The Stelter City Saga: Ultranatural (3 page)

When he let go, Lee crumpled to the
ground landing hard on her knees. Another pain shot up her joints,
but nothing compared to the blaze in her shoulder. She couldn’t
move her entire arm. Even if she could, she wouldn’t have been fast
enough to shield her face from colliding into the floor
cupboard.

“
Alright, I’ll let you
recuperate.” He insisted as he snatched up a small apple from a
neighboring fruit basket. “I haven’t had my fun yet.”

Lee laid on the floor feeling like her
entire left side was paralyzed. Her shoulder had turned into a
violent throbbing pain, and she gasped several times to regain her
composure. “Why… are you doing this?” she wheezed. “I’m not even
one of you.”

The man shrugged as he bit into the
fruit. “Eh, might as well tell you since today is the day you
die.”

Lee had managed to crawl up into a
sitting position and rested her back against the cupboard. She
glanced at her arm as she cradled it on her lap. Already she could
see bits of black and blue from the man’s clutches.

Without another word a five inch spike
shot form his finger and lodged into Lee’s thigh. Her scream was
deafening, and it was music to his ears. “I’m going to kill you
because it was his Majesty’s order.” He said crouching on the floor
in front of her as blood pooled around her leg. “Fun stuff,
huh?”

Lee’s fingers wrapped around the spike
watching it stain her hands red. Her eyes began to fuzz up. The
sight of something the size of a coloring marker lodged inside her
flesh was incomprehensible and she was instantly relieved that her
pajama pants covered the sight of her penetrated skin. As she sat
there with her leg ignited in torture, she couldn’t help but wonder
if she should pull it out and bleed to death. There was no point in
resisting and surely that would be a whole lot less suffering. With
a swift tug, Lee yanked the spike out. An involuntary groan escaped
her clenched teeth, but the pain didn’t subside.

“
Well look at you!” The man
said clicking his tongue. He watched as hot blood gushed from her
leg pint by pint. It stained her pants as the crimson liquid pooled
beside her. Already Lee was beginning to feel woozy and when she
glanced back down, she saw that the metal barb had pierced down to
her bone. The sight of every muscle and torn hunk of flesh was so
sickening; she almost passed out on the spot.

“
Let me speed things up for
you a bit.” He said with a sneer. Lee closed her eyes, but not
before she saw the man aim a spear between her brows.
Do it,
she willed,
kill me. I can’t fight back anyway…

What should have been the sound of a
barb being launched her way was replaced by a startled yelp and
then a crash. When Lee’s eyes fluttered open, Ace stood in the
intruder’s place with his fists clenched, jaw taught and an
infuriated look in his eyes.

“
Well, well, well, what do
we have here?” the man inquired. He had collided into the
refrigerator which was now bowed in and pieces of egg laid cracked
around him. He climbed to his feet, and as he did so, his skin
seemed to be eaten up by an army of spikes. By the time he stood
up, he had transformed into a hideous thing drenched in so many
barbs they began to rip through his trench coat.

“
I think this party just got
started.” The assassin had said that hoping Ace would retaliate.
Yet he couldn’t hide the startled expression when the boy turned
around and crouched beside Lee.

“
Ace,” she muttered. She had
only been bleeding for a moment but already her voice was growing
hoarse.

Ace couldn’t lift his eyes to meet
hers. His fingers trembled as he gazed down the gash and the pool
of blood quickly flooding to the scene. He opened his mouth to say
something just as a metal horn sailed through his hair. Ace didn’t
bother to look up. He had grabbed a rag and was tying it to the
wound as gently as he could.

More horns fired and some were even
aimed at Lee, but they sailed right through. Lee knew he couldn’t
keep her intangible for too long. Using supernatural powers on
Naturals was an exhausting thing. It was a sort of law she knew all
too well, and apparently so did the intruder.

“
Well,” he huffed hopping
onto the counter and continuing with his apple. “I’ve never been a
patient fellow, but I can wait for this one.” He banged his feet on
the cupboards below, “You know the moment you turn her tangible,
I’m just going to kill her?” he remarked taking aim with his arm to
prove a point. “And don’t try running away with her. She won’t be
able to tolerate the speed and you’ll finish my job for
me.”

