Airborne

by Constance Sharper

  The ear piercing cries ripped through the area as the debris struck multiple harpies. Their wings tore and they collapsed.

  The building quaked and the slant on the roof grew worse. Then even the injured harpies took their chances with a damaged wing and a dangerous scrappy flight pattern. They took off into the sky in a flock but couldn’t escape. Rafael and other members of the Band were there to meet the fleeing harpies, weapons drawn. Then, at mass, the Band members began to attack.

  Avery averted her eyes from the bloodshed. She still stood on the roof, exposed and alone. She desperately sought out Mikhail. He’d escaped his shackles at some point during the chaos and jumped onto the toppled judge’s bench.

  “Nobody leaves!” He ordered. The screams of fear and hoards of panic intensified.

  The guards were too busy to capture him. The authorities couldn’t keep track of anyone in the chaos. Avery took the opportunity, looking for an escape. She couldn’t fly and there weren’t exactly stairs waiting around for a human to get out. She made a dash for the edge of the roof, ready to look for an opening, when the building gave a roaring rumble again. Somewhere during her run, she lost her balance.

  Normally she could have pin wheeled but with arms cuffed behind her back, she swayed. Slick concrete and another tremble from the building caused her to slip. Avery screamed, seeing it in slow motion. She fell and hit her back, and her legs slid over the side of the building. Unlike most rooftops with raised edges, the entire roof was smooth and currently pointed to the dark blue waves of the thrashing ocean.

  Mercifully, the long chain of her cuffs caught a rigid crack in the cement. Her weight fell over the side and she hung from the cuffs on her arms. Horrified and helpless, Avery kept screaming. The cuffs wouldn’t support her weight much longer. The broken piece of brick they held onto was slipping. Avery shut her eyes, waiting for the drop.

  A tight hand grasped her forearm. Before she realized it, she was lifted up with a single pull and found her feet standing on the rooftop again.

  “Mason!” She gasped, heart fluttering to see the harpie that had saved her.

  “Can you, just once, not die?” He posed the questions with two comically arched eyebrows but the moment was fleeting.

  He still held her arm and urgently guided her over the roof. The initial dust and smoke storm had lessened just enough to increase visibility in the area. It’d become clear that the explosion had ripped through the foundation and half of the building’s supports. Avery knew then that the slanted rooftop was the least of their problems. The entire building would give out soon.

  She cast a quick glance towards the sky. The Band members had created something of a corral, blocking and rushing the panicking harpie civilians. The resulting stampede allowed no one to escape. The flapping could have caused a windstorm.

  Mason kept her moving before she could stare. He stopped her by a downed harpie and fetched out a set of skeleton keys. Upon recognizing the keys, her heart stopped. She looked down and saw the harrowing scene. The harpie guard that she’d actually been friends with had been struck down. A steel bar had come down from the explosion and struck him dead. His dilated, fixed eyes stared blankly upward.

  Mason used the keys to unlock her cuffs. Then he put a hand on her shoulder.

  “Come on.” His urged her uneasily.

  She nodded, ready to take off and bury the unsightly image away in her mind, but then she heard the voice.

  “Help me!” She heard.

  The screeching and flapping was thunderous but the distinct sound of someone’s cry managed to cut through it. Avery spun around, trying to locate it.

  “Help!” It was weaker this time but she recognized the voice as belonging to Samuel.

  “Mason, where’s Samuel?” She asked. “Mason, he’s calling for us.”

  Mason’s eyes sought out the roof behind her, to the juror box, where he’d once been. It was empty now and Samuel was nowhere to be seen.

  Face shadowed, Mason acknowledged it but still said, “It doesn’t matter. We have to go now.”

  The building continued to rumble and the vibrations grew worse by the second. Avery ignored it, suddenly frantic to find the other harpie, but Mason caught her elbow and prevented her from turning.

  “It’s not time for your human nonsense, Avery.” He barked, heavy and impatient.

  “It’s not nonsense, Mason!” She said, still trying to listen for Samuel’s weakening cries.

  It sounded like Samuel had fallen down into the lower level and somewhere in between his wings had probably been injured. Mothering instinct or not, the sheer pain in his cry made her feel the need to help.

  Mason kept his eyes towards the clouds. The Band didn’t have the advantage anymore and harpie civilians were fighting back. Among them was Adalyn, and the blonde girl had her sharp silver dagger posed to strike. Mason was so intent on the sky, Avery ripped free from his grasp.

  “I’m going to help him.” She declared.

  Mason’s looked down from the clouds and caught her eyes.

  “If you go back, I won’t come after you!” He hissed.

  Temporarily stunned, she blinked at him. Using the opportunity, he grabbed her again, eager to take off from the roof. Mason wasn’t so eager to leave her behind, clearly, but she knew the situation. He wanted to protect her and help Adalyn. Avery knew he couldn’t do both.

  She knew instantly that this was the choice. Every fairy tale had one. But this wasn’t a fairy tale and if she chose wrong, Avery wouldn’t live long enough for the happily ever after. Decided and moving quickly, she broke free from his grasp. Mason whirled around, surprised, but she’d already taken off.

