Part 299: Third Strike

Embry gagged as Hal shoved his face in the wet sand. The cop wasn’t sure how to put him down; the murderer was always a good fighter. It was evident from the trail of dead people and dead cops he left behind in America. Hal then gagged as Embry slammed his food in his privates. The cop jolted forward as the soldier grabbed him and proceeded to punch him again. “You can’t beat me, Hal! You never could!” he laughed.

Embry then picked him up by grabbing his shirt and shoved him into the water. Hal choked as the salt water entered his mouth. Then Embry jumped on his back and slammed his head in the water. Hal tried to get up to get air but the man was putting all his weight on him. His lungs were burning; his nose was stopped up. Then the cop head a loud thud then Embry collapsed onto him. The moment he was off of him, Hal jumped out of the water, gasping for air. He turned and grabbed the man, who was floating in the shallows. The cop turned to the beach and saw his friend Dutch holding a rifle like a baseball bat. When he realized how he was holding it, he checked Embry and understood that he was still alive, just unconscious. He held out his hand and Dutch took it, helping him up. Hal grabbed Embry by the jacket and dragged him out of the water.

The moment they got to shore, Hal checked his jacket for what he saw earlier. He never knew why Embry had handcuffs but he didn’t care. He quickly slapped them on his wrists. “What do we do, Hal?” Dutch asked.

“I am going to go make sure Libby and Karliegh are okay,” Hal said, getting up, “You keep that rifle on him. If he looks like he is going to attack you, shoot him.”

“Got it!” he said, pointing it at the man, as Hal ran off into the distance.


Jin and Sun paused in the jungle; they lost sight of everybody else. The Korean woman held onto her husband, as he looked around for some sign of their friends. But they didn’t see Micheal nor Yolanda nor anyone. “What should we do?” she asked him in Korean.

“We stay. Someone will come.” Jin replied back in his native tongue.

Then he saw the Oriental soldier earlier barring down on them. He held up his sword and thrust it toward Jin. He quickly grabbed his wife and ducked as the sword sliced into the tree where they were just seconds before. The Asian man then screamed as they ran in the opposite direction; right back toward the beach.

The man then opened fire on them with a Mac-10 pistol. The bullets collided with a tree nearby as they ran. As they got within sight of the beach, Jin then grabbed a bamboo pole, twirled and collided with the sword. Sun screamed for her husband to run but he stayed his ground; hoping to buy her time to get to safety with the others. The Asian soldier twirled his sword and then began to chop the bamboo staff into pieces. Then sliced against Jin’s wrist. The Korean man stepped back from the attack.

As his handcuff slowly fell off.

The Asian soldier looked in confusion. Jin smiled briefly at the sight of the relief he just received. If the soldier wasn’t hell bent on killing him, he would have thanked him. The Liberator then swung his sword at him, making him fall back. Jin held up the bamboo staff but the soldier sliced it in half. He pulled up his sword against to thrust the killing blow. Sun screamed for the safety of her husband, as the sword swung down.

And clanged against another sword.

Seth slowly grunted as he kept the sword from killing Jin. The Asian soldier looked in amazement; he never expected to see a white man with a samurai sword. The young singer slowly brought the sword up with trembling arms. “Seth?” Jin asked.

“Jin,” Seth grunted, “ . . . run.”

Jin rolled out of the way, grabbing Sun by the arm and running to the beach. Seth slowly brought the sword up. The Asian soldier began to laugh. “White gaijin,” he chuckled, “pretending to be samurai.”

“I don’t have to . . .pretend,” Seth grunted.

The soldier then kicked him, sending him back onto the ground. Seth did a back flip and ran into the beach area. A few bullets flew by him. He stopped and then started to sword fight the other soldier. Their swords clanged together in a harmony of song; spending sparks against both of them.


Back on the boat, Kate was looking around for her friends and loved ones. Shanna was right behind her with a knuckle grip on her shoulders. “Do you see Jack?” she asked.

“No, I can’t see Mia either,” Shanna mentioned.

“Is that . . .is that Seth?” Kate pointed.

Shanna saw the man she loved like a brother was fighting another soldier with a sword. It looked like something out of a movie; the way they were fighting. The redhead wished Brendon could be there to see him; he would have been so proud. Then the two warriors jumped out of the way as Mecha rolled by them swinging four soldiers in the air.



Seth grunted as the robot drove past him. He quickly scanned around and found the Asian swordsman getting up from the attack. He then cupped his sword to his left and ran toward Seth. The singer jumped up and ran toward him; finding himself screaming. The two men ran toward each other, yelling like mad men. Then Seth jumped toward his right and turned around, flinging his sword toward the man’s neck, just as the man flung his sword toward his chest. “KIAI!!!” Seth screamed.

Seth then collapsed onto his knees, feeling a massive sting across his chest. The pain was sharp and painful; but he was happy his biceps were not ripped open. He heard some familiar women screaming his name. It sounded like Kate and Shanna. The young man turned toward his right to see them on the boat. He smiled; glad they got the boat and glad they were safe. The Asian man then collapsed on his knees in front of the young man. Seth then blinked when he heard a whistling sound.

The Asian soldier stared to the sky as a slow red mist poured out from his neck. The cut on his neck was making a whistle, just like Brendon’s journal said. The Liberator stopped staring at the sky and looked to Seth, who held his bleeding chest. “The Whistling Cut,” the Liberator ached in his voice, “Most swords . .men . . .spend their whole lives . . .trying to master . . .such a cut. . . .”

