Key to Safe Haven

-Chapter 3-

                                                                                         ~.~

"Vampires!" The man screamed again. I ran harder and faster then I have ever ran before, dodging all the willows that guarded the path. My hands were getting sweaty in Kentori's grip, but I still managed to hand on. It hurt- my legs were aching and my face was smacked by the low-hanging branches of the trees.

"Minian!" Odrin yelled; he was holding onto Lily's small hand.
He waved us over to the crisp grass fields, and I bolted the couple of feet that separated us. Once Kentori and I finally got a chance to rest, Odin grabbed my hand harshly.

I looked at him with pleading eyes and he tried to grasp the right words to explain the situation. Opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water, he finally managed: "Let's go." It was all he managed to get out before hauling the three of us across the fields, keeping his solemn face pointed forward.

Looking at the man, I could tell that he was as scared as we were. His brows were set, digging a deep crease in his forehead and his jaw was locked, not to mention he was drenched in sweat. This was probably from running to get us.

My gaze started to trail off to the right, though I regretted it. Shifters screamed while running for their lives across the blood covered fields. A huge bat like creature clamped onto a man's back with it's freakishly long talons.

It ripped the flesh off of the mans back while he howled a blood curdling scream. The attack had left nothing but shreds of muscle clinging to his spine. The monster dug his claws deeper into the wound and ripped out any muscle it could find.

The man fell dead, and the creature stood on the his mangled corpse. My eyes widened in fear as I took in it's features, clear as the day. It's face was like a wolf, except for the bat-like ears and nose. The wings loomed behind it's back, showing how large they were.

They were big, and strong, coloured red and black. Every inch of the body was covered in black fur, matted with fresh blood.

My mouth dropped as I watch the animal lower down and grip the man's head, twisting it with a loud 'crack'. It held it up in the air and let the crimson liquid drip into it's mouth.

I gagged at the gruesome image; he must have heard because his ears and bright yellow eyes turned in our direction.
"Don't look Minian!" Odin ordered as he pulled me forwards.

The creature crouched down on all fours and growled in our direction, it's wings fully expanded in their glory. Then it started leaping from rock to rock, closing in on us quickly.
Kentori screamed, closing her eyes tightly, while I took a deep breath and did the same.

I waited for my death to come like it had many others. But instead of death, I heard a whimper. I opened my eyes.
A young man with knotted blonde hair and brown eyes that betrayed his fear was in front of us, holding a long, think bamboo pole. In front of him, the creature whimpered and rubbed it's head with it's huge black paws.
Odin stopped his running and looked at the man with fear, and we halted as well, looking at the man with sadness.
"Samual!" Odin yelled, gripping on my hand.
"Go!" He yelled over his shoulder, "Take the children with you, Odin!"
The creature seemed to regain its strength suddenly, and it leaped at Samual with renewed force. He countered the attack with the pole, holding and pushing away the sharp teeth that snapped at him.
"Samual, come on!"
"GO!"
Odin looked hesitant, taking one last look at the young man before grimacing and running away with us once again.
"Will he be okay?" Lilly breathed.
Odin kept silent for a bit but then nodded.
"I hope so," he said bitterly, fully aware that Samuel had little chance of surviving. Our breaths quickened as our pace picked up. My heart was racing, pain shooting through my chest.
"Ah!"
I looked behind me and found that Lilly had slipped. I stopped abruptly alerting Odin and Kentori. I let go of Odin's hand and took a look around to see if there were any vampires. Once I saw that the cost was clear, I scurried over to the blonde.
"Are you hurt?"
Lilly looked down; her knees were scratched and covered in dirt and blood.
"A-A little."
"We have to keep moving." Odin stated, and I nodded, reaching my hand out to her.
She nodded and took my hand, letting me gently pull her to her feet. "Let's go."
"It shouldn't be too long till we- AHHH!"
"ODIN!"
A vampire jumped onto him and Odin fell to the ground with the monster following. The black creature gave a deep chuckle and bit into his shoulder, making blood spurt into the air. My eyes widened as his scream pierced our ears.

Lilly and Kentori screamed as well, frozen in fear. I looked around quickly for anything that could help while the vampire licked the blood off his body. Nothing around us would be of use, so I had to go to my last resorts. I ran and jumped on top of the creature with a war cry, pushing it off the wounded Odin.

We tumbled onto the ground and fought for dominance. Finally, the animal pinned me to the grass and growled at me. I stared at it, not with fear, but amazement.

It's eyes were blood-red and strangely captivating. It quit snarling and looked at me with interest. It lowered its head and took a small whiff at my neck making me wince and close my eyes. It's eyes widened in amazement, making me more afraid than I had been before.

It held my shoulders with it paws and looked at me with some sort of desire. A puff of smoke surrounded me, and I coughed and wheezed while trying to escape its grasp. Once the smoke cleared up, I found that towering over me was a young man.

With long, black hair that was tied back in a loose, low ponytail. His skin was pale, almost white, and his eyes were an entrancing blood-red. he was dressed in a white outfit.

I then held my breath, afraid that one movement would end my life. He smirked at my helpless state and lowered down near my neck with his fangs displayed. I turned my head the opposite direction and closed my eyes as his long, black nails dug into my slender wrists.
"Minian!" Odin screamed, before taking his backpack and hitting the man off me.

He jumped on top of the vampire and straddled him while raising a knife above his head, plunging it into the man's chest. The vampire screeched in pain and Odin got off of him and swung his backpack on, throwing me on top of his shoulder.
"We're almost there! Hurry kids!"

Lilly and Kentori took one last look at the vampire only to see that he was gone; they started to run after us.
"Is he dead?" Kentori asked softly, hope evident in her tone.
"No, just wounded. It takes a lot more to kill those abominations."
"They're monsters." Lilly whimpered.
"Yeah." Odin stated, he placed me on the ground and groaned.

"Your shoulder!" Lilly screamed.
"It's okay! Keep your voice down, you will attract more attention." He then crouched down to put away his knife.
"D-Do you have any supplies that can help your wound?" Lilly asked while holding her hands to her chest flashing her worried eyes at him.
Odin zipped up his pack and shook his head, "I wish, but don't worry. We're here."
Kentori cocked her head. "Here?"
He nodded and pointed to the flowering field. The grass was tall and there were many different colored flowers carpeting the area. We gave him a confused look. He smirked and walked up to a big yellow flower.
"That's just a flower." Lilly stated.

He chuckled at her statement and held his fist out. He then knocked three times on one of the flower's petals.
"What are you doing, Mr. Charles? "
"Watch." We looked closely at the flower. At first, it seemed nothing would happen, but then yellow and white dust puffed out from the middle. We coughed and covered our eyes with our arms. The dust swirled around us, sparkling in the sunlight. It rose into the air and we were able to get a good look at what was happening.

The dust formed a huge wall before disappearing, revealing a big, royal blue door that was engraved and detailed in gold. Our eyes widened in amazement and Odin, holding his wounded shoulder, chuckled at our reaction.
"This is.... Amazing!" Lilly yelled while throwing her arms into the air.
"This is what I get to do everyday, for my job." He snickered.
"..so cool." She muttered to herself. I walked closer to the door and placed a gentle hand onto the cold wood. The rest of the glitter and dust vanished. "Amazing." I thought aloud.
"This is what will get us out of here."
"How?" Kentori asked.
He smirked at the ravenette and all of the sudden the huge doors started to open, screeching in protest.
Our eyes widened with the sight of what- or rather who- was inside.

"Welcome to the Between!"

~.~