Reaching Salvation: Post-Acer Part 4

"You don't particularly act like one, either. You're still kinda confused on whether you want to be nice or whether you want to be just on our side," Tom pointed out.

"How?" Nathan asked with a humouring look. "Would you rather I paraded around in a white coat with short hair? Or maybe you'd rather I looked like Joey."

He turned to Tom and shrugged. "Don't try to get in my head Tom... it's more complicated than just being nice or being allies. For one. No one accepts it when I'm nice, and two you're the only person who's actually returned the action of being nice."

"Well ripping up gates, and even appearing in the middle of the village and summoning a weird troll thing, despite the intentions, isn't going to help your reputation," Tom replied pointedly.

Heidi's eyebrows knit together as she looked at Nathan. "You think I'd take any comfort in the asshole's appearance?" she asked, anger rising in her voice. "He's weak, useless, suspicious, a sniveling baby!"

"It's a bit like comparing Heidi to Kira," the blind man chipped in.

"True. What was I supposed to do? Knock on the gate holding a white flag?" Nathan responded to Tom before turning to Heidi. "You think you're the only one who doesn't like Joey, trust me you're not the only one who wished he wasn't with Erika."

As he said the last bit his eyes widened and he clenched his fist. He hadn't meant for that to slip out. But at least he hadn't revealed anything too much... especially about what was really going on in his mind.

Heidi choked a little, making a noise somewhere between laughter and death. "You..." she said slowly, "I think I'd approve Joey with Erika before you and her."

"That wasn't what I meant..." Nathan responded coldly his fists clenching even tighter. "Just forget I said anything, it wasn't what I meant."

Tom was skeptical. That seemed to be exactly what Nathan had meant. The blind boy raised an eyebrow.

"Uh huh, then what did you mean?" Heidi asked, curiosity filling her voice as a smirk settled on her face.

Melaney sat back and watched it all play out. She had no words of wisdom or any kind statements. What was in the past was in the past. If Nathan had changed at all he'd get over it and move on.

"It doesn't matter." Nathan said coldly. "I don't even know what I meant." And I don't even know what I'm feeling in terms of the two of them...

"Let's just go."

"That's what I said," Tom replied, shouldering his pack and moving onwards.

"Ooh, the magnificent Nathan, not even knowing what the hell he was saying? And I was supposed to think you had a way with words," Heidi goaded, grinning, her scar making it look quite eery. "But if you don't want to talk about it, then I guess you don't have to. Onward!"

Nathan gnashed his teeth and then suddenly he blurred and was no longer there. Streaking away at Super Speed. His head felt like it was going to implode.

He needed a fight.

Heidi blinked. "The bastard ditched us," she frowned, stating the obvious.

The earth under the trio moved to catch up with Nathan, going at a more manageable speed.

"Must be that time of month again," Tom joked wearily.

Heidi almost lost her balance when the earth started moving. "Little warning would be nice, Tombo," she laughed once she'd recovered.

"Whatever happened to those pets?" Tom asked, missing not having to do the work.

An explosion of flow rippled around them and out of the ground shot out a thirty foot high creature that could only be described as a Hydra.

All sixteen of its heads glared and a mixture of fire, water, lightning, ice and what looked like poisonous gas shot down towards them all.

Darkness rippled forward and completely destroyed any traces of gas whilst more darkness shielded the group from most of the rest of the attacks.

"Fuck!" Heidi shouted in surprise, before letting out a string of curses and checking if the hydra had any blood. Hopefully...

The Hydra had nothing with any blood in it and its skin looked almost metallic. It could almost sense Heidi using her flow and with a roar shot a lightning fast burst of water out of one of its heads at her.

Heidi was knocked to the ground, now soaking wet. She coughed up some water, choking out something about robots.

Melaney calmly went into action, her shadows creating a barrier between her and the monster. She whipped out her pistols and began firing at the beast.

Nathan appeared in front of Heidi and blocked a lightning bolt that had been going straight for her. Her cast out with his hand and encased one of the heads in a box of darkness.

A screeching sound could be heard as he focused on tearing its head apart.

The bullets only bounced off. It seemed that the creature was bulletproof. It sent scorching hot flames directly for the girl.