The Excalibur Chronicles: Camelot Rising

Chapter Four - The First Battle

CHAPTER FOUR – The First Battle

The skin of the nurse’s body rippled and began to change into a more feline form as she pounced. Arms became front legs, with long, sharp claws, sleek grey fur replaced skin, and her head pulled back and morphed, lengthening into a feral set of teeth that were going for Veronica's throat. But the girl moved faster than Adam would have ever believed possible, diving out of the way and grabbing his arm, pulling him along. They were out of the door and into the hallway in mere seconds.

The creature – or skin-walker as Veronica had called it - was hot on their heels. It leapt out of the room, skidding on the linoleum floor, banging into the wall before righting itself and chasing after them. Adam didn't dare look back; he let his bare feet carry him, pounding against the ground hard and fast through the deserted corridor.

He could feel it gaining on them and it was at that moment that Veronica turned and threw her fist out behind her, like she was throwing something. Sure enough, a moment later the creature yelped and crashed into a supplies trolley like it had taken a blow to the chest and rolled over itself into a heap. They didn't stop to watch it pick itself up again.

Veronica pulled him down the nearest flight of stairs, only looking back once to a worrying sound that was growing louder by the second; a terrible hissing noise that made Adam's skin crawl. 

"Run!" she urged. "Keep going!"

He didn’t argue with her. 

They reached the reception area in no time, ignoring the looks and shouts of surprised people, wondering why on earth one of the patients was bolting through the hospital. Adam wondered if they should warn them, but Veronica made no sign of slowing down, her face set with grim resolve.

Out on the street, the cool breeze hit Adam and he shivered. He was starting to wish he’d gotten his clothes on before the skin-walker attacked. Besides his feet burning from the stones underfoot and his cold legs, the gown wasn’t the most practical of clothes. A drizzle so fine that it felt as if they were sprinting through clouds coated his exposed skin and began to dampen his hair. His lungs burned from exertion but Veronica wasn’t stopping.

“We need to get out of sight,” she muttered, more to herself than to him.

“But shouldn’t we warn people? I mean, can other people see that thing?” Adam panted as they weaved through the crowds. Veronica didn’t answer him. Instead, only seconds later, he heard breaking glass and after that, shrill screams filled the air.

He took that as a yes.

Looking over his shoulder as he ran, he saw that the skin-walker had burst through the facade of the hospital and taken the form of a large serpentine creature with thin reptilian limbs. It dug its claws into the brickwork of the building and was using it as a roost to scan the crowds. Shattered glass rained on the people below. Eventually, its yellow eyes narrowed into slits and its mouth curled up into a wicked, toothy smile. It continued to climb the building, slithering up the bricks until it reached the roof and, ignoring the cries of the Londoners below, unfurled a pair of sickly yellow wings and dove straight for Adam.

Veronica was there before it could grab him. She pushed him to the ground and braced herself, holding her arms up, palms towards the creature. Whatever she was doing worked; the creature had to pull out of its dive with a screech. It landed in the middle of the road, crushing the front of a taxi cab that had the misfortune to be in its way. Adam looked up in horror from where he lay, vaguely aware that Veronica was pulling him to his feet. He had no idea what animal it was supposed to be but the thing was enormous now; it towered over them, with at least a dozen black eyes and pincers that snapped and clicked like gigantic scissors. He didn’t want to think what they would do to a human.