The Hidden Directive

Hunted

** 5 Years Later **

Bethany mused at how unprecedented it was that a male, her child at that, could hold the power of a dark. They were unpredictable and extremely dangerous if the power were to surface without the proper knowledge or training.

Once he came of age, it would fully awaken. Lou had a few more months before his eighteenth birthday, so they needed to focus and finish his training as quickly as possible.

"Mom, this is ridiculous, this thing is annoying the crap out of me," Lou complained as he lost his focus yet again, slamming a clenched fist into a nearby boulder.

"Honey, I need you to concentrate. Please, this energy isn't a toy, nor can it be controlled easily."

She nudged him with her elbow. "Now, from the top. Remember, you need to bond with this being. Become one, and you'll be able to control it."

He rolled his eyes at her, then groaned as he took a deep breath. Lou slowly exhaled and, closing his eyes, began to picture a wine-colored sphere surrounded by darkness.

Taking cautious steps towards it, he stretched his arm out to touch the sphere. It darted back, slowly, it shifted into a creature with elongated claws and fangs with wine-colored eyes. The figure growled at him as it circled, sizing him up.

"You and I are connected, so I've been told," Lou spoke with courage.

"As it seems. You are weak; a host like you will never be able to handle me." The creature's voice cackled.

Lou clenched his fists, held his head high, and took a deep breath, all while staring this figure in front of him square in his eyes. "I am strong enough to control you. You won't get the best of me!" he yelled as he drew his fist back. Lunging towards the creature, he swung his fist, only to miss. He was sent flying backward into the abyss.

"Lou! Open your eyes! Open your eyes!" Bethany's panicked voice called out, her strong hands grabbing his shoulders. Lou felt her shaking him, but it couldn't pull him back from his mind.

Lou huffed. His energy was starting to wear thin after multiple attempts to strike the figure. He brought his arm up to wipe the sweat from his forehead and cheeks as the creature in front of him just stared, unphased. He shifted his left leg backward, preparing to strike again.

The creature lowered its torso as its knuckles touched the dark floor as if it was bored. Lou took this opportunity to dash towards it with a clenched fist.

It dodged, weaving from side to side and disappearing altogether. It reappeared behind Lou, and with a wave of its arm, it cast him forward. A deep chuckle escaped its lips. The figure grumbled something inaudible towards him as it watched him.

Lou's body ricocheted off the floor as the impact echoed through the darkness. He lifted his head and growled. Shifting his arms under his torso, he lifted himself off the floor and turned to face it. What he didn't know was how to meld with it. Instead, he kept trying to bring pain to it until he was out of energy.

"Foolish! You cannot defeat what you cannot see. You cannot conquer what you don't know!" The figure spoke, its voice repeating in his mind.

Lou tried to muster up enough strength to attempt one final strike. Moments went by as the creature stood, patiently waiting for some sort of response from Lou. "Veil," it grumbled.

"What? What did you say?" Lou furrowed his brow.

"Veil," it grumbled a second time.

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" Lou snapped back.

Veil growled fiercely. The corners of its lip curled into a smile, striking fear into Lou's gut.

He stumbled to his feet and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath, remembering his mother's words that he needed to concentrate and become one being with this thing. He brought his hand up to the being and opened his eyes.

"You will never control me." He spoke calmly as the creature began to screech, clawing into the darkness, its form slowly fading back to the nothingness it had come from. Lou finally managed to pull himself from the darkness.

Gasping for air, he shot up from his position. He was in his bed; his black tee and sweatpants were covered in sweat. Bethany and Wilson stormed into the room, their brows raised in a question.

Looking up at his parents, all he could do was shake his head in disappointment. "I pushed it into the back of my mind. It's not there anymore. I can't feel it, and I'm scared." His voice shook.

"Son, it's ok. It's not every day that a male inherits one the dark. We don't know how you're going to do when you fully activate your power, but we'll be prepared for anything and everything." Wilson leaned over and patted Lou's shoulder.

--

"We'll figure it out, Honey. You said that you pushed it to the back of your mind. That will give you more time to train. Did he say anything to you or give you a name? I don't know if…" Bethany was interrupted by the sound of the doorbell chime.

"Who is that at this hour?" Wilson c****d his head towards the bedroom door.

"I'll get it," Bethany motioned as she walked out of the room, down the stairs, and to the front door.

Upon reaching the front door, Bethany stopped. Something in her gut told her not to open the door. She turned and quickly yet quietly hurried up the stairs.

--

Lou c****d his head, a wave of worry washing over him as he watched his mother slowly creep back up the stairs, informing Wilson and Lou that they needed to fetch their bags immediately.

"I don't have time to explain. Get your things, and do it quickly, but quietly!" She motioned Lou to get out of bed.

