Chapter 4: Reasons to Go On
What can I say about Chris and Cole? Well, I was definitely thankful for their company, and they were both very… uh… they were… they were friendly, to say the least. And talkative. A little too talkative for comfort for someone as quiet as me. At least, for the most part, they talked about things that I like, like music. Their taste in music was almost the exact same as mine. They liked the classics, like Michael Jackson, Van Halen and Genesis, but they also liked new age music like Skillet and Owl City. I don't know why I'm going off on this of all things, but it was just something really cool about the twins. Of course, whenever they tried to get me to sing, I'd always decline, not knowing what these fractured windpipes of mine would do to a good song.
But one thing I noticed was that they never talked about anything negative. They always acted nicely towards me, which I was appreciative but very suspicious of. What reason would these two have for helping someone like me? I wanted to ask them that, but something else was bugging me in my walk.
"Hey, guys?"
"Yeah?" Chris called to me.
I stopped and turned around. "Considering you guys are leading me, don't you think it would make more sense if you were up front?"
Even if they were a good twenty or thirty yards behind me, I could tell they were both shooting me blank expressions. "Yeah… probably," Cole muttered.
I sighed. Sure, they meant well, but at least this meant that they were at least a little wary about me.
My gaze trailed up to the sky. It had gone dark quite some time ago, and since I didn't have my watch, I guessed that it was going on ten o' clock. I knew I could've and probably should've kept going, but the twins were only human. They needed some time off. "Why don't we stop and rest for the night?" I offered as they walked up to me.
"Yeah, that sounds good," Chris yawned, stretching his arms.
I nodded and looked around for a good place to camp out. Not too far ahead, there was an open area blanketed with clovers and occupied by a few logs, rocks and stones. "I guess this is as good a place as any."
Chris and Cole sat down on one of the logs and slipped off the backpacks they were wearing, checking the contents of each. They had several snack bags, most of which were empty, and a few bottles of Mountain Dew that had all been opened but one. Cole offered me the unopened one, which I politely refused; I'm not a soda drinker… at all. Cole shrugged and put it away again, taking a sip of one of the open bottles- I imagine it must've been flat by that point - while Chris idly chewed a piece of beef jerky.
I let out another sigh. "Not trying to be rude, but when was the last time you two had something decent to eat?"
"A while," Chris responded.
"Well, how about this. Can you guys start a fire?"
"Oh yeah, pretty easily," Cole mumbled.
"Then you guys take care of that and I'll see if I can catch something."
They blinked at me. "Wait…" Chris choked. "You mean you're gonna make us eat like… rabbit or deer or something?"
"Hey, I'm not thrilled either, but we gotta eat something."
No sense in arguing there. The twins nodded and started setting up a campfire pit while I took off deeper into the woods.
Well, this was it. My first hunt. I wasn't excited in the least, yet some foreign instinct in me was getting riled up in anticipation. The burning in my throat intensified at the mere thought of blood. But my human brain did its best to reject all this. I was about to hunt, kill and eat a wild animal, and the idea made me want to puke. I just kept telling myself that it had to be done. I was hungry. Chris and Cole were losing energy and rations.
Why did the twins need those rations anyway? What were they doing out here?
I'd ask them after I came back with food. For now, I turned my senses on full power and began tracking down any animal I could find. The first sounds I became aware of were the screeching of bats. I quickly tuned these out; they weren't of any use, plus I hate bats. Then I heard the rapid beating of a tiny heart on the forest floor, and when I matched its scent, I identified it as a rabbit, out late for whatever purpose. It was as good as anything else, so located its origin and formulated my plan.
There was a very gentle breeze blowing my way, which meant I was downwind of it. For the moment, I stuck to the element of surprise, moving as lightly as I could across the forest floor, the clovers and pine needles cushioning my footsteps. I quickly spotted the rabbit not too far ahead; it was facing the other way, remaining unaware of my presence.
Something compelled me to crouch down on all fours, letting my adrenaline build until just the right moment. I stood there, breathing slowly and quietly, muscles tensed and ready to attack. And for one brief moment, I allowed my instincts to take over long enough for me to charge at the rabbit and grab it by the neck before it had a chance to escape. I raked my claws across its neck and it was dead in an instant.
