Sable's Story

The city of Freedom. Once a staple of the idea of the American dream, it was now overrun with crime. Sirens blared as the police force fought a losing war against the many street gangs that controlled more than half the city. Law abiding citizens tried to stay out of the way, hidden in their homes behind locked and barricaded doors. There were those that would take advantage of this lawless state.

One such dissident used the confusion to begin destroying buildings in Lincoln. She laughed as green, leafy tendrils snaked up the sides of businesses and ripped out their foundations. Large, fierce wolves drove people screaming from the area and the police were too busy stopping a gang war to respond.


Sable

Sable was nothing to look at, really, just a punk wandering the streets. She could probably pass for a kid if it weren't for the cigarette in her mouth and the tattoos that covered her body. She absentmindedly itched one of her tattoos, one that looked like a brown paper bag. The damn new ones always itched for awhile. Luckily, she wouldn't have it for long. She nodded curtly to a greasy looking man in a hooded sweatshirt who was leaning against a building by an alley. The drug dealer smiled, "Whatcha got for me today hyna?"

"Solid stuff, pure grifa." She said, pulling on the itchy tattoo and handing him the bag.

"Hey," He said, counting out her money, "When you gonna get me some perico, eh? Why you gotta sell me the soft shit all the time?"

"You know I don't deal in that. Pase's dangerous, vato. Deal in it, and people always get killed. Now gimme the lana so I can go." Sable puffed on her cig while she looked at him, her hand out for the money.

He sighed and handed her the money. "Whatever chica. You do what you do." Suddenly they heard a crashing sound as hundreds of screaming civilians ran by. "Ay wey, what's up with them?"

"I don't know, but I'm gonna find out." She said, turning to walk away.

"Loca! What's wrong with you?"

"Nothin, chavala. Some people run towards the fun, cowards like you run away." She said, flipping him the bird and speeding up to a jog.

"Desquentate then, go get yourself killed, won't see me cryin." He said softly as she rounded a corner.

The woman laughed as a Starbucks collapsed. Her flowing forest green robes seemed to sink deep into the ground and spread out all around her in vines that were now covering much of the buildings. She waved her hand and more vines flew out to destroy a fire hydrant that exploded, causing water to spray everywhere.

"Drink, my children!" She bellowed to the plants. "Drink and GROW!"

She waved her other hand and several wolves ran to her. "Are the humans gone?" She asked. "Good! Then keep all others from entering this sacred grove!"

The wolves ran out, barking their orders to the other wolves that had been patrolling the streets.

One wolf, however, was too busy hunting to take orders at the moment. It growled, the human had gone farther into its territory. She smelled of fear. The wolf bared its teeth and stalked into the alley. Dead end, human girl. Lunch time.

Sable

"Whoa." Sable said, looking at the overgrown city. It was like something from an apocalypse movie or that show After Humans. Vines were everywhere and plants were growing in so many places that Sable found herself unable to tell where some buildings started and some stopped. She began walking towards the center of it all, the place where she'd heard the crash. She heard birds and other creatures instead of the sounds of the city.

Then she heard howls from further into the vines. It was enough to make her shudder. She began to back up, trying to get to a highpoint where she could see everything. She climbed on top of a taxi that had been covered with ivy.

"You've got to be kidding me." She said, her jaw hanging open. There were wolves, a lot of them, stalking towards her and baring their teeth. The wolves moved as one, drawing around her in a semicircle. Sable didn't have time to count. She drew her guns, the ink flowing into metal, and pointed them towards the beasts. She wasn't sure if she had enough ammo, let alone the ability to hit them all. "What did I get myself into?"

The woman was alerted to several humans entering her territory by the plants, they ignored any animal presences. Two were being dealt with by the wolves, one was simply standing outside the perimeter and another had been trying to communicate with them. Well, they thought it had been communicating. They had felt a psychic presence. Curious, the woman headed towards the one who had tried to communicate. Maybe he was an ally, wanting to help?

The wolf stalked around the building, searching for the female. It had lost track of her when it had gone deaf for a second, but her scent was still strong by the door. The wolf found an open window and jumped inside. It would find the girl, in time.

Sable

The wolves charged in from all directions and Sable opened fire. She heard a few yelps as bullets either grazed or found their marks. The wolves however were set on taking her out and several jumped up onto the car, knocking her off and onto her back. She landed with a thump as several wolves jumped down towards her. One ran in and bit her arm.

"Mother Fucker!" She screamed, shooting it several times to make it let go and got to her feet as fast as she could.With the air knocked out of her, she ran from the wolves. She was frantic now, firing wildly behind her, blood dropping to the ground from her arm faster and faster as her heart pounded in rhythm with the gun fire.

Sable ran as fast as her legs would take her, narrowly avoiding the jaws of the wolves and barely hitting anything with her guns. She wasn't exactly paying attention to where she was going and before long the wolves had backed her into an alley with a dead end. She turned around, pointing her guns at the wolves who were stalking closer teeth bared and hackles raised. She pulled the triggers and the guns didn't fire.

"Shit."

From somewhere in the concrete jungle a roar echoed out into the night, as much man as it was some primal beast from the Earth's primitive and violent past. A shape lumbered into view at the end of the alley, easily taller than Sable was and wide enough to fill most of the tight corridor. It was hard to make out exact details without direct lighting but looking at the horn and the overall shape some Dinosaur-man might come to mind.

