Zodiac Story

Take Up This Terracotta Armour, For The Hunt Begins Part 3

The morning sun arose, and Willa flopped out of her bed. Her arm was aching, but she could feel her shoulder wasn't as dislocated as last night...last night. Hina, the moose, the phone asking her to work with them...her dislocated shoulder. The bed next to her was unoccupied. Written there was a note saying that Jenny was working, and wouldn't be back until late in the evening. The wrong scent had infiltrated the bedroom. That was likely because of Jenny chasing after corpses. Wait, Willa thought as she steadied herself, that moose was dead. She killed a moose with a collar. The bulky armour she wore felt heavier. What was going on? How was she going to explain this to Jenny? She closed her eyes, and her hand instinctively reached for the disk.

You can call me at any time, and you won't disturb me.

Ate Clara would know what to do.

"The hunt has ended, and my oath has been fulfilled," she whispered to herself as the armour fell away into sepia marks. Her left arm had almost healed, and she marched herself to Clara's room. One knock later, Clara opened the door, the bags in her eyes getting darker.

"Hi, Willa. Do you need anything?" Clara asked, her exhaustion evident.

"I need to tell you something." Willa looked around. "In the room."

"Sure. Kids, me and Ate Willa are going to talk privately, okay? Just stay put." Clara folded the sheets, letting Willa sit beside her.

"What's been troubling you lately?" she asked.

"Those visions I've been having...I should tell you something. I think they're connected to this." She took out her amulet. "I found it in the forest when I was hiking alone. It lets me transform into a dog." Nothing happened when she transformed, so she wouldn't be hurting anyone. "Can I show you?"

Clara nodded. "Of course you can."

Willa held her amulet in the air. "I swear this, I will pursue all that flee from my vigil. Let the hunt mark them, and let me pursue them with zeal and fidelity."

Terracotta light enveloped her. Sepia marks appeared from her body once more, forming armour around her arms, legs, and torso. An exhilarating feeling overcame Willa, as the world burst into the faint scent of freshly cleaned linens and ube ice cream.

Once it was finished, Clara was astonished. She looked at Willa from the metal helmet down to her combat boots. Willa took off her helmet.

"Awwww, your ears!" Clara smiled. "Do they move? Can you move them?"

Willa flattened one of her ears, then raised it up.

"Wow!" She blinked. "If you take away the amulet, will your visions stop?"

"I'm not sure." Sometimes, she stored it in her suitcase. The visions still occurred.

"Well, if you-"

"Mom!"

Miguel burst into the room. "What's this?" He pulled down his shirt collar to reveal a sepia-coloured mark in the shape of hunting rifle crosshairs in the middle of his collarbone.

Willa and Clara exchanged a look.

"Did you-" Willa started.

"I only saw a flash of light, and then you were there. Miguel, where's your sister?" Clara asked.

"In the bathroom."

Clara got up, walked over to the bathroom, and grabbed Nina. Checking her collarbone, she also sported a sepia marking in the same shape as her brother's. Nina wasn't as bothered by it as her brother, who returned to the bathroom to try and scrub it off.