Codename: SSP-57

Chapter 6 (Revised)

I woke a short time later, my body aching. Sam sat over me, a concerned expression on his face.

"Thank god you're awake! I thought... I don't know what I thought, but I was scared that you weren't going to wake up before it started! I'm so sorry I didn't warn you earlier, I wasn't sure if she would do it, I thought she had given up! And then I went by your house and your brothers told me you took the horse to the woman, I tried to get here as soon as I could. I was too late, I'm so sorry-" I cut him off.

"You knew her?" I asked, trying to rub the fogginess out of my vision. We were in the middle of the woods, oak trees surrounding us on every side, their canopies blocking out the sunlight. Birds sang from the branches, totally ignoring the two teenagers on the ground below them.

"Uh, yeah, she uh, got me too. I was able to get away but I didn't know what to do afterwards. When I first met her she seemed like a nice lady, she had me help her with her garden. I was crouched down with my back to her weeding a patch of dirt, and she came up behind me and then stuck me with a needle. I-I was able to run halfway into the forest before I passed out. When I woke up next the pain of the change had already started." He was sitting back now his back against a tree, his elbows resting on his knees. His face was lowered and he was not meeting my eyes.

I sat up and scooted against a tree to hold myself up. I tried to process what Sam had said. My eyes were closed an attempt to ease the headache blaring inside my skull.

"What do you mean by change?" I asked him, opening my eyes to see his expression.

He didn't answer right away, his mouth opened and closed a few times like he was trying to find the right words. Just then, a searing pain shot its way through my body and I gasped as it rocked my entire frame. I doubled over holding my stomach as it seemed that that's where the pain was coming from. Sam was beside me in a flash, his concerned expression a little fearful now.

"This is the change. Emily listened me, you have to lay flat. Whatever you do don't curl up, don't move, don't try to get up. Don't do anything but lay there, trust me. It's going to hurt a lot more if you move. I'm so sorry, I tried to get to you before she did, I should've told you." I opened my mouth to tell him to stop apologizing, but another wave of agony rolled trough me, and I slumped to the ground, my body trying to curl in on itself. He pushed me further down into the dirt and held me flat as the pain exploded in my body yet again and I choked on a scream that was clawing its way out my throat.

My body felt like it was on fire, and blackness dance across my vision once again. My body fought him, wanting movement, but Sam's hands kept me firmly in place in the soft grass of the forest floor. I tried to kick him away and roll over but he pinned me down even more, with strength you wouldn't think a teen his size could possess. It was like a bodybuilder was sitting on my chest. The waves of pain came again, faster and with more ferocity. It felt like my bones and organs were rearranging themselves. I started to scream but Sam's hand clamped down on my mouth, smothering my cries, whispering more apologies and soothing words in my ear. After another wave hit, my vision went completely dark and I passed out.

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"Emily! Emily wake up! We have to go right now! Emily!" I felt myself being shaken by my shoulders. I moaned, my whole body ached; I felt as if I had been hit by a truck. I started to drift off, and again the voice was back, calling my name and telling me to wake up. I reluctantly peel open my eyelids, and I see Sam's haunted emerald eyes.

"Sam? What's going on?" I ask groggily. My limbs were heavy, and I just wanted to sleep.

"Oh good, you're awake! Come on, we have to go, now!" He said. His eyes were shifting around, watching the woods around us.

"What? Why, what happened-" I stopped as I remembered the events leading up to now. Shadow, Ariel, drugs the horrible, excruciating pain...

Sam pulled me out of my thoughts."Emily!" He said sharply, pulling me to my feet, "We have to go!" Then I heard it.

Off in the distance a short ways, was the baying of a tracking dog. I look towards the sound, and I see a person, a man from the stocky build, in full camouflage, his face covered, the long silver barrel of a rifle in his hand, and a blue-tick coonhound by his side. The duo spotted us, and the dog set off howling and sprinting towards us, and the man raised his rifle and shot. The bullet would have hit me in the shoulder, had my instincts not taken over and sent me flying behind the trunk of a nearby tree. Sam was beside me, and we shared a glance.

Without saying anything, we both took off running in the opposite direction of the man and dog. My body reluctantly moving to match the extremely fast pace Sam set. We dodged trees and leapt over fallen tree limbs and rock outcroppings. We tried to stick to trails, but sometimes had to run through the underbrush that scraped at our exposed skin. We startled a deer, and she took off running, at first in the same direction we were going, and that's when I noticed how fast we were really moving. We easily caught up to the running doe, who veered away to our right as we came upon her. I stumbled as I realized this, my foot catching a squirrel hole, sending me rolling.

Sam stopped and returned to me, helping me to my feet. We were both breathing hard, his hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat. We both held our breath as we listened for our pursuers. I could hear them, the baying of the hound showing their location. Judging by the sound, I figured them to be at least a mile away, since sound carries better under the trees. We were in a small clearing, no more than 10 feet in any direction the trees began again. Soft green grass grew beneath our feet, but besides Sam and I, no other living creature stirred. If I had been thinking properly, I would have known something was up.

"You alright?" Sam asked me once our breath returned.

I nodded. "Damn." I said. "We were flying! That shouldn't have been possible, we caught up to a damn deer!" I say, still keeping my voice low. "And, I shouldn't have been able to hear that guy's footsteps from that far away! I know I have good hearing, but that's not natural!"

"Listen, Emily, I'll tell you what's going on. That lady, Ariel, she..." He was cut off by the ringing of a gunshot through the valley. A dart hit Sam square in the chest and he stumbled, falling back. He ripped the needle out of his chest as he quickly got to his feet. I tried to help him when he stumbled again, whatever was in the dart was quickly taking effect. His eyes began to change, going from emerald to an amber color. He shoved himself away from me, landing on his hands and knees just as I felt a dart hit me in the shoulder. I fell to my knees, gripping to dart as hard as I could after I wrenched it out of my flesh. Looking up, I saw something I had only read about in books. In a few seconds, Sam went from being on his hands and knees to a large black wolf wearing the remains of his tattered clothing.

I didn't have time to process what I had seen because I felt myself begin to feel the full effects of the powerful drug in the dart. I crushed it in my grip, the small shards of the glass stinging my hand as it cut my palm.I saw the wolf, or Sam, stumble and fall into a heap of fur, completely still, save for breathing. My vision blurred, and I felt myself fall back into the grass. Right before I passed out I heard Ariel's voice say, "Thanks Jared."