Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12: CAUGHT

Kat couldn't believe she could move. She could feel both ends of her spine jabbing at her skin, tugging it from beneath. She struggled to her feet and a series of snaps and pops resonated inside her skull, her form slowly changing. She felt her spine slip together, knot once more in unity and her fingers melting together. Soon she was on all fours sensing another like her in the balcony from which she fell. It held the body of a wolf, yet horns branched off from it's skull. It looked down at her, shouting orders in some other tongue she didn't understand. She took her cue and bolted out of the theatre, maneuvering around the chairs and out into the aisle. She slammed through the doors, flying into some innocent pedestrian, and sending her screaming bloody murder. She instinctively mumbled her muffled, unformed word “sorry” when in fact it sounded like a low whimpering. The whimpering quickly shifted into a screaming howl as something sharp slipped through the vines that made her up, snapping the tight cords and rushing away. She growled lowly, leaping away from the woman who had gone silent and rushing down through the streets. The screeching creatures from above sent the humans running and shoving, screaming and yelling like sharks were feasting upon them. They ducked from things Kat could not sense, but knew were there. The wolf-beast came stalking into the streets, it's lips tugged back over its gums in a confident snicker. Kat then sensed the sudden stiffening and tenseness of the muscles, and leapt into the air seconds before the beast threw itself where she was, it's horns jerking upwards as if hoping to catch her at the last moment. She landed smoothly on the light pole that flickered on under her weight, then back out. She growled at the creature beneath her, ears flattening against her head. It looked up at her, smirked, and leapt up after, it's fangs snapping around where her ankle was a moment before. She skidded across the roof, then kept going, running and leaping to the next building, then the next, her paws splitting and linking around the lips of the roofs and pulling her up and over. The beast came after her, but managed only to make it to the second building before crashing into the third building's window, glass getting caught in its fur and some making it far enough to cut it. It rolled into some desks, toppling them over and getting stuck under them. Kat paused for breath, her lungs heaving. She sat back on her haunches, when screeching from above reminded her of the unseeable beasts above and caused her to duck just in time, a wind rushing over her from the passing beast. She snarled, snapping in the air but missing, and, she guessed, probably by a lot. Another swooped down and cut her neck, while she whipped around and snapped her jaws around something that snapped. The beast struggled free quickly, but collapsed on the ground below. Kat pulled her senses from around her to below her, but as she did so, something hit her hard and flung her off the building. Just then a sharp knife of some sort slipped through her, the bonds of vines snapping as torso fell from abdomen. Some how she landed on her two front paws as if she had her legs still intact. She would wonder how later, she told herself, as vines grew from her abdomen, twisted and knotted till her lower half had grown back, the vines that had fallen away smoking and inwardly burning away. She took off running once more as the beast a top the building growled loudly, following her upon the roofs of buildings. Then something dawned upon Kat.
Where exactly was she going?
Thinking quickly and acting seconds later, she changed her route, turning upon a paw, claws gripping the pavement and whipping her down a small alley. The beasts from above rammed into each other, hitting the brick building next to her, giving her a glimpse at what they looked like. Their bodies were mainly wings, their heads small and eye sockets large. Their nostrils were slitted holes, but not on their face, instead splitting the skin upon their chest. The arms that sprouted from their shoulders were miniature, with three claws, much like those in the museum, whom the tourists called the “Tyrannosaurus Rex.” The legs on these creatures held the similarity of human legs, except that they were backwards. Their tails whipped around in a violent, most likely bloody mess, as long as twice their body, with two long, serrated edges upon them. They screeched loudly, howling out at each other, their cries causing Kat to wince and flatten her ears, their mouths making a near perfect circle with teeth layered like sharks' around from the roof to the jaw till the back of the throat. She felt a cold finger run over her spine and turned the corner, the wolf beast barreling through the alley and snapping at one of the flying demons on the tail, getting them to stop fighting each other and focus on her once more. His large body barely fit through the narrow run, his horns scrapping painfully on either side of him. He almost skidded to a stop to turn the corner Kat had slipped behind. She could sense him starting to gain on her, realization washing over him at long last when he saw the trees gather in a large area. Kat pushed herself harder, her paws starting to ache and her lungs sucking in needles. Then the freshness of the air and the trees rushed passed her as she stumbled into the forest, weaving and ducking in attempt to make her trail lost. She came to a sudden stop and strained to send her senses out, the wolf coming to a trot and stopping at the trees' beginning. A few howlers rushed in, but their thin flesh was cut easily and they fell heavily into the park's arms. No others flew in after that.
The demon in wolf's clothing sauntered in, sniffing the air. Quickly, Kat split her paws and wrapped them around the tree above her, pulling her up into the branch and backing up against it, hoping the green of her vines would allow her to blend with the leaves. The wolf stalked around, sniffing one tree then another, finally coming within arm's length of the tree she was perched in. then he did something unexpected:
He turned and left.
