Chapter 25: Mission Complete

An Hour Car Ride Latter

"Mind telling us why we are at San Laurent Hospital, Businge?"

"Paula, I want to use the hospital as a reference point. The three of us received treatment here before the school pulled us off the case…when Aamina hurt her head?"

"Yes, I remember that day. What is the plan?"

It is decided that Aamina, Businge, and I will split off from Paula and Mathéo. I turn my eyes towards the sky; the sweet melody of chirping flirts with my ears as I exhale for thirty seconds.

A cold chill rolls through my body and it is not from the weather.

"We will rendezvous here", Aamina places a bag of rocks near the side of the road, "by midnight."

"Are you sure you don't want one of us to accompany you all?"

"Mathéo, you and Paula work well together...and she is descent in reverse-curse technique. Should either of you be injured, you will not have to wait around for first aid. Businge and I have been training together since birth. And Blaise…we like having her around."

The corners of my eyes crease at Aamina's words.

"Very well then. Come on Mathéo, we have work to do."

Once the adults are out of earshot, I strike up a conversation.

"You know precisely where our target is located, eh, Businge."

"Of course I do. I am not one to sit around and wait for permission to investigate a case. Do me a favor and keep an eye on Aamina. I am not entirely comfortable with her being on this case."

"Any particular reason you don't want her…."

"You know why! Come on, I don't want to be caught in the open when the sun sets."

An Hour of Walking Later

The slightest trail of blood oozes from Aamina's knee as she picks herself up. I break out into a jog to keep pace with her. Once Aamina slows down, she shoots her hand out, stopping me in my tracks but, it is too late.

I cover my face, trying to brush the dirt from my face. My heart rate spikes up when someone reaches out and grabs my shirt. I jerk my eyes open, swatting them away in the process. A burning sensation encapsulates my hand.

"Are you with them?" The sound coming from this person is nearly inaudible.

I move away from the voice. The sounds of footsteps echo in my ears and the same question comes at me.

"Are you with them?"

My hands and pants feel wet. The slightest glimmer of light reflects off pools of water.

"Show me your face first then I will answer your question. Move slowly."

In a few seconds, the person behind the voice is in front of me. They are a quarter of my height, thin, and refuse to get closer to me. I get a quick look at their face, despite the darkness, and my eyes bug out my face.

"Why is your mouth gaping open, Miss? The child asks with a slight giggle in their voice.

"With whom?"

"Blaise?" Another hand rests on my shoulder, making me scurry toward the child.

Aamina rolls her eyes and gestures for me to get up.

"Businge is up ahead."

"Can I come with you two?"

Aamina and I look at each other and nod.

"Yes, would you like to hold my hand? I am not with them, I promise." The child latches onto my person. They have a strong grip and bury their face in my chest. Sniffling noises come from their mouth.

After reaching a fork in the cave, an overwhelming frosty bite rips through my bones. My eyes contract, my blood vessels constrict, and sweat pools around my neck. I place the child on the ground and wham! I throw a curse against the wall; Aamina jumps into action, finishing the curse off quickly.

We head right, avoiding a confrontation with three curses. I have released all my veils, giving me total access to the cursed energy swirling in the cave. Suddenly, I fall to my knees, clutching my head.

The sound of clicking and clanking rings through the air. Muffled grunts and a shriek force me to look beyond the blood dripping into my eyes.

"No! Don't take…" The kid rushes over to me and ducks behind me.

"Thought you could get away from us again, little snack? I will take the purple-eyed doe; you take her friend." I am met with a pair of deep-red eyes and a pair of sharp teeth.

"Over my dead..."

Thwomp!

Approximately Ten-Minutes Later

"Wake up, Miss Santa-Clara."

"She is fine, just passed out."

"I am not asking her to wake up because I am worried about her. Now search for the missing child and the other student."

"On it, Sir."

….

"So, you managed to run away from Jujutsu Technical College. Good on you."

"How do you know I am the person you are referring to? The last I heard Florynce had shoulder-length hair and an interesting encounter with the Bonnforts."

…

"Are you going to answer my question, or should I force one out of you?"

"By restricting airflow to my lungs? Go right ahead, be my guest! Put my service to the…"

It feels like a million coals are dancing on my face. The smell of ammonia penetrates my nose and a cold, wet substance trickles onto my lips. It tastes metallic.

"Keep up the sarcastic attitude and you can bid your friend goodbye. Now answer me."

"I assumed you had shaved your head to throw me off. Getting a closer look…your presence is stronger and more sinister than Florynce. Reverse-Curse…"

The next thing I know I am hurled across the room! I encase my body with cursed energy but, hit my head on the floor. It is difficult for me to get my bearings as I am dragged out into the hallway.

Crunch. My elbow connects with their nose giving me five seconds to crawl towards the door.

"No, you don't! Get back here."

Wham. I am pinned up against a wall, blood dribbling from my mouth, pupils dilated to full capacity. I do the first thing that comes to mind.

