I'll kill anyone that threatens Lilith...
Nathan watched as the super soldier's corpse burned in the flames. The underpass was damaged, and it came crashing down in the fire.
"Um, Nathan?" Lilith asked as her eyes kept closed, pretending she hadn't seen anything."
"Oh, sorry," Nathan said. "I had no choice but to kill him..."
"Oh, no worries," Lilith said. "I know you're just defending yourself."
"Yeah, let's get out of here now."
With that said, they left the area. They didn't go too far and settled in a large abandoned home (since almost everyone was gone.)
Nathan smashed the window with a rock. Materializing thick gloves to protect his hand from the shards, he climbed in.
"Hold on, I'm going to open the door," He said, to which Lilith nodded. After opening the door and letting Lilith in, Nathan placed a couple of metal beams that acted as a barricade.
Sluggishly, Nathan sat on a couch.
Ugh...my head hurts...so bad...
Lilith looked at him in concern, which he noticed.
"Ugh...don't worry. I'll be fine. I just need to...rest for a bit." Nathan assured. Still stricken with concern, Lilith began searching around the house.
"What are you looking for?" Nathan asked, but she didn't respond. She went to another room.
What is she doing?
Returning after a few minutes, Lilith carried a bucket of water and a roll of bandages.
"That's what you were looking for..."
Lilith set another couch and sat in front of Nathan.
"Ahh...it's alright..." Nathan shyly said. "You don't have to--"
"No, I have to stop the bleeding!" Lilith said as she took a soaked rag in the bucket. She began to wipe the blood from his head, and Nathan reluctantly allowed her.
She then began to wrap the bandage around his head. Her proximity caused Nathan's cheeks to flush red.
"There. All better." Lilith said. Realizing their closeness and having eye contact with each other, Lilith began to blush as well.
"Ah...thanks..." Nathan awkwardly said in an attempt to break the equally awkward mood.
"Aww, I was hoping I'd get to see more." The developer suddenly said on Nathan's phone. An expression of annoyance quickly rushed over Nathan's face as he heard the developer's voice. "It's surprising that you guys haven't gotten together yet."
"W-What?" Lilith stuttered.
"Would it kill you to go fuc--" Nathan was interrupted by the sounds of talking outside.
For heaven's sake! Is it so hard for us to get just a little rest!?
"Looks like you guys are gonna be busy again." The developer said. "I'll leave you to it."
After hanging up, Nathan peeked through the window to understand the situation. He had expected some soldiers, but it was far worse.
There were no super soldiers in sight, but numerous enemy soldiers were approaching the home that they occupied.
Shit. There are at least eighty of them...maybe a hundred! Incapacitating them is out of the question!
Nathan materialized his RPG and looked towards Lilith.
"When I shoot, I want you to run full speed to escape through the back," Nathan advised.
"Right..." Lilith agreed.
I wish he'd allow me to help...
Suddenly, Nathan fired a missile through the window. The soldiers could only watch in fright as the rocket traveled towards them and exploded. It killed quite a few of them. The soldiers instinctively dropped to the ground to take cover.
"DAMN! THE CRIMINALS WERE HERE AFTER ALL!" A soldier angrily said. "QUICKLY, SURROUND THE BUILDING!"
* * *
Right after firing, Nathan followed Lilith (who knew the layout of the house) as they ran to the back. Simultaneously, bullets started flying through the walls as the soldiers began retaliating, frightening Lilith.
Damn, these guys don't care about property damage...
A bullet struck Nathan's leg, causing him to stumble.
"Ouch!" Nathan shouted, to which Lilith looked back in concern.
"Are you okay--"
"It's fine," Nathan said. "My armor protected me. Just don't stop running."
Steeling her nerves, Lilith listened and continued with Nathan right behind her. Upon reaching the back door, she began to open it. However, Nathan heard footsteps nearby.
Wait a second...
No sooner had Lilith opened the door than Nathan dragged her back. Bullets came flying past, which came very close to her face. He immediately shut the door after dragging her back in.
Lilith began to hyperventilate as she realized that she nearly died, but Nathan took her hand and went upstairs. He also materialized a ballistic helmet and placed it on his head.
Shit...we're surrounded now, caged in.
He was right, as the soldiers stood at different points around the scheme. He looked up and noticed a four-section chandelier in the middle of the passageway. Seeing him looking up, Lilith did the same out of curiosity.
Hmm...I have an idea...
The soldiers closest to the doors and windows around the house communicated with one another using hand signs. Deafening silence filled the area as no one moved.
The eerie silence caused Nathan to be suspicious as he was waiting at the top of the staircase. Taking a deep breath, he calmed any lingering nervousness.
Suddenly, the soldiers made their move. Breaking the doors and windows, they entered, which alarmed Nathan as he heard them.
