Chapter 12: Cedere

"Wait! What just happened?!" France looked at Italy and Canada in confusion.

"I realized something important... that our enemies..." Italy looked over as the next memory started.

"Damnit!" Feliciano cursed as his phone hit voicemail again. "Fucking Matthew, pick up your goddamned phone!" He angrily stuffed his phone in his pocket. "Technology hates me." He sighed.

"Now..." He looked at the midnight blue Ferrari before him. "How do I work a normal car again?" He pulled out the key fob and randomly hit a couple buttons, setting off the alarm before it finally unlocked. "Oh, yeah..." He climbed in and jammed the key in the ignition and turned it, causing the engine to roar to life. He smirked. "Oh, this'll be interesting. I think I remember how to navigate traffic... Mostly."

"M-MOSTLY?!" Japan cried out in horror. "Onegai... iie..." He shuddered in fear, remembering the car ride the two of them had gone on. And that was while Italy's driving skills were used regularly!

"Don't worry! I didn't hit anyone~" Italy reassured the group. "Unless you count that bank robber."

"THAT STILL COUNTS!" France cried out, horrified.

Feliciano hit the gas, nearly reversing into a tree, before he stopped, switched gears, and sped off. The nations sweatdropped, wondering if he would really only hit one person.

"Well... in my defense, I hadn't driven for nearly five thousand years, unless you count a Roamer... but that's more of an off-terrain vehicle." Italy shrugged.

"Did you get pulled over?" America wondered idly.

"Nope~ I managed to lose the cops." Italy grinned.

America just sighed. "I'll find the record and wipe it."

"Oh, you don't need to do that~ I used a fake license plate~"

The scene abruptly changed to show Matthew standing on the roof of a tall building in New York City at night. He was watching the screen on the device Feli had given to him, seemingly unaware of his surroundings.

The radar showed several pings, but one in particular was incredibly close. The nations stiffened, worried about their little Canadian.

"As far as I know, I'm fine." Canada reassured the group.

"Doesn't keep us from worrying, mon cher." France shook his head.

Before anyone knew what was going on, a hand reached out from the shadows behind Matthew and covered his mouth. His eyes widened in horror as he was pulled back into the more secluded area of the roof.

"Mattie..." America was just barely keeping himself from panicking.

Matthew, however, wasn't going down without a fight. He whipped his head back, colliding with the person's nose with a satisfying crunch, before stomping the heel of his boot down on their foot. He then jammed his elbow into their gut, causing them to release their hold with a cry of pain.

Matthew immediately whirled around to face his attacker, who held up their hands in surrender.

"Damnit Matthew! It's me!" Light illuminated Feliciano's face, one hand held to stem the bleeding of his broken nose while the other was wrapped around his midsection. He carefully kept weight off his left foot, where the other had mercilessly broken several toes.

"Dude, what the hell?!" America glared at Italy, who looked away, a light pink dusting his cheeks.

"The hell Italy?!" Matthew growled. "I thought you were one of those—"

"Shhh!" Feli immediately shushed him. "We can't talk here; it's too dangerous. We need to get back to the lab. Now."

"But there are several—"

"I know." Feli pulled back the side of his jacket to show a hastily wrapped injury, which was now bleeding profusely through the makeshift bandages due to the earlier elbow to the gut. "I got attacked earlier. All the more reason to get somewhere safe. That really hurt, you know." Feli held his gut tenderly as he quickly set his busted nose with a wince.

"Sorry... but it's really your fault for sneaking up on me." Matthew shrugged.

"Cold, man." America winced.

"I'm Canada. Cold is kinda my thing."

"Well... I suppose I did have it coming..." Feli admitted with a wince.

"You okay?" Matthew asked, looking at Feli's bleeding side.

"Yeah, just a gunshot wound..." Feli paused, tilting his head. "Actually... I can't really feel my nation. This could be a problem."

"You what?!" Matthew choked. "What the hell do you mean you can't feel your nation?!"

"Oh, um... I don't really know how to explain this... Let's just say I've got some connection issues and leave it at that for now."

"Connection issues? You're not a smartphone."

"A... oh yeah... that's a thing." Feli chuckled a bit, before wincing and clutching his side a bit more. "Okay. No laughing."

"We need to get that tended to..."

"No time. We have to get out of here before—"

"Leaving so soon?" A woman's voice echoed from the shadows of the building, causing Feli and Matthew to whirl around in surprise.

"Shit. They've found us." Feli cursed under his breath.

"Indeed we have, Feliciano Vargas. You're quite the hard man to track down." She stepped into the light, revealing a young woman in her mid to late twenties with dark red hair, yellow eyes, and pale skin.

