Of Brick and Stone (open)

Aaly had been biased towards excusing herself and leave when the awkward silence started. She then blinked at Jonathan's remark and just smiled a little.


"I don't. My godfather sent me there while he payed for my school fees and my living expenses" She explained. She glanced at their locked fingers from the corner of her eye before looking up at them. So they had really come to love each other, their parents must have been happy because of that. Another marvelous thing decided by others, if she ever was to fall in love she was happy that it would be because of her own choice.
 
"Oh," Jonathan said. "How have your studies been?"


Before Aaly had a chance to answer three noble children came over and and interrupted the conversation.


"So you are Aaliya," the first girl said. "Daughter of the famous Aashan family. Wow your father was mourned. Such a brilliant mind gone like that," the girl snapped.


"Vivi!" Obsidian gasped.


"Oh she's just saying what everyone is thinking." The other girl, Amy, said. Then to Aaly. "You know you are causing quite the buzz tonight. A lot of people are talking about your return to District 1. You might just make it into the feeds."


"You have to excuse Vivi and her friends," Jonathan said to Aaly. "They just doesn't know when to shut up."


"Oh Your Highness. That is so rude," Vivi said. "But you should be happy with all the buzz you are getting


Aaliya. A lot of people would kill to be in your shoes. Isn't that right Hunter?"


The boy nodded. "Quite right. But that's not the only gossip floating around tonight." Hunter said. "Aside from District 6, we have you," Hunter pointed to Aaliya. "And then there's the pregnancy of Queen Isis. And we also have--"


"No one cares about your gossip Hunter," Jonathan sighed.


"But you will care about this," Amy said. "The Rennel's are here. And not just them, Noelle is here also."


That caught both Jonathan's and Obsidian's attention. They both frowned.


"Wait, why are they here?" Jonathan asked.


The Rennel's and Noelle were apart of a government group known as Fixers. In fact, a lot of the members of FlyBird were thought to be apart of that group. But those three were the best. Whenever something went on that didn't go along with the principles set by the New Order, and the government could fix it themselves they would be sent in. And somehow, it would all work out. The government denied the Fixers at every turn but Jonathan knew first hand that they were real.


"The last time those three were in the same room together, the royal family of District 8 ended up dead," Obsidian said.


"So one Has to wonder," Vivi said. "Why are they here now."


"Where are they now?" Jonathan asked.


"Noelle is over there," Hunter said pointing to the blonde woman who was talking with Lux. "And there are the Rennel's." Hunter pointed to the man and woman who were speaking to a girl, beside her stood a boy. Hunter went on. "Oh and that's their daughter, I'm not sure who the boy is beside her though."


"So that's Crisis huh?" Amy asked. "You guys know what she's named after right?"


"The Crisis of California," Hunter said.


"What's that?" Vivi asked.


"Oh come on Vivi. It was towards the end of the world war. Our enimies went into hiding in this small town in California but we didn't know who was friend or foe. So we just bombed the whole town killing 100,000 plus. It's this really dark moment in history that we're not suppose to talk about. And then they go and name their daughter after it."


"Wow," said Vivi. "How heartless do you have to be to do something like that? Let's go say hi to her!"


Both Hunter and Any agreed.


"It was nice seeing you two again," Vivi said.


"The feeling is not mutual," Jonathan said to the three. Then he turned to Aaly. "Sorry about them. They live in their own world."
 
Aaly tried her best to not explode right there and do something to them when they talked about her father but it was even much more difficult for her to retain her composure when they talk about Noelle and the Rennel's and she realized Crisis and Halo were standing right there. Since she realized that, she had just ignored the obnoxious noble children and her mind became a momentary mess. Would they know anything about them? Did Tydus, Trent and Thanos knew it? Did Shotgun knew it? How much time had it passed already? It had only been about 15 minutes. The knot on her stomach grew and she felt like throwing up, it was not nervousness, she had a bad feeling. A way bad feeling.. Even more when her eyes fell on Noelle and Prince Lux, which she had never liked either. All that chaos was going on her mind but in her face there was just a blank and calm expression.


"Sorry about them. They live in their own world" Those words brought her back to reality, which resulted on a sorta even painful feeling.


Aaly blinked when she realized those guys were already gone. She forced herself to process the Prince's words before talking "It's okay, I won't get mad at things like that anymore" She said with a reassuring smile as she was aware that when she was little she would snap extremely easily at any time. She forced herself to calm down and to believe that everything was gonna be okay, that Tydus and Trent had everything under control. She repeated over and over again Shotgun's words on her mind 'What could go wrong?'
 
Jonathan noticed that Noelle had left Lux's side and decided to excuse himself. "It was nice seeing you again Aaliya and I would love to catch up on everything that happened over the past years, but I really need to speak with my brother. You should stop by tomorrow morning for breakfast and we can talk then." Jonathan dropped Obsidian's hand and made his way over to Lux.


Obsidian watched Jonathan go and then turned to Aaliya. "I feel like I should apologize again for those three. What they said was rude and very inconsiderate."


"Princess," a servant said coming over to the two girls. "Your parents are looking for you."


"Really?" Obsidian asked. Then to Aaly. "Excuse me."


"Wow. That was, wow." Shotgun said after Obsidian had left. "Are you enjoying seeing your old like Aaliya? The glitz? The glam? I mean, you might even make it into the feeds," Shotgun grinned.
 
Aaly just waved at the Prince with a sweet smile on her face, hoping to never see him again actually. She was starting to feel he was not really a bad guy but he was still a royal and he was only nice to her because he believed he was one of those important girls in society. He would treat her completely horribly if he had met her as Aaly, the District's 2 rebel. If he had really cared about their friendship he would have wondered about her, instead he had just left her to rot on District 2 when her parents died and she was no longer of use to the Royal Family. Her heart was slowly feeling with rage towards someone, she once loved and though as her best friend.


She then suppressed a blink when she saw Shotgun making his way to both of them, trying hard for not a single hint of recognition flash on her eyes. When the Princess left after his message she relaxed.


The corners of her mouth fell, she was tired of smiling so much. Instead, she turned to Shotgun and gave him her usual grin, one she had gained over District 2 full of malice and complicity, one she would better not show to anyone while she was there


"Oh my, you servant dare to speak to me like that?" She joked for a moment, forgetting for the time being all her worries, her best friend, her real best friend, eased up her worries easily.
 
Shotgun chuckled. "Just don't tell the head servant. I swear he has it out for me." Shotgun's face softened. "How are you dealing with all of this? I know it must be hard being here. With all of them."
 
Aaly shifted a little before giving him back a reassuring smile "I'm fine. But hey.." She hit him softly on the shoulder "Stop giving me that look, it creeps me out" She answered jokingly but then blinked when everything came back to mind and she lowered her voice "Shotgun, that blond woman of the raid is over here, you know Noelle whatever, as well as those brats from District 5. I don't like FlyBird being here at all much less that there seems to be these two people that are with them... you know the fixers" They had heard about them as well in District 2 and knew it by heart that they were real "Be careful. Do Trent and Tydus know about that?" She bit her lip, afraid that they didn't. She glanced at the clock still 6 more minutes to go.
 
Shotgun glances around the room spotting everyone Aaly had just mentioned. "Oh man, this just got very serious." Shotgun turned back to Aaly. "I have no idea if Trent or Tydus know that they are here. If Crisis or Halo recognizes us," Shotgun stopped to think. "Maybe we should start earlier before someone recolonizes us and finds out what we're up to. "I don't even want to know what the fixers are up to. Did Trent or Tydus say where they went off to?"


Halo and Crisis stood listening to three noble children go on and on about the gossip of the night. Crisis responded back and at some parts seemed really interested. But Halo just wanted to shoot himself in the head. Why did he come here? He could have been at home. He could have been anywhere but no, he was here listening tho things that he could care less about. Halo did however laughed when the girl, Vivi was it? Mentioned the meaning behind Crisis's name. She looked like she was ready to punch the girl in the face and Vivi got an ear full from Crisis about not assuming the reason why her parents named her that or and how she could care less about what they thought.


"Wow, we were only kidding," Amy said rolling her eyes. "I mean not even Aaliya got this mad when we asked her about her family."


"I sorry," Crisis asked. "Did you say Aaliya?" surly it couldn't be the same girl from District 2. Crisis shook her head of course it wasn't. There was more then one person named Aaliya in the world.


"You've heard of her?" Hunter asked. "Yup, she's back in District one." The noble boy pointed her out.


Crisis's and Halo's mouth both dropped. If they didn't know any better, they would have just thought that the girl and the servant standing next to her were just normal people at the ball. But they did know better. Ever with the blonde hair and pretty dress, they were not fooling Crisis.


"The bitch got a new eye," Crisis muttered to herself.


"Excuse me?" Vivi asked.


Crisis turned back to her. "Nothing, sorry. I just need some fresh air." Crisis left the three and headed in Aaly's direction but was stopped by Halo grabbing her arm.


"Halo? We have to go see what their up to."


"I know," Halo said. "But we can't just walk over there. We have no idea what they are up to, or if they are armed."


"Should we report them to someone?" Crisis asked.


"Not if we want to explain how we know them. Let keep an eye on them from afar. see what their up to." Halo moved through the crowd away from Aaly and Shotgun, followed by Crisis."


Clink, clink clink...


King Julian tapped his glass three times to get the attention of the guest. The guest grew quiet and the music stopped. Beside him stood Lucinda.


"If I could have your attention," he said. The room stood still. The District 1 king was about to give his speech.
 
Aaly shook her head at Shotgun's question "They didn't. And I have to wait five more minutes to meet with Thanos" She muttered, frustrated.


She did, however, raised her eyebrow when from the corner of her eye she could see Crisis walking to them even though she was quickly stopped by Halo. 'S****' She thought to herself. They had been recognized and there she wanted to avoid that. She pulled on Shotguns sleeve as she dragged him away from them which seemed to be doing the same.


