Nick had been waiting weeks for this. He still hadn't had his first mission. He fought with Peter, Marshall, and Fred multiple times on their missions taking down a couple of beasts in teams. He still never had a chance to actually fight on his own mission, though. Now that he got one he wished it could have been any other time but now.
Nick leaned over to Kelly and kissed her lips. “I'm really sorry but I have to go. I'll be back in a few minutes. I need to grab some air. Wait for me?” She stared at him confused. “I'm sorry about this,” he said, sadness radiating from his voice.
“You look terrible. You're sweating like a man who just escaped prison,” She said as she wiped his forehead. Her heart twisted as she felt a sudden grief and became worried for her boyfriend.
“I swear I'm okay baby. Let me go grab some air and I'll be right back, promise.” He began strolling towards the exit.
“All right...I'll be waiting here.” He could hear the sadness in her voice. It killed him to hear that. He'd do anything for her not to be upset, but he needed to complete his Objective. He never knew the consequences of not finishing a mission but he wasn't about to find out.
Nick quickly went to the side of the school. In this empty space he clicked the button on his beeper and went into the other realm. He wanted to complete this mission as quickly as possible. He ran towards the address that he had written down.
As he ran through the streets invisible to the normal world, he watched as kids were all around the area. Even three blocks away from the school they were hanging out near cars, on lawns outside the house, in garages. He ignored it, focusing on the mission. He grabbed his Rod and began focusing on a weapon. He'd been training with the spear a lot lately. However, he wanted to master his skills in sword play. He loved the way the sword danced with his body. He focused for a moment, imagining a black handled, silver tipped, three-foot sword. In a matter of seconds it formed in his hand. It gave him a sense of power to hold such a weapon every time he created it.
He arrived at the address. Looking around quickly, trying to spot the beast that passed through the realms. He saw a few kids walking down the block but, besides that, the street was completely empty. Nick jogged up the block looking side to side trying to find it. He wanted to be cautious but also wanted to hurry back to the dance.
As he reached the end of the block he heard a hiss. Turning quickly to his right he backed up on instinct. He checked under the last car on the street and found a pair of red eyes peering back at him. He held the sword close to his side, waiting for the creature to pop out. It hissed again from the darkness. Nick hadn't seen or heard this creature before.
As if it was on a timer, the beast darted out from under the car and flew towards Nick. Its whole body was black, eyes dark red, with teeth that were razor sharp, and claws coming out of its paws. It looked similar to a wolf but mixed with a fox in terms of body design. Nick brought his sword up as the thing leapt towards him. He wasn't ready for its speed as it tackled him before he could even raise the sword up.
The creature used its weight to push Nick down. He slammed on the ground, letting go of the sword. The Unknown dug its front paws into Nick's chest. It tore right through the shirt and into his upper body. As it dug right in, Nick let out a cry of pain, and blood began seeping out almost immediately. The white shirt he was wearing was slowly becoming entirely red. On reaction he kicked his two feet up, knees hitting the creature, as he flung it off him. The creature hit a truck heading down the street head on. Nick heard a crushing sound and a few yards away the truck swerved to the side and came to a full stop.
Nick got up, coughing. He grabbed his chest and could feel the blood. He took a glance downwards realizing he looked a lot worse than it actually was. He tried to ignore it but the pain soared through his chest with a burning sensation that he couldn't do anything about.
He surveyed the truck down the road that hit the Unknown. He could see a blood trail not far from the truck. He had been hoping the impact would have killed the beast. He slowly walked towards the truck, trying to brush away the pain. He could hear a few kids from down the block shouting. They heard the impact from the crash and were now making their way towards the truck. Nick heard another hiss. Now he had to kill this thing before anyone could get involved. The mission importance just jumped tenfold.
Fred sat in the gym after a four mile run. He was holding forty pound weights in his backpack determined to build up his strength. He wasn't going easy on his body anymore. He refused to ever be in another fight and badly hurt like he was in the first mission he was on. He wanted to become an important part of the team, and to do that he had to push himself beyond anything he imagined before. He kept at it, never giving up.
Peter on the other hand kept playing with the elements; forming them into different shapes while trying to figure out how to use them as weapons besides just throwing them. He learned a few new tricks that made him better at close range as well as farther away. He just had to figure out how to combine his skills to make him the perfect fighter. His strength was to push himself to the point of perfecting an art. This however, was also his weakness in that there is the occasional art that cannot be perfected no matter how hard he tries.
Fred turned to Peter. “Feels good to work out sometimes. Gets that pent-up stress relieved. Ya know what I mean?”
“Agreed,” Peter nodded.
“I do kind of wish I had gone to the dance now.” Fred wondered how the dance was going. Wondered if he should have asked someone after all. Maybe it would have been fun. He never really danced but to hold a lady and let their bodies move in unison would have been pretty special. At least Fred imagined it would be since he had never had the chance.
Peter couldn't understand the need to go to a dance. He never liked to dance in the first place. The dress up part was also foreign to Peter. He'd never gone trick-or-treating or done anything special for Halloween. He couldn't understand the fascination of going out and getting dressed up for candy. He didn't want to seem like the odd one out again though. “Yeah, could have been fun.”
