Becoming Chaos

V - Circling Full

It was cold and dark.

I broke through the surface of the East River and plunged myself down its flowing depths. Waves of dark liquid pushed and pulled me into what seemed like an endless abyss. I thrashed my arms around, flailing like a helpless i***t in an attempt to resurface. Where is the surface? I wondered as I fought to maintain my consciousness.

I could not explain the taste of the water. It was like I dragged my tongue across the bottom of a dumpster, but that was the least of my worries. The cold current dragged me along like I was just another piece of trash dumped by careless humans. The pressure all around me was overwhelming. It was as though the water knew I was foreign to the river. It pressed me from all directions, wanting to occupy my space and crush me into nothingness.

I was exhausted. My muscles felt weak and tired from fighting the river for my life. My lungs felt like popping as I could not hold my breath anymore. I released the air that I was holding and my stupid nose thought that it was a good idea to inhale. In seconds, polluted water filled my lungs. Is this how I finally die? I wondered as I surrendered to the crippling void. I finally closed my eyes and thought: Screw it.

-0-

My eyes flew open and I saw two blurry objects leering over me. I was lying motionless on the ground, and something was digging into my back. With a grunt, I blinked hard. The two figures over me focused to clarity. Faces. Familiar faces.

The first one had black and pink hair and glowing eyes. The other one had the color of the night for hair and forest for eyes. I stared at the second one. “M-Mich-aa,” I tried to speak, but a fit of coughing made its way through my throat. Water poured from my mouth. It tasted like blood and something inedible.

“Hush,” said the Angel boy watching over me as I puked sewer water out my mouth. “Don’t move around too much yet. Aeriella’s not done with you.”

What? Not done with what? I wanted to ask, but another fit of uncontrollable coughing overwhelmed me. With all the energy I had left, I stared at the pink-haired woman.

“Stay still, hunny,” she was saying. “Just one more.”

One more what?

Another wave of spasming cough rose. This time, the fit dragged for so long that I felt my throat get raspy and scratchy. I puked out what seemed to me was a bucket of brown water. I closed my eyes and took in the cold night air.

“There,” a melodic voice declared. It was then that I realized Aeriella was pulling the water from my lungs with her mermaid magic just like when she returned the water to the river after flushing the wolfmen away. “Can you sit up, hunny bunch?”

I opened my eyes. At first, I felt sharp stings, but after a few blinks, my vision cleared. Whenever I moved, my body sent aches and flares all throughout my system. I winced at the pain but I managed to sit up. “W-what happened?”

“You were careless,” it was Michael. I did not know if it was the water in my ears, but I thought his tone sounded different from usual. “If you have plans on swallowing half the East River, at least tell me in advance!”

“W-why a-are you so mad?” I said. “I nearly died!”

“Exactly my point!” he shouted and stood up. “How many times do I have to tell you that you cannot die under my watch? The Ministry will not take it lightly!”

I gathered the strength left in my muscles and I stood up to meet him. “To hell with your Ministry,” I snarled. My anger manifested as waves of tremors all over my body. My legs felt like giving, but I remained still. “I don’t care what they do to you! I did not ask you to save me! You could have just left me in that alley to die. I did not ask for any of this!” Earlier, my lungs felt raw from almost drowning. Now, they felt like they were on fire. I took ragged, deep breaths as I struggled to slow my raging heart. My throat vibrated as low and continuous growls came from me.

“Hold up, hunny bunch,” interjected Aeriella. I shot her a dark look, but she prodded on. She turned her focus to Michael. “I think it’s the turning that does her speaking. She sounds…,” the mermaid paused. “Well, she doesn’t sound like a lot of fun now.”

I bared my teeth at her. I did not want to, but I could not help it. It was as though I was moving without my volition. My movements felt forced and unfamiliar, yet I knew I was the one doing the actions. It was as though I was a passenger in my own body. In an attempt to calm myself down, I swallowed the liquids pooling at the back of my mouth. It tasted like blood and mud.

The night wind blew. I knew that it was supposed to be cold, but I did not feel it. A strange, warm sensation overwhelmed me. It felt like there was fire trapped under my skin, making me feverish. I glanced my eyes around, looking for something, I did not know what I was looking for, but I looked for it nonetheless. It did not make sense. Nothing made sense lately, and you’re still surprised, Kay?

I was standing across Michael. Aeriella was beside him. For a moment, I was amazed that none of us were wet given that I just drowned and somebody must have saved me. I did not need to ask what had happened since the memories of my recent drowning flooded my mind on their own. A stupid broken zipper handle. A bubble popping. Then rushing polluted water and an endless darkness. Lastly, a blurred figure of a man.