Once it was over, I rested myself on my knees and panted. Did I really just do that? It wasn't so much the fact that I had killed a little rabbit that bothered me, but the animalistic display I put on while doing it. I gulped hard, ashamed and embarrassed, though thankful that the twins didn't see me.
But as I stared at the rabbit carcass in front of me, that one feeling started to come back: bloodlust. It was right there, calling out to me, and those scents- though not as potent as those I smelled on Chris and Cole- were just egging me on. Should I? What would happen if I did? What would happen if I didn't?
There was only one way to find out. After one gag courtesy of my human stomach, I lifted the rabbit up to my mouth and sunk my fangs into the wound I had inflicted.
The reaction was nothing like I would've expected. Upon tasting the first drop of blood, a supernova of flavor exploded in my mouth, like every perfect taste imaginable was comingling in one sweet mixture. It wasn't quite like the tempting scents Chris and Cole carried on them, but nonetheless, my taste buds were alive with indulgence. I felt warm, relaxed, more satisfied than I had ever felt. Everything around me seemed to be drowned out by the flow. My world became one with this irresistible desire, as though nothing mattered more than the blood's gratifying taste.
At some point, though, I broke this train of thought. My human mind kicked in, forcing me to remember what exactly I was doing. I found the will to pull myself away, leaving the carcass with about a quarter of its blood.
And I was glad I did. I felt and more than likely looked like a nightmare, eyes wide in shock, mouth agape and stained with blood. I breathed for a moment and finally calmed myself down. The burning in my throat had subdued, albeit slightly, and the bloodlust was gone. Once I licked all the redness off my mouth and fingers, I stood up, grabbed the rabbit and took off. At least with a little bit of its blood left, it would still have some degree of flavor for Chris and Cole's sake.
One I found an adequate body of water, I skinned, cleaned and gutted the rabbit, which wasn't as long or horrible as I thought it would be. Maybe seeing things like this was getting easier for me. Then I stuck it on a makeshift spit and headed towards our campsite. When I made it back, the twins already had a decent-sized fire going.
"Wow. You guys are pretty good."
"Thanks," Cole replied, warming his hands up by the flames.
"So… a rabbit, huh?" Chris asked.
"Yeah… figured I'd start out slow," I sighed. "This whole hybrid thing is taking some time to warm up to."
While I heated up the rabbit, I decided to ask that nagging question. "So what're you two doing out here anyway? I mean, the last thing I expected to run into was a couple of twin boys wandering around the middle of nowhere."
They looked at me sadly, then turned away. Chris was the first to speak up. "We ran away."
"From home?"
"Sort of…" Cole muttered. "Mostly from boarding school."
That shocked me. Chris and Cole in boarding school? Even if I had only known them for a few hours, that sounded wrong on a number of levels.
"I guess you can say we're out here looking for where we belong," Chris told me.
"Oh…" I prodded at the fire with a stick, my mood quickly dropping. "I guess I can understand that."
"Not on our level," Chris groaned sarcastically, earning an annoyed slap on the arm from his brother.
I shrugged and silently dropped the subject. It wasn't brought up again until after we had finished eating (to my surprise, it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be; the rabbit meat almost tasted like chicken).
"Um…" I started slowly. "What compelled you to come out here to find the place where you belong?"
"I guess we just… felt compelled to break away from our old life," Chris answered. "It wasn't where we were meant to be, so we left."
"But what about your family and friends? Don't you think they're worried about you?"
"Our family… that's debatable. Our friend…" Cole put great emphasis on the word's singular form. "…already knows what we're doing. We gave him our good-byes before spring break began."
"You mean to tell me you guys have only had one friend your whole lives?" Even for someone as antisocial as me, that sounded awfully hard to believe. Heck, I've had a decent number of friends throughout my life.
But Chris gave me a sincere nod. "Cole and I have always been… social outcasts, so to speak. No one's really accepted us as we are. Eric was one of few who did. He was our roommate at school, a fun yet naïve kinda guy. We got along real easily."
"And then there's Darrell, our stepdad," Cole picked up. "He was probably the only real parental figure we had."
"What about your mom and dad?"
