The Emerging Darkness

Chapter Three-
Forsaken Souls

October 24th, 2012.

The young child ran through the forest, jumping over logs and crawling through the foliage. She ran as fast as she could, pumping adrenaline through her veins. She could hear her hunters chasing after her; they were so close to her. Realising that there was no point in running further, she stopped dead, and waited for them.

Slowly, they came at her, creeping behind her. The girl immediately turned around, and faced a small group of soldiers. She looked at them fiercely, her dark eyes gleaming with anger. She let the CO walk towards her, and waited for him to come close enough for here to attack. The boy was a mere foot away, the kicked him in the knees, causing him to fall. As he motioned to his group not to attack, he slowly got up. The girl waited for him to be at eye level and grabbed his neck, and squeezed hard. Her eyes widened as the boy struggled out of her grip. Behind her, X5-243 came forward to save her CO. 243 punched the girl hard in the back, the girl retaliated by grabbing 243's fist as she came in for another punch. She twisted her arm, her right hand still clasped round the boy's neck.

X5-546 grabbed his gun, and shot the girl. The girl looked at him with angry eyes, and looked as if she were about to charge, when she collapsed.

July 13th 2020 Kit's apartment.

Kit shot up, her heart beating so fast, it seemed like it wasn't at all. Her eyes were wide with confusion and shock, every second of her 'dream' imprinted on her mind. She instinctively touched the right side of her abdomen, as if she was hurt. She crept out of her bed, trying to gather her thoughts. Glancing at the clock, she sighed as she realised that yet again, she had slept for less than two hours. It was no surprise really; she had always known she was a little strange. Kit walked into the bathroom and leaned against the sink.

As she looked at herself in the mirror, she couldn't help but think how different she was. She just seemed so alone and numb, even though Caleb had always been there for her. She opened the ice-cold tap, and washed her face, attempting to scrub away the memories. As she leaned up, she looked at herself again. The moonlight illuminated her high cheekbones, making them seem sharper. She wasn't the obvious beauty, yet she held a certain charm that lingered in her eyes. Her eyes were a strange dark brown colour, but in the light, they were lighter, with flecks of gold.

She briskly walked out of her bathroom, and stepped into her own room. It was such a sparse room, giving no identification that it was being used at all, apart from her unmade bed. Kit made up her bed quickly, as if it was the epitome of all evil. She walked over to her window, half hoping that the night would last forever. The darkness always tickled her, its strange shapes and shadow's hiding her from everyone and everything.

She made her way to the living room, to find Caleb sitting there, watching an infomercial with no interest.

"Guess you couldn't sleep either..." He called out to Kit, his eyes looking up to see her small frame.

"Yeah...well...I never can." She answered plainly, her eyes fixed on the TV with a new passion.

Caleb coughed quietly, as if to summon up strength. "It was a nightmare... wasn't it?"

Kit's eyes shot to Caleb, a strange spark flickering. She ignored his question, and began to watch the next infomercial.

"It's ok to talk about it..." Caleb whispered, pity evoking his senses.

"I don't need your sympathy." She whispered coldly. She shot up, and walked to kitchen; she yanked the refrigerator door open and pulled out a bottle of water. Kit looked at Caleb, hoping that perhaps he would melt under her furious gaze. No such luck... Kit stomped into her room, slamming the door shut.

Maybe she's pissed off...Caleb thought, sighing. He hated the fact that she would never open up to anyone, let alone him. But who would want to know what happened to her?....apart from a crazy scientist...

Kit quickly emerged from her room, wearing a navy t-shirt, and jeans. Her black jacket was in her left hand, while her keys were in the other. "I'm going out. Don't wait up." And with that, she left, leaving an uneasy Caleb staring at the TV screen.

Kit rushed down the eleven flights of stairs, obviously trying to escape Caleb's stare. As soon as she left the building, she broke into a run, heading to her motorbike. As soon as she reached it, she jumped onto it, and put the key in the ignition. She sat there for a while, trying to calm down. Why does this shit always happen to me? I hate it...why can't I just be...before she could finish the thought; she drove off, trying to outrun her thoughts.

