Absolute and utter Henry Stickmin Randomness

Family issues

December 13th 1997

Sergeant Samuel Calvin

The facility was right in requesting some military presence while these artifacts were researched here. Obviously it wasn't enough. There seemed to be more thieves to catch than soldiers and guards were currently available. It was a change of shift... and the next shift didn't arrive while some of the first already left.

Sam was sure they were intentionally held up somewhere. Whoever these guys were, they weren't amateurs. That they got in at all already showed that.

Now everyone was running around trying to keep them from getting out again.

Sam himself was currently chasing someone through a storage area. Only footsteps and rare sightings in the light of his flashlight were guiding him. He was a trained soldier and he had trouble catching up with that thief. Loosing that guy now would probably hurt his pride a bit...

This seemed to be the end of the room. There was some free space between him and a shutter door. That was slowly closing. He swung his flashlight around, looking for the control panel and whoever was controlling it when he could see a shadow slip out from behind some boxes and run towards the door.

By the time he had his gun aimed and shot, the thief was already through the gate and he had to hurry to get through himself.

After rolling on the ground and hearing the shutter slam close behind him he looked around.

This looked like a small side storage, almost completely empty. Just a few shelves and various unmarked containers.

The thief was just a few feet away from him, laying on the ground motionless. Did... he get a kill shot from that distance? That was unlikely...

He carefully got up and stepped closer, trying to see where he had hit the thief, and to take a closer look at them in general.

A man in a black suit, brunet hair... Sam couldn't see his face.

He really couldn't tell where the bullet had hit, he only had his flashlight and some moonlight from outside, the others clothes were dark and there was no blood on the floor.

Even now that he was standing right next to him he really couldn't tell what could've killed the man. Did he somehow knock himself out when he fell? Was he alive or not?

Well, no matter what exactly happened, he was incapacitated for now. Turning his back, Sam surveyed the rest of room. Why did the thief run in here? There were some windows high up. Was he planning to get out through there?

He stepped towards one of the walls to take a closer look at the windows. Were there people outside waiting for this man?

He checked his walkie talkie but communications were still jammed. Really nobody had found a way around that yet? Shouldn't they-

Suddenly something hit him in the back of the neck, slamming his face into the wall. His gun fell to the floor and he could hear how it was kicked and skid across the floor.

"Not only a bad shot, a fool on top of that"

Sam froze mid-counter attack. He knew that voice... "... Terrence?"

There was a long silence. When he dared to turn around he saw the thief standing a few feet away from him and fidgeting with a revolver. It was still dark and he had now lost his flashlight, but he could still make out the others face. Pale skin and seemingly glowing yellow eyes.

"...what are you doing here?"

Terrence arched one eyebrow "That's the first question you ask?"

"Yes!" What else would it possibly be? He hadn't seen his little brother for three years, no one had seen him for three years, how-

"Breaking in to steal some priceless artifacts", the brunet brushed some dust off his suit "I thought that was the reason you were chasing me, so why are you asking?"

Oh yeah... "But... why? Did you get yourself into trouble? You could've just come to me if you-" "Need help?", Terrence snickered and plopped down on one of the containers "Do you think someone forces me to do this?"

"I..." Sam just didn't know what to say. He couldn't imagine his brother as a criminal by choice. He was a troublemaker, but he always felt like most of that was unintentional.

"Also, why would I come to you of all people? Because you were so helpful before?"

"I always tried to be helpful!"

"I asked you for help only once", the brunet was holding his gun with both hands now "and you did nothing"

"I helped you plenty of times before that"

"I never asked you though... and you never helped as much as you think you did-"

"I helped! You can't just-" he flinched when Terrence suddenly shot a container to his left.

"Do not. Interrupt me. Again", Terrence was squinting his eyes at him "You do not know even half the things that happened between me and my mother. You and your dad showing up just made everything worse because you were the son she always wanted, so she suddenly always compared me to you... Do you really think you helped with that in any way? And the one time I actually wanted and needed your help, you didn't even listen!"

Sam couldn't recall Terrence ever raising his voice before... he really was angry at him. But he had no right to be.

"I listened to you, I tried to help!"

"You told me to kill my son before he was even born!"

"You were both teenagers, you couldn't take care of a child!"

"That's why I asked for your help, asshole! But you just brushed me off, and now you're saying you helped? My mother threw me out, your father didn't care and we had no place to go", the brunet scoffed "A bunch of criminals are more helpful than you"

No, Sam couldn't let that one stand. "Breaking the law is never helpful! Why would perceive them like that?! Why would you join some group of filthy burglars?!"

Terrence just cocked his head and raised a hand to his ear. Could the thieves still communicate?! Before Sam could say more Terrence sighed and got up "I don't think you'd really understand, but... if you only have a handful of people who actually appreciate and care about you, you're inclined to stick with them and not try to return to a life and people you hate anyway"

Sam was boiling as he watched the smaller man pick up a black hat from the dusty floor. "How can you say that we never cared about you?! You always had everything you could possibly need! How can you be this unthankful?!"

Terrence didn't say anything, but before Sam could yell anymore there was an explosion outside and parts of the wall to his left collapsed. After the dust settled he could see Terrence standing in the newly created exit.

"Now that we talked, I hope you stop indulging yourself into the illusion that you were a good brother... and just focus on being a good father. I wish your kid a good life, Samuel"

He was fuming now "Don't talk down to me like that!" He charged at him as Terrence slipped through the opening. The chase wasn't very long. The moment he stepped outside, someone threw a smoke bomb and he couldn't see anything anymore, but he still continued to run. Sam wouldn't let Terrence get away.

But after the smoke cleared... he was alone. When he looked up he could see a small silhouette, like a helicopter, against the black sky. With something that looked like a rope ladder.

Sam could only growl "Damnit..."