I found myself on a grassy plain covered in trees. There was even a small pond twenty yards from the exit. The stars twinkled beautifully above me and far off I could see the near-full moon in the dark night sky. The sounds of the city were far away, but had a strange echoing to its noises.
I heard a clatter of footsteps behind me and took off to the right. A small strip of metal surrounded the edge of the grass and beyond that was darkness. Ten feet from the edge I realized what the darkness meant and slid to a stop with my toes hanging over the strip.
I teetered on the edge of the Indigo Towers two hundred floors above the city.
CHAPTER 5
I waved my arms and leaned myself away from certain death. My heart beat hard against my chest as I stumbled away from the edge. I heard a noise behind me and spun around to find Fox ten feet away from me. Something sharp hit my arm, and I looked down to see it was a tranquilizer. I pulled it out and expected to fall unconscious, but all I felt was a little faint-headed. His finger tightened on the trigger for another shot.
The ground beneath us rumbled. Fox's henchman rushed out of the door and over to Fox.
"I'm afraid I couldn't stop him, sir. He's released-" The earth shook again, more violently than the first.
A column of rainbow-colored light burst through the ground between us. The column lit up the sky and its heat seared the grass. I was knocked back and over the side of the building, but my hand caught the edge. I hung in space for a few seconds before my other hand grabbed the edge and I pulled myself onto the top of the building.
More columns erupted from the ground, dozens of them. They cracked the green surface and ignited the trees into balls of fire. The columns created a circle between me and the pond some fifty yards away, and the center of the circle burned bright red with heat. In a moment the steel and grass melted away, and a storm of wind burst from the hole. It spun in dizzying circles three hundred yards into the sky. The first creature to emerge from the circle above the tornado was a brightly-plumed bird. It followed the tornado to the peaks of its height and let out a screech that was heard over the entire city.
Among the terrible howling of the wind I noticed there were dark shapes in the tornado, dozens of them. They swirled in its depths and followed the bird into the sky. The bird let loose another cry and the tornado broke apart into dozens of smaller tornadoes. Each mini tornado had one of those dark shapes. They scattered across the sky and landed in the far reaches of the city. The bird itself screeched again and flew off into the distance.
The wind was gone. The bird was gone. Everything was calm. I chanced to stand, but the roof trembled one last time. A large shadow flew from the dark hole left by the tornado. It spread its leathery wings wide and let loose a loud roar and shook the air. Its lizard eyes blinked, its scales shimmered in the starlit sky, and its tail whipped about in anger. My mouth dropped open as I realized it was a dragon I saw, and it was pissed. It flew over me and let out another deafening roar.
"We must get to the cannon," I heard Fox tell his assistant. The pair stood near the crumpled remains of the door.
His voice caught the dragon's attention. It flew in a circle to my right and over the pond. The dragon opened its mouth and I beheld the pits of a fiery hell. A stream of flames burst from its powerful jaws and spread across the pond and few remaining trees. The water evaporated and created a thick mist over the rooftop. The fog hid its prey from it, but I saw their dark shapes move towards the thin bridge that made up the center of the 'I.'
The fog only drifted so far, and the moment they stepped foot on the bridge is the moment they cleared the fog's boundaries. The dragon made another pass and spotted them. It roared and opened its mouth. A ribbon of flame flew at the pair. The dragon didn't have very good aim. The flames melted the steel five yards from where they sprinted. Part of the bridge buckled beneath them and the assistant disappeared into the depths of the mess of heated steel.
Fox leapt forward and tried to grab the other man's hand, but missed by a hair. "Aldus!" Fox cried out.
"I'm fine, sir, but you must get to the cannon," Aldus called back.
Fox nodded and rushed across the bridge. A screech caught my attention, and I noticed the dragon coming back for another try at barbecued bad guy. This time it wasn't going to miss.
