3 YEARS AGO

“You sure he'll be fine,” asked Sunshine, watching her father as she stood near a door.

Jerome was in a hospital bed and was being treated for the past couple of hours. Apparently, he had severed his own arm in that Walmart to avoid getting infected by a zombie bite along with a lot of bruises.

“Honey, don’t worry your pretty little head. Your dad will be fine,” assured the old woman, placing a pillow under the head of her bandaged father. She had a white coat on, so Sunshine assumed that the lady was a doctor. “I wouldn’t have brought you in here if that weren’t the case.”

Sunshine brought her doll closer to her chest. “Then why isn’t he awake yet? Is he in like… a coma?”

The lady smiled and walked over to her. “All you have to know is that he'll be awake soon. The anesthesia we used on your dad was a little strong. Should I explain what anesthesia is?”

“You don't have to explain such a basic thing to me,” Sunshine said bluntly, glaring at the woman’s conceited eyes. “Besides, you doctors never had him under anesthesia. He was conscious the entire time. I saw almost everything, but none of you saw me. Even when you people reattached his arm and dealt with his bruises, you guys had him there for like another two hours. It looked like you guys were trying to find something in his body.”

She paused for a while, caressing Sunshine’s face with her frail, wrinkly hands. “You have such beautiful, soft skin for a surface dweller. I remember when I used to look like this back in my day. Perhaps in a few years, I’ll-”

“What were you doctors doing to him? Will he be fine or not?”

“He’ll be fine,” said a man behind Sunshine. She turned around and was relieved to see that it was Dante, the guy who saved Jerome. “And Granny Teresa, didn’t anybody ever tell you that you shouldn't be so weird around children? Back up a bit.”

Granny Teresa chuckled awkwardly and murmured, “Can’t an old lady admire the appearances of the young anymore?” She sighed. “Anyways, I expect he’ll wake up in the next few hours.” She gestured for the two to move out the way which they did, allowing her to walk out the room. “Girl, don’t let that running mouth of yours be your undoing. Sometimes, you just have to let things play out the way they should.”

With that, the woman walked off, leaving Sunshine to ponder on her weird words. Dante didn’t seem to think about what Teresa said at all as he was already sauntering towards her unconscious dad.

“It’s pretty messed up what happened to him back at that store,” he said, touching Jerome’s bandages. “He's just a regular dude, and yet he took down like… thirty zombies by himself. He wasn't even doing all that for anything important.”

“He got himself hurt ‘cause of me,” Sunshine replied, walking to the man’s side.

“Exactly. Nothing important.”

Sunshine didn't say anything back to that comment.

“I mean, I get if it was for money, food, water, girls, or even his own survival. But to do it all for a child is just… insane to me. Actually, it’s just plain stupid.”

Sunshine dropped her doll on the ground and began to fix her dad’s blanket. “I get why he did it, and yet I don't at the same time. Why did Jerome put my life over his? I'm just a weak, little girl.”

“It's because he loves you.”

That sentence made her eyes widen in shock.

How could love bring someone to cut off their own arm and continue fighting!?

That's just… stupid…

I'm just a burden to him. He should've left me there. I should've been the one to cause a distraction so he could leave. It's not like I won't die anyway ‘cause of this disease. What was the point!?

Dante gave a soft punch to Sunshine’s shoulder, pulling her out of her thoughts. “I don't know why you look so confused. It should be obvious to you at this point in your life. Your connection with your dad is a full packaged deal. He’s like your reflection. When you're happy, he'll be happy. When you're in pain, he'll suffer too. And if you die, he probably would too. Your father is you.”

She looked at Dante. Jerome is… me?

Dante smoothed his hair back. “At least, that’s how my mother said it to me before she… Well, anyways, I’ve been told by certain people that that mindset isn’t totally correct. My own father says it’s pretty selfish for only the parents to feel that way.”

“So is it a good or bad thing?”

