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It was a sweet thing, watching the two embrace, but when Vandal looked behind him, he ran to Magpie and Iggy. He urged Ravage and Talon to keep to follow with a gesture.
In the distance, Dark Weaver tested their wings. Some still broken, she could not quite lift herself off the ground for too long. She had not seen them in the graveyard yet, thanks to the forest of obelisks, slabs, and mausoleums.
"She's near," whispered Van, pointing. "We must move."
They kept the tombstones between and the dark destroyer, keeping low and making their way to a different section of the city. There was a tall wall of corrugated metal; years of rain and wind had turned it red and orange. Barbed wire crowned the walls as well. Piles of rubbish and crushed metal sat high within.
"Can you teleport us in?" Van asked Talon.
Talon nodded; he made a portal against the outer wall of a mausoleum. The exit, he placed inside the junkyard. The team entered and ended up within the rusty walls.
"Where do we go from here?" Magpie asked.
Van looked to the north. "Perhaps we make our way to the northern end, circle around Dark Weaver."
They had to reunite with Jayden and Moryuu soon.
Sticking together, they took a path cutting through the piles of refuse. One particular path was surrounded by tall piles of rusty cars. A groan in the metal had Vandal looking up. He was at the head of the party, so when he looked back and saw the pile to his right start to lean at the top, he shouted.
"Get back!" Van said, and the vehicles poured down with a thundering crash and scream of metal. Fortunately, his allies heard him; they had stopped and backed up. A cloud of brown dust rose, and the wind of the impact forced some into Van's eyes and mouth. He coughed hard, crawling away from the pile of cars.
Are you all okay? Van wanted to shout to his comrades beyond the new wall that separated them. But he couldn't. Someone behind him, with a woman's voice, called out to him from behind. She asked him the same thing.
"Are you all right?" said the woman.
Van turned, spitting and rubbing the powdered filth from his eyes.
Before him stood Leonette, his lover of old.
"Van!" Talon was saying, "Are you hurt? Say something! Anything."
"Just take us over to him, Exit," Ravage suggested.
There was a sound of small impacts on metal. "Ravage," a voice that sounded like Iggy's said, "wait!"
There were more words exchanged from the others, but Van did not hear them. He was too mesmerized by the sight of the woman.
"Is it you?" Van uttered more to himself than to his lover.
"Of course, it is, my love." She giggled. Leonette had always called him that, saying it so sweetly. "You are looking for another way out? Come, follow me." Without any other words, she began to move fast down the path.
"Wait!" Van screamed as he ran after her.
Half of the gunner's mind was hesitant as he kept his pursuit. Is this some sort of trick by Shadow? No, it can't be, he's inside ... He did not want to think of Nu at this moment. Is it still possible that she could somehow be here? There is not much that I understand, but if it is possible ...
The path split as they went; it was like a maze of urban rot. Finally, at the northern wall, Leonette stopped. There was a tear in the metal, allowing one to crawl through if they got down on their hands and knees.
"I loved making you chase me!" Leonette said joyfully. The woman had her hands behind her back.
Van had a stupid smile on his face as he walked slowly to Leonette. "I could never catch you," he said softly. "You would rest at that peach tree and wait for me to come." Vyncent dropped his long gun; his choice between Leonette's was clear. "So now you are trapped here with me and my friends." When he saw the woman frown he quickly said: "Worry not! We will escape, I promise."
"We wouldn't without me," she said jokingly. "Now, come to me." Her eyes were alit with coquetry, a look that made Van's heart beat fast. "Before the others show." Vandal approached with his arms open. No more than the tips of his fingers grazed those soft shoulders of his lover. Two people were on him from behind pulling him back.
"Van, don't!" It was Iggy at his right. "Get back!"
"It's a trick!" Magpie was at his left. "It will kill you."
Blind with rage, Van fought them. "Unhand me! How can you be su—"
Suddenly, a shiny red blade sprouted from Leonette's mouth. It was like a bloody viper's tongue mid-hiss. She fell to her knees. Behind Van's lover was Ravage, smiling with sharpened teeth as she slid the sword out of her victim.
Van said not a word at first, but his fight did cease. There was no rage or revenge to ignite his heart as he watched the woman he had loved bleed. Had it not been for Iggy and Magpie, he would have fallen to the floor; the pair held him.
"Her hand," said Talon solemnly to Van, "look what's in it, man."
A steak knife of stainless steel was in Leonette's grip.
"Why?" was all Van could mutter with a deep sigh.
Ravage apparently heard him. "I saw a monster like this at the toy store!" She poked its cheek with the top of her wet blade. "It pretended to be Blue." She let loose a creepy giggle. "It made me chase it. It was a fun game."
"And you killed that one as well?" Van asked idly.
She made an affirmative noise. "It wasn't as fun as the real Blue," She pouted. "That one didn't play with lightning."
I doubt Moryuu would run from a fight, either way, concluded Van silently.
The creature that took on Leonette's image began to change back to its true form. An ugly monster it was: its teeth looked too big for its mouth and its eyes were like that of a fish's. Leonette's long brown locks faded into thin green strands that looked like tiny squid tentacles. Its skin faded into a pale blue; the ears on its head grew pointy. "Hshhhh," it was saying as it writhed on the dirt, apparently still alive, "Ssssshhhhsss caaaassss isss shisss."
"A sturdy fellow," said Van darkly as he picked up the only Leonette he had left to him. He brushed the dust off the shiny yellow barrels. Ravage made a noise in agreement. Whether Ravage left it alive out of cruelty to let it die slow or to let himself achieve proper revenge, Van did not know for sure. "Step aside, little girl," Van said curtly to Ravage. The girl in pink leaped back, excited to see what Van would do to the shape-shifting beast.
"Vandal—" Magpie called out. Van was deaf to her words as he walked up to the dying beast that dare took the shape of Leonette.
Vandal pointed his long gun at the beast's revolting face and fired one shot; he fired the other two at its chest. Even its blood was not naturally red; bluish gore spattered on Van's overcoat. The fluid had a sour smell to it. The only regret Van had was enchanting his bullets with fire. The steam and smoking flesh made his allies cover their noses.
The horrid smell seemed to take him out of his trance. He looked around with wide eyes.
"Uhm," Talon began, scratching the back of his head, "are you okay, Van?"
Van twisted, looking around at all his saviors. "Thanks," he managed to say. He cleared his throat. "Thanks, uh, guys."
They left through the hole in the northern wall and continued on carefully to Jayden and Moryuu.420Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDl6pXscHwX
