Chap 96
:
"I'm not going to say I told you so," Reynard said.
"But I knew this would happen." He threw his hands up in air and
paced irritably in the cavern, he and the other Ghosts were staying
in. The last Ghosts: Mercy, Feather, Gozbud, and Olga, sat around a
small fire they had made, with their belongings beside them.
"Reynard, sit down," Mercy said, staring into the fire.
"You
know this is your fault," Reynard hiss as he sat beside her.
"You
should've killed him when had the chance."
Olga growled. "We
are going to pretended we didn't just hear that. None of us saw
this coming, not even Mercy."
"She's right, finger pointing
won't do us any good…I still can't believe Roc betrayed us,"
Feather said quietly.
"Thanks to you, Reynard, we were able to
escape him," Gozbud pointed out.
"Yeah, but what about PC and
Breeaka," Reynard said. "I couldn't save them."
"You
did what you could and that is all we can expect," Feather replied.
"What we need to focus on now is what our next plan will be,"
Reynard announced.
"Well, I think our first plan is obvious, we
go to the School and get our friends back," Gozbud said. Everyone
except for Reynard nodded in agreement.
"Are you guys crazy?
Do you guys forget what we're up against?" Reynard said.
"You
know what's crazy to me, Reynard? You want PC's position so
badly, but then again when comes to circumstances where you need to
think a little "loosely", you sit back on your butt and say it
can't be done." He glared at Mercy, but he could not deny that
everything she said was true.
"We can do crazy," she
continued. "After all, most people we would say we were crazy
enough to escape from Lab 7, some will say we were crazy for not
lying low and not causing trouble. You see, it's our craziness that
got us this far." Everyone nodded in agreement. "Through our
madness , we claimed the lives we wanted, and that's why you can
sit in your little basement apartment, listening to heavy metal and
that hippity hop music and eating cupcakes, not having to worry about
an Eraser breaking down your door."
"Alright then," Reynard
said smoothly. "Your point has been made, so…do you have a plan?"
"We do," Feather said sternly.
"Sorry to leave you out
of the loop," Gozbud said. "But we have been planning this for
about a day or two." Reynard was stunned that they would plan
something and not let him in on it. After a temporary moment of
outrage, he understood why they did that. He would've torn down
their ideas and no plan would've been formed.
Reynard smiled.
"Alright then, what's the plan, Mercy?"
She smiled back at
Reynard. "It's a complex plan…everyone has a part, but just to
soothe you nerves, Reynard, about our numbers. I've asked four
people to give us a hand…They'll be arriving shortly."…
Raf:
I
had returned from my search empty-handed. I knew where to go…when
something like this happened, I was usually sent for by Jeb. I waved
to Kane as I passed by her desk and she smiled at me and continued to
type on her computer.
"Rafmire, there you are," Jeb said,
looking through an experiment file. "I've been looking through
recent logs and it appears you have returned here three times empty
handed…not a single Ghost in tow. I want to know why."
I
sighed. "They're harder to track than I once thought. You
shouldn't underestimate them, they're pretty smart."
"Uh
huh…You know whose file I'm looking at?" Jeb asked.
I shook
my head. "It's PC's file…from these records it shows that PC
is smart, too. That is how he's escaped so many times. But you know
that he's here now…because he made a mistake…mistakes are what
bring SMART experiments down. Look for those…find snags, anything
that leads you to them. Consider this your last mission, Rafmire.
Once those Ghosts are mine, you're done."
"Hmm…that's
funny… I thought—."
"I changed my mind; Max would wipe
the floor with you. Raf, you are not a SMART experiment…you are an
AVERAGE experiment…you can try to plan, but your plans are
half-baked…that's how you got caught when you tried to spring
Chase. The only successful plans I ever expect you to make is raiding
the cafeteria refrigerator." A shock when through my body and began
to tremble. "Even now, Average experiments are controlled by pain;
smarter experiments must be controlled psychologically. Your
situation is nothing, compared to PC's; there is nothing more
satisfying than breaking someone's spirit." The electricity
stopped and I sighed softly. I was getting used to it. "Are you
done?" I asked.
