Testing Fate
Wordcount: 11143
He felt like home.
Safe, like, if she was in his arms, nobody could touch her. As long as his hands were on her, as long as he was there, around her, nothing could hurt her. He was warm against her frozen flesh, his suit wrapping her in the comfort of smells that she had grown to love, cigarettes and woods. A smell that haunted her waking hours, the smell lingering over her clothes long into the school days. He even smelt like home, or at least what she wanted home to be. The familiar feel of just being generally wanted rose up the back of her throat as his fingers threaded through her hair, his nails grazing lightly over her scalp to produce a relaxing motion.
There was something almost magical about those fingers, something that had her completely wrapped up in within seconds. She needed him. That much was undeniable now. Now that he had left her for a whole week. He hadn’t opened his apartment door to her knocks, didn’t return phone calls or text, no response on any social media. The boy had not even shown up to school. He had just left, disappeared without any sort of trace, right along with the other three. And no one seemed to be worried, not a single person seemed to be out looking for him. Not a single person bothered in any sort of absence of the bubbly blonde boy.
Besides her, that was.
She closed her eyes to the feel, trying to keep out the incessant buzzing that seemed to be blaring at her through her blonde haze. She could feel him speaking, his chest rising and falling against her cheek, she could even feel his heart beating, her own trying to slow down to match his. Her fingers came up to bunch in the fabric of his suit, pulling him closer, as if, if he was not touching her that she would explode into some sort of wild array of something probably pretty important to keep together.
She wanted it to be a blonde bundle of overly excitable boy, she wanted it to be the boy that she had been longing after for two years. Kasmir. She wanted him to be hers, she wanted her to be his.
He was speaking now, his words only hushed hums through her ears, even as he took hold of her chin, forcing her to look up to him, she could not understand. But she watched those lips move, watched as those icy eyes pulled her into some sort of daze that she could not possibly understand. But she watched those lips form each word, diligently. Saw his pink tongue dip to touch his lips and she saw the small quirk to his frown as he watched her.
There was a pause between his words though, as he waited, for a response she supposed. That was the norm. To respond when someone said something to you. But she had not heard him, his words literally going over her head. Instead the buzzing still rang in her ears as her thoughts raced across the channels that she seemed stuck on. It was shrill, loud, brought a shiver that wracked her bones as she tried to pull back into the warmth of his chest.
“Liam… He doesn’t like astrology. Says it’s a waste of intelligence. Intelligence better to place somewhere else. He doesn’t know any. Not a single constellation… You do. You care about things. You care about me?”
Her eyes lifted from his lips that drew her in, seeking something, to the bridge of his nose, exploring his cheeks as she spoke. Her words flowed easily from her mouth now. There was no stopping them, not once she had started. Not once she caught on to the small obsession she had been holding on to with him. Her own fingers came up to caress his jaw, her finger running soothing circles over his skin as he let worried eyes rest on hers.
The affection that bloomed in her chest for the boy was alarming, something that her mind cold steadily focus on through the euphoria that was clouding out the bad. He was always there, he was always ready to defend her to the hell and back, but Emmy had only been able to appreciate it through a false facade of just friendship with him. A tick that she knew right off the bat that Kasmir did not appreciate. But here she was, in his arms, uncaring of their surroundings. Instead she was trying, with every ounce in her to hears his words. To understand why he looked so forlorn. But try as she might she couldn’t seem to focus beyond the string of thoughts running through her head.
‘Why did he leave you for so long if he really cared about you?’
‘He probably got sick of your excuses and just wanted to get away from you.”
‘It’s your fault for choosing Liam over him. Why should he have to say anything to you when he decided to leave?’
“You could have at least said goodbye.”
--------------------------------
She wasn’t listening, or she couldn’t listen, that much Kasmir was able to tell as he watched her eyes move along his features, tracing them with her gaz as he tried to draw a response out of her. She didn’t fight as he moved, his hands sliding along her body so that he could hook her legs in the crook of one of his arms, pulling her close to his body as he held her, her arms wrapped around him as she pressed her body harder against him.
Her voice spilled, fall as he turned away from the massacre before her, her eyes wide and unseeing as she spoke of a boy hours past dead, her head rested on his chest as she spoke whatever it was that came to mind. Her question to him made him pause his movements, Kasmir looking down at the woman in his arms with something of a surprised look, confused but there.
His mouth opened, lips parting as he took in a breath. All words seemed to catch in his throat, to stay stuck to a gummy tongue as he swallowed thickly to try and speak again, but he found he had no words, not a single clue as to how to answer her. Kasmir was a bright boy, not the top of his classes but damn near close, but no amount of studying or reading had prepared him to give voice to the emotions she brought to life in his chest. He wasn’t Davy, he didn’t know how to find the words to name these emotions, didn’t have the skill to string them so artfully together as his friend did even if he had managed to find the words. He didn’t have the words for what she really meant to him, and even trying felt forced and felt flat on what he really wanted to say. There wasn’t a way to voice it, this heat, this need , this fire that boiled his blood. There was little he wouldn’t do for his friends, but there was even less when it came to the woman in his arms, her touch, her kiss, her body on his drove him crazy in all the best of ways. He needed her, needed her in his apartment laughing as she found his baby pictures again, In his kitchen, clinging to him with her legs and arms wrapped around him as she begged him to cook something for her because she was starving, and if she didn’t eat, right now, she was absolutely going to die. He needed her in his bed, completely on top of him with her hair falling in his face, nearly drowning him as it got caught in his mouth but what did that matter if it was her in his arms?
Kasmir loved her. The words were weak and tired and overdone, but they were true.
“Of course I do. You know that, Emmy. I’ll always care about you“ He muttered as he pressed his lips to her temple, walking past the bodies of friends and men he called his family. His words were spoken against her temple, light brushed of his lips on her skin, nuzzling into her as he walked them both toward the only exit in the school.
