A/N: This goes for the whole story. I don't own any familiar characters, they belong to L.J. Smith. And that's all I'm going to do.
Hey, y'all! It's The Fox Queen here. This is my Night World fanfic, Firefox Apocalyptic. Don't ask me about the title—I think it sounds cool. :] Hope you enjoy. I don't know whether I should continue it or not; that's up to you guys. I'm hoping you guys will like it enough to say yes.
I hate it when people talk in chatspeak. Isn't that fascinating?
-Fox
Firefox Apocalyptic
Chapter Quote: "That—that just repulsed me."
A black fox slinked through a thick forest in Vermont, towards the hidden base by the name of Altar. She paused when she heard a twig snap behind her, wary of any followers. She didn't want a dragon on her tail, and the information she held was too important to be risked getting caught by any 'wolves and 'shifters. After sniffing in stillness after a while, the fox didn't pick anything up and she continued on her way.
Finally, she reached a clearing. To the left of her was the ordinary forest she had been stalking through. To the right of her was the ordinary forest. To the south of her was her trail, and to the north of her was the ordinary forest that shimmered a tiny bit.
It wouldn't have been detectable to even a vampire eye, but the fox's well-developed night vision allowed it to witness a slight shudder that ran through the hologram every five minutes. She paused, waiting for the shudder. When it did, she was sure she was facing the right direction and took a step forward, and then stopped abruptly.
The fox sniffed again for any intruders or followers and then walked up to the hologram tree that had 'H+T' on it. The fox looked around quietly and then stepped forward, her cold nose touching the warm mist. It hit the '+' mark and then she was sucked in by a spell.
The fox shuddered as she was pulled for two seconds through blinding white light, and then she was on the other side of the hologram; specifically, inside of Altar. The fox looked around again and then broke into a run.
Finally, she reached a brown-brick, three-story building that she recognized as the guest rooms and morphed into an 18-year-old-young woman with freckles over her nose, strawberry blonde hair that tumbled down her back and gold-flecked dark brown eyes that were almost black. Those eyes were currently filled with disgust and terror from the news she'd just possessed. Leah Räv looked around anxiously, smoothing her jeans and panther shapeshifter fur-covered shirt with a sweaty palm.
And then she entered the building. Bright fluroescent lights blinded her temporarily and then she got to look around the place. There was tiled floor and wood paneling, along with a few couches. It looked like any hotel lobby. There was even an elevator for the disabled that led up to the second and third floor.
A witch looked up from a desk, three clipboards scattered carelessly around the surface. When she recognized the person, her eyes lit up. "Leah," she said warmly. "Just in time, too. Lord Thierry came this morning because Harmony was recently attacked by a dragon. He's sending some other people to here, in Altar, because it's unknown and safe. Why don't you go talk to him?"
Leah nodded numbly, still stunned from the information she'd aquired in Michigan, where Hunter Redfern's apprentice was making the threat come alive. "I will. Where is he?"
The witch pointed down the north hallway that was near the desk. The hallways contained rooms where the people of Circle Daybreak stayed. "Go until you find 115. Open that door and take an immediate right. That's where he is currently." Leah nodded and wandered down the hallway, her bright hazel eyes scanning the numbers. Finally, she reached room 115 and opened it, taking an immediate right.
"Lord Thierry?" she asked softly. The study was illuminated by lamplight and Thierry himself was sitting in a desk chair, his head in his hands. He didn't make a move to acknowledge Leah's presence. Leah ducked her head apologetically. "Sorry. Perhaps this wasn't the best time . . ." she was about to close the door.
"No. Wait," Thierry said. Leah was surprised how hoarse he sounded. He lifted his blonde head away from his hands and turned to look at Leah. His eyes were unfathomable pits, sunken and filled with sadness and guilt. For what, Leah would never know. "I apologize. Harmony was attacked and many got hurt. Hannah . . . she was almost killed. She's in the hospital section of Altar right now." Thierry gazed at Leah.
She flushed. "Oh, Lord Thierry, I'm sorry. I didn't realize—" she stopped herself. I didn't realize your soulmate was hurt, she almost said. "Well, may I come in?"
Thierry absently nodded and sighed through his nose. Leah opened the door a bit wider and closed the door behind her, sitting in a velvet chair next to a mahogany bookcase. "Yes, well, I have some news for you," Leah began.
"Ever since we discovered Delos Redfern, Hunter's been declared dead. Well, I found out that Hunter apparently took a made vampire under his wing until Delos got rid of him. The made vampire's name is Alec and, well, he's rumored to be even more ruthless than three Hunters combined. And he's gathering an army of his own."
