Author note: Yes, this is, sadly, the last chapter of Burn that Baby. I couldn't decide if I should wait a couple chapters or not, but I think everything would turn out better if it all pieced together in here. It's been an awesome time, especially since this is a piece of work I normally wouldn't consider writing. However, before I end this last note, I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed. I received no negative response and was pelted with kind criticism, which is awesome. There was a point when the reviews were low and I thought that I had scared everyone away, but apparently not, which I also must thank those of you who stayed faithful to the story, no matter what happened. I will not hold you back anymore, so please read on. It was an awesome experience writing this!
"Only a few hours ago, Patrick Zala, leader of the PLANTs, announced what his plan was for obtaining peace. Several people opposed his idea, which was to unleash the Genesis, an array of weapons connected to one.
Not much had been explained as to what the Genesis does, but people are taking shelter within their homes, waiting for an end to all the fighting. However, there are a great amount of people on Zala's side and many acts of violence have occurred due to arguments over what side is right and what side is wrong.
It seems that Zala has caused more havoc than settle the fighting problem. Officials have not yet announced what their plan of action is and the local law enforcement has refused to take part in the events that have yet to occur. Stay tuned for more news."
The same message had been played through radios, television sets, even spoken between other people as they waited in fear for what was going to happen. Though everyone was sure that those living in their part of the neighborhood had heard of Zala's plans, they were completely oblivious to the fact that over half didn't own a radio or a television. They were blind to the fighting.
Children were pulled off the streets by their worried parents in a panic, their games of jump rope and hopscotch forgotten in a world of dread. The streets became incredibly empty, silent as if everyone was holding their breath, waiting for something to break out.
It was mid afternoon in the city overrun with the Mafia. Not a door remained open, not a window cracked open for a warm breeze to drift through a silent house. Everything had a lock on it, or had been barricaded in a hurry. Every neighborhood, every apartment complex, every alley and every building were coated with silence, so strong that nobody dared to move.
Like a wild fire, fear spread into the hearts of those that made up the better part of Orb. The news of what their fate most likely would be was terrifying and nobody wished to get caught up in the fight Patrick Zala had secretively declared.
A little past five the heat of the day began to disappear. People were beginning to think that Zala was only speaking lies and life slowly came back in full swing. The children returned to the streets and their sweet laughter brightened the hearts of everyone.
It was then that the fighters of the PLANTs showed up.
The sound of heavy footsteps upon cold cement sidewalks and roads rang loudly throughout the area of Orb. Gunfire erupted every so often as people ran for cover, their screams of pain and protest against the fighting was like background music in the war zone.
Buildings stood ablaze, flames pouring out windows and the smell of burning wood lifting into the air. In the distance a small explosion could be hear, nothing close to the damage that the Genesis was going to cause.
Passing fallen body after body, Nicol had to fight back the bile that had risen in his throat. He cringed as a woman cried out in pain and couldn't help himself but look over, immediately turning to keep his eyes ahead when he caught sight of the woman's deceased child on the cold cement sidewalk.
The gun grasped tightly in his hands, a special issue AK-47, suddenly felt heavier than it should have been. Nicol cursed human kind for harboring such things as hate and weapons as he passed another burning building, the flames making the air thick and hard to breathe.
He couldn't take it anymore. He had lost his best friend, lost his will to continue fighting, and he felt like he was losing his sanity with every scream that ripped through the air. And his body had agreed with his mind, shutting down and forcing him to collapse on the ground.
"Get up Nicol!" Yzak barked from behind, having almost run right over the green haired boy. "You're going to hold us up if you just lay there, now hurry so we can get this over with."
Yzak and Dearka, who were both standing behind Nicol, pulled on him so that he was standing perfectly upright and began to run ahead, their guns drawn as they shot at people who they considered at threat to their main objective.
The Genesis.
On his back, Nicol carried a rather large bag, as did Dearka and Yzak. Yzak however, carried two instead of one. In the bags, as Nicol remembered, were a part of the Genesis and needed to be set in the exact location that they were given. The green haired boy hadn't been told exactly what they were for, neither had Yzak and Dearka, but they all knew that the heavy pieces of equipment in the bags could do a lot of damage.
Dearka slowed his pace and turned around, calling out to Nicol and telling him to hurry. The younger boy swallowed back the bile in his throat and stood back up, checking his bag to make sure that he hadn't ruined anything. He used the last of his strength to catch up and was glad when Yzak finally came to a stop, setting his bags down and immediately pulling out several tools that had been shoved inside of his pockets.
"Dearka, pass me your bag."
The blond took the heavy weight off his back, thankful that he would no longer have to run around with it latched onto him. Nicol did the same, sliding the bag off his back, and received a rather cold stare from Yzak, who had securely bolted one of the heavy pieces of equipment into the ground.
