Beasts of Pennsylvania - | The Nature of the Beast |
31

When the three beasts saw Davina hoisting herself over the balcony, panic immediately rose within them. Jackson and Charlie were ready to speed over and assist her, but Dean held the both of them back. He knew this time if she was going over a rail, it was voluntarily. She landed on one of her knees, flipping her hair back, seeking out Vincent. Using her beast like speed, she silently flew towards him, kicking him violently in the gut. Her beast like strength sent him sailing through the air, sending him into a wall. He held his abdomen, letting out an agonizing groan as the pain surged through his sides, leaving him breathless. Vincent glared at her through red rimmed eyes, clouded with pain. Davina then appeared at Elliot’s side. She examined him to make sure he’d only slapped him. She noticed the back of his knuckles left a few small, slivery gashes with skin peeled back. Her eyes then cut back to Vincent. He paid no mind to the unforgiving, harsh eyes of Davina, and only paid attention to the intense red color that only started to make an appearance today.

“Get them!′ Vincent shouted, seething. Immediately, beasts arrived in the congregation room. The group didn’t seem to notice how different these beasts were compared to the genetically modified ones. Dean and Davina noticed the difference. Dean remembered the beast he head been reduced to killing the previous night. Davina recalled what Ryan had told her. It was then the two made the connection, gazing at one another from across the room. Before either could warn anybody of this discovery, their enemies made their first move. Vincent’s followers headed straight for Marnie, emitting a squeal from her. Xavier was quick to jump in front, having never let his guard down. The two wrestled together as the others battled on. Davina, without turning, caught the weapon Jackson tossed at her. A weapon Dean never felt comfortable carrying, a gun. She managed to catch it before hitting a wide eyed Elliot who became fully aware of the gun hurling in his direction. Davina then aimed her gun at Vincent, earning a scoff from him.

“Even after all that I’ve told you about them, you still don’t see the importance in my cause? You don’t see that I will stop at nothing to rid this God-forsaken world of the filth that walks among it?” Vincent asked as he took a few steps forward, nearing Davina, and the gun of hers that was begging to go off. Davina lightly nudged Elliot away. He gave her a worried glance before running off someplace else. “I almost killed their precious King. The beast you seem to look at like he’s the answer to all of your problems. That didn’t scare you enough?” Vincent continued as he inched closer, his footsteps heavy with anger. “It didn’t scare you when I held a gun to his heart? In a moment where he was so weakened, he couldn’t save you from me?” Vincent prodded further, bringing Davina’s memory of it forth. The frightening event didn’t take place long ago. It had been three hours, give or take. Somehow, it was her least fond memory of Dean thus far. Not any of the times he riled her up, not any of the times she felt he treated her unfairly, mainly because she’d come to realized how courteous he had been at times, and not any of the times he made his dedication to saving her life crystal clear. She used to feel so angry about it. How he, someone she just met, seemed to care more for her than any other man she’d met in her life. Not even the man that now stood before her, towering over her menacingly, ever tried to do that. For the third time, the word ‘love’ crossed her mind. She was glad Vincent didn’t posses the ability to read her thoughts.

“No, it didn’t.” Davina spoke, her eyes cutting upward to Vincent. “Try all you want to kill the beast King, but the fact of the matter is, the damn man’s unkillable. I, one of the best shooters in the field, came the closest anybody ever has to killing the King of Beasts. I fired the gun directly at him, but as you can see I failed. I failed because he has the most loyal subjects, ones that would throw their own bodies in front of a bullet for him. That is why you will fail. Because each and every one of them would put their lives on the line for their King. Our family, or I should say my family, would do the same because he is an honorable man.” Davina continued with a firm voice. Vincent’s lip curled upon hearing the words she spoke. He contemplated laying his hands on her, as he did his youngest son. “You are wasting your time because they will stop at nothing and I will stop at nothing. Even if I have to die and come back as a beast to put an end to you, I will.” Davina spat, making Vincent’s eyes darken. After turning the safety of her gun on, she stuffed it into her back pocket, and stood in her best fighting pose. She knew she couldn’t kill Vincent just yet. He’d yet to inject with with the enhancer. She decided hand in hand combat, what she did best at, would provide the perfect motivation for Vincent to inject her and get it over with. Vincent continued to glare at his daughter as he rolled up his sleeves, itching to beat her black and blue as he’d done with the rest of his children in their adolescent years.