Kat went stiff, her ears pricking, her senses following. Trap, her gut hissed, trap! Get out of there now!
But how could she? She had no idea where those flying mutants were in the air and no idea if they could be prepared if she dodged out. Where would she go after that? Couldn't go home, no. She released her breath, listening carefully.
There was something..beating..flapping in the wind above her, and the beast was making little sound leaving-
Wind?
Her ears quickly lowered and she leapt from her perch; there was no wind. The beasts, however, saw her leap from her perch and dived. Several hit the ground with a liquid mess staining the trees, but they cleared the way of branches for the others that came, swooping down and gathering up Kat in a bundle of claws and chaotic wings. Their legs latched on to her, digging into her vines, and lifted her up. She snapped at those she could reach that held her in the air, gaining altitude quickly, and ripped wings straight through. However, there seemed to always be another to take its place. Eventually, one snapped its claws right on her muzzle and she fought no more.
After a grueling flight, they dropped her somewhere, her legs buckling under her and betraying her to gravity. When she went to stand again, the beasts landed and slashed at her legs with their tails. She let out a gory howl, grinding her teeth and getting to her feet that had started to grow back. They went to hit her again and she leapt and dug her fangs into the creature's neck. That sent the entire flock into the air, crying out.
“Silence!” Howled out the wolf that had once been a good man. He stood up from laying down and sauntered over to her, a mock grin spread across his muzzle. She snarled, fangs dripping with blood and licking her chomps.
“Ah, Katara, so nice of you to join us.” He growled out, his voice dark, deeper.
I'll kill you, you-
“Now now,” he shook his head, understanding her growls and ear movements, “now need to get into foul language, my girl.”
YOUR GIRL!? You ripped me in half! How is that even possible!? Where the hell am I!?
“How indeed?” He said, circling her, ignoring her last inquiry. “Quite amazing, I must say. But we are not here to talk about that,” he said, coming up next to her, his furred cheek next to her vined one. “We are here to talk about Samuel.”


****

Samuel sat in the tree, his legs up on the hard branch, his blonde hair ruffled and teased by the slight breeze. His back was leaning against the trunk of the tree and he was, of course, playing with fire. He opened his hand and let the fire travel across his fingers and up his arm so it sat inches away from his shoulder. He had already burnt his shirt, thus causing it to be tossed to the ground below. At the thought of it, he glanced down, his blue eyes searching over the yard to where it had landed. The red shirt was now covered in splotches of black like he had painted and the words that were at one point clear as the moon in the starry sky, were now unreadable completely. He spied a car heading down the street towards his house, his flame, now unattended, spreading up his shoulder and perching as a bird. He blinked and closed his fist, the fire vanishing in a puff of foul smelling smoke, smelling much like burning skin. He leaned forward, his back arching and his muscles tensing with the movement. Soreness still took him from the last run in of training with Captain. The black, sports Porsche had the windows down and rode low to the ground, hugging it tightly with thin tires and sending a thick, violent beat flowing from it. It pulled smoothly onto the gravel of his farm house, cracking the small rocks and popping a few under the tires. The engine died down and the boy with a white jacket hood pulled up over his greasy, brown hair that held a bang that covered one eye, honked the horn and shouted at Samuel to get off the tree and get one a bloody shirt. The kid in the passenger seat laughed and made a teasing joke the was awarded by a laugh from the entire car, two small back seaters joining in, leaving one spot for Samuel. He leapt from the tree, his legs bending to take the pressure and spread it, then picked up his burnt shirt and slipped it on.
“You can't but that piece of crap on!” Shouted the asian behind the wheel, shaking his hooded head.
“Why not? Mom, I'm leaving!” He walked up next to the car and the passenger got out, pulled the seat forward, and Samuel slid into the middle seat. The passenger then got back onto the leather seats, black like the exterior, holding the heat from the sun and warming quickly when a Fotia, the official name for walking flamethrowers, settled into the back seat. The asian shrugged and laughed, “Your loss, Sammy boy. None of the girls'll go for you if you wear that.”
Samuel shrugged, exchanging hellos to the black kid next to him of strong, bulky build, a fighter, or Stratiotes, the boy to the other side of him, olive skinned with large wings now folded into the crooks in his back, an Adler, and the passenger, a pale, black haired kid, part of the few ice-wielders, or Pagos. Together they formed an odd looking group of all different specialties, all different colors, and all different secrets.
“Nah,” the Pagos teased, “he only needs to impress one girl, isn't that right, Sammy?” The Pagos let the last word slip into a high pitched 'girl's' voice, smirking wickedly. Samuel rolled his eyes, “It ain't like that, Nyne.”
“You wish it was!” The driver pitched in, looking over his shoulder and backing up steadily. Samuel didn't respond and just grinned and shrugged. The road become cracked pavement instead of gravel and they slipped off towards the town. Samuel's mother waved goodbye from the wooden porch, smiling kindly and Samuel smiled back, rewarding her with a slight wave. The boys around him thought nothing of it and the ride was mostly silent as they drove the few minutes back into the city limits.