"How do you know me?" Feli's eyes narrowed into golden slits.

"Oh, we have our ways... You won't stop us. Time may be on your side, but we've got the power of the gods on ours."

"The... gods?" Matthew echoed, confused.

"Allow me to demonstrate." She smirked, approaching the two at a leisurely pace. Feliciano made to draw his gun, but the woman shook her head, her eerie yellow eyes twinkling with amusement. "Oh, I wouldn't move too fast, if I were you."

Matthew stiffened when he noticed movement on the roof next to them. A sniper.

"We've got you surrounded. One wrong move, and this rooftop will be covered in your brain matter." She walked right up to the edge of the building, before gesturing down at the crowd of people. "See that? Look at all the people down there. Why, it would be a shame if someone were to... say... open fire on them."

"You wouldn't!" Matthew growled.

"Oh, we would." She smirked, raising her left hand into the air. She made a signal, and several rounds were released into the crowd. The panicked screams of hundreds made the nations cringe.

"We are gods, here." The woman smirked. With a flick of her wrist, the gunshots ceased. A twist of her hand signaled one man. He stood from the rooftop, holding out a hand before him, before releasing a concentrated blast of Kei energy into the crowd, killing dozens instantly.

"Mon dieu..." France paled.

"How awful..." England agreed. The nations shuddered, giving America sympathetic looks.

"I... Is that why you won't teach us this Kei stuff?" America asked softly, remembering the incident.

"Si. It's not only powerful, but unnecessary in this world. It evolved only to help humanity's survival against the Contaminoids. No Contaminoids, no Kei. That's how it should be." Italy answered, voice just as soft.

The smell of blood filled the air as a terrible hush overcame the area. "I'm not looking to necessarily kill you... yet. Interfere further into that which you do not understand, and we'll have some serious issues." She spoke to Matthew.

"You, on the other hand, Mr. Vargas... You're already in far too deep." She gave a sickly grin. "You... will need to be eliminated." Feli's eyes widened.

Without warning, he dropped to the ground, the bullet grazing the top of his head. Immediately, he rolled to the side, and grabbed Matthew's arm.

"We're leaving!"

"You don't have to tell me twice!"

"GET THEM!" The woman roared, an inhuman sound escaped her throat, chilling the nations to the bone.

Her mouth split from the corners like some grotesque smile. Razor sharp teeth lined her maw, as her tongue split into several tentacles that lashed outwards in an attempt to capture her escaping prey. Her back bulged with a sickening crack, as dragonfly-like wings sprouted from her back.

Matthew made the mistake of glancing behind him as they tried to reach the door, and paled. "What the fuck?!"

"Don't stop!" Feliciano warned him, but Matthew had paused long enough. A bullet found its home in Feli's shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain and hide behind the wall. Their exit route was blocked.

"You won't escape alive." The woman promised. Her voice sounded layered and gravelly, like several people talking at once.

"What are you?!" Matthew demanded.

"So... I was right." Feliciano's mouth was set into a grim line. "Matthew... You're going to have to trust me, here. When I say 'go', run to the edge of the roof."

"Wh-what?!"

"Just do it!" Feli stood up, barely dodging the gunfire. He concentrated Kei into his left hand and aimed it at the roof he stood on. "GO!" He let loose as Matthew shut his eyes and ran for the ledge.

Feliciano wasn't far behind him, as the blinding light from the explosion slowed down the woman and created a smokescreen.

The two jumped over the edge of the building. Matthew let out a startled yelp as he felt an arm wrap around his midsection. "RESTORATION! 0-3!" Feliciano's voice cried out as golden threads erupted from his Dite.

In a manner reminiscent of Spiderman, the two swung off to safety. The woman's cries of anger followed them, as she flew after them, intent on catching them.

The scene shifted, showing the two sitting in an alleyway. They looked exhausted and filthy. The sun was already rising and sirens were heard in the distance, showing that they'd made it quite far from the scene of the shooting. Matthew was patching up Feliciano's gunshot wounds.

"What the hell was that?" Matthew demanded, a set glare on his face.

"These people aren't human."

"Gee, ya don't say? And here I thought growing a mouthful of fangs was normal." Matthew's eyebrow twitched in irritation. "I'm not in the mood for games."

"They're... erm... Genetically modified? I think." Feli stated, causing Matthew to pull the wrappings a little tighter. "Ow." Feli glared.

"That doesn't answer my question. The fuck was that?! That's more than 'genetic modification'! And just what are they after?! They opened fire on a crowd of people for no reason. What the hell is going on?"

"I... can't really explain much..."

