AN: The next 2 chapters (11 and 12) are going to be EXTREMELY graphic. The ending, chapter 13, is far more mild, but these 2 chapters are the only parts of the story I'd attach the MA rating to. Chapter 12 has a LOT of blood and gore in it.
The silence stretched on for what seemed an eternity. Phillip was starting to regret not telling them sooner. He made the mistake of going to Ranelk 2 days after meeting Claire, to figure out what the hell happened to the 2 of them.
Ranelk…the place was a real mess. It was pretty calm in Richmond (for now), but it was hell on Earth in Ranelk, especially for non-humans. Rioters had already destroyed half a city block and most Mystics with any sense ran and never looked back. The few left there stayed because they had nowhere to run TO. The attack on the camp should've rallied people against the extremists, but instead assholes who didn't like non-humans and weren't afraid to show it started coming out of the woodwork. Anyone who opposed them found a torch through their storefront – or worse, their living room window. Word was going around that the National Guard was on its way to enforce Martial Law. After what he saw there, he was still wondering why he didn't just leave and make for the west coast. The real problems were on the east coast, at least he'd find some measure of peace out west – for a while, anyway.
"I can get you more veils," the Augurey said urgently. "I should've told you sooner. You can't go to Ranelk!"
"We don't have a choice," Dr. Morris said, his face and voice solemn. "But I'm going by myself. Tell me where to find Luc and I'll be back in a few hours."
Claire, surprisingly, was the first to respond: "I'm going with you."
This caught the vet by surprise. "Claire?"
"You encounter Mystics there and you'll need an interpreter," she said, suddenly growing a little more confident. "We won't be there very long anyway."
Daniel wanted to argue, but there was something in what Morris said…this was important, they needed to find Luc. "Claire…are you sure about this?" he asked carefully. "This isn't like after those wolves…"
She shook her head. "Not really…but something tells me I have to go back there."
She didn't know why she needed to return, but as it turns out, it was a damn good thing she did go…
Claire shivered, even though the heater ran constantly during the car ride. Nerves, fear…just to name a few reasons. Phillip sat next to her on the seat; he was currently veiled and Claire had discovered just how young the Augurey was. He was well-spoken and self-sufficient for a 12-year-old. He didn't like the idea of going to Ranelk for ANY reason, but it didn't take long to convince him during the ride.
The young Kitsune tensed as their surroundings grew more familiar and they finally entered the suburbs. She had to look away as she saw the first destroyed building. It had been burned out, rioters more than likely. The streets were empty, it was a peaceful morning. After the pro-humans had their way with the residents, things were calming down – and there wasn't a single non-human to be seen. They were terrified and in hiding…or very far away from here.
"Phillip, are you sure Luc is here?" she asked hesitantly. "Why the hell would he stay here?"
"He's with a group of Mystics," he answered very quietly, staring forelornly out the window. "They're hiding in a half-destroyed house on the outskirts of town. They're waiting for the right opportunity to move out, when they can get away without any trouble. The police know they're there but the extremists don't. He's helping keep them supplied with veils, though he was low on supplies last I heard." He turned and stared at Claire for a long time. "Claire…there's far safer ways to get veils, I even have a stash I'm willing to share. Why Luc? It's not the veils you need from him, is it?"
Claire looked up and met Dr. Morris' gaze through the rearview mirror. He gave a slight nod. She closed her eyes and said, "Danny's dying." She shook her head. "He doesn't look It and he doesn't know it, but the instincts are getting worse. Ethan won't make the potion to save his life and…Danny'll go completely feral if we don't stop it."
Phillip remained silent for a long time, digesting this. "That's…Ethan has always been an asshole, but that's cold even for him…what could make him hate Daniel so much?"
Before Claire could respond, a rock struck Claire's window and she jumped. Just some asshole teen, probably thought it was funny. After another minute, they pulled into a parking lot outside a convenience store. Opening his door, Dr. Morris stepped out and scanned the area for danger before signaling for them to exit. He slipped a hand inside his coat pocket, gripping the small sidearm there – just in case things went down-hill. "Where exactly is the building?" he asked quietly.
