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Amityville
Year: 2003
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As night enveloped the world outside the bus, casting everything into shadow, Rin stirred from her slumber, her senses slowly returning to her as she blinked away the remnants of sleep. The lights within the bus had been reduced to a dim barely-there glow, the occasional running lights casting eerie shadows down the narrow aisle.
Feeling something brush against her leg, Rin's eyes snapped open, her heart pounding in her chest as she froze in place. She glanced down, her breath catching in her throat as she realized that she was tucked snugly under Luke's chin, his arm draped protectively around her shoulders. His cheek rested against the crown of her head, his breath warm against her skin. He was sound asleep.
For a moment, she was too stunned to move, too overwhelmed by their unexpected closeness. She could feel the steady rhythm of his heartbeat beneath her cheek, an oddly comforting echo, but before she could dwell on it she felt something brush against her leg once more, a shiver of fear coursing through her veins. Her muscles tensed, her eyes scanning the faintly lit interior of the bus for any sign of danger.
And then it happened again—a soft, insistent coiling sensation around her leg, making her flinch in surprise. Jolting awake, Rin inadvertently nudged Luke, who grumbled something incoherent in his sleep but remained blissfully unaware of the disturbance.
Heart thundering in her chest, she tried to extricate herself from the brunette boy's embrace without waking him, but as she shifted in her seat, her movements clumsy and awkward, the thing around her leg tightened, wrapping around her ankle like a vice.
Then the true horror came when it uncoiled itself, and Rin could finally make out what it was. With a sickening realization, she saw the menacing tip of the creature's tail, long and thin like an elongated scorpion's appendage, emerging from the narrow gap between the seats in front of them. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as she watched in terror, her breath catching in her throat as the tail reared back.
"Luke, wake up! Move!" she hissed urgently, her voice a trembling whisper as she shook him roughly, but Luke only grumbled in response, his movements sluggish and disoriented from sleep.
"Well, geez, I'm sorry for trying to make your sleep comfortable," he muttered, his tone tinged with annoyance. "Too bad you can't return the favour. I know you're mad at me, but you can't just tell me to move. Where am I supposed to go?"
Rin scowled, her frustration mounting as she watched the thing in front of them, its tip poised to strike at any moment. With a surge of adrenaline, she shoved Luke off his seat, sending him crashing into the aisle with a startled yelp. His eyes flew open in indignation, his protests cut short as, in the same instant, the scorpion tail came slamming down into his vacated seat, right where his head had been moments before.
As the tail remained embedded in the cheap leather of the seat, Luke scrambled into action, fingers fumbling with his bag, searching desperately for his sword as Rin watched in tense anticipation, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
Finally, he drew his weapon, the Celestial Bronze blade gleaming and he stumbled into a standing position. Meanwhile, the commotion had attracted Samarah's attention, and she stood alert, her gaze scanning the bus frantically as she assessed the situation. Her eyes widened as she caught sight of the creature's tail suddenly freeing itself, retracting back towards wherever it originated from with lightning speed.
Luke's hand shot out to grab Rin's wrist, dragging her out of her seat.
"We need to get out of here, right now," he declared, his tone urgent as he glanced around for an exit strategy.
"Yeah, I think we got that," Rin replied, her voice sarcastic. "Except how do you expect us to leap from a moving bus?"
"Not the time to be snarky, Rin."
Before she could give him a retort, their path was suddenly blocked by the imposing figure of the bowler hat man who had been sitting in front of them. He filled the aisle with his towering presence, his gaze piercing and intense. She took in his appearance—the absence of his hat, his mismatched eyes—one brown, one blue—and the startling transformation that was unfolding before her very eyes.
His form began to shift and warp, his human limbs and appendages melting away to reveal the shape of a lion, its scorpion tail now as thick as a tree trunk curved above him with the tip dangling over its head. The man—no, the thing— towered over them, mane bristling with energy as it let out a low, menacing growl. The seats on either side of it groaned in protest as part of them were ripped from the floor, the metal twisting and buckling under the strain.
The other passengers on the bus erupted into chaos, their screams filling the air as they scrambled to their feet, desperate to escape the terrifying spectacle unfolding before them. Some huddled in their seats, trembling with fear, while others pushed and shoved their way toward the front, their panic palpable in the cramped confines of the bus.
