No ownership besides the plot and new characters =P
Okay so this is the longest so far. I'm still trying to get back my old files but whatever. *shrugs* personally I think this is better than the original. Oh well... you be the judge. Help me be a better writer by reviewing. :} thx and enjoy!!!!!!
Chapter 7
It wasn't that bad. Ash thought as his chute led him safely to the ground. His lanky legs were only a few feet away from solid earth now. Jo, Quinn, and Rashel were already un-strapping their used parachutes while he, Keller, Daphne, and Phil just landed.
As his feet hit dirt, Ash immediately surveyed his surroundings and teammates. Everyone looked relieved to have that part of the mission over, except Jo of course. Her black-and-purple hair was ruffled, even messier than usual, and her cropped leather jacket looked ripped and worn from the fall as she took off her chute. Jo looked disappointed somewhat; like it wasn't the thrill she was looking for.
Quinn and Rashel looked at each other with open gratitude, Daphne and Phil's expressions gave away their joy and self-pride of not backing out and Keller just looked like she wanted to get the whole thing over with.
"All right people." She said. "We should get going, and fast. The dragon's already on the move."
Everyone nodded solemnly.
"But wait Keller," Jo said. "Don't you think we should come up with a plan first?"
"We already have one Jolanda—"
"Don't call me that."
"Why?" Keller looked mildly surprised and curious. "I thought you used to go by that, and it is your real name you know. Your parents gave you that name."
"Used to go by it Keller, that's the key word. Used to, and your real name's Raksha isn't it?" Keller flinched, Jo continued. "That's what I thought. Jolanda isn't my name. So don't call me that." Ash couldn't see the look she gave Keller but the shapeshifter's eyes widened.
"Oh." was all she said.
Everyone was listening intently during the whole conversation, some confused some curious. Ash was curious.
"What do you mean not your name—?"
"Shut up Ash." Keller said, not taking her eyes off of Jo. "If she doesn't want to explain she doesn't have to. And besides—" she turned around, towards the city. "We have a dragon to slay."
Mary-Lynette's world was spinning. The world's going to end. Blaise had said. 6 months.
It can't be. Mare feebly protested. It just can't be. The mug of hot chocolate she held was shaking, spilling brown drops on the carpet. James and Nissa were blaming Blaise for… what were they saying? Mary-Lynette dragged herself to the current conversation.
"—can't believe we listened to you." That was James. "You see? Lonan was right. She's in shock."
I'm in shock? Mary-Lynette blinked. She blinked again. The mug was already falling, Minsi, the closest to her, had to steady her hands. That was when she realized that there wasn't an earthquake in the room; the shaking was coming from her.
"It's all right Mare." She said. "I almost went into shock when I found out too." A warm sienna colored hand clasped hers, providing comfort. Minsi's brown eyes showed nothing but concern.
"O—okay." Mary-Lynette said. She had to get it together, fast. Before Lonan came back and killed Blaise. The problem was that she couldn't seem to wrap her head around the idea. She was scientific; a girl built on logic. Even after the whole incident last year she clung on to that trait. Though her primal instinct was shouting at her to believe, the practicality embedded in her brain was getting in the way, whispering the question she needed to be answered: how could the world possibly end? The stars hadn't shown any signs of galactic alignment, and there weren't any meteors close to Earth that were big enough to get past the mesosphere and wipe the planet in one blow. It wasn't possible. It just wasn't.
She wanted to explain all that to the rest, wanted to show them that her thinking process was still working, but all that came out was: "H—how?"
Nissa switched her focus to Mary-Lynette, effortlessly putting on a mask of worry mixed with the same unperturbed look from before. "Are you sure Mare?" she asked. "Are you sure you don't want to go home? It's fine if you do, you don't need to hear the rest."
"No." Mary-Lynette was pleased to hear her voice finally come back, clear and sure. "I'm not going. I won't leave until I know exactly what's going on."
"Exactly?"
"Exactly."
