• Act VIII- Bloodshed.



    As I awoke in the morning, Zero’s arms lay limp around my waist. I smiled when I saw his sleeping face peacefully laid next to where mine was. Ah, Morning, wait…MORNING?! I jumped onto my feet and shoved Zero awake, “What are you doing sleeping?!? Don’t you know what today is!?!” I screamed as I picked up the still sleeping Sparks and started out of our shelter. Zero just yawned and laid his head back down, “It’s no biggie,” he mumbled sleepily. I dropped Sparks’s right where I was and he awoke with a yelp. “HUH???” I responded.

    Zero sat up with his pure snow hair a mess, “Judging by the angle of the sun, it’s 8 am. Surt-Lim ain’t comin’ for another 5 hours.” I feel to the ground like a piece of seaweed, “No one told me this why?” Everyone shrugged. Well, shouldn’t we find a plain or something?” I suggested again. Hotaka immediately took out his pen and paper and jotted down notes, “She’s right. If we stay in a heavily vegetated area such this, the chance of having poor, discombobulated, offensive attacks immensely decreases.” Zero looked totally clueless, his expression forced a giggle out of me. Hotaka sighed, “If we find a flat place, we fight better.” Zero’s invisible light bulb flew on, “Oh, duh!”

    ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

    After about 3 hours of packing and very last minute drills, I asked Hotaka for his pen and paper. I walked away from the three boys to write a letter. It was a simple note, no more that 5 sentences, filled with good-byes and I love you’s. I had a feeling I would never see at least one of them again. After I was done, it was perfectly polka-dotted with my subtle teardrops. Right before we headed out to find a flat location, I slipped the note inside of Zero’s pack. After what seemed like forever, we all found the perfect setting for our intended blood bath. Finally, that hour came; 1pm, it was cloudy and the clouds above cried for snow. Our each and every breath turned into an eruption of steam. I loaded my gun with as many bullets as it could carry and my ammo box was snuggly inside of my back pocket. When we transform into our wolf forms, at least one physical article of clothing is transferred from our human self to the wolf form we now know too much about. For me, it was my hair barrettes and that dinky little cat collar Zero bought for me. The golden, hair-like grass was tall enough to come up to a human’s waist. I stayed human so I could get a semi-bird’s eye view. Before the first snowflake fell, “Here they come!” I warned as I blinked into my wolf from. Just as I did, Sparks started shaking like a leaf so I nudged his neck with my muzzle. “It’s going to be ok. We’ll be fine, I promise.” Sparks nodded. The first wolf attacked Hotaka, the two rumbled, bit and clawed for about 6 seconds before Hotaka bit into the opponent’s neck, slitting the jugular vein and splattering the wolf’s bodily fluid all over the seemingly calm grass. And with that, the bloodshed had begun. One after another of ravenous wolves erupted out of the wall of wheat that confronted us almost every second. None of us were given more than 3 seconds to prepare for the next brutal attack. Whenever Sparks would singe the fur off of a charging wolf, I would either bite into their stomach, disemboweling them, or sink my fangs into their bare necks and send them on a bloody trail to Hell.

    Because of all the battling, the once calm grass was now pinned to the soil, making a trail form us to the enemy. We were demolishing Surt-Lim’s army, but a certain little wolf threw his fangs over Sparks’ neck.

    “…Ichio?” I whispered silently. Sparks exploded into a ball of flames, forcing Ichio off of him. The two were obviously evenly skilled but, Sparks was begging to tire and Ichio was getting the upper hand.

    “Ichio, stop!” I howled as I tried to help yet, I was preoccupied by another wolf under Surt-Lim’s command. After I killed that opponent, I flashed into a human, I…have…HAD IT!” I yanked out my gun and unleashed my lead massacre on the enemy. I wasted no bullets and aimed for their heads; one shot, one kill. I ran out of bullets quicker than I expected and had to resort to my human form once again. We were all tired form our 10 day wild wolf chase and lack of food and the enemy was rapidly getting the advantage. Zero pushed another box of ammo at me for me to, once again; launch my bullets at any approaching. But, before I could load my gun with a single bullet, a huge reddish wolf bounded on top of me and I guess, knocked me out.

    {Zero’s Point of View}
    I thought we were winning but Yukiru was ambushed by one of Surt-Lim’s head minions. Yukiru passed out before she even hit the ground. “Yukiru!” I helplessly called as Surt-Lim himself grabbed her by the back of her neck. Sparks was busy with some other wolf, and before I could get to her, Hotaka sprinted to rescue Yukiru. But, a larger female wolf hit Hotaka broadside and knocked him out too. Yukiru was depending on me now; I was almost there when a wolf, out of nowhere pinned me down on my side. I was only feet from Yukiru’s sleeping, wolf face. Surt-Lim started to walk away with Yukiru in his mouth, “Where are you taking her!?” I yelled as I scratched at the soil in a pathetic attempt to escape. Surt-Lim only smiled smugly back at me, “That’s for me to know and for you to never find out.”

