# Skyfall Chapter 11

Author: Abyssa
Tags: Alien, Anthro, Canine, Human, Hybrid, Laboratory, Magic, Male, Phoenix, Werewolf, Wolf, space

             The
early hours of the morning approached. The sky was lighting up with that deep-blue
glow that haunted the landscape before sunrise. I needed to meet Kato with my
supplies for Eldon in about an hour. I rubbed my sore eyes and slid off the
branch. I had no idea what supplies I would even be bringing to Eldon. 
  I walked back towards the
lab in a daze, completely exhausted. Once I reached the courtyard, I hesitated.
I was too tired to stay standing up straight, and I swayed a bit. A few guards
exiting the building glanced at me, probably assuming I was drunk or drugged. 
  Eventually I stumbled
through the doors of the lab and saw Kato sitting in one of the lounge chairs
studying a clipboard. He glanced up from his work when I approached him.
  "Decipher," He said,
setting the clipboard on the table in front of him, "you look terrible."
  "I get that a lot." I
sighed, sinking into the chair across from him. 
  "I'm sorry, Decipher." He
said, staring into my eyes. I closed my eyes to avoid his probing stare. I
didn't have the energy to hide how I felt. "What did you see?" Kato asked.
  "I saw enough." I said, my
voice rough. "Everyone seems to know this about Misha. Why didn't anyone try
and warn me?"
  "So I take it you found out
his big 'secret', then?" Kato leaned forward and rubbed his head, "It's hard to
say. Most of us thought you would be better off figuring it out on your own. I
tried to warn you, but Misha promised me he was going to tell you the truth."
  "I'm sure he would have,
once I pressed the issue so much that he wouldn't be able to hide it." I spat,
my eyes glaring past Kato. I glanced into his eyes, "Do you think he actually
cares about me?"
  "Absolutely," Kato said,
"but that doesn't mean you can trust him...Although, I guess it depends on how
much you care about that part." 
  "You mean the fact that he
fucks all the experiments he works with?" I snapped.
  "So you do care." Kato observed.
  "I don't know if I care,
honestly, Kato..." I sighed with a low growl, "I'm just...afraid."
  "You don't care about what
he does?" Kato asked, leaning forward, "What are you afraid of?"
   I had to think for a moment. I
wasn't sure exactly what I was afraid of. "I guess I am afraid he doesn't
really care." I admitted. "I've put aside the fact that I've been lied to,
manipulated, everything...but, if he doesn't really care, I'll have invested so
much of my time and feelings into him for nothing."  The thought felt so juvenile once I expressed
it out loud.
  "So you don't care that
he's been cheating on you?" Kato asked, seeming skeptical.
  "I'm not even sure I can
call it that. We never established that we were in a closed relationship."
  "Did he tell you he loved
you?" 
  "Yeah." 
  "Then you shouldn't have to
establish it as a closed relationship." Kato let out a heavy sigh, "Misha
is...not a good person. You need to be careful of him."
  "What do you mean by that?
What do you think he will do to me?" I demanded. I needed to know what he
meant. I was afraid and Kato was the only one I felt could give me answers at
this point. "Kato, I have no idea what I'm doing." I admitted.
  "I assume you saw one of
his ravaged experiments in the basement, right?" Kato asked, "Strapped down and
drugged?" 
  "Yeah...a werewolf. He had
Misha's scent all over him, and then complained about how Misha had lied to him
about his feelings." I swallowed hard as I attempted to ignore the visual of
the struggling werewolf.
  "Misha takes what he wants
with very little consideration of how the other person will feel." Kato said. I
could tell he was tiptoeing around the subject, but my mind was too weak to
make him be specific. I knew what he meant; I just didn't want to believe it. 
  "On occasion, Misha lies
and uses manipulative techniques to make the other person go along with it, but
he also isn't afraid to just take what he wants by force." Kato said, his
golden, fiery eyes piercing into mine. "You understand?" 