“I guess . . .I had a good teacher,” Seth grunted, from the stinging pain.

“Forgive me,” the man coughed, “I didn’t . . .believe . . .you were . . .samurai.”

“You’re forgiven,” the singer said quietly.

The soldier then stabbed his sword into the ground next to Seth. He then jolted and convulsed for a few second, then fell onto the ground. The mist continued to whistle out of his Adam’s Apple as the life poured out of him. Seth then fell back on his buttocks, worried that the cut across his chest might get infected.


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Kellye slowly opened her eyes. The wind was blowing across her face and she could hear the waves crashing next to her. She slowly raised her head, feeling over the blood on her face. The girl soldier then gasped at the sight of the beach. There was no fight. There were no bodies of Liberators.

There wasn’t anything.

What was going on? Kellye couldn’t understand how all of her friends could have been wiped out. She tried to move but it didn’t work. She leaned up, massaging her forehead. When she blinked she saw a figure standing near the water. He was dressed in army fatigues; brown and amber desert camouflage. He had no boots, as he was letting the water caress his feet. He slowly turned toward Kellye and she gasped as she had not seen the smile in several years. “What do you think, War Dove?” he grinned, “Will the water wash my footprints all the way to Japan?”

“Brian?” she gulped.

“The one and only,” he said, holding out his arms.

Kellye smiled, as tears swelled up in her eyes. She grunted as she got off her feet and stumbled toward her brother. She embraced him; burying her face in his chest. Brian stroked her soft curly, kissing her on the top of her head. “I missed you, Brian.” She wept.

“I missed you too, War Dove.” He smiled.

“I didn’t think . . .I would . . .make it without you.”

“But you did, Kellye. I am proud of you and so is Pop. He wanted to me tell you that you are doing the right thing, in going home. Jesse needs you by his side.”

“Huh?” she asked confused, “But I thought . . .I thought I’d be going with you?”

Brian then laughed, covering his eyes. Kellye didn’t know what to make of it. After his chuckle, he looked at her with a massive grin. “War Dove, you are not dead!” he laughed.

“I’m not?” she gasped.

“No, but you were close to it. That’s why this is happening. You and I have been granted this moment. If you were dead, then Pop would be here. So would Uncle Ralph. No, War Dove, your time is no where near here yet.”

Kellye smiled for a brief second, then started to cry. “I wanted to die . .in battle . . .like you and Dad.” She said, “I thought . . .I would see you again.”

“You will see us again, sis. But when your time comes, you will be doing something better than me or dad. You won’t be defending oil, or country rights, or political agendas.”

“What will I be doing?”

“You will be defending your friends. Trust me, War Drove, everybody dies. Even you.”

“But not today?” she grinned.

“Not today,” he smiled back.

Kellye embraced her ordered brother again. The young soldier wanted to hold onto him, and never let go. Brian kissed her on the head again and rubbed her back. “I will always watch over you, War Dove. But now, you got to wake up.” He replied.

“Why? I want to stay with you.”

“You have too, Kellye. Your friends need you.”


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Jenny grunted as Eve kicked her in the stomach, sending her splashing back into the water. Hurley tried another swipe but Eve blocked him, kicking him in the buttocks. Joscelyn screamed as she threw rock after rock at the female soldier. Kristy tried to help but they were not connecting. Jenny grabbed for her nunchuks; amazed that timid little Joscelyn was fighting a full blown soldier. Then it donned on her; it was because of Kellye. Her one friend while she was trapped in the bunker. Keeping the other soldiers from touching her. The blonde teenager then stood up, while Eve pulled out a large blade from her back belt. “Come on, little bitch!” she hissed.

Then she jolted as four bullets slammed into her chest. Jenny grunted from the splash of blood that got on her. Eve then collapsed on her knees, gasping for air. She turned around and then moaned in disbelief. The girl she shot in the head was leaning up, holding the M-60 with it’s smoking barrel. Kellye held it up with trembling hands, as the blood now covered one of her eyes, making it closed. The female soldier then felt down, bursting out one glob of blood from her mouth.

Hurley turned around to see Eve was dead. He then turned to see who shot him and all he found was Kellye with a gunshot wound on her head. “Dude,” he whispered.

“Kellye?” Joscelyn asked in disbelief.

The four friends ran to their girl soldier friend. Kellye slowly placed down the gun, then raised her hand toward her forehead. “How . . .how is this possible?” Kristy choked.

Kellye winced, feeling the stinging sensation of touching her forehead. She was worried that she would find a hole leading to her brain. However, there was no hole; only broken skin. She slowly looked at her bloody fingers, then took a gulp. “No hole.” She whispered.

“How . ..how is that . . .” Hurley tried to say.

Kellye then chuckled a bit, then giggled some more. Her friends stared at her, wondering if she lost it. She smiled up through her one open eye. “It deflected.” She smiled, “The bullet . . .hit my forehead at the right angle . . . .It ricocheted.”

“Oh, my god,” Kristy covered her mouth.

“I beat . . .the one in a million . . odds,” Kellye laughed.

Hurley’s eyes then rolled up to the back of his head, and then plummeted to the ground, passed out. Before Jenny could say something, then Joscelyn began to sway on her knees. She jolted to the ground and then collapsed; right on top of Hurley. Kristy, Kellye and Jenny stared at them. At any other time, it would been a laugh riot. Jenny was trying to think of something to say but she could only come up with one thing.

“I knew they’d make a lovely couple,” she sighed.