Nissa sighed. "Fine. Blaise? I think you're the only one willing enough to continue." She moved away from Blaise to sit beside Mary-Lynette on the sofa. Minsi was on Mare's other side and James settled back on the leather recliner in Blaise's side of the room. Blaise made her way to Mary-Lynette. Her smile faltered a bit as she looked Mare up and down.
"I—I am sorry for putting you through this." From the corner of her eyes, Mary-Lynette saw James roll his eyes. "But you have to listen to me Mary-Lynette. You need to know."
"Then tell me what I need to know." She kept her voice steady.
"All right then." Blaise's smile looked more genuine now. "You're pretty brave for a country girl eh? Anyway, yes, the world's going to end. We don't know any specific details but we're sure that it'll be soon. Six months at the most, at the millennia mark."
"The millennia mark?"
"Yes. The year 2000." Blaise took a deep breath. "You mean to tell me that you haven't heard of all the commotion going on?" Mare shook her head as Blaise shook her head at her. "Diseases are multiplying by the minute. Lower respiratory infections, HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, cancer. Some are treatable some not. Depression is as common as cell phones now and victims keep turning up every week. Suicide, homicide, attempted genocide. Humans are dying by the minute and there's nothing the fancy doctors or officials can do to stop it."
She continued. "Animal attacks are at an all time high. Coyotes, lions, tigers, and wolves are attacking everything and everyone in sight—"
"Which is weird because they're all peaceful towards humans." Minsi cut in, speaking in behalf of her animal brethren. "They'd only attack if their territory was invaded or if something was, like,really wrong in the world."
Nissa locked gaze with Mary-Lynette. "Not hard to guess which one's the right answer, is it?"
Blaise cleared her throat. "If I'm not mistaken, this is my lecture."
Nissa and Minsi mumbled apologies as Blaise sat on the coffee table in front of the couch. At the angle, Blaise and Mary-Lynette were looking at each other eye-to-eye. Mare swallowed once and nodded. "Go on."
"All right, well, like I said animals are going crazy everywhere, Box jellyfishes are stinging more people than usual, only a few make it out alive with that kind of poison, scorpion and tarantulas have been found crawling in and out of drainage pipes, snakes are slithering in sewers and rats now reside in our water pipelines." She made a face. "Goddess knows what they do in there."
Mary-Lynette put down her mug of hot chocolate on the table as she made a face identical to Blaise. Eww.
"The odd thing is," she continued. "More and more animals are disappearing. Thousands of species are now endangered and others are on the brink of extinction. Humans aren't an exception to the madness either. In fact, I hear it's a good time to work in a mental institute these days. Business is really booming."
Blaise looked Mary-Lynette up and down. "Get the picture sweetie?"
Mary-Lynette gulped. "Is that it?"
The witch chortled. "Hardly."
She crossed her legs as she leaned farther back. "There's always the issue of the next massive climate change. Global warming is all the rage now, you know; temperatures are reaching highs and lows never thought possible." Blaise rolled her neck and crossed her legs again, the picture of ease.
"Winters are either freezing or scorching, summers are even more extreme and the ozone layer is breaking off piece by piece. Human governments are doing everything they can to stop it with all their fancy technology but…" she shrugged. "nothing's working, big surprise huh? Wild fires are seen more often than not, leaving disgusting flakes on the streets," The black haired vixen icked and stuck her tongue out.
"Took me forever to clean that mess off my car… Hurricanes are rolling in, tidal waves are wiping out whole cities like they were made of those mini legos, and there's even a chance of California breaking off because of "plate-tectonics". Blaise continued with the same tone most people would use if they were talking about the weather or a movie. Catalytic indifference. She studied her nails.
"Earthquakes are becoming more and more frequent, fault lines are opening up, geologists are worried about so-called "dormant" volcanoes, lakes and rivers are either bone-dry or over-filled, and the sky is as foggy as ever." Blaise turned back to re-face Mary-Lynette. "I'm sure you know all about that, darling."