“You know I love you. I won’t let anything happen to you…. I got you, It’s okay, just relax…”
He was thankful, suddenly, absently, that he didn’t really have to deal with the same struggles his friends, his brothers had to, the ones who were now starting the hunt to track their girls down, the ones that were now turning from the bloodshed of the masses to those who had either wronged them or they desired. Kasmir didn’t care really either way, his mind having heavily settled on Emmy since the moment this plan had come to fruition, only a few other names added to the exempt list because of him. His mind was wholly consumed by her, and he thanked whatever gods may be that Emmy had simply walked straight to him, into his waiting arms with only a mumble against his chest.
She was shaken, in shock, but she came willingly, and that was what stuck with him.
“I won’t leave you, not ever.”
----------------------------------
“Hmm? Who?”
There was a hum as he snapped his gaze up, pulling it away from the blood that was starting to pool at his feet, to seep into his shoes and collect about the sole. He didn’t know why he bothered to look really, considering Neferox didn’t see himself as a particularly bright boy, names often slipping from him almost instantly after him learning them, the effect of a few too many concussions left untreated. He leaned into Vaughn’s Touch, his kisses, the little smile on his lips widening with every press of his lips to his cheek. Blood soaked hands moved along the back of his brother’s suit, the fabric wet and sticking with the blood that coated him, to reach of the little strip of cloth that had been placed in his pocket, pulling it out to wipe off his hands. The handkerchief, quickly changed from white to pink to red, stained forever with a memory he carved, painfully, into his mind.
The small little gestures of affection pulled a laugh from his lips, a chuckle building in his chest before he looked to his brother, catching the same mismatched gaze he held boring into him. There was a smile on Vaughn’s face, a pull to his lips he hadn’t seen in so long that he had almost forgotten what it looked like, what his brother looked like without the troubles of another bully, or the wounds from yet another fight that they had found themselves in littering their skin, bruise blooming under his eyes, lips pulled into a deep frown as he fought to stop the bleeding from his nose and split lip. Everyday had been the same thing, over and over and over, the same fights, the same bullies, the same beatings from people who didn’t have the courage to face the Matthews brothers on their own. They had endured it, had learned from an early age that life was not, would not, be fair. Fair was for bedtime stories and kindergarten classrooms, a non existent concept anywhere else. They had learned that there wasn’t anyone who would help them, had learned from a young age that they only really had each other, and over the years, that had taken a toll on their morale. Neferox could hardly recall the last time he had seen Vaughn really, genuinely smile, and to see it lighting up his brothers face now made his chest tighten with an affection he could not name.
If Nothing else came out of tonight…. At Least Vaughn was happy.
Neferox turned his gaze away from his younger twin, dual colored eyes flicking toward the sight of Neket and Audi as Neket drew in the taller boy easily, the same sort of knowing movements that had Neferox’s hand moving to his brother's hair, fingers running soothing little lines along his scalp. He glanced at the set of twins before them, the vivid pastel purple and the glimmering fake strands of the girl next to her, and it took a moment for it to click, the names coming back as he drew in an excited little gasp. His eyes widened as he allowed his own smile to drift over him, hands moving excitedly for a moment.
“Oh! I actually know this! That’s Lunthe and Braithe! Neket’s wifi wifey, and Audi’s eye candy!”
There was pride in his eyes, a flash of it as he turned slightly toward his brother, before pulling a face at hima twist to his expression as it became just that slight bit darker, that little shift that had his smile sliding straight from a puppy like adorable tick to a smolder of darkness that had been present on his face before, the sadistic flair to his features as he turned them away from the sight. The laughter bubbled in him, in his chest, the feeling foreign and almost new, a memory he had about another life. He had never felt so wonderfully free, wonderfully justified and righteous and god he felt Powerful, lives taken by his hands, his tormentors, the ones who had specifically made his life hell.
“But they aren’t the important ones…. Now are they?”
His voice changed slightly, a dark velvet hum along the scent of blood that now hazed the air like a lingering fog.
There Was the minor sound of gurgling blood behind him, the slight shift in tone as someone let out a dying breath, the plea silent but there, present and unanswered. The sound sent a shiver down his spin, a jolt straight to his gut to pool and simmer with need.
“I know I personally have no real interest in Lunthe and Braithe…. Not tonight at least.”
--------------------
He could hear the concern lacing each word, the thoughts projecting the caring tone in his voice. He could hear the slight agitation that seemed to build up at the fight that his Khaleen put up. A valiant attempt to protect a sister that they both knew she could not. At least not for long. But he couldn’t bring in him to spill his guts at this moment. Not while his eyes were on Lunthe, not when he could see the shivers running up her spine and the chill to her blood. Her heartbeat was a roar in his ears as he made his way over to the girls and his bleeding heart of a best friend. Not an etch of the concern was in his features, they were all hard edges and mockery. That was until those caring hands reached out for him, fingers wrapping around the back of Audi’s neck to press him closer to Neket.
There was a twinge, a small quirk to his smile as the mask crumbled just that little bit. Just that fraction for just that split second as those multi colored eyes landed on his, shifting his attention entirely to his Dhouti. There was a crack somewhere in the armor he wore for Neket, there always had been and he was sure there always would be one. He just slipped under his skin, warmed his very veins and on the bad side, brought a lump to his throat when he thought about even trying to lie to him.
Audi shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his free hand coming up to cup the back of Neket’s neck. He let the small connection soothe him, let the calm wash over him at the feel of his own Dhouti. His fingers smoothed back strands of wild black hairs, twirling the locks between his fingertips before answering.
‘I’m as fine as I can be… Let me just get this done so i can get Lunthe out of here.’
There was a pause a subtle flicker of acknowledgment as he heard the sigh rip between the two, Neket’s lips parting to let out small sigh. The smile on his lips turned into something sweet for a moment, Audi’s hands worked quickly, pulling Neket’s forehead down so that he could press a soft kiss to the crown of his head. His own smile lifting as he kept his lips pressed for a second.
