Chapter 13: The Angel with the Honest Heart

It was warm under the spotlight. He smiled beneath the evergreen scarf that masked his face and it was a shame that few members of the world could enjoy such a heartwarming sight. His joy resembled that of a child's. Untainted. Pure. Genuine. He and Lucille let the crowd's cheers bathe them before bowing down and waving good bye. They passed the stage workers on their way to the dressing rooms. People thought it strange that a man and woman would go into the same changing station, inappropriate even. But Lucille refused to have her friend too far from her when there were people everywhere. Too many dangers like persistent fans, rowdy workers, and two-faced entrepreneurs. If Francoeur was discovered…

Lucille shook her head and packed her things. It was sort of rude to leave so soon, skipping drinks with the show organizers and refusing invitations for outings. That could be fixed tomorrow. Tonight, they had someone to meet.

…

"Come on, Francoeur. Sing with me! London Bridge is falling down, falling down-"

Francoeur chittered loudly, fuming the best he could. That song was horridly inappropriate for luring a monster. Don't want it getting any ideas.

"You love that one! Can't you just hear the kids from Paris?"

Her friend held his head high and kept a straight face while surveying the area. No signs yet.

Lucille sighed tiredly, "I'm only trying to help. Thank you for doing this for me." She grabbed his gloved hands to pull him down and kiss him on the cheek. Her actions were interrupted by a blood curtailing screech. Both of them looked up to the roofs, keeping a sharp eye out for movement. Francoeur stepped closer to Lucille in an attempt to protect her. He would be ready to give his life for her, again.

The sharp sound of metal creaking in the distance told them that the danger was not there. Lucille couldn't place the source, but Francoeur could. He swiftly picked up his partner and jumped over the buildings, going back the way they came. It was at the theater.

…

It was unbearable, the sound. Those unfortunate enough to be caught at this late hour were running away from it. It tore at their minds and made their ears bleed. The theater stood empty, save for the creature inside that destroyed it.

When the singers landed, there was no light to lead their way. The street lamps were once again ripped from their roots and tossed aside. Some of them made their way to the theater entrance, the source of the horrible sound. The creature had bent them, twisted their figures together so that no force of man could tear them apart. It was building makeshift gates to keep people from going inside. Due to the dim light provided by the cloud covered moon, the two on-lookers could only see the outline of the monster as it finished up and ducked inside through a gaping hole near the top of the structure. It had several arms and a long body that stood on sharp legs embedded in the ground for support. From what they could tell, the creature was strong, agile, and severely pissed off. It let out another bone chilling screech from within the building. The sound echoed out and vibrated through the metal gates outside as if it was the call of a demon from hell, signaling the end of days. And Lucille wanted to go inside.

Francoeur tried to pull her away from the gates, but she shoved him off and glared at him, "I'm going to talk to it. No one here is even trying to." With a nervous breath, she crawled through the contorted metal, slipping away into darkness. The giant flea chittered desperately, but she didn't come back. He looked up and jumped into the hole the creature had used, determined to find it before Lucille did. Maybe it could be scared off. He rolled his eyes at himself, what a joke that would be.

It was dark for a moment before his eyes adjusted. He looked down to see he was in the balcony area, but it was strangely empty. The seats were ripped out, decimated by a monster trying to get through. Its path of destruction lead down to the stage area, but from there he couldn't tell where it went.

"Francoeur," Lucille called out as quietly as she could. She was beneath the balcony that held him and waved him over. He put his arms on the edge, planning to climb down instead of jumping, but stopped when the monster dropped down onto the stage and screamed. It had been watching them from the roof.

The creature stood to its full height of seven feet and extended its four arms out. At the ends were not hands but sharp talons, two on each arm. It also had four legs connected to a segmented body. The monster's shape resembled that of a spider, except that it was long and thin. And its face was more humanoid. True, it had fangs that protruded from its mouth, but thats where the similarities end. It had two large eyes that glowed a sinister red that sat in center like a human's. It had a round, oval shape to its head, with the top forming into an almost point. The really surprising part was that it had hair growing from the top of the head that hung down down to its chin and parted around the eyes. This, along with its oddly feminine facial structure, gave Lucille enough confidence to approach it.

As the woman walked closer, the arachnoid remained rooted to the stage, examining her. It made small clicking noises at her and peered closer. There was a small sound coming from behind Lucille. The creature looked past her and caught sight of Francoeur who tried sneaking around the seats to the stage in case the monster became hostile. And so it did.

