Chapter 68: Meeting Up

Their breath was harsh. They were high up. As the vulture swooped down and stabbed its talons upon the holes, angling the legs to catch the falling ship, it would become a sense of reprieve for the children, getting up, recovering from such a high. "We....DID IT!!" Harvard would yell in triumph, with Stolas cheering on by the boy's side.

"And to think.....we actually did it without breaking a sweat!" Stolas would state, laughing as he would have his hand out, with Harvard recognizing and casting the spell, creating two separate vials to drink out of, healing them back. While Stolas' comment shows such confidence, deep down, he was absolutely lying to himself. The pirates were clearly strong. Had they not have been just as reckless, the outcome would've been just as horrible. "Actually, speaking of....What exactly happened?" Stolas would ask, his mind being somewhat fuzzy.

"Ah-. . ." Harvard would try to recollect himself, recalling what has occurred, to no avail. "Good question. Think we went too hard on them?"

"Probably....Then again, NO WAY am I ever gonna miss out doing something like this again! Seriously, we did pretty good there!" 

Harvard couldn't help but laugh to himself at that, rubbing his head and being embarrassed. "Aww C'mon, Almost anyone can do that!" He'd state, before having the ship finally come down softly, thanks to Rasca carrying it with his bare stone-like talons, and having Orion fetch the coffins that housed the Saint's Jewels, carrying them and bringing them ashore. To the two's surprise, Solomon and Zazel would be entering the scene, as the two got off of the ship. "Oh! Hey guys! I was wondering when-"

THWACK!

"ARE YOU GUYS INSANE??!" Solomon stated, after issuing a karate chop at the boy's heads, stunting them a bit. "WHAT THE HECK WERE YOU TWO IDIOTS DOING!?"

"Gah! Jeez...No need to be so loud! We were just beating up the bad guys!" Harvard stated, rubbing at the wound made on his head.

"Oh! Right! Yeah! Beating up the bad guys.....BY LITERALLY NUKING THE ENTIRE DOCK!?!" Solomon was angered beyond belief.

"Eh?? The heck yah talki-" Stolas would ask, trying to shake off the attack, before noticing the damages made: The Dock being in mere shambles, due to the first explosion, as well as subsequent explosions made due to both the kids and the Pirates in their battle. ". . . .Ah. . . . That. . . ."

"Uhhhhhhhh....It'll get better?-"

THWACK!!

Another strike made at their heads, as well as a grab by their shoulders as they are pushed out of the scene of the crime, with Solomon taking deep breaths so as to not get an aneurysm. "I'm going to PERSONALLY watch over you like a dang HAWK to ensure you don't do another nuke in the process. At least when I went All out, I HAD TO RESTRAIN MYSELF!-"

"Even though you damaged most of the school?" Zazel would interrupt, to which Solomon looked back.

"Yes, Even that. AT LEAST NOBODY WAS ACTIVELY THERE WHEN IT HAPPENED!! This is a whole public place that people VERY MUCH have died at." Stolas couldn't help but be flabbergasted at such a double standard Solomon posed.

"So wait, just because YOU do it, its an exception, but when WE do it, its a crime!?" Harvard asked.

"Just shut up and keep moving. I'm not gonna bother arguing against a Terrorist."

"BRO, YOU'RE JUST AS GUILTY- Oh hey, isn't that your dad, Stolas?" Harvard would immediately run off, ignoring the conversation's topic and shifting his focus to something going on at the center of the city. Stolas would take notice and follow shortly afterwards.

"WH- WHERE ARE YOU GUYS GOING!?" Solomon yelled, trailing behind, with Zazel doing one last glance at the disaster made and sighed to himself, before following the rest of the group. All four of them would be resting amidst a building, their porch as a way to block shade from what looked to be a sunset. The battle's they've took must've been the entire day, which should say enough. They look on to see the man, Ennio, being in a stance, looking around, before noticing the children.

"Hold it there. Don't you move even a muscle. Don't you make even a peep. Something dangerous is here." Ennio would state, an omen made for the children. The most perplexed would be Harvard, as he would at first try to reach out and ask what he meant, but shortly after, his answer would come. A Whistle. A Sound. A Tune made as if they were playing a song with just their lips. The child would stay still, quiet, motionless, not even blinking his eyes. The song played on without his awareness of who's making it. Without his awareness of where it was from, only that it exists, and it is soft.

It went from a small low, to a strong medium, to a heavy high. It repeats itself from low, to medium, to high. Harvard tried to shift his gaze to his friends, noticing their reactions. Stolas was just as keen, and just as alert. He was more experienced with this sort of encounter, somehow. Zazel was just as lost, yet just as quiet. His nerves were evident, as he doesn't know this threat at all, sharing the same mental gymnastics as Harvard was dealing with. Solomon didn't gave a concise expression, almost as if he was a brick wall. Just as motionless, just as still, and just as concentrated. Everything was dead silent, save of course, for the whistling. It was almost taunting, in a way. Without any prior warning, however, a direction was made. "BEHIND YOU!" Ennio shouted. On instinct, Harvard looked back, yet saw nothing. That was when he looked back towards the cowboy.

He didn't moved his mouth when saying such words.

"HARVARD, NO!" Solomon warned, prompting Ennio to pull his gun and aim right at the child, pulling the trigger.

BANG!!

What came next was nothing short than a scream. A Screeching sound. A Cacophony of cries all close to the child's ear. Harvard looked at the beast in its glory, awed, yet horrified. A Beast of fur, with a skull for a head. A Beast that mimicked Ennio's voice, as well as what seemed to be others, to trick the child. A Beast with a muscle build equivalent to a boxer, with bone-like claws, and a ribcage made up of bone marrow. A Beast with a singular red set of dots to encompass as its eyes, and bleeding profusely from its shoulder, mere inches away from ripping Harvard apart. The beast looked on towards Ennio, its anger prevalent.

Its next feast will have to wait.