The Girl With Metal Claws

Running

ELLIOTT

Elliott and Garry were out of the car and on the opposite side of the street. Elliott looked back at the rest of them to notice how insecure they looked. That only made him want to start the plan.

Elliott looked up at the houses that were closely packed and with open rooftops. His eyes hovered over the brick railings at the edge of the houses. Almost all the houses in Wellspring had open terraces that almost felt like a tradition.

Only if he could cross these houses...

"Come on," Elliott said leading the way as both of them snuck into an alley. They were out of the guard's side by then.

Elliott's eyes were cautious as he looked around for a way to get to the rooftop of one of the houses. They couldn't go in from the main or back door because people might be living inside. It was true that because of Phoenix, half of the houses were abandoned but he didn't know which ones.

The streets of Amberville could get them caught easily because two guards were posted outside each house, keeping the people inside safe from another attack. So they decided that they'd use the roofs to reach the place Garry found leads on.

Elliott felt like he was the threat people were scared of.

The thing about localities was that it is usually a large area with a lot of houses and it was impossible to block all possible entrances. They may close the main entrances and streets but the secrets of the alleys couldn't be known by anyone till they have lived there.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching them. He quickly opened his shoes and held them in his hands, Garry did the same. Then, as if on sync, they backed away and hid behind a wall, taking cover.

They watched two police guards who were patrolling the area, pass by without noticing them. He heard Garry sigh of relief.

Elliott was about to leave, he turned around. He saw metal fire exit stairs leading up to the roof of the building near him. It was an exception to find something like that, and it felt like a reward to Elliott.

"Follow me," Elliott said as he walked towards the stairs. Bounded by the wall of two buildings, no one seemed to be around except them. Tiptoeing, they marked their way up, being extra cautious because the stairs were creaking.

Before climbing on the roof, he looked around for guards. There was no one in sight as if people were afraid to even leave their rooms. Elliott motioned to Garry as he climbed up. He got up on the roof and crawled his way to the edge, to not get spotted.

"The police aren't taking her seriously. They should've posted guards up here." Elliott said, slowly getting up.

"Just consider yourself lucky." Garry huffed as he got up.

"You won't say that if Phoenix acts up again." He replied, climbing up the brick railing and jumping on the terrace of the next building.

Just as he landed on the next building, he heard the gate of the terrace open. Someone was up on the roof, apart from Elliott.

Quickly, he signalled Garry. Garry lied flat down on the ground. But Elliott didn't have time, he climbed off the roof and held on to the ledge of the railing, pushing his body against the wall to not loosen his grip. If his hands gave out, he'd fall from the building and die and Garry would be stranded alone, probably get arrested as a suspect.

He started praying to his fate. Not god. Never god. He wished Jack or Fred was there with him because no matter what, they always have a solution. But Elliott wasn't that well off.

"HEY MARCELLA!" A woman's voice shouted. The voice came from the terrace Elliott was hanging onto, trying to hide. "Come visit my house, let's talk."

"But..," Another woman's voice sounded from a distance.

Elliott's nerves in his hands started straining and were shaking with the pressure. He could hear Garry whisper, "Hold on, kid. For god's sake." He tightened his grip on the ledge and pushed his body further.

"NO. No one is allowed to move out of their houses. Stay in and follow the orders. It's for your safety." A male voice shouted back. Elliott turned his head slightly and found out that he could see the guard who was yelling. The guard couldn't see him.

The woman on the rooftop groaned and stormed back inside the house, banging the terrace door close.

After a few seconds, Garry raised his head a little.

"Clear." He said and Elliott pushed himself up, his skinny arms almost giving out. He climbed on the roof again and quickly helped Garry to that rooftop. Garry's pace was a little slow but he was keeping up just fine.

Then, they proceeded further. Jumping over railings from one roof to another, crawling and hiding.

"This jump is a bit larger, you'll do it right?" Elliott asked, waiting at the edge for a moment.

"My ancestors were hunters, you know?" Garry smirked and just like that, he got up on the railing and dive jumped onto the next house. He looked like a dolphin, his eyes were closed with a smile on his face. His huge built looked quite charming for an instance.