The truth was, this night was not meant for him. Honestly, he could not even tell you if this life was fit for him yet, but it was perfect for Neket. Suited the King more than it suited others, more than it suited the Michaels at least. Or just him, his brother seemed to be stepping into the position as shadow king very well. But point being, there was a spot in his heart that was just for his Dhouti, strictly. And that spot enabled the boy to be able to get in and pull on some heartstrings, enough to get whatever he wanted from Audi.
Even now, Audi could feel it, the need in Neket for Audi to be just as happy. And it was that need that built the smile up just a little bit more. There was a need rising up in his own guts to give his Dhouti exactly what his Dhouti wanted.
Dhouti’s get what they want.
Lee’s, they take what they want.
‘Don’t worry about me, Tovak. Besides,... you have bigger things to worry about. Do what you came here to do.’
He let go reluctantly, his eyes stuck on Neket’s for a moment longer. He wanted him to be happy, could honestly say that he wanted almost nothing more in this world than for his Dhouti to be safe and happy.
But they were there for bigger things, than the small connections that they needed to feel from time to time.
The second he turned his eyes from him though he could feel it, the dread pick back up as eyes as blue as the ocean swept him up. A fear hidden behind them that caused his heart to absolutely stumble in his chest and threatening to rip him apart from the inside out. She was scared, terrified, her heart erratically pounding against her chest, her eyes were wide, tears on the cusp of falling, droplets sprinkled across thick lashes as her eyes shifted from him and Neket and back again.
There was sorrow that raced through his vein for her, and he was moving, the ache to soothe those fears encompassing him before he even knew what he was doing. His hand moved almost on instinct, moving to rest her cheeks in the palms of his hands, his thumbs coming up to wipe at unshed tears.
He shushed her, his body bending so they could look at each other on an eye level . There was concern, genuine running through him. He could understand, her need to stand up, to protect the one person in her life he knew she needed. He could understand her fear of him as he pulled her into his arms, letting one single hand move to her hip. He could understand the punches that she threw.
Hell, she didn’t know what was going on. Had not a single clue as to why it was this was happening around her. But she also didn’t know that she was safe, that he wasn’t going to let anything happen to her. That nothing,... horribly bad would happen to her sister. At least not fatally.
It was not her fault that she didn’t know their plans, she didn’t have any sort of clue what she had in store at this point.
“Calm down, Khaleen. You’re fine. I’m not here to hurt you.”
------------------------
“They aren’t even looking this way. Break the window.”
“Jess, they are going to hear i-”
“Just break it Thomas. I swear to god. I’m not trying to die tonight.”
They were all talking, they were all whispering among each other as the shots rang out, their eyes wide as they focused on nagging each other instead of the situation at hand. Their scared and panicked tones kicking up into the air to create a thick layer over the already tense atmosphere. Brown eyes shifted, watching each movement from her corner of the room, she watched as they argued and nitpicked, their hands coming up to push at each other as their words got more and more heated. But she knew. Knew what fear could do to a person. Even if it was quite possibly the worst decision they could possibly make in a situation like this.
Circee ducked into the corner, her back sliding along the cold of the wall as she dipped down to the floor. Logically speaking, none of them were going to be able to hear the window breaking. Not over gun-shots. They would have to be right in the general vicinity of the classroom. Which since they the shooters thought they were all stuck in the gym, they would not be. Really, Thomas was being the fucking idiot here.
And he was going to be the reason they got caught.
“Jess, listen. We can just go see if the exit’s are open there’s one that's not too far down the hall.”
“It’s locked. And you heard his announcement.”
“They couldn’t have locked them all. Not that fast. Come on.”
“Thomas,...”
“Trust me”
‘Don’t do it Jess, you’ll regret it.’
“Alright. Fine”
‘Fucking Idiot.’
The thought was short, blunt. But they had decided on their own death. And their was nothing Circee could say, let alone wanted to say. The girl followed the dumb jock to her death again. And they would end up being the romeo and juliet of the sunday header of the newspaper.
That's what they had decided their lives could amount to.
“Come on, baby. I got you don’t worry.”
Thomas was gonna be able to play tough guy up until the moment that those gunshots were heading straight his way, then Jess would be left out in the dusk. But Circee supposed she was really going to die one way or the other so what happened.
“You’re right baby. You’re right.”
They shuffled in their spots for a minute, unsure on their next movements, but with a small touch to the small of the little black haired girls back, Thomas was able to move her forward. Her hands reached for the door, turning the knob as quietly as she humanly could. She didn’t move, didn’t dare breath as they opened the door, the soft click of the lock catching as the door shut behind them was almost jarring in moments like these.
But what was it she was supposed to do to escape from the same hell?
But the world around her went quiet, the shots fading almost just as fast as they had begun. The screams that had echoed died, and there was only quiet now. Something that seemed to shake her even worse than just the terror that had just been rising through the air.
Circee was not a scared girl, she didn’t shy away from danger. Hell, usually she ran face first into it. Taking on any sort of challenge as she seen fit. Bungee jumping, sky diving, tank diving. She’d been surrounded only the best, all of her friends or family willing to jump head long into the danger of it with her.
But right now. She was shivering, and not just from the cold that clung to her skin, her heart was jerking erratically against her rib cage. Right now, she was not a strong girl .She was not brave. She was scared. Intimidated. Cowering in the corner of a classroom with her hands brought up over her ears to only deepen the bone chilling silence that was resonating now.
‘Breathe. Just breathe. In through your mouth and out through your nose. No one knows you’re here.’
She couldn’t sit here and call people names when she could not even gather the courage to stand up, to look for some sort of exit. She couldn’t even lift her eyes as something rang out low in her ears, the words or sound all together inaudible, but it was long, and if she had to guess it was probably screams. Probably Romeo and Juliet themselves getting caught up in an idiotic plan, that Romeo that was the ‘smart’ decision.
‘No one knows, no one knows you’re here.’
There was a crash, loud, reverberating through her bones again causing her to jump. The sound rocketed off again. Soaring through the night air as a loud holler of enjoyment echoed through the halls. The twins sounds collecting into a noise that she wanted nothing to do with. She shuffled, resting her forehead on top of her kneecaps, er ears still covered by both her hands.