  She’d pinpointed Samuel’s voice on the lower level. Samuel’s weakening calls guided her and she came to a spot where the ground opened up. Below, the crushed concrete and ruined supports acted as a makeshift ramp onto the lower level. Careful not to trip, she climbed down inside. The lower level was hot and even though it was unclear what was actually burning, the heavy black smoke reeked of wood and plastic.

  Avery dropped to her knees, holding a sleeve to her nose, and crawled forward. She listened hard over the blood pounding in her ears. Twenty more agonizing steps following his voice and she found him.

  Trapped beneath huge chunks of clay and concrete laid a figure so covered in soot, it didn’t even look like a person anymore. Moving in, she could finally pick out the face that protruded from the pile.

  Lungs burning and body sweltering, she quickly scrambled to his aid but found herself unsure of exactly where to start. Samuel’s face had been blissfully spared by the crushing concrete but his body hadn’t been so lucky. His chest was crushed and he only managed slow and shallow breaths. The chunk of concrete over his abdomen was massive and heavy, but Avery knew this is where she had to start. Digging her fingers into the rock, she pushed. Her muscles turned to fire and the concrete refused to give.

  “Sorry.” She wheezed out, hearing him cry uncomfortably.

  The building’s trembling grew worse and Avery let out a strangled gasp. Changing her approach, she placed her open palms on the rock and tried to stir the magic in her chest.

  It always started like a hum in her blood but rapidly turned into a pin needle sensation. Though she successfully wound it up, she wasn’t sure how to manifest it in the proper way. She’d melted things and electrified people. She never managed anything worthy of moving an overwhelming chunk of concrete before.

  She shut her eyes.

  “Come on Jericho, help me do this.” She whispered. “I know you could use the magic. Show me how.”

  The electric sensation of the magic in her chest pushed outward. Hands firmly on the rock, she willed it to work. Then, with an explosion of feeling, the debris shuddered and suddenly gave. The concrete actually launched off of Samuel and skidded onto the floor at least ten feet away.

  Samuel twitched to life and cleared the remaining rubble off of his own body. His widened eyes caught h
ers after he could stand.

  “You came back for me.” He breathed, the amazement dripping from his voice.

  She smiled, but felt too disoriented to enjoy the moment.

  “Yea, no big.” She waved him off.

  Avery turned her attention to finding an exit. The crumpling structure of the building caused huge crevasses in the walls. Seeing them as an opening to the outside world, Avery pointed it out to Samuel. Samuel’s forearm grasped tight, she started towards it with the lumbering harpie behind her. The air was toxic this high up but they had to make better time. An entire building rocked to its foundation wasn’t a reliable place to stand.

  Just a few steps from the exit, Samuel stopped in his tracks. At first she’d thought he’d fallen from his injuries but instinct quickly told her something was wrong. Samuel hadn’t stopped because of something but rather because of someone. That someone’s body was eclipsed in the dying sunlight outside but she didn’t need to see his face to recognize him.

  “Mikhail.” She said with more audacity than she felt. “I guess I knew you were around here somewhere.”

  Samuel released Avery and sulked behind her, clearly wanting to stay out of the show down while so grievously injured.

  “Go.” Avery told him in a short breath, feeling the weight of Mikhail’s stare solely on her.

  Samuel used the moment to dive out of the opening, even on his injured wings. Then Avery was alone. An icy fear washed through her veins, and Avery forgot how to breathe. Mikhail’s black eyes glimmered with sick enjoyment.

  “Now, I couldn’t let you get away without seeing you first. After all, now that the government’s out of the picture, we have a personal score to settle.” He made a wide gesture with his hand to encompass the entire array of chaos.

  Weary, she checked her escape routes. Crawling through the wreckage would be too slow and she couldn’t fly. Avery was trapped with Mikhail. Her brain fought to connect with her mouth and she blurted out the only thing she could.

  “You don’t want to kill me.”

  “I don’t?” He raised an eyebrow, edging toward her slowly.

  “No. This magic won’t help you. Everyone in the world will know where you are all the time. If you have it, you can’t hide from anyone.” She circled to mirror his movements, desperate to keep the berth between them.

  “Whoever said I was going to hide? Wait,” He tapped his forehead. “Whoever said that I only wanted to kill you because of the magic? I can’t take a slight from a little human girl.”

  In the next second, he freed a long thin blade from his belt. Without a moment of hesitation, he went for her chest. Even in slow motion, Avery didn’t react in time. The blade came at her and then she fell to the floor. She expected pain but none came. Then she caught on. She hadn’t been stabbed but knocked back. Someone had pulled her free before the blade made its target. Avery whirled to face her hero.

  “You came back for me!” Avery shouted.

  Mason shot her half a smile but kept his eyes trained on Mikhail. The Band’s leader had recovered from the movement quickly and was on his heels again. Mikhail’s weapon had the natural advantage and he used it. Mikhail dove for Mason this time, a tactical sliding movement that caught Mason’s shoulder. Blood splattered and a gurgled cry escaped Mason’s throat. Mikhail kept on him, ready to launch another attack.

