Rebel: A Monstercat Fanfic

006 - Solitude

Song of the Chapter: Renegade - Noisestorm (Electro)

(Evee's POV)

I jolt awake as a water droplet lands on my face. Blinking to adjust to the sunlight, I sit up and look around. Everything seems - wait, where's Rogue? I jump to my feet and frantically scan the area, my heart racing.

"Rogue?" I call softly.

No answer.

"Rogue? Where are you?" My voice is shaking as much as my hands.

Still, no answer.

What if he got caught or something? But then why would they leave me? And he would've put up a struggle, and I didn't hear anything, so that can't be it.

But why would he just run away? Unless ... he was going to turn me in.

I shake my head. He seemed so ... different. Kind, even. I mean, he could have been lying and putting up a façade, but I don't think he was. He was too passionate when he'd talk about music, although, now that I think about it, he never talked about his music.

"Rogue?" I call, louder this time.

There's still no answer.

Maybe he just went to find some water or something. I think I can hear a creek or a river somewhere around here. I'll wait for maybe an hour and if he still hasn't shown up, I'll go to the river. If he's not there, I'll go where he said he saw smoke.

I wait long past the hour I promised myself. I draw, I write, I read, but he never comes back. Eventually, I wander to the river, but he isn't there, either. I have to accept that he's gone.

Something inside tells me I might have imagined it. I was desperate for help and I've always been known for a wild imagination. Maybe I ate the food and drank the water myself without realizing it. Maybe I imagined his voice telling me that I played beautifully. Maybe I imagined his strange Roman helmet and his shining sword. I've only been out for a few days, but maybe I'm going crazy.

I sit down by the river and start to cry. I can't help it. I needed someone badly, and the only one who came disappeared. I'm truly alone now.

●•●•●•●

(Phantom's POV)

I was not happy when they told me I couldn't go with them. They said, "If we get caught, they'll find out who we are, and we want you to stay anonymous." Yeah, well, I can take care of myself. If we get caught, I'm just another guy who's already in their system. They won't think much of it.

Stephen Walking took Monstercat, Tristam, Mr. FijiWiji, Varien, and Hellberg to see if they really could successfully sneak into Vancouver, and left me, Noisestorm, Ephixa, and a couple others behind. Muzzy showed up sometime the night before, but he keeps disappearing, so I'm not sure if he went with them or not.

And on top of that, my jacket is completely ruined. The back is in tatters and smells like fireworks and burnt hair, so I'll have to get a new one, but GUESS WHO'S NOT GOING TO VANCOUVER.

I'm freezing without it, with just a thin t-shirt on and some weird creamy stuff Stephen put on my burns, so I get someone to build a fire as soon as they leave. They tease me about it, but I ignore them. I don't like starting fires.

The warmth remind me of better times. I stare into the flames intensely until the sound of two voices carries toward me on the wind. One of them is Noisestorm's. The other one I can't identify.

I look up as they both emerge from the forest into our camp. Noisestorm is pulling another guy into the clearing, who's fighting against him with everything except the sword in his hand.

"I'm telling you, you have to let me go back. She's waiting for me!" the other guy yells over and over.

Noisestorm just sighs. "Rogue, you're just making her up. There's no girl in the forest who gave you chips and cookies. You're going crazy."

"I know it sounds weird, but I swear she's real!" Rogue pulls out of his grip, but Noisestorm catches him again.

"I'm going to start swearing here in a minute - come on, let's just go over here and sit down ... "

"Why won't you just listen to me?"

"Calm down for a second." Noisestorm practically throws him into the log next to me.

"Tell me about this girl in the forest," I say.

"Who are you?" Rogue gives me a confused look, and I almost laugh. One second, he was angry and yelling and now he's almost calm and simply questioning.

"Phantom," I say, sticking out my hand. He awkwardly shakes it. "EDM smuggler. You're welcome."

"Uh huh ..." Rogue stares at me for a second, then shakes his head. "The girl ... she plays the violin. She has a nice voice, golden brown hair ... she was wearing a grey skirt with black leggings, and a fuzzy hat, almost like your beanie. She was drawing pictures and ... I don't know, I feel like she understands me." He pauses, waiting for a reaction.

Noisestorm and I just look at each other and burst out laughing.

"Sounds like your dream girl, doesn't it?" Noisestorm laughs in between breaths.

Rogue's face turns bright red. "I'm telling you, she's real. I'm not making this up."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. I think you need some sleep and some food to clear your mind. Go talk to Ephixa. He'll get you something." I point to the folding table where the penguin is playing cards by himself.

"He'd better listen," Rogue growls, storming away.

I watch for a minute and then say, "He's got quite a personality, huh?"

Noisestorm barks a laugh. "Oh, yeah. I swear he's got more than one."

We watch in amusement as a guy in a Roman helmet and a penguin throwing playing cards around scream at each other, and then two seconds later, they're playing a game together. I shake my head and laugh again. We're all crazy.