//------------------------------// // Chapter 41: You're Not Me // Story: Bounty Hunters 3: Genesis // by Jasper77W //------------------------------// Both pegasi pulled their triggers and ducked, heavy caliber bullets whizzing by their heads. "Just do me a favor and kill yourself!" Rainbow yelled, lunging forward. "Not before anything else does!" Silver yelled back, bringing her blade up to meet Rainbow's. Their cleavers clashed, and they both put their body weight into it. They came nose to nose, snarling at each other. Then Rainbow launched a kick into Silver's cleaver and sent her away, and leaped into the air. Silver quickly recovered and rolled forward, hearing Rainbow slam the cleaver down behind her. She quickly turned on her back and brought her cleaver up to defend herself as Rainbow swung the blade over and down onto Silver. There was a solid metallic bang as both blades clashed again, but Silver had the disadvantage of being on the ground. She quickly rolled to the side that the handle was on, got up and ripped her cleaver out from underneath Rainbow's. she swung it back, directly aimed for Rainbow's head. Rainbow ducked down, the blade whooshing past her. She sprung up, swinging her cleaver up with her. Silver countered it by swinging from up high, both cleavers clashing and deflecting off of each other. They both swung again, from opposing angles. Again they deflected off of one another. Rainbow pulled into a defensive position this time as Silver swung, and when the blades hit she put all her strength into shoving everything forward. Silver went stumbling back, off balance and leaving a clear path for Rainbow's cleaver directly to her chest. Rainbow stabbed forward, but Silver leaped up and kicked the blade from the side, knocking it away. This time it was Rainbow who was left recovering, her cleaver knocked to the side and her left shoulder exposed. Silver swung in from the side, and there was no time for Rainbow to counter it with her blade. But she could still use the cleaver. She lifted up the hilt, and Silver's cleaver edge hit it right on the end, stopping inches from Rainbow's back. Rainbow slammed a hoof on the cleaver's trigger, and the force of the recoil shoved Silver's blade away and gave her time to regain her hooves. Silver dispersed the sudden momentum and spun in a circle, then brought the cleaver up with a click. Rainbow swung up, using the side of the cleaver to deflect the bullet. Silver fired again, and Rainbow lunged forward and past the shot. * Octavia could hear shots being fired now. She panicked, and started picking up the pace. The forest's thick foliage crunched under her hooves, covering over the sounds of a violent fight going on in the distance. She could barely see anything in the darkness, the thick vegetation blocking out the moon light. Her back hoof caught on a twig, and she stumbled a bit. That was when she realized how irregular her breathing was- and she was sweating more than she should be from the simple exercise of running. She coughed onto the back of her hoof, and saw that whatever she coughed up was a dark color in the shadows. Slowly she trotted towards a small clearing, regulating her breathing. Moonlight revealed the substance to be blood- thicker than usual. She shook her head- the poisoning was getting worse by the second. She quickly shook the blood off her hoof, and continued running towards the sounds of battle. * Silver swung her cleaver up, but Rainbow batted it away. There was a flash as Rainbow stabbed the cleaver deep into the rock and pulled the trigger, the mini detonation rippling through the ground and sending shards flying up into the air. Silver stumbled back, struggling to see through the dust cloud from the explosion. Then she saw her own shadow stretch before her in a red aura, and raised an eyebrow. She heard a loud whoosh behind her, and ducked down just in time as Rainbow swung the cleaver over her head. She didn't even see her sneak around the dust cloud. She rolled forward and out of range, then came back up on one knee and leveled the cleaver. Rainbow swung and deflected the three rounds that followed, the loud bangs thudding against her chest. She hit Silver's cleaver off aim then swung her own back and aimed at Silver's head from point blank range. Silver yanked her head to one side just as Rainbow fired. The bullet skimmed her ear, but it was the bang that did the most damage- her ear drums shattered, and she quickly flew to the left. Rainbow looked down at the cleaver- it had a bit of blood on it. She shook it off, unsettling a small layer of dust on the floor. Silver was kneeling on the ground a few meters away, her cleaver on the floor. Blood dripped down from the wound in her ear, and she was watching it drip to the floor. "Just do me a favor and die already." Rainbow bared her teeth, taking aim once again. Silver dived to the side and picked up her cleaver, then swung it up to block the bullet. She then fired at Rainbow, who was forced to bring her cleaver back as a shield. Silver took the chance and swung up from the ground, hitting Rainbow's blade on the hilt and sending