  I nodded and looked towards
the sky outside. The sun was beginning to rise.
  "It's almost time for the
final approval. I have some clothing for you, were you planning on packing
anything else for Eldon?" Kato asked, following my gaze out the window.
  "Just my dagger blade." I
said. 
   "Then you probably don't need to be here. Meet
me after lunch and I'll give you your gear and explain it all." Kato said,
standing up and collecting his clipboard and papers.
  "Kato." I said, standing
with him, "One more question."
   Kato kept his eyes on his board, "What is
it?" He asked.
  "Did Misha hurt you?" I
asked. 
  Surprised, Kato looked up
at me. "No. He never harmed me. We broke up because it turned out I wasn't his
type. After about two years, Misha realized he was into animals instead of
humans." Kato paused and rubbed his wrist. When he rubbed his wrist, I could
have sworn I saw a black marking appear for a brief moment, but then it was
gone as soon as I had seen it. "Being a human, his attraction for me naturally
faded, and then I found out what he'd been doing behind my back." 
  "I wasn't happy about it,
but we remained on good enough terms. I forgave him a long time ago for what he
did to me." Kato finished, turning his back and walking away.
  "Wait, Kato!" I said,
walking next to him, "Misha told me that we couldn't be together because I
wasn't human...isn't that some sort of taboo?" 
  "Confront Misha on the
matter." Kato said with a wave of his hand, "It might have been in the past,
but everyone here knows about Misha, anyways. We all expected him to fall for
you. It sounds like it was just a bullshit excuse to get you to lay low while
he tested you out. Now go sleep."
  I stopped and watched Kato
walk away. "Thanks, Kato." I mumbled. He waved in response. I began to feel
guilty for involving Kato; I could tell it was stressful for him.
 
I stirred in my bed as I became aware of a faint tapping at my door. My
eyes slowly opened to the blinding sunlight that was shining into my room.
Listening to the tapping, I remained still. I felt sick, sure that it was Misha
at the door.
  "Decipher!" His voice
called in. "Are you in there?" 
  My stomach tightened and I
felt the urge to vomit. I rolled out of bed and approached the door. Slowly, I
opened the barrier between us.
  His smiling face on the
other side filled me with confusion. He sauntered into the room as soon as I
opened the door. He was wearing different clothing. It seemed very familiar. I
assumed that this was the type of clothing that was worn in Eldon. 
  He wore a tight, tan shirt
made of a thick fabric and had a leather cord laced up the front, and brown
pants that looked like they were made from some sort of animal hide. 
  "Decipher! Good to see
you." He said, stroking my arm as he moved past me. I held back a snarl. "You
seem upset. Are you okay?" 
  I closed my eyes. I
couldn't distract myself with his new outfit anymore. 
  "You said you were done
lying." was all I could think to say.
  "Yeah." Misha said
carefully with a puzzled expression. "But it'll take time to confess
everything...I thought we talked about this."
   "I met one of your experiments." I spat,
staring past him and out the window. 
  Misha remained silent, as
if he were waiting for me to rant. His silence was infuriating, and my muscles
began to shake with anticipation. 
  I decided to give him what
he was waiting for. My head jerked towards him, "The other day when I said no."
I growled as I gazed into his worried, dark eyes, "You had to find someone else
to take advantage of because you couldn't keep it in your pants, right?" 
   Misha had no response. He opened
his mouth anyway, as if hoping some words would come out and save him from the
mess he'd gotten himself into. "I just..." 
  I stepped closer to him,
causing him to cower. "Did you think I wouldn't find out? Did you think that
this would just be okay when I DID find out?"
  "No! Listen!" Misha
pleaded, stumbled backwards. 
  "What about all of your
experiments that you manipulate into loving you? Are you sure that wasn't what
you were doing to me?"
  Misha shook his head, "I
swear...I swear I never wanted to get involved with you!" He said. 
  I growled, tempted to
snatch him by the throat. "Never wanted to get involved with me? So you don't
love me!"  
