“Just grab the damned thing,” AJ says to Nate as the two of them creep through the darkness of an abandoned building.
“I dunno AJ…is this stealing,” Nate asks looking at him from his green eyes through the darkness.
AJ stares at him blankly with his red eyes, “Move out of the way,” he says pushing Nate aside and picking up a chair. He looks at a sheet of glass before him and takes is a breath before throwing the chair at the glass.
“AJ no it’s…” Nate says as the chair bounces off the glass and onto the floor barley missing AJ, “indestructible glass.”
AJ lets out a long breath and looks at the glass before him, “What do we do?”
Nate shrugs, “I never was the one good at this stuff. I can do computers, but not the physical stuff. That was always Stan’s job…do we really need a glider though?”
AJ nods.
“Why?”
“I dunno,” AJ says.
Nate looks at him and then out a window on a far wall, “Sure is dark out there.”
“Too dark,” AJ nods.
“Stars never looked so bright before either.”
AJ looks out the window at the sky and sighs, “Maybe we can try this some other time then.”
Nate nods before digging his hands into his pockets and feeling his gun brush against them, “You think the snow will last long?”
“I dunno may…did you hear that?” AJ asks softly as he looks around the room.
“What?” Nate asks softly.
“That noise,” AJ says before looking around again.
“The snow will last for three days,” a voice says as a pair of purple eyes appear in the darkness.
“Kevin?” Nate asks.
“Yeah,” Kevin says.
“Jesus you scarred me,” AJ says to Kevin as he walks up to them.
“Sorry,” Kevin says, “I was going crazy staying held up in that house though…no offense or anything,” he says to Nate.
“None taken trust me,” Nate says.
“What are you guys doing?” Kevin asks.
“AJ wants a glider,” Nate says.
Kevin nods as he looks through the plate of glass at the smooth black board in the shape of a stingray without the tail. Two small engines one either of the fins stick out from under it and a long silver streak coils its way around the board.
“Unbreakable glass,” AJ says as he looks at the board too.
Kevin nods as he places a hand on the glass as he stares at it intently.
“Kevin?” Nate says, “Kevin you ok.”
“Shhh,” AJ says to him as he sees the glass begin to tremble slightly and small cracks begin to spread from where his hand is. The glass begins to break into a spider web effect as Kevin stares at it before shattering completely as AJ jumps back.
“How’d you do that?” Nate asks softly as Kevin removes his hand from the glass and stretches his hand out.
“Practice,” Kevin smiles at him as he walks by him patting him on the shoulder.
AJ looks from the broken glass back to Kevin before shaking his head, “Unbelievable.”
Nate watches as Kevin disappears into the darkness and sighs, “Weird.”
AJ nods before reaching into the case and pulling out the glider, “Let’s go.”
“What do we need that for anyway?” Nate asks as he follows behind AJ.
“Dunno,” AJ says, “I just always liked the things.”
Nate smirks to himself as he follows AJ out of the building. Yeah that was AJ.
Brian stares at the snow blanketing the ground from the inside of the abandoned motel they had come across. Stanton was standing by the window with his large frame taking up most of it. His arms were folded across his chest and his eyes concentrated on the newly fallen snow. Cole was stretched out on the floor of the room with Evie by his side as he tried to take apart the television piece by piece. Brian thought he was going to end up electrocuting himself.
“I don’t get it,” Stanton says looking out across the snow.
“Huh?” Brian asks.
“I don’t get why it fell.”
“Why did it rain blood? Why did it rain fire?” Cole asks from the ground, but not looking up, “Nothing is explainable.”
Brian walks over to the window and stands by Stanton’s side, “I’d rather have snow than fire.”
Stanton nods, “It’s just so weird.”
“What do you think they’re doing up there?” Brian asks motioning to the sky.
“I dunno,” Stanton says, “Do you think they even know?”
“They have to know something,” Brian says, “They have to know when they don’t get communications.”
Stanton sighs, “I guess. It’s just weird that they haven’t sent anyone yet.”
Brian shrugs, “Who knows.”
“You think a lot of people knew about this? Like Kevin.”
Brian frowns and nods, “I doubt Kevin was the only one.”
“So if we’re put here for a reason what is ours?” Stanton asks Brian.
“I have no idea,” Brian says.