it out of her hooves. It flipped through the air and lodged into the ground several meters behind Rainbow. Silver fired at the disarmed Rainbow, who turned on her side and allowed the bullet to pass harmlessly. Silver then swung, but Rainbow hit the blade on the side as it was coming down, knocking it aside. She darted forward, making sure the cleaver couldn't get her; and drove a knee into Silver's stomach. Winded, Silver tried to fight back- but it wasn't working very well as Rainbow didn't even give her time to recover. Rainbow slammed her across the head then launched a kick into her back as she stumbled around. Silver went sliding across the ground however still on her hooves, and she still had her cleaver. She wiped off a bit of blood from the corner of her mouth, and charged at Rainbow. She brought the cleaver high up into the air, then slammed it down at Rainbow. Rainbow ran forward and slid forward, the angle of the blade stopping itself before it could harm her. She pushed off behind her with her front hooves, and kicked up with her back. She caught the cleaver's trigger, and rammed it down with a hoof. There was a loud boom as it went off, startling Silver. She accidentally let go, and the cleaver was left spinning through the air above their heads. They both leaped for it, but Silver got there first. She caught the blade by the handle, and threw it as a javelin down at Rainbow. Rainbow flexed her wings and arched backwards, her back hooves only just clearing the heavy and undoubtedly lethal blade. It slammed heavily into the ground, and she landed with a thud a few meters back. Silver was already at the cleaver, and had already pulled it out of the ground. The cleaver was only lethal at a certain range, if the range of combat got too close the blade wouldn't be able to reach the opponent. Rainbow ran at Silver once more, but this time she was prepared. Just as Rainbow was about to give her a right hook across the face, she lashed out a kick straight down into Rainbow's hip. Rainbow's face registered surprise as she went tumbling back, her center of gravity completely thrown off. She went skidding back several meters, and came to a rest in the dust on her back. She struggled to get back up, her right leg completely disjointed. She was relying on her other legs as she stood up, then eventually straightened up into a standing position. She spat out a droplet of blood, and snarled. "I'll never lose to scum like you." She said with a slight smirk, placed a hoof on her right leg, and shoved it back into place with a loud crunch. She groaned, her body contorted and shaking with pain. But eventually, she stood back up again and flexed her shoulders. Silver growled, and swung her cleaver. Rainbow kicked back, her hoof connecting with her own cleaver's trigger. It came blasting out of the ground, the handle of it slammed into Silver's blade and knocking it away. The cleaver dropped back down again, and fell right into Rainbow's hooves. "Now this is a proper duel." She muttered, and swung from the side. Silver met the cleaver with her own, and twisted it out of the way. She came back for another swing, but Rainbow did the same thing and flicked it to the side. Metal clanged on metal as their cleavers clashed again, sparks flying through the air as they struck at each other once more. Rainbow was pushing Silver back, forcing her to slowly back away with her relentless attacks. And finally, she had forced Silver into the very corner of the battlefield. "DID YOU EVEN THINK WHEN YOU JOINED SIDES WITH VAL!!??" Rainbow screamed, slamming the cleaver down at Silver, who barely deflected it in time. "SHE DIDN'T GIVE ME A CHOICE!!" "THERE'S ALWAYS A CHOICE, WHETHER OR NOT SHE GIVES YOU ONE!!" Rainbow yelled back, stabbing the cleaver forward. Silver batted it away with her own from the side, but barely. The tip of the cleaver ripped her coat and made a small cut on her stomach, but did nothing more. "AND YOU CHOSE YOURSELF!!" Silver didn't reply, just kept defending herself. "I CAME ALL THIS WAY TO MAKE SURE THEY WOULD BE FINE-" Rainbow snarled, firing a shot down at Silver's hooves. The bullet shattered the earth there, and Silver fell back. She stabilized herself by moving a hoof back and using that as support, but didn't have time to recover fully. By now Rainbow had already raised the cleaver high above her head, and was in the process of bringing it down. Silver quickly brought her own up to defend herself- but didn't have a firm enough hold. "-AND ALL IT TOOK WAS ONE LITTLE PIECE OF CRAP LIKE YOU TO RUIN EVERYTHING!!!" Rainbow screamed, bringing the cleaver down with all her strength. The air around it rippled, and trails of a rainbow-colored sonic bubble formed over the blade. It struck Silver's cleaver dead center, and the moment the two made contact the Element of Loyalty crystal suddenly glowed a brighter red than it ever did, illuminating the darkness and sending the shadows scattering away. There was a loud clang, and to the surprise of both pegasi- Silver's cleaver completely shattered into large chunks of waste metal under the force of Rainbow's cleaver, fueled