Some hours later, Cloud and his friends wait quietly on a row of seats outside after an army of nurses politely locked them out.
Amy's condition had been stable until an hour ago when she started thrashing around in the bed like her body was being possessed.
The doctors told them later that she was experiencing several tiny seizures one after another which did very little to calm any of their nerves; especially Cloud.
Every now and then he catches glimpses of what's going on in there when a nurse leaves the room or a doctor enters, feeling unsure of what to do with his hands once he sees the foam spilling from her mouth or catches glimpses of the people responsible for her care shouting clear and frightening codes that mean absolutely nothing to him.
Sky takes his hand when she notices his leg shaking as he impatiently taps his foot on the ground, leaving behind a scuff mark where the rubber of his boot consistently rubs against the shiny floors of the hospital.
He forces himself to tear his eyes away from the door, squeezing her hand before making the smarter decision to simply walk away.
Him being here isn't helping anyone, especially not himself.
Cloud strolls calmly into the bathroom, ducking into the furthest stall from the door.
He reaches the end of his tether as he starts violently kicking it in frustration, blurring into an entity of unfiltered, primal rage, bouncing around in an enclosed space like a Tasmanian devil!
Only after almost taking the lime green door off its hinges does he take a rest bite, counting to ten with his eyes closed as he rest his head against the wall.
When ten isn't enough he counts to twenty, but then twenty becomes thirty and thirty becomes more.
Cloud emerges from the stall, realising that he actually did end up doing some damage as the door bends out of shape.
“This is all your fault,” he whispers, exhaling deeply through his nose whilst glaring at his own reflection in the mirror for the second time of the day. “You did this!”
The forces that be seem to agree as black slim oozes from the taps, endlessly pouring until the sinks overflow, corrupting the surrounding white tiles and sinking deeply into the exposed crevices and cracks.
Cloud wrinkles his nose at the smell as he peers into the sink, his irises glowing brighter than jack-o'-lanterns once he notices the black feathers floating to the surface of the bubbling, black, soup.
He fights the urge to touch, yanking his hand away once he hears the groaning of the pipes in the walls that sound about ready to burst, flinching once the same stuff comes shooting up the toilets, tunnelling holes into the ceilings due to the sudden release of built up pressure.
Most of the feathers glued together by the tar-like substance splatter against the walls and plop into steaming clumps on the tiled floor but one catches his eye.
A single feather falls gracefully through the air, tilting back and forth like a meandering river on a path directly aimed towards him.
He only catches a glimpse of a winged figure glowering at him in the reflection of the mirror, but he has enough time to duck his head at the very last second before the horrendous screeching of metal grating against metal pierces his ears.
Cloud stops shielding his face from the sparks of the busted fluorescent lights, revealing the giant claw marks dragging across the stalls where his head had been only moments ago.
Hunter!
Cloud bolts out of the bathroom immediately, tumbling over his own feet at the first turn, ignoring the stares of the innocents he passes by.
“Slow down!”
“You slow down!” he yells back, ignoring the fact that it's probably a doctor or a security guard, trying to keep ahead of the lights as they shut off one after another.
He flies through the doors leading to the staircase, his love of horror movies informing his decision to run down the stairs.
However, peeking over the railing, Cloud spots the lights bursting on each floor, starting on the ground level, the darkness rising at an alarming rate.
With the decision being taken from him, Cloud lets his feet carry him up several flights of stairs, collapsing onto gravel once he makes it to the very top, his hamstrings and calves flaring up after the ordeal.
He recovers with enough time to climb back on his feet as the red metal door leading to the roof snaps shut, followed by a chilling gust of wind as the air trembles with just as much anticipation as he has.
“Are you real?” he shouts, panting heavily with his words getting stuck in his throat as Freya suddenly descends from the sky, landing on the edge of the building with her back facing him.
Her wings are heavy, he can tell just by the sound that they make when flapping against the air, like a thousand sheets of paper all working in awkward unison.
“You have to be real, because…because I've already lost enough. I can't lose my mind too.” he continues to yell, albeit at a lower volume, turning his head slightly but catching only a glimpse of her blonde hair before she leaps off the building.
Cloud sprints to the edge, feeling both relieved and terrified not to spot a freshly fallen body on the ground.
"What the hell?" he scoffs, wanting to puke at his own hope and desperation.
She had him in her sights and yet she chose to let him be. Why?
What is this all about?
That's when he loses his footing, almost falling off the building if not for Hunter pulling him back onto the roof by his shirt.
"Dude, you just saved my life."
"You don't say," he retorts, sneezing once the scent of her feathers tickles his nose. "If you died to an astral projection I'd never live it down.”
After dusting himself off, Cloud notices the several cars rushing towards the building, driving recklessly between lanes before swerving to a halt in front of the steps.
Cillian Black emerges from one of these vehicles wearing a navy blue jacket and for whatever reason he decides to look up, catching sight of them staring down at him.
Cloud backs away from the edge once he sees the army of Red Cloaks swarm behind the Mayor, their faces hidden behind white masks with golden trimmings, and red eyes.
“We have to go…we have to go, now!”
YOU ARE READING
The Initials | Nanowrimo 2023
Fantasy[Book 1 in the Displaced Angels Series] "You took the life of my best friend, made her life a living hell...so I took your building and everything inside, and turned it into ash." °°° Being abducted the first time was already crazy enough, but twice...