I now had a choice: to stand here and watch the fireworks, or to join them and risk my neck for a shot at stopping the dragon from turning the city into a blazing mess. I didn't have any false hopes that it would kill the bad guys and just fly off quietly into the night. This thing was out to burn, and after it was done with Fox it would go after the city. Maybe even Dakota's apartment.
"Damn it. . ." I muttered as I raced after Fox.
I was faster than Fox, but not faster than the dragon. It flew over me and spewed another another stream of fire. Fox dove for the opposite side of the bridge, but the dragon's fire hit near the center. The steel melted and the rooftop caved into the lower floor like quicksand. Fox tried to catch hold of the edge of the bridge, but he missed and slid towards the deep hole in the rooftop. He slipped into the depths of the melted, twisted steel.
I dove for him and slid a few yards across the singed grass to the edge of the mess. My hand caught his, and he looked up at me with that strange half grin on his lips.
"I didn't know you cared," he called to me.
"That's what's different between us. I do care," I countered as I hefted him back onto the bridge.
"Further moral conversations for later. We need to get to the other side," he told me.
The other thick part of the 'I' held a beautiful castle that I would have admired more if I hadn't been running for my life. Fox led us over to a fire hydrant that sat twenty feet from the junction of the bridge and the end of the building. He pressed his hand on the top and the floor behind the hydrant opened to reveal a platform. On the platform was a large turret gun with a thin, long barrel, and behind that was a padded chair to sit in while the gunner aimed the massive gun.
"In order to defeat the dragon we need to extinguish the dragon's fire," Fox told me. He set his hand on the barrel and nodded at the shadowy creature that swooped around for another pass. "This water cannon can fire five hundred gallons a minute, but the water must be shot into its mouth. That's the only weak spot. One of us will have to attract its attention while the other one manages the gun."
I grabbed his shoulder and shoved him into the chair. "You're no knight in shining armor, but you'll have to do," I quipped.
"You realize you may be killed," he pointed out.
I shrugged. "I don't know how to use your machine, anyway," I pointed out.
He grinned and grabbed the controls to the gun. "Perhaps I have grossly underestimated you."
"Compliment me when this is all over," I replied as I darted away. I ran over to the bridge and waved my arms above my head. "Over here, ya big ugly lizard!" I yelled.
The dragon roared and moved onto a collision course with me and my big mouth. I turned tail and raced back to the gun. The dragon swooped low and aimed good. I could feel the heat of its breath on the back of my neck.
"Duck!" Fox yelled at me.
I dove at the ground and covered my head. A sprinkling of water rained down on me as Fox fired off the gun. I looked over my shoulder and watched the water hit its mark in the center of the dragon's mouth. The creature roared and took a hard turn to the right. It crashed head-first into the grass and plowed its way to the far end of the building.
I stood and threw a fist into the air. "Yes! Take that you-" Something hit me.
I looked down at my side and saw it was another tranquilizer. This time there wasn't just a wooziness. My legs buckled beneath me and I fell onto my knees. I looked up and glared at Fox as he came up to me with the white gun in his hand. The barrel was pointed at me.
"You. . .you bastard," I growled. "I. . .I helped you," I told him.
"What you did was create a storm that the inhabitants of this city ca
n't begin to fathom," he argued. "I'm afraid I can't let any more of my experiments run free."
"Then. . .then let me make up for it," I gasped.
He raised an eyebrow. "I'm listening."
"Let me. . .help you get them back," I suggested. "Like I did with the dragon."
"I will consider your offer, but for the present you can't be trusted." He pulled the trigger and the tranquilizer embedded itself into my arm.
My head hit the grass and it was lights out for me.
CHAPTER 6
Another splitting headache later and I found myself among the conscious again. I opened my eyes, and the world was a fuzzy vision of colors and shapes. My head pounded at its ill treatment. I tried to sit up, but my arms buckled and I fell back on a soft, cushioned surface. My hands felt the thin strands of blankets beneath me, and a little bounce told me there was a mattress beneath that.