"Get out," Jeb said dangerously and I was
more than happy to oblige.
Ana:
I roared ferocious
and howled like a wolf, pulling against the chains that held me. I
was crouched down on all fours, my long claw-like nails raking across
the tile, making it screech. I could only think of one thing and that
was freedom, freedom to run, to prowl, to hunt, and to eat. I hissed
and arched my back as an Eraser got close with what looked like some
kind of stunning device. My hissing changed from sounding like a
cat's to more like a crocodile's. I saw my parents watching
behind a glass shield. They were shouting at me to do something. I
didn't remember my name, I didn't remember theirs and I couldn't
speak, all I could do was growl and make strange calls. But nothing
that sounded like language. I charged forward and lunged for the
Eraser. He backed away and hit me in the side. I yowled and grabbed
the device in my teeth, yanked it from his grip and tossed it aside,
then went for his legs. The Eraser screamed as I yanked him down on
to the floor.
"Security get in there!" a voice boomed. It was
the first phrase I had come to understand. It was when I didn't do
something they liked…
Jeb and The Skynard's
were sitting back in a dark room, watching black and white video, and
every now and then scratching a few notes down.
"Truly
fascinating," Jeb said.
"I agree; they both attack the same
way," John said.
"How so?" Lee Ann asked.
"Look at
the video of Ana on the left, see how she attacked the Eraser? Once
he went down, she was going for the throat. Now look at PC's tape
on the right. Same maneuver, although PC was able to bring the Eraser
down while standing on two legs. But the same tactic they used is
astounding. The choke hold is used by big cats such as lions…to
bring down larger prey."
"I see…Ana's intelligence came
through today…a little…. look at how she tossed the stun stick
away. But she needs to embrace more human ways of thinking; purely
animal ways will get her killed."
Raf:
I wandered
the halls, walking off that shock Jeb gave me earlier. I wished he
wouldn't insult my intelligence like that, I'm not a complete
idiot. He would soon figure that out. Whitecoats passed by talking
about their latest experiments on various subjects and how they
reacted. I wonder what makes them think that they aren't
experimenting on people. Is it the fact that their DNA isn't
completely human? It's astonishing that some people had the belly
for this kind of work. I sighed and continued walking; I heard a
screeching noise from behind me and saw, Bob the janitor, down the
hall. He was an old man with tanned skin and a bristly salt and
pepper chin. Bob was pushing a janitor's cart, which had all the
tools a man of cleaning might need.
"Hello there, Raf," the
old man said. His voice sounded like a creaky staircase.
"H-hi,"
I said, taken off guard by the greeting. I had passed Bob many times
in the halls but he never said hello to me…ever. Then I noticed
something different about his eyes. They were blue….if I remember
correctly, Bob's eyes were brown. I hesitated at first then
whispered. "Kane?"
The janitor nodded, then pretended to
laugh. "Don't be silly, sonny, would you mind helpin' a poor
old man get some stuff from the janitor's closet?"
"I've
got nothing better to do…sure," I said flatly. I walked beside
Bob/Kane until we got to the closet on another hall. Kane opened the
door and I followed her in closing the door behind me. I looked at
her quizzically. "Should I ask why you stole that man's form?"
Kane frowned and said in her voice "Uh! Don't remind
me…biting Bob was like biting sandpaper and then licking an ash
tray."
"Okaaay?"
"Listen, Raf, there is something I
need to tell you…it's important."
"Really? Do tell"…
Chap 97
Raf:
I raised my eyebrows. "That's very interesting." Kane
nodded. "How long have you been sitting on this?"
"For a
week or so…"
"Why?"
"I don't know…I didn't
want to lose my job…please understand, Rafmire. I couldn't bear
it anymore. I had to tell you."
I grinned and then bit my lower
lip pensively. "This may work to our advantage?"
Kane eyed
me. "What are you talking about?"
"Nothing. You need to
worry about."
"You're planning something, aren't you?"
"No? What makes you say that?"
"Because you said "our".
