Okay just so everyone knows what sucks about this chapter, THERE WERE 1,999 words. ONE MORE WORD and I'd have a straight 2,000!
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"Trixie?" Jake asked again.
The creature before him was emitting a low growl, as it's tail thrashed about behind it. Jake blinked many times, expecting himself to either wake up from a bad dream or at least for the creature to be gone and Trixie to be standing in it's place. He stood up slowly, focused on the thing, "What did you do with Trixie? Where is she?" he yelled, his own growl coming through his voice.
The cat thing recoiled from it's fighting stance and smiled, pearly white fangs shining in the darkness. It's eyes stop glowing red, the tail and claws retracted and there standing before him was Trixie. She took a few steps towards him, "Jake, you shouldn't have come here tonight." She told him.
"Where's Trixie?"
"I AM Trixie, boy!" she told him in a cold tone.
Once she was close enough to touch Jake she reached out and pulled him up by the collar of his jacket. She ignored her reflection in his eyes and pulled him so that they were almost touching nose to nose, "Listen to me!" she said once Jake started screaming obscenities at her. He didn't believe who she was. This was understandable, she knew this might happen one day but she was on a mission.
Jake stood up on his own two feet, never once taking his eyes off hers.
Trixie, once again being dwarfed, looked around before continuing, "You gotta go. Being here right now is a very bad idea." She told him, still looking around. She knew something was coming, it was just a matter of time.
"I'm not leaving unless you come with me! Trix, it's been three years. I've missed you so much!" Jake suddenly blurted out without knowing what he had done. When Trixie's hard expression faltered for a brief moment he took the opportunity to continue. "Where have you been all this time? Are you okay? Why haven't you tried to contact me?"
She didn't answer a single question, just stared at Jake with sentimental eyes clouded with an array of other emotions. What was she doing the entire time? Trying not to be killed, that's what. "Jake," she said slowly, "There is so much to be explained but now isn't the time." She turned to start walking towards the sack of gold she had dropped earlier only to be stopped by the hands of Jake.
"Where are you going?"
"Jake we've both got to get out of here right now." She tugged.
"I'm not going anywhere until you give me some answers, Trix. Do you know what we've gone through to find you, what I've gone through?" he asked her, his eyes starting to sting.
There was an explosion of noise coming from some direction behind them, Trixie suddenly looked panicked. "Jake I promise you will see me again, but for now, we have to leave this place." She told him, twisting free of his grasp.
"When?" he called after her as she began to run off.
"Sooner than you think." She said. Shortly after the darkness swallowed her up and her footsteps could not be heard anymore.
There was a brief moment of complete silence before Jake could see lasers and heard the yelling of men in the same direction as Trixie disappeared. Trixie, no! In panic for her safety he ran after her. He had to protect her, he had to keep her safe. Now that he had seen her there was no way he was going to loose her.
He neared the area only to be tackled into a tree unexpectedly by the person he forgot was there, Spud.
Spud had one hand holding them both to the tree and another over Jake's mouth, "Dude, Huntsclan rolled in a few minutes ago. I don't know what their fighting but we've got to go." He said, panting and out of breath.
Jake pushed him off angrily, "I know! That's why I'm going!"
Spud angrily pushed him back into the tree, "Maybe you didn't hear me there's the Huntsclan and some freaky cat thing back there, it's time for Jakey-poo and Spudinski to go home now."
Jake stood up and began heading for the lights and noise, "Trixie!" was all he said.
"Trixie?" Spud questioned as he ran after Jake, "I didn't see her in the brawl at all."
"The cat thing."
Spud tripped over an overturned root of a tree, dirt and weeds getting into his mouth, "What!" he squealed, spitting it all out. He quickly got up and followed Jake, whose strides took him considerable far from him in that short amount of time.
"Get her!"
"ARG!"
"Bring here down!"
They heard the carnage before they saw it. Crouching behind some bushes and peering through they could see the massive group of Huntspeople. Trixie stood in the center of the mob, tail thrashing wildly about as her eyes scanned the area, a few of the huntsclan soldiers laying face down in the dirt in front of her.
Jake remembered her growl so when he heard it again it sent chills up and down his spine—very good chills. He could feel his own growl wanting to come out. He watched her, with the yearning to join her, with a great anticipation. She wasn't the sassy-mouth girl he once knew; she was something more, something greater. He could see an aura of great power surrounding her body, one that wasn't there before. He once asked himself if that could really be Trixie.
On one side, the hoard of Huntsclan members suddenly began to part into two fractions like the red sea and from the gap came a hooded figure, slender with a staff and a whip like object hanging from the back of its head. It walked into the center of the circle, in front of Trixie and shoved the pointed end of its staff into the ground.
