This isn't dying, this is living!//Gwennie-1Other

[Fighter Mallory]

Fighter strode through the crowd, her gaze never breaking from the building in front of her. She knew what she'd come for and she wasn't going to stand here waiting for the rest of them to barrel towards the building. She wanted in and that's what she was going to get. She stepped on an unconscious guards face as she passed him, twisting her heal until she heard bone crunch. When one of the other guards came running towards her, his gun pointed at her she ducked as he fired and barreled head first into his gut. Then she gave him a solid left hook to the face and kicked him in the groin before pulling out a knife and holding it to his throat a wicked grin on her face. "Nothing more I love than putting a bastard in his place." And with that she significantly lowered the knife and sliced, enjoying his bellow of pain as his hands cupped the place she'd cut. She smirked and stood, "Be glad you're still breathing."

She heard him call her a bitch as she stood again and continued on her way and she laughed wickedly to herself. God she was going to enjoy this day. Already she could feel her hands covered in blood and as crazy as it might sound she was actually savoring the feeling. She wanted them to pay for daring to take someone she cared about. For daring to mess with her friends and with Brooklyn. Fighter was almost to the door when she got bumrushed from the side. With a grunt she managed to use his weight against him and flip him over so she was on top of him. She brought an elbow down to his face and knocked him out but not before he'd given her a black eye.

With a sigh she stood once more, she was really getting tired of these distractions. She pulled her extra knife from her pocket and kicked at the door with the heel of her boot. When it didn't budge a scream of frustration tumbled from her throat and she kicked it again and again. Before she could get it open she heard a noise on the other side, it sounded like a whimper. Everything in her snapped and she stepped back and then flew at the door throwing all of her weight into it.

[David Jacobs]

Things had gotten messy far quicker than David had anticipated, he'd gotten separated from Jack, Dodger and Prince fairly quickly and the noise and activity was reaching a fever pitch. Darting around to the side, David spotted a girl - he thought he recognized her as someone from Brooklyn - fighting off a couple guards in between attempts to bust open a door. As he worked his way towards her, he saw her seem to lose control and throw herself against the door almost frantically. He was almost to her when he got waylaid by a guard that shouted and grabbed his arm, causing David to shout before whirling and on instinct hurling a punch towards the guard's beefy face. The large man howled in pain and David took the moment to shove him aside and race over towards Fighter.

"Hey, probably easier with two of us," He offered quickly, taking in the blood covering her, the wild look in her eyes and the determination set on her features. In that moment, David admired her as much as he had admired anyone in his life. "Look, let me try my hand at the door and you keep these jerks off me, you're better with a knife than I could ever be." He gently touched her shoulder and pulled, pushing himself in beside her against the door. Sucking in a deep breath he threw his shoulder against the door, wincing when pain reverberated down over his body, but felt it move just the smallest little bit, spurring him to keep trying.

[Birdie Schaffer]

Birdie had found a way to be incredibly stealthy herself as she moved threw the shadows as she'd always been able to for information and jump on the backs of anyone that she could see that might be an enemy. She knew most of the faces in the boroughs, by the time she reached David she grabbed the door to help him get it open and gave Fighter a whistle before tossing her another one of her own knifes.

Brooklyn girls were the dangerous girls that you were never sure were girls at all. The rest might get in the way but they were assets. She pulled out a lock pick and nudged David. "Not all of us are the brute force types.." She tossed her hair out of her eyes and looked back for a moment. She knew it was probably locked and it wouldn't take her to long to pick the damn thing if she had some time. A couple minutes max but in a situation like this she needed to make it seconds.

"Davey! Keep them off of my back alright!?"

[David Jacobs]

David eyed Bridie when she squeezed in beside him, seeing the lock pick in her hand he immediately saw the logic in her words and shifted out of her way. "We're on it, Birdie," he said under his breath, not even sure if Birdie heard him, but knowing he could count on the other Brooklyn girl to jump in when needed. Turning he caught sight of a dark shadow moving around the building and plunged his hand in his pocket, fingers curling around the handle of the knife he'd nabbed from his mom's kitchen before leaving that day.

