There’s nothing like flying. My gryphon chirps in my head with his agreement. Out of all the forms and abilities I have, flying is the only one that leaves me feeling free. Soaring through the sky with the sun heating my core and the breeze rushing through my fur and feathers, it’s unparalleled. Not only does it allow me my space away from everyone, but it’s also one of the ways to ease the fury in my soul.
When dad ordered me to skip class and take on this assignment, I almost told him to get someone else to handle it. But who am I kidding? I wouldn’t say that. It’s not my place yet to ask questions, but when he mentioned it was a flying scouting mission, my unease vanished. I couldn’t pass this up, besides my animal was itching to fly. Reports were pouring in on the Sulks’ activities, and that is one issue we never take lightly. No one is immune to its death trap, so a scout is sent out if someone has even whispered about it. Today, I’m that scout.
According to archives, there were countless suspected attacks, but the last confirmed sighting of the Sulks was when it claimed JP’s mother.What could be making it move now?
The report I received this morning stated it was last seen around the Ever Woods Eastern bank a couple of days ago, so that’s my target. There’s another portal to Nova out this way, but this one goes straight to Ever Woods, and no one in their right mind travels through that unless you can fly like myself and a few others. As long as you can get above the pesky trees and foliage, you can survive their mood swings. I know for a fact, this year, part of the woods will probably be used as The Gauntlet. They are still in talks about the safety of students though. I shake my head at the thought. Who cares? If they get hurt, then maybe they don’t deserve to travel to Earth. As long as the guys make it through with me, that’s all I need.
Surveying the landscape below, I’m cutting across the Survival Course, where the class is typically held. Still, I’m not in a big hurry to perform my scouting mission. Though, that’s not how I was trained. “Precision, Dedication, and Urgency,” are the Core’s motto. John Steinbeck's quote pops into my head, “All war is the symptom of man’s failure as a thinking animal.” Dad hates that motto, always stating we never fail as long as we always rely on our beast. That all bloodbaths are a part of our nature. His personal motto for our family is, “Embrace the rage of your inner beast and thus reward is to bathe in thine enemies blood.”
There’s a small part of me that wants to be a rebel. Let’s be honest here. It’s a large part, actually. Sometimes I envy Zeke and how he is always carefree and causing mischief. Though I would never tell him that, but I wish we could change places. Granted, he’s still getting into trouble for it, but I would love to slip into his shoes. I understand him most out of everyone and why he acts out. Ever since we were little, it has always been us. Of course, Levi and Ryker were there, but they had their own things going on.
Panic hits me like a freight train, and my wings falter as I dip off course.
Escape! Up!
Up! Hurry!
Run!
The fear that spikes off of the animals draws me out of my musings and my gryphon’s protective instincts kick in. They urge me to try to focus on their pull and scan to find the danger. Changing my direction, I veer to the left to head towards their location. One or two animals panicking is normal, it means another shifter or animal is hunting, but this mass exodus… I shake my head and flap my wings harder, pushing my form to the max. The Sulks will have to wait. I need to find out what’s threatening my charges.
Every shifter is able to communicate within their specific creature. As in, bear with bear and wolves with wolves. Once you were a part of their pack, you could communicate freely with each other. I have an affinity though, for all creatures. I might not fully communicate with them, but I can pick up on emotions and some thoughts. The thoughts I’m picking up are purely on survival and trying to hide, not coming from one specific animal.
Spiraling down, my gryphon form easily making the tight turn, I hover over the treetops and focus my eyes on the animals running up the tree trunks. Searching for the source of their fear, I catch movement in the brush. A long black shadow moves through the thicket and I think it’s safe to say the rumors were true.
No one knows much about the entity creeping along the forest floor; only that it kills whatever it touches, and there’s no help for them once they turn to ash. The Leaders of Nova have spent centuries trying to unlock the secrets of the Sulks. How did a once safe portal to Earth turn into a nightmare brought to life?
I watch as it seems to move with purpose, striding faster and in one direction, which is out of the norm. According to reports, it usually slithers lazily in an absent-minded fashion, and it wasn’t predictable at all.
Movement catches my eye again, and I notice two figures walking deeper into the forest. I can’t tell who they are, but the uniforms give them away as students. Probably in the Survival class I’m skipping out on. Panicked, I try to message dad, but get nothing.
Shit! I need to warn them.If they go any further, they might reach the Sulks. I swing my gaze back to the killing machine, and my heart drops. Where the fuck is it?
A blood-curdling scream saturates the air, and my sapphire eyes zero in on the students, finding the Sulks underneath their feet, drinking their life essences.
No! Holy Shi—
Wait!
Only one is withering into a husk of skin and dried organs. Her fiery hair dulls and goes out, and I watch in horror as her porcelain skin starts to blacken and shrink like a deflated balloon.Katie May!She’s the only female I know with hair like that.
The girl that’s with her screams, but it’s not from pain as far as I can tell. It’s in shock to see Katie May disintegrating before her eyes. Out of the trees, I watch as Moni, at her full height, runs in and grabs the screaming girl, pulling her back. I’m utterly floored by what I just witnessed. Students crowd around, looking at the train wreck before them as the couple moves out of the fray. Dad appears, bringing up the rear as he looks around, undoubtedly spotting the end of the Sulks as it doubles its speed and rushes away. Feeling my gaze, he looks up, notices me hovering on the breeze, tilts his head and uses hand movements at his side that I recognize from our special ops.
The slight nod and movements speak a thousand commands. I am to continue my surveillance and report back to the station when I’m relieved for debriefing. More grueling hours at the facility, when all I want to do is have time for myself. Hopefully, this time I’ll be able to ask questions too. Starting with, who’s the girl that can survive the Withering Sulks?
Chapter Sixteen
The Perfect Distraction
Rez
After calming down, to the point I’m not catatonic and being checked on by Mr. Grumpy Bear, Aka Chief Cloak, I’m sent to Dean Caldron. Don’t ask me why. Maybe to see if I need counseling for the nightmare I just watched. I mean, who goes up in flames like that? Well, technically, she was already in flames. So, who goes down in ashes? I didn’t even know that was a thing. After a sweetheart of a demon with horns sneers at me and points me to the right hallway, I find myself in his office where an actual kind, plum haired woman asks me to have a seat. The nameplate says Abs, and in front of her is a blood bag with a straw. Vampire? I do as I’m told, and it feels like I’m in the principal's office after the time I superglued Hunter's car doors shut.
What? You would have done it too if you knew he was the one sneaking into the shower rooms snapping pictures of everyone. It was only fair to post the photographs he took of himself in lingerie and glue them to the inside of his car. Don’t ask how I got those. Let’s just say it included dressing like a guy, midnight, gasoline, and a graveyard. Not one of my finest moments. Cocky bastard! He learned his lesson though, and I only got a week of in-school suspension. Totally worth it.
“Nerezza?” I look up and see Levi walking out of the office with a look of worry.Aww. He cares. Why does that give me a warm feeling, like curling up into a fuzzy blanket with a cup of cocoa? Damn, he even looks good in his uniform, just like his suits. It fits him like a glove.
“Hey Levi,” I wave with a small grimace, and he walks over before sitting down on the love seat with me. Love seat. Now that’s a nifty word. Do you have to be in love to sit on it? Oh, or better yet, what if you fall in love with whomever you sit on it with? Now that would be cool, or a nightmare depending on who plops down next to you. Could you imagine the blob sitting down next to you?
