Modern Reaper

And So Our Dance Begins

I stood over the bodies, panting.

All of them. Dead. By my hands. I had killed them. Me.

But was there a point? More continued to crawl from the rifts in the Earth. If I couldn't get to Linc, there wouldn't be a point to any of it.

Turning around, I saw Akita jump. "What is it?" I asked startled by her reaction. She gulped then shook her head no.

"It's nothing, it's just that your eyes-" Before she could go on, I scooped the petite Asian girl into my arms and began to make a run for it out of the area.

"What are you-"

"I know. My eyes, they don't feel the same." I whispered. "It feels like they're burning. I can't even see straight anymore. It's strange. And my Dragon Tattoo..." I turned the corner and shoved one of the little monsters out of the way. "It doesn't matter. It'll be okay. I just need to keep you safe and find out how to get to Linc."

"She must be nearing the city by now." Akita muttered, her face buried into my chest as if she couldn't bear to look at me. "We'll never make it on foot."

I had been running down the street barefoot, and I slid to a stop on the jagged concrete floor; feeling pieces of glass and rubble dig themselves into my skin. I winced, but got over it just as quickly. I set Akita down and quickly ran over to the nearest car. "What are you doing?" She called out. I signalled her to stand back and looked at a black car that had a man passed out in the driver seat. Trying the door, I decided to wing it and I elbowed the window, shattering it. "What are you doing?" Akita hollered. "You can't just steal a car!"

The man, still unconscious, only stirred in his sleep and it occured to me that regular humans had probably fallen asleep due to the harsh change in the environment. We had been so boisterous. But no neighbors came out to curiously peer at us and tell us to be quiet.

I carried him out of his car through the now open car door and looked at Akita. "Get in." I directed. Hesitantly, she obliged. She slipped into the car and I patted the guy until I heard his keys. Digging in his pockets, I pulled them out and carried him to the nearest bush, hiding his body in there.

Snarling. The gasping, wheezing voices of the skinless creatures were fast approaching. They were quick, and upon finding us they screamed at each other, their voices guttered yet projected loudly.

Some of them sped down at me on all fours. Quickly, I sauntered to the car, getting in and slamming the door closed just as one of them launched themselves at me.

I quickly opened the door and hit a monster with it.

I watched it's gruesome face smash against the door and I stomped it's head down before it could get back up. I got back in the vehicle and began to fumble with the keys, only to have my thoughts stopped by Akita's fear stricken voice. She leaned into my view, watching my face as sternly as she could. "Can you even drive?"

"It can't be that hard-"

"Open your legs. I'll drive. We don't have time to change seats, and I'm not going to die in a car accident because of a guy who couldn't get his act together." Akita unbuckled, and in seconds she was sitting in between my legs.

I know it was really bad. And it was even worse that I blushed over it. I may have changed, but these small feminine things. They would forever never cease to catch me off guard, would they?

Plunging the car keys into the keyhole, Akita put the car in drive and slammed the gas pedal, jerking the car to life.

It had to at least have hit a few of them. I tried not to think about why the car suddenly felt like it was driving through a rough patch in the woods. I bit my tongue and kept my eyes out of the window and focused on the nape of Akita's neck. I eventually had to help press the gas pedal because Akita had difficulty reaching, so I kept myself occupied with that.