Robin stood in the middle of the captured men of Locksley. They had all just been put inside the castle, and now they were waiting for their chance.

"The front line with me," said Robin, trying to create a plan. "Hold off the guards. The second line attack the gates. And use the chains, anything you can find as weapons. Wait for my signal."

The two Irish men emerged from the castle, going down stairs. There was the man that attacked Robin and the villagers, Finn, and a man with black hair and beard with brown eyes behind him, Tiernan.

"They don't look like much," said Tiernan.

"Well, I'm giving then to you, Tiernan," answered Finn. "They're yours to train and lead."

Tiernan looked at his brother in shock. "You expect me to make soldiers out of peasants? No."

Then, Guy emerged as well, and he seemed in a rush. "Sergeant, extra guards now!" Robin's eyes widened when he saw that Kate was captured by guards, Linda right next to her. Guy drew his sword. "Robin Hood!"

"Ready? Hold!" shouted Robin to the men. "Now!"

The front line charged at the guards, and Linda had to admit, Robin did plan his attack nicely.

Her attention turned to Finn. "No weapons, and yet they fight like lions for that man."

"Don't be surprised," she answered him, watching as Robin fought the guards.

"Secure the gates!" screamed Gisborne. Then he started to walk down stairs, Kate and her captures with him.

"Here we go!" said Linda to herself.

"Hood!" screamed Guy, holding Kate in one arm and putting a sword to her chest.

"Guy, what are you doing?" said Linda with unease, arriving next to him.

"Wait, wait! Stop, stop!" shouted Robin, getting the peasants to stop fighting.

"Another move, and I kill the girl," said Guy.

"He's not kidding!" yelled Linda to Robin.

"Kate!" yelled Matthew.

"Wait, wait!" Robin tried to stop Matthew, but he was kneed in the gut.

"No, Matthew!" cried Kate.

Guy threw Kate into Linda, and Linda had to keep Kate from throwing herself at Guy, much like her brother was now. Recklessly, Matthew charged. He thrusted is sword at Guy, who parried it. Then he stabbed him.

"Matthew!" screamed Kate, escaping from Linda's grasp.

"Physician!" shouted Linda. Grabbing a guard, she shook his shoulders. "Get a physician. Go." The she joined Kate, who was cradling Matthew's head.

"Are you alright? Let me look at it," said Kate. "Matthew! Matthew!"

"You're surrounded. Don't waste any more lives," said Guy coolly to Robin, who was now up. Growling, he put his hands on his head.

"Kate," struggled Matthew.

"I'm here, I'm here. I'm here, Matthew." Looking to Guy, her eyes were pleading. "Look, I'll do anything. I'll do anything you say. Please, please help him."

Linda looked at Kate. "Kate, Matthew isn't going t—"

"No! Shut up! You liar! You promised me he would live!" Kate screamed at her, and Linda stood up and retreated fast. Kate looked back to her dying brother, sobbing. "Lie still. Lie still. I'm going to get you home, you're going to be all right. Everything's going to be all right."

"Find a better place," gurgled Matthew. "Take care of our family. It's up to you now." Then he took his final breath... and he was gone.

"No, no, no, no, no! Matthew! Matthew!" sobbed Kate, and Linda bit her nails to keep from crying.

"You'll pay for this, Gisborne," hissed Robin.

"Get the girl out of the castle," ordered Guy, looking at Robin. The guards picked up Kate and dragged her away, her still sobbing. Guy pointed his sword at Robin. "Say your prayers, Outlaw."

"Gisborne!" shouted Vaisey.

"For the love of God, not now!" muttered Linda in annoyance, turning around to meet her father.

Vaisey was on the second floor, arms crossed. "You move, and you die."

"I will have his blood!" screamed Guy.

"Like you had Matthew's?" Guy's head snapped back in surprise from the harshness in her voice. "Don't be so selfish," she said coolly, turning to go up the stairs.

The guards grabbed him, dragging him back. "Get off me! He dies now!"

"Come, come. Surly you don't want to miss the slow and painful death of Robin Hood, hmm?" said Vaisey temptingly.