The three beasts were working in collaboration to put down the beasts that were slowly rotting away. Dean and Jackson glanced up every now and then to check on Davina. Neither felt comfortable with her being so close to Vincent. Charlie was getting a little fed up with their concern for Davina. He knew that both had undeniably fallen in love with Davina, but it irritated him how overprotective the two were with her. He tried to suppress his heavy sighs of distaste but eventually, could not longer do so. He stopped and tossed a beast in another direction with a little too much force. He ignored the sound of his enemy hitting the wall, making a splat sound as blood and other parts seeped out of the beast from the incredible force of his throw. When he was finally facing both Dean and Jackson, he shot his dull eyes at him.

“You guys know she can handle herself, right? She isn’t fragile.” Charlie spoke in an irritated tone.

“We’re aware of that, Charlie.” Jackson replied as he ran his claws across the neck of a beast, beheading it with his claws alone.

“Then, why do you keep looking over at her as if she’s helpless?” Charlie asked. He went to continue, but Dean stopped what he was doing, and turned to Jackson with widened eyes. Dean was unaware that Jackson had been watching her too. He shot his co-leader a nasty glare for doing so. Jackson only rolled his eyes at his King. “Oh, quit it you too! You both have some intense feelings for each other, alright? Stop getting upset at one another for it!” Charlie scolded the both of them.

“Neither of us are upset.” Dean grumbled, earning a huff from Charlie.

“Yeah, right! The both of you don’t even try to hide the dirty looks you give each other.” Charlie spat. Dean and Jackson eyed one another before continuing. “Look, I get it. Davina is a pretty remarkable woman. Even I can see that! But your friendship and brotherhood comes first and foremost. Not your affections for her and certainly not your status, Dean.” Charlie spoke directly to Dean, making him frown. Charlie didn’t know what happened with the two of them the day he and Clementine visited his past. He couldn’t have possibly known what Dean said to Jackson. Charlie, however, knew his best friend very well. He’d expect Dean to use his status against Jackson, only in the heat of the moment, though. “You both like her? Neither of you get her. Simple as that. Not that she’d choose either of you anyway.” Charlie continued, grumbling the last part. Both the King and his co-leader glared at Charlie.

“The hell do you mean by that?” Dean asked harshly.

“I mean, let’s be real. Davina and I have much more chemistry together. It just makes sense.” Charlie spoke, thoughtlessly, before ripping the head off of a beast. Both Dean and Jackson wanted nothing more than to give Charlie the beating of his life for what he said, but they were stopped by the door of the congregation room flying open. They all turned to find Sasha and Brayden entering together. Sasha had her hands held out as she began chanting some incantation unknown to the others.

“Everybody, back away!” Brayden shouted, making the members of the group all take a step back from Vincent’s followers. At the same time, Anderson and Gabby entered through the back door of the congregation room. All were distracted by Sasha’s actions to notice Vincent was preparing an attack on Davina. He made his way behind a tall, wooden cross propped up on the stage. He gave it a few hard pushes before letting it tumble forward. Davina heard the sound from behind, making her turn. She didn’t have enough time to move out of the way before the heavy cross hit her in the back of the head. It knocked her forward, sending her and the cross into the communion table. The sound of a heavy thud and wood breaking caught the attention of everybody in the room. Neither of the three beasts seemed to realize Davina was buried underneath the cross, but both were concerned when they glanced around the room and didn’t find her.

“Too far, Sasha! You’re losing it!” Brayden exclaimed as he tried to grab one of Sasha’s hands. After she’d processed her violent acts, she realized when she brought the beasts to the brink of death, she was capable of rotting away the enhanced part, and leaving what was buried underneath all along; humane beasts. She realized she could save all of them. Even if it weakened her a little or potentially killed them entirely, she knew it was a risk she had to take. They had lost too many beasts as a result of Vincent. She knew she had to and that she was the only one equipped to do it. The beasts had already returned to their human state, but Sasha had gotten stuck in a trance once more. Blood trickled down her nose as she shook uncontrollably. Gabby took a step forward to do something, anything that would help the fellow witch.

