Painted Moments

13 Calmly Panic, Then Run

Chapter 13
Calmly Panic, Then Run

Oh Sweet Creator, no! My mind was running a mile a minute. Last time they checked in, Mom and Dad were back at the Inner Office! If Harrace already had them then the house was already compromised and we had to move!
"Luc we have to run. Now!"
I latched onto his hand relieved he simply ran with me instead of being a hard head like me. That didn't stop his questions though.
"So you're saying Aunt Liv and Uncle Doc have been kidnapped by this Harrace guy?"
"Yes Lucas and he is coming after us next so we have to get to a location he doesn't know about. According to Mom, that's your place."
"Wait, you spoke to her!"
"Wait till we're on the road Cori, I am seriously barely processing at this point. Just grab your I.C.E bag and get to the car."
"It's that bad already?"
"What do you think Cori? It's Harrace!"
"Yes I got that thanks! What I don't know is if we are running towards the problem or regrouping. Try getting your head on straight, and communicate Mason."
"You're right, I'm sorry. I just freaked when I couldn't find you in the house."
We were rushing through the gardens as fast as Luc's pace would allow us to. My mind was already moving through the possibilities as we ran through the flower beds sticking to the shadows.
We made it to the sun room and immediately went to our corners of the room. Portable art kits are a God sent invention. Both of us simply grabbed up our weapons of choice, and then some.
"I take it that all this running and sneaking around has to do with this big secret you can't tell me?"
Luc was taking cues from us, and was stuffing a bag full of sketch books and acrylic paints.
"Not exactly what I would call emergency supplies fit for this occasion."
He held up the bundle of paint brushes for us to see before shoving them into the bag.
Mason and I looked at each other a bit nervously.
"Don't freak out guys. I'll play it by ear for now."
He wouldn't look at us as he lunged down for two big bottles of paint thinner to put into the backpack.
"Let's just get what you need, and get out of here."
Mason looked between me and Luc with narrowed eyes.
"Right..., Lucas go with Cori, and keep eyes on each other. Get changed and grab your bag. If all goes smoothly I'll meet you at the front door."
We all nodded, shouldered our backpacks, then headed upstairs. We went to Luc's room first. I stood in the doorway watching the hall out of the corner of my eye as he went to the bathroom to change, then came out to snatch a box from his night stand. He came out, shoving it into his backpack.
"Hey, sorry. I figured we aren't coming back for a while."
I just shrugged my shoulders.
"Come on, I need to get changed. I can't exactly protect you in this dress."
The look on his face was hilarious, but I didn't have the time to enjoy his confusion.
"Protect me from what? Wait don't you have that backwards?"
I was already moving towards my room and didn't bother to look back as I answered.
"Nope."
Once I got to my wing I stopped for just a second to touch the pretty ivy vines painted on the outside of my library door. I wouldn't have to even open the door for the murals located within the bookshelves to start swallowing all of my books into my special hideaway.
Afterwards, I told Luc to wait at the door of my bedroom, and I went straight to my closet. I began snatching aside the clothes hiding a small wall mural of me walking through the airport with a black shiny hard shell suitcase on wheels. I didn't even think, I just reached inside and grabbed the bag as the portrait of me turned and said good luck.
That's when I heard a whispered "Holy God Almighty."
I swung around with my heart in my throat.
"Luc you were supposed to stay at the door!"
Lucas had been right behind me the whole time. Now he is staring wide eyed at the image of me on the wall that was now blowing him a kiss before the mural lost all color and became pitch black, no longer accessible. Great, shell shocked Lucas mentally crashing was not what we needed right now.
"I told you I have a secret, and I'll explain it all later. Though I think we should get somewhere safe first; before the equivalent of a super villain succeeds in catching me to use for his own evil purposes."
I knew that announcement would get him moving. His face immediately filled with a protectiveness I know well. He simply nodded his head, put my backpack over his shoulder, then grabbed the door handle.
"Get changed, you may be able to run in those heels, but something tells me it would be better if you were dressed for the occasion."