"Well, is it okay for me to refer to myself in the third
person?"
"I-I guess."
"Why are you being
so…suspicious of me? Are you planning something?"
"Stop
that," Kane said tartly. "Here, before you go…take this." She
reached into her pocket and placed something soft in my hand. I
curled my fingers around it, not even bothering to look at it and
headed for the door.
"Kane, can I ask something of you?"
"What is it?"
"Tomorrow…don't be hard to
find."
PC:
The Whitecoats hadn't come for me in a
while. I was getting nervous…are they done? It may be that the next
time they come for me, I'd be taken away and euthanized. Being
euthanized is said to be painless, that's why they use it on
animals. It's the most humane way to die…so I've heard. I had
probed my memories of the facility…smells, sounds, and sensations
anything that I could utilize to form a plan that had would remotely
work. My strength and energy was back up to par, but I still had to
pretend that they broke me. The Whitecoats had gotten careless with
me, ever since Bree's death…that means they didn't blindfold me
anymore and they let information slip about Ana's location. It was
in a new division of the School. One recently built, for what purpose
I didn't know. But it was close to where I was located. My plan was
what Bree and I termed as a "mad dash". A mad dash is just how it
sounds…at the first opportunity you take out the people that stand
in your way and run as fast as you can. It's similar to what Bree
did to find me. But only this time I had a rough idea of where to
find Ana. I didn't know how far along Ana was in the
transformation, but if what my parents said was accurate, she was
already fully changed…I couldn't help but wonder what she looked
like. She must be in wild stage right now. If that was the case, it
would cause a problem. Not only would I be fighting Eraser and
Whitecoats…I might have to fight Ana in order to save her. That
wastes time and energy, the plan would be a failure…and I would
wind up dead. I wished I had more to work with but I didn't…without
any elevated status I had no pawns to manipulate…no edge. For the
next few hours, I replayed scenarios in my head and tried to patch a
plan together. When one of the Whitecoats brought me food, he
announced that I was going to be decommissioned tomorrow. This put a
strain on my plan…there was a time limit; I had to think of
something quickly in a matter of hours. After a few more hours of
thinking, I finally came up with a plan…it was a long shot, but if
things turned out for the worst, I think Ana would at least have a
fighting chance. I was prepared for death either way…
Later on
that day, when I was taking one of my numerous naps, there was a
tapping on the door to my cell. I slowly roused and jumped as I saw
Raf staring in at me.
"I thought I'd never see you again,"
I yawned. Raf grinned and sat on the floor outside. "I thought you
weren't allowed to see me?"
"I know, but I'm in the mood
to break the rules," Raf said, idly moving his clawed finger across
the glass. "I heard about what happened to your girlfriend." I
winced at the mentioning of the event.
"Where were you?" I
asked. "I was out tracking down your friends, for Jebby."
"I
expect you found them?"
"…kind of…a trace…is one way of
putting it."
"Did you hear? I'm being decommissioned."
"Yeah I know…It's almost like an event; everybody knows
about it."
"Great," I said.
"Well if it makes you
feel any better…I'll be put down soon too. Once I've found your
friends…it's bye bye."
"Have you heard anything about
Ana?"
"Not really except that she's as wild as they get."
"Uh- huh."
"Hey ! What are you doing down here!" A
Whitecoat shouted distantly.
"Uh oh…" Raf muttered.
"Raf,
aren't you not supposed to be down here?" the Whitecoat asked
crossly.
"Nope, but I was sent to give him something…it's
from Kane…she didn't want to see this flea bag so she asked me."
The Whitecoat nodded, he pulled out a card and swiped it. The door
popped open slightly.
"Slide it through and get out of here."
Raf obeyed and slid a small object through the crack. The Whitecoat
slammed the door and glared at Raf, who shrugged and walked away. I
gave the Whitecoat a blank stare and pretended to be void of energy.
He soon backed off…nothing to see.
