The last things he heard after jumping through the window were Rita’s screams and the deafening sound of the top floor exploding. The force of the explosion sending them down faster. Adrenaline and slight panic wrestling in his veins, this was the first time he had jumped from a place so high up, a skyscraper. It was the first time he had jumped from somewhere this high whilst clutching someone in his arms. His total focus was on finding a place where they could land without turning them into roadkill and at the total mercy of the debris falling around them. They were not close enough to the other buildings for him to at least be able to land in, he had not checked or cared about his trajectory or where they were going to land seventeen seconds ago. He had only cared about getting them out of there before the bomb went off. Right now, he wished he had thought of those things.
He fervently scanned the area below, aside from the people running for shelter and the damage the debris had and was still causing, there was nowhere to land. He had almost lost hope, sure that he had signed both Rita and himself up for their own deaths when he saw his chance. An advert banner that had particularly been torn off its sign post, flapping in the breeze on its last legs. He dove for it. And almost did not grab it. The rain had made everything wet and slippery. He gritted his teeth against the pain that came from his a having to take on all the sudden weight.
He could feel the banner tear from its ropes just as a heavy piece of metal sliced into his arm. Samuel could not stop the growl of pain that came from his mouth just before he swung them towards the side. The banner finally giving away too early and sent them free falling again.
He had partially swung them away just in time before a huge chunk of concrete came crashing down on the sign post. Effectively crushing it. But they were still too high up from the ground.
That was when he shifted, his wolf coming through the surface. With his torn arm the shift was painful and for some reason it was not healing. The shirt Rita had been grabbing on to was gone, shredded by his new form and with nothing to hold on to, she fell freely away from him. He moved below her since gravity pulled his body to the ground faster than hers so she would land on him and not wherever gravity was throwing them to.
They came crashing through a window and instead of glass, wood splintered and plaster broke against his back. They landed hard on the floor amongst pieces of broken wood and ripped material. Some of the rogue pieces finding their way into his back, his shoulder and his calf. His eyes searched for Rita and they found her. She had landed on a few feet away from him, closer to the wall and although he had broken most of her fall, he could see her head was bleeding and could smell her blood. Her heart was still racing just as his was and she was still trembling. Trembling even more than when they were stuck in the frozen tundra of his office.
He tried to get up but he forgot about his wounded arm, well now, fore leg. It still had not healed. His own blood seeped from the gaping wound and from the slices on his back and hind legs. The room they landed in was small for his wolf form, his fur grazing the roof, he winced when the splinters dug into his back more when he moved. Some pieces of plaster covered his snout, he shook them off and gingerly made his way to Rita. When something hit him on his head and out of the corner of his eye he saw a man wearing a ski mask, dressed in black combat gear and in his hands was a metal bat.
He must have hid his scent because Samuel did not get a single hint of it. Even now he was standing in front of him. Samuel snapped at him and the man swung the bat again. Samuel dodged the attack and grabbed the the bat with his fangs. He yanked it out if his attacker’s hand hard. He came crashing at Samuel’s paws, a sickening pop filled the room as well as the man’s scream. The man backed away cradling his dislocated arm to his side. Samuel threw the bat away and advanced towards his assailant.
His nose might not have been able to pick up on a scent but his eyes picked out one detail. Any other creature that had gone through his yank would not have ended up with a dislocated arm. His attacker was human. Samuel growled low, his wolf ready to teach the fucker a lesson when more masked people came running into the room, each one brandishing their own bat. Two carried tasers. They came at him and he readied himself for their attacks.
They went after his head, his sides and his injured leg. And no matter how many he took out, more just kept coming. They were like ants.
For several Rita lay there on the floor, wondering if she was dead or dieing. Her ears were ringing and her chest ached with how fast her heart was beating. Her head hurt so much it was hard to think. She could see a large tail from where she lay and she remembered with a wince that Samuel had shifted.
He limped backwards and she saw more of his coat. It was a dark like coffee and it looked beautiful and brittle. She wondered if it was. Brittle. She saw someone wack him on the side of his head and he faltered in his steps. Another came and hit him again and Samuel bit into his arm and threw him away. She felt the person scream just before he went flying out of her sight.
Masked men kept delivering blow after blow to his huge form faster than he could fend them off. She wanted to scream for them to stop but her mouth would not open. She had to do something. He was going down. She spied a metal bat close to her and she reached for it. She did not know which blow knocked him out, if it was one precisely placed one or a cumulation of all of them. She grasped hold of the handle of the bat with her fingers.
The cowards stood over his body like it was some sort of trophy as she struggled to her feet, bat in hand. She held the bat tighter in her hands and started for them in a run.
She swung the bat at them with all her might and she felt the bat connect with bone and one of the people fall at her feet. She felt something warm drip down her head and her vision swam. Before she could even recover, she swung again. She did not connect with anything on that one but that did not stop her from swinging again.
She got two more hits in and was swinging for another one before she felt shocks go through her. Wave after wave of electric current bolted through her body and she felt a long and hard scream leave her lungs before she let go of the bat mid swing. She dropped to the ground, her head hitting the wooden floor as the shocks kept coming. Her lungs burning with all the effort it took to keep her screaming before she blacked out.
