Warriors we will be//Avalanche

[valerie]

When Byron left and Avalanche began talking Valerie managed to loosen her grip on his arm. She watched him, listening to him and tried paying attention. He was being as soothing as possible as Valerie had clearly stepped into something she knew nothing about here. Her heart beat was going a mile a minute and she wasn't about to go 'diving into' this situation. Or try for the police. The newsies weren't a bunch of pickpockets, she knew that. They did work for their money. Most were nice boys and polite to her. Alot of them were even orphans.

And they were apparently organized. Avalanche spoke to her as if she need protecting and while it was a little irritating, she found herself grateful. Even flattered. But he looked to be around her again, if not a touch younger.

Valerie shook her head, "No... No, if the police haven't bothered to help with the missing children by now..." Those poor children. Where they here? Some were newsies she was sure of it. That blond boy she saw earlier! What was his name? Dutchy? Yes, he had told her so. And Pup was one of the missing. Stuart. A little boy running from the cops that she'd helped some time ago. Her throat tightened at the thought. He was barely eight. How could the cops just ignore these children?

She looked to Avalanche and spoke sincerely, "How can I help?"

[Avalanche]

He gave her a grateful smile. "We have people at Irving hall waiting to attend to the wounded. Medda Larkson, the woman who owns the hall has agreed to give us a hand. If you would really like to help that is where we will be needing people here come real soon. Medda has workers, but I'm sure she could always use more." That was really all she could do at the moment, it was definitely where she could be the most useful for sure. He was happy that she was at least willing to not tell the cops! That made her good in his book, the fact that she wanted to legitimately help was nearly a staggering concept to him.

[Lord Byron Hastings]

Byron hurried ahead to help tend to the wounded, leaving the girl for Avalanche to deal with. As soon as he got to where all the action was taking place, he stopped dead in his tracks. He couldn't believe the number of dead and wounded lying on the ground. And, in the clearing leaning against a tree he spotted Reid Halliway craddling a small, limp boy in his arms. By the way Reid held him and how distraught he looked, Byron knew that had to be Perry. Oh, no. Not Perry. He pulled his hat off his head, and combed his fingers through his hair before replacing it back on his head.

When Byron looked ahead of him, to where the fighting was going on, he saw a young boy a ways ahead, laying on the ground with a larger, older man straddling him with his hands around the boys neck. The boy was gasping for air, and flailing around trying to get free. Byron hurried to the boy as fast as his legs would carry him. He yanked the man by his shirt collar off the boy, motioning to the boy to beat it. "What kinda man, picks on a little kid? That's pathetic." The man, who looked to be in his late thirty's, struggled to his feet and glared at Byron. "The kind dat don't care, boy!" The man swung at him, but Byron was quick and dodged out of the way causing the man to loose his balance for a minute and stumble. The man collected himself, before trying again. This time the man caught Byron off guard, and his fist connected with Byron's jaw. "This may be easier than I thought," the man snarled. Byron spit some blood from his mouth onto the ground and glared at the man, "Alright. Looks like I'm not gonna make it back home unscathed."

Byron rolled up his sleeves and smirked at the man. Seeing that as a challenge, the man lunged at Byron, wrapping his arms around Byron's waist, tackling him to the ground. Byron was a bit bigger, so he was able to roll them over so he was on top of the man and landed a few punches before the man pushed Byron up over his head, making him land face down. Byron pushed himself up off the ground and turned around to face the man who was standing, facing him holding a knife in his left hand. Byron's heart began racing. What was he going to do now? He didn't have a weapon to defend himself... Byron took a deep breath, and braced himself for what was to come. The man stepped towards Byron slowly, holding the knife out in front of him. Byron eased forward. The man swiped the knife at Byron's throat, barely missing him. Thoughts were racing through his head, trying to figure out how to overtake the man. The man swiped the knife at him again just nicking Byron's cheek, leaving a long, shallow, bloody cut on his cheek. The man sneered at Byron, cackling, dropping the knife to his side. "Aww, did I mess up that pretty face of yours, boy?" Byron didn't hesitate, using that moment to overcome the man. Byron lunged at the man, knocking him to the ground. Byron straddled the man and wrapped his hands tightly around his neck. The man gasped for air and began to flail around just as the young boy had. Spying a large rock just within reach, Byron released one hand from the man's neck and grabbed the rock, and hit the man hard on the side of his head. The man's flailing stopped and his body went limp. Byron looked down at the rock in his hand and dropped it on the ground beside the man. He felt the man's neck for a pulse, to no avail. He rolled off the man and sat on the ground, his face in his hands. What had he done? Byron looked up at the man one last time and stood up. Byron, you don't have time to think about this right now. There are kids who need your help. He brushed the dirt off his pants, picked up his hat off the ground where it had fallen the first time he hit the ground, and placed it back on his head...

Byron inhaled and exhaled a deep breath, then continued forward to see who needed help. He stopped and crouched down next to a young blond girl who was laying face down. He turned her over, and saw blood all over the front of her shirt where it looked like she had been shot in the chest. He felt the side of her neck for a pulse, and found none... Oh, God. She's so young... He turned her back over onto her stomach, so no one else walking by would have to see such a gruesome scene. Then, he stood up, wiped the blood that trickled down his cheek from the cut there, and looked back to where he came from to see if Avalanche was still being detained by that girl. Sure enough, she was still there, holding him up from coming to help. "AVALANCHE, MATE, COME ON! WE NEED YOUR HELP!" he shouted to his friend, hoping the girl could hear the urgency in his voice and let Avalanche be.

Byron continued checking each body he came across for a pulse, not wanting to leave someone to die who might have been saved. The ones who were still alive, he helped get to a safe enough distance away from the fighting so they wouldn't be hurt more, and the ones who were dead he left them where they lie, knowing there was nothing else to be done for them and that when everything was over, someone would come and take them to be buried, even if it had to be him...