A/N: I'm working really hard to get this fic done in time for the deadline, so I haven't had time to update my other fics. This is by far one of my favourites, completely different then anything I've written, which is why I like it. Anyway, thank you all once again for your wonderful responses, and I'm glad you like it as much as I do. Enjoy!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part XIII
The sound of an explosion awoke her from her surprisingly peaceful slumber. The memories and visions had finally faded away, but now she had a whole other nightmare on her hands.
“Oh, God,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper, “They’re here.”
She thought that they would have given up, but she should have known better. One thing was for sure; she’d rather stay here and continue to be tortured for the rest of her life than to be made into a monster again.
The footsteps were loud and heavy, becoming even louder as seconds flew by. There was no place to run. She had shot herself in the foot with her previous idea that the world’s worst evil would give up the chance to destroy more lives… yet again.
“Thorne!” a large man with a black mask and gruff voice exclaimed, slipping the cardkey into the slot and releasing her, “Lets go!”
She knew she had no choice, like so many other things in her life, lately. If she was going to make her move, she’d have to wait for the opportunity to present itself.
She was escorted by one arm, past the two guards who had been watching her, who now lay dead in a pile on the floor. She felt a pang of guilt, thinking about their families, or if they even had any. Yes, Sydney was definitely starting to make her return.
“Which means I’m slowly starting to fade away…”
Not that any of it really mattered.
The light shone brightly in her eyes. It had only been two days, but it felt like two years since she had last seen the light of day.
“Get in!” another masked figure said, pulling up in front of them in a large, black van.
Three of the assailants ushered her into the vehicle and the door was slammed tightly as they sped away, exchanging one hell for another.
----------
“What do you mean, “Camp Harris has been compromised?”” he asked, not believing was his ears were interpreting.
“About an hour ago, a Covenant team hit the base and extracted Thor… Bristow. They’ve vanished off the map since,” Peterson explained.
Could things get any worse? What were they going to do with her? Kill her? Turn her again? How hard could it have possibly been to find a location on these monsters?
“I have to do something!” he shouted, jumping up off his chair.
“You’re off this case, Vaughn. Let the NSC handle this,” Peterson replied, pushing him back down.
“Sir!” an agent said, running into his office, “We’re found the vehicle and the team!”
“Where?” both men asked at the same time.
“Dead. All of them. It looks like the Covenant was ambushed while trying to escape through the mountains.”
“And Bristow?”
“Missing. A team is already there, cleaning up the mess and searching for her. What should they do once they find her?” the junior agent asked.
Peterson was silent, “I want her back in our custody, dead or alive.”
----------
Disposing of the guards was almost too easy. She didn’t know if it was Sydney’s expertise or Julia’s ruthlessness that contributed to it. She didn’t have time to worry about that, because she was making her way through the mountains and out of sight. Dawn would break soon, the sun’s light rising with it and tearing away her one chance at salvation.
“I need to find a way out of here,” she thought, “Safe from the Covenant and the CIA.”
Going back was not an option now. Even if she turned herself in again and tried to explain the situation peacefully, they’d still kill her for trying to escape. Evidence and time weren’t on her side.
Luckily for her, she had some contacts in the United States that were loyal only to her and not to any other organization. She would have to make some calls from someplace secure.
“The only way to go is forward… to Moscow.”
A rainbow shone brightly and illuminated the sky in such dreary weather, sketching out an inhuman course. However, what most people didn’t know was that at the end of the rainbow, at the end of the light, at the source, was darkness.
“I’ll reach the end; the darkness, and kill it.”
And once the source was gone, the rainbow would disappear.
----------
“Sydney, what are you up to?” he thought, pacing throughout his house.
Maybe it wasn’t Sydney. He was always pretty good at understanding what was going on inside her head, but this was Julia’s mind now. Sydney, he knew. Julia was a stranger.
“Michael,” Lauren said, stepping into the living room and handing him a cup of coffee, “Sit down. Relax. Tell me what’s going on.”
“There’s no time to sit,” he said, placing her coffee on the table.
What if the Covenant team wasn’t hit by an unknown third party? What if it was Sydney, trying to escape? There were no signs of other vehicles in the area, so it was the most reasonable explanation. If that was the case, he needed to find her before someone else did.
“No time for what? Michael, please, be honest with me!” she exclaimed, grabbing his arm, “What is this about?”
He couldn’t lie to her face. Not anymore, when he was risking his neck to protect someone outside of his vows, but further inside than even her. He needed to be straight with her.
“Sydney’s alive.”
She was silent, then sat on the couch. He could tell she wasn’t feeling upset, but… threatened.
“I see.”
She really didn’t, but there was no way he could make her understand. If he had more time, maybe, but not in this world. He needed to find Sydney and stop her before she did something she regretted.
“But she’s in trouble. Her life is in danger and she needs my help. That’s why I’ve been so antsy these past few days,” he explained.
She nodded, like she understood what he was saying, “Then go to her. Save her life.”
He smiled, glad he hadn’t hurt her with his confession. When he turned to the door to leave, he caught the last part of her sentence, “But don’t come back.”
He stopped. He knew this moment was coming. To be honest, he wanted it, but he feared it.
“Lauren--”
“I don’t want to make you choose. I don’t like to, but I don’t have to, either way. You’ve already made your decision.”
“But--”
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, smiling a sad smile, “I can’t begin to imagine what it must be like and I’m not even going to try to. I understand that I’ll never understand.”
He hated to end it like this, but he had to worry about his other ending. An ending that he wanted to postpone, with Sydney. If he didn’t move quickly, it would all be over. She walked over to him, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek.
When she opened her eyes, he was gone.