Stupid bitch had caught them off guard. The scanner said she was a human. She had managed to take out Sergei, Jane and Samson with one of their own equipment. Looked like a raving mad bitch from hell while she did it too.
He took a closer look at her and without most of the plaster he recognized her even with the blood on her face. She was the woman in the papers three weeks ago. Some of them called her the mutt’s go to fucktoy who was not keen on sharing.
Disgusting. He could see why but it was still disgusting nonetheless. Humans should be with their own species and not mingling with biological or supernatural freaks like the one unconscious in front of them. Why most of humanity could not simply see that was beyond his reasoning. They were dangerous, too powerful and just plain wrong. Only humans should be at the top of the pecking order. Only humans should even exists. Freaks like this one were supposed to be nothing but stories and myths that only existed in the minds of fanatics and in storybooks. That meant the mutt at their feet was none other than Billionaire Alpha, Samuel O. Princeton.
Double the score.
“Time to mark this one up.” Regan said and the rest agreed. Regan took out the knife from the sheath at his side. The blade was laced in the same stuff that was not letting the wolf’s wound heal. It would make sure the marks that the blade left on his body would stay and leave a lasting and permanent mark.
Now where to cut. Regan kneeled and examined the shifter at his feet. The damn thing was as big as his girlfriend’s truck!
The pelt was gorgeous and could fetch a hundred and fifty grand on the black market. At least! And around three hundred grand if you found the right buyer. Too bad they were not here to reap.
Regan thrust the knife across the beast’s stomach enjoying the way the flesh split so cleanly against the blade. The way it sizzled and bubbled as the rosetoil did its work. The beast stirred but that was all it was. Regan prepared himself for the next cut, this time right over its pelvis. After this, he would mark up the bitch too.
The sound of sirens took Regan’s attention off his task. Damn it all to hell! The cops were here! The sound of helicopters filled the air around them. Fuck! It was time to get out of here.
They did not have anytime to pick up their fallen comrades. They were dead weight, they would have to leave them behind. “Let’s go.”
“What about them?” Quill asked incredulous. He was tending to one of their group members that the wolf had bitten.
The sound of several footsteps coming towards them, lot the fire under Regan’s feet and his patience.
“The cops and what other security this mutt has on him are making their way to us right now. We cannot take them with us. We are leaving them behind.”
“What?! We can’t just leave them.” Quill argued, still trying to stop the bleeding on Judas’ side.
Regan could not believe he had to explain this. Again. This was always the problem with new recruits no matter their advancement. Always thinking about the people and never the entirety of the cause. “This is never an outcome anyone wants but you have been trained for this. They have been trained for this. We know the drill, they do too, now let’s get out of here!” Regan seethed.
“But–” Quill attempted again but was interrupted. “This is Alvas Police and fire department. If you can hear us please remain calm. We will try to get you out as soon as possible.”
“No time! Move move move!” Regan ordered. Everyone filed out of the room. Quill took one last look at their comrades before doing the same.
“Halt! Stay were you are! Put down your weapons down!” A cop yelled.
Regan and the others continued to make for the exit point. Reagan pulled out his gun and turned. “We would rather die, you freaks!” No matter what they would rather die than have these bunch of abominations and traitors take them in. He pulled the trigger.
“All units, cover all exists! Suspects are armed.” Another cop shouted through his walkie talkie through the shower of bullets.
Shit! The place looked like a maniacal kid sprayed the place in blood and broken dolls. Celeste and her team ran into the room and she turned on her walkie talkie.
“Squad C send in the paramedics. Fast. We got a wolf and a woman here still alive with serious injuries. Plus ten downed suspects. Possibly with the group that caused all this. All very serious. Fifth floor of the building on sector A.”
The walkie talkie buzzed. “Roger that Squad D, we are sending them in now.”
Celeste’s eyes looked at the people in black and combat gear and watched as a woman’s chest rose, fell and did not rise again. She went over and pressed her fingers to the woman’s pulse. “Squad C, one of the suspects is dead. You need to hurry before any more expire.”
“We’re on our way Squad C.”
Samuel did not exactly like the smell of hospital for the little he had been in them his whole life. When he woke up, he was back to his human form with stitches on his arm and on his stomach.
He watched over Rita as she slept. They said she had suffered a bad blow to her head, significant electrocution and lost a lot of blood. He worked closely with the police department and his own influence to find the bastards that carried out the attack.
They were known as H. Q. E. Initials for the latin sentence ‘his que emudant’. English translation: Those who cleanse. An extremist group of humans that believed all supernaturals were nuisances and nothing but freaks, abominations and blemishes on the face of the earth and in the eyes of their god that needed to be put in their place or be exterminated.
It was easy to find them. It took less than a week after it happened. They had been so confident in their initial attack that the could not be bothered to clean their tracks. Confident in the fear they had struck. Their overconfidence lead to their downfall.
He went to the hospital everyday for the next four days after that till Rita woke up.