Chapter IX:
The Long Shortcut
The black rental car sped down the dark, deserted road. The wind blew through the girls' hair. The moon sparkled in Cordillia's eye, as she continued to drive down the dark, dusty road. "Um, Cordillia," Hotaru queried, "Don't you think we should have followed the guys, instead of taking our own way?" "Of course not!" Cordillia responded smugly, "I know exactly where we're going! We will beat the guys there by miles. This shortcut was a great idea." "Cordillia, you don't even know any of the roads in the Philippines.. Um, nevermind. You never listen to me anyway. Just keep driving us into the oblivion." Hotaru said sarcastically. "Hotaru," Cordillia retorted ignorantly, taking her eyes off the road, "I do to listen to you! Why do you think I bring you to meetings with me. I always am asking you for help." Hotaru replied, "Cordillia! You always are listening to yourself! Your ego is way too big! It's all because you." "Cordillia!! Watch out!!!" Hitomi screamed as she jumped from the back seat, and grabbed the wheel. She turned it quickly. 'THUD'! The three girls were thrown around as the car spun around and swirved to the side of the road. It stopped. Smoke poured from under the hood of the car. The girls looked at each other. Cordillia ran her finger across her cheek, brushing her hair behind her ear. She looked at her hand. A smeared line of blood ran along it. She adjusted the rear-view mirror, to look at her face. Small rivulets of blood dripped down her cheek. "You guys." she whimpered, "are you ok?" "Yeah," they both replied. They looked to the dirt road. A dark figure laid in the middle of the street. "Wha.What did we do?" Hitomi inquired fretfully. "I hope he's not." Cordillia said nervously, "dead." "You guys!" Hotaru said, as a tear dripped down her cheek, "Don't say things like that! Just stay calm. This isn't a really big deal. We'll just call for help." They looked at each other. Cordillia reached into her purse and pulled out a cell phone. She dialed the number. Cordillia heard a lady speaking a foreign language, followed by, "Press two, if you speak English" "Tres, en hable Espanol." Cordillia pressed 2.
"Hello! 9-1-1, what's your emergency?" a lady said with a filipino accent.
"Yes, um, we're in the middle of no where, and we just hit a person. We were driving to our hotel and.well, we kinda got lost. I didn't see the man."
"Who is with you?"
"It's me, and my two friends."
"Yes, is the man alive?"
"We're not exactly sure. Actually, we don't even," "Cordillia," Hotaru interrupted. Cordillia stuck her hand in Hotaru's face as she continued "know if it's a man. We can't," "Cordillia!" Hotaru said again. Cordillia looked at her and signaled with her eyes to be quiet. "really see detai." "CORDILLIA!" Hotaru and Hitomi yelled. Cordillia covered the phone. "What!" Cordillia said agitatedly. "It's gone." Hitomi whispered. "What?!" Cordillia said. "It's gone." Hotaru informed. There was a banging noise on the back of the car. The girls quickly rolled up the windows.
"Hello? Hello? Are you ok?" the operator asked. Cordillia shook nervously. Her trembling hand dropped the phone. Hotaru grabbed on to her arm. Cordillia turned to Hitomi, with a nervous look. They slowly turned around, struggling to keep their eyes open. Then they heard a loud thump on the top of the vehicle. All three girls jumped. Hitomi bit her lip, as Hotaru squeezed Cordillia's arm tightly. They looked up and watched the roof in terror. Sweat poured down the side of their faces. The footsteps pounded along the roof of the car. A shrill screeching noise ran along the top of the vehicle. A dark, shadowy head peeked slowly down from the top of the car. It's large, glowing red eyes sent piercing terror through the girls. The three just stared at the thing. It had no face, only two fiery eyes. It climbed down from the vehicle. It put it's khaki hat on, covering its face. It brushed off it's black suit, as Cordillia, Hitomi, and Hotaru watched in terror. Cordillia pulled her skirt up, and pulled out her pistol, which was attached by a strip of leather around her thigh. She held it tightly, glaring at the thing outside. Her finger slid back slowly. Three shots were fired. The mysterious figure fell to the floor. Cordillia fired two more shots. The thing remained motionless. "W.What was . that, that. thing?" Hitomi bleated. "I don't know." Cordillia said, starting to breath again, "but someone needs to see if it's dead." "Cordillia!" Hotaru cried, "This always happens in movies! It will suddenly jump up when we turn around, or something." Then she grabbed onto the steering wheel, and rammed her foot onto the gas pedal. 'THUMP!' She ran over the body again. 'ch-ch-ch...BOOM!' Smoke began to pour from under the hood again. This time, a lot more than the last. The sound returned, 'ch-ch-ch-ch.' "That doesn't sound good." Hitomi said nervously. The girls stepped out of the car. "Cli-POP!' More smoke poured out. They stared at the car.