"Dammit, Shotgun, I think they recognized us" She moved through the crowd of people with him "I think it's better if we-" But she didn't get to finish her sentence as everyone's attention was caught by King's Julian. Everybody turned to him and soon Aaly's and Shotgun's exits were blocked.


She made a face which she quickly disguised with a smile and turned to look at King Julian, her grip on Shotgun's sleeve getting tighter. They wouldn't be able to move without standing out at the moment.
 
"I am so pleased that you all could make it to this wonderful event in history. Today we celebrate the joining of another district to The New World Order." King Julian lifted his glass to the royal family of District 6 and the rest of floor did as well. "It is on this gracious day..."


The king continued his speech but Crisis's eyes were on Aaly. Just what was she up to? How did the rebels get up here? Crisis caught Aaly's eye and raised her glass in acknowledgement, a cold smirk on her lips. Then she turned to Halo.


"It doesn't look like they're doing anything." Crisis whispered.


"They didn't come here to enjoy the ball," Halo whispered back. "They're planning something."


Jonathan had left the ball room in search of his brother who had done the same. He could hear his father giving his speech as he walked down the hall.


"Are you looking for me?" Lux asked from behind.


Jonathan turned around. "Yes, why did you leave the ball?"


Lux chuckled. "I had to use the bathroom. Surely I didn't have to ask your permission for that little brother. Did you need something?"


Jonathan cleared his throat. "I wanted to know how you knew Noelle."


"Noelle? Dr Damon's daughter? I met her tonight, we struck up a conversation. Why?"


Jonathan couldn't tell if he was lying or not. "Why did you tell me to stay away from father's study tonight?"


"You know how father gets when you play around in there. And mother wouldn't like it if you left the ball early."


That smile was still on Lux's face. The one that looked so real that Jonathan almost thought it was.


"Speaking of which, we should be going back to the party." Lux said.


"Yes," Jonathan said. "We should."
 
Aaly raised her glass as well, though on her face was the warmest and harmless smile one would ever had seen on the Rebel's face. She wouldn't let those brats mess up with their plans and so she acted as if there was nothing wrong, as if she was just greeting a friend which had seen her on a party. Aaly turned to Shotgun and leaned a bit to mutter something on his ear


"Let's split. If something happens find our man, take the microchip with you and get the hell out of here"


With that said Aaly carefully made her way to the tables Trent had mentioned earlier through the crowd of people. She clenched her fist softly, the hard little shape of the green pill against her hand which was covered by her black long gloves.
 
"Of course mistress," Shotgun said as he turned to leave. The king had invites the royal kings and queens of the other districts to stand with him and was finishing up his speech. With all eye on him this was the perfect time for Shotgun to go to the study and download any and all files that they might need. Shotgun placed the try he carried on a table as he exited the grand hall.


"They're on the move," Crisis told Halo.


Halo watched at the two rebels separate, Aaly going to the tables, and Shotgun leaving the room. "Go talk to Aaly, I'll follow Shotgun."


"What do I do when I get to her?"


"There are guards surrounding this place," Halo. "Threaten her with that. Say that you're turning her in." With that Halo left in search of Shotgun.


Crisis watched Halo leave and then took a deep breath. She really wanted to tell her parents what was going on but she knew then too well. She would get in a lot of trouble for not only going over to District 2, but for lying about it as well. Crisis made sure that no one was watching her then made her way to the tables where Aaly was.


"You have three seconds to get yourself and your rebel buddies out of District 1 before I expose you to everyone," she hissed when she reached Aaly.
 
Aaly blinked as she saw Crisis making her way to her and faked a quite good puzzled expression


"Excuse me?" She said, confused.


"Is something wrong here?" Thanos who had gone to meet Aaly stopped beside her with a concerned look on his face


"Ah, Uncle. There you are, I've been looking for you. Where did you go?" She asked with a pout, diverting her attention from Crisis.


"Oh, I'm sorry, my dear. I had to take care of some affairs as soon as I stepped into the ball. Mostly I had been having to give out explanations to everyone of why and where I had you hidden for all these years. Well it's nothing to be surprised about though, the only daughter and therefore heir of the name Aashan is only you, honey and now that you've come back to District 1, your home, it had caused quite the stir" Thanos said with a good-natured smile


"Oh please, Uncle. I think people are just exaggerating" Aaly smiled. Though that smile, hidden deep inside it, had a bit of pride in it. Her father's family name was still at least respected and that made her somehow glad. She was aware that drawing so much attention could hinder them a lot but having people still admiring her father was such a nice feeling. Well but it was true that no wonder they did as most of the things they had over there had been invented or started by her father's projects. It was a shame that all the high tech he had developed was now fully on the New Order's hands though.


"I'm not, believe me" He chuckled "In fact, there is someone that wants to meet you and... Oh.. Who is this young lady over here?" He turned his gaze to Crisis.


