Renegade Rupture (9 page)

“Whip . . .” Gisbo said.

“Now you know my story, and because of what happened to me, the way I see the world changed. I feel it instead and continue to do all I can for people. That’s what being a Renegade is, being a neutral good that doesn’t play favorites. You simply do the right thing because you need to. No questions asked. Grey. And besides, I rather like how my senses have evolved. The past doesn’t haunt me; it raises me up, well away from where I used to be. And with that, we’re of age now. How about you buy me a beer?” Whip said.

“Should you really be drinking when you should be preparing, Whip Miles?” a Strife asked, appearing at their table.

“And who the hell are you?” Whip asked.

“You’ll know my name soon enough. It’s a shame, really. I’ve already predicted that you and I will fight in the upcoming Naforian match. I know so much about you, just from listening to this conversation, and yet, you know nothing of me,” the Strife said. Gisbo looked at the Strife with a look of disgust.

“How about you . . .” Gisbo started.

“ . . . go suck something sharp? Really, I’ve never come across a brain so slow witted before. It took you a good fifteen seconds to come up with that one, and I finished it for you,” the Strife said.

“How, how did you . . .” Gisbo started.

“Know what you were going to say?” the Strife asked. “Simple. I’m a Psychic.”

“Bull,” Gisbo said.

“Right now you want to kill me. Such dark thoughts for not even knowing me.” the Strife said.

“Take it easy, Gisbo. This guy’s full of it. I’d like to kill this guy myself,” Whip said.

“Full of it? Fine, let me prove it to you, I . . .” the Strife said, suddenly pausing. “You, you truly believe that I’m a fake . . .”

“Yup,” Whip said.

“Don’t just write me off! I’ve been waiting, preparing for this moment for as long as . . .” the Strife started, until Whip raised his voice and interupted him.

“Well, why don’t you do it over there, ok? The adults are talking,” Whip said.

“I’ll, I’ll,” the Strife started.

“You’ll what?” Whip asked.

The Strife, lacking anything better to say, walked away.

“Weird guy,” Gisbo said.

“He’s a Strife, what do you expect?” Whip said.

“But, he really did just . . .” Gisbo started.

“Read your mind?” Whip asked.

“How did you . . . now you’re doing it too!?” Gisbo asked.

“Gisbo, sometimes you’re a little slow, even for me,” Whip said.

“I just need a beer,” Gisbo said. “Whip, thanks, I . . .”

Gisbo froze, noticing something far away.

“What is it? What’s wrong?” Whip asked.

“Whip, you can sense things far more than anyone else I’ve known. Ever since last year, I’ve, it’s going to sound crazy, but I’ve had someone watching me and he gives me the shakes,” Gisbo said. “Act like nothing is out of the ordinary, but right now, he is standing at the side of Renegade Joe’s Steakhouse, just leaning against it. I see him, but nobody else seems to! Tell me, Whip. Do you sense anything over there?”

Whip sat still and raised his nose to the wind and took in his surroundings.

“Through the smells of beer, fresh grease spitting from the grill, seasonings, and somebody on the third table to the left of us belching up cigar residue, there is nothing over there, Gisbo,” Whip said. Gisbo turned, and once again, the Goat Man was gone.

“Forget I said anything, he’s gone. I just . . . maybe I . . .” Gisbo started.

“Maybe you need a beer? And maybe you need to buy your friend Whip one too since he forgot his wallet at home and has been waiting for some poor victim like you to come along?” Whip asked. Gisbo smiled.

“I’m on it, pal,” Gisbo said. Gisbo raised his hand and bought two, tall, cold mugs of golden ale and placed them down.

“Cheers, pal, to the rest of our lives,” Whip said. Gisbo clinked glasses and they chugged away at their beer. When Gisbo put his mug down, he looked out of the corner of his eye and saw the Goat Man return.

Chapter Six: The Blond Swan

The next day, Gisbo rolled out of bed with the sun shining in his tree house, alone except for his roommates’ Boons, who had all snuggled up on the top bunk with him. All except Fao, whose whining and scratching at not being able to climb like Jackobi’s fox, Chara, or Rolce’s eagle, Harpie, had woken Gisbo.

