Mutation [ON HOLD]

Chapter 06.

"FANGLAX BIRD, HUH? It sounds really familiar to me, for some reason," Sean pondered.  I replied bitterly. "Sure you do.  And you can also efficiently work us out of a dark scary tunnel safely."

Sean whipped his head around quickly.  "I'm the Fighter here, not the Shifter.  I'm just supposed to be fighting."  I scoffed.  That's not what he said a while back.  

"Relax, I know what I'm doing."  

And look where that got us: the "helpless" girl saving their whooping butts back there.

I sat on the soft dirt underneath our tattered shoes and leaned against a mossy tree.  Closing my eyes, I think about my predicament.  My mother is kidnapped by some crazy Supernatural werewolves, her supposedly trustworthy best friend hid away like a coward, and now we have no idea what to do next.

I heard a soft rustle on the dried leaves scattered across the forest floor.  I froze and strained my ears again.  "Did you hear that?" I ask Sean.  "Hear what?" he replies, rummaging through the bookbag.  I strained my ears for a sound, but only the slight chirping of birds and swaying of trees could be heard.  "Nevermind," I mumble.  

A minute later, it was back.  I had sharp ears and I most certainly did hear a soft padding of the feet against the floor.  "Who's there?" I cried out.  Sean stopped looking through the bookbag and stared at me.  

A twig snapped.  We both froze.  Sean unsheathed his dagger and I put up what I hoped would be a good defensive position.

Behind the trees a wolf cub tumbled out.

I approached the cub.  "Hey, little one.  You lost?"  The cub wagged its tail and rolled on its back.  I sat back down against the tree.  Nothing to worry about.  Only an extremely perky little wolf cub.

The cub padded its way toward me.  Sean raised his dagger slightly but I gave a shake of my head.  He sheathed it but stared suspiciously at the cub.

The cub sat on my lap and started whining.  Then it licked my face.  I laughed.  "Hi.  I'm Tam.  And you are?" I said to the wolf.  The wolf started barking excitedly.  "Okay, okay, calm down you little pesky furball.  I'm going to call you... Bob."  Bob wagged his tail.  Okay, so Bob it was.

I was playing with the wolf.  "So... how's life?" I asked Bob.  Bob gave me a innocent grin and started barking to me.  It was weird because for some reason, I could understand what he was feeling.  I felt like Bob was a cub that wandered a little too far.  He was trying to make friends and then when he saw me, he wanted us to be buddies.

Sean began aggressively tapping my arm. "Hey, hey, hey, hey!" he shouted into my ear. I winced.  "Can't you see that Bob and I are having a moment?"

"Well, I'm sorry," he said, looking anything but sorry. "But I found out what a Fanglax bird is."  We huddled around him.  Bob wandered about two feet away and started relieving himself.  Sean looked disgusted, but recovered his attention to the book he was holding.  "I stole it from my mom," he explained.

"The Guide to Beasts and Creatures," I read.  "A Fanglax bird is an extremely powerful bird with large wings.  They are immune to any weapons or venom, making them nearly invincible.  They have a weak spot, but it is not found yet.  Fanglax birds, if threatened, will shoot out their fangs and bite into their threat's body.  The victim to their venom dies immediately.  There is no cure to their venom."  I shiver in horror.  "This is interesting and all, but how are we going to use the Fanglax bird?"

The Fighter shook his head.  "It says near the bottom that humans and mutations can ride on the Fanglax.  They travel extremely quickly, even faster than vampires do, and know your desired destination as their sixth sense," Sean read.  "However, as a payment of a ride for you, you must sacrifice something."

I stared into space, shocked.  I couldn't sacrifice people or anything.  I needed them.  And as hard as it was to admit, Sean and I make a pretty good team.  "And what are we going to sacrifice?"

"I vote on that wolf," he said pointing to Bob.  I frown and punch him on his shoulder.  He winces in pain. 

"We are not giving away a poor wolf cub to that bird."

"How about we think about that later?  Let's just summon the Fanglax bird.  Before the Supernaturals find us."

I agreed.  It says in the book that we had to whistle a shrill note and mutter "Fanglax, Fanglax, Fanglax" over again.

I whistled while Sean muttered the bird's name over and over again.  There was a whoosh of wind and a red, orange, and yellow bird appeared.  It was sizing us up.  Then it bent down to let us on.  Bob whimpered.  He fled away in such a rush into a woody area.  

On the Fanglax's back, I watched a blur of green trees underneath us which transformed into a desert like area.  The Fanglax began flying faster to avoid a sandstorm that was coming up behind us.  The bird whooshed up into the air and I couldn't see earth.  Only dark clouds and the drool on Sean's face as he was sleeping.

Huh.  This guy could sleep through anything.  Even when we're miles above the ground.

The bird lowered itself down under the clouds.  There I saw a snowy terrain.  It had many buildings and trees.  The area was surrounded nature.  

The Fanglax lowered itself until it touched the ground.  I woke Sean up, hopped off the bird, and adjusted my backpack on my shoulders.  The bird looked expectantly at me.

"Listen, I'm extremely sorry we don't have anything.  But I'll offer you to help you in your time of need, as my repayment.  Any favor, and I'll do it for you."  I bowed at the bird.  "Thank you."

The Fanglax bird seemed to smile at me through its wise, human-like eyes.  It flew off into the clouds.

I look around the snowy area and check the instructions.  After the Fanglax bird dropped us off, we were supposed to be in the training base where all mutations are.  Where we're safe.

I smiled.  The hardest part of our journey was completed.  Now, to find the training base...

A boy stepped out from behind a snow-covered tree.  "Immobilize the boy and girl.  Take these trespassers to the Torture Chamber." My smile dropped.

You're kidding me, right?