You can do this, Nathan. To protect Lilith...you have to kill them!
The soldiers quickly but cautiously searched around the house. Allies carrying riot shields let them in anticipation of a confrontation of gunfire. However, as soldiers turned to the staircase, Nathan was already prepared.
Holding the under-barrel grenade launcher that he stole from the first super soldier he killed, Nathan immediately began shooting at them down the staircase.
Although their riot shields would aid in bullets, this would not be the case for explosives, especially after shooting multiple grenades. Nathan succeeded in killing more men, but the loud bangs of the explosions only revealed his location to the rest.
Lilith was staring at the bodies of the soldiers, and with a frustrated look, she once again held onto her katana tightly.
"Come, Lilith!" Nathan instructed, snapping her from her trance.
The soldiers pursued them up the staircase and aimed, but to their surprise, Nathan and Lilith hid behind an armored vehicle at the end of the hallway.
"Tsk, this brat is so annoying...but he has nowhere to run now...FIRE!" A soldier said, and with readily obeying, they began to fire. With their high-powered assault rifles, they pelted the vehicle with bullets.
Sigh...I'm tired.
They slowly approached them as they fired. The relentless shooting scared Lilith, but being used to it, Nathan kept his composure.
Closer...
They kept moving as they fired. The car glass began to crack as the bullets continued to bombard it, causing Lilith to yelp in fright.
"N-Nathan..." Lilith softly said.
Closer...
The soldiers were now under the chandelier (which had eight Molotov cocktails, two tied at each section), right where Nathan wanted them.
Perfect!
He immediately stood up, exposing himself, and fired at the chain supporting the chandelier, causing it to fall. However, at that moment, Nathan exposed himself. He was shot numerous times on his armored vest and once on his head, but thankfully, the ballistic shield was enough to protect him.
The chandelier came crashing down with the cocktails, shattering as they hit the ground (or on soldiers unlucky enough to be in the way) and dousing the area and soldiers in oil. The fire quickly spread and engulfed the soldiers.
"AAAHHHH!!!" They screamed in agony as they desperately tried to put out the flames. Their screams and the sight pierced deep into Lilith.
Shit...getting shot always hurts...
Nathan, as quick thinking as he usually was, stored the vehicle and placed another one. This time, it was facing the soldiers and not so much as acting as a shield. He quickly opened the passenger's door and placed numerous explosives inside.
Turning on the engine and placing a brick on the gas, he shut the car and grabbed Lilith.
"We're jumping!" Nathan said before running towards the window at the end of the hallway. Simultaneously, the car drove straight towards the soldiers.
With Lilith following closely behind and in a slow-motion sequence, Nathan jumped through as the car exploded, flooding the passageway with flames.
"AAHHH!" Lilith screamed as gravity took effect, causing them to fall. However, Nathan easily cushioned their fall with soft padding.
"Ha...Hahaha." Nathan chuckled as they lay on the padding. "I was betting on the soldiers thinking that the chandelier was just on and not Molotov cocktails tied to it...boy, am I glad that it worked out..."
It always does with you, Nathan...but I wish...you didn't have to carry this burden alone...
"Sigh, I'm pushing myself quite a bit today," Nathan said as they stood up. "But, I told you that you wouldn't need to h--"
In Nathan's peripheral vision, he noticed a couple of soldiers preparing to fire at him. Saving both of their lives, Nathan immediately placed a third vehicle for protection, grabbed Lilith, and stooped down with her.
Damn! Some survived all those explosions!? It's only a few, but still...
Nathan proceeded to gun them down one by one after waiting for them to stop shooting. His judgments were not always correct, as he'd be shot multiple times, only being saved by his armor.
Nathan would bear through the pain and pick them off, with his mind set on keeping Lilith from harm.
Thank god for this armor...and for these armor-piercing bullets against these guys.
Nathan saw a grenade rolling toward him.
CRAP!
Immediately, Nathan grabbed the grenade and stored it. That was only a trap, as out of nowhere, Nathan got hit in the head with the back of a rifle, and the soldier who tossed it quickly ran up.
"Ugh!" Nathan groaned as he stumbled to the ground, greatly concerning Lilith. The soldier followed up by delivering a powerful kick to his gut.
"NATHAN!" Lilith shouted, but before she could even do anything, she received a backhand from the soldier.
"SHUT THE HELL UP!" The soldier angrily shouted. "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU AFTER I GET RID OF THIS BASTARD THAT KILLED MY COMRADES!!!" He declared as he took a knife from a sheathe on his leg and tackled Nathan.
He attempted to stab Nathan in the neck, but he caught the soldier's arm in time, stopping it short. It quickly became a struggle.