Wilson grabbed his cellphone and sent a text message off to Marcus. "I need you to open the hatch. They are here." He spoke as he typed his message. He hit the send button and slid his phone back into his pocket, already on his way to grab a bag.

Lou hopped up and grabbed his to-go bag and headed to his father's room.

Wilson and Bethany yanked in tandem to uncover a giant, circular steel door with a brass handle embedded into the center. The tunnel bypassed the kitchen and the basement to a secret underground labyrinth. Bethany started down first, then Lou, with Wilson last to follow.

As Wilson started the descent into the tunnel, the banging on the front door grew louder and sharper, like someone was kicking it in. He leaped down into the tunnel, slamming the door shut behind him.

--

"What's going on, Marcus? How did they find us again?" Elaina exclaimed. Her voice trembled; anxiety struck her as she waited to open the steel door. 

"Mom, let's go!" Mimori yelled down the hall as she attempted to tame her hair. She snagged her bag, rushing over to the washroom.

"One of us is going to have to stay behind to shut this door. Once it's closed, the tunnel will disappear. Mimori, I need you to be ready to go as soon as Wilson and his family get here. They should be coming… Now! Open it now, Elaina!" Marcus yelled.

Lou, Bethany, and Marcus came running through as the door opened, exchanging quick hugs as they headed for the tunnel in the washroom.

Mimori and Lou went first, then Elaina and Bethany, then Marcus. Wilson climbed through the door as the intruders' footsteps and breaking of glass echoed in the passageway.

"I'll hold them off, Marcus. You take care of everyone else. I will meet you at the second location if I make it out of here. I love you, Bethany!" Wilson shouted, setting up his forcefield. He slammed the door shut, his only chance of escape.

Bethany screamed for her husband.

Lou became furious, slamming his fists onto the metal siding of the tunnel as they continued down. Wilson had stayed behind. The thought terrified him, but he understood it was a sacrifice Wilson was willing to make.

"Wilson, nice to see you again" were the last words Lou was able to make out as he continued his descent down the tunnel.

The sounds of men grunting, furniture breaking, and glass shattering began to fade as the group came sliding down the intricate dark steel tunnels, their breathing becoming heavy as the tunnels lacked oxygen for more than one person. They finally reached the end that flattened out enough for them to stand and walk an hour later.

"Mom, we have to go back!" Lou cried as they arrived at the other end of the escape tunnel.

Bethany broke down into tears as they exited, falling to her knees and beating her fist on her chest as if her heart was on fire.

"Why, you i***t?" she choked out, grabbing her chest. She cried until Elaina's hand rested reassuringly on her shoulder.

"Beth, he knows how to take care of himself. He'll be fine." Elaina's voice wavered with uncertainty as she glanced up at Marcus, who was pacing back and forth, running his hands through his hair.

"God damn it, Wilson, why doesn't he ever think to stick to the plan? He knew that door disappears when it's shut, so why on earth would he stay behind?" He mumbled.

Mimori tiptoed over to Lou, her braid frayed. He sat frozen in place, unable to control the tears of terror for his father.

"Lou, it's going to be ok. Your dad is totally badass. He'll be fine." She spoke softly as she embraced him, giving him a light squeeze.

He lowered his head into the crook of her neck, hugging her just as tight. "That was our home," he sobbed.

She pulled away, looking him square in his eyes.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later. These guys seem to be everywhere. It sucks, but we have to keep going. We can always rebuild." She smiled sadly, unable to suppress a heavy sigh as her gaze turned towards the adults who were consoling Bethany.

"We still have a long way to go," Elaina spoke up as she motioned over to Marcus to assist Bethany to her feet and carry her bag.

As the five of them gathered their things, Marcus' phone chimed. He shifted his attention to his pocket, his hands shaking. He quickly took his phone out of his pocket and let out a sigh of relief as Wilson's name popped up with a text that read, "Made it, barely. Not in good shape… meet me by our location in 15."

He read the text out loud for everyone to hear. Bethany's ears perked up, and she began crying harder, attempting to smile. "Bastard," she managed to get out between the heavy bawling, wiping her tears away on her sleeve.

They set off towards a safe house to meet up with Wilson, Mimori yawning here and there.

"Are we there yet? We've been walking for hours." She groaned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"Mims, it's only been five minutes. Do you want me to carry you?" Lou halted and turned in her direction. Due to their drastic height difference, Lou stood at a solid six foot two while Mimori was only five foot one. She wasn't tall enough to jump onto his back. Crouching, he invited her to climb on for a piggyback ride.

She nodded her head and climbed onto his back, wrapping her arms and legs around him as he grabbed her legs to support her weight. "Mims, you're getting heavy," he whispered back at her.

She tucked her head in the crook of his neck. "And you're a f*****g tree." Chuckling, she kissed the back of his neck and sighed as her eyelids slowly shut, exhaustion getting the best of her.