> IV <

  Rain began pattering against the walls of the hut. The rich, earthy aroma of soaked concrete filled the air. Natalie gazed up into the corner of the room while Kayce sat cross-legged on the floor in front of her.

  “Long ago,” she said, “a righteous valkyrie descended from heaven—”

  “What was she like?” Kayce asked.

  “I’m getting to that part, Kayce…”

  “Sorry…” He said. The rain fell harder, turning from a patter to a gentle roar.

  “The valkyrie was a beautiful young woman with long golden hair. She had these massive wings that were whiter than the purest snow and softer than anything you could imagine… She wore armor made of solid gold and carried a sword and shield.” Kayce’s mouth hung open—his eyes were glittering and glazed as they stared off into nothing. “She was kind and loyal and brave, and she was here for a purpose. You see, there was this little village that had been attacked by this monster, over and over again.”

  “The rabid wolf!!”

  Natalie smiled. “That’s right, Kayce. The rabid wolf. A massive beast with tangled fur, covered in dirt and blood. He had these razor sharp teeth that he would use”— Natalie lunged forward and grabbed Kayce in her arms —”to gobble up the little children of the village!!” Kayce screamed and squirmed, giggling.

  “More!” He cried. “Tell me more about the wolf!!”

  “Hmmm, what else?” Natalie grinned. “I know—he had these long claws that were like knives, and these bright red eyes that the villagers could see glowing in the forest!”

  “I have red eyes! I have red eyes too!” Kayce’s smile grew wider and wider. He leapt to his feet and began to prance around on all fours, growling and smiling.

  >>> ||| <<<

  His hunched form is ravaged, filled with glowing blue gouges that bleed out flurries of sapphire petals and digital dust. Blue cracks blossom across what little skin is exposed beneath torn rags and dirty bandages. A short, ripped crimson cloak is wrapped around his neck and head like a hooded scarf. Some kind of black screen bearing a blue, V-shaped symbol covers his upper face above his mouth and chin—he gnashes his teeth and growls like a rabid animal as the symbol glitches and flickers. Two halves of a broken mask dangle around his neck. The fangs on the mask that once glowed a bright crimson are now a dim, flickering blue. His dirty white hair has grown—it falls over his face, with a thick streak of dye that’s faded into the color of dried blood. He arches his back and lets out a shrill, broken screech.

  Kayce… His name rises in Natalie’s throat like bile. It swells there, just behind her tongue, and chokes her. What have you become…? Her body trembles. A sinkhole expands in her chest. I’m sorry…I’m so sorry… She shuts her eyes against the sight and grits her teeth, swallowing hard. Her fingers tighten around the handle of her new sword. Not now, Nat. Not now. Focus. She opens her eyes again.

  Dark clouds fog the sky of the coastal district of Strian. A tiltrotor circles beneath them like a metal vulture—its spotlight spills over Kayce’s shoulders and bathes the area around him in harsh light.

  “Shelter in place! This is not a drill!” a voice calls from the aircraft. “P.U.S has this situation under control! Remain calm!”

  Kayce stands on the ruined hood of a battered armored truck, his head snapping about as he searches for prey. Beneath his heel is the broken body of an Enforcer, missing its left arm and covered in deep, smoking gashes. Several more identical bodies are scattered around the vehicle among their discarded weapons.

  As her gut tightens, Natalie retracts the faceguard of her helmet and steps forward. She pulls in a sharp breath.

  “KAYCE!!”

  Kayce freezes. He turns and stares at her, unmoving. Two blazing spots of red light emerge beneath the symbol covering his face. They flicker and make small movements as they scan over her.

  “N-N-Nat-ta-talie?” His voice is like a corrupted recording: it’s hollow and metallic; riddled with artificial echo and staggering over syllables. The trembling, hollow maw in Natalie’s chest opens wider. Invisible needles prick every inch of her body.

  “Yes, Kayce…it’s me…” She steps forward, arm raised and ready to summon her shield.

  “Y-Y-you should-d be d-dead-d…” he says. His arms hang limp at his sides, clutching worn, curved knives that shimmer with sapphire light. “I…I k-killed…you…”

  “You did, yes…but I’m here now. I’m here to help you.”

  “N-no…you…you…aren’t-t real…” His hands fly up to cover his face. He hunches over, twitching and mumbling and sobbing. “Th-this is…your fault…your fault…”

  “Please, Kayce…I’m real…” Natalie’s hand shifts to her belt, where the autojector hangs. Her shaky voice stumbles over her tongue. “Just let me help you…” She takes another step closer. Then another. And another. He’s almost in range now.