  “Hey pigeon, over here!” Avery shouted.

  Her insult worked. Mikhail turned and Avery launched into motion. His wing was wide open and she jumped for it. She made contact with the bone segment of Mikhail’s wing and let loose the magic in her chest. If it hurt, she never got the chance to know. Mikhail spun on her quickly. She slammed back into a pillar and held both hands out. She could feel every inch of the magic now, clear as a bell. The pulse of energy raced through her fingertips with absolute control. She bundled the magic in her chest, the burning so familiar it didn’t sting anymore, and held it.

  Mikhail then lunged for her. In that second, she let the magic go, pushing it out from her chest, out her hands, and into the open air. The blow, like an invisible backhand, knocked Mikhail clean off his feet. He slammed into the opposite wall with a crippling crash. The resulting vibration ripped through the entire building and the foundation churned. The damage growing worse in seconds, the walls creaked, and building shifted and slanted. Rubble rained down on their heads.

  Mikhail let out a deafening bark of frustration. Twisting quickly, he rushed her. Avery threw her hands up but he only slid sideways, narrowly avoiding her. Mikhail then dove for the opening in the wall to disappear into the sky. Avery followed him to the edge and peered into the air.

  She waited until he was gone, then whispered, “We did it.”

  She couldn’t have done better with Jericho watching over her shoulder. Triumphant, a smile reached her in the moment of it all and she turned to Mason to find his pale face staring back.

  “Avery.” He rasped and reached out for her.

  Something made Avery glance down. Her breath escaped her. Mikhail had struck her on the way out. His silver knife had slashed her nearly hip to hip leaving an ugly brown streak of blood in its wake. Feeling the surge of pain at that moment, she let out a bumbled gasp. Muscles giving out, she fell backwards. Mason snatched her before she fell through the opening in the wall, and then she only dangled by his hand. Her body refused to work right. She couldn’t make her numb limbs pull herself back in.

  The pain grew more intense by the second until her entire abdomen was consumed by the scorching sensation. Black splotches took up her vision. Then the tingling came back in her blood. But the familiar magic suddenly seemed so unfamiliar. It pushed out from her body with the consistency of crushed ice. Among the million things stuffing into her panicked brain one echoed loudly.

  “If you die, then the magic will jump to the next organic creature.”

  Images flashed through her mind the same moment. Jericho’s crumpled form falling into the raging black ocean. The shiny rock that had attracted her attention and the sting as it dissolved in her hand.

  “Mason.” She whispered. “Mason, let go.”

  The building was collapsing. He’d die with her. And the magic. Even if he got out, the magic would be his death warrant. She stopped holding but his grip never loosened. Holding on so tight that his talons dug into her skin, he refused to let go.

  She knew when the magic reached him, curling around his body with the stinging that made him gasp. She knew when it left her too, and a sudden fatigue soaked into her body. Barely aware anymore, she just saw him flinch. Then he pulled with such strength she ended up face flat on his chest. Unspoken, she just barely understood what had happened. The magic sinking into Mason gave him that burst of strength that had left her. Quickly, he wrapped his arms around her back.

  The last thing she remembered before her world spiraled black was the wing on her face and the subtle brushing of soft feathers. The last thing she remembered was going airborne.

  Twenty-seven

  She came to with a start, launching herself forward and immediately regretting the movement. Abdomen in stitches, she drew herself forward cautiously the second time around.

  Her surroundings were surprisingly calm and quiet, and the knot of anxiety in her chest took a moment to loosen. Rather than a salty beach side or green forest clearing, she sat in a stark white room. The room was empty and lacked furniture in the corners, photos or paintings on the walls, or any real hint of life. The ceiling clearance was abnormally high leading her to the conclusion she wasn’t anywhere in a human structure. Maybe she was in a VIP harpie cell or some type of harpie hospital room.

  She turned her attention down to her stomach, the gruesome memory of the bloody wound inflicted by Mikhail weighing heavily on her mind. The injury had been tightly bandaged so she couldn’t see any stitches or scar. The pain was minimal so she shifted her thoughts to the more pressing situation at hand.

  The nearby door’s knob jingled and turned, and the
n a figure slipped in quietly. Mason walked in and his eyes widened when he caught sight of her.

  “You’re awake already.” He crossed the room to end up by her bed.

  His arm too had been bandaged with the same consistency as hers and his white face became a canvas for dark purple bruising. He held his wings awkwardly, but otherwise he was looking well.

  “You okay?” He asked when he sat down at the bottom edge of her bed.

  “Depends. We’re still in harpie headquarters aren’t we?” It came out more hateful than she’d intended. The dismal situation was sinking in fast and Avery didn’t have enough energy to fight off the negative emotions. As far as she could foresee, they’d battled for their lives and done everything to fix the magic situation only to be back at step one. This time however, the magic had jumped from her to Mason and he was the one in trouble. Already miserable, Mason’s morose comment only made her feel worse.