It was burned into her head, the image of her brother screaming for her help.
She hadn't had visions or intuitions on where to go for a while, they kinda just started driving and not really caring where. She wondered if the universe had pulled them in the right direction, no it definitely did, because when she pulled up a map on her phone to get directions to Ocean Hill, they discovered they were only four hours away.
Now, they were only 10 minutes.
"Hold on, Todd. I'm coming." She muttered to herself. "We're almost there."
She hadn't once used the wand. Not once. She never figured she'd need it but right now she found herself frantically digging through the pages of Suzie's spellbook. Writing down any useful offensive spells on one arm and defensive on the other, not marking what they actually did but it didn't matter. She probably wouldn't have to use them... right?
They passed the sign she saw in her vision, just wait a little longer, Todd. We'll be there.
"We're here," Martin said. "Where do we need to go now?"
"Yeah! What do ya see, Boss?" Vogel asked.
"Right now?" Amanda said. "NOTHING!" She threw her head back against the headrest. "I can't see anything right now. What are we supposed to do?!"
"I think we're the ones supposed to be asking that one," Cross said.
"Well do you smell anything?" She asked.
"Nothi- wait... it smells like...." Martin growled lowly. The entire van fell silent for once. That was never good.
Panicked and flustered she turned around to see the rest of the boys sharing the same look on Martin's face. Anger and slight fear. But they were never afraid.
"Wha rong?" Beast tilted her head.
They were never afraid except when it came to...
"Blackwing." They all whispered.
"Your brother's a dead man drummer," Said Martin, his voice still low, his head shaking. "Especially if Icarus loves him. They can use him as bait."
"Todd is strong he'll-"
"Dead man."
"We have to try."
"Dead man."
"There's no use Amanda," Cross said.
"We're the Rowdy 3! We don't give up. We never fucking give up."
"You don't know what it's like there, Drummer," Gripps said.
"They starved us last time!" Cross added.
"They're cruel and they hurt you!" Vogel said.
Martin parked the van on the side of the road. "Amanda, we love you," He turned to her, hands on her shoulders. "And we won't see you get hurt. But sometimes there's a difference between being the Rowdy 3 and being suicidal. We can't just jump into this one."
"You put me in charge. I'm the leader now. We are going to-"
"No." They all said.
She was pissed, to be honest. Completely livid. Not just because they refused to help her brother, but because they were backing down. They never backed down. They were the Rowdy 3, they were fearless! But the fact that they refused to help her brother , that felt like a stab to the heart.
All she could think about was the image of him screaming for her help. He never did that. This was bad, this was different. And if they could see it they too would surely march into battle. But they couldn't, they couldn't see her thoughts. So she had to convince them.
And one memory resurfaced. A memory of a time when she was done. When she didn't want to push on. And these five words so easily changed her mind. After all, these boys, and Beast, were her family, they were just like her. These five words could change their minds on anything.
"It's just..." She looked at her lap and shook her head laughing.
"What?" They all looked at her.
And she slowly lifted her head with a mischievous glimmer in her eye. " I thought you were punk ."
Martin turned his eyes to the road ahead of them and swiftly moved his hand for the shift, yanking it back forcefully. "I am punk." He slammed on the gas, angrily revving the engine and causing the wheels to screech from under them. "Fuck you."
"THERE HE IS!" She gave him a hardy pat on the back. "YOU READY ASSHOLES?!"
"FUCK YEAH!" They raised their weapons of choice in a battle cry.
"FOLLOW THAT SMELL!"
——————————
"Come out Dirk, it would be so much easier if you just turn yourself in," Ken said, wandering aimlessly through the foyer.
"TODD, TINA, I FOUND IT!" He heard Dirk yell.
"There they are!" Ken pointed in the direction of his voice and the soldiers ran to the door and began slamming it down but it was stuck.
"Come on Icarus. No need to fight. You don't want your friends hurt, do you?" The door opened slightly to reveal a blue-green glow.
"Shit!" Ken yelled, he recognized that glow. "Keep pushing whatever it is out of the way, we don't have much time before-"
And the glow diminished.
The door finally opened with some effort to reveal an empty room. Well, empty of people.
"Damn it! God fucking damn it!" Just out of his reach. Always just out of reach. He was tired of this. This wild goose chase, this witch hunt. It felt pointless and maybe deep down he knew it was but he still refused to give up.
And to make matters worse he heard an engine. A loud one.
"WHOOOOO! " Martin screamed as he jumped out of the van and the rest joined.
"YAHOO!" Came from Cross as a laugh came from Vogel. Gripps just smiled.
"SA-HAVE DE BIBBIT!" Beast yelled.
"YIPPEE KI-YAY MOTHERFUCKERS!" Amanda took her bat to the headlights of one of the black military vans. The sounds of glass shattering and metal clanging as it was being pushed in was deafening.
Ken and the soldiers emerged from the door, weapons drawn. "Stand down," he motioned to them and began walking down the stairs. "Incubus!" He said arms outstretched like an old friend who hasn't seen them in a long time. They almost expected 'long time, no see' to follow but it didn't.
"Who the fuck are you?" Martin asked.
"My name is Ken Adams, I'm Friedkin's replacement, who was your old pal Riggins' replacement."
"Riggins ain't no friend of ours," Martin said. Cross and Gripps grunted in agreement
"YEA-" Vogel went to chime in but Martin extended his arm over his chest to tell him to stop. He backed off disappointed.
"Let's get down to business..." Amanda stepped forward. "Where the FUCK is my brother?!"
"Your brother?" Ken walked towards her, almost too close and Martin snarled.