by the last element of harmony crystal still in existence. Silver went stumbling back, remnants and pieces of her only weapon still falling all around her. Rainbow flicked her own cleaver up into the air, folding it back into a canister. It fell in her pocket, and she lunged at Silver. Silver had barely recovered when Rainbow drove a knee deep into her stomach, violently forcing all the air out of her lungs. Then she felt a dull pain across the left of her face as Rainbow slammed a hoof into it, followed by a kick into her shin which drove her to her knees and forced her to turn around with her back to Rainbow. Rainbow placed a back hoof on Silver's back and gabbed onto her wings. She wrenched at them, slowly tearing them out. Silver could feel her flesh being ripped, and her bones slowly sliding out of their sockets. Then there was a dull tearing noise and a loud snap as Rainbow ripped her wings off with her bare hooves. Silver screamed, and Rainbow kicked her across the clearing. She rolled to a rest at the edge of the forest, and struggled to get back up. She couldn't stand up though, and could only get to a kneeling position. And even then she still had to keep a hoof on the ground so she wouldn't fall over. A portion of her face was bruised, and she was covered in dirt. Blood dripped down from a wound on her forehead and from the corner of her mouth. Her back was soaked crimson, and she was grinding her teeth together from the pain. There were tears coming out from the corners of her eyes, and she struggled to shake them off with the agony. Her back was burning, and her severed wings were a few meters in front of her, lying in a puddle of blood. The grey feathers were soaked red, and it was just a mess. There were several loud clicks as Rainbow deployed her cleaver, and pointed it at Silver's forehead. A shot like this would be completely lethal- from point blank range, Silver wouldn't even have a head after this. Rainbow looked down emotionlessly at her defeated and corrupted self, her eyes cold and without a slimmer of pity. "Kill me, then. Go on." Silver snarled, looking weakly up at Rainbow. "No regrets." Rainbow said coldly, and pulled the trigger. Suddenly something hit the cleaver on the side, and her shot missed. The bullet barreled past Silver and hit the ground. Rainbow felt someone grab her by the collar then thump her to the ground. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!!??" Octavia screamed at her face. "GET OFF ME!!" Rainbow yelled back, trying to free herself- but Octavia had a firm hold. "YOU HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS!!" "WELL I DO NOW!!" Octavia shouted. "Listen- You're not thinking clearly! We still need her!" "FOR WHAT!!?? SUICIDE!!??" Rainbow screamed, and shoved Octavia away. She brought her cleaver up again to take aim. "SNAP-" Octavia slammed Rainbow across the face, and she dropped the cleaver in shock. "OUT OF IT!!" "Octavia...?" Rainbow stumbled back. Octavia charged forward and grabbed her by the collar again, then swung her around and slammed her against a tree. "You think is going to help anyone? What would killing her do, huh? You're gonna kill her for revenge!?" She snarled. "We need everyone we've got, and you know it. And you're gonna kill her- for yourself!? WHO'S THE SELFISH ONE NOW!?" She shook Rainbow. "But... She..." "Are you listening to yourself? You bucking sound JUST LIKE HER!! Laying the blame on others! Rainbow- why, do we fight?" "She-" "Just answer my question!!" Octavia shook her. Rainbow sighed, looking down guiltily. "To protect those that are precious to us." "And are you protecting anyone by killing one of us? Silver may have done wrong- but she's still on our side. She could still help us." Octavia said, then sighed. The earth rumbled, and they all fell silent to listen. The edge of the cliff was cracking, due to all the heavy bullets fired into the ground that destabilized the local area. There was a loud cracking noise as suddenly everything tilted down a few degrees, and Rainbow and Octavia stumbled a bit. They were still in the danger zone. "Son of a mule. Run, damnit!" Octavia let go, and waved towards the forest. But Rainbow wasn't moving. "You coming or what?" "You were right, Octavia." Rainbow growled angrily and frustratedly, then looked to the edge of cliff. "We still need her." She said, and darted for the edge. "Shuck..." Octavia muttered, but could do nothing more than back away onto the safe side. Silver didn't even hold on, just sat on the edge as the cliff was slowly sliding off. "The hay are you doing! Come on!" Rainbow yelled at her, landing next to her with a quick beat of her wings. "I'm not coming. Go, Rainbow." Silver said, and Rainbow grabbed her by the shoulders. She batted her hooves away, a bitter look on her face. "The hell is wrong with you? You're gonna die here!" Rainbow growled. "Here's your chance to have me dead. Take it." Silver said calmly. "Because I'm accepting it." "I still want you dead." Rainbow grabbed Silver by the collar and pulled her nose to nose. "That much hasn't changed a bit." She snarled, looking into her eyes