Phillip pointed to a small house down the street. Half the ceiling was collapsed, the place was open to the elements and obviously unlivable. "They're in the basement." The trip was slow and they made their way to the alleyway around back a few houses out, to avoid prying eyes. The place was dangerous, to say the least, but the stairs leading into the basement were completely cleared of debris. Dr. Morris made to lead the way, but Phillip stopped him: "No, Claire has to go first."
This surprised both of them. "Why?" Claire asked.
The Augurey shook his head. "They're hiding from fanatics hell-bent on killing them. They see a human come down first and we'll be dead long before they ask who we are."
Nodding, Claire shifted into her true form and with a significant amount of caution made her way down the steps…and almost instantly found a rifle in her face. It only remained there for a split second, however, as he saw she was a Kitsune. The guard was veiled, wearing tattered and burnt clothing. "We thought no one else made it. You both veiled?"
"I am," Phillip answered. "And he-" He almost said Dr. Morris was human but thought better of it. "-is with us. We're looking for the alchemist Luc."
Withdrawing, the guard allowed them entry and the 3 of them found themselves in a storm cellar. It was small, it was cramped, and it was cold, but it was also hidden from prying eyes. It was composed of 2 small rooms and 8 inhabitants – including the guard. Most of them were asleep, covered by blankets, but a young Gryphoness in the corner of the first room remained alert, watching their movements intently. It was in the second room, however, that they found the haven's only Kitsune resident. She was several years Claire's junior and covered in several burns and numerous bruises. The little fox retreated at the sight of humans, disappearing with a whimper under a blanket, but for a second Claire thought she recognized the Mystic. Beneath the cosmetic damage there was bright orange fur…fur a lot like her own…could she maybe be…?
She was pulled from her thoughts as they approached the back of the shelter. There was a minor alchemical kit set up on a table and a young man fast asleep in a chair. It took her a moment to recognize the man as Luc; they had met a few times. "Luc…?" she asked, tapping his shoulder. He slowly stirred and blinked open his eyes.
"Claire…? Been a while." He spotted Dr. Morris and his eyes narrowed, but Claire quickly said,
"We need help. It's an emergency."
The man shook his head. "No veils, I'm sorry to say. Our own supplies are getting low, can't spare any and the next batch is spoken for."
Claire and Phillip exchanged a worried glance. It was a problem, but that was only an excuse to come; the real reason they were there, however… "We need a specialty potion," Dr. Morris finally said for them. "A powerful instinct suppressant. On New Year's, a new Descendant awakened a Gryphon and…well, the instincts are becoming a problem."
This immediately grabbed Luc's attention and he sat fully upright. "The Overdrive Effect." It wasn't a question. The vet nodded. "That's quite a bit more than a simple instinct suppressant – expensive to make, too." He paused. "But I'll make it for you for free."
This caught them off-guard. "Free?"
"We can't have a feral Gryphon walking around, especially not right now," he explained. "It'll take a few days, but…how long has it been since the change?"
"A week," Claire answered. "To the day."
He nodded. "Then he still has plenty of time – as long as nothing speeds up the mental decay."
"Speeds up?" the 3 asked simultaneously.
Luc nodded solemnly. "You didn't know? It usually takes a month, but that's in the best of times. Emotional trauma, fights, hunting, near-death experiences…the more situations he's in where the instincts take over, the faster they erode his human mind. I've seen it take less than 2 weeks before. This Descendant of yours could have a helluva lot less time left than you think he does. With everything going on, I'd say he has a week - at MOST."
Claire's face paled at this. Luc quickly told her, "4 days, that's all I need. I'll find a way to get the potions to you when they're done, you have my word."
Dr. Morris patted Claire's shoulder. "C'mon. I think it's time we left." Nodding, Claire followed him as they made their way back to the stairs. Before they even left the back room, however, Claire suddenly stopped, seeing the Kitsune kit yet again. The child was shaking in fear and yet again something about it called to her.
"Luc…who is this Kitsune?" she called out to him.
"Dunno," he answered. "She appeared here on the First, covered in burns. Hasn't spoken a word since she got here. All we know about her is that she was at the New Year's party, which is why she was so badly hurt."