“I don’t know,” he muttered, stuffing one hand in his pocket. “I think he was trying to say that if parents have to try their best to make their kids happy, then their kids should as well. An equal exchange kinda thing I guess.”

She picked up her doll. “You make doing that sound so easy. That’ll be hard for someone like me.”

“It isn't hard. All you have to do is get stronger. When he gets stronger to protect you, then you need to get stronger to protect him too. Equal exchange, remember?” Dante bent down to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “But you have to remember this one thing. Don’t ever think for a second that all strength comes from love. It’s a trait that only the strongest have, and it’s a trait that’s always masked by another. It’s the only reason your father’s still alive. Do you know what that is?”

Sunshine shook her head no.

“Well, a lot of people in this world are gonna bleed you dry for all your worth, so the only way to get rid of them is to be stronger than them. And speaking of bleeding dry…” He took out a white card with the words “You are now under Dante’s care!” on it. “Give this to your dad when he wakes up. Tell him I’ll be in Woodshaven.”

She nodded and took the card. Not only did this man save her dad, it seemed like he wanted to be even closer with him too.

What a nice guy.

*****************

PRESENT TIME

The battle against Daemon was, in Sunshine’s honest opinion, the hardest fight she's ever been in. It was one thing to fight one-on-one in a fight to the death against a man-fly monster whilst unconscious. It was another to fight an unpredictable man like Daemon being fully awake during the danger and fully aware of the danger she was in. Even though it was obvious that man wasn't trying to kill her and Jerome for most of that fight, the last stretch of it said otherwise.

There was only one thing that kept her going, kept her alive. It wasn't her strength, speed or mind. It wasn't luck… Well, maybe some of it was. It was the words of her dad pushing her to continue the fight, and the way the zombie man fought so wholeheartedly throughout it all. Jerome wasn't just fighting to protect Sunshine, he was fighting because he wanted the belief that she could fight alongside him to be true.

What kind of daughter would she be if she couldn't make her dad proud?

That final blast from Daemon made Sunshine freeze up, but her father was able to shield her, protect her from a doom she was confident was unavoidable. Now that the two of them were battered and bruised in an underground cave, it was time for her to protect Jerome.

That was easier said than done though. The two were in the middle of being chased by a group of radioactive animals in a large underground cave, rabbits, rats, and gophers leading the charge while a mysterious animal… human-like figure watched from afar.

Although, the only one of them doing the running was Sunshine. Jerome was knocked out cold and she was stuck carrying his headless body over her shoulders. For a lifeless zombie, the man was heavy. She could punch through and move at the blink of an eye, but that didn't matter when she just went through a grueling battle of life and death. The pain from Daemon's attacks still plagued her body, and she was really regretting not having that teleporter dude with her.

What was his name again? Benny?, she thought, jumping over a few pointy rocks.

Remembering names aside, there was also the problem of Dante’s dear old daddy. Sunshine had no idea when he’d come back or if he’d come back to finish the job, and, even if it was hard to admit, she stood no chance against that guy. Even with Dead Girl Walking, a minute wouldn’t be enough to beat him. And it wasn’t like she could use it at the moment either. Sunshine knew for a fact that her mindless self would abandon her dad in favor of fighting these rabid animals.

Every option Sunshine had guaranteed some form of loss. However, that wasn't a reason for her to give up. If every choice she made here would lead to failure, then she would just have to create a path that would bring her a win. There would always be an infinite number of paths as long as an effort was made to bring them into the surface.

That was a sentiment Sunshine needed to show these little beasts. The dead end she came across made it clear that that would have to happen sooner rather than later. Noticing the bunnies kicking the rats toward her, she dropped her dad and readed her hands. The moment each one ended up in her grip, they exploded in a burst of crimson, staining the girl’s hands with every squeeze of another rat.

Teamwork from these things? Even weirder, teamwork between normals and radioactives? Unusual, but pretty cool.