Their simultaneous cringe was impossible to miss. "Mom…" Cole said awkwardly. "She was… alright. She looked out for us, sure, but she was often pretty repetitive when she told us that nothing our dad said about us was true. Once we got older, things just weren't the same with her."
My ears drooped. "What did your dad-?"
"C-Can we not talk about him?" Chris nervously interrupted.
Clearly their father was a touchy subject, one that I was willing to drop if it was that painful to them. I nodded politely and let them continue.
"After Mom remarried, things started to look up for us," Chris sighed. "Darrell was a great guy. He really helped us broaden our minds. But over the past few years, he seemed to be slipping into a depression and we didn't know why."
"Other than Eric, he's probably the one most affected by us running away," Cole mumbled. "But we knew we had to do it. There's a calling for us somewhere out there."
I blinked at them, genuinely touched by their story. Part of me just wanted to hug the sad duo, but I held that back for multiple reasons. Compared to the energy and enthusiasm they displayed to me earlier, their lives sounded so empty.
My head went limp with grief. "I'm sorry. I can't imagine what that must be like."
Cole shrugged. "So what about you? What was your life like before you came out here?"
My eyes stayed locked on the ground while my ears shot up a little. What was I supposed to tell them? Should I mention the part about me being the Popcorn Fairy? Even if they seemed trustworthy enough, would they believe me if I told them?
I looked back at them, ultimately deciding not to say that much. I'd tell them enough of my story to get them up to speed, but that was it.
"Well, I was once somewhat of a social outcast too, though less by others' opinions and more by personal choices. It wasn't until this guy moved to my town from Detroit that I started to come out. Mutt's been great to me, and now we're even boyfriend and girlfriend."
"Awww…" Cole cooed. Chris simply shook his head at his brother's reaction.
"Yes, well… Soon after Mutt moved, we realized he has the power to turn into a wolf. Not like a werewolf, though… more like the wolves from Twilight." When they didn't make any wisecracks about the aforementioned series, I continued, "So just recently, two vampires crossed our path to hunt Mutt for his blood. I got caught in the middle of that fight and it ended when one of the vampires, Mutt and I were electrocuted together, resulting in this." I spread my arms out as if to show off my bizarre new form.
Chris and Cole both nodded; their willingness to accept every part of my story surprised me. But something was bothering them. I could tell. I was reading confusion and nervousness like it was written all over them.
"So, uh…" Chris rubbed his neck. "You got that way from an electrocution?"
"Apparently," I responded plainly as I looked up and down my arms. "Maybe when I find Sora, she can explain the reasons behind this."
I didn't receive a reply, so I looked up at the twins, who were silently yet awkwardly eyeing each other. Then Cole suddenly spoke up again. "Well, it's been a long day, so why don't we swivel our pocket watches?"
"Swivel our…?" I repeated under my breath as the boys quickly laid down in the clover beds. These two had such weird vocabulary.
"Now promise us you won't prey on us while we're sleeping, okay?" Chris told me once he settled down.
I smiled. "I promise." Though just to be safe, I put a fair amount of distance between the twins and me and laid facing away from them. "'Night, guys."
"'Night, Nat," they both replied.
They were asleep in an instant. It took me a while, but soon my exhaustion took over, the comforting forest sounds lulling me to sleep. And believe it or not, it was one of the most restful nights I ever had.
Meanwhile, miles away from the three of us, two wolves, one tan and one black, were making their way through the forest, just about to cross the Ohio-Pennsylvania boarder, constantly sniffing the ground. They had put quite a bit of distance between each other, but they remained in contact telepathically.
Found anything? Mutt asked.
I haven't found anything the last twelve times you've asked me, Shane snapped. What the heck makes you think I'm any closer to her now?
Hey, lose the attitude, Shane. Mutt idly sniffed the forest floor. Besides, this is her scent. It's faint, but it's definitely hers.
The vampire stench isn't nearly as bad here, but I can still smell a small trace of it. Shane took another deep whiff, letting out a confused whine. Come to think of it, why am I smelling your scent?
Maybe because we've been travelling together for the past thirteen freaking hours? Mutt groaned sarcastically.
I'm serious, Mutt. That's not your fresh stink I'm smelling. It's like your scent was with her here.
Mutt took another curious sniff, and was surprised to find that Shane was telling the truth. What the heck…?
See, I told you.
