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After the visit from Thomas and the toad the day was calm. We all went back about our business and tried to forget about the potential danger. I don’t think anyone would bother to try anything to get at the rest of the village, but they would for me. Maybe I should leave?

I brought up that idea with Paul that night, but he vetoed it immediately. “No way! You’re not going off on your own just to protect us. I’d follow you, and the rest of them would be in trouble without you to keep them going in the same direction. We’ll deal with anyone who comes after you together.” he declared vehemently.

He was so adamant about it I dropped it. If things got really bad I’d fly away.

In the morning I went hunting. I was just flying back towards the village when I saw a boat approaching from the ship. Thomas was the only one on the boat, so I decided to fly down and meet him. He was almost to the shore when I landed, so I waded out and pulled his boat up high enough so it wouldn’t wash back out to sea. “What brings you out here alone?” I asked as I lifted him out of the boat.

He seemed bemused by how easily I lifted him out of the boat. “A few reasons. I think you’d better gather everyone together, I have news that effects everyone.” he answered.

He had several packages with him. I handed him the smallest ones and I carried the rest. I led him back to the village and told Paul on the way to gather everyone in the square. Thomas was moving pretty slowly, I guess those little packages were heavy, so everyone was already gathered by the time we got to the square.

“What’s all this?” Elaine asked pointing out all the packages we were carrying.

Once he’d relieved himself of his burden Thomas explained, “I brought some supplies for you. Medical supplies, blankets, etc. Things you’d have a hard time making yourselves. I thought you could use them, and I needed an excuse to come out here.”

Elaine looked at the packages with more interest. I’m sure she was already planning to make a dress or something with some of the blankets. She was always bemoaning the lack of female clothing. I didn’t care much, my old pants and shirts were fine, once I made holes for my wings and tail. “So what’s the real reason you’re here?” I asked.

“I think they’re going to try something. Nobody was particularly surprised to learn you’d all been mutated, and that wouldn’t have been a cause for trouble. But when they learned how extensive your mutation is, they became very interested. I was sent out here with a mixed group of people from various military and government agencies. One or more of them is going to try to get their hands on you.” he replied.

Jacob groaned. “So now we’ve got the fucking military coming after us because of you!” he grumbled.

In a flash he was on the ground with his right arm twisted painfully behind him. “Don’t even think of trying anything Jacob!” Paul said into his ear as he twisted his arm.

“Ow! Shit, I wasn’t going to do anything man! Let go of my arm!” Jacob whimpered. Paul let him go and stepped back to my side. I was a little surprised at his reaction, but I guess Paul wanted to nip any such ideas in the bud before they got a chance to grow.

Thomas looked on, bemused. “What can we expect?” Elaine asked.

Thomas spread his hands and shrugged helplessly. “No way to know. I don’t even know who you’ll be dealing with. There aren’t any aircraft onboard, so they’ll have to come by boat or swim.” he said.

“Any idea how much time we have?” Paul asked.

Thomas shrugged. “I don’t know how much time they’ll need to get ready. They might already be on their way.” he answered.

“Maybe you’d better head back before you get caught up in it too.” I suggested.

Thomas nodded and I led him back to his boat. I had him climb in and I carried the boat out and sent him on his way. I took a look around from the beach, but I couldn’t see anything. I returned to the square.

“So how are we going to handle this?” Paul asked me when I got back. Everyone else was looking at me, waiting. Did they really rely on me that much?

I thought a moment before answering. “Well, first thing is we need lookouts. Jill, find a tall tree in sight of the ship and climb up it. You can see in the dark, so if nothing happens until dark you’ll still be able to spot them. Tina, you’ll act as runner for Jill. When she sees something you’ll run to tell us.” I instructed. Jill’s only mutation was her cat’s eyes, so I’d try to keep her out of the fighting.

“What do I do after I send Tina off?” Jill asked worriedly. Being normal, other than her eyes, she often felt vulnerable.

“You’ll stay put. You’ll have one of the AK-47s and some ammo. If more come you can pin them down and the noise will alert us. If they manage to grab one of us, they’ll have to get by you, first.” was my answer. I hoped she wouldn’t have to get involved, but she would make a good backup. She was one of the only ones in our group who actually used an AK-47 fighting the pirates.

