Deadly Quartet

Chapter 2

Azae’s Point of View

A loud thud wakes me from my deep slumber. Opening one eye and pulling my head out from under my wing, I scan the room but see nothing. I open both eyes now and, peeking under my wing, look at the trio who are still dozing under my wing. Fuji and Kavita are curled together, so they almost seem to blend into one being. Rodent has calmed down so much in his sleep that his spikes have almost fully retracted and he looks almost like a large and lengthened kitten. I listen more intently and I can actually hear him purring slightly, the sound mixes with Kavita’s loud purring and Fuji’s rumbly snoring. Their soft noises create a gentle thrum, pulsating in the air. Sounding to me like life itself.

I begin to doze off again, when I hear another louder thud. Snapping my eyes open I ease my head out from under my wing and stretch my neck and head out of the room into the living room. I hear someone shuffling around in the kitchen, then a loud bang followed by a muffled curse.

I pause for a moment and cast a short sleeping spell on the trio who are by my side, making sure they aren’t disturbed.

Narrowing my eyes, a growl escapes from deep in my throat as I scoot out of the room slightly, just enough not to do any harm to the walls, but so I can get a good look around. The noise in the kitchen stops suddenly and time seems to stand still. A shadow passes over the hallway floor and a hooded figure slowly steps out in front of me. They take a slow step toward me and I growl again, pulling one forearm out of the room and flexing my claws. The tension between us rising and straining like a cord that’s ready to snap. The stranger takes another step, and I dip my head, snarling at them, raising my clawed hand slightly, ready to strike out if need be.

They take three quick steps and I lash out quickly with my hand, but am stopped suddenly by a great force. I snarl more loudly and snap at them with my teeth, but they’re just out of reach. Unexpectedly I can’t move my head and neck anymore either. I’m forced to stare into their hidden face. Furious I struggle to fight against their hold on me, but they only laugh…a familiar laugh.

Retreating into my thoughts, I realize that they don’t have a hold on my mind. I extend my thoughts to the masked figure and hit a thin barrier when trying to enter their mind. Using my newly-mastered powers, I fight against their magic and they panic when they realize what I’m attempting. In their moment of shock I invade their mind. I pause however, and decide to give them a chance to tell me who they are before I roam their memories for information.

“Who are you? What are you doing here?” I rumble at them, speaking to them through my mind.

“It seems like you should know me better than that…Autumn,” they huff at me sarcastically, their voice obviously male.

I growl menacingly, pressing into his thoughts harder, I feel him wince, “Who are you and how do you know my alter-name?”

“Because I know all about you, Gretchen Autumn Halvard, or as you prefer to be called, Azae Luna Skular,” he chuckles at me with devilish amusement.

“I’m going to ask you one more time, and only once more, who are you?” I rumble, infuriated.

“Go ahead and search my memories, it won’t bother me, you helped create them after all,” he laughs quietly, “I can’t believe you don’t remember me, I guess you really did block out all your memories of me.”

Exasperated, I delve into his memories, but I don’t find one, one finds me. A young guy and girl are walking down the street, hand in hand with their backs turned to me. I can’t hear them, but I think they’re laughing. The girl turns her head and I realize that she…is me.