“It all kinda amazes me though,” Stanton says, “I mean everything we are doing is preplanned. We’re small parts of a much bigger puzzle.”
Brian stares at him and nods, “I don’t like the idea of us being such main players in this game though.”
“Why?” Stanton asks.
“I don’t know,” Brian sighs, “I just have a very bad feeling about all this. Like we aren’t experiencing what is really going on out there. Like there is more to it. Did you see the way that guy JC looked? He looked haunted. Like someone horrible was happening,” he says and shakes his head, “We’ve been out here so long I don’t know if I’m ready to see what is going on in New York.”
Stanton looks at him, “I need to find my brothers.”
Brian nods, “I know, but what I really don’t get why I don’t feel that pull to south anymore.”
“Yeah,” Stanton nods, “I don’t know. We’re only pawns though Brian. Something else is controlling it…and us.”
Brian sighs, “I think the snow is a relief.”
“From what?” Stanton asks.
“From the world,” Brian says softly.
“We need to get her somewhere dry,” JC says looking over his shoulder into the back seat as Justin cradles Pilar in his arms.
“Where are we gonna find that?” Justin asks.
“I don’t know,” JC says as his eyes dart from side to side scanning the area, “There has to be something out here somewhere.”
Justin shakes his head slowly and looks down at the girl in his arms wrapped up in his jacket. She was half frozen to death and shivered from the unseen chill in her bones.
“I can’t believe people would do that to another human being,” JC says as he looks up in the rearview mirror back at them.
Justin sighs, “They aren’t human. Those things aren’t human. They’re something else. Something else is telling them what to do. They take orders form people and carry them out.”
“What do you mean?” JC asks him not turning around.
Justin sighs again, “Don’t ask me how I know it, but I do. They take their commands from a young man, a Halfling with bright green eyes like hers and the Rooks’. He’s around twenty-two I think…American too. He orders all of the people in the black cloaks. They are all his followers. They die if he told them to…”
“But why…why would anyone do this,” JC asks.
Justin sighs, “He promises them power. He promises them a seat in his government. He knew this was coming before hand. Just like Kevin he knew and he was preparing. Now everything is falling into place. He knows there are seers out there and he is stopping them at any cost. He kills them. Doesn’t matter if they are man or woman. Both Halfling and human follow him. He has eyes everywhere on this damned planet. The reason he knows he can do this is because the leaders were all older. Even the rulers up in space are older. If any of them tried to come into Earth’s atmosphere they would die…disappear…incinerate into nothingness. Anyone who is not between the ages of 13 and 30 couldn’t survive here.”
“What happens when people turn thirty one?” JC asks.
“Poof,” Justin says simply as he rocks Pilar in his arms, “They’ve all been trained…all of the cloaks have been trained to kill. To he sharp. The Halflings are his pride and joy though because they’re faster and can shoot more accurate. If you turn your backs on them it’s like asking them to kill you.”
JC frowns and looks back at him.
“Please don’t ask me it,” Justin says, “I don’t want to talk about how I know this.”
“Sideways fallin’. More will be revealed my friend,” Pilar says softly with her eyes still shut.
Justin stares down at her and closes his eyes slowly.
“More will be revealed my friend,” Pilar says softly again.
“I found a place,” JC says as Justin feels the car make a sharp turn to the left and then the sound of the car shutting off as it sinks lower to the ground, “It’s not much, but…it will have to do.”
Justin opens his eyes slowly and stares at the house before him, “Oh Jesus,” he mutters as he opens his door quickly and gets out holding Pilar still, “This…this isn’t a house JC,” Justin stammers.
JC stares at him, “Well it’s a cabin. I didn’t see anything else and she needs a bed and something to keep her warm.”
Justin stares at the cabin before him and a chill gets sent down his spin as the wind picks up slightly and brushes against his cheek stirring up the snow at his feet while making Pilar’s loose hair wrap around his arm.
“C’mon Justin,” JC says as he walks over to the front door of the cabin and opens it easily before walking inside calmly.
Justin stares at the cabin and sighs before walking towards the front door and walking into the cabin that he saw in his dream then locking the door behind himself.
Nick looks behind himself as he sees Nails and Jagger walking behind him and Elijah. The night had engulfed the city now and without the lights the city was pitch black.