Thierry's voice turned sharp. "How so?"
Leah shrugged helplessly. "Well, he's making made vampires out of homeless teenagers and others who he's sure the parents won't miss. It was kind of like that enclave that Rashel and Quinn busted, but it's worse. They're from all ages for the made vampire limit, up to nineteen to ten . . ." Leah broke off in a shudder. "I was sent out to spy on them and I was nearly caught twice, but they only thought I was a bothersome fox. I escaped, of course. And then, after I saw them bite a seven-year-old girl, that—that just repulsed me. So I left. And now, here I am." She smiled shakily at Lord Thierry.
He nodded. "Did you find anything about the Wild Power?" he asked.
"Yeah. There's this girl called Sarah Strange in California. Grandma Harman sent out some to watch over her before she was murdered. Apparently, one of Sarah's friends—Mal Harman—is the last Wild Power, but no one can be sure." Leah shrugged.
Thierry nodded. His voice had lost that rough, scratched voice of someone who'd been crying and now it was merely soft and subdued. "Thank you very much, Leah," he said sincerely. "You are truly help to Circle Daybreak."
Leah ducked her head. "It—it was nothing, Lord Thierry. Truly. I don't really have anywhere else to go."
Thierry smiled. "Nonetheless, you are still a great help. Now, if you'll excuse me; I'm going to go see Hannah in the hospital wing of Altar."
Leah nodded. "I hope she gets better, Thierry," she murmured. "How bad was it?"
Thierry's face visibly darkened. "There was a dragon. Keller, Galen, Quinn, Rashel and I were fighting it. Keller, of course, killed it with the others' help, but I heard a scream and then I was gone. Some shapeshifters had gotten into Harmony and . . . one had Hannah by the throat." He stopped. Apparently he was content with leaving off there. "It was terrible," he finished, his gaze dropping to the floor.
Leah nodded. The silence that followed was awkward, until Leah stood up with Thierry and he held the door open for her, following her out. Leah abruptly turned around. "Wait. Celeste—that's the secretary witch. Celeste said that you sent others over here because it's hidden and almost no one knows about it. Who did you send over, exactly?"
Thierry closed his eyes. "I sent over a girl who'd shown up after the attack because she was in a daze, Hannah, Rashel and Quinn, and Thea and Eric. Poppy and James are on their way here from Las Vegas, along with a girl named Gillian and David."
Leah nodded. "Okay." she stepped out of the way for Thierry to pass and then added, "Thierry, I know the witches are doing everything they can. She'll be okay." Thierry flashed a grateful smile before turning around and walking out of his room, room 115.
Shaking her head, Leah left the room to go back to Celeste. The witch looked up from her position at the desk and smiled. "Ah, Leah. How'd it go?"
"Good," Leah said absently. "Hey, Celeste, is anyone else coming?"
Celeste clucked her tongue and scooted backward, leaning over and looking for something. And then she pulled out a clipboard and clucked her tongue again. "Raksha Keller and Galen Drache, along with Morgead Blackthorn and a witch named Dani Aberforth. They're on a mission with Ash Redfern to protect the Wild Power in California. And then there's Poppy North and James Rasmussen. They left Thierry's manor in charge of a vampire called Nissa and Nilsson along with a witch named Winnie.
"And then there's that one boy. Phillip North—Poppy North got him to change his mind and he was studying in a Texan base called Granule and he's coming here with a girl named Carly Griffins." Celeste scanned the list and looked back at Leah. "That's it."
Leah nodded. "Okay. Thierry mentioned a girl who came with Hannah and the others because she was in a daze. Do you know who that is, so I could possibly go see her . . .?" her voice trailed off.
Celeste smiled. "Of course, hon," she murmured, lifting three pages off of her clipboard. "She's in room 274, second floor. I think she should be sleeping, and you can go see her if you want."
"Thanks." Leah turned around and went to the elevator, pressing the button. When the doors opened, she pressed the needed button and waited for it to close. At the last second, a hand was stuck through the doors, cutting them off from closing completely. A girl with dark hair and dark skin came in breathlessly and gave a nod.
"Hi. I'm Carol Hans," she greeted. Leah saw she had a black violet bracelet and immediately felt reassured. "You are?"
"Leah Räv, shapeshifter. How'd you get that?" Leah asked, motioning to the black violet. Black violets were the symbol of lost witches; basically, witches who didn't know they were witches. Leah herself had a black lily necklace she kept underneath her shirt.