“She’s killing herself!” Gabby shouted. Before she could attempt at making it off the stage, Anderson stopped her. He knew there was nothing she could do. As did she. She couldn’t help out with the spell even if she wanted to, and interference of any kind would only hurt her. The sound of a gun going off then gained the attention of all, Sasha included. Marnie watched as her brother, Xavier, stumbled back. He had a gaping hole in the middle of his chest. Steam rose from the small bullet sized hole and soon, his skin turned pale before he fell to the floor. Marnie’s eyes widened in shock as the room went deathly silent. Marnie slowly turned in the direction where she heard the bullet go off. She found Vincent with a gun in hand. She paid no mind to Davina, who was unconscious beneath his arm. Marnie let out a shaky breath when she realized what kind of gun he held. She and everybody else knew it was the same gun Davina had pulled on multiple beasts. It was the only gun any member of the organization could use to kill a beast because of the poisonous plants crushed into the gunpowder. Marnie let out a loud sob as she went to attack Vincent but Catrice stopped her. She pulled Marnie into her arms as her loud sobs echoed throughout the church.

“It seems to me your little witch has found a loophole and can turn my scientifically modified beasts back to their original state. Fortunately for me, I have a fail safe.” Vincent said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a long, sharp needle. He jammed the needle into her neck before anybody could process Vincent’s actions.

“No!” Dean shouted. Davina arose from her previous state. She began coughing violently, gasping for air, and clawing at her throat from the acidic, scorching pain she felt. She could feel the enhancer as it went down her throat and soon making it’s way throughout her body. She let out a distressing scream as she dropped to the floor, begging verbally and with utmost desperation for the pain to stop. Dean could feel what went on inside her. That, with the added pain in his chest of hearing her painful cries, made him freeze completely. Jackson and Charlie sped over to Davina, joining her at her side. Jackson propped her head across his thigh while Charlie knelt down beside her, taking her hand in his own. The screaming then came to a sudden halt as Davina stared up at Jackson, breathing at a slow pace.

“Vina? Vina, what is it?” Jackson asked. She blinked a few times, letting him know that she heard him, but didn’t speak. Dean managed to push past the pains he felt and made his way over to Davina. When Dean approached the stage, Davina’s vison started to blur. While his biggest concerns were occupied, Vincent snuck out the back door.

“I can’t see. Why can’t I see?” Davina asked barely above a whisper. Tears flooded her eyes and soon poured out. She blinked her eyes a few more times, seeing the world around her slowly start to fade into a bright red shade, before turning dark completely. “I’m not dying, am I?” Davina asked once more when she realized she wasn’t receiving an answered. She called out to someone, but no one responded. She began to panic and sat up from her spot. She could see new figures appearing in front of her, but couldn’t hear them arriving. She tried to stand but fell back down, landing on something behind her. She, however, couldn’t feel it. She couldn’t see anything, couldn’t hear anything, and couldn’t feel Jackson beneath her.

“Davina?” Dean called out. Davina, unbeknownst to her, called out to him. He answered immediately and even knelt down beside her. When she didn’t answer, he felt panicked. They all watched as her eyes trailed around the room, seeming confused. He tried calling out to her multiple times to gain her attention, but she didn’t hear a single one of his calls. He didn’t understand what was going on with her. Fortunately, someone appeared to provide an answer.

“This is how it starts.” Ryan spoke up as he and Colton entered the room. He was struggling to walk a bit as a result of Elliot’s use of his supernatural ability, but Colton was helping him with each step.

“Colton.” Aaron breathed out as he made his way over to his brother, revealing to the others who one of the mysterious men were. Aaron patted Colton a few times on the shoulder before helping Ryan over to the stage.

“How what starts?” Victor asked. sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ FɪndNøvel.ɴᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“The process of becoming an enhanced beast. One potentially more powerful than the King himself.” Ryan replied, reminding Victor of the night Vincent told them his plans of what he intended to do to Davina. Ryan glanced over to his King, giving him a nod. It was then Dean realized who the blonde man was. He recalled interacting with him a few times, even providing some words of wisdom in regards of his current relationship. He never imagined Ryan was with a member of the organization.

“How long will it last?” Elliot asked with a worried tone, his eyes glued upon his elder sister.

“Doesn’t take very long for any of you. For her, she may be a little confused about where she’s at and how she got here.” Ryan explained.

“Perfect. She’ll be up and ready to go after Vincent before he can escape the graveyard.” Gabby spoke.

“Go after him? Wait, who the hell are you?” Charlie asked as he stood from his spot.

“To do what? Kill him?” Aaron asked, earning a nod from the witch.

“It’s apart of the plan.” Gabby answered. Both Charlie and Aaron narrowed their eyes at her. Aaron, however, took a step forward, staring down at the woman.

