Finding Parthas

Approaching: The Ley Zone -- Market District.

"Hey, Leo!"

The man jerked, dark eyes opening with a start as the subway train lurched to a halt. He remained still a moment, simply leaning against the uncomfortable plastic seat. He was trying to sort out the dream, or rather the memory, from the reality he'd found himself thrust back into. The only thing that seemed to stir his mind was the chime that echoed over the PA system before the robotic woman's voice repeated the place that the opening doors revealed.

Ley Zone -- Market District.

Leon scoffed, finally forcing his legs to work, and stumbled to his feet. What a fancy name the people that didn't live there called it. Market District. Once, it was a Market, yes, but that was before the world went to shit. The world got too hot during the day for people to live on the surface, so they started making cities underground. This place? It was simply The Slums, the area closest to the surface and therefore the most run-down shit hole you'd find. Where the poor folk lived, the people that most of humanity made a point to forget.

It was the only part of the city that had access to the surface. The only part that wasn't locked down at night to prevent them from sneaking in. Again, no one cared about the people that lived here. So, what was it to the politicians and wealthy that lived in the deepest parts of the underground if a few kids went missing? What was it to them if people died?

He'd been meaning to head to the left, cut down a side street, and then aim for a run-down pub on the other side of the area. Meaning to, but his mission was cut short. The dark browns widened, jerking to the right as something darted through the shadows and down a back alley. A moment for it to process, and his nostrils flared as they took in the smell of decay.

"Hounds are here already?" Leo looked to his arm where a barely functioning watch ticked away and noted the time: 9:42 PM. He hissed, turning to head after the fleeing beast almost instinctively. "Bit early."

She always had a routine that She enforced strictly. For the dogs to be out this early meant something, and what that was, he had every intention of finding out.

Leo had broken into a run, taking a deep breath as if he were trying to sniff out the creature's trail. Thankfully he found it, or at least the scent of one of them. The only issue was that it was behind him, tailing him as if it had broken off from the pack to keep an eye on him. So, he had two options. He could continue and act as if he wasn't aware of the one in pursuit, or he could double back and kill it before hunting down its brethren.

Unfortunately, he hadn't the time to think about his course of action. Before he could finish processing the situation, the creature was running directly at him. The brunette spat under his breath, turning on his heel and thrust his arm out. What met him was something from a nightmare.

A dog, or at least what had once been a dog, was staring him down with gaping jowls. The man had managed to catch either end of its mouth before they'd clamped down onto his shoulder. Now he was left trying to wrestle the decaying beast off with a look of disgust.

The creatures always looked worse every time he saw them. They always looked more unnatural, more like reanimated corpses with missing hair and pieces of flesh hanging from brittle bones. The one thing that never changed was the eyes; they were always large, bulging, and a deep crimson that rivaled dried blood.

Leo struggled to keep the mouth from snapping closed, pushing back while trying to ignore the black spittle that dripped down over his fingers. Nothing about these things was natural -- nothing about them was supposed to be in this world.

"Fuck off!" The baritone snapped, agitated, as its owner shoved the creature and freed himself finally. Leo stumbled to his feet, glaring into the lifeless eyes inspecting him greedily.

He wasn't in the mood to fight these things.

A coughing bark to his right reminded him he didn't have a choice in the matter. The rest of the pack was circling back, and another scent was mixing into theirs. It caught the man's attention and forced his gaze to search wildly for its source. What he found turned his stomach.

Two slumped forms clutched in the jaws of the one he'd been persuing. They weren't dead, but seeing them caused a tint of red to seep into the brown orbs watching. So, that's why they were here this early. She had set Her eyes on another set of twins.

So, that bitch was trying again.

He didn't wait for the beasts to move first and instead took a deep breath and launched himself at the one holding the children. Rage was causing his hands to shake, causing the world to swirl in a way he hadn't dealt with for over a month. His heart was beating in his ears so loudly he couldn't hear the sound of the creatures around him.

He couldn't make out where his fingers ended, and their decaying bodies began. Where the squelching feeling of blood mixed with the tearing of sinew, he didn't know. All he knew was that there were things here that didn't belong, and there were people here that were going to die if he didn't do something.

Die? Who was going to die?

What was it that he was trying to kill again?

Kill them. Bite them. Eat them.

"Leo! Don't hurt them!"

There was a bright light. The brown orbs yanked open and found themselves staring up at a sky full of stars. Stars. How were there stars here?

Leon groaned, forcing himself to sit up and registering the feeling of sand beneath him. He was above ground, and when or how he'd got here, he didn't remember. Where? What had he been doing? The man moved his hand and found something heavy was within it. It was startling enough that he jerked his attention down, and what he found caused his breath to catch.

Two girls, looking no more than five years old, were curled up on top of him. They looked to be sleeping, and he'd been clutching them tightly from how stiff his knuckles were. Part of him held out hope that they were sleeping, but another part of him knew better. Another part saw the crushed limbs and large gashes from massive teeth in their sides.

That's right. Leo remembered what he was doing, and he remembered that he was too late. The dog had gone to the surface in an attempt to escape. It was trying to flee out across the sands and head back to its master. Had tried and failed miserably from the battered corpse to the man's left.

He let out a rasping breath, trying to reel in the wave of guilt that was starting to bubble up. He'd been too late. If only he hadn't fallen asleep on the train, then he'd have gotten there sooner.

Leo shifted his weight, arms holding the small forms to his chest as he stumbled to stand on the unsteady sand. Now? Now he needed to find their Mother -- at least he hoped they had a Mother. Orphans weren't abnormal around here, but that would hit far too close to home for his comfort.

"Hey! Are you alright?!" A woman's voice called out.

Leon froze, eyes wide as if he had been caught doing something illegal. He heard the sharp intake of breath before he spotted her and heard a shaking gasp as the woman seemed to be trying to hold back tears.

"They were at- ..." Leo started, finally letting his gaze fall on the shorter form a few feet away. That was when his voice caught in his throat, and a pained gasp came stumbling forward.

A pair of green eyes were watching, not terrified but pitying. They were jerking from the two children clutched to his chest and back to his face.

She seemed to be assessing the situation, taking in the blood on the ground and the fallen creature a few paces away. She was busy trying to push back long strands of black hair from her eyes, fighting the wind that was kicking up sand now and then to remain standing.

For a moment, he wasn't in the middle of the desert. For a moment, he was in a white room surrounded by dozens of other children, all playing. He was standing near the wall, watching a small girl across the way that seemed to be just as interested in him. Watching her green eyes searching him as if he was lost, and she was trying to decide if she should punch him or hug him.

Then, just like that, the blonde girl was gone, and the raven was back before him. Taking a few steps towards him with her hands outstretched as if she wanted to help.

"Are you okay?"

Leo took a step back, brows furrowing, with a look of terror on his face.

No, there wasn't any way that this was who he thought it was. She was dead. He knew she was because he'd seen her die. Yet the face was the same, and the eyes were the same. She had that same look on her face that was always there when he'd looked like he was going to crumble under the weight of the world.

"Lilly?"