~*~
The Arrival
~*~
Connor groaned, his hands placed under his head and his body curled up contently from the night's sleep. A chill moved up his spine as he felt the cold breeze gave an occasional whistle, alerting him that it was another morning. Although Costelos was a pleasurable island, free from the dangers of the world, Connor couldn't help but argue that the weather was unbearable. Sure, it looked sunny and warm from the outside, but the early mornings brought in cold windy breezes that anybody couldn't even imagine.
"You've been taking again from the loot, haven't you?" roared a voice in the background, breaking the silence.
They were already up.
Connor winced, his eyes still not fully open, but his hearing was still quite sharp. It was something that he truly hated – his hearing. It could be a blessing at times, but hearing everything that came out of anybody's mouth can be a curse at times.
"It was nothing, Francis!" shouted a female voice.
A gust of wind blew once again, the leaves of the surrounding trees rustling about them. Dawn was breaking and it was getting even colder. Although the forest had the ability to cover and hide almost anything within its reach, the group was still able to find a dwelling for themselves only they can find and reach.
Finally realizing the commotion about him, Connor strained to open his eyes and stand on his haunches to see what was going on. His eyes finally found Sage, her green eyes burning with fury and her long curly auburn hair that fell past her shoulders. Her height loomed above everybody, giving her a bit of authority that she needed. It didn't take him long to figure out that she was the one who retorted at the previous voice. He could feel the tension slowly rise, no doubt she was mad at somebody. Her face expressed anger and annoyance, something that he rarely saw.
"Nothing?!" spat Francis, strands of his dark brown hair edged about the corners of his eyes, edging closer towards Sage. "He practically took a fourth of what we saved! What are we supposed to eat now, huh?"
"Honey, you are nothing but an animal," answered Sage calmly. "I can bring you down and I'll do it again. Besides, a fourth of the loot to you is practically a pinch!"
Their conversation was suddenly interrupted when a loud bark erupted in the air. Connor and the other two turned their attention to where their ears led them, where a dog growled at the pair. Its dark brown colored coat seemed even more polished from the sunlight now bearing down upon them and a pair of amber colored eyes bored at Sage and Francis.
Connor snorted at the scene; upset and tired by the fact that Francis had found something to pick on again. It wasn't extraordinary to find him bickering – especially with Sage. Their supposed history was to blame for that.
He closed his eyes, pressing his eyelids down tightly. Even though he had been doing this for more than a year, the amount of pain that came with transforming still cut through his body. He groaned, feeling his two legs shrink beneath him while the other two stretched out. His bones and tanned skin extended out like jelly, giving the impression of a painless transformation. His brown fur coat disappeared with every second, replaced with a tuft of short black hair on top of his head. He groaned from the pain and his eyes widened, causing his vision to blur. Minutes later, he could finally sense the feeling in his hands, feet, and body that he did not have before.
He shifted.
"Just another happy morning, eh?" said Connor, a hand placed over his stomach, shielding it from the pain.
"You never fail to be sarcastic even though you seem to be in pain from shifting. You'd think that you'd be used to it by now," said Sage, ignoring Francis and turning her gaze towards Connor.
"Can't say I was a prowler, forever, now can I?" answered Connor, raising his eyebrow. "Now, what about the loot?"
"Cavenaugh, here, took – no, ATE, a load of what we just gathered two days ago!" shouted Francis angrily, turning his heel towards Connor and pointing his finger suspiciously at the growling dog.
Connor shrugged, looking back and forth between Francis and the dog. "Doesn't matter. We have enough. He can eat what he wants."
"See?" shouted Sage. "I told you!"
"I'm protecting us from dying! Don't you understand that?"
Sage opened her mouth to answer, but was suddenly interrupted when she saw the so-called dog slowly shift into a different form. The brown colored dog growling at them on its four paws just seconds ago now had legs and feet – the likeness of a human. She watched him slowly creep up towards Francis and tap his shoulder, an act that made him look juvenile for just a moment.
"You know me long enough to call me Allen instead of Cavenaugh, don't you Sullivan?" muttered Allen menacingly.
Connor saw Francis' sudden change of emotion. He had just figured out that Allen had shifted. That's what Connor loved about being a prowler – the ability to change from human to animal as you wish. It wasn't something that could be done easily. He remembered the pain on his back and legs from shifting when he first became a prowler. But the fact is, being a prowler is being different from society. And society wasn't always accepting.
"I know you well enough to eat what we have," said Francis, turning around to face Allen.
"You're ever so trusting, Francis. That's what I love about you."
"We could die, Cavenaugh! We can't stay animals for a long time – you know that! Your form will practically eat away at you and you'll never be able to -."
"You think I don't know that?!" bellowed Allen.
"Why else would you be constantly changing into a human than a prowler?" taunted Francis.