"Todd." Her arm shifted to her pocket, ready to grab her wand. Ken took notice of this and backed off slightly. "Where the fuck is he?"
"Todd? He isn't here."
"I know you're lying."
"He isn't, that I can swear on." He crossed his heart, arms in the air.
"You're here for Icarus," Martin added. "He goes where he goes."
This time her wand drawn, "I'll ask again." The crystal tip began to glow. "Where." A step forward, "The fuck." And another one, "Is he?" Her wand pointed at him and the soldier's guns raised again.
"I SAID STAND DOWN," Ken yelled over his shoulder, arms still surrendered. They all obeyed. "He isn't here. We just showed up, they were in a room one minute, and then they weren't."
Her eyes widened as she lowered her wand and whispered, "Wendimoore."
"How do you know about Wendimoore?" Ken asked, causing her to raise her wand again. "What do you know about Wendimoore?"
"A lot. More than you ever will. Let us through." She had to get in and find the portal-wherever it was, if it was-and reactivate it. Even if it was just to send the rowdies through to retrieve them. She hoped she could do it herself.
"I'm afraid I can't do that."
"LET ME THROUGH! PROTESTOS!" The first spell that came to mind from her arm.
He froze in place, the soldiers drew their weapons once again but with a few more of the same spell, she paralyzed all of them.
She ran up the front porch, ran in, never minding the giant monster torn through the floor, she didn't have time for that, and she frankly didn't want to know what that was all about. She had to find the portal, open it, and find Todd.
Running through the halls, frantically checking every door. "TODD?! DIRK?! FARAH!?"
Completely ignoring the horrors that awaited beyond the numerous doors.
Nothing on this side.
"TODD! DIRK FARAH!" She ran across the foyer again, hopping over missing floorboards.
And then she saw it, an open door. She ran in.
All she saw was blown-out glass, a weird machine, papers, an IV pole and a tossed over cot by the door. There was dry (thank goodness) blood everywhere and her saving grace, a puddle of water in the corner.
She dove down and touched her hands to the floor in the puddle, focusing intently, searching for her brother when she saw him safely in Wendimoore on the other side of the portal. But she still had to check on him.
" AHHHHH !" The pain came sudden and fast, almost too much to handle, but she had to keep going. I am punk, I am punk .
Her eyes squeezed shut she could feel something pulling her downwards and quickly opened them to see the portal. "COME ON, I CAN'T HOLD IT MUCH LONGER!" She needed them to get through and get through now. But when she didn't see or hear them she lost focus and the portal disappeared. Shit ! She was about to go in again until she heard...
"Impressive show." Fuck, it's Ken. "How did you do that?"
She stood up and walked over to him. "Like I'd tell you, you asshole."
"And the bit with the wand, let me guess, Wendimoore?"
She flipped him off.
"How did you know Todd and Dirk were here?"
"He told me they'd be here."
"And you came all the way to Louisiana after they told you they were going here?" He scoffed. "Tell me the truth."
"That is the truth." This was ridiculous, how did he know she was lying? She wasn't going to ask that though, it would prove his point. Where were the rest of the Rowdy 3 when you needed them? Wait... where were the rest of the Rowdy 3? "Where are they?!"
"Where are who?"
"Where are my friends?!"
He ominously smiled. "I have them." Fuck. "And you seem important, I'm going to have you too." She went for her back pocket to grab her wand when two soldiers entered the room. She successfully grabbed it and looked over to her left arm for something more useful than freezing when Ken snatched it out of her hands.
"What the fuck, dude?!" He grinned and shook it between his thumb and pointer like a pencil.
And before he could dodge she moved closer and speedily and forcefully raised her Doc Martens to his balls causing him to collapse and drop the wand which she grabbed.
But before she was able to cast a spell the two soldiers grabbed her arms from either side and restrained her.
She swung herself forward and then back, slamming her foot on one soldier's toes and her elbow into the other's gut, not enough to make them fall over but enough to shock them into letting her go. "You guys are like, seriously ruining my beach day." She frowned sarcastically backing up.
She sensed Ken getting up from behind her. But before he could grab her wand again she punched him in the nose, hearing a satisfying crack as she drew blood.
"Let's try this again, BORA-" But she forgot about the soldiers behind her. Before she finished the spell, one of the soldiers raised the butt of his gun to her head and sent her into darkness.
——————————-
Amanda felt the bright lights shining through her eyelids sting her sore head that was being supported by a very shitty pillow.
She opened her eyes, looking at the plain white ceiling above, clenching her head, and realized her hair was down. What the fuck?
Slowly sitting up and looking at her surroundings, a plain white room with nothing but the uncomfortable bed she sat on. She looked at her legs, they were covered in a bulky grey fabric. She pointed her chin down to see she was wearing a grey jumpsuit with a magenta stripe across the bust and a square with a strange triangular symbol over her heart. No . This can't be...
"I see you're awake." Ken's voice blared over an intercom. "Welcome to Blackwing Amanda Brotzman. Project name, Chiron."
She looked up to the ceiling and yelled, "Why am I here? I'm not like them. I'm a normal human!"
"If you're such a normal human then how come you could use the wand that none of us can."
"I don't know, man! Let me out!"
"And it's not just that. We looked at your information."
"Oh no!" She brought her hands to the sides of her face. "Now you know my secret! I'm an alien with three asses from the planet FUCK OFF!"
"Says here you have a disease called 'Pararibulitis'. Runs in your family."
"Yeah, so?"
"We have reason to believe from past research that when exposed to a specific situation, individuals with Pararibulitis can experience anomalous phenomena. In other words Amanda, yes, you are like them. We just don't know what sets it off, that's what you are here for."