Deceitful Hearts

Chapter 22

Heat rushed to my face from the nearing flames lapping at the remnants of the wrecked building scattered throughout the area, stressing me out a million times more as I shook my unmoving friend forcefully with trembling hands.  She fluttered her eyes open after a while of the action, lifting herself off of the ground and brushing off her bare knees below her purple skirt with Cheetah-like patterns.  Immediately, her gaze darted to Slate, and vibrantly colored guns formed in her hands, that she pointed in his direction.

Before I could stop her, she pulled the triggers on each weapon, forcing me to push myself in front of the lightning fast bullets, reflecting them off of my black scythe.  She had a skeptical look on her face as she placed a hand on one hip, confusion brimming in her eyes as she asked "Hailey, what the heck?"

I opened my mouth to reply, but I was interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice, followed by heavy panting "Hey, Neko girl!"

Turning my head around, I spotted Kane and Ashe sprinting towards us, one looking a lot more worn out then the other.  As Kane practically collapsed from the running he'd just endured, Ashe gestured towards the fire "We've gotten Kayde and Jayde away from here, but Luka and Cyrus are still missing, as well as your other friend"

I tilted my head, the thought immediately forming in my mind of how little time they'd managed to accomplish the task of finding my two Neko's and somehow discovering a safe place to keep them.  However, I didn't dwell on it, instead turning my attention to searching for my other missing friends as I instructed "Come on, we need to hurry!  Ashe, can you please take care of Slate?  Me, Jillian, and Kane can go looking for everyone else"

The red haired Canid nodded, his blank violet gaze turning to the crazed Slate as me and the others ran, each going in different directions.  I immediately went head-first into the fire, knowing it wasn't the most intelligent idea yet worried that one of them might be engulfed in flames as of right now.  Of course, I didn't actually go into it, but I got dangerously close, spotting a head of messy black hair.

Vibrantly colored flames lapped right beside the limp form of Cyrus, and I practically tripped over my own feet as I reached to grab him by the hood of his Panda jacket, pulling his unmoving shape backwards hurriedly.  The fire loomed horrifyingly close as I dragged him back with me, stumbling over the debris at my feet while attempting to support my friend best I could.  He stirred for a moment, but returned back to his original stillness, allowing me to hoist him on to my back in the spare time I had and break into a slow sprint.

However, as I ran forward, I noticed that Slate was retrieving several more bombs from his pockets, throwing them at a wide-eyed Ashe, who dropped to the ground to avoid contact with the dangerous weapons.  I felt Cyrus topple off of my back as I too, immediately pushed myself against the ground, surveying the scene through two worried blue eyes.  The expected explosion came more violently then the previous one, and I felt myself being forced backwards, grabbing ahold of Cyrus to shield him as we were practically blown away.

My vision flickered from black to the dull blue of the sky as I found myself in the air, the wind batting my face mercilessly as I smacked against the ground, feeling dazed from the hard blow that'd sent a sharp spark of pain throughout my head.  I let out a choked cry, feeling helpless as the blackness engulfed me, though I could've sworn that just before I'd lost consciousness, Kane flashed in front of me, but something was off.  He raised his hand, I heard an unidentifiable sound, and suddenly I found myself shrouded in darkness...

~

I awoke to a pulsing head ache and the sound of an eerily calm voice that sounded familiar to Kane's, prompting me to lift my head and blink tiredly at his form, eyes widening at what I saw.  His hands were wrapped around Slate's throat as he pushed him against the wall of the unfamiliar room we were in, whispering something incoherent.  Blood trickled down from the green haired Canid's mouth as he struggled, managing to knee his attacker in the gut with an inhuman growl.

Kane recoiled from the blow immediately upon impact, giving Slate time to leap backwards, his chest heaving painfully as he caught his breath.  However, the violet haired Canid in front of him raised his hand into the air, similar to what he'd done before I'd lost consciousness, and slowly closed it into a tight fist.  Slate's face twisted in pain and he curled in on himself as his body suddenly wracked with violent spasms, a pool of blood forming underneath his chin from the mouthfuls of the crimson liquid he spat out.

"Does that hurt?" Kane's voice was icy as he made several more hand motions that seemed to only increase the green haired Canid's pain, sighing as he added "Probably, but eh, who cares?  You practically did the same thing to us, correct?  I feel no remorse for you"

He snickered, though his voice held no humor as he added, sounding a bit odd "Listen, touch Ashe again, and I'll tear you to bloody pieces, understand?"

Slate allowed a growl to slip passed his lips, followed by a pained whine as Kane kicked him in the cheek roughly with the tip of his shoe.  I could feel myself slipping back into unconsciousness as I watched, a newfound fear for my supposed 'friend' welling up in my chest.

"Hailey..." A familiar voice prompted me to flutter my blue eyes open, catching sight of a shape standing in front of me "...This isn't the full extent of Kane's power... Hard times are coming, but you have the power to stop them... The next time we meet, I'm guessing it won't be very pleasant... But bare with me..."

Before I could reply, the figure who was obviously Leone, gently rested his hand on my shoulder, flashed me a reassuring smile, and vanished, leaving me in the endless darkness of my mind.