Boxed In
1-1

My stomach churned as the Dragon craft banked, and I held my breath in an effort to calm myself. I wasn't scared of heights, or flying, but the small aircraft seemed to feel every shift and dip in the wind. It didn't help that there were only two living people onboard, including me, and neither of us was the pilot.

"Sorry for the turbulence," Dragon said again. "Weather conditions around the target have been abnormal since the wall went up."

"Right…" Don't be sick, don't be sick, don't be sick! My clawed foot tapped on the bare metal of the floor as I tried to find an outlet for my nerves.

Dragon hadn't been kidding when she'd said that the craft hadn't originally been intended to carry people. The seats had been bolted to the floor of what I suspected was a cargo hold and had the bare minimum of padding, with specially fitted restraints to keep us from tumbling about.

If we even still count as people…

I pushed the thought aside. Dragon had insisted I was still 'me' and that, legally, I was still human.

"You need to relax," Madison said quietly, even though her own face was pale. A hand reached out for my shoulder, but I glared at her until she pulled back, her furry ears drooping.

I could tolerate working with her, even talking, but I wasn't ready to touch the girl.

Despite everything that had happened between us, all that she and her friends and done to me, she seemed desperate to touch me, following me everywhere, her mouth rambling about one silly topic or another.

In containment, I'd had ways to avoid her, but in the cramped confines of the Dragon craft, I didn't have that luxury.

"Taylor, I—"

"If I talk, I'm going to be sick." Keeping my eyes closed, I tried to press the back of my head against the cool metal behind me, only for my horns to bang into it instead.

After another sudden jolt, the ride suddenly smoothed out, though I could feel the ship banking again. The intercom beeped and Dragon's voice filled the air. "I've had to go higher to avoid the turbulence. I'm sorry."

Fifteen thousand feet, sixteen thousand feet, it didn't really make much difference. I was still planning on jumping out of the ship and trusting my wings to land. Sure, testing had proven that I could fly, but this was very different from a few short flights in a test chamber.

"We're nearly there." A nearby screen lit up, and Dragon's face appeared. The first time I'd seen her, I'd been surprised by how normal she looked. Dark hair, dark eyes and a skin tone that could be from anywhere. I could have passed her on the street and never looked twice. The naked concern on her face only served to make me feel guilty. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

No. "Yes." I tried to keep my voice calm, to sound more confident than I felt. I suspect the twitching of my tail gave me away.

"I-I... yes. I need to know what happened," Madison said, her voice wavering, and she refused to look at me or Dragon.

"Very well." Dragon paused and the image on the screen changed. Now it showed a city that was surrounded by a large wall and capped by a glowing blue dome. My heart clenched at the sight of my home, now another quarantine zone.

"Construction of the wall finished three weeks ago," Dragon said calmly, as the image rotated. "A week later, the 'fog' that appeared after the giant incident had spread far enough to completely obscure the city. Two days later, we lost contact with the PRT HQ. Hours after that, the relief centers inside the perimeter wall went silent."

The image changed again, showing one of the specially-designed gates that had been built into the wall. Each one had a refugee center built into it that was supposed to distribute food and water and even offer communications with the outside world.

In the picture, trucks were parked outside the gates and people were milling about.

"What happened to them?" Madison asked, leaning forward to look closer at the image.

"We're not sure. I'm sorry to say that one or more centers going silent isn't abnormal. In situations like this, people get desperate, and desperate people can be dangerous. But all four — and within hours of each other? That speaks of coordinated attacks."

Dragon's face reappeared, and she looked at us both as she chewed on her bottom lip. Eventually, she seemed to come to a decision.

"We haven't made it public yet, but the southern center was able to get a message out… I'm not supposed to show you this, but you deserve to know."

A video opened on the screen. In it, people were lining up at a counter that was handing out boxes. My eyes flicked from one person to the next, hoping to spot Dad. A minute later, one of the 'refugees' fell over, his body twisting and thrashing.

I felt a pang of sympathy as people pulled away from him, and his limbs started to grow, having gone through the same thing myself. Huge bone like spines tore from his back, skin still hanging from them. His face stretched outwards, mouth opening to reveal row after row of teeth.

People started to run, trying to get out, but others were also starting to transform, some of them blocking the doors as they changed.

The creatures, not even recognisable as human, started attacking the people around them, newly grown claws carving through flesh like butter and covering the floor in blood.

The footage cut out as one of the monsters tore a woman open.

I tried to force back another wave of nausea. Next to me, Madison was making heaving noises.

"Is… is that going to happen to us?" she asked eventually, her body trembling. "Are we going to eat people?"

