" Anything? He shouted into the empty void of his head. Nah, it shouted back.
(( This is the best thing I have ever read. XD))
((Also…. I THINK THAT'S BRILLIANT. So, wait, is he a clone or was he created from multiple genes? What if, like, they took all of the best soldiers' or fighters' DNA they could find and combined those to create him? Or something similar.
"Curtis?" Eden glanced at the shorter man standing next to Kaz. "This guy? He looks like a–" She paused mid-sentence. "Wait, did you say a building fell on you?"
Curtis just nodded, although Eden didn't seem to be paying any attention to him even still. "He's not joking. It really happened."
(First thing: Thank you! I laughed typing it out)
(Second: Yes to the second one. And, after the people who created him found out that he could survive such a beating, they saw him as too powerful and try to kill him.)
"That's what Curtis has been saying," Kaz said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Obviously, I got no relocation of it, but he nearly had a panic attack talking about it."
"Well, if you'll come back with me," Eden said, "we'll get your memories back and then maybe you can remember for sure what happened. That's the only way you're going to to remember. No offense, but you can't take the word of weird little homeless man."
Curtis almost retorted that he wasn't homeless, until he realized that his home had literally just been obliterated, so any argument he had died along with all of his previous acquaintances.
"Hey, Curtis is coming too," Kaz said, crossing his arms. "It is way too dangerous for him to be out here by himself. What if the gang comes back?"
This isn't something Kaz would've said before he lost his memory. He would have left the guy in the dust without even a thank you.
"Since when do you care what happens to people?" Eden asked, a bit surprised. "No, no. We can't bring strangers to the lab." She shook her head. "It's too risky."
(So, since Eden is a love interest, I have an idea. What if the reason why her and Kaz hadn't been a couple before all of this is because Kaz was such a jerk? Like, she cared about him, but his personality kept her from really making that next step?)
"Well…." Kaz trailed off, glancing in between Eden and Curtis.
He was conflicted. This lady told him his name and offered him sanctuary, something that was beyond enticing. Plus, she was pretty. But, on the other hand, Curtis had saved his life while risking his own. The gang could have easily doubled back and dropped another building on him, which was something he wasn't sure he'd survive again.
"Well…" Kaz crossed his arms. "then I'm not going."
(( Ooo! That's a really good idea. It has my stamp of approval :D
"What?" Eden was genuinely shocked– amazed, even. This was even more surprising than the injury or memory loss. "You're not going… because you don't want to leave him?" she asked, just to clarify. Was she sure this was even Kaz? Of course it was, but he was acting like someone else.
Curtis smiled, which may have been a bit out of place considering the current situation, but he couldn't help but feel happy and grateful for what Kaz was doing. He obviously had no friends left (not that he'd had any BEFORE the city went kaplooey), and the fact that Kaz was sticking with him meant a lot– especially since they'd only been friends for a good half hour.
Kaz nodded, albeit slowly. Is this really best decision? he thought, then a wave of guilt hit his mind as hard as the building had hit his face. (So pretty dang hard.) Yes, this is, his brain fired back. He would do the exact same thing for you.
"Yeah. He helped me," Kaz said with more determination backing his voice. "If I left him, I wouldn't be able to live with myself."
(( The way you word things is the best way. XD ))
Eden blinked. "Wow. Okay, then." She paused. She had to get Kaz back, although she didn't want to bring an extra person. Maybe she'd get lucky and find a way to drop Curtis off in the woods somewhere along the way. But she couldn't risk not bringing Kaz, and forcing him to come wasn't really a good idea. "Fine, then. I'll bring the hobo too, if you'll come."
Curtis wanted to thank Kaz right then and there, but he wasn't sure about the timing, so he swore he'd do it later. He'd never met anyone who had been so loyal to him so quickly.
((Curtis casually considering Kaz a brother at this point and they're like 30 minutes into a friendship XDD))
"Well, then, let's go back to this 'lab' you keep talking about," he asked glancing over at the tanks. "Is there gonna be enough room in there? You brought so many soldiers it looked like a freaking circus act when they climbed out of the vehicles."
"A circus act?" Eden asked. She grinned a bit, though it didn't last long. "Hm, well you'd be surprised how many clowns can fit in a tiny car. Come on." She spun around and started back towards the vehicle.
Curtis wasn't sure if this chic was calling him and Kaz clowns, or if she was referring to the soldiers.
Kaz grabbed Curtis's wrist and pulled him to his left side as they walked
"Just walk forward, alright?" he said, twisting his body so it would shield his friend from any sniper fire.
Good lord….am I even human? passed through his mind, dealing his self-esteem a heavy blow. No normal person can do what I can. What does that make me?
((Honestly probably more as an object, all things considered.))