I don't get it. It's like my scent is mingling with hers… His eyes trailed up to the night sky, resting on the bright star that only he could see. What're those vampires trying to hide from me?
Don't ask me, Shane moaned.
I wasn't asking you!
Whatever. Can we stop and rest or what?
No, we can't stop! If we stop now, the vamps will catch us! Once we find Nat, then you can sleep to your stony heart's content.
Real nice, Mutt. Real nice.
With that being said, they continued on in silence, blocking out each other's thoughts and focusing on their own. A missing girl, two vampires, and someone they couldn't stand were a little more than Mutt and Shane could handle.
Gosh darn it, Nat, you better be safe…
Sure enough, the werewolf hunters were on the move. They had only been travelling for about an hour, but had nonetheless made good distance, even if they were still far behind Mutt and Shane.
Dr. Hayashi and Oliver hadn't spoken to each other since that morning, something rather common between them. Under any other circumstances, this mutual silent treatment wouldn't be an issue, but tonight Dr. Hayashi just wasn't in the mood for a lack of cooperation. He constantly had to stop or slow down so Oliver could catch up to him, and he had a nagging suspicion that Oliver was being slow on purpose.
He looked over his shoulder; Oliver was a good fifty yards behind him. "Oliver, will you stop slowing us down?"
Even from a distance, he could see that smirk on his son's face. Bragging rights always went to the one who didn't break the silence first.
Dr. Hayashi rolled his eyes and stopped long enough for Oliver to catch up. As soon as he did, he grabbed Oliver by the ponytail, forcing him to run beside him.
"Ack- Dad!" Oliver whined. "I don't get what your problem is!"
"Well, for the time being, you're my problem."
"What does that mean?"
"I know you're slowing us down, Oliver, and I want to know why."
Oliver paused for a moment, merely glaring at his father. "You wanna know why? Well, maybe it's because I don't wanna do this. Maybe it's because those two don't need any more problems to deal with right now."
"Oliver, what have I told you? You can't sympathize with our prey. When that happens, we don't kill, we don't drink, and then we die. Is that what you want?"
"No, but-"
"Then stop being stupid and move, will ya?"
Oliver yanked his hair free. "How about you stop being selfish for once in your life?"
"Excuse me?" Dr. Hayashi snapped, clearly offended. "I'm just trying to do what's best for us!"
"No, you're thinking of yourself and dragging me along for the ride like always! You've never even given me the freedom to decide whether I wanna do this or n-"
WHAM
Without warning, Dr. Hayashi whipped his staff out of his coat and struck Oliver in the face, sending him spiraling back thirty feet and crashing back-first, upside-down into a tree trunk. Oliver let out a long, pained moan, quickly shutting up when he opened his eyes again. His father was giving him… that look. Not the look reserved for their fiercest werewolf prey. This one was much… much worse.
"You insolent… insensitive… ungrateful little twerp! Do you have any idea how much I've sacrificed for you? I've done everything for you! I've taken care of you from the moment you were born! From the moment your mother abandoned us! I didn't have to do that, you know!"
Dr. Hayashi grabbed Oliver by the shirt and yanked him up to his eye level. "So the least you can do is show some gratitude, stop acting weak and listen to what I tell you, because I'm the reason you're even alive! Now get up and don't slow me down, because we're not letting that mangy wolf get away from us! DO YOU UNDERSTAND, OLIVER?"
Oliver just slumped there, seething for the longest time. "Yes…" he finally growled through clenched teeth. "I understand."
Without another sound, Dr. Hayashi shoved Oliver out of his grip and continued running. Oliver had no choice but to follow him.
It just wasn't fair. He wanted to scream. He wanted to explode. He wanted to kill someone… anyone other than Mutt or the Blue Star successor. How could his father treat him like this? Why did he have to be stuck with him? Oliver hated the whole thing. He even partially hated his dad.
But still, he followed after him. Hey, where would he be without that kid?
The morning sun started to peak above the eastern horizon, shining its warm beams on the sleeping twins. Chris and Cole murmured in their snooze, smiling from the comfort and nuzzling deeper into their bed of clovers. The sight was so cute that half of me regretted having to wake them up.
"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauties."