I listed my head to one side and saw I was in a medieval sort of room. The walls, ceiling and floor were made of smoothed stone. Twenty feet to my left was a thick, ornate wooden table stood beside an equally thick wooden door. A large, gray metal lock was wrapped around the handle. Twenty feet to my right and against the wall was a dresser and vanity with a large mirror. It reflected a blurry me as I lay on a high four-poster bed raised on a six-inch high stone platform. On the wall behind the bed were two tall, wide windows with thick sills.
A noise in front of me caught my attention. I dragged myself to the side of the bed and looked at the foot post to see a fifty-inch TV thirty feet in front of me. The scrolling bar at the bottom and the woman with the microphone in hand told me I was watching the news.
The reporter stood in front of a tall gray-stone castle which was swarmed by other reporters. Wind whipped at her clothing and perfectly-manicured hair, and the light told me it was morning.
"I'm standing in front of William Fox's castle atop Indigo Industries headquarters where a nearly-tragic scene unfolded last night."
The view changed to a camera on a helicopter. The helicopter flew around the rooftop of the building, or what remained of the rooftop. The top six floors were scarred ruins of their former selves, and there was a skid mark on the grounds in front of Fox's castle where the dragon had made its crash landing. The woman's voice-over narrated the scene.
"Some time last night a main gas line exploded, sending massive columns of fire into the sky that was seen for miles. Mr. Fox's personal secretary, Aldus Emery, had this to say." It panned to the large front entrance and steps of the castle where Emery, the bespectacled man of last night, stood in front of a few dozen reporters and flashing cameras. He sported a bandage around his head.
"It's a regrettable accident, but Mr. Fox has every intention of rebuilding," Emery told the reporters.
"What exactly was on those floors?" a reporter asked him.
"Research and development," Emery replied. "Now if you will excuse me." He walked down the steps with the reporters mugging his every step.
The TV went black.
"It seems you can't believe anything you hear on the news," a voice commented. I whipped my head to the door and found Fox standing there with the control. "It was fortunate for us the dragon could be carried away via a transport plane before any police helicopters made their appearance." He set it on the ornate table and walked over to me.
I scurried away from him, and it was then I realized there was something different about me, something wrong. I touched my hand to my throat and my fingers came into contact with cold metal.
"Do you like it? It was made to your measurements," Fox told me as he reached the side of the bed.
"What the hell is it?" I choked out.
"An insurance policy." Fox held up one of his hands and showed off a shining gray cuff link. He pressed his other hand against the cuff link and I saw it was a button.
That was the least of my worries as a jolt of electricity raced through my body. My muscles tensed and loosened, and tensed again as the current flowed over me. I fell back writhing in pain as my body spasmed and twitched. The source of the electricity was the collar around my neck.
Fox released the cuff link, and the pain stopped. I gasped for air and clenched the sheets beneath me.
"Amazing what humans can do with electricity, isn't it?" Fox commented. "The collar is connected wirelessly to my cuff link. If I feel you've become a danger to me then one simple press of a button will solve that problem. The most amazing part of this invention is the way the current travels through the collar. It first passes through a silver conduit that, for werewolves, heightens the pain of the electricity."
This man was insane. I had to get to those reporters. They would help me because I'd be one hell of a story. I rolled over and dropped onto the hard stone floor at Fox's feet. He stepped back as I made my pathetic attempt to the window. The sill stood three feet off the ground. I leaned my shoulder against the cold stone wall and pushed myself to a seated position. I reached my hand up, but my fingers only brushed against the tip of the sill. My arm dropped to my side. My energy was sapped and I gasped for air against the echoing pains of the collar.
"I admire your perseverance, but the reporters left several hours ago. The report you viewed was taped," he informed me.
A few hours. So close to hope and yet so far. I shut my eyes to try to block out this terrible nightmare. The clack of footsteps against the stones made me open my eyes and I saw that Fox stood at the now-open entrance.
