Meeting Maia

Murderous

We'd been on the run with Klaus for three days. We'd managed to travel through half of the country so it was doubtful that anyone would find us now. When our feet began bleeding, Klaus managed to blow us into a safe area to sleep and fix our feet. In all honesty, I wasn't quite sure why we were running but Maia was determined to find someone who could control the earth. Four elements, four of us, that was her logic.

"Do you miss Jonas?" I asked, one night. It was pitch black and Klaus was breathing heavily in his sleep. The moon was half full and glared at the earth. It was a piercingly beautiful and intriguing night. Maia's head was resting on my stomach because the floor hurt her neck. I didn't mind, it was comfortable.

"Sometimes, but not really. His feeling for me were much more intensified than my feelings for him, especially after I met you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, he liked me much more than I-"

"No. About me?"

"Well, it's just that when I first saw you. There was a spark, literally. You lit up and I... I felt like I'd finally realised why I belonged on this world. You were so mysterious and new and all I wanted was to strip down this mental wall you had and decode you but I also saw Jonas and I felt guilt because I think my destiny was to find you and I think I knew that when I began flirting with Jonas, that something much bigger was going to happen."

"And it has." it was pathetic compared to what she'd just told me but that was all I had.

"Yeah," I wanted to kiss her but her eyes had closed and her breathing had slowed so I couldn't move her. I pushed her hair out of her face and let my fingers linger on her cheek. I reached over and grabbed her hand, then proceeded to closing my own eyes.

"Maia, Raphael?" Klaus was shaking us lightly. "We have a problem, see I didn't tell you this but I'm being tracked by these guys that want to kill me and uhh they're about a mile away,"

"Shit." I said, I went to get up, as Maia had sat up immediately, but our hands were still entangled. I quickly let go as Klaus gave us a raised eyebrows look.

The morning was erupting and watching the sun rise seemed so normal and perfect with Maia but I could almost hear the harsh, murderous footsteps and the cruel gun shots. Maia was the only light in the light of the dark cave we were in and even then, as her confidence wavered, she dimmed. I sucked in a breath. If we weren't out if here and out of sight in at least five minutes, we were dead and even then we still might not get away.

"Raphael, we need to talk," Maia said.

"We're about to die, now isn't the time!" I replied, slightly rudely but, in my defence, I'd never been in a life threatening situation. I'd had an utterly normal life before I met Maia. She turned away and I realised the extent of my rudeness and felt awful. Klaus was gathering the very little food we had and the make do blankets we'd scavenged from the hospital. I picked Maia up in my arms and, though it wasn't like me at all, I kissed her. I erupted into flames and she looked like gushing water was pouring all around her. I had to drop her instantly but we stayed as we were.

"Raphie, start a forest fire towards them! you can blend into the flames!" It was a genius idea from Maia and I did. I sprinted out of our small cave and into the forest, avoiding anything in half a mile radius of the cave so that they could escape. "We'll see you later!" she called. I could hardly hear her now. I got the feeling that something bad was going to happen.

I misinterpreted their distance and ran straight into them, setting two of their clothes on fire. There were five of them. They were absolutely enormous with muscles the size of Russia. I had no idea how a scrawny little thing like Klaus had managed to avoid them for so long.

I only managed to anger them, or in some cases excite them. They seemed experienced with catching victims, as four of them, one of them slightly scorched, made a circle around me. The other guy was burning at my feet and I wanted to stop it but my whole body was engulfed in flames; I could only worsen the situation. He began screaming in agony, trying to pull off his clothes to no avail.

"Water!" I cried at the murderers, "Get water!" I kneeled beside him, knowing of his murderous qualities but uncaring. I would not watch a man die. I couldn't do it.

"Why?" asked a blonde haired one directly in front of me.

"He's your friend,"

"He was told he could die on this trip and he took it anyway!"

"It's not fair!"

"What are you going to do about it, kid?"

"Yeah, kid?"

Another scream of agony.

"I can't."

"Exactly, so you can put up a fight or come with us?"

"I'll come with you." If I surrendered now, they'd have to go before I got away, meaning Klaus and Maia would be fine. They whacked me harshly on the head and I blacked out in seconds.