Lyptic

Crimson

Sweat beaded at his forehead. His long hair matted to his face. His heart pounding.

"No" he cried as he held her lifeless body in his arms. Tears ran down blinding his vision. His 

heart broken. The embers of anger hung onto his soul.

A silent metal click pulled him closer. There it was again. Click click, a whimper of a thud.

What? His tears stopped, caught in between. "What was it?"

His eyes jerked open as he remembered where he was.

He sat up instantly whipping the single tear that ran down his cheek. His pain still lingering on 

the surface.

A shuffle beyond the door, sent him to his feet. Pulling the switch blade from his boot. The light 

had was gone, leaving utter darkness in the room. This left him knowing stab first, question later 

and fight your way out. His mood set on death. With a flick of the wrist, he was ready. He waited, 

the knob jerked, turning then stopped. Voices, from outside as he stepped closer.

Those that stay here are the most trusted. Who was betraying that trust right now? Bear pulled 

his knife from the stand beside his cot. As silent as he could manage he crept towards the 

doorway. The shadow was reaching for the doorknob of the laundry room. In a hushed voice. 

"What are you doing?"

Bear moved with swiftness. Spinning around and grabbing the figure's arm, a fight started. 

"What are you doing?" Questioned the figure. A swing and a miss turned into a head lock as Bear 

unknowingly missed a knife. A knee to the side, the fight escalated. "I will kill you, get the fuck 

off" yelled John.

Punches were exchanged evenly between the two. Each unfazed by the abrupt blows. Bear 

missing a blade as John swung. However, John was not as fortunate. Only to catch him with his 

blade. Slicing into the muscle of his side. His intent was not to do too much damage. Bear 

leading with a hook, sliced John's face. Giving him a long cut from ear to nose.

Bear grew more frustrated by the betrayal and neeed to end the scuffle. With an intentional stab 

to the hand, he pinned him to the wall. His large hunting knife going all the way through. A cry of 

pain. Kicking and pulling stopped as his hand started to tear more with each bit of movement. 

"Why" he questioned stepping back into his room grabbing a lantern to light.

"You made the wrong decision" bluntly stated John. "Then why go along with the plan?" Bear's 

frustration intensified. "I know you did not agree, but you fully went along with it" Bear 

continued with his rhetorical questions. "Yeah, and Henry stopped me today"

John admitted that Henry stopped his attempt to kill Killian when he was unconscious. He fully 

intended to find,trap and kill him.

"You should have never been in charge!" John trying to put authority in his voice. "Henry 

stopped me more than a few times from fixing the right to power" He continued. "Your presence 

intruded on my plans. I was suppose to be inside those walls, I deserved that. I should have 

never been left outside with these shit stains." His smug tone churned the bile in Bear's stomach.

"I will eliminate you, and turn these worthless freaks over. Getting me inside those walls. "I have 

people on my side, they will not let you survive past tonight!" He shot this point blank at Bear. 

"These morons will believe anything I say, and you will be removed permanently", he continued 

with his delusional bullshit.

Bear rolled his eyes. No one had questioned him. He knew some didn't agree but the only one 

who spoke out was John.

Killian stood ready, he could hear the fight. The door shook and the swift thud against the wall. 

He waited listening to the traitorous shit that spew forth from that dick. Killian had enough, the 

rant about being inside the walls, made him laugh.The laundry room door opened.

Bear holding the lantern revealed Killian's shocked look as blood trickled down the wall. Killian 

pushed his damp hair away from his face. He flipped his blade closed. "Let me guess you 

thought because you were a patriot, you deserved better? Do you suffer from Dunning-Kruger?" 

Killian snickered.

The crimson color leaked into the grooves of the wood panels. John, pulled and tugged at his 

hand. He kicked at Killian so hard it tore his hand clean through. His fingers disconnected. 

Flopping with a moist persistence disturbance that filled the small space.

Zero hesitation and with anger Bear lunged pulling the knife from the wall. He grabbed John by 

the hair of his head. He snatched him back. No fear, just a deep emptiness washed over John's 

face. The drop of the lantern flickered as it hit and rolled across the floor. One weak light 

illuminated John's astonishment as the blurred glint of scarlet across the blade plunged into his throat.

The spray of blood, encompassed the hall. A gurgling of silence fell between them as John's 

body hit the floor with a numb thud. The blood began to pool. Creating a lifeless pond of distain.

 The fateful puddle increasing and seeping into the floorboards.

The voices came from down the hall. Killian looked at Bear. His face was contorted in anger. His 

frustration stemmed from the fact that he had to kill one of his best men. Was the man's attitude 

beyond worth dealing with on a daily basis? A question not worth an answer at this point. 

Especially when it came to their entire mission.

Why he felt the need to lash out at Killian he didn't understand. Yes, clearly Killian is a force but 

Bear knew in his gut he would be worth having around. Bear intended to prove it but right now 

with this inanimate corpse laying on the floor it would prove more difficult. The voices in the hall 

set panic on a run through Bear. Just then a rumble and the lights came on.

The rhythm from the hall halted right in front of the departed. The wood tarnished a deep red 

wine. Bewilderment on their faces. Henry looked to Bear for answers. He searched his mind, not 

knowing exactly what to say. The knife still in his hand. Splatter of the event was the new 

pigment of horrid paint. It was everywhere.