by Darren Lewis
RUN!
Ellie cried out in agony and held her free hand to her head.
“What was that?” She asked, the pain making her voice tremble.
Someone inside the Institute! They know we're here. Run, Ellie!
Blinking away the pain that seemed to have settled behind her eyes, Ellie took a few cautious steps and then sped up to a run.
*
Video feeds from the cameras on-board the helicopters and worn by the ground assault team were all trained on a figure down the road that had set off running a few moments after Cassandra's rebellious act.
“Move in and secure.” Sloan ordered.
*
Ellie looked quickly over her shoulder and saw something that made her stomach drop and her racing heart skip a beat. The figures that had rushed into Isabelle's house were now spread across the road and coming towards her, followed by the SUV and helicopters. She whined slightly and looked forward just in time to crash into Mrs. Hardcastle. Ellie bounced off her rather than both of them taking a fall as Mrs. Hardcastle, as her name coincidentally indicated, was a large, solid woman. Not fat in any way at all, she was just big. Ellie's Dad often remarked that it would take a hell of a siege if Mr. Hardcastle ever wanted children.
“Sorry.” Ellie gasped walking around the large lady.
“Just be more careful, young lady.” Mrs Hardcastle instructed. Ellie nodded and turned to begin her dash away from the approaching menace, but was stopped abruptly by a large hand on her shoulder which spun her around. “Just think about others more often!”
Ellie was momentarily flummoxed. It was if the real world intruding into her day and mind had turned it to clay. She could not think of one thing to say to the large woman standing in front of her. She did, however, notice that she was close enough to Mrs. Hardcastle for the chasing figures to have disappeared from view.
*
“Target has stopped and made contact.”
“Copy that. Move in.”
“Standby. Contact on target lost.”
“What? How is that possible?”
“Target is behind contact.”
“Oh. I see. Proceed as necessary.”
“Affirmative.”
*
“Don't you ignore me, miss!” Mrs. Hardcastle shouted and her entire body jerked, and a look of pain and shock quickly replaced the one of righteous anger. Ellie stepped back a pace, cautiously.
“Are you okay, Mrs. Hardcastle?”
The big woman's hand curled around her own back and it jiggled slightly as she tugged on something. A small smile appeared on her face as she brought a small black tube ending in a vicious point up to her face. Ellie remembered seeing similar things on wildlife programmes. It was a tranquiliser dart.
“Whaa…?” Mrs Hardcastle's eyes rolled to white and the smile became a stupefied grin. She tumbled forward and Ellie jumped back. She would've normally helped anyone falling, but the collapsing woman was very, very big. Ellie didn't watch the woman crumple to the ground, as directly in front of her now she saw that one of the helicopters had turned side on with the door open. Leaning out of the door, feet planted on the landing struts was a man pointing a rifle at her. The sun glinted off the rifle's scope. Ellie moved backwards slowly and saw more people coming onto the streets now, pointing and yelling at the unfolding drama.
They're not going to stop now.
Dust was now being blown down the street by the spinning rotors and Ellie narrowed her eyes against the sting.
“Well, you can bloody well come and get me.” She whispered. Ellie spun quickly and began running.
*
“Sir, we have a lot of civilians out here!”
“I don't care. Take the shot!”
*
Ellie weaved back and forth across the road in an attempt to stave off a tranquiliser dart to her back. She knew it was only a matter of time before it happened, but she simply could not think of anything else to do. A quick look around and she saw the helicopter much closer, and the rifle trained on her. There was a slight puff of air from the barrel. Time slowed for Ellie and she pictured that dart with the sun glistening on its black tube speeding towards her. She imagined the impact and what it would feel like to lose consciousness. She turned ever so slowly and uselessly continued her run. Her back tingled and the sky darkened. Her first thought was that the dart had hit her and the concoction it contained was going to work on her brain. But the darkness passed quickly with a great rush of air not emanating from the helicopters. Ellie felt a large, deep thud through the ground to her right and felt it shake from a large impact. Ellie turned and looked.
*
The Institute's marksman was sighted upon the girl's back as she ducked and weaved along the road. His main concern was the exposure the teams were being subjected to. Inhabitants of the village had started to crowd the pavements and some were actually moving towards them, fists raised, fingers pointing, their mouths moving wildly with unheard shouts.
“Sir, we have a lot of civilians out here!”
“I don't care. Take the shot!”
Mr. Sloan wasn't one to be questioned and the marksman flexed his shoulders, starting a routine he had followed a thousand times before. The pilot was keeping them still now and he had a good angle on the girl. He brought the rifle up and sighted the running figure down the scope. His finger touched the trigger lightly and he held his breath. Sure of the shot, he let the pent-up breath lose slowly and squeezed the trigger softly. The recoil was not as strong as a normal rifle but he felt the vibration of the shot leaving the barrel. He watched through his scope, satisfied that the target would be down and captured within a few seconds. A dark green cloud or shadow seemed to pass behind the girl and the marksman looked up quickly with a frown and saw something that he would watch time and time again on video playback and never forget until the day he died.