It didn't take long for them to rouse, and soon they were sitting up, stretching and yawning. Cole brushed some grass off his shirt while Chris rubbed his neck, possibly to check that I had kept my promise.
Being the morning person I am, I had woken up long before them and gone blood hunting again. Now that my thirst was partially satisfied, I could focus on the matter at hand. "We've got another long day ahead of us."
"No doubt," Chris chuckled as he cracked his back.
Cole shot to his feet. "Hey, quick question. If you're half vampire, shouldn't the sunlight burn you or make you sparkle or something?"
I couldn't help but laugh. "I'm guessing the possibility of sparkling is out of the question, but I think that vulnerability is diluted because I'm only half vampire. It does hurt a little… kind of itches."
"Ah…"
"Well, are we having breakfast?" Chris asked.
"I already did," I answered. "There's leftover rabbit if you guys want it."
The twins shrugged and opted to snack on the go. Soon we were off again, walking towards the rising sun. I was relieved to see that Chris and Cole had recovered from their depression last night, as they continued to chatter on like they had during yesterday's trek. I just smiled and listened to them, ever thankful that they were willing to stick by me. Heaven knows what would happen to my sanity if I was still alone.
Somewhere along the way, however, I started to think about everyone back at Peach Creek. My family… they obviously knew I was missing. They had to be worried about me. What were they thinking about? Were they looking for me? I really started to miss them. Then there was Shane. Maybe Mutt already told him what had happened. And what if Mutt was following me? What if Shane worked up the courage to come with him? I could only hope.
And somewhere else along the way, when it was about mid-day, something caught my attention. For a moment, I thought something was just giving me a headache, but it felt more like a buzz than a pain. My heart was pounding slightly too. I swore I could remember this feeling, but I couldn't put my finger on it.
What was more powerful than that was the smell that I was suddenly picking up. It had a slightly metallic scent to it, yet also very earthy, like wet rocks or soil. There was also a hint of the hot, unpleasant, gassy smell of a lit Bunsen burner. And all this was tied together in such a way that… No, it couldn't be. My empathy powers hadn't been working quite as well since my transformation. Was I actually smelling anger?
I knew where I had heard these words before. Those were the words Mutt used to describe the scent of Minusions.
I stopped cold and looked at the ground; I could hear it if I listened close enough. It was digging a tunnel beneath our very feet, and it was only then that I realized just how adapted to this job they must've been. Either way, if it had followed me here, I had to take care of it one way or another.
"Chris, Cole, get down."
Despite my calm tone, Chris and Cole dove into the nearby flora as if their lives depended on it. "W-What's going on?" Chris whispered.
"Something's following us," I answered grimly. "And I think I know what it is."
Cole gulped loudly. "Then what-?"
"Shh…"
Upon my order, the boys shut up, allowing me to focus on the nearby sounds. The sound of the Minusion digging had ceased. All I could hear was animal sounds and heartbeats, namely those belonging to Chris, Cole and the closest forest animals. There were no sounds coming from underground for a long time, not even breaths or heartbeats.
A thought popped into my head. Did Minusions even have hearts? Mutt never told me whether or not they did, and it wouldn't surprise me if they didn't. After all, aside from the King, they were created entirely by and thrived solely off of Gold Star energy, so creatures that artificial wouldn't have much use for a heart, would they?
Well, the only downside at the moment was that with the dead silence from below, I couldn't pinpoint its exact location. I could still smell it, sure, but its scent was all over.
I also found myself asking why it was so far out here. This had to have been the farthest from Peach Creek a Minusion had travelled as of yet. One obvious answer was that it must have followed me, picking up on the Blue Star.
But my biggest question was this: Why wasn't the Blue Star showing me anything? Why was I depending on my ears and nose to find the Minusion? All the Star was doing was giving me a slight buzz, as if its power had died down.
…Or was being drowned out.
Now I was worried. If what I was thinking was true and the Blue Star was being overpowered by the vampire and werewolf energies, how was I supposed to kill the Minusion? I stuck my hand in my pocket, desperately hoping I was wrong, and clasped my hand around a kernel. I didn't have to look at it to know that nothing was happening.
I gulped hard and tried to reassure myself. Even if I couldn't become the Popcorn Fairy, I still had the Blue Star in me. Maybe there was some way I could still use it using only brute strength.
