"Don't Be Next!"

- Chapter 14 -

"She's awake! She's AWAKE!"

Cleo heard someone shouting. Her head hurt. Her neck stung like fire. Cleo thought she recognized the voice... but everything hurt and it was hard to tell. Cleo slowly opened her eyes. She was in a soft white bed. People surrounded her bed. It took a moment to look over their worried faces and tell who they were. She sat up quickly, causing herself to flinch in pain. 

"Cleo!" Someone hugged her tightly, and Cleo hugged back, knowing at once who it was.

"Hi, Stress." Her voice sounded crackly and broken, "When did you get here? And, where are we?"

Stress let go of the hug. She looked down. "Um. Well. We're in a big house in the middle of nowhere?"

"Iskall is missing." Lizzie appeared from somewhere. Joel was at her side. "And Cub is badly injured."

"Iskall and Cub are here? You guys are here? Who else is here?" Cleo asked.

"Iskall isn't here. We-" Lizzie took a deep breath before continuing. "We think he's been taken by the Watchers."

Iskall yelled in pain as a Watcher broke their arm. The Watchers had been torturing them for days now. 

Your fault that you're here...

Iskall's head snapped upwards. They were alone in their cell, the Watcher had left. "Who's there?" They whispered quietly.

You could've left him...

"No," Iskall murmured. "No, I couldn't have left him. Grian is okay now... right?"

YOU would still be there...

"But Grian wouldn't be. He'd be here, being... tortured."

Who cares about him? After all, he broke your wings...

"Wings? I don't have-" Iskall cut short as the room changed before them. They were chained to the floor. The door creaked, and Grian entered the room.

"Grian! Thank goodness! Can you possibly unchain me?" Iskall asked, smiling.

Grian didn't respond. Instead, he just approached Iskall menacingly, and disappeared behind their back. 

"Grian?" Iskall asked, worried. They screamed in pain as bones on their back broke. Iskall turned to see Grian had snapped their wings- they had wings? - which were now a bleeding mess. 

The memory ended. Iskall lay, panting on the ground.

He broke your wings... The voice taunted.

"He did." Iskall said. They sat up and spread out their new black wings. "And for that he will pay."