That was seemingly the distraction the animals were aiming for as a flash of pain erupted in her calf, and she felt the skin on her leg get shaved off. Immediately, she picked Jerome back up and attempted to run back the way she came, but Sunshine realized that they had all surrounded her.

The ground beneath her cracked and, assuming the worst, she jumped out of the way. As she expected, a gopher was the source of that original attack and the terrifying growls from the rest of the animals suggested they wanted a piece of her too.

There is no way I’m dying in some random cave, she thought, aiming a finger gun at the pack.

A bloody battle was sure to ensue, and yet none of the enemies moved. In fact, they seemed to have calmed down mostly. Sunshine didn’t know what would cause such a change in reaction until a silhouette caught in her Energy Sense gave her the answer. Her body told her to move, but the arms of something furry stopped her, wrapping around her neck.

“You move even an inch away from your current position, and I’ma tear your little head off nice and slow,” said a masculine voice, more parts of the wall erupting behind her. He had a real Brooklyn-esque vibe to his voice

“Aren’t you supposed to do it fast so that my head can come off easier,” asked Sunshine, trying to stay calm.

“I want it to be slow,” he answered quickly. “I want you to feel every part of it.”

A sweat ran down Sunshine’s forehead. “Well, since you’re giving me the chance to stay alive, that means you want something from me, right?” She felt a cold breath swallow her neck whole, and the smell of carrots and blood came with it.

“I smelled something on you the moment you came down here. Something strong and something that me and the guys here want.”

The person that was speaking stepped forward, allowing Sunshine to see who it was. It was someone in a bunny costume…?

No, this thing is the real deal!

If this was a man simply wearing a costume, then Sunshine wouldn’t have sensed radioactive energy coming from behind her. Even if it was actually a Radius Ability user, the aura outline in her Energy Sense would’ve matched his actual body, not the costume.That dusty fur, those long ears, those big red and green eyes, slender frame—this was an actual animal.

What was more fascinating to the girl was that the bunny could talk.

The bunny’s black nose twitched. “You reek of death, dirt, and flies. But underneath all that, you got the smell of-”

“Holy s-word,” she shouted, eyes sparkling. “You’re a talking bunny! How’s that even possible?” She scanned his body despite the confusion of the bunny. “Now that I’m getting a good look at you, you look very… anthropomorphic. I think that’s the right word. I knew mutations occurred within you little guys, but this is on a whole other l-”

“Shut. The. Hell. Up,” he demanded. He had tapped her forehead after each word, and his nail made it hurt way more than it should have. “First off, I ain’t no cute, soft ‘bunny’. I’m a rabbit. A rabbit with a rock-hard resolve and trained in the ways of assasination, deception, and acting. My previous human owners made sure I knew that last part.”

“Actually, you’re a bunny and a rabbit since they’re the same thing,” she chuckled. “Common misconception, I know.”

“Bullshit! You take that back!”

“Hey, I read about it all in a book once. I’m not lying.”

The rabbit turned back to his gang. “Can y’all believe that this human is telling me, Flash, that I’m on a small level as a goddamn bunny!? The nerve on this muthafuc-”

One of the bunnies made a noise, causing Flash’s ear to twitch. “Wait, she’s actually right about that? Why didn’t any of y’all tell me something that important?”

Stolen novel; please report.

A gopher squeaked.

“I don’t need y’all to lie to keep me happy. We’re all family here so we gotta be honest, alright?” The rabbit turned back to Sunshine. “As I was saying before you rudely interrupted me with a newly found existential crisis, you got this… herbal smell on you. Like a medicine type smell.”

Medicine? Is he talking about those plants Jerome gave me? Geez, how the heck did they survive all that fighting? I completely forgot they were in my pockets.

Sunshine raised an eyebrow. “Ok…? What am I supposed to do with that information?”