  “If…if you’re r-real…th-then…then…” Kayce’s breathing quickens, rasping through his teeth. He begins to twitch more. His knuckles curl, digging his fingers into his face beneath the flickering screen as his hands tighten around the handles of his knives. “Then…I’ll…”

  “Kayce, don’t…just—”

  His arms fly out to his sides as he crouches low, ready to spring forward. His ruby eyes are blazing bright beneath the symbol obscuring his face. He screams. “THEN I’LL JUST KILL YOU AGAIN!!”

  >>> ||| <<<

  “Alright, Kayce, that’s enough. Let’s get back to the story,” Natalie sid through a chuckle. Kayce gave a small groan, then hopped back over and plopped down onto the beanbag next to hers. He yawned and settled, still staring up at her through glittering eyes.

  “Why was the wolf attacking the village?” Kayce asked.

  “Well, that’s exactly what the valkyrie wanted to know,” Natalie said. “She flew far and wide over the forest until she found him, feasting on another animal. She descended and asked him ‘oh, wolf, why must you prey upon the innocent?’ And the wolf replied ‘Because mankind took my home from me when they built that village, so they must pay!’”

  “Why would they take his home from him? Didn’t they know he lived there?”

  “Because the people who built that village thought he was worth less than them. But the valkyrie said to the wolf: ‘the children have nothing to do with the decisions of their elders! Spare their lives and I shall see to it that true justice is served!’”

  “That isn’t fair, though…” Kayce said. “The people took his home from him.”

  Natalie smiled and pulled Kayce close. “The wolf thought that way too.”

  “Then why didn’t the Valkyrie take his side?”

  “Because, Kayce, one wrong doesn’t justify another. If someone went and hit you, would you do the same to me?”

  “Well…no…but you didn’t hit me!”

  “Right, and the children of that village didn’t take the wolf’s home from him. So why should they be punished for someone else’s actions?”

  Kayce is silent for a moment. “I think I get it…”

  “Good,” Natalie kissed the top of her little brother’s head. “But the wolf,” she continued, “didn’t see it the same way as you and I. So he attacked the Valkyrie.”

  >>> ||| <<<

  Clank! BWEEE! Natalie’s faceguard slams down as she ignites her sword.

  “Kayce, don’t make me do this…” She takes a stance and summons her golden hardlight shield in front of her. THOOM! THOOM! THOOM! A war dum hammers through the current of blood behind her ears. She tightens her grip on her weapon. “Please…”

  Kayce takes a step forward, then freezes. The knives fall from his hands and clatter over the pavement. His red eyes vanish behind the digital veil again. He clutches at his head and screams, lurching forward and tumbling off the hood of the truck. When he hits the ground, he begins to writhe and spasm.

  “N-NO!!” He cries, “D-DON’T G-G-GO! PLEASE!! I’LL B-BE G-GOOD! N-NO…NO MORE FIGHT-TING…I PR-PROMISE!!” The sight of Kayce rolling and sobbing on the ground closes an invisible fist around Natalie’s heart and squeezes. She extinguishes her sword and clips it to her belt. As she steps forward, he rolls to his knees and begins crawling toward the armored truck.

  “Kayce—”

  SKREETCH! Kayce grabs the open rear passenger door and tears it free of the vehicle.

  “SHUT-T UP…SHUT…SHUT UP!!” Kayce spins and heaves the door at her. Natalie ducks. The steel panel breaks the air over her head and crashes through the window of a nearby shop. “You aren’t her…you aren’t her…I k-killed her…NO!! K-KEEP IT…TO-TOGETHERRR…” Kayce rears back then brings his head down against the pavement. CRACK! The symbol over his face flickers again and the blazing red lights of his eyes reemerge. He stands, panting, and picks up his knives. “This…this time…” He shakes his head. “This time…”

  “Kayce, you need to stop…someone’s gonna get hurt!” Natalie says.

  “I’M GONNA MAKE SURE YOU STAY DEAD!” Kayce flies forward. Natalie brings up her shield in time to block both of his knives as they arc down toward her face. KRANG!! The impact forces her arm back against her body, and she stumbles backward. In a blur of movement, Kayce rolls to the left and steps past her.

  Dammit, MOVE! Too late. He seizes one of the hardlight wing-blades on her back. Natalie is jerked off her feet and flung. The world blurs around her. Her head meets something solid. A crash fills her ears as the surface gives, accompanied by a sound like a thousand windchimes hitting the concrete. She slams through another surface that splinters around her and drives a rod of dull pain into her spine, before she impacts the ground. Stars blaze to life before her eyes and fade out the moment she blinks. She’s lying on her back, atop the fractured remains of a mahogany coffee table. Bits of broken glass fall like crystalline raindrops from the jagged edge of the window she’d sailed through. Men and women gather around her, wide eyed and mouths agape. Natalie groans and commands her aching body to rise. When did he get so strong…?