  "Decipher, I do love you! I
tried to escape you, but you kept approaching me. You kept trying so I thought
maybe it could work!" He cried as he backed himself into the wall, "I never
wanted to involve you in my life. I knew I would bring you nothing but
trouble...but I stopped resisting when you kept reaching for me."
  My ears flattened and I
stopped approaching him. I considered his words...it was true. He had ignored me. He had tried to escape
me. The events flashed clearly though my mind. 
  "You seem stressed. Can I help
somehow?"
  "I have to go."  I began to shake even
harder as I realized I was the one who had done this.
  "What's so wrong about caring for someone?" 
  "Do you know what I mean
when I say I care about you?"
  I began to feel panicked. I
sank down onto my bed. My breath was heavy and I felt faint. He had tried to
warn me, but I was too foolish to listen. 
  Misha slowly approached me,
"I do love you." He whispered. "I know. I wasn't completely honest in the
beginning, and it's true...I've manipulated others into loving me...but I was just
lonely. I needed someone. But I would never do that to you." 
  I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting
the feeling of panic. "If you had me, would it not be enough?" I said through
grit teeth. "You had me...Just because I can't handle your physical demands all
the time doesn't mean that I'm not there, and it certainly doesn't mean you can
take advantage of others for your own selfish desires." 
  Misha sat down next to me on
the bed. "I'm so sorry, Decipher." He said softly, "I want you more than
anything...but I have issues. I'm terrible, you're right. I don't deserve you,
but I want to try and be better!" 
  My heart was racing, and I
felt like it was going to leap out of my throat. I swallowed hard and tried to
calm my shaking body. 
  "You shouldn't come with us
to Eldon." I said with a shaky voice. 
  "I have to." Misha replied,
avoiding my eyes, "Doctor Hale gave me an official assignment."
  I didn't understand what
exactly that meant, but I knew that if Hale had commanded it, it had to happen.
I sighed and took a few deep breaths. 
  "If you travel with Sheila
she will kill you." I said, staring out the window.
  "I know. I'm fairly certain
that Hale wants me to go so that this issue will be resolved." 
  "You mean he wants you
dead?" I asked, surprised.
   "No. I think he wants one of us dead. I'm
not sure if he has a preference."
  I couldn't comprehend that
statement. The fact that I was still completely ignorant to what was going on
in this place dawned on me. Staring out at the sky, I imagined life back at
home... As horrible as it was, I began to wish I had never left. I rubbed the
deep scar on my arm absent-mindedly. There would be no returning. These
thoughts were pointless. I needed to focus on the issues at hand. 
  "Decipher?" Misha asked,
placing his delicate hand over mine. I cringed.
  "I will link with you,
Misha." I said as I stood and moved away from him. "But you need to back off
for now. We will see what happens when we return from Eldon, assuming Sheila
doesn't kill either of us." 
  Misha nodded and remained
silent. I glanced up towards the clock and saw that it was lunch time. I headed
towards the door. 
  "In the meantime, I expect
complete honesty from you." I said, sending a glare in his direction. "I need
to meet with Kato." 
  I
made my way through the crowd of people at lunch, not bothering to get food. I
found Kato at a table with Caliber. They were both dressed in village clothing.
Their clothing looked very primitive when compared to my stark-white shirt and black,
silky shorts.
  "You okay, Decipher?"
Caliber asked, his voice full of genuine concern. "I heard about what
happened."
  I nodded. "I'll be fine."
  "Good." Kato said, tossing
me my own village outfit. "You should put these clothes on. We leave a few
hours before sunrise. Caliber and Sheila are leaving for Skyfall in a few
hours, and we will meet them at the pass before tomorrow's dawn." 
  I held up the shirt and
examined it. It was tan with a deep crimson design sewn into the front around
the neck and down the center. The design reminded me of Doctor Hale's uniform,
the one I had seen when I first met him.
  "What do they mean?" I asked
as I traced my fingers along the swirling designs.
