More gore, again. Azar is deadly and dangerous. And there's a lot more swearing than usual. A few characters do love their curse words.
My gaze had found the shooter's once more. It couldn't be. Why was he here? Out of all of the places to see each other, this had to be the place.
His eyes held shock as he stared at me. The both of us feeling the same chaotic emotions. But there were more important things to deal with. We were in the middle of a battle, there's no time standing around and goofing off. I decided the outside has enough good guys to leave and padded over to a hole one of the humans had created.
The whole way over there and even inside, I could feel his gaze bored onto any spot he could see. It was dark out which limited his normal, human eye sight, that didn't stop him though. I shook off the weird feeling building up inside and followed the sound of gun fire ringing out.
William's scent could be found through the millions of odors hugging any physical object, may it be the walls or ground. His voice rung out, one of pain. This spurred me to move quicker. I slid into the corridor the sound came from and lunged.
A creature that was part some sort of big cat had pinned down William and tried to tear out his throat. The man wasn't ready to die and fought against the half human like his life depended. At this moment, it really did.
The big cat caught sight of me but a few seconds too late. My body crashed into his. We rolled a couple of times before I came out on top. I immediately spat acid into his face and swiped my claws at his chest and throat. My second attack was deflected as he used his arms to protect his vulnerable spots.
Screams of agony ripped through his throat as the venom ate away everything it touched. I will give him credit for fighting through the pain to stop me from swiftly killing him. His defense fell though as the pain became too much for him. The big cat swiped at his face to try get the acid off but only caused it to spread more.
With his defensives lowered, I slashed my claws through his throat, officially killing him. He gurgled on the blood before falling still.
Water assaulted me; my body was roughly thrown against a wall and pinned there. The force was enough to make me see stars in my blurry vision as I tried to gather my senses. What in the hell just happened?
The liquid was shoved down my throat against my will. Instead of it going through my gills, it filled my lungs and stomach. Now, I started to freak out. My lungs were only meant to breathe oxygen. They couldn't handle water.
I felt through the water to the person controlling them. Their power was nowhere near mine. They must have just acquired it only a few months back. I released the energy building up and easily took over control.
It fell away from my body and swirled around the attacker. I crumpled to my knees and both coughed and puked up the water that was forced into my lungs and stomach. That hurt and left me with a pounding headache. Did this person not know who I am? Or at least how powerful and skilled I am?
If they didn't then, they were going to know now. I rose to my paws and strode with confidence towards the ball caging the super powered human. It opened on my command and allowed for me enter.
She stood terrified as she to use her entire arms to summon the water to her. The worse part, the human already looked tired, exhausted after that small stunt. Once she saw me enter, she dropped down to the ground and covered her head with her hands. "Please, don't hurt me!" she cried and tried to back away from me but the swirling water stopped her.
With calculated steps, I leaned down so she could feel my warm breath across her head. "And why's that? You attacked me. Why shouldn't I do the same to you?" I snarled and bared my canines at her in warning.
"Be-because they made do it. Pl-ease, I know who you, you are. I would n-never attack unless forced," she explained and yelped when I growled dangerously. Her hazel eyes filled to the brim with fear. Tears threatening to fall for them to be collected by the swirling ball of water still surrounding us.
I stood back up but stayed where I was to use my height as an advantage. The noises of the other humans outside could still be heard. Her eyes flickered to the warbling humanoid shapes behind me, her fear doubling. "Ever heard of Aztec?"
Confused, the girl glanced up at me for only a few seconds then changed her gaze to the floor. At least she knows not to stare a predator in the eye for too long. "Y-yeah, why?" Her body language and tone continue to give the terror she felt racing through her veins. I could hear the thumping of her heart deep in her chest. A sliver of pity filled me but it washed away as soon as it came. This could all be an act… yet nothing indicated she had other intentions to cause harm to me or the other humans. My pupils narrowed into silts purposely. The silver prominent and deadly looking. Then they returned back to a relax position, the best that could be done with how bright the hallways were.
