Zephyr Ashwright's Arc

Chapter 2 of 3

Zephyr stood between Malachus and the pond. The bunny gripped his shoulder. The fox pressed low against his leg, green eyes locked on the cloaked man. "They're not yours," Zephyr said. "Not anymore." Malachus raised his clawed arm. The blue pig snorted and charged. Its huge arms tore the ground. Zephyr threw fire, but the pig plowed through the flames and slammed him. His force field cracked. He hit the dirt hard, breath gone. The pig reared over him. Then something dropped from the sky. A metal boy landed on the pig's back. He was Zephyr's size, half machine like him, brown hair wild. Where one hand should be, a long silver sword glowed. The kid drove the blade down. Blue sparks flew. The pig screamed and bucked, throwing the boy off. He flipped in the air and landed light on his feet. "You bend fire," the boy said, glancing at Zephyr. "I cut. Together's better." Zephyr scrambled up. "Who are you?" "Later." The kid pointed his sword at the pig. "Left side. Go." Zephyr flew low and hurled fire at the pig's face. It flinched and swung wide. The Aero Blade Kid darted under the arm and slashed. The fox lunged too, snapping at the pig's leg. The bunny fired its jet pack and streaked past the pig's eyes, blinding it with laser light. The pig staggered. It stumbled toward the water again, confused. Malachus's claws twitched. He was losing control of it. Zephyr saw his chance. He pulled both hands back and pushed the biggest wall of fire he could make. The flames roared into the pig's chest. It squealed, spun, and crashed into the pond. Water sprayed high. The beast went limp in the shallows, done fighting. Malachus lowered his arm. His red eyes moved from the pig to the metal boy to Zephyr. "Two of you now," he said. His voice stayed flat and quiet. "Doesn't change the count." "It changes this," Zephyr said. "You lost." Malachus looked at the fox and bunny beside Zephyr. "For today." He turned. His cloak dragged over the roots. "I don't forget what's mine." Then he stepped into the trees and was gone. The forest went quiet. Zephyr dropped to one knee, shaking. The bunny nuzzled his neck. The fox licked his hand. He had kept them safe. Both of them. The metal boy walked over. His sword dimmed to gray steel. "He controls animals," the kid said. "That pig wasn't wild. It was a puppet." "You knew that," Zephyr said. "I've been tracking him. He takes things. People. Creatures." The boy studied Zephyr. "You beat his pig. He won't let that stand. He'll come back with worse." Zephyr looked at the trees where Malachus had vanished. His force field flickered green. He had won the fight. But he had also made a real enemy, one who now knew exactly what he could do.