“It’s what you’ll do, it’s what we’ll do that you should be worried about,” he said, pulling out a dagger from the shoulder holster around his torso. Without hesitation, Flash made a small cut in Sunshine’s cheek which got a yelp out of her. He wiped the blood on his finger and sniffed. “It’s become one with your blood. You must be a real addict with this shit, huh?”

Sunshine didn't answer that question, looking down. Instead, she asked, “So you need the ‘medicine’ for something? I didn't know animals could get sick from that virus too.”

Flash titled his head. “I ain't know humans had a virus problem in the first place. Serves y'all right. That's karma for all the shit you've injected into my kind for your silly, little experiments. All the pain that you and your species has caused since the old times.”

“Huh?” Her grip on her dad’s arms tightened. “Dude, I'm only nine. I don't know anything about causing you guys pain. I was born after the apocalypse started.”

“It doesn’t matter if you were born after ‘cause you still causing us pain! My guys saw you fighting someone on the surface, and that fight nearly destroyed our home. There’s like three giant holes down here now. You ruining our winter preparations.” He pointed at her bloody hands. “You didn’t think I’d notice that? The blood and flesh of my boys Larry, Sheldon, and Mitch are staining your hands, and you wanna tell me you don’t cause us pain?”

“What was I supposed to do,” asked Sunshine with an innocent confusion. “Those rabbits kicked them at me and they had their teeth out like they were gonna bite my eyes out. I used some self-defense, so what?”

Flash shook his head in disbelief, gritting his giant teeth. “And now you lying ‘bout my family too? I should-”

A bunny’s squeak cut him off, causing him to shift his attention to the animals again.

“Wait, she isn’t lying?” His voice rose a few octaves. “What the hell is wrong with you animals? Those were the guys right there. Why would you do something like that?”

The bunny responded.

“Rats are not dirty or smelly. They just never had anyone caring enough to clean them up. Humans never would. That’s why we as a family must take that role and-”

“Mind Trick: Dog!”

The orb of energy hit the back of the rabbit’s neck, putting an end to his conversation. Flash’s movements stopped as the animals were beginning to go into attack mode again. Seeing this as a sign her ability worked, Sunshine ordered the anthropomorphic creature to protect her from his little friends.

For some reason, Flash stayed silent and didn’t move an inch. It was like he was paralyzed instead.

Sunshine stepped back several inches. “C’mon, boy, protect your owner and I’ll give you a tr-”

Before Sunshine could finish her demand, she felt something hard strike her gut, blasting her through the wall behind her. Debris collided with her as she spiraled in the air. The ground wasn’t any kinder, sending shockwaves of pain through her back.

She regretted not using defensive aura, though it wasn’t like she had the chance. One blink, she was behind the rabbit. The next, she was airborne.

Closing and opening her hand, Sunshine noticed something was wrong. Where’s Jerome!?

“What kinda human is this?” Sunshine’s ears twitched and she looked to her left. Flash was lifting her dad by his arm, inspecting his body. “Green muck like those walking deads, visible skeleton, and it’s dead. And yet, it feels like a human. Well, a human without skin.”

Sunshine started to crawl. “Hey… that’s mine!”

Flash glanced at her and snickered. “Yeah, I could tell that was the case with how tightly you were holding him.” He lifted the zombie up, staring at the ledge. “Well, if you want him, then go get him!”

The rabbit hurled Jerome off the ledge, but Sunshine had already figured he would do that. Fortunately, she was able to catch her headless dad just in time, however, it looked like Flash had figured that she would do that. He gave the girl a quick kick to her skull, knocking her and Jerome back several meters.

Sunshine swiftly regained her footing, focusing her aura on the three main points of her body: her head, torso, and legs. Her head was pounding like crazy, and yet she couldn’t complain. At least her head was still there. Her father was in desperate need of one, and that animal’s radioactive blood was the substance he needed in order to regenerate.

“I guess your name is Flash ‘cause you’re really fast,” she sighed. “Although, with how fast you are, you could’ve dealt with me instantly with those knives on you. Is the smell of my blood really that important?”

