by H. D. Gordon
Once we got close to the tower, and Clare and the beasts came into sight, I could do little but stare for several moments. The creatures were huge, with bulging muscles and blue fur that sprouted from every inch of them. They climbed the tower the way monkeys climb trees, agile and swift, as if they’d been engineered to do so. Considering the fact that the poor things had been made in a lab somewhere, I supposed that was probably true.
When I looked at them, it was hard not to be afraid, but I needed to remember that under all that blue and brawn was two Halflings, likely very young ones, who had little to no control over what they were doing.
I breathed a sigh of relief when Remy reached Clare, unbound her from the top of the tower, and soared away with her in his arms, giving me a thumbs up as he did so. But it was short lived, because the two beasts howled out in rage when they saw their prize had been claimed. The sound was so loud that it shook the metal of the tower under my hands.
“Hey!” I shouted at the enormous creatures. “Down here!”
Two furry and furious heads turned my way, two sets of rage filled eyes. I uttered a curse as they leapt down several feet and began to chase after.
Right. Now I just needed to lead them away from the heavily populated downtown district and try not to get crushed to dust under their fists while I was at it.
“Where are you taking them?” Sam’s voice asked in my ear, and I nearly lost my grip on the tower with surprise. I’d been so concentrated that I’d forgotten about the telecom system in my hood.
“Got any ideas?” I asked, barely able to hear my own voice over the wind, sirens, roars, and pounding of my own heart.
“Remember last time?” she asked.
I grunted as I picked up my pace, seeing that the beasts were gaining on me.
“When the beast hit the water, it hadn’t known what to do. It panicked. And then it drowned.”
I leapt off the tower and onto a nearby building, one of the beasts landing in the spot I’d just vacated a second after. “I don’t want to kill them, Sam,” I said as I ran. “They’re innocent. They didn’t ask for this.”
Sam was silent for a moment, then let out a small sigh. “And what if it comes down to you or them, Aria? What then?”
I didn’t answer. I leapt to another building, the roof shuddering under my feet as the two beasts followed after.
“Aria, are you listening to me?”
“I won’t kill anyone else!” I shouted back, the distraction making me stumble. I felt the air over my head stir as one of the beasts made a grab at me, and missed just by a hair.
I expected some sort of angry retort, but silence filled the line, and I thought we’d lost connection. I ran, leapt, and dodged, heading toward the docks despite what I’d said to her. They were the least populated area that was nearby, and maybe I could figure out some way to contain them there.
There was a crackle in the telecom connection. “Sam? You there?”
Silence for several heartbeats. “It’s me, Aria,” a familiar voice said.
I was so shocked that it took me several moments to respond. “Caleb?”
“Yeah.”
“What…Are you with Sam?” I asked, panic rising in me. If Caleb knew where Sam and the others were, then the Brokers or his crooked ass father likely did, too.
“No,” he answered. “I just cut into your connection…. I’m going to help you. Take the beasts to the docks near Broad Street. I’ll meet you there.”
So many questions flew through my head that it was hard to grab hold of one. There was no time to hesitate, though, so I veered toward the location Caleb had mentioned, hoping to God that he was not luring me to some trap.
“Aria? You there?” Sam asked.
“Still here.”
“Sorry. I don’t know what happened. We lost connection for a minute.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“You’re heading toward the docks,” she observed.
“Looks like.”
Keeping ahead of the beasts was not so difficult now that I was running and jumping rather than climbing. They were big and strong, but I was small and quick, and I used this to my advantage as I lead them onward. I slowed just enough to keep them on my tail, taunting them so that they didn’t get distracted.
When we neared the docks, I wondered if I’d made a mistake, as I didn’t sense or see Caleb anywhere. I glanced toward the dark and murky bay, loathing the idea of jumping in there again. As ridiculous as it was, all things considered, dark and deep water had always been a fear of mine, not to mention the creatures that lurked below. It would be just my luck to meet my end by getting eaten by a shark or stung by a stingray or something.