“Yeah...” Fred thought about it. He wasn't sure what else to say. He felt Peter wouldn't understand the need of being near a girl. Peter seemed content at this moment in his life but Fred ached to have a girl to comfort him. He'd never been on a date, never held a girl, never kissed one. At this moment he wanted to so badly; to just try, if for no other reason than to try something new. He also wanted to be close to someone. Being in a lonely house all day made him crave for another human being.
“Have you ever dated a girl?” It was as if Peter could read Fred's mind. Fred looked back in shock.
“O-of course,” he replied stuttering.
Peter read his body language and response. It was easy to see he was lying. “I never have,” he said figuring if he told the truth that Fred would follow suit.
“Really?”
“Yes. I've thought about it occasionally.” Peter didn't have much time for dating in his life. He figured one day he'd find someone but spent most of his time studying and now training. Still, every so often he saw a couple walking and felt like he was missing that. That connection that he dearly wanted. If he were to gain it he'd be feel even more normal. Something he wanted to be so desperately.
“Okay I lied. I've never dated. It just feels weird. I mean I'm seventeen and I haven't dated. How sad is that?”
“Nothing sad about it. Just ‘cause you take your time in life with certain things, like dating, doesn't make you sad.” Peter walked over to Fred and sat near him. He pulled his knees up close to his chest. “I do want to find someone special though. I don't have many reasons other than to find out how it feels. I want to see if I can form a connection that others are always speaking about.”
“Yeah, I understand that. I try to envision the same thing. I want to know how it feels. I think I want that more than the other stuff. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'd love to get down and dirty.” Fred said laughing, pushing Pe
ter. Peter laughed back, sincerely this time. “I just want to know how it is to have someone you can love. Know what I mean?”
“I do.” Peter wondered what it meant to love every day. He felt like he couldn't even love his own mother. The person who gave birth to him. So, did that mean he could ever truly feel that feeling of love? He questioned it every single day.
“Man we sound like two sappy losers, don't we?”
“I don't think so.”
Fred laughed, patting his friend on the back. “Yeah, you wouldn't. All right, I'ma run another lap then we can get out of here.” Peter nodded and Fred got up. They both went back to their training.
Marshall let Lucy's head lay on his chest as they slow danced. He could feel her movements every step they took. He could feel the heat of her body fuse with his own. He laid his head on top of hers, feeling like he was becoming closer every step they took. It felt amazing. Marshall was glad he went to the dance after all. He was overjoyed that he asked Lucy to accompany him.
The song ended and they pulled away from each other. “You're a much better dancer than you give yourself credit for,” Lucy said smiling at Marshall.
“Who would of guessed?” he grinned.
“Thank you,” she said, looking around the dance room.
“For what?”
“For taking me here. With you. It's something I never expected to do. I-” she began then shook her head. Looking back into his eyes he could see her's were watery. As if she were about to cry. He wanted to pull her in closer, to make sure she never cried.
“I've never had a date that was this great. Thank you for coming with me.” Her smile grew as did his. He felt a bond he never experienced before flourishing.
“Marshall,” Kelly walked up to them both. “Nick said he was going out for some air. It's been over thirty minutes. I'm starting to worry.”
Marshall looked at Kelly; he could see how nervous she was. “He just walked out in the middle of the dance? Was he sick?”
“I don't know. He looked nervous. Now I'm scared.” she told him. He could sense the sadness in her voice.
“I'm sure he's fine.” He grabbed Lucy and looked at her. “I'll be right back. I'ma go look for him and bring him back here. Dummy probably got lost around the block,” he said laughing. A hollow laugh that neither of the girls bought.
“All right, please hurry back.” Lucy never thought she would say something like that. Especially to someone like Marshall, no less.
“I will. Kelly, stay close to her. We'll be back in no time. You both owe us our last dance, remember that!” he called back as he walked through the crowd. He made his way outside as quickly as he could. Pushing through the vast amount of kids at the dance was harder than Marshall imagined it would be. He didn't want to push anyone or get into a fight.
He reached the door and pulled through. As he ran down the steps and was about to make a turn he bumped right into Ryan. Ryan, the school bully, who looked angry as hell. He turned around and grabbed Marshall by the tip of his shirt. “Hey, little Marshall. I've seen you hanging out with the nerds and freaks. You loser.” He pushed Marshall hard into the ground. Marshall fell, but only because he was busy trying to figure out which way Nick went. Ryan towered over him. “Hey loser, get up.”
Marshall looked past Ryan. He could see in the distance a truck's back lights shining red. He figured that must be the way Nick went. Nobody would stop in the middle of the road for nothing. “Listen dude, I don't got time for this.” He rose and began to walk past Ryan. Ryan grabbed him again but Marshall quickly pushed his arm away. Ryan didn't expect the swiftness of the much smaller boy. Marshall then broke out in a run. Ryan took a few steps then stopped. The drinking caught up to him and he couldn't get very far without wanting to throw up. He watched as Marshall ran around the corner, cursing under his breath.