“Aw, sorry, girl, I’ll be down in a . . . ah, DAMN IT, HARPIE!” Gisbo yelled at the eagle, who had nuzzled up in his neck and left three decent sized bird droppings all over his chest.

“Get off me, you stupid bird!” Gisbo yelled as he flung the eagle off him. With a squawk of protest, Harpie fluttered down onto Rolce’s bed and Chara just looked up with twitching ears to see what all the commotion was about. Gisbo rolled off his bunk and once again grabbed Rolce’s pillowcase. He wiped the bird droppings onto it and thrust it back upside down.

“Damn bird . . .” Gisbo mouthed under his breath as he scratched Fao behind the ears, and she followed him about the room as he made breakfast, got dressed, and sat down with a book.

“No voices . . . none at all. Listen, Fao! None!” Gisbo smiled as he nuzzled his wolf’s face playfully. “Ah, now just to relax with a new book and . . .”

There was a knock at the door, followed by the door opening a crack as Nina peeked her head in.

“Can I come in?” Nina asked. Gisbo looked up, and suddenly, he felt a fierce pain in his stomach as Malik’s face seemed to flash all over her features.

“Seems like you’re already halfway in. Might as well,” Gisbo said as he picked up his book and pretended to read. Nina came in and sat across from him on the couch, just looking at him, and let out a deep sigh.

She actually let that Strife touch her. Probably in ways you could never even . . .

“DAMN IT! SHUT UP!” Gisbo yelled as he slammed the book shut and grabbed at his head.

“Gisbo, I, I didn’t even say anything,” Nina said, leaning back in her chair, and her eyes began to water.

“No, it’s not you, Nina, it’s . . .” Gisbo started.

“It’s the Drakeness, isn’t it?” Nina asked.

Gisbo didn’t reply as he stared at the floor.

“Gisbo, I just wanted to say I don’t blame you for what happened in the courtyard earlier; it wasn’t your fault. You didn’t mean to push me down. It’s this Drakeness, it . . .” Nina started talking and Gisbo zoned out.

Look at her, like she has nothing to apologize for,
the voice said.

“And like you don’t have anything to apologize to me for? Really? I told you all about Malik, what he did to Kinny, and you never, EVER, in all this time we’ve been together, never thought to mention to me that, oh, yeah, he used to be your boyfriend?” Gisbo asked.

“Gisbo, I, that whole situation is complicated and . . . and what do you mean we’ve been together? Is that what we’ve been? Together? You never asked me to be your girlfriend, you’ve never asked me to hang out with you since we’ve been back. Is that what we are? In all my life, I’ve never felt more alone!” Nina said.

“I don’t wanna listen to this right now,” Gisbo said. He got up and put his book back on his shelf. Nina stood up and folded her arms.

“Gisbo, I don’t know how else to do this! It needs to be now! Just, please, there’s a dance soon, and well, I wanted you to take me and . . .” Nina started.

“I don’t dance,” Gisbo said.

“Well, I, I can teach you! It will be fun, we don’t have to . . .” Nina started.

“Don’t want to learn,” Gisbo said.

“Gisbo, what . . . If I’ve done something to hurt you, I want to know! Please, let me fix this! I’ll do anything!” Nina said.

Listen to her rattle on; you don’t need this in your life,
the voice said.

“Nina, maybe I’m just a little freaked out that you seem to know everything there is to know about my life. Maybe I don’t find it at all exciting or thrilling that you know more about me than I know about myself. Maybe I have too much on my mind right now to worry or be nagged about going to a stupid dance with you, and maybe, just maybe, I never asked you to be my girlfriend because I never saw this going anywhere just to prove you and your stupid visions wrong, how about that? Is it ok if I think on my own too? Or are you going to tell me what to think next?” Gisbo asked.

“Gisbo, I’ve never told you what to do or what to think! You know I can’t control this, it’s just how I am, and I’m not nagging! I just thought it would be fun if we went together since you’re supposed to bring a date. I just assumed . . .” Nina said.