I sighed. "That was
weird." I scanned the floor for where the object had dropped. It
was small, grey, and soft. "A feather?" I examined it
thoroughly…there seemed to be nothing special about it, it's a
just plain feather. I tucked it into my pocket and went back to
sleep, which didn't last long. I always woke up when they turned
off the lights for the experiments on my hall. I tried to go back to
sleep, but I couldn't. It got cold, in the lab at night and
compounded by restlessness, it made me irritable. I decided to change
position and leaned my head against the cool glass door. It was
comforting, I sighed deeply as I began to relax. But just before I
closed my eyes, I heard the sound of paws and claws coming my way. A
Howler stopped in front my cell door. Great, now even the Howlers
were here to heckle me. Its hot breath fogged the glass on the door.
I glared back at the grotesque mutt and after sitting there,
drooling, it finally walked off. "Stupid mutt," I muttered and
was about to go back to sleep when I noticed something from where the
Howler had fogged the door, there was a word. "How did…" then I
remembered Raf writing on the glass. I thought he was just doing it
on a whim. Okay…maybe he was trying to tell me something. The word
on the door was: ITEX. I muttered it over and over…why did it sound
so familiar…I pulled out the feather Raf had given me and twirled
it between my fingers. Then it hit me…a while ago…I had heard of
the School being supplied with technology and resources from a
corporation called Itex. We had rare scrapes with Itex so we only had
limited knowledge. It was the company that made the new isolation
chambers, I had heard about...one of the biggest and practically the
only other thing that the Network knew about Itex was the FEAR
project…I remembered reading about it in one of the numerous
documents Bree and I had burned. This project was for the development
of a holographic imagery system that projects what a person fears
most…I looked down at the feather in my hands and my heart started
to pound. I amplified the sense of smell in my nose and pressed the
feather against it. It smelt like mold, dirty water, and other
disgusting things…but among those was a scent I recognized…it was
strong, only a few days old and had the salty tainted scent of
perspiration. My eyes widened…Breeaka she was still alive…
Chap 98
Mercy:
It was early in the morning when I awoke...and stepped onto
the cliff that jutted out in front of our cave hide out. The air was
crisp and cool and the sky looked like an explosion in a paint
factory. Beautiful blues, reds, and purples were all being slowly
covered by overcastting storm clouds. I felt Voice's presence
approach me from behind. "Hello," she said.
"Hi," I said
shortly, focusing on the horizon. "Did you sleep well?"
"Okay,
I guess…Mercy?"
"Hm?"
"Do you think…do you think
everything will be okay?"
I looked down at Voice and I couldn't
help but smile. "I'm not sure…Last stands are a gamble…it
goes either way, unfortunately. Just so you know, I appreciate you
and your flock's help."
"They still have Nia," Voice
said.
"She's part of our group; our flock isn't complete
without her."
"I understand."
"And you're going to
get your friends back, too, aren't you?"
"Yes…among a few
individuals…Now why don't we get breakfast started." Voice
nodded and we walked back inside.
Breakfast consisted mainly of
pop tarts on a stick, eggs and some sausage, courtesy of Reynard, who
had swiped it from a campsite nearby. We ate in silence. Everyone was
nervous there was no denying it. There hadn't been a deliberate
attack on the School before. Even though Max's escape did turn a
few heads…what we were about to do…I don't think even she would
try.
"Listen, everybody...you all know we may die doing this,"
Reynard said, standing up. I glared at him. If he said one more
negative statement, I was going to break him like a toothpick. He
raised his pop tart and said, "But just so you know, Storm, Voice,
Torrin…we're glad to have you here." The three new comers
nodded. I had tracked them down again; because I knew to pull this
off, we would need more than five people. It helped that they were
from the School and had some knowledge of the facility. Reynard
turned to me and nodded. "And also thanks to your creepy brother."
I smiled…which turned to more of a smirk and I stood up. "We may
go down…today, But rest assured if we go down…we are going take
as many of those Whitecoat jerks as we can with us."
"And
we'll show them that they pissed off the wrong people," Gozbud
added. Everyone let out a resounding "YEAH!"
"Let's get
fired," Storm said.
"Let's get pissed," Torrin added.