‘Someone had to have called the police by now. They are probably on their way here already...’
The bangs shifted, turning into loud low shrieks of shrill metal running across the hallway bricks. If she had to pin point the sound it sounded like an aluminum baseball bat colliding with the hard brick that was the foundation of their school. But that was not the part that had her trembling, that part was that the noise was getting closer, louder as it approached. The scream of metal obnoxious in her ears, even through her hands, even through her desperate attempt to quiet it. Her body shrinking in on itself to the best of her abilities.
But then it disappeared, gone past the door to continue on through the halls. Until finally she was dipped into the silence again. At least for that moment.
---------------------------------------------
His words were nothing, something she could only call a hum of background noise as her mind suddenly came to screeching halt as she took in his looming form. moving through shadows and oceans of blood before he came to a alt before her, her eyes locked on him but his attention for the man before him, his eyes flickering over to her before he turned to reach for the smaller man that was already reaching for him. Her eyes flickered between them, the Snow that kept her sister glued to her phone, who her sister stalked and fawned and laughed over, who she cried for when she told him she couldn’t talk to him anymore. She still remembered her sobs, the gut wrenching churn in her own gut at hearing them as she watched her sister's phone light up in her hands, His messages falling through before she could manage to pull up the contact she would need to block him from reaching Braithe’s phone.
‘Braithe, Wait.’
‘Please Don’t do this.’
‘Braithe please i can’t I can’t lose you’
‘I can deal with nick, It’s not like he can make my life worse’
‘Braithe don’t give up on me i need you’
‘I can’t do this’
‘Please don’t let me go’
‘You’re all I have left’
The last of the messages before she managed to block him hovered in Braithe’s inbox, and Lunthe could remember looking at her sister as she screamed into her bed, holding her stuffed animals as she sobbed her misery over losing possibly the only man she had ever seen her sister really, truly care for, Lunthe had deleted them, the whole of their conversations, and continued on the mission that Braithe had asked her to do, To Block him from reaching her on any social media, because Braithe didn’t have the heart to do it herself, but she couldn't let Nick Destroy Neket Snow.
And she had. She had done her job as her Older sister, had done what anyone would have done to save the person that meant everything to them from further pain. But it had apparently backfired splendidly, as now Neket let go of the taller man, his smile unhinged and his eyes snapping back to the silent younger Durandal.
Lunthe hardly noticed Neket, could hardly focus on anything as Audi turned his gaze to her, locking her in her place, froze and unable to even so much a breath.
It was him. It was him, it was him, it was him. She felt the tears start, the burn behind her eyes falling to burn along her skin. She shook, her hands trembling as she sucked in a little, her eyes on him as the realization hit her that it really was him, Audi Michaels, the silent boy who had managed to steal her attention away without her even realizing it was happening. She didn’t really know when she started to look for him. She could remember having him in a few classes, mostly required classes she decided to take a little early or electives, and he never said much, was never really involved with the rest of the school. She could remember watching him, watch as he ignored the school around him, as people passed him for a partner, for homework, almost like he wasn't there. It had started somewhere around her noticing him, her seeking him out to be his partner on projects or lab, her taking a seat next to him in classes when she saw him. There was something about him, something in his clipped responses and him looking away from her as he responded to something she had said that pulled her, the boy a mystery she wanted to know, an ocean with hidden currents. She found herself thinking about him, wondering as she laid in bed at night with her sister cuddled next to her about what he was like,w hat his room looked like, his favorite color or his life.
Audi was a mystery, but a mystery that had already started to seep into her veins. Even now she felt it, that strange allure, but it was tainted now, a dark thread of fear tracing through her blood to make her body tremble. Audi had always been quiet, but she had never seen him as violent, never seen him so angry and free and unrepressed. He moved easily over the floor, straight to Neket without so much a a flicker of his lashes, uncaring about the lives around him. There was the instant fear, the shiver of terror that closed her throat and had her hands clenching tightly to Braithe.
It hit her like a freight train.
She was going to die tonight.
He stole the breath in her lungs as he moved. His hands found her cheeks, pulling her to him, His words sliding along her skin as she moved to fight, to struggle and pull from his hold. Her eyes were wide, fear rippling through dark blue eyes as she gasped in surprise, his arms steel she could not bend. She pushed, getting nowhere as she heard Neket move, shifting as she heard her sister’s twin gasp. Her heart stalled, eerily silent in her chest before it reappeared in her throat, pulsing out a roar in her mind that made everything else fade away.
“Everyone’s Dead. Everyone… I know is dead.” Her Words fell, her eyes wide as she pushed, though her strength had died long ago. Her hands clenched now, pulled at his jacket as she stared, vivid, distant eyes, terror apparent in the shine of it.
“I didn’t mean to make anyone angry.” she was babbling now, her mind starting to frizz over with the harsh static of fear,
“Don’t kill her, don’t Hurt Braithe.”
-----------------------------------------------
Arsen was going to be sick.
The scent of death hung heavy in the air, the reek of dead bodies seeping through the heavy wooden door Arsen had locked behind him. His stomach curled as he stifled a gag, his eyes snapping away from the door, his hand moving to cover his mouth for a moment, before he dragged it down along his face. Arsen had never had a particularly strong stomach, not able to handle the bloody gorey movies Heru and Neket seemed to love so much, or the particularly bad food combinations that the High minds of Neferox and Vaughn, or Inness and Oberon liked to make. He never had a good tolerance for things he found absolutely disgusting, and as it was, it turns out that people in general were one of them.
People were absolutely disgusting. Rotten, sewage from the inside out, only proven by the stench of death they emitted when they passed. Spilled blood created a thick stench of metal decay, a burn along his throat as he breathed in, his tongue tasting the rot and curling in on itself, waging war with his self control.