"No," Dragon said quietly. "You're both stable, or I wouldn't have allowed this mission. The virus in your system is dormant and no longer able to affect you."

But we're still carriers, I thought to myself. That was why it was just the two of us inside this ship: Because we could still infect others.

I looked at my claws. My changes had been… extensive, but I was still clearly human. Patches of dark scales covered my body, starting on my face, then in running in lines down my arms, back and chest. Large batlike wings emerged from my back, flexible enough that I could wrap them around my shoulders like a cape.

The biggest changes were to my arms and feet. My forearms were covered in scales that built up in layers like armoured gauntlets all the way down to my nails, which had become claws. My lower legs were similar, with armoured scales covering my legs from my knees down. I walked on the balls of my feet, my toes now three large claws.

Combined with the large horns on my head, I looked like a cross between a dragon and a human. I even had a tail that was nearly as long as my leg. The wider hips and large breasts, however, made me look more like some sort of erotic cosplayer. Thankfully, Dragon had made sure I still had clothes that fit and downplayed those changes.

"I'll ask again," Dragon said, her face appearing on the screen. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

I pushed down the fear that had been wrapping around my insides for days now and forced the words out. "My dad's still in there."

Madison just nodded.

"Very well," Dragon said with a soft smile. "Take your positions and get ready."

Nodding, I unstrapped myself and moved towards the back of the craft, taking a moment to adjust the straps on my body armour, Madison quickly following me. Without stopping to ask, she quickly reached up and adjusted how my armour was resting between my wings.

I sent her a glare, especially when her hands brushed across my shoulders, but she just smiled back at me.

For this 'mission', Dragon had modified a PRT combat uniform for me, cutting off the lower legs and forearms, then making holes in the back of the body armour for my wings.

She'd done the same thing for Madison, though as she had fewer visible changes, her uniform hadn't needed as many alterations. Really, all she needed was a hole for her long, red tail.

The doors opened with the sound of rushing wind, and I quickly scooped Madison up into a bridal carry. The smaller girl snuggled into my chest with a blush, and I considered just letting her fall.

"Go!" Dragon said, her voice coming from a small device in my ear, and I ran forwards, jumping out of the ship and letting myself fall towards the glowing dome.

The wall formed a ring around the city, even going out into the bay. I wasn't sure how it had been constructed, but Dragon had mentioned it sitting above the waves and being heavily patrolled.

My wings twitched, steering me towards the northeastern edge of the wall and as close as I could get to the docks without hitting the densest part of the fog. In my mind, I could picture the automated turrets mounted on the wall, tracking our descent and ready to fire should it look like I was going anywhere but the city.

This hadn't been our first or even second choice for entering the city, but by the time the PRT had realised something was wrong, the gates had been sealed shut from the inside. And the PRT didn't want to risk breaking containment by forcing entry.

Dragon had also attempted to navigate the bay, but she'd lost contact with the ship the moment it'd reached the 'fog'.

Below me, the shield was getting closer. Dragon had sworn that the shield was a one-way system, allowing us in but not out. I tried not to think about what would happen if she was wrong.

Madison pushed her head against my chest, eyes closed and ears pinned to her head in an effort to block out the noise as we fell. Personally, I barely felt the wind as I let my new instincts guide me.

Narrowing my eyes, I forced myself not to flinch as we hit the shield. As promised, it passed over us harmlessly with only a slight tingle on my skin, and I snapped my wings open to catch the wind.

Madison squeaked at the way we jerked in the air. Something about the sound sent a pleasant shiver down my spine, and without thinking about it, I banked a couple more times, only stopping when she turned a worrying shade of green.

Originally, I'd planned to fly all the way to our destination, but Madison was heavier than she looked, and keeping us both in the air was starting to tire me out.

Worse than that was the fog.

Dragon had warned us about it before we left. It had started in the bay, where the creature had been left, but had quickly spread across the city. Apparently, before the city had been isolated, people had reported odd sounds and feelings when exposed to it.

Experiencing it now, I knew just what they meant. It was like swimming through treacle; I could feel the fog pressing down on me like it was trying to drag me under. I could barely see more than a few feet in front of me, even with my enhanced eyesight, forcing me to slow down or risk crashing into something.

Surrendering, I let myself float slowly to the ground.

"That was mean," Madison whined, leaning against a wall to recover. Her ears and tail were down, her face pale as she took deep breaths, and I felt my cheeks flush.

What the fuck was wrong with me?

Madison was… well, she was a bitch. One of Emma's little followers who had dedicated themselves to making my life hell. I shouldn't be getting 'warm and tingly' from her making squeaking noises.