  "Many things." Kato said.
  "I always just assumed it
was a nice design." Caliber said, glancing down to his own shirt, which had an
emerald pattern sewn across the bottom.
  "Very helpful." I said with
mock disapproval.  
  "So, Decipher..." Caliber
began cautiously, "Will Misha be travelling with Sheila and I?"
  "No." I replied with a sigh,
"I will link with him."
  "Have you two come to that
drastic of a resolution?" Kato asked while Caliber let out a sigh of relief. 
  "It's hard to explain, but
we are okay for now." I said, holding up the clothes, "I suppose I'll go slip
these on."
  "Decipher, are you sure?"
Kato said, "Linking with someone is extremely difficult as it is. You might
hurt yourself if you cannot successfully link with Misha."
  "I'll figure it out." 
  Kato nodded, "As long as
you'll be alright. After you've changed I'll give you your supply bag."
  I walked into the gym
dressing room and slipped off my clothing. I pulled the shirt over my head. The
fabric was thick and seemed durable. I stepped into the black pants next. 
  The pants were firm and
dense, and had some strange scales sewn around the waist. The scales were
golden and stiff, but flexed with the way my body moved and tightened when I
stood up straight. They seemed to mimic the elastic effect that my other
clothing had. I wondered what kind of beast these scales belonged to. Some type
of rare dragon, my downloaded information told me, but that was all I could
gather from my exhausted mind. 
  When I stepped outside of
the dressing room, Kato was leaning against the wall with a satchel. 
  "Here's your bag. It has
some food, a water pouch, and an energy crystal." He said, pulling out a jagged
blue stone that pulsed with energy. The feeling was strong. I could sense the
powerful energy from where I stood several feet away. "These are hard to come
by. Be careful with it."
  I reached my hand out to
touch it. I felt energized just being around it. I was afraid that if I took it
from him, the energy would seep into me. 
  "How do I use it?" I asked.
  "Focus on the energy and it
will enter you." Kato said, "Just like when you're trying to light a fire and
you draw energy in. The crystal's only really for emergency use, though."  He dropped the crystal back into the satchel
and handed me the bag.
  "Because of the...recent
stress that Misha has caused you, you'll probably need some of that energy to
recover after teleporting." Kato said with a sigh, "Walking through Skyfall
Pass requires your full strength; it is a dangerous place."
  I nodded and slipped the
strap on the bag over my shoulder. "I'll be fine." I said. I wasn't really
talking to Kato, I mostly said it to convince myself.
  My head jerked upwards at
the sight of Misha, who casually walked down the hallway towards us. Kato and I
remained silent as he cautiously walked around us.  
  "Doctor Hale has another
assignment for you to pick up before we leave for Eldon, Kato." Misha said, "He
sent it up to the information desk. I think there's something for you, too,
Decipher."
  Kato sighed, "Alright." He
said flatly, "Come on, Decipher."  
  Grateful to have an excuse
to leave, I quickly followed Kato up to the information desk. 
  "You've never had an
official assignment before." Kato sighed, "Of course Hale chooses your first
visit into town to test you out."
  I wasn't sure how to
respond, so I remained silent. It seemed that Kato was talking to himself,
anyway. We walked in silence to the information desk.
  A woman behind the desk
slid two envelopes out towards us, "Hello Kato," She said with a smile before
turning to me, "and...Two-fifty-seven? You're Decipher, right?"
  I nodded and took the
envelope with my number stamped across the front. Kato's envelope was marked
somehow, too, but he quickly slid his hand over the mark and snatched the
envelope before I could get a good look.
  Kato peered inside at the
contents of the envelope and cursed under his breath. "I have to run down to
the medical wing." Kato said, quickly descending the staircase. "Go read your
assignment. If you have any questions, I'll be in the lounge after I'm done." 
  "Alright." I said. I
trailed behind Kato and stopped in the lounge. I took a moment to reflect on
the conversation I had with Kato hours earlier. I could hardly believe so
little time had passed. I felt like an eternity had passed since that
conversation.