"Zayden, their leader, can help you. They'll keep you safe away from Jasper. If you don't want to, I'll have to kill you right here. Jasper cannot have more soldiers. I hope you understand." I gave her fake friendly smile even though she couldn't see it.
Her gaze snapped up at me in shock. A flash of anger appeared in her eyes, for only moment. My own emotions surged forward in defense, wings flared and teeth bared. "What?! Bu-but I haven't done, done anything wrong!" she argued but realized who she was talking too and muttered an apology. Smart. Her shoulders scrunched up, a futile attempt to hide away from the monster in front of her.
"If I let you go, Jasper will either kill you or continue your training, then you'll do something wrong. You have two choices, make one quick. And to warn you, I have years under my belt for water manipulation. If I even feel you try to summon a single drop, I will slice off your head where you stand," I threatened and huffed a plume of smoke out. Of course, the young human wouldn't understand. She has yet to truly experience the Jasper ride of torture, pain, and suffering. It's something you don't want to miss.
She visibly gulped and nodded her head before lowering the limb to think. I walked backwards out of the water bubble and found William and seven of his soldiers on their feet. Their clothes were completely soaked.
The man spotted me and stumbled over to me. "What was that for?!" He sounded angry as his eyes glared into mine. A few other of his soldiers stood there dumbfounded or offended at the assault of water we all took. I scrunched up my nose, visibly irritated. They were blaming me without taking the whole situation into consideration. If only they could use the brain cells they have. Hopefully, they do. The longer I'm around this group of humans, I come to realize they don't really have any common sense or comprehension of the situation.
"Not me. I'm not the only person who can control water or fire. She's in there. I haven't killed her unless she makes a decision. If it's the right one, I'll take her to Zayden. He can help her," I responded and kept my eye on the entrance in case she did something stupid. Now, he looked guilty and stupid as he stood there. Does he not think before he speaks? Because man, it seems like he doesn't have any filters.
The girl nervously stepped out of the water. Tension and exhaustion evident in her walk and body language. All of the soldiers quickly snatched their guns, which were probably water logged, and aimed them at her. I stood there as well, waiting for her to speak. Her eye widened at the sight and she froze in her spot, unable to move. "Well, girlie. What's the choice?" She shook herself free and cleared her throat.
"I'll go to Aztec. I just want out of this place." Easy enough. Zayden can help her if she'll accept it. If not… then he'll be doing everyone, including her, a service by putting down the threat. It may seem wrong or immoral but it's for the best. It's either that or being locked up in a room for the rest of their life. Death is the easier way out.
I dipped my head, thankful she didn't force me to put her down in front of William. They aren't as open-minded to the problem at hand. Their safety trumps keeping what they think of my morals. "Well, okay then. You stay with us. Remember my warning well or else." With that, I began marching down the hallway, I'm guessing, she came from. The water ball dispersed and disappeared as I drew the energy back in.
We continued on. The girl had a guard on her to ensure she didn't do anything. A gun pressed into her back and a hand forcefully leading her out with us. The building itself seemed to be most filled with scientist though. The other super humans weren't able to fight though; their bodies were lying, dead in the hall ways. Alongside them were some of William's soldiers. Sacrifices to take down this base. It was working too. The sounds of gun fire were dying down.
The battle seemed to calm down after clearing the building. We had found some more super humans like the girl with us: newbie's. Unlike her though, they attack us without remorse. They were able to kill one of the soldiers with us. That pissed me off. Let's just say their body is now burnt to a crisp somewhere in there.
While in there, I tried to find anything, and I mean anything, about Jackie but there was nothing. My anger only seemed to grow from there. Fire raging on inside of me.
One thing I forgot until it almost slapped me in the face was him. Said man was arguing with Robert. Like always, his face was red and his voice carried out over the clearing. "Where is she?! I saw her! If you don't give her to me, I will kill you for holding my daughter away from me," Zayden grounded out and poked Robert's chest harshly. Poor Robert looked lost, a silent question of 'who the hell was this man?' painted over his face.
