A Howl In The Night by Lorelei Sutton (life books to read .txt) 📕

Yi turns away, looking at Xavier with a shrug. “I guess they really did pull it off.”

A dark shadow crosses Xavier's face. He looks away.

"Mind letting me out of these bonds anytime soon?" I ask them slowly, "I don't really deserve to be treated like a criminal." Of course, the two both ignore me.

Thanks a lot.

A small figure enters my vision, coming towards me from the edge of the clearing. "Mona, you gave me quite the shiner," she laughs. It is a beautiful laugh, full of femininity and self-assurance. Blue and black marks her forehead with an intensity that causes me to gasp.

"But I only tapped your forehead.. I don't understand how..."

"I think you underestimate your strength, Mona. It felt like a freight train was being dropped on my head. Lucky for you, you didn't get to see the bloody wounds before they healed a few hours ago. It was bad."

I suppose I didn't really spend much time examining the effects of my attack before Xavier distracted me.

"I apologize," I say awkwardly, looking off to the side and narrowing my eyes. For some reason, I feel strange and uncomfortable. I know these people, but they have become strangers. 

And most of all, my past self has become a stranger to me. These memories simply don't make sense. How could I let myself become so vulnerable? How pitiful of a life have I been living up until this point?

Xavier stands up, glances at me solemnly, and walks away. I feel a shameful tug at my heart.

"I understand that you probably don't know how to react right now," Danae begins, "even though I don't understand the particulars of your internal struggle." I roll my eyes, though secretly interested. "My advice to you would be to always go with your heart. No matter what."

"Thanks," I smile sardonically, then laugh for the first time since I have become... different. "I will keep that in mind."

She turns without smiling, walking away back into the forest. I look around at the area, seeing the tall trees and dark gray skies. The smell of sulfur is barely prevalent, and the ground is covered in dark vines and dirt. It is if I am just now truly noticing my surroundings.

"Hey guys? Uh... where are we?"

"We were hoping you could answer that," Xavier says in response, and my blood runs cold. 

Suddenly, the air chills my heart and the alien emotion of fear caresses my form, whispering into my ear. My body begins to shake uncontrollably. 

And then everything went black.

I know this feeling. I know it more than anyone.

"Everyone! Out of the way!" I yell, then furiously bend my head to my bindings. There is no way I can get out of these bone breaking ropes without some sort of sharp object. And it is getting closer by the minute.

As the cold embraces me with an intensity that is overwhelming, I suddenly am drawn to thoughts of a lance, elegant and strong with a sharp, pointy end. Almost instantaneously, my muscles clench, and the bonds fall like water from my shivering skin.

And the beautiful lance is in my hand. 

I lose myself in my instinct, my eyes grow hard and I take a step backwards. My senses seem to be heightened and my reasoning has evaporated. They are so close.

Ghoulish creatures appear from the trees into the clearing, slowly moving towards me. In a flash, Xavier runs in front of me, shielding me from them. "Mona, please let me handle this," he pleads, and his warm body in front of mine sends chills through mine. My breath becomes even shorter as I realize that I am affected by this strange act. This is impossible. I... can't accept this.

"Out of the way, Xavier," I impatiently push him, and he seems to be so stunned that he almost falls to the ground beside me. Trying not to waste time, I run towards the Shifters, one word echoing through my mind. One word that seems to drain me, but seems to be instinct in that it possesses me entirely. 

I lift my lance and throw with precision. Almost instantaneously it pierces two of the Shifters, and a horrible cry consumes the air. I am almost frozen from the chills that sound sends through my body. It is the cry of pain, of heartache... of pure terror.

I must stay strong. I cannot let this affect me.

I throw the lance again and again, and the small group of Shifters decrease in number with each attempt. Each new cry seems to join the collective, increasing in intensity and power. However, I never stop, and a few seconds later the last Shifter is hit. They are gone now.

They can't hurt me.

I turn and look behind my shoulder, where Xavier is standing, staring at me like I was a stranger. Yi's expression is similar. Hastily my eyes snap away from them, away from the incredulity in their expression. I only did what was necessary. I only wanted for them to leave me alone.

I raise a hand to my face, and only then do I notice the flood of tears.

* * *

"So what's the plan?" I ask after a long stretch of silence. The fire crackles beside me, sparks flying in the air.

Empty gazes meet mine.

"I guess we should focus on trying to figure out where we are," Xavier finally replies, his voice low and gruff. "Maybe we should just travel until we see people who can tell us."

"This place seems rather rural, out in the middle of nowhere," I comment, "we could be days away from any sort of civilization."

"Wait a second," Yi says, and we look at him. "I think the far more pressing matter at this moment is what to do about you."

"What? Are you insane?" I narrow my eyes. 

