Authors: Kathy-Lynn Cross
I slipped the crushed cell phone into the back jeans pocket and quickly made a mental note to get a replacement in the morning. Finding my footing as I started scaling down the mountain, I jumped, making the edge of a ledge on the right. I landed like a cat on all fours and cocked my head to judge the distance from there to the ground below. It was not far. I figured about ninety feet give or take, so I focused on the sounds from a nearby waterfall. Then I stepped off in a crouch, forcing the mass to fall faster, slamming onto a patch of dirty snow. Dusting off the snow and mud, I summoned my minion to shift me from my blended-Vessel appearance. When the cloak was done, I watched it slither to the edge of the canyon. Now naked, I felt the wind coughing up the remaining ice and snow into places where it should not be. I clapped both hands to psych myself into morphing. No matter how awesome the power, the more magic summoned caused the pain returned to the user tenfold. The practice was referred to as compensation, and I was once told, “Get used to it.”
Rounding both shoulders into my body, the action made a massive crunch as bones started breaking and fusing into a different skeletal structure. Time for my Smolder to appear. The tips of my wings’ blades tore through flesh and jutted straight up and out. I loosened the folds by lightly shaking my torso back and forth so they would start to open. The action was followed by several hissing sounds as blood dripped down the edge of each webbed appendage and back. Concentrating on morphing into something from a medieval nightmare, I finished unfolding the massive wings and pushed them into the air behind me. They expanded to about eighteen feet in length at rest from shoulder to cusp. Extended, they added another six. The wingtips were as sharp as folded Japanese steel but stronger. Drawing in a jagged breath as the warmth of blood ran down ripped skin and over new scales, snapped me from the pain stupor. My shoulder blades and spine expanded in size to support the weight of the massive wings. Sucking in another quick breath, I bent down toward the icy ground and into the pool of blood I had made. It appeared more like cooked tar across the gravel and melting snow. I dug fingers into the steaming puddle.
That was the worst part of the process as my frame crumbled to the earth like a rock slide with a sudden impact. Birds from the surrounding trees took flight from fear of the unknown quake. A sudden howl from the unbearable pain rebounded from the back of my throat as hair and skin melted away, revealing dark purple scales highlighted with red. My outer layer materialized as burnt skin before it faded into more scales. On my head grew a set of hollowed horns that curled down and out over pointed ears. I had never really looked at myself in this form but guessed the horns were about two feet in length even with the curls. Arms, legs, hands, and feet cracked and popped in unison, creating a single sound for everything. That move had taken about two hundred years to perfect.
Face morphing was last because it was simply a couple of good, hard shakes for the snout to extend. A hiss of laughter slipped off my forked tongue as I stretched out front claws and wet, leathered wings so they could dry out before I took to the sky. I yawned and slid my massive jaw back and forth before snapping teeth together with a loud crunching sound. This part of the transformation made me appear as a mythical, winged serpent. The drawbacks were the odor. When fully morphed, I reeked of sulfur, and the air around me smelled of rotting corpses with a hint of stale sea water. For centuries, I had re-enacted this process, yet, the pain was so unbearable that within the birth of a second, I always wished for my own grave.
This evening’s mountain chill resembled a soft kiss on the breeze and left an aftertaste of Winter’s Remembrance in my mouth as it melted. The smell of that unique rose swept through the trees and swirled through the black mist coming up from the holes I had made in the ground with all four claws. I extended the canopy of wingspan so my minion had room to flow around me. It was the closest thing to an embrace, but I endured the searing pain and accepted it as a price for the existence. I opened both wings wider to invite the sharp stings of whipped up snow and ice. Nips from nature’s teeth sent a chill down each scale and a sneer exposed my canines. It was a welcome torment after the disappointing turn of events.
Time was my nemesis now and I needed to carve it up, to make it there before hers was up. I sniffed the winds to pinpoint the direction of her scent, figuring about sixty– to sixty-five miles away through this dimension. Crap. I needed to haul ass and tail. Dropping the top of each wing would help scoop up the air around me. Using my back hind leg muscles, I pushed the ground out from under me as both side extensions cupped the air. I was airborne.
Flapping silently, I tried to clear my head before the battle by filling my chest cavity with the frosted heaviness of night, ridding myself of the weighted questions I had concerning the child. To imagine for a brief speck of time… the power I felt as death’s wielder was not designed as a Vessel’s savior. Slowly, I unhinged both rows of teeth while slitting my eyes to keep them from tearing as I collected more of her scent. I used her fragrance to fuel me while pushing every muscle to their maximum velocity. Then I started to pull apart both dimensions, looking for a bend in time to merge back into her world.
