Think on me
The fight isn’t going well. Zedd’s already taken out Billy, and it’s up to Trini and Zack to distract him until Jason and Kimberly can figure something out. When Alpha had said the Zedd was nothing like Rita, Trini hadn’t expected this. Zedd acts like they’re nothing. He’s barely exerting any effort as he swats them away like flies.
Zack charges him from the side and Trini sees an opening. She charges, daggers held out in front of her. Zedd turns his head to look at Zack, an arm shooting out to catch him around the throat before he can even make contact. Without even looking away from Zack, Zedd strikes out, his foot slamming into the center of Trini’s chest. Trini hears something crack, not sure if it’s the sound of her armor or her ribs. It hurts, but everything hurts right now so she can’t tell. She tumbles back, one hand reflexively dropping a dagger so she can clutch at her chest.
Zedd tosses Zack aside like he’s nothing, body limp as he hits the rubble that used to be Krispy Kreme. Trini grits her teeth in anger, shaking off the pain so she can focus on fighting Zedd, destroying him. (She’s willing to destroy herself if it kills him. He’s hurt her family, her town, and Trini is tired.)
“Your world will bow before Lord Zedd,” he says, his strangely accented voice echoing around them.
Trini ignores him, ducking under his staff and slamming her shoulder into his gut. She plunges downward with her remaining dagger, trying to drive it into his thigh. It bounces off him like she hadn’t even attacked. Zedd takes two steps backwards, absorbing the force of her tackle.
“You’re beneath me.”
He grabs the back of her neck and hammers his knee into her face. Her visor cracks. He releases her neck only to bring his elbow cracking down in the same spot, almost sending her sprawling. Trini punches at him, trying to see through her spotty vision. He doesn’t even seem to notice her weak, uncontrolled hits.
Zedd kicks the side of her knee, the loud popping sound drowned out by the sound of her pained yells. She knows this time that the noise was her and not her armor. Her leg buckles, knee bent oddly outward even with her armor supporting it. She hits the ground hard, barely managing to roll out of the way of Zedd’s stomp. It leaves a dent in the asphalt where Trini used to be. He doesn’t miss the second time. A harsh blow sends Trini spiralling through the air.
There’s nothing but concrete to catch her. She writhes on the ground, coughing. Her mouth tastes like copper and her lips are slick with blood. Her vision is hazy around the edges, fading to black every once in a while, even as she struggles to stay conscious.
Jason and Kim enter the fray like avenging angels, taking on Zedd like a well oiled machine. They’re not beating him, not even close, but they aren’t dead yet. They keep his attention divided, their voices echoing through the coms. Trini lets her eyes flutter closed. (Just for a second. She just needs a second.)
“Kim, now!” Trini’s eyes snap open at Jason’s rough yell.
She sees Jason running straight at Zedd, Kim drawing attacks from Zedd’s staff. She manages to catch his arm on a downward swing and holds him still, muscles straining as she slowly bends back under the force of Zedd’s strength. Jason tries to stab Zedd with the sword, but Zedd knocks him away, the sword clattering to the ground at Zedd’s feet. Jason hits the ground with a sickening crunch and doesn’t move.
Kim glances down at Jason’s sword, her arm shaking from the effort of holding Zedd at bay. Trini knows her thought process almost like Kim is explaining it to her. Grab the sword, and in the split second before Zedd attacks, stab him. It’s not going to work. Trini knows it won’t work. (Kim probably knows too.)
“Kim, no,” she pleads.
“It’s okay, Trini,” Kim replies. Trini can almost see the sad, contemplative smile on Kim’s face. “Someone’s gotta do it.”
“Please don’t.” Trini’s not sure if she actually spoke, if Kim heard her. Her body is seizing up, tense and waiting to see what Kim is going to do.
Kim’s head turns, her mask melting away as she looks at Trini. There’s that smile, melancholy but still so, so beautiful. Trini’s already shaking her head, rejecting whatever’s coming. Kim is crying. Staticky, through the banged up com system, Kim speaks.
“I love you, Trini.”
Kim turns like she hasn’t said anything, dropping Zedd’s arm and darting close in the small moment he’s off balance. She scoops up the sword and drives it into Zedd.
And Trini’s longed to hear those words, has dreamt about Kim saying them to her, but not like this. If this is how Kim tells her, Trini doesn’t want it.
It’s almost in slow motion, the way Zedd raises his staff and drives it through Kim’s torso. It’s like her armor isn’t even there.
Kim grabs at the staff, the armor peeling away from her hands. Her palms come away slick with blood. Someone’s screaming. (It’s her. It’s Trini but she doesn’t know if she can stop. Doesn’t know if she’ll ever stop because Kim - Kimberly.)
Kim looks up at her and smiles one more time, blood spilling over her lips. Even through her screams, through the sounds of chaos around her, Trini hears Kim speak, crystal clear.
“It’s okay, Trini. It’s going to be okay.”
Zedd looks down at the sword sticking out of him and teleports away, Jason’s sword clattering to the ground. His staff disappears too, and Trini’s stomach turns at the spray of blood that erupts from Kim’s stomach once it’s gone. Kim drops to the ground like a sack of stone. She doesn’t even move to catch herself as she falls. (Kim’s always reminded Trini of a doll, but she hates the comparison right now. Kim falls to the ground like a doll cast aside by a bored child.)
Trini drags herself to where Kim lies unmoving on the ground. The pink armor has closed over the wound, a strange clean spot in the midst of the blood slicked metal. Kim is pale, her washed out complexion only highlighting the bright red of the blood leaking from her mouth. She’s so still. Her chest is hardly moving but Trini can see her pulse beating rabbit-fast in her neck. Trying to make up for the blood loss. Trying to keep Kim alive.
Trini cups Kim’s face, opening her mouth to say something, anything, but all the things she wants to tell Kim get jumbled in her throat and all she does is sob.
Jason stumbles over, holding Billy in his arms. “We need to get them to a hospital.” He sounds just about as broken as Trini feels. She sees Zack dragging himself to his feet behind Jason.
(She doesn’t know if a hospital will help but-) “Yeah.” (-she’ll take hope where she can get it.)