  “The hell are you waiting for?” she says. “This isn’t some live show! Get out of here!” The crowd stays a moment longer.

  Kayce roars. Someone screams. Before Natalie can get on her feet, he’s on her again, pinning her down under his foot. The crowd disperses, fleeing and crying in all directions. Some spill out through the cafe’s door; others, through the shattered window. Kayce raises a knife over his head and snarls.

  “Kayce…STOP!” He brings the blade down. Natalie catches his wrist. The tip of the curved knife grinds over the gauntlet covering her forearm. He presses down harder. Natalie jerks her head to the side and releases his wrist. Kayce falls forward, off balance. KRANG! The knife slams into the ground. Natalie folds her legs around his waist and throws her body weight to the right. Kayce tumbles. Natalie rolls over him. As her brother flails and screeches, his hand tears the autojector free of her belt, knocking it away.

  No, no, NO! Natalie dives for it, grabbing it and resecuring it to her belt. She climbs to her feet and lunges for Kayce. Her hands close around his wrists, but before she can complete the pin, Kayce pulls his legs up and plants both feet against her chest. She’s thrown backward against the wall—the bricks crater around her and the air flees her lungs.

  She falls to the ground and someone stifles a scream beside her—a young woman is hiding behind a chair, tears streaming down her face. Her eyes are wide and she rocks in place, muttering to herself.

  “I don’t wanna die…I don’t wanna die, I don’t wanna die…”

  “Hey, it’s okay…it’s okay,” Natalie says pulling herself up, “I’ll protect you, I have the situation under con—”

  Kayce shrieks. His shoulder slams into Natalie’s gut and drives the air from her lungs once more. The wall explodes behind her as the two crash through it and into an adjacent shop. More people scream and flee. People are pouring out of buildings across the street now. Cars honk and speed up the road. Kayce’s hand closes around Natalie’s throat and he lifts her off the ground. The world blurs again. She sails through another window and collides with the side of a parked car. KREECH! Tires squeal. Metal screams as it caves against her body. Kayce emerges through the broken window. He lunges. Natalie throws herself out of the way and rolls to her feet. BAM! He collides with the car. She grabs his left wrist in one hand and plants the other against his scalp, pinning him against the vehicle and twisting his arm behind his back.

  “Stop, Kayce! Just stop! Before someone gets killed!”

  “You…can’t save…them…”

  “This has nothing to do with these people. I won’t let you do this.”

  “You…can’t…STOP ME!” Kayce twists. Krikk! He dislocates his shoulder and brings the elbow of his other arm back against Natalie’s helmet. CRAKK! Dull pain floods her skull. Black spots swim through the space between them as Natalie stumbles backward, clutching her head. Kayce grunts as he forces his shoulder back into the socket.

  Natalie shakes off a wave of dizziness. “Dammit, Kayce, I’m trying to save you here!”

  “I don’t need saving!” Kayce shouts. He rushes forward. “I don’t NEED YOU!!” He tackles her to the ground, drawing a knife and plunging it toward her skull. Natalie jerks her head out of its path, and the blade grazes the side of her helmet and sinks into the concrete. Natalie brings her arm up and across. Her fist connects with his jaw and he tumbles off of her. She springs on top of him and tries once again to pin him.

  “I can’t…” Natalie says through gritted teeth. Kayce writhes and claws at her. “I can’t…let you hurt anyone else! This isn’t you, Kayce, please!”

  A ribbon of blue light sails toward her face. The sapphire blade of his other knife clips her faceguard. She jerks back. Kayce seizes the moment to throw her off and retrieve his other knife.

  “You…still…spewing th-that nonsense?” Kayce begins to stand, but screams and clutches his head. His eyes disappear behind the symbol again. “I D-DON’T WANT-T TO…TO…B-BE ALONE…” The broken voice bubbles up from within him, like an echo in reverse. He roars and slams his head against the pavement again. CRACK! “STUPID…STUPID!! ALWAYS… ALWAYS WAS…ALONE…”

  Natalie stands and pulls the autojector from her belt. She steps forward. “You’re not alone, Kayce. I’m right here. I’m gonna make everything better…I promise…”

  Kayce hammers the sides of his head with his fists. “P-PROMISES…WORTHLESS…” He begins to sob. His body quakes. “CAN’T…CAN’T REMEM…REMEMBER…”

  “It’s okay…” Natalie kneels and levels the autojector with his neck. “Whether you believe me or not, I’m on your side…” Kayce freezes.