Ace finished tying a knot around her
thigh then stroked Lee’s cheek even though his fingers were stained
with her blood. He pressed his lips to her cold trembling blue ones
and at the sight, the man on the counter rolled his head back with
laughter.

That was just the distraction Ace
needed. Swiftly he grabbed the bloodstained horn Lee had pulled out
and hurtled it back at the man.

Startled, the invader brought his arm
around to shield. Another distraction which gave Ace just enough
time to land an uppercut to the jaw. The horned demon flew off the
counter and smashed through the kitchen wall to land in the dining
room. The table collapsed on impact and he just had enough time to
roll out of the way before Ace’s foot landed where his face had
been. Desperate, the man launched an army of spikes in Lee’s
direction, and while his attention was torn, Ace managed to land
another punch. But this time, it was unlike hitting human flesh.
Metal spikes were sprouted in mountains across his face and Ace had
just sent his fist sailing at supernatural speed into
them.

The man tossed his head back with a
rage of laughter as Ace glanced down at his damaged knuckles.
Already he could see his skin growing over the exposed bone, but it
was still tender.

“
Guess I’m gunna have to
knock you out of the picture before I can finish this job.” The
invader confessed.

“
Don’t count on it.”
Answered Ace then his foot collided into the center of the demon’s
chest and the man went soaring down the hall before smashing into a
painting.

He was back on his feet sputtering as
blood trickled down his razor spiked lip. Instinctively, he slashed
his arm in an arch. A cascade of horns rocketed down the hall and
sailed right through Ace. “Alright,” said the man spitting blood.
“Now you’re just pissing me off.”

Ace ignored his comment and walked
toward him hesitantly with his hands up in half surrender. “I don’t
want to have to kill you. If you leave now, I won’t even look at
the damage you’ve done.” Of course he wouldn’t. Lee was bleeding to
death in the next room and he needed to get her out.

“
Ha,” the demon snickered,
“Well then, it’s a shame you’re on my hit list.” Then he
charged.

If Ace wanted to, he could have let the
monster tackle right through him. Instead, he grasped onto a pair
of his glistening horns and made to throw him to the ground. But
the intruder was heavier than Ace had expected and instead he was
knocked to the floor. One of the metal spears had just managed to
pierce through Ace’s chest when he kicked the monster off. As the
man sailed back once more, he managed to send another attack of
spines.

With incomprehensible speed, Ace
whirled around to catch one and just as the man collapsed against
the wall, Ace hurtled it with exact precision right in the center
of his chest.

The monster coughed up blood. He barely
had time to yank out the red stained horn when Ace jabbed him in
the eyes. The creature let out a howl of pain and blindly launched
as many metal horns into the air. Every single one of them sailed
right through Ace.

“
Last chance.” Ace warned.
Blood had begun pooling against his own chest but it was nothing
like the downpour staining the intruder’s trench coat.

At the sound of Ace’s voice, the
creature sprung his hands toward Ace’s throat. The boy dove out of
the way and managed to swivel behind the man. With his hand
intangible, he jammed it inside the creature’s chest, right where
his heart would be. The man felt nothing of course, that’s why this
was going to be painless. Before the intruder could utter a vile
remark, Ace willed his limb to solidify once more.

At that moment, the man was dead. Where
Ace’s arm had been was a perfect mold of his hand and he could feel
the warmth and stickiness of flesh as he yanked his fist back.
Blood sprang up on the scene as Ace gazed down at another man he
had killed. His sleeve was stained in blood, but Ace let himself
become indefinable just long enough so all the warm salty fluid
cold drip through and join the puddle at his feet.

He remained emotionless and without a
second look back, Ace hurried back to the kitchen. But it was too
late. Lee’s head had slumped to the floor from the loss of blood.
Her emerald eyes now a pale green and rolled to the back of her
head. He crouched down beside her and could hear her heart throb
weakly.

