Wings and Steel

Chapter IV - A Light Between the Rocks

"Speed." We all said at once, casting a massive enchantment meant to land on every Fairy in the room, before we split up and started running.

The next things happened all at once. Dahlia rushed to the windows and shattered them with ease. Canna started guiding the girls to one of the windows, as two other Fairies quickly cast a barrier surrounding everyone who was evacuating. Lilly and I had trained together during our childhood and we had an agreement that, whenever we had to take down two men, she would take the one on the left and I would take the one to the right. Remembering that agreement well, she swiftly ran to the guard standing to the left and broke his neck with ease. I did the same to the guard on the right and quickly pushed the captive into another Fairy's arms, who pulled her inside the protective barrier.

However, it couldn't have been all that easy...

"There you are" the man said as he grabbed my arm tightly. Only now I noticed his eyes were blood shot and the veins of his face and neck were swollen.

He wasn't stupid. He knew this might happen. He had drunk Power Juice just enough time before the meeting for it to kick in at this precise moment. But that was more clever than any human I'd ever seen. So calculated and composed, paying such attention to details and planning ahead, outsmarting Fairies? Who is he? Or rather....

"What are you?" I asked without thinking as my eyes widened in surprise.

He smiled and used the fist of his free arm to punch my chest, throwing me against the wall. He pulled out a pistol and shot Lilly, who was trying to attack him from behind. The bastard only hit Lilly's shoulder. It was plain to see that he wanted to capture her alive for interrogation. I coughed, trying to catch my breath and recover from the blow. The pain was intense and it made me realize the magnitude of the effects Power Juice had on humans. They were terrifying, putting even our enchantments to shame; and we were witnessing these very effects first hand.

He turned to face me and started walking with a devilish smirk spread across his face, but Canna threw herself at him, pushing him against the wall with difficulty.

"GO!" she shouted looking at me.

Before I could do what she said I felt Dahlia grab my arm and pull me towards the window.

"We got this, go!" She said as she pushed me outside.

"I can't leave y-"

"Damn it, Amanita! Just do as I say for once in your life!" She said as she turned around to face the many guards now coming in through the door.

Petrified, I stepped back, away from the window, forcing myself to leave everyone behind. The very thought went against every fiber in my body. Suddenly, I felt someone grab me from behind.

"Hey, I got her!" I heard a voice behind me as a man tried to lift me up by my jacket.

I quickly lifted my arms and bent my knees, gracefully slipping out of the garment and pushing him as hard as I could with an unintentional grunt, causing him to stumble and fall. I turned around and started running, my heart heavy with remorse and worry alike, determined to take advantage of the time I had left of the speed enchantment.

I knew they were following me, so I did the only remotely smart thing I could do given my situation – I ran, turning as many corners as possible, in a desperate attempt to lose my pursuers. I wasn't sure whether they had used Power Juice or not, but I did not plan to stick around and find out. In my experience, it was always best to prepare for the worst, so I assumed they had taken the drug and, on top of it, they were highly trained. I dared not look back as I sprinted towards an unknown destination, my breath growing heavier as my body became more and more tired.