"Don't mind if I do." I wrap my legs around the vampire's waist, wriggle my hand franticly under their grip, and throw my body weight onto them. They do not falter. Their body feels like solid ice.

A small bit of cursed-energy pulses through my hand and onto my opponent's face.

On the western part of the forest

Paula and Mathéo look at a middle-aged man with thinning hair. A halo of sweat covers his round face, and his lungs forcefully exhale and inhale while he falls to his knees.

"There now," Paula says in a sweet tone, "do you mind telling us what happened?"

"I just ran away from…them."

"From whom?"

"Those monsters with fangs!"

Thud. Not another word is uttered from the individual's mouth.

____________________________________________________________________________

"Take a deep breath for me please and try not to move." Businge closes her eyes and gently touches my right wrist.

"Where is…"

"Aamina ran away to look for help. The kid standing behind me is our missing person." I close my eyes and relax my body. "Forgive me for doing this."

As I push Businge away, the vampire slams into me.

With the vampire in my face, I grab their fire-orange hair and do not let go. Before they get their bearings straight, I make direct eye contact with them. The left part of my face raises towards the ceiling, my purple eyes glint in the dim light and I can feel my heart rate pick up.

I twist my arm and turn the vampire's body weight back onto them. I receive a punch to the gut and bite into their hand.

"Ouch! You little brat! Get off me."

.As the vampire reaches for me, I grab hold of their hands and whisper, Curse-Technique: Soul Rest. The vampire drops to the floor like a sack of potatoes…and so do I.

Businge's eyes meet mine and they are the size of Pluto! It does not help that she keeps squirming around, trying to push me away. I smile at her and feel a tap on my shoulder.

"Hold on little one, I will be with you in a minute."

"I don't consider myself to be a little one, sorceress."

Wham! I am seeing stars and am unable to stand up. The cold concrete is painted red.

"If you thought fighting my counterpart was a pain, that was a warm-up."

Before I know it, Florynce's doppelganger sinks their fangs into my left calf muscle.

The more I move around, the deeper the teeth go. I imagine this is how a fish feels when it is hooked. Suddenly, a warm, tingling sensation radiates from the part where I was bitten to my head. It feels like I am swaddled in a blanket, with zero care in the world. My eyes are wet, and the room goes completely blank.

My leg gives out under me as the vampire forces me to stand up. The taste of bile fills my mouth, my stomach turns a mile a minute, and I can't see straight. To top it all off, I hear the muffled sounds of voices coming from someplace else in the room. I am met with a swift punch to the gut. I cough up blood as my lungs franticly gasp for air.

"I don't…oh no, you will look me in the eyes while I am talking to you."

"Shoot! Make it stop, make it stop! Get out of my head! Zyler no, stop!"

I grab the sides of my face trying to stop the influx of memories from overpowering me.

"Let her go!"

"Oh, you want to play with the big fighters, do you? Well, come at me."

While I am stuck in my head, I hear crashing and banging. It is hard to pinpoint their locations but, the force of bones and flesh crashing into me brings me some relief.

A pair of warm hands makes me jump in place!

"Blaze! Look at me, please. You need to snap out of your pity party and fight! Let's go!"

"Fight. But why…"

"Because…"

Crash, smack crunch. Crash!

"Why Zyler?"

A smaller pair of hands touch my face. The smile behind the eyes makes my heart skip a beat. I quickly push whoever the person is behind me and rush towards the crashing noises. I meet the ground and am kicked by something powerful.

"Good, you are back. Your friend did not last long. Now to finish you off."

The person I am fighting slashes my torso, drawing blood in the process. I return the favor by headbutting them and spitting on their face. I smear blood on their person and dodge their counterattack. Before making it a safe distance, my opponent grabs my ankle and tosses me like a rag doll. I land next to an unconscious body.

"Barrier-Technique: Death." A flash of yellow-purple light flashes across the room. The faint smell of sulfur and moss dances in the air. My body refuses to move as the muffled sounds of "Oh, my goodness! Businge, Blaise", echo in my ears.

Friday, June 14th, 2007

I bat my eyes open, seeing nothing but white. It feels like shards of glass lodged themselves into my lungs

"Make it stop! The burning is too much!"

I grab ahold of my chest and close my eyes tightly. The gentle water trickling down my face cools the inferno growing inside my body.

"Help me get her back onto the bed. On my count, one, two, three."

"Put me down. Businge, where is Businge? And the child?"

I grab hold of the person closest to me: a young individual wearing navy blue scrubs, a name badge, and a furrowed brow.

"Take a deep breath and relax. Your friend is coming out of surgery right now."

"Surgery? Oh goodness, this is all my fault! All my fault. What have I done!"

I grab my knees and hug them into my chest. The heart rate monitor blares in the eerily white room. A cooling sensation pulses through my veins, making my eyes droop shut.