But now I'm in too deep
It's got me so that I just can't sleep
Ooh, get me out of here
Please, get me out of here
Just help me I'll do anything
Anything
If you just help
Get me out of here
--Genesis "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight"
/Make it stop,/ she begged. /Please make it stop..../
Her shoulder slammed into a chain-link fence, and she let out a dulled whimper of pain, her vision doubling again, though less than before. She kept moving forward, trying to outrun the taste of horror and death in her head, the burning light of conflagration that kept playing over and over in memory that wasn't there but was. Her shoes scraped the sidewalk as she wove her way down the darkened street in her own little nightmare.
"Ooo, heyyyy, honey, wanna play?" a male voice called to her from behind. She picked up her pace, the stagger drawing nothing but a jeering chuckle. He knew vulnerable prey when he saw it, she absently realized, and was toying with her. "Pretty girl like you shouldn't be out on the streets,."
Pretty girl shouldn't be seeing stuff. Pretty girl shouldn't have scars on her wrists and a full head of gapped memories. Pretty girl shouldn't be in the wrong country, in the wrong place, with the wrong people, who kept *asking* her things she couldn't answer, made her look inside her head, and cringe at the holes. Pretty girl shouldn't think taunting gangbangers and a metropolitan area after dark was more understandable and comprehensible than the kindness of a blonde woman and the taciturn inquisitions and care of a red-dressed young man with ice hair and eyes like a wolf's.
But they were. And it kept *hurting* her.
Make it stop, she whispered.
Someone wolf whistled. She ignored, turned down another street, heading westward towards the distant blue aftertaste of the setted sun. She still heard footfalls though, keeping pace. Only a matter of time before they grew bored and closed in. And then? The necklace felt bitterly cold against her neck.
Onward.
Someone decided to dash up and grope her, giggling. There were appreciative hoots from his compatriots as Anne's breast got a contact it didn't want and an arm wrapped around her waist. She squealed in pure panic as the mocking laughter of the gang sounded in her ears, the rest closing in for their own turns. She struggled, her captor apparently enjoying himself and his control too much to cut to the chase right away.
Her perceptions tunneled inward. No escape...
NONE....
Conscious thought left, the animal taking over...
*Crack*
The gloating laugh abruptly morphed into a scream of pain and a curse, as the woman managed to break away with a frantic twist, staggering away, fingers arched into panicked claws. He recovered himself, holding onto his shin, eyes glaring pure hate at his prey over bleeding weals on his cheek.
"Fucking *bitch*! Gonna make you *bleed* for that!" He limped upright, teeth baring at the pain of his shin, whipping out a gun. "Get that cunt! Make her *pay*! No one crosses Alfonse! GET HER, YOU ASSHOLES!" There was a ripple of rising shouts as the others left their state of shock behind to finally take him up on it, trailing the slender figure already running for it.
Anne's legs pumped, her heart hammering even more, the fear still live in her nerves, knowing it would be worse than rape or maiming if she were caught now, knowing she couldn't go up one against a half dozen.
Absently, she licked away the blood still traced on the nails of her right hand, even as she continued her headlong charge away.
But fighting had felt so *good*, for once, for a change..
A bullet whined past her, bursting into an overturned garbage can. She gulped, continuing her dash, her breath roaring into lungs, blood churning through veins scoured clean of the last traces of sedative by adrenalin. There was another shot, chipping off asphalt that scored into a leg, the blood tracking unfelt and leaving small splatters black in the streetlights. She stumbled momentarily, recovered, kept running. But some of her pursuers were faster and had more stamina, and were drawing up within easy firing range of her with their metal penis extensions.
/I won't go quietly/, the small voice inside her head uttered calmly, under the din of panic.
"What the fuck is taking so long to fire, man? Can't find your fucking triggerOh MY GOD HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT *HOLY SHIT*!"
The shout trailed off into a screech of shock, as from a perpendicular street an eerie howl rose. Counterpointed by the unearthly wail, a hammering clatter exploded, and then a black form, glistening in the hazy mercury-vapor light, obliterating it in a rear...
Anne look back, getting a glance.
Then she screamed, fear replaced with utter terror, the glance giving her too, too much to see. The air exploded with the reports of gunfire, not directed at her, but the grunting, wheezing howl was unstopped, and the pounding clatter grew, even with her dash, even as she gained space. Directed, she realized, with a white haze of horror, at her.
She left nothing left to think with. She just ran, droplets of blood continuing their intermittent pattern on the pitted asphalt.
It could smell the blood. Delicious, delicious blood, leading its way to its source, still hot and fresh, dripping freely from the prey. Running, but wounded, and bound to fall before too long. It grunted as a bullet found a haunch, but ignored, feeling the sting of healing set in, the lead causing no problem.
One of the other non-prey aimed again. It reached out with one arm and sent it sprawling in a blow that would have broken a neck had it actually been putting force into it. But it had its orders, and they had been given by one it dare not defy. It would take the prey first, then it would feed later. Not now.
But where had it gone? Only faint scent, and a singing coldness to the air....
It snarled, broken teeth exposed, nostrils flaring, sensing for the metal-sweet scent of lifeblood. There, but confused....it would need to hunt more thorougly now, but that only added to the pleasure. With a wail of exhiliration, it bunched its legs underneath it and continued, breaking through the power, searching for the scent.
Anne ran onward, frantic, still hearing a clatter behind her, though perhaps it was only the slap of her own soles on the streetside.
In the effort of the moment, she didn't feel the chill around her neck, or the greater glint of the bouncing silver medallions.