My ears shot up when I heard it moving again. It was digging, and based on the vibrations and loudening noise, it was digging vertically. Right beneath…
"CHRIS, COLE, MOVE!"
The twins jumped in opposite directions in the nick of time. Where they once stood, the earth burst open and out jumped a Minusion Soldier. It landed and crouched down, growling first at Cole, then at Chris, then at me.
"N-Nat…?" Chris stammered.
I bent my knees, narrowed my eyes and gave the Minusion my own warning call. It didn't come out the way I expected, sounding like a strange cross between a deep-throated growl and an airy hiss, but it did its job. The Minusion seemed rather unnerved by my appearance, and I could very faintly make out the message in its sonar…
"What in the world? This can't be right. Is this really the Blue Star successor?"
"Yeah, it's me," I responded, holding my arms out. "Why? You want a piece of me?"
Its shock soon faded and it took me up on that offer, charging at me with bared fangs.
I wasn't used to being- for the most part- grounded in battle or depending entirely on short range attacks, so this was like learning how to fight all over again. My first instinct was to jump out of its way, an act that propelled me what felt like ten feet into the air. This newfound agility startled me, but I was fortunately still able to land on my toes.
The Minusion turned my way and charged again. This time I leaped over its head and landed on its back, forcing it down, then I jumped off with a slight twirl and raked my claws along its face. Its howl of pain hurt my ears, the disorientation throwing me off balance. In my stumble, the Minusion scratched me in the stomach; yes, it hurt, but not as much as I expected.
I had enough strength to dive away from another attack and throw myself into a short brawl with it. I couldn't let my drive die down, even if each attack was a stalemate. With each duck, jump and swipe, I found myself aching to sink my teeth into it, but I did my best to ignore this urge. Something else I noticed was that every time the Minusion scratched my skin, moments later the wound would be completely healed.
But what was even stranger than that was that after attacking it enough times, my claws were started to get stained… orange.
That discovery distracted me long enough for the Minusion to knock me down. My tensed muscles were starting to ache, half out of pain, half out of anxiety. After taking a breather, I let out that strange growl-hiss again, eyeing the grinning creature before me.
And then…
ZAP
A bolt of lightning shot out of nowhere, electrocuting the Minusion. Once it ceased, it waited for the static to clear out of its fur before turning to the right.
Chris and Cole had emerged from their hiding place, arms raised and brave looks on their faces. The former twin snapped his fingers and waved his hands their way, calling out, "Yeah, you want some of this?"
"Guys, what are you doing?" I shouted.
The Minusion growled and crouched down, ready to attack the twins. Before it had a chance, however, Chris raised his half-clenched hands as if in preparation for a strike. All within a second, sparks surrounded the Minusion, and when Chris threw his hands down, the sparks turned into bolts and zapped it again. Then Cole threw a hand out, lightning emerging from his palm, and struck the Minusion with his own hot blasts.
I was in complete shock, no pun intended. What I was seeing was unbelievable. Chris and Cole had… electrical powers?
"Well, don't just sit there!" Cole cried out. "Give us a hand!"
"Ah, right!" I stood back up and rejoined them. With the Minusion thrown off balance, I was able to slash some deep wounds into it, the shocks from the leftover static being the farthest thing from my mind.
But I knew it wouldn't do any good. I had to inflict it with the Blue Star if we were going to see the end of it. The question was how?
The swinging claws, rigorous jumping and electric flashes seemed to go on forever until I received a hard scratch on the arm. The force was enough to drive me to my knees, and while down, out of curiosity, I watched as my skin stitched itself back together, but not before a trickle of blood dripped out and slid down to my elbow.
And that's when I got an idea.
"I got it from here, guys!" I called to the twins. They immediately stopped their zapping and backed off.
With all my might, I threw myself at the Minusion, making myself an open target. I ignored Chris and Cole's worried cries, instead focusing on finding the right place to get scratched without risking my life. Anywhere near my neck was out. I finally opted to let it go for my left arm, jumping forward and throwing it out as if in self-defense.
Sure enough, the Minusion lunged forward and bit down hard into my arm. I didn't scream- though the twins did. Now that I was where I needed to be, I had to act fast before the wound healed.