Cordillia quickly turned around, remembering the strange man. He was gone. Cordillia gasped, "He's gone again." The girls looked around. Large bushes, marshes, and weeds surrounded the dirt road. There was a rustling noise in a bush behind Hitomi. She slowly came closer and closer to it, with Cordillia and Hotaru behind her. They screamed as a clutter of bats flew out. The bats surrounded them, flying through their hair, ripping their clothing. 'j-j-j-POP!' The car popped up, and another puff of smoke came out of the hood. The bats scattered and flew away. Dead silence surrounded the girls.
Cordillia walked over to the beat-up car. She reached in to pull out the keys. As she was coming out, she bumped her head on the roof. "God damn it!" she cursed, noticing that her earring fell off. "Cordillia!" Hotaru cried, "Hurry up!" Cordillia stuck her hand out of the car to tell her to hold on. Hitomi shivered, "I'm getting kinda cold." "See!" Cordillia rebuked, "I told you we needed to pack warm clothes! I don't know why you made me put all my winter clothes back!" Hotaru frowned. A drop of sweat appeared on the side of her head. Cordillia returned to her search for her earring. Hotaru and Hitomi started to look around again. A bright light came from inside the car. Hitomi called, "Cordillia, what are y,y...A.AHHHHH!" She screamed in pain. She grabbed her hair, pulling it roughly. She screamed in agony, bending down on her knees. Hotaru grabbed her, helping her up. Hitomi stopped. Her body went limp in Hotaru's arms. The light went out in the car. Cordillia ran out. "Hotaru! Hotaru!" she called, "I saw.the, the.thing. It's going to come back!" She was breathing heavily. "What?! When?? Cordillia! When?!" Hotaru yelled. "I don't know! My visions don't give me a time!" Cordillia responded. Hotaru sighed. She handed Hitomi to Cordillia. "The vision knocked her out again. I hope she's ok," Hotaru said. She looked at her watch as she yawned. It was 11:36p.m. They walked back to the car and laid Hitomi in the backseat. Hotaru and Cordillia went back up to the front and sat down. Cordillia grabbed a mirror from her purse, and looked at the dried blood on her face. She pulled out a disinfectant hand cloth, and unwrapped it. She wiped off all the dried blood. Hotaru placed her hand on the gash on Cordillia's face. A feint, purple light came from her hand, and the cut healed. Hotaru smiled. "Thanks," Cordillia said and smiled back. Then they heard a sudden pound behind the car. Cordillia reached in her purse and grasped a small golden 'pen-like' wand, with a teal jewel at the top, and an Earth symbol in the middle. Hotaru pulled out hers too. Hotaru's had a purple jewel with a Saturn symbol in the middle though. Cordillia held hers up, and teal sparks flew from the top of the wand. The jewel began to glow, and a teal light captured Cordillia. Hotaru said, "I've had enough of that creature," and with that, she held up hers. Purple sparks came, and the jewel lit up. The purple light then abducted her too.
The monster crept along the outside of the car. He slid his long trench coat sleeve down, revealing his long, razor-sharp, metal fingernails. He glided them along the back window, slicing it finely, staring at Hitomi. His collar fell back, revealing his mouth full of silver, spike teeth, shaping into an evil grin. Two footsteps trudged behind him. He turned around, dropping his trench coat. The monster had a human-shape body, but it was all black, and his mauve veins ran along the outside of his tight black, demon skin. Cordillia and Hotaru stood in front of him in their Sailor Scout outfits.
