Souls

by Kahilah Harry

  “No!” Dmitri hissed, eyes widening. He was yanked down, and he let out a sharp breath from the force and gripped the edge of the hole to stop from falling in with Dax. Rita reached out to help Dmitri, but before she could, he shook his head fiercely.

  “Don’t. With both of us pulling, it will rip Dax apart.”

  “Ow! Dmitri, what is that?” Dax yelled, glancing down frantically below him. Dmitri didn’t answer and yanked Dax upwards, trying to get him out of the hole, but something pulled Dax right back down. I leaned a little closer to the hole to see what it was and squinted to help me see better.

  “Oh my…” I whispered to myself, gasping, wild eyes turning to Dmitri. Orange tentacles wormed their way up the hole slowly.

  “It burns! Dmitri, it burns!” Dax cried out, pain twisting his features. My heart clenched in fear for him as he kicked his legs, and I saw what was holding him down. A flash of orange was wrapped around his ankle, preventing Dmitri from bringing him to safety. Dmitri kept trying to pull Dax up, but he couldn’t. He was actually straining, and I swear I saw a drop of sweat roll down his face. Maybe I had imagined it.

  “Dmitri!” Dax screamed, and I flinched at the sound.

  “Axel! The gun!” Dmitri snapped, looking around for him. I didn’t turn around to see if Axel was getting the gun, but I heard something drop to the ground.

  “Axel, now!” Dmitri yelled when he didn’t get the gun right away. I heard rustling, and then someone breathing next to me. It was Axel with a double-barreled pistol in his hand.

  “Scoot.” Was all he said to me, and I stood up, backing away just a little bit to give him some room. Dmitri let go of the edge and propped himself up on the heels of his feet, planting them. He grabbed Dax’s arm with his other hand so that both were gripping him, and turned to Axel, his silver eyes piercing.

  “Do it now,” Dmitri told him, getting a nod from Axel. He raised his arms, cocked the gun, and aimed into the hole. He tilted his head to the side and waited. Shots filled the air, and an ear-splitting screech came from the hole, forcing me to cover my ears. Dmitri yanked his arms back, and Dax came flying out of the hole, landing on his back.

  The screeches continued, and Axel kept shooting until the screeches ceased. My eyes flew to Dax, who clutched his leg and frantically pulled up his pants, revealing his skin. We all gasped except for Dmitri. Dax’s once brown leg was now a moss green color from the middle of his leg down to his ankle. The wound was bubbling, and I gritted my teeth at how gross it looked.

  “What is that?” Dax yelled, hovering his hand over it. He had a distraught look on his face and was panting heavily. I wasn’t sure if it was from the exertion or the pain, but he was starting to sweat. My heart pounded in my ears, and I stared at Dmitri, waiting for him to do something. Would Dax die? Was it poisonous? He hadn’t explained anything and was just standing there, staring at Dax’s leg.

  “Dmitri, do something!” I yelled, throwing an arm up in the air. He raised a finger at me, and I gave him a look, still wondering why he was just standing there.

  He looked as if he was thinking hard about something and then suddenly tossed his pack to the ground, moving quicker than my eyes could keep up with. He was at Dax’s side before I could register what he was doing. He had a black pouch in his hand and dumped blue powder in his palm. He looked up at all of us and focused his attention on Axel. “You’re going to want to hold him down.” He turned back to Dax. “This is going to hurt like hell. Ready?”

  Dax nodded vigorously, probably wanting to get it over with already. He was still clutching his leg, and sweat dripped down his face.

  Axel hurried over to Dax, crouching behind him. I glanced at Rita, and she just had a straight face, making it hard to tell what emotion she was feeling. A hiss made me turn my attention back to Dax, in time to see Dmitri coating his leg with the blue powder. Dax’s jaw ticked from how hard he was clenching his teeth, and his arms strained against Axel’s, holding him in place. Dmitri finished sprinkling the rest of the powder on his leg, and the wound started festering even more, grotesque bubbles growing and shrinking at an alarming rate.

  Some popped, making the wound look like melting mold. I didn’t even know what melting mold looked like, but I would assume it looked like Dax’s leg. Disgusting. The wound changed from a green color to eggplant purple, and I swear I could hear the hissing of bubbles forming and popping. Dax began to scream, and Dmitri held his leg down so that the powder could fully dissolve.

