Flying Without Wings

Hours had passed since anyone had spoken or moved. Bastian, Audrey and the rest of the Angha Soldiers had been gone for another long day and cold night and the other Angha Soldiers that Audrey said would come never did. I knew in my gut that something dire was happening, I hadn’t been separated from Bastian for this long since we fell in love, it left me feeling empty in a way I never had before and I wondered if he felt the same way. I meandered around my own house feeling like a stranger. I watched other people make cups of tea in my kitchen and read books from my shelves. I couldn’t do anything but pace, I was lost without Bastian and knew I had to save him, see him, go to 36 Hyacinth Street. But despite my plea’s Lewis refused. We had to wait another day he said, he was sure they would come home or we would hear word of their whereabouts. His petulance made my skin crawl, was he afraid? I knew Bear and Gomez were itching to go and fight as well. I needed to get them alone to figure out how to leave my own home, how did I get myself in such a predicament? Any stolen moments I had to speak to them, Lewis would interrupt, his incessant munching of carrots followed me around the house. It was a sort of announcement of his presence. So instead I sat and I watched the clock tick, the seconds seemed to be taking longer and longer and each minutes was a distant refuge that brought little ease. I felt like Audrey, staring at a pocket watch that refused to move. Time felt like an illusion that refused to be understood. I lay on the couch in the lounge room all alone, I glared at anyone that tried to come and speak to me. My isolation was my only solace, Marvillo was curled up at my feet and he staggered up suddenly. He started to choke and wheeze then gave an earth shattering howl. His cries brought every being to the lounge room, I watched him in terror as he fell to the floor and writhed in pain. I was paralyzed, we all were, his little black body flipped over and over and his eyes rolled back in his head. “What is happening?” I screamed trying to grab a hold of his twitching body.

“Bastian.” Bear muttered from somewhere behind me. When an Angha’s human dies they die too. My heart felt like it was trying to explode out of my throat, Bastian was either dead or about to be.

“I’m going I don’t care who is coming with me.” I had waited long enough and waited myself for every second I had let slip by. A few minutes later we were ready to go. I picked up Marvillo’s limp body and gave him to Clementine, after Marvillo’s spasm she was the only one that opted to stay behind. Clive had stopped her bleeding but she wasn’t healed completely and was in no state to fight. She gave a teary wave goodbye on the stoop as we stormed out the front gate. I took a last look back and saw Marvillo was cradled in her arms, I knew she would protect him. Lewis had hailed a cab at the end of the street and we all piled in.

“OK we still need a plan though.” Lewis said picking fluro orange from between his gaped teeth.

“Yes but not one of yours, your ideas or lack thereof is why we are in this bloody mess. If we had gone to the house yesterday or last night this wouldn’t have happened.” I spat. Lewis looked hurt but I didn’t care, I felt such rage at having spent the last few hours doing nothing and now my lover and my dog were dying at opposite ends of the city.

“We need weapons, the guards that made it out of the caves will be at Zenasia’s and they won’t be playing nice. A whip with blades will seem like a walk in the park compared to what is to come.” Bear said thickly through gritted teeth. I was glad Bear had finely started talking, he was the only one that was making real sense to me.

“I can get you weapons.” the cab driver spoke in a hoarse whisper. I looked up startled, his pooling eyes were staring at me in the rear view mirror. I had seen these sad brown eyes before, it was the same driver that had taken us to Zenasia's house days before. “After seeing that, that house again I began to remember, remember what that women did to my Tulip, what she did to my wife, what she did to me. I knew you were Angha Soldiers the moment I saw you and have been on your street for hours waiting for you to come out, I want to help you.”

“We would have been out a lot sooner if it was up to me.” I said glaring at Lewis’ stupid head.

“Good take us to them.” Bear said thickly placing his hand on the drivers shoulder.

We pulled up to an old storage unit and the driver disappeared inside one of the containers with Bear. I avoided Lewis’ apologetic gaze, I still couldn’t face his toothy grin without punching it. The cab driver and Bear returned minutes later laden with guns, grenades, daggers and glass bottles filled with silver smoke. I had always wondered what people kept in these great storage units. Empty tin cubes waiting to be filled with people’s lies, secrets and lives.

“I remember him now.” Gomez exclaimed from the backseat, I had almost forgotten he was in the cab. “George, oi George!” He scrambled out of the car and took the weapons from his arms. “It’s George isn’t it, George and little Tulip the Terrier, I remember you now.”

“Gomez?” George said slowly recognition spreading across his dark face. “I thought you swapped sides after you lost your brother, I thought you were ZS.”

“Never, it was all just part of a bigger plan my friend.” Gomez laughed embracing George.

“Get in the cab.” Bear spoke quietly but firmly. “Get in the cab now, don’t run.”

I heard a deafening snap above me and my heart started to race. I carefully looked out of my window trying not to move my head. I could see men dressed in black creeping across the top of the storing units like great spiders creeping across a web, I knew we were the fly. They moved swiftly and I could see the glint of guns, swords and whips reflecting in the grey sun. “Gomez.” I hissed and signaled to the roof. Gomez didn’t even turn, he just knew from the look in my eyes, he carefully went to the boot of the car while everyone else climbed inside. The men in black were dropping flat to the roof and setting up their weapons. Come on, come on, come on, I thought. Gomez slammed the boot and shouted for George to take off. I left my door open and the men in black started to fire at it. Gomez took a great leap and jumped into the car as it squealed out of the parking lot. He was still grasping four guns and handed one to each of us. I starred at the ugly white thing he had given me and hesitated.

