Tris and I flew threw the air, sniping zombies left and right in the street. I gave her a high-five as we went into an area with tons of them. The zombies' heads snapped up and began to walk towards us, forming a circle around us. I looked over my shoulder at Tris, who nodded and smirked at me.

We came back to back to each other and let loose, no holds barred. We began to turn, zombies falling like rocks. Before I knew it, they were all on the ground. I groaned and took a knee, tired. Tris leaned over me, grinning. She stretched her arm out and pulled me up.

"Up there," I said, pointing to the air balloon. "I think most of the zombies are shot. They should be returning back to normal soon. Up there... is the final boss." I glanced over at Tris, who looked back at me and smiled.

"No matter what happens... you're still going to be..." Tris gulped and looked at the leaf-covered ground. "My friend." I smiled and held my arm out.

"Hold on." I replied. She gripped my hand tight as we took off towards the air balloon.

Towards the final boss of the game.

----~----

We landed at the cabin's door, in front of the guard rail. I looked at Tris, who wasn't looking too well.

"Hey, you OK?" I asked her. She smiled and nodded, pointing her pistol to the door. I nodded back and kicked open the door, pointing the pistol at the pilot. He turned around and held his hands up in the air. I tilted my head at his reply.

"Looking for me?" A voice called out. I turned and pointed my pistol at him.

Mr. SOuND.

He was standing on a stage, with a hostage right next to him. I gasped, fury building up in me.

It was Tris's mother!

"Surprise, surprise. Someone actually came to save the day. Nice to meet you, Mark."

"It's not nice to meet you. Why do you have Tris's mother as a hostage?!" I yelled at him, putting a little pressure on the trigger. He chuckled, taking the tape off of her mouth. Tris's mom coughed and looked at the ground.

"I-I... work for him. He saw me on the street begging for money, so he took me under his wing. He said that I could anything I wanted if I listened to him. If I worked for him. And I had a daughter. She got ran over by a bus when she was five... I'll never forget that day."

"But... then... who is..." I turned my head to see Tris on the floor, weak. She didn't look like she was breathing either.

"You zapped over ninety-four percent of the zombies. Nice work." My A.I companion chimed in. I sighed, knowing that she was still there.

"So, after he noticed me grieving, he built me one. It took a long time. But I guess the battery ran out." Tris's mother sadly concluded, sniffing. I clenched my fist, pulling the trigger back even farther.

"Don't worry; I'll make you a new daughter. As soon as I finish this maniac off." I proclaimed. Mr. SOuND's eyes widened as he tilted his head, staring at my SOuND.

"How are you not infected?! Y-You should be a brainless zombie right now!" Mr. SOuND yelled. I smirked.

"That's for me to know, and for you to never find out," I said, pointing the gun at the ground. I pulled the trigger, which shot me backwards. He flinched as I activated my Root and blasted towards him, sinking my foot into his face. He was slammed to the ground as I backflip landed on the ground. I held my pistol to his forehead.

"You're a sick, sick man, Mr. SOuND. I'm sad that I even wanted this stupid thing." I said. Mr. SOuND smirked and snapped his fingers. All at once, guards began to flood the stage, their guns loaded and targeted at me.

"You're under arrest. Drop your weapon now or face the consequences of death." The main guard growled, poking me with his gun. Mr. SOuND got up and leaned in towards me.

"Robotic guards. You like 'em? Made from the same technology her stupid daughter is made out of, only stronger. Face it, you've lost. Any last words?" Mr. SOuND turned away from me.

"Yea. Tris, rescue. Two." I said. Mr. SOuND flinched, clenching his fists.

"But Mark, you won't-"

"It's OK. Worry about me later. Just do it," I looked over at the guard.

"Hey. You want to drop my weapon? OK," I smiled and dropped my pistol, which began to beep furiously. The Root flew off of my foot and kicked the guard in the face, latching onto Tris's mother like a jetpack. The other Root did the same for Tris, both taking off through the window. Air began sucking everything up and out in the room, including me, the guards, and Mr. SOuND. Mr. SOuND and I grabbed at the stage floor. He looked at me and frowned, gripping onto the stage. I smiled and let go of the stage, waving goodbye. Mr. SOuND looked at the pistol, his eyes widened.