Before she could process what was happening, Lucille was thrown back into the stage curtains, getting tangled up in them. She grabbed onto the curtains so she wouldn't hit the ground too hard. When she re-emerged, her heart almost burst out of her chest at the fight before her. The monster had Francoeur in its grasp, shaking him violently against the stage floor. With a harsh crack, the flea's head hit the hard wood over and over until his body turned limp. It looked tired, heaving heavily as it slowly lowered Francoeur to the ground. The woman in the background didn't know what to do for once. On the one hand, she was scared for her friend's life that was still in the creature's grip. On the other, that very creature looked tormented, ready to break at any moment. She decided on letting things remain quiet for a while.

…

The red shade bled out of view, leaving a blue face in its wake. He looked familiar, but the memory of where he was from kept out of arm's reach. There's wind, no, it was speed. Something moving very fast. Adrenaline. Then, it stopped and there was confusion. Curiosity. A want for something new, exciting, life-changing. She followed it, that something. It lead to nothing, but then there was another something that was new, exciting, and…a blank space. She can't remember that transition from the new something to the deadly something. The cage. The cage that stole the lives of little birds. That transported them. Forced them into a better place.

Her golden eyes looked frantically across the body in her hands. What had she done? She looked around her to find a woman looking at her with a calm face, but she could tell it was a facade. Her fear smelled delicious. Enough!

…

Lucille watched as the monster finally let go of her friend and crawled away into a dark corner of the building. There was scratching and loud booms coming from its direction. She paid no mind as she ran up to her partner. He looked awful, but he was breathing and beginning to stir. She let out a choked sob as relief flooded her senses. It was a terrible idea to risk her friend's life. She almost lost him again.

As Francoeur sat up and held onto his upset friend, he noticed the distant sound of people running and shouting. The two looked up to see a group of police men enter through the center walkway.

"E-llo?"

"Who's ther'?

"Show yourselves!"

"If you don't come out, we'll hav' tah detain you."

The two performers looked at one another before quickly hiding behind the curtains. The giant flea had lost his disguise a while ago, and he had no intent of getting the blame for the mess.

"Psst, hey."

"Ya?"

"The stage."

"Okay, follow me." Two of the men made their way to the stage, but before they could take a step onto it, a seat crashed just behind them and the creature scurried up the wall above them.

"Up there!"

"What in God's name is that?!"

Piston's were shot off, some hitting their mark and the arachnoid screamed. The impact caused it to lose its grip and the creature fell onto the two men by the stage. They struggled under its long body. Flesh met talons and blood soon spread everywhere. The rest of the men ran to their aid and with their combined strength they lifted the monster up. It was covered in a dark blue liquid that seeped out of various holes littering its arms and torso. A brave officer lifted its chin to check for signs of life. She responded by opening her eyes.

There were more shots, shouting, screeching, and running. Bodies and debris flew through the air to crash into the building supports. One by one, the columns crumbled and the foundation cracked. The creature worked quickly to speed the destruction until the officers got the hint. With a deafening boom, the structure began to fall apart. It was going to collapse. The remaining able men shouted orders at one another to get out and grab those they could. Three men were left behind, struggling to make it to the exits. The arachnoid jumped into their path and picked them up. Against their protests, it crawled up the building and out the hole it had first entered. They were dropped in front of the officers that made it out first, then it went back inside.

Francoeur and Lucille hung onto each other as the big guy prepared to jump out. They were surprised to see the creature coming back inside. It crawled down to the center of the building, only to stand and stare blankly at the roof. It watched pieces crack off and fall, some dangerously close. It didn't even flinch. The singer's looked on, heart broken at the pitiful figure before them. With a heavy spirit, the flea jumped out of the crumbling theater with his friend.

Outside, the performers stared at one another, torn internally. Francoeur gave Lucille a determined look that spoke far more than words ever could. The woman took a shaky breath and said, "Be careful."

…

She stood there, tears streaming down her face, struggling to remain in place. Her vision blurred into shades of red and black as the monster attempted to take control. It rattled her stance and she shook in agony as the adrenaline faded, her wounds making themselves known. This form was dangerous, an abomination she inherited from her creators. When she looked down at herself, she felt sick. It was like waking from a nightmare only to realize that you were never really asleep. She held her head up, watching as a wooden beam fell above her, and closed her eyes. A place better than here, a place where I am better than I am here.

There's wind, no, it was speed. Something moving very fast. Adrenaline. It didn't stop. There was the sky. Freedom. Weightless-ness. A want for something old, familiar, invigorating. Serena.