Introduction- Monster
Hurrying urgently through alleyways that are like mazes, the darkness is my friend yet also my enemy. I don’t know how or why everything suddenly crashed and burned to the ground, but what I do know is that I need to get away from them.
Red and blue lights seem to follow me everywhere I step and I worry that at any moment they are going to see through my hooded disguise and realise that I am the monster they are hunting. But each time they pass I am lucky enough to remain unnoticed, though it doesn’t ease the churning of my stomach.
A nagging ache in the back of my mind tells me that maybe I should be found and locked away; I am dangerous, that much is clear. But there’s also the louder part of me that is telling me to keep running. Reminding myself that I don’t want to be imprisoned, or possibly even executed, when I could just drag back my control and carry on my life as if this curse wasn’t cast upon me. No powers, no danger. Everyone's happy. Everything’s normal.
Though, what chance is there for me to go back to my life now? Nothing will ever be normal again.
I conceal myself behind whatever I can find when they get too close for comfort, but this time, I am not so lucky. I need to get a hold of my emotions more- even if I don’t feel their crippling effect just yet- the adrenaline is handling that. As soon as it can be overheard from their radios that they are dead, my surroundings go up in flames, lighting up the narrow alleyway. It definitely does not go unseen if the shouts and clocking of guns is anything to go by.
Run.
I dash off, hopefully before they catch sight of my face, and pant as I scale my way up the wall, using an overflowing bin as support. The roofs are not the most conspicuous mode of transportation, but right now it is the best chance I have. I just have to keep going. With adrenaline coursing through my veins, I let out a crazed laugh that bubbles up from the bottom of my stomach from the sheer absurdity of it all.
I don’t have any time to register whether the tingling in my muscles and pound of my heart is pleasant or not whenever I jump across the gaps between buildings with no room to hesitate because they are behind me, moving slowly, but still there. Always fucking there. Cars race along the road below, and I know they are planning to cut me off from the other side. Predictable, really, but it does result in me stressing to work a way out.
Suddenly, interrupting my racing thoughts, I crash into a figure in front of me, sending us sprawling to the floor and I realise with sickening dread that I am caught.
I grapple with whoever is beneath me, but very quickly find myself pinned to the ground by… the most stunning woman I have ever seen in my fucking life. Get it together Dorcas. My eyes fixate on her piercing green ones that are looking back down at me with a strange mix of urgency and amusement.
“Slow down there, Princess. Not here to hurt you.”
“Says the one pinning me to the ground with her knee,” I breathe out heavily with a scowl, trying to shove her off of me but it is as if she is made of stone.
She snorts, “You really are fiery aren't you, Princess?”
I stop in my tracks and stare up at her. Does she know what I am? And if she does, why doesn’t she seem alarmed in the slightest?
Who the hell is she?
“Relax Marls,” a male voice speaks up from above us. I hadn’t realised before but I see now that there are two other guys there. Of course you didn’t. One of them is smiling down at me cheerfully (strange) whilst the other one oddly has his hands lifted up in the air, and a look of concentration on his face.
“Who the fuck are you?” I hiss, scrambling up immediately when the girl with the green eyes climbs off me.
“Don’t run,” the boy says, annoyingly not answering my question. He has warm brown skin and probably the most unruly hair I have ever seen, topped off with a pair of round glasses. He seems… Friendly?
“You wouldn’t be able to stop me.”
“Trust me, we would.”
I turn, glaring at the one he called ‘Marls’ and cross my arms over my chest whilst she just looks at me with a smug smile, pushing her blonde hair away from her face.
“You don’t know what I’m capable of- I’m dangerous,” I argue, with unconvincing confidence.
“Oh! Actually we do. That’s why we’re here.”
I raise my eyebrows, which would cause most to cower in fear, but his smile does not falter.
“I’m James. The one who kicked your ass is Marlene and this over here is Remus,” he motions to the other one, a tall, lanky looking boy who simply gives me a short nod.
“We’re from the Order of the Phoenix and we’re here to take you in and rescue you.”
I gape at them, “The Order of the Phoenix… The Mutant Rebels? The only ones the government fears? Targets of the Mundane Association? The ones with those hideous yellow and blue onesies?”
“Indeed. And they’re not onesies, and mainly only used for media appearances.”
“And you want… to take me in?”
“Yep.”
“No.”
“Great! We’ll- wait sorry, did you just say no?”
“Yes I did.”
I almost scoff. Do they really think I’m going to just go with them to a place crawling with mutants? I don’t even know these people and they’re acting as if I should trust them completely. Even if they seem nice enough- well, one of them does- there’s no way I’m following them blindly.
“I don’t need saving, especially by a bunch of mutants,” I say harshly and now James scowls at me as well (which is quite unsettling, really), whilst Remus’ face reflects more of understanding- if his short glance at me tells me anything. Though James' frown isn’t threatening like Marlene’s, it reminds me more of a scolding parent.
“Listen,” the frustrating blonde speaks up in an impatient tone, “by all means carry on running but you won’t get away. They will find you, and they will not hesitate to fucking kill you just like that,” she snaps her fingers, “You must be smart enough to at least have realised that. But if you come with us and for once just trust someone to actually help you- we promise you will be safe and made perfectly comfortable. You’ll even be able to learn to control your powers- like we did.”
“We’re very hospitable,” James adds.
A decent argument of sorts, I think to myself, but I’m not yet satisfied.
“Okay. First tell me what you can do. What your powers are, or whatever.”
She blinks, possibly in surprise, and nods.
“Uh, okay. I can uhm… adapt,” she says unsurely, “...quickly?”
“Adapt.”
“Yes, adapt. I can change my body into different materials or develop features that help suit me to the environment I’m in.”
She seems to have lost her arrogance momentarily as her cheeks flush pink- Remus snorts and I quietly register that that’s the most he's spoken so far, if you could call it that. Must be an inside joke. I ignore it however, and press on. I’m not going with them until I know all the ways they could possibly trick me.
“Such as..?”
Her freckled cheeks go an even deeper shade of red, which is frustratingly endearing.
“Well, I can grow gills to breathe underwater, or turn into metal if I need extra strength,” she responds.
“Hm,” I shrug, not giving her the satisfaction of seeming impressed when in fact I am incredibly curious, and turn to the one who is far too happy to be here.
“And you?”
He beams proudly, “I can teleport and crawl up walls.”
Okay, first bit is cool, the second is just freaky.
“Right… And the BFG over there?”
He looks over at me with an exasperated expression, “I say we leave her here.”
“Ignore him. He can make barriers and things invisible. That’s how we haven’t been spotted yet.”
I had honestly forgotten about the whole being hunted down like a wild animal thing, so I am mildly impressed.
“Alright,” I sigh, “take me to your secret boy band or whatever before I change my mind,”
“Not just boys,” Marlene winks, and I pray that the heat I feel rising to my cheeks isn’t obvious on the outside.
James takes a hold of my arm as well as Marlene’s, who holds onto Remus’.
“So, you may experience a little bit of uhm- dizziness, so just try not to puke on the floor, okay?”
“Oh Merlin…” I mumble to myself as the other two share a sly smirk between themselves.
What the fuck have I gotten myself into.