Some of the mountains and trees I had moved to the lower and middle plains worked on splitting my vision. The atmosphere started to work against the wingspan as a separation within dimensions changed the velocity of air molecules. This was making the density of the air either feel too heavy and sticky or too light and very thin. I growled with deep frustration as I pumped faster to gain altitude trying to adjust breathing and speed.
Zipping in between the tall pines, limbs of the trees snapped and crashed as they fell to the ground. That particular commotion was the cause and effect of the sharp bone protruding through the wings, slicing through the dense forest. I tried to lift up above the trees. Occasionally, I felt a splat hit an area on my chest from an unknowing bat or a small night bird that took a wrong turn and crossed my flight path. Something in the dark smacked into my snout and made me sneeze a fizzle of fire.
A lot of power is required, so I rarely use the fire ability. Besides, the core smolders for days. No amount of Tums will extinguish that kind of burn.
Locating the bend to her dimension, I tucked in both wings and slipped through with ease. A new aroma brought me back from daydreaming. The stench hindered both vision and lung function as I detected a foreign chemical. It was still not as potent as Alexcia’s scent, but if my nose was working correctly, she was heading straight for it and it was aiming at her. Either way, whatever was coming was inevitable.
I roared at the darkness around me. The fire burning from behind my palate escaped, licking up the sides as gray smoke plumed from my nostrils. I was still about eight miles away and the mixture of smells continued getting stronger. The possibility of not reaching her in time was making me crazed with an unfamiliar sensation of sinking in sorrow.
Buckling each limb, I positioned them closer to my mass for less wind resistance, pumping legs forward as though running. Pushing out with my wings, I used every scale on them for an advantage. I ground both rows of teeth until I could taste blood as a reminder of the Bond-Rite I had made with Rae. Protect her Child-of-Balance at all cost. I had never broken a vow. I would keep her from harm even if it meant losing my own existence in the process.
Sleeping eyes seal my fate
Dreams of terror cannot escape
Choices I suspect can manipulate
Our journeys beyond death’s gate
~Alexcia
The satellite radio clock on the dash blazed 11:51 p.m. in neon blue as the truck rocked side to side from the gusts of wind trying to push us off the road. Tod murmured an apology every now and then. It was either meant for us or the truck. I wasn’t sure which. He jerked the steering wheel in the opposite direction of the wind, to no avail because it tossed us back into the right lane.
My lips froze into a permanent pout as I listened to the guys talk about the difference between lacrosse and soccer. A small, defeated sigh slipped out. I should have gone with my gut and called one of my friends to come and pluck me out of the Wonderland of Hell. It was my own fault for choosing door number two in haste. The white rabbit’s bonfire get-together was looking pretty lame because the narrow path scared me more than taking the wrong one.
As childish as it might seem, my favorite book had always been the original works of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Charles Lutwidge Dodgson. Most people would know his work under Lewis Carroll. I’ve always had a habit of quoting from it or using some flamboyant phase to make me feel better. The story reminded me of the fairytale family life I once had with my parents. Catching my reflection in the truck’s window, I watched the smile fade as a memory of my dad surfaced. He was reading the story to me at bedtime when Mom was away on business and became upset with the book when he couldn’t make sense of the plot. I remembered laughing at him as I explained, “Chaos is what makes life fun.” I was six and needless to say, he never read it to me again. I watched two raindrops streak down my two-dimensional face like unspent tears. If anything, I learned that the narrow path implies no room for error. I figured if one wrong mistake would send me down the rabbit hole, why fight destiny? Take the plunge.
A boisterous roll of laughter from Tod bounced me from the daydream. Brad had tossed me a rope by telling Tod a joke, and I used the symbolism to pull myself from the memories. When our group had brought up the Red Rock bonfire party, it sounded like a great escape from the hostile scene. I also didn’t want to stay with the blue shirt creep either. Something was very
off
about him, and he seemed more like an older brother being put out by watching his younger sister. My gut said,
stalker
.
Chin on the back part of my left hand, I leaned my forehead into the cold glass with a
thunk
. Eleven fifty-three glowed from the dashboard like a casino marquee. It also reminded me we had been on the road for almost twenty-five minutes. I should have peed before we left. While crossing my legs tighter, I tried to think of other things.
