The Elementals

Chapter 12: Attacked

There was a sudden gut-wrenching scream from somewhere outside, somewhere close. Noah's eyes shot open and it took a moment for him to adjust to the dark. The first thing he did was look beside him, seeing Alexis' sleeping body curled up next to him and her injured leg propped up on top of his calf. He relaxed slightly but was still alert; that scream wasn't his imagination. Sliding out of bed, he placed a pillow under Alexis' leg and walked over to the window, cautiously peering out.

It was still dark, the houses casting large shadows across the ground from the light of the moon. He scanned the area, but there was nothing out of the ordinary. Someone started knocking on his door and he quickly went to answer it, picking up a white t-shirt off of the end of the bed and putting it on. He looked over his shoulder at the sleeping girl as he opened the door, turning back in front of him to see Kyle and Elizabeth standing there, who were both still in their pajamas.

"I'm assuming that since you're awake you heard that scream too," Elizabeth said. Noah nodded and stepped out into the hall, only closing the door halfway behind him; he wanted to be able to hear if Alexis got up.

"I didn't see anything at the south gate," he said.

"There was nothing outside my window either. Jarvis didn't seem too worried about it; maybe it's something that happens a lot here," Kyle said with a shrug, rubbing his eyes as he yawned. "Do you think we should go check out the area at least?" Elizabeth put one hand on her hip and the other rubbed the back of her neck.

"This isn't some horror movie, we don't make dumb decisions," she mumbled, letting out a sigh. They were both still visibly tired, and Noah felt a little sluggish as well. He fought the yawn that wanted to erupt and scratched his chin.

"We could-"

"Nooaahh...." a whine sounded. Kyle looked at one of the doors down the hall, then his head snapped back around when he realized it didn't come from there. Noah turned around as his door creaked open and pursed his lips. Alexis was standing there with her pillow clutched to her chest, wiping her eyes with one hand. Her hair was sticking out in a few places and the large shirt she was wearing was hanging off of her right shoulder. Most of her weight was shifted to her left leg and her toes were curled from the cold floor. Kyle and Elizabeth stared at her for a moment before turning back to look at the blonde in sync, Kyle's face completely red.

"W-WHAT WAS SHE DOING IN YOUR ROOM!?!?" he exclaimed. Elizabeth scowled and glared at him, slapping the back of his head.

"Keep your voice down, stupid," she growled. Noah shrugged his shoulders as he looked back at him.

"She couldn't sleep," he said simply, turning his attention back to Alexis. His eyes strayed past her to the window as he did so, however. There was a faint orange glow reflecting off of the glass, some type of light. Alexis looked up at him and followed his gaze, looking over her shoulder.

"I was going to tell you that there were people outside," she mumbled. The lights in the hall dimmed as Elizabeth entered the room, going over to the window with Noah following behind her. They got on both sides of the glass and looked out below them.

There was a group of people with torches gathering in the spot where the dancing had taken place earlier. One of them threw down a squirming bundle, a person; it looked to be one of the young females. She started to kick and roll around, the muffled sound of her screams barely audible. Noah and Elizabeth watched as one of the torches was thrown onto her and her body lit into flames. Suddenly, multiple black masses shot in through the south gate and ran off in all directions. The other people that held torches threw them at the buildings that were closest to them, letting out loud screeches and cackling laughter. Elizabeth grabbed Noah by his arm and they quickly left the room.