“No time to learn or question morals Bea, just aim and shoot, these old ones don’t have a safety!” Gomez shouted. The cab skidded into the street and George floored it. The Zimrugh Saviors were up again and bounding across the roofs like hideous black grasshoppers. They leaped high in the sky and thumped onto each rooftop, they dented sheds and shattering tiles. Each time one of them flew into the air they peppered the cab and the street with bullets. I saw pedestrians diving out of the way, of the cab and the pellets, not all of them were moving fast enough.

“George is this cab bullet proof?” Lewis said amazed watching the bullets bounce off. “The windscreen, nothing is getting through.”

George winked and laughed feverishly. “For the longest time I couldn’t remember what had happened to me or why my wife was gone, but I knew I was in danger. Everyone sniggered at me, a bulletproof cab in this town saying it ‘ain’t New York’ they would say. But look who is laughing now!” He was, he gave a great chuckle and lowered the windows just enough for a gun nozzle to stick out. “They won’t get through this glass but we don’t want them chasing us all over town. Let em have it Soldiers.” I heard an eruption of fire from the other guns in the cab. The noise was deafening, frighting, so much louder than in the movies. I closed my eyes, there is no safety, and squeezed the trigger. The force sent me flying backwards and into Bear. He held my head down as a whip flew through the open window with a loud crack. Bear caught the black whip as quick as a fox and pulled the Zimrugh Savior off the roof. They plummeted to the pavement with a sickening thud. I watched, transfixed.

“Beatrice we can’t save Bastian with this lot following us! Tense your core, relax your arms and open your dam eyes.” Bear growled shoving me back to my window. I tried to remember what he said, I took aim at the Zimrugh Savior closest to me and gently squeezed the trigger. Five bullets ripped out at once and hit the wall just below him.

“That’s it ha ha shoot them all.” George cackled and started to weave in and out of the traffic erratically. I took aim again and squeezed the hot trigger. One bullet exploded out this time hitting one of the black clad monsters in the leg. I squealed with delight to my own surprise.

“Good, now aim for the chest or the head, we shoot to kill.” Bear said shooting three more as he spoke. I tried to shoot them in the chest or head but could only manage their limbs, whether it was on purpose or my bad aim I didn’t know. Seeing them drop after a little red explosion made me feel sick, but I thought of Bastian and kept shooting at the faceless men, I had too.

George had been dancing the cab in and out of traffic manically laughing for about ten minutes. We must have been nearing Zenasia's house but still had Zimrugh Savior's following us. I had reloaded my little gun about ten times and my arms were tired from the frightening vibrations but we still had ZS following us.

“Screw this.” Lewis said handing me his checked bowler cap and undoing his window all the way. As soon as his head popped out into the open bullets flew at him. A snaking whip lashed out and licked his head giving him a crimson kiss but he stayed put, he fired at each ZS hitting them, 2, 3, 4, they were dropping like flies. Soon there were none left. He slid back in the window, grabbed his hat and covered the cut on his head. I was panting and elated. I really felt like we could win this thing and by Lewis’ triumphant toothy grin, he thought so too, but my jubilation was cut short by a stomach-churning gurgle from the front of the car. George coughed up a ball of blood which splattered across the front windscreen. He had been hit by one of the bullets aimed at Lewis’ exposed head. Bear was pressing his hand hard into his bloodied chest to slow the flow of blood but it was dripping over his fingers, it was thick like molasses but George just kept driving.

“George stop! Someone else will drive, we have to get you to a hospital.” I cried.

“No,” George struggled to speak with the little breath he had left. “That bitch took everything from me, I’m not stopping until I take something from her. If it kills me I’ll just be one step closer to my wife.” He accelerated again and we zoomed onwards, I knew these streets, we were heading to Hyacinth Street. A loud thud which could only be the sound of a Zimrugh Savior landing on roof startled me. I looked up to see a sword go right through Georges open window and straight into his then neck. I gripped my gun but Bear was the first to shoot, he missed and the sword pulled cleanly out of George’s neck. The ZS disappeared back onto the roof, I could hear him scratching about and I wanted to get him. George pressed for the windows to come up but his eyes were starting to lose focus. His head was lolling from side to side but his foot stayed on the pedal, the car lurched as we continued accelerating and swerving. George began speeding up and braking incessantly trying to throw the Zimrugh Savior from the roof. Bear kept hold of his bloody chest and now his opened neck as well as he swerved in and out of lanes. We were now passing the park just before Hyacinth Street, the park Marvillo had happily flopped around just days before, I hoped he was still alive and being cradled in Clementine’s arms. I could see Zenasia’s vine covered house at the end of the street. George suddenly stopped the cab again and the Zimrugh Soldier finally flew onto the bonnet. “Ha ha” George yelled, blood thickly flowed from his mouth as he opened it. “Buckle up now.” George shouted and put his foot to the floor, the cab jumped forward, the man in black was holding on to the bonnet for dear life, we were approaching the house at full speed and I could see the fear in his steely eyes, we weren’t slowing down.

“We are gonna crash.” Gomez shouted trying to grab the wheel but Bear stopped his arm.

“Yes we are, so brace yourself.” He let go of George’s wounds and covered his own head. We smashed through Zenasia's gate, up the steps and straight into the front door. There was a loud crunch as car, brick and bones became one. The Zimrugh Savior had given a terrified scream as he realized what was happening but it was too late, he was quickly silenced as his body was smashed into the front door. I flew into the seat in front of me and could feel a warm trickle of blood dripping down my cheek. I pealed my eyes open and saw a red lion’s head staring right back at me. It was sticky with blood, the Savior was definitely dead and so was George, his eyes lay open and were lifeless, but he still had a mad smile across his face. I pulled myself out of the car and tested all my limbs. Nothing seemed broken accept maybe a few ribs. Lewis, Bear and Gomez clambered out as well. Bear had a thick piece of glass protruding from his arm, he ripped it out angrily.

“Grab the weapons and let’s finish this.” He grunted.