This couldn’t be happening. Two months
ago he had watched the mayor pull the trigger as it was pressed to
her skull. It had been Mirage who had taken the bullet then,
disguised as Lee, but even as he listened to Lee’s failing
heartbeat, he couldn’t push away the memories of his worst fear.
And right then, he was reliving it like a hellish Deja
vu.

Those feelings had swelled up so
powerfully inside him, his mind went fuzzy and he almost forgot
something Mirage had left him in the letter. It was a curious line
about how supernatural blood had remarkable healing abilities. Even
on Naturals.

He yanked the cloth through her leg and
grabbed onto the closest sharp thing he could find; a spike. With a
slash across the palm of his hand, a river of blood sprung up.
Already he could feel the wound healing, but he managed to get
several drops of his blood into Lee’s wound. The last of his drops
fell, and nothing was left on his hand but a slightly pink scar.
Desperate, he moved to his wrist and slashed again and
again.

He wasn’t even sure if this would work.
And maybe kneeling beside her unconscious body was the stupidest
thing. But he hadn’t known that becoming tangible inside another
solid being would replace space. He had only guessed it from
reading Mirage’s letter and he had been restless to try it
out.

By the third time his wound sealed
over, he could see the gash in Lee’s thigh closing over.
Fascination and relief flowed down his joints. But he cut his wrist
one last time before patching her still vicious wound with a set of
clean rags.

Gently, he scoped her into his arms and
headed for the garage. By now the neighbors, if they could hear,
would be wondering what all the ruckus was. Some might have even
called the cops. He laid Lee down in the back seat of Cherry’s old
Toyota and was relieved to see color already returning to her blue
lips. But just to make sure that the cops were on their way, he
whipped out his cell phone and dialed 911. The operator picked up
on the second ring, and then Ace hung up.

Without opening the garage door, Ace
reversed down the long stretch of driveway then sped off toward
South Side.

~If Ammon O’Connell hadn’t been in a
batting cage, that swing would have been his 47th consecutive hit.
Normally, his batting streak averaged about 35, but he was in an
exceptionally miserable mood which only meant he had more power and
more energy to swing away.

Crack!
That was 48, but from his pants pocket, his phone rang for the
third time. Frustrated, Ammon threw the bat up against the net and
whipped off his helmet. “What?” he demanded.

“
O’Connell?” came
commissioner Marsaun’s deep voice.

“
Yes, sir?” he asked not
bothering to keep the poison from his tone.

“
2428 Hollywood Avenue North
Side. Now.” and he hung up.

Ammon let out a frustrated scream then
his phone went sailing through a hole in the net and collided
against a wall outside the cage. What did it matter? After all the
walls his phone had smashed into lately, it was safe to deem that
thing indestructible.

“
Is everything alright?” the
cute curly haired cage worker asked as Ammon stepped
out.

If Ammon had been himself,
his reply would have been; “
It will be when
you give me your number.”
But he wasn’t
himself and no charming remarks came from his lips as he strolled
past her to pick up his phone. He slammed down a wad of $300 too
much cash into the girl’s hand and stormed away.

He never really enjoyed listening to
heavy metal, but as he reversed out of the lot in his Mitsubishi
Eclipse, he cranked up the volume until his ears
throbbed.

Ammon bombed down East Tarrillian
Boulevard and came to a stop next to a Stelter Lambert. Stelter
cars were the pride and joy of anyone wealthy enough to own one. He
remembered when he used to gawk as the luxurious sports cars
whizzed past. By now, the sight of any Stelter- Icyst, Lambert, or
Hailstorm made him want to set a bunny on fire.

As Ammon sat there waiting for the
light to turn green, he rolled down his window just so he could
spit at the perfectly waxed hood. As the wad of spit landed just
short of the glistening gold rims, the just-turned-eighteen kid
inside him couldn’t help but to admire its long dark silver body,
and wide set of rims. There was something about Lamberts- maybe the
structure of the engine flaunted in the back window, or the way the
body bowed in along the doors- but they had always been the most
appealing to Ammon.