An immense, taloned paw reached out with incredible speed and snatched the tranquiliser dart from the air. It flared its enormous wings and pivoted in the air to face the two helicopters. It met the road with a heavy thump, one the marksman swore he felt in his chest over the vibration of the craft. The pilot reacted out of instinct and pulled up and away to his right, allowing the marksman one more look as this creature took the tiny black dart and crushed it on the ground. It then sat back on its haunches and opened its maw, unleashing a deadly torrent of fire at the air and ground teams. Both teams turned and fled. The marksman pulled his legs back into the helicopter and sat there numbly, picking at his trousers.
A dragon! He thought. A bloody dragon!
*
Ellie watched the fire racing towards her pursuers and their subsequent panic as they realised what they were dealing with. Ellie backed away quickly. She may have just been saved from the Institute by a dragon, but her memory was in a spin. The part of Ellie she remembered expected to see Cole and she thought for a second she saw his magnificent red wings stretched wide above her. But it was a trick of the light. The dragon's eyes burned yellow and with a fierce intensity. This dragon's skin was green and she knew him well.
“Malachite.” She breathed in fear.
The green dragon lunged towards her and snatched her up in a large paw. He tucked Ellie into his chest and launched himself back into the blue sky. After a few seconds of attaining height they both vanished from sight.
*
“Ellie! Oh my God! Ellie!” Dad shouted. Jack cried and Dad lifted him up but he wasn't scared for himself. His sister had just been taken away from him by a dragon.
*
The rushing darkness froze Ellie to the bone and she shivered in Malachite's strong grip. She was certain she had been screaming when they'd entered this dark tunnel, and a curious part of her mind wondered why she could breathe but not hear anything. This place, she thought, the way in which dragons travelled. A shortcut or conduit to travel any distance in a short space of time. Ellie had memories of using such passages. In fact it was how Ellie and
Cole had discovered Malachite in his deep cave.
Malachite! His intention was to destroy mankind and then, after they had offered aid to Ellie, the rabbits. Such devastation would lead to the destruction of the world itself. The memories of mistreatment and war were given to Malachite by the surviving dragons and had driven him quite mad. Ellie's memory of him ended after her other self had taken Malachite with her back in time to prove to the then young race of dragons of what was to come. Ellie assumed all was well as she herself had never encountered Cole or the other dragons. She occasionally thought about the fact that there were two of her, living in different times, but comprehending it was another matter. It was part of the story she never spoke about with Dad. His memories of events were still unclear so it was difficult for him to remember, so Ellie kept her silence, not wishing to upset him.
Ellie glanced up and saw a light ahead. She recognised it for what it was. As if a door to the end of the tunnel had opened up and she prepared herself to escape as soon as possible.
*
“Let me go!” Flare screamed into Storm's ear. Storm had somehow managed to flip Flare onto his front and was now out of range of his flailing paws. Over the noise Flare was making she could hear the commotion from above. The entire warren was panicking. The pounding paws, the screams of fear and pain as every rabbit except for her lost control. Flare's jerking body had shaken loose unshed tears from Storm's eyes as she fought for control of not only Flare, but her own drug-crazed mind. As the noise from above lessened, Storm heard a faint buzzing and tracked the source to the centre of the cavern.
“About time.” She whispered and then cried out in pain as the back of Flare's head smacked her jaw.
*
Malachite emerged into a white cloud. His back legs hit the floor unexpectedly and Malachite grunted with pain. His grip on Ellie became loose and she thrust away to the side, even as Malachite kept sliding forward. As she rolled across the ground she heard a loud thump, and the dragon roared in pain and annoyance. Ellie came to rest and looked about quickly. The space they were now in couldn't have been very large as the echoes of Malachite's roar hurt her ears. Silence descended and Ellie dared not move. The white mist, wherever they were, was slowly wafting away at Ellie's head height so she remained hugged against the floor, with the orb hidden under her body lest the orange glow gave her location away. As it cleared she saw they were inside a small cave, maybe one hundred feet or so in length. What light there was came from her right hand side and stayed in one area, never wavering. A shuffling noise came to her and Ellie cocked her head, desperately trying to identify what is was and where it was coming from. It sounded too small and quiet to have been caused by Malachite.
“Let me go!” She heard a voice yell and Ellie shrunk even closer to the dirt floor and the white haze.
“Ellie?” A strained woman's voice seemed to come from the same direction as the scream. Ellie held her breath and strained to hear more.
“Ellie. I know you're in here!” Added another voice, Malachite's.
Hunched to the ground, Ellie pressed her forehead against her fists and desperately tried to think of a way out.
“Malachite, that doesn't help, does it?” The woman said, obviously frustrated.
Idiot. I see he hasn't changed much. The orb added.
“What? Oh, I see. Sorry. Ellie, are you okay? Please don't be scared.” Malachite apologised. Ellie shifted slowly and cautiously to sitting but placed the orb under her t-shirt until she grasped what was going on. Malachite had caught and crushed the dart meant for her. He'd chased away the helicopters and protected her. But doubt still remained.
I know how you feel, Ellie, you're broadcasting that loud and clear but please listen. You can trust him.
Ellie pulled the orb from its concealment and whispered to it.
“You better be right.”
She stood up and called out.