Cordillia held a long, black pole, with an arced blade and a sharp thrust in the middle, at each side. The two blades had ancient symbols on them, in a circle, resembling the elements, and two in the middle which stood for life and death. Hotaru held a long black pole, and a blade, similar to Cordillia's Axion, but only on one side and without the symbols. It was more like a small rapier, with one side shorter than the other. She held her Silence Glaive high in the air. It began to blaze with a purple light. Cordillia twirled her Axion swiftly. The sharp blades gathered raging flames, as a red symbols lit up. The monster jumped toward them. Cordillia flipped over him, as Hotaru cut him with her Glaive. He sliced Hotaru across her stomach, and Cordillia jammed her flaming Axion into his back. The monster bent back, screaming in pain. Hotaru got up, and wedged her Glaive into the ground. The atmosphere around them became black with a dead silence. A long, narrow crack bolted under the demon. A purple light bursted through the crevice. Cordillia pulled out her weapon from the creatures back. The monster began to shake comatosely. It started to fade away. The blinding light began to hurt Cordillia's eyes and she turned around, covering her face with her arm. The monster disappeared fully. The environment slowly came back around them.
Hotaru pulled her Silence Glaive out of the road. Cordillia squinted and rubbed her eyes. Purple and teal sparks came from under Hotaru and Cordillia. Their outfits changed back to normal. The girls large weapons, shrunk back into their transforming wands. Hotaru looked at her slashed stomach. A purple light came from inside the wounds, and they slowly closed up. The two girls got in the car and checked on Hitomi. Cordillia stuck the key in the ignition. She turned it several times, but no luck. It made a strange 'whirling' noise. Cordillia dropped her head on the wheel. The horn blew loudly. She opened her eyes slowly. A bright light shot out from them. Her body began to glow too. Hotaru looked around quicky. The light surrounded the car. Hotaru screamed frantically, "Cordillia?! Cordillia! Cordillia."
The Long Shortcut
The black rental car sped down the dark, deserted road. The wind blew through the girls' hair. The moon sparkled in Cordillia's eye, as she continued to drive down the dark, dusty road. "Um, Cordillia," Hotaru queried, "Don't you think we should have followed the guys, instead of taking our own way?" "Of course not!" Cordillia responded smugly, "I know exactly where we're going! We will beat the guys there by miles. This shortcut was a great idea." "Cordillia, you don't even know any of the roads in the Philippines.. Um, nevermind. You never listen to me anyway. Just keep driving us into the oblivion." Hotaru said sarcastically. "Hotaru," Cordillia retorted ignorantly, taking her eyes off the road, "I do to listen to you! Why do you think I bring you to meetings with me. I always am asking you for help." Hotaru replied, "Cordillia! You always are listening to yourself! Your ego is way too big! It's all because you." "Cordillia!! Watch out!!!" Hitomi screamed as she jumped from the back seat, and grabbed the wheel. She turned it quickly. 'THUD'! The three girls were thrown around as the car spun around and swirved to the side of the road. It stopped. Smoke poured from under the hood of the car. The girls looked at each other. Cordillia ran her finger across her cheek, brushing her hair behind her ear. She looked at her hand. A smeared line of blood ran along it. She adjusted the rear-view mirror, to look at her face. Small rivulets of blood dripped down her cheek. "You guys." she whimpered, "are you ok?" "Yeah," they both replied. They looked to the dirt road. A dark figure laid in the middle of the street. "Wha.What did we do?" Hitomi inquired fretfully. "I hope he's not." Cordillia said nervously, "dead." "You guys!" Hotaru said, as a tear dripped down her cheek, "Don't say things like that! Just stay calm. This isn't a really big deal. We'll just call for help." They looked at each other. Cordillia reached into her purse and pulled out a cell phone. She dialed the number. Cordillia heard a lady speaking a foreign language, followed by, "Press two, if you speak English" "Tres, en hable Espanol." Cordillia pressed 2.