I swung around and perched myself on the Minusion's back, yanking my arm free in the process. I squeezed the fleshy part to draw as much blood as possible; at the same time, I satisfied my killer instinct by biting down into the Minusion's jugular. I did my best to hold my breath, not wanting to inhale the foul-smelling blood. And as I dug deeper, I found that the orange stains on my claws did in fact come from its blood. Rivers of the thick, orange fluid were pouring from the open veins.
Finally, I tore my mouth away and dumped my own crimson blood into the wound. There came an assuring sizzle; flecks of black and gold jumped out like the sparks of an igniting fire. The Minusion cried in pain as the Blue Star energy in my blood burned in from the inside out. Once the flow stopped and my arm healed, I simply pressed against the back of its neck, digging my claws in deeper.
Eventually, the exhausted Minusion collapsed. Its body started to shatter from beneath me until it crumbled completely into dust, which retreated into the earth as always.
I panted, worn out but not completely tired. That was not easy, and while I was thankful it was over, I was also praying that I would never have to do it again. The next time I saw one of those things, I could only hope I could use my wings in the fight.
In the silence, I found myself sniffing the air. The Gold Star scent was still present, and it wasn't leftover from the orange blood stains on my hands or the ashes retreating back to their source. No, there was another Minusion beneath our feet, but my senses told me it was retreating. Probably just an Adjunct that had observed the fight and was now leaving to report back to the King. Whatever the case, I was too whipped to debate its importance.
I thought about the blood again. That sickly orange blood that I desperately wanted to wash off of me. Was the Gold Star so potent in the Minusions that it had lightened the color of their blood?
My train of thought was cut off by Cole's voice. "What the CRAPTAKE was that?"
After a slight cringe, I looked up and the boys and got back on my feet. "That was a Minusion."
"A what now?" Chris muttered.
I sighed. Might as well tell them… "Guys, apparently there are things we didn't tell each other last night. To put my story simply, that creature is part of an army that seeks to gain dominance over humans. Minusions have the power of something called the Gold Star and are led by the King Minusion. I have the power of the Blue Star, making me their equal opposite, and it's my duty to stop them. I just couldn't use the Blue Star because it's being overpowered by the vampire and werewolf energy in me."
"Whoa…"
"Sweetcakes…"
"Can we find some water for me to wash my hands off with?" I asked sheepishly.
"Oh, sure," Chris replied as we turned and started walking again.
"In the meantime, why don't you guys explain that display of yours to me?"
They fell silent for a long time. Eventually, Cole looked back at me, looking rather worried. "Nat… you don't think we're freaks, do you?"
"No more than I am," I answered honestly.
Cole sighed, nodding to Chris, who then began, "Our powers are just something we were born with. We didn't know for a long time; heck, Mom just told us about them a few weeks ago when they fully developed and we used them for the first time."
After taking in my silence, Cole added, "I guess that's part of the reason we're out here. We've never been accepted, not even by our own father. We just wanna be somewhere we can be useful. And liked."
My ears drooped in sorrow. "Your… father…?"
"He never treated us like his kids!" Chris snapped. "He only saw us as freak kids with superpowers. And would you believe me if I told you he even tried to kill us?"
My ears then went from flat to vertical. "He… He really…? Oh, guys, I'm-"
And just like that, Chris and Cole fell on me, wrapping me in a hug and burying their faces in my torn shirt. The act surprised me, but I eventually gave in and exchanged the embrace. They were so… broken. And I understood their pain.
Or did I? When my identity was revealed to the public, everyone was welcoming and grateful for me. Chris and Cole had been shunned. No, I didn't understand it, and part of me knew that I never could.
I managed a smile. "If it makes any difference, what you did back there was plenty useful to me."
They looked back up at me with those bright hazel eyes of theirs. "You mean that?" Cole asked.
"Of course." I chuckled a little. "Maybe we ran into each other for a reason. Maybe I'm helping you guys as much as you're helping me."
That got them both smiling. "Yeah, maybe…" Chris laughed.
The three of us exchanged a moment of silence and smiles before I said, "What say we keep moving?"
Chris and Cole nodded in a agreement, then we continued our journey eastward. I honestly did believe we were all together for a good reason. These two had something great in store for them. I just knew it.