Driving for what seemed like hours, she stopped at a gas station for a bottle of water. Since I'm here, I might as well get some gas... She poured the gas into the bike, careful to not spill a drop. She walked into the store, and pulled out two twenty dollar bills. "Where's your water?"

"Straight ahead." The man answered rather confused at her ignorance. Kids today...don't notice a thing...

Kit walked straight ahead, and pulled out a bottle without looking. Weirdly enough, the bottle was full of Evian water. She walked to the counter, unaware that the owner was giving her a toothy grin.

"That all?" He asked, pouting at her ignorance.

"And a tank of gas." She turned her head away from him, as if to tell him to hurry up.

"Ok...that'll be seventeen dollars please."

Kit put one of the bills on the counter, and waited for her change. The owner took the bill, and secretly inspected it, not that it mattered, Kit wasn't even looking at him.

"Could you hurry up?" She said with obvious annoyance in her voice.

The man frowned at her. Why can't they just be patient? Damn kids...wait till they've got arthritis! He took out the three one dollar bills, and was about to hand them to her when the door flung open showing three men, wearing black masks.

"GIMME ALL YOUR MONEY NOW!!" The first one bellowed, his gun hovering in the owner's direction. The second one, about 5'9", sounded as if he was in his mid-teens, quite close Kit's age. He looked at Kit and pointed his gun at her uneasily. The third man had long hair and was standing at the door, on the lookout for the cops.

"You too!" The boy said to Kit.

Kit faced him, her face in total disgust. "What the hell do you think you're fucking playing at?"

Everyone froze. The owner, who had been putting all the money from the till stopped and stared at Kit.

"It's fucking 3:30 in the morning? Don't you have homes to go to or did you forget that your dog wanted an easy fuck?"

The first man laughed at her. Kit turned to him, and frowned. "Do you have a death wish kid?"

"No...but I think you do..." Kit punched the boy in the face, causing him to drop his gun. She blurred to the taller man, and kicked him the stomach. She was about to punch him, when a gun fired. She didn't even see it coming. It tore straight through her shoulder ripping the flesh apart, and hit the owner in the chest. "You jackass!" She told the boy in a strangely calml voice. "That was my favourite top. Now, you die." She came towards him, ready to launch her attack when the tall guy grabbed her from behind.

"Ugh..." she made a face of total revulsion as he grabbed her throat. She pulled her legs forward, and flipped over him. Mid-air, she kicked him in the head, and landed on her feet. The man fell to the floor unconscious.

"You're fast kid...but you ain't faster than a bullet." The long haired man who was standing at the doorway waved a gun at her. The boy stood to the side of him, confusion in his bright blue eyes. The tall guy was still on the floor, drool spilling from his mouth.

Kit was about to blur to him, and pull away the gun, when a shot rang through the room. The long haired man fell to the floor, letting out a moan of pain, revealing Alec standing there, with a grin on his face. "I don't know why he's moaning...I didn't even shoot him..."

The boy widened his eyes in terror. "You got ten seconds to scram. Otherwise..." Alec made the sound of a gun cocking and then shooting. The boy looked at Kit, his deep eyes searching for something in her face. Finding nothing, he ran out the store.

"What was all that about?" Alec pointed to boy who had run away. "Was there something kinky going on? Cos as a responsible adult, I must urge you further."

Kit scowled. "What the hell do ya think you're doing? I was absolutely fine."

"Technically, I've already saved your ass, so it's not 'you're'. And you didn't look fine to me."

"Really? Was that because you were following me, and didn't bother to find out what was really happening?"

"I wasn't following you." Alec blinked several times.

"You're either a bad liar, or you want your ass kicked 'cos you know I'm right."

"What can I say? It's the hero in me; I just need a damsel to rescue." He tried to lighten the mood, but to no avail.

"I am NOT a damsel. I'd probably save your ass." Kit pointed out.

