The Human Luna

Man Down

Catalina's P.O.V

"You still feeling okay, young one?" I asked Ailani soothingly.

No answer.

"Ailani, honey?" Katie's voice was covered with panic. She ran to the bed and turned Ailani's face towards hers. The gasp that came from her mouth made goosebumps on my skin, my wolf stood to attention.

"Katie what's wrong?" I stood up along with Rhea, but Ailani's body was being blocked by Katie's frame. I moved her out the way, and the same gasp escaped my mouth as I saw Ailani's face.

Katie wasn't able to hold back the confusion and sorrow, tears flowing from her eyes like a running tap. "What's wrong with her, Catalina?"

I didn't, couldn't give her an answer. Ailani's face was still, a pale white colour, and her eyes were red. Not bloodshot red, but the whites of her eyes were crimson red, her pupils dilated to an inch bigger than normal. I observed her chest, and sighed with a bit of relief as I saw it rising and falling normally.

"She's not blinking. She hasn't blinked once." Katie was hysterical now.

I placed her on the armchair and told her to calm down. Thankfully, Rhea had her self composure on tight, and she was staring at Ailani with concern and something like interest. She waved her hand in front of her face, "Ailani?"

But nothing.

"Is she possessed?" I asked her, completely unsure of what was happening.

Rhea paused, still looking at Ailani's frozen figure on the bed. She shook her head. "Not possessed, something worse, for sure. It's like she's trapped."

"Like she's in a coma?" Katie's whimpering voice came a bit stronger now.

"Yeah, you're right, like she's in some sort of coma." Rhea agreed.

"But surely if she's in a coma, then she can still hear us. She just can't respond to us." Katie began. She got up from her seat and climbed on the bed. "Ailani, it's Katie. We're right here, we aren't going anywhere. We've got you. Everything is going to be alright."

I growled at Ailani's silence. Something was wrong, and it was my duty to protect her. My wolf was becoming restless. I went towards her. "Maybe I should see what's going on-."

Rhea slapped my hand away from Ailani's face. I growled, canines extending and glared at her, my wolf on edge. Rhea was still and calm. "You cannot risk touching her Catalina. I won't allow it." Rhea stood up, squaring her shoulders.

I looked at Ailani and sighed, stepping back. She was right. 

"What do we do, what do we do? We have to do something." Katie was overwhelmed with so much emotion she could barely breathe in between sentences.

I whipped my phone out of my back pocket, dialling Solomon's number: 

"Solomon,  something is happening to Ailani, we need you here n-."  

"What the fuck!" Rhea gasped as she was flown backwards, her back hitting the wall with a large thump as the door swung off its hinges with a gust of supernatural wind. I stood frozen as my hair flapped wildly around my face with a force so strong I could barely get a breath out. 

Katie had her body sprawled out on the chair, her face exhausted from the strength of the air pushing her backwards. The plasma tv fell on its face, glass shattering to pieces as it connected to the floor; a few papers whipped around us, and the curtains rattled noisily.

Ailani lay on the bed, her eyes still bloodshot red and open. 

"What's happening?" Rhea screamed, her back held against the wall. 

"I don't..." Before I could finish speaking the wind stopped and went back to normal. "Know?" 

We all sat on the floor dumbfounded, staring at the mess the room had become in the space of minutes. 

"Someone please explain?" Katie stuttered nervously. "Someone please explain what the fuck is going on!"

I glanced at Rhea who looked as clueless as me. Katie jumped up, an angry look on her face, mixed with exhaustion. "You know what? This supernatural werewolf shit is getting on my last nerve. None of us asked to be here. This," she motioned to the territory, "this was supposed to be a fucking vacation! But here we are, with my best friend nearly dead on the hotel bed." 

"Katie I under-."

"No- no you don't understand, and you never will. I just want my best friend to be safe, and as far as I can tell this is not the place she needs to be." Katie went into the wardrobe and started packing things into the suitcases they had come in. 

"Katie, if you think for one second that you're going to find safety in somewhere other than here, then you're wrong... and very stupid." 

"If you haven't realised, Rhea," Katie stood up, her voice rising. "No one is safe here either. You have a loose witch on the run, and you don't seem to have any idea who she is and what she is capable of, where she is and how she came to be alive. I'll take my chances."

"Catalina," Rhea looked at me. "Stop her." 

Katie reached for Ailani's hand, carelessly attempting to drag her out the bed, her rigid body falling to the ground. 

"Katie, what are you doing! Have you lost your mind!" Rhea tried to pick Ailani back up from the floor, but Katie slapped her hands away in a vicious attack. 

"We. Are. Leaving." Katie breathed heavily. 

Rhea stood up slowly from the floor, her eyes never leaving Katie's, who was still crouched over Ailani's body. 

"Catalina," she said carefully, a quiver in her voice. "That's not, that's not Katie." 

My heart skipped as Katie looked at me, an innocent tearful look on her face. "What do you mean? Catalina, can't you see that this is too much for us. My best friend is basically dead, the bond between her and Adrian is broken and-." 

"What do you mean, broken? How do you know about that Katie?" I questioned her, my eyebrows raised. 

Katie didn't say anything, instead she walked up to me, a smirk on her face as she reached both hands out and placed them quickly on my temples. 

"Catalina, what is she doing?" Rhea cried out.

"No!" I breathed, trying to struggle free from Katie's grip. "No, please dont." 

"I'm sorry Catalina. Go to sleep." 

I collapsed on the floor as soon as I saw Katie's eyes go back to normal, her body jerking the witch out of her. My wolf cried in agony as my head collided with the ground. 

Something dark told me that I wasn't going to wake any time soon.