Knowing she would be armed seemed to calm Jill down. “What about me, am I only to be a messenger?” Tina asked.

I snorted. “Of course not. You may not be as strong as Mike or Elaine, but you’re stronger than most and fast as well.” I answered. Tina seemed mollified at that. “Greg will be our other lookout. He can spot boats, swimmers, and divers that aren’t visible from the surface. Paul will be his runner.”

Paul gave me a strange look at that. He probably wanted to stay with me, but his speed made him a natural choice for the role. “And where will you be?” He asked.

“Well,” I began, “I’m assuming you guys aren’t going to go along with me waiting for them on the beach.” That was my preferred plan because it would keep everyone else out of danger.

“Definitely not!” Paul declared loudly. Most of the others agreed, with the expected exception of Jacob.

I shrugged, I’d expected that reaction. “Okay, then my second choice is for me to wait for them in the square.” I continued.

“Bait?” Elaine asked. I nodded. “Where will the rest of us be, then?”

“Waiting on the far side of the village to come to the rescue.” I answered. I hoped I wouldn’t need their help, but I knew Paul, at least, would insist on giving it.

“How will we know when to come in?” Mike asked.

“More lookouts. The square will be lit up by the fire, so movement will be easily seen. Connie and Sarah will be hidden in the trees. When they see movement they’ll alert the rest of you. By then Paul and Tina should have joined you. Connie and Sarah will have rifles and can support the rest of you, all of whom have physical enhancements that will give you an edge over whoever they’re likely to send.” I explained.

“So you’re just going to take a nap and wait to get hit?” Jacob asked.

“Of course not. Tina and Paul will go to you through the square, so I’ll know someone’s coming. I’ll go hunting once we’re done planning and once I know they’re coming I’ll get comfortable and start eating. I’ll give them the opportunity to assume I’m more animal than human.” I said, knowing my eating habits would encourage that opinion. Probably unnerve some of them, too.

We discussed my plan for a while, making few changes. Then we broke up to take our positions while I went hunting. I got lucky and found a boar right off. Just what I was looking for! I brought it back to the square and ate some of it. That way even if they found me soon after I was alerted to their presence, they’d find a well-mauled carcass in front of me. It would reinforce the image I was trying to portray.

After that I curled up next to my kill and relaxed. As I expected, nothing happened until after it got dark. Then Tina came sprinting through the square, making sure to hit the ground hard right by my head. I was instantly alert…well, more alert, and started tearing at the carcass next to me. More to make a mess and look dangerous than anything. A few moments later Paul came tearing through, briefly making eye contact before reluctantly joining the others.

Shortly after he passed through I heard the first group, and there were two, coming out of the brush. They made an astonishing amount of noise, or so it seemed to me. I made sure not to look directly at them or otherwise let them know they were spotted.

There were only four of them, though one of them was holding back and making a little less noise than the other three. I made a mental note to watch out for him, he was probably a sniper or something.

Since the others would come when Connie and Sarah saw movement in the square, other than the small movements I was already making, I waited until the second group was in the village before moving. The first group was almost in the square by that time, so I would have had to move anyway. The second group was also composed of four people, and one of them was also holding back and moving quieter.

The fourth member of the first group wasn’t that far back from the rest, so I decided to deal with him first. I bounded over to where he was and struck the rifle out of his hands before clawing his throat out. He went down fast, so I turned on the other three. The nearest one raised his weapon towards me, but didn’t get a shot off before he joined his friend. The other two had a little more time and started shooting.

I dodged behind a house and went after the second group. They started running for the square when the shooting started, so I climbed onto the roof of one of the houses and jumped their sniper. He went down as fast as the other two, but his comrades reacted a little faster and got some shots off before I put the second one down. I was hit a couple times so I jumped back up on the roof and away.

By now Connie and Sarah were shooting (AK-47s sound a lot different than M-4s, what the attackers were using). I also heard the rest of our group running into the square. The two from the first group went down quickly, while the two from the second group were pinned down. They couldn’t get away, but their own fire was keeping everyone away. So I took to the roof again and took them from behind.

