Status: Semi-hiatus due to school, sorry about the wait!!
Shift
Prologue
The little girl was sitting in an alley, shivering next to a dumpster. It was February, and a fine layer of snow still covered the ground. A cold breeze swirled around her and she brought her knees closer to her chest. Her clothes, covered in mud and blood, offered little protection against the chill of the morning. She rubbed her arms, trying to keep her blood moving.
She couldn't remember the last time she had had a real meal. During the winter she had stayed at a local homeless shelter, but when the people who ran it realized her parents were not among the other patrons she had been forced to flee. She was very bright for all her nine years. She occasionally stole food from stores, but fear of being caught forced her to keep moving. Running. It was all she had known for the past five months, which in her mind seemed like an eternity.
Exhausted, she rested her head on her knees. Come nightfall, she would take refuge in one of the giant pine trees in the park. It was not an ideal bed, but it kept her relatively safe and off the cold ground. She dozed off and started dreaming. Her dreams quickly turned into nightmares of the place she had left behind.
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*She crouched behind the old gray couch, listening to her parents screaming at each other. Her father had come home drunk again, and had started taking his rage out on his family and various pieces of furniture. This was not a rare occurrence, and the little girl had learned to stay out of the way until he finally passed out, which was what she was waiting for him to do now.
He was pacing the hall, screaming and accusing his wife of infidelity. With every step he seemed to become even more enraged. Then he suddenly burst into the den where she was hiding, waking up the infant who had been sleeping in the crib in the corner by the window. The infant wailed, and he started for it.
"I won't have someone else's brat living under my roof!" He smashed the side of the crib, sending splinters flying. Some of them hit the baby, causing her to cry even harder. The drunk man raised his fist, poised to strike. Not being able to take it any longer, the little girl leapt up from her hiding place.
Something had changed inside the girl. It was a stirring of a powerful force, a strength born of fear and rage. The power flowed outward, consuming her entire body. Her body started changing, and her childhood ended abruptly.
Her teeth sharpened into fangs, her nails into long, curved claws. Her dark hair soon covered her fair skin, and her freckled face twisted into a snarl. Her green eyes, once so innocent, glowed with anger. The creature inside her had been unleashed. There was no taming it now.
Her father stared at her. Growling, she walked closer. He swung at her and missed. "Filthy mutant! You don't belong here either!". He grabbed her by the neck and began choking her.
The rage inside her hit its final breaking point. Wrenching away, she lunged forward until her teeth connected with his shoulder. As she tore down she could feel the warm blood filling up her mouth, but she didn't let go. Her claws shredded his arms, and she kicked him viciously. When he went limp, she dropped him and stared down in horror and shock.
Her mother was crying. When the little girl started to approach her, she just yelled at her to get out because she wasn't safe there. Confused, the little girl ran outside.
As her body began to revert back to its normal form, she heard sirens in the distance. Panic filled her mind. Her parents had never been fond of cops, and they had passed that fear onto their daughter. She fled into the woods, not knowing where she was going or what she was going to do. The only thing she could think to do was to run. And so she ran.
She ran until her lungs threatened to collapse and her legs felt like cement, her clothes were shredded by thorns and her limbs were covered in scratches. She ran until the woods turned into fields, and the fields into a city. But no matter how much or how fast she ran, she couldn't get those memories out of her mind. Her hands, covered in blood that wasn't hers. Her sister's cries and her mother's screams. And those words. Filthy mutant. Monster. An infinite loop of nightmares she didn't understand. So she kept running, hoping to find a way to erase them. A way to make her free. And a place she was loved.*
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Footsteps approached her. She cautiously lifted her head, praying it wasn't a cop. She didn't think she had the energy to run. She moved behind the dumpster, hoping the stranger hadn't seen her. Then a voice spoke to her.
"It's okay. I won't hurt you. You can come out." She peered around the edge of the dumpster. A lanky boy a few years older than her stood there. Shaggy hair covered most of his face, but she could see that he had kind brown eyes. He reached out his hand to her. "I'm Kite. You look hungry. Why don't we go get something to eat?"
