Witch Hunter Robin Fan Fiction ❯ When All Is Said And Done ❯ XII ( Chapter 12 )

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XII

 

Robin

 

Robin's body tumbled harshly down the rough terrain, the gunmen in hot pursuit further up the cliff. She was relieved when she felt her body stop moving, though it was hard to tell if she'd truly stopped. Her whole body was numb with pain, and the ache of her left leg was excruciating.

“Why…?” she kept asking herself. She tried to get up, but found that she could no longer stand on either leg. She didn't want to die, not then, not that way. Not without knowing why, at least. She looked up and saw several men sprawling at random spots down the hill. She cuddled into herself and set the ground around her on fire, hoping to create some type of shield from them. They blocked her fire when she aimed it at them, and she couldn't set them on fire directly. But at least that way, they'd be stalled.

“…over here,” someone said.

“This way…”

“…swing around back. She might have gotten away…”

“…indicates that she hasn't moved…” Robin curled up even tighter, her fear causing the fire to burn greatly. There was immense heat around her, but she didn't care. She would rather be taken by her own fire than to give her pursuers the satisfaction of hunting her.

“…what was that…?”

“Agent 5, come in!”

“…go around the back, now!”

“Ah!”

“Agent 5! Damnit, Agent 5!”

“Uh!

“There's a break in the system!”

“What's going on here…?”

“AAAH!” Robin cringed. What was going on there, indeed. Were they…being burned by her fire?

“Agent 3!”

“Kuso!”

“Chief, come in, chief!”

“Ah!”

“Come in! Agent 1, report your—unh!” Thump! Robin opened her eyes. One of the agents had fallen through her fire, and lay half on the grass and half in the flames. He wasn't moving. She didn't want to watch him burn. She shut her eyes and covered her face. She waited. She didn't hear anything. She opened her eyes again and sat up. It was quiet, except for the roar of the flames. Then, distantly, she heard a familiar voice call out to her.

“Robin!” She gasped and looked towards the voice, though she couldn't see through the fire.

“Michael…?” she asked unsurely as she got to her feet. Her legs trembled greatly; she'd forgotten how much they hurt. She fell to the ground. “Michael!” she called.

“Amon, she's inside,” Sakaki said. Robin looked down, a reassured smile coming to her features and tears welling at the rims of her eyes. They came for her. They were going to save her.

“Robin, try to extinguish the flames,” Amon instructed. “We can't get through to you.” Robin used the same energy to ask the flames back as she did to ask them to spring forth. In a sweep, the fire quelled, leaving a steaming ring of charred grass around her. She coughed as the smoke whisked by her. She heard someone coming near. She sat up. It was Amon. He kneeled next to Robin and put his arms around her. “Robin…” he said.

“Amon…why…why did they do this?” she asked.

“I don't know,” he said. He tried to lift her up, but her legs gave out on her again. Sakaki kneeled to the right of her.

“Hey…are you alright?” he asked.

“My legs…” Robin said. Sakaki reached down and pulled her skirt up.

 

Sakaki

 

“Oh…shit…” he said. There was a bone sticking out of one of them, and a bullet hole in the other. He looked up at Robin. She was about to faint.

“What is it?” Amon asked, and looked for himself. He paled. “We have to get her to the hospital, now.”

“Amon, Haruto…!” Michael said. “We have to get out of here. Two factory trucks are coming this way.” Amon reached down and scooped Robin up quickly. Sakaki followed him as he headed for the car. Michael was there and had the doors open for a quick escape. Amon sat Robin in the back seat and Sakaki slid in on the other side. Amon got into the car and slammed the door. He started up and sped away.

“Sakaki…” Robin murmured. She was covered in a heavy layer of sweat and she was losing color. Sakaki wiped her forehead dry.

“We're going to get you help, Robin, just hang in there.” Robin nodded and her head tilted to the side. Sakaki shook her and she didn't move. Sakaki pressed his fingers to her neck to check her pulse. She was still alive. He kept his hand there so that if her condition changed, he'd know right away. Sakaki looked at Michael. He was working on his computer.

“Why are they trying to kill her?” Sakaki asked.

“Because she's a witch,” Amon said. “I can't think of any other reason.”

“But she hasn't done anything wrong,” Sakaki said.

