Starting a Game of Hyde and Seek
#101 of The Moonrise Chronicles
So the people have spoken. Sigh. Here you go all you vocal voters - more of Maggie and Edward. Just be forewarned that the story has taken a dark turn, as I hope you have come to expect.
The fog
and mists shrouded the seas for leagues in all directions. The dull slap of
waves hitting the rusted metal hull provided a auditory backdrop that was
devoid of recognizable sound. The ship was far out to sea, lost in the
moisture-laden air. The situation was even more eerie in that there was absolutely
no one aboard this liner.
None but two.
One lay
on the deck, near death. His injuries were deadly by anyone's standards and yet
he still lived.
One sat
atop the highest crow's nest above the control room. Wings outstretched, she
sat in silent vigil over the waters, her ears alert for the slightest sound.
Now and again the distant cry of a gull or other oceangoing bird could be heard
faintly across the waves, but overall silence shrouded the ship as effectively
as did the ghostly vapors.
Her
wings, still bloodied along the edges from where they had tore away from her
body, dripped with red-tinged moisture. They were never meant to be used and
abused in such a reckless fashion, most importantly not for her first flight.
But what choice did she have? Now she relished the cool North Sea air which did
much to comfort them. Maggie was a tough little scrapper, but falling from
seven miles up and then saving what was left of Edward had taken its toll.
There
were it seemed, limits to their abilities after all.
Edward
was lying in a congealed pool of his own blood. His left arm was missing right
up to the shoulder. He was a grizzly sight to behold. And the cause of all this
harm? Hyde was unaccounted for. She could hope he had drowned, but she felt it
in her bones that wishing for that eventuality was a fool's request. The man
was too filled with hate to die so easily.
At least
he had not made it to their present hideout. It didn't mean he wouldn't find
it, but for now they seemed safe enough.
The
name on the ship, strangely enough, was in English, though the name was
Russian. She had no idea what or who Lyubov Orlova was, or why this ship,
marked as belonging to Cruise North Expeditions, was floating along like a ghost
ship. She had done a preliminary search and found the entire thing deserted.
There didn't even seem to be any cockroaches on board, or rats, or any sign of
life. How someone could lose a ship this size was mind boggling. How long had
this thing been adrift?
Locating
it had only been by happenstance. She had been losing strength in flying Edward
to someplace solid. To find a place of safety seemed to be too much to ask, but
this ship answered her call. Her wailing cries in the night seemed to bounce
off of something besides endless sea, and she had homed in on it unerringly.
The
droplets of dew now collected on her skin and ran in rivulets down her flanks
to the deck, leaving narrow paths in their wake. They might as well have been
tears for all she cared. Edward was in bad shape, and outside of her ring on his
finger, there was nothing she could do to help him. He was a mess of sundered
parts, broken bones and smashed flesh.
Hyde
was still out there, somewhere in that gaping expanse of black ocean. Edward
and he had battled in the air, heedless of the fact that they were falling to
their doom. Edward had underestimated the sheer hatred contained within
Stevenson's dark side. The man was easier to avoid and handle on something
solid, but here in the air, with the clouds swirling around them, the battle
had taken a darker turn. In the end, Edward had nearly been completely beaten.
That was
where Maggie came in. She didn't know if it was the stress of the situation or
what, but she knew she needed something to give her an edge. Wings weren't even
in her mind at the time, not that she consciously remembered much of what was
going through her gray matter as she was falling. All she knew was that she had
to reach them and somehow pull them apart.
It was
at that moment that her body was wracked with pain. Her back writhed and tore
loose. Heretofore nonexistent or simply unmodified bones stretched out to grant
her her birthright. The wind tore at them and she was suddenly watching the two
men disappearing into the darkness. She wasn't flying, but her increased rag
was slowing her down. She instinctively drew the wings in and dropped like a
stone. She'd worry about the details of flying later.
The air
flowing over her raw flesh helped to alleviate some of the pain, and focusing
on her intended target made bearing the rest doable, if nauseating. Her eyes
were far sharper than a normal humans and now they seemed especially so. She
folded everything about her into as streamlined a shape as possible and felt
like every hair on her head was going to tear out.
But she
caught up with them. The sea was far below, but getting ever closer. If they
hit it, the impact would likely kill them instantly. Physics was not to be
denied. At the speed they were falling, the impact would crush their tissues.
