All at once, the Kinlings rush at Dalton in a flurry of white t-shirts and cargo pants.
I feel the air leave my lungs, which confuses me for a second, before I realize in the split second it took the Kinlings to attack Dalton, Zero had swung around and grabbed me, throwing me over his left shoulder while hoisitng the unconsious Malia up onto his right.
I inahle sharply, trying to get back the lost oxygen from being thrown like a sack of potatoes, but Zero doesnt give me a chance to recover before we're in front of Malia's doors that are thrown open with one powerful kick from Zero.
I'm able to lift my head and meet eyes with Dalton for a millisecond through the flurry of Kinlings. In that millisecond his eyes narrow and a spear of darkness shoots out from the open space to come soaring at me only to clash against a blue barrier emanating from my necklace.
Phew.
Next thing I know we're zooming down the hallway, Zero running as fast as he can while trying not to majorly hurt the luggae he's carrying, although I can already feel brusies forming from the violent jostles.
"W-wait, Zero!" I wheeze out, sounding incredibly attractive at the moment....not. "We.....ha-have to....go back.....FOR BECKY!" And Iris and Max, I want to add on, but a very large jostle had me yelling the last part and not being able to continue.
"Don't worry about them." I manage to just barely hear Zero through the wind rushing past us as he sprints through the Villa. "Aella's got them."
He sure seems to put a lot of trust in his fiance, an ugly, bitter part of me thinks in spite.
"A-aren't you.....worried about your people?" I recover my voice enough to ask more smoothly this time.
He's silent for a few seconds and then I hear a faint "Yes."
That causes me to go quiet and instead start praying with all I have that all of the innocent Kinlings manage to get away from Dalton alive and unharmed.
I want to ask Zero where exactly he's planning on taking Malia and , but decide not to emabrass myself anymore by speaking while being jostled around and just stay quiet.
It would be so much easier if the bond between Zero and I was still there and we could use telepathy again, a voice in the back of my brain whispers and I instantly shut that voice down.
I decide to then try and focus on the surroundings as zoom by, and even though pretty much all of the Villa is similar with it's same white marbling and creme pillars, after spending some time here I have a vague sense of where we are and where we're headed....which seems to be outside.
Based on what i saw in the cave it looks like Zero has control over the elements, so maybe outside would be a safe place to go, but then again the outisde means soil, and soil means if I spill even a drop of blood Dalton gets more powerful, which makes us an easier target for Dalton.
The further away we get from Malia's room the slower Zero gets until he's not full on sprinting but still going fast by running with long strides. At least it's not as painful when it comes to the jostles, and also the environment isn't as blurry as before.
We turn down a hallway I have to yet towalk through, and I lift my head as we pass by an open doorway just in time to see a flash of orange.
"Stop!" I suddenly shout, and this startles Zero enough to halt. "Set me down please."
Zero shakes his head, "We have to go Ashley, who knows when Dalton is going to come after us again."
"I think I just saw the culprit behind Malia's poisoning." I explain in a rushed tone. "I spoke tot he Core, and he said if we apprehend them, Malia can recover and help Core to seal away Dalton again."
Zero looks down the hallway towards where he wants to go, then back towards the open doorway.Finally he huffs an exasperated sigh, and sets me down, manuvering Malia to where she canr est more comfortably in his arms.
"Alright, but this can take no longer than a few minutes and if I deem anything dangerous we're leaving." He states and I nod.
Slowly, we walk back to the open doorway, and Zero gestures for me to stay back whie he goes first. He walks in front of the doorway, and I pause, wondering if Cato in his animal form is going to attack, but nothing happens.Instead, Zero looks at me with a confused face, and I wonder if the flash of orange I saw was really Cato in his animal form. It could ahve been something else.
I walk up beside Zero and peer into the room, taking in the scene before me that passed by in a blur when we ran by it.
The room is entirely made of thick glass walls, trees lining the huge space and making it look like what iw ould picture a Greenhouse to looklike, minus the cages.
Yes, there are cages hanging from the ceiling all over the room, all of them filled with birds of different colors and sizes.
I trail my eyes over the many birds, wondering if Malia has some kinds of bird-collecting obession, and that's when my eyes catch the orange that had made us stop in the first place.
In a slightly bigger cage than the rest, an orange bird perches, watching us with fox fur colored eyes.
I hurriedly make my way over, and the bird doe not break eye contact.
"Cato?" I ask, wondering how dumb I'd look if my hunch is incorrect and it turns out to just be some kind of exotic bird.
The bird makes no movements, but then there's the slight tilt of it's head, and I inhale a deep breath in surprise.
Wait wait, it could have tilted it's head by coicndience since it heard me speaking, I need to make sure.
"Nod your head if that's you Cato." I order.
the bird pauses again, and I can almost see the wheels in it's head turning as it debates what it should do, before slowly it bobs it's head in a nodding movement.
No way.
This bird really is Cato, but why is he locked up? He supposedly shouldn't even be at the Villa right now and isntead looking for me in the jungle.
Unless....Cato really is in kahoots with his Uncle, but then General Andre turned on him and locked him up here....at least that's the best possible scenario Ican come up with for now.
I hear Zero tap his foot right behind me, and remember we're in a time-senstitive situation. One of the culprits has been conveniently apprehended already by it's partner, which means all I have left to do is find General Andre, and if anyone would know where he is, it would be Cato.
I quickyl reach up on my tippy-toes and slide the cage off the hook, grunting at the weight of it, before turning to Zero and nodding.
"He's coming with us, although I think it best we not let him out of the cage." I tell Zero.
Only then does Cato have the urge to angrily squawk, his beak pecking at the lock on the door.
"You're not getting out until we find and arrest General Andre." I scowl down at the bird, defenitely feeling satisfication that the person who tried to kill me is now helplessly locked away in a cage.
