Chapter Three – The Outcasts.
A seventeen year old girl with long blond hair stepped through the broken window, a grin spreading across her face. She had a ten year old girl behind her, followed by a sixteen year old girl with long nails.
"Echo, get behind me." Torna said, signaling to the feline-like girl. She nodded and hid behind Torna, her eyes narrow with hatred for the people that had just walked in. Electra coughed.
"Great to see you, Mina," she pointed at the first girl. "Lilinia," she pointed at the ten year old. "and you, Exendreta. Happy to be back?" she mumbled sarcastically. Mina let out a short laugh and thrust her hands forward. A jet of a green liquid shot from her fingertips. Electra dodged out of the way and it hit the table behind her. The wood began to burn as the green acid spread over it.
Luna swallowed. This was real. She may actually die. She kept still and Lilinia moved forwards. "Where's this new girl, Luna Raiyn? I want that Opal. I need to kill her and receive it for my own." she said in a croaky voice. Echo, the twelve year old feline-like girl, stepped out from behind Torna.
"Never!" she cried, adding a hiss to the end of her sentence.
"Meow!" Exendreta exclaimed. Suddenly, her nails grew longer and sharper, like small, thin blades. She slashed them towards Electra and caught her arm, drawing blood. Electra let out a cry of pain and threw off her white gloves, touching the metal tap on the counter behind her. Luna watched with wide eyes as her skin began to harden and turn to metal. The same metal as the tap. It was like a metal shield forming over Electra's body, turning her skin and clothes the same shining silver.
"Leave now, or we'll drag you out." she said. Mina laughed.
"Not after we've got Luna." she said sternly. Luna let out a small gasp, and Lili heard her.
"There she is!" the girl said, running towards the counter. Luna screamed and jumped out, running towards the back door, Lili hot on her heels. Her lungs were burning with a fierceness she'd never felt before. She ran out of the back door into the large, short-grassed meadow ahead.
"Crap!" she mumbled under her breath. There was no-where to hide for miles out here! What had she been thinking. She turned round and came face-to-face with Lili.
"Hello, Luna." the girl said with a laugh. Luna backed away, and as the rest of the Team and Outcasts ran out, Lili began to groan. Luna stood, rooted to the ground with fear, as the girl's clothes ripped. She tore them off, but tore her skin with them. Luna felt sick rising to her throat as Lili turned herself completely inside-out. Blood ran across her exposed organs and muscles, and her black Onyx gemstone was encrusted into the muscle of her finger. The only normal thing about her were her eyes. They weren't inside out, but were bloodshot and red.
"Luna, hide, we'll hold them off!" came Torna's voice. Luna nodded, swallowing down the sicky feeling in her mouth, and running towards the only tree in sight. She tried to climb it, but the trunk was too thin and it thrashed about under her feet. She swallowed her fear and darted behind a large boulder, just as a shot of acid from Mina's fingertips hit the tree behind her, burning into the bark with a small hiss.
Luna watched as Lili turned to the still metaled-up Electra. Mina turned to Exendreta, but before she could speak, the back door of the Cafe burst open, and out came a tall, muscular nineteen year-old boy. "Hey, Luna, wanna give me that ring of yours without a fight, or do I have to go down on 'ma knees and beg?" he said, with a strong Texas accent. Luna kept low in her hiding place, feeling her body tremble with fear.
Electra moved towards him, but Exendreta blocked her path, holding up her nails. Electra growled and hit her around the head. Exendreta screamed and turned to Lili and Mina.
"Darnel, Lili and Mina – stay here while I get more of our team." she mumbled, cradling her head as she moved out of the door.
Electra turned to Lili with a glare. Mina shot an angry glance at Torna and moved towards her, and to Luna's surprise, Darnel, the nineteen year old boy, flashed a grin at Echo. Luna swallowed. They were all fighting for her. She moved from her hiding place, and Darnel spotted her.