Just like that the incursion was over. All six of the men I took down were dead. One of the other two was alive with two bullet wounds. I sent Paul and Tina to check in with Jill and Greg while Leonard and Vincent treated the survivor’s wounds and Mike and Jacob collected weapons, ammunition, and anything else of use.

A few minutes later Paul returned, saying that there was another boat coming with six armed men on board. I was just about to tell everyone to get back in position when we all heard shots fired. Jill was in trouble! I sent Paul back to Greg after telling him that I would deal with the boat. I sent Mike and Jacob to help Tina and Jill while everyone else retreated to wait and guard Connie and Sarah.

Dealing with the boat was the easiest thing in the world. I flew up as high as time allowed and dived. Just like on the Cat Pad I flipped and landed feet first. The men on board had no warning before they were tossed in the water. Grabbing onto the boat did no good, as it sank immediately with the hole I tore in it with my landing. I did get a little tangled in the boat, but I just shredded it with my claws and talons until I was free.

Greg was waiting and helped me dispatch the men in the water. They were so loaded down with clothes, armor, and weapons that it was ridiculously easy. Greg carried everything of value to shore while I flew towards the shooting.

Jill was hiding behind the trunk of the tree she had been in; pinned down by the fire of another six man team. Tina was propped up beside her, unconscious. Mike and Jacob hadn’t arrived yet. As I approached I remembered that I’d been hit twice in the village, and yet it wasn’t slowing me down at all. If I can handle that, maybe I can handle a little more?

I came in fast and silently, strafing through the six man group with claws and talons extended. I tagged three of them, one in the throat. Jill took advantage of the distraction to take a few shots at them. Two more went down. I circled around for another pass. They were now distracted by their injuries and being attacked from two directions at once. The only uninjured one threw his weapon down and surrendered. Two of the injured men surrendered as well. The other three were unconscious or dead.

Just like that, the second round was over. I took Tina back to Leonard and Vincent, who had finished treating the wounds of the captured soldier. I flew back in time to direct Mike to lead the injured soldiers, now bereft of weapons or armor, back to the village. Meanwhile Jacob and I collected everything of value and carried it back.

Once back at the village I sent Mike to take Tina’s place. I wasn’t sure there wouldn’t be another group, though I doubted it after a total of twenty men were sent and didn’t come back. Strangely enough, none of the men had radios.

Paul arrived briefly to drop off everything Greg stripped off the men from the boat, and the boat itself, then returned. Of the six man team Jill and I took down, two were killed instantly and one more died of his wounds. So we now had three injured prisoners and one uninjured one.

I was hoping Thomas would return in the morning, so we could arrange the return of the prisoners. In the meantime, we had collected eighteen M-4s and two sniper rifles, plus ammunition. We also had pistols, grenades, knives, and Kevlar vests. We had more weapons and armor than we could use!

Thankfully, Tina only got shot in the shoulder and the bleeding had already stopped. So far everyone seemed to have gained accelerated healing, though only a few had been injured so we couldn’t be sure. The only ones we knew for sure were Tina, now, Jacob after I sliced him up a bit, and Greg after he cut himself on some rocks underwater. And me, of course, but my healing was much more rapid.

Once we’d sorted everything out, I sent Jacob with three vests to hand out to Jill, Mike, and Paul. Everyone else also got one except Greg, Leonard, and me. Greg would be weighted down too much underwater, and Leonard and I couldn’t wear them with our wings without major modification.

I returned to the square, but this time I was playing guard to the prisoners while the others watched from outside the village. We spent a tense night and were all relieved when no more attacks came.

Once the sun came up we all returned to the square. We were all tired, but Tina was the only injury on our side. We gathered all the corpses on the shore with the remains of the boat and the boats they’d managed to get ashore before we’d noticed them. We’d keep at least one of the intact boats, I figured, maybe two. The third we could use to send the corpses back.

As I hoped, Thomas returned in the morning. I helped him bring his boat to shore. “What happened here?!” he exclaimed when he saw all the bodies and the shredded boat.

“Like you said, they tried to take me. We’ve got four of them tied up, plus these sixteen that died in the attack.” I explained.