"What happened back there Nicol? You can't just do that out of nowhere. The Don is relying on us so we have to be quick, stay behind if you want to that badly."
Nicol remained silent, trying hard to block out all the horrible noises in the background. He closed his eyes momentarily and when he opened them, the green haired boy found himself in a different neighborhood, the last of the heavy equipment bolted into the ground.
"Come on," Dearka called back to him as Yzak began to take off, "We have to hurry and get back to the Don."
Nicol sighed heavily and followed close behind, his legs seemingly having a mind of their own. Though as he exited the area that belonged to Orb, he felt that he should at least stay back and help. But Yzak wouldn't approve so he was forced to follow.
Kira and Athrun were gathering up any means of a decent weapon, only managing to find handgun bullets. Ready to go and scared for each other, the two froze completely when the sound of ear-splitting gunfire tore through the silence that had sprung up like a plague.
"It's already begun," Athrun said, sighing heavily and placing his hand in his hair, thick locks of blue spilling between his fingers. "Father... what have you done now?"
Having his voice muffled, Kira was unable to understand what Athrun had just said, but he could sense the sadness in his words and could do nothing but place his hand on his shoulder. It seemed to do the trick as Athrun stood himself perfectly upright, his eyes shinning with determination.
Tolle came through the front door, followed by several people. Athrun recognized them from the other day when he was looking for Kira and gave a slight wave, trying not to be rude. The one called Fllay shot him a cold look, then turned her head the other way, refusing to make eye contact with him again.
"Tolle, make sure everyone stays here. Don't go outside and if anyone comes in," Kira took out a spare gun that he always had along with him, "Use this."
"Oh Kira," Fllay flung herself at the brown haired mobster, clinging to his arm. "What do the PLANTs want anyway? We've done nothing to them, please tell me everything will be alright."
Athrun watched the girl through the corner of his eye, feeling something akin to jealousy burning in him. However, Kira gently pried the girl off his arm and reassured her, quickly telling everyone to stay safe again.
"Come on Athrun."
Kira grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the door, a fully loaded handgun in his free hand. Once outside, the brown haired mobster let his grip on Athrun go as he stared off, his eyes catching onto the fighting before them within seconds.
"All my friends are here, all the ones I care about. They're in danger too, but Athrun, so are you. Please promise me you won't leave again, I've lost you before and I won't be able to stand it again and-"
Athrun pulled on Kira's arm, spinning him around and pulled him close. He rested his head upon Kira's and then broke away, but not before he managed to steal a gentle kiss.
"I promise." Athrun made sure his gun was loaded and looked in the same direction Kira had stared off into before. "But now it's time to finish this."
Nodding, Kira followed Athrun as they headed towards the house that the Don occupied.
The table which had been surrounded by people waiting to see what their leader planned was crowded with faithful members of the PLANTs. Behind Patrick Zala, who sat in a chair made from oak with snakes carved into the frame, stood Nicol, Yzak, and Dearka.
With their hands placed respectfully in front of them and their backs arched into perfect posture, they watched their leader and waited to see what was about to happen next. Everyone in the room was the same as them and it was getting harder and harder to remain patient, but at last the Don of the PLANTs spoke.
"It is time," he took a pause for effect, "I will now present to you the main idea of the Genesis. Be amazed by its power and what it is very well capable of doing."
In the middle of the table sat a small model. It was covered by a red cloth made from silk, multiple bumps visible where something heightened off of the model. With one flick of his hand, the cloth was pulled off, revealing to the people occupying the room a complex looking model.
"The Genesis is a series of weapons all connected to one. They are packed with the highest amount of power, more than enough to take out a mountainside." Patrick pointed to the middle of the model where a circular object was. "This is the main part of the Genesis. It sends out messages to these four objects." Using his finger he pointed to four almost circular objects, all of which Nicol new they had been sent out to place them in the exact location of which the Don wanted.
Nicol watched as he began to feel light headed, terrified for what was going to come out of the Don's mouth next. He felt guilty for taking part in setting up the Genesis, but he could not go back and alter what was in the past. It was too late for that.
"Once these messages are sent to the four, shall we call them, rings, using a new type of technology that sends signals from the ground, the rings will react. These rings," Patrick pointed to the almost circular objects again, "will be triggered, exploding them. It will surely rid us of those filthy people associated with Orb."
Everyone went silent.
Dead silent.
Hoping that everyone doubted their leader, Nicol let out a soft sigh, only to hear the loud roar of people clapping their hands and shouting out their agreements. It felt horrible, knowing that the people were idiotic enough to follow through with the Don's plan, but what was even worse was that Yzak and Dearka were clapping as well.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen, let us begin the cleansing of a world that will soon belong to the PLANTs!"