Curtis nodded, sticking close to Kaz. He was amazed; he'd never had a friend like this, one who actually risked themself for him. Usually it was the other way around. Curtis almost couldn't believe it. "Why are you doing this? I mean I'm grateful beyond words– but– no one besides my family has ever really cared. We just met. Why did you choose not to leave me?" Curtis knew he wouldn't have left Kaz, had the situation been reversed, but that didn't mean he expected the same treatment.
Eden stopped next to the vehicle to wait for them.
"You'd do the same for me, man," Kaz said as the reached the vehicle. "Besides, right now you're the only person I know I can trust."
His hair was laying on his forehead like a limp napkin after he took a rocket launcher to the chest, so he pushed it back into place with a huff.
"Hey, lady?" he asked, turning to Eden. "Will there be a new set of clothes for me when we get to where ever we're going?"
Curtis knew Kaz was right; he would've done the same. Even so, he was beyond grateful. He wanted to thank Kaz, but he felt like "Thanks, man," wasn't enough to cover it. He swore to himself right then and there that he would make it a point to do everything in his power to help this guy. Besides, it wasn't like he had anyone else to trust besides Kaz, either.
"You can call me Eden," she replied blankly as she pulled open the door to the vehicle. She glanced at his terribly damaged clothes. "Yes, definitely. You need them badly."
Kaz froze when the lady said her name. You did know her! his brain shouted with glee, running on overdrive for a few moments to drag up a repressed memory.
"You need to stop" Eden had said, looking up at him with her big (blue?) eyes, "Please, just stop."
He had ignored her and grabbed the terrified man by the neck, pinning him against the wall.
"Think you can shoot me, huh?" he growled, his hand clenching even tighter as the man stared up at him with wide eyes. "Think you're gonna shoot me in the back and run off with my money?" Kaz was close enough to smell the alcohol on the guy's breath.
"Kaz!" Eden shouted, shoving him off of the poor guy. "Stop! You can't just attack people like that!"
He snapped out of the memory and looked up at Eden, his eyes going wide. Christ, what kind of person was I?
He fumbled through a few questions that he could've asked, but settled on one.
"Did I kill him?" he asked in a soft voice, a frown forming on his face. She probably doesn't even know what I'm talking about.
"Kill who?" Curtis asked, utterly oblivious to the situation.
Eden stared at Kaz for a short moment, a twinge of sadness– or some similar emotion– visible in her intelligent (yes, blue) eyes. Does he remember something from before? The fact was that he had killed too many people for her to keep up with them all. How was she supposed to know which one he was talking about?
"We'll talk more about this when we get there, if that's alright with you," she responded finally, although she sounded a tad more distant and thoughtful than she had before. "We should probably get going." She motioned for him to get into the vehicle.
(I like the touch with the flashback-memory. That was snazz)
Kaz looked over at Curtis, a confused expression on his face. Words struggled to find their way out of his throat as he attempted to explain what had just happened.
"I…remembered something," he managed to squeeze out. "And it wasn't good."
With that, he climbed into the vehicle and sat down next to Eden, staring down at his feet as he wrestled with his own memory. C'mon, he pleaded with it, Just give me a little more.
No, it responded indignantly. *I don't want to.
(Thank you!)
Curtis clambered into the vehicle after them, wondering what it could've possibly been that Kaz remembered. Something about killing someone, obviously. He wanted to ask, but he didn't dare tread that ground– just in case. He sat down beside Kaz and intertwined his fingers, sitting in awkward silence while he tried to make sense of the situation. It had been a weird day, and he was afraid it was only going to get weirder.
Once they were in the vehicle, the driver hit the gas. A few moments of silence passed, with Eden staring straight ahead, obviously lost in her own thoughts. After some time, she glanced at Kaz. "What did you remember?" she asked, her tone low, almost a whisper.
He didn't look up from his feet, which he just noticed where shoeless. He must have lost them in the explosion. Or maybe he didn't have them to begin with.
"Just…..you telling me to stop," he said, returning to the one memory he had. "Me pinning some guy to a wall, then you shoving me away. Then….nothing."
Kaz looked over at her with a pained expression, hoping she could make sense of it.
Eden bit her lip. She couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards him. Sympathy towards Kaz? It wasn't that Eden was incapable of sympathy, because she had plenty, but it typically didn't spill over Kaz due to his actions. But something was different here– something that made her heart hurt for him. She almost didn't want to tell him. Fortunately, her expression remained nearly blank.
"I know what you're talking about. A drunk man– he shot at you, tried to rob you. You freaked him out and threatened to kill him for it. I tried to stop you, but you were dead set. Do you remember anything else?" she asked slowly.
He rubbed his head with both hands, his fingers weaving through his tangled hair. After a few moments of silence, he shook his head.
"N-no….no, I don't," he mumbled, barely opening his mouth when he spoke. "What happened afterwords?"
"You killed him." Eden felt a bit sorry for being so blunt about it, but what was the point in sugarcoating the truth? Besides, he was Kaz. He wouldn't care anyway.
Would he?
Curtis eavesdropped, as confused as anyone but legitimately interested in the details