“I'm okay. I'm over here.”
A brittle laugh sounded and echoed through the cave.
“Some good news at last! Come towards my voice, Ellie.” The woman instructed.
Ellie walked forward slowly. The mist was clearing now, and the curved walls of the cave revealed themselves. Looking up again, Ellie now saw crystals suspended from the roof of the cave. Despite her nervousness, she smiled at finding herself in the one place she never would've dreamed of visiting again. Up ahead the shadowy form of Malachite crouching near the entrance was revealed and next to him were two rabbits. The larger one lying on top of the struggling smaller one. The female rabbit's eyes seem to whirl wildly. Her body was under great tension and then strain, as the rabbit below her bucked again.
“Don't be afraid. The white mist is a gas being used on the warren. It's making them all panic and race to the surface. Unfortunately I'm not immune.” The rabbit gave an exhausted sigh.
Ellie came closer but stopped at a discreet distance. She felt Malachite's yellow eyes studying her, so she met his gaze. He smiled.
“Panic? Why, what's happening?” Ellie asked.
As she asked, the last of the white mist evaporated and the smaller rabbit stopped writhing against the one holding it down.
“The people who were after Isabelle and you attacked the warren.”
Ellie went cold. The Institute were behind both of these assaults? She looked to the ground.
“What the hell is going on?” She asked faintly.
“Ellie?” A small, weak voice croaked. Ellie ran forward and the female rabbit let the other one up.
“Flare!” She yelled. The young rabbit jumped and flung himself into Ellie's arms. He buried his head against her chest and began to sob.
“Mummy! Daddy!” He cried.
Ellie looked sharply at the rabbit and dragon.
“Where are they? Where are Rox and Plume?”
Malachite shook his head.
“I know they're not here. They must still be in the woods.”
Ellie narrowed her eyes at the green dragon.
“How do you know that?”
Before he got a chance to answer the female rabbit, now also free of the effects of the gas, hopped over to Ellie.
“We don't have time to explain now. We must get out of here and to safety.”
“Okay.” Ellie said slowly giving the rabbit and dragon an icy stare, she then pointed at them. “Then I want answers!”
“Ellie?” Flare's muffled voice cried.
“Yes, sweetie?”
“That rabbit said she's my Grandmother and her name is Storm. How can that be true?”
Storm held up a paw before Ellie could ask anything further.
“Yes, my name is Storm, and yes, we'll answer your questions, but not now, please!”
Ellie sighed and nodded while stroking Flare's back.
“So much for taking off!” Malachite moaned and stretched to his full height, his spine rubbing the meeting cavern's ceiling. “I'll have to dig us out of here. I hope Ellie doesn't mind waiting.”
“No, I don't mind.” She replied sitting down.
Malachite lowered his large head until he was face to face with the young girl.
“I didn't mean you.” And he winked.
The woods
Rox could not put her sense of unease to rest. The wood's surroundings and scent were the same as they'd always been. While running she noted, as she often did, the paths that humans and other predators used, and there seemed nothing out of the ordinary given the weather and time of year. Still, though, she remained troubled and believed it wasn't just anxiety over her young human friend. Rox slowed and brought Plume and Fern to a halt.
“What now?” Plume asked between breaths. Rox batted a paw at him for silence and closed her eyes. Plume shrugged and leaned on his staff while he waited for his partner to resolve whatever issue she was having. Fern glanced around nervously, not sure what his leader was sensing. Magic couldn't help them here, as he had nothing to focus it on.
Rox took a deep breath and he
ld it. She allowed the woods to flow through her. She felt the ground beneath her paws and the impacted soil on which she stood. She moved deeper into the earth and encountered tree roots on their quest for water to provide sustenance for their trees. She allowed her mind to be drawn and sucked into the root system, travelling at high speed through the tubes and up the tree itself, higher and higher into the branches and leaves. The tree stood proudly amongst the others and Rox looked about the entire woods. Towards the entrance to the main park there was little activity, and only a few human transports. Not odd in itself, but unusual. She changed direction and gazed back towards her home.
Rox gasped and drew many heavy breaths. Plume rushed over and held her shoulder.
“What is it?” He asked.
“We're being hunted.” Rox gasped. Plume looked about and Fern whimpered slightly. Plume shook his head.
“But there are no foxes out there, I'd know.” He said with a proud shake of his head.
“No, Plume. Humans. They're hunting all of us, here and back at the warren. I saw two of their mechanical beasts in the sky.”
“How?” Fern queried.
“Does it matter?” Plume admonished sharply, and his face became serious. “What do we do?”
“Each of us is fast. It might be wise if we split up. Give them three targets to chase.”
Plume grinned and nodded excitedly.
“It's been a while since we've had any fun around here!” He exclaimed. Though Rox was extremely worried about their situation, she still managed to give her partner a cold stare.
“Oh, really?” Her voice was as cold as her eyes.
“Oh, you know, apart from Flare and you and me and stuff.” Plume blustered.
“Never mind.” Rox sighed and she turned to Fern. “Fern, head to the village and see what's going on and if Ellie needs your help. Plume and I will head back to the warren by different paths and hopefully lead them away from you.”