Awakening - The Last Science #1

Chapter 26 - Monsters - I

  As if a rope had been cut, they fell back to the earth. Only Natalie had been unaffected, though Alden wasn't sure if that was because she'd held onto Gwen—who hadn't so much as twitched during the event—or because of her status as naturally awakened. Either way, the rest of them weren't so lucky. Ryan in particular ended up crumpling to the ground and knocking his head against a tree branch as he went, cursing all the while.

  "Chikushō, chikushō, chikushō," whispered Rika.

  Ryan clambered to his feet, though he looked very unsteady. "That was the ritual, right? They killed him, and I'm about to go drink all the fucking beer in the K n' B?"

  "In your fucking dreams," Rika whispered. "He got to them."

  "I wanted one last happy thought before we all get ass-fucked, bitch," he snapped.

  "Shut up!" shouted Jerry—and to Alden's surprise, it worked. But then again, it usually worked when Rachel interjected as well, so maybe they were just easy to calm down. Jerry continued in a surprisingly calm voice. "We have to regroup, right? Find Rachel and figure out what to do next."

  As he spoke, a deafening crash echoed across the landscape. A fireball erupted into the sky, in the direction of Hector's store. A split-second later, the shockwave pounded through the underbrush, making them all flinch.

  "Fuck that, I'm out," said Ryan. He meant it too, turning and sprinting away into the woods at a random direction. Jerry hesitated, reconsidering his idea to rejoin the fight. After a few moments, he ran in a different direction, though still far away from the scraping and burning sounds and occasional screams now issuing from Rallsburg.

  Natalie said something to her new hawk, and it took off into the sky. She rode off hard in the direction Rachel had last been seen, leaving only Rika and Alden alone in the forest.

  "What do we do now?" Alden whispered. He'd only planned out up to the fight with Omega. He had no idea what he was supposed to do if they failed. It hadn't even popped into his mind. That was the final battle, wasn't it? The big finish with the risky gambit and the life-or-death stakes?

  What did he do after they'd lost?

  Rika shook her head. "We're fucked. Rachel's plan failed." She sounded just as shaken as Alden felt. "I don't know, Alden."

  "Do you think any of them are alive?" he asked, while Hailey and Jessica's faces flashed through his mind.

  "Could be. Ritual backfiring might not have killed them. Omega would though." Rika grimaced. "Fuck me, I have to go after her."

  Alden nodded. "I'm coming too."

  "Okay then." Rika started down the path Natalie had just taken. Alden followed as fast as he could. Thankfully it was still mid-day, or the forest would be much more difficult for them. Instead, it was the things in the forest that caused them the most trouble.

  A snap of a branch had them both twisting around in an instant. Alden summoned up a ball of flame in one hand, larger than he'd ever managed. He assumed the adrenaline currently flooding his veins was helping him out with magic somehow. Rika had one hand full of gemstones and her other fist up and ready to strike, sparks dancing between her knuckles.

  Viper was behind them, his hand in the air. "White flag," he called out.

  "Rika, shoot him," Alden snapped.

  "What?"

  "He tried to kidnap me."

  "He what now?"