But he dropped on the ground of the terrace with a loud thud. Elliott's body stilled as Garry looked around with a confused expression. If someone came bursting up the terrace, they'd be caught and handed over.

Elliott grunted and slapped his forehead as Garry gave him an apologetic smile. Any moment now...

Neither of them moved. Elliott stood cautiously while Garry was sprawled on the ground of the next terrace, regretting everything.

They were expecting to hear footsteps of the guards coming up the roof but that never sounded. Neither did a bunch of guards ran up the stairs. Elliott decided to keep moving while they still had time. He quickly jumped to the next roof.

"I think it's time to get down," Garry said, back on his feet.

"Are we close to the place?" Elliott asked.

"Yes. There's no point moving ahead, we have to get out." Garry said, his eyes moving side by side towards the clustered houses.

"How?" Elliott asked.

"I have a plan but it's too risky for both of us." Garry sighed, his eyes settled on a spot by then.

"Let's do it." Elliott declared.

~

"That's your plan? That's too risky as a bait." Elliott gasped as they slowly opened the terrace door and got into the building. They understood that the house was abandoned because the door wasn't locked.

The worst thing about Wellspring was, no one knew the origins of most of the people. Everyone in the same family lived together and hardly had any relatives. In cases where the whole family dies, no one comes to claim their houses or bury their corpses.

"I'll be okay, can you?" Garry said. They slowly walked down the stairs, looking out for people.

"If you get..."

"I won't. I'm skilled. My ancestors were..."

"Hunters. I know. Let's go." Elliott said, his pace quick as they descended from the stairs.

"You know where to go, right?" Garry asked, holding his position. Elliott nodded.

That was when Garry started walking towards the main door of the empty house. He had no clue whether the guards were posted there but he kept walking. Elliott watched him carefully.

Garry walked to the main door and opened it very casually, lowly whistling and just like that, he got out of the building. But Elliott didn't move, he kept watching.

What Garry didn't notice was, two guards were posted in front of the door. He had casually walked past them and out of the house.

After a little pause of both Garry and the two guards staring at each other, Garry started running away because that was his plan. To distract the guards so that Elliott could get out and carry the plan.

The two guards didn't move, instead, they picked up their guns aiming at Garry. Elliott gasped and almost ran to help when suddenly a voice shouted from outside.

"DON'T SHOOT. CATCH HIM ALIVE." Someone with an authoritative voice yelled. So they did recognize Garry from the rifle incident. That was worse than just being an intruder, Garry was now a suspect too.

The two guards and the man yelling started bolting towards the way Garry had disappeared in. Elliott saw a few more police guards run behind them. That was all the distraction Elliott needed.

He couldn't take the main door, so he ran out from the back door of the house. Once in the streets, Elliott saw not just the guards but also the people outside of their houses. Terrified of what was happening but also curious. The crowd made it better for Elliott to sneak right under their noses.

~

Elliott was surprised by the point he reached the first building Garry asked him to go to.

He saw no guards on the streets, neither many people. Because everyone was on the opposite side of where he was trying to catch Garry.

As Garry told him, he went to the first two-storeyed building and immediately traced his way to its backyard. With wild eyes, he started staring at the walls and the pavement and even the windows. He could see nothing until his gut feeling told him to look closer.

On the lower part of the wall of the house, a very unfamiliar looking symbol was drawn with what looked like black dust. A circle, more circles inside it, a square, scratching lines. Elliott just couldn't understand what it was or rather if it was the sign Garry told him about.

Upon hearing someone talking, he quickly clicked a picture of it and started running away to the next place.

From people's mouths, only Garry's name could be heard. The whole neighbourhood knew him and now they were thinking he was the traitor.

But Elliott didn't know the truth yet, where Garry really was being truthful. In the back of his head, Elliott also felt like he was falling deeper into a trap with each step he was taking.

He was somewhere far away and unknown, all alone. He knew that Garry was around somewhere, running away but deep down, he knew someone else was writing their fate.

Someone who never leaves Elliott's mind.

The Phoenix.