As she stood up, I looked at her ears and tail. Aside from her hair turning fire-red, they were more or less the only outward signs of her transformation, and they made her look cute and innocent. Maybe that was the problem? If I was some sort of predator, maybe her being a mouse made teasing her fun?

I'm sure it was something like that.

Now that she no longer looked sick, Madison stood up and looked around. It was almost amusing how her nose twitched at the air.

"Okay, where now?"

"The Dockworkers' Union is that way," I said, peering into the gloom. Down here on the ground, the fog wasn't as bad, but it was still messing with my perspective. The buildings around us seemed to stretch for miles into the sky, vanishing into the fog.

"But what about the refugee centers?"

"We'll go there later. First, I need to find my dad." I'd do what Dragon asked, and find out what happened here, but Dad was my priority. I tapped my earpiece, hoping for some kind of warning or comment from Dragon, but all I got was silence.

Oh well, we hadn't expected it to work anyway. Every drone or ship Dragon had sent into the city had vanished as soon as it'd reached the fog. Even so, her help, limited as it would have been, would have been nice.

"Come on, I don't want to be here after dark." Turning, I started walking, with Madison following quietly behind.

##

The streets were empty as we walked, the normally bustling city silent, the ever-present fog covering everything and muffling any noise.

Occasionally, I'd catch movement in the corner of my eye, only for it to vanish when I turned.

Madison followed along behind me, her feet almost silent. One or twice, I heard her draw breath, likely getting ready to say something before thinking better of it.

"Taylor?" she eventually asked.

"What?" Now that I'd had a chance to calm down, it was easier to be indifferent to her presence.

"We never really talked about… before…"

Looking over my shoulder, I glared at her. "Is this really the time for that?" I snapped.

"… no, I suppose not." Deflating slightly, she looked at the ground in front of her, and we continued to walk in silence.

"Taylor?"

Sighing, I turned to face her. "What?"

"Haven't we passed that building already?"

My irritation evaporated as I followed her gaze to the building she was talking about.

It had once been a Chinese takeaway place, one of the hundreds throughout the city. Now, it was just another empty husk, its windows smashed and door missing, the building filled with darkness. The sign above the door said 'Wong's' in faded and chipped letters.

Madison was right. We'd walked past it three times already.

Something's not right. The hairs on my neck rose and I spun around, peering into the gloom. We'd been walking in a straight line without taking any turns. It just wasn't possible for us to pass the same place three times.

"Master effect?" Madison's voice wavered as she moved closer to me.

I shook my head. "Shaker is more likely…" Masters were parahumans who could control other people or animals, influencing them in some fashion. Shakers, meanwhile, messed with the world around them, either directly or indirectly.

The only Shaker in the city who could do this was Vista, a member of the Wards. At least, she had been. Who knew what powers people had now.

My stomach twisted as I looked at the empty streets, my eyes darting from one darkened window to the next. I really hoped it didn't come to a fight.

Dragon had done what she could to teach us both to use our powers, but I'd never been in a real fight before.

Madison gasped, her mouselike ears twitching as she turned towards a building on the other side of the street. Glaring into the darkness, I saw a shape move in the shadows, its claws tapping on the pavement as it emerged.

Skinless, exposed bone and muscle glistened in the fog. It was as big as a man, its limbs stretched and twisted to let it walk on all fours like an animal. Its face stretched forward like a muzzle with a mouth that seemed to run from ear to ear — at least, where ears would have been on a human.

Stepping forward, it growled, and Madison took a step back.

"Isn't that one of the things that Dragon showed us?" she hissed.

"No, I don't think so." I flexed my claws and focused on its eyeless face. It was similar to the one in the video, but smaller and with fewer spines. Even so, it had likely been human once.

As the creature paced back and forth, there was a scraping noise behind me. I spun around to see another one burst from the nearest building, and I froze as it cleared the distance in two strides and pounced.

It slammed into me, knocking the wind from my lungs and sending us both to the floor. My vision swam, and I could hear Madison screaming as the monster's jaws snapped at my face, its claws digging into my body armour.

Holding my arm against its chest, I did my best to throw it off, but the monster was heavier than it looked and thrashing like an angry snake.

"Taylor, hold on!"

I could hear the sounds of Madison's flames as she danced around the other creature, but I couldn't spare the time to look.

Growing desperate, I pulled a hand free and drove my claws into the monster's side. Taking a deep breath, I let my own fire travel up my throat. Before the creature could break free, I opened my mouth and roared.

A torrent of flame burst forth, white-hot from anger. The monster thrashed wildly for what felt like an age before finally going still. Even so, I didn't stop until I was gasping for air.