  “On…my side…?” His hand closes around Natalie’s wrist before she can plunge the autojector into his flesh. His head flies up, revealing red eyes that burn through the symbol brighter than before. He surges forward, throwing her onto her back. The autojector slips from her fingers. SHIKK! Searing pain blossoms through her belly. Natalie bites her tongue against a scream. She looks down. His knife has punctured her armor and dug deep into her gut. He twists the weapon. A fresh wave of burning pain crawls up through her chest. She yelps.

  “If you were really on my side…? You would have never abandoned me to begin with!”

  Natalie glances to the side—the autojector is lying just out of reach. Her voice hisses through her clenched teeth. “You’re right…” She throws her head against his—her helmet meets his skull with a cold smack! Kayce reels back, releasing her wrist. Natalie snatches the autojector and swings it up. Clikk! The tip of the autojector meets Kayce’s throat and thrusts a needle into his neck. Kayce gasps. The device hums as it begins pumping the violet liquid into his bloodstream. He tears the device out, stumbling backward and clutching his head and neck.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  “W-what…what d-did you…?” He falls to his knees.

  Natalie stands. “I’m sorry, Kayce…” She grimaces and chokes as she tears the knife out of her flesh. Blue light leaks from the wound—she presses a fist against it and watches as Kayce collapses. “I told you, I’m gonna make this all better…after that, you can hate me all you want…” After all…I deserve it…

  Rain begins to strike the pavement, rattling on the roofs of abandoned cars. Natalie turns away. The street is empty—the doors of businesses hang open, and bags, hats, and umbrellas are discarded on the sidewalk. Rubble shifts in the ruined buildings next to her. The buzz of electricity drones in the air, getting louder. The tiltrotor begins to descend from the sky, still circling.

  A familiar, grating sound comes over it all—half-human, half-machine. Natalie’s heart seizes and her body freezes over from within.

  Kayce is laughing.

  It’s a laugh dripping with mania and delirium; with pain and sorrow. It’s distorted and digital, somewhere between a scream and a sob. At random intervals it pitches into a long, ragged droning noise, like a corrupted screech, before cutting back to Kayce’s broken voice. Electricity crackles beneath it. Natalie turns.

  No…no, no, NO…

  Kayce is on his feet, clutching a knife in each hand. His weapons are glowing brighter. Blue lightning arcs off them and lances across the street, cutting gouges in the cement and exposing pipes and power lines beneath his feet. Brilliant blue light and sapphire fragments pour out from his body in all directions. The bright crimson spots of his eyes are now blue as well. He stops laughing and turns, staring at the buildings around him. His mouth hangs open in an expression of childish wonder.

  His voice drifts from out of his chest, even more distorted than before. “I see it now…” He twirls and laughs. “Don’t you see it too?! Don’t you see behind the veil, how everything is absurd?”

  It didn’t work…why didn’t it work? Celestia said it would work!!

  “The world is sick!! THE WORLD IS SHACKLED BY THE ILLNESS OF PAIN AND LONELINESS!!” As Kayce twirls faster, more lightning arcing off his body. The places it strikes glow blue and disintegrate into shimmering dust. “I’M NOT ALONE ANYMORE!! I HAVE PURPOSE!! I WILL BE THE DEATH THIS DYING WORLD IS BEGGING FOR!!”

  What’s happening to him?!

  “HEY SIS!!” He stops spinning and faces her. “WON’T YOU TELL ME ANOTHER BEDTIME STORY?! ONE WHERE YOU WATCH YOUR WORLD BURN AS I KILL YOU OVER AND OVER AGAIN!!” Kayce raises both of his knives over his head. The air is filled with violent crackling. He drives the blades down toward the ground. “COME ON!! SING ME ONE MORE LULLABY!!”

  Natalie’s mouth flies open. She screams at him to stop but can’t make out her own words. She charges forward, summoning her shield. The points of his knives meet an exposed pipe in the ground, where the concrete had been torn away by the storm surging from his body. They pierce through the copper metal. Worms of electric light crawl through the wounds.

  “LET’S BE TOGETHER FOREVER!!”

  Fire blossoms from the pipe.

  BOOM!!

  >>> ||| <<<

  “Their battle was fierce,” Natalie said. “The wolf used his claws and fangs to try and kill the valkyrie, but she was able to avoid him with her wings! But she couldn’t land a killing blow either, for the wolf was nimble and fast! They each landed blow after blow, but never enough to bring their opponent down! But the wolf knew he was in a losing battle—he would soon grow tired—so he devised a plan!” Kayce gasped. “‘If I can’t defeat the valkyrie in one-on-one combat, then I’ll just divide her attention!’ the wolf thought, and he took off for the village!”

