Only Words Bleed

Battlefield Part 3: Fighting To Hold On

"Sound the bugle now. Play it just for me. As the seasons change remember how I used to be.

Now I can't go on. I can't even start. I've got nothing left, just an empty heart.

I'm a soldier, wounded so I must give up the fight. There's nothing more for me, so lead me away...

...or leave me lying here."

Battlefield Part 3: Fighting To Hold On

Clem's Pov:

I'm too stunned to move as I stare at the motionless body at my feet. I can't even process what just happened because one minute I was on my feet then the next I'm on the floor and I feel like I've just witnessed something out of a war movie. I don't even have time to properly react to the fact that my girlfriend could have just possibly died a few seconds ago before I hear a sinister-sounding chuckle.

I look up and Violet's dad stands above me with the gun raised again. My eyes widen as I become aware of my situation and I realize that I could suffer the same fate. I scramble to reach for my bat so I can block his swing, but my fingertips just graze the end of the handle as I strain to reach it. But the hit never comes as I hear a very audible whack. I see the gun slip from his hands and he falls to the ground with a thud.

Now standing in his place is Louis who seems to be out of breath as he takes in the scene before him. Then all of a sudden he drops the wooden bat that I gave him earlier as if he had just realized what he had done. "Oh my god! What did I just do?"

"You just saved our asses, that's what," I tell him from the floor. I'm then thrown into a fit of coughs and I look up and see smoke is starting to funnel its way to us. I don't know what happened, but where there's smoke, there's fire and I'm worried the house might turn ablaze. But even if the flames didn't capture us in its burning rage the smoke could choke us in its toxic hold.

I quickly stand to my feet and I remove the gun from the equation just in case our attacker isn't asleep for long "Louis see if there's anything we can use to bind his wrists together. He won't be out for long." I tell him as I throw the shotgun aside.

Louis nods in affirmation and leaves the hallway to search the living room. Then I turn back around and lean down next to my fallen knight. I finally have a chance for my emotions to catch up with me and my heart aches for what I see. She had actually been struck down by her own father and I know for certain now, that this is not the first time she's played victim to the abuse.

I kneel down and gently pull her into my lap and I quickly check her pulse. It's there and I let out a sigh of relief, but I hate that things had to come to this, that she had to go through that. "Oh, Violet..." I whisper out as I hug her to my chest. I feel like I want to cry, but I don't get the chance to let the tears take over as Louis runs back and there's panic in his voice.

"Clem? Clem! We have to get out of here!" He coughs through the smoke that's starting to settle around us since it has no route of escape.

"What's wrong?"

"A fire has started. Grab Violet, we need to get out of here, now." He tells me.

I nod in understanding and I carefully lift the unconscious girl into my arms. I don't know what kind of injuries she sustained before I got here and if she went through anything like what I just saw, I know there's bound to be some damage done. I don't want to hurt her worse or agitate any wounds and it pains me to see her unconsciously wince when I lift her up.