“You sure this is a good place to start?” Nick asks Elijah.
“Trust me,” Elijah says, “There is someone in there that knows that Brian kid.”
Nails and Tacks look at each other quickly exchanging looks before they all make a turn onto an alleyway and hear the beats of the pulsing club music.
“This way,” Elijah says as he turns to his left and looks at a lard steel door before him, “Nails, Tacks keep an eye on Nick.”
“Alright,” Nails says softly as Elijah pushes the steel door open and they all step inside the club.
The dance floor was covered with young people like themselves dancing around in rave clothes and bright florescent eyes. The DJ booth and lights were hooked up to a generator that was powering the club. The three of them follow closely behind Elijah while scanning the area. “Whatever happened to Mary? Whatever happened to Mary? Whatever happened to Mary? Whatever happened to Mary?” the music sings from “Mary Mary” as the ravers bounce along to it. Nick looks at them all and shakes his head…thank God he wasn’t one of them. Nick shakes his head again and locks eyes with a young human male standing against the far wall.
“Falco?” Nick says to himself as he looks at the male. What the hell was Falco doing here?
The male stares at him and Nick stays in his spot as the others continue to walk across the floor. Falco nods at him calmly and begins to walk across the dance floor towards him. Nick was just trying to figure out what the hell Falco was doing in a place like this to begin with. He always seemed to hate Halflings.
“What are you doing here?” Nick tries to yell at Falco over the music.
Falco stares at him and shakes his head as he approaches Nick. Falco grabs onto Nick’s right hand and shoves a small parcel wrapped up in tissue paper to him, “10: 37,” Falco whispers leaning over to Nick’s right ear.
“What?” Nick asks looking at him.
“10:37,” Falco says staring at him before rushing across the dance floor and over to an exit.
“Wait!” Nick yells as he tries to follow him, but feels a sharp pain rip across his back. Nick spins around and looks behind him before the pain across his back again. The pain rips across his back a third time as he falls to the dance floor in pain, “Help. Help!” Nick yells to be drowned out by the music as the pain rips across his back again. Nick cries out in pain as he tries to get up again and is knocked back down by the pain again, “HELP!”
“Nick?” Nails asks looking over his shoulder, “Where did Nick go?” Nails asks his brother.
Tacks shrugs at him.
“Eli we can’t find Nick,” Nails yells up to him.
Elijah stares at him, “Shit,” he mumbles.
“What the hell is going on?” Nails asks looking over at the dance floor as the crowd forms a circle around something.
“C’mon,” Elijah says making his way over towards the crowd quickly with Nails and Tacks.
“Will you people move,” Tacks yells at them as he pushes his way through the crowd along with the others.
“Nick?” Nails asks looking into the parted area as Nick lays stretched out on the club floor screaming out in pain.
“Jesus Christ look at his back,” Elijah says as the three of them make their way over to Nick and help him up.
“Did someone hit him with something?” Tacks as one of the ravers who shakes his head, “Didn’t anyone see anything?” Tacks yells out with only blank stares in return.
“Nick? Nick you ok?” Nails asks holding Nick up with Tacks.
Nick stares at him with a blank expression before shaking his head no, “My back. My back.”
Elijah looks at Nick’s back and shakes his head at the six long whip marks across his back that were bleeding. His whole shirt had been torn up where the whip marks were and no one had seen anything, but Nick fall to the ground, “We’re going to the Rooks.”
Justin looks around the cabin and shakes his head. Everything was just like in his dream. He sighs as he walks over to the glass window in the front of the cabin and taps it lightly…unbreakable glass. That was off for a cabin. JC was starting a fire in the fireplace over against the far wall while Pilar was laid out on a bed bundled up in all the blankets they could find in the house. Justin’s stomach growls loudly and he realizes for the first time how hungry he is. Knowing that they had prepared for this sort of thing while in the city, Justin makes his way over to his rucksack and fishes out a granola bar for a snack.
“Hey JC can we cook something here?” Justin asks him with a mouth full of granola.
“I don’t see why not,” JC says to Justin looking up proudly from the fire he had started.
“Is she…” Justin asks JC as he looks over his shoulder at Pilar.
JC shakes his head, “She’ll be fine hopefully. I’m worried about hypothermia more then anything else.”
