killed more people than you can imagine.”
“I find that hard to believe…because I can imagine a lot.” Sam said. “You are obviously under-estimating us.”
“Watch your tone, boy. You don’t know how horrible I am. I’m one of your worst nightmares. You just don’t know it yet.” Rudin said. He reached behind his back and then brought out two large knives that looked like butcher knives. He spun them around in his hands then fell into a fighting stance, the right knife above his head aimed at Ian and the left by his side, aimed at Sam. “Let’s see how confident you are in your abilities.” He said. Ian and Sam raised their already blood-stained Judges, ready to fight. They watched Rudin, standing there unmoving and staring right at them. The moment stood still, just for a split second.
“Let’s go!” Ian yelled. Sam and Ian sprang into action, running at Rudin. They closed the gap between them quickly. Ian, who was on Rudin’s left, brought the sword down, ready to stab him through the stomach whilst Sam, who was on the right, raised his sword, preparing to swing it down into his neck. They both enacted their attack. Rudin acted quickly; he brought the knife in his right hand to the right and knocked away Sam’s blade while the left knife swung around and parried Ian’s stab away, knocking him the other way. Then Rudin quickly brought both knives up high in the air and brought them down, the blades aimed for Sam and Ian. The two recovered from their failed attacks quickly and brought their Judges around and above their heads, blocking the knives from hitting them. It became a power battle as Rudin pushed down on both of their Judges with his knives, trying to break through their defense. But Ian and Sam pushed all of their strength against the knives, keeping them from moving. They stayed like that for a few seconds, the metal weapons scratching against each other. Then Rudin grinned as he quickly brought his left leg up and landed a crushing kick into Ian’s body. He went flying back and skidded against the wooden floor, unmoving. His left hand free, he quickly brought it around and punched Sam square in the ribs with such force that he too was sent flying. He didn’t fly as far, as he crashed into the computer consoles on the left. He too didn’t move as he slid down the consoles to the floor. Rudin looked between the two boys and laughed.
“Is that all? Is that all your might army will send against me; two boys who are defeated by two blows? I think you severely over-estimated your strength, fools.” He said, as he finished laughing. “Let me do you a favor and end your lives quickly.” He started walking towards Ian, lying in the center of the room.
Suddenly, Sam sprung up from his place on the floor and charged at Rudin. He brought his Judge around and swung quickly for the general’s right side. Rudin spun around quickly and deflected the attack with his right knife and then kept spinning, bringing the left one around in an attack. Sam leaned back as far as he could, the blade just barely slicing through the air above his stomach. They both quickly recovered and Sam attacked again, swinging down towards Rudin’s head. He brought both knives up and blocked them blade from the Judge. But Sam took the opening and quickly retracted the Judge, spun on one foot to the side and side kicked the general in the stomach. The large man let out a huge influx of air as the foot sunk into his stomach. He stumbled back, bringing both hands down to his belly. Sam spun and charged the wounded Rudin, hoping to quickly end it. But Rudin had other plans. He quickly threw down the knives, sticking them into the ground, and brought his body up. Before Sam had time to react, Rudin’s left fist came up into his jaw, upper cutting him. Sam’s head snapped back and he went into a backwards flip. But then Rudin brought his fist up and smashed it into Sam’s stomach as he was suspended in air. This smashed Sam into the ground hard and painfully. Rudin grinned evilly as he pulled his fist out Sam’s gut, who was lying in pain. He reached down with his left hand and grabbed Sam around his neck. He was lifted limply up to face Rudin’s malevolent face.
“Nice try, kid. But like I said you’ll have to-…” He quickly cut off and let out a loud yell of pain. His grip on Sam’s neck lessened and he quickly spun his head around to his back, where had felt the sharp pain. Ian stood there, with the blade from his Judge buried into Rudin’s back. Ian sneered and pushed it in harder, pulling another yell of pain from Rudin. Suddenly, Ian pulled the blade out and brought it up, ready to bring it down on Rudin’s neck. But Rudin reacted quickly and spun himself around and let go of Sam, aimed at Ian. Sam’s body slammed into Ian’s, causing Ian to drop his Judge to the ground, and they both flew back into the wall. Rudin groaned and put his right hand to where the large gash was. He brought his hand back and saw blood stained on his hand. He turned and glared at the two boys, struggling to get up. He marched over quickly and picked up his knives.