"Let him go!" ordered Linda. The guards hesitated, but they let go of Guy. Turning to face each other, he winced under the her practical evil glare. "You and I need to talk. Now."

*****

Guy followed Linda into the main room, where she shut all of the doors so they were alone. Then she went to the windows to close them as well. Turning around to face him, she held both hands out and walked forward a bit.

"You've done it," she said. "You've officially done it."

Guy raised an eyebrow. "Do what, exactly?"

"You've killed a citizen for no reason." Guy rolled his eyes and shook his head, showing his back to Linda. "Once again, you have ended another life for no reason at all!"

"What was I supposed to do? Let him kill me? Let one more outlaw run free?" he said, turning around to face her.

"Of course not, but don't just lash out on Matthew! Now, because of that, he is dead. This isn't the first time this has happened, either. No, not at all." She paced back and forth, her hands on her head. "I promised her, Guy. I promised Kate that her brother would live."

"And that includes me... how? I never made any promises, so I don't see the problem."

"Because that's what I said to Marian! I promised that I would protect her and keep her safe. I promised her that I would keep her alive. I told her that I would help her, and I said that I would keep her away from you, because you're the monster that haunted her dreams! You haunt everyone's dreams!" she screamed.

Silence filled the room. Guy blinked, unable to process what Linda was saying. Shaking his head, he pointed at her. "No. No, you're lying to me."

"No, I am not. She hated you. She never loved you, she loved Robin, and you were too blind to see it. She thought you a villain, a murderer. I defended you, telling Marian that you were not. Now I see she was right. You are a killer, and you don't see reason. Go to hell, and there you will find your pathetic reasoning you long for!"

"No!" shouted Guy, advancing toward her. Drawing a knife, he pinned her to a wall and put the knife close to her neck. "Take. That. Back," he said darkly, a fire igniting in his eyes.

Linda looked up at him; he could have sworn he saw a tear leak from her eye. "Go on," she said. "Do it. Let your rage take control of you, let it drive you... like in the Holy Land. No one is stopping you. Kill me now. Go on, do it!" She was practically daring him.

He growled and pushed the blade closer to her skin, the tip almost drawing blood. Then his eyes widened in realization. Taking a step back, Guy ran into the table. Steadying himself, he let go of the knife, it clattering from the table to the floor. They were both panting now, Linda coming off of the wall slowly.

"You see?" she said lowly. "A monster lives in you. The devil is toying with you, and you're playing along." With that she left the room, Guy replaying the words she said over and over again.

*****

Vaisey and Guy stood inside a large rock room, Robin Hood chained in the middle of it. Tiernan and Finn stood outside the entrance, talking to each other. Vaisey walked around, pretending to examine the room.

"We call this room the vault," said Vaisey. "One door, solid oak, three locks. No windows, just...." Vaisey looked to Robin. "Lots of stone."

"A challenge," said Robin with a nod, staring at the wall in front of him.

"This is the last room you'll ever know," said Guy from behind Robin. "You should have killed me when you had the chance, and you should have fought off that little friend of yours." He walked forward, stopping until he was close to Robin. "I'm going to make you suffer before you die," he promised with a dark and whispery tone.

"Just like you're suffering, Gisborne?" retorted Robin, turning his head to look over his shoulder. "You know, you could kill me one-hundred times over, but the pain you're feeling now, the hatred, the self-loathing, it's never going to go away."

Guy shook his head. Grabbing Robin, he rammed his knee into his back, causing Robin to groan. Then he turned to leave the room. "Stupid outlaw."

"You'll never hate me as much as you hate yourself," called Robin.

Guy turned, drawing his sword.

"Oh, put it away," said the Sheriff, leaning on the wall to to exit. "Always in such a rush, hmm? Sometimes I think you don't appreciate the poetry of pain. Something, clearly, Robin Hood does." They left the room then. "So... how about the death of a thousand cuts, a nasty Saracen practice."

"As long as he dies," answered Guy, leaving Robin alone in his prison-like room.

*****

guyinda issues = *world explodes*