She knelt down and tried to get a better look at the fox. "C'mon, I won't hurt you. I'm a Kitsune too." It retreated further into the shadows. Realizing this approach wasn't working, Claire shifted back into her true form…and immediately the kid's demeanor changed, eyes widening in shock.
"CLAIRE?!" Its fear turned to joy and it came running toward her.
That voice…suddenly, all the pieces fell into place and Claire finally realized where she knew the Kitsune from. She turned back into a human and hugged her cousin Jess tightly, sobbing openly. The tiny kit nuzzled her affectionately. Claire had hoped and prayed beyond all reason Jess was still alive…she still had some family left, and they finally were together again…
Over the next 2 days, Claire was the happiest she had been in a VERY long time. Jess almost never spoke anymore, but the fact she was alive filled Claire with immeasurable joy. The problem was…she was still traumatized, even though she had started opening up. She refused to speak of what happened that night, especially when it came to how she got those burns. It would take a long time and she would probably never FULLY recover, but at least she now had a chance.
Claire nudged her cousin with her snout, trying to coax her out of the closet yet again. It took a lot of work, but Jessica's kindness and soft words eventually won the younger Kitsune over. For the time being, the 2 of them had some place to stay. The problem was that damn dog, a golden retriever puppy with the play instinct of 5 puppies. She turned her head and growled at the dog, sending it scurrying away. "C'mon, Jess," she said soothingly. "You know that dog's a pushover. You ever get scared by him, just turn into a human. You're a lot bigger than him then."
Jess' face grew haunted at the mention of her human form and she buried her face in her forepaws, shaking her head. She didn't say anything, however. Worried, Claire nuzzled the kit for a second. "Just what the hell did they do to you that night?" Jess didn't respond and turned her head away. Sighing, she went into the kitchen to find Jessica. The woman was washing dishes, humming, so Claire jumped up on the counter next to the sink, sitting on her haunches.
"He really just wants to play," Jessica said to her, putting a plate in the drying rack. "Our other dog's a lot older, so he's never had another dog to roughhouse with."
Jumping back down to the floor, Claire shifted back into a human and said, "Any idea why she's afraid of her human form?"
The woman hesitated before finally shaking her head. "Dr. Morris has been looking into that. You should ask him, it sounded serious."
Claire looked over her shoulder at the closet. Jess was still shaking..
"How's Daniel's flying coming along?"
She shook her head. "He's a natural, literally born to fly," she muttered. "But it's really dangerous. If just one person sees him…" She shook her head. "I've been meaning to talk to him since we got back. I think it's high time he found out the truth about his condition. It's getting harder and harder to lie to him about it."
Jessica's face grew solemn and she met Claire's gaze. "What are you going to tell him, exactly?"
She shook her head. "I don't know yet…but he's becoming aggressive and doesn't even see the change in his behavior. Just 2 more days and this'll all be fixed."
It was snowing that day, Claire remembered. It was a peaceful morning, with an inch or so covering the ground.
She almost forgot how beautiful it was in Richmond once when everything fell apart...
She pulled her coat tightly around her shoulders, a small cloud emerging from her lips as she exhaled. She needed to talk to Dr. Morris, to figure out exactly what she was going to say to Daniel when they spoke – and to ask about Jess, of course. He would probably oppose her decision regarding Danny, but she was dead-set on this.
Walking into the clinic, she was met by a warm room and Dr. Morris sitting in a chair in the waiting room. He nodded to her. "I've been looking into Jess' condition and I'm convinced it wasn't the Hunters that did that to her."
She sat in the chair next to him. "Who else would do that to a Mystic?"
His response was long in coming. "There were reports of Revealer activity in the area on New Year's."
Claire's blood turned to ice at this and he stomach plummeted. "They…? But we'd been trying to live with humans!"
He shook his head. "Their ideologies might be different, but it wouldn't be the first time they worked together. The Revealers had experience with rooting out Mystics, to make sure anyone on the run didn't hide for long." He paused. "If the Revealers found her…there's no telling the number of unspeakable things they did to her. They've always hated Kitsunes above all other Mystics for their natural ability to shapeshift."