with her own hatred. "You've ruined what I had. But's there's still more left, and if you're gonna ruin that too by not helping- you'll deserve a death even more." Silver pushed Rainbow away and turned around, but Rainbow stopped her and laid a firm hoof on her shoulder. "You said you regretted it, didn't you?" Rainbow took her hoof away. "I did." Silver sighed. "Then make up for it." Rainbow said, offering her hoof this time instead of being forceful. Silver turned around and looked down at the hoof. There was no forgiveness in it, but a solid goal set not to be failed. A goal they shared in different ways- one to protect, and the other to exculpate. Silver took the hoof and shook it firmly. "You up to the task?" Rainbow taunted. "Are you?" "I know I am." "Then no different here." Silver narrowed her eyes. "Wings or no wings." "You deserved that." Rainbow said, and they started running for safety. A large portion of the earth beneath their hooves suddenly cracked and suddenly lifted up on one end, and soon they were climbing at an eighty degree angle. Rainbow got to the edge with ease, and swung over the edge. Silver was there a second later, and followed. Rainbow landed on firm earth, and looked up. Silver timed her jump, placed both back hooves on the rock plate and pushed off. But just as she did, the rock plate experienced a sudden drop, rendering Silver's push off near useless. "Shuck-" Octavia saw, and darted forward. Silver fell short, but Octavia caught her by the wrist just as she passed. She swung down and slammed onto the new cliff face, the air knocked from her lungs. But her survival instincts told her to keep holding on. Octavia could feel herself slipping. Then before she knew it, she had been dragged off the edge as well. Rainbow quickly leaped over and caught Octavia's hoof, and now they were all suspended hundreds of meters above a violent and roaring river. The only firm anchor was Rainbow- who was barely holding on. "Shuck- slipping-" she managed as she ground her teeth together, struggling to pull up the two adult ponies. She was barely holding onto them. Octavia could feel her hoof slipping from Rainbow's, and both were desperately trying to hold on. But it was no use. Rainbow was straining to hold on and keep herself from falling at the same time, and her back hooves left grooves in the dirt as she was slowly dragged towards the cliff edge. Then she felt the load lighten, and Octavia felt another pair of hooves grab onto her wrist. Magnum held on firmly, and together with Rainbow they lifted the two ponies up. First Octavia, then they all helped her lift Silver to safety. They collapsed meters well away from the cliff edge, huffing and puffing. They could still hear rocks and the old cliff edge tumbling down the side, then loud splashes as the huge chunks of earth hit the river. "Magnum... Just in time... As always..." Rainbow said between huffs of breath, and swallowed so her throat was less dry. "Well," Magnum shrugged, sitting next to her. "I wouldn't know." "Geez- thanks to you we're still alive." Octavia patted her on the back. "Do you remember anything yet?" "I remember saving you guys' arses half a dozen times, and that's about it." Magnum said, and they shared a laugh. "Seriously though. Were you guys really that useless?" "Not so much." Rainbow sighed, getting up. "And... What the hay happened here though? I heard gunshots. Freakin woke me up too, and I saw you guys were missing. I also heard screaming. Got kinda... Worried. Damnit." Magnum muttered. Rainbow pulled her into a big hug. "Don't worry, you're getting there. Already getting worried for us eh? That's a development." She said cheerfully. "And it shall remain highly awkward in the meantime. But seriously- what happened!?" "Well, Silver-" Octavia started, looking to where Silver should be. "Holy crap! What happened...?" "No... Idea..." Silver muttered, a huge wooden splinter going into her side. Blood was still dripping down, and she was struggling to breath or even make noises. "Buck. Somepony get EDI! We need something to wrap her wounds up! EDI has the materials- Magnum! Go get her now!" Octavia yelled, checking Silver's wounds. Amongst the chaos Rainbow just stood there looking down at her own hooves. Probably the hooves that killed Silver- she didn't know whether to be satisfied or to be horrified. Inside, she could feel that monster purring again. That same feel from years ago- when she first came in contact with the virus. A monster inside, fighting to break out and wreak havoc. Had she lost control again? Those years ago- Val drove her own thirst for revenge against her, is the same thing happening again? That her desire for revenge had caused her to weaken herself? Weaken what little resistance against the science faction that was left? Like Octavia had said, the more they had on their side the better- and Silver was one of the better fighters. Sometimes old sins have to be forgiven then forgotten if new alliances are to be formed- and in their case, the alliance is for one purpose- and one purpose only. To liberate Equestria from Val's grasp, and kill the Valkyrie.