“What's this one about?”
“It's bout us, Sammy. It's like Sky High, except better.”
“And who told you that Aros?”
The asian kid shrugged and smirked, “Internet helps a ton.”
The Adler glanced at his watch and raised an eyebrow, “Man, we're twenty minutes early. What the hell are we doing till then?”
“Beat someone up?” Jokingly added by the gruff voice of the Stratiotes.
“Oh? Like who? This place is a ghost town.” Nyne inputed.
“C'mon, let me out, it's cramped in here. Why couldn't Graves just fly us over?” Samuel said, grinning over at the Adler who gave him a look, “Ha-ha. Very funny.” Sammy grinned and shrugged. He motioned for Nyne to move but he didn't. Instead he twisted in his seat and looked back at Sammy.
“Why would you fall for a blind girl?”
Samuel stared at him, his blue eyes blazing and flickering a bloody warning. Then they narrowed, the Pagos' lips twitching at the corners.
“She's an amazing person. Let me out.”
“But she's blind. She can't even see you. How's she supposed to kiss you?”
Sammy glared at him, “Don't make fun of her.”
The car had went silent, fire and ice raging war against each other in the air. Aros broke in, “Alright, um, let's get out of the car, huh?”
The other boys quickly agreed, Aros opening his door and pulling the seat forward for the Adler to get out, and all but pulled Samuel out from the glare that held poison he was aiming at Nyne. Nyne then got out his side and pulled the seat forward for the soldier to get out. The stood and stretched, shut and locked the doors in the empty lot, the massive theatre towering up into the sky directly ahead of them. They headed to the doors when Nyne glanced over at Samuel.
“How you supposed to-”
Sammy knew the sick remark he was about to make, along with the other boys, wincing, expecting the remark. But, Samuel's fist shut Nyne up real fast.
“Don't you ever talk about her like that you sick jerk.” he snarled, his eyes vicious and narrowed, the smell of burning flesh wafering into the air. Nyne rubbed his jaw and looked at Samuel, “Ouch. Would your parents even agree? Do your parents even know?”
Samuel snarled as Nyne cocked his head and crossed his arms. “They don't, do they? What are they ganna say when you get a blind girl pregnant, hm?”
“That's enough!” the soldier snarled, moving to come between them. Nyne moved his hand and ice swirled up the legs of the teen, freezing him to the spot. Samuel took a step forward, “I would never. I am not some jacked up jerk who thinks of girls like that. Get the hell outta my face.”
“Aren't you though? C'mon, don't tell me-”
“I said shut up!” Sammy colided with the boy, fire engulfing his hands and burning through Nyne's clothing, and, before Nyne had a chance to react, hit him over the head. He went limp under Samuel, colder than he was before. Samuel got up slowly. “I'm going home.”
He turned and started walking, no one arguing. Though, as Samuel turned a corner, he spied the boys pulling Nyne off into some bush and taking to the car. They pulled up beside him.
“Get in,” Aros said. He gratefully accepted the front seat.
“What that jerk said was nasty.”
“Yeah.” Sammy replied, looking out the window. He tried not to think about what Nyne had said, focusing his thoughts else where. They pulled up silently around the corner.
“Sorry Sammy. Truly am. Um, can you walk? I know that's-”
“No problem. Thanks for the ride.” Samuel pushed his door, got out, and slammed it shut more violently than necessary, walking down the street to his home. The black Porsche flipped around and went back to town.
Samuel walked up to his house, hesitated on going on the steps, then headed around the back, wanting to slip quietly into his room. No need to make a bigger issue than there already was, he figured. He walked around the small, wooden, white painted house, the paint peeling away and the gutters filling from the large oaks and pines surrounding them. Horses neighed and pawed the ground when the saw him coming, but he put his finger to his lips and the beauties quieted. He ducked under the window when he caught his name from an strangely familiar voice.
“...Samuel's well being is resting on this, Susan.”
“But to hurt that girl? We could never ask him to do it.”
“Then don't ask,” the forceful voice growled, “make him. Or you know what will happen.”
“Shh, honey.” his father now, “Can't I do it? We won't make him do this.”
“Oh, won't you?” There was some ruffling of pages and his mother gasped sharply.
“Oh my-”
“See that? That's what was left of her parents because they disobeyed. Think of that happening to your boy there.”
“Oh goodness! Please no!” His mother cried desperately. “We'll make him do it! Just, just get out of my house.”
“I will be back one last time. Then your debt to me shall be payed and I will no longer visit you. Look for my return. And Susan,” the papers ruffled again, “don't try to disobey me.” The floor boards creaked and screen door swung open. The porch steps moaned under some weight and Samuel slowly looked around the corner. Then he swung around, rushed to his room and started packing.