Patrick Zala, Don of the PLANTs, and respected greatly, pressed a button close to his chair, causing a small platform to rise from the table. He looked over the buttons, until his aging eyes came across a red button with the letter "G" engraved into it. Pressing down on the trigger, Patrick Zala exploded the first of the four rings.
Athrun kicked down another door, memorizing the way to the meeting hall. Kira was close behind, his gun drawn and ready to face anything unexpected. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a large explosion could be heard and the two mobsters were thrown to the ground as a forcefield of energy rippled through the building.
A picture was knocked off of the nail it was hung on, crashing to the floor in front of Athrun. He opened his eyes that he had closed, fearing that something might get in them, and came upon a picture of himself and his father in a family photo, now torn and broken.
Kira threw himself to Athrun, checking for any wounds, but was batted off and assured that nothing had been injured. When they were up and walking again, they headed down a mess of hallways, constantly checking to see if their presence was hidden.
A big red door came into view and Athrun immediately stopped, grabbing Kira and pushing him gently against the wall. They went silent, the only thing ringing in their ears was the sound of their hearts beating at a rapid pace. Athrun slowly advanced, motioning for Kira to follow.
Voices could be heard, mostly cheering and congratulations. With his gun drawn, Athrun reached for the doorknob and slowly twisted it once his free hand felt cold metal underneath. He gave Kira one last look before barging in.
If the room had been silent before, it was even worse when an unexpected blue haired man came through the red door, a gun in his hand and his eyes shimmering with hatred.
"Father!" Athrun yelled, nearing the Patrick Zala with a scowl on his face. "What have you done father?"
Two men made to grab for Athrun, but were quickly felled by a single shot to each of their heads, thanks to Kira. The brown haired mobster walked closely behind Athrun as the people in the room began to panic and become angered.
Nicol's eyes widened like saucers at the sight of his old friend and found that he had to restrain himself from running at him. Yzak let out a angry grunt while Dearka chuckled to himself. But the person Nicol was worried about the most was Athrun, especially when his father stood angrily up from his chair and ran towards Athrun and the brown haired person behind him.
"You!" Patrick yelled, pointing towards Athrun as people quickly filed out of the room, which was left empty within seconds. "You have to wreck everything."
The Don went to hit Athrun, but Kira lunged at him with furious speed, latching onto his back and refusing to let go. Patrick made a grunting noise and effortlessly threw Kira off to the side, slamming him into the wall. The respected Don went after him instead, withdrawing a gun from his uniform and shoving it into Kira's face.
"And you! You're the reason why my son can't even function as a normal human being! You're the one who destroyed everything I had planned for the future! You little prick!"
Patrick grabbed Kira by the collar of his shirt and hoisted him upwards. By the time Kira was dangling inches from the ground, his back forced against the wall, he was fighting for air as well as trying hard not to notice the cold metal pressed painfully into his face.
"You're going to pay!"
The Don of the PLANTs loaded the gun and made to pull back on the trigger but froze. Kira was released from his death grip and fell painfully to the ground below. He watched, violet eyes taking in everything, as Athrun's father staggered backwards until he hit a chair, then fell down, a growing pool of crimson appearing over his heart.
"Athrun?"
Kira looked up at the blue haired mobster, meeting emerald eyes filled with tears. He stood up, his lungs thankful for air, and reached for Athrun. He pulled the torn apart man into his arms and closed his eyes, his heart singing out to his friend and jumping for joy that the fighting would be put to an end.
"I couldn't... I couldn't..."
"Everything is over Athrun, we can go back to living normally now."
Athrun raised his head, his faced wiped dry. He scanned the room and realized that everyone had left, even Nicol, Yzak, and Dearka, whom he had first spotted among everyone that had been in the room at the time of his arrival. However, he spotted something that he utterly detested.
Pulling away from Kira, Athrun took the metal box that had the buttons on it and smashed it over his knee, then grabbed the model and threw it across the room. His shoulders were heaving and he was short on breath, but Athrun ignored it, moving out of the room and gradually towards the outside world.
It was unusually bright out for the time of day, even the sun was still out. Athrun sighed heavily, letting go of everything that had been penned up inside. His mind was now clear and his heart healed more than he thought possible.
Kira came slowly out of the house, unsure if Athrun was alright or not. He tried to remain silent, but Athrun turned around, his emerald eyes meeting those of which Kira possessed. As he neared, the brown haired mobster was grabbed onto by Athrun and pulled into a deep kiss, which was only broken due to a lack of air.
Looking towards the area which had been demolished from the bomb, Athrun felt guilty that he hadn't made it in time to save the people. But things were going to change and everything would get better.
Placing a hand on Kira's shoulder as the sun began to finally set, Athrun couldn't help but smile.
Tomorrow was going to be the start of a whole new life.