"Hello! 9-1-1, what's your emergency?" a lady said with a filipino accent.
"Yes, um, we're in the middle of no where, and we just hit a person. We were driving to our hotel and.well, we kinda got lost. I didn't see the man."
"Who is with you?"
"It's me, and my two friends."
"Yes, is the man alive?"
"We're not exactly sure. Actually, we don't even," "Cordillia," Hotaru interrupted. Cordillia stuck her hand in Hotaru's face as she continued "know if it's a man. We can't," "Cordillia!" Hotaru said again. Cordillia looked at her and signaled with her eyes to be quiet. "really see detai." "CORDILLIA!" Hotaru and Hitomi yelled. Cordillia covered the phone. "What!" Cordillia said agitatedly. "It's gone." Hitomi whispered. "What?!" Cordillia said. "It's gone." Hotaru informed. There was a banging noise on the back of the car. The girls quickly rolled up the windows.
"Hello? Hello? Are you ok?" the operator asked. Cordillia shook nervously. Her trembling hand dropped the phone. Hotaru grabbed on to her arm. Cordillia turned to Hitomi, with a nervous look. They slowly turned around, struggling to keep their eyes open. Then they heard a loud thump on the top of the vehicle. All three girls jumped. Hitomi bit her lip, as Hotaru squeezed Cordillia's arm tightly. They looked up and watched the roof in terror. Sweat poured down the side of their faces. The footsteps pounded along the roof of the car. A shrill screeching noise ran along the top of the vehicle. A dark, shadowy head peeked slowly down from the top of the car. It's large, glowing red eyes sent piercing terror through the girls. The three just stared at the thing. It had no face, only two fiery eyes. It climbed down from the vehicle. It put it's khaki hat on, covering its face. It brushed off it's black suit, as Cordillia, Hitomi, and Hotaru watched in terror. Cordillia pulled her skirt up, and pulled out her pistol, which was attached by a strip of leather around her thigh. She held it tightly, glaring at the thing outside. Her finger slid back slowly. Three shots were fired. The mysterious figure fell to the floor. Cordillia fired two more shots. The thing remained motionless. "W.What was . that, that. thing?" Hitomi bleated. "I don't know." Cordillia said, starting to breath again, "but someone needs to see if it's dead." "Cordillia!" Hotaru cried, "This always happens in movies! It will suddenly jump up when we turn around, or something." Then she grabbed onto the steering wheel, and rammed her foot onto the gas pedal. 'THUMP!' She ran over the body again. 'ch-ch-ch...BOOM!' Smoke began to pour from under the hood again. This time, a lot more than the last. The sound returned, 'ch-ch-ch-ch.' "That doesn't sound good." Hitomi said nervously. The girls stepped out of the car. "Cli-POP!' More smoke poured out. They stared at the car.
Cordillia quickly turned around, remembering the strange man. He was gone. Cordillia gasped, "He's gone again." The girls looked around. Large bushes, marshes, and weeds surrounded the dirt road. There was a rustling noise in a bush behind Hitomi. She slowly came closer and closer to it, with Cordillia and Hotaru behind her. They screamed as a clutter of bats flew out. The bats surrounded them, flying through their hair, ripping their clothing. 'j-j-j-POP!' The car popped up, and another puff of smoke came out of the hood. The bats scattered and flew away. Dead silence surrounded the girls.