Nick held the sword tightly. He was searching under the truck where the hiss came from. He saw the blood smeared along where the truck was and underneath it, but no beast. He smashed his fist on the side of the truck. “Where the hell is this thing?” He heard the front of the truck open. “No,” he muttered. He quickly made his way from the back of the truck but it was too late. The second the driver stepped out of the truck the creature leapt from the top of it. The poor man couldn't see or even hear what was attacking him. He was just knocked to the ground as the beast dug its claws into him. He cried out in pain as the beast took another swipe at him on the ground.
Nick rushed forward, his sword tucked to his side. He roared trying to scare the beast but it was too busy with its prey. Nick took advantage of the distraction and charged forward. He was able to tackle the creature from behind, sword sliding right through its side. It viciously let out a howl of pain as they both fell to the side. Nick recovered quickly, drawing the sword out of the beast.
The beast bellowed in pain. He wrenched the sword back, ready to finish it off. The beast reacted and threw all four of its short legs forward. It jolted him backwards; he dropped the sword while flying a few feet back. He could feel his back crack on the concrete. It hurt his chest even more, the burning was reignited and he bit his lip to try and forget the pain.
The brute got back to its feet. It fumbled around, blood pouring from the wound hole on both sides. It still held strong, snarling, angry at its attacker. Nick let out a painful moan as he crawled back to his feet. He didn't have time to recover, as the beast pounced once again. He was back on top of Nick before he could reach for his sword. It went to dig the long claws back into Nick’s chest, but he grabbed the beast's head and slammed it into the street while rolling over. The creature growled, he reached his other hand up to put it behind the beast's head and slammed it again. It yelped it pain. Nick did it again, the beast cried once more before sagging to the side. Nick rolled out from underneath the bloody monster. He wobbled his way up and then took a breather.
He saw the crowd of kids from down the block surrounding the truck driver. He was bleeding badly and one kid was trying to hold pressure on the wound. The other three were on their cell phones. Chances they were calling their parents or the police. Nick stepped forward; he had to get his Rod back. Being invisible it would be no problem.
He then heard the hiss again.
“Are you kidding me?” he muttered angrily. He turned back around to see the beast was on all four, its face pushed in slightly. Blood dripped from its long snout. “Do you not know how to die?” He moved to one side. The beast reacted and dashed to the other side before launching at him. Nick rolled to the opposite way, just in time, as the beast flew past him and smashed on to the sidewalk. It tumbled over but recovered quickly. Nick backed away. He could hear the ambulance sirens now.
“I can't go near the kids to get the Rod. This thing will follow me, it'll hurt them. My first mission is to protect the innocent. What to do?” Nick looked around for anything. The beast stepped forward, this time making sure it didn't leap the wrong way. It wanted its prey badly but it wasn't stupid enough to pull the same mistake. Nick moved backwards, slowly, trying to find something, anything, to use as a weapon.
The beast howled as it moved forward. He spotted a brick loose near the steps of a house. He quickly dashed for it. The beast growled again and rushed forward. Hot on his trail, it was only a few feet away. Nick came low to the ground, scooping up the brick, turning around and slamming the brick down. The beast took the brick to the side of its face. It flew to the side, a thud sounded as it hit the ground. Nick backed off, dropping the brick.
He let out a sharp breath; he could feel his chest burning even more. The movements must have made the wounds bleed out. He knew it wasn't horrible; the wounds were not too deep. They still hurt, causing him to wince in pain with every step he took towards his Rod. The ambulance must have been close because he heard the sirens even more loudly now. His vision was becoming blurry. Fatigue and loss of blood during the fight was expected but it was taking a toll on him more then he imagined. If he had his weapo
n it would have been a lot easier, but getting knocked down and thrown around took too much out of him.
The hiss returned.
Nick turned around in shock.
The beast was back on its feet. It looked confused. Nick was thinking the brick had damaged it badly. It’s one eye barely opened. The other eye that was fully opened peered straight at Nick. “Are you freaking kidding me?”
The beast stepped forward. Nick stepped backwards. They were almost to the street now. He couldn't believe the beast was still able to stand. Its brain should have been damaged beyond repair. It should have been dead by all accounts. Yet it was stalking closer towards him.
As the beast was almost upon Nick it was hit by a bullet through the head. Its red eye gave one more look at Nick before the glow disappeared. It fell over, blood spilling out from every wound that it had. The beast laid still, finally dead.
Marshall stood there, gun aimed where the beast once stood. He let the firearm drop to his side and transform back to his Rod. “You okay?”
“Yeah, thanks.” Nick leaned on a car. He could feel the pain in his chest grow. He survived another fight. Yet, barely.
Marshall came over, bending down near the beast. He moved it to the side, checking out its features. The bullet wound was right above the jawline. The beast was certainly dead. Marshall still felt pity every time he put a creature down. However, when his partners were in danger he did not question it. Shoot first, wonder why he had to shoot later.
“My Rod is over there,” Nick told him pointing to the group of kids. The ambulance was now parked in front of where the truck was. The emergency crew was trying to get the stretcher ready to load the truck driver up. “Mind grabbing it for me? I need to rest.”
Exterminators Infected (The Exterminators Book 1) Page 15