Claire remained silent, processing this. It was no wonder Jess wouldn't use glamours anymore…
AN: I might go back and expand on the Richmond angle of the story, add several more chapters, but the time has finally come to move the plot forward. It was only a matter of time before the story reached this point, this next chain of events are what I've been building towards right from the start.
Dr. Morris placed a hand on her shoulder comfortingly, but the moment only lasted a few seconds as he saw something out the window. He whispered to her, "Claire, you need to find Daniel, NOW."
Confused, she asked, "What?" Following his gaze, she immediately saw them: Hunters, 6 of them. And they were armed. She jumped to her feet, looking for a way out without them seeing her.
"There's a door out back, leading to the alleyway," he told her. "Get to Daniel and run. I'm sorry I couldn't help you more."
She hesitated for only a second, then turned and ran toward the backdoor. On the way to the forest, she looked back, seeing Jared and the others enter the building. They had just run out of time.
Turning, she ran towards the tree-line, to warn Danny.
Dr. Morris calmly returned to his office and waited. Opening one of the desk drawer, he slowly removed the firearm he had hidden there and concealed it in his lap under the desk
It didn't take long for them to arrive. The door wasn't locked.
Dr. Christopher Morris and Jared stared at each other for a long time, silent. Only 2 of them came in with Jared, the others stood guard. Morris was the first to speak: "So, talk or straight to the point?"
Jared didn't respond at first, regarding the veterinarian for several minutes. "I'm here to offer you a deal, actually: give us the Gryphon and you and the girl go free."
"He didn't kill Avery."
"We know he didn't." This caught the Doctor by surprise. "That Mystic is worth twice his weight in gold, he should be happy he'll be helping us one last time."
Dr. Morris did a double-take. "You knew the truth all along?"
The man shook his head. "After that line of bullshit he fed us, the pieces quickly fell into place. He's descended from the Royal Gryphons, his blood alone will support us for years. He's a veritable gold mine."
Morris resisted the urge to spit on him. "You people make me sick," he hissed. "You would do anything for profit, even murder one of your own! You couldn't care less about Mystics being in human society!"
Jared shrugged. "Maybe if they shared the wealth, we wouldn't have to take it from them. Do you have any idea how much dragon blood sells for on the black market?" Morris didn't give him the satisfaction of a response. "$12,000 a quart. That's worth more than 24kt gold. It's ironic Avery's ancestors called themselves 'Paladins' once upon a time."
"And if you didn't keep killing them, the price wouldn't keep going up!" the Doctor snapped. "It's monsters like you that caused all of this! Where the hell did you even get that much money? It had to have cost a fortune to coordinate an attack like that!"
"A generous donation," Jared responded simply, "from a dying old green dragon. The blood alone totaled almost $4 million. It's a shame her daughter escaped us on New Year's; it broke my heart I couldn't reunite Nessie with her mother."
Infuriated, Dr. Morris drew the pistol from under the desk and shouted, "YOU SON OF A BITCH!" He never got so much as a single shot off; a bullet from one of the other Hunters ended the fight before it started and Morris slumped in his chair, the gun falling to the floor with a clatter.
"Perfect," the other growled at the gunman with a glare. "Now we'll never find Avery."
"We won't need to," Jared said, turning to them. "He'll come to us."
"And how the hell do you figure that?"
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a lighter. "We'll send him a smoke signal."
Claire quickly found her way to the clearing Danny was in. The Gryphon was fast asleep but quickly awakened at her approach – and immediately saw the look in her eyes. "What happened?" His voice had grown considerably deeper over the last few days, developing a distinct growl more like a dragon's voice than a human's. He had also started talking a lot less, she noticed.
"We need to leave," she said desperately. "NOW. Jared's back!"
This immediately grabbed the Gryphon's attention and in an instant he was on his feet. "Phillip? Jess?" Suddenly, he looked off in the distance and his expression hardened.
"They…" Claire paused, suddenly uncertain. She could never forgive herself if they just left the 2 of them and ran. She didn't know Phillip very well, but Jess…
She was drawn from her thoughts, however, by the look in Danny's eyes: there was an indescribable fury there, but he was looking toward Richmond, not toward her. Finally, for the first time since she started running, Claire looked back…
…and immediately saw a pillar of black smoke rising in the distance, filling the sky.
It was coming from Richmond…