This past week and taught him the importance of scents. He was able to pick out the healthy from the sick, the sober from the drunkard and the weak from the strong. Everyone had a scent, but Arsen had found that every human he had ever come across smelled the exceptionally awful, lingering rot following in their wake. Their true stench was one of decay, rancid to the core and pungent enough to make his eyes water and his stomach to heave. He was lucky there was nothing solid in his stomach as he turn to walk out of the front office, taking in a deep breath as he stepped outside those confines.
God He hated blood.
“Ugh…. Someone tell me That the announcement went all the way through the school… I’ve had it with the gun play.”
The words echoed in his mind, along the bond where he could feel the presence of each one of his squad members, the minds of each of them bubbling along his own thoughts as he tried to shake the vaguely sick feeling from his gut with a ruffle of his hair, his eyes closing as he breathed.
“What? Can’t Handle a little Violence, Mr.Trigger Happy?” Oberon’s voice purred along his thoughts, the rumble of his Twin’s laughter following immediately after. The twins were notorious for getting under people’s skin, and now it appeared that they had set their sights on Arsen.
“Took the first kill away from Neket and everything. Greedy.”
Arsen rolled his eyes, hardly acknowledging them as he heard the warning snaps from His Dhouti, before he just sighed, his arms crossing as his stomach slowly started to settle down. Oddly enough, this connection, one he had once thought would be more embarrassing or strange and hard to get used to, was actually surprisingly comforting, a low constant hum of activity over him, an anchor he needed to remain grounded. It was them, his friends, the only ones who had remained by his side, lingering in the back of his mind. It was hard to explain how it worked, much like talking but all completely mental and over longer distances. He felt it with all of his kind, with the man He called his father and the others who had saved his friends, and feeling them there was soothing over his nerves, by himself but never really alone. Even the insults and teasing light remarks fell short of irritation, Arsen simply shaking his head.
“She shouldn’t have treated me like a dog. Either way, I wanna get this going. I’m already sick of staring at these walls again.”
“Then let the Hunt begin. Everyone knows the names of the people who are off limits, so if You find anyone you don’t recognize from it. Off them. The less people left alive the better. I’d rather not have the police arrive a little too early.”
The smile curled along his lips, spreading along his features like melting butter. His eyes narrowed, his back straightening as he turned to make his way down the hallways. His head tilted as he listened, hearing the groan of a building settling, possible for the last time it would hold students within it’s walls.
Ryker was here. Somewhere… Somewhere in this maze of classrooms and halls and lockers.
And he would find her.
--------------------------------
“Shh, shh, hush now, Khaleen. Everything’s going to be ok. I promise. It’s going to be okay.”
His words were low, whispered under hushed breaths as he watched her, his fingers moving to capture her tiny wrist into the palms of his hands. His own fingers a velvet cage around her fragile flesh, cradling her as soft as he possibly could in his hands.
His words seemed foreign, even on his tongue, just a mimicked way to make the only girl who had ever caught his attention seem somewhat safe in his arms. He knew that in her eyes, everything was probably not gonna be okay. Even ‘if’ she did make it out of this. Her whole world was going to change, her entire logic and sound mind was going to be twisted until he was her very rock. The person she would cling onto for affection the only person that was ever going to be able to satisfy her again.
She was going to be his, so everything, in the end of these grand schemes was going to be okay. There was no real lie behind his words.
There was a moment where all he could do was watch her, her reactions, the way she felt in his hands, the way her eyes screamed with so much built in emotions. There was a moment where he could only marvel at the woman that he had only dreamed of holding thus far. The girl he had let hold his imagination during those nights where he just could not bother to go to sleep. Lunthe Durandal, the girl that he only dreamed he could possibly even stand a chance with.
Those chances slide right into his fingers in the grace of his King, the grace of the only man who had made this possible for any of them to be here. It was all thanks to NEket that right now the very definition of human perfection stood right in front of him, in his hands, crying for him. Yes, he knew it was for Braithe and herself, schoolmates that he had personally never got onto a friendly level with that was making her actually cry. But it was him she begging, it was him that those eyes were finally focusing on. It was him that finally had all the attention that he had so rightfully deserved. Lunthe had no choice but to acknowledge him, she had no choice but to plead to him, she had no choice but to choose him.
He wasn’t giving her the option. Not anymore.
“You didn’t make anyone mad baby, no. This isn’t your fault… “
Not when she had chosen so wrong for so long.
Audi let his knee hit the ground as he stared up into wild blue eyes. There was another tug on his heart, the world already hazy seemed to blur into nothing but blank ground. Her skin felt nothing like the way his late night fantasies had felt, silk and satin held no candle to the pale flesh under his. Her eyes more blue than he had ever expected, the bright flecks of sapphire more vibrant in her eyes than had ever been able to see. In this sort of despair, the sort of defeat that was beginning to cling to her like a second skin, she seemed fragile, so easily broken that he needed to keep her. Had to keep her, by his side, protected, endeared and loved properly for the first time in her life.
He needed to provide for her the safety that she had never been offered before from this world.
“Lunthe, listen. As long as you cooperate, as long as you listen, Braithe is safe. She won’t die tonight. Okay?”
One of his hands shifted pulling both of those wrist into one of his hands, his other hand came up to push violet strands back behind her ear, his finger coming down to trace the pattern of her jawline until his thumb caught up under Lunthe’s chin, tipping it backwards slightly so that she had to catch his eye. And entrancement took over him, petty and weak to the ways of his violet haired queen.
“Lunthe, you do understand me, right?”
-----------------------------
It was quiet in the gym now.
Derek marveled at it as he sat in the bleachers, bright blue eyes flickering over the bodies of people he had grown up with, people he had sat next to in class, had given paper to when they had been out. His eyes danced over faces that had sneered at him, faces of people who had made his life a living hell and laughed as they watched his misery unfold before their eyes, not a single one of them lifting a hand when the world seemed to be closing in on him. They passed im, ignored him, for something as trivial as the person who had helped conceive him’s sins.
None of them had helped him. None of them had reached out a hand for fear he would be like the man he was forced to call his biological father, for fear he was like a man he didn’t even really know, a man who had been in his life long enough to leave the ragged scars over his body and heart and soul, his mind ravaged and bleak, but not a single person had lifted a hand to help.
