Crack!
A voice came from behind them and then red liquid fell on top of Emily's head. Staggered, Emily slowly looked up, like a badly oiled machine. The red liquid- blood had come from the shoulder of the man who licked her. The man couldn't believe his eyes and stared at his arm, before falling to the ground. He didn't even have the time to scream; too shocked.
Emily was also paralyzed. In all her life, she hadn't seen so much blood. Could humans really even bleed that much?
The two other men looked at each other and then at the attacker. The attacker- a boy in a small frame had only one weapon. A very old one but it was probably something worth fearing: an axe.
Axes were still kept in stores as a good luck charm after the era of the Zombie apocalypse. At one point humanity had even worshipped axes.
"You brat!" The bald man yelled and dashed for the boy.
The boy ducked the attacker's rod and penetrated his stomach with a vertical swing. The man grabbed his stomach and fell on the ground, groaning.
Though the men were modified and superior to the boy, they had no real combat training. Granted the boy didn't have any either, but he was desperate: he had to save his sister.
And for that, he didn't care about striking anyone down, no matter who they were. And he certainly wasn't afraid to hit them twice.
'Where'd the third one go?' He glanced forward but-
But the other man was behind the boy. The boy realized a second late.
Without a warning, a thick jolt of electricity fell on the boy's head and he succumbed to the ground: the axe fell close the Emily.
Clang!
The sound reverberated again and again in her ears. All this time she thought she was going to be saved. It happened so fast she couldn't even move.
The boy couldn't breathe, he couldn't speak, and he couldn't even look at his precious sister.
"Theo!!" Emily screamed. This was the first time she called him anything other than 'worthless or moron.' This was also the first time she was worried about someone other than herself.
The man kicked the incapacitated Theo over and over again. "How you like me now, brat?" He snickered.
Theo muttered only two words. Those two words took his everything. "Run… Emily." His heart palpitated rapidly… before slowly coming to a stop...
Emily stood there, dazed. Her eyes were wide open. She was about to lose a member of her family, the same member who just saved her. The same member who she called worthless for as long as she remembered. The same member who she hated…
Her brother.
"Don't worry. I'll take good care of her. You can just go to sleep for eternity." The man laughed like nothing was wrong. Two of his comrades were on the ground covered in the pool of their own blood but he didn't even care. If he could just get rid of this brat, he could have his prize.
Emily took the axe, thought for a second, and screamed "AHHHHH!" She screamed so loud her vocal cords shattered. She screamed for vengeance, she screamed for salvation, she screamed for her brother.
THUD!
Before the man could react and turn around, there was a gaping hole in his skull. An axe was sticking out from his head; blood trickling out. Emily had swung so hard she'd broken the handle and now the tip was stuck.
The man touched his own blood. He couldn't believe it. This was probably the first time he saw so much blood- his blood.
"Ahh! Aha ah ahahh!" His cries didn't evoke any pity in Emily. He groaned and moaned in agony as he fell unconscious, bleeding on the ground.
These men were the so-called thugs.
They were hired by a certain someone.
"Theo!" Emily hurried to Theo's side, dropping the broken handle. But Theo was already half unconscious. His brain took a big hit: his heart rate dropped more and more: was it even beating? "Why? I hated you and-" Emily tried chest compressions. She didn't know how it worked and she never thought this would ever be necessary in this world. And yet, in sheer desperation, she did it. But sadly, it wasn't working.
She knew it wasn't working.
He was dying.
"Theo." Tears streamed down her face.
Emily was a strong girl- at least she believed so. But now, she didn't care. She didn't care.
She just wanted him to live. "THEO!" She knew it wasn't working but, but she still tried pushing on his chest.
Chest compressions!
Theo raised his shaking hands and touched Emily's cheeks. "Cause you're my… my sister and I… love you." He went unconscious again.
"NO…NOO… this can't be happening!"
•••
Theo was saved- barely. A passerby had taken some pity on the duo and called for help.
Later Emily found out the real reason behind the thugs and why they could manipulate the R.I: they were hired by someone she knew, someone she trusted, her mother.
Her mother wanted to test them both, gauging their skills and intellect. And Venira was unhappy about the way Emily and Theo had handled the situation. According to her, they could have done better. Much, much better.
From then on, Emily never forgave her mother. She never told Theo about the incident either.
Instead, she started respecting him…
What started out as mere respect, gradually become love.
She wanted to be loved and she wanted to spread that love to him. It was love- and she knew it was more than perhaps just sisterly love… and perhaps even a bit romantic?
The feelings only grew- to a point where it wasn't just love anymore.
It was… an obsession.
***
And now three years, no, almost four years later, she was about to do something very rash. 'I'll just take you by force, my dear lovely brother.' She licked her lips in an elegant manner as she stared at the portrait of her brother and giggled uncontrollably, touching herself to utmost extremes; one down there beneath her dress, one hand touching Theo's holo face. "AHH." A moan escaped her lips but was trapped inside her room, unheard.