There was a parking lot that led out to the dock area, free of buildings and people, and large enough to dance around for a bit until Caleb arrived.
If Caleb arrived.
And if worse came to worst, I supposed I could always leap into the bay and save myself from the beasts, as Sam had suggested. I cursed the Gods for always making it an either or choice, for making it so that if I did survive, I’d feel guilty over that survival.
I removed my staff from its holster as I reached the paved parking lot, the ground shaking as the two beasts thundered after. When they reached me, they wasted no time trying to beat me into the ground. I ducked and rolled, jumped to the side and spun out of the way, like a human pinball bouncing from here to there.
This only served to frustrate them, and they roared at me so loudly that it shook in my own chest, spittle flying from their lips and landing on my face.
“Ew,” Sam said.
“Not helpful,” I gritted out.
“Well, what are you doing? Jump in the damn water already and let’s get this over with.”
One of the beasts made a grab for me, but I swatted his massive hand away with my staff and then quickly danced away from the other. I was faster, but I could only keep this up for so long. Had Caleb been tricking me? If so, what was the point?
“Aria, the water,” Sam demanded as one of the beast’s fists smashed into the concrete where I’d been half a heartbeat ago, leaving a crack that webbed outward and dislodged several pieces of rock.
Then he picked up the broken concrete and hurled it at me. I leapt to the side, but it made contact with my shoulder, and pain shot all the way down to my fingertips.
“God damn it!” Sam shouted in my ear.
I flipped up to my feet, but was yanked back as the other beast grabbed my cape. Before he could get me in a vice grip, I stripped the cape free of my shoulders and left him wrestling with the fabric.
“What the hell are you waiting for?” Sam asked.
I couldn’t spare the breath to answer. A friend, I thought. I was waiting for a friend. Or, at least, I hoped.
“You’re going to get yourself killed,” Sam snapped. “And then I’m going to kick your ass.”
“Sam, please—”
The words were stopped short as one of the beasts connected with my face, the back of his furry fist striking my cheek so hard that stars burst behind my eyes and my entire body lifted into the air, sending me flying. I landed in a heap, stumbling as I tried to regain my feet, blinking rapidly to clear my vision.
“Get up!” Sam shouted.
But I was too slow. The next thing I knew, there was a vice grip around my throat, and I was being lifted into the air as if I were a rag-doll. I clawed at the furry fist holding me aloft, kicking my legs uselessly, the breath refusing to reach my lungs. The world began to darken at the edges, and I saw the furry, angry face of the beast as he roared, hot breath fanning my hair, spittle spraying my face.
“I got you!” Sam said, and I heard a click from somewhere on my suit. I hit the ground a moment later as the beast released me.
“What…was…?” I tried, but could only gasp for air.
“That was a little addition Matt made,” Sam responded. “An electric current. Matt says you’re welcome.”
I pushed up to my hands, b
linking as I saw another flash of blue heading toward me. I glanced toward the bay, the water calling me. I didn’t think I could take much more of this.
Finding my feet was not easy, but I managed, limping toward the docks as the beasts approached from behind. When I glanced back, I saw that I was not going to make it. They were closing in too fast.
Then a familiar aura appeared on the other side of the parking lot, and I wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or wary.
When Caleb raised a handgun and pointed it my way, I settled on the latter.
Chapter Thirty-One
There wasn’t even time to blink before he pulled the trigger.
Not once, but twice.
I shuddered, expecting the sound to be enormous, but instead, only heard two clicks and puffs of air. It took me several seconds of staring to realize that Caleb had not been aiming at me, but at the two beasts at my back.
The glance cost me, and I was snatched up again by one of the beasts. I noticed as he held me aloft, choking the air out of me, that there was a dart sticking out of his neck. His grip loosened, and he swayed on his feet. Then he collapsed altogether, releasing me as he did so. I danced back just in time to avoid being crushed under his massive weight.