“You captured or killed twenty presumably armed men without any injuries and without weapons?!” he asked incredulously.

“Not exactly. We had some AK-47s retrieved from the pirates that we used. Also, several of us have natural weapons that work just fine. And two of us were shot.” I answered.

“Are they alright?” he asked anxiously.

Paul looked at me strangely when I said ‘two’. “Tina was hit in the shoulder, but she should be healed up in a day or two. I was hit at least twice. I felt them, but that’s about it. I have no idea what kind of damage I might have taken. By the time things settled down enough to check, I was all healed up.” I explained.

“Why didn’t you tell me you’d been shot?!” Paul demanded.

I shrugged. “I was hit by the second group in the village. We were still fighting, so I ignored them and kept going. After that we were busy dealing with the soldiers, and then the second wave came and we had to deal with them. Frankly, I forgot all about it until now.” I said.

Thomas was gaping at me. “You were shot at least two times in one fight, then proceeded to finish that fight, clean up after it, and then get involved in an entirely different fight?” he asked.

I explained how everything happened, but he seemed even more impressed afterwards. I was a little shocked myself, but I’d just been too busy to worry about it at the time. Adrenaline, I guess.

“So,” I began after we finished explaining the night’s events, “can you help us get these guys back to the ship?”

He agreed and dropped off more supplies. We ended up sending the living back with him, and tethering one of the boats to his and piling the corpses up in it. We kept the other two. The remains of the fourth boat we could use for scrap, or something.

I flew up to watch out for any more attacks while everyone else got some sleep. Then they could guard me while I slept. We’d have to keep alert so long as that ship was there.

Nothing happened that day, or the next. We all relaxed a little, but we were well aware that further attacks were likely. If not from that ship, then from some other source down the line. On the plus side, we had more weapons to defend ourselves with.

Thomas returned on the third day, still alone. We all met him in the village. “So what’s going on now?” Mike asked.

Thomas smiled ruefully. “You really stirred things up with the way you dealt with those guys. I think somebody thought they could just pick you up and go. Now they’ve got to explain sixteen dead men, three injured, three lost boats, and all the weapons and ammunition you confiscated. I imagine someone’s going to be demoted over this, at the least.” Thomas said.

“Are they going to try again?” Jill asked fearfully. She’d been pinned down with an injured Tina for a few minutes before I arrived, it really shook her up.

“Not from this ship.” Thomas answered. “There weren’t that many soldiers on board to start with, and those that remain don’t want anything to do with you.” He said this last while pointing at me.

“Me? Why just me? I only took out…” I counted in my head and had to count again because the number seemed too high. “Um, well, I only took out twelve or so.” I said sheepishly, as I realized I’d accounted for more than half of them on my own. I noticed that Jacob wasn’t too happy, either. He still resented being weaker than me, I guess.

Thomas laughed. “Only twelve?! You’ve answered your own question. You injured or killed, and mostly killed from what I’ve heard, over half the attacking force on your own. Nobody on that ship wants to get anywhere near you.”

Paul laughed, “At least we don’t have to worry about being attacked right away. We could use the sleep.” he said.

“How can we keep them from trying again, once they’ve gotten more men and equipment?” Elaine asked.

“I think you’ve already done everything you can.” Thomas said regretfully.

“What are you talking about? We haven’t done anything.” Jill said.

“Haven’t done anything?!” Thomas laughed, “You’ve decimated two groups of well armed and well trained men with only a few AK-47s and your own mutations. Now that you’re even better armed than before, they know it’ll take a small army to accomplish anything here. I don’t know if someone will try something or not, but they’ll certainly think twice about it!”

“It’s too bad there aren’t more of us…” Leonard mused aloud. We all looked at him; he rarely spoke up like that. He looked up and realized he spoke out loud. He looked down and seemed to shrink back in on himself and didn’t say anything else.

Jacob snorted; he’d never had much respect for the quiet Leonard, “What good would a few more people make? They come busting in here with tanks and shit and we’re still toast!” he complained.

He seemed to shrink even more at that, but Sarah put her hand on his arm and said, “They can’t bring large things like tanks in without making lots of noise. If we had enough people we could have someone on watch at all times and they wouldn’t be able to surprise us. We could sink their ships before they landed, or set traps for their people if they come by air.” she explained in Leonard’s defense.