Jacob placed a hand on his boss's shoulder to prevent him from truly attacking him. Said man looked slightly different than the last time I saw him. His armor had changed, his hair was shortened, and his gear had been switched out. I glanced behind me to see William staring confused and glancing between the two of us. "Yeah, that's Zayden," I answered his incoming question.
William's face morphed to shock and partial dread. He halted his footsteps, his team doing the same. The girl tilted her head in question, eyes glancing around to find out what was happening. Until her gaze stopped on Zayden and she visibly stilled. She knows what he looks like? They never taught me that. Well, I already knew since he's m-he was my dad. A sigh escaped, too tired to deal with this type of mindset this late in a battle.
Like most times, I was going to turn tail and hide out somewhere or even go to one of the twins. Fate wasn't with me this time. Zayden somehow spot me from the corner of his eye. A man that was always aware of his surroundings, something we have in common. "Azar May Dragna! If you dare try running from me, I fucking swear," he threatened and stomped over to me. His heart pumped fiercely in his chest. Rage was clearly evident in his form. There wasn't an option to run anymore. All I could do was stand and face the music even if I didn't like the genre.
Once he made it to me, I thought he was going to smack me across the face like Jacob did. His body language definitely read he would do that. Instead, the man wrapped his arms around me and drew as tight as possible to his chest. He completely ignored the blood from my wounds and killing others.
I froze, unable to make sense of what was happening. Why was he here? Why did it have to be here we see each other? He's not going to be happy with me, not one bit. Zayden probably has already noticed the robotic beings and military troops around the place. Yeah, not one bit.
"Are you not going to return your father's hug?" he sounded hurt, heartbroken at the fact. I couldn't deny him that. It's been over a year since we've seen each other. I returned the gesture with weak arms.
Tears welled up and fell a few moments later. I felt the presence of the twins before even registering the sounds they made. "Hey! He's the one that sent those humans after us," Sides pointed out Jacob from the crowd and skated towards him. Over our bond, I felt the tail ends of frustration and anger, building up from him.
Sunstreaker followed after him. It took only a moment for the same emotions to run over the bond. Their feelings bleeding into mine, even if they were feather light. A scowl etched into his face as he glared down at Jacob. The human, usually tough and fearless of many things, visibly tensed.
Internally, I knew he was going to do something. His brother trailed behind him with the same look in his eyes. I ripped myself from the hug and glided in front of them. They stopped before they could run me over. "Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, don't. I will explain but not here." My voice was hardened in warning as I attempted to make them feel comforted and ease their building anger. The attempt seemed to work. It was hard since I didn't know what I was completely doing. They did, this was their thing.
Sides huffed but gave in. Sunstreaker growled and looked like he wanted to act mad yet stopped after looking me in the eye. I took a breath of relief until someone snatched my ear in their grasp. Pain sprouted through the sensitive organ. A yelp passed my lips in reaction. Zayden pulled me away from the two robots towards Jacob. By the sights and scents, Mia wasn't here. Good, or else she would be getting an earful.
Both of the twins reacted all within their rights. Sides, being the feistier one, skated forward to snatch me back. His brother slide out his blades, a few of the humans scattered to get away from the clearly angered bots. I stopped them with my hand and waved them off, silently telling them not to. It was better not to piss off Zayden even more than he already he was. He wasn't in the mood right now to deal with anymore bull crap.
"Child of mine, you are never leaving my sights again. I don't fucking care if I have to handcuff our hands together. You aren't leaving." Fuck. More tears fell and I could care less about the people around me saw.
"Zayden-" I started but he placed a hand over my mouth to shut me up. I wasn't having it though and pushed the limb off. Frustration washing over me, spilling into the bond slightly. "Zayden, let go, please. I know they grow back but that doesn't mean it's not painful."