I looked to Caleb, and saw the other beast stumbling toward him. Caleb backpedaled, still holding the tranquilizer gun up at the creature, but a few seconds later, it collapsed in the same manner as had the other.
Then it was just the two of us, standing there staring at each other with two gigantic, unconscious beasts laid out before us.
“Hey,” I said.
“What the hell is he doing there?” Sam asked in my ear.
“Looks like he’s saving my butt,” I mumbled.
Caleb only stared at me.
I turned off the communications in my suit for a moment so that I could be alone with him. Then I approached him slowly, as if I were afraid he might run…or bite.
Now that I was looking at him, I saw how tired he looked, how defeated. There were dark bags under his eyes, and his usually stylishly messy hair was now just messy. Even his clothes were wrinkled. What hurt the most, though, was the mistrust I saw in his aura, the wariness with which he observed me.
I wanted to go to him, to wrap him up in my arms and make it better, but I had a feeling that if I tried, it would only scare him away. So instead, I stood awkwardly, feeling like a fool in my black superhero suit and mask.
Caleb turned to go.
“Wait,” I said.
He paused, turning back.”What?”
I bit my lip to hide the way his tone made me feel. “Why’d you help me?”
Caleb looked past me at the two beasts still lying on the concrete. “It was the right thing to do,” he said.
“Where’d you get the gun?”
“I stole it from my father’s lab.”
I swallowed. “What…Caleb what have they done to you?”
He’d been half turned away again, preparing to leave, but he whirled back to face me now, and it was an effort not to recoil at his anger. “The same thing everyone does to me, Aria. They used me.”
I didn’t miss the implications there. My eyes started to burn and I blinked to keep the tears at bay. “I’m going to stop them,” I said quietly. “All of them.”
“Good luck,” he said.
“Caleb, I wish you’d talk to me and let me help you. We used to be friends. You can trust me.”
He plucked something out of his pocket and tossed it to me. I caught it out of the air. “You can have that back now,” he said.
I looked down at the tiny device in my hand, the tracker I’d tucked into his jacket the last time I’d seen him, the one that had led me to that meeting at the docks between Cynthia Shay and his father. Suddenly, I felt like a real buttwipe.
“I…I’m sorry,” I said. It sounded lame to my own ears.
Caleb’s blue eyes narrowed, and he shook his head. “Yeah, you keep saying that.”
I released a low breath, pretending that my heart wasn’t aching. “Wait, what about…?” I gestured to the blue beasts.
He rolled his eyes. “I’ll have someone come pick them up. You probably should be gone by the time they do,” he said, and turned to leave again.
“Are you going to get in trouble for this?”
Caleb glanced over his shoulder. He shrugged. “I don’t know what else they can do to me,” he said.
This time, I let him leave.
Once he was gone, having hopped into a sleek black BMW and driven out of sight, I scooped my cape up off the ground where I’d left it and fastened it back around my shoulders. Crisis averted. For now, anyway.
Remembering that I had shut off the communication devices in my suit, and that Sam was probably very unhappy about it, I flipped them back on.
And heard a gut wrenching scream on the other end. Followed by more screams and shouts, and other sounds of chaos.
“Sam!” I said, already running in the direction of the old abandoned schoolhouse. “Sam, what’s going on? Are you okay?”
No answer, only the sounds of a struggle.
My heart thundered in my chest, a cold sweat breaking out across my forehead. “Sam!” I tried again. “Answer me!”
As the noises on the other end quieted, my pulse picked up in pace. Then there was a shuffling sound, and a crackle, and a smooth voice said, “Sam can’t come to the phone right now.”
I’d heard that voice before, and once I pinpointed it, I almost cried out at the fear that washed over me. “What have you done to her?” I shouted.
I could hear the smile in the tone when the voice responded, “Come and find out.”
I tucked my chin and ran faster than I’ve ever run in my entire life, and even still, it was not fast enough.
