𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙎𝙀𝙑𝙀𝙉
—𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘨𝘰 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯—

𝙎𝙇𝙊𝙒𝙇𝙔 𝘽𝙐𝙏 𝙎𝙐𝙍𝙀𝙇𝙔, every soldier was killed in front of Allison and Leo. The woman silently cried, forced to listen to their screams fill the air, all the while Leo begged for her to pay attention to anything else. He had seen things like this before, so the sight didn't really faze him‒ but the fact that Bane was doing it simply for pleasure and payback made him extremely angry. Especially when Allison was getting hurt in the process.

It seemed like hours passed when the final soldier was killed. Soon enough, the sun would begin to come up, and the lasting hours of the Purge would cease. Everyone who wasn't involved would carry on with their usual days at school and work, ignoring the ambulances and emergency systems that eagerly roamed the streets. They wouldn't know what happened the night before, it seemed— but everyone else would always remember what happened that night.

"What an enjoyable show," Bane claps, grinning mildly as he steps over to Allison. "Don't you think so? Maybe you'd like to be the encore."

"Touch her and I'll fucking kill you," Leo grunts, narrowing his eyes.

It was obvious that neither of them were armed, and there couldn't possibly be a way out of their traps without one. But Allison was no longer thinking about escaping; she was too focused on Carlson's safety, along with his team and the others. She would find a way to kill Bane, and would hope they were okay.

"A little possessive, are we?" Bane raises an eyebrow, pulling a knife from his belt. He lifts it up above his head, looking over it as the light shines against the metal.

"You're fucking crazy," Allison breathes, lifting her eyes to his cruel ones. "And one day you'll pay for your mistakes. You'll find remorse for the pain and suffering you've brought upon so many people."

"And you don't think you will?"

"I understand the consequences for my actions, but you . . . " Allison trails off, a grin of her own growing on her face. "Satan will have no fucking mercy on you, you pathetic bastard. I hope to see you rot in hell."

"You, sweetheart, are an absolute freak show," Bane rolls his eyes.

Allison doesn't respond, laying her head against the wall and closing her eyes tightly. She releases a small groan at the migraine that begins deep within her head, before burrowing into her mind and spreading like wildfire. She swallows hard, biting down hard on her lip. Leo scans her for a moment, examining her state of distress. As Allison tilts her head to the side, her hair exposes the left side of her face, showing off a bruise on her temple.

"What the hell did you do to her?" Leo demands, knowing that he had injected her with something.

"I've been watching Saw for a while now," Bane says nonchalantly, tipping his knife forward. "And the way he does things is incredibly interesting. Haven't you noticed? The movies are old, but the ideas . . . oh, they're just genius."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It'll kill her slowly," Bane begins. "And she'll feel every ounce of pain that I wish upon her. The perfect death, if you ask me."

Leo releases a breath, looking to Allison as she sighs in discomfort again. "You won't get what you want, Bane."

"Oh, I think I already have," he chuckles, gesturing to her flinches. "We'll see who wins in the end, Allison."

"Screw you," the woman chokes out, gritting her teeth to hold back a gasp of pain. Instead, only a whimper escapes her closed lips, coming out as a soft hum. But then it turned into something more as tingles began to erupt in her fingers, the fire growing in her arms.

It felt as though she were being burned alive, a raging fire continuing throughout her whole body. And even though it was a small blaze, she couldn't help but cry out. Leo jerked around in his chains, ready to lunge for Bane. But the man only laughed at his defenselessness.

"This has been my favorite Purge yet," Bane says aloud, trying to speak over Allison's muffled yells that were turning into screams.

Leo didn't understand why he felt so urged to kill Bane— other than the fact that he was a disgusting excuse for a human being. He didn't feel for Allison, did he? They were hardly friends, so why was he suddenly feeling this way? Then again, anyone would feel horrible when someone else was being tortured beside them. But this was something so much more, and he wasn't sure he could handle the overwhelming sensation in his chest.

He had never felt something like this before in his life, and it was different. A protective different, one that made him want to take away Allison's pain and place it upon himself instead. He wanted to murder Bane in the most vicious of ways possible.

The door to the warehouse was opened with a crash, sending the metal flying towards the ground. Light filled the dim building, shining brightly at the entrance. Bane looked quite confused at the chaos, hesitating as he turned to see what the commotion was about. A mechanic whirr sounded from outside, echoing off the walls. Allison screams out at the top of her lungs, thrashing in her holds.