She stared at him, curious. She hadn't heard kind words in quite some time. Was she imagining things? Cautiously she crawled out and stood up. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her of how hungry she was. The boy was still smiling at her. Taking a deep breath, she took his hand and followed him.
She couldn't remember the last time she had had a real meal. During the winter she had stayed at a local homeless shelter, but when the people who ran it realized her parents were not among the other patrons she had been forced to flee. She was very bright for all her nine years. She occasionally stole food from stores, but fear of being caught forced her to keep moving. Running. It was all she had known for the past five months, which in her mind seemed like an eternity.
Exhausted, she rested her head on her knees. Come nightfall, she would take refuge in one of the giant pine trees in the park. It was not an ideal bed, but it kept her relatively safe and off the cold ground. She dozed off and started dreaming. Her dreams quickly turned into nightmares of the place she had left behind.
__________________________________________________________________________________
*She crouched behind the old gray couch, listening to her parents screaming at each other. Her father had come home drunk again, and had started taking his rage out on his family and various pieces of furniture. This was not a rare occurrence, and the little girl had learned to stay out of the way until he finally passed out, which was what she was waiting for him to do now.
He was pacing the hall, screaming and accusing his wife of infidelity. With every step he seemed to become even more enraged. Then he suddenly burst into the den where she was hiding, waking up the infant who had been sleeping in the crib in the corner by the window. The infant wailed, and he started for it.
"I won't have someone else's brat living under my roof!" He smashed the side of the crib, sending splinters flying. Some of them hit the baby, causing her to cry even harder. The drunk man raised his fist, poised to strike. Not being able to take it any longer, the little girl leapt up from her hiding place.
Something had changed inside the girl. It was a stirring of a powerful force, a strength born of fear and rage. The power flowed outward, consuming her entire body. Her body started changing, and her childhood ended abruptly.
Her teeth sharpened into fangs, her nails into long, curved claws. Her dark hair soon covered her fair skin, and her freckled face twisted into a snarl. Her green eyes, once so innocent, glowed with anger. The creature inside her had been unleashed. There was no taming it now.
Her father stared at her. Growling, she walked closer. He swung at her and missed. "Filthy mutant! You don't belong here either!". He grabbed her by the neck and began choking her.
The rage inside her hit its final breaking point. Wrenching away, she lunged forward until her teeth connected with his shoulder. As she tore down she could feel the warm blood filling up her mouth, but she didn't let go. Her claws shredded his arms, and she kicked him viciously. When he went limp, she dropped him and stared down in horror and shock.
Her mother was crying. When the little girl started to approach her, she just yelled at her to get out because she wasn't safe there. Confused, the little girl ran outside.
As her body began to revert back to its normal form, she heard sirens in the distance. Panic filled her mind. Her parents had never been fond of cops, and they had passed that fear onto their daughter. She fled into the woods, not knowing where she was going or what she was going to do. The only thing she could think to do was to run. And so she ran.
She ran until her lungs threatened to collapse and her legs felt like cement, her clothes were shredded by thorns and her limbs were covered in scratches. She ran until the woods turned into fields, and the fields into a city. But no matter how much or how fast she ran, she couldn't get those memories out of her mind. Her hands, covered in blood that wasn't hers. Her sister's cries and her mother's screams. And those words. Filthy mutant. Monster. An infinite loop of nightmares she didn't understand. So she kept running, hoping to find a way to erase them. A way to make her free. And a place she was loved.*
__________________________________________________________________________________
Footsteps approached her. She cautiously lifted her head, praying it wasn't a cop. She didn't think she had the energy to run. She moved behind the dumpster, hoping the stranger hadn't seen her. Then a voice spoke to her.
"It's okay. I won't hurt you. You can come out." She peered around the edge of the dumpster. A lanky boy a few years older than her stood there. Shaggy hair covered most of his face, but she could see that he had kind brown eyes. He reached out his hand to her. "I'm Kite. You look hungry. Why don't we go get something to eat?"
She stared at him, curious. She hadn't heard kind words in quite some time. Was she imagining things? Cautiously she crawled out and stood up. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her of how hungry she was. The boy was still smiling at her. Taking a deep breath, she took his hand and followed him.