“What plan?” Aaron inquired.

“That’s none of your concern.” Gabby spat with a look of intimidation in her eyes. He scoffed, continuing to glare at her. He went to speak, but Victor piped up.

“I take it Mabel’s found her?” Victor asked, making all ears perk at the mention of an unknown name that only the two seemed to know.

“Indeed. You should be so fortunate that Vincent was able to take her. I’d have never been able to introduce the two if he hadn’t.” The witch said.

“How’s that any good?” Aaron asked in a frustrated tone, feeling irritated that he didn’t know the woman before him but Victor seemed to very well.

“Because, now she knows there’s something bigger to fight for.” Gabby replied. Aaron’s eyes only tore away from hers when he heard Davina sucking in her breath. Davina grabbed the first thing she saw as she gasped for air. Her throat was dry, her bones ached, and she felt sluggish. She was desperate for some water to help the soreness she felt anytime she swallowed.

“Hey, hey. Calm down.” Dean spoke as Davina gripped ahold of his shoulder’s. He was certain is she gripped any tighter, he nails would cut through the leather. He noticed her fast breathing pace pick up, deepening his concern. “Davina, it’s alright. The worst of it’s over.” Dean continued, but Davina wouldn’t let up. He then thought back to what Jackson said to her back at the club. How it seemed to be the one thing that calmed her. He figured he had to try it for her sake. “You’re okay, now.” Dean said in a soft tone as he pet her hair. Her eyes cut up to his. Her once blurry vision now appeared normal. She no longer saw the world through her beast like eyes, making her feel instant relief. Her breathing slowed once again and she was starting to feel the material of Dean’s leather jacket beneath her fingers. “You’re okay.” Dean repeated. She blinked at him a few times as her his soft, comforting voice filled her once deaf ears. Before Dean could repeat the words a final time, she threw her arms around Dean’s neck. Jackson felt the loss of Davina leaving her place in between his thighs. His heart ached ever so slightly that she’d go to him for comfort though he was the one holding her. Even if she didn’t feel it, he did. He saw the look in Davina’s eyes once she pulled away to look into Dean’s blue ones. He saw the love the two both held for one another. Even if neither had come to terms with it, it was visible for everybody to see. He felt a pang in his chest as he realized he couldn’t get in between something like that. In fact, he wouldn’t. He wouldn’t do that to his King, his best friend, and his brother.

“I’m okay.” Davina whispered, earning a nod from Dean.

“Yes, that’s right.” Dean said in an almost desperate sounding tone. Gabby then knelt down beside Davina, decided she’d calmed down enough to carry on with the plan.

“You know what you need to do now, right?” Gabby asked. Davina slowly turned to her, giving a small nod. She glanced over at Dean, wondering what he’d think of this. She wasn’t sure why she cared of his opinion. She’s killed plenty of people throughout the short life she’s lived thus far. Yet, she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d approve of this. Would he do the same, Davina wondered before bringing herself up from the ground. He gave her a look that told her he understood her thinking. That one look gave her all the conformation she needed to kill Vincent. She looked around, finally noticing that it wasn’t just her, Dean, and Gabby with her. The others were all surrounding them, awaiting for her to finish the process. She felt a small pang in her chest when she didn’t find Jackson. Why’d it do that, Davina wondered. She twisted around, feeling immediate relief upon finding Jackson behind her. She shifted to sit in front of him, finding his eyes fixated on something behind her. Her mind brought her back to another time she found him like this. How all she had to do was reach out and touch his cheek to gain his undivided attention. She did so, finding his hazel eyes on her own instantly. She gave him a soft smile, letting him know she was okay. Davina let out a heavy sigh before heading to the steps of the stage. She was stopped by a voice calling out to her.

“Davina. What are you-” Victor asked, but she was quick to cut him off.

“He did it all for you, you know? You were a baby and he just wanted you to be safe.” Davina spoke as she turned back to the group, but faced Victor. “I want her to be safe.” Davina emphasized though only herself, Victor, and Gabby knew who she was. She didn’t think it was likely she was parting ways with the three beasts, so she figured she’d tell them about her one day. A day where Vincent was no longer around. She turned on her heel, heading straight for the door. She stopped when she found Xavier’s lifeless body on the ground with a bullet wound in the middle of his chest. She glanced back only for a moment to give Marnie an apologetic expression, before she sped out of the church and into the courtyard. Once she made it outside, she closed her eyes, and listened closely to the sounds of the world around her. Her ears picked up on heavy footsteps running at a fast pace as well as the sound of heavy breathing. Davina knew it was Vincent. She sped throughout the graveyard, finding him quickly. She sent him to the ground with a hard kick that knocked him back a few feet, making him slide across the dirt. He groaned out, lifting his head up only slightly to get a better sight of Davina.