THIS SON OF A BITCH JUST HIT LILITH, AND I CAN'T EVEN DO MUCH ABOUT IT! HE'S PRESSING ON MY LEGS, AND I CAN'T USE MY ARMS TO GET SOMETHING FROM MY INVENTORY BECAUSE IF I LET GO, THEN HE'LL STAB ME...DAMMIT!!!
As they were struggling, the soldier pressed down with all his might, and the knife got closer to Nathan's neck.
"HAHA! The soldier laughed. "I WONDER HOW MUCH MONEY I'LL GET FOR KILLING AN S-CLASS CRIMINAL!!! DI--"
Right as the knife was about to pierce Nathan's neck, Lilith came from behind, running her katana right through the soldier.
"W-What...?" The soldier weakly said as he turned around to Lilith. Nathan noticed, and a horrified expression filled his face.
"I told you...Nathan..." Lilith said as she began to pull the katana out of his body, causing the soldier to scream in agony. "You're not the only one...who has to do the protecting."
"STOP!" Nathan pleaded as he stood up, but it was already too late. She pulled her now blood-tainted katana, and the soldier fell over in a pool of blood. All Nathan could do was look in pure shock.
Lilith stared at the soldier, clearly shaken at what she had done, but Nathan was shaken up for a different reason. All the convictions Nathan had to keep Lilith away from harm, to keep her from doing anything she'd regret...all of that was now broken, with one mistake Nathan made.
"N-No..." Nathan softly muttered. Hearing that, Lilith, with trauma-filled eyes, looked upon him. However, she saw something more urgent. Another soldier stood behind Nathan, ready to shoot.
"NATHAN! BEHIND YOU!" Lilith desperately shouted as the soldier fired. Nathan turned around but was hit by multiple bullets, along with Lilith. Enduring the pain, he ran towards the soldier and quickly knocked his gun from his hands. Lilith, on the other hand, fell to the ground.
Dammit...Nathan...you're such an idiot.
Nathan and the soldier went into a short fistfight before the soldier got the upper hand, likely due to the injuries Nathan had sustained. He punched Nathan in the face twice before putting him in a chokehold.
"Go to sleep, bastard." The soldier said as he squeezed Nathan's neck at full strength as they dropped to the ground. Nathan began choking as he unsuccessfully tried to get himself from the chokehold.
As his vision became blurry, a memory of Lilith's smile towards him came to him. The memory was followed by her trauma-filled eyes after her first murder.
I'm...getting tired...but I can't...go to sleep...not after putting Lilith through that...
Materializing a knife, Nathan began to stab the soldier in the abdomen several times.
"AAHHH!!!" The soldier screamed as he released his hold. Nathan got up and desperately gasped for air as the soldier was in pain.
You just couldn't leave Lilith so she could be safe...look what you caused, you dumbass!!!
Controlling his breathing patterns, Nathan angrily stood up. He materialized a combat axe as he made his way to the soldier. He stooped down over him.
"W-Wait..." The soldier pleaded as he held his wound.
You couldn't protect the one thing you cared about...
Raising the axe high in the air, he brought the sharp edge straight into the skull of the soldier, splitting his head somewhat and causing blood to splatter. Struggling to pull it out, he raised the axe in the air once again and came down.
Nathan kept repeating this process a few more times, as blood splattered from the soldier's head onto Nathan's body until it turned into a bloody mess.
You don't deserve a good life...Nathan.
With a cold stare and covered in blood, Nathan stared at the soldier's corpse.
"N-Nathan?" Lilith weakly called out, snapping Nathan from his...frenzy.
"Lilith, are you okay!?" Nathan responded as he remembered that she had just been shot.
"Yeah...the vest you gave me saved my life," Lilith said. "Thanks, by the way--" Lilith was cut off at the shocking sight before her. Nathan was covered in blood, the soldier's horrid corpse, and his cold and apathetic expression visibly scared Lilith.
She stepped back a few and covered her mouth from fright. She had felt nauseous from the sight.
"Oh..." Nathan muttered, realizing her fright. "You're right...you shouldn't be near me."
"W-What?" Lilith asked.
"I'm...just a killer...I'm not a good person, and now...I ruined your life, too. Because of my limitations, you had to murder someone, too. I'm just...horrible."
Silence filled the area as Lilith had to take in everything. She remembered Nathan breaking down upon witnessing his parent's hanging.
C-Come on, Lilith...you can't...break. You vowed to be there for him.
"Well..." Lilith said as she broke the silence. "I guess you have no choice but to let me fight with you...because we're the same now." She said, with a smile to hide her trauma.
Hearing this, Nathan wanted to get angry. He wanted to yell at her so she wouldn't want to stay with a dangerous person like him. But he couldn't...he didn't want her to leave him.
"Damn it...Lilith."