  “Oh no!”

  “The valkyrie pursued him through the woods, but she wasn’t fast enough. The wolf reached the village and began killing the villagers without mercy! The valkyrie was forced to choose between killing the wolf and saving the people from his jaws, and their battle continued as the village fell to ruin…”

  “Were the people alright…?” Kayce asked.

  Natalie nodded. “The valkyrie was very brave. She swooped in and pulled the people out of danger, one by one. But she couldn’t save them all. The wolf, however, was foolish, and got so focused on killing the people of the village that he forgot all about his opponent! He saw a little girl hiding, and dove for her, ready to snap her up in his jaws!!” Kayce’s eyes widened. “And that’s when the valkyrie saw her opening…”

  >>> ||| <<<

  Her senses crawl back in like a wounded animal returning to its den. First is the acrid scent of smoke, burning her nose and drying her lungs. She coughs. Her mouth is singed with the taste of iron and dirt. Rocks tumble nearby. Fires crackle and roar in the opposite direction. Beneath it all is a pitched hum and a sound like flowing water, accompanied by the distant twinkling of chimes. Her hands close around fistfuls of rock and dirt and ash. Cold rain plummets from above and crashes against her face. Natalie’s eyes fly open.

  The dark clouds are blending with darker smoke. Everything is bathed in the orange glow of firelight. She’s lying in a ditch by the ruins of a building—some kind of cafe or restaurant. A broken chalkboard sign juts out from the piles of rubble. Scorched rings of blackened flowers still dangle over its corner, obscuring a dusty message about vacation. Twisted metal bars rise from ruins like antlers, casting wavering shadows behind them in the light of the fires.

  A girl with white hair kneels over her. Her eyes are closed tight, brow furrowed with concentration and sweat beading on her face.

  Celestia…?

  Celestia’s arms are outstretched, hands cupped over Natalie’s abdomen. Her fingers obscure a ball of glittering light, like a little star she’d plucked from the heavens—the source of the twinkling sound Natalie had heard.

  Natalie begins to shift. Celestia’s eyes open and the star vanishes from beneath her hands.

  “Rest. You’re safe now.”

  “What—” Natalie coughs. “What…are you doing here?”

  “I came to aid in the evacuation as soon as I saw the news. Astral Sanctuary is setting up refugee and first aid camps.”

  “What happened…?” Natalie’s hand finds her head. Her helmet is gone. A fog thicker than the smoke around her lingers around her mind.

  Celestia’s brow furrows again. “You don’t remember? Half of Strian went up in an explosion. Your brother—”

  “Kayce!” Natalie flies up. Pain rips through her stomach—she doubles over. Memories pierce the fog in her head like knives, playing in reverse. Debris flying through the air. A shockwave punching the air from her lungs. The ground heaving beneath her feet. A fireball. Kayce driving his knives into a pipe. “Where—” Natalie grunts as another jolt of pain stabs through her midsection. “Where is Kayce?”

  “P.U.S is tracking his movements,” Celestia says, “but their hands are tied between securing him and aiding in the evacuation efforts. The casualty counts are so high already…”

  “I have to reach him…” Natalie groans as she begins to stand. Every muscle in her body is stiff. Every little movement stirs a fresh wave of pain to wash through her bones.

  “Natalie, wait—” Celestia catches her by the shoulder.

  “The tranquilizer didn’t work, Celestia…” Natalie manages to find her footing, before staggering sideways against a pile of rubble. “I have to find him…I have to find a way to subdue him.”

  “Natalie, listen, your brother is gone—”

  “NO! I’m going to find a way to save him, Celestia…you promised you’d do whatever you could to help him…”

  “Natalie, I can’t.” Frost crawls through Natalie’s chest. “Your brother’s condition is…worse than anything I’ve ever seen at this point. His body is overflowing with reverstring energy…I don’t even know how he’s still alive, Natalie. There’s nothing I can do for him…”

  Natalie’s legs give out. Her armor clatters as her knees hit the ground. Hot tears fall from her eyes. “No…no…I have…I have to save him…”

  A hand falls on her back.

  “Natalie…I can’t imagine the situation you’re in right now…but I know you blame yourself. You think that your actions are what created this monster he’s become. And maybe you’re right about that…but right or wrong, your brother is hurting. You are hurting. Your brother has chosen his path…a path that’s dark and painful. You have to let him go, Natalie…you have…you have to let him reach the end of that path…that’s how you help him, how you help yourself.” Celestia sighs. “Trapping your brother in your heart like this is not how you will find peace…you’re only destroying yourself and hurting others in the process. You need to let it end, Natalie. You both made your choices. You need to see them through.”