“I ain’t tryna kill you because you’re more useful to us alive than dead,” he replied, hunching his back and swaying back and forth. “The herbal medicine inside your body will be tainted if you die.”

“Uh… then why the heck did you kick me through a wall? Did you not think that would kill me?”

“Because you’re a human with powers. This rabbit’s been aware of humans like you since my run-in with this electricity man. Almost died in that fight.”

This rabbit fought Kofi? Even Jerome had trouble with him.

“So basically, your big plan is to eat me? You guys are just the same as any radioactive animal.”

Flash bent his legs, still swaying back and forth. “We not gonna be the ones to eat you. Someone important and special to our family needs every last part of you devoured so she can feel better. There’s no way you’re getting out of this.”

Sunshine readied her fists. “Well, I think I’ve made a habit of ruining other people’s dreams, so don’t think yours won’t end up the same.”

While Sunshine took one step forward, Flash took many more, appearing right in front of her. A kick to her head was his first attack, but the aura around her skull allowed her to remain on her feet. The second strike landed on her leg, making her stumble slightly. Her chest was the third target, though Flash wasn't able to get away so easily this time, his leg falling victim to her grasp.

“Looks like you can only run fast when both feet are on the ground,” said Sunshine, holding onto his leg.

The bunny squirmed, but it was clear her grip was too much for him to handle. “I didn't think a child would be this… strong. But just so you know…” He unsheathed two of his daggers. “Fighting fairly ain’t my style.”

With one vertical swing, Flash severed Jerome’s arm. Sunshine’s eyes widened upon the realization of his plans, and she bolted out of there, letting go of his leg. The more aura she directed to her legs, the more the dust kicked up in the air.

However, her smokescreen plan would backfire as a large tornado of gray and black formed around her. Sunshine covered her face from the incoming dust, yet she couldn’t protect herself from the rabbit-shaped cloud of dust that blitzed past her, a wound on her knuckles coming right after. A couple of slashes followed and several cuts were made. With nowhere else to go, she took the chance to slide her fingers across some of her wounds and heal them.

Although, she had a lot more to worry about than herself. Her dad’s leg dropping on the ground was a grim reminder of that.

Her patience was starting to reach a boiling point, and she wanted nothing more than to stomp this guy’s head in the ground. That would have to come later though. Saving Jerome came first. She focused on the zombie, protecting his upper body with an embrace. This would quickly come with a cost as Flash would slice her right eye open two seconds later.

Sunshine screamed at the top of her lungs, falling back while she held onto her new injury. “My eye! My eye!”

“Shit! I actually didn’t mean to do that,” yelled Flash, placing his daggers back. “That wasn’t my fault though. Even if it was, that’s only a fraction of what a human like you deserves for the years, the centuries of pain you caused all kinds of animals.”

Sunshine got on her knees, her hand remaining over her damaged eye. “You… cut… my eye!”

“You kept animals in zoos, owned us, domesticated us ‘cause y’all wanted to hold us down. Y’all wanted to erase our instincts and our freedom, but the green gas in the air changed us. Now we are the prime species of this world and humans, humans, are weak, little things. We animals have the freedom to get what we want and what I want is your body. That's the least you can do for causing our lives so much pain.”

Her breathing became heavy while all the possibilities of failure crashed into her mind.

“You were on the verge of destroying our home and you killed my allies. All of that, and yet you still deny us the medicine that we’re owed. All you humans do is cause problems and take away the things that we care about most. So I won't rest till you and everyone you care about are dealt with.”

Sunshine shrieked for the whole cave to feel, the energy around her erupting like an explosion. It wasn’t a shriek of pain. It was a shriek of pure rage. “No! You're so fucking dead!”

With a tremendous force, she crossed the space between her and Flash, grabbed his legs, and snapped them in two. A scream just as loud as Sunshine’s earlier one escaped from the rabbit’s mouth, drops of blood spattering on the girl’s face.

