“Hunters? Impossible,” Henry thought. The sight of the angle masks sent him into a state of shock so deep it made him take a step back. In his mind, there was no conceivable method in which Hunters could’ve found them. It went against the very existence of Allison Street and all its security precautions.
“It cannot be,” said Carlyle, who seemed equally confused and stunned. The others seemed to feel the same. A moment later, Meredith shouted. “Well that doesn’t matter now! It’s clear we’ve missed Morrow’s deadline. Now it seems we have a fight on or hands,”
Henry cleared his throat and calmed himself, realizing that Meredith was right. He then watched as the members of the Gratousy and the regular soldiers lined up side by side. He then noticed Marilyn look very confused and distraught.
“It doesn’t make any sense,” she muttered to herself. “This was not supposed to happen…not like this!”
“What do you mean?” asked Henry. But Marilyn ignored him as she clutched her head with her hands in an almost panicked manner, her face riddled with bewilderment. “There is something missing. I must see Eustice!” she said before swiftly walking away. Leaving the rest of them very confused.
“What about the children? They haven’t returned yet,” asked Harold hastily. “I think its best they stay in the house,” said Meredith. “I suggest we move the little ones inside as well!”
“We cannot do that,” Carlyle argued. Henry gave him a glare. “It seems to me that we’re in a standoff of sorts,” he explained. “At least, that’s what they seem to think. If we try moving inside they might take it as a signal to attack,”
“Well we cannot simply stand here indefinitely!” said Amos. “I can hear them whisper amongst each other. They do not intend to say in this standoff for long,”
“No need to say that to me, Angelmore,” said Carlyle. “Their thoughts tell me they are waiting for something. Some sort of signal or sign,”
Henry gulped once again. The weight of the situation was slowly starting to crush him. “I need to see Janice,” he said before he too swiftly left the group. He made his way over to the car closest to the front door. There he found Janice leaning against the open back door where Lucy was sitting with a fearful look on her face.
“Why are they all pointing their guns at the road, mother?” she asked with a shiver.
“It’s probably nothing, dear” said Janice calmly whilst crouching down on the sidewalk so Lucy could see her face. Janice then turned her head towards the Henry the moment she saw him appear. She then turned to Lucy; she patted her on the head and smiled before swiftly standing up and walking over to her husband.
“What in MOOR’S NAME IS HAPPENING?” she whispered with panic before grabbing Henry by both his shoulders and pulling him closer to her. Henry shuddered at Janice’s intensity. “How are there Hunter here?” she continued. Henry then took a deep breath. “I don’t know. But it appears we’re in a standstill. I suggest you and Lucy get inside the car. It’s safer that way,”
Janice wavered. “When are we leaving?” Henry then heard another voice yell. Henry looked back at the car behind him, which was parked facing Heny. There he saw Wren peeking his head out of the back seat window, waving in angrily at David, who stood outside.
“I have been in this infernal steel box for ages! When are we departing, David?” Wren asked angrily. “We seem to have hit a bit of an obstacle, father” David replied calmly whilst glancing at the row of armed men ahead of them. Wren seemed to find that fact unacceptable. “Are you going to let a bunch of street hooligans stop a Baron’s car? That is quite disappointing of you, David,”
David groaned but kept his composure. Henry pitied him. But as he watched David deal with their father he noticed something in the corner of his eye. He saw soldier in a brown cloak break from the defensive line. Henry watched as he ran a few back before pointing his revolver in the air and firing into the sky.
The sudden gunshot made Henry and Janice reel backwards and hide behind the hood of the car. And as the sound of the bullet rang in the air every soldier who wore a brown cloak diverted their gun and pointed it at the Gratousy and the other Great Houses, the Gratousy in return pointed their guns at the soldiers. Henry couldn’t believe his eyes. He then heard a high-pitched scream in his left ear. He looked to see Lucy huddling in her seat, screaming whilst covering both or her ears. Janice tried to reach for her, but she froze when the man who had fired the bullet in the air turned his gun on Henry and Janice. They both raised their hands in the air; Henry’s mind still was still reeling from shock. He looked over to David, who too stood frozen as he watched the man point a gun at his brother. Henry then saw another soldier wave his hand in the air before doing a gesture he didn’t recognize. When he did so the Hunters blocking the road slowly broke away from their positions and began to walk towards them.