Once the door was closed I quickly began removing the dress and heels. It felt like it took me forever to release the corset.
Now down to my navy babydoll slip, I started to grab for the closest option of runaway attire. My hand barely made it to the rack when the entire house shook like an earthquake throwing me to the floor.
Only thing is, this isn't an earthquake area. The screaming of my name from Mason down the hall had me panicked. Before I could even detach myself from the clothes that fell on top of me to get up; Mason was at the door throwing it open.
"We got to go now!"
"But!"
"It's just us Sissy! Get up!"
I quickly grabbed the closest pair of running shoes and shoved them on my stockinged feet. I grabbed both of the hands offered to me as they pulled me up out of the now tangled mess that was my closet. Mason grabbed my suitcase. Then without further thought we ran.
The house began to shake again. Throwing us about the hallway.
"What the heck is that Mason?"
"I got caught in Mom and Dad's room okay. It's filling with ink! It's an old trap Harrace use to use to capture people he wanted from far away. He must have sent it through Dad's card! If it gets a good hold on us it will pull us through any access point and straight back to him!"
"What the heck are you talking about! How does ink trap you!"
Just imagine the blob from old movies mashed together with venom from Spider-Man and run Lucas!"
We were almost to the landing of the stairs; when the master bedroom door burst open throwing splinters through the air. The gelatinous mass of black ink bubbled out of the room so fast it was like a flood of sticky oozing tendrils that lashed out seeking its prey.
It was barely fifteen feet away from us and to close for comfort from the stairs we had to get down in order to make our escape.
"Don't touch anything it paints, it will suck you in like a black hole. If the tendrils grab you get out quick. The faster it paints you the quicker you're caught. Now run! Run!"
The boys ran out ahead of me with Mason setting the pace to keep us all together. They both dragged me by my hands towards those nemesis stairs. There was no way I was getting down without falling. As soon as we moved the abomination screeched at us in rage. It began throwing its tendrils out. Pulling anything not nailed down and even some that were, back into it's dark depths.
We were about a third of the way down when it began to regurgitate everything. Throwing it back at us like heat seeking missiles. Amongst the chaos I have an odd thought that I'm glad I painted a hard shell suitcase as Mason picks it up and simply throws it and his duffel bag down the stairs into the foyer. Good advice mom!
Between the stairs, the tendrils and and the skull splitting projectiles; about half way down I tripped and lost my footing falling into Lucas for the third time.
Just then a spindle from the staircase speared the wall where my head previously was. I unconsciously screamed. My cries violently mingled with the shrieks of the creature.
At that point I'm sure Lucas was only worried about me falling and breaking my neck. Because I suddenly found myself slung across his shoulder like a sack of flour. His patience with my precarious footing completely evaporated.
Several more spindles were thrown at us like javelins as Lucas and Mason got us to the bottom of the staircase. My view of the carnage the creature was subjecting my childhood home to was in full view from my vantage point over Lucas's shoulder. The hallway it had emerged from was painted a solid black so deep it looked as if it ripped itself from the very depths of space.
I felt my body being lowered to the solid ground floor. I was finally able to find my footing. I couldn't tear my eyes from the scene behind us though. That was probably the only thing that kept us from being completely shredded. I watched as the creature consumed Mom's prized three hundred year old stain glass. The beautiful glass window had been secured to the wall there since I was six. Reaching from ceiling to floor and expanding four feet across, it was a massive piece of preserved history.
My heart broke as I watched it be destroyed, but I knew what would come next.
"Guys run, Now! the glass!"
The sounds of the shrieking grinding glass as the creature began to mulch it set my teeth on edge.
My body broke out in a cold sweat as everything seemed to slow down. The house shook again, throwing us around like ragdolls.
I stumbled back as Luc pushed me away to avoid the tendrils lashing out toward us in the mayhem. I landed hard against the townhouse mural. When I looked up I felt the panic begin to choke me. The front door was completely covered in sticky black tendrils blocking us from leaving.
