A/N: Above is the photo of Ty. Tho I imagined him a bit younger and chubbier XD
***
After launching the ship's booster, the group gained enough distance to prepare for an all out war. Along the way, Zoe found herself wearing Krista's spare clothes. The older girl claimed that it was her old hunting gear, a black tank top and leather pants, which were too fitted for her taste. She was also forced to be separated from her pink fluffy slippers and wore hunting boots, and somehow, it felt just like her Timberland boots. She expected a brief battle plan meeting just like from movies, but it never happened. Everyone moved as though it was an everyday occurrence and she never felt so lost.
"Keep firing!" Darcy yelled above the harrowing voices of monsters.
"I know!"
Zoe pressed the trigger and magic roared beneath her skin. White lasers shot from the human-sized gun, hitting two monsters at the same time. The creatures struggled to stay afloat but quickly disappeared below the veil of clouds. Before she could do a happy dance, four more took their' place.
"But these... these maggots--"
"Juggernaut," he supplied.
"Juggernauts keep poppin'! And now they're targeting us instead of those fishes--"
"Sirens."
"Fine! There's just too many of them. If this continues we would soon be overwhelmed."
"That's why you should keep shooting them."
"I already know that!" Her cheeks changed to the bright hue of red as her patience dangerously tip-toed to the edge. "If you keep reminding me every minute I might accidentally shoot you!"
"Then focus on your side."
"That's what I've been doing!" she hissed and hit another creature. "You're the one who should focus on your side! You did nothing but pry!"
She heard him chuckle and chose to vent her irritation on the Juggernauts.
Controlling the gun was easy enough. It was as simple as playing a shooting game with a three hundred sixty degrees wide screen. According to Darcy, the weapon was designed to release the same power supplied by the controller. The more power channeled to it, the stronger the damaging power. However, for some unknown reasons, not a single weapon responded to her.
The young man reassured her that the power residing inside her must be dormant from not being used since birth and it would take time before she could wield it with her own will. Yet, something so unsettling stirred inside her. She had been in a situation like this and she knew far too well when someone was hiding something from her.
What could Darcy be hiding?
"This kind of behavior is rare for Juggernauts."
She blinked twice and licked her drying lips, unable to pick up his words. "What did you say?"
"They usually hunt in groups," Darcy continued, shooting monsters better than a hunter. "And from the looks of these number, it's like the whole herd is after us."
After he came into her life, everything turned for the worse. Her greatest nightmare trespassed in their mansion and ate her. She had witnessed ghastly scenes that would surely haunt her for days. And now, she was thrown into a battle of goose-chase. Even though she was glad to do heroic things and discover unimaginable places, deep inside her, there was one thing she knew she could never give--her life.
To put her life on the line to save the world she never knew existed seemed like a martyr's job.
If they knew her real feelings, would they still consider her as their heroine?
"Zoe!" His alarmed tone cut through her thoughts. "There are too many Juggernauts on your side!"
"I'm already on it!"
She shifted the control, aiming the weapon to her left. The borrowed power from the ship hummed at the tip of her fingers, it was so intense that her goosebumps were going bonkers. Without mercy, she shot one monster after another, sending the gargoyle-like creatures to their deaths. But no matter how many times she blasted her enemies from left to right, more kept coming. The increase in level was just too fast than her normal games back home.
However, that just made things more fun.
"Ty is going to assist from the deck." Darcy sad, firing at his enemies like there was no tomorrow. "Focus on the ones getting closer to the ship."
Zoe felt the urge to shout "Aye aye, Captain!" just like how she used to when playing with her brothers, but she decided to swallow the temptation and focused on being cool. She needed to collect a lot of life threatening events like this, so she could boast to her brothers and watch their jaws drop.
A faint green glow caught her attention. It soared and ripped through the wings of distant enemies. It was fast and seemed to be more effective in immobilizing the Juggernauts. She flashed it a quick glance, catching the fact that it wasn't a bird. Instead, it was a set of five arrows arranged to bear form of a much bigger arrow. It flew as if it was guided by someone.
Could it be the aid Darcy was talking about?
The sight amazed her in many ways. She had been into world class plays, but nothing felt more magical than this. Simply watching it made her curious of how many more tricks they had on their sleeves. Maybe she would learn those someday and show it to her brothers.
The ship moved slower every second, allowing the night breeze to gently blew on her face. It brought a cooling sensation as it touched the dribbling sweats on the nape of her neck, as though a ghost was whispering on her back. It was refreshing until a foul odor lingered in the air.
Her stomach was tempted to do another revolt, good thing she had nothing to throw up. But her thoughts kept derailing for it was much worse than the scent of burning meat, something so old as though it was decaying for ages. And it continued to thicken as the flock of predators surround their dinner.
The stench of death, she thought.
But how did she knew that?
Her gazed focused on the creature before her, it resembled the gargoyles she saw during their visit at the church of Notre Dame in Paris. A color paler than the moon coated their skin, matching the grotesque structure of their body. It wore the muscular figure of a man, accompanied by long arms designed to catch their preys with sharp talons.
One would mistake it for a human bat, however, its face told a different tale.
It had the horns of the devil and eyes as plain and murderous as a clean sword. Its jaw remained unhinged, showing a row of jagged teeth, made more uncanny by protruding canines on the side of its upper and lower lips--something that would definitely skewer its victims. The name "Predators of the Sky" fitted them. Just hearing the sound of their strong wings made her knees tremble.
Then the ship shook with tremendous tremor.
***
Dedicated to KhreiziMhufin
***
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Fantasy|Book#1|Chronicles of Mamoria| A story that was forgotten by history. A secret kept for hundreds of millennia. A dark heart sheltered by the light. A young prince who gave up his pride to protect his people. And a teenage girl who was destined to lo...
