Undead Dilemma

“So eager to end your life?” He asked. “No, just to put an end to you.” I replied. He stood up slowly from the couch, brushing his hands down to straighten his robes. “I want you to know that while I have found your antics against me amusing, I will not falter in killing you.” “I have worked too long and too hard to get the girl.” “Why do you want to live forever and rule?” I asked him. “Ah because I know the weaknesses of every living thing on this earth, even the monsters.” “And to not use that knowledge to get myself everything I ever wanted would just be a waste and I have wasted enough of my life.” “A waste.” I replied “My mom and I were not a waste.” I did a quick glance to the side but didn’t spot Cake or James anywhere. At least they wouldn’t have to witness this whether it went my way or not. I grabbed out a couple of my favorite daggers. Part of me wished I didn’t have to kill my Pops, but I couldn’t let him have Cake. I couldn’t let him destroy the world we lived in just because he wanted to. It would be easier since he had admitted to planning the murder of my mom. My slightly ditzy mom who had loved him so deeply. I would put an end to all of this for her. I crouched down and sprung towards the undead man who used to be my pops.

He dodged around the other end of the coffee table just as I had sprung towards him. I jumped back to the other end of the coffee table so that I could be in the wider section of the living room. We eyed each other a moment, neither of us wasting words in this dance of death. I reached behind my back to try and snag one of my smoke grenades with my fingers. I had just got ahold of one when he kicked out with his foot, shoving the coffee table into my shins. I fell forward on top, throwing out the smoke grenade as I was falling. I could have laughed at fate as the smoke bomb bounced of his chest and onto the table in front of me. I rolled off the table and hit the floor in a low crouch. He swung his leg out towards my head just as the smoke began to fill up the room. I shoved myself back and onto my feet. Thinking quickly I raced out the front door and into the yard. I gave two seconds thought to finding a hiding place but discarded it because I didn’t want him taking the chance to look for my friends. I dove for the edge of the porch, hoping I could at least catch him a glancing blow with one of the daggers. I waited on pins and needles for him to come barreling out the door and down the steps. Of course I should have remembered that my pops had always been a crafty one. As I waited for him, I heard one of the windows shattering and he came vaulting out right over my head.

He landed gracefully right next to me and shoved me against the edge of the porch. My breath whooshed out and the edge bit deeply into the middle of my back. I lashed out with my right dagger and tried to catch him in the neck. He blocked my move and then knocked my arm into the support beam behind me. My hand went numb and I watched the dagger fall uselessly onto the ground. In a swift move he brought his hand behind my head. Using the momentum, he shoved my head forward and kneed me across my face. I felt and saw the stars explode in my head, he shoved me face first into the ground and I tried to regain my sight so that I could defend myself. He grabbed the back of my jacket and flung me so that I lay on my back, one arm twisted somewhat painfully behind my back. Thankfully for me it wasn’t the hand that still gripped tightly to the one dagger I hadn’t lost. I veered my head over so that I could see him. He was walking calmly towards my fallen dagger like he didn’t have a worry in the world. I still couldn’t quite see clearly; it was all a little fuzzy around the edges. I pulled my arm out from under me and tried to lever myself up. I wasn’t not going to die easily for him. I had just worked myself up onto my hands and knees when I saw his feet turn and start making their way back in my direction. I pushed to my feet and felt the pain renew and stab itself into my brain. I forced my eyes to focus on him and raised my dagger up. I was about prepared for his attack when all of a sudden I saw Cake launch herself onto his back.

That minute felt as if it was suspended in time. Me swaying on my feet, dagger clenched in my trembling hand, ready to die by my father’s hand as long as I could take him with me. My pops still looking good with the silver in his hair and his features so like mine. Walking non-chalantly forward to end the life of his only son, so that he could get the immortality he needed to rule the world like he wanted. And Cake. Beautiful, brave and terrified Cake jumping onto the back of the man who killed her family. Wanted to kill her. Gods...I loved her. I know some what cliché to say that I loved her when I expected to die any minute but hey I couldn’t help it. I have heard people talk about being so close to death and realizing so many truths about themselves that they hadn’t known. I just knew that I loved her. Of course time kicked back in and what had felt like forever was truthfully probably half a second. I could feel the horrified expression creeping across my face as she landed on his back. He started to fall forward from the impact her body had made against his, when she slung her arm forward and smashed a UV globe into his face.