Rin knew that the Mist must be at work, hiding the true form of the creature from the terrified onlookers, but whatever they did see was enough to send them into a frenzy, their primal instincts overriding their rational minds as they fought to flee from the perceived threat.
"Uh, guys, is that what I think it is?" Samarah's voice came out strangled from behind them.
"Yeah, what in the world is a manticore doing on a bus?" Luke replied grimly, his eyes fixed on the lion-like creature that loomed over them with predatory intent.
With a sense of urgency, Rin scanned their surroundings, her eyes landing on the glass that spanned the width of the bus behind them.
"The back window," she murmured urgently, her voice barely above a whisper as she relayed her plan to the others. "We need to use the back window to get out of here."
Samarah's eyes widened in realization. "But it's tempered glass," she protested. "It's four times stronger than regular glass. How are we supposed to break through?"
Rin's mind raced as she considered their options, her fingers tightening around the hilt of the dagger at her waist—the only weapon she had on her person. Her sword lay forgotten in her backpack, wedged under the mangled remains of their seats, rendered inaccessible by the creature's relentless advance.
"I'm sure you'll figure it out," she told her friends steadily, despite the fear that gnawed at her insides. "You work your magic, and I'll cover you."
"Are you fucking insane? No!"
Luke's protest was immediate, reverberating through the tense air in a panicked burst. Rin shook her head defiantly, her resolve unwavering as she met Luke's pleading gaze with steely determination. She knew the risks involved in her suggestion and understood the recklessness of her proposal, but she refused to back down. Perhaps it was her way of proving herself, some misguided attempt at showing them that she wasn't just going to be deadweight on this quest, wasn't going to be a burden to them.
"No," she snapped, her voice cutting through the chaos of their surroundings. "You've got the shoes. It's the only way you and Samarah will make it safely without breaking every single one of your bones jumping off a moving bus."
"And what about you? I'm not leaving you behind!"
"Who said anything about being left behind? I'll be right behind you."
Rin wrenched her wrist away from Luke's grasp, her gaze flashing with defiance as she stood her ground.
"You can't do this. I won't let you."
Rin nodded, her jaw set in determination as she met Luke's gaze head-on, "Don't exactly remember asking permission. We don't have time to argue. You need to go, now."
"Not happening, Rin. I am not leaving you. Moving on to Plan B."
"Guys, not the time to be having your little lover's spat!" Samarah snapped from behind.
She had her bronze hammer out and was relentlessly slamming it into the glass window repeatedly, and with each resounding blow, the tension in the air grew thicker, the panic among the passengers reaching a feverish pitch as they realized the gravity of their situation. But despite everything, the bus showed no signs of slowing down, hurtling forward at a reckless speed that seemed far too dangerous for such a large vehicle.
Rin's mind raced with concern as she glanced towards the front of the bus, a sinking feeling settling in the pit of her stomach as she realized that something must be terribly wrong. The dimly lit interior seemed to close in around her, the aisle lights flickering ominously as the vehicle shook and rattled over every bump and imperfection in the road.
"Fine," she relented, her tone begrudging. "You get to the front and make the goddamn driver stop the bus, and I'll distract the thing."
With a reluctant sigh, Luke nodded, and before Rin could protest, he reached out and snatched her dagger from her, pressing his sword into her hands with a reassuring smile.
"You'll need this more than me," he cracked a small smile.
With a final nod of gratitude, Rin turned to confront the creature that loomed before them, its menacing form a hulking shadow in the dark. Her grip tightened around the new weapon in her hands, adjusting to its weight. It wasn't a completely foreign feeling; they'd sparred with each other's weapons in the past, but never had she faced such a creature. She could feel the weight of its gaze upon her, a primal instinct urging her to flee, to seek safety, but she couldn't do that just yet. Escaping the thing would not be enough, it had to be killed.
As the manticore's tail came crashing down with deadly force, her instincts kicked in, propelling her into a swift dodge that saved her from certain harm by a hairsbreadth. With a deft movement, she evaded the attack, her heart pounding in her chest as she narrowly escaped the creature's lethal strike.
Although there was barely enough space to maneuver, Rin swung the sword with all the force she could muster, aiming for the creature's left flank. The blade sliced through the air swiftly, but to her dismay, it seemed to have little effect on the manticore's thick, armoured hide.