I heard Luc scream my name as Mason tackled him to the ground. I watched as the glass shards peppered into the walls behind them. They kept their heads down as the glass was exploding from the creature like a machine gun drawing closer and closer to its target.
"Guys you have to move! Crawl to me!"
The guys immediately began to slide across the floor. My suitcase and Mason's duffle bag forgotten behind them. At least they still wore the backpacks of supplies on their backs. It provided some modicum of protection, even if it wasn't much.
"We can't stay here Cori. We are literally sitting across from the house he is in. He could be waiting for us on the other side right now!"
"We are not staying here, we just have to buy enough time for it to run out of glass!"
"It's a ten foot tall stained glass window! We don't have that kind of time!"
"Mason chill! There is a pattern!"
"What!"
Both of us were shocked by Luc's announcement.
"Just trust me! As soon as it throws it's first tendril again, run to the living room. Cori take your backpack, and
Mason and I will grab the bags as we run through. Think you can handle that?"
Luc looked pointedly at Mason's leg.
His slacks were cut with splattered blood on the back of his left calf.
"Yeah sure. I can do that."
Luc nodded.
"Fine... then I'll grab Cori's, you get your own. When we make it to the living room we try for a window. If there is not time for that we head for the sunroom. Alright?"
Mason and I had no arguments. Luc was making calls as if he had been in situations like this a thousand times. It was honestly impressive and there was no need to argue with him.
We all got into position to make a break for it.
"Ready? Set? Now!"
When the first tendril shot out I finally understood. They were looking for us after blindly firing whatever it could get a hold of. It was programmed! Grab, fire, lash out, and retrieve; rinse then repeat. The only time it deviates from the pattern is to block off perceived possible escape routes. We just have to reach the next exit before it blocks it.
Unfortunately the living room was a literal minefield for this creature. Full of breakable things capable of shredding us when thrown at such high velocity. This battlefield put us at a disadvantage. Then if we make it through the living room; the sun room is the next available exit point. That's a lot of glass.
Another quake shook the house, throwing us back to the floor. The chandelier above us came crashing down sending electrical sparks flying as we tried to get up. The shattering sparks from the twisted wires set fire to the coat rack that quickly started to spread.
Before it could get out of control the creature released an unholy screech. It threw itself unto the flames smothering them. We stood for a second frozen as we watched everything the flames touched get sucked up into some kind of black hole.
"Oh heck! Mason it's attracted to heat!"
"Got it Cori. Now move!"
Like a shot we were moving again. It was too close for us to use the window now. There was no way we would get it open wide enough to get us and the bags through in time. I'm seriously considering just dumping them, and running the risk of purchasing new items in town, but if I lose my papers I won't be able to travel the human way. That's the best way to travel when you're running from The Vita family.
Mason went straight to the fireplace. Snatching up the lighter fluid he started spraying down the sofa and carpet between us and the creature. He dumped the whole bottle making the ignition zone as wide as possible.
Grabbing the box of matches I tossed them to him. Just as the creature's tendrils came through the archway he dropped the lit match. The creature's response is like a dog snarling after a T-bone steak. It shrieked and lashed at the tall flames as if it could contain them.
"That bought us some time, let's go!"
Luc latched onto my arm as we ran to the sun room. The creature was already working on the third step in its program, but ignoring us for the moment.
I will never be able to express the feeling of relief I felt when I saw Luc grab the handle to the French doors and throw them open. We made it out. It was okay. We'll get to the car and be long gone before that thing makes it outside.
My shoulder throbbed from being slammed into the mural. I was covered in small cuts, the biggest on my left side where a shrapnel grazed me. It looked like Mason was still bleeding from his left calf. So the injury was definitely worse then he led Luc to believe, but he was still walking.
Aside from the huge cut on Luc's jaw there didn't seem to be any serious injuries. I'm relieved considering as a Cog his recovery time is limited. Thinking that however, makes me realize that that cut is probably the first of many that will scar him if he stays in my world. Suddenly I'm so freaking mad at myself for getting him involved in this crap.