“Are we going back to New York then?” Justin asks looking down into the rucksack.
“I dunno,” JC says, “We started going this way for a reason right?”
Justin looks at him and nods, “I was just wondering.”
“We’ll see what she wants to do,” JC says as he looks at the fire.
Justin nods slowly before walking over to Pilar’s bed and staring down at her.
“What’s wrong?” JC asks him.
Justin shakes his head no, “I don’t know,” he says as he touches her forehead lightly with his right hand, “Pain,” he says.
“Pain?” JC asks, “Like she’s in pain?”
Justin shakes his head no and runs a finger down the side of her face lightly. He shuts his eyes slowly before he falls to the floor by her bedside as his knees collapse.
“JUSTIN!” JC yells as he runs over to the bed and stares down at Justin as he clings to Pilar’s body as it rests on the bed.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhh,” Justin screams out at the top of his lungs as his body arches suddenly and he sits straight up.
JC starts to back up as Justin spreads his arms out widely and begins to scream out in pain. His body lurches foreword every few seconds like someone is striking him on the back before bouncing back into place.
“Make them stop!” Justin yells out as JC stares at him helpless, “PLEASE,” Justin cries out before his body lurches forward again, “Please,” Justin cries, “Please just stop.”
JC stares at him and walks foreword slowly with a hand out trying to touch him.
“Don’t touch him,” a voice says and JC sees Pilar sitting up in bed staring at Justin, “Don’t touch him.”
Justin lets out a loud cry and finally opens his eyes staring up at the ceiling.
“What do you mean don’t touch him!” JC yells at her.
Pilar stares at Justin and frowns. She moves foreword towards him slowly and lightly places a hand on his check whipping away some tears, “Justin,” she says softly, “Justin.”
Justin’s eyes close again slowly and a fresh set of tears make their way down his face.
“Justin let it out,” she says to him, “Just let it all out.”
Justin opens his eyes slowly and lowers his arms to his sides. He lets out a long sigh before looking at the ceiling again and letting out the loudest cry that JC had ever heard in his life before collapsing to the ground.
“Justin,” JC says rushing over towards him, “Justin, open your eyes c’mon,” he says to him.
“Let him rest,” Pilar says staring down at him bundled up still.
“What the hell happened to him?” JC asks.
Pilar stares at him with her green eyes and JC could feel a shiver run up and down his spine, “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me,” JC says lifting Justin off the ground and putting him onto the bed beside her.
“It will all make sense in time,” she says.
“Stop talking in fucking riddles!” JC yells at her, “You and Kevin both.”
She nods, “He will explain it to us tomorrow,” she says looking down at Justin, “He will know what to say.”
“What the hell happened to him?” Xander asks looking over Nick’s back as the other Rooks stare at them.
“I…I don’t know,” Elijah says, “No one knew or saw anything.”
“Looks like he’s been beaten,” Jordan says looking at the deep gashes on Nick’s back.
Xander sighs, “They’re so deep. What did he get hit with a whip?”
Nails sighs, “We only turned around for a second.”
Xander stares down at Nick and sighs, “I can’t believe the bleeding even stopped truthfully.”
Nails and Tacks look at each other with their blue eyes and shake their heads.
Kevin stares at Nick’s body and then exchange looks with Jackson.
“The cycle is starting,” Kevin says as the others stare at him, “It has begun,” he says as his purple eyes shine brightly.
“How the fuck was I supposed to know that…that…that fucking ingrate would play a vital role in this whole fucking thing,” Lance yells as his green eyes burn brightly and he storms around the small office room that had already been destroyed, “I would have never sent him if I knew what he was capable of.”
“Known of us knew,” a British girl says from the corner, “Like you said before this has always been planned out to happen.”
“Oh shut up!” Lance yells at her slamming a fist on the desk sending a large crack through the wood, “Find him. Find Justin. Find the damned wanderer. Find JC. Find that prophet and the girl…above all else find that girl and kill them all. Not tie them up and leave them to die. KILL THEM ALL!” he yells at the girl.
The girl nods at him and slowly walks out of the room.
Lance stares out over the darkened skyline of New York City with his florescent green eyes and smiles, “You think you’re winning Justin. You think I’d give up that easy. Oh no. I will find you Justin. I will.”
