Stellar Saviors

third chapter

   Looking back to the door, the hallway provided no answer. Power must be out entirely, power... my door. It stays locked through the power Maybe I could...

    Reaching for the knob, my senses screamed at me, even as I took hold of the cold silver. Twisting it entirely, the door pulled open. A shudder ran through me at the sight of the vacant hallway. Where we're all the Shakall.
    A shatter of glass echoed through the building, the sound of shades falling resonating in the dark. Glancing back I saw the window broke from the outside. I clutched onto the end of my sleeve and began to walk through the dark. The Golden One was bound to be in his office, right? He had to be he was just here.
     Goosebumps raised on the back of my neck as I continued forward. My shoulder bumped into a wall, my hand instinctively raising to glide against the surface.the surface. There was a concerning silence through the tower. Outside I heard muffled rumbling noises.
    I felt a change on the wall, a difference in pattern. A door. If I remembered, the Golden Ones office was all the way down the hallway. Three doors down from my quaters. I was getting close.
     A reverberating bellow stopped me. Froze me immediately. I was reminded of the forest monsters and my last encounter with them.

    26 years ago it was normal for me and the outside team to go in the forest. We would hunt for food to feed my people. To help my city.
   We would encounter wicked beasts. Monsters long mutated from their original forms. Animals.witj elongated and twisted limbs. Extra heads. Countless spikes. In the forest they'd hide and follow any source of sound. We did our best to keep away from the large mutants. Some days went better than others. The worse days ended with a member infected. Some of the beasts had this toxin in their claws that changed us if it entered our bloodstream.
    They all made different noises. Howls, screams, hollers. I forgot what they sounded like.
   That bellow, flooded me with memories.My men dying. dying. My team changing. Their bodies shriveling. Their screams. Memories better forgotten.
   My hand balled against the wall as I pushed myself upwards. I didn't realize I had leaned over in the first place. I looked forward again and pressed on. I had a feeling I was almost at the door now.
    I hear breathing. Heavy breathing.
    Press on, I told myself continually, My hand reached forward, grabbing at air until finally it wrapped around a door knob. I took a sharp breath in as I pushed against the door.

✧
     "A rabbit eats the greens, a coyote eats the rabbit ,then a bear eats the coyote," a dazed image of a teacher reflected in my memory.

   "So everything is eaten? "Another curious kid beside me questioned. I remember this lesson. I've never seen any of these animals before in all my life.

    "Not everything. It's called a food pyramid. The weakest is on the button and is the prey. The Strongest is above all, the hunter or predator," the teacher goes on to explain.

    "think of it as survival of the fittest, "another teacher butt in. "Those smart enough and strong enough to, will survive
The strongest however, will thrive."

    I learned there is no hope for the weak in early grades.
✧

     The Golden One was floating. No. Not floating. Just lifted. His feet desperately stretch for the floor.
    A stranger hid most of him from view. Who I would've believed to be a bulky human if not for the fur-pointed tail. There was a trickle of blue falling between the two. Then slowly the stranger began to turn.
    The reveal of a spear, lodged in the middle of the Golden Ones torso. A gasp escaped me. This got their attention.
   "Voice... Get help," The Golden Ones true voice pleaded. A croaky and weak tone. Half a growl half an actual voice. The strangers head turned to me, the glint of jewelry leading my eyes to squint.
    A hardened expression was on the man's face. A long horn pointed from his forehead. His hair fell and spiked in every direction, the color hard to tell in the dim light. Sharp ears stuck out to the side hidden under strands. Unidentifiable tattoos under his eyes, I don't know if they were a language or just swivels. His eyes reminded of the Shakalls, but unlike theirs, his held spheres of aque

   "Get. Help," The Golden One spoke once more, erupting in a fit of coughs as he curled forward. His hand reached to take a heap of the stranger's hair, pulling his head backwards.
    In the spur of the moment I tuned and ran down the hallway. My recollection of the building should help me in this darkness. But why am, I helping? The Shakall don't deserve it. Yet I still ran. A familiar bellow echoing behind me.
     I had to go to the stairwell due to the power, my feet thumping with each step. Halfway to the 2nd floor I heard the door I entered from slam open, tugging at my pulling heart. Stop running, the Shakall don't need help. You don't have to listen.
   I refused to listen to my own mind and continued down, holding an to the railing with all my trust. I felt a hard grip on my shoulder, pushing me forward. My cheek pressed against the cold wall
   There was another hand gripping my wrist. An uncomfortable tug pulled at my arm muscles as it was held behind my back. I could feel the heavy breath of the stranger on my neck, a quiet growl in each exhale.

    "we're... helping," A deep voice hushed as I was slowly turned around. With both my wrists in his grip now he kept them pressed to the wall. The blue flow barely emitting enough light to show his face. His eyes glow. How curious.
     I saw deep bags shaded under his eyes, emphasized by the faint glow. Like the sky, it was a soothing blue. His face was squared, tension in his jaw as he looked down at me. My head, I noticed, was tilting to the right as I stared up at him. How was I supposed to respond, what could I even say?
    Yeah I ran cause you were killing the Golden One. I ran cause I was told to. I ran because my intentions were to help the Shakall. Why did I run?
    One of his hands reached up, letting my wrist go. A claw extended from one of his fingers as it came up. Then slowly he scraped from my bridge all the way down to the tip of my nose. It left a cold feeling in its path, bringing goosebumps to my skin. He leaned in, strands of his hair falling against my cheek.
    "Don't run anymore," That Voice spoke again, a quiet echo ringing through the stairwell. A wave of unease rushed through me, his hand releasing its remaining grip. Quick numbness flooded my body and I could feel myself toppling over. The blue flow was all I could focus on as I collapsed to the side. A harsh hand catching the back of my head. He didn't speak again, not as I lost consciousness. The aqua burned into my vision.