"Why not? You've dragged me into an obviously dangerous situation, refusing to tell me anything at all of value. You're apparently mortal, and forgot to tell me that little tidbit, and, uh, oh yeah; these things can apparently shoot energy beams from their hands. I think... after nearly having my head blown off, you owe me an explanation."

"I'm not allowed to explain, Matthew. I'll get in really big trouble if I tell you more than I already have. I'm toeing the line as it is." Feli admitted.

"Not allowed?! Oh, so you've got someone giving you orders, now?!" His voice rose to an angered whisper. "Just how big is this stupid web of shit you've dragged me into?!" He paused, glaring at Feliciano. "It's always just 'Do this, Canada. Do that, Canada.' 'I can't tell you anything, Canada!' Well, maybe I'm sick and tired of being your yes-man all the time. Can't you trust me at all? Can't you trust anyone?!"

His words hung heavily in the air, as Feliciano expertly held back a wince, his bangs shadowing his eyes making his expression unreadable. The sound of Lovino's dying scream made him flinch, causing Matthew to misread the situation.

Matthew let out a breath of disbelief. "Wow. You really don't trust anyone anymore. I don't know you anymore. You're so different, and it honestly scares me. You're not Italy anymore." Feliciano cringed as he spoke. Matthew paused for a moment, thinking carefully about what he was about to say. "I don't know what's going on. And unless you're suddenly ready to volunteer that information to me, I'm out."

Feliciano looked up sharply, a slight panic coming into his gaze. "You're leaving me?" I'll be alone... again?

"Yeah. I'm sorry, but I just can't work with someone who's going to put me in danger without even giving me a solid reason why. I've got people I care about, too, and not all of them are immortal. I'm giving you three days to vacate the lab. After that, I'll get rid of anything left behind." Matthew stood up, pointedly not looking at the Italian. "I trust you can find your own way back." With that, he got up and walked away.

Feliciano sighed, disheartened. "I suppose it was selfish of me, after all, to try to share this burden..."

"That was a little cold." America turned to his brother.

"I was scared, okay? I didn't have any context at all, and he was refusing to tell me anything. We'd just been attacked by people who looked like monsters! For all I knew, it could've gotten someone I care for killed." Canada defended himself, thinking of Al's States, and his own kids. Though he did still feel like an ass. After seeing what Feli went through... to just abandon him like this? "I'm sorry, Italy. It came out crueler than I intended."

"No, no... It's all right. I deserved it." Italy shook his head. "I really did leave you in the dark. With what little information you had... It's completely understandable. I wasn't used to how everyone used to act back in the AD era... I'd forgotten how strange and scary such a situation would be. It was really my fault for not thinking anything through."

"It wasn't your fault, aru." China spoke up, startling the group a bit. Nobody had really wanted to speak up, all things considered. "You were traumatized. You had hardly had any human contact for centuries... Millennia, even! It was a miracle that you could get any part of your point across."

"It still doesn't excuse such a blatant fuck-up." Italy responded.

"I suppose I should get going, then." Feli sighed, looking around himself.

"Master Vargas?" Jarvis asked from the smartphone replica in Feli's pocket.

"Heh... You know you've hit rock bottom when an AI is more worried about you than an actual person." Feli scoffed.

"Your brother did program me to worry about you." Jarvis reminded him.

"It's the closest thing I have to him... right..." His eyes widened in realization. "The Tunnels..."

"I'm sorry?"

"I have a lab I can use. I'm sure... He'll ask questions, but... my brother will keep his mouth shut if I really need him to." Feli smiled. "Looks like we're going home..."

"I've already purchased a plane ticket for you, Master Vargas."

"Grazie, Jarvis." Feli smirked, pulling himself to his feet with a grimace. "This time... I'll fix everything."

A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry it's been so long. Depression's kicking my ass again. -_- On the plus side, I've been getting hella hours at work lately, so I'm financially semi-stable, now. ^^ At the very least, I'm not going to have to go back to soup kitchens any time soon!

Hope you've enjoyed the chapter. Had to rewrite it when Mattie went waaay OOC. Hehe. Hopefully I did him justice this time. Don't think we've seen the last of him, though. ^_~ And I've now introduced this random group of weirdo non-humans into the mix! Yay! XD

Time, what am I doing with my life?

Words: 2,472

Pages: 5

Posted: 08/03/2019

SHOUTOUTS:

Special thanks to Byrony for being my second pair of eyes and catching some embarrassing typos (cause I'm a dork and I write at freaking ungodly hours).

This chapter is dedicated to everyone who's currently struggling with depression and/or self-harm.

"You can be stronger tomorrow than you were today. Yesterday is not a failure, but a lesson to learn from. And sometimes, the most painful lessons, are the ones we need the most."

– Rin (SilvermistAnimeLover)