Obliterate

twenty six

THE EYES VANISHED before either of them could react.

Eli rushed to the door and threw it open, stepping outside into the darkness. Sophie immediately reached for her phone, dialing Aelia's number, and followed him. Her mother answered on the first ring with a distracted, "Hello?"

"There is a Revenant on campus," Sophie told her.

That got Aelia's attention. "Where?"

Sophie's eyes skirted around the darkness that surrounded them, searching for those eyes. She quickly explained what they'd seen to Aelia and then ended the call. The moment she did, a trilling alarm sounded throughout the halls.

"I can't smell it," Eli told Sophie. He sounded panicked. "Didn't those creatures have an awful scent? I have no clue where it went."

Beside them, apartment doors opened. Faculty and staff poured outside, instantly on guard and ready to fight. Some rushed to the main part of campus, where the students were held. Others climbed to the tops of the apartment roofs, searching the outside area. Sophie and Eli moved to the railing in front of them, peering down into the small courtyard below. The fountain, now reconstructed, spewed water toward the sky, creating an ominous trickling sound.

It brought chills to Sophie's spine.

The courtyard in front of them was a hard place for Sophie. It always brought up bad memories. It had been where a hunter had attacked her, back before she knew about the corrupted Headmaster. It had been where Eli had 'died'.

"Ironic, isn't it?" Eli whispered to her. "We always have to fight intruders in this courtyard."

Sophie shivered. "It's cursed. I hate it. We should have torn it down and remodeled it when we redid the castle."

Eli chuckled and jumped over the railing. Sophie followed him, landing quietly on her feet. A few others followed them, canvasing the courtyard. When it was clear that the creature wasn't there, they moved inside, rushing through the halls.

The guards that Aelia had hired were everywhere, their guns ready, searching for any sign of the creature. One of men stepped forward as Sophie approached the Dining Hall. He wore a shiny badge on his chest. "We haven't seen anything yet," he told her. "Are you certain that you saw one of the Revenants on campus?"

Eli glared at the man. "We both did. It was right outside our apartment."

The guard didn't care to question Eli further. He turned around to the rest of the guards and barked out a few orders. The guards dispersed through the halls.

It wasn't long before the hallways became too crowded to function. Teachers, janitors, lunch ladies, guards —they all plagued the halls. Each had a different method for searching. The witches used magic, their hands glowing bright with magic. The werewolves had changed, rushing through the halls on all fours, furry blurs of chaos.

Somehow, Sophie and Eli were separated.

She darted through the hallways, focused more on her sense of smell. From what she could remember from her encounter in the forest, the creatures had smelled absolutely disgusting. Both she and Eli had smelled them long before they'd seen them.

Sophie caught a whiff of blood. It wasn't human blood. It had a rustic, almost disgusting hint of metal to it —which usually meant that it belonged to a vampire. She followed it, racing through the halls until she found herself back in the courtyard. She hesitated, mere feet from the fountain, and breathed in again.

The smell was coming from the fountain, almost masked by the scent of the salt water that spewed from it. She carefully moved around it. Moonlight streamed down from above, illuminating the shadows of a body.

"Not again."

She darted toward it, her heart frozen inside her chest. She knew that it wasn't Eli. She could smell that it wasn't Eli. But despite the evidence, it was still hard to convince herself that it wasn't him. Flashbacks and memories reigned supreme in her mind. All she could think about was Eli's discarded body, the fountain in ruins, and her heart shattering inside her chest.

The body belonged to Finn.

He was still alive, his breathing labored. Blood seeped through the material of his shirt, stemming from a massive gash across his right shoulder. She crouched down in front of him, immediately attempting to stop the blood.

"Finn, can you hear me?"

A weird, guttural hiss filled her ears.

Her entire body froze solid. A foul smell filled her nostrils, as if she'd breathed in the scent of a rotting corpse. Her eyes traveled upward. Sitting atop the fountain's statue, crouched like an animal, was a gnarly looking creature with pale, dirt encrusted skin. Its clouded eyes pierced through her. Moonlight illuminated it from behind, showcasing the creatures elongated limbs. Its skin clung so tight to its body, to its bones. Every crevice was filled with dirt and grime. Skin peeled away in areas, revealing ragged sinew and muscle underneath.

She wanted to puke. Its stench filled her airways, making her eyes water and her lungs refuse to work. She forced herself to stop breathing —to make her mind process everything — and barred her teeth at the creature.

"Go away," she snarled at it.

It let out a shrill shriek. Before she could blink, it was coming at her, a mess of claws and limbs and bones. Pain immediately blistered through her face, as its claws raked across her cheek. She swiped out with a sharp kick to its chest, forcing it away from her. Its nails snagged on her scarf, yanking it from her neck as the creature flew backward.

It hit the fountain with a sharp crack. The glow of her mark filled the courtyard, glistening in the reflection of the fountain's water. The creature shrunk backward, away from her, screeching so loud that it made Sophie's ears ring. Its hands covered its face, its cloudy eyes. She moved closer, intent on stopping it.

It scrambled away from her, its long arms propelling it toward the building behind them. It grasped at the walls, pulling itself upward, onto the roof.

Sophie started after it, but a small groan stopped her.

"Finn, are you okay?" she gasped. She crouched back down next to him, watching uneasily as the creature disappeared into the night.

A shout sounded from behind her. It was Eli's voice. Sophie glanced back at him as he approached. "What happened?" Eli demanded.

"We need to get him to the infirmary," Sophie told him. "Now!"

hey babes!

Sorry for the late update. Life got a little overwhelming this week. I know that this chapter is on the shorter side, but at least it's something!! Thank you so much for your patience and support! ❤ I hope you have enjoyed reading so far!