Unstoppable: Revitalized

-39-

And there they are.

Poppy's monster stood, armless but still alert, as we walked in, slamming the door behind us. It hissed for a moment, creating some space and swinging a claw out. To my surprise, my creature caught it, pulling it towards us, before slicing down, removing it instantly. It made no noise as it let the arm drop, now completely defenceless.

'Surrender. Allow me to make this easier for us both. You are not supposed to be. You were made from an incomplete Deoxyribonucleic acid strand. You are inferior in every way.' I heard through my new ears as the other creature clamped the air, still clearly ready to bite it's way through us.

'You are to be eliminated. I will show you perfection.' Poppy's monsters' voice echoed in my own mind as it lunged towards us, jaws open wide. Again, we remained motionless until the last second, as my monster raised it's hands, claws extended, allowing our opponent to perfectly skewer their face into it, sinking it's way into what felt like the chest of the beast. Poppy's mangled face soon ripped itself out, seething with hatred as it once again sized me up, seemingly uncaring about the dotted parts of green flesh caking it's face. It leaped again, one arm wide, yet we stood firm, slicing against it. It flapped against the floor, Poppy's creature now looking defenceless. I tensed my legs and ran at it, slamming it down and burying my hands into it's chest, my own hands beginning to spread it's claws outwards, effortlessly cutting through bone, flesh, and tissue as Poppy's monster collapsed to the floor, taking coarse and raspy breaths as we knelt by whatever was left of it's head.

'You may want to close your eyes, Adam. This part is not pleasant.'

I obliged, keeping my eyes firmly shut as I felt our arms move at a rapid pace, the sound of flesh being cut and bone being scraped consuming my mind, each snip and crack only succeeding in making me want to open my eyes just that little bit more. The sounds cut instantly, our body rising as I felt the shift from animal to mammal happen, my coarse body re-emerging from the darkness.

'You can open them now, if you wish. I have removed all trace of the inferior creation.' 

I found Poppy, sitting on the floor, chunks of the creature all around her as she laid bathed in it's blood. Her eyes were wide as her arms seemed to dig into her sides. As I got closer, I noticed she was drawing blood, as small rims of red surrounded her fingers as she let the colour slowly drain from her. I crouched in front of her, taking her hands and holding them in mine. Her eyes seemed soulless as she stared past me, unblinking and monotone. I took a seat, trying to reach her, part of me scared, the other part concerned. 

"Poppy? It's me, Adam. Talk to me. Come on." I spoke softly, not wanting to shake her, but she continued to stare ahead, her face and body rigid. I waved a hand in front of her, trying to see if she was awake enough, and it seemed to snap her into life: Her hands suddenly stopped, wrapping themselves around my throat and squeezing tight. I raised my own to try and rip them off, but she had an iron grip on me, my scratching soon becoming impossible as my body flailed and panicked. I couldn't even speak to my stowaway as I feebly attempted to punch her, the sides of my eyes already starting to succumb to the darkness.

I'm going to die. Again. What if The Boss smashes his way in here and I'm down? No. Fight back Adam. Don't you dare give up on these people.

I'd started to feel the numbness of death creep into my chest when a sudden crack shook me, hands almost immediately loosening as my back felt the brunt of a fall. A slow, yet constant thud filled my ears as I took deep breaths, my body filling itself with oxygen as it flushed the dizziness and confusion away, the redness in my cheeks spreading as I greeted whoever came to save me.

"So, you shot her?"

"No, I used a taser Adam. I'm not a monster."

Callum was sat downstairs with me at the kitchen, both of us enjoying the coffee we wanted at the start of the day, our hands practically clamped around our mugs. Callum looked a little shaken, and my shirt was torn, but my body seemed to have fixed itself well, and a lot quicker too. I felt a strange sense of peace after taking a few sips, letting the caffeine buzz it's way through my body as I refocused on Callum.

"-walked in there, and there was Poppy, strangling you. I could see in her eyes she wasn't thinking clearly, so I used a taser to put her down for a while. I'll see how she is when she wakes up. In the mean time, change clothes and head to school. We need to keep suspicions low. The Boss definitely knows your here, but he doesn't know that that... thing is awake." I saw Callum shudder slightly as he took a sip. He pulled a smoke out of his pocket, clearly making a move to head outside.

"Smoke in here. I'll end up doing it too eventually." I gestured to the table, which he calmly sat back down at. I headed towards a cupboard around the back, digging through it until I found my Dad's old ashtray, putting it on the table. To my surprise, Callum threw a fresh packet across the table, which I ripped open, fishing out a cigarette I lit, letting the tobacco melt it's way through me.

'Adam, I sense a chemical attack. Are we in danger?'

'No, I'm smoking.'

'Alas, I will purge these toxins, all beside one. It allows a lightweight feeling upon me, and I rather enjoy it.'

'Me too bud. It's why I do it.'

"Thanks, Adam." I watched Callum crack yet another genuine smile as I checked my phone, noting how quickly time had gotten away from me.

"Hey, Callum, How long have you had-"

"The whole time, kid. I didn't trust you at first, now it's for self-defence. Get changed, school's going to start soon, and I'm walking in with you."