In laughed a cold-hearted laugh and began to speak, "Trixie, Trixie, Trixie, out trying to be a hero are we?" it asked with a voice so silky and cold in was almost inhuman.
Trixie stood up straight, all of her cat like features disappearing, and smiled. She pushed her hair out of her face and shifted her weight to one side, folding her arms, "Wuddup sista-girl?" she said.
The person across from her didn't seem to like that very much, it frowned, "Give us the gold." Trixie didn't move, a smug smile still plastered across her face. "I said…"
"I heard you, girl. I just don't feel like giving it to you."
The huntsclan members behind the girl began to stir but with one swift motion of her gloved hand the settled down to a low murmur. "I will give you until the count of three to hand over that gold."
No answer.
"One," The person adjusted the gloves on her hands, "Two," she cracked her neck and stretched her arms, "Last chance, Traitor."
"No dice." Trixie said, pulling off her jacket and throwing it over the crowd in some random direction.
"Have it your way. Three!" She removed the hood and threw it to one of the Huntsmembers behind her, long blond, braid flipping about. Her blue eyes sparkled pure evil in the moonlight and her red lips curled into a smile.
Jake thought he really was in a bad dream this time. "Rose, " he managed to mouth to himself as he felt his sense of conciseness slowly slipping away.
Rose launched herself at Trixie, some sort of grunt escaping from her mouth. Trixie dodged effortlessly with a sidestep. Rose rounded on her, angrier than the first time, and threw out a kick and another and another only to be denied each time.
"ARG!" Rose yelled in agitation, "Just stand still and take your beating like the traitorous bitch you are!" She jumped up spun three times and came down, heel of her foot aiming straight for Trixie's head.
Trixie looked at the on coming foot, smiled and as her eyes began to glow red, raised her hand and caught Rose right before they collided. After slamming her foe into the moist dirt beneath her she let out a deep throaty almost maniacal laugh.
Jake flinched. For whom, he did not know. Spud noticed but said nothing, the fight taking place before him had his full attention.
Rose hoisted herself out of the dirt and flipped over to where her staff still protruded upwards. With one ferocious yank it was in her hand, whirling over her head in a circle. "I grew tired of your childish behavior a long time ago, Trixie!"
"I grew tired of your face a long time ago, Rose." Trixie retorted.
With that Rose had had enough. She began firing off her staff at Trixie as fast as she could but Trixie was to fast, dodging every beam left and right, causing them to hit her Huntsclan foot soldiers.
"Going to have to do better than that." Trixie taunted, sticking her tongue out at Rose and making funny faces.
Rose's bright blue eyes narrowed into slits as she grew steadily more annoyed with Trixie's actions. Panting, she plunged her staff deep into the earth again, "You could have been great." She managed to say between huffs and puffs.
Trixie's eyes stopped glowing, as she began listening to what Rose had to say with great distain.
"You could have been great!" she yelled again.
Trixie held up one of her elegant fingered hands to silence Rose and lifted her head to the sky, "I suppose I could have been—and for a while I was the best. Better than you in fact," she ignored the scoff from Rose and continued, "But, I remembered the value of life—late—but I realized it."
"You are so full of bullshit! Magical filth must be eradicated."
Jake flinched again.
Trixie eyes flashed red, "You'll hush up if you know what's good for you." She scorned.
Rose straightened up and looked to the sky that was now increasing in brightness,. She held out her hand and almost immediately her huntsclan mask was given to her. She put it on and grabbed her staff, "Until next time Trixie," she said, "For now I bid you farewell." Then she turned to the rest of her huntsclan, "MOVE OUT!" and in a puff of smoke they were all gone.
Jake quickly rushed in, hoping to get hold of Trixie before she to disappeared but he wasn't so fortunate. He stumbled into the area just as all the smoke was dissipating, Spud stumbling after.
They both stood there, bemused by the spectacle that took place in front of them and nearly blinded from the sunlight pouring in through the canopy of leaves overhead. Without meaning to, Spud glared angrily at Jake, "Are you sure that was Trixie?" he asked in a rather angry tone.
Jake ignored the way Spud was talking to him and nodded, "I spoke to her, it's Trixie. She's just a bit different now."
"Gee, ya think?" Spud said in another distasteful tone.
Jake rolled his eyes, not knowing how to take Spud's tone. He looked towards the now pale blue sky and sighed, "Come on, let's head home. We got what we came for."
"You got what you came for," Spud mumbled so quietly under his breath that Jake barley picked it up. He didn't react to it, he just aloud Spud to push past him.
Before exiting the fight site something caught Jake's eyes, a bright red jacket hanging off a branch nearby. He smiled, looked around and silently put it away in his pack, "Trixie," he said to himself.
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