“You’ll pay for that, you rats!” He said angrily and stomped towards them. When he was close enough, he raised the knives high in the air and aimed them straight down towards the boys. They both looked up in horror at the weapons. He brought them down. They both covered their eyes.
THWANG
Ian and Sam sat there, waiting for the inevitable feeling of the knives sinking into their bodies. But they felt no such pain. They both let their bodies untense, as the moments passed. They heard a loud sound, like someone kicking someone else, and Rudin groaning. Then a loud crash as something heavy hit the ground. Sam was the first to open his eyes, slowly letting the world come back to him. A pair of legs stood in front of them and through them, he could see Rudin lying on the ground, looking up at the person standing in front of Ian and Sam. He let his eyes travel up and he saw a boy about his age, dressed exactly like Rudin, but he wasn’t nearly as muscled as him. The boy had short spiky blonde hair.
“Don’t you ever come near my brother, you monster.” The boy said with anger in his voice. Ian’s eyes opened immediately as he heard this and he looked up. His eyes widened.
“Garret…”
* * * * * * * * *
The room was silent as Rudin, Sam and Ian all stared at Garret, who was standing in between the general and the two boys. He held a Judge in his hand by his side, this one made of silver and the blade made of gold. It shone brightly in the dim light of the room.
“Sacco? What the hell do you think you’re doing?! You’re attacking the wrong people!” Rudin said angrily, slowly getting to his feet. “Now turn around and take care of those two rebels.”
“Sorry General, but I don’t follow your orders anymore.” Garret said slowly. He saw shock and horror hit Rudin’s face hard and he couldn’t help but smile. “I finally see where my true calling is and it’s with the rebellion.”
“What?!” Rudin roared.
“It’s really thanks to you, General. If you hadn’t shown me all the horrible things I’ve done, I never would have sat down and thought about it. But you made me realize how much of a monster I have been. All my life I wanted to join the Empire for noble reasons; to fight for a powerful and fair force and make people’s lives better. That isn’t what the Empire is; it’s just a power hungry force that is willing to sacrifice everything and everyone for their own benefit. I just wish I had seen it before…” He trailed off. He turned his head back and looked at Ian. “I know I can never repent for all the evil I have done. All I can hope for is that I can make up for it by doing the right thing from now on.”
“You traitorous bastard! How dare you turn on the mighty Empire?!” Rudin roared, his face red. “If you want to be with the rebellion so much, then you’ll have to die just like the rest of them!” And with that, he attacked.
Rudin charged forward, both knives ready to strike. Garret brought his Judge up, ready for the attack. Rudin swung his right arm around, knife aimed at Garret’s head. Garret swung his Judge around blocked the attack. Then he quickly eyed Rudin’s left hand coming at him. He quickly kicked the knife out of the general’s hand, sending it flying back. Rudin looked back it quickly then turned around in time to see Garret push his other knife away and jump forward, ramming his shoulder into the general’s chest. The heavy man stumbled back as Garret still pushed into him. Then Garret swung his Judge up from the left towards Rudin’s chest. Rudin just barely managed to block the incoming attack but as Garret kept pushing against him, he continued to stumble. Garret freed his left hand from holding the Judge, pulled it back then sent a punch flying straight into the general’s face. His head snapped back and he was launched backwards. He fell onto his back and skidded along the ground until he stopped, right in front of the gateway. He groaned and struggled to get himself up. Garret shook his left hand out; relieving the pain, and then quickly snapped it back into a fist.
“Is that all you got, Rudin?” He said, grinning. “I guess I can’t expect you to be at the top of your game; you haven’t fought in over two years. Whereas I spar and train everyday. So I guess I have the upper hand” He said, cocky.
Ian and Sam had finally managed to stand up and stood, staring in awe at the battle. That kid can fight better than anyone I’ve ever seen. Sam thought. We could barely lay a hand on Rudin and here’s this Garret kid standing up to him alone and winning. He broke out of his thoughts as Garret walked over to Sam’s fallen Judge. He picked it up with his other hand and then walked over to the two boys slowly.
“Are you two alright?” He asked as he handed Sam his Judge back, looking over them. They had a few bruises and cuts but nothing serious.
“Yeah, I think I’m alright.” Sam said, taking the Judge and then brushing himself off. Garret then turned and looked at Ian, who was staring at him.
“Are you alright?” He asked quietly. Ian didn’t answer, just continued to stare at him. Garret stared back, fear and hurt running through him as he realized that Ian might not have forgiven him this easily.
“Yeah…I’m fine. Thanks…for saving us.” Ian finally said slowly. He brought his hand up and held it open for Garret.
