The Mission
The next morning, Tangle woke as she climbed out of bed, walking out of her bedroom and into Whisper's to check on her.
Tangle could barely look at her- she hated to see her girlfriend in such a state- beaten, bloodied, and in dire need of rest.
But they couldn't rest.
Not yet.
Tangle stared at Whisper with a concerned and upset face, leaning against the doorway as she waits for her to get up, wiping tears from her face, her eyes red from crying.
Whisper groggily began to fall out of bed, limping out as she leaned her hand against the wall to keep her up, covered in bruises and cuts.
"Oh, Whisper..." Tangle muttered to herself in a distraught tone, running over to Whisper and helping her get up.
"You're hurt- you can't go on the mission today." Tangle continued as Whisper turned to her, holding her wounds.
"No..I.." Whisper went to speak, before violently coughing- as if she was about to cough up her lungs.
"...Need to go.." Whisper continued, covering her mouth with her arm as she coughed.
"You've got to be kidding me, Whisper. No. No, you don't. You can't keep throwing yourself into danger like this!- You're going to die, someday, Whisper! One day I'm not gonna be there for you, and-" Tangle spoke up, throwing her arms around as she spoke. At the end of her sentence, her voice began to choke up, and tears streamed down her face.
"And I don't wanna think about wha'td happen then. I don't wanna lose you, Whisper." Tangle continued, hugging Whisper and resting her head on Whisper's shoulder.
Whisper went to push her away- but ultimately decided not to. She could atleast give Tangle a shoulder to lean on- for now, anyway.
But she knew she could never reassure Tangle about her safety.
Because as long as they're out there- Mimic, the Eggman Council- She couldn't rest. She couldn't live. She'd have to fight every second.
Whisper grunted- she needed to go on this mission. She wasn't going to let Tangle go alone.
Tangle fell unconscious, and her vision was too blurry back when she lost a part of her tail to even see the faces of the rebellion's soldiers.
Whisper wasn't.
She saw them.
She saw them cower, when they were needed.
She saw them freeze up.
She wasn't going to let something like that happen again.
Because she knew- she believed- that if she wasn't there, Tangle would've been dead before anything would've been done to save her.
Whisper tried to push Tangle aside- but let out a slight whimper as she tried to push her away, her arms in heavy pain as she moves them.
Tangle swiftly let go of Whisper- helping guide her towards her bed, where she sat.
"Whisper...you really can't go. You'll...you'll get hurt. You can barely walk, and you've just woken up! I need you to listen to me, Whisper, if just for today!" Tangle continues, sitting next to Whisper as she desperately tries to convince her to stay home.
Whisper's ears lowered as she held her wound, upset- she couldn't go on the mission, but she couldn't let Tangle, either. It was a suicide mission for whoever left.
Or Whisper believed it to be, atleast.
She'd have to make both of them stay- Tangle clearly wasn't going to let Whisper go.
As Tangle began to get up from the bed, sighing, Whisper grabbed her shoulder, speaking-
"Wait."
"I'll...stay here. If you do the same." begrudgingly, lifting her hand off Tangle's shoulder as Tangle begins to smile.
Whisper had been secretive, closed-off and constantly injured for days.
Maybe now Whisper's thinking of opening up- talking to Tangle- telling her why everything is happening.
Tangle feels hopeful, and with joy, speaks,
"Sure."
"That'd be great, Whisper." in a soft and sincere tone.
Whisper feels her heart become heavy- an immense guilt falling upon her.
Tangle really believes that she's doing this to work things out.
Not doing this just to keep her alive.
Whisper tries to fake a smile, but struggles and falls back into her bed so she doesn't need to, turning away from Tangle.
Tangle stares at Whisper for a moment, smiling before she gets up from the bed.
"Up for some breakfast?" Tangle asks, going to leave the room.
Whisper only replies with a nod, yawning as she rests.
Atleast, now that she couldn't go on the mission, she had no choice but to rest, accidentally dozing off as she sat on her bed.
Tangle headed into the kitchen, searching through the cupboards, foraging for a breakfast.
But just as she opened the fridge, she heard it.
Something flying into their front door.
It was a loud, heavy thud as something was stuck in it- Whisper didn't wake, barely moving in her sleep.
Tangle didn't think to wake her, either- Whisper hadn't been sleeping much, recently. Tangle was lucky to get her to rest now-
She walked the to door, cautiously opening it as she prepares for any danger,
but is only met with an empty street.
Staying alert, Tangle looks at the door; a knife and a note is against it.
Tangle becomes worried- before she takes a closer look at the note.
It's a threat.
Addressed to Whisper.
Her faces turns from sad to furious, snatching the knife from the note and taking the note.
"Is this...is this what she's been hiding from me!?" Tangle says to herself, throwing her arms in the air and shaking her fists.
"Whisper, you- Urgh! I...I need to sort this out. If they've been the ones- if it's their fault that Whisper has been coming home bloodied and beaten- Then I'll make sure they'll never be able to hurt her again." Tangle continues, lowering her arms and locking the door as she walks away from the house.
The note left instructions.
A location.
For a final fight, between old friends- or enemies.
Tangle wasn't going to let Whisper go to it.
It was a death trap- and Tangle decided to take her place.
Sneaking through the streets of New Yolk city, Tangle was constantly alert and determined as she headed to the meeting place, using what was left of her tail to hold the knife.