  “Axel, make sure he’s secure. This next step will be intense,” Dmitri warned him, and Dax’s eyes widened.

  “Intense? This isn’t intense?” Dax panted, blinking rapidly as sweat rolled into his eyes. Dmitri dug in his pack and pulled out a hunting knife. I covered my mouth, and Dax’s eyes grew, and he started shaking his head. “Oh, no, no, no. I’m good, it’s all good. I will heal, just give me a second.” Dax tried to reason with Dmitri, but it didn’t work. Dmitri looked up at Axel, and he nodded, hooking his arms underneath Dax’s to secure him. I gritted my teeth in anticipation as Dmitri grabbed his leg, positioning it in front of himself. He slid the knife slowly into Dax’s swollen, bubbly skin. Dax screamed. My heart rate sped up as he thrashed wildly in Axel’s arms, trying to get out of his grip. He was kicking his leg, trying to get Dmitri to let go, but that didn’t work.

  His screams grew louder, and then turned into an inhuman sound. He started panting heavier and narrowed his eyes at Dmitri, a growl escaping his throat. My mouth dropped open as his eyes changed to a vibrant violet. He growled again, and his canines started growing, liquid dripping down his teeth. He snapped at Dmitri, harsh growls filling the air, but Dmitri didn’t budge. Dax thrashed around again, wildly, and Axel tightened his arms, a strained look on his face.

  Dmitri continued sliding the knife in Dax’s skin, slowly carving and slicing off the now dark purple skin. It looked dead. Dark, red liquid dripped down Dax’s leg from the slicing, and pink flesh was now exposed where the dead skin used to be. It took all I had in me not to puke. Blood didn’t make me queasy, but the smell of rotten flesh made my stomach turn.

  “I’m almost done. Just one more,” Dmitri reassured Dax, pausing his slicing. Some of his hair was falling in his face, a few curls dropping right in front of his eyes, yet it didn’t seem to bother him. Dmitri resumed. When he stuck the knife back in Dax’s leg, he went wild and screamed. The ground shook, making me tense in place. Dax’s yells intensified, and snapping sounds filled the air, making me wildly look around to find the source of the sound.

  I screamed as thick green and brown vines shot up in the air, twisting around each other. I had to jump out of the way of the vines and turned to see Dax still screaming, his eyes glowing intensely violet. This had to be his doing. My breathing grew jagged, and I clutched the straps of my pack, ready to bolt to safety at any minute. I didn’t want to be collateral damage from Dax’s pain.

  Dmitri glanced up, a flash of emotion passing over his face when he saw all the vines. I wasn’t sure what it was, but when he made eye contact with me, his eyes widened briefly, and he quickly carved the rest of the skin off, tossing it to the side like he did with the rest of the dead skin.

  “Dax! You’re good! Drop the vines!” Dmitri yelled, shaking Dax to get him out of his painful stupor.

  Dax gasped loudly, inhaling deeply, and closed his eyes. He stopped thrashing. His eyes snapped back open a second later, and they were back to its natural brown color. The vines dropped to the ground, disappearing like they were never there. Dax patted Axel’s arms, and Axel slowly let go, stretching out his arms. Dax stood slowly, and Dmitri helped him up, making sure he was steady.

  “I think I’m good now,” Dax croaked, breaking into a coughing fit. He cleared his throat and brought his hand up to it, rubbing softly. His voice was probably hoarse from all the screaming. Dmitri let him go, and Dax adjusted the pack on his back, wincing a little when he put pressure on his wounded leg.

  “You will be okay. If
I hadn’t cut off the skin, it would’ve seeped into your veins, and the poison would’ve killed you,” Dmitri explained.

  Dax managed a strained smile, giving Dmitri a thumbs up.

  I exhaled and placed a hand over my chest. If this was only the beginning of the journey and we hadn’t even made it to the mountain yet, what more was waiting for us on the actual mountain?

  I shivered and turned my worried eyes to Dax, who was checking out his wound, a huge smile on his face. Only Dax would smile in a situation like this one. Me on the other hand, I was trying to stop myself from worrying about one of them dying and how close Dax came to death. Was this it? Did he come close to paying the price? Was that what Augustus was talking about? I couldn’t stop wringing my hands together.