"Let's make sure the Whitecoats NEVER forget this!" Voice
shouted. Everyone nodded in agreement and I checked my watch.
"Alright everyone, time's tickin', let's head out. We'll
meet again outside the School boundaries and we'll carry on from
there." There were nods of compliance and we all filed out. I
opened my wings and jumped off the cliff face. Air blowing threw my
hair and roaring in my ears, I closed my eyes and whipped open my
wings. I flapped them and gained altitude, then looked over my
shoulder, seeing Storm, Torrin and Voice…jumping off in single
file, then flying into formation behind me. The other Ghosts that
were earth bound were already making the trek across the landscape;
we turned and followed them.
PC:
I couldn't sleep a
wink last night, now that I knew that Bree was still alive, I was
more anxious and pissed off than ever. Heads were going to roll for
this little trick; that much I had decided. My opportunity to get out
was coming soon. Whoever they sent to get me, I would knock them out
and lock them in the cell. But if push came to shove, I would not be
afraid to dispose of anyone, who stood between me and getting Bree
and Ana back. I still pretended to be broken and waited for the
Erasers to come. My heart pounded to the point that my chest hurt. I
transformed as I heard the wheels of the gurney coming my way. There
were only two Erasers and one Whitecoat, one I recognized…Dr. Ross,
who became one of my least favorite Whitecoats. He didn't take the
spot of my creator, Dr. Rancor, but he was pretty darn close. He was
head of all the experiments they had put me through and it was him
who ordered the other Whitecoats to keep shocking me even after I
puked my guts out. Dr. Ross slid his card and the door opened.
"Your
time's up, Purple Cat," he said. I didn't move.
"Get up,"
one of the Jawz said. I sat there. Impatient, the Jawz reached out to
grab me. Quickly I caught his arm, locked it and broke it, then
pulled him into the cell. The other Jawz outside came in roaring with
outrage. I ducked as the two Jawz tried to attack me from both sides.
The two colossal Erasers clashed with each other and knocked
themselves out. Then I turned on Dr. Ross, who had seen what had
happened and was on the run. I closed the cell and imprisoned the two
Jawz.
"Oh no you don't," I said and pushed the gurney at
Dr. Ross. It ran him down and he was pinned between it and the wall.
I approached him
"Stay away from me!" He cried. I picked up
the key card that had fallen out of his pocket. "Stay away!" He
trembled. I would've stayed away if I could, because out of fear
the poor Whitecoat wet himself. Ignoring his cry and the scent of
urine, I grabbed Dr. Ross by his lab coat and began to drag him back
towards my cell.
"Quit making a fuss…I haven't hurt you
yet," I said, as I slid the card into the reader to open the door.
"Please don't do this," he whimpered.
"Do what?" I
asked.
"Don't put me in there."
"Oh, come on, Dr.
Ross. It's not that bad, besides I can't have you running around
setting off alarms. That would be…just terrible." I tossed him
inside onto of the Erasers and closed the cell.
"Let me out,"
he demanded, pounding the glass.
I turned away from him to think,
then said, "Tell me Dr. Ross…does this key card open all cells?"
"If I tell you will you let me out?"
"Sure."
"Yes
it does. Are you going to let me out now?"
"Hmmmm…nope,"
I said walking away. Dr. Ross continued to shout at me as I went down
the hall and unlocked all of the cells. "Run you guys! RUN!" I
shouted and then headed in the opposite direction. I didn't know
whether any of the experiments I had freed would escape, but at least
they had a chance. As I ran down the halls, I knew I needed to find
Bree. But I didn't want to waste precious time looking for her in
all the wrong places. So I set out to find Rafmire. I knew that there
was a good chance that he was in his room. Raf was a first class
couch potato and home body. I snuck around the halls even though it
was still early, you couldn't be too careful. Finally, I found our
old room and kicked in the door. Raf was on his bed working crossword
puzzles and looked rather annoyed.
"You could've knocked,"
he said.
"Where's Bree?" I growled, baring my fangs. Raf
got up and put his puzzle book under the pillow and said, "Come on,
I'll take you to her."