However, the creature still roared in fury, the sound reverberating through the cramped confines of the bus like a thunderous clap of thunder as it recoiled from the unexpected assault. Its eyes blazed with rage as it turned its attention towards her wholly, its massive form towering over her and when it opened its mouth, she could see the three rows of teeth set in its upper and lower jaw, exceedingly sharp and larger than the fangs of a hound. Rin's heart raced in her chest as she braced herself for the creature's retaliation, knowing that she had succeeded in drawing its attention away from her friends.
With a menacing snarl, the manticore lunged forward, its claws slashing through the air, and she felt the rush of air as the creature's claws grazed past her. A surge of adrenaline coursed through her veins, sharpening her senses and heightening her awareness of the danger that surrounded her. In the heat of the moment, she felt a sense of hyperfocus wash over her, her mind honing in on the creature's movements with a clarity and precision that surprised even her.
With each passing moment, she found herself mirroring the manticore's movements with a strange sort of fluidity. It was one thing to be able to match the skills of another demigod in combat, but to mirror the movements of such a creature felt like an entirely different challenge altogether. And yet, to Rin's surprise, it came almost naturally to her.
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Meanwhile, Luke wasted no time in taking advantage of the distraction, and with a swift leap, he vaulted over the mangled remains of the seats to his right with a burst of speed that seemed almost superhuman, his eyes fixed on his target.
As he approached the front of the bus, his eyes widened in horror at the sight that greeted him. The elderly driver, slumped over in his seat, appeared pale and lifeless, a massive chunk of his shoulder missing in a gruesome display of violence. The jagged torn edges of his wound suggested that it had been torn from him by some monstrous force, leaving behind a gaping cavity that oozed with blood and gore.
But what truly sent a chill down his spine was the sight of the driver's foot, which seemed to be fused with the gas pedal in a grotesque mass of flesh melded with metal. It was as if his body had been twisted and contorted, merging it with the very machinery of the bus in a horrifying display of mutilation.
Luke swore under his breath, his stomach churning with a sickening mixture of disgust and dread. It was clear that the driver was beyond help, and yet, even in death, he remained trapped in his seat, his foot still pressed against the gas pedal, propelling the bus forward with relentless momentum.
Next to the driver, a terrified-looking man was wedged into the seat, his hands gripping the steering wheel with white-knuckled intensity. His eyes darted frantically from side to side, his face twisted in a mask of fear and desperation as he struggled to maintain control of the speeding bus. But it was clear that he was out of his depth, his efforts to steer the bus hampered by his lack of experience and skill. With each passing moment, the bus veered dangerously close to disaster, careening through the mercifully empty country road with reckless abandon as it hurtled towards an uncertain fate.
Luke's mind raced as he assessed the situation before him, his thoughts spinning with a whirlwind of possibilities and potential courses of action. With a steely resolve, Luke stepped forward, his voice ringing out with a firm command as he addressed the terrified man beside the driver's seat.
"Get out of the way," he ordered, his tone leaving no room for argument. "I'll take it from here."
Somewhere far behind him, there was a sound of shattering glass, and he hoped that Samarah had succeeded in breaking open the back window. Now all he had to do was slow them down enough to make an escape.
As Luke frantically slammed his palm against the emergency brake button, a sinking feeling settled in the pit of his stomach as he realized that it was utterly useless. The button remained stubbornly unresponsive, refusing to yield to his desperate attempts to bring the bus to a halt. The man beside him confirmed his worst fears, his voice trembling with fear as he admitted that he had already tried the same futile tactic.
So he had to engage the brake manually, but to do so, he would need to reach the pedals—an impossible task with the driver's body blocking his access. As he knelt beside the driver's seat, Luke felt a surge of frustration and desperation wash over him.
With a grimace of determination, Luke considered his options. He could try to move the driver's body, but time was running out, and there was no guarantee that he would be able to do so without causing further harm. And even if he did manage to clear a path to the pedals, there was no guarantee that engaging the brake would bring the bus to a stop.
In a moment of desperation, Luke raised his dagger, the blade gleaming ominously as he prepared to slice through the driver's foot in a last-ditch effort to reach the pedals, but it passed clean through the man's flesh and bone, and Luke swore under his breath when he remembered. Celestial Bronze was useless against mortals.
He muttered a half-hearted apology before he reached out and grabbed hold of the driver's lifeless body, yanking it out of the seat with a forceful tug. The corpse tumbled to the floor with a sickening thud, its foot still firmly attached to the pedals.