Throwing the smoldering corpse off me, I rolled over to see Madison step around a lunge from the other monster, her arms and legs engulfed in her fire. Scorch marks pocked the pavement and the monster's flank.

Pushing myself to my feet, I took another deep breath and let out a roar without the fire.

The sound echoed in the empty streets, and the monster hesitated, its eyeless head snapping between me and Madison, before it turned and ran, vanishing back into the gloom.

For a moment, neither of us moved, then Madison collapsed, her fire going out as she curled up on herself, her body trembling.

I managed to take a few shaky steps towards her before the anger that had been filling me slipped away, taking the strength from my body, and I fell to my knees next to her, panting for breath.

"You okay?" I asked, once I was sure I wasn't going to be sick.

"I… I think so… I just… I never thought… what happened here?!" She wasn't quite whining, but I could see tears shining in her eyes.

"I don't know…"

There was a noise, and we both hesitated, looking around frantically in case that monster had returned. After a moment of not seeing anything, we heard it again, and something bounced off my leg.

Looking down, I saw a small piece of stone.

"Oh for… up here!" a voice hissed, and I looked up to see someone looking down at us from a third-story window. It was a woman, older than me, maybe in her twenties, with scales on her face.

"Quickly," she hissed, "get inside! Something will have heard the noise you were making!"

In the distance, something roared.

Madison and I shared a look before forcing ourselves up and moving towards the building she was in.

Inside, bits of furniture had been arranged like a barricade, with broom handles and other objects shaped into angled spikes to stop anything from just running through the blockage. There was a door beyond it, but it had been covered in wood and debris.

Light filled the room suddenly as a section of the ceiling was pulled away, revealing a square opening.

"Up here!" The woman's voice came from above, and a length of rope fell down.

Madison and I shared a confused look, her ears twitching before she scrambled up the rope with an ease I almost envied.

Looking at the rope, I gave up on any thoughts of climbing it. My clawed hands were too clumsy for that. Instead, I stood under the hole and jumped, wings pinned to my back.

I reached the ceiling with ease, grabbing the edge of the hole and pulling myself through. Madison was quick to grab my arm in an effort to help, but after the fight, I didn't have the energy to push her off.

The room we were in was mostly empty, with a few boxes scattered around and a single bulb hanging from a cable on the ceiling. The nearby windows were covered by thick black cloth, keeping the light from spilling out.

The only occupant beyond Madison and myself was the woman who had called us inside. Her dark hair was cut at shoulder level, though given how choppy and uneven the cut was, I assumed she'd done it herself. A simple, loose-fitting t-shirt covered her torso, reaching to what should have been mid-thigh and leaving her lower body exposed. Instead of legs, she had a snakelike tail that stretched out behind her.

Madison stared for a long moment, then stepped carefully behind me with a squeak.

"Honestly, what were you thinking?" the woman hissed, replacing the trap door. "Walking around out there at night? You're lucky I didn't just leave you out there!"

"Night? It's midday... At least, it was when we landed." Madison gasped, checking the time on her phone.

The woman scoffed. "This close to the fucking docks? You're lucky it's still the same day. What are you even doing out here?"

"I'm looking for my dad. He works at the docks."

"Works at…" The woman's eyes narrowed, and her head flicked from Madison to me, her eyes darting over our clothes.

"You don't know what's going on, do you?" She gasped in sudden realisation. "Are you from outside?"

"Yeah." I flexed my claws and stood up as straight as I could, trying to look more confident than I felt. "Dragon sent us in to find out what happened when the refugee centers went quiet."

"Well they sure took their fucking time," the woman snarled. "Of course the shelters went quiet when they stopped sending food. Do you know what it's been like for us? Trapped in this city with those things all this time?"

"What are you talking about? It's only been a few days, at most."

"Days?" the woman almost screamed, moving closer and glaring down at me. Quills on her shoulders stood up as she tensed, and I got ready for her to dive at me. "Listen, I don't know what you think you know, but no one—"

Her rant was cut off by Madison stepping around me and pushing her phone in front of the woman's face. She stared at the screen, quills dropping as she shook her head, eyes wide in shock.

"Is this right?" she asked, her voice suddenly quiet, brittle. I realised, with a sinking feeling, that I'd heard that tone before. Madison and I hadn't been the only ones at Dragon's containment center, after all.

"How long has it been?" I asked carefully, stepping forward and putting a hand on her shoulder. "Since the wall was completed?"

Leaning back on her coils, the woman looked at me, eyes shining with unshed tears. "It's been nearly four months…"

What the fuck?

AN: Chapter commissioned by NaGeL.

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