Said man seemed to realize the strain he was putting on my earlobe and released it. "Oh right, sorry." His apology didn't sound genuine, only a reaction to his actions. Never mind that. There were bigger fish to fry right now. "And, I can't Zayden. You know this, both of you do." I glanced between the two to get my point across. Jacob rolled his eyes and crossed his arms uncaringly. His body language unsettled me. The second in command seemed so unconcern about the situation.
Anger flared on the older man's face. "Stop giving me that bullshit! I don't give a shit if it puts me or anyone at Aztec in danger. They signed up for that, they know the risk. But what pisses me off the most right here is you working alongside the military, more importantly, the government. Seriously Azar, I thought I taught you better." My own anger spiked at what he said. Orange, red, and black became the main colors of my scales, clearly showing my emotions. How dare he say that!
"I'm not going to argue with in front of everyone. Go back home and stay to the shadows. I'm taking care of Jasper like I said I would." In this situation, it was hard to keep my emotions in check while this irritated and tired. I turned to return to the twins' side yet someone thought we weren't done.
Zayden grabbed my shoulder and yanked me back into the conversation, quite literally. My feet stumbled to keep me standing, his pull nearly knocking me over. "No, we are going home. That's your home just as much as it's mine. And I thought we were going to take down Jasper together, like a family." Goddamn you, you son of a bitch. I stilled and felt my barriers starting to break down at the mention of us being a family.
The twins must have sensed this and took action. Sunstreaker scooped me up without a word and snarled at him. Both of them surrounding me with comfort; trying all they could in this situation to calm me. My hands started to shake the more I thought about what Zayden said to me. His words rung in my mind like a church bell. I wanted to go home. I wanted for all of this to be over… I wanted my dad back.
A sob finally broke me. I curled up to Sunstreaker and clutched onto his plating like my life depended on it. The hum of spark drifted to my ears, aiding in easing my chaotic emotions. "Give me back my daughter you oversized lemonade can!" Zayden spat and marched up to Sunstreaker without caring the mech was three times his height. My heart rate and breathing quickened when he mentioned the word 'daughter'. It stung painfully once more, drawing out more sobs and broken cries.
Sides blocked him with his foot and sent a threatening glare. Then the mech turned his back to him and blocked me from view. Gently, he stroked the area between my horns in a soothing way. I sobbed even harder but tried to keep the noises down. There were still humans and other bots around us.
"I'm her father; I should be the one holding her. Not you!" This caught the twins' attention as their eyes stared down at me. Silently, they questioned about his words.
"Ehm, put, put me down. I need-" I hiccupped-" I need to talk w-with him." Actions speak louder than words. My claws dug more into the golden mech's plating. In the back of my mind though, I knew I had to get this is over with. "Please."
Sunstreaker's engine lowly rumbled but he complied, hesitantly though. My hands shook from the anxiety rising dangerously inside of me. "Zayden, I want to go you home with you." I could feel the betrayal rolling off of the twins. It struck me harshly but I stood firm, somehow, someway in this state.
Said human brightened up and went to hug me but I stopped him. "But you know I can't. Not until this war is over. Rue needs to die. If she doesn't, she'll haunt the both of us until the day we die. I don't care if its bull crap to you, it's the truth. Fate won't let us be together unless Jasper is taken down. And I can't be doing that with you at my side. I would lose my focus too much." I intonated the hug and wrapped my arms and wings around him.
Behind me, the two relaxed, Sunstreaker was still on guard though. His hurt trickled in our bond. Sides rolled forward, his wheel brushing against my tail fins. A semi-pleasant shock running through my bond due to the touch. He gave a confident boost to break away from Zayden when I needed to.
Zayden didn't waste a moment returning the gesture. "You really aren't coming home until this is finished, are you?" The amount of pain in his voice hurt worse than you think.
"I'm sorry, Zayden. It's for the best." I tightened my grasp, talons lightly digging into his skin. Zayden didn't seem to mind and did the same thing.