The smattering of people around him exclaimed aghast, at the scene that unfolded before their eyes, their voices rising in a cacophony of fear and disbelief, but Luke paid them no mind, his focus solely on the task at hand as he climbed over the driver's body, his heart pounding in his chest with a mixture of fear and determination.
With a sense of grim resolve, he wedged his own foot down onto the brake pedal, his muscles straining with the effort as he slammed his foot down with all his strength. But to his dismay, nothing happened. The brakes remained stubbornly unresponsive, the bus continuing to hurtle forward with reckless abandon.
With a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, Luke knew that he had to act fast if they were to have any hope of bringing the bus under control. With a swift motion, he lifted his foot, releasing the brakes before engaging them again with renewed force.
This time, there was a faint keening sound as the brakes finally engaged, the bus lurching with a violent jolt, and veering off the road and into the dense thicket of trees that lined the roadside.
"Get back! All of you get back!" he yelled, waving his arms for the passengers to seek cover.
When they finally crashed, the sound was deafening. The windshield exploded and the bus careened through the underbrush, branches snapping and splintering under its weight. Luke was thrown to the floor, his body slamming down with bone-jarring force, but thankfully emergency lights came on, and the door flew open, the passengers clamouring as they stampeded out into the cool night air.
As Luke turned toward his friends, his heart leapt into his throat at the sight that greeted him. The manticore had Rin pinned to the floor, its monstrous form looming over her as its tail hovered menacingly inches from her face. Rin held the sword he had given her aloft, using it to fend off the creature's relentless assault as its scorpion-like tail pressed against the blade.
Luke's instincts screamed at him to rush to her aid, but before he could move, Samarah sprang into action. With a swift and decisive motion, she hurled her hammer at the creature, the heavy weight of the tool slamming into the manticore between its eyes with a sickening thud. The creature recoiled in pain, its grip on Rin momentarily loosening as it stumbled back, stunned by the unexpected attack.
Seizing the opportunity, Rin scrambled to her feet, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she darted away from the creature's reach.
"Thanks, Sam," she muttered, sparing a quick nod of gratitude.
"What can I say, I'm a modern-day Thor," Samarah grinned in response.
Meanwhile, Luke wasted no time in rushing forward to join the fray. With a determined set to his jaw, he closed the distance between himself and the manticore. His gaze fell upon a piece of metal protruding from the wreckage of the seats, and with a determined grip, he wrenched it free, the sharp edges cutting into his palm as she did so. Without hesitation, he hurled it at the creature, his aim true as it sailed through the air. The metal struck the manticore's side with a resounding clang, eliciting a furious roar of rage as it turned its attention towards him.
Rin's voice rang out in outrage from the other end of the bus, his words a mixture of anger and concern as he shouted, "What the hell are you doing, Luke?"
But Luke paid him no mind, his focus solely on the creature that turned its head in both directions eyeing the two of them, as if deciding who to make a meal of first.
It was Samarah who solidified its decision, as she hurled another object, her aim true, striking the creature's tail with precision. However, the manticore retaliated swiftly, flicking its tail to send a barrage of sharp spikes hurtling toward her. Rin watched in horror as the spikes flew towards her friend's face, but she barely had time to react.
In a split-second decision, the girl activated a mechanism on her watch, and to Rin's amazement, a thick bronze shield materialized from the device, forming a protective barrier just in time. The spikes collided with the shield with a resounding clang, denting the metal with their force.
The distraction was enough for the manticore to refocus its attention on them, its predatory gaze locking onto Samarah. With a menacing snarl, it advanced towards her, and Rin knew that they had to act fast if they were to have any hope of defeating the creature. Without hesitation, she darted forward, her movements fueled by a combination of adrenaline and determination. With a swift slide beneath the creature's belly, she positioned herself directly beneath its gaping maw.
As the manticore opened its mouth to strike at Samarah, Rin seized the opportunity, driving Luke's sword upwards with all her strength. The blade pierced through the soft tissue of the creature's upper jaw, sinking deep into its flesh with a sickening squelch.
A guttural roar erupted from the manticore's throat as it recoiled in agony, its teeth dragging against Rin's forearms as it thrashed in pain. But Rin held her ground, her grip on the sword unwavering as she maintained her stance beneath the creature's towering form.
And then, in a moment of blinding light and deafening noise, the manticore exploded into a cloud of dust and ash, dissipating into nothingness before their eyes, but not before its tail connected with her shoulder, and pain shot through her, sharp and agonizing. The impact sent her reeling backwards with a groan, and she stumbled, her vision swimming as she fought to maintain her footing, the taste of blood filling her mouth as she struggled to catch her breath.