Mary-Lynette nodded, her mind was beginning to work and there was no more doubt of whether or not Blaise was saying the truth. She believed. "The stars and planets are all getting dimmer, I know. I've wondered about that myself. If I want to see the Pleiades of Taurus, or even Jupiter, I have to get my Orion UltraView binoculars. I used to be able to see Jupiter without anyinstrument, Orion's belt isn't as bright as before either; I always figured it was my eyesight but…" Mare blushed as she realized that she was babbling. Judging by Blaise, James, and Nissa's amazed and befuddled expressions, they didn't know what the hell she was talking about. Minsi, cute, dependable, oddly somber Minsi, was the one who saved her from the embarrassment of explaining.
"She's right, guys. Even Venus is getting blurry, and that's with my eyesight." Minsi looked different when she was serious, her brown eyes held a sense of grim understanding in them, her childish tone was replaced with one fit for an elder. "The world's changing, going downhill, and dragging everyone and everything down with it. And we're the only ones who could stop it. And we don't have much time either."
"Wow Minsi. That was pure poetry."
Minsi's face twisted into something like a sneer, it didn't look natural on her. "Shut up Lonan."
Lonan was at the doorway, Galen right behind him. He held up his hands in mock defense "It was a complement, Min, geez. Little touchy aren't we?"
Blaise mimicked Minsi's sneer. "What's gotten into you bird-brain? You seem… weirder than usual."
Lonan shrugged impassively. "Galen over here helped me see it your way." A sly smile plastered itself on the shining blonde's face. "So… what are we talking 'bout now?"
James scratched his head, a perfect copy of Galen's smile on his lips. "The end of the world."
"Ah, my favorite subject. Have you gotten to the prophecies yet your 'wickedness'?"
"Not yet, crow." Blaise considered something. "Actually, I think you're better at that part of the story. I'm getting a bit parched with all this explaining." She cast a look around the room before getting up. "I'll be right back."
"Care to get me a glass of water, witch?" Lonan said, making way for Blaise's retreating figure.
"Don't count on it." Then she was gone, Mary-Lynette could hear her footsteps carry her downstairs. Into the kitchen maybe.
"Well," Lonan was the first to break the silence. He clasped his hands together. "let's continue with class shall we?"
"I, Rashel, and Quinn will be the main offense. We'll hit it as hard as we can and, if possible, we'll aim for the horns." Keller was spouting out orders to the others. No one protested, they were all too busy trying to keep up with her. She was a panther; they were pretty hard to run with.
"Jo. You and Phil are on both defense and offense."
"Meaning—?" Jo huffed. Even spunky, up-for-anything Jo was tired.
"Meaning that you guys will do your best to attack it with your witch fire. You have an advantage, a long range weapon."
"But we won't be able to get the horns even if we hit it head on." Phil managed a burst of speed to catch up with Keller. Ash and the others were right behind. "Our fire's not strong enough."
Keller seemed to realize for the first time that the others were lagging behind, she slowed down. "I never said to kill it with your witch fire. I said attack. Distract it so we could get a chance at the horns. Ash? Daphne?"
"Reporting for duty." Daphne gasped. Looks are seriously deceiving, thought Ash. Daphne was keeping up with everyone else, blond hair windblown and face red from the cold air, black jumpsuit bending to her needs. It was weird for Ash to think that she was as normal as any other teenager a few weeks ago. He wasn't the only one impressed; Rashel shot her an approving glance.
"Nice job, Daph." She said. A genuine smile was tilting her lips.
Keller gave Daphne a smile then twisted to face Ash. "Ash? How about you?"
Ash grunted, increasing his speed. "Yeah, whatever, what she said."
With a roll of her eyes Keller turned back, resuming her job as team captain. "You two will help Jo and Phil with the distractions, but first, your main job is to keep the bystanders safe at all costs."
Ash and Daphne nodded.
"There are still the Midnight witches." Quinn's voice was as dismal as ever, but everyone in the group knew him long enough to scope out the excitement and anxiety underneath his bleak tone. He was enjoying this as much as the rest. "Who's going to take care of them?"
Keller put some thought to it then replied. "Jo and Phil will. Ash and Daph'll be too busy with the civilians." Ash opened his mouth to protest but Keller cut him off. "There shouldn't be much witches anyway, you won't be missing anything. Besides you just got back from a mission right? Perfect time to get some rest." He closed his mouth.
