Rebellion

Final Stretch

The Final Stretch

​"TAK!"

​That was the first scream that registered in his ears. He had watched that man leap in front of Chester and shove him out of the way. It was that elite that had died instead of Chester. Dave had seen everything happen in slow motion. He turned and ran with Tak and Ryan who had stayed behind to help him get to cover. Another gunshot had gone off and then there were only two people standing. He heard two cries of despair. One was a little farther off but he knew that it was Chester's. The second one was much closer. Ryan was kneeling next to his friend who was dead. Tak was gone now too.

​"Ry," Dave managed, "We have to....the others," he managed. Ryan nodded.

​"I know," he choked out and the two of them got up from the dirt, "I just....."

​"We'll talk about it when we can be safe," Dave said softly, "I promise you can have your time to grieve."

​Ryan nodded and ran with him. They reached the group where Bono was letting Larry bandage his side where Chester had scratched him with his claws. Brad was helping nurse the gunshot wound on Rob's arm.

​"Did you kill the bastard?" Rob asked.

​"Tak....Tak shot the other elite....well he was going to shoot Chester but the other elite jumped in front of him."

​"Well, at least you got one of them. One less to worry about in the future."

​"Yea that's true," Dave said, "Is everyone alright?"

​"Yea. Thankfully, the bullet went straight through," Rob smirked, "Just bandages for me!"

​"How about you Bono?"

​"Wonderful," Bono said with a small smile, "Honestly, I don't feel too bad. Stings a bit though. I forgot that he turns into that thing."

​"Can you guys walk?"

​"For a bit yea."

​"Okay. We're going to move further into the trees and stay out of sight. I expect more of those kind of attacks now that we're close."

​"Yea. It would make sense. Let's go," Larry nodded. They started working their way through the trees. He wondered why Chester hadn't followed them. He usually chased them for a bit. He remembered hearing that shout. Had Chester actually cared about that elite? Was there actually a heart in there somewhere? He looked over at the only person next to him.

​"So what are you thinking then?" Larry asked with a smirk.

​"About Chester."

​"The crazy tiger?"

​"Yea. I was just wondering if he had a connection to that other one. I think we called him Scott right?"

​"Yea."

​"I just saw.....I mean, people don't usually try to save others unless they care about them right?"

​"Yea true. Maybe you're right. But hey, I mean, he killed everyone we care about, it's about time it caught up to him."

​Dave nodded but couldn't help thinking the opposite in his mind. He didn't want to be a killer. Yes, he'd fight for his life but he didn't want to become someone who approved of killing people. He didn't want to find joy in taking away someone who was loved by another. And the more he thought about, the more he realized he'd done exactly that. He shivered at the thought and then called out to his friends.

​"Hey guys, we're going to stop here alright? We all need a break."

​"Yes we all do," Rob said as he sat down with a grunt. They looked worse for the wear. Dave knew he had the scars from Chester's claws. Rob had the gun shot. Bono had the slashes on his side. Larry was covered in dirt and some blood. Brad and Joe looked about the same. Ryan was a wreck emotionally. They were definitely a rag tag group of rebels.

​"I don't know if we can take another attack like that," Dave admitted, "How are we going to get through the buildings?"

​"Easy," Bono said as he leaned forward, "The buildings are not designed to fight a war in. We just blow 'em up."

​Dave stared at him in shock, "There are innocent people in there."

​"No, there aren't. There are only people in the prison and we won't destroy that building. We blow up the other buildings and then raid the main building and the prison. We free Mike, capture Mark and Chester. There you go."

​"Will that work?"

​"It should. It is explosives after all. Mark only keeps the people that work for him in those buildings."

​"Alright then," Dave said with a small smile, "Then that's what we'll do. Do you know your way around it good enough?"

​"Pretty well. I don't think he's changed much except for adding new additions."

​"Alright," Dave nodded, "I'm glad we have a bit of a plan."

​"Me too," Brad agreed.

​"We need a symbol," Rob said suddenly, "For once we take over. A new start, a new symbol."

​"Mike thought of that," Ryan said softly as he opened his backpack and took out a piece of paper, "He liked to draw a lot and this is what he came up with."

​The group looked at the piece of paper that Ryan had set down. On it, was a soldier carrying a flag with wings. It was......amazingly drawn. And it was perfect for them. Dave smiled slightly.

​"I say yes. That's perfect."

​The group nodded and Ryan folded it up before putting it back, "I think it'd be a good idea to put it up once we win, because we will win."