“If you want a date so badly, why don’t you just bring your boy toy Malik? I bet you two have SO much to catch up on,” Gisbo said as he stormed out. Before he could, Nina grabbed his arm.

“Let go of me,” Gisbo said.

“GISBO! Stop this! This isn’t you! It’s the Drakeness talking, it,” Nina started.

“NO! No, it isn’t! Nothing is more powerful than my will, NOTHING! Nothing controls me or my thoughts or my future other than me! Understand? Not the Drakeness, not the damned Phoenix, and certainly not you! You want the truth? Looking at you sickens me knowing that Malik was all over you before me. That’s not the Drakeness talking, that’s me talking! Understand? Just leave me the hell alone! Every time I’m around you, I just, you make me think of him now and I just get so, so,” Gisbo started as the support beam on his wall morphed into Malik’s laughing face. Without a second thought, Gisbo hit it with everything he had, knocking a hole right through the side of his house. Nina jumped, startled.

“Gisbo, you’ve been distant even before you found out the truth. You’re, you’re the only one I really know here, the only one I have to talk to on the entire planet! I, are you saying . . . you don’t want to, to see me anymore?” Nina asked through choked breaths as tears erupted in her big, doe-like eyes.

“You said it, not me,” Gisbo said as he turned to leave again.

“Gisbo, but, don’t you see? Don’t you see that I . . .” Nina started, when Gisbo whirled on her.

“You what?” Gisbo asked, startling her.

“Nothing . . .” Nina said.

“Good,” Gisbo said before he stormed out of the tree house and down the stairs, leaving Nina streaming tears.

“Don’t you see that I . . . love you?” Nina asked, and with that, she broke down into full-blown tears.

Gisbo stormed through the woods, off to his regular training grounds in a fury that came from nowhere when he finally stopped.

“What is wrong with me? Where did that come from? I was having a fine morning and then . . . I need to go back,” Gisbo said. He ran back, but Nina was gone. Gisbo felt an awful guilt set in as he found himself slumped into his reading chair with Fao’s big, blue eyes looking up at him.

“What is wrong with me, girl? I never used to be like this, did I?” Gisbo asked. Fao whined and licked his hand, then rested her muzzle across his lap. Gisbo began to pet her.

Of course you were. Two words: Oak County,
the voice spoke.

“For the love of . . .” Gisbo sighed in frustration as he grabbed at his throbbing skull. The voice continued.

You cannot silence me. I am you, you are me,
the voice said.

“I can’t be here alone, I have to keep moving. Come on, girl, let’s go find Nina,” Gisbo said, and together, Renegade and wolf walked through the woods.

“Fancy meeting you here,” a voice spoke. Gisbo whirled around to see Kennis dressed in her restaurant apron, ready for work, walking through the trees behind him.

“Oh, hi,” Gisbo said.

“You just roll out of bed or something?” Kennis asked.

“Um, kinda,” Gisbo said.

“You hungry? I can make you something at Joe’s, free of charge,” Kennis said. “We’re so overstocked on steak and eggs for tonight’s party.”

“If you’re offering, that’d be great!” Gisbo said, looking into her shining features and feeling a tingle of butterflies and that undeniable, near intoxicating peace.

“So, who are you bringing to the party tonight? Are you bringing that girl I always see you with?” Kennis asked.

“Who, Nina? No, we’re just . . . friends,” Gisbo said.

“Oh, I see . . .” Kennis said. “Well, you do know that it’s customary for the girl to ask the boy to the opening ceremonies. Did she ask you yet?”

“Um, I think she’s bringing somebody else,” Gisbo lied.

“Oh, too bad for you,” Kennis said.

“How come?” Gisbo asked.

“Well, you’re going to look pretty silly dancing by yourself,” Kennis said, smiling.

“Wait, who says I even have to dance?” Gisbo asked.

“You will if you want to enter the tournament. All the contestants sign up, then join the dancing circle as part of the festivities. It’s required,” Kennis said.

“Well, screw that, I’m not doing it,” Gisbo said, folding his arms.

“Oh, come on. It’s not that bad. Compared to what we did a few months ago, it will be a cake walk!” Kennis said.