"Rick!" A voice cried out. "Rick!" The voice shouted once again. Rick"s eyes flickered. He grunted, rubbing his head as he sat up. When he opened his eyes, he gasped, scooting backwards. Kneeling in front of him was Cole. "W-What are you..." he whispered. Then realization set in. "Am I...?" Cole smiled. "Please don"t worry, you"re only unconscious!" Rick looked at him, then let out a sigh of relief. "Is this real...are you...?" He extended his hand, patting Cole on the head. Cole giggled. "What are you doing here..." Cole closed his eyes, smiling. "I"m here to thank you!" He said, beaming. "For what...?" Rick asked, as he stroked Cole"s head. "Thank you for keeping our promise." He said. Rick looked down. "What"s wrong?" Cole asked. "Maru is..." Cole began laughing. Rick quickly looked up. "Maru is safe, Rick." Rick"s eyes widened. Tears began welling in his eyes. He looked down, as tears streamed down his face. "I"m sorry..." Cole c.o.c.ked his head. "For what?" He asked. Rick looked up. He slowly lifted a hand, touching Cole"s cheek. "Because of me, you"re..." He stroked Cole"s cheek gently. Cole kept smiling. "Because of you I"m free..." Rick looked up at him. "Because of you, Maru is free." He said, tears in his eyes. "Your job isn"t finished yet though!" He said, wrapping his arms around Rick. As he whispered something into Rick"s ear, Rick smiled. "Promise?" Cole asked, smiling as he faded.Rick"s eyes widened, as he regained consciousness. He breathed heavily. As he looked over at Larkin, he noticed his shocked expression. Larkin"s grip had loosened. However, Larkin wasn"t paying attention to Rick, rather the others. Rick weakly turned his head to see what was going on. All he could make out was m.u.f.fled screaming. "Now"s my chance..." he whispered. He weakly, stood up. Larkin, still too absorbed with the others. Rick grabbed the sword. He breathed heavily, as he held the sword in his hand. He remembered the knife match years ago. He closed his eyes, gripping the sword. Just as Larkin turned around, Rick was coming at him. "Larkin!" Rick screamed, as he jumped in the air. Larkin"s eyes widened. As he saw Rick coming at him, he also saw the child he had let down. The boy he had cut so deeply. Rick let out a cry, as he came flying to the ground.
There was a long, suffocating moment of silence. Larkin opened his eyes. They widened, as he saw the sword, as well as Rick just inches away from him. Rick was huffing, and panting heavily. "You..." Larkin whispered. "I can"t bring myself to do it..." Rick whispered, smiling. "I promised..." he said, tearing up.