Warning: Plot twist :)
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"Hold on, it's almost ready!" The scientist added what was needed to complete the serum. His hands barely worked as he was overwhelmed with anxiety. The serum was the first ever, and it was to be tested on his dying son. 'What if it doesn't work?' He would never forgive himself.
"Hurry up, we're losing him!" Marie's eyes were red and swollen; her cheeks were glistened with tears. Her son's chest was rising and falling too quickly. His hair was no longer in strands. Instead, they crumpled as perspiration drenched his head. As Mark Logan finished the serum, he rushed towards the bed. And as he jabbed the needle in his son's thigh, Marie had a worried look on her face. Her son's breathing rhythm decreased drastically. He began to exhale as if it was his last breath. His body fell onto the mattress, enervated. His face was as pale as a ghost.
"I can't feel his pulse," she whispered. Mark looked up, his bottom jaw dropped slightly. He stared into her eyes, as if telling her to keep hoping. Her eyes were like crystal as they began to water again.
The serum was inside the boy's body. As it slowly travelled through the veins, the blue lines that trailed along his body turned green. His skin was next. The boy was as if the centre of the world when his parents watched him attentively. Marie saw his lips parted, taking in air once again. His fingers twitched, giving a sign that he survived. The couple smiled at each other. Mark walked to the other side of the bed, and then wrapped his arms around his wife. They were both relieved and thankful.
Soon after, the couple broke apart as they heard their son mumbled. As a concerned mother, Marie got closer and whispered to him, "Gar honey, what is it?"
The little boy opened his eyes slightly, still tired. His mouth was shaky so he stuttered, "Hung… Hung..."
"Yes?" Marie asked, making an attempt to understand. She moved her left ear closer to his lips. The boy known as Gar felt an odd sensation. Not only did he miss his mother's scent, but he… craved for it?
That moment, Gar considered that he was reborn with a new gift. The scent he inhaled grew stronger as seconds elapsed. His senses heightened. His touch was sensitive and his vision was clearer. And the tip of his tongue was tingling, he needed to taste something. He was…
"Hungry."
Gar's eyes shot open, revealing his dilated pupils in emerald orbs. His canine teeth stuck out into fangs, his fingernails turned to claws. Marie did not have the time to panic as he pounced on her, burying sharp teeth in her neck. Marie fell on her back, her arms flailing as an attempt to get Gar off of her. Mark tried to pull him away from Marie, but Gar was stronger. As he saw his father as a disturbance for him to finish his meal, Gar turned his back and attacked Mark. Marie lost an immense amount of blood. Oxygen failed to be distributed to her body parts, her energy was drained and slowly her breathing slowed down.
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The Earth was dark and gloomy ever since the haze covered the skies and sunlight. The roads were filled with vehicles, but only dead ones. Buildings were nothing but rust and moss, and skyscrapers didn't seem so monolithic anymore. The once melodious chirping went missing as they followed the birds fly towards an unknown universe. Humanity was close to extinction –the beasts were next.
Why?
Because they depended only on humans to survive. They coveted for the blood and meat. But they were neither vampires nor zombies. They were not the living dead. They were completely alive, and they lived with lusts at a whole new level. Perhaps they were close to werewolves, yet this was not a curse. To be exact, they were shape-shifters. On the outside, the beasts appeared as normal people. No one could tell the difference. But they would lose their control the second they smelled blood. As lust took control, they began to turn into something else.
Jump City.
Raven Roth stopped by a convenience store to grab some snacks. She had the average size of a teenage girl, and she didn't look like she fulfilled the criteria to survive the apocalypse. Nonetheless, we can't judge a book by its cover.
Raven was a born as a witch; she inherited her father's gift. Her father, known as Trigon, was also a wizard but he misused his abilities. Wherever he walked, there would be pandemonium. Not only the city, he even destroyed his own family. Raven never forgave her father for taking away her mother's life. And she would never forgive herself for letting Trigon killed his wife right under her nose. Raven ran away from home and never came back since. Trigon never looked for her and even if he did, he would never find her. Raven was good at hiding.
Raven grabbed five packets of biscuits, two bottles of plain water and a bottle of ice tea –no longer cold as the fridge hadn't working since electricity had been cut off. She stuffed all of them in her backpack. And as she did, she heard a 'ding' from the entrance. Someone was at the store. Raven was no longer alone.
