Trust No One

Chapter 10

"So," his painful, exhausted voice broke through the sheet of silence that had been sitting there in the air (metaphorically),
"You all know me: I'm the killer who left you all a long time ago. The man who you were told to stay away from. Aye, I'm talking to those who had properly met me. The rest of you have heard stories - correct, I know these things. Those stories mightn't have been true. Let's just clear something up: 'true' isn't always what you think. The word itself doesn't always mean what you take it as. Life is not true. No one in this room is true. Most importantly, I am not true." Hiccup paused, then coughed heavily, and failed the attempt to hide the large amount of blood he coughed onto the leather gloves.

Everyone was silent; waiting in anticipation of what this man would say next. Then he laughed. That same laugh he'd used in the UCCD. He then continued,
"Thy doctors are pathetic, may I say. They were completely out of ideas at the sight of a man who desired everyone dead."
Then he activated his ability.
"Yes," he spat happily, "you will all die here."

The doors all slammed shut and transformed to a dark stone; the windows and vent openings doing the same. Everyone was stuck in the hall. The floor was covered by a terrifying black mist, and everyone activated their abilities. A girl in the room named Astrid Hofferson and her accomplice Heather Deranged. Both rushed towards the stranger, actually inflicting damage.

But the stranger retaliated much faster than they could've imagined, amd within milliseconds the Deranged girl was out cold. The Hofferson almost got killed if not for a dodge. The instinctive activation of each ability of all sixteen hundred students in the room turned out to not be in vain.

They all somehow fired at once, and it created such a force that the stranger was half killed and driven into a wall, turning unconscious and therefore losing his power over the trap.

Everything returned to normal.

Except from the pile of rubble in the corner created by a man who was covered in blood. His eyes, which were as dark and creepy as the great black hole at the centre of all creation, we're now closed, and if one could see inside behind the eyelid, they'd see the iris was emerald green once more.

Astrid's POV

I heard a tired sigh as I sat outside BMC hospital, and, looking up, saw Heather walking towards me.
"Heather! How do you feel?"
"I feel fine. But he took quite a beating," she replied quietly.

Nothing made me happier than to see his stupid body flying across the room like a ragdoll wearing an unstable jet pack.
"I asked them what would happen to him, and General Throk told me there was something they were going to try to do, like slowly introduce him to normal life here or something."

This did seem hard to believe, but from her tone of voice and state of health, I seemed true enough. Anyway, the general was the sort of person who'd do that. So yeah.
BEEP BEEP BOOPITY BOOPITY BING BONG BOOP!
(A very sophisticated alarm.)
Me and Heather jumped to our feet: everyone knew this alarm...

ATTENTION! ATTENTION! LETHAL CRIMINAL HAS ESCAPED FROM 1 UCCD #TRK45GYS672. HE IS CURRENTLY LOCATED IN CORRIDOR 42FGS. IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO SAY THIS THAT HE'S NOW IN CORRIDOR 42FGB.

Heather and me were already there, chasing him. I have to admit he was a resilient person; he's covered in wounds, blood and bruises but still keeps going. Little did he know he was about to come to a dead end. Leather, bloodied boots thundered on the metal stairs that led to nowhere, and the wall at the end of one of the corridors was getting closer.

Panting heavily, me and Heather watched as he struggled to keep going, and I realised with happiness he was telling himself there was a way out this way.

He couldn't be more wrong.

I laughed cruelly (I have to admit) when he reached the end. Heather already had her ability activated, so drew her dual-bladed axe. I drew my favourite weapon.
"It's the end of the road Haddock. Give up," I shouted, for once feeling power over him.

This wasn't the Hiccup I knew. That one would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. Hiccup breathed heavily, blood running from his mouth and nose. There was defeat in his eyes. There was also sorrow. And depression.
(They're kind of the same thing.)

Suddenly I felt sorry. I finally understood why he was like this. He'd fought for so long - longer than anyone - and now he had no strength left.

It turns out all he needed...

...was a friend.