Annnnd, I'm back, losers!
I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG! I have no excuse… I was just lazy.
Ok, little bit of time setting. The last chapter took place during the time Adian and Vector were in the rooms and stuff. This chapter is caught up with the present, placed right after chapter 19.
Reviews are once again at the bottom, and please enjoy the newest installment of Kitsune!
Gadget looked down at the blood on the forest floor and was once again struck by the thorns of worry and slight guilt. He was a light sleeper, and he had heard rustles of leaves being misplaced during the night, but he had brushed it off as nothing. Had he woken up, they might not be in this predicament.
The predicament being following the trail of blood their injured friends had left behind.
Gadget remembered the rather strangled cry that Sky had uttered when she found it. He remembered the angered yell that had come from Hunter's mouth. He remembered being grabbed by Sammy and drug along as they had charged into the forest, following the death trail.
He signed and wondered how long they had been walking.
It couldn't have been too long, but when he looked up, the sun had moved from its place high in the sky, to dipping down below the tops of the trees in shame. Gadget could see a ghostly outline of the moon, rising up to fill in what its brother had left behind.
Beside him, Sammy let out a long suffering sigh and rubbed his hand up and down his arms. "It's getting could out here…" He muttered. Gadget took one of Sammy's hands and clasped it tight between his, warming it up at best he could. Sammy smiled lightly, pink dusting his cheekbones and squeezed Gadget's own hand slightly.
While Gadget and Sammy shared a moment, Shade's mind was a hurricane of panic, scorn, and anger. Panic at knowledge that Vector and Adian could be somewhere, bleeding out, scorn at Sky for being such a useless twit, and anger at James for stopping her from pummeling said twit's face in. In Shade's not so humble opinion, Sky deserved to have some sense beaten into her. If Shade were by herself, she bet that she could have found them already.
Hunter pressed a warning hand to her shoulder.
She suddenly realized that her face had pulled into a wolfish snarl, ears pressed flat against her head and tail bristling.
She relaxed her pose, and Hunter moved away, shooting a sharp glance on her way.
Sky was pissed.
She wasn't sure what had warranted her the irate glares Shade keep giving out of the corner of her eye. Every time Sky caught her in the act, Shade glanced away quickly, acting like she wasn't doing anything.
And Sky had just about enough.
Just as she was about to spin around to confront Shade, a flash of something that was definitely un-forest-y.
She glanced around and her eyes finally settled on a piece of orange clothe hanging on a low-hanging branch. She gulped, hoping against hope it wasn't what she thought it was.
Unfortunately, luck wasn't on her side. She lifted the torn fabric from the branch and held it out to Shade. Shade, forgetting her anger for a moment, ripped it from Sky's grasp and took a deep sniff. "It's Adian's shirt," She confirmed.
Hunter growled deep within her throat and quickened her pace until she was flat out sprinting, the others hot on her heels.
They continued like this until they ran into trouble. Literally. Sammy, in a burst of speed, had sprinted out in front and smashed into the monster.
Needless to say, it didn't take kindly to that.
The demon rose to its full height, the legs were that of some sort of horse/dog mix, having cloven hooves, but the sleek fur of a greyhound, and its face was a horrible mix of human and goat, punctuated with deep scars and boils. It beat its bare chest with the flat of its axe and bellowed, spittle flying everywhere.
Gadget, covered head to toe in saliva, screamed, "WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!" and proceeded to force the monster to chop off its limbs with its own weapon, laughing all the way.
"DIE, MONSTER! DIIIIE!"
"Remind me to never get on this kids bad side…" Hunter whispered to James, who simply nodded, stunned out of speech.
Soon the demon was nothing but a pile of little bits of meat, and Gadget slipped his remote back into his pocket, and spun around on his heel, the spit on his body mixing with the darker blood.
"Alright, lets go."
The group nodded mutely and followed.
"I bet I could have done that faster…" Shade grumbled, crossing her arms tightly.
"Then why didn't you?" Sky remarked snidely, have heard the comment.
"Guys, lets not start this again!" Hunter snapped, acquainting her forehead with her palm.
The continued, as though she hadn't spoken.
"Why didn't you help, feathers?"
"Because I didn't have time to move!"
"Really? What happened to those 'amazing reflexes' you were bragging about?"
"I have never bragged about my reflexes, you absolute pancake!"
"Wow, you really need to work on your come backs, feathers~"
"You shouldn't talk, bitch!"
"Shut up!"
"Why should I?!"
"You're just a useless bird brain!"
"Me?! You're the one who didn't do anything when Adian and Vector disappeared! I'm sure you heard them being taken, you are a light sleeper, after all."
"I was passed out from the amount of power I used! I couldn't have heard anything!"
"Oh, sure you didn't! I bet you were too lazy to help!"
Shade let out an angered scream and lunged forward, claws extended. Sky held out her hand and her bronze staff appeared in a flash of gold light, the three blades on the end sharpened and the orb floating in the middle glowing white with power.
Sky swept the staff in front of her, and a strong gust of wind caught Shade in the chest, knocking her off balance. But Shade twisted so that she landed on her feet and she shot forward again, lashing out with her sharpened nails, leaving a deep gash in the tree behind Sky, as she had flow up at the last second.
James, who had been watching in horrified silence, snapped out of it as Shade drew her kantana.
"Hunter, Gadget, Sammy! We have to stop them before they hurt each other!"
The nodded and when to grab the feuding duo.
$%$%$
Shade stood at the edge of the clearing, moonlight casting its pale glow on her friends.
"I'm going to find him on my own," She whispered. "I don't need any help."
And she disappeared into the night.
"Shade's gone now too!" Hunter wailed, pulling at her long hair.
"I can still see tracts," Sammy replied evenly. "I'll go find her, you four keep looking for Adian and Vector."
Gadget nodded solemnly, before walking up to Sammy. He looked directly into Sammy's eyes, and just when everyone thought he was going to say something cryptic and motivational, Gadget drew back his hand and punched Sammy square in the gut.
Sammy doubled over, wheezing, and Hunter cracked up.
"You don't came back, I'll find you, and you'll get something 100x worse than that," Gadget said smartly.
Sammy gave him a thumbs up, to out of breathe to speak.
%^%^%
Not long after Sammy had embarked on his mini-quest, James, Hunter, Sky, and Gadget came across a stonewall.
But that wasn't what made James scream.
It was the words scrawled across, written in something that looked disturbingly like blood.
YOU HAVE 3 DAYS
All right, done!
Frist, reviews-
Wolf- I have no idea. Maybe it would be a draw? Anyway, I'm really happy you are enjoying this story, and I hope you liked this chapter!
Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review!