Carmen had just finished her shift at work. She hummed a tune while she walked to her old little car. Carmen looked into her purse for her keys when she heard a set of swift footsteps. She turned to see the dull lighted streets and concrete of Austin Texas.
She turned back to her car and flinched when she saw a black bipedal cat on top of the car. It had white robes and a hood with gold outlining. The cat looked at her with its piercing yellow and black eyes.
Carmen narrowed her eyes, “Azriel, what are you doing here?”
Azriel’s tail whipped from side to side and then stopped. He narrowed his eyes at her, “The child is no longer safe in your custody.”
Carmen’s eyes widened, “What why?”
Azriel’s tail swayed, “They have gotten close to the safe house and they know the child’s general appearance—except for height. Her stunted stature is the only thing buying us time. We knew this would happen. Do you have someone else you would prefer the child to go to? You've already been on the ledge by how you've been doing things. If you do not have a suitable candidate by now I WILL take matters into my own paws.”
Carmen sighed, “there is only one, and if this fails. Then have it your way.”
Azriel nodded, “alright who?”
Carmen smirked, “Thokath.”
Azriel’s eyes widened. He fell silent for a moment just staring at her until he spoke, “You... hmmm...this could work. But understand if this goes awry and the child dies.” Azriel narrowed his eyes. Small blades floated from his cloak pocket. They pointed towards Carmen, “It won't be just the child who will have died that day, am I clear?”
Carmen nodded solemnly, “Crystal.”
******
Lexy woke up to the sound of fire roaring with the cries of dying men. She quickly sat up in her bed, her storm blue eyes wide, her blond hair stuck to her forehead. Her mom barged open her bedroom door. Lexy looked at her mother and she lost her breath. Her mother had a sheathed sword on her back. But not just that, her mother’s clothing was soaked in blood. Blood that was not her mother's.
Lexy shuddered, “Mom what-”
Her mother pointed to Lexy’s closet, “Get up, we're leaving. Now.”
Lexy didn’t feel like she could or should argue with her mother. Quickly Lexy grabbed her suitcase out of her closet and put in clothes along with a few items of sentimental value. She looked at the knife case on top of her dresser. But before she could head towards it an explosion burst in the front yard and her mother was shielding her from the flying glass shards of her window.
Lexy looked up at her mother with wide eyes as her mother only shook the shards and fiery debry off. Her mother met her gaze, “Come on we've been here too long.”
Lexy nodded and zipped up her case before she followed her mother downstairs. Lexy felt her stomach twist, two of the dining room windows were shattered. There were three dead bodies on the wooden polished floor. Lexy walked off the last step and felt something touch her foot.
She inhaled sharply and almost tripped when she saw a severed head had touched her. The eyes were orange and lifeless they just stared into her soul. Her mother looked at her from the door, “Come on.”
Lexy pulled her case and carefully avoided touching the dead bodies. But their eyes, all these bodies had the same eye color as the severed heads, haunting orange.
She followed her mother outside and the yard was on fire. But it wasn’t the only thing the fires were feasting upon. Lexy looked into the flames to see burning dead bodies, it smelled similar to pork. Blood was stained on the concrete driveway.
Lexy looked to the station wagon and watched her mom get in. Part of Lexy screamed at herself to get out of here, but another informed her that this was her mom and to trust her. Lexy walked over to the car and opened the back passenger door. She put it in her suitcase and then got in after the case. She sighed and looked at her mom when her mother started the car. Lexy’s hand trembled, “Mom, what was, no, who were those people!”
Her mother glanced at Lexy through her rearview mirror, “I can’t explain right now, but you need to trust me. When I drop you off at the airport, take the items I have in the trunk and keep walking until you get on that plane. Trust no one until you get to that address on the letter.”
Lexy’s eyes widened tears formed in her eyes, “Wait, you're not coming with me?”
Carmen didn’t meet her daughter's gaze through the mirror, “No, I'm not.”