He kept his eyes on the shifting light, the darkness of the human shape becoming more defined the longer he watched and just as the guard made a move for Birdie, he surged forward holding the knife outright and feeling it slice into skin as the man screamed out in agony. Warm blood gushed over David's hand and he supposed some other time it'd be enough to make him stop, but not here and not now. He had to give Birdie time, time to open that door, time to get to the others.

The guard was waving a gun, swinging it wildly around as David pulled at his knife, the handle slippery and sticky with blood. Cool metal struck the side of David's head hard enough for his ears to ring but he only tightened his grip and yanked harder, freeing the knife and swinging it again to cut the man's bicep and sending the guard turning away howling in pain.

[Gwennie]

Gwennie was huddled in the corner of the closet in which she was hidden. When the commotion had started, Gwennie had been at one of the looms closest to the rest of the building. The door out of the work room was usually left locked and guarded but as the big mean guards rushed out to try to stop the other newsies outside, they left it open. Gwennie's heart had leapt when she saw it. Fighter must have been out there with all of the others, she knew it, and now she had a way to get to her and get out of this place. She had dashed through the door and down the passageways only to find that she didn't know where the way out was and even worse, she had forgotten Milo. She couldn't get out without him, he was her friend and he was younger than her so she was responsible. She had turned back the way she came, hoping to make her way back to the work room but , just at that moment, she'd hearrd heavy footsteps running toward her down the hallway. Sure it must have been one of the guards, she had run through the door nearest her and into the closet where she was now. The footsteps had passed what seemed like hours ago but she still couldn't do anything but sit there and pray that the next people to come by would be newsies, noty guards. Part of her told her that she had to get out and find Milo and the other littler kids but she couldn't make herself move. It was just too scary. "Please come, Fightah. Ya jus' gotta come" she whispered to herself, clutching her knees closer to her chest.

[Fighter Mallory]

When Davey spoke Fighters head whipped around and she had her knife halfway up before she realized who he was. Fighter lowered her arm and nodded her head slightly to his idea. She was in her zone and she tended to get tunnel vision when she was like this. Turning, she stood with both knives at her side her eyes darting around constantly as Davey tried the door. She heard the shot before she saw the gun and it grazed her shoulder, but she barely felt a thing. She turned and glanced up at the building and immediately saw the guard standing at the second story window. The cowardly bugger was shooting at them from up there. Taking a step back she pulled her arm back and hurled her knife up at him. She saw that she hit him but couldn’t see exactly where but as long as he was out of commission she didn’t give a damn. Fighter was pissed she’d lost one of her knives and that’s when she heard a high pitched whistle, looking to the side she saw Birdie and reached her hand up just in time to grab the knife that was tossed in her direction.

Giving the girl a nod of thanks she gazed across the battle field. It was getting bloodier and bloodier by the minute. At that moment a guard ran towards her and she smirked, God she was in her glory right here in this moment. Taking a punch to the ribs, Fighter kicked him in the face and took a deep breath. He’d gotten her good that was for sure. She glanced at Davey and noticed he was entangled with someone as well and Fighter grinned when she saw the kitchen knife he brandished. Hell she wouldn’t mind one of those, they were bigger than hers. Fighter gave the guard one more kick and punched him in the face, taking a punch herself to the face. As he went down he grabbed her hair and pulled her with him. Grunting in pain she kneed him in the groin again and again. He cowered in a ball and Fighter stood spitting in his face, “Pathetic.”

Fighter glanced at Davey to see how he was doing and he seemed to be managing fine, but Fighter wanted this to end. She darted over behind the guard, wrapped her arm around his head and pulled his head back before cutting his throat. Fighter sighed as he fell to the ground and didn’t bother to look at Davey. She knew he was probably horrified by what she’d done, but enough was enough. Turning her eyes towards Birdie instead, she took a step towards the door. “Got the door open yet?” Fighter was itching to get inside and find Gwennie doing as much damage as possible.

