50 States of Mind ~ Hetalia Fanfic

Chapter 22: The End Pt 1 of 2

Chapter 22: The Final Battle (Pt 1 of 2)

(A/N: Thank you all for being patient with me. I have typed this chapter on my phone and it may have grammatical errors... Not that I proofread my work before anyway. Please enjoy the final chapter of 50 States of Mind part one.)

The sky was too beautiful for the bitterness that engulfed them that fateful evening. Where it blushed, they only saw blood. Where it bled violet and sapphire, all they could see were bruises on a fragile canvas. The states were weary, wary, and above all, afraid.

Afraid to lose and afraid to win. Afraid to fall and afraid to fly.

But they had no choice. It was time to face that dark, empty void that dwelled in each of their bodies. It was time to fight the chaos that was them. Another side of them. A second player to a first player.

America peered with disgust over the dark rim of his glasses, his lips dipping with hatred. A few feet away stood a man who was him but was not him. This man wore a crooked smile America could never have created, his eyes dark and aglow with sadistic satisfaction. A bat, stained with scarlet and beaten by time, was pressed gently against his right shoulder. America loaded the pistol in his hand. It was time.

"Charge!"

"Let's have some fun!" The man who was not America howled with a wicked laugh. America slung his gun forward like a slingshot, unloading five bullets into the air before him. The metal blew past the second player of America, a man simply called 'Al'. Al threw back his head and laughed.

"This is good, too good!" He chuckled as he rushed forward. He ran at different angles, swinging his bat as if it were an axe. America swiveled his head from side to side, twisting his body to avoid the blows. Al's swings became more and more forceful and the wind screamed as he broke through it. Without his knowing, America had backed against his tree. He tensed when his foot hit a root.

Al charged like a rhino. His weapon came crashing toward America like a meteor. America leaped out of the way. The bat smashed against the tree. It shattered, its pieces scattering around the duo. The second player of America paused in his assault, his ruby irises fully exposed as he looked at the remnants of his weapon.

America watched as the chaotic man's body shook as though rattled by thunder. It was in this moment that America realized how truly unstable the second players were. When Al turned to face him, his face was transformed by wrath, his expression resembling that of a caged beast. His eyes narrowed on his prey and he ran at him with amazing speed. It was a speed America himself didn't possess, fueled by the explosive temper of a psychotic man. It was... Repulsive.

Focusing his pistol on Al, America withdrew a deep breath. Concentration willed sweat to his face. The evening air was bitter and cold as he wrapped his finger around the trigger. Al didn't even seem to notice in his grief. America trembled.

Eyes wide like a hawk, his gave in to the hatred in his heart.

A sound more earth shattering than an explosion broke through the air.

-OoooooooooO-

Hawaii lifted her head at the sound of a gunshot. It was America, she knew. A cool wave of reassurance flooded through her the second it went off. Weight was lifted off her shoulders.

The relief was short lived as a calloused fist was rammed into the side of her face. Hawaii was sent spiraling backwards under the impact. She jammed her hands into the frosted earth to stop herself from flying further, her eyes clouded by determination. Standing just before her, hair wild and body language hostile, was her second player, Leilani.