I closed my eyes quickly and jumped blindly back so that they wouldn’t come crashing into me. As soon as my feet landed though I opened my eyes Cake was trying to crawl up off his back as he screamed and clutched at his face. I darted forward and pulled her up against me. I grabbed onto her arm and tried to run forward with her when I felt her being jerked back. My pops had grabbed around her ankle and pulled her to a stop, now he was pulling himself up hand by hand as he dragged her down onto the ground. I let go of her hand and let myself fall forward onto him so that he would be forced to let her go. It worked as I had planned but then he shoved his body up, rolling me off him and back onto the ground. My back hit the ground. I rolled onto my side and reached out with my knife hand to slice along his leg. He tumbled back to the ground, howling in pain and rage. I rolled away from him and stood up once again. I looked down on him and felt a glimmer of pity enter into my heart. This was my pops, laying on the ground wounded, by me. Cake moved over to me, pulling out one of her own daggers. I reached up and took the dagger out of her hand. She jerked her eyes up to mine and I shook my head no at her.

I could see the disagreement clearly across her face. I looked at her and then down at my pops who still lay on the ground, clutching his leg and whimpering in pain. I looked back up at her and I guess she could see the truth and pain on my face because the fight drained out of her. She leaned up and kissed me on the cheek, then took several steps back. I repositioned the daggers in my hand and started to make my way to pops. I steeled myself against the part of me that wanted to give him mercy because he used to be my dad. He wasn’t any more and if I didn’t stop him he would just find another way to come back for Cake. When I was 2 feet away from him, he looked up at me. “Go ahead...do it.” he said. My step faltered and I hesitated for a second. Just long enough for him to reach his arms out and pull me off my feet. I fell back and felt my breath whoosh out once again. Between the stars in front of my eyes I could see him stand up and brush regally at his robes again. “Never did learn to get rid of that pity, did you, boy.” He said to me. “You got that from your mom, unless life was immediately at risk, she would always hesitate to kill.” “Pity and mercy are for the weak.” he stated. “Don’t go anywhere girl, I want you to see exactly what I am capable of when I kill my good for nothing son.”

He had turned slightly as he spoke to Cake. When he was turning back towards me, I saw her eyes shift to the left and she dropped to the ground. I stared at her quizzically and then suddenly for the second time that night I heard the 10th Calvary from somewhere off to my left. I swung my head around to my pops and stared in horror as he was riddled with bullets until he fell to the ground. The gunfire stopped and I got up off the ground and rushed towards my dad. His eyes wheeled towards me and I could hear the blood filling up his lungs with every breath. “I forgot about the other one.” He spluttered and coughed out slowly. I wanted to kneel down next to him and take his hand. I knew though that in this instance it was better if I followed my father’s last advice and show no pity. He coughed a couple more times and then looked over at Cake. “I…would have ruled the world because of you.” She looked over at me and then down at him. “Then it seems only fair that the world is saved because of me.” She said to him. And with that she whipped out a dagger and plunged it through his head.

I turned my back to the scene as a sob escaped me. I did nothing to hold it back. I just fell to the ground and let the flood move through me. Waves of memories rode through with the pain. Every single one that I had of my pops and me. Of seeing him and my mom dancing underneath the moon when they thought I was in bed asleep. And as the memories of the last few days joined with those precious memories, I broke down completely. I don’t remember much for the next little while. I just remember surfacing from the well of grief to warm arms cradling me close and Cake humming to me softly. I didn’t move until I felt the sadness smooth out into a more manageable state. As it did I sat up and looked at her. She looked at me sadly and I knew that she felt bad for the pain she had caused me when she had killed my pops. “It’s okay Cake.” I croaked out to her. I gave her a small smile and felt it grow bigger as she smiled back at me. James walked up as we were rising up from the ground. “I took care of your pops for you man.” He told me. ” I....I didn’t know if you would want it or not but I scooped up some of his ashes for you just in case.” He passed me one of those plastic Kool Aid tubs and I busted up laughing.

They both looked at me like I had busted a gasket. I reached out and took the little container from James. “I could put his ashes with my mom’s I guess.” I said. “He may not have liked it but I think my mom would have so...” I trailed off. I blinked back the tears not wanting to cry again so soon. Cake slipped her arm around my waist and leaned into me. I rested my cheek against her hair and realized that we had done it. Cake was safe, we were all alive and the big bad evil had been defeated. We made our way up the steps and into the door. Cake looked down and then stooped down to pick up one of the things that had spilled out of the bags when James had been bopped on the back of the head. She stood up and I could see that she had found the nightlight of daffodils that I had gotten at the store on our way home. She tucked it in close to her chest and then beamed at me with her eyes all misty. I felt my face heat up with embarrassment. Not wanting it to get awkward at the moment though I cleared my throat. ” I ah... I think the first order of business, is to get the kitchen cleaned up enough to get us some grub.” James and Cake chorused their agreements. I reached out for Cake’s hand and when she slid hers into mine I knew whatever the future held we would make it through.

The End