Henry’s mind was made of questions, but he knew he needed to focus. “Not so high and mighty now, are you, Baron?” the soldier said with a smug grin whilst he switching between pointing the gun at Henry, Janice and David. Henry managed to appear calm on the outside, but inside he was drowning in fear and panic.
“You fool! You don’t know the treason you’ve committed!” David said bravely. The man remained unaffected by his words. He smiled at David as he pointed his gun at him. “Oh I wouldn’t worry about that now, sir. We are under orders not to shoot you. So I suggest you be thankful for that,”
“Whose orders?” asked Henry swiftly and with an authoritative voice. The guard glanced at him, but said nothing. David spat at the man’s face, but it only landed on the man’s shoe. The soldier seemed to be far more insulted by that, for he then walked directly in front of David. Then, without warning, he took his gun and hit David on the side of his head with it. The blow was so painful that it made David fall to the ground whilst clutching his cheek. The man then leaned down and looked at David with amusement. “Be careful now, sir. Our orders are to take one able-bodied member of each House as a captive. Which means you are as expendable as any common man now,”
The man took his gun and placed it directly on David’s head. At that moment, Henry’s calmness reached its limit. He glanced at the closed front door of the car that the man was standing next to, a door knew was unlocked. Upon seeing an opportunity his mind decided it could not wait any longer. “DO NOT POINT YOUR GUN AT MY BROTHER!” he shouted as he instinctively swung his arms downwards diagonally. The soldier barely had time to look back before the car door flung open by itself at an incredible speed. It hit both David and the soldier but it was clear that the soldier had taken the brunt of the blow. For as they both flew down onto the sidewalk David managed to stagger back up faster than the soldier did. David then hastily grabbed the soldier’s gun hand and wrestled the gun out of his grip before wrapping his hands around the man’s neck before pinning him down on the stony pavement.
The other soldiers turned their eyes away from their targets and onto Henry. One such soldier stood with his gun pointed at Leonard and Jeanette. The moment the soldier took his gaze away from Jeanette Henry saw her reach for the man’s gun. She immediately grabbed it and pulled it to her side. The soldier recoiled and tried to fight back. He pulled the trigger but Jeanette directed the man’s gun onto the road. What followed next was loud bang and the sound of glass shattering at the bullet ricocheted off the road and into the window of one of the surrounding facades. Jeanette struck the man in stomach with her fist before wrestling the gun out his hand and hitting him over the head with it.
Moments after Jeanette grabbed the gun the other Gratousy soon followed, taking the soldier’s distraction to their advantage. Some of them, like Jeanette, grabbed onto their attackers while others swiftly reached into their cloaks pulled out their spare revolvers and knives. This sudden change of action was swiftly succeeded by the sound of several guns going off at once. Henry watched as the Gratousy opened fire on the soldiers while the soldiers did the same. Henry and Janice both quickly crouched behind the car and got out of view. Henry looked to his side and saw David still strangling the man who had hit him in the head. David pinned the man’s hands into the pavement and with his power, he made the stone melt and rise like a liquid until it completely covered the man’s hands, encasing them in stone. David then let go of the man and punched him the face before standing up and walking over to the gun. He then took it from the ground and, with a tired pant; he shot the man in the head. Janice let out a short scream had David pulled the trigger and Henry himself flinched and shuddered. David then hid behind the car next to Henry with the gun in his hand.
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“WE NEED TO GET TO SAFETY!” David shouted amidst the sound of guns and screams. Henry was about to respond when he noticed that row of Hunters who had started to approach them were now falling back and running behind their own vehicles. Henry knew things would only get worse. He glanced at the front door of the house, which was less than ten feet away. He then turned to Janice.