That's
when the arm flew past her head. It was obvious that Edward was in trouble;
deep, deep trouble. He might have the strength to fight off Hyde, but he had
too much compassion to do a proper job. Hyde on the other hand lived for the
mayhem and destruction and he had promised to kill Edward if he got the chance.
Falling through the air was likely only making him more manically violent.
She
plummeted as fast as she could, stretching out her arms and growing some very
wicked looking talons from her fingertips. They weren't just claws, but
scimitar shaped blades with only one purpose. The air buffeted her eyes, making
vision difficult, so she said a little prayer and honed in using her other senses.
Her ears seemed up for the task, despite the wind rushing past them.
She
landed in the middle of them and in a flash her claws struck out, striking her
foe in the neck. Blood spurted in all directions, but as her eyes were still
shut, she wasn't blinded by it. She howled like a harpy and dug her talons in
again. He bellowed and let loose of Edward, who slowly began to tumble
away. With once last stab she kicked
Hyde in the opposite direction and flew to Edward.
It
wasn't all that simple, but she managed to grasp him before the ocean raced up
to swallow them both. Gritting her teeth, she opened her wings and braced for
impact. There was nothing but the sound of Edward's back paws trailing through
the water. But she heard the crash of another, equally large mass hitting the
surface with a sickening kerchunk. She smiled in grim satisfaction and flapped
slowly along, wondering where they were at and when she might find land.
The
ship had loomed up just in the nick of time, and she used the last of her energies
to get him up on the deck. She didn't give a damn what anyone thought of such a
combination hitting their precious little boat. She would muster the needed willpower
to fight off an army if it was necessary. But there was no army, no first mate,
and no passengers. The ship was a floating heap, a wreck lost from some port or
another, or worse, a place where everyone had died mysteriously. She hardly
cared for the moment, but she did do a quick survey to confirm they were alone.
They
were.
She
flew to his side, wanting to cry but holding it in. It wouldn't help him one
bit. She slid off her ring, the only thing she was wearing besides the vial
around her neck, and stuck it on his mangled finger. He was wearing his, which
somehow had miraculously remained in place. But his body needed more than
simple healing.
It was a wreck and a ruin.
She leaned
down and kissed him. "There isn't much I can do for you lover boy. You took on
more than you bargained for and paid the price. It isn't the first time and I
hope it won't be the last."
With
her lips touching him, she sensed his mind. It was roiling in pain, but a few
words came through clearly. "No? Why
not?"
"Because stupid, that would mean
that you were dead. You can't go dying on me now."
If he had anything more to
say he kept it to himself. She stood, wiping away a tear despite her resolve
and flew to a higher point from where she could look out over the ocean. The
vial was beginning to burn her skin, so she removed the chain and held it out
at arm's length. She made as if to throw it, but refrained from doing so for
the moment. She settled down for a long watch and that was where she remained.
She took the time to try to get her wings to go fold back in; for she had seen
The Kindred do it. Whatever the trick was, she didn't have it.
After a
while she used them to wrap her torso, keeping some of the incessant mists away
from her. She was cold, but she was feeling that the sensation had more to do
with the possibility of losing Edward again than the cold North Sea air. He
might as well be dead considering the extent of his injuries. But his mind was still
in there so there was hope for the rest of him. She laughed grimly to herself. The
rest of him... He was missing parts. She was morbidly curious to see if he could
grow back an entire limb.
After a
while, she walked cautiously down the steps until she made it to the inside of
the ship. Her nails clicked and clacked along the way. The captain's control
room was a corroded mess, and nothing on it had obviously worked on it in a
while. Down in the hold, she searched the area until she found the galley. The refrigeration units had been
nonfunctional for what had to be years, but the shelves did have a supply of
rusted cans. Since they weren't bulging, it meant that whatever was inside them
was still edible. That was good.
There
were a few rooms that still had beds, and she mentally mapped the area she had
just been in for future reference. She didn't want to move him just yet, not
until his body had pieced itself together a little more. He had said once that
a body, even theirs, couldn't make something from nothing, though she wondered
about that. How the hell did they manage to bulk up from their normal forms? If
that wasn't magic, then she didn't know what was.
But it happened, so there was that,
and one couldn't argue with the facts.