It was stuck on his SOuND.

KABOOM!!!

I soared downwards as I grabbed a guard and took its chestpiece off, using it as a surfboard to sail my way down. I spotted Tris and Tris's mother floating down to safety. I began to see the Alversia ship appear, which made me sigh once more.

"Um, Tris... a little help?" I said, sailing towards ground faster.

"They are still high enough that impact can still kill them." Tris informed me.

"Well when they get close enough, give me my Roots!" I yelled, seeing the ground coming closer than ever. I started to see more ground... closer... closer... I closed my eyes and crossed my arms in front of me.

I would never think this would be the... end…

Thud.

I opened my eyes as I was floating upwards.

Oh my gosh... no... no!

"NO!"

"Oh, calm down. You're not dead." Tris giggled. I had the Roots jetpack on. Phew. I thrusted out my legs, letting the attach to my legs. I lifted my body upright so I could what the damage was. Everyone was groaning, standing up and returning home. I smiled at a girl who found her mother and hugged her. My eyes widened.

"Where are they?" I commanded Tris.

"One's on Albury Avenue, while the other is on Orchard Lane."

"Take me to Tris." I said.

"Mark, she's right there, on someone's lawn." Tris explained. I noticed and ran towards her, propping her up in my arms.

"Tris... no..." I said softly, lowering my head. "I don't know if you can hear me or not... but I don't care if you're half robot or whatever... the truth is, we have... a lot in common and... to be honest... I kind of have a crush on you... so please... return to me..." I uttered, laying on the grass. I wiped a tear from my eye, sitting up and looking at her. Now that I better look at her…

She looked beautiful.

I sighed and stood up, beginning to walk away.

"Mark... I don't feel so well..." Tris said.

"Oh, A.I Tris... not you too..." I cried.

"No... I... I feel like... I'm shifting... like... I'm being reborn..." Her voice faded, and I felt a hand touch my shoulder.

"Hey, are you OK?" I turned around to see Tris, who was smiling while looking away. Her hair was blowing in the slight breeze that was saying 'Hi' and 'Bye'. I lowered my head once again, shaking it no as well.

"We won. Why are you sad?" She cooed. I shook my head again and looked away. "You wouldn't understand." I said solemnly.

She reached for my hand and held it. I looked up at her, being greeting with her grinning face.

"I may be a robot, but I know a little bit about love." She whispered, kissing me on the cheek. I blushed, smiling back at her.

"Goodbye Mark... You're the best..." I heard something else whisper into my ear. I hugged Tris that day, and we went our separate ways. For then.

----~----

I leaned back in my Gravity chair, staring at my new invention. I heard a knock at my bedroom door.

"Come in." I said. Tris slowly slipped in, sitting on my bed.

"Hey Tris. Glad you could make it. I'm gonna need you." I said slowly, reaching for my SOuND.

"I see; you seemed urgent on the phone. Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked me, kicking her legs. I nodded and took a deep breath. I gripped the SOunD and tore it off, right off of where my ears should be. Tris flinched, making a weird face. I stuck my head in my new invention, pressing a button on the side. It started to buzz and shake. I sighed as it beeped moments later, pulling my head out and looking at Tris. She remained speechless. I walked over to my mirror and looked at my head.

I had ears again.

"Tris?" I said. My hearing was slowly fading in.

She got up and tackled me with a hug.

"I can't believe... it works... that it can regrow your ear AND still allows you to hear. That's amazing." Tris said, hugging me tighter. I hugged her back and kissed her cheek, just like how she did a week ago. She started to blush a low pink, her starting to giggle. I started to chuckle, and with that, all was well.

Everything was at peace. My mother remained single, my aunt found a job at the high school I was going to, and I was kind of respected at school for saving mankind and everything. But sometimes, I sit back and think that the future was safe. But it really wasn't. It never was.

But you just have to listen to the SOuND of today to find the MUsIC of tomorrow.

-the end-