I felt the familiar drops of water hit my shoulder. He was crying. Thankfully, Sides gave me extra help or else I would've broken down right there. Zayden rarely cries so this also stung painfully. "Well…" he moved his hand to wipe away his tears, "tell those two tin cans to take care of you." Wait what?! "I'm your father, Azar. I know you better than anyone on this planet." How?! No, seriously. How?!
We let each other go after a few long moments. Sides moved back to stand next to Sunstreaker, on the ready. "One last thing, tell Mia I'm pissed." Personally, I felt every right to be mad at her. Mia promised me to keep my whereabouts from Zayden and the rest of Aztec. Instead, she went behind my back and gave them full control. Heat burned the back of my throat the longer I thought about what she did. This is why I have trust issues! And you people don't make it better by betraying me.
"Don't be. It's not her fault. It was simple to tell she was your inside person. I pressured her into giving us your whereabouts. If you're going to be mad, be mad at me. And first off, where is your watch?" My muscles froze, eyes widening. About that…
"Yeah, missy. Where is it?" Jacob joined in and placed a hand on each of his hips. I raised an eyebrow at him as if he needed me to confirm his thoughts. "I know that was a stupid question, you are always loosing things. Expensive things. Including your suit. So uncivilized."
For that last comment, I smacked him on the side of the head. "Shut up. Sometimes I like being natural, it's easier with no resistance." Then I took a moment to glance around see William was gathering his soldiers. "I have to go. But I'll leave with a present. I found a kid, around twelve with water manipulation powers who wants to join you guys." I turned to face the large group. "Kid, come here."
It took a couple of moments for her to appear and some more time as she jogged over to us. "Kid, this is Zayden, leader of Aztec. That there is Jacob, he's a pain in the side but he's Zayden's second in command," I introduced. That snarky comment earned me a half-heated glare from Jacob; one I paid little to no mind to it. He deserved it for his own remarks to me.
The girl smiled kindly though nervously. "H-hi, I'm Sally. Thank you, you for taking me in." Hmm, she at least has manners of some sort. I stood close by, on the ready in case she tried to do something stupid. She did act us first and tried to cause towards us, giving me all rights to feel this way.
The two returned the gesture. "Nice to meet you, Sally. Jacob, take her over to Zack so he can check her over," Zayden ordered and wait until they left then turned to me. Sorrow swirled around in his eyes, the same with mine. It hurt nearly physically to leave him once more. But we both knew this was for the best, even if he or others didn't think so. He was too blinded by his love for his daughter to realize I was putting him in danger. "Before we depart each other, could you at least introduce me to them?"
Right. I nodded and motioned over to Sides first. Surprisingly enough, he held the same expression as his brother, unpleased and angry. The bond held the same emotions and partially washed the sorrow I originally felt. "Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Or as a special few call them on base, the Terror Twins."
"I wish we met under better circumstances but nonetheless, it's nice to meet you." Zayden had toned down the hostility to a near zero. Since I've known him for years, I could hear the sparks of anger in his voice still.
Sunstreaker grunted and kept a normalized glare on him. His brother on the other hand at least greeted him with words, even if it was only one. "Likewise." Sides's voice expressed his seething anger. The bond only telling me twice what he expressed.
"Well, Azar. I guess it's time. Please don't stay away. It's been long enough. A visit, a real visit is overdue." That I agreed with him. "I love you, child of mine, even if you're a pain in the ass sometimes" He embraced me once more before hesitantly taking his leave.
The muscles in my chest tightened painfully at his retreating form. The moment he disappeared through the trees, I fell to the ground on my knees and bowed my head. For a second, I thought this was the bond acting weird. That wasn't the deal. Seeing him leave once more had caused me physical pain.
Sunstreaker didn't leave me on the ground for long and held me close, in a protective grasp. "Time to go back home." The two seemed to silently agree with me.