CHAPTER 10
All right, the game is on. Can Orchid outsmart Julian once and for all or will she lose and possibly risk everything? Thanks for plowing through all of this with me, Kate. :-)
I adore reviews, so feel free to write them if the urge comes upon you.
Curled in her small hiding place, Orchid was growing impatient. Surely it had been five minutes by now. It felt like five hours. Yet she still hadn't seen any sign of the creepy minions. Was it possible that she was so well hidden that they couldn't find her? She seriously doubted it. Perhaps they knew exactly where she was, and they were simply waiting for her to come out and give herself to them.
She felt like a rabbit being hunted by a pack of dogs. Oh, this was such a stupid, stupid game! She was supposed to be the *hunter*, not the prey! Was this the way her victims felt when she swooped down on them? Her muscles were starting to cramp from not moving for so long.
The creature inside of her was itching for a fight. Even if her power disappeared completely, she would still rather go out fighting than stay curled under the twisted roots of a gnarled tree. Maybe she should climb up into the tree. It wasn't very tall, so she could hide, keep a lookout, and have a place to jump out of for a surprise attack all at once.
But then, the few bent trees and large rocks scattered about the area were the only possible hiding places, so she could actually be in one of the worst spots. The silhouette of the stubby tree could draw them right to her. She was starting to become confused.
*Let them come,* that dark voice inside her head muttered. She was ready to take her chances. She would take them all on at once if she had to. Was she supposed to kill them? Could they even die? There had to be some way to defeat them or the game would be impossible instead of simply unfair.
Orchid stared at the glowing ground. She wondered why the light here was like that. Maybe it was just more proof that everything about Julian- including his games- was backwards. This place was starting to give her a headache. Or maybe it was the shackles that were making her feel under the weather. She had tried and tried to find some way of prying them off, but they wouldn't budge.
Though still rather sharp, Orchid's heightened senses were fading. It was torture, sensing her power seep out of her body, drop by drop. If the minions held out much longer, she could have to deal with them as a human. She wracked her brain for all the human thought patterns she had picked up while feeding. She hated the thought, but she might have to depend on thinking like a human to get through this.
She was halfheartedly considering how to mix her natural instincts and human ability when she heard a soft crunching noise. Orchid nearly jumped out of her skin and instantly slid her hand into her cargo pocked, closing her fingers around the small, silver knife that she always carried with her. She had rarely used it as a weapon; now it could be the best mode of defense she had.
She tried to shift into a less restricted position and jumped again as her shoe scraped over some unseen gravel and made a loud, grating noise. She froze, holding her breath. The cold fog swirled around her. She waited in silence for seconds....minutes.... Slowly, she let out her breath. If the noise had been a minion it must have passed her by. Maybe she could see them from the branches of the tree. Cautiously she began to inch out of her hiding place. She was just about to leave the roots and climb into the tree when the ground beneath her feet disintegrate. Orchid screamed as she began to fall.
All right, the game is on. Can Orchid outsmart Julian once and for all or will she lose and possibly risk everything? Thanks for plowing through all of this with me, Kate. :-)
I adore reviews, so feel free to write them if the urge comes upon you.
Curled in her small hiding place, Orchid was growing impatient. Surely it had been five minutes by now. It felt like five hours. Yet she still hadn't seen any sign of the creepy minions. Was it possible that she was so well hidden that they couldn't find her? She seriously doubted it. Perhaps they knew exactly where she was, and they were simply waiting for her to come out and give herself to them.
She felt like a rabbit being hunted by a pack of dogs. Oh, this was such a stupid, stupid game! She was supposed to be the *hunter*, not the prey! Was this the way her victims felt when she swooped down on them? Her muscles were starting to cramp from not moving for so long.
The creature inside of her was itching for a fight. Even if her power disappeared completely, she would still rather go out fighting than stay curled under the twisted roots of a gnarled tree. Maybe she should climb up into the tree. It wasn't very tall, so she could hide, keep a lookout, and have a place to jump out of for a surprise attack all at once.
But then, the few bent trees and large rocks scattered about the area were the only possible hiding places, so she could actually be in one of the worst spots. The silhouette of the stubby tree could draw them right to her. She was starting to become confused.
*Let them come,* that dark voice inside her head muttered. She was ready to take her chances. She would take them all on at once if she had to. Was she supposed to kill them? Could they even die? There had to be some way to defeat them or the game would be impossible instead of simply unfair.
Orchid stared at the glowing ground. She wondered why the light here was like that. Maybe it was just more proof that everything about Julian- including his games- was backwards. This place was starting to give her a headache. Or maybe it was the shackles that were making her feel under the weather. She had tried and tried to find some way of prying them off, but they wouldn't budge.
Though still rather sharp, Orchid's heightened senses were fading. It was torture, sensing her power seep out of her body, drop by drop. If the minions held out much longer, she could have to deal with them as a human. She wracked her brain for all the human thought patterns she had picked up while feeding. She hated the thought, but she might have to depend on thinking like a human to get through this.
She was halfheartedly considering how to mix her natural instincts and human ability when she heard a soft crunching noise. Orchid nearly jumped out of her skin and instantly slid her hand into her cargo pocked, closing her fingers around the small, silver knife that she always carried with her. She had rarely used it as a weapon; now it could be the best mode of defense she had.
She tried to shift into a less restricted position and jumped again as her shoe scraped over some unseen gravel and made a loud, grating noise. She froze, holding her breath. The cold fog swirled around her. She waited in silence for seconds....minutes.... Slowly, she let out her breath. If the noise had been a minion it must have passed her by. Maybe she could see them from the branches of the tree. Cautiously she began to inch out of her hiding place. She was just about to leave the roots and climb into the tree when the ground beneath her feet disintegrate. Orchid screamed as she began to fall.
