Chapter 22: A Bus To Nowhere

The early morning air was cool. From where they stood the light of Icarus city looked like stars. Alice and Eli stood motionless. The calm of the forest made the ordeals they’ve just been through seem like they were nothing more than a bad dream. But the winces of pain they both experienced with every step reminded them that it was all real. “What?” Eli asked Alice who seemed to be acting more cautious than usual.

“Nothing,” Alice denied any troubles, “Um, so what now?” She asked, deflecting the question.

“I think we wait for Corin,” Eli answered as he sat on a log, taking special care not to agitate his wounds.

“How long D’you think That’ll take?” She asked as she sat beside him.

“Not that long,” Alice and Eli jumped at the sound of Corin’s voice. It was hard to see in the limited light, but his face was pained at the sight of Eli and Alice. Eli gazed at the ground and muttered something inaudible.

“We failed,” He said, Corin didn’t react, “You trusted us, and we failed.” Eli’s fists were clenched tight. He bit his lips and cursed at his welling eye’s. He flinched when Corin placed his hand on his shoulder.

“You got back,” Corin said calmly, “both of you got back, you’ve been through something not many people your age could even conceive.” Corin beamed. “Besides, The shards are useless unless he has all four.” Eli wiped his eye’s. “You can go home,” Corin said with a smile.

Corin lead them through the forest and back to the road. It wasn’t long after they arrived at a bus stop did one arrive. Eli boarded after Alice and turned to Corin.

“I’ll find my own way,” Eli proceeded to sit beside Alice. It was in that moment he realized just how exhausted he was. And Alice must have been just as tired because she almost immediately fell asleep on his shoulder. Eli leaned his head back and decided to follow suit.

The sound of the bus’s horn woke them up.

“Hey buddy, get out the way!” The Bus driver shouted.

“What’s going on?” Alice asked with a yawn.

“Don’t know,” Eli returned while peaking over the seats trying to see through the windshield. Just then the bus door opened and a tall figure entered. His face was obscured by his hat and high collared trench coat, and he had an undeniably intense presence. The tingling sensation that Eli usually felt in his tail was now burning. He gripped Alice’s shoulder tightly waking her up fully.

“What? What happened?” Alice asked surprised.

“I don’t like this,” Eli muttered. Alice looked at him confused, and she was right to be. Eli was having trouble explaining the backflips his stomach was doing in that moment.

“Hey! Is there a problem?” The bus driver called out. The man ignored him and instead made his way down the isle, getting closer to Eli.

“Ow,” Alice said as Eli tightened his grip on her shoulder.

“Hey!” The bus driver rose out of his seat. The man ignored him and continued to approach Eli. Soon he was standing directly above him.

“Who the hell is this guy?” Alice asked. Eli didn’t answer.

“Listen! Either you come off or I throw you off, choose.” The bus driver made his stance clear. The man in the trench coat turned to face the man, Who puffed his chest out and balled his fists in anticipation for a fight. Eli’s tail was scorching.

“Alright, I gave you a choice—” It happened in an instant. A wolf like creature bolted out from the man’s trench coat and locked it’s horrible jaws around the man’s head. The chilling sound of cracking bone and splattering blood petrified everyone in the bus. Time seemed to slow as the man turned back to Eli. His body was frozen, so his heart decided to jump ship itself.

But despite all of that, his body was placed firmly in between the man and Alice, who was just as traumatized. The man gripped Eli by the shirt and tossed him to the other side of the bus like he was made of feathers. He then grabbed a petrified Alice by the throat. When Eli saw this, he forced himself off the ground and dove for the man.

He didn’t make it far, however, as the wolf that devoured the bus driver turned it’s bloodied jaws to Eli and pinned him down, the only thing holding it back was the command of it’s master. Eli watched helplessly as Alice’s struggle went limp. The man hung her over his shoulders and turned to Eli. “Don’t worry kid,” the man said, “You’re girlfriend’s fine – for now that is.”

“Draven,” Eli said, almost stating it as a fact.

“Well aren’t you a sharp one,” Draven said with a chuckle. “Listen kid, I need you to do something.”

Eli didn’t respond.

” I need you to steal the last two shards for me.”

Eli glared at him defiantly.

“I’m sure I don’t need to tell you the cost.”

Eli glanced at the unconscious Alice and immediately conceded.

“See, a sharp one.” With a snap of his fingers the Wolf vanished into ashes. Draven pulled a small key from his pocket and threw it to Eli.

“Do you really think I’ll be able to actually steal anything from that place, the shards have to be heavily guarded.”

“Don’t worry about that . . . man power will be a bit thin.”

Eli gulped hard at the implication.

“All you have to do is go there tonight. When you do manage to steal them There’ll be an arch like structure, just stand beneath it and bleed.”

“Bleed?”

“yes, bleed. Also, just so you have a general consensus on where to go, it’s down.” Draven turned and stepped and strolled off the bus. “See you tonight kid.” he said as he walked away. Eli rose off of the floor of the bus, walked past the remains of the bus driver and stood in the road that was being slowly lit by the rising sun. He began walking, but not home, he knew he couldn’t go there.