Why should he help them as they beg for their lives now?
He listened for a moment, the heavy feeling of his phone in his hands as it lit up once again with another text message, listened and ,used on the sound of their hearts, the rapid fire beats that filled the air, silent to those who had not made the change and strangely comforting to those who did. Namely. Him. Derek listened to the hearts as they started to stutter, slow, but the sound of more, or harsher heartbeats covered the last dying soft beats with rapid, vivid pounding, the course of blood singing in their veins before he shifted, lifting his phone backup to read the little box that held Kasmir’s message.
Derek was happy for him. Honestly if there was anyone in their group who had deserved a no fight capture of their girl, it was Kasmir. Now, don’t get him wrong. Derek Loved Emmy. Adored her really. She had easily become one of their group when she had started hanging out with Kasmir, her intergration not nearly as awkward as he had anticipated it to be. She fit in well with them, mismatched as they were and as Rowdy as they could potentially become, Emmy had become sort of dear to them, the past two years seeing her on a near constant basis. Derek loved her, but he didn’t love her like Kasmir did.
Derek could honestly say it was almost sickening how much Kasmir loved the girl. For years, all he would draw was her, little doodles on homework that Derek was trying to copy because work took too much of his time, on paper probably best left untouched but kasmir couldn’t ever find it in himself to care. Derek could remember rolling his eyes as Kasmir went off, again, about her, some thing she did or something she had said that some how made the sun shine out of her ass. Watching him was nauseating. But he was happy for him, happy he found some who made him feel that way.
At least he had the courage to start something with the girl he loved. Derek had never so much as said a word to his in real life.
His heart rate sped has he thought of her, the one girl who had managed to ensnare him with nothing but the wave of her hands and the glance of her vibrant eyes. Derek had never really spoken to Romi Masters in real life, but he had developed something of a crush on her early on in his school career. It wasn’t hard to see why. Even when they were younger, Romi had always been pretty, a child everyone loved to be around and tried to befriend. Derek had watched from afar, the heavy cloud of his father’s last name following him everywhere he want, preventing him from basking in the sun with her when all he was meant for were shadows. Like every other boy his age, he had developed a crush on the girl, and his feelings never wavering but never intensified either as he made his way through the grades. It just was, she was continuously the prettiest girl he had ever seen, and it had remained as simple as that.
Until he found her online.
He hadn't been looking for anything discriminatory when he had found the website. Rather, he had been curious, bored enough to go through the effort of searching, a long hot night of summer that found him skimming over blue links as he typed away. It wasn’t until he notice a few words, over and over and over again that he found the tumblr in the first place. He could remember the panic in his veins as he saw video after video, picture after gif after gif and picture of her, bent over in various degrees of undress and that had been the start of his slow decent into madness. There she was, a practical goddess, a queen of his school, talking and laughing and joking, her private snapchat and her private accounts available with a monthly subscription.
Romi Masters was a Cam girl, and she was a damn good one, and Derek was not a strong man.
He had started looking for a job the next day.
Derek closed his eyes now, breathing in as he felt his body shake again.
Looking back on it, it all seemed just so innocent. An Innocent crush. He was just like the rest of the men who followed her, lead by hormones and teenage impulse. He had never expected it to lead to this, to lead to this burning aching feeling that lingered in his blood long after she had gone to bed for the night and told him goodnight.
But it saved her tonight. Her ability to pull his heart strings with a bat of her lashes saved her from the massacre that he watched indifferently.
“Kasmir’s on his way back to the Hold. Emmy’s all sorts of out of it, but she’s not putting up a fight. If only we all could be so lucky.” Derek’s voice snapped out of the silence, amplified slightly by the open air of the now near empty gym. He stood easily, sliding his phone back into his pockets as he allowed his foot to slip of the bleacher, catching himself mid fall with the other foot to send a loud resounding bang out across the acoustics.
His mind was filled with the pretty dyed white and brunette, his thoughts lingering on her as he settled on the ground floor, taking in a deep breath as he heard the heart beats racing at the sound of his footsteps.
“Do you hear that?” Derek’s voice purred as he tilted his head, missing as his brother rolled twin colored eyes, though one was a much lighter blue than the other, scares spilling down one half of his face as a reminder of what this night was really about.
“Yes Derek, Because there isn’t ten thousand other sounds going on right now.”
“Shut up Helix, I mean that thrumming.”
His gaze shifted over the bodies, listening, as his body tense, lips pulling slightly in the slightest of smirks.
“Someone’s still alive in here.”
-------------------------------
It hurt. So bad. She could not recall a moment in time when she had ever felt any sort of pain this bad. Not even the time she broke her leg in third grade falling off the fireman's pole. Even then she had been able to keep a smile on her lips, hell, she had been the one to comfort her parents. Her mom was in damned near in sobs, her father had tears running down his neck. But Romi, she had kept that smile on, let them believe the pain was nothing. But not now. Now she cried, her heart stuttering to a halt before picking up pace again in her throat. Pain bloomed in a wild array,her head throbbing right along with arm, the bullet still lodged into her shoulder. Now pain was the only thing that she could concentrate on while the world around her was going crazy.
She couldn’t recall a time where there had seen so much blood, slipping through her fingers to cruise down the length of her other arm as well. No, there was not a single memory she could even try to connect to as much blood there was in this moment. But the scene played behind wet eyelashes hundreds of time over now. The kid that had decided to have just the right amount of courage to ask her to prom, all smiles, sweet. Aaron Weatherly. His hand wrapping over her shoulders as Arsen Michaels began to talk. A valedictorian she had not even heard of before, but he was way too serious, more than anyone should be at prom.
Aaron let her rest in the crook of his body, warm and protected almost, as he bent down to whisper sweet little nothings into her ear. Which she really couldn’t lie, they were working, blush crawling its way up her neck as he spoke softly. Words only meant for her. Words that distracted her from the problems that were pursuing on stage, as she pulled closer to him, her arms wrapping around his waist.
