The plane shuddered again, and as Luke and Lucy turned to leave, Morrison approached them. "We have a problem. The plane is slowing down... on its own. The pilot can't do anything about it."
With a skipping heart, Lucy looked out the window. The storm that caused the turbulence was in full rage and the plane appeared to have stalled in midair. The power of the sphere pulsed like her own heartbeat, faster and faster as Mother Nature whipped them around. The increased frenzy of the sphere was Lucy's only warning that powers beyond nature had hold of the plane. She gasped as the tail of the plane tilted up as if on a string that someone jerked.
"Hold on!" Her warning was too late, as everyone on board slid toward the front of the plane. She held tight to a chair, but gravity forced her to let go and she crashed into Luke.
Morrison looked almost comical as he tried to right himself and regain control of his team. "Everyone, just stay calm as we figure out what's going on."
Before the agent could follow through on his plan, the back hatch of the plane, where they would have parachuted from, screeched open as metal twisted and snapped apart. The cabin pressure quickly changed and pulled at them.
A panicked pilot hollered from the cockpit. "I've lost all control of the plane and there's a helicopter hovering above us."
Everything clicked for Lucy as she looked into Bethel's eyes. "Paranormals. They're attacking the plane."
Bethel's head dipped slightly to acknowledge her words. "Now is the time for stillness."
As if on command, men in black poured into the cabin, some carrying guns, and others... she guessed they didn't need guns. That worried her even more.
Agent Morrison pulled his own gun and aimed it at Beleth's head. "This is what you're here for, right? Him? Don't move or I'll blast his brains out, I swear."
One man stepped forward from the group, a baseball cap on his head, and raised his hands.
Lucy felt the sphere pulse as energy flowed off of him. His pale eyes took in the group, and she knew he was the true threat. "Be careful. He's the telepath that brought down the plane. He's very powerful."
The man's eyebrow twitched. "Perceptive."
Morrison didn't waiver, and Lucy found herself finally impressed by the man. "Don't even think about it. As soon as I feel this gun budge, I'll pull the trigger."
Lucy pushed through the wind assault to face the man directly. "What's your name?"
He looked almost amused as he answered. "Robert. And you?"
"I'm Lucy," she said, then gestured to her brother. "This is Luke. We're paranormals too. There's no need to attack us. We're not your enemies. But I can assure you, Agent Morrison will pull the trigger if you use your power. Are you willing to risk Beleth's life?"
Robert hesitated, then waved his hand. The room tensed in anticipation, and beads of sweat dripped down Morrison's face, but his hand held steady. Lucy prepped for the onslaught of power, but instead, the other soldiers lowered their weapons.
The room let out a collective sigh. At least, those on the receiving end of the weapons and power.
Lucy looked over to Beleth, relieved that his life had been worth something to these men. A glint of black, something shiny like oil, caught her eye. The transformation happened so fast. One second, his tattooed hand rested by his side, the next, it extended into some kind of blade.
"No!" Lucy tried to dive toward Beleth, to stop him, but the cabin pressure did not allow for a fast response. At least not for her.
Beleth had no problem navigating the space. No problem using his sword-hand thing to slice through the air, and into flesh and blood and bone. No problem slicing Agent Morrison's gun hand clean off.
Time moved in slow motion as Morrison stood, stunned, not seeming to realize his hand had been amputated. He looked down, his face paling, and clutched his wrist. Bright red blood poured from the space where his hand used to live, and he slumped to the floor.
Lucy couldn't make sense of what she was seeing. Breaking out of Rent-A-Kid had resulted in plenty of bloodshed, but this... this looked almost fake. So much blood, so bright and sticky, like the stuff they use for movies.
Beleth, unfazed, walked to Robert, his black sword changing back into a hand. "What's our location?"
Robert handed him a gun. "We're near the base, Sir."
Lucy couldn't believe they could have a conversation like a man wasn't bleeding to death in the corner. She pushed through the cabin, ignoring the threatening glares of the soldiers, and reached for Morrison. She pulled off her belt and tied it around his wrist. He didn't speak, but stared at her with eyes that were losing their spark.
A soldier raised his gun and aimed it at Lucy.
Luke screamed. "No!"
Beleth put his hand up. "Not those two," he said, pointing to Luke and Lucy. "Kill the rest."
The sound of bullets filled the small space. Lucy screamed. Luke stood very still, channeling his power. The sphere pulsed stronger.
And the bullets stopped in mid-air.
The soldiers ceased fire and Beleth turned his attention to Luke. "Interesting."