Cordillia walked over to the beat-up car. She reached in to pull out the keys. As she was coming out, she bumped her head on the roof. "God damn it!" she cursed, noticing that her earring fell off. "Cordillia!" Hotaru cried, "Hurry up!" Cordillia stuck her hand out of the car to tell her to hold on. Hitomi shivered, "I'm getting kinda cold." "See!" Cordillia rebuked, "I told you we needed to pack warm clothes! I don't know why you made me put all my winter clothes back!" Hotaru frowned. A drop of sweat appeared on the side of her head. Cordillia returned to her search for her earring. Hotaru and Hitomi started to look around again. A bright light came from inside the car. Hitomi called, "Cordillia, what are y,y...A.AHHHHH!" She screamed in pain. She grabbed her hair, pulling it roughly. She screamed in agony, bending down on her knees. Hotaru grabbed her, helping her up. Hitomi stopped. Her body went limp in Hotaru's arms. The light went out in the car. Cordillia ran out. "Hotaru! Hotaru!" she called, "I saw.the, the.thing. It's going to come back!" She was breathing heavily. "What?! When?? Cordillia! When?!" Hotaru yelled. "I don't know! My visions don't give me a time!" Cordillia responded. Hotaru sighed. She handed Hitomi to Cordillia. "The vision knocked her out again. I hope she's ok," Hotaru said. She looked at her watch as she yawned. It was 11:36p.m. They walked back to the car and laid Hitomi in the backseat. Hotaru and Cordillia went back up to the front and sat down. Cordillia grabbed a mirror from her purse, and looked at the dried blood on her face. She pulled out a disinfectant hand cloth, and unwrapped it. She wiped off all the dried blood. Hotaru placed her hand on the gash on Cordillia's face. A feint, purple light came from her hand, and the cut healed. Hotaru smiled. "Thanks," Cordillia said and smiled back. Then they heard a sudden pound behind the car. Cordillia reached in her purse and grasped a small golden 'pen-like' wand, with a teal jewel at the top, and an Earth symbol in the middle. Hotaru pulled out hers too. Hotaru's had a purple jewel with a Saturn symbol in the middle though. Cordillia held hers up, and teal sparks flew from the top of the wand. The jewel began to glow, and a teal light captured Cordillia. Hotaru said, "I've had enough of that creature," and with that, she held up hers. Purple sparks came, and the jewel lit up. The purple light then abducted her too.
The monster crept along the outside of the car. He slid his long trench coat sleeve down, revealing his long, razor-sharp, metal fingernails. He glided them along the back window, slicing it finely, staring at Hitomi. His collar fell back, revealing his mouth full of silver, spike teeth, shaping into an evil grin. Two footsteps trudged behind him. He turned around, dropping his trench coat. The monster had a human-shape body, but it was all black, and his mauve veins ran along the outside of his tight black, demon skin. Cordillia and Hotaru stood in front of him in their Sailor Scout outfits.
Cordillia held a long, black pole, with an arced blade and a sharp thrust in the middle, at each side. The two blades had ancient symbols on them, in a circle, resembling the elements, and two in the middle which stood for life and death. Hotaru held a long black pole, and a blade, similar to Cordillia's Axion, but only on one side and without the symbols. It was more like a small rapier, with one side shorter than the other. She held her Silence Glaive high in the air. It began to blaze with a purple light. Cordillia twirled her Axion swiftly. The sharp blades gathered raging flames, as a red symbols lit up. The monster jumped toward them. Cordillia flipped over him, as Hotaru cut him with her Glaive. He sliced Hotaru across her stomach, and Cordillia jammed her flaming Axion into his back. The monster bent back, screaming in pain. Hotaru got up, and wedged her Glaive into the ground. The atmosphere around them became black with a dead silence. A long, narrow crack bolted under the demon. A purple light bursted through the crevice. Cordillia pulled out her weapon from the creatures back. The monster began to shake comatosely. It started to fade away. The blinding light began to hurt Cordillia's eyes and she turned around, covering her face with her arm. The monster disappeared fully. The environment slowly came back around them.
Hotaru pulled her Silence Glaive out of the road. Cordillia squinted and rubbed her eyes. Purple and teal sparks came from under Hotaru and Cordillia. Their outfits changed back to normal. The girls large weapons, shrunk back into their transforming wands. Hotaru looked at her slashed stomach. A purple light came from inside the wounds, and they slowly closed up. The two girls got in the car and checked on Hitomi. Cordillia stuck the key in the ignition. She turned it several times, but no luck. It made a strange 'whirling' noise. Cordillia dropped her head on the wheel. The horn blew loudly. She opened her eyes slowly. A bright light shot out from them. Her body began to glow too. Hotaru looked around quicky. The light surrounded the car. Hotaru screamed frantically, "Cordillia?! Cordillia! Cordillia."