"Oh my, have I not been rude? From what I heard from Prince Jonathan and Princess Obsidian's friends she is the Rennel's daughter, Crisis is your name, right?" She smiled at her "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Aaliya Blythe Aashan and this is my Godfather, Thanos Flumoise" She would continue with all that charade for now. Even more now that she knew that person Thanos wanted her to meet was their man.
 
Crisis stood and watched the two talk dumbfounded. She couldn't believe the rebel girl had planned this out so well. And what an actress the brat was, she should stat her own drama.


"You know damn well what my name is. And it's nice to see that you have slipped into your role here so easily. You know, for someone who claims to hate the higher districts so much, you sure have an easy time fitting it." Crisis spat. Maybe she should just go and get her parents. The rebels could be planning something dangerous and if she could stop it she should.


"Hey," Halo called out to Shotgun who was making his way down the hall. The rebel stopped and turned. Seeing who it was, his face turned hard.


"You shouldn't interfere in what you don't understand," Shogun said coldly.


"I don't care about what you think I don't understand,' Halo shot back. "I do care if people get hurt, and that seems to happen when rebels are around. So you and your friends need to leave."


"Or what?" Shotgun asked taking a step closer to Halo. "All around you are people who could care less if people got hurt as long as the ends justified the means. You should know this first hand for crying out loud. Why are you so quick to protect them."


"Because I'm not like them! And I wont stand by while you hurt innocent people."


Shotgun scoffed. "Nice speech boy scout. But I'm not hurting anyone, so you can just go back to the hall and enjoy the rest of the party."


"What the hell is a boy scout?" Halo asked.


Shotgun shook his head. "I don't have time for this." He turned to leave but Halo stopped him.


"I wasn't kidding when I said you should leave."


Shotgun smirked. "You know what you are? You're in my way. And do you know what I do to things that are in my way? I tare them down."


Jonathan was following Lux back to the ball when a figure rounded the corner. The person was limping and leaning to one side. Jonathan took cautious steeps to the figure then ran towards him when he saw who it was.


"Sebastian!" Jonathan cried catching him before he fell. His friend look awful. Blood stained his cloths and flowed onto Jonathan's.


"What happened?" Lux asked by their side at once.


"I'm not sure," Sebastian said. "They came out of know where and attacked. Jonathan, we need to get everyone out of here, it's not safe!"


(Now I want to put up Sid's and Crisis's gowns :P )


Sid (But in green)


Mermaid-Dress-Up-white-wedding-dress.jpg



Crisis


chanel-iman-weinstein-company-and-chopard-pre-academy-awards-party.jpg
 
Aaly just smiled at her, looking at her as if she was crazy and she pitied her


"Poor thing..." She turned around with Thanos and left with him. It was not because of Crisis but she felt her heart beating wildly against her chest. Something was going wrong and she could feel it.


"What the..." Thanos started but was stopped by Aaly.


"Take me to that man now. Get this stupid thing done and leave" Her tone was strained and her gaze was hard and cold.


Then Thanos made a face he had not done since she met him. His smile withered and his expression turned death serious as he nodded. Aaly was surprised by that fact and just that made her realize that man was much better at acting than her. To her he seemed goofy and a happy-go-lucky person but with just taking a look at his grey eyes he had gained her respect.


Thanos made his way through the people until he reached the other side of the salon. There, a man with a petite woman chatted excitedly and cheerfully.


"Gaius. Allow me to introduce you my goddaughter, Aaliya Aashan"


The man turned to her and his smile faded for a moment before he held out his hand


"It's a pleasure"


Aaly held out her hand automatically and blinked when she felt a little thing being placed on her hand "The pleasure is all mine" She said smiling, triumphant.


Her hand then dropped to her side as she quickly slid the microchip inside a secret pocket of her dress. Now they just had to get out of there. Everything had turned out perfectly... Little she knew that it was still way too early to conclude that.


(Oh my I love them!! Specially Sid's!)
 
Jonathan put Sebastian's arm around his shoulder, helping him to his feet.


"Jonathan, these people that attacked us, they were trained. And they seemed to know this palace very well." Sebastian said.


"We need to tell father of this," Jonathan said helping his friend walk down the hall. "Have you sounded the alarm?" he asked his brother.


"I'm trying," Lux said pushing the panic button that was equip with his cell. "It must be cut."


"This must have been planned... damn, father's cell is off," Jonathan put his own cell back in his pocket.


"I'm going to head over to the grand hall to warn everybody about tonight's turn of evens. Are you okay with me leaving you two?" Lux asked.


Jonathan nodded. "Yes, go."


Boom!


Lux had barely took on step when down the hall the study room had exploded into a blaze of fire. All three boys were knocked off their feet.


Jonathan coughed as he tried to exhale the smoke he had just inhaled. "What the hell was that!?" he wheezed. Jonathan didn't get his answer because another explosion came from the ball room.


Both Halo and Shotgun was bruised and bleeding. Breathing heavy, eyes narrowed, Shotgun had to admit. He was pretty surprised that Halo was giving him this much of a challenge. But he did grow up in a lower district and that meant learning how to fight quickly. Shotgun glanced behind him, how long had he been tied up here? He really needed to get back to his assignment.