“You’re gonna stop threatening my family!” She lifted Flash up by his crushed leg and repeatedly slammed him on the unforgiving Earth. “You think I give a shit about your stupid problems!? You have no idea how many problems I have to deal with!” Sunshine hurled the animal into the air. As he plummeted back down, she met him with a punch that sent it crashing into the wall, leaving a deep crater.

“I ain’t… losing to a…”

Sunshine’s foot collided with the rabbit’s chest, staining her clothes with even more green. “I’ve been holding back… everything! Not anymore.” She threw Flash down and proceeded to beat his face over and over again. “I’m sick and tired of everyone blaming me for their problems. It's not my fault I was born like this! Maybe you should stop whining and get stronger in order to fix your problems. That’s what I'm doing!”

“S-Stop it,” Flash groaned, stabbing the middle of her chest with his nail. Sunshine knocked his arm away and kept going.

”I’ll never let… anyone ever… ever…” Green was everywhere. “Hurt my family!”

Sunshine clasped her hands and was about to put an end to the fight, but the arms of someone frail snapped her out of her rage.

“Please stop!”

Sunshine’s hands dropped, her eyes glancing behind her. The plea came from a girl who didn’t look that much older than her. She had tears in her eyes, and yet what Sunshine was more focused on was her cracked skin. Aside from her blue hair, she looked like a living rock. Additionally, part of her face was hollow like a zombie’s skeleton.

It reminded her of the boy in that shack last month. They both shared symptoms of the same virus, a byproduct of Sunshine’s disease.

“Moonlight… what are… you doing here!?”

The girl rushed to Flash’s side along with a bunch of other critters Sunshine didn’t see pull up initially. “Everyone told me you were fighting someone over… medicine. Why are you fighting a child over medicine!?”

“Sh-She’s the medicine. I was tryna make her go sleep so it’d be easier for you to eat her.”

“Eat her? I’m not going to eat another human!”

Flash placed his hand on her face. “But Moonlight, your condition is getting worse. If we don’t do something soon, than you might-”

“I already said no,” she responded, holding his hand. “We are not going to kill others to make us feel better, ok? We’re stronger than that.” She looked at all the animals. “We are going to apologize to this girl right now! And I don’t want anyone not say8ng sorry to her.”

“H-H-He started it,” stuttered Sunshine, pointing at Flash with a shaky finger. “I didn’t mean to do that. I was just protecting my… dad.”

“Your dad?” Moonlight looked to her left and pointed. “You mean that man over there? Is he ok?”

She looked in the direction that the sickly girl pointed to, and she saw that Jerome was laid out on the floor. However, Sunshine felt her heart drop upon noticing the drastic change in appearance he took… and the amount of actual blood spilling out of him. Many kids nowadays probably would’ve been happy to see their zombified dad turn back into a human, but Jerome turning back was the last thing he needed.

The pool of blood Sunshine stepped into reaffirmed that fact.

Did that rabbit do this…? No, this energy reminds me of Dante’s dad. Did he change my dad somehow?

Jerome’s head and leg was back. Unfortunately, his arm wasn’t. What made it even worse was that he was still unconscious. No matter how much she shook him, he wouldn’t wake up.

If he was healed earlier by the blood, then maybe I can still fix him.

“Woah, that man’s really leaking,” said Moonlight. She had a concerned expression. “You should really get him some help.”

“Uh… it’s fine! I can save him.” Sunshine lifted Jerome onto her back. “And uh… I hope your disease doesn’t cause you any trouble in the future. And uh… don’t follow me or else I’ll do you like I did your rabbit friend.”

On that final note, Sunshine ran out of there. But she didn’t get far. A sudden, searing pain ripped through her insides, as though invisible blades slashed at her skin. Her legs faltered, the ground spinning beneath her feet. Before she could catch herself, she tumbled and skidded toward the ledge—then plunged over it. It would’ve been bad for her dad if they were about to crash into solid ground.