[David Jacobs]

It was a surprise to Daivd when the guy in front of his nearly disappeared from his view, jerked back by Fighter's grip and he watched with wide eyes as the girl slit the man's throat, blood gushing every where. At another time and place David would have gasped in horror, unprepared for the grizzly sight, but here on what was quickly becoming a battlefield, filled with the shouts and screams of friend and foes, it seemed almost common place. He nodded his thanks to Fighter, barely time to process what had just happened before another man appeared.

David gripped his knife hard, knuckles turning white as he slashed out at the nearest man, catching him in the gut with the knife at the same time as his knee hit up into his groin. The guy groaned, shouting out in suprise but managed to get off a shot that sent a bullet flying somewhere close to David's head. The noise of the gun firing caused a momentary pause in David's concentration, giving the guard an opening to send a beefy fist flying into his stomach and David felt his breath leave him and he swung out with the knife again, striking the man high in his chest and feeling him sputter before he fell away from David.

His head rung from the smack of the gun from the first guard and he was still catching his breath as he staggered up alongside Fighter and looked down at Birdie. "Any luck on that damn door?" He asked, lifting his eyes to look at Fighter again before turning and looking out over the battlefield trying not to think about the fate of all his friends.

[Birdie Schaffer]

Birdie hadn't moved when the guard had come for her, she'd stayed where she was until she heard Fighter hollar at her. At the same moment the door swung open. It had only been a few seconds but to those fighting it was like an eternity.

"Keep you knickers on, Dave," Birdie said easily as she sat up and kicked the door in the rest of the way looking around to see some guards coming at her from the other side. She rolled her eyes and used one of her other knives to stop the guard in his tracks. She was small enough she could get under his guard and pound the knife into his stomach without to much effort on her part. She'd always been the kind that liked to let the other people do most of the work in a fight and she'd use that against them. People didn't think to much.

She looked past the body as it dropped and back over her shoulder. "It's clear, Fight. Go get your Brat. Go with her Dave, I've got ta go make sure Decker hasn't gotten himself killed yet.." Nah he was Brooklyn, the body count alone for their side was enough to make grown men cry.

[Fighter Mallory]

Fighter stalked through the doorway, knives out and in her hands. When one of the guards came towards her she wasted no time with fighting and stuck one of her knives in his chest before swiftly pulling it out again and moving on. She wanted to find Gwennie as soon as possible. Giving a nod to Birdie before she was out of sight, Figther turned down a long dark hallway. Her nose wrinkled up at the horrible smell that infiltrated her nostrils but other than that her face showed no sign of emotion. Right now you could probably refer to her as a cold blooded killer because anyone who got in her way was going to have no mercy.

Although this hall was empty, she could hear footsteps from the one she was approaching and she slid up against the wall motioning for Davey (if he was still there) to do the same. Slowly she crept towards the end of the hall and peaked around the corner, there were four guards so the odds weren't horrible. She pulled her head back and quietly told Dave how many there were. "Only one of them has a gun. If I can get it, I'll make quick work of the others."

"Stay here for a minute then follow. That way they think I'm alone." Fighter stepped out into the other hallway and faced them. Their voices died down quickly when they saw her and realized that she was covered in their comrades blood. An evil smile slowly spread across her face as one spoke, "Well, well lookey what we have here. I say we take our time with this one."

They began to step forward and that's when she threw her arm, palm up into the first guards face smashing into his nose. She quickly did a roundhouse kick against another and then kneed a third. She shouted for Davey and started wrestling the fourth, who happened to have the gun. She hoped she'd caused enough damage that he could take care of the others because the last thing she needed was to get her head shot off right now.