Alec stared at her for a second. She's probably right...but then again... "Before or after you get shot?" He pointed to her open wound. Kit glared at him.

"If I needed your help, I would have yelled for it when you came after me when I was outside my apartment. Or when I was at Barney's last night. Or when I was in Crash."

Alec gulped. Damn...this kid's good! "You can understand why I did follow you. To make sure that you weren't double dealing..."

Kit furrowed her brow, and was about to argue, when she heard a grunt. The owner was bleeding heavily, and was attempting to grab the phone. She walked behind the till, and crouched down next to the owner. Kit looked at the struggling man, and passed him the phone. The owner gasped for air, and stared at the Kit for help. As Alec grabbed the long haired guy, Kit snatched the phone away from the owner and angrily dialled 911.

"Hey, I'm on Preston Avenue, in the gas station. There's been a shooting, and the owner's half dead. Oh, and there are two unconscious guys here, that need to be arrested. The boy ran off so keep a look out for him." Kit told the operator in an authoritative tone. She slammed the phone down, and got up. She grabbed her change and the bottle and headed to Alec, who was now grabbing a bag of Oreo's. "What?" He asked as he saw Kit's sly look. "I'm gonna pay..." He slammed the money on the counter, and turned to Kit. "There...happy now?"

Alec smiled slightly, but his grin slipped off his face as he heard a strange wheezing sound. It was the owner. Alec jumped over the counter and checked him for a pulse. It was very weak, but there. "Did you call an ambulance?" He asked Kit.

"Yeah..." She said candidly. "Come on, we have to go before the cop's come."

"And just leave him here?" Alec asked appalled at Kit's comment. He put his hands on the owner's wound, applying pressure to it.

"Yes. The ambulance will be here soon, and like I said before, so will the police."

"He's going to die if we leave him."

"He'll die regardless. I doubt the doctor's will be able to save him, the bullet tore through his chest and is now in his left lung, causing blood to seep into his lungs, making it harder to breathe."

Alec shook his head, and grabbed a bag from under the counter. He took a deep breathe of air and let it out into the bag. "Here..." He put the bag onto the owner's mouth, and began to squeeze the bag every few seconds. "Kit, grab some bandages, and cotton balls." He called out to Kit who sighed.

"I can't find any."

"Well, try harder." Alec yelled, anxiety spilling out of him.

"You look then!" Kit yelled back, her face red.

"Come here then!" Kit stomped over to the counter, and put hand on the bag and the other hand on the wound. Alec jumped up, muttering something about 'useless' and 'bitch'. Well fuck you too...Kit thought, but she didn't want to start a fight so she stayed quiet.

Alec rummaged through the shelves, looking for anything to help the man, while Kit did her best to keep the man from losing too much blood. The old man moaned, his breathing was becoming more and more difficult. Kit, knowing he wouldn't last, put her bloody hand on his shoulder, and let go of the bag. She came close to the man, and whispered in his ear, and when she got back up, the old mans dead eyes bore into her own.

She brushed her hand over his eyes, closing them. Alec returned with cotton packs and a med kit. "You should have called me..." Alec whispered, as he saw the old man.

"Why? It's not like I've never seen a dead guy before..."

"I didn't mean that..." Alec snapped.

"I know what you meant." She answered back sharply. "He would have died anyway." She got up, and headed to the door.

"So that makes it fine?" Alec strode over to her, and grabbed her shoulder.

"Yes. It does. He's an old man- or rather was. If he survived, he'd live for what? A couple more years working in a crappy petrol station in two in the morning? Somehow, I think he's more grateful this way."

"You have no right to make that choice."

"And neither do you!" She yelled. She turned and looked into his eyes, her own lifeless. "Don't you dare talk to me about choices...I know for a fact that mine have always been a lot worse than yours. You've had it fucking easy, so don't talk to me about all this choices crap."

Alec shook his head, and watched Kit walk to her bike. She hopped onto it, and rode into the distance, the early sun glistening on her dark hair. Alec pulled out his cell phone, and punched in a number.

"Max, I've lost her."