The radio could barely be heard with the truck sounds and the wind, but the guys blasted it because some old band named Guns N’ Roses was playing. It was going to be a whole hour of their songs and us trying to decipher what they were singing about. Since the static was coming in clearer than the songs, from what I could make out, the lead singer was singing about a disease he’d caught in a jungle? The rhythm was catchy, but it caused my hearing to become impaired from the hissing speakers in the back seat. The reception was so horrible it was making the drive seem even longer.
Leaning toward the middle console, I mumbled a quick
sorry
to Brad and twisted to face Tod. I used my best voice of reason and kissed his cheek while I tried to get him to change the station or plug-in one of our iSlims. Brad agreed with me, pulling out his iPhone VII and plugging it into the black two-in-one USB three-point five millimeters Audio Charger Cable for iPod/iPhone.
Yes, I know my gadgets.
Brad began talking to Tod about this new band he heard on one of the satellite stations. He liked the song so much, he had downloaded it.
Great.
Then Tod smiled and motioned for him to connect it. I screwed on a
fine by me
smile and pushed back into my seat. An exaggerated sigh slipped out.
Damn.
I was outnumbered since Melanie had passed out next to me, behind Brad’s seat. The crease on my forehead deepened as I watched her shift and moan. Her mascara had smeared under her eyes and the sparkly fuchsia pink lipstick was a faded memory. Melanie moved her lips and laughed under her breath reenacting her drunken dream.
Yeah, this was going to be loads of fun.
Sarcasm dripped from every internal word.
A cramp made its way up my left thigh, adding to the fact I needed to pee, and it didn’t help my mood either. To occupy empty minutes, I searched for my purse, did a contents check, then tossed it back on the floorboard. My chest was a bit warm, so I decided I no longer needed Tod’s jacket for protection. Attempting to shuck out of it, I heard him clear his throat.
Okay… I’ll keep the damn thing on.
Jeez. I rearranged myself, pulling on my skirt and shifting the sheer blouse so it was no longer twisted. When I was done stretching like a kitten, I scooted my butt back into my time-out seat, letting out a soft, defeated huff.
The truck hit a puddle and the tire’s complaint to the brakes was to let out a quick screech. We lurched forward, and I looked back to see where I dropped my stomach. I pulled up from the corner of the backseat to make more room since Melanie was stretched across hers and most of mine.
My mood flashed into existence like lightning with words sounding as heated. “How much longer until we get there, Tod? I’m feeling cramped and a bit claustrophobic back here.” The leather squeaked as I pushed my right knee into the back of his seat. A little reminder of my discomfort. Lex-Cee wanted him to get the point.
“This is sick. Where in the world did this weather come from? You know, Bro, I don’t remember hearing anything on the radio about rain…” Brad let the rest of his sentence roll out. “Especially this kind of crap.” He placed his hands on the dash while leaning closer to the windshield. Peering up into the plethora of clouds he added, “You may think I’m crazy, but it looks like it’s starting to hail.”
I was too caught up following Brad’s gaze into the unknown to notice Tod’s reply to his passenger was distracted and remote. “I’m not sure it’s hail.” He leaned toward the steering wheel craning his neck while surveying the night’s sky. His breath fogged up the glass while he spoke. “The rain is getting harder to see through. I can only make out a few feet of pavement past the headlights. If I don’t find the place by midnight, we’ll head back.”
Tod was trying to sound reassuring to those of us who were coherent about our impending situation. I looked down at Melanie and felt a twinge of regret forming in the back of my brain. To be passed out right now was a blessing in disguise.
In the distance, I could barely make out two pinpoints of light appearing and disappearing in the darkness. I eased the girl over toward her door and shifted my legs to the left. Leaning closer to the guys, I tried getting a better look at what Tod was dealing with. A small prick of fear made its presence known by raising every hair. I pulled Tod’s jacket back around me for an insulated hug as streaks of rain and hail made seeing practically impossible. Never mind trying to see the road. It looked like we were four wheeling in the desert, mud as far as the headlights could reach. The night sky was gone, replaced by a horror scene from a motion picture. I put my right hand softly on Tod’s shoulder and dug all five nails into his seat with my left hand. At that moment, I realized I was stone cold sober.
Lucky me.
“Maybe we should call the night off and turn around anyway. I’m not really in the party mood anymore. Plus, I have to pee. What about you Brad?” I turned to him with pleading eyes.
Please change Tod’s mind
.
“No, I don’t have to whip it out yet,” he said without turning around, still focused on the weather. My jaw unhinged. Oh my goodness. That was all he heard, that I had to pee? Brad was looking out his window up at the sky. Yup, it was official, he was as dense as a redwood. This situation called for a direct approach with Tod.