It was a good night. All the fun and magic that she had heard of. To be honest the night had been exactly what she had wished for it to be. She had a hot date, who knew how to treat her, she had the perfect dress, people were staring in awe.
That was until the shocked gasp ripped through the air, another person she really could not name taking the stage with a swoop of enthusiasm that the other boy just didn’t seem to hold for the night. And that’s when her night turned sour. The magic seemingly disappearing in an instant.
The scurry, the crowd clattering, running over one another to get to the doors before the shooters could get to them. There was a sickening calm as they had been huddled back into the gym. This new figures words echoing through the room, only to cause more panic. Shots rang out, wild and coming from every angle. There was a rip, an audible one she could hear. But it wasn’t just the sound, it was the pain, the burn that blossomed in her shoulder that made her realize what had just happened.
But there had been no time. No time to collect herself, to try to get somewhere safe. No in the frenzy of the crowd.
She had lost Aaron, not a second later. Almost immediately, his body collapsing on hers in a messy heap. His body completely limp as he looked down at the world with dead eyes, his mouth open, blood already swelling to pour over what she had once or twice that night thought were rather pretty.
It wasn’t the initial terror she would have thought would have went through her mind, it was confusion. A deep rooted confusion that had her head spinning. It took only seconds for the disgust to build up, another one she had not expected if this situation had ever occurred. But even that subsided as realization hit. A scream of terror ripped through her lips as shifted, desperate to get out from underneath her dead date. Her fingers clawing into the cloth that made up his now ruined suit jacket.
“Here,... Romi grab my hand!”
Electric blue filled her vision, gold eyes penetrating her as a pale hand was offered, even though his eyes reflected the panic that she could feel rising there was a certain courage that he held that she knew she didn’t. But she moved, latching onto Tanner’s extended arm.
An from there that how they had found themselves here. Huddled in the back corner underneath the bleachers, with Tanner’s hand trying to pry away blood soaked fingers. She could vaguely see the furrow of his eyes brows, the concentration that he was exerting to move her hands, the small plea in his eyes as he flickered from the wound to her and then back again.
“Romi,... I have to stop the bleeding. You have to let go.”
He was crouched in front of her, back to the darkness that surrounded them, his only concern helping a girl that felt utterly helpless.
“Do you have your phone on you? We gotta call the cops or something…. I can’t find mine.”
Her voice came out softly, barely a whisper, almost what she would call inaudible. She shook, with pain, her voice cracking underneath the pressure of her tears. But she didn’t move, didn’t lift her fingers from the wound even as his fingers pried.
“No, i don’t… But someone had to have already… Romi… I need to see your arm.”
“It hurts.”
Silence bristled between the two for a few seconds. The thick atmosphere not any clearer back here than it was out there. But she could feel his body warmth over her, the protection that he was exuding was something she clung to now, in this moment there wasn’t anything else she could really concentrate on. Her fingers pulled away, only to rest on a clean cut suit, bunching the fabric in her fingers.
“I know.”
--------------------------------
It was strange. Death was not something new to the black haired girl. Death was something she had seen, and witnessed up close and personal. She had never personally had a hand in the death of another being, having never been the one to land the last blow that ended a human being’s life, but she had seen it, witnessed it as her brothers tried to move her out of the way, tried to block her vision but never quite being able to fully shield her away. Death wasn’t something new to her, but this was something more than just death, something more than the brush of inevitability, The light at the end of the tunnel that everyone would see.
The massacre she watched unfold before her was nothing more than pure, cold hearted revenge, such brutal violent acts could only be spawned from the hatred that must have boiled in their blood, found home in hearts blacker than coal. There had been only one instance she had seen when the rage in their movements, their laughter, the wicked gleam to their smiles, in another person, and it had been years ago, days long past but now, she felt like she was reliving that horror all over again, but in a scale so grand it both dazzled and terrified her.
This was not how she had thought she would die, and the fact had long since settled in her gut, a thick pill to swallow but done easily with the fear that now raced through her veins, her heart hammering in her chest to pulse out a beat of her terror, fast paced and loud in her ears. Her eyes were stuck, locked on the sight of boys she knew, boys she used to hang around when she would be waiting for Heru to leave a class or a meeting with a teacher, boy she had watched grow up as she did, had followed behind as their school existance got darker and bleaker, and Nephine found that in the deepest parts of her heart, she could not pass judgement…. At the very least, not for the actions they chose.
Pushed enough, tempered enough, hurt enough…. Everyone had a breaking point. It just seemed that These boys had met thiers.
Nephi breathed as she huddled behind the curtains on the stage, her heart hammering as she glanced around the shadows surrounding her, once again to try and find a way out they may not have thought of. She already knew the doors to the gym were a no go, one already sealed shut in some sort of way, the other guarded by someone who was plucking off daring would be escapees one by one. The bathrooms on either side of the stage were a no go was well, she would have to walk down the stairs to get to the bathrooms to even attempt to get to the windows that lined the bathroom walls, running a higher risk of being heard. Nephine’s heels were already resting in a forgotten corner of the stage, her breaths shallow as she tried to breath as silently as possible.
Gunfire had slowed to nothing, and now she could hear the soft murmurs of voices, too muffled to make out words but just clear enough to hear tone, for her to make a guess on who it was. She could hear them as they converse, bits and fragments of sentences as they moved, the rippling sounds of sobs the only other accompaniment to the laughter and purr of voices along the gym’s floors.
In times of trouble you can’t sit still, Nephi. You have to move, you have to try and get yourself away and get to one of us. It’s harder to hunt a moving target, so make sure you're the most difficult target there is.
Cain’s voice drifted to her mind, her heart rate slowing as her Eldest brother’s words ran over her again, a soothing tone she had always found comforting. Her eldest brother was a little over protective of his family, far more than willing to do whatever he had to to ensure their safety. He had taught Nephi how to survive in the streets, how he had, how to fight, that fair was fair but victory was dirty, and you always strived to be the victor. His voice sparked to life a little flicker of an idea, growing as she breathed in, her eyes closing as her tried to calm herself. Her heart slowed, just the tiny bit, her head clearing slightly of the haze that terror had created, her thoughts falling to one single sentence.