We followed Mason around the house keeping quiet and keeping low until we got to the car. The night was pitch black. All the lights shut down except for the sparks coming from the destroyed breaker box by the garage.
The shaking of the house had done some crazy amounts of damage.
Finally we got to the car. Luc was already wrestling with his key ring. It's the fastest I've ever seen him find the key he needed. As quickly and silently as possible we opened the hatch and loaded the bags.
We could still see the creature fighting the fire through the living room windows. Scary thing is that it was starting to win.
"Alright guys seatbelts for this ride, Seriously. Once we crank the car we have to ride like a bat out of a brush fire. Understood?"
Luc let out a nervous chuckle.
"I don't think that's the way that saying goes man."
"Does that really matter right now?That's how we say it."
"Considering the thing we just ran from, I think the original version is more appropriate."
I could tell that Luc was just trying to distance himself from the situation. Focusing on random normality for sanity's sake is a common reaction to the supernatural.
"Guys this really isn't the time for this."
I just wanted to leave. I've read about the ink blots and they always sounded kinda weak. Which is probably why I didn't read as much as I should have. Now I plan to read everything I can get my hands on about them.
"Seriously, it's not like it will kill you guy's to say it once. Aunt Viv isn't even here. I mean what's really wrong with saying "A bat out of...."."
Both my hand and Mason's came down on Luc's mouth.
"Sorry man, that's bad luck for us. Don't say it. Once we get to your house you can say any curse word you want while we explain what we can, but please not that one."
"Or the (D) word please. I'm begging here Luc they mean invoking something much more powerful to us then a passing emotion."
Luc's eyes got wide. Apparently his mind was putting a lot of twos and twos together. The obvious religious reference we just made was bound to get his attention.
The fire was starting to go out completely, but we could still see the creature moving through the house. Trying to hunt us down. As soon as the engine turned I just knew, like Mason and Luc knew, that thing would freak. We would have to get through two acres of tree lined gravel road to get out of here before it catches us.
The chill of the night seemed to seep into my skin. The sweat from the fire and exertion seemed to pour freezing ice down my spine. The slight breeze made me shiver as the silk of my slip clung to my back. I opened my door and slid into the backseat suddenly, very self conscious of my torn clothes.
"Mason?"
"What Cori?"
"Can.... Can I have your shirt?"
Both guys looked back at me. One look had Luc clearing his throat and looking back out toward the house. While Mason turned to look at me with startled concern.
"Oh uh right...one second."
Mason took off his seatbelt to strip down to his undershirt. As quickly as I could, I dressed in the button up shirt and rolled up the oversized sleeves. Finally, we buckled back in. We couldn't procrastinate any further.
"Are you guys ready for this?"
Luc laughed out right.
"Mason I don't even know what this is, and I'm desperately wishing I had a better car option than hippie right now, but yeah I'm ready to get out of here."
Our breather was over, and it hadn't even lasted a minute. Listening to the engine turn over, my heart seemed to drop into my stomach. Dread filled my mind as the headlights illuminated the house. It was a disaster zone. The house was nothing more than a wreckage at this point. The creature had completely collapsed mom and dad's wing of the house. The tendrils were lashing through the air snatching at trees.The house was quickly being consumed into the black sludge. The creature's scream from inside the house pierced my mind as everyone's hands flew to their ears to try to protect our eardrums. When everything suddenly fell painfully quiet. The hum of the engine is the only sound in the eerie night.
"We need to go now!"
Mason's panic seemed to jump start us all. Lucas started to back the car out of the driveway when everything seemed to implode at once. The front of the house was violently ripped open, the front door and its supports sucked into oblivion.
The black flood spewing forth and dividing into multiple pulsing copies of the creature.
"Oh Heaven and Creator help us."
I prayed as my last count I got was eight before we turned onto the gravel road that led us to the back roads of the small community we lived in just outside of the city.