"Thinking about running?" Halo asked between heavy breaths. Blood dripped from both his nostrils.


Shotgun grinned. "Not a chance. I was just considering if I should kill you or not."


Halo matched Shotgun's smile. "I'd like to see you try."


"Hmm?" Shotgun took a moment to spit out a bloody tooth before rushing Halo. His fist connected with Halo's jaw. Before the teen fell backwards Shotgun caught him by the neck and slammed him against the wall.


"You know," Halo coughed out. "For a little girl, you sure fight like a b*tch."


"That's interesting for you to say when you're the one choking to death," Shotgun said tightening his grip on the boys neck.


Halo kneed Shotgun in the stomach and he instantly let of of Halo's neck grabbing his torso. He saw Halo grab his neck and was catching his breath, Shotgun saw an opportunity to end this fight once and for all. he was about to deliver a hit when a explosion came from down the hall causing both boys to stumble and fall to the ground. The floor shook from under them. Seconds later there came another boom some distance away, then another.


Halo looked at Shotgun, fear and anger in his eyes. "What the hell did you just do!?"


Shotgun shook his head. "It's-- that's not me."


Crisis huffed out an angry breath as she watched Aaly walk away with that man. She facepalmed herself hoping that Halo hadn't failed as badly as she had. Turning on her heels, Crisis caught her parents giving her a stern look, clearly not happy that she took it upon herself to walk off in the middle of the king's speech. Her mother lifted her finger and wagged it towards her, telling Crisis to come. Crisis sighed, she was going to get scolded.


"And with that, I turn you loose to enjoy the rest of your evening. Have a wonderful time." Julian had finished his speech and the room erupted in cheers and applauds. Crisis was making her way back to her parents when there was a loud boom! The room stood still. Crisis turned her eyes upwards. The chandeliers shook and dust fell from the ceiling.


Fear was creeping up from the silence.


"What...?" Crisis started.


And then everything went black.


Obsidian's blue eyes flung open and she took in a sharp gasp. She could hear faint screams and black dots danced in her vision. The Princess coughed, and it hurt so much to cough, but somehow that made her cough more. Obsidian used her elbows to help prop herself up, the screams became louder as the ringing in her ears died down. Obsidian squeezed her eyes shut, it was painful trying to sit up. Why did her leg hurt so much? Obsidian's vision was clearing and she could see that the once beautiful ballroom was now in panic and chaos. Part of the ceiling had fallen, pieced of chandelier littered the ground. Dust and smoke filled the room making it hard to breath or see. What had just happened? She was so confused.


"Mom...?" She called. "Dad...?"
 
Aaly was just making her way back to the entrance through the marble stairs when she heard a loud Boom!


She had turned back on her heels, eyes widened. Suddenly before she could think of anything else she heard another loud Boom! The floor seemed to disappear below her feet and she felt herself falling. Her body rolled down the stairs before she found herself on the ground with a strong quick blow as she hit something hard that seemed to had fallen up from the sky. She felt the blow running up her spine to which a sharp pain soon followed. When she tried to stand up confused by the yelling, the chaos and the disorienting buzz on her ears she was knocked out by a sharp, hard and heavy piece of something that fell right on her head.


She opened her eyes soon after. One of her arms had strangely gone numb as well as her back. She blinked a couple of times, her sight blurred by a bloody vision that turned everything red right before her eyes. It was like seeing everything from the outside, as if she was watching a movie safely far away from that mess. At one moment, she was not sure when, she had pushed herself up with both of her hands as a warm red liquid ran down her forehead and dripped on her dress as well as on the floor. She felt the same warm and humid sensation on both her right arm and her back but she tried to pay no attention to it. Her mind was a mess as she tried to understand what had happened just a few minutes ago.


As she dragged her feet through the once beautiful and impeccable floor which was now covered with dirt and debris she just tried to get her brain to work and process what seemed to her as just a horrible dream she was going through. She felt herself being shoved to the side by a scared person and soon the floor was right on her face. Just then she realized she was not alone. It was like a painful come back to reality. The yelling resonated on her ears as dresses and suits seemed to flash right in front of her in fear. She tried to push herself up again before something red entered her field of view. She raised her eyebrow and as if moved by an impulse she didn’t come to understand she found herself rushing towards the seemingly injured District 5 Princess.


“Princess Obsidian… Princess.. Are you alright?” She managed to say in a hoarse and almost choked voice. Right, it was an stupid thing to ask but right now it was the only thing her mind had managed to come up with.


However, she did not get to hear the answer from the disoriented Princess as some strong arms suddenly pulled her up.


“Aaliya..” Trent mumbled as he held her tightly from her left arm, panic, a thing she had never really seen in him, lighted up his sweaty and dirty face.
 
Jonathan had gotten off the cell with help several minutes ago and now he could here the sirens off in the distance. He and Lux had reached the door to the grand hall but it had collapsed. There was no way in. Sebastian lay against the wall resting.


"Dammit!" Jonathan hit the rubble with his fist. "What happened? What just happened?"


