Agent 38: In The Making

Chapter 50: Farewell

Eight scaled the walls like a monkey, diving into one room, setting the bomb, and leaping into the next. It was fun, in a way. Three cheered her on from his perch with Aaron, boosting her confidence and strength.
     She'd go to any length to protect him, even if she gave her life doing so. She would never let him die, not on her watch. Nor would Eight ever stop loving him, like a mother loves her child.
     Eight flipped into the 74th test chamber, quickly sprinting inside. There had turned out to be a secret passage into the tests that led to the Station Platform, and she could set the bomb there.
     She peeked in from the passage and spotted two sanitized Octolings, which spotted her in return, and they instantly engaged. Eight drew out her daggers and quickly stabbed the both of them with ease. She slipped the blades back in their casing and grabbed a bomb from her forearm, gently placing it right on the Equipper.
     "Sayonara, mon amigo." She said, turning to leave.
     This whole thing had been easy so far, but she had a prickly feeling at the back of her neck that kept telling her something bad was going to happen.
     At first, when she'd seen the huge cavern, it was extremely daunting. But now that she was here, planting the bombs, she felt at home. Eight was so used to roaming these tests that she knew it better than the back of her hand. However, it had a cold, empty feeling to it now, like the eerie aura had been sucked out of the entire place. She barely saw any of the sanitized Octolings, which was very worrying.
     Eight slid sideways along the wall, daring to look down. She shivered. It was a long, long fall, and nothing but cold rock would catch her.
     Don't look down, She thought, breaking into a cold sweat. You can do this. Do it for the world. Do it for your friends. Do it for Three.
     She muscled her way into the 75th room, making quick work of it and scrambling to the next. She had to focus on the grip her fingers had, the traction her shoes held, to keep her mind off the excruciating pain sparking in her hands. Eight heard Three and Four talking over the earpiece, something about escape routes.
     "What if she doesn't make it out?" She heard Aaron whisper. "What then?"
     Eight shivered. He's right.
     What if I don't make it? What if I fall and die? What if we get caught? What if I ruin everything by accidentally getting spotted?
     What if my friends lose their lives trying to protect me?
     Sweat rolled down her back like a cold finger.
     Don't think like that. You're gonna make it. You have nothing to worry about.
     Eight was so lost in thought that she accidentally overshot the 76th test chamber.  She scrambled back to the doorway, pulling herself up. At this point, having climbed up and down and sideways so many times, she couldn't bring herself to put it in the Station Platform. So she stuck it on the wall and glided to the next room, and so on.
     Eight clambered into the 80th test chamber, a bomb in one hand and an ink-stained knife in another. She proceeded with caution, on high alert. She shoved aside the door and opened it up to the Station Platform-
     Eight gasped, eyes flaring wide.
     Tens of thousands of squadrons were gathered at the test, waiting for her. Each were equipped with blades instead of ink based weapons; Knives, daggers, maces, scithes, katanas, longswords, shortswords, you name it. Instantly, one by one, they turned their heads to glare at her.
     Eight felt panic creeping into her mind, her hearts starting to race, her body breaking out in a cold sweat.
     All together, in a battle cry a million strong, they yelled. "Destroy."
     Eight threw the bomb with as much force as possible and fled, starting the timer.
     She stopped at the edge, her hearts racing, and realized that even if she climbed up or down, these mindless monsters would follow her even if it took their lives. Having said that, she whipped around and drew her daggers, snarling.
     At least ten of them came for her at once, their weapons drawn as well.
     She dove around the first one, quickly stabbing it in the back, and leapt onto the next one, driving the knives into its chest. Eight jumped off the body and whipped around just in time to feel a knife slashing across her arms. She shrieked in fury and lashed out, not even caring who she hit or how, until one of them shoved her right off the edge.
     Eight let out a yell, terror filling her body.
     This was it. This was how she would die.
     At least I finished the job.
     At least I saved them.