  “Hey, you’re okay. Breathe in and out deeply three times for me.” Dmitri murmured in my ear, and I followed his directions without looking at him. I could feel his body heat on my left side, and his presence alone helped me for some reason. My heart calmed down, and my head was a little clearer than before. Slowly, I looked up at him and was locked on his gray eyes.

  His eyes were hard yet soft at the same time. I tilted my head a little bit. Was he worried about me? Once he saw that I was calmer, he glanced at the sky.

  “We need to get going. It’ll be dark soon, and we need to reach the mountain before nightfall.” Dmitri picked up his pack, slinging it on his back as he started walking. I adjusted my own heavy pack and hurried to catch up. I didn’t want to be the next one in a random hole. Instead of walking behind him, I decided to walk next to him to make it easier on myself. And now maybe he would slow down to my pace so that I wouldn’t have to almost jog to keep up with him the entire time.

  We walked through the colorful field for the next two hours. About thirty minutes into the two-hour walk, I grumbled to myself about how fast he was walking and that not even my long legs could keep up with his for much longer.

  He slowed down after my grumbling, much to my surprise. I forgot he had super hearing or something. I thanked him under my breath to see if he could hear me, and without turning my way, his head slightly nodded. So he could hear me, which meant he probably heard my earlier conversation with Dax. Good, maybe he’d give me some answers.

  An hour passed by. My shirt was drenched in sweat, it was that hot. But the good thing was there were no bugs to bite at me, which was a little weird. The only sound of a bug I’d heard the whole time was from a cicada. My legs burned, and my throat was starting to close up from the dry air. The longer we walked, the worse it got, so I peeked up to see what kind of mood Dmitri was in. He seemed to be deep in thought, so I assumed that meant he was in a mellow mood.

  “Pst.” I looked in my peripheral to see if he reacted. His face didn’t change, and his steps didn’t falter. “Pssst.” I tried to catch his attention again, and this time his jaw clenched.

  “What do you want, Meadow?” he asked in a bored tone, not even bothering to look my way.

  “My throat is dry. Did you bring any water for the human?” I joked, trying my best to look at him and walk at the same time without tripping on air. It was working so far. He raised a brow at me and narrowed his eyes, as usual.

  “You’re not human, but yes, I have water. Why didn’t you bring any for yourself?” he asked, grabbing something from his left side. He stuck his arm out with a black canteen in his hand, ready for the taking.

  I eagerly grabbed it, chugging the water and sighing as it soothed my raw throat. Once I was done, I gave it back to him and he put it back in the side of his bag. “I thought you brought everything that was needed. You didn’t tell me I had to carry anything extra. And at the moment, I am human,” I finally answered, staring straight ahead. I didn’t go through some magical transformation after finding out I wasn’t human, so I assumed that whatever I was would manifest when I got my memories back.

  He didn’t say anything to my response, and we continued to walk for another hour.

  The sun dipped lower in the sky as time passed, and it looked like we were almost to the mountain. I couldn’t see if there was a way to actually get on the mountain or not. Maybe when we got a little closer, I would be able to see something. My stomach fluttered with nervousness. So close. I was so close. Once we hit the mountain, that was when the real journey would begin.

  I breathed in and out slowly and started humming softly to get my mind off of everything. I didn’t want to stress prematurely. The sun started disappearing quicker, and the sky turned into a beautiful pink and orange mix. I glanced at Dmitri, and my brows dipped when I registered the look on his face. His eyes were darting back and forth quickly across the field, and I scanned the area with him, trying to see what he was looking for—or at. I didn’t see anything. I glanced back up at him, and a panicked look passed over his face for a second, then it was gone.

  If I’d blinked, I probably would’ve missed it. I tensed, eyes darting left and right when he slowed down. He wouldn’t even slow down for me unless I asked. Whatever he was seeing had to be serious. I slowed down and inched closer to him, careful not to trip.

  “Do you guys hear that?” Dax asked from behind me, and I glanced back at him. He had a similar look of panic that passed over Dmitri’s face a second ago. I listened for anything but heard nothing.

  “I heard it too,” Rita whispered.