"Aldus will bring you some food soon. We wouldn't want you to be completely exhausted for tonight," he told me. The door shut behind him with a loud click.
Tonight. My eyes widened. Tonight was the night of the full moon. I had to get out of here. I couldn't let him turn me into a guinea pig.
I reached again for the sill and my fingers caught the lip. I grimaced and tried to pull myself to my feet, but my strength failed me. My legs buckled and I fell back onto the cold floor. Warm tears streamed down my cheeks. I was so tired I couldn't utter a sob. My one chance, my last chance at escape, and I'd thrown it all away to save a son-of-a-bitch.
No, that wasn't quite true. I'd done it to save Dakota and Lance, and everybody else in the city who would've become fried foods if that dragon had been allowed to run amok over the city. I leaned back my head and sighed.
"You're a big, softy, Gwen. . ." I murmured.
I was so tired that I didn't even care that I fell asleep there on the floor.
CHAPTER 7
"Miss Rogers? I have your dinner," a voice spoke to me from the void.
My eyes fluttered open and I was disappointed to find myself in the same stone room as before, and again on the bed. A shadow stood to my left, and I saw it was Emery. He had a tray in his hands, and on the tray was a pile of medium-rare meat. The scent of blood wafted to my nostrils and I inhale deeply the sweet smell.
"Mr. Fox thought you would be famished," Emery explained.
I struggled to sit up. My arms wouldn't bend and hold my weight. Emery set the tray at the end of the long bed and grasped one of my arms.
"Don't touch me!" I snapped.
Emery pulled me so I lay against the mess of pillows at my back, stepped back, and took the tray back in hand. The actions were one swift motion and with such little effort that I wondered at his strength. He was as thin as a pencil, but picked me up like I weighed nothing.
"I hate to rush you through your meal but it is nearly sunset and the moon will be full," he told me as he set the tray in my lap.
His reminding me of the day made me lose my appetite, and I pushed the tray away.
"You must eat something, Miss Rogers," Emery insisted.
I whipped my head to Emery and glared at him. "It's hard to chew food when you're watching me," I snapped back.
He bowed. "Then I will wait outside the door. Please call me when you are finished." I was surprised when he kept his word and left the room.
I glanced at the window to my left and saw the light outside was fading fast.
The sun would be gone within an hour. I sighed and looked down at the meat in my lap. Blood pooled at the bottom of the rimmed plate. My tongue flicked out and whetted my lips. I grabbed the fork and knife, and dug into the meat.
I was only halfway through the pile when the door opened. Emery stepped inside and opened the door wide.
I glared at him. "I'm not-" Fox followed Emery into the room.
"Don't take too long," Fox told Emery.
"Yes, sir," Emery replied. He bowed and left the room, closing the door behind him. I set the tray aside and swung my legs over the side of the bed. Some of my strength returned, and all of my anger.
"What the hell do you want?" I snapped at him.
Fox walked the room between the foot of the bed and the TV. "I know you think of my as an enemy, but I would rather you think of me as a father. Seeing as this is an important night for you I've chosen to be here for you."
"If you're my dad than this is child abuse," I quipped.
He cracked that half-smile of his and walked to the foot post closest to the door and me. "Please try to understand that I've tried to make things as easy for you as possible."
"You kidnapped me and shoved me into a cell!" I reminded him.
"I couldn't very well let you lose on the streets, could I?" he countered.
I jumped to my feet and gestured to the window. "Why'd you even have to be there? Why couldn't you have chased that stupid werewolf down some other alley?"
"Fate, I'm afraid, can be very cruel," he commented.
I balled my hands into fists at my side and snarled at him. Behind me the sun made on last gasp of life as its weak rays drifted through the glass panes.
"I'm not without a heart. I have been considering the offer you made me last night," he revealed as he moved to stand between me and the door. "However, you neglected to mention what would be your reward."
"You know what it is," I snapped. "I want to be free. I want my old life back."