Never Get Out Alive

Chapter 27: At Your Enemy's Doorstep.

As I turned around and plunged into the swarm I used my abilities to shapeshift my arm into a shield blocking all of those in front of me, slowly allowing me to push my way forward. As I stumbled forward I shot out the disc on my gauntlet directly in front of me using my left arm, which wasn't currently an alien-bird shield.

It shot forward into three different birds, all of which exploded gruesomely leaving a wide hole in the gap for me to run into. I surged forward using what energy I had left and stumbled into even more empty, dirty wasteland. The only thing around me was more and more rocks and dirt and the swarm. As they got closer I realized I was on the edge of the cliff and looked down below me to see a cave far down in the distance.
I didn't have time to think or question the first terrible idea that popped into my head, so I accepted it and just did it.

As the horde got even closer, almost to about 10 feet away, I raised the crossbow with a fully loaded explosive shot and aimed at one of the few slabs of stone just standing up in the desert, as if a pillar for me to die against. But I aimed the crossbow, and just as the birds got to it, within 10 feet, I let the flaming, sparking, explosive arrow fly. 

It struck the rock and almost instantly exploded taking out easily half of the birds, and in the process sending me over the cliffs edge. Just before I learned what it was like to be a bird, I loaded the razor wire bolt and before I knew it, I was flying through the air down into the depths of the canyon. It was easily a one hundred foot drop, which was absolutely sure to kill me. But I shot the bolt from the bow hoping it would strike something and stick, and then hoping it'd hold my weight.

Luckily for me it did. At just about fifty something feet, It struck a large piece of rock jutting out of the Stone canyon, with only a stream of water trickling below. As it did I felt the crossbow jerk and I held on with both hands as I slammed, side first, against the canyon wall. Small price to pay for surviving a one hundred foot drop.

I had already used my powers alot making my arm a shield from the birds earlier, so they were drained and i couldn't use them. I looked around me as I hung from the bow on the flat face of the canyon. About twenty feet below me and across the stream, which I now noticed was a good twenty foot deep creek, was the cave from earlier. It was twenty feet up above the creek and into the face of the other side of the gorge.

I let out a sigh of utter defeat and depression. You've got to be kidding me. I thought to myself. The only things I had on me was a pistol, the crossbow I was holding onto for dear life, my clothes and helmet, and of course my gauntlet. Wait. My gauntlet. I let go of the bow with my left hand, using what little power I had to fuse my right hand to the bow.
I flung my wrist out, slipping the glowing blue etched blade out of my silver, black and blue streaked gauntlet.

I pressed the trigger on the crossbow allowing the razor wire to snap free and fell about ten feet below me before shoving my gauntlet into the rock face with extra force. As I did, it glowed and then burned itself into the rock, not even bending a little. As I stood there, my feet hanging on little foot holds and my left arm shoved into the rock, I aimed the crossbow with my right. I aimed about ten feet above the cave, so directly across from me, and let the bolt fire. It buried itself into the stone and I tugged on it to make sure it was sturdy. I released my burning blade and wrapped both hands around the bow as I swing free across the creek, to the other side of the canyon.

As I did, like I expected, I dropped a little, swinging straight into the mouth of the cavern before me. I pressed the trigger just as I entered hearing the line snap and tumbling into the dark mouth of the cave. I sat there for a minute, completely astounded and thrilled, my veins pumping with adrenaline from what just happened. As I sat there against the cave wall I clicked on the light on the side of my helmet, and activated the comms. Everything was down, just as I expected it to be, due to me being so far away and probably being underground.

I stood up and dusted the dirt off of my pants, slinging the crossbow on my back and pulling my pistol out, turning the light on that on as well.
I slowly walked forward into the cave making my way left and right not finding anything but a path. As I continued through here I turned the corner left before I saw my only way forward. A small crawl way. I stood there for a second chewing on the inside of my cheek and sweating, contemplating life and whether or not I wanted to just die. I could just go back out there and die in the beautiful pink and blue creek.

Ugh. I hated tight and small compact places. I crawled through the tunnel slowly but surely taking my time, knowing if I rushed it, itd be even more horrifying and it would take longer. My breath got more rapid and shallow and ragged as I crept forward almost giving up, but i saw a sliver of light. A small sign of hope. As my heart pounded in my chest and my pulse throbbed in my ears I shoved myself through the other end of the tunnel stumbling into a room filled with a bright red and yellow light.

As I slumped against the wall and looked up, I took and then let out a deep deep breath and cursed myself in my head, and then out loud.
Before me was a fire, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was, just on the other side of that fire, now looking at me with golden blazing embers in his iris, was Cyrus.
So this is how it felt to be at your enemy's doorstep.