Then, she arrived.
It was an empty alleyway- there was no one to witness anything that happened here.
Tangle turned around- searching for anyone nearby.
It was completely barren of life, and not a word was heard except the cold, whistling wind.
Tangle tightened her grasp on the knife, pacing around the area, before yelling,
"I'M HERE FOR WHISPER! C'mon, you scumbags! You wanted a fight!? I'M HERE! COME AND GET ME!" at the top of her lungs, waving the knife in the air and throwing the note onto the ground.
All she heard was grunt in reply.
And then an imbalance in the wind.
As if someone jumped.
Tangle began to become nervous- but did her best to brush it off, staying cautious as she waited for someone to appear.
And, just as she expected, someone did-
An octopus, wreathed in a torn, black cloak.
He leaped infront of Tangle as she prepared for a fight, attempting to hide the knife.
"Where. Is. The wolf." Spoke the cloaked figure in a threatening, demanding tone.
"Sorry- but you'll have to kill me before I'll ever talk." Tangle replied as she dashed at the octopus, charging him with the knife-
He skillfully leaps out the way, jumping past Tangle and leaving her with a large, agonizing incision across her back.
Tangle gritted her teeth, placing the knife into her hand as she used her tail to stop the bleeding, her fur becoming red as she does so, the wound constantly stinging, distracting her.
"Damn-" Tangle muttered as the pain in her back only got worse, blood beginning to stream down her back like a river.
She felt on the verge of collapse, but continued fighting as the octopus spoke,
"Your death can be arranged.", as he darted towards Tangle, multiple sharp, jagged blades in his hands.
Tangle, weak and vision blurry, did her best to move out the way as one of the blades caught her ear, slicing off a large chunk that fell to the ground, her hearing getting worse as blood runs down her face.
Everything starts going black- she can't fight anymore. Not now.
But she can't give up.
"Yo..you..b..astar.." Tangle tries to speak as she begins to lose her grip on the knife, collapsing to the ground as she bleeds out, coughing up blood.
Everything went black.
She lost.
And Whisper woke up.
Groaning and climbing out of bed as she grabs her wispon, using it as a walking aid as she tries to be careful with her wounds, Whisper walks down into the kitchen, still tired-
but for once, somewhat happy. She'd finally get to spend some time with Tangle- and that's important to her.
But then she freezes completely, dropping her wispon and leaning against a wall as her eyes open wide.
"No." She mutters to herself, before screaming,
"TANGLE!" to no reply.
Her heart begins pounding.
Her breathing gets worse.
And she grabs her wispon, pushing past the agony of every step as she charges to the rebellion's headquarters.
As she entered, the bandages on her wounds coming loose as drops of blood begin to show once again, all she heard was gasps and noise.
Lots and lots of noise.
She was furious- they couldn't have let Tangle go on the mission. Tangle wouldn't have gone like that. They must've forced her- Whisper went up to a large crowd, Rebel standing at the back of them.
She grabbing Rebel by the neck- or, atleast tried to, weak and injured.
"Where is Tangle? Why did you force her to go on the mission!?" Whisper asked, raising her voice.
Renegade went to intervene- but Rebel gestured for him to move back as Whisper let go of Rebel, tears streaming down her face as she screamed at the top of her lungs,
"WHERE IS SHE! WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER!?", Rebel only staring at her with a concerned- and upset- gaze. She felt bad for Whisper, clearly-
But Whisper had no idea why.
Until Rebel spoke,
"Whisper..I..I am so sorry. Tangle- she didn't go on any of the missions. She went out alone, without our permission- And- and there's something you need to see. I'm sorry. This shouldn't have happened." In a calm tone, moving out of Whisper's way as the crowd slowly walked back.
Whisper could feel her heart drop as her ears lowered.
Her life slowly slip through her hands.
Fear run down her spine.
And panic fill her mind.
She threw herself to her knees, landing infront of a severed, drenched in blood, tail.
It was Tangle's.
It was still warm.
Whisper was mortified. What remained of Tangle's tail- what could be the remains of Tangle- sat in her arms as she held it, sitting on the floor without a word as her eyes darted over it.
She wouldn't breath.
Everything stopped.
She could only hear an endless ringing in her ears as the world went silent to her.
She almost puked- She felt deathly sick.
Tears running down her face, Whisper only muttered one thing;
"Oh...my...god.." As she held the tail, speaking quietly.
There was nothing else she could say.
She didn't know what to do.
Her world was completely broken.
Everything was shattered.
The one person- the only person she devoted herself to protecting could be dead- gone- and It'd be all her fault.
Because she just couldn't be honest.
She recognized the menagerie of cuts and wounds on the ends of the tail- some of it was by machinery, but most of it?
She knew the work of Mimic.
He did this to her.
He has to pay for it.
Whisper rested her head in the tail, and screamed.
Screamed as loud as she could, bursting into tears.
She broken down completely as Rebel tried to comfort her- but Whisper only pushed her away.
She felt dead-
Like there was nothing left for her.
The only thing she could think of was revenge-
Grabbing Mimic by his slimy, wretched throat and carving out his guts.
She wanted to burn his corpse in the streets.
All she wanted now was to send the bastard off to hell, even if she'd die trying.
And she'd never rest until she could.