“You think that matters?” Amon snapped. “Do you know how many innocent people they've come after, just for having powers?” Sakaki swallowed hard.

“I just don't understand.”

“It's not for us to understand,” Amon said. “Idiots think on a level we could never, and that is all there is to it.”

“They're there,” Michael said, “and they're stagnant.”

“What do you think they're doing?” Sakaki asked.

“Looking for her,” Michael answered. He shook his head. “No… Wouldn't they already know she's not there?” Amon stepped on the gas.

“It won't take them long to assess what's happened.” Amon veered sharply right and continued on.

When they pulled into the emergency lane of the nearest hospital, Sakaki quickly opened the door. Amon got out and helped him help Robin from the car.

 

Michael

 

Michael hurried inside the sliding doors to inform the desk clerk of what was going on. She was speaking with another clerk when he came up to the front desk. Before he could speak, someone gave his arm a yank and pulled him towards a hallway.

“Hey, I…”

“If you know what's good for you, you'll keep your mouth shut.” Michael froze. That voice. But how he had gotten there before them, if at all? “Come with me, and don't say a word.” Michael nodded and allowed himself to be pulled down the hall. He didn't want to complicate matters before he knew his situation. They stopped in front of a door at the end of the hall. “Go on,” the voice informed. Michael opened the door and went inside. The room was dark, but the moonlight from outside was enough for Michael to see what was inside. It was a small patient room, with a bed, a TV and a few chairs. “Have a seat.” Michael sat in the first chair and looked down, shifting a little after realizing he'd agitated his backside.

“What are you going to do with me?” he asked, rubbing the base of his back to relieve himself.

“What am I going to do with you?” Zaizen asked. “Michael, I'm not going to do anything with you.”

“Then what is this about? Why is Robin being attacked? And why aren't you allowing me to help her.”

“I have no idea what's going on with Robin,” Zaizen said. “More to the point, we made an agreement, did we not? As long as you upheld your part of the agreement, there would be no problems. But you didn't. You've broken the agreement. Do you remember what your punishment for breaking the agreement would be?” Michael wasn't afraid. He wouldn't allow himself to be afraid. But he couldn't help but be nervous. He told himself that as long as he was in the room, he was safe. He could easily change the outcome of whatever was supposed to happen to him.

“You know?” Michael said. “You'd think that if I was in a hospital, and I made it clear to you that something's wrong with Robin, if you were truly innocent of what's going on, you'd at least show some concern.” Michael stood up.

“I know what you did,” Zaizen boomed. “Sit down.”

“I have more important things to do right now,” Michael said. Zaizen grabbed Michael by the collar and pushed him up against the wall.

“You've been around that egotistical bastard for too long,” he growled. “You belong to me! I own you!”

“I thought you weren't going to do anything to me,” Michael said. Zaizen's eyes lowered and he stared at Michael. Michael was confused. “You don't have to use force against me as long as you continue to get your story mixed up. I'm not going anywhere until I figure out your part in this.”

“You are not here to interrogate me.”

“Yeah, obviously,” Michael said. Zaizen banged him into the wall. Michael could feel Zaizen's arms shaking from holding up his weight. Amon was right. He wasn't as strong as he seemed. But then again, all those late nights Michael spent eating junk food and drinking pop might have been why.

“Shut up!” Zaizen said. Michael shook his head at him, not believing how ridiculous his situation was. He didn't say anything. He realized that the more he talked, the longer it would take. Zaizen slowly slid him down the wall. Michael caught his footing and straightened out his shirt. “You've fucked up,” Zaizen told him. “You've screwed up bad. You should have kept your nose out of this. You'll pay for your interference…” Michael ignored him, and began to think about his situation.

Zaizen knew everything, didn't he? He knew everything that was going on, with their talks, and their knowledge of his plans. He wanted the plan to be carried out, but Amon, Haruto and Michael stopped it. Robin, herself, delayed it. And Zaizen was beginning to lose his control.

“I'm not going to do anything to you,” Zaizen said. Michael looked at him. “I'm not. But that doesn't mean that no one else will.”

“I figured that,” Michael said. “You don't have to explain everything to me like I'm five. I know what's going on.” He sat back down and gave himself another mental rundown of his situation. He still wasn't afraid. He was…curious. And anxious. He wondered how Robin was faring.

 

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kaj