Cato squaks again, flapping his wings as much as he can in the enclosed space.
"This will slow us down...." Zero trails off, not seeming happy with the newest addition.
"If worse comes to worse we'll just drop him." I state, earning me another angry squawk.
Zero huffs a sigh, before turning on his heel and leaving, Malia still unconscious in his arms. I follow, holding the handle on the cage using my uninjured arm.
We walk quickly....well quickly for me, not so much for Zero, and I keep my eyes peeled,as if I'm expecting General Andre to appear around a corner at any second like the first time we ran into him.
The silence is a little bit suffocating, only the sound of our footsteps and my heavy breathing from walking quickly while lugging the cage, not in my most attractive-sounding state right now.
More awkward silence passes.
Finally out fo curiosity, but msotly desperation to break the silence filled by just my embarassing breathing, I ask Zero, "How do you know your way around the Villa so well?"
He turns his head to glance at me out of the corner of his eye, then continues to look straight forward.
"Malia and I go way back." Is all he casually responds with, catching me off guard at how cool he's playing this.
Okay then, Mr. "Calm and Collected", I'm sure you and Malia go way back just as much as you and Aella do.
I don't say this out loud though, seeing as how I have no protection, and I doubt Lager will be popping up anytime soon to step in if Zero goes wrath-mode again.
Does this make me a coward?
Yes, yes it does.
It's silent, and I am the one to intiate the talking yet again.
"Do you have any questions you want to ask me?" I ask, thinking it may be better if I give his the chance to ask anything before I abrrage him with more questions.
He's quiet, and then in a low tone of voice:
".....what is your relationship with the Darkling High Commander?"
I blink.
"Excuse me?" I nearly cough, knowing full well what he asked but hoping I heard wrong.
"You heard me." Zero says in an accusing tone, which motivates me to speed up my walk enough so I'm beside him in order for him to see the incredulous look on my face.
"That's the question you want to ask me?"
"Yes." He says in a firm, unfaltering voice.
I don't know how to respond, partly because of disbeleif, and partly because even if I tried I have no idea where to start with answering that question.
"I would like a response." Zero pushes, and I scowl at him, but he's not looking at me, focused straight ahead.
"Are we really going to do this now?" I shake my head, really starting to wonder how much this situation has regiestered in his head.
"You wanted to ask questions, I answered yours, it's only fair you answer mine." He defends himself.
"And why do you care what our relationship is? The bond between us was dissolved, remember?" He winces when I bring up the bond, and I feel a tiny sting of guilt.
"It seemed like you moved on pretty quickly." he grumbles, his brows furrowing to match his accusatory tone.
"Oh so that's how you're playing it?" I raise an eyebrow. "That's rich coming from the guy who has a fiance this whole time!"
"It isn't like that." His scowl deepens.
In our quarreling I hadn't even noticed that we reached the maind oors leading out of the Villa, and only then do I notice the Lightling guards that are usually stationed there are gone, hopefully in Malai's room helping to subdue Dalton.
We make our way outside, as I scoff a laugh. "Don't give me that....you can't actually beleive I'd trust it isn't 'like that'."
Zero stops suddenly, making me come to a sudden halt as he turns to face me. I flinch, wondering if his eyes are sharp and full of anger, but isntead they're calm, and open wide, as if he has nothing to hide within their grey depths.
"I know I've kept many things from you, Ashley, but not once since the bond was dissolved have I lied to you. I already learned from that mistake and I do not tend to make it again."
I shift on my feet, suddenly uncomfortable with how his words are making me feel.
"Yeah, well.....okay." Is the best I can respond with in my off-guard state. Zero's eyes search mine for a second more, before he seems to accept the fact that he won't get any more of a response and he nods, ebfore turning to continue.
Just then there's a rumble, sounding jsut like thunder, and the ground quakes.
An earthquake?
But Zero's eyes aren't on the ground, and I follow to where they're looking at the sky, not looking the look in his eyes as I tilt my head upwards only to see something flying through the sky, looking like a figure.
It streaks across the sky, and I realize the figure isn't flying, but falling, and towards our direction at that. As it gets closer I'm able to make out a familiar build of a person, with familiar clothing and familiar dirty-blonde hair done in a braid. She's not moving as she falls, and I'm hopng with everything I have shes just unconcious.
Aella.
"No." I whisper under my breath, and Zero quickly kneels, setting Malia down softly on the ground.
"I have to catch her." He says, but then he looks at me, and I realize he's conflcited between catching her and leaving me alone.
"Go!" I urge, leaving no room for argument, and he's gone in a flash, dissapearing into the forest towards the direction her figure is looking to land.
I look back up towards the top of the Villa, where I'm gauging Malia's room to be.
If Aella was thrown...then......what happened to Max and Becky?
I soon receive an answer.
Dear readers, duh duh duhhhhhhh! More cliffhangers, honestly if you're surprised by the cliffhanger at this point then I seriosuly doubt you've been reading the end of my chapters lol. I hope you all are having a fantastic Summer!!! Nothing better than snowcones, sun, and sunscreen.....lots and LOTS of sunscreen. Summer is a very dangerous time, especially for all my redhead kin out there who struggle not to get third degree burns everytime this season comes around. Anyway, back on topic, I hope you also enjoyed this chapter, it's unedited (as always lol), and please comment on what you think happened to Max and Becky, theories are always accepted and wanted. Vote, comment, and download and play Mario Kart Tour! (To clarify I am not sponsored, my sister downlaoded the game recently and got me hooked on it. Mario Kart is a game you can always go back to and play and never get sick of it as the years go by which is why I love it so much. IF anyone has any connections to Cane's on the other hand though.....sponsor meeeee lol XD). Lots of love,
Dangeroustoken