As he charged forward Sable could be forgiven for thinking it was after her. It's horn shattered a few of the lights the lit the alley and tore clotheslines free of the alley's brick walls. One wolf was simply trampled by a large, three-toed foot. Two more were grabbed and simply flung through the air to an almost comical distance. One turned to bite at the beast's leg and had its head smashed into the concrete for its troubles.

After another wolf is swung by its tail and dropped in a dumpster her savior, looking unharmed, turned his attention to Sable. He gave a snort, steam streaming from his nostrils as a rumble built in his chest.

Blight stood stock still her mouth agape. "You see the future?! What harms come to my children what-!" She was cut short by the sounds of gunfire and a bestial roar. "Why did you not tell me sooner!" She screamed as the yelps of wolves echoed out through the still city. It was growing darker by the minute and since the plants had cut power, soon it would be pitch black. Blight Reached out her hands towards the sounds. "The Wild Ones...I can only hear one over there." She almost seemed ready to cry. "Come back to me sweetheart. Come back to Blight and reunite with the Others."

The one remaining wolf stopped short as the human leaped from the building and onto the fire escape. It could have caught her, it really wanted to, but the Alpha called. It growled softly but turned and ran down the stairs and back out of the building the way it had come.

Blight reached out and called the other Wild Ones around the city to her. She felt another presence that was very wild, probably the one that had roared, but she turned her attention first to the Psychic. "My children were hurt as you say. What more do you see? Tell me and I will spare you!"

Sable

Sable fell backwards and dropped her guns as she tried to scramble away from the giant monster that was tearing apart the wolves. It was throwing those creatures around as if they were mere play toys and not predators that had, a few seconds ago, been ready to tear her limb from limb. She even saw one bite the monster and not even leave scratches on it's scaly hide.

She looked at her own bloody mess of an arm. It was useless now, and she was starting to feel a little light headed. She doubted she'd be able to put up a fight with the giant dino-man. This thing was out for blood and it looked like it wanted to kill her too. She fumbled around for a weapon, anything, forgetting about the virtual arsenal in the ink on her body. When the beast was done destroying the wolves it stopped in front of her, rumbling and breathing steam. She hefted a lead pipe with her good arm to block any attack. "What the fuck are you?" The small girl asked, not really expecting an answer. She looked for a way out of the dead end, but it seemed hopeless. The monster was blocking the entire alley and backwards was not an option. At this point, Isabel was certain that she was going to die.

The large creature's attention was taken off the injured Sable briefly, head lifting as its gaze turned skyward to the chopper in the air. It's voice came out in a low rumble, eyes turning back to the woman and more importantly her injured arm. "You really should see a Doctor about your arm." With that it started to back out slowly, big horn denting a fire escape ladder along the way. It may have even muttered, "Oops."

Once out of the alley the dino-man turned slowly and started in a run down the street. He was going to need to get out of sight before he could change back. Being so large he knew being caught in his hybrid form would be an issue one day but he really wanted to keep his identity a secret. Can't work in a mail room when people know you turn into a large monster. With a grunt and all the strength he could find in his legs he took off.

Blight focused on the psychic intently as the wolves and other creatures of the wild began to fill in the clearing that was once an intersection. She waited as he seemed to stare off in space, hoping that he might be able to help her keep her children safe while still furthering her goals. What she got instead was disappointing cryptic nonsense.

"I do not know a man with a scar!" She said, the nearby plants beginning to twist and wind towards the psychic slowly as if responding to her anger and not a direct command. "You have told me nothing! How does a single man stop Blight? Where? When? Why?" She was almost screaming now. "You may not leave until you tell me answers and truth!"

____

The chopper followed the creature as best they could as it ran through the streets and alleys. When it ducked under a parking garage, however, they lost sight on it. They hovered over the garage, waiting for the beast to exit.


Sable
“You may want to have a doctor look at your arm.” The monster said in a deep rumble before leaving. Sable just dropped the pipe and stared open mouthed as he walked towards the end of the alley and then ran away. She stared for a few more minutes before a throbbing in her arm caught her attention. She was still bleeding.

She looked around for something to stop the bleeding but couldn’t find anything that wasn’t disgusting. She sighed and tore a piece of her shirt off, exposing her midriff, and tied it tightly around the bite marks. “Orale. What have I gotten myself into?” She muttered.

When she finished, she saw a girl at the end of the alley. The girl was looking towards her. “Hey!” Sable, shouted as she stumbled out of the darkened alley. “Are you okay?”

Standing at rest for the moment, Ione tried to ignore the thickening stench that was becoming ever more prominent. The taste of bile still lingered in her mouth and her stomach still rolled unpleasantly. With such a combination, getting sick yet again was still in the cards. Taking shallow breaths Ione was about to turn around and beat a retreat when someone called out to her. Or that's what Ione assumed considering there was no one else on the street. Feeling jittery, wondering whether this was a friend or foe, Ione stepped further into the alley.

A girl was stumbling towards her, blood stained and injured. Chewing on her lip, Ione considered the girl. Looks were deceiving, yea, but this person did not seem to be the villain in all this. "Hey...um yeah. I'm okay. Uh...well...better than you anyway." Self consciously, Ione's hand drifted to the lump on her forehead. She forced her hand back down to her side, pushing both hands into the pockets of her hoodie.

"Do you need help or anything?"

Ione was unsure what to do with herself. It was obvious this girl was worse off than herself, what with the blood and all. If she keeled over from shock or blood loss, Ione would be the epitome of useless. She had no cell phone with her and there wasn't exactly anyone around to help them. Silently and selfishly, Ione prayed the girl would be fine.