Cruel & Blue (Eyeless Jack story)

Chapter 46

The both of them held hesitant faces for a few moments before relaxing. All three of us went on with our lunches, chatting about things that best friends chat about. Suddenly, Kayla jumped in her seat, fiddled with her phone and pulled up a video. Craig and I stared at her, wondering why she got so excited so suddenly. "You guys should check this out," was all she said before she played the video for us. Craig and I leaned in to see what it was.

The quality of the video wasn't the best but it wasn't completely horrible. Judging by it, it was recorded on a phone. I recognized the setting in the video as the Metropolis center next to Gracewood. I couldn't hear the sound that well since we were in the lunch room but I can tell people were screaming. Then, I figure out why. There's this creature jumping around on buildings, large, dark figures resembling hands trailing behind it. I couldn't really get a clear image of it because the camera was shaking. Although, once I focused hard enough, I recognized it to have a female figure. Finally, it stopped running across rooftops and landed on a street lamp, perched perfectly like a bird. That's when my face dropped at the realization that the creature was very familiar. It was Elizabeth but her face was different, terrifying. She was going ballistic; screaming, picking up cars and terrorizing people. I don't remember this happening. Thinking back on it, is that why I saw those police cruisers driving hurriedly towards the Metropolis center, on the day I was kidnapped. This is what happened while I was running from Corrupted and the white haired man?

"How come I've never seen this video?," I asked Kayla.

She chuckled, "Well, it could be because you don't have a phone."

I gave her a look. "Besides that..."

Kayla shrugged and said, "I'm not exactly sure. It's going viral through all types of social media. Who knew this part of Virginia would ever get this kind of attention, huh? There's rumors that the government or some organization tried to keep the incident a secret but it eventually got out somehow. So, since it's so popular, it's hard for them to erase it from existence, ya know? But, no one is really sure. It's just rumors and theories right now."

"I say it's some sort of publicity stunt," Craig retorted. "Maybe some extreme advertisement for some project, or someone just got really, really bored. Oh, but did you hear about that train getting derailed on the same day?"

"Yeah. Also, those eight officers who were massacred? That's screwed up on so many levels. The perp hasn't even been found yet," Kayla added.

"What do you think about this stuff, Ao?," Craig asked me. Both of my friends' gazes turned towards me. I couldn't say anything, really. All I could do was keep watching the video; watching as Elizabeth attacked a semi-truck, howling ferociously. I watched the images in my head; the white haired man chasing me, attacking me, killing those officers right in front of me. I could remember the feeling of the last officer's blood spraying across my face, covering my glasses, obscuring my view of the white haired man hitting me over the head with a gun and then carrying me away. I unconsciously reached up towards the spot on my head that was hit, gulping hard.

Once I could finally cut my focus from the video and my own thoughts I just shook my head and replied, "It's absolutely terrifying..."

The school bell rang, concluding the conversation.

...

The school day was over and students were gathered in the front, hanging out in their usual spots and talking with their friends. I was waiting out in the front also, along with Kayla. The both of us need a ride home and Craig is the only one with a vehicle and license for it.