Luckily, water was there instead. Water that was happy enough to embrace the two, but cruel enough to not let them know how cold it would be. Despite the sting against her wounds, Sunshine summoned all her strength, fortifying her body with aura as she swam toward Jerome. Grabbing hold of him, she fought her way back to the surface and dragged him to safety, placing him a few feet from the water’s edge.

She coughed, took deep breaths, and ignored all of the pain. There were… bigger problems to deal with.

The girl crawled to her dad, getting all of the rabbit’s blood onto her hands. Her hand hovered over the severed arm, though before she could touch it, another wave of agony washed over her. Trying not to yell was the hardest thing in that instant, and she couldn’t stop it from coming out.

She fell on Jerome’s chest, breathing heavily again. At this rate, she was gonna be bleeding as much as him. Using her Energy Sense, she saw that Flash had injected her with some kinda… radioactive poisoning thing through that earlier stab. There didn’t seem to be any simple way to get it out of her system. However, her problems weren’t important right now…

Every movement towards Jerome was like torture, and the distance between them was only a few meters. With some more effort, she reached him once again and splattered the stump with the blood. Even though he was turned into a human, somehow his regenerative abilities as a zombie were still there. So the moment the energy in the blood covers his injury, it should be healed up.

Thankfully, that was exactly what happened, his arm growing back as though time had reversed. It was only at the cost of her… comfortability.

“C’mon already,” she shouted, slapping her face. “After everything Jerome did for you, you wanna cry over a little pain!?” She grabbed Jerome’s regenerated arm. “I’m gonna get you out of here, Jerome. This time I’ll be the one to save-”

Saving her father was the last thing the pain desired her to do as it would ram into her again and again and again and again… until she stumbled to the wall behind her. “What the heck is wrong with me!?” She slammed her head into the wall several times, saliva dripping from her mouth, the hope that this could make it all stop filling her brain.

Headbutting didn’t stop it. She was finally given relief the second she fell on the ground, accepting whatever the heck Dante’s dad did to her.

A hundred swords stabbing into her at once, bullets raining down on her body, getting brutalized by a dozen baseball bats—the past… five minutes all felt like this happening at the exact same time. It was the most painful feeling she had ever experienced.

Sunshine started at her father. He was still out cold. There were so many things she went through today alone and the girl was just… so tired, fucking tired. A teleporter, a cockroach flying insect man, the leader of the Underground Radius, and a talking rabbit who slashed her goddamn eye. She was hungry and she was thirsty. She was hurt and tired, so, so tired.

Sleep, she just wanted to sleep… She didn’t want to be here.

She looked at her dad once again, and jealousy started to build inside of her. How nice it must have been to be unconscious like that, to be sleeping like that. How nice it must’ve been to be a damn zombie. Jerome wouldn’t feel a thing if this was happening to him.

It wasn’t fair. She was hungry and thirsty, and he… he didn’t have to feel any of that. Perhaps saving him wasn’t all that necessary anyway. Could she just let him go? Let the guy figure it out for himself? Why did she have to do all this damn work? Would it be so wrong to just… let herself rest?

At that moment, the memories of the past month-no, her entire life flashed in her mind. All the times she shared with Jerome, happy, frustrating, sad. All the times he saved her. All the convos they had. Everything. And she came to one answer to all of her questions.

She closed her working eye. No… Of course I can’t do that. But I wish I could just sleep or drink… I really wish I could.

As though a divine voice had read her mind, Sunshine felt a cold liquid hit her tongue. The fact that it had no taste meant it was definitely water. She was burning up so bad, one little splash of water and it was like she was swimming in a pool on a hot day.

Yeah… that’s good. Wait a second. Who’s pouring water for me?

Sunshine opened her eye and the sight of Jerome standing near her with water in his cupped hands shocked her to no end.