Garret looked down at Ian’s hand, looked back up to Ian. “Hey…anything for family and friends.” He said, smiling. Then he took Ian’s hand and they shook. It was finally a nice moment between brothers.
“Get ready to die!!” Rudin yelled from behind them. All three of them spun around to see Rudin on them, with both knives now. He had brought them up, ready to stab them. Garret quickly rolled off to one side while Ian side-stepped quickly to the other side as the knives came down where they just were. They stuck into the wooden floor, splintering it. But Rudin quickly pulled the left knife through the wood, cutting it as it went, up towards Ian. Ian quickly brought his Judge around and, with one hand on the back for strength, blocked the attack. He held his ground as Rudin pushed into him. Then the general turned his attention to Sam and Garret on the other side. Sam rushed in and swung his blade, aimed for the general’s neck. Rudin pulled out the other knife, showering splinters everywhere, and blocked the attack. Sam pushed into Rudin’s knife hard, trying to break through, but Rudin proved stronger and he was quickly pushed away by the general’s mighty strength. Garret burst into action, pulling his Judge up into attack position. Rudin saw this, spun his knife around and threw it at Garret. He saw this and quickly had to roll to the side again to dodge. This bought Rudin time enough to turn his attention back to Ian, who was still pushing against Rudin’s other knife. The general raised his right fist, ready to smash Ian. Ian saw the fist rise and quickly thought of a resolution. As soon as Rudin brought his fist forward towards Ian, the boy quickly dropped to the ground, making the knife and fist miss him completely. He then rolled underneath the general’s open legs and hopped back up on the other side as the general stumbled from his miss. Garret, Ian and Sam all stood up next to each other, each holding their Judges. Rudin turned around after regaining his balance to find all three of them rushing at him. We got him. Sam thought. All three of them got ready to attack.
Then suddenly, Rudin leaped into the air. He soared right over them and did a flip. All three watched, stunned. The general landed on his feet and quickly spun around his left, knife ready. He brought it forward towards the closest victim.
Ian
Everything slowed down as the knife got closer to Ian’s chest. He watched in horror as everything he had worked for, all of the sacrifices to save his friends and world, were about to end at the end of knife. His eyes shut as his life flashed before his eyes. All he could do now was wait for the blade to find its target. It was all over.
The seconds felt like hours. He stood there, waiting for knife to strike. But he felt no sharp pain anywhere. But he heard two short footsteps and he felt air move by him quickly. Then he heard the general chuckling, very softly. He opened his eyes slowly, expecting to see the general right in front of him, ready to strike. But he didn’t see that. Instead he saw the back of Garret’s head. His eyes widened and the hair on the back of his neck rose.
Oh no…
Garret stood in front of Ian now, a look of pain written over his face. His knees shook softly and his arms hung limp by his sides. He tried to open his eyes but only managed to open the right one, barely. A droplet of blood fell to the ground and red started to go through his shirt. Rudin’s blade had found a target. It was now buried deep into the right side of Garret’s chest.
Rudin finished chuckling and looked at Garret’s face, a wicked smile on his own face. “You’re a fool.” And with that, he pulled out the knife quickly, also pulling a loud groan out from Garret. Blood came with knife and it fell to the ground. Garret stood there, limp.
“Garret…why?!” Ian said softly.
Garret turned his head slowly to look at Ian. His half open right eye looked into Ian’s eyes, a small tear of pain running out. But he managed to crack a small smile. “I told you” He said hoarsely. “Anything…for family and friends.”
Then Garret fell forward on the ground and didn’t move.
* * * * * * * * *
The room was silent again as Ian and Sam stared in horror at Garret lying on the floor. Blood had started to pool on the ground around his chest. Sam shook himself out of his daze and quickly got down to check on him. He turned Garret over onto his. Garret’s eyes were closed now and blood was all over his chest. Sam put his hands to Garret’s neck to check his pulse.
“He’s still alive…but just barely…we need to get him some help.”
Ian just stared at Garret’s seemingly lifeless body, lying there in his own blood. Ian couldn’t move or speak at all. This can’t be happening…Ian thought.
Rudin began to chuckle again and Ian finally snapped out of his trance and turned his head towards Rudin. His eyes were still filled with fear and shock.
“I must say…this is quite ironic.” Rudin said, finishing his chuckle. “With I being the one to kill you and your brother. It looks like I’ll get the privilege of having killed your entire family.”