  See them through… The words harden around Natalie’s heart like molten iron. She grits her teeth and clenches her fist, driving it against the wound in her belly. Pain ripples throughout her body. With each blow, the resolution pushed to the back of her mind slides forward into clarity. She stands in spite of her broken body’s protest.

  “Natalie…?” Celestia starts.

  “I’m going to find him, Celestia,” Natalie says. “I’m going to stop him.”

  “Your wounds aren’t fully healed, I can’t—”

  “Celestia…I need to do this…”

  Celestia looks to the ground for a moment, then looks back up at Natalie, her gaze like steel. “Be careful.”

  Natalie nods, then turns and looks to the sky. Where are you, little brother? Tiltrotor aircraft cross the sky, searchlights twisting and scanning over the destruction. Her eyes land on one in particular as it circles, its spotlight fixed on one spot a few blocks away. There…

  Natalie begins to trek through the ruins. The streets of Strian have been reduced to a series of long, interlaced gashes scarring the earth—the explosion must have set off some kind of chain reaction in the gas lines beneath the roads. The buildings on all sides of the road have been reduced to various states of collapse, some more ruined than others. Broken glass glitters among the rubble like jewels set in stone. She passes a stuffed toy, half-buried in the debris. Its fur is scorched and matted beyond recognition, and it bleeds cotton stuffing through several deep lacerations. Up ahead, a pair of Enforcers are pulling an unconscious man from the half-buried wreckage of a car. His body is covered in glowing wounds.

  So much pain… Natalie swallows back more tears. And all of it’s my fault, isn’t it? She looks down as she continues to limp along. Maybe…maybe it isn’t…maybe it is…but I’m going to make it all right, either way…

  Fires lap at the air with their many forked tongues in defiance of the falling rain. The moon is beginning to rise behind the clouds on the horizon, painted a bloody orange color by the smoke choking the atmosphere. A short building gives up the last of its strength nearby. It bellows out a groan as its shingled roof caves in and vanishes into the flames roiling within. She’s getting closer now. Gunshots crack over the ambience of settling destruction. Metal screeches. Something inhuman lets out a shriek. She hurries her pace, ignoring the furious pain clawing up the bones in her legs. Her muscles grow hot. She unclips her sword and summons her shield as she rounds the corner.

  Her heart quickens as her eyes land on him.

  Kayce is walking toward an Enforcer standing between him and two civilians—a little girl with auburn hair and a grown man with short black hair. The Enforcer fires every round in its weapon’s magazine into Kayce’s torso—he doesn’t even flinch. Lightning arcs from his body and strikes the barrel of the gun. The weapon disintegrates into glowing dust that falls through the Enforcer’s fingers. Kayce darts forward. His hand closes around the Enforcer’s head. With a metallic shriek, he crushes it—it explodes into shrapnel, sparks, smoke, and glowing blue flower petals. With no wasted movement, he speeds forward again and grabs the man by his shirt collar, hoisting him off the ground. Like a streak of blue light, his knife slashes across the pleading man’s neck. The man goes limp, and Kayce drops him as his corpse begins to disintegrate. He turns to the little girl.

  Natalie breaks into a run. She ignites her sword. Kayce kneels and says something to the little girl as he raises his knife—Natalie can’t make it out over the roar of blood in her ears. The pain in her body is consumed by a brilliant fire that spreads from her heart. Kayce is only a few steps away. Lightning lashes out at her, grazing her cheek and shoulder. He begins to turn. She yells and swings. The tip of her blade catches his raised arm and cuts deep. His hand springs open from the pain and the knife falls from his grasp. He shrieks. Natalie spins and drives her foot into the side of his head, sending him tumbling away.

  Natalie glances down at the little girl. She can’t be older than eight or nine. Tears are carving clean lines through the dirt on her cheeks as she looks up at her through bright brown eyes.

  “Run.” The girl stands and begins to limp away, clutching at a wound on her thigh. She trips and falls, crying out. Natalie turns to help her, when a broken voice falls over her like an avalanche.

  “Back for more…?” She turns back. Kayce is back on his feet, laughing and wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. Natalie says nothing. She raises her blade in front of her and readies her shield. Kayce frowns. He’s quiet and unmoving as he studies her expression. For a moment, the blue spots of his eyes flicker red and widen. He pulls in a long, shaky breath. Something on his face catches the light: a single tear, crawling out from beneath the digital mask and dripping off his chin. He whispers.