     "Pheonix! Catch her!" She heard Three yell.
     Eight twisted around in midair to see Pheonix diving towards her. She flung her arms out, reaching for his spine- Eight was nearing the ground, chills sliding down her back-
     Her body slammed straight into Pheonix, crushing the air clean out of her chest.
     The bird spiraled up and away, giving her no time to recover as she clung to his orange crystal spine. Eight gasped for air, her body aching and bruised. It took her body a moment to realize it still functioned correctly.
     "Thanks," Eight croaked once she'd righted herself.
     "Anyday." Three said, relieved. "Let's go before we die here."
     "Go, I'll catch up to you guys." She demanded.
     "No, we're staying until you're right next to me." He said.
     Eight hesitated for a moment. "Fine."
     Pheonix gradually flew across the massive cavern, letting out small squawks of pain now and then. She realized this was because a bit of his wing looked weighed down, which was probably causing strain in his bones.
     Her eyes widened.
     Why is his wing weighed down?
     Right on cue, the bird's left wing cracked in half.
     Pheonix let out a screech of agony, no longer able to fly.
     They plunged for the ground at startling speeds, the rock bird desperately trying to wing his way upright.
     To make matters even worse, a sanitized Octoling burst out from under the bird's crooked wing, and kicked her right off.
     Her hearts seized up in her chest, her limbs frozen in fear.
     No one's going to save me this time.
     This time, I die for real.
     No one's gonna save me.
     Eight felt the daggers slipping out of their holders.
     She gasped, plummeting past the stagnant air.
     Except me.
     In one swift motion, she ripped the blades out of their holders and stabbed them into the stone wall. For a moment, she thought they would bounce right off, but they slid cleanly into the rock. However, she couldn't halt the momentum that easily, and kept falling, the daggers leaving deep scratches in the wall.
      Eight dug them in a little further, curling around the hilts of both blades, the toes of her shoes creating friction against the rough stone, until she finally stopped.
     She breathed a sigh of relief, her teeth unclenching.
     That was close, Her thoughts whispered.
     Then she saw the horde of sanitized Octolings gathering beneath her, stumbling atop one another to try and get to her, like they were trying to make a tower. To her surprise, they were getting pretty close.
     Eight leapt up the wall, racing across it quick as wind. Soon, the mob was way down below, but she didn't exactly have a way to get out, so she kept climbing.
     One thing she forgot to think about, however, was the bombs.
     The realization struck her like a brick in the face.
     The beeping of 80 bombs in unison filled her ears.
     MOVE MOVE MOVE GET OUT HURRY UP GO GO GO, Her mind screamed.
     Eight hastily tried to climb sideways along the wall, her hearts racing.
     "EIGHT!" She heard Three shriek.
     She whipped around to see him lunging out of the ledge, Aaron pinning him to the floor.
     I can't escape this.
     I'm not gonna make it.
     Tears pricked her eyes.
     Eight held on to one dagger, jamming the other into the stone by her foot so she could stand on it.
     One foot stood on a blade, one hand held onto the other by her head, as Three yelled and thrashed under Aaron's grip.
     "AARON! GET OFF ME, YOU SLIMY HALF-BAKED CLAM!" Eight heard him yell. "I need to get to her!"
     "I can't let you do that!" Aaron screamed. "You'll die! I'm not losing both my best friends in the same day!"
     She knew there were mere seconds left.
     "AARON! GET OFF ME!"
     "No!"
     Eight knew she was going to die.
     "EIGHT!" Three roared.
     This is the end.
     A single moment of silence.
     A thundering BOOM! Shook the walls. And then another, and another, and another, the stone crumpling inwards into a massive heap on the ground below.
     The daggers unhinged from the wall.
     Eight met his eyes from her spot on the wall as it collapsed.
     "Three," Eight whispered, tears streaming down her face. "I love you."
     "NO!"
     And then she fell on one falling boulder, and another, until she hit the ground, and the rocks piled up on top of her, and the world went black.