“Take Lucy and run!” he said. Janice paused for a moment. She glanced at the scene unfolding behind her, with bullet ricocheting off every surface and bodies falling onto the cold ground. She then stared at Henry and gave him a nod. Henry nodded back at her. He then swiftly turned to David and held out his hand. David immediately took the hint and handed him his gun. Henry took the gun and gave it to Janice. “Be safe,” he said softly. He and Janice momentarily embraced each other and touched foreheads. He then let go and watched as Janice slowly crawled her way to the back seat and opened the door to find Lucy huddled in the corner, whimpering whilst keeping her eyes and ears closed. Janice quickly grabbed Lucy by the hand and took her into her arms. She then hastily stood up and ran to the sidewalk with Lucy huddled close to her.
Henry didn’t wait to see them get into the house. He peeked his head out at the road knowing that he couldn’t hide behind a car forever. He put his hand on the car’s chassis, making part of it melt from the iron exterior and into his hand. He then shaped the iron into a point before looking back at the road for an opportunity. He then saw a soldier come running up in front of the car, his attention heavily diverted. Henry thought fast. He flicked his fingers, making the road beneath the man rise up, swallowing the man’s feet and trapping them in asphalt. The man tried to move only to realize he couldn’t and while he stared down in utter confusion Henry exchanged glances with David before leaping forth from his hiding spot and ran at the man. The soldier saw him coming and tried to pull his gun on him. But Henry caught his gun hand and put it over his soldier before taking his pointed piece of metal and stabbing it deep into the man’s side. He then twisted the man’s arm and grabbed the gun from his hand. He took a step back; the man wailed and grabbed the piece of metal with his hands and pulled it out of his body. He swung it at Henry desperately but he was too far out of reach. Henry hesitantly pointed the gun at man and pulled the trigger, shooting him the chest. The man bent towards the ground, dead, with his feet still rooted to the ground.
Henry took a deep breath as his gun hand shivered and his ears rang. He had held a gun many times but never had he fired one before. Pulling the trigger had made him black out for a few moments. He then saw something out of the corner of his right here. He turned his head and saw another soldier point a gun at him from point blank range. Henry froze, knowing he did not have time to defend himself. But before the man could shoot the door of car name to him came flying off its hinges and hit the man from the side. The man went barreling onto the ground and Henry saw blood come oozing out from his corpse. He leaned closer and saw that the surface of the car door had been molded into several rows of conical spikes. Henry flinched in shock and disgust at the sight of the man’s body, which the spikes had partially shredded. He then turned around to see David standing behind him with his arms outstretched, breathing heavily. Henry sighed in relief. He then glanced at the now three-doored car before glancing back at David.
“I’ll pay for the repairs,” said David whilst cracking a small smile. “I think its best if we replace the car entirely!” Henry exclaimed, exhausted.
As Henry turned back to the fray, he saw Jeanette and the remaining Gratousy shoot down the remaining soldiers. As the last man laid bleeding on the road, Jeanette came up to him and shot him in the head. Just then, from the corner of his eye, Henry saw Eustice come running up to him. He seemed to be in poorer form that he was. His coat was dirty, his arms were bruised and he too had a gun in his hand.
“Henry!” he exclaimed in a panicked voice. He then placed both his hands on Henry’s shoulders. “I…I need…” he stuttered, as he seemed to be in a state of shock from all the violence.
“No need to apologize now!” said Henry not wanting Eustice to overexert himself. “Its fine, we’re alright,”
“No…Not that!” Eustice stuttered. But before he could say anything else Amos Angelmore let out a shouted from behind him. “WATCH OUT!” he screamed pointing to the line of cars blocking the road. Henry looked over and saw that the men who had previously retreated had now hid behind their vehicles, forming a line of rifles directed at Henry and the others. Jeanette and the other Gratousy saw this too. Henry only had moment to see Jeanette’s eyes widen in horror before she yelled, “EVERYONE GET DOWN!”