I looked at the clock again, 11:55 p.m. “Tod, I really have to go. Maybe if we make it to the Red Rock Observance Center, I can find a bush and then we can head back. It’s not even midnight yet. We can still spend some time together. My parents won’t be home for a couple of more hours. Maybe raid the kitchen, go up to my room and play some C.O.D. How does that sound?” At that moment, I would have rather been zoning out by killing zombies instead of drinking problems away.
Tod started to answer when we all took notice of the lights ahead. They were definitely headed our way, getting closer, brighter each moment. I took them as a sign of salvation because I hadn’t seen another car pass us for several miles. At least we weren’t the only crazy people out here in this crap. Maybe they were looking for the party too and got lost or decided to head back because of the weather. I frowned but tried to think of the situation optimistically.
The unconscious girl beside me started to moan and smack her lips. Melanie brought one hand up to her stomach and the other to her mouth. She was coming out of her alcoholic-induced dream. That meant one of two things; she was either going to be violently ill when she woke up or she had a severe case of cotton mouth. I was hoping it was the latter and certainly not the former. I didn’t need to be stuck in the back with Sister Upchuck. The thought gave me an idea for a new approach, especially since we were in Tod’s precious, pristine truck.
I softly coughed and tapped Brad on the shoulder. “Ah, Brad dear, I think your date is going to clear out her stomach here in the back seat.”
Tod whipped his head around and his hands on the steering wheel followed, doing what it was told. Jerking hard to the right, the truck then skidded to the left. We all slammed to the opposite side of the cab. A limp Melanie flew onto my side and knocked me in to the passenger door. When my head smacked the window, the door handle bit into my ribs. I screamed, Melanie came to and met me with the same reply, blinking wildly. Brad braced himself against the dashboard with one hand, the roof of the truck with the other. Tod let out a string of curse words, forcing the monster to obey its master.
The tires were slipping and catching the asphalt as the weather seemed to match the tragic mood blasting its way into the space we all occupied. Lightning flashed brightly, then an immediate thunderclap caused the cab lights to flicker. Both ears popped, leaving an intense ringing that blocked out everything happening in the cab. The scene played out frame by frame.
When I regained my balance, I pushed Melanie off me. She appeared shocked and dismayed towards her surroundings. I wasn’t sure she even remembered climbing into Tod’s truck, let alone most of the night’s debauchery. I barely understood the guys raising their voices to each other on what to do next. I was sure they couldn’t hear very well either. Another flash of lightning and the entire truck shook from the sound wave. Everyone’s screams were drowned out by the roar of thunder that followed almost immediately.
The oncoming headlights were getting closer and the vehicle seemed to be almost on top of us. My eyes widened at what I saw. To stop the pain and tears, I pressed four fingers into each eye socket. The pepper spray sensation made me instantly nauseous, and I opened them against my better judgment and tried to focus. Whatever was coming toward us was huge and was swerving from side to side taking up most of the road. A halo of shimmering light encircled the moving mass, and we were on a collision course straight for it. A hitched breath caught in the back of my throat followed by a very cool, calm, rational voice. I clenched my teeth from the intense reverb pinging between each eardrum.
Look at what your fear caused, doing what you do best, only thinking of yourself. Your boyfriend can’t even keep the truck on the road in this weather, and you chose to distract him, to get your way. You’ve sentenced everyone to their grave. Enjoy the rest of your ride. See you soon, in hell.
Water filled my eyes making the burning subside. I looked around. Everything still moved in slow motion. Melanie was crying and looking around as if she’d been cast in a horror flick. Brad turned to face her while yelling at her to calm down. Terror showed in his eyes, and when he reached for her, I noticed his fingers shaking. I glanced at the rearview mirror and met Tod’s eyes. In between the ticks of a second hand, I understood what Tod was trying to say. The truck was fighting him, protesting against staying on the road. His eyes apologized because he didn’t think he could get us out of this mess. Most of all, I felt he was saying that he was in love with me. He blinked, and I lost our connection.
The walls I had built between us began to crumble. I sobbed and poured my soul out that night across the highway, pleading with them all to forgive me. I hadn’t meant to create such a catastrophe. Nobody was supposed to get hurt or even die on account of my selfish fear. Feeling the harsh sting of reality, I tried harder to be heard. I screamed prayers out into the air. For all of us… for the people we were about to instantly meet. I would have gladly given my life to replace one of their souls.
I noticed the clock in the dashboard flickering and fading as it tried to stay on. I thought how fitting… our time was about to run out. I whipped my head back and pleaded for someone, anyone, to hear my cries.