Chapter 7: A Feral Mind

“Bullet! ... Lightning! ...” Cade calls out through the echoey apartment “Darn it why won't they answer?... Bullet!, Light-" his ears catch a faint whimpering coming from upstairs “Boys?... are you okay” he swiftly trotted up the swirly staircase every stair creaked sharply with age, echoing eerily through the empty room. The air was heavy so tangible that Cade felt like he was wading through it, something was off, something was wrong. He sprinted faster up the stairs; a sharp metallic scent started to drift up his nose “ oh no" he dashed as fast as he could up into the attic “ Bu-" the air shut off in his throat, blood was splattered and spilling across the floor a nurse lay on the floor steeped in blood, Lightning sat terrified shaking and whimpering in the corner and Bullet sat at the ledge under a clouded window his .hands on his face and claws digging into the sides of his head with a look of terror and disbelief plastered on him, his maw dripping with blood.

Earlier that day...

“Bullet had a high fever this morning, I gave him medicine before I left so hopefully he has stabilized by now but can you go check on him and Lightning for me because I’m really busy right now,” Cade says with a stern and tired expression on his face while scribbling down things on documents on a large and messy pile “but sir I-" “ also can you go to the store and get something for their lunch, they haven’t eaten yet," he says cutting her off “ but-" “ Diana I know you have nothing on your timetable right now, I wrote it. Just do this now and ill give you a bonus at the end of the week. She stood there her brow furrowed and a strained obviously fake smile “hmpf- you’re lucky I’m in a good mood today” she says as she pivoted on her heel and trotted in the other direction “only for you Dens" She said as she walked out the door. Diana sighed and walked towards the vending machine down the hallway and stopped and searched her pockets for change. “Man I wish they had lunches in vending machines,” she said and sighed to herself “Well Actually something similar to that is rolling out soon," A deep voice said behind her "AAH” she swivelled round shocked to see a tall thin dark figure with light grey combed back hair and thin piercing eyes, his tall towering ears stood high to attention and the bat stood high almost regally behind her “Jesus Christ Ivoss don’t come up behind me like that, you almost gave me a heart attack,” she said clutching her chest ”Sorry Miss grant-" “Doctor” she interjected as she pressed some buttons and put some coins in the vending machine, “I overheard you wanted some lunches, well I had made some lunches for my son and his friend but it seems they had found some pizza vouchers and wanted to use those instead.” He says as Diana stared at him with a concerned expression “So, do you want them it’ll save you the trip” Ivoss said with a smile while holding up a see-through carrier bag with two lunches in cheap plastic containers, she looked at them apprehensively however she quickly realised that she was too tired to contemplate. Diana sighed and took the lunches and two juice boxes that dropped from the vending machine “Thank you Ivoss” she answered as she started to walk away “No problem Doctor Grant" Ivoss said in a quite tepid tone, however with is staple wide smile on his face.

Diana walked down the echoey hallway towards the staff elevator, the sounds of her heels clacking bouncing off the walls, that was saturated in the mid-morning sun spilling through the hallway windows. Trotting up to the elevator, Daina got out her key and slotted it into the staff elevator and rode it up to the residential area. As the elevator doors opened again she clutched the bag plopping in the two juice boxes while walking up to the library and she opened the doors and walked through the tall walled maze. The smell of old leather and parchment filled her nose, the dim warm brown light swirled throughout the old library, reflected off the sea of books, the light came from the old yellowed circle windows. The windows spotted the heights of the shelves and looked like old eyes overlooking the astoundingly large library; after a while, she navigated herself to the small parting in the shelf wall to an antique-looking door. Diana knocked hard on the old door that looked like it would shatter under a little more force and the sound ricocheted through the apartment. Diana stood there for a bit before she could hear small footsteps running down the stairs and up to the door, a small light bluish boy opened the door his excitement visibly turning to shyness once he realized it wasn’t his Grandpa “Cade wanted me to bring you lunch" she sighed and handed the bag to Lightning, he nodded at her “ill come back to check on you in half an hour” she said dryly and he nodded again in response. Afterwards, the little boy closed the door and she could hear him run upstairs to give his brother the lunch. Diana walked back through the library to the computer area and started to do a little work to pass the time, she enjoyed the muted echoes of the quiet library as it was usually quite empty and loved the rich vintage atmosphere, she could easily get lost in it and as a result she quickly became saturated in the thick classic feeling and while she worked 40 minutes flew by. Absentmindedly Diana checked her watch and put it down but quickly took a double-take as she realized the time; she quickly saved her work and logged off and swiftly went to the two boys apartment to check up on them. Once again she knocked against the rickety door however a frantic scrambling of feet came from behind the door and the door flung open revealing the same bluish boy, however pale and with a look of terror pasted across his face. Lightning flung himself at Diana grabbing at her jacket and his eyes pleaded at her in silent horror, his looks sent chills down her spine “What’s going on, what’s wrong?” she said hastily, his fear prickling wavers into her voice. Lightning just pulled at her jacket while he pointed up the winding staircase and her eyes followed but she quickly started to hear manic scuttling, scratching and crashing up the stairs that dashed across the upstairs with insane speed and ferocity. Without hesitation Diana started to dash up the stairs “Bullet!, Bullet!, Are you okay?!” She shouted up the stairs as she ran, Lightning right behind her. Diana swung open the door “B-" the sound shut off in her throat as she looked in abject terror.

Bullet stood hunched over on all fours however somehow seemingly towering over his surroundings, his crimson fur was on edge, his face curled and scrunched up, his nose flared, his mouth grimaced showing monstrous blade-like teeth. Dark unknown black liquid and viscous dark blood dripped from the dressing on his eye finally his eye, a brilliant almost glowing red with 3 strange white circles spinning in the iris, and it was staring right at her with blind fury. Bullet’s dripping maw parted slightly letting out a booming growl as he started to turn towards them stalking on all fours like a predator, snarling, as he pursued them they started to scuttle to the other side of the room and with their sudden movements Bullet’s growling became more intense; Diana startled by it tripped over onto the floor and started to scoot backwards on the floor and Bullet was now only focused on her. As Diana stared at him she could notice his fur getting darker and it seemed like his back got longer and his tail started to puff up, his lower ears started to shrink and by the time he was only a meter away he was a large black feral beast that had smoke that drifted from his nostrils and As he edged closer she started to look frantically around her for an escape. Finally, he stopped as he loomed over her still snarling as piercing red eye stared at her intensely, but suddenly in her delirious fear she dashed in the direction of a pencil to distract him with but without warning, he lunged at her going directly for her throat.

Blood sprayed across Bullet’s face causing him to recoil, he looked at Diana, a pool of blood started to form as he looked at it his fur started to shimmer and red started to come through again and he slowly started to turn back. Bullet regained his senses and he finally looked at himself he fell backwards and scurried away from the expanding pool of blood, he leaned himself against a ledge below a bright circular window in the middle of the room, his breathing became shorter and shallower, his breaths became short and gulping almost like he was drowning in the thick sharp air and his stomach started to convulse dryly as he coughed violently. Tremors drifted throughout his small body and he dug his claws into his face as he shook and a mixture of wine red liquid and a black dripped from the soaked bandage. Time seemed to come to a thundering halt, milliseconds or centuries could have passed and he wouldn’t be able to tell over the crashing of his own heart. Scorching heat spread across him as his grip on reality started to waver as the dizzying pain that spread across his core started to drift away, everything became distant and intangible, his very existence almost seemed foreign, detached, unreachable. “Bu-" The door opened.

To be continued...