[David Jacobs]

Blood was rushing in David's ears, almost so loud that it was drowning out the faint shouts from outside as he and Fighter slipped through the door and quietly made their way down the hall. He kept his eyes on her frame in front of him, followed her lead when she pressed up against the wall at the sound of footsteps. He could hold his own, but she had more experience and he wasn't daft enough to think he could handle any of this on his own. Fighter moved ahead and peeked around the corner, returning a few moments later with the report that there were four guards, one of them with a gun.

He listened carefully to her plan, weighed the options in his overwrought mind and figured it was there best shot by a mile. "You go on and I'll take care of the rest," He promised, however it had happened he and the girl from Brooklyn were in this together and like hell he was going to let down on his end of things. He nodded his head at her instruction, looked her in the eye to let her know he had understood then watched her go.

A chill slid down his spine as he heard the words of the guard, the implication in his voice thick and so heady with a threat David had to stop himself from running out before Fighter signaled. There was a bustle of noice and activity, the sounds of grunts and bones crunching and then she was shouting for him and he raced around the corner, knife poised and he leapt on the nearest one, glancing off his ear and sending blood gushing over them both.

He was getting used to the scent of blood and sweat now, the taste of it in his mouth as he grappled with the guard enough to shove him back against a wall just as one of the others came up behind him. The man yanked at him, growling low in his throat about "these fucking kids" before taking aim and hitting David right above his eye, sending stars dancing across David's vision. Gritting his teeth, David fought, kicking out hard and catching the man in the shins hard enough to send him doubling over and David used the knife again, plunging it in any available flesh he could find until the man stilled and david shoved him aside, launching himself at the next one.

[Fighter Mallory]

The man with the gun seemed more trained than any of the others she'd fought today and she had a difficult time getting it away from him. Thank god he seemed to want to be accidentally shot as much as she did and refrained from putting his finger near the trigger. After what seemed like an eternity she head butted him, sending the back of his head crashing into the cement floor. Quickly she grabbed the gun and stood turning to point it at the others. She pulled back the barrel causing the other guards to stop their attack on Davey and turn to look at her.

"Don't worry I won't take my time with you." With that she pulled the trigger and shot one of them through the chest. She pointed the gun at the other two but before she could fire it again they took off down the hallway. Shaking her head she gave Davey a sardonic smile, "Wusses." Walking over she checked out his face, "Not bad. Here." She held the gun out to him, thinking he may need it more than her.

Once he took the weapon she turned and continued on her, checking each entrance way and doorway as she passed for more guards or missing children, but especially for Gwennie. She didn't want to call out the girls name and attract attention to her and Davey but she was beginning to get a little antsy and she wanted to find her and get her out of here.

[David Jacobs]

The gunshot echoed in the hallway and almost before David realized it, the remaining two guards had taken off down the hallway, leaving him and Fighter alone for the moment. She shot him a smile, before handing him the gun which he took with some measure of relief. The knife in his hand was so sticky with blood it was getting hard to handle and the gun was more managable should they meet up with anyone else...when they met up with someone else.

David let her take the lead, following her down the hall as he kept a wary eye behind them, tensing when he heard footsteps pass somewhere nearby but no one appeared for the moment. Each room they passed was a mess and empty, either they had already gotten out or...David refused to consider the alternative and blinked his eyes to return his focus. Fighter was clearly looking for someone in particular and David was trying to keep an eye out for anyone else who might have been left behind or was cowering in some corner among all the commotion.

There was a shout down the hall and David spun, lifting the gun prepared to shoot as a guard rounded the corner and grinned as he spotted them. David's head ached, every muscle in his body felt like it was being pushed to it's limit and he felt as though he might never be able to erase the images that were now forever ingrained in his brain. But as the man rushed them, Fighter behind him no doubt prepared to launch herself at the guard with little regard for her on safety, David knew that here, fighting with the Newsies was exactly where he was always supposed to be; so he gritted his teeth and fired, shooting the guard in the leg and watching as the man stumbled and fell, cursing at him as David turned to catch up with Fighter.