I was surprised by this outburst. Sarah had been very quiet since her transformation, sticking close to Leonard as if for protection. Now I started to wonder if there was another reason for it.

Thomas looked thoughtful for a moment before saying, “Maybe we can do something about that.”

“Do something about what?” Mike asked.

“About getting more people here to help you.” Thomas replied.

I shook my head. “I don’t think we want to be bringing anyone here. They could be working for one of these groups that attacked us. How could we know that we could trust them?” I asked.

“By picking mutants that need your help.” Thomas replied with a smile.

“Need our help? We’re not exactly in a position to help anyone.” Paul said.

“Sure you are.” Thomas replied. “This is about the only place in the world where being a mutant isn’t a liability. Mutants are discriminated against and mistreated just about everywhere. There are lots of mutants who would jump at the chance to live here.”

My eyes widened as I realized the potential of what Thomas was saying. Our island could support a lot more people than we had here. With extra hands we could develop our village even more, and be better prepared to protect it. And using mutants would mean we’d maintain our advantage.

“So, are you offering to ferry mutants here for us?” Paul asked.

Thomas shook his head regretfully. “No, I can’t do that. I’ve already done about as much as I can. I might be able to find some promising mutants with bad situations who would be willing to come and join you, but you’ll have to bring them here yourselves.” he explained.

“Well, there goes that idea.” Greg said with a sigh. “Our little boats won’t get us far, and I can’t go that far either.”

I cleared my throat nervously before saying, “I…I think I can.”

Paul looked at me in confusion before asking, “How? When you first arrived you flew out in all directions and couldn’t find any sign of land. You exhausted yourself then, what makes you think you can do it now?”

“I’m a lot stronger than I was when I first arrived. I think I was still changing. I haven’t really pushed myself since then, until this fight with those soldiers. I was running, fighting, flying, diving, and getting shot, and I wasn’t even winded. I think I can do it, so long as I know what direction to go.” I explained.

Thomas nodded thoughtfully. “I can get you some maps and a compass. I even have the first candidate for you.” he said hopefully.

My eyes narrowed at that. “You already had this planned?” I asked suspiciously.

He held his hands out as he hurried to reassure me. “Not like this! I was hoping I could get you to help someone I heard about in Australia. She’s had a really bad time of it, and things don’t look like they’re going to get any better. A friend of mine down there told me about her. Her family kicked her out when she mutated and she’s been beaten nearly to death several times already.”

The part about her family kicking her out got my attention right away, I still wasn’t sure what my parents would think of me now, and feared the same reaction. “How far is that?” I asked.

“Now wait a minute!” Paul interrupted. “You can’t go flying off on your own! You’ll have no one to protect you if someone else makes a try at you.”

Thomas just chuckled at Paul’s concern. “I think you’ve got it backwards Paul! It’s more like Catherine won’t have to worry about protecting anyone else if she’s attacked!” he said with amusement.

“He’s got a point. She pretty well carved those guys up all by herself.” Mike agreed.

I gave Paul a one-winged hug to reassure him as I asked Thomas again how far. “I’m not sure how far it is from here. I’ll get those maps and compass for you tomorrow and we can plan out the best route for you.” he replied.

Thomas left after that. We all discussed Thomas’ idea. Jacob didn’t see the point of it, but seemed pleased with the idea of me being gone for a while. Leonard and Sarah were in favor of me going, of course. The rest seemed mostly unconcerned about it, except for Paul.

We carried our discussion on into our house. Paul was adamantly against me going alone, but no one else could go with me. I might be able to carry someone, but if I were attacked I’d be helpless. He finally agreed to the plan, after making me promise I would be careful and come back as fast as I could. He still wasn’t happy about it.

I lay awake long after Paul fell asleep, thinking about what tomorrow would bring. Thomas would bring the maps and compass, and we would plan my route. Then I’d be off, on my own. And I’d have to worry about possibly being attacked again without anyone else to help me. And then I’d have to convince an abused, frightened girl to come back with me! How do I get myself into these situations?

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 To Be Continued...
 

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