  “Finally…” He grins as more tears pour off his face. “FINALLY!” He starts to laugh. “FINALLY! FINALLY!” He flies forward, knife raised. “FINAALLYYYYYY!!” Natalie raises her shield. He drives his knife into it. SKREEE!! The blade grinds over the golden hardlight surface and leaves a deep gash. The cut glows bright as the shield begins to heal itself.

  Kayce screams with laughter and begins to pound the shield with slashes, carving a jagged tapestry of glowing scars in its face. Natalie’s arm aches against the barrage of blows. She roars and forces the shield outward, catching his next swing and batting it away. While he’s off balance, she swings her sword up. The tip of the blade catches his chin and cuts up across his face, flinging sparkling blue sand from the wound. Kayce regains his balance and scoops his other knife off the ground. He brings it up toward her with a cry of his own, but Natalie catches it on her shield. The knife punctures the hardlight with a shriek. Natalie swings her sword again. Kayce hooks her blade in the curve of his other knife and deflects the blow. He tears his weapon from her shield and leaps back.

  Natalie charges back toward him. Every vein in her body is pumping hot lead to her heart. She brings her blade down. He crouches and catches it on crossed knives.

  “I’m sorry Kayce. I’m finishing this,” Natalie says.

  Kayce grins and giggles. “Good. I was thinking the same thing!” With the last word, he forces her back and somersaults over her head. Natalie turns in time to catch his blow on her shield.

  The sedative must be doing something after all. He’s not as strong or fast as he was before. She deflects another swing with her sword. Either that…or he’s just so unstable he can’t control his body the way he wants anymore. Either way— She stabs forward, the angled tip of her blade grazing over his collarbone —I can beat him…

  Kayce smiles wider. His fist flies forward past her shield and connects with her nose. Natalie’s head snaps back and pain washes through her face. Her shield vanishes. Her sword drops from her grip.

  “I’VE WAITED SO LONG FOR THIS, Y’KNOW!!” Another blow connects with her ear. She reels. “AFTER EVERYTHING YOU DID TO ME!! WHAT YOU MADE ME!!” Another blow, this time to the stomach. Natalie doubles over, and his knee flies up into her face, throwing her onto her back. “YOU’VE FINALLY STOPPED RUNNING!! YOU’VE FINALLY COME BACK TO ME!! YOU’VE FINALLY COME TO SET ME FREE!!” Kayce screeches and pounces on her, bringing his knives down toward her face. Natalie brings her arm up.

  The knives slam through her armor and pierce out the other side of her arm, destroying the shield projector and sending a shockwave of pain tearing up through her shoulder. Natalie traps her scream between her teeth.

  “M-maybe…I made a mistake…” Natalie says. Kayce pushes down harder, forcing the blades deeper through her arm. “But that doesn’t mean…I’m gonna let you…” Natalie begins to push back. “HURT…! ANYONE…! ELSE!!” She throws her arm to the side, throwing Kayce off balance. He rolls off and tears one of the knives from her arm as he does. Natale grabs her sword and reignites it, leaping to her feet. Kayce finds his own footing. She swings for his neck. He ducks under it.

  “YOU’LL FAIL!! JUST LIKE YOU FAILED BACK IN THAT DUMP YOU CALLED HOME!!” He swings and their blades clash. SKREEECH! “JUST LIKE YOU FAILED ME!!”

  “NOT THIS TIME!!”

  SKREETCH! Their blades clash again and again, like two wide ribbons of light entangled with one another. The sword grows heavy in Natalie’s hand. She grips it tighter and swings harder. SKREE!!

  “YOU’RE JUST ANOTHER PART OF THIS SICK WORLD!!” Kayce screams. “PLAYING GOD AND CHOOSING OTHER PEOPLE’S FATES FOR THEM!! I’M TRYING TO SAVE THIS WORLD FROM PEOPLE LIKE YOU!”

  KREEE! Natalie forces her weapon off his and swings, only for the blades to glance off one another again.

  “BY DESTROYING EVERYTHING?!” Natalie cries. “I CARED ABOUT YOU, KAYCE!! EVERYTHING I DID WAS FOR YOU!!”

  “YOU ONLY CARED ABOUT YOURSELF!!”

  SCREE! KREEEEECH!

  “I LOVED YOU KAYCE!!”

  “THEN WHY DID YOU LEAVE?!”

  Natalie brings her sword down with every ounce of strength she has left. It connects with the curve of Kayce’s knife. SKREEEETCH!! The golden hardlight blade of her weapon passes through his, shattering steel. Kayce staggers backward, dropping the broken knife. Natalie brings the hilt of her sword across his face. He falls to the ground and begins to convulse. His eyes vanish behind the symbol again.