[Gwennie]

Gwennie's head shot upwards, her eyes wide withg terror as she stared at the inside of the closet door. She had just heard a gunshot she knew it and it sounded really really close. Who had gotten shot? She didn't know if any of the bigger newsies had guns, they never talked to her or the other kids about stuff like that, but she knew that the big guard guys had guns, lots and lots, they told her so all the time. It was all she could do to repress a sob as she thought of what that gunshot could mean. What if somebody was dead? What if it was Fighter or even Milo? He was just little like her but those men were really bad. She knew she should have gone back to look for him sooner. He was only seven she was a whole year older she was supposed to help him.

If her heart had skipped a beat at the thought of who the bad men might have hurt already, it nearly stopped altogether when she heard footsteps rushing down the hall, coming closer and closer to her. She closed her eyes as tightly and tried harder than she had ever tried before not to make a sound but, to her horror, as the footsteps passed the closet door, a small whimper escaped her lips despite all of her efforts. She was going to die. She'd never thought about it before, not even when ther mama and her papa and her brother had died, but she was sure it was going to happen now there was no way the bad man hadn't heard her and any minute now he would find her and he would kill her just like that big girl a few days back. She bowed her head between her knees and pressed her back against the wall, too scared even to cry as she waited for the bad man to shoot her. At least she would get to see Joseph and Mama and Papa again in heaven...

[Fighter Mallory]

Fighter turned as she heard footsteps approaching behind them, she barely had time to register the guard before Davey fired the gun and he fell to the ground clutching his leg. Fighter nodded her thanks and continued on her way. She nearly missed the doorway and probably would have if it wasn’t for the slight whimper she heard from within. As soon as she heard that noise reality seemed to set in and she glanced down at her appearance. She had blood on her hands and she could feel some on her face and neck. Quickly she unbuttoned her top shirt; she was still wearing a long sleeved black undershirt not that she would have cared if she wasn’t. Taking the shirt off she tried scrubbing the blood off her hands and face. She didn’t want to scare whoever was behind the door. Tossing the shirt over her shoulder she opened the door and squatted down putting her hand on the shoulder of the person she’d wanted to see more than anything these past few months. “Gwennie…” Fighter reached out and tugged the small girl in her arms, holding her for a moment.

Fight started to stand with Gwennie still in her arms, but it put an unexpected strain on her shoulder and she hissed in pain. Leaning against the wall, Fight looked at Davey and as much as it pained her to ask for help she knew she wouldn’t be able to carry the girl out of here. “Can you take her?” Fighters eyes said what her mouth never would, that she was in pain and didn’t want to admit it.

[David Jacobs]

David watched Fighter strip off her shirt and carefully wipe the blood away and for a moment he was struck by the compassion that lingered in that moment, in the unselfish andpure honesty of the moment as she wiped the blood away from her hands and face. Turning his attention away he allowed his eyes to dart down the hall, keeping watch for any errant guard that might stumble across them. He turned back just in time to see Fighter scoop a little girl into a hug and felt a burst of hope at the fact that it appeared they had found who Fighter had gone in after.

Fighter tried to lift the girl then and David saw the pain that crossed her face and as she slouched against the wall and asked him to take her, David knew what it must have cost the proud girl from Brooklyn to say anything at all. Nodding his head he reached for Gwennie, easily hositing the girl up onto his hip before looking at Fighter and holding out the gun to her.

"Hey, it's Gwennie, right?" David said softly, trying not to imagine Les at this age because it caused a lump to grow in his throat. "Here's what I need you to do, we're gonna get you out of here but I need you to hang on tight, okay? No matter what happens or what you hear, just hang on tight and we'll get you out of here," He promised the girl, settling a comforting hand on her back before looking back over at Fighter and nodding.

"I've got her," He ssaid, looking Fighter square in the eye and instinctively tightening his hold around Gwennie. "Let's get out of here."