Phil nodded. "Agreed."
Jo cracked her knuckles. "Awesome. It's about time I get some payback."
They ran the rest of the way in silence. Boston was smaller than Ash remembered, or maybe it just seemed like it because they were running full sprint. They landed near the Laurence G Hanscom field, 20 miles northwest of Boston. Luckily, no one seemed to notice their little misadventure with the sky diving, the only problem is that they had to run twice the miles originally planned. It was about noon and Ash was sure everyone was tired, even the she-panther, they've been running for an hour. Again, wasn't much of a problem for Ash, Quinn, and Keller but it still used up some of their energy; Ash could tell the others were struggling. And they'll need all their energy for the dragon. It was going to be a tough one—
Which reminds him…
"Wait, you said that the dragon has three horns?"
Keller nodded. "That's right."
"So how old is it?" Rashel asked, jumping over a bus bench. "Less horns mean older and wiser dragons right? Are they more powerful or not?"
"It's an even tie, Rashel. The younger ones, like the one Iliana and my team fought, have more… raw power but the ones like this one, the one we're headed to right now, actually know how to use it." She let this information sink in before she continued. "They've trained themselves, I guess, and they know how to hurt with their Power, they can target your weakness. And it hurts.Really hurts. And—"
"—and they can switch forms like pros." Jo explained, earning herself a quick glare from Keller. "One second they can be a tiny fruit fly and the next…" Jo whistled. "Man, they're huge."
Keller looked suspicious. "How do you know so much about dragons?"
They rounded a corner, getting close to their destination. They could afford to rest for a few seconds so they all slinked into a small alley. As Keller took a few breaths she looked at Jo, gray eyes speculating, her custom fit black-and-gray hoodie was rippling with her deep breaths. Her waist length hair was swaying while her denim-clad legs allowed her to lean on the brick wall.
"Well, Jo?"
Jo's highlighted hair was falling into her petite pinched face again, covering her startling violet eye. Her leather jacket was definitely ruined; a rip ran through her left sleeve. Her deep purple "Abbey Dawson" shirt was heaving as she fought to catch her breath and her black leggings were a bit wobbly, she was using her right arm to steady herself. Despite all that, she still looked otherworldly menacing as her dark brown eye glinted with her grin.
"I'm a Midnight witch remember? One of the best," She took a last deep breath. "there's not much that I don't know."
Keller didn't look convinced but the air around her was filled with grudging respect for the fiery witch. She smiled back.
"Fine then. I don't suppose you know how to beat that thing would you?"
Jo looked out the alley, half chocked then turned back. "Uh… sorry, that's not really my department."
"Guys," Quinn was at the edge of the alley looking out, gray sweater letting him blend in with the foggy mid-noon. Like always, he had everybody's attention in an instant. "It's in dragon form, and it doesn't look all that happy." Quinn steadied his voice, making it the dreary voice they all know and love. "Jo's right. It's huge."
Right on cue there was an ear-splitting roar followed by what felt like an earthquake that sent Ash, Rashel, and anyone else foolish enough to stand, down to the ground.
Ash cursed, rubbing his back. He could feel his eyes turn dark orange with annoyance. "What the hell did it do that for?"
Phil looked out. "I think it knows we're here, guys." The words weren't laden with fear or terror, just annoying calm. He helped Ash up. "It's waiting for us. Just look"
They did.
The dragon was in its natural form, to everyone's dismay. The thing had to be at least quadruple the size of a normal human, two times bigger than the last one. Its scales looked silver, platinum in its sheen, sparkling when the sun hit it just right. Illustrations from a time now long forgotten dotted its body; they looked like something found in Greek or Roman vases. Patterns laced with gold were swirling on its forehead, around the three horns, before it led down the dragon's spine column all the way to its tail. The wings were huge and, if Ash didn't know full well how deadly they could be, he would've thought them beautiful beyond compare. Its horns and teeth glistened madly as the thing turned its head their way. The group froze.