  “N-no…no…” He clutches his head, whimpering. “D-don’t-t-t leave…d-don’t l-leav-ve m-me ag-again…Na…Nattie…”

  “I left…because…” Natalie pants and raises her blade over her head to deliver the killing blow. “...because I wanted to make a better world for you, Kayce.” The iron melts away from her heart, leaving it wounded and raw. Her voice breaks. “Because I couldn’t bear the thought of you having to grow up in a world that turned its back on you, time and time again.” Tears stream down her face. “But in doing that, I abandoned you. And I’m sorry for that.” Kayce’s breathing quickens. “But now it’s time for you…for both of us…to find peace…”

  “No…n-no…no…no no nononono…” Kayce spasms and claws at his head. Lighting lashes off his body in all directions. “I won’t let you…I won’t let you, I won’t let you…”

  Natalie swallows a sob and lifts the sword higher. “Goodbye, Kayce…”

  “I WON’T LET YOU!!” Kayce’s hand flies out and closes around his broken, discarded knife. He hurls it. It glances across the side of Natalie’s head—she yelps and reels back. Kayce flies to his feet and drives his heel into her chest. Natalie flies backward, crashing into the ground. Someone screams. She sits up and turns to see the small body of the little girl a few feet away, curled up in the fetal position among the rubble. She’s trembling. Kayce falls back to his knees, screeching and hammering the ground with his fists. “I WON’T LET YOU LEAVE ME AGAIN!!” His head flies up. His eyes are gone. The digital mask is covering his entire face now. He staggers to his feet, hunched low like a wild animal. His head snaps toward the little girl.

  “Kayce, don’t—!” Natale ignites her sword and climbs to her feet.

  “I’LL NEVER BE ALONE AGAIN!!” Kayce surges forward and leaps toward the little girl, hands outstretched like claws.

  “STOP!” Natalie dives onto her knees between them, sword raised.

  >>> ||| <<<

  “...and she swooped in and cut the wolf’s head clean off!” Natalie brought her hand against her palm in a slicing motion. Kayce flinched.

  “Woah…”

  “The wolf was vanquished, and the valkyrie helped the people of the village rebuild. But when her time came to return to heaven, she refused, vowing instead to stay in the village and protect the children there from any other evils that may lurk in the woods. And they all lived happily ever after!” She leaned down and kissed Kayce on the forehead. “Now go to sleep. Goodnight, little brother.”

  “What about the wolf?”

  “Hm?”

  “The wolf! What happened to him?”

  “The wolf is dead, Kayce, weren’t you listening?”

  “I mean,” Kayce said, “what happened after he died? Did the wolf go to heaven? It wasn’t his fault that the villagers took his home from him. He was just upset.”

  This kid… Natalie smiled and ran a hand over her little brother’s hair. “Yes, Kayce…I’m sure the wolf went to heaven…”

  >>> ||| <<<

  Natalie pants, swallowing smoky air. Her whole body trembles and aches. Sweat rolls down her face. The little girl whimpers behind her. The sword is heavy in her hands.

  Its golden blade is through Kayce’s chest, piercing his heart.

  He chokes and goes limp. His body slumps against hers and his head falls on her shoulder. Natalie extinguishes her sword—the blade vanishes from his body and the weapon clatters onto the ground. He slides off, but she catches him and cradles him in front of her.

  A tight pain in Natalie’s chest forces tears from her eyes, blurring her brother’s form until she blinks them away.

  “I’m sorry…I’m so sorry…” she says.

  The symbol over his face flickers. Words crawl from his throat. “G-guess…you…g-got what you…wanted…in the end…”

  “I didn’t want this…” Natalie says. “I just wanted what was best for you…”

  “What…was best for me?” Kayce chuckles, then coughs. His body begins disintegrating away. “All…I ever…wanted…was my sister…and-d you…t-took her from me…” He coughs again. “I’ll never…n-never…for…forgive…you…” More blue cracks are spreading throughout his body.

  Natalie runs a hand over his head and forces a smile. “I know…but you were always my little brother, no matter where I was…”

  “I…” Kayce’s voice is fading into static. “I…hate…you…”

  “I know you do…” Natalie says.

  His body turns to glimmering blue dust in her arms—Natalie watches it glide away on the breeze. She raises an arm to catch it in her hands, but the last of her strength fades, and she slumps onto her side. Wretched sobs swell in her throat and push their way out. Her tears roll into the bed of rubble beneath her. The cold spotlight of a helicopter washes over her broken body, as darkness comes and collects her consciousness.