Screams, that was all that came through the broken door.


"You better be alive," Jonathan whispered to himself. "I swear if you die..."


The lights had gone out all throughout the palace so when the officers did arrive their lights were the first thing Jonathan saw.


"We need to get you out of here Your Highness," an officer told Lux. "All three of you need to come with me."


"But my parents are in there," Jonathan said not moving. "My fiance is in there!"


The officer cleared his throat. "We will do anything and everything to save as many lives as we can, and the includes all of you. So please, follow Dan here outside and we will keep you updated Prince. And you have my word that we will find who did this. The whole palace is surrounded, no one is getting out unchecked."


After the blast knocked them back, both Shotgun and Halo found that it was hard to keep their balance. Shotgun was better off then Halo so he had Halo's arm around his shoulder, but they were both supporting each other. The lights had gone out so it was hard to know for sure if they were going the right way. The blood dripping from shotguns head didn't help either.


"We have to go and see if everyone's okay," Halo muttered.


"I know. But they way we came caved in from the exploitation. We can't go back."


Both boy walked a steady pace down the dark hall. Sirens could be heard in the distance.


"You should start running, you wouldn't want to get caught bu the guards."


"How many times do I need to tell you, this wasn't me. This wasn't any of us. Why the hell would I bomb a place that I'm in?" Shotgun asked.


Halo shrugged. "Why do rebels do anything?"


"I should just drop you now," Shotgun muttered.


And with that step the floor fell from under and both boys went tumbling down. They landed with a thud on the first floor and was instantly surrounded by a swat team. Shotgun and Halo both shielded their eye from the light of the officers flashlights. All around them guns were pointed.


"We're unarmed," Shotgun said holding up his hands. Halo did the same.


"Check them," an officer yelled. Another came over and scanned both of their eyes.


"They're clean," he yelled back.


"Then take them outside and get them the care they need."


Blood was dripping from Obsidian's mouth. With every cough came more blood. She had noticed why her leg hurt so much minuets ago and now was trying not to look at it. It she had to see the way her led twisted in the wrong direction and exposed her bone, she would puke. Right now she had to focus on finding her parents. Finding Jonathan. Tears stained the princess's pretty face. They couldn't be dead could they?


“Princess Obsidian… Princess.. Are you alright?”


Obsidian turned her head to see a girl who wasn't in good shape at all. When she was swept up by a man and her name was spoken, that was when Obsidian connected the face.


"Aaliya?" She said. The words were followed by more coughing, more blood. "Thank goodness you are alive."
 
Aaly heard the princess and without thinking it even twice she pulled away from Trent, practically shoving him to the side.


Trent looked at her, bewilderment and doubt on his eyes. He then looked down at his hand, which had been gripping her arm, to find the tiny microchip on it. When had she…? He glanced at her once his eyes clearly telling her ‘You better know what you’re doing’ before he walked away from her and got lost in the chaotic crowd.


Actually she didn’t. She didn’t know what on earth she was doing and that really scared the hell out of her. Nevertheless, even if she was supposed to be practically running towards the exit, she found herself by the Princess side, kneeled down by her wounded leg. She glanced at her scared face full of anguish and then she wiped the blood that ran down her forehead off her eyes. She needed to concentrate on this one.


She tore apart her dress on the lower part. Revealing a pocket like small leather bag tied around her thigh, which Relena had insisted on bringing it with her.


“I’m sorry, Princess. But if you don’t want to lose your leg you’ll have to bear with me on this one” She muttered to her before placing her right hand on the Princess' thigh and the other below her knee. She pulled the knee to the side with all her strength as she tried her best to immobilize her thigh to keep it still. The bone made a strange crack like sound when it was put back into place. The blood, which had stopped a little started to flow from the wound much more than before, but Aaly knew the sight of blood was always alarming and that didn’t stop her from sighing in relief as judging by that reaction it confirmed she had done it right.


Right there she thanked God she had been taught these kind of things back on District 2 so that she would be able to know how to act and what to do during critical situations. In this kind of situation, even if it hurt as hell as Aaly was well aware of, for her it was better to put the bone back into place by brute physical force when there was no other option than to wait for it to be cut off because it was too late or to chop it off right there and right now.


She wiped the blood from her face again before taking out a silver tiny bottle out from her leather bag.


“Just a bit more, Princess. I’m almost done…” Aaly mumbled with a labored breathing as she tried to blink a couple of times, trying to somehow get rid of the blurriness that interfered with her sight.


Aaly tore another piece of her dress and got it drenched in the clear and seemingly thick liquid that she had brought with her in the silver bottle. She raised Obsidian's bleeding leg as softly as she could and wrapped the fabric around the wound, tying it firmly at the end.