The fire was burning her insides now, and was tearing her apart— that's what it felt like, at least. Her hands, arms, legs, feet, her whole body in general was shaking more than they ever should.

"You didn't think you'd get past us, did you?" A voice resonated towards them, a figure stepping into the doorway. He held a machine gun in his hands, his shoulders broad and familiar.

But Allison couldn't look, as she was gasping for air and heaving with sobs. If she could've saw, Leo knew she would've been the happiest she could ever be.

"Carlson," Bane says joyfully, clasping his hands together as his men in white join his side's. "How nice of you to join us. Here for the show?"

"I've been waiting to kill you for the longest time," Carlson moves forward into the light, his face bloody and bruised. "You have some tough ass fighters, but they missed me."

In an instant, gunshots filled the air, and every man at Bane's side fell to the ground. Blood splattered onto Allison and Leo, both of them flinching at the contact. Bane was left standing alone, not budging.

"Allison deserves to slaughter you like a pig," Carlson pauses. "But I'm here as a fill-in, and I intend to make sure her plan is carried out."

A knife is lodged into Bane's throat right after Carlson finishes. The dark-haired man sputters for a moment, before sinking to the ground, his hands going to his throat. Blood pours from the wound, pooling on the floor around him. Carlson rushes over to Allison and Leo instantly, his eyes wide as he looks over them.

"Allison?" He asks, tugging at the chains that hold her up. "Oh my gosh, what did he do to you?"

After the brunette is free of the chains, she moans before falling into his grasp. She falls limply onto him, her eyes fluttering. Carlson settles onto the floor with her in his arms, frantically searching for anything that could help her.

"You couldn't save her if you tried," Carlson says gruffly from beside them, blood dripping from his lips as he holds the area of his neck around the knife. "None of you can. This is what I've been waiting for."

Leo breaks free of his chains, landing on his feet before barreling over the the shaking woman. He takes her from Carlson, holding her face in his hands. "Allison, look at me. Can you hear me?"

"What did you do, you sick bastard?" Carlson growls.

"I—I passed on a favor," he gurgles on his own blood, spitting it onto the floor. "She deserves death as much as I do."

It takes only a second longer for him to choke on his own blood, and go limp. His body is stiff and unmoving, and then the monster finally stops breathing.

"He—he's dead?" Allison sinks into Leo's arms, her voice hoarse as she tries to contain her shaking. "That's all I—I ever wanted."

"Stay with me, okay?" Leo stammers, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs. "Everything will be okay. The sun rises in a few minutes and we'll get help—"

"Thank you for h—helping me," she smiles weakly, reaching up to place her hand on his cheek. "I shoul—should've listened when you warned me. I'm so sorry I got the two of you into this mess."

"No, don't say that," Leo says firmly, shaking his head. "I won't lose you, too."

"Just remember me." Allison gives him one last smile, before her eyes find the ceiling.

Above them, through holes in the roof, she could see the sunlight shining through. It wasn't prominent, but anyone could see it if they looked hard enough. And in that morning sunlight were loose tendrils of dust, flowing through air like dandelion petals on the wind on a warm summer day.

It reminded her of a time ten years ago— when she and her brother had discovered a field full of yellow wildflowers. They were kids then; no worries, only laying down a plaid blanket in the grass and laying side-by-side to stare at the clouds and make pictures with the sky. They were so close.

And as the sunlight in the ceiling got brighter, it seemed as though the memory was more vivid— it was real. Allison was her normal age, laying on the picnic blanket next to her brother. He looked the same as he always had, his brown hair falling into his eyes. Allison places her hand on his cheek, gasping as she touched smooth skin.

He was here, right next to her where he belonged. Her brother simply smiles back at her. Allison releases a breath of relief, placing her hand in his as she turns her gaze back to the sky. She could no longer hear Leo's pleads for her to keep her eyes open; she wasn't aware of her normal state, nor of the single tear that fell from Leo Barnes' eye.

Because, as Allison Pierce closed her eyes for the very last time, she felt at peace. She didn't belong in a place where Bane had been sent— she was only a lost soul. A lost soul that was finally being united with her life again . . .

All the while leaving so many people behind in the psychotic world.

THE END

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