Blue eyes cold as glaciers met theirs. If Ash had human sight he would have missed it completely, but he didn't miss it and he was sure as hell he'd never forget this sight in his life. There was a ring around the two icy pupils, an outline of gold for each. It gave a certain shimmer to them. People could die of wonder looking at eyes like those. Ash shuddered.
People died all right, but it wasn't from wonder. Those razor teeth weren't red from cherry soda.
It roared once more and stepped closer, crushing trees and an unfortunate Honda CRV in its wake. The gigantic tail attached to the beast whipped and dented a building. The abnormal pair of eyes whisked side-to-side. Obviously, it was waiting for something.
Designed to mesmerize. Equipped to kill.
This wasn't going to be easy.
Rashel broke the stunned silence with whispered curses. "But how did it know? We only received information this morning; it shouldn't be waiting foranything."
The group looked at each other warily.
Daphne cleared her throat. "Look guys, we have to go now. We need to take that thing down before it does anymore damage."
Everyone nodded agreements, Keller got up. "All right, split up. You all know what to do. "
"MY BABY! MY BABY!"
"Miss! Miss, it's all right my friend is getting your baby, don't worry its okay. But Miss—Miss!" Ash grabbed the middle-aged mother as gently as he could while trying to pull her back into the current safe house, a recently abandoned warehouse. It was good enough for the job. The woman he was holding was about thirty-two, her hair, naturally brown, was red, Ash could smell the dye. Her green eyes were wide with alarm and terror. "Please mam, listen to me. Listen to me, your baby is safe with my friend, she's fully trained, all you have to do is stay here, and your baby will be here in a few seco—." Ash broke off as the door opened. A blond girl looking very much like a ninja walked in with a bundle snuggled neatly to her chest.
In seconds the woman was having a full-blown hysteria. "Thank… thank you… thank you so much… thank you…" she sputtered. Her knees buckled and, if it weren't for Ash, she would have fallen down. Daphne walked towards the woman then gently placed her load into the mother's arms. "Here you go, Miss."
The mother kissed her child's forehead then stood up and kissed Daphne the same way, and then Ash. A gracious thank you. Ash was sure his eyes turned light blue with pleasant surprise. The lady didn't seem to notice. "Bless you children. Thank you so much." She caressed her baby and then sat herself on one of the spare crates, green eyes tearing up with gratitude. Ash felt something inside his chest tighten. He made his voice creep around the obstacle in his throat and addressed Daphne.
"Are you okay? How are the others?"
Daphne blinked away some tears of her own and smiled. "I'm fine, a couple of bruises from hitting my head on the car's dashboard, but I'm fine."
"Dashboard?"
Daphne laughed. "The baby rolled under there, no, seriously. I have no idea how it happened. But you know what it did when I got it out? It hugged me." Another laugh. "It feels great to be able to do these kinds of things. There's a good feeling to it."
I know what you mean, thought Ash. The thing inside him constricted and he found himself grinning just like Daphne. They each took turns scoping out injured and petrified victims, that woman and her baby were the last ones according to Daphne. So now they could just sit and relax... but there were more pressing matters at hand.
"Wait, Daph, what about the others?"
Her smile fell instantly. "Not so good. Those other agents were right, it's a three-horn, and Keller's been going all out, still nothing. Rashel and Quinn have gotten in a few good shots at it but the thing just won't let its guard down. They're tiring out but the dragon's just getting started."
The ash blond vampire opened his mouth in surprise. "Nothing's working? How? You mean to tell me that none of our strategies are taking effect?"
"None."
Ash sat on a lumpy stray bag of dirt. "But… how?"
Daphne got snippy. "I don't know, Ash. If I did, don't you think I'd tell you?" she took a deep breath and sat beside him. Her voice came out as a whisper "It knows all of our moves, Ash. All of them."
The two sat together in silent misery. Ash couldn't believe it. None of their tactics were working? This was the third dragon they've been assigned to execute. So what was the difference? They purposely did different procedures the other two times, just in case word got out about the attacks and the methods used. It was a good approach to the matter, it kept the enemies guessing.
So why wasn't it working now?
Ash felt something vibrate next to his lower calf. "Um… Daph? I think your cell's ringing."