Lucas' house is almost forty minutes from ours on the other side of Shreveport. If we could just make it to the more populated areas we could lose the horde in the city.
The problem was getting to the well lit streets before those things pulled us off the road and dragged us back to Harrace kicking and screaming.
I'm pretty sure they can't travel too far from their original entrance painting before they fizzle out. We just have to make the border. That's impossible to tell though, since it's measured according to the casters own strength.
Even though he is acclaimed to be one of the most evil men in our family's history, Harrace is also known as one of the most powerful. An anomaly of sorts. He and his mysterious less known brother were the first and only recorded branch family member to be born with both family abilities. That just doesn't happen. Most say that that is the reason he turned out so deranged.
Gravel was sent flying as the car's tires left the driveway. The multiple shrieks behind us never lost any distance. I couldn't resist it. I looked back.
I could still hear them, but I could no longer see them through the trees. I swear if Luc wasn't punching the gas pedal practically through the floorboard they would have surrounded us by now.
Out of the dark, rugged spears torn from the trees began to lance the sides of the car. Luc was doing everything he could to keep us from crashing. The car swerved haphazardly every time another volley of spears were launched at us. In my opinion we couldn't get to the road fast enough.
"Everyone duck!"
Luc's scream was impossible to ignore. I lunged down against the seat just in time to avoid the top of the car being cleanly sliced through. Within seconds it was gone. Looking back I caught sight of the reflection of the thin blade like tendril retreating back into the woods. They had apparently learned a new trick.
"Hold on Cori!"
We were coming up on the turn onto the only road leading back towards the city. Luc obviously couldn't slow down. I decided the best thing to do was to hunker down against the seat again. The tires squealed against the asphalt as the car spun and realigned itself.
Now tearing down the road at breakneck speeds, we seemed to put at least a couple of yards between us and those monsters. Their shrieks seemed to die out a bit as we reached the sparse neighborhoods. So I was right. They avoid the light and populated areas.
We might have a chance.
I finally felt like we had a little room to breathe when the car was hit from the side. A smaller version of the gelatinous ooze was plastered on what was left of the window like a huge mutated spider.
With the top of the car gone there was nothing stopping it from climbing over and making mincemeat out of us. I screamed for Mason's attention. I didn't know what to do as it was already effectively fighting the wind resistance to make its way toward me. How do you fight an advisory you can't touch!
It's lashing tendrils were simply eating through the window. If I was right about what is coming next, this is going to hurt. When it started to regurgitate I couldn't do anything but take the assault and protect my face.
The feeling of the sharp stinging knives piercing my arm, side and leg was nauseating. The pain is like white hot flashes exploding all through my right side. I could hear Luc and Mason shouting for me.
I couldn't react to them, the creature wasn't about to let up as it lashed out for me. Every time I ripped off one of the creature's tendrils it would slash at my skin before two more would sprout to take its place. I found myself completely wrapped up in the tendrils.
The most notable is the constraining one around my neck cutting off my frustrated screams. I can't breathe. My struggles are becoming weak. I can feel the cold ink pouring over my skin mixing with my blood as it begins painting me for transport.
"CORI!"
The car swerved with Luc's panic.
"Lucas the underpass! Scrap it off!"
The smell of turpentine fills my nose and my wounds sting as if they are lit on fire. The creature is screeching violently, drowning out the sounds of chaos around me.
Out of nowhere, my body is slammed forward into the floor board finally completely free from the creature. The painful yet sweet relief of being able to take a breath again is short lived as the sensations in my body return. I think I've fractured my wrist from being thrown. My body is burning from the lacerations caused by the creature's tendrils.
Sparks flying above me are the first thing I see as my vision begins to clear. The car banging and scraping against the cement underpass did the trick to turn the threat into nothing more than an ink blot on the wall.
I Look over to find my brother's hand clinging to mine in a death grip. The once comforting smell of the turpentine is so strong it's making my stomach roll in nausea. I can hear Luc begging me to just talk to him. My mind keeps fuzzing in and out. I can't gather the strength to respond.