She had to find Cain.
The thought hit her, even now, oddly. She felt like a child for it, felt like a child because it was the first thought she had. Nephi’s single thought was to find her brother, simply for the fact that Cain was Cain, and he always had the answers. It was like this since as long as she could remember, where Cain was always able to solve the problems of his Younger Brothers and sister, always had the answers to any question, and problem that popped up. It was a long shot, she could give it that. Besides the fact that her school was locked down and there was manic killers left on the loose, boys she once knew but could no longer recognize. There was also the fact that her brothers, all eight of them, had suddenly up and disappeared. About a week ago, Nephi could remember waking up to a silent house, something unusual for the family of nine. Her house was not known for quiet, wasn’t known to be peaceful. It was hard to maintain any level of order when there was eight boys crowded into a house, regardless on how much space her brother had. So when she had woke up to silence, She had been confused. Later she found all her family gone, left with coffee still steaming in the pot and a note from Cain that simply said “Use for food and emergencies” and instructions on how to use his credit card. It was true, there was some times that Her brother went on ‘business trips’ and oftentimes many of her brothers went with him, be it for protection or intimidation, Nephi never got to hear,but it was never all of them, certainly not Sterling, the only other protected Child in the family besides herself.
She knew part of her plan was because she missed them, but a huge part, the larger part, was the scared little girl that would run to find comfort in her brother’s , the girl that ran to them when ever she got bullied. They were nasty, they were crude, they were assholes, but they always protected her, and right now, all she wanted was the familiar. They had been gone for a week now, and it would be a huge jump, but she could go to Cain’s hideout, where his office resided and he could usually be found, if not that, then a clue as to his location.
If nothing else, if by some miracle she found him, he would be able to keep her safe, would be able to fend off any monsters that might creep into her nightmares, would fix this and help her find Ryker and Braithe and Lunthe, visions of them, uncharacteristic but there in Nephi’s fears, huddled away as they shook in fear, Her heart plummeting at the thought of Ryker’s breath catching in her chest as her body worked itself into overexertion. Worry hit her harshly, and she squared her shoulders and pushed off the floor, hands braced against the floor as she started to move.
Her only option at this point was to try and get to the back door of the stage, the rarely used exits of the dressing rooms. She started to move, her mind scream at her as she tried to silence her raging heart, bare feet hitting polished wood as she sucked in a breath, heading straight for the stairs that would lead to the back maze of dressing rooms, and hopefully to one of the few girls Nephi would give her life for in a heartbeat, be it the pastel twins or her little golden girl.
She stood as she came to the door threshhold, her nerves on fire as she pause to listen, to try and hear if anyone could hear her. She heard nothing as the door moved silently only, thankfully , oiled hinges, her eyes scanning the area before moving on, allowing her feet to hit the stairs as she felt around in the dark for the rail. She pause only for a moment as the door closed, allowing her eyes to adjust to the pitch black, before she continued on, a determined look across her face
Keep moving…. Don’t stop…
Nephi breathed, trying to keep herself quiet, finally down the stairs and into the dark. There was a sliver of light from the little glass rectangle in the door, where she could see them standing, just a few yards away from the stage, backs turned toward her. She would have paid it no mind, would have turned away from them if it wasn’t for the flash of pastel purple strands and bright pink gloves and rainbow shoes.
The twins.
Her heart dropped as she watched them, her hands on the wall as she stood on tiptoes to see them, the hands of the abnormally tall Michaels wrapped around Lunthe’s body, the lavender colored girl pushing and shaking her head. She still couldn’t hear words, but she saw Neket, the mirror image of her own demon, move toward a practically vacant Braithe, the small girl’s eyes locked on him, never moving.
She knew it was stupid, knew that her best plan of action would be to find a way to get help, to get to her gang leader brother and get back up, weapons, anything, but she couldn’t leave them, not like this, not in their hands. She couldn’t just do nothing, and so she moved, biting back a curse as she stepped back into the darkness, looking around for something, anything she might be able to use as a weapon. Most props were pushed to the sides, on top of one another in a rush to get things ready for prom. She shifted, creeping until she felt her hand close around something solid and small, long enough to swing and heavy enough to do some damage. She wasn’t sure what it was supposed to be, some sort of cane or staff of some sort, gnarled wood with of black along it, smooth but bumpy.
That’ll work.
There wasn’t much time to plan, as she knew she would only have maybe a second or so’s opening to do anything, so she moved, creeped slowly until she was in front of the door, green eyes lifted to peek out again, this time t judge carefully for her opening. Her hand moved, placed on top of the light switches just inside the door, hoping and praying they were what she thought they were, a connected set that would turn off the lights to the gym.
Her gaze never wavered, her heart a steady pulse in her ears, her breath caught and stuck in her lungs. She wouldn’t allow them to kill them, wouldn’t allow them to take her friends.
Not without a fight.
Okay...GO!
Nephi’s hand swiped down on the lights next to her, her prayers answered as the whole of the gym descended into darkness for a moment. The bright lights stopped, only the disorienting flash of the colorful strobe like lights moved along the wooden floor, music pulsing the back ground to cover the groan of her opening the door. They looked up, blinking as they tried to adjust back to darkness, off guard for all of a moment. They didn’t see her as she moved, creeped along the floor, before she burst forward and swung, eyes closing as she threw her weight into it. She felt it connect, but she didn’t wait before she turned, using her moment to strike at the other.
She didn’t look to see what she had done, only moved to pull a Stunned Lunthe and a shocked Braithe to their feet, pushing them to run as she pulled them along to the now guard free door.
“Run. Run run Run Run Run Run!”
Nephi couldn’t remember speaking them, but she heard it, a chant in her mind and on her tongue as she bolted, ears ringing and her heart pounding as light flooded behind her again.
Oh God what had she done. She was a fucking idiot, why didn’t she just go for help, they were going to shoot them, holy shit….