"Oh. Oopsies. My bad. Damn it, these things are so tight…" it took a while but she managed to get the phone out of her pocket. She checked the caller ID and turned pale white, birdlike bones taut with surprise. She flipped it open.
"Rashel? Why are you using your phone? You know they can track these."
Rashel was shouting on the other side. Ash could hear the dragon roaring from both the phone and outside. Tremors ran through his whole frame, and they weren't from the roar. If Rashel was calling it had to be bad.
"What? Hold on, I'll put you on speaker." Daphne tapped a button then set the phone in between her and Ash. "All right, you're on."
The voice on the other and was Rashel all right, and she was mad. Breathless, but mad. "Ash, you idiot. I've been trying to call your number, what happened?"
"I left it at base, didn't think it mattered." There was a rule on limiting cell phone use; Daphne was right about the tracking thing. "What's happening?"
"Well, first of all, the witches have arrived early and—shit." Muttered the voice. The sound of a phone dropping and cackling electricity. Then Rashel's voice from far away. "Why don't you aim that at someone your own size you little imp!" More electricity. The sound of a struggling was distinct, blows connected. Then, finally, came the faint thump of a light body falling limp on the ground.
Daphne looked torn between terror and laughter. "She must be real mad to say stuff like that. She usually takes 'em down as silently as she can."
Ash stayed quiet, he just stared at the pink Motorola.
The sound of footsteps coming closer, then the phone was picked up. "Damn, witches." Rashel muttered. "Sorry about that, but I think you guys can tell how good things are going. Keller underestimated their numbers, Jo and Phil can't handle all the witches for long. How about you guys? Are the rest of the citizens safe?"
"They're safe." Ash answered. "There's only about… twenty-one in here."
"Good. There's going to be a change of plans. Is it okay if you two—?"
"Rashel!" shouted a deep voice. "Watch out!"
Rashel grunted into the phone. Ash could clearly imagine Quinn tackling her, avoiding another energy-ball by a hairs breadth.
"Get behind me, and hurry with the call. I'll cover you."
Feet padding the pavement, then Rashel's shaky "Thanks." Ash could hear her fingers fumbled on the phone; at least she didn't drop it this time. "Ash? Sorry, but it looks like you won't be getting any of that rest we promised you—" The phone cackled, they were breaking up. "Come… on! Not… much… we can't hold… much longer!"
Silence. Daphne looked at Ash helplessly, Ash was thinking. He didn't know what Rashel meant by can't hold on. She may have been talking about the connection but... but if they stayed and Ash was wrong, the rest were dead. He couldn't let that happen, even if he was still sore. There was only one thing to do. His eyes were probably changing color again, into something profound and thought-inducing. Rough violet-blue most likely.
Daphne took the phone and began talking, listening to Rashel as she received rough updates. The blond vampire looked around himself. The woman was still there, still whispering softly to her child's ear, a boy the same age as Ash was comforting his girlfriend. A small child was clinging to her dad and an old woman was constantly petting her Pomeranian. Most of the people in the remaining crowd were individuals, too scared to move or ask questions. Ash made a snap decision. He searched every face in the crowd meticulously.
"You, uh… with the tan jacket. Yes, you. Come over here."
A dark haired boy detached himself from the crowd and made his way forward. He looked about thirteen with a tan jogging jacket and matching pants. He stood a good four inches below Ash.
"What's your name?"
The boy's face dimpled with a small gentle wry smile. "Ethan."
"Ethan? All right, well, can you do me a favor kiddo? Can you stay here and watch the others for me?"
"Sure thing." The smile was still in place. "I should be able to do that."
"Great." Ash said. Ethan's tranquil eyes was the bright blue of sapphires, they betrayed not a drop of the terror this kid should be feeling. He was the only calm one here.
The boy seemed to strike some chord in Ash, Ethan looked familiar but Ash was sure as heck he's never seen him before in his life. No time to dwell on that, though. Rashel would be blistering with fury if they were late.
"Great." Ash repeated, grabbing the boy's shoulders in a thank-you squeeze. "You'll be home soon, okay kid? You'll be safe soon." He met Ethan's gaze, his own eyes changing into deep green or hazel with dedication. "I promise."
