False Gods | The Prime Archives #3 ✓

twenty-three

Stella and Orion quickly moved into the motel room.

Two beds were pushed against the back wall. Both were unoccupied, as was much of the room. She didn't see Oscar—or the little girl with him—anywhere inside. Eyes narrowed, Stella cautiously moved around the small space.

"Where are they?" she grumbled, mostly to herself.

Orion remained near the door, his head on a swivel. His golden eyes lit up as he found the bathroom. He pointed at the closed bathroom door.

Stella nodded.

The pair of them slowly moved toward it. The stained carpet beneath their feet cushioned their footsteps. Though, Orion kicking down the door surely alerted the pyrokinetics of their presence.

Stella pressed her finger to her earpiece. "Neon. Tempest. Be on high alert."

"Copy that," Samantha said. "I'm watching the parking lot now."

"Good," she replied. "They're going to try to r—"

The bathroom door exploded off its hinges, smoke rolling off its metal surface. It sailed across the room before clattering through the thin walls of the motel room. Oscar and his hostage darted out of the bathroom like fireflies. They beelined toward the newly made hole in the tacky motel room wallpaper. It led straight to the parking lot where Samantha would be waiting for them.

Stella wasn't planning on letting them get that far.

Lashing her arm out, she released a blast of concussive light at Oscar. He twisted his torso as the flashing bolt whizzed past him. It crashed into a painting, leaving a sizable hole in the middle.

Oscar kept running. He was gripping the hand of the little girl trailing steps behind him. They were nearing their exit.

Stella turned to Orion.

He nodded at her.

The man took off from the ground and flew toward them both. He scooped up the girl by the scruff of her shirt and lifted her from the carpet. She kicked and screamed, clawing at the iron-like grip holding her above the ground.

"Stop resisting!" Orion ordered, his voice robotic as he struggled to keep her still. "We are trying to save you!"

"Don't need saving!" she yelled back. A feral yell erupted from her throat. Waves of heat rolled off her body. Stella raised her hand to shield her face from the raise in temperature. It didn't take long for her face to become slick with sweat.

What the hell?

Orion managed to keep hold of her. The heat wasn't affecting him in the slightest.

He was quickly forced to let go, as a torrent of red flames slammed into his chest. The girl dropped to the ground and rolled toward Oscar after hitting the carpet. He quickly helped her up and the two continued for the hole in the wall.

Stella rushed over to where Orion had landed. A smoldering mark had been burned into the center of his black uniform. She pressed a hand to his chest.

"Are you alright?"

He pointed at their escapees. "Do not let them get in their car."

Nodding, she sprung back to her feet and took off after them.

The brisk, midnight air met her clammy skin. The inside of that motel room had begun to feel like a furnace after the girl did whatever she had done. Her reluctance to comply was surprising.

Perhaps she wasn't a hostage at all.

She seemed to be an accomplice.

Oscar and his companion were gunning for their red mustang. And they were closing in on it.