This is my fault.

As much as Scott insists otherwise, this is my fault.

I could've tried harder to stop Scar. I could've stopped his plans. Trapped him in the house...

And now he's ended up dead.

'Grian, you can't just go back to the Crastle!' Cub insists again. Scar's death stopped the utter surprise of him not being dead.

'I can. And I will. I have to... Ren's going to pay!'

He pushes past Cub. I stand suddenly. He stops.

'No.'

'Jimmy get out the way.'

'No. I won't.'

'Jimmy...'

'No. I'm not letting you go.'

'Jimmy. Move.'

'NO!'

'WHY?'

'BECAUSE THIS IS WHY SCAR'S DEAD.' I take a deep breath. 'Because I didn't stop him from being stupid for revenge!' I sob. Scott steps closer, arm around my shoulder.

'Jimmy, it's ok.'

'It's my fault!'

'Jimmy, seriously. If I don't go back to the Crastle, Ren is going to send Iskall here in search of Scar and kill you. Or Scott. Or Hermes.'

'If he goes for Hermes I'm blowing up the Crastle. He's not going to hurt our child.' Scott vows defensively. Hermes looks over from sitting next to Scar, glancing between us all - Grian in the middle of the room, me blocking the door, Scott next to me, and Cub sat, head in hands, either thinking or upset.

Cub looks up.

'Grian, do you know if- well... me and Scar communicated with...' A lightbulb clicks on in Grian's mind.

'Yes! He's still got it!' A frown 'What about yours? We thought Ren had it...'

'Stole it back. It's in my- your old- home.'

'And?' I blink. 'How does this help?'

'You two have one of them, and we have the other. So if we get into trouble, you know.'

'So... we stay here until you get into trouble.'

No reply. And then another idea.

'While we're killing Ren, you kill Impulse.'

'Kill Impulse?' Me and Scott question simultaneously.

'Yes!'

'Hermes?'

'I can stay with Aunty Lizzie!' Hermes offers, excited. 'Can I stay with Aunty Lizzie?'

'Hermes's you're a genius!'

'Where's Scar's transceiver?' Grian answers by crossing to Scar, pausing for a second before unhooking something around his neck. Memories of Tango's attack come back.

'The secret box!'

'Exactly.'

I let Grian run past and upstairs. Cub's frowning, thinking, planning, before...

'Uncle Cub do you want a cookie?' Asks Hermes. Cub looks up, surprised, to see him holding the box of cookies out for him.

'Scar- taught you how to bake cookies?'

'Uncle Scar makes the bestest cookies!

With a small laugh, Cub took one.

'Yeah, he could. Thanks.'

'Are you the best friend Scar was really really upset about?' A pause. There's no answer.

'Hermes... Why don't you grab some stuff to take to Aunty Lizzie's house?' I try to save the situation by suggesting. Hermes runs off to pack.

'Cub, I'm so sorry. Sometimes that child has no filter...'

He still isn't talking, and I realise too late he's fighting tears. Sympathy fills me as I run over, hugging him

'I should've been there for him.' He sobs.

'You did the best you could... I'm sure Scar would never blame you...'

'I don't care if he blames me. He- did I do the right thing in hiding from him?'

'You didn't know he was going to end up dead.'

'No, but I knew he was part of the resistance... I saw him get hurt and helped him.'

'That was you?!'

'I knew Scar would just join me. And... He'd force me to stay out of everything, or join me and get killed in the plan.'

'The... Plan?' I pause

'Me, Etho, a few others... Scar would just want to help and get himself killed. But now...' With a glance at Scar, Cub sobs again. 'He's dead anyway and I wish I'd spent more time with him.'

'Got it.' A small black transceiver in hand, Grian appears in the doorway, before noticing.

'What happened?'

'Cub... Regrets not telling Scar he was alive.' I explain.

A pause.

'I don't blame you. I don't blame you at all. You had an impossible choice to make in abandon your friend or watch him die and... You had no idea he'd end up getting involved anyway.' Crossing over to us, Grian speaks. 'All we can do now is stop this from ever happening again.'

Cub smiles.

'Then let's go.'

It takes another while longer to prepare properly. We have to learn how to use the transceiver, gather supplies and call Lizzie around for Hermes. But at last we're leaving the house, readym

'Got the transceiver?' Checks Grian.

'Yep.'

'We'll be in contact as soon as we get ours... See you when this is over.' With a final nod, he and Cub scale the roofs and run off, as me and Scott head over to the resistance base.

It doesn't take long to get inside. And as we do, we see what's going on.

'We stand here today, trapped by a malicious king who's denied a promise of peace over and over again and I've had ENOUGH!' Yells Impulse as he looks out on the crowd. 'And so tomorrow, we will stand in a fair world again, built on the foundations of the battle we must fight today... Are we ready?!'

'They're going to war?!'

'Well kill him before he can.' I aim my pistol. No one gives us any attention. No one except one person, standing next to Impulse slowly shifts over to defend him.

Tango.

'Shoot!' Scott hisses.

'I can't shoot him.'

'What do you mean you can't shoot him?!'

'It's Tango!'

'Shhh! Why can't you kill him? He abandoned you!'

'Because I still care about him!'

'He tried to kill Scar!'

'He tried to stop Skizz! He let Cub see him as he died... He killed Skizz!'

'Jimmy, shoot or I will.'

Tears blur my eyes. I blink furiously.

'Why doesn't he just move out the way?!' I snap.

'Jimmy, shoot him or I will.'

I try to communicate with him from afar, signal for him to move. He shakes his head. I try again. He signals for us to get out. I don't move. And then his eyes widen.

He doesn't move for a second. I don't know why. But then I hear the call from behind.

And he's suddenly running.

I shoot the moment he's out the way. Miss. I aim again.

'JIMMY NO!' Tango yells, shoving me to the ground. And I'm about to fight back when I hear a gunshot from behind.

He collapses.

'TANGO?' I scramble to his side, trying to cover the hole in his neck. His bloody hands grab mine.

'I couldn't- I couldn't let them kill you.' He forces out. Blood dribbles from his mouth.

'Tango, shut up. You're not going to die.' I sob back. 'You're going to survive.'

'Jimmy... Impulse is coming.' I ignore Scott's warning.

'Kill Ren for me.' Tango requests. I nod, crying, as he falls still, dead.