BREATH . OF . LIFE . ~ { ReGenisis Chronicles Book I }

Chapter Three [Part 1/5]:The Scavenger

The man held his gun up, his finger tensing on the trigger. Before he could pull it, Griffin had somehow crossed the distance between them at unbelievable speed. In the same motion his leg had lifted and spun, knocking the gun from the 'scavengers' hand. As he planted his foot back on the ground he hit the man hard in the stomach, making him slide back a little in the leaves.

The scavenger retaliated, grabbing hold of Griffin's arm. He was yanked towards a tree, somehow in the transition from being thrown and making impact, he'd positioned himself just right. Griffin's feet met the bark and pushed off of it.

He launched himself straight at the old man, growling a guttural warning, "Look away, Kate."

I flinched my eyes shut just as he made contact. I heard several loud crunching sounds echo through my ears. I shuddered, feeling my stomach turn over on itself.

As my eyes opened again Griffin was throwing a now limp body towards the trees. It hit one straight on, several more cracking noises followed, each making me recoil further. I had to hold my hands over my stomach  to hold it down as I my head spun.

My eyes were wide on Griffin, who stood straight and dusted off his shoulders before crossing his arms around himself. He stared towards the body, a tinge of darkness about his expression, but for the most part unaffected. Was that tinge remorse that he'd killed or regret that I'd been here to see it? He dipped his head forward, his eyes closing for a second as he seemed to focus on steadying his breath.

"You're... alright." I stammered breathlessly, I could still smell that copper and disinfectant mix on the air, potent up my nose.

"For the most part," he muttered before turning to me. "I'd better get us somewhere a little safer." He'd moved on, striding over to me. He stopped still noticing me tense up and jolt back from him a little.

"Are you sad I brought you back to this?" His voice was low and strained.

I didn't quite know how to answer. I stared up at his face, seeing the sadness in his searching eyes and tried to shake my head. "Honestly, I don't even know how you brought me back." A tactful answer compared to the stinging idea that maybe my father had been completely right about the outside world. If this was all it was. But then logic told me it wasn't, otherwise he wouldn't ask like it was new to me. Still, too much swirled through my mind to piece together and furl out of my mouth.

He moved his hand towards mine, but I pulled mine further away, resistant. His eyes closed, this time bottling irritation. Hiding a wince of something else. "I'll explain when I can, but I really would suggest we leave."

"How do I know I can really trust you?" I asked, trying not to breathe in his scent because I knew it would jumble my thoughts, and they were tumbling over themselves like clothes in a dryer already.

"What makes you think that you can't?" He countered, as his eyes flicked open, they caught mine. He leant in closer to me, a smile developing on his face as I stood there speechless. "You see, nothing comes to mind. Anyway, I have given you my word, I will never bring you any harm."

He held up his hand, waiting to see what I'd do. I placed my fingers in his palm, feeling a jolt of electricity travel between us that made me feel light headed again. I let his fingers close around mine.  His smile became as light as I was feeling. He breathed out just as I took air in. Dizzily I leant forward, but as before he stood straight. Logic was being battled by feelings I'd never experienced before, it told me, if anything, all of this should make me trust him less. Only the feelings felt like instinct, and logic was being trampled down by it.

Instead of let instinct have its way completely, he compromised, resting his other hand on my cheek, rippling my skin under his tender touch and sending shivers through me. The way his sad eyes searched mine caused an ache, a real physical ache. It was unbearable but I wouldn't look away.

"Life for you has just begun," he whispered.

My mouth was waterless like a desert is dry. Again our hearts matched pitches. This wasn't normal, whatever this was. I tried to swallow, but instead that made it worse.

"Your family?" He asked from out of the blue.

I opened my mouth to say something, and then frowning I stared down at my feet. "Complicated."

I felt the hum of an almost soundless chuckle, "All families are complicated. I'm afraid going back to them isn't an option now, though. To them you have died. It has to be that way."

My eyes snapped back up at his face, I wasn't sure whether I felt panicked or relieved by this statement. "Why?" I stammered, "and why would you bring them up in that way if you knew I couldn't...see them again?"

The smirk on Griffin's face terrified and set me at ease all at once. "I had to see how softly I needed to break the news to you. From your reaction to the word itself, I knew there are already some burning bridges and regrets there. Your ties are already flimsy."

"Oh," I frowned. "I guess you're right..." Then I shrugged.

I drew a little closer to him as I started to feel heavy, running back the gun shots and the sounds of breaking bone in my head. I held my hand up to his chest to steady myself as the sick feeling came back. Only my fingers rested against something wet and their contact disturbed the smell of fresh blood.

I gasped, staring up at his face, my eyes growing wider. "What is that..."

His hand slipped away from my cheek and unbuttoned the front of his coat. I didn't wait for him to open it to push the material away to see several holes that were more visible in his black polo-neck. From them a slow drizzle of crimson flowed. I couldn't shriek back from it, couldn't make a sound as I rested my shaking fingers over the wounds.

"You've been shot..." It was all I could say for a moment, "h-how are you still... breathing?" I couldn't bring myself to look up at him, I felt like bolting again. Getting away from him before this got any weirder.

"Yes," he inhaled, wrapping his hands around my wrists delicately and gently pulling them back. My fingertips moist and covered in a red that made my head spin. "How are you still breathing and without a mark to blemish your perfect skin?" His lips inched up into a subtle smirk, but it was a little more forced.

"I'm scared to find out." I was trembling and trying to pant back air. But the oxygen was escaping my lungs as quickly as I was taking it down.

"Doesn't it hurt?" I was shaking my head at the whole situation, now. I couldn't seem to focus properly, the world was in a whir around me.

"Very barely, I'm quite numb. The bullets are still in so it can't heal. My body is simply trying to compensate for the blood loss, it's doing a good job of working around it. Apart from stealing some of my energy." He admitted, composed but breathier than before.

"What will you do, can you get them out?" I swallowed, looking away dizzily so that I didn't have to focus on the red.

He let go of my wrists and buttoned his coat back up, not saying a word until after he'd done so. "We'll see."

"So, if you don't get them out... Will you..." I caught my breath, looking down at the crimson on my hands. "Will you die? Like a normal person." A droplet fell from the tip of my index finger and splashed against a pale autumn leaf. Our eyes had both been fixed on it during the fall and we both flinched to hear the echo the small drop let off, quiet but sharp in our ears.

Sighing, Griffin closed his eyes. "Even the strongest among us fall."