​The others agreed. But at what cost? That was the thought running through their minds. Who would be there to see that symbol go into the air and who wouldn't? Who would die in this cause and who would still be alive at the end? Dave looked around at the young men around him. He didn't want any of them to die. He'd already lost two of them. He didn't want to lose another. They'd all really made an impression on him. He liked all of them. He hated going into every day hoping that he wouldn't lose another friend and he hated staying up into the night because he had lost one. And that's exactly what they did. None of them got any sleep. They stayed up, exchanging awkward glances and staring into the fire. No one wanted to be the first person to go to sleep. Dave could still feel hear the gunshots echoing in his ears and Chester's screams. He shouldn't even be upset about it but he was.

​"Are we all going to have PTSD when we're done with this?" Bono finally asked, "Cause I didn't get it in the military and I really don't want it now."

​That brought a few grins to the circle and a few shrugs. A chorus of 'I hope not's' and 'probably' followed. It was silent again. And then finally Ryan snorted.

​"God, it's like an awkward lunch table at high school here."

​There were more quiet laughs. Dave gave the blonde man a smile and then they continued to stay quiet. And that's how they stayed through the night. Rob got a few hours of sleep since he'd been shot but everyone else stayed awake. When the sun began to rise, they packed up their stuff, snuffed out the fire, and started walking again. They had to make their way to D.C. and end this.

​"So, when we get in there, what are our groups?"

​"We don't have to decide that now, we just have to keep going and be on the lookout."

​Dave sighed as he saw the board that told them that they were now leaving Tennessee and entering Virginia. He smiled slightly. After this long-ass journey, they'd finally be where they needed to be and that was at the capitol. He grinned at his friends whose faces lit up when they saw him smile.

​"We're almost there boys."

​"Yes! Finally this boring part of the journey will be over," Joe said, "I hate walking."

​"One more state to cross, I think we can do it," Larry agreed. As they walked into the new state, things looked nicer. Most houses were still built. People were still living happily. But there were definitely going to be more soldiers. They couldn't walk on the empty streets anymore. Instead, they found themselves cutting through alleys and backyards.

​"Oh we are so going to get caught," Brad muttered as they ran through more backyards. People did have windows in the back of their houses.

​"Just deal with it. We'll be gone by the time they really know who we are," Rob said quietly. They made their way through at least a quarter of the state before they decided to rest. They were all tired.

​"Alright guys, rest here. In a few days, we're going to be right where we want to be. We're going to rescue Mike and we're going to take down this corruption. Out of it, a new government will be born. I want all of you by my side while we try to fix this."

​"And we'll be there," Ryan said, "Every step of the way."

​"Once we fix things up, I don't want to lead if I don't have to. I want someone who has the capabilities to lead, that knows how to run a country," Dave smiled slightly, "Bono, I know you said you wanted to rejoin the military but I would be much happier if you ran in the election instead."

​"You're kidding," Bono said with a small huff of laughter, "I never led a country."

​"No, but you know how a country works. You've been in the government for years, that'll give you some advantage in the election anyway. I'd trust you up there."

​"Alright I'll do it. But if I don't make it, I'm going back to the military."

​"That's fine," Dave nodded before turning to the rest of the group, "Here's to a new nation!"

​They all grinned at him and raised a fist in the air with him. This was it. This was his army and they were ready to go. Rob walked over to him after everyone had headed to sleep.

​"Hey."

​"Hey."

​"So, I have a message."

​"What?"

​"I have a message, from someone in D.C."

​"Who?"

​"I don't know. They didn't give me a name."

​"What was the message?"

​"They said that they were ready, whenever we made our appearance, they'd join us. I think we have more support there than we think."

​"That's good."

​"It is......," Rob trailed off, "That's why I can't let you do this."

​"Rob....what?" Dave scrambled off the ground. He didn't know why he had but his instincts had told him to get up. They were also telling him to run. Rob stood with a knife and Dave drew his gun, "You should've thought this through!"

​"I did!" Rob snarled before throwing the blade at him. Dave moved but it still cut him. He shot. All he needed was one shot and Rob was dead. The man that he had trusted from the very beginning was a traitor.

​"Dave what happened!?" Joe asked, "Why is Rob dead!?"

​"Rob tried to kill me," Dave said finally, "I....I think he was working for the government."

​"Oh my god!" Brad managed, "How did we not notice?"

​"He was good. But he did tell me one thing. He said we have support in D.C."

​"How do we know if it's true?"

​"We don't. But I hope to god it is."

​"Yea, me too."

​They stayed at their camp the rest of the night but everyone was glaring cautiously at everyone else. No one wanted to be the victim of a traitor. Dave sighed and then snuffed out the fire.

​"Come on guys. We need to sleep. If one of you is working with the government, just go ahead and kill me in my sleep alright? But I need the rest if we're going to have a good attack."

​"Captain's got a point," Larry said, "Everyone hit the hay."

​Dave was glad that the next morning everyone woke up without a scratch and they could keep going. They really only needed to deal with one traitor. And with that, they finally headed onto the final stretch. The war was coming sooner than he thought.