Lexy felt her shoulders shake, she bit her lip while she looked out the car window until they got to the airport.
Lexy let out a shaky breath before her mom pulled something at the front of the car and the trunk opened. Lexy looked at her mom, “I love you.”
Lexy got out of the car while she grabbed her suitcase and heard a soft, “I love you too.” from her mother. Lexy opened the car door and got out. She walked over to the trunk and pulled out cash, a letter with an address on it, and an airplane ticket.
Lexy swallowed a lump in her throat. She pocketed the items before she closed the trunk.
Lexy walked away from the car and she walked through the airport with her suitcase in one hand while the items her mother gave her were in the other. She could feel the coarse paper of the letter she held along with the cash weighing down her pocket. She could see people bustling about. The smell of bleached floors was welcomed over the smell of burning flesh. She shuddered in the back of her mind those haunting orange eyes were still lifelessly gazing at her.
She looked at her ticket and her eyes widened. Dread pooled in her stomach. Her ticket was marked as a one-way flight. She looked back to the drive and ran out of the doors tears whelmed in her eyes to see her mother had already left.
A woman walked up to her, “Excuse me, are you ok?”
Lexy looked to the stranger only for her breath to hitch and her hair to stand on end. The woman’s gaze was haunting orange, just like the dead bodies at the house.
Lexy nodded, “Yeah I just thought I forgot my ticket. I have it. Thank you for your concern.”
The woman smiled, “Well, do you need help getting to your flight.”
Lexy’s heart paused for a moment her nerves felt like they were dipped in ice, “No.”
Lexy quickly walked away and walked back into the airport. She ran her free hand through her hair, “Just what is going on?”
The woman from before with haunting orange eyes grabbed Lexy’s wrist, “Are you sure you don’t need help?”
Lexy gazed at the woman for a moment with wide eyes. The woman had green hair along with a midnight black dress. Lexy tried to pull her wrist away but the woman’s grip was tight. Lexy huffed, “Let me go!”
The woman smirked, “Not a-” she paused and her eyes widened before she grit her teeth, “Azriel.”
Lexy looked to her possible savior only for her jaw to drop when she sees a normal-sized black house cat sitting on one of the waiting chairs. The cat was dressed in a gold and white robe.
The cat or Azriel as the woman had called him glared, “You shall let go of this child or else face my furry.”
The woman laughed, “Really this is what my men are so scared of a talking little kitty.”
Azriel growled, his hackles raised and his ears flattened against his head. The lights in the airport flickered while the ground began to rumble. The chair under Azriel began to float and all the other chairs began to be picked apart by some kind of invisible force.
People’s eyes widened and ran leaving only those behind with haunting orange eyes. Then blades began to float from Azriel’s coat pocket.
The woman’s eyes widened and she smirked. She moved her feet and dark magic speeded onto the ground creating a spell circle.
Lexy quickly kicked the woman in the groin and ran, something told her that she did not want to be caught in the brawl between whatever those two were.
The woman hissed with clenched teeth in pain, she glared at Azriel. She smirked when her spell circle turned into a dark void and an undead dragon crawled out. The beast roared at Azriel.
Quickly Azriel raised his paw at the monster and all the floating materials swooped in at the monster, poles of chairs skewered the monster into the concrete floor. The floor cracked and a huge cloud of dust rose from the action.
Azriel looked around when the dust settled to see all those with haunting orange eyes were gone, the only evidence they were even there was the groaning beast skewered to the ground.
Despite the polls through its body, the dragon got back up and took in a deep breath before releasing a dark black fire. Azriel rolled to the side to dodge the blast. The dragon stood tall its head almost scraping on the roof of the airport.
It went in for another attack but Azriel was too fast and small for it. The beast frustrated began lighting everything it saw into black fire. It began to slam itself against the walls.
Azriel smirked and made a crushing motion with his paws. In response to this, the walls began to shake as they closed in around the undead dragon. The beast wailed before black blood splattered everywhere like a bug had just been crushed.
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