"Oh – she's a beauty. Shame I'll have to kill her to get that ring." he said, making a dash towards her. Echo hissed and her eyes turned into deep green slits, her clothes splitting and revealing black and orange striped fur. She grew ears on her head and a long, bushy tail. Her hands and feet split into massive paws, tipped with long, blood-stained talons. She fell onto all-fours and lashed her tail. Her red hair vanished, and she jumped into the air, skidding in front of Darnel, baring her teeth and growling. She had a massive tiger-like figure, with a fluffy, cub-like coat.
Darnel stopped and took a step back, before letting out a small laugh and a howl. He grew large gray and black mixed ears, a long bushy tail. Like Echo – his clothes split and he fell onto his hands and knees as thick grey fur pushed through his clothes, spreading them over the floor. Once fully transformed, he was a strong, handsome looking grey and black wolf. He snarled at the tiger-Echo and ran forwards, catching her by the neck and throwing her to the ground. Luna let out a small cry as the tigeress lashed her tail in pain.
Meanwhile, Electra was backing away from Lili. The small, deformed girl laughed, spluttering up blood.
"Scared of what's inside you?" she asked. "Well – it's probably all metal now." and she lunged forward. Electra dodged and caught a handful of grass. It turned to sharp metal blades in her hand and she threw them towards the flesh of the girl. Lini giggled as the blades entered her body, vanishing into her guts. "Don't try that again. I just absorb anything I touch." she said with a laugh, spitting at the ground and lunging forwards again.
Luna couldn't stand it anymore. She jumped out from her hiding place and swallowed.
"Stop it! Just stop it, seriously!"
she was surprised at how stern her own words sounded. Everyone stopped, and Torna frowned.
"Luna, run, RUN!" she cried. Luna widened her eyes as the wolf dashed towards her, blood dripping from his massive fangs. She screamed and turned, rushing as fast as she could to the bottom of the meadow. She could hear the wolf panting behind her, enjoying the thrill of the hunt. As she neared the end of the meadow, she noticed a tall barbed-wire fence and whined, spinning round and dashing back up the meadow. She thought she'd lost Darnel, when the wolf skidded in front of her and transformed into a fully-clothed human.. The real Darnel. He caught Luna and pinned her arms behind her back, drawing his dagger from his pocket. He held her in his arms with a grin and raised his dagger. She let out a scream and he placed his hand over her mouth.
"Help!" Luna cried between his fingers, but Torna, Electra and Echo were in their own trouble. Torna was being held tight by a fifteen-year-old guy with amazing white wings. Electra was back in her human form and was captive behind Exendreta's long claw-like nails. Mina had Echo in her human form, with a tight headlock. Luna was on her own.
"Now, I don't want to hurt you, but I need that ring, 'a right?" he said. Luna swallowed. He was attractive, but she wouldn't let a war start again over the Opal in the hands of darkness.
"No." she said sternly. Darnel held her tightly and she had no choice but to let her head fall limp. She stared into his blue eyes and saw no expression. He held up his blade to the light and picked up her arm, holding it out towards him.
"Let's make you die slowly and painfully. How about loss of blood?" and he ran the cold blade over the front of her wrist. She screamed as the metal cut through her flesh, and felt her own warm blood gushing across her arm. Darnel dropped her and she squirmed on the grass, trying to cut out the pain. She clutched her bleeding wrist and sobbed. Darnel felt no pity and picked up her other wrist, when suddenly the air rumbled. He looked up and saw the sky darkening. Torna held her hands up into the air and two massive rain-clouds circulated above his head. He cursed under his breath and darted forwards, just as a streak of lightning hit the ground where he stood.
Luna didn't dare open her eyes, as she could feel the red blood across her skin. She suddenly felt a firm hand on her shoulder, and was lifted to her feet. She opened her eyes and saw three kids in front of her. There was a tall, pretty girl who was around fifteen. There was a seventeen year-old boy with a flame darting over his palm, and then a very handsome boy the same age. He grinned.
"Hey. Let's get you to the base." he said. Luna nodded and let him drag her past Electra, Torna and Echo, who were backing away from the fight.
Suddenly, Luna's eyes darted to her throbbing wrist. Black blood oozed out from the fresh slice over her veins. Her clothes were drenched in blood, and she suddenly felt dizzy. As the light left her eyes, the boy dragging her held out his arms as she fell into unconsciousness.