She returned to her perch, glad
that some vestige of the sun was trying very hard to break through the thick
veil that obstructed her view. She had hopes that when the fog had cleared
there would be some sort of landmass nearby.
She was sorely disappointed when
none was visible. Still, there was food and shelter on this ship, if not much
else. On the other hand, if it was out here floating, and for more than just a
little while, then the chances of anyone noticing them was slim to none.
From her perspective the ship
seemed to be motionless, in regards to its surroundings, but the fact was, it
was moving ever so slowly. Ocean currents were moving it along, carrying it
with it until such time as it sank.
Then it belonged to Davy Jones and
his locker of maritime wonders.
She looked down at the motionless
body on the deck. He probably would have survived a direct hit from a semi rig
better than his battle with Hyde. She grimly pictured in her mind that
horrendous beast cutting a swath through the German lines during the war. It's
a wonder that particular conflict lasted as long as did. I guess it depended on
how many planes the RAF had opted to lose. They should have dropped him on
Berlin.
All day she kept her vigil,
splitting her attention between the horizon and the deck. She had no delusions
about Hyde. He had survived a lot; had murdered a lot and if he was still alive
out there, she innately knew he would find his way to this ship. She pitied any
country that was close enough for him to make to their shores for they would be
struck with a tragedy of epic proportions.
But then, maybe the depths had taken
him. She laughed grimly. The world couldn't be that lucky. There was also a
chance that Hyde had lost cohesion, reverting back to his human host. Again it
was doubtful. Stevenson had said that anything that had the potential of
killing him would bring out the bad side. Drowning seemed to be right up there
in the realm of ways of dying. That in itself would force Hyde to remain.
Her watch continued over the course
of the next several days. Cans were opened and food, though not appealing cold,
was eaten. By day three Edward was looking...more complete, save his missing left
arm. She had moved him to the interior the day before, hoping the drier
conditions would help him along. She hardly knew what to say to him about his
missing appendage. She was just glad he was alive.
He was a little more pragmatic
about the situation. He was sitting up in the bed, looking out the porthole.
Reaching up, he gingerly felt his shoulder. "Well Mags, looks like we'll need
to find a thrift shop when we get to land."
"What? Why?"
"You know; a second hand store."
"I can't believe you! You're making
a joke about something like this?"
"What do you want me to do? I only
hope that everyone else is ok. Hyde and I really trashed the plane before we
left."
"I haven't forgotten everyone else.
But I can't exactly call and find out now can I?"
"Chill
out Mags. We're alive, and that counts for something. But in retrospect, I
think the next time someone wants to come with us, the answer is going to be
no. Hey, did you see if the ship's radio worked?"
"There's
no power, remember? I've been using my new nails to open the cans."
"Yes,
your new form is quite...interesting. Still haven't been able to get the wings to
retract?"
"Obviously
not," she said petulantly, "otherwise I'd have ditched them a while ago. They're
a pain to deal with down here in the hold."
"True.
But you look amazing with them. Especially right now."
She had
reverted as much as she could, turning most of herself into her human form. Her
feet and legs were stuck in something much more akin to...to...something avian. Her
wings were the color of her skin, though originally they had her fur on them.
She was as variable in this new form as she was in her others. But right now
she was painfully beautiful. Her face, though looking worn from worry, had a
glow and a life about it that seemed magnified her in the dim light of the
room.
"If I
felt more up to it, I'd drag you down on the bed and make love to you. But I'm
not very handy at the moment..."
"Shut
up before I throw you overboard."
He put
on his best hurt face. "It's not like I'm trying to strong arm you or
anything..."
She
jumped on top of him and kissed him passionately.
"What
was that for?" he said with a touch of amusement in his voice when she released
his lips.
"There is
more than one way of getting you to be quiet."
He
smiled. "It's going to be alright, I promise."
"And
how do you know?" But she caught herself. "What do you see?"
"A life
together. I have learned not to look too hard for answers, because I think I'm
just too stupid to understand it anyway."
"Is
that so? At some point in time we are going to run out of food you know. And
this stupid hunk of steel has been floating around for who knows how long. I
doubt anyone is going to find us on it."
"Just
because I can't go anywhere doesn't mean you can't. You have wings now, which means
you're about as tied down to this ship as the breeze is. I'd suggest you quit
worrying so much about me and learn how to use those things. Have you ever seen
an eagle in action?"
