Anarchy [ Watty's 2016 ]

XIII: Jade [Short-ish]

Now, if I'm one-hundred percent honest, maybe it wasn't the smartest idea I'd ever had. In fact, it definitely wasn't. As soon as I threw the knife, everything went to complete and utter hell. Just before the blade could hit Pierce-and it would've been right above the collar bone, if my aim was true-Damien dropped Alex and shot forward with inhuman speed, knocking it out of the air with his own knife. Alex fell to the floor, coughing; blood still dripped from her neck, although it was a minor wound. My knife clattered to the ground in front of Damien. I made a split-second decision to rush forward.

While I made yet another stupid decision, I saw Mordekai run over to Alex out of the corner of my eye. He helped her up as I tackled Damien, catching him off-guard and knocking him to the ground.

Unfortunately for me, he recovered quickly. He rolled over on top of me, wielding his knife. I dodged to the right, just in time to avoid his attack; the tip of the blade nicked my ear. I took advantage of the opportunity and used his own momentum against him-I grabbed his arm and pulled it over my head, kicking up at him at the same time. He flipped right over me and onto his back, landing with a grunt. I scrambled to my feet and backed away, breathing heavily.

Will decided it would be a good time to comment. "Nice flip. But this is really important. Do you actually have the files?"

"Now really isn't the time," I said through clenched teeth. "I'm a bit busy. Unless you can help me out in some way, then we can talk later." I narrowly dodged a punch, but because I was distracted, I didn't notice Damien's other arm swing around until it was too late. He struck me right in the stomach, knocking the breath out of me. I doubled over with an "Oof!"

Mordekai decided he saw fit to join the fight at that moment, possibly saving my life in the process. He crashed right into Damien, sending both of them sprawling. On the ground, Mordekai gripped Damien in a chokehold, tightening his grip until he stopped struggling and went limp. He rolled to the side, stumbling as he stood up. When he glanced at me, I gave him a weak smile, still trying to get my breath back.

If I'd been wondering if Pierce was going to make a move, I needn't wonder much longer. I had just enough time to register Alex choke out a warning of, "Watch out!" when I looked up and saw him holding out a gun; as a matter of fact, it was my gun-the one that had been taken from me by the Official. I dropped flat on my stomach as soon as I heard Alex, just in time for me to hear a gunshot.

When I got back up, I was surprised to find that it hadn't been Pierce who'd shot at all. Instead, he was on the ground with a gunshot wound in his forehead. It was then that I noticed there was no blood-instead, there was a pool of oil forming around the body. Upon closer inspection, I saw frayed cords and wires in the wound.

"What the hell?" I asked, looking around at my friends. "You guys saw that too, right?"

Mordekai and Alex both nodded faintly. I heard the clicking of shoes on the gym floor, and instinctively crouched. A girl, who looked to be a couple years older than me, strode into the middle of the room. She had .50 caliber sniper rifle propped against her hip. Her copper-red hair was messy, and the look in her chestnut eyes was wild, yet she gave us an arrogant smile.

"Now, I couldn't just stand around and let you fools get killed, could I? Unless, that is, you want me to finish the job."