Mutations

Mutations: ~ Chapter Forty Five ~

Mutations:

~ Chapter Forty Five ~

The air hurt to breathe in.

A bright glare cut into my eyes, making them burn. I had to cover them with my arms whilst Eric guided me forward, I was too awestruck to function at the cocktail of delicious scents; the one I missed the most was the richness of the earth, rain watered dirt as fresh as could be.

The sweetness that clung to the bark on the trees that towered above us, feathered with withering feathers of mustard yellows, mahogany reds, and browning greens. Like a giant canopy above our heads that was falling to pieces. Shadows crisscrossed over the leaf laden ground, like an exquisite lace pattern.

The dying season; I loved fall.

"Finally." Two shut his eyes, tilting his head back so that the hazy glow of the sun fell over his face. His broad shoulders instantly relaxed as he inhaled greedily, "Hell, I missed this."

I thought Two would look younger in the natural light but it was the opposite. His features seemed to grow more stoic and severe, I watched the relief slowly melt from his face, and turn his eyes critical as they analysed our surroundings. Already, the brilliant novelty of the outdoors wore off on him and now he was in alpha mode.

I couldn't help but inhale with every passing second, loving every moment of the scent of the sap that came from the trees. The nose tickling freshness that came from the flowers, and even the edginess of the wild growing grass. Above it all, I loved the smell of the dying leaves the most.

"What now?" Two turned to the mentors, staring at them expectantly. Cutting short the joyous whoops, Five was hollering in the distance as he blurred from one direction to another, "We can't stay here. It's not safe."

Three was unusually quiet, it wasn't until I noticed how he was trailing his fingers over the exposed roots of an old tree that I saw how entranced he was. His eyelids were closed as he took in the touch of freedom, my heart broke that he couldn't see what we could. Three could only sense but sometimes, the desire to see was overpowering.

I could sense how badly Three wanted to see; we all could.

"The woodlands stretch out for miles." Three cleared his throat gruffly, standing abruptly to his feet. His hands were curled into tight fists by his side, and I bit my lip to keep my mouth shut, "Don't, Six." He said quiet enough, just for me to hear.

Ripper made a purposely loud humming noise and nodded his head in vigorous agreement, "Oh, yes they do." He sighed dramatically, and I watched as he clasped something around Zero's wrist. She didn't object but just stood obediently, her own eyes wide with amazement but tinted by fear, "If only one of us knew exactly where we were, and even had scheduled transport...oh wait!"

Eric cast him an un-amused glance, his anger barely being contained with each word he spoke, "This is not one of your games, Ripper!" He hissed replacing the clip on his gun with ease, "And we don't have time to play."

"I can assure you," Ripper started to say slowly, too preoccupied as he fasted the bracelet around Zero's wrist. He was simultaneously checking her pupils and her pulse at the same time, it was only then that I noticed how green she looked, "That this is not one of my games, friend. I mean, my games are fun but this...this is just plain stressful."

My initial amazement started to fade as the dread set in. We were, as beautiful as it was, in a dangerous environment that exposed our vulnerabilities in every way, and right now we were as good as sitting ducks in an open shooting range.