Chapter 2: CHAPTER TWO
"Fan out. Find her," I heard someone say from a distance. How much further did I have to run? Was Isaac even going to be there?
For a short moment I thought about stopping. I probably wouldn't get too far before they caught up with me anyway. But the sound of boots thumping through the tunnels behind me had me running even faster.
"Hear that? She's down here. Go!" The tunnels slowly began to light up.
Flashlights.
They were close, but I was already at the exit now. The only problem was making it to the towers without being spotted, especially with every guard in the city looking for me. I had ditched the wig, even though it would hardly fool anyone now, and I could hear the men behind me getting closer. Just then, I felt something pull me out of the way with a quick jerk and my heart jumped. My eyes widened as he placed his hand over my mouth and i started to kick and wriggle, trying to break free from his grip.
"Hey. It's me." The familiar voice sent me into a slight calm and I swiveled around with a frown on my face. What the hell was he thinking?
"It's fine. I'm fine." Isaac lifted his gloved hands. "See?"
I stared at him in disbelief. He had on the hoodie and scarf from the other night and a pair of leather gloves, but I wasn't buying it. A million things could have gone wrong and he could have died.
"You lovebirds going to keep bickering or can we get this over with?" Someone else said In a distinct Scottish accent. Immediately, I noticed the tall blonde girl leaning against the wall a few inches away from Isaac. She was dressed in a black leather jacket, dirty grey pants and black boots. There was a rebellious aura about her.
"Save the introductions for later, luv," she said when I looked over at her. "You two can finish your lovers quarrel when we're done being hunted." I noticed her eyeing me from head to toe in a manner I found rather uncomfortable, and then she held out her hand.
"The Coat."
I frowned. What did she need my coat for? I looked at Isaac and he nodded in agreement, and so, reluctantly yet hurriedly, I took off the charcoal gray parka coat and handed it to her as she in turn placed her black leather jacket in my hand.
"Don't scratch that," I heard her say as I threw on the leather jacket that seemed to be a tad bit too long at the arms, seeing as she was an inch or two taller than I was. But then I lifted my head and she was gone. There was someone else in her place now.
No. Not just someone else. Me.
I watched in fascination as she stood there in my jacket. Small and slender with chocolate brown skin, dark brown eyes, thin lips, and shoulder length dreadlocks that fell to either side of her head. It was like looking into a mirror. And for a moment it irritated me to see how frail and naïve I looked. Maybe that was part of the reason why the Union was making a puppet out of me. But not anymore.
"You know what to do," she said to Isaac, and I found myself smiling. It was her voice, but the thought of being able to talk made me wonder if it was really possible.
"Come on." Isaac took me by the hand and led me away. And as we neared the tower, I could hear the men yelling behind us.
"There she is!"
"Get her!"
But it wasn't me they were going after this time. Well, not exactly.
Getting outside the city would be easy. All we needed was the pass card I used to leave the Steelgarde, or so I thought. We had made it past the checkpoints and were moving to the gate when a fairly huge man with a hard look came around.
"Carson." His voice was deep and gritty.
"Yessir," one of the guards answered with a firm salute.
"Where's your damn receiver?"
"The Walkie?" the small man answered in a pitch that was an octave higher than when he spoke to us. "I was charging it, sir." He was trying to collect himself in a way that was pitiful and hilarious at the same time. Probably one of the new recruits.
"Seal the gate. Nobody leaves or enters. Colonel's orders…" He was saying something else when finally he asked? "Who are those two?"
Startled, I looked back, somehow locking eyes with the hard-faced man. I stiffened and stopped dead in my tracks. He recognized me. They were on to us now.
"Seal the gate, now!"
His voice seemed to send vibrations through me. Before I could think I felt Isaac's hand grip my wrist, pulling me along as he made for the exit, and I ran as fast as I could.
We were halfway across when the sand erupted all around us from the impact of the bullets that spewed from above. I stumbled back, placing my arms over my head.
"Hold your fire!" The man shouted to the gunners on the wall. "We need her alive!"
Quickly, Isaac pulled me again and we ran even faster now. There were almost a dozen soldiers tailing us, but all I could see was the huge and unbelievably thick steel gate sliding down. The opening was only a few feet high now. With a grunt and a powerful swing of the arm, he threw me to the ground and I rolled in the dirt under the descending barricade, and he swiftly followed.
We were out now but the gate was still up and the soldiers were hot on our heels. I got off the ground and continued to run, but I halted when I noticed Isaac was behind with his back to me. It was now that a wave of astonishment rushed through me as I watched gobsmacked. The air lit up, spreading a flare that flashed across my face. He was doing it again, that thing with the fire, but bigger this time. A lot bigger than I'd seen before.
Peering from a distance through the raging flame, I could see the soldiers draw back as the fire threatened to burn them to a crisp. He kept at it, somehow dispersing wildfire from his hands until the gate was completely sealed. And then he backed away and moved towards me.
"Let's go," he said as he walked past me. The gloves had been burnt off.
"What about the girl?" I signed to him as I walked briskly, trying to keep up.
Darn, he was fast.
"She's fine. She can take care of herself."
I scowled. She wasn't the friendliest but I didn't want to believe we had just left her to Ritter and the Union.
"She's fine, Xaia, I promise," he said after noticing the look on my face. "If it makes you feel any better, she'll be here any moment now."
Silence.
I thought about the professor and what the Union was going to do with him. Ritter wouldn't kill him, they still needed him. But they would do things to him that were probably worse, and it made me wonder if I had done the right thing.
We had walked a little farther when the sound of a vehicle approaching invaded my thoughts. The truck pulled up abruptly beside us and we both stopped, shielding our eyes from the sand and dust. A skinny dark skinned boy hopped out.
"You're late," Isaac's face held a disappointed look.
"I know, sorry." Then he looked over at me and a stupid grin spread across his face. "Hi, I'm Hussein." He stretched his open palm, and Isaac scoffed.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Isaac said and the boy's forehead creased in a confused frown as he unconsciously withdrew his hand. And then, as if apologetic, he forced a smile.
We got in and as the truck moved through the desert, the two boys got to talking–more like arguing–now. I wondered where we were going and what it would be like there. And where was the Blondie anyway?
Just then, a rather unusual bird flitted through the open window and onto the back seat, sending me into a scare. Hussein and Isaac too. But then I noticed my coat on the seat. And the animal slowly started to transform into something else. I could feel my heart thumping hard as I watched in horror.
It was her.
"Seriously, Erin, you need to stop doing that!" Hussein said, easing his grip on the steering wheel. She simply held out her hand and Isaac handed her a bag. I was still shell shocked, staring wide-eyed at her nude body. Not only could she impersonate people, but she could also turn into ANIMALS?!
And they said I was strange.
"Don't Even," she said when she caught Hussein from the corner of her eye trying to get a view from the rear mirror as she threw on the clothes from the bag.
"Nice Jacket, by the way." She smiled at me and I tensed even more. It was the fist time I saw her smile. "Now I'll need mine back." Her smile disappeared almost as soon as she spoke and i wondered if she was like that with everyone. Or was it just me? But there was a lot more to think about than just that. And now I wondered what profits and perils loomed on this path which I had chosen.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone