Forest Mutation (Book Two)

Chapter 22: Flights, Frights, Fights

Diaval opens his eyes to find Leonardo and April kneeling over him. A spring breeze drifts through his hair and brings with it the scent of grass and earth, but all Diaval feels is a dull throbbing throughout his entire body.

"What...happened?" Diaval asks as he slowly sits up, keeping any sign of discomfort from his expression.

"From what Leo told me, you fell off the Chimera," April says. She blinks a few times and lifts her head upwards.

"And...where's everyone?" he wonders. He turns in slow circles and tilts his head towards the sky. His vision swims briefly and his eyelids slide shut for a brief second as he waits for the vertigo to fade.

Leonardo's jaw clenches and he tries to stand, but his knee keeps him grounded. "They're gone," he answers as Diaval's eyes land on him. "I couldn't do anything."

"Leo?" April asks, searching for the source of his voice. "My eyes..."

"April." He half-crawls, half-limps to her side. Her pupil-less gaze finds him. "You're...you're blind?"

"Not exactly. Somehow, I got a psychic connection to the monster. Maybe from Donnie's neurotransmitter?" She pauses as Leonardo considers it. Diaval wonders what a neurotransmitter is as April points to her pure white eyes. "I'm seeing through its eyes. I know where it's taking them. And..." Her stomach growls and she wraps her arms around himself. "Uh oh...I know why it took them too. I feel really hungry. Like...Mikey hungry."

Leonardo looks back to the sky, his lips pressing together. Diaval makes a soft noise in the back of his throat as his hand moves to his shoulder, earning a quick glance from Leonardo and a full beat of attention from April as she tries to pinpoint where exactly the pale boy is.

"Diaval?" she asks. "Was that you? Are you okay?"

"Might've...hurt shoulder," he admits. He tries to move his arm and lets out a breathy gasp. "Y-Yeah...hurt."

"You fell off a giant bird, I'm surprised you're still standing," Leonardo says. There's a bite in his tone that makes Diaval narrow his eyes.

"Diaval, come here," April says, holding her hands out in front of her. "Maybe I can...feel how bad it is?" Leonardo arches an eye-ridge. She sighs at the silent reaction. "Or, maybe, Leo could set aside his grudge for a second and help you."

"No, 'm fine," Diaval mutters. He adjusts his cloak and releases his shoulder, his expression returning to a neutral resting face. "Gotta go get 'em, yeah? Don't matter."

He retrieves his fallen bow from the ground and maneuvers it over his head with some difficulty. Leonardo eyes the back of his neck, but gets his crutch anyways and tucks it beneath his arm. He limps to April and she grasps his arm, trying not to trip over her own feet.

"Yeah, let's go," Leonardo says.

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Casey grunts and groans as the Chimera flies, his body smacking into the tops of trees. The creature is dragging him along by his feet, leaving his upper body with little security.

"This...is not...cool!" he exclaims right before getting a face full of fir tree.

The Chimera shrieks as it nears a distant peak. Destiny, still clamped in its jaws, scrunches her eyes shut at the sudden and ear-splitting noise.