  Dmitri came to a full stop, causing me to bump into his shoulder. I opened my mouth to say sorry, but the words never came out because Dmitri stuck his arm out, pushing me behind him. He was tensed as if something was after him, so I grabbed his arm and peeked around him to see. The only sound I heard was my breathing.

  “It’s getting closer. What’s the plan?” Axel asked, placing a hand around the holster on his waist as he eyed the field.

  Dmitri didn’t answer, but it looked as if he was thinking hard. He looked at the darkening sky and then at me, eyes narrowed.

  Suddenly, a loud screech followed by hissing filled the air, making me yelp and clutch Dmitri’s arm in slight fear. What the hell was that? I’d never heard anything like that before and it definitely wasn’t any creature I’d encountered with this group.

  “What in the world was that?” I asked out loud, trying to control the fear in my voice. Whatever it was, I was hoping we would be able to outrun it. The creature screeched and hissed again. This time, the sound so forceful, I saw sound waves move in the air.

  “We go now!” Dmitri snapped and started walking quickly, glancing back to see if I was following. I jogged after him, stumbling over my feet as I tried to keep up with him. Another screech reached my ears, and I heard rustling in the field this time, prompting Dmitri to put an arm out, stopping me.

  “On my back,” he almost growled, a serious look on his face. He took his pack off his back and put it on his chest. “Meadow, now!”

  The next screech that was belted vibrated the air so hard that we were all pushed back a little bit from the force.

  “You’re taking too long. Let me help you.” Before Rita even finished her sentence, I was launched into the air, igniting the loudest scream from me. Reaching out, I clutched Dmitri’s shoulders when I landed, my legs and arms automatically locking themselves around his waist and neck. His arms wrapped around my legs, holding them in place, and then he took off running.

  I squinted at the force of the wind and buried my face in his shoulder when it became hard to breathe. I couldn’t see anything clearly anyway. Everything was a blur of colors. I squeezed my eyes shut and heard Dmitri yell “jump,” prompting me to tighten my arms and legs around his body so I wouldn’t fall off. The wind was hitting the side of my face forcefully at this angle and continued until I couldn’t feel it anymore.

  Dmitri stopped running. He actually stopped moving altogether. “You can get down now, Meadow,” Dmitri spoke, his voice echoing as he patted my leg. Echo? I opened my eyes and peeled myself off his back, blinking a few times to get my eyes adjusted. It was dark, and I couldn’t really t
ell where we were.

  “Where are we?” I asked, my voice echoing as well.

  “We’re on the mountain, in a cave,” Dax spoke.

  I nodded, still looking around. Made sense now why it was so dark and why our voices echoed.

  “This is where we’ll stay for the night. It is the safest place at the moment. The creature below will be in the area until the sun comes up,” Dmitri explained, and I shuddered, not wanting to think about what would’ve happened if we stayed down there a second longer.

  I let out a sigh and looked out the cave’s mouth into the darkness. The only source of light for us was the moonlight and the stars twinkling in the sky. It was a beautiful sight that I rarely got to see in The Angels. Something shiny on the ground outside of the cave caught my eye, and I squinted to see it. A gem? A necklace? Squinting didn’t help. “What is that on the ground outside?” I pointed to it.

  Axel gasped, throwing his pack on the ground. “That’s mine.” He started walking to get it, but Rita and Dax’s protests stalled him for a second.

  “Axel, wouldn’t it be smarter for you to just get it in the morning?” Rita asked, a worried look on her face. Rita, worried? What was she concerned about?

  “Yeah, man. I have to agree with Rita on this one. Just wait until daybreak.” Dax chimed in, a similar look on his face. I looked at all of them, confused. What was wrong with him going outside to get the gem or necklace? I didn’t see a problem with it, mostly since the creature that was chasing us was in the field. Maybe they just didn’t want to risk anything happening to him.

  Axel shook his head. “Sorry, guys. This is really important to me. I can’t risk not having it on me.” He shrugged. He took his time walking to the mouth of the cave and crouched when he got there, letting out a breath. He glanced back at Dmitri, who gave me a quick glance before nodding at Axel. Why are we looking at each other? I watched Axel stretch his arm out the cave to retrieve his fallen object.