Chapter 130: The Convergence
Chapter 130: The Convergence
Chapter 130: Chapter 130: The Convergence
POV Switch: Paul
Paul ran.
His legs were burning. His lungs were screaming. His heart was pounding. He was exhausted. He was terrified. He was furious.
Behind him, Lord Ashworth was chasing. His flames burned bright. His eyes glowed red. His footsteps cracked the ground.
Beside him, Cheeky was running. Her iron skin was cracked. Her body was broken. Her breath was ragged. But she was keeping up. Barely.
"Faster!" Paul shouted.
"I’m trying!" Cheeky shouted back.
"Try harder!"
"I’m already trying!"
Paul looked back. Lord Ashworth was gaining. His flames were getting closer. His heat was getting intense.
"He’s gaining on us!" Paul shouted.
"I know!"
"We need to lose him!"
"How?"
"I don’t know!"
They ran through the streets. They dodged the stalls. They weaved through the crowds. They jumped over carts. They climbed walls.
Lord Ashworth followed. He didn’t dodge. He didn’t weave. He just burned. Everything in his path caught fire. Everything in his path crumbled.
"Stop!" he shouted. "You can’t escape!"
Paul didn’t answer. He just kept running.
"We need a plan!" Cheeky shouted.
"I’m working on it!"
"You’re not working on anything!"
"I’m working on running!"
"That’s not a plan!"
"It’s the best I can do!"
They turned a corner. They ran down an alley. They jumped over a fence. They climbed a wall. They dropped into a courtyard.
Lord Ashworth followed. He burned through the fence. He burned through the wall. He burned through everything.
"He’s not stopping!" Cheeky shouted.
"I know!"
"What do we do?"
"I don’t know!"
---
POV Switch: Lyra
Lyra ran.
Her legs were burning. Her lungs were screaming. Her heart was pounding. She was exhausted. She was terrified. She was furious.
Behind her, the mob was chasing. Their shouts echoed through the streets. Their footsteps thundered against the cobblestones. Their weapons glinted in the sunlight.
Beside her, Brick Head was running. His arms were pumping. His legs were flying. His face was red. He was panting. He was sweating. He was grinning.
"This is fun!" he shouted.
Lyra glared at him. "Fun? This is fun?"
"Yeah! The running! The chasing! The excitement!"
"We’re being chased by an angry mob!"
"I know! It’s exciting!"
"It’s terrifying!"
"Same thing!"
Lyra groaned. She kept running.
"Your plan sucked!" she shouted.
Brick Head blinked. "What?"
"Your plan! Destroying the statue! It did nothing!"
"It did something!"
"What?"
"It destroyed the statue!"
"That didn’t help!"
"It felt good!"
"It didn’t help!"
"It felt really good!"
Lyra groaned again. She kept running.
"We’re still being chased!"
"I know!"
"The mob is still angry!"
"I know!"
"We’re going to die!"
"We’re not going to die!"
"How do you know?"
"I’m a hero! Heroes don’t die!"
"They do die!"
"Not me!"
Lyra shook her head. She kept running.
---
POV Switch: Daniel
Daniel stood in the building.
Fluffy was in front of him. Mittens was beside her. They were both looking at him. Fluffy was smiling. Mittens was nervous.
Daniel looked at Fluffy. At her smiling face. At her wagging tail. At her hopeful eyes.
He looked at Mittens. At her cat ears. At her cat tail. At her scared face.
He sighed.
"Fluffy," he said.
Fluffy looked up. "Yes, Master?"
"Who is this?"
Fluffy gestured at Mittens. "This is Mittens. Fluffy’s new friend."
Daniel looked at Mittens. Mittens looked at him. She was trembling.
"Fluffy’s new friend?" Daniel repeated.
"Yes. Fluffy saved her. Fluffy found her. Fluffy brought her here."
Daniel sighed again. He ran a hand through his hair.
"Fluffy," he said. "Why do you always bring in strangers?"
Fluffy tilted her head. "Because they need help."
"You can’t just bring in every stranger you find."
"Why not?"
"Because I can barely manage the ones I have."
Fluffy blinked. "What?"
"Nothing. Never mind."
He looked at Mittens. At her scared face. At her trembling body.
"What’s your story?" he asked.
Mittens flinched. She looked at Fluffy. Fluffy nodded encouragingly.
Mittens took a breath. She spoke.
"I was a slave," she said. "My master left me. Men took me. They said they had a better master. They lied. They brought me here. They tied me up. They said they were going to sell me."
She paused.
"Fluffy saved me. Fluffy freed me. Fluffy said her master was kind. Fluffy said her master would help."
She looked at Daniel. Her eyes were wet.
"Please," she whispered. "Please help me."
Daniel looked at her. At her scared face. At her trembling body. At her wet eyes.
He sighed.
"Fine," he said. "You can come with us."
Mittens’s eyes widened. "Really?"
"Really."
She smiled. A real smile. A happy smile.
"Thank you," she said. "Thank you so much."
Fluffy bounced on her heels. "Fluffy has a new best friend!"
Daniel looked at her. "What about Lyra?"
Fluffy tilted her head. "Pretty lady?"
"Yes. Pretty lady. Lyra. What about her?"
Fluffy thought about it. "Pretty lady is too big for Fluffy."
Daniel stared at her. "What?"
"Pretty lady is too big. Fluffy is small. Mittens is small. Fluffy and Mittens are same size."
"That’s... that’s not how friendship works."
"It is for Fluffy."
Daniel shook his head. He looked at Mittens. At her cat ears. At her cat tail. At her small form.
"Alright," he said. "Let’s go."
---
They walked out of the building.
The sun was bright. The streets were busy. The crowds were thick.
Daniel looked around. He looked to his right.
Paul and Cheeky were running toward them. Behind them was a man. A man with flames. A man with rage.
Daniel looked to his left.
Lyra and Brick Head were running toward them. Behind them was a mob. A mob with weapons. A mob with anger.
Daniel stared.
He looked at Paul and Cheeky. At their desperate faces. At the flaming man behind them.
He looked at Lyra and Brick Head. At their exhausted faces. At the angry mob behind them.
He looked at Fluffy. At Mittens. At their confused faces.
He sighed. He ran a hand through his hair. He looked at the sky.
"It hasn’t even been ten minutes," he muttered. "Why am I always in this type of fucked up situation?"