The atmosphere inside the bus was thick with tension and adrenaline, the lingering aftermath of their harrowing battle. Rin's breaths came in ragged gasps, her chest heaving with exertion as she tried to ignore the searing pain radiating from her wounded shoulder. She clenched her jaw, determined not to show weakness in front of her friends.
As they stood silently for a moment, the gravity of their situation began to sink in. They had narrowly escaped death, but the danger was far from over. The bus groaned and creaked around them, its damaged frame a stark reminder of the chaos that had unfolded moments earlier.
Rin exchanged a glance with Samarah and Luke, their eyes mirroring a mixture of exhilaration and shock. With great effort, she straightened herself, hoping to conceal the dark stain spreading across her shirt.
Samarah retracted her deformed shield into her watch with a strained squeal of metal, the sound echoing through the silent interior of the bus. She sniffed the air cautiously, her brows furrowing in concern as she detected the faint scent of engine oil lingering in the air.
"Engine oil is very flammable," she remarked, her voice low and urgent. "I don't know why we haven't gone up in flames yet, but we should probably get out of here while we still can."
With a sense of grim determination, she limped forward towards the exit, her movements stiff and laboured from the exertion of the battle. Luke followed closely behind her, his gaze flickering between Rin and the door as she trailed behind them.
As Rin reached the threshold of the bus, her foot poised on the last step, a sudden realization washed over her. With a furrowed brow, she paused, her gaze darting back towards her seat where her backpack lay wedged beneath the twisted wreckage.
From outside, Samarah's voice cut through the air, tinged with concern. "What's wrong, Rin?" she called out, her tone laced with urgency.
"I forgot something," Rin's words were barely audible over the creaking and groaning of the bus.
Both Samarah and Luke shouted at her in disbelief, their voices mingling with the ominous sounds emanating from the damaged bus.
"Are you fucking crazy?" they cried out in unison. "What could be so important?"
But Rin paid them no heed, her mind racing as she rushed back towards her seat. Ignoring the shrieking pain in her arm, she threw herself into the task of retrieving her backpack. Beneath the twisted metal and shredded leather, her fingers fumbled with the straps, struggling to find purchase amidst the chaos. There was something in there that Rin could not afford to lose, something that she knew she would not be able to survive without.
Outside, Luke moved to follow after her, his concern for her safety overriding any sense of self-preservation, but before he could take a single step, Samarah's hand shot out, grabbing hold of his arm with surprising strength. He followed her gaze to the wall of flames that had erupted where the driver's corpse lay, blocking the exit, and he blanched.
Meanwhile, inside the bus, Rin fought against the odds, her muscles straining with effort as she dislodged it, dragging it free from the wreckage with a grunt, but when she moved toward the doors, she found her escape thwarted.
Then her eyes fell upon the open window at the back of the bus that Samarah had cleared earlier and she sighed in relief. With practiced agility, she climbed over the edge of the window and dropped down onto the asphalt below. But her relief was short-lived as she landed with a painful thud, her injured shoulder bearing the brunt of the impact. She let out a sharp groan as she rolled onto her side, the minuscule bits of glass crunching under her as she tried to catch her breath.
Her friends' voices reached her ears from nearby, their frantic screams urging her to safety. Through the haze of pain, Rin managed to push herself upright, her muscles protesting with each movement. Samarah was the first to reach her side, her face etched with concern as she hauled her to her feet and toward the safety of the trees, away from the flaming vehicle, and the gaping throng of panicked onlookers and the previous occupants of the bus who had stayed behind to witness the aftermath.
"So," Rin hazarded a cautious smile, speaking before they could start lecturing her on recklessness. "Where in the world are we now?"
Samarah rolled her eyes, sighing, and Rin's eyes followed her gaze to the dilapidated green road sign that loomed a distance away, its faded letters spelling out the words: Amityville, New York.
"Great," Samarah muttered sarcastically. "Of all the places to end up at, we end up at the one known for its mass murderer."
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A/N: hope you enjoyed this chapter, abit more action-filled, although the scene changes were a pain to write lol.
As usual, don't be a ghost reader, comments/questions/even keyboard smashes are highly appreciated and really motivate me to continue writing so share your thoughts plz and thank u <3