She dropped the leg back on the floor as softly as before and let herself fall on her knees. She had done everything she could possibly do. By now she could hear the sirens outside the castle and knew for sure aid was on its way and would arrive soon. She looked down at her silver bottle and smiled, that liquid she had used to soak the fabric and so Obsidian's wound as well would soon stop the bleeding as it helped the body by speeding its coagulation process. It also helped the body to fight any invasive microorganisms and so prevent the high possibility of infection. Lastly, it helped on the maturation phase of the wound healing process, helping also in rapidly creating new skin cells as well as partially repairing the tissue until it received actual medical treatment. It had been one of Relena’s last medical inventions, which Relena had called the curatio.


With shaky hands Aaly took out another small bottle from her bag, which was only full of medicine and such. This one was of a deep red color. She handed it to Obsidian slowly.


"Drink it, Princess. It shall help you for now" All of those were just momentary meds but as such they were effective.
 
Once they were outside Sebastian was rushed to the hospital and Lux went off to speak with the chief officer, so Jonathan stood alone just outside the officer's barrier and watched as his beloved home burn to the ground. It was an immensely painful thing to do but he refused to cry. They must have finally gotten into the grand hall because people in tattered dresses and torn suits were being escorted out, some in body bags. Jonathan scanned the scared and confused faces, non of them the ones he wanted. Fifteen minuets had had passed and it felt like a lifetime. Then finally, "Mother! Father!" Jonathan ran towards them and gave his mom a hug.


"It's good to see that you are well Jonathan," Lucinda said hugging her son back.


Jonathan pulled away and turned to his dad. Julian put his hands on Jonathan's shoulders. Both the king and queen were cut and bleeding, but nothing too serious.


"We are survivors," Julian smiled. "So I had no doubt in my mind that you would make it out alive. Where is your brother?"


"With the chief," Jonathan said pointing.


"I will speak with him too," Julian and Lucinda nodded at each other and Julian walked off.


"Have you seen Obsidian?" Jonathan asked his mother.


Lucinda shook her head. "I know Kannin and Penelope are over there," she pointed to an ambulance where the District 5 King was being put in. Penelope watched, worry on her face. "They are both fine, but Obsidian has yet to come out."


Jonathan looked back at the burning house. "Come one," he whispered. "Come on."


Obsidian shrieked when Aaliya forced her bone back in. The pain shook her whole body and she fell back, a cold sweat running off her body. She felt as though she was dying. The pain was unbearable, making her vision blur and clear every few seconds, and all she wanted to do was pass out but the adrenaline running through her body made that hard to do. Obsidian watched the front door being broken down to take her mind off the pain. She watched as first responders filled the room trying to get to everyone at once. Obsidian smiled tearfully, at least they weren't going to die there. Obsidian was snapped back to Aaliya when she said something to her, but the princess didn't know what. The girl held out a bottle of red liquid and Obsidian reached for it but missed. It was getting harder to see straight. An EMT knelt by the two girls. She looked over Aaly work.


"This is well done," She said. "Did you find a first aid kit?" The EMT Scanned over Obsidian's right eye, then did the same to Aaly. "You don't look too good," she paused to look over the file. "Aaliya. But don't you worry we will have you out of here in no time. The woman waved over two more EMT and they brought a stretcher over. The two knelt down and lifted Obsidian onto it.


"Can you walk?" the first EMT asked Aaly.


Shotgun and Halo were both sitting on the edge of an ambulance breathing in from a portable oxygen tank. Shotgun watched all the faces come out of the burning palace but non of them belonged to who he was looking for. He wondered where the hell Aaly was. He tried to remember she was still at the ball when the bomb went off. He should have never left her side.


Halo puled the mask from his face. "So, if this wasn't you, then who was it?" he asked keeping his voice low. "xiii is the only rebel group that has the means and the way to pull something like this off."


Shotgun pulled his own mask off. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it. Trent and Tydus wouldn't have done this without filling in the rest of the group first would they? Shotgun would understand, he hated District 1 as much as the next rebel but... this wouldn't be the first time xiii had bombed a place. Shotgun shook the thoughts from his mind. He felt guilty that he would even have that doubt. Trent and Tydus wouldn't risk the lives of their own just to send message.


"This wasn't us," Shotgun said firmly, his voice also low.


"You hesitated," Halo noted. But his eyes weren't on Shotgun, he too was scanning the crowd."You have doubt?"


"No," Shotgun said quickly. I was just thinking.


There was a pause as both boys watched the people being rushed into hovercars and red and blue light filled the night skies.


"Look, I sure Crisis is fine and she'll be walking out of that place any moment now," Shotgun said.


"Yeah," Halo said. "Same with Aaly."
 
Aaly stuffed her bottles back on her leather bag and nodded as she stood up, wobbling. Now that she had nothing to concentrate on she realized how her forehead, arm and back felt as if they were burning as hell. She shut her eyes tightly before opening them again.


"I need to go out" She muttered as she dragged her feet to what she thought was the exit. Stupid enough, but it never crossed her mind to take Relena's meds, maybe she just felt too disorientated to think straight right now. She then glanced to her side and her eyes widened as she recognized a body on the floor. She stumbled to it, before falling on her knees in by its side.


"Thanos.." She mumbled as she shook the man's arm. Her eyes went down to his chest where a big and sharp piece of the ceiling had thrust itself into it.


