Day break, high noon, dozens of recon units having gathered around the area. Having reported via a wire regarding the incident, additional orders were distributed with other scout groups moving in combing the area to find more, the train under guard by several, the Vice-Conductor working heavily upon it alongside other volunteered workers.
-
Off near the riverside, Ellie sitting at the bank alone, legs curled up, arms wrapped around, staring across the river, Shawn standing right behind her, having arrived mere seconds before.
“So… it all makes sense now, doesn’t it?” she’d murmur.
“Yeah… to think you’re a Darkling.”
“What are you waiting for then? Shouldn’t you be cutting me down? No one would know.”
“I won’t do that.”
“Why not? I am the object of your vendetta, the reason why you fight.”
“Hmph… you’re not it. As far as I know, you haven’t killed anyone, you’ve simply withheld information.”
“Why? Why not just kill me now!? I’m no different than the Darkling you’ve seen up till now, isn’t that right!?”
Silence, moments of silence, glancing back waiting, Shawn remaining without motion, a sigh soon to leave, “You’re wrong Ellie… I may not know as much about you as I should to make a confident comment but I can tell you’re not like many of the others. You actually care, unlike Zedd who I assume is also a Darkling.”
“I might not have, in my life I’ve only killed six humans, three being the ones who killed my mother, the other two in training, the last by accident. He actually has killed for sport but it doesn’t matter. He got the Conductor, he’s sabotaged and killed plenty. If you blow the whistle on him, I’ll go down anyway so you should just do it.”
”No.”
“Why not?!” came her shout, turning round with an angered expression though slowly turning to one of shocked, a sad look returned by Shawn, “I won’t do that to you Ellie… while it’d be valuable intel if he were captured, I’d rather just kill him. His body would just disappear and I could claim a Darkling tore him away from the group. You’d be safe.”
“Why do you even care!?”
“BECAUSE!!”
Looking down, his face tense, then glancing back to her eyes, “You might have the body of a Darkling, the appearance of a human being fake, but your heart is a human’s. You have a human heart and that isn’t fake.”
Her face now with shock, eyes shaking, resting and looking into his, a sincere look returned, “You have a human heart that isn’t fake Ellie, that’s all I need to trust you. You’ve even saved my life. If you were a Darkling, even a human one, you would’ve let me die. You’re a human born a Darkling, that’s all. Your origin shouldn’t define you!”
“You… you don’t know what you’re saying Shawn, you just don’t..”
“Look at me Ellie and tell me. If you’re the same as the Darkling or Zedd then kill me.”
Shock flooding her, a spec of horror mixed, his voice continuing, “I won’t resist. If you’re truly like them then kill me now. I know your secret, I’m a threat, and I’m defenseless.”
“I… but… dammit, I can’t-”
“But I can.”
The unsheathing of a weapon and then the sound of water splashing on the ground, red running away from Shawn, horror upon Ellie’s face and shock on Shawn’s, Zedd standing behind, smirking, laughing a moment later with Shawn falling forward, crashing to the ground.
“Ellie, when you told me you didn’t want to do this anymore I didn’t know why, I must confess, but now I see why. You’re in love with a fucking human. Childish child, ABSOLUTELY CHILDISH!! Now, I’M GOING TO KILL HIM!!!”
“STOP IT ZEDD!”
“And WHY would I do that HMM!?”
“Because!! I have the codes we need. If you kill him I will take my ring and burn, undoing everything we’ve done for the last few years up until now, I swear it!”
“BAH!! You’re such a child Ellie.”
Sheathing his weapon, walking left leaving Shawn, Ellie looking down, “Let’s go Ellie, now! Arghast is sabotaging the train as we speak!” A sigh, her steps approaching Shawn, reaching down with a hand on his back, another disappearing below him for a second though near unnoticeable to Shawn, “I’m sorry...” she’d murmur, standing back up turning to walk.
Their steps echoing, “H-hold it!” came the shout of Shawn, both stopping, Zed turning back chuckling, “Ho? You want more?!”
“E-Ellie… tell me… what do the others mean to you!? What do I mean to you!?!”
Silence from her and a twisted laugh from Zedd, “That’s rich, a human asking a Darkling for their thoughts on a human. COMICAL!”
“Shut up Zedd!!”
Turning, red tears streaming from her eyes looking down, the tears dripping with hair covering her face, “Shawn… I want to thank you for everything… you just might have been the first friend I’ve ever really had. I’m sorry-”
Both turning, Zedd laughing, Shawn’s vision clouding then head dropping.
-
Eyes twitching, blinking, gradually opening, Shawn looking up into the world, bolting straight up, “ELLIE!!”
“Shawn, calm down!”
Arms wrapping around him pinning him back down, Francis’s and Stevenson.
“You were badly hurt.”
“It was Zedd… that bastard is a Darkling.”
“We know… he and Arghast short-circuited the train, leaving us for dead.”
“Those two, Jehkal, and Ellie, to think they were all dirty rotten Darkling right under out-”
“You’re wrong!” came his bark, looking right at Francis, “I don’t give a fuck WHAT you, the Church, or anyone else says, Ellie is NOT like them!! At the very end, Zedd was going to kill me but she stopped him. She left with tears in her eyes by force!”
“It doesn’t matter what she is Shawn, we need to take her and the others down, with lethal force if necessary.”
“I… I couldn’t, not on her-”
“But if we could, we could take them alive for questioning.”
“Where would we even go? They escaped man.”
“The scouts reported them walking along the old tracks on the other side of the river by the fallen bridge. Those tracks lead into the mountains. I venture to guess that we’ll find them there.”
“Count me in.”
“Shawn, in your condition-”
“I don’t care!! I swear, I will bring Ellie back with us if it kills me, I won’t let Zedd take her.”
“I agree with the boy,” came a familiar murmur, slowly standing, Officer Revan next to him, “When do we leave?” he murmured, though taking a glance to Shawn, seeing a white card sticking from his coat pocket, a bit of black liquid dripping off it. “Shawn, what’s that?”
“Huh? What’s what?”
“In your pocket.”
Reaching in, pulling out the card and opening it, his eyes filling with shock in no more than a few seconds, “This is-”
Revan approaching, giving it a quick look over, his also widening, “Contact the Church immediately!”
ns 15.158.61.51da2