Ian’s muscles tensed up and rage ran through his veins like his blood. He felt his hands start to shake and his vision was clearly seeing red. His teeth were grinding against each other.
“What the hell do you mean by that?” Sam spoke up, having seen Ian’s reaction.
Rudin chuckled again as he reached into his pants pocket. He fumbled around in there for a second then very slowly started to withdraw. His hand emerged in a fist, obviously holding something. He brought it out and brought it up to his face. He opened his hand so only he could see it. His smile got even more wicked as he closed it again and then brought it down in front of him. He turned it upside down and finally opened his hand.
Ian’s eyes darted to the two objects in Rudin’s hands and he felt thousands of emotions hit him at once as he saw what he was holding. In his hand was a female’s wedding ring and male’s graduation ring. Ian’s entire body was shaking now and tears started to develop in his eyes.
“As Ian can well see, these are his parents. When we ran a standard blood test on Garret, we found that his DNA did not match his parents. So we found the real parent; Walter Allan. We found that he and his wife were captives of the Empire and were held in one of our prisons. I went to find them. And when I did…” He licked his lips ferociously. “I killed both of them by myself. And took these two so I could always look at Garret and see how such a strong boy came from weak parents.” He turned his hand over and dropped the jewelry on the ground, a slight ding as they both bounced and then landed next to each other.
The room fell silent as both Sam and Rudin’s eyes settled on Ian. Tears were streaming down his face now, running down to the bottom and falling, staining his shirt. His right hand somehow found its way into his pants pocket. It went through and pulled out his father’s wedding ring and his mother’s necklace. He brought it out in front of him and his stared down at them, his eyes still tearing. Looking at them brought him back to the night of the secret meeting. I had been questioning even fighting the Empire then. He thought. His hand shook slightly as two tears fell into it, almost hitting the jewelry. I swore to avenge them. To avenge everyone that has been hurt by the Empire. His hand slowly curled into a fist around his parent’s heirlooms.
“Now let’s finish this now. I’m getting bored with you two-….” Rudin started to say. He brought his knives forward.
“No!” Ian said loudly. It caused both Sam and Rudin to jump from its intensity. Ian slowly bent down and picked up Garret’s Judge in his right hand. He straightened back up, never looking up. Then slowly he raised his head, his glare aimed at Rudin. Rudin’s eyes opened slowly in shock as he stared into this boy’s eyes. He could practically see the rage in them, roaring and threatening to tear him apart. Ian’s soul was on fire and there was no stopping him.
“You’re the one that is going to be finished!!” He yelled in rage as he sprang forward. Rudin was caught completely off guard and Ian’s fist slammed right into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him. Then Ian’s other fist, holding the Judge, slammed into him, not threatening with the blade though. Then the other one came back. Ian delivered punch after punch into Rudin. It was so powerful that Rudin felt himself being lifted off the ground. Then Ian’s left hand hooked up and uppercut him. Rudin was lifted a little higher, his eyes wide in shock. Then Ian spun around and delivered a kick straight into the man’s chin. Rudin’s head snapped back and he flipped backwards. He hit the ground hard on his chest and he let out a yell of pain. But he wasn’t ready to give up just yet. With all his strength, he brought his right hand around and threw the knife at Ian, aimed at the boy’s head. Ian saw it moving the entire way and knocked it away with the Judge, his eyes never leaving Rudin. Rudin let out a roar of anger and tried to push himself up. Suddenly a sharp object stuck itself into his right shoulder, pinning him down. He yelled in pain and he looked up to see Sam holding his Judge, stuck into Rudin. He groaned and turned his vision back to Ian in time to see the barrel of the gun from the Judge aimed right at his face. Ian’s face was emotionless, even though Rudin could still see the rage in his eyes. He bared his teeth and spit at the boy’s gun.
“It doesn’t matter. You’ll never stop us. Nobody ever will! You’re an idiot for even trying!” He yelled.
Ian narrowed his eyes at him. He opened his left hand, which now held the jewelry and also the other two rings that Rudin had. He looked at them. Then he looked back at Rudin. He bent down close, still holding the Judge aimed at him and reached around Rudin’s neck. He violently pulled the necklace that Rudin wore, holding the key to the gateway, emitting a grown from Rudin. Then he straightened up again.
“That’s what you think.” He said softly. Then he steadied his aim. Rudin’s eyes opened wide and he tried to open his mouth to speak. But no words came out. Ian growled.
“This is for my parents.”
And he pulled the trigger.