Ethan nodded slowly, his smile turning into a concerned frown. "Be careful."
Daphne got up and slipped her phone back in her pocket. She thanked Ethan a few times and then the two were out the door. Ash was right beside her as she gave off her new information.
"They've been able to get a horn halfway out." She said. "Rashel said that Keller's been killing herself trying to get one more swipe at it. She and Quinn have been helping her but they keep on getting harassed by those witches and they keep getting hit by the dark power. They figure Keller's used to it more than they are, she can stand it more effectively. They can't get that close without getting thrown backwards with that insane Power."
"What about Jo and Phil?"
"They're too busy with the other witches. They can't afford to let their guard down, looks like they sent trained reinforcements for once." Daphne snorted. "I couldn't understand much after that because of all the static but Rashel says Jo's losing it, she has no idea how anyone could possibly know about her spells and attacks. Her methods are as unpredictable as she is, so it's practically impossible to know what move Jo will make, let alone counter-attack it."
She slowed down at the same time he did. Looks like they were both on the same page. "Ash, do you think… about what I said earlier, about the dragon knowing all of our moves… and now, when the witches seem to… to know how to counter attack every spell Jo and Phil throw at them… is it... is it possible—?"
"That we have a spy in our group? Maybe…" In truth, Ash was dead sure that someone was in league with the enemy. He just didn't want to tear the group apart when they needed all the help they could get. Plus, he was missing a vital question: who? Out of the thousands of agents and residents in Circle Daybreak who would stoop so low? Ash wasn't sure if he wanted to find out.
The buildings around them looked like survivors of a 5-point earthquake. Ash reconsidered, they would have been better off with a 7-point earthquake. The ground was cracked; cars were thrown aside like toddler toys. They stayed on Tremont St. then cut through the City Hall grounds, towards Washington St.
They were almost there.
Ash jumped a garbage can cleanly as Daphne fought her way through knee high grass and shrubs. Ash could hear the sound of fighting a few miles away, a booming soprano roar cut through the afternoon haze. Daphne covered her ears and Ash copied her actions. They made it a few more feet before it happened.
A voice called out, addressing the dragon. It was too far away for the two to know who it was or even what it said.
Daphne and Ash looked at each other, staggering in their run. At first, Ash thought it was just his imagination but then he heard Rashel yell: "OUT! OUT OF THE WAY!"
The next sound sent ripples down Ash's spine like ice cold water. His running stopped so abruptly he almost slipped. Daphne, on the other hand, did trip. She caught herself before she completely fell and gasped in horror.
"No."
A girl was screaming.
Not just any screaming. It was a chill-inducing, lung tearing, heart busting wail. A shrill keening that only a dragon with massive energy supplies could bring out. The scream broke off suddenly, turning into sickening gasping. The beast had given everything it's got. Ash could feel the scorching heat of left over Power from a mile away. He could only imagine what the target must be feeling. The very thought of pain that bad brought tears to his eyes. The worst part?
He didn't recognize the voice.
Another voice followed, Rashel's. "NO!" she dragged the word out. Ash's vision got even blurrier. Daphne's breathing hitched.
The air was thick with hostility and dread. In a daze, the two picked themselves up and resumed their trek towards the monster. They could see the silhouette in front of the setting sun, casting eerie shadows around the two agents. Ash and Daphne continued running. It was like nothing else mattered besides getting there in time to help their comrades and defeat the dragon.
Absolutely nothing.
But there was one thing that kept Ash from going any faster, just like how the same force was working against Daphne too. He wasn't scared of the dragon anymore. He was scared of what he was going to find.
He didn't recognize the voice, which meant only one thing.
The girl was human.
And now she's dead.
It was a civilian, it had to be, but how could both he and Daphne miss the girl? They double checked all the streets in risk of damage. Did the girl just turn up out of nowhere? Or was she hiding? Whatever the case, it didn't matter now.
No one, no one, not even Hecate Witch-Queen herself, could survive that kind of blast with such raw power. It was impossible.
Another mile down. Just a few feet to go.