"Thanos" She repeated again, trying to get her voice to sound less shaky and more firm. She should have known it by now, or maybe she just didn't want to admit it, the man was already dead. His grey eyes were slightly opened and void of all light and his body was cold and still.


There was a pool of blood below him which had already stained her knees and bloody dress. Still it was like her mind refused to accept that the man whom she had just met a few hours ago was gone.


"Help..!" She whispered in a choked voice "Somebody help him!" She repeated as she looked around, desperation glowing on her eyes.


Something on her mind yelled at her 'What are you doing? Get out!' But her body wouldn't just obey her. She had undergone training but until now she had yet to be in a real mission like that and just till then she realized how training could be so far from reality.
 
The EMT went to Aaly's side and checked the man's pulse.


"I'm so sorry miss, but he's gone." she said reaching over and closing his eyes. "I need another stretcher," she called to her team. "And a body bag." By now the fire had died down dramatically and most of the people were out of the castle. "We need you to lay on here," the woman continued when the stretcher arrived. Two other EMTs were putting Thanos's lifeless body into the body bag. "We will take you outside to safety where you will be treated. You should conciser yourself among the lucky ones."


The Woman helped Aaly up and checked her wounds and she laid her on the stretcher.


"You're going to be just fine," she said. Then to her other team. "Take her outside."
 
"Thanos" She whispered again as she finally felt like giving up and laid still on the stretcher.


Everyone... How would everyone be? Shotgun, Tydus.. She had seen Trent, she knew he was okay, but the others? They couldn't have gone and die like that, could they? Who had placed that bomb anyway? Why had all of that happened? She held what remained of the lower part of her dress tightly as she felt her throat closing itself as a huge knot seemed to squeeze her chest.


She stared at the destroyed ceiling as if all of that was part of a nightmare. She wanted to be out, being there on that place practically in ruins suffocated her.
 
"Oh my god!"Penelope said rushing to the stretcher her daughter was being carried out on. She walked beside the stretcher as the EMT pushed it to the ambulance. "My dearest," the queen said stroking Obsidian's hair, tears pouring from her eyes. "Thank heavens you are alive."


"Hi mom," Obsidian whispered looking up at her mother. "Where's dad?"


"He was taken to the hospital," she said waiting for the EMT to but Obsidian in the back of the ambulance before she herself got in. "Just like were we're going."


The EMT was about to shut the back door when he was stopped by someone yelling wait.


Jonathan stood looking at Obsidian's bloody body. His smile was both happy and sad at the same time.


"It is good to see you are well," Penelope told the prince.


"Same to you," Jonathan replied. "Do you mind if I ride with you?"


"Not at all."


Jonathan climbed in and stood beside Obsidian grabbing her hand. "I was so worried," he told her kissing her hand.


Obsidian just smiled up at him, the oxygen mask on her face preventing her from saying anything.


Halo saw Mr. and Mrs. Rennels walking beside an EMT while he pushed at stretcher to an ambulance. Halo instantly dropped his oxygen mask and ran towards it. He smiled when he saw that it was Crisis on the stretcher and was relieved to see that she was still breathing. She was unconscious and unmoving, but at least she was still breathing.


"Is she going to be okay?" he asked when he reached the Rennels. Crisis looked dreadful lying there. An oxygen mask covered her face and the whole left side of her body was cut up. Pieces of glass stuck out from her shoulder and chest and she there was a gash in her side.


"They said that it's bad," Alice Rennels said. "But it she's a fighter."


"Yes, she's a fighter," William Rennels said watching his daughter get put in the back of an ambulance.


Halo took in a deep breath. This didn't look good.


"Go with her," Alice said. "We need to stay and help establish what had just happened."


Halo nodded. "Of course."


"And Halo," William said. "Keep your cell on and keep us posted."


When Halo left Shotgun got antsy. Where the hell was Aaly? She should have gotten out by now. Shotgun watched the body bags being pulled out. she couldn't be dead. She just couldn't! The rebel ditched his oxygen mask and started moving towards the crowd, checking every face as he moved along. None of the, looked familiar. There ware too many faces. He was getting angry.


"Aaliya!" He called out through cuffed hands. "Aaliya where are you!"
 
Aaly had been gazing at the sky as she felt herself being carried to God knew where. She heard people calling out for their dear ones here and there and she somehow thought it would be nice to have anybody desperately looking for her. Her sight got blurry again and darkness seemed to want to take over her again but she blinked, trying to keep herself awake.


"Aaliya!"


Those words made her react at her name being mentioned as well. She moved her head to the side slowly and tried to look for the one who was searching for her.


"Aaliya where are you!"


She blinked and opened her mouth to yell "Shotgun.." It came out as a mumble as it was difficult for her to find her voice. She cleared her throat and took a deep breath this time "Shotgun!!" She yelled with all her might, hoping he would be able to hear her. She felt completely drained, all the energy she had gathered before to walk and to treat the Princess was gone by now and that itself dragged her down.
 
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