  With a sigh, I opened my envelope.
Focus. I reminded myself. Focus on the issues at hand.
  The top of the paper had my
number on it, as well as some symbols I did not understand.  I scanned the rest of the paper, my nerves
building with every line I read. 
Assignment:
 
Protect Misha Aras
Description:

  Class 5 Assassin of T.R.I.L., Sheila Duran,
is unable to put aside personal matters. We are convinced that she will attack
geneticist Misha Aras during her trip to Eldon Village. M. Aras is a vital part
of our team. Your job will be to ensure he survives, as well as take care of S.
Duran. Duran has become disposable; she does not need to return.
 
Notes: 
  It would be unwise to attempt a sneak-attack
on Duran. It is recommended you wait until she is blind with rage. She has
always had trouble controlling her emotions. Use this to your advantage. She is
stronger and smarter than you. 
   I read through the description over and over
again. I couldn't believe what I was reading. This is how they deal with
problem employees? My eyes wandered to the bottom of the page, where Doctor
Hale had scribbled his signature. 
  Someone sat next to me
suddenly. I jerked away and shoved the paper back inside the envelope. I sighed
with relief when I saw it was Kato. 
  "Hey." He said drowsily.
  "Are you alright?" I asked
him, attempting to ignore my own shaking body.
  "Yeah." He groaned while
rubbing his arm, "I just had some shitty injections. Drugs are stupid. I hate
them."
  I nodded, pretending to
understand what he meant. He seemed a bit out of it. 
  "What's your assignment?" Kato
asked, leaning back in the lounge chair.
  "Protect Misha." I said,
wondering if I should go into detail. 
  Kato laughed, but it wasn't
a regular laugh. He giggled and fell forward. I caught him before he hit his
face on the table.
  "What the hell, Kato!" I
said, shaking him. "Are you okay?"
  His face became serious for
a brief moment before he burst into another fit of laughter. I shoved the
envelope into my satchel and hoisted Kato up. "Come on." I said as I lifted him
over my shoulder, "Let's go ask a doctor." 
  I carried him towards the
medical wing. I heard someone else laughing behind me. Her laugh sent a shiver
through my body. I turned to see Sheila's intense, green eyes staring at me. 
  "What's wrong with Kato?"
She laughed, winking at me, "Is he drunk?" 
  I narrowed my eyes. I don't
know what she could have done, but I still blamed her.
  "Well, I have to get
going." She said, still flashing her wicked grin, "See you two at Skyfall Pass,
if Kato can make it that far."
  Kato was still giggling
like a madman. I growled and continued towards the medical wing. If Sheila had
done something, at least he didn't seem to be hurt...just useless.
  "Hey Decipher!" Kato said
in between laughing as I rushed into the medical wing. "Sheila says she's going
to kill you before she's done. I said that's not very nice but oooh well!"
  I sat Kato down on a table
in one of the patient rooms, "Shut up and stay here." I growled, looking around
for a doctor.
  Misha was flipping through
some papers at the end of the hall. I searched around for anyone else, but it seemed
he was my only option. I gave up and approached him.
  "Misha, I need your help." I said,
pointing towards the room that contained Kato, "I think Sheila gave Kato some
kind of drug. He's acting like a lunatic." 
  Misha raised an eyebrow,
"Acting like a lunatic? The nurse just gave him a few injections to boost his
energy levels." 
  He followed me into the
room, where Kato was laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling with a
grin.
  "He won't stop laughing. Is
that a normal side effect?" 
  Misha leaned over Kato and
shined a light into his eyes. "Kato?  Can
you hear me?" 
  Kato squirmed and nearly
fell off the table. "Too bright..." He mumbled.
  "No. I wouldn't say this is
normal." Misha said, tossing his light and examining some puffy, red marks on
Kato's arm. "Damn it." 
  "Is he going to be okay?" 
  "Yeah, he'll be fine..."