"Sure,
but one bird is like another don't you think?"
"Yep,
except when they're not."
"I'm
hardly going to hover in place like a hummingbird you know!"
"I
agree. But keep eagles in mind. They do soaring very well. Learn how to expend
the least amount of energy and you can go far on the winds."
"But I
don't want to go far!"
"You
may have to. This ship could be anywhere in the North Sea. I'm sure there's
traffic in the region, but like you said, this wreck has been drifting for a
while. That alone makes me think that it's either very much lost or avoided.
You may have to go miles before you can figure out where we're at."
"If you
say so. The sun is out today. Do you think I should try it?"
"I do.
And the sooner we get off this floating heap the better."
"I
doubt it's going to be that easy. What are we going to do about you?"
"We'll
worry about that when the time comes."
She
climbed up into the open air, stretching her wings before pumping them and
feeling her feet leave the deck. With a cry she launched herself skyward. The
tissue between her ribs and the wings had filled in and healed over with skin,
compounding her concern that the wings were ever going to retract back to a
position where they couldn't be seen. But for now, she was content to fly.
She soon
learned to take the thermals; the heat rising from the surface of the ocean.
Edward had been right about that, and the more she thought it over, the more
she remembered watching vultures circle for hours with a single flap of their
wings. She locked her wings out to their fullest. With her legs held straight
behind her she proved to have a very aerodynamic form.
It
turns out the ship was very far from land, so far in fact that after an hour of
soaring in ever widening circles, she saw nothing that looked remotely like
land. But she did see a disturbance in the surface of the water. Dropping down to investigate showed the dark
patch to be a school of fish.
She
wished she had some way of catching one, for some fresh food would be a nice
change of pace. But without a net or a hook and line, she was sunk. Then Edward's
words struck her.
Like an eagle.
She
swung around, lined up with the school and dived. When she was just a few feet
off the surface, she pulled up and leveled off, pulling up again and slashing
her feet into the water. With a few strong blasts from her wings she pulled up
clutching a cod in each foot.
The
trip back was short, not surprising considering she had refused to go far from
the ship. She dropped the fish on the deck and landed with the lightest of
touches. Picking up the fish she carried them down to Edward.
He saw
them and smiled. "So you thought like an eagle after all!"
"I did!
I don't like these feet but they have their uses."
He
looked over the fish. "Something fresh sounds good, but how are you are sushi?"
"Sushi?
Do I look like a chef?"
"You
have to learn some time."
"There
is nothing usable in the kitchen in the way of spices, except maybe salt.
Everything else has gone bad."
"Beggars
can't be choosers. Get some salt if you like, but raw is what's on the menu."
She
watched him eat one handed, thankful that if he was to lose a limb is was the
non dominant one. He never complained once. She knew he was thankful to be
alive after the terrible fight with Hyde. He was healed now as much as he was
going to be so it seemed. And he appeared resigned to it.
He was
watching her in turn, suddenly leaning in and grasping the silver vial. "What
did you do with this earlier? I've been wearing your ring."
"I tossed it in a drawer. What
should we do with this do you suppose?"
"That's a good question."
"I
thought about throwing it away, but I've fought that idea until now. Should I
toss it overboard?"
"I say
keep it. I for one have no desire to be less than what I am, but obviously he
did. We'll hand it over to Leo when we make it to Rome. Maybe he'll find an
interest in it."
"Do you
think we'll ever make it to Rome?"
"Sure I
do. We just got delayed a little in the meantime."
"Delayed
a little? That's an understatement."
"We're
together. It's not the most glamorous of cruises, but we do have the ship to
ourselves."
"In the
middle of the North Sea no less! Couldn't we have picked the Bahamas?"
"Heat
and fur don't go together very well in my estimation. On the other hand, you in
a swimsuit might be appealing."
"More
so than me being nude?" she said saucily, seeing as she was at that moment buck
naked.
"There
is something to be said for clothing too. Somehow the art of concealing what
you have has been something women have leaned over the centuries."
Maggie
stood, wrapping herself in her wings. "Like this?"
He
reached out with his lone arm and pulled her in. "Precisely!"
She
batted her eyes fetchingly and giggled as he dragged her onto the bed.