Raf took me down a series of passages
that I had never seen before.
"This is janitor's route…it's
a series of corridors that lead everywhere in the School," Raf
explained. "It'll be smart to use these hallways because they are
not very wide and Erasers rarely come through here."
"How did
you find out about this?" I asked.
"When I planned to spring
Chase my pack and I used this pathway."
"Oh…how did you
find out about Bree? How did you know she was down here?"
"I
didn't know until Kane told me."
"Kane?"
"Yes…she
arranges everything for Jeb, remember. She told me the whole story.
Apparently…they were going to euthanize Breeaka. But I guess you
have your mother to thank. She said euthanizing her was too good for
Breeaka. So she was dragged down to the basement to rot. What you saw
was a holographic projection of Bree dying, courtesy of Itex…pretty
mean trick, wouldn't you say?"
"Yeah," I nodded.
"Kane
told me where to go to find her. I paid her a visit last night and
brought her some food…as much as I could carry without anyone
getting suspicious."
"Why didn't you just tell me out
right…after all, you were already breaking the rules by seeing me."
Raf stopped and looked over his shoulder. "PC, my head is
already on the chopping block, why make things worse for myself.
Anyhow I couldn't get caught, not yet." We rounded a corner to a
grimy, rusted door.
"In there," Raf pointed. I sunk my claws
in and ripped off the door. Crouched against the far wall was
Breeaka.
"PC!" she shouted.
"BREE!" I exclaimed. We
embraced each other.
"PC? I can't breathe."
"Same
here." We couldn't stop squeezing the life out of each other. She
was here…it wasn't a hologram, she was covered in dirt and smelt
horrible, but she was warm and alive.
"You ready to get Ana?"
Bree asked.
"Yeah. You well enough?"
Bree smiled
wickedly. "I'm strong enough to kick Eraser butt anytime."
"That's what I love to hear," I grinned. We joined Rafmire
outside.
"I think this is where we part," he said.
"What
do you mean? Are you returning to your room?"
Raf shook his
head. "No…I have my own plans here."
"You? Formed a
plan?"
Raf nodded. "I don't know why people are so shocked
by that…anyways…You guys go and find Ana…don't worry about
kicking Eraser butt too much because there are eight other
experiments on their way here that want a piece of this place."
"You mean."
"Yeah…your friends are on their way here
and I've got to be on my way to let them in."
"Well, you
have been a busy bee," I said.
Raf grinned. "Good Luck… and
see you around." Bree and I nodded and headed down the corridor.
Raf:
I moved quickly through the halls…if
everything went according to plan…the Whitecoats were in for a
morning they'll never forget. I popped up on the grounds. The
passage I was using was a special high-fenced walkway through the
grounds used by the custodial personnel. At the end was a gate that
only they could open. Luckily for me, Kane gave me the key. The sky
was overcast with wicked black clouds, twisting and brewing. The area
surround the School was covered in a dark haze, which happened to be
a multitude of ravens and crows. As I undid the lock, a raven flew
down to me. I smiled and plucked one of the feathers from my hair and
gave it to the bird.
"Tell my sister…her plan is motion."
The bird seemed to nod and flew away.
Mercy:
One of
my ravens circled down and perched on my raised arm. I stroked its
head and it dropped the feather from its beak. I smiled and turned to
the group.
"The gate has been opened, let's get this party
started."
Chap 99
:
It was another lazy morning in the security center. All the
operators were settling down with the cappuccinos and mocha lattes,
for another boring day of staring at the screens. But this beautiful
sense of repetition and familiarity ended with a loud clap of thunder
and a rustling sound in the ventilation system.
"What the hell
is that?" an operator commented. Everyone looked up at a small vent
in the roof, and wandered toward it, except for a few operators
trying to find out if there was breech.
"NO! GET AWA—!"
another operator cried.
Suddenly the vent burst open and crows and
ravens poured into the room, cawing and flapping their wings. They
weren't attacking anyone, but they were causing panic. Erasers
arrived on the scene and attacked the birds. After a few minutes the
winged invaders retreated.
