Hurricane ~ L. Valdez

1.15- Stupid Ankle

The anemoi thuella was fast. It moved like...the wind, and I was very surprised we were able to keep up with it.

"Speed up!" my brother urged Leo.

"Bro," Leo said, "if I get any closer, he'll spot us. Bronze dragon ain't exactly a stealth plane." 

"Slow down!" Piper yelped. The storm spirit dove into a grid of streets. Festus tried to follow, but his wingspan was way too wide. His left wing hit the edge of a building, causing me to grip Leo tightly as he pulled up. 

"Get above the buildings," Jason suggested. "We'll track him from there." 

"You want to drive this thing?" Leo grumbled, and I grinned, watching as he did what Jason asked.  After a few minutes I noticed the storm spirit again, zipping through the streets purposelessly. It blew over pedestrians, ruffling flags and making cars swerve.

Suddenly I groaned, noticing something new. "Oh great," I mumbled. "There're two." A second anemoi thuellai blasted around the corner of the Renaissance Hotel and met up with the first. They wove together in a chaotic dance, shooting to the top of a skyscraper, bending a radio tower, and diving back down toward the street. 

"Those guys do not need any more caffeine," Leo said.

"Neither do you." I added.

"I guess Chicago's a good place to hang out," Piper said. "Nobody's going to question a couple more evil winds."

"More than a couple," I said. "Look... it's a family reunion." We circled over a wide avenue next to a lake-side park. Storm spirits were everywhere—at least a dozen of them were whirling around a big public art installation. 

"Which one do you think is Dylan?" Leo asked. "I wanna throw something at him."

"I dunno but let me know if you figure it out." I grinned, before my smile suddenly dropped. I could see that woman's face on a screen, and it felt like she was haunting my mind.

"Leo...Lara..." Jason said nervously. 

"I see her," Leo said. "I don't like her, but I see her." I nodded in agreement.

Then the screens went dark. The venti swirled together into a funnel cloud and skittered across the fountain, making a waterspout almost as high as the monoliths. They got to its center, popped off a drain cover, and disappeared underground. 

"Did they just go down a drain?" Piper asked. "How are we supposed to follow them?" 

"Maybe we shouldn't," Leo said. "That fountain thing is giving me seriously bad vibes. And aren't we supposed to, like, beware the earth?"

"Yeah." I agreed. Besides, if there was anything I learned from my years of questing, underground wasn't usually good.

I turned to look at my brother, and I could see the wheels turning in his head. He was strategizing. "Put us down in that park," he suggested. "We'll check it out on foot."  Festus landed in an open area between the lake and the skyline.

The signs said Grant Park, and I guess it's nice in the summer; but now it was a field of ice, snow, and salted walkways. Festus' metal feet hissed as they touched the ground. He flapped his wings unhappily and shot fire into the sky, and thankfully there was no one around to notice. I was freezing, and my eyes stung so badly, I could barely see. 

We dismounted, and Leo helped me off, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and instantly bringing the warmth back into my body.

Festus stomped his feet. One of his ruby eyes flickered, so it looked like he was blinking.  "Is that normal?" Jason asked.