    “If you don’t give her back I’ll-“

    “You’ll do what? Kill me?” Surt-Lim paused to laugh at me, “Tell you what, if you kill me, I give poor little Yukiru back to you.”

    He was taunting me as he bent down and licked the side of Yukiru’s face. “Don’t you dare touch her!” I ordered.

    “Oh, I’ll do much more than that,” He returned with an evil chuckle. He ran off with Yukiru and his enlarged followers within 2 hours of his army first showing up, even Sparks’ opponent disappeared. I get up and ran towards Surt-Lim but he had vanished into thin air. I changed back into my human form and slammed my fists into the ground out of sheer fury. She’s gone! Yukiru’s gone and Surt-Lim took her!! WHY COULDN’T I SAVE HER!?! I kept repeating that last part in my head until Hotaka finally snapped out of it with a cry out for he long gone Yukiru.

    “Where is she?” I muttered to myself. Hotaka came running as a human to my side, “Huh?” he returned as he looked over the calm wheat field.

    “Where the hell is Yukiru! Surt-Lim kidnapped her and now she GONE!!! Now, where did he take her!?” I screamed, I didn’t know how else to take my anger out.

    Hotaka sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, “If I knew, Zero, we would’ve left already.”

    “Do you at least have an idea?” I interrogated.

    Hotaka pondered for a few seconds, “He would have taken her somewhere far away and be that last place we looked.”

    Then it hit me harder than any wolf attack, “That b*****d took her back! Surt-Lim is back at Yukiru’s den!”

    Hotaka looked at me with shock, “But that’s an eight day travel!”

    “Not if we never stop,” I responded walking back to Sparks who was licking some of his wounds. “C’mon, we have to save Yukiru,” I said sternly as I picked Sparks up and pushed him on his way. Hotaka made a mental map so we couldn’t get lost, the rest was up to Yukiru.


    {End of Zero’s Point of View}


    When I woke up, I was chained to stone wall in an oddly familiar room. “H-hello?” I whimpered as I rattled the chains with every movement of my feet or arms.

    “I see you’re awake now darling,” a sinister voice purred from the darkness. The only thing lighting up the vast, circular room was a large bowl of fire right in the middle of the cave. A man with red wine hair stepped into the small light I had to let my eyes use.

    “Who…who are you?” I asked again.

    The man put on a fake put, “It makes me sad when some like you doesn’t know when the great Surt-Lim is right before them.”

    Surt-Lim!? Oh God, how long have I been out? Where are Zero and the others? Were they even alive? I couldn’t help but let my panicking show on my face. Surt-Lim let a few laughs crawl out of his mouth as he wheeled a silver medical tray into my view. On it, were around 10 gray, shiny rods with sharp points on the end. Surt-Lim picked one of them up and immediately my heart began to race.

    “Did you know that there are twelve pressure points on the body that if they were to be let’s say, stabbed, that the victim would not die, but only receive the worst physical pain man has to offer? Did you know that, dear?” He said when he held up a small metal mallet. He pressed the pointed end of one of the metal rods up to my ankle, “One of these pressure points is right in-between the ankle and heel bones.” And without delay, he hammered that pin into my foot with tremendous force. For a split second, I felt nothing and my ankle was numb, but not one second after the biggest wave of excruciating pain exploded up my leg and into my entire body.

    I opened my mouth to scream and cry but the pain was too severe that now sounds would come out. I almost vomited out of the sheer pain I found to will power to hold it back though.

    Surt-Lim put his face close to mine, “Aw, that was only one my dear. We have eleven left. Don’t tell me I went through all of this trouble for nothing.” Before I could respond he slammed another rod onto my opposite ankle. This time, my voice found my mouth and I allowed a blood curdling shriek echo through out the cave. Surt-Lim boomed into laughter as I cried and sobbed from my suffering. Please, please be safe. That’s the phrase that I repeated in my head.

    {Zero’s point of View}


    At full speed I ran to Yukiru. Whenever I would get tired, I would just think about what Surt-Lim could be doing to Yukiru at that moment or if she was even alive. Sparks was falling behind, “Hurry up kid! We have to get Yukiru back form Surt-Lim!” As soon as I finished, Sparks’ paws literally burst into flames and his speed almost matched mine. “Good boy,” I panted as I gave him a quick smile. Please, please be safe. My head was like a broken record player because I wouldn’t stop repeating those words in my mind.

    End of Act VIII