"What on earth?" the operator that
had yelled said.
"What is it?" An Eraser asked.
"All
experiments on level 3 Blue are gone."
"Check Purple Cat's
cell." Video appeared on the screen, showing Two Jawz and Dr. Ross
inside the cell.
"My god, he's loose," the operator said.
Other security personnel went to work, frantically making calls and
pushing buttons. Erasers were being summoned and ordered to swarm.
Suddenly the ground began to shake.
"What was that!" a
frightened employee shouted.
"There are two experiments on the
grounds," one replied.
"What's going on!" Jeb shouted as
he stormed in, nearly slipping on one of the dead crows.
"PC's
loose, Mr. Batchelder…All experiments of Level 3 Blue are gone,
there are two experiments out on grounds killing off the Land Sharks
and Howlers."
"Mr. Batchelder, Experiments on Level 2 and 4
have been released!" a second operative shouted.
"By whom?"
"We don't know…they're not any of ours."
"How did
they get in?" Jeb hollered, running his fingers through his hair.
"Sir, correction, someone let them in…"
"WHO!"
"Rafmire, sir."
Jeb scowled. "Send a squad to collect
Rafmire and have him brought to my office. Send out squads NOW! I
want these vigilantes contained!" Jeb stormed out of the security
center……
Raf:
I casually sat on my bed, working
on a crossword…like nothing was going on. The fun was just
starting. Suddenly shadows darkened the doorway.
"Let me
guess…Jeb wants to see me." The Erasers pulled me up and dragged
me out of the room. It wasn't long until I was thrown onto my face
in front of Jeb. His son Ari was there too, holding Kane with her
arms behind her back. I looked up at Jeb and whistled. "Man, you
look pretty upset, something happen?" Jeb kicked me in the face
with his shoe. "Start talking, Rafmire," he said coldly.
"I've
got nothing to hide," I said, spitting out blood. "I did find the
Network members…a long time ago." An Eraser kicked me in the
stomach and another struck me in the head.
"But ...I was
sick…of you…there was no way…I'd play by your rules…not
anymore." I was struck again by another Eraser, he pinned me to the
floor with his boot.
"So you lied to me…you were plotting
this whole time and I never saw it coming," Jeb said smoothly.
"It
doesn't matter if you kill me…you're about to get your butt
handed to you anyway." "Your death may not matter but I'm
sure…her's does." Jeb pointed to Kane. "Kill her." He
ordered. My eyes widened and I began to squirm. Ari tried putting a
hand over Kane's mouth to keep her quiet as he choked the life out
of her. Suddenly, the entrance to the office warped and imploded as
an angry Mercy came in playing with her lighter. "Hands off my
brother," She said darkly. She snapped her wings out and objects
began to tremble and crack. Ari screamed in a pain as Kane bit him.
He slapped her and threw her to the floor.
"That hurt!" he
snarled. "I'll get you for that, you little witch!" Kane got
her feet and relished the taste of the blood in her mouth, a
murderous gleam in her eyes. Then she transformed into a
ferocious-looking Eraser. She was taller and heavier built than Ari.
She roared and Ari screamed, his voice high like a little girl's.
The Erasers that had me began to attack her and Mercy. I saw Ari and
Jeb running to a doorway that opened on the opposite wall. I got to
my knees and sent a shard of glass at Jeb. An Eraser rammed into me
and my shard wound up grazing his shoulder. He glared at me one last
time before the hidden door closed. Kane and Mercy made short work of
the Erasers in the room. Mercy extended her hand and pulled me up.
"You're a mess, but I'm glad you're alright," she
smiled.
"Is everything going into motion?" I asked. The
lights flickered as a hideous storm raged outside and occasionally
the floor would shake.
"That answer your question?" Mercy
asked.
I smiled." Let's go."
"Not yet," she said.
Mercy took my wrist and waved a hand over my Ring. Using her
telepathy it unclipped itself and fell to the floor.
"Guys,
we've got company," Kane said in a gruff voice.
Mercy made a
smirk. "Excellent."