"Rashel, Rashel! There's nothing you could do. She's gone." Quinn, Ash could recognize him anywhere. Unfortunately, he knew what Quinn was talking about; he also knew that Daphne knew. "Keller? Where are you going?"
"Keller!" Ash recognized that one too. Jo. "Move out, you'll be hit! Move out—!"
Then Jo screamed. Ash and Daphne stepped it up at the same time. Ash's feet felt like they were treading on hot rocks.
"JO!" Keller. "You bastard!"
Ash and Daphne finally arrived at the clearing but their relief disappeared in a second. It looked like hell in this place. Buildings have been toppled, cars were crashed, and trees that have stood tall and majestic for years were cracking. Everything had dents in them, some looking like dragon claws and others looking suspiciously like thrown bodies or avoided witch fire. Bodies were sprawled all around the place. Ash didn't know if they were dead or what, he was too focused on his teammates.
Rashel was bending over something in the middle of it all, holding her blade like it was a teddy bear; Phil and Quinn were covering her back and attacking any witch that got too close. Jo was nowhere in sight. Ash moved his eyes to Keller. The shapeshifter was kneeling beside something too, but she stood up and blocked it before Ash could see what it was. Keller was in front of everyone else, directly in the way of the dragon. She was in half form, half panther, half human. Her ears and tail were twitching in sync, waiting for the dragon to make the first move. Her eyes were living daggers.
She turned to Daphne. "Daphne," Her voice was as deadly and cold as her stare, too furious to speak normally. "Take her; you have more medical experience than anyone in this team."
Daphne rushed over and picked up the bundle Keller was pointing too. It was only when she was carefully walking towards Rashel did Ash get a good look at it.
Jo.
The dragon moved closer, its own tail whipping in anticipation. Ash was impressed with his comrades; they got in a lot of good swipes. Its left calf looked scraped with multiple cuts from claws and blades and its snout was bleeding out a river. Abrasions interrupted the mystical patterns on its back and it was limping a bit. But its horns were still there. Keller stepped forward.
She was shifting.
Right now.
For a second, she wasn't there, just a shimmering misty image of a body. And then a panther appeared, with teeth bared and legs bunched. It was preparing for a jump.
It was preparing for suicide.
"Keller!" Ash yelled but it was too late. Keller jumped, straight at the dragon. Straight at the horns.
Ash felt the blast before it happened. The dark energy swirling inside the dragon, getting ready to fling it at Keller with one of those massive horns, the dragon narrowed its eyes. The panther didn't stop. Her teeth connected with the middle horn, at the same time the dragon released its Power.
"KELLER!" everyone shouted it at the same time, Keller held on.
Ash saw her jaw loosen as the dragon sent out another blast. The thing was weakening, that much was clear. The dragon was losing its main seat of power. Its middle horn. If Keller could just get it loose, if she could just hold on a little while longer... Keller snarled and growled but Ash knew the truth.
She was slipping.
Ash rushed forward. If Keller fell from that height, panther or not, she's dead. He knew it was a long shot, knew there was only a slim chance that he would get there in time, but he sprinted anyways. No one else was as close to the dragon as him and they all had problems of their own. He heard the sound of gasps and shouts behind him. Ash ignored them. He pushed his protesting legs forward.
Keller let go. She was falling.
He was close to where she was dropping. So close.
But he wasn't going to make it. He knew that from the beginning. He closed his eyes, dreading the inevitable thump of a hundred-ten pound panther connecting with the concrete.
Author's Note: WOW... that has got to be the best/worst cliffhanger i did so far... huh... I think this story has more than 6,500 words in it, that's a new record for me :D *cue confetti* haha.
Anywayz hope u enjoyed the story, if u didn't tell me y in a review, it won't hurt my feelings (hopefully) =} if u did then thank you. I'd love to get a review from anyone and everyone it'll make my day and help boost my creative thinking =P not kidding... it helps me know that my typing isn't going to waste. BAI!!! :) and REVIEW =D
one more thing... do u guys want me to make the chapters shorter? This is pretty long and I don't know if long chapters are all that good. You guys decide and tell me in a review.