Misha sighed, stepping outside to speak with the nurse.
  "I gave him the premade
injection that you left me." I heard her voice say. 
"Here's the note that you left with it."
  I glanced out to see Misha
snatch the note, "Don't ever trust notes!" He yelled, crushing the paper, "If
it doesn't have a keycard on it, don't trust it." 
  "I'm sorry!" She cried,
"You were right next door. I didn't think to question it..." 
  Misha shoved past her,
"Decipher, I'll be back. Watch Kato."
  Kato was stirring on the
table. I glanced at his wrist; the black pattern was there again. It looked
like a swirling flame, and when Kato struggled, the flame seemed to ignite. I
held onto his wrist, it was burning hot. 
  I looked around, the nurse
had gone and no one was around. Kato struggled against my grip and opened his
eyes. They looked like they were on fire, and I sat frozen as I stared into
them. 
  "Kato?" I asked quietly.
  He grinned and held up his
arm. I was terrified. "I miss this." He laughed again. Suddenly his entire arm
burst into flames. Without thinking, I snatched his arm and focused on putting
out the flames.
  "Kato stop!" I begged,
"Calm down!" 
  Kato's entire body began to
glow with a brilliant yellow aura.  An
intense wave of heat exploded from his figure and knocked me backwards. He sat
up for a moment, and then laughed and fell to the ground. I tried to catch him,
but his skin burned me. I jumped backwards as he crashed into the ground. 
  Misha ran back into the
room, "Dammit. Did he ignite?" He asked, jabbing a needle into Kato's arm.
  "I have no idea!" I
shouted, shaking off my burnt hand. "What does that even mean?"
  "He was drugged with a
toxin that is meant for capturing phoenixes." Misha said, carefully sliding a needle
into the vein on the inside of his arm, "Typically the drug gives the phoenix a
euphoric feeling before it renders them unconscious, but it affects Kato
differently because of the drugs he has received as part of training here. In
this case, it awakened his phoenix powers, while making him euphoric."
  "Phoenix? Kato is a
phoenix?" I grabbed the side of my head. Phoenixes
rarely take human form, and would never choose to live as one. My
downloaded information chimed in my head. "Drugs? What did you do to him?"
  "Hale captured him many
years ago." Misha sighed, sitting Kato upright, "Kato would transform into his
human form so that we could communicate with him, but soon he became depressed
and unresponsive. He stopped eating and became very ill, so Doctor Hale worked
out a deal with him. If he stayed a human and enrolled in training, he would be
allowed out of his cage."
  "That deal sounds
familiar." I growled. I couldn't believe Kato had been an experiment, and that
he, too was a prisoner. A vision of Kato as a beautiful, flaming bird, locked
away inside a dark cage crawled into my mind.
  "Being a human, his attraction for me naturally faded, and then I found
out what he'd been doing behind my back." Kato had said just this morning.
I pitied the poor man; he had been forced to be a human, a form he probably
hated...I couldn't imagine having wings stripped away from me. Would he and Misha
have made it if he were allowed to have his true form? 
   "You might have to link with both of us
tonight. I don't think Kato will be able to transport." Misha said, jarring me
back into reality. "Help me lift him up and we'll place him in the bed next
door." 
  I glared at Misha and
shoved him aside, lifting Kato up gently. If Caliber and Sheila hadn't just
left, I would have suggested Misha travel with them instead.
  Carefully, I placed Kato on
the bed next door. I pulled the sheet over him and watched his black, swirling
flame disappear. 
  "Take it out on Hale,
Decipher." Misha said from the doorway, folding his arms. "It wasn't me who did
this. I wasn't even the one to work with him back in those days."
  I sat down next to Kato's
bedside. I had nothing else to do. "I'll watch him." I said.
  "We'll let him rest until
we leave." Misha said before he left. "Sorry, Decipher." 
  "I suppose it's not your
fault." I said, closing my eyes. "See you later, Misha." 

Source: https://sofurry.com/view/565765

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