Heroes (On Hold)

Chapter 9: Sparky and the Huntsman

I stared in shock up at the girl pinning me to the rooftop with supernatural strength. It was definitely Tiffany, but... not, at the same time. Her eyes, once a deep brown, now blazed with a luminescent green, and her voice had a strange echo to it- like many people were speaking through her at once.

"Where is the other?!" She screeched, shaking me and slamming me against the ground. "We will find you, no matter what!"

"Who the hell is we?" I asked, struggling against her grip to no avail. She didn't respond, instead knocking me again against the rooftop, hard enough that I saw stars.

Suddenly, she reeled back, crying out in pain. I didn't know what to do- I didn't know what had caused her so much pain.

"Sparky! Move!" A voice called to me through the shock.

I snapped back to attention, realizing this was my chance to escape her grip. I wrenched myself free of her grasp, pulling up my feet and kicking her hard on the chest as I did so. She fell backwards, and I didn't hesitate to encase her hands and feet in stone. I noticed an arrow protruding from her thigh: the source of my escape.

"This changes NOTHING! We will find you, and when we do, we will kill you!" She screamed at me with that other worldly voice, her eyes glowing entirely with that unnatural light.

"Thank you," I breathed earnestly to the mysterious archer. As I turned, however, I noticed another arrow leveled at Tiffany's neck.

"NO!" I cried out. Before I could stop it, the arrow released from that strange bow. I threw out a hand, as though I could stop it- and the arrow disintegrated into ashes. "This isn't her! Something is wrong with her!"

The archer turned to me sharply. "She almost just killed you. As far as I'm concerned, that makes her an enemy." Another arrow flew. Another crumpled into ash.

"Would you please stop that?"

"No. Not until you stop trying to shoot her. We have a bigger problem right now," I argued, making a point of frying another flock of birds.

The archer heaved a sigh. "...Fine. If you want to let her live, that's your call. Just as long as it doesn't come back to bite me." A gloved hand pointed toward a small, nondescript building. "Every flock seems to be centering around that building just before they dive bomb the city. My guess is that they're being controlled somehow by someone inside."

"I hope those birds scratch your eyes out," Tiffany hissed sadistically behind us. "I hope they destroy you like you almost destroyed me."

I ignored her. "I can take out the controller if you can handle the birds. People- and animals- deserve free will. Anyone who takes that away is someone I have a personal vendetta against."

The cloaked figure gave a short nod, answering in a voice distorted by some sort of hidden machine. "Of course. They won't see me coming until there're arrows in their chests. Quick request though, before you go-" The archer held his- his? her?- strange bow out to me. "Would you mind giving this a good zap with that lightning of yours? My charge is running low."

I gave the figure a confused look. What kind of bow needed to be charged? Regardless, I channeled a bolt of lightning into the polished silver of the weapon. When I removed my hand, faint sparks leapt spontaneously from the excess electricity.

I turned to Tiffany. "I'll deal with you later."

"See you on the other side," I saluted the archer, stepping on to the rooftop's edge.

I was answered with a chuckled, "Later, Sparky." I shook my head at the silly nickname (Sparky? Not very original.) and stepped off the building into the open air. Catching myself on a strong air pocket, I made my way to on open window of the featureless building. Checking to be sure the room was empty, I slid through the opening and into a completely vacant space.