Damsel

Spirit

Anna Marie

"I swear to god, I will personally rip off your wings and feed them to the crocs."

"Spirit. I like that."

Anna Marie leaned down to peer through the splintered windshield, shooting Breese a cold daggered glare. "Good, because that's exactly what you're about to become."

Breese fanned out her wings and walked the length of the car hood, a fist under her chin, glancing back and forth, from the ground, to Manny to Anna and back again, mulling over an idea it seemed. In the thinning air, with her wings stretched out behind her like two giant metallic shields, Breese didn't look like a Hero. She looked like a Villain.

Manny had one finger on the trigger of his gun, but he made no effort to move and for a brief moment, Anna swore she could actually hear his heart pounding beneath his shirt. She wasn't sure if it was excitement or fear. Maybe it was a bit of both. Then, Anna Marie wondered if that was what she was feeling too?

Why was excitement bubbling up inside of her?

Anna tucked that notion into a far corner of her mind. She was fastened on the Hero standing a few feet away, her chatoyant gaze locked down on Anna Marie like she was some toy Breese could toss back and forth between her paws.

But Anna was no toy; she could feel the truth in that though resting in some distinct part of her conscious, tucked away but never hidden, an eager part of her that she suddenly realized had been waiting in the wings her entire life, desperate to be obtained, acknowledged and utilized. With her entire being, Anna Marie felt Breese challenging her and oddly enough, Anna felt her equal desire to answer that challenge. Abruptly, she wanted to not only stand up to, but also fight Breese and even if Anna couldn't win -which she was certain she couldn't - it beat the hell out of falling to her death. At least that way maybe she would die of her own accord.

"Where is my sister?" Anna Marie felt her heart tug at the mere mention of her sister.

She rose from the seat, hating the way the car wobbled and swayed as she crawled through what remained of the dilapidated windshield. Even the slightest misstep would send Anna Marie plummeting to her death -something she had never before seen as an adamant threat. In the wind, Breese was somehow labyrinthine, and an ethereal force whispered to Anna that this was her territory. The air was where the Hero Breese thrived.

"She has nothing to do with this, little Bee." Breese muttered, rolling her eyes to prove she was the epitome of apathy.

"She had everything to do with this." It was as if someone had cupped a vacuum to both of her ears and Anna had to scream just to be heard above the dull, yet strong, tumbling air currents.

Breese laughed a bizarre sound like beating on a broken drum. "Oh, please, it was a good effort on your Areis part to throw us off your track like that. When one masters the air, they tend to look anywhere for threats but up. He utilized our blind spot and little did we know, it was right beneath our nose." Breese paused and Anna Marie knew she was waiting for a response, but no words would form. The winged Hero swept her eyes over the interior of the car, looking bored, before she continued. "Our Seer is livid -mistakes are rare in her line of vision, but it matters not, I've found you now. The prize is mine and I do intend on collecting." A cruel smile spread across her chiseled face, kicking adrenaline into Anna's bloodstream, swarming it with a rush of something strange -not fear, maybe thrill? Breese growled a feral sound and cracked her neck twice. That irritatingly complex instinct echoed in her mind.

Time to fight.

Breese padded across the metal, two quick strides that brought her inches from Anna, who backpedaled. One heel balancing on the edge, equilibrium dwindling, arms flailing outward, making tiny circles like a paper windmill. Those cat like eyes of Breese's relished in her discomfort, and she waiting, smirk widening, until finally placing two fingers just under Anna's shoulder and gently pushing. But instead of falling as Breese had clearly hoped, Anna whipped around and locked onto Breese hand, tugging herself inward, using the Hero to gain her poise back before jamming her shoulder into Breese's chest. A loud grunt followed, and Anna noticed the wind wiz a notch higher. The Hero didn't waste a second on surprise, yanking her hand free before lowering herself to swing a foot over the hood. Anna jumped free of the swinging leg, finding more room in moving onto the roof of the cabin of the car just as Breese removed two beautifully engraved daggers from a belt on her waist.