I knew Michael had saved me. I knew he'd jumped without hesitation into the toxic sludge that was East River. And yet, here I was mad at him. Angry. Nothing was inside my chest but a searing rage. I wanted to jump out of my skin and lunge at him, claw his throat and tear his heart from his chest. A warm wetness gathered in my eyes and I choked in an attempt to push them back. “Michael,” I said as a tear managed to break through. “W-what is h-happening to me?” I said in between sobs.

He looked up as I stared at him. He was miraculously dry just like the rest of us. However, he was without his black leather jacket. His hard musculature was visible through the fabric of his tight-fitting white shirt. His hair was tousled as the wind blew. “The clouds,” he said, still staring at the sky. “They are clearing up.”

“W-what does that mean?”

“It means you are going to turn once the full moon is revealed,” said Aeriella since Michael did not answer. She too, was dry. Her tail was no longer anywhere to be seen as her legs were back. Her skimpy outfit was back, too. “Michael, we cannot stay here once she shifts,” she said taking a step back. “It’s dangerous. A new wolf…” her voice trailed.

Michael stayed still. He didn’t look at Aeriella, but he answered. “You can go now, Aeriella. You can leave if you want,” he said without pausing. “I’m staying here.”

“As you wish,” said Aeriella. I could swear that I heard hurting in her voice, but I thought it did not matter at the moment. “Good luck, Kaylene,” she said to me and ran to the edge of the land. She drew her hands over her head in a graceful arc and dived into the water. An odd, moving blue light was visible deep within the river as she swam away in full speed.

I looked back at the boy in front me. He held my gaze with his hazel eyes. For a moment, I thought they really were like forests in the way that one can get lost in them. In my peripheral vision, I saw the surroundings and I figured that we were already on the North Brother. Trees and wild grass were scattered across the land. To my far right, I could just make out the figure of an abandoned structure. It was like a white cube, and it was huge. Its paint was probably cracked and dirty from abandonment. “What am I supposed to do, M-Michael?” I managed to force the words out.

Without speaking, Michael grabbed my wrist and dragged me as he half-ran into the wooded expanse. He moved so fast that my tired legs could not keep up.

I tripped over something and I fell down face-first. Sharp rocks and debris dug into my skin. It did not hurt as much as I thought it would.

“Summers,” said Michael as he knelt down beside me. His hands went to my shoulders. It was cool against my feverish skin. I wanted him to keep touching me if it meant that I’d be relieved of the sensation of internal burning. “Get up. We need to take you into the woods. You cannot shift here near the edges of the island.”

Lifting my head, I slumped on the ground. The earth was so cool that I did not want to get up, but Michael’s hands pulled me. “What’s going on? I-I do not understand what’s happening…” my words trailed.

“Can you stand up, Summers?”

“I-I don’t know,” I admitted. My head felt light as though it was full of air. My vision was blurring along the edges. I squeezed my eyes using the back of my both hands. I blinked hard, and as I opened my them again, everything was red. It was as though I was looking through a car’s windshield that was covered in blood. I felt cool hands lift me up my feet. The raging feeling was still there, but for a reason I could not fathom, I felt weak. My muscles were shaking with unpronounceable energy, itching to move, but my brain fought it. All I could think about was a darkness so profound it was heavy. My ears twitched. “What’s that? Did you hear that?” I asked Michael.

“Hear what?”

Ignoring him, I swatted his hands off of my shoulders and walked like a drunkard toward the source of the sound. I nearly stumbled, but I managed to right my footing. In front of me, I could see the abandoned structure sitting like a lazy cat in the distance. It looked red instead of white. I shook my head and wiped at the slobber dripping from my mouth. I knew it was gross but I couldn’t care less as I was so focused on finding where the faint sound came from. Shaking my head, I closed my eyes.

“What are you doing, Summers?”

“Shut up, Angel boy!” I turned to him, snarling. A deep growl came from my throat.

He did shut up. Ha! Chicken.

I turned around. Except for the chirping of night birds and crickets, it was silent. I strained my ears, searching for the sound. The beating in my chest rang inside my ears: loud and fast and strong. Over the steady rhythm, I found it.

A voice.

I crinkled my nose in the way dogs do when they are sniffing baggages at the airport. “Human,” I muttered under my breath.

“WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?” It was Michael’s turn to ask that question.

I did not answer him as I was pretty sure he heard me the first time. I opened my eyes. Despite the crimson that tainted my vision, I saw that I was bathed in moonlight. Rich, pearly moonlight. I looked up and sure enough, the clouds were gone. The moon was at its fullest, glowing like a beacon, blotting out even the brightest of the stars. Hell is about to break loose, I thought as a howl erupted from my throat.