Carol looked away. "Um, some guy gave it to me," she said, sounding flustered. "I'm staying here because there was this thing that attacked me. I don't know what it was. The guy saved me and then he gave me this."
Leah nodded. "Do you know who the guy was?" she asked as the elevator climbed to the second floor. Carol shrugged.
"He said his name was Sam," she murmured. "He had a black rose T-shirt and I don't know where he is now."
Leah shook her head. The elevator stopped, opening the doors at the second floor. Leah smiled at the girl called Carol and stepped out, meeting three hallways. Behind her, she heard the elevator doors close and the hum of it rising to the third floor. In front of her was the plat saying Rooms 135-214. To the left of her was a plaque saying Rooms 116-134. To the right of her was a plaque saying Rooms 214-277.
She went right and scanned the individual plates with room numbers on them, until she got to room 247.
There, she pushed open the door.
It was dark. It was basically the same as Thierry's room—there was a small hallway with a kitchen to the left, but instead of a study to the right, there was a small bathroom. Leah walked forward to see that the main room was both a living room and a bedroom. The living room was separated from the bedroom by a half-wall, where a bookcase and chair and a TV were propped up against various parts of the room. Leah turned to look at the girl in the bed.
From what she could tell already from her fox night vision, the girl had dark, almost black hair. The lump where her shoulders held up the covers were rising steadily, the girl herself curled up into a ball. Her heartbeat was light and fluttering, like a rabbit's. She couldn't be over eighteen, same age as Leah.
And Leah had no idea where she was. Leah didn't want to wake her up; she just wanted to find out who she was. Thierry and Celeste both didn't know who she was.
Leah tentatively stretched out a hand and placed it lightly on the girl's shoulder. Even though the pressure wasn't great, a lot of things happened at once. The girl reacted like she'd been shocked by lightning. She jerked up with a single shriek and her hand darted under the pillow.
Leah soon found herself being faced with a can of pepper spray and the finger that determined whether she got a week of eyesore was trembling. So was the girl. Fine tremors were going through her body. She looked clammy and pale and Leah actually saw a trickle of sweat drip down her face.
Okay, so maybe her breathing wasn't as peaceful as Leah had originally thought.
Leah slowly raised her hand and clamped it around the girl's wrist, forcing her to lower the pepper spray. "I'm not going to hurt you," she said slowly, looking directly at the girl.
The girl's chest was heaving. "Who are you?" she gasped, wiping her face.
"I'm Leah Räv, a shapeshifter who's with Circle Daybreak. Who are you?" Leah asked, enunciating her words carefully and deliberately. The girl sighed and her heartbeat slowed down.
"I'm . . . I'm Mary-Lynnette Carter," she murmured, brushing her hair away from her neck. Leah froze as her eyes focused on a pair of small holes in her neck. Oh, God, no wonder she was in a daze. She'd been bitten. "Nice to meet you."
"Why are you here?" Leah asked, unable to tear her gaze from Mary-Lynnette's throat.
"Oh, um. I was waiting for a year. I was at Harvard, and when I came back Briar Creek was gone. Kestrel Redfern told me it had been burned down and she had Mark. My parents—my parents didn't survive, but Jade got my brother Mark out in time." Mary-Lynnette scratched her nose. "And, um, they told me to go find Ash. Ash Redfern, I mean. He's my soulmate. Anyway, I figured he was here instead of the west coast, so here I am."
Leah stiffened even more. "Ash Redfern is in California. With Raksha Keller, Galen Drache, Dani Aberforth and Morgead Blackthorn." Mary-Lynnette sighed and sank down into the covers.
"I had a hope," she murmured. "What's he doing?"
"Fighting a dragon," Leah said seriously. They probably were, anyway. Dragons were waking up all over the place. Mary-Lynnette chuckled as if something about this was funny. "What?" Leah asked despite herself.
Mary-Lynnette chuckled again. "Well, when you said 'fighting a dragon', it reminded me when I told Ash to leave to make up for all his wrongdoings. And he said, 'I'll fight dragons.' Something like that. It just made me laugh."
Leah smiled, just hoping Mary-Lynnette would see and make her smile. "I can see how that would," she murmured. Then she stood up. "Well, Mary-Lynnette, sorry for waking you up. I just wanted to know who you were, since Thierry just referred to you as 'a girl who was in a daze'. So, sweet dreams." She flashed a grin at her. Mary-Lynnette nodded back, a hint of a smile playing around her lips.
Leah turned around and left.
She had to tell Ash about Mary-Lynnette's vampire marks.