She heard footsteps getting louder and louder as her heart pounded harder and harder. Raven quickly knelt, hiding behind one of the shelves. Drops of sweats began to form on her forehead and this wasn't good. Her scent would be stronger and discoverable.
Suddenly, she heard something –perhaps a cash register –dropped onto the floor. Raven straightened her knees a bit, trying to take a peek from the shelf. There she saw the beast –covered with white fur, its size was as large as a bear –scattering some stuffs on the counter, searching for its prey. From what she had experienced, this is the smallest one she had ever seen. 'Well, this should be easy,' she thought.
"Azarath Metrion Zinthos," she whispered. The door hinges clatter before they broke into pieces. The beast was distracted and he stopped looking for his prey. As Raven repeated the spell, the door flew across the store, hitting hard on the beast. It let out a yelp before it fainted. Slowly, its fur disappeared, its ears no longer pointed and it shrunk, taking a shape of a teenage boy. His hair was eccentrically white and his body was slender. A small bruise formed on his forehead.
Raven recognized him. He was in her school before the beasts conquered the world. He wasn't just a boy –he was her first crush.
'Malcolm.'
Raven had the urge to wake him up. She wanted to help him. She needed to know how he ended up as a beast. Yet some part of her warned that it was not worth the risk. So she raised her right hand and summoned up the courage before reading out her spell. She watched as the ceiling dropped onto him.
With a heavy heart she walked away and later she ran, avoiding the chance to encounter with other beasts.
'I'm sorry that I had to hurt you.'
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Raven always thought that Jump City wasn't that huge. She was wrong. It was dusk and she still didn't reach the border. The beasts were nocturnal creatures, so walking at night was considered suicidal. Raven needed a place to crash. And the building on her left was perfect. An apartment.
To be safe, she climbed the stairs until she reached level 3. It was not the highest and not the lowest part of the building. It didn't matter though, because the space was filled with silence. And most of the time, silence was the best way for the beasts to know if there was a meal being delivered. Raven flicked the switch of her torchlight and lighting her way. These were the times when she hated being alone, especially at night.
Raven heard a growl coming from somewhere near. 'Not good.'
She spun around, pointing the torchlight randomly, searching for a sign of the beast. The hallway was quite narrow, and it's either turning back or moving forward. But Raven didn't want to turn back, she didn't want to be outside and exposed. 'Forward.'
Her choice was neither wrong nor right. Shelter was truly important, yet she's running towards the beast. The beast did the same.
Raven finally spotted the beast as her torchlight reflected its eyes. Its fur was black, so it blended well in the darkness. This time, the beast was enormous. As it ran, its back almost touched the ceiling. Raven kept running while thinking of an idea on how to knock it out. She searched for any object that could be used to hit the beast. She looked over the ceiling and the floor. Her lips began to form a smirk.
Raven didn't stop. Instead she ran faster. She even threw away her backpack in order to gain her speed. When they got closer, Raven quickly slid on her back across the slippery cemented floor. The beast hovered in mid air as Raven passed through under him. She managed to avoid the beast, but she couldn't find any hard objects to hit the beast with. Raven knew she couldn't tear down the ceiling onto the beast. One wrong move and the building would be knocked down. She had no other choice.
"You know, I really hate doing this. But if I am to be your meal, then I have to do it," she said to the beast, but there was no sound of regret.
The beast growled again before it accelerated towards Raven. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" Black energy started to circle around its neck. And slowly, the circle became smaller and this suffocated the beast. It fell to the floor, its hind legs reaching up to its neck. The claws tried to break the energy or at least loosen it, but they failed.
Out of the blue, gunshots were heard. Raven jumped to her side. Next to her was a teenage boy with black hair and a serious expression. His hand jerked backwards as he pulled the trigger. The bullet pierced right in the head.
"At least, let them die quickly and less painfully," he said.
"You're not a beast, right?" Raven asked, trying to ensure her safety. The boy raised his left eyebrow before he walked away, heading to one of the houses. Raven summoned her backpack and she followed him. She could use a company.
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I think it's kinda short, but I don't want you to be tired from reading, although reading is good. Okay, what am I saying? Bleh bleh bleh...
Bet you can guess who's Malcolm and the boy with black hair~
Logan in later chapters! Sorry, peace no war.
PLEASE REVIEW, I NEED TO IMPROVE MY WRITING.