“Jerome… you’re awake? Wait…” Jerome’s eyes were still closed and his head was bowed. “How are you doing this while still unconscious?”

When her dad was out of water, he limped all the way back to the lake to get some more. Sunshine didn’t know he had a problem with his leg. Seeing the man use up his energy for someone like her after those dumb intrusive thoughts made her feel like the most pathetic daughter in the world.

“You’re doing all this while you're not even awake? What a stupid, selfless man,” she muttered, her eyes beginning to water.

She continued to watch as Jerome scooped up some more water and made her way back to her. But with how weakly he was moving, it seemed like he couldn’t keep holding on to the water for that long.

It all spilled out, and yet he went back for more. At least, he tried to. He fell to his knees after only a few steps.

Seeing him fall forced Sunshine to remember the words of someone she talked to a while back.

“Your connection with your dad is a full packaged deal. He’s like your reflection. When you're happy, he'll be happy. When you're in pain, he'll suffer too. And if you die, he probably would too. Your father is you.”

“I guess you were right, Dante,” she cried softly to herself, clenching her fists. “This is just perfect. Not only do I hurt myself, I’m hurting my own dad too.” She tried to get back up, though her body met the ground soon afterwards. “He’s in pain ‘cause I am and I’m in pain ‘cause he is. If this whole reflection thing is real, then I need to hold my weight.”

At that moment, Sunshine heard the sound of cracking from above. She turned her head slightly and looked up. A giant piece of the rock started to fall and Jerome was in a position perfect for the rock to crush him. This realization set her adrenaline into overdrive, however, that wasn’t the only thing that went into overdrive as the pain came back with a vengeance.

It was as if the very thought of wanting to save her dad brought those painful feelings back. Despite that, she surged forward with all the energy her small body was allowed to utilize. She ran, the knives cut into her skin, but she jumped back up. She ran, the bullets collided with her flesh, but she got back up. She ran, the baseball bats smashed her head in. She still got up.

It almost seemed like gravity was working against her the way the rock’s speed was increasing by each second. Or maybe it was the stress manipulating her brain into thinking that. Or maybe it was the torture constantly bringing her down. Whatever it was, Sunshine needed to keep going.

‘Cause if she was gonna be the daughter to illuminate that man’s life, then she needed to make sure he was alive to experience it fully. Sadly, there was only so much a kid with some willpower could do before it just became too much.

Jerome was right there and Sunshine wasn’t strong enough to cross the distance. If she kept going like this… death would surely-

“No!” She pointed a finger gun at her chin. “Screw this shit! I’m getting you out of here!”

“Mind Trick: Adrenaline Surge!”

As Sunshine screamed to the heavens above, the heavens that the dark ceiling of the cave tried to block from her, her aura erupted upwards. A bring emerald filled the area while her muscles tightened. The healing of her body quickened and her pain grew to astronomical heights. The only thing keeping her going was the thought of saving her dad, saving him and saying the words she should have already said by now.

Her light became the cave’s sun. Her determination turned into action. Punching the rock and destroying it completely was the result of that action.

Saving Jerome was the reward.

“I-I did it,” she panted, plummeting next to her dad. She was sweating profusely and it smelled like death. Any normal person would’ve despised that smell, but the sight of Jerome finally transforming back into a Radion made it the best scent her nose could ask for. “That was… so worth it.”

“Wh-What the hell? Sunshine, is that you?”

Jerome was finally awake and she couldn’t be any more elated. “Yeah, it’s me.”

“God, you look like you just played a four quarter game of basketball. What happened to you?”

Sunshine patted Jerome’s head. “Don’t worry about it. I fixed our little problem.”

“Hmm, alright then,” he replied. “I really wish I could find some pants my size. I’m tired of being naked all the time.”

Sunshine smiled, finding amusement in a worry that sounded so trivial. “You know what? I love you… Dad.”

Jerome turned his head to her, staring at her for some moments. Then, he said, “I love you too, kid.”