It is strange that they are looking at me like this. It is almost as if they are expecting me to explode at any minute, or vanish into thin air. I'm not a ghost!

"You just killed those Shifters, Mona. I don't know if you are yourself anymore. It seems like your entire personality has changed."

"Of course I am myself," I scoff. The fire warms my skin as I rock back and forth, hugging my knees. They don't seem to believe me.

"Where did you take us, Mona?" Xavier asks me gently, his hand moving to rest on mine. Strangely familiar warmth spreads throughout my body. It takes a minute for me to realize what he said.

"Take us? You mean I took you somewhere?" I snap my hand away, although a guilty, lingering blush remains. Danae makes eye contact with me and grins knowingly. I feel the sudden need to slap her.

"You must have. The last memory I had before all this was when we were in that strange chamber at headquarters. Do you remember that?"

These people are going crazy. 

"That's not what happened. Griffin was taking me to a new part of the castle when you guys showed up and..." I put my head in my hands. "I don't know."

"You are missing some very important pieces of the puzzle, Mona," Xavier smiles, an action that brings red to my face. He thinks I am a fool. These people are making up events that never happened in order to embarrass and confuse me.

I glare at him, and his bright smile fades.

"Maybe it is not just us stranded in this place," Danae comments, "maybe some of the others are here too." 

"You can't worry about the others unless you find them on the way," I reply almost forcefully, "as of now the focus should be on getting food for survival. All I have seen so far is strange, shriveled-up berries and miles of tall trees. Everything here seems dead." 

"I disagree," Xavier narrows his eyes at me, "I feel like worrying about the others is absolutely essential."

"I'm not saying worrying about them is not important, but that survival is more important," I snap, standing up. The cool, harsh wind beats at my skin. 

"Mona..." Xavier looks at me with a gaze that makes me want to punch him in the face. "Please be reasonable."

"Xavier, you can't search for anyone if you die of starvation. And as of now, you have no idea who you are looking for."

"Wait, what do you mean by you? Shouldn't you be saying we?"

"Oh, sorry. My bad." I try to act like it is no big deal, but now I can see that this is going to be difficult. If the careful substitution of you for we was recognized, they will definitely have an easier time keeping me here, just like a prisoner, even though I don't want to get involved in their drama. These people are maniacs and it would be suicide to keep up with guys if they are only interested in saving their friends instead of saving themselves.

Without another word, I stalk off, heading into the deep forest. I can still hear voices behind me, and when I cross a few trees I pause.

"She is almost exactly like she was before I saved her in the forest," Xavier's voice echoes, "even though she remembers most of the events that happened afterwards."

"I wouldn't lose hope with her just yet," Yi responds, then a heavy silence fills the air. I listen for another second, but nothing happens. I heard enough anyways, I guess.

Racing farther into the forest, I find a large tree not far from the clearing. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a small, dark shadow leaning against the tree.

A Shifter.

I try to figure out what the creature is doing and why it is here. The cold embraces me, and the dark feelings that usually come after such an encounter are very minimized. For some reason, I am not afraid. 

I don't see the red eyes, so the Shifter must be resting in some way. It seems strange to me, that Shifters need to sleep like every other creature. 

Without the red eyes, it looks almost peaceful.

I sit down where I am, peering at the monster. It is white, but you can easily see the ground through its body. Almost subconsciously a small dagger, seemingly made from the same material as the lance, appears in my hand. I stare at it for a minute, amazed at how easily I am able to conjure weapons when I was unable to before arriving in this strange new world. 

I edge closer, careful to minimize any sounds. This is my chance. It can't get any easier than this.

However, I hesitate before striking the Shifter. Something about this is not right.

How come so many Shifters have appeared out in the open, without seeking to possess any inanimate objects? How come everything in this area is dead, dark and devoid of any type of civilization? 

I gasp as the eyes of the Shifter suddenly appear in its body, my father flashing before my eyes. Except this time, these eyes are filled with a different sort of emotion, beyond anger, pain, and hopelessness. 

Pure terror radiates from the creature beside me. 

Startled by confusion, I launch forward with the dagger stretched outwards. Immediately my face hits the ground with a resounding thud. My consciousness seems to fade in and out as I try to get myself off the ground, my brain pushing for survival while my brain is begging for time to recover.  I forcefully push myself up, and then to my feet after a few seconds of near-paralyzation. Immediately I search for a red glow, a red anything that would indicate whereabouts of the Shifter.

Shock crosses my mind as I see nothing besides the same bleak, dreary landscape.

The Shifter... ran away.

Truly frozen this time around, I fall against the tree. The dark stench of sulfur wafts towards my nose, suspending all thought and movement. This can't be happening. Shifters don't run away.

"Mona!" A voice calls out, and suddenly a body is by my side. "Did you see a Shifter? I