“You do know how foolish you are, right?” Davina asked as she neared Vincent, walking at an agonizingly slow pace. He crawled back, using only his elbows to drag him, but Davina was quick to put a stop to it. She pressed her foot into the middle of his chest, making him wheeze out. She then hummed, waiting for his response.

“You’re dying. I can’t have you under my control until you’re dead. I planned to wait it out.” Vincent tried to explain, but Davina cut him off. She didn’t have to listen to his heartbeat to know he was lying. She’d never known him to be a liar. She hardly knew him at all, but everything he told her seemed to be the truth. She only knew now because of the fearful expression written all over his face.

“No, no. You know now that I can be changed back. Why did you run?” Davina asked, not receiving an answer. He continued to wheeze, which resulted in Davina pressing harder into his chest. She pulled back only for a minute to grab ahold of the collar of his shirt, pull him up from the ground with ease. She then pinned him against a nearby tree. He grunted upon impact, letting out a few pants. He was easily a foot taller than her, yet he was so intimidated by the smaller woman before him. He mentally cursed at himself for perfecting his enhancer towards the bitter end. All the other’s turned out to be failure’s, but it was clear to him now. He succeeded with Davina. He found the irony in the enhancer working on his daughter and that she’d now deliver him to the devil himself. He almost laughed at the thought. “Why?” Davina demanded, pushing him harder into the tree. Vincent gritted his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut from the pain.

“Because, I know of your new found motivation!” Vincent answered. Davina tried not to act surprised at receiving the news. It made sense to her. She was out for quite some time. He could’ve figured out what Gabby had shown her. Still, she made no change of expression. The stone cold glare remined on her face. “I knew once I turned you, you’d have all you needed to take me down. That way, I never got to your precious niece.” Vincent spat, his voice laced with venom. Davina was silent for a moment, glaring at him with intense red eyes. She didn’t say a word as she dragged her claws across Vincent’s chest, ripping through the material of his shirt. He cried out, his voice echoing throughout the woods. “That was for taking Colton.” She started, then clawed at Vincent’s shoulder, emitting another cry from the elder man. “That was for killing Xavier.” Davina continued. She sliced along his calf, making him fall to his knees.

“Davina, wait-” Vincent begged from his knees, making yet another attempt to crawl away. Just like the first time, he failed.

“That was for holding a gun to Dean’s chest.” Davina spat viciously as she continued her clawing tactics, making Vincent cry out more. “This is for the emotional and physical pain your put my siblings through! This is for killing my mother! This is for killing Bianca!” Davina continued, taking a pause to breath. Her claws were currently along where she last slashed; his throat. She hadn’t realized there were tears streaming down her cheeks. That she’d unleashed on Vincent. Blood seeped from his cuts, he bled through his maroon colored button down, and he bled through his black slacks. He was on the verge of passing out. Unfortunately for him, he wouldn’t quite make it there. He was on his way to the flaming gates of hell. “And this is for everything that you’ve done to me!” Davina cried out as she reached into his chest. In one swift motion, she pulled out his cold, loveless heart. She stared into her father’s frozen eyes as a single tear dripped down his aged face. He tumbled back, landing in the dirt with his lifeless eyes on the sky. Davina let out a breath she hadn’t known she was holding in. She stared down at her father with wide eyes, processing what she’d just done. Again, she’d killed plenty of times before. Only now, it felt different. It was never personal and was always for the means of survival. The slaughter of her enemy was for the same reason. She knew this was different because of who he was. She couldn’t deny it as much as she wanted to. The man that laid motionless before her was her father. And she’d just torn his heart out. She clasped her hand over her mouth, trying to cover up a sob that was resting in the back of her throat. Eventually, she found she couldn’t hold it in any longer. She slowly dropped to her knees, finally letting her agonizing sobs free. She tucked her arms underneath her knee’s, then hid her face into her lap as she sobbed loudly. She didn’t care if anybody inside the church could hear her. She needed the release. Not long after she broke down, she felt arms embracing her tightly as if whoever was at her side, made it their mission to hold her for as long as she needed it.

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