TCI: Book 1 Part 1: (N. L .A.) The Fire Stone. Book 1 Part 2 Continuing

Part 2. Chapter 16. The Black Keppet

"Dom'nokeeta! Nah goyer!! Dom'nokeeta! Ba'cka!"

As Chase reached the slope of the cliff face he quickly began to climb. High to his left he could still see the stallion plunging about trying to break free from the coils as they appeared to grow, covering not only its legs but its head, neck and body too; spreading quickly  to encase the creatures wings.

Both the Human creatures screech down at Chase as he climbed the cliff. One of them shot a white light from its finger tips but Chase once again formed a shield that protected him. Amy had thrown or more likely rolled the light spheres and they were now speeding towards Chase. The little balls of light gleamed as they spun across the dusty ground. One of the creatures shot another reddish beam of what looked like fire towards the spheres but missed.

"Keep back Amy!" yelled Chase as he spotted her in her fluffy penguins-on-skis pyjamas, running after him. "Get down Amy, hide!"  One of the creatures was now trying to shoot at her too!

As the sphere's reached Chase he swung down from a tiny ledge he'd reached then, in a leap of faith, jumped. How he managed to stay on the spheres in his bare feet, he didn't know, but he did and soon began rising up the face of the cliff towards the two black cladded aliens.

As soon at he cleared the cliff top Chase was ready. He fisted his hand then sent out a dark shimmery light that exploded right in front of the creatures, coursing rocks and grit to fly up and hit them both full in their masked faces.

"Shatic'co des org'tag Human boy!" yelled one of them and then they too, produced wings, which fanned out from the backs of their suits. They both shot up high into the sky circling the cliff top raining down jets of light at Chase and even more at Amy. Just in time, Chase produced the shield again.

 Still flying towards them, and using the power they'd just fired at him, Chase sent out another bolt of engery, something colourless and invisible, something that felt very powerful. It caught one of the creatures across the shoulder. It screamed out in pain and immediatly began falling from the sky, spinning out of control. Its companion, screamed more adbuse and then dived after the injured creature just managing to grab an ankle, before it could fall to its death on the other side of the narrow cliff top.

 By the time Chase landed, they'd gone. All he could see were tiny black shapes in the sky drifting off towards The Purple Topped Mountains, far in the misty distance. Amy came scrabbling up the cliff behind him out of breath, her face dirty from the climb and the falling grit and rocks. 

"I told yer stay put!" he yelled angrily, "they could've killed you! Are yer okay?"

"Yes! Don't shout at me! Look!"  pointed Amy.

Chase turned towards the black keppet. He was such a magnificent beast and so much bigger than the females who were now calling to him from the ground below the cliff. 

Both webs, which had been thrown by the strange aliens, were growing fast and still tightening around the creature as it reared and plunged about.

"Whoa there," called Chase as he slowly made his way towards it. "Tell him it's okay..." Chase called to his own keppet, who neighed and whinnied as she too tried to climb the cliff.

Chase was now close enough to see that the web wasn't cord or rope at all but some kind of thin twisted steel. It gleamed blueish-grey in the sunlight. As it grew and stretched, more tentacles flailed out from it, twisting around the stallion. As these grew and tighten they cut cruelly into the beasts body. 

"Oh Chase you have to do something! You have to get that web thing off! It's hurting him!" cried Amy.

Chase could see the fierce black eyes edged in white as fear begun to fill the creatures mind, as it realised it could not break free. It stumbled towards the other side of the cliff where it dropped down into the deep ravine below. The bottom hidden in a strange yellowy mist.

The creatures eyes rolled in both fear and anger and in that moment Chase knew it would rather die by crashing into the rocks far below, than to have the web mutilate it to death, as it cut deeply into its blue-black body.

"Oh my goodness I can't look!" cried Amy, covering her eyes. "It's going to cut the poor thing to pieces!!"

Chase then did something stupid, or maybe very brave. He leapt at the rearing stallion with knife in hand. Something was telling him to cut the steal cord. As he vaulted onto the creatures back, clinging tightly to it's mane, Chase sliced the knife into the steel. Astonishingly it cut straight through as though it was soft butter.

As the creature was freed it stretched out its massive wings, flipped sideways and took off into the air so fast, Chase lost his grip on its mane and slid down under the creatures belly just as one of the released coils slashed across his face and chest. Chase yelled in pain and was thrown high into the air. There was blood, a lot of blood but he couldn't tell if it was his or the stallions.

'Heal the creature!' damn you!'  came a sudden harsh voice from inside his head. 'Heal it!' called the Id again.

'What?! You turn up now! Can I do that from here?' thought Chase as he fell.

'Do it! Do it now or die!'  yelled the Id again.

Chase threw out both hands and managed to send out a blue white light from the tips of his fingers that coiled around the stallion like long thin shinning ribbons. The creature roared as it soared higher and higher sounding nothing like a horse or even a keppet but, as it swooped down with it's huge wings out stretched, Chase could see it's wounds were healing!

In slow motion, like a silent dream, Chase watched the Black Keppet glide effortlessly into the bright sky again. Then, as reality came flooding back, Chase realised he was still falling. Faster and faster he fell, turning over and over. Suddenly, the suns blinded him as he plummeted down through the warm air.

Then he remembered his dream. The other dream, where he'd seen a black winged creature. He remembered the warmth, the blueness of the sky, the brilliant light of the suns and the rush of the wind in his ears.

He was still falling. Once more in slow motion he looked over his shoulder, trying to get is barings. Then he noticed the deep gash across his chest, caused by the flailing cord. He turned in the air. Was there no bottom to this side of the cliff? Would he keep falling forever? The yellow mist far below now seemed even further away than he first imagined. He looked up into the blue sky again.

"Hells bloody Curses, this is goin' to really hurt when I hit the ground!"

Was this it? Was he going to fall to his death? Somewhere in the distance as dark black clouds filled his head, Chase could hear Amy screaming!