The city flew by in a blur around me, the lights of the buildings flickering and casting a pale glow into the clouds above. The sirens were still blaring, but as I got further away from the downtown area, they quieted. It seemed to take an eternity, but at last, I reached the old schoolhouse.
I paused, taking a moment to catch my breath, to survey the situation from the outside. I wished there was time to come up with some brilliant plan, rather than charging in there headfirst. I wished I hadn’t left them at all, that I hadn’t been so stupid as to fall for the distraction of Clare and the blue beasts.
I checked my pocket and breathed a sigh of relief when my fingers brushed the box with the Relic, grateful that I’d chosen to keep it on me. If I had to, I would bargain it away for my friends’ lives.
Circling around to the rear of the building, I found a back door that was locked with a chain, and snapped the rusted metal with my hands. Then I gave the knob a sharp twist, and I was in.
The door squealed on its hinges as I pushed my way inside. It let into a dark hallway with yellowing tile dusted with dried leaves. I always wondered how leaves got inside old buildings like this, but didn’t have time to ponder it at the moment. It took several seconds before my eyes adjusted to the darkness, my nose to the smell of rusting metal and decaying walls.
Lockers lined either side of the hallway, and a rat scurried by, its glowing eyes fixing on me with marked intelligence before it hurried off again. The silence was somehow worse than the chaos I’d just left behind, and I realized that it had been a while since I’d felt so very alone. I couldn’t even entertain the possibility that I might fail here. My friends needed me, and I needed to suck it up and do what had to be done.
The old school was a bit hard to navigate with the lack of light and various levels, but I found my way to the library. When I reached it, no sound was coming from the inside, and I only sensed two auras. I drew a final breath, slipped my staff out of its holster, and pushed my way inside.
And there was Thomas, bound to a chair, his face bloodied and his clothing ripped. His eyes fluttered and then popped opened fully when he took sight of me, and I could see in his aura that he wanted me to run.
&n
bsp; Then, from the shadows, a man I’d met once before appeared. He was exactly as I remembered him, with a fine suit of all black and a face that I couldn’t quite make out. The soles of his shiny black shoes clicked over the linoleum as he stepped forward, the temperature around me dropping ten degrees as he drew near.
The man in the shadows, I thought, recalling Matt’s words. The true puppet master. The big bad.
And then the Seer’s words. Typhon. The God Killer. The Father of Monsters.
“Hello, Aria,” he said.
I adjusted my grip on my staff. “Where are the others?”
Typhon glanced toward Thomas, waving a hand in his direction. “Your lover here was very heroic. He sacrificed himself so that they could get away.” A shrug. “Doesn’t matter. All I needed was him.”
“For what?”
A flash of white teeth in the shadows surrounding his face. “To make a trade, of course. Where is the Relic?”
“Somewhere safe. Let him go and I’ll tell you where.”
He clicked his tongue. His head tilted to one side, and his eyes glowed red in the darkness before fading back to black. “You brought it with you. Stupid girl.”
I resisted the urge to reach into my pocket and check on the thing. Even now, the thought of handing it over to this psycho was repulsive, but one glance at Thomas, and I knew the choice was no choice at all. If I had to choose between safeguarding this powerful object for the betterment of the world, and Thomas’s life. I would choose to save Thomas. Just as if I had to choose between my life and his, I would save his.
“What are you?” I asked, trying to buy a little time so that I could come up with some kind of plan. I unhooked my cape from my shoulders, knowing it would hinder me.
Typhon watched as it pooled to the floor, and took another step forward. Still, his face was wreathed in darkness. “Just an old player in an even older game.” He held out his hand. “Now, the Relic. Or I’ll tear his limbs from his body while you watch.”
These words brought up the image of the Seer in the woods, of how it had appeared that her head had been ripped from her shoulders. I suppressed a shudder as I realized I was likely standing before the creature that had killed her, and the kind of strength it would take to do that.