Henry almost instantly crouched down onto the ground behind a nearby protection vehicle. Eustice hid alongside him. The moment Henry did so he heard the sound of several guns firing in unison. What followed next was the sound bullets piercing through metal and the sound of glass shattering. Henry closed his eyes and covered his ears, waiting for the noise to stop. He could feel sharp burst of pain along his arms as glass shards bounced off his skin. When it did, he uncovered his ears. The first think he heard the sound of painful moaning coming from his left. He turned and saw Eustice sitting next to him, bruised and scared but otherwise unhurt. He then looked beyond him and saw David leaning up against the car next to Henry. He saw him shuffle around in agony with his hand covering his left eye. Henry saw blood stains on his coat. It took a few moments before Henry fully realized what and happened. As he looked at the ground him, he could see hundreds of glass pieces scattered across the ground. It was at that moment he felt his heart beat so fast that it he thought it come ripping out of his chest.
“TAKE POSITION!” he heard Jeanette shout as the moment their enemy’s fire stopped. Henry saw the Gratousy take a defensive position behind whatever car was closest to them. “Fire at will!” said Jeanette as she pointed her own gun at the enemy. Less than a second later the Gratousy opened fire upon the enemy vehicles. Henry once again had to cover his ears. But as he looked at the scene in front of him it filled him with nothing fear. He could see Marilyn and Meredith all couched down behind the Gratousy, looking on with terror. Carlyle and Harold were bot holding out there weapons and firing alongside the Gratousy while Amos was leaning down against a car, covering his ears as though the sound of gunfire was causing him great agony.
He looked to David, who was still in great pain. Henry tried to reach for him by extending his hand across the gap between their cars. But before he could reach his brother Eustice swiftly pulled him back moments before a bullet came flying through the gap, embedding itself into the road next to them.
“Don’t! It’s too dangerous!” shouted Eustice. Henry sighed. At that point, the pain, fear and panic had completely numbed him. “Tell me, was this event ever avoidable?” he asked in a high pitch. Eustice stared at him for a moment, and then frowned before looking away. “No, no it was not,” he said somberly. “We were tricked. We were so preoccupied with searching for an outside threat from the Order that inside betrayal seemed like nothing but a non-variable. I just cannot understand how I could not see it,”
He covered his face with his hands, ashamed. Part of Henry wanted to blame him, but the other could not help but feel sympathetic towards him. Another part also wondered how their enemies had known and whether the angel masks were a purposeful part of this elaborate ambush. However, he didn’t have time to ponder. He leaned his head against what remained of the car and took a deep breath. “Perhaps your own visions betrayed you,” he said. Eustice sighed in distraught. “I was blind, I didn’t consider every variable. I brought doom upon us all with my ignorance! Moor knows my father would be disappointed to know he taught a failure!”
Henry stared at Eustice for he understood that feeling very well. “Do not fret now, Morrow. We can still come out of this,”
Eustice glanced at Henry. He then took deep breath and calmed himself. He grabbed and his pistol from the ground whilst Henry pulled the hammer back on his. Henry reached his hand over the car hood and fired in a random direction, praying that he hit something. He then placed his other hand on the car door, made the metal melt into, and cover he holes left by enemy bullets. He even saw Meredith and Marilyn pull one of the street lamps out from the sidewalk before making float over the Gratousy and towards the enemy line. Henry did not dare peek his head to see it fall but he did hear a large thud followed by shouting. But even with that the enemy fire did not stop.
After firing a few, more times Henry took back his gun and checked the barrel, only to see that he had only two bullets remaining. His hope was slowly beginning to fade way. He tried to think some way he could escape this. Some way he could save everyone. However, nothing came to him; his mind was too cluttered and lost to think clearly. At that point he was completely helpless.
Suddenly, the chaotic noise of gun firing came to an immediate halt. Henry saw Jeanette raise her hand in the arm, a moment later the Gratousy stopped their firing and their faces all watched in awe. Henry was confused, realizing that there wasn’t any gunfire he swiftly stood up and looked at the road. And at the moment his eyes widened and his jaw dropped in utter disbelief.
For in front on him stood a lightly bruised Wren, standing sternly with his cane on the ground. His right hand was outstretched and in front of it was a barrage of bullets suspended in midair.