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Nova

Chapter 14: Escape

Vash

The beast's muscular body snaked around to examine the bed of the truck, its nostrils flaring every couple of seconds or so as it sniffed around. It's feet moved slowly, surely, seemingly going over each scent it picked up with a fine toothed comb.

"Damn," I hissed, peering out from behind the building, "you think we can distract it?"

"I highly doubt it," snorted Knives, "We'd have to use someone as bait. How about you, Meryl? You up to a little running?"

"In your dreams." Meryl grumbled from behind us.

"Stop it, Knives." I said in an annoyed tone, frowning at him, "Let's concentrate on how to get that thing away from the truck."

"I'm afraid your brother is right, Vash." Kestrel said quietly, "The only way to get that thing away from the truck is to distract it with someone. But that person has to be me, it's not after any of you."

"No, no one is going to be bait here. " I said, my frown deepening, "There's got to be another way."

I glanced back at the three women behind me, Meryl and Milly were crouched down with their night-bags clutched to their chests. Kestrel was standing, looking off down the street.

"Does anyone have any ideas? Besides using someone as bait?" I asked, shooting Knives a look.

He glanced back with a smirk. I sighed and looked back to Kestrel, "Say, your brother, Legato, he had powers. Like telekinesis. Do you have any powers like that?"

She shifted her gaze away from the street and looked me squarely in the eye. Her gold eyes stood out on her face, making them seen like they were glowing.

"No, I don't have Telekinesis. I wasn't trained in it."

"Oh," I said, "What were you trained in."

Kestrel snorted, "Nothing that can be of help I think. I was only trained in Healing and Telepathy, and of course my force shield."

"Healing?" Knives said, mostly to himself.

"It's too much to get into right now," Kestrel said, "I've already tried to use my telepathy on the beasts, but their brains don't work like ours, when I tried it just seemed like they were automatons, I couldn't pick up any thoughts, fears, or emotions, nothing. I couldn't even figure out how it could use the force shield."

I heard a rough growl, and peeked out. The first beast had been joined by a second.

"Wont be long before they are joined by the other two." Kestrel said from behind me.

"Oh, no! Look!" Milly said.

I turned and saw two more of the beasts coming up the alley. Kestrel had been right.

"Crap." I said.

"We have to get out of here." Kestrel said.

"Where?" Asked Meryl.

"Anywhere, but away from those creatures." She replied and looked back and forth between the beasts at the truck and the ones coming closer.

Suddenly I felt a tug at my hip, and turned just in time to see Knives grab my gun and step out into the streetlight.

Before I could stop him he fired twice. Hitting the two beasts near the truck squarely in their heads.

They crumpled to the ground. Knives turned to me and threw the gun to me, "Don't say anything, Vash! At least we have the truck back!"

"Yeah but now we've go the attention of the other two." Meryl said, reaching into her cape for her derringers.

"Come on!" Knives yelled, he was already halfway to the truck. I waved for Meryl, Milly and Kestrel to follow him.

I looked back and saw the other two beasts running swiftly toward us and gaining ground at a shocking pace.

I sprinted after the others. Knives jumped into the drives seat while the girls climbed into the bed of the truck.

Kestrel

Vash slid into the passenger seat at Knives started up the truck. That's when the creatures burst forth from the alleyway. One of the managed to grab onto the

tailgate of the truck as it pulled forward, ripping it off its hinges. The other latched itself to the side. It held on tight to the back of the truck and roared

at us.

I grabbed one of the suitcases in the back of the truck and swung it at the beast. It knocked the case away like one would a fly. It lunged forward and dug

its claws deep into the sheet metal gaining leverage as it moved forward.

Meryl took a shot at it with her derringer then quickly replaced it with another.

"Damn it! I missed!" Meryl cried.

Milly dug around then pulled out a weapon with eight large cylinders on it.

She fired it and a large 'X' came shooting out, hitting the beast with enough kinetic energy to knock a hole in a wall.

The beast flew back and hit the receding sand behind us.

The second beast still latched to the side of the truck lunged forward toward Milly, who it was closest to, and knocked the stungun out of her hands. Milly

let out a little shriek and kicked out blindly, hitting the beast on its snout.

The beast rolled back but didn't fall off. It regained its footing and was about to lunge forward again when Vash reached out of the passenger side window and

fired off a shot, hitting the beast on in the shoulder making it fly off the truck like its partner had moments ago.

"All right!" Meryl cried enthusiastically.

I laughed nervously at first, suddenly triggering both Meryl and Milly's to start laughing. The three of us were laughing so hard that I barely caught a glimpse of both Knives and Vash looking back giving us odd confused looks.

Finally after the laughter had died down I leaned back with a sigh.

We were alive.

This time.

Unknown POV

It grinned, through the transparent encasing around it, at the view screen of the sandy planet below.

"So the little simaki has help." It said to itself. There was no one else to hear it speak. They were all asleep, lost in an almost eternal sleep that had lasted well over 2000 of the planetary rotations. Strangely it never thought to wake the others. It was content to sit quietly, contemplating its visions.

"Run, little simaki, run while you still can. Your end is near, and you will perish along with all those you have involved in this." It sneered at the view screen and mentally ordered the view-screen to zoom in.

Yes... she will run. It thought. The hunter has become the hunted.

It laughed as best it could, a hard grating noise that hardly be considered a laugh.

But, it was the first time in many planetary rotations that it had something to laugh about.

Despite that, it was far from a happy or joyful laugh.

This was the laugh of someone utterly mad.

Many many many many many thankees to foo!

Man it has been raining here like Noah's flood Part two! Not to mention the fact that I think we have a new Niagara falls in our backyard. We live on a bit of a slope so all the rain comes flowing down hill. It's good thing we have a ditch around the back patio or we'd get A LOT of water damage. And you should see the street out there, people seem to think that the street is Daytona 500, so every time a car passes a gargantuan wave flies up into the air.

But what the heck, at least we aren't getting 80 mile per hour winds like Texas was!

I got the pic's of Kestrel u on my Yahoo!Groups thingy! FINALLY! Check em out now. NOW I SAY NOW!

(Please excuse previous statement, was drunk on reviews)

Reviewer Responses!

Josie: Well, I don't think I really understand what you mean, but Kes is going to fall inlove with Knives one way or another.

ShadowDemon+Gengar: Nor me, thank you for reviewing!

Vashra BloodReeper: Thank you, it's great to hear it.

Lord Hustino(Who was too lazy to sign in): Yes going too far would just be... odd. Especially in a truck!

Neptune Butterfly: You very welcome! I'm happy to please.

Rosebud: Digital date with Johnny Depp? *is drooling* If only it were possible! 'Make merry in the truck?' Good god I laughed so hard hen I read that! I've never heard that term used before! I love it!

Rainy-days13: Whoosh! ^_^

Desmonia: You did write two reviews! Not that I'm complaining, I tried to send you some digital tacos Desmonia, but your e-mail provider sent it back. Sorry.

Happyjack: Oh thank you! Man a much as people are saying that I must be doing something right!

Saroya: Cute is my nickname! Oh wait you were talking about the chapter... eherm, oops. Actually my nickname is button but don't tell anyone!