"Francis!" shouted Sage, pushing him ever so slightly to bring him back to his senses. "Why do you do this? Pin things on Allen! You never even bother asking the others about…"
"Hey! Hey! Don't look at me!" said Connor, throwing his hands in the air and shaking it in front of him. "I didn't do anything! I was just peacefully sleeping…"
Hearing voices about her, Cat cracked an eye open, unknown to the situation at hand. Still in her panther form, Cat stayed in her spot and watched the scene unfold before her. The group had been oblivious to the fact that Cat was awake, too caught up in their world. But one thing made her throat dry – Juan was gone. Her eyes scanned the ground to see a sleeping figure of a dog or human, but there was nothing to be found, except for Maylee, still sleeping and present in her wolf form. They were all there, except for one. Cat couldn't hide the fact that Juan was keeping something from her – from the prowlers.
The fighting continued, but Cat was lost in her own world. Her senses suddenly focused, her eyes much more sharper, her ears much more alert, and her nose ready to pick up anything on the way. Cat sniffed the air once more, making sure of what she was sensing. Her thoughts swirled about her as a sudden thought struck her mind.
"Blood."
~*~
"Just think of it as exercise, y'know? Wave to the left! Wave to the right!" said Max as he waved his hand back and forth in a constant rhythm.
"Erm, Max… we're supposed to be welcoming, not exercising," muttered Riley. Even though her height may make her seem as if she can overpower anything, she was feminine in almost everyway. Her bright blue eyes, long black hair, slightly tan skin, and flawless smile made her one of the most well-loved and admired girls on the island of Costelos. Interestingly enough, Riley preferred to play a role – somebody different from what she was – other than being herself, making her a tough girl to follow.
Kaitlin rolled her eyes at the two, Max still doing his rhythmic waving, and said, "We're supposed to be lively anyway, aren't we?"
"Sure, after we've done this a hundred times," said Sparks, giving her arms a break and shielding her eyes from the sun. "Why can't we just give them a fiesta instead of standing out here and waving at them for hours on end?"
"Because they're the elites," muttered Luis, his hand still waving in the air. "They're from… out there. Where we can't go."
"That's a rock solid foundation," said Lute sarcastically. "Just 'cause they live out there doesn't mean we have to suffer every month from this!"
"True. Besides, I still have to get home and start cooking for tonight," exclaimed Liselle, arching her back from the pain. "I'm sore – and its only morning!"
Luis watched the ship slowly come to view. It never ceased to impress them with its presence. Every month it would arrive at Costelos and every month the natives of Costelos would always be there to await its arrival, ready to greet them and welcome them to their beloved island. It was something they were required to do – something that you couldn't get out of. The spirits that dwelled on the island tend to remind the natives, usually bother, since they were a straight source from the gods. It was hard to escape it, especially when you have powerful creatures watching you.
Luis waited for the ship to finally dock to shore, seeing as it was only miles from where it was standing. The sails fluttered and its carvings gleamed from the sun, giving it a much god-like presence. Luis stared out into the ocean, where a sudden shimmer caught his eye. He blinked and strained his eyes, only to see it again. He looked around to see Carlos, who seemed to be seeing the exact same thing. They exchanged glances and looked back out into the ocean, waiting to see what the shimmer came from.
Suddenly, a great groan came from the ship. Luis' eyes widened as he saw the ship slowly descend into water. Not quickly like a rock would, but ever so slowly. He squinted once more, seeing even more numerous colors of shimmer in the water. Green, auburn, pink, gold, and bright blue bounced off the surface of the water. It didn't take long for him to see the heads of the mermaids looking upon the Ambassador.
Everybody else in the crowd was caught up in the action before them, losing sense of their purpose there on the beach. Nobody was waving their hands anymore, even Max was watching intently, curious to see what was going to happen. Arrival of the Ambassador was always smooth and perfect, not like this.
Even though the Ambassador still pushed on with its journey, not too far from the docks, the natives could see that water was filling up quickly within the ship. The crew held on, working on the ship, pulling ropes and fixing sails even though they could see their effort was no use.
"What… why are they jumping?! They shouldn't…" mumbled Liselle, her eyes still on the ship.
Silhouettes of the crew and passengers of the ship could be seen jumping towards the water, the only choice they have from surviving. The Ambassador neared closer and closer – both advancing and sinking beneath the ocean. The natives could see the Ambassador fight to survive, but lose quickly as it disappeared from the surface.
The natives looked about them, torn from the scene, suddenly hearing a sudden whistle echo in the air. They looked about in confusion, unable to decide what was happening. But Kaitlin kept her eyes on the ocean, shocked from what had just happened. She looked down on the waves rolling beneath her feet, suddenly seeing a boy about her age, dragging a boy about ten and another boy that seemed to be the same age. Her eyes widened as she watched the boy struggle with his step. She stayed rooted to the spot as she watched him fall limply on the shore, along with the two other boys.
Kaitlin took in a deep breath, looked about, and shouted, "HELP!"
~*~
I wrote this right before i went to sleep - 11 at night - and i haven't done any editing, so excuse me if there's anything wrong with it. :P Just quick SOs and thank-you's to eire, socks, sparks, cards, matchin' laces, justduck, frenchygoil, inquisitive, irish rain, sheengale, geometrygal, and strider! *hugs to everyone!*