It's got me so that I just can't sleep
Ooh, get me out of here
Please, get me out of here
Just help me I'll do anything
Anything
If you just help
Get me out of here
--Genesis "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight"
/Make it stop,/ she begged. /Please make it stop..../
Her shoulder slammed into a chain-link fence, and she let out a dulled whimper of pain, her vision doubling again, though less than before. She kept moving forward, trying to outrun the taste of horror and death in her head, the burning light of conflagration that kept playing over and over in memory that wasn't there but was. Her shoes scraped the sidewalk as she wove her way down the darkened street in her own little nightmare.
"Ooo, heyyyy, honey, wanna play?" a male voice called to her from behind. She picked up her pace, the stagger drawing nothing but a jeering chuckle. He knew vulnerable prey when he saw it, she absently realized, and was toying with her. "Pretty girl like you shouldn't be out on the streets,."
Pretty girl shouldn't be seeing stuff. Pretty girl shouldn't have scars on her wrists and a full head of gapped memories. Pretty girl shouldn't be in the wrong country, in the wrong place, with the wrong people, who kept *asking* her things she couldn't answer, made her look inside her head, and cringe at the holes. Pretty girl shouldn't think taunting gangbangers and a metropolitan area after dark was more understandable and comprehensible than the kindness of a blonde woman and the taciturn inquisitions and care of a red-dressed young man with ice hair and eyes like a wolf's.
But they were. And it kept *hurting* her.
Make it stop, she whispered.
Someone wolf whistled. She ignored, turned down another street, heading westward towards the distant blue aftertaste of the setted sun. She still heard footfalls though, keeping pace. Only a matter of time before they grew bored and closed in. And then? The necklace felt bitterly cold against her neck.
Onward.
Someone decided to dash up and grope her, giggling. There were appreciative hoots from his compatriots as Anne's breast got a contact it didn't want and an arm wrapped around her waist. She squealed in pure panic as the mocking laughter of the gang sounded in her ears, the rest closing in for their own turns. She struggled, her captor apparently enjoying himself and his control too much to cut to the chase right away.
Her perceptions tunneled inward. No escape...
NONE....
Conscious thought left, the animal taking over...
*Crack*
The gloating laugh abruptly morphed into a scream of pain and a curse, as the woman managed to break away with a frantic twist, staggering away, fingers arched into panicked claws. He recovered himself, holding onto his shin, eyes glaring pure hate at his prey over bleeding weals on his cheek.
"Fucking *bitch*! Gonna make you *bleed* for that!" He limped upright, teeth baring at the pain of his shin, whipping out a gun. "Get that cunt! Make her *pay*! No one crosses Alfonse! GET HER, YOU ASSHOLES!" There was a ripple of rising shouts as the others left their state of shock behind to finally take him up on it, trailing the slender figure already running for it.
Anne's legs pumped, her heart hammering even more, the fear still live in her nerves, knowing it would be worse than rape or maiming if she were caught now, knowing she couldn't go up one against a half dozen.
Absently, she licked away the blood still traced on the nails of her right hand, even as she continued her headlong charge away.
But fighting had felt so *good*, for once, for a change..
A bullet whined past her, bursting into an overturned garbage can. She gulped, continuing her dash, her breath roaring into lungs, blood churning through veins scoured clean of the last traces of sedative by adrenalin. There was another shot, chipping off asphalt that scored into a leg, the blood tracking unfelt and leaving small splatters black in the streetlights. She stumbled momentarily, recovered, kept running. But some of her pursuers were faster and had more stamina, and were drawing up within easy firing range of her with their metal penis extensions.
/I won't go quietly/, the small voice inside her head uttered calmly, under the din of panic.
"What the fuck is taking so long to fire, man? Can't find your fucking triggerOh MY GOD HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT *HOLY SHIT*!"
The shout trailed off into a screech of shock, as from a perpendicular street an eerie howl rose. Counterpointed by the unearthly wail, a hammering clatter exploded, and then a black form, glistening in the hazy mercury-vapor light, obliterating it in a rear...
Anne look back, getting a glance.
Then she screamed, fear replaced with utter terror, the glance giving her too, too much to see. The air exploded with the reports of gunfire, not directed at her, but the grunting, wheezing howl was unstopped, and the pounding clatter grew, even with her dash, even as she gained space. Directed, she realized, with a white haze of horror, at her.
She left nothing left to think with. She just ran, droplets of blood continuing their intermittent pattern on the pitted asphalt.
It could smell the blood. Delicious, delicious blood, leading its way to its source, still hot and fresh, dripping freely from the prey. Running, but wounded, and bound to fall before too long. It grunted as a bullet found a haunch, but ignored, feeling the sting of healing set in, the lead causing no problem.
One of the other non-prey aimed again. It reached out with one arm and sent it sprawling in a blow that would have broken a neck had it actually been putting force into it. But it had its orders, and they had been given by one it dare not defy. It would take the prey first, then it would feed later. Not now.
But where had it gone? Only faint scent, and a singing coldness to the air....
It snarled, broken teeth exposed, nostrils flaring, sensing for the metal-sweet scent of lifeblood. There, but confused....it would need to hunt more thorougly now, but that only added to the pleasure. With a wail of exhiliration, it bunched its legs underneath it and continued, breaking through the power, searching for the scent.
Anne ran onward, frantic, still hearing a clatter behind her, though perhaps it was only the slap of her own soles on the streetside.
In the effort of the moment, she didn't feel the chill around her neck, or the greater glint of the bouncing silver medallions.
