It's not like I've never seen a dead body before, but still.

It's a little more jarring when they're people you know. 

I swallow back bile as Ivory and Raelyn lead me through the hallway, trying to ignore the sea of bodies. I think I see Lynch's corpse among the many. I hope I'm mistaken. While Ivory steps lithely, quietly—almost like she's scared to wake the dead back up—Raelyn strides through the carnage as if she doesn't have a care in the world. 

And this is the kind of bloodshed I'm not used to. I've been trained with guns and magic and, occasionally, a discreet knife. But these bodies have been ripped open, tissue and skin and intestines strewn across the ground. Snapped-off horns and squished eyes and severed tails. It's the most careless kind of killing. 

"How did you..." I trail off, squeezing my eyes shut. My gaze lands on Raelyn, who's just up ahead, and chills run down my spine. 

Her lupine gaze catches mine, and she grins eerily. A small clump of something stringy and red—I'd really rather not think about what it is—is caught in one of her pointed canines. 

"What?" Raelyn asks, wicked smile growing in apparent enjoyment of my discomfort. Her tongue pokes out, running along her fangs. "Oh—did I have something caught in my teeth?"

She uses a black pointed claw to dig out the little scrap of... muscle? Tendon? And flicks it away. 

"Thanks," Raelyn says, promptly going back to surveying the mass of dead bodies with pride. 

"She's creepy, I know," I hear Ivory whisper in my ear.

I whirl around. I hadn't realized she was so close to me. "It's not like you're much better," I mutter under my breath.

Ivory shrugs, hopping over a body like a little kid leaping over a wide puddle. "Least I don't enjoy it," she replies. 

"Why do you work with her?" I ask, shivering against my will. I've seen the kind of havoc someone without a conscience can wreak. It's not pretty. 

"Because she's good at what she does," Ivory replies. "And because she's—"

"Just a friendly reminder that I'm part wolf," Raelyn calls, not even looking back at us as she speaks. "I can hear everything you're saying." 

"Aww, sorry, Rae," Ivory grins. "You know I love you, though." She blows her a kiss. 

I can hear Raelyn's quiet sigh before she mumbles, "Whatever." 

It's evident from the mess of corpses that Raelyn is good at what she does. I wonder what else Ivory was going to say before Raelyn cut her off.

I spot a camera just up ahead, and for a moment, I can feel a spark of hope ignite. It's extinguished pretty quickly, though, when I realize that if anyone was watching the cameras they'd be here by now. Or maybe they've been killed. 

It's nauseatingly likely that Ivory, Raelyn, and I are the only living people left in this building. 

"And it's... just you two?" I ask them reluctantly, not sure how much they're going to tell me. Or what their plan is. Or where they're taking me. There's a lot I don't know. 

And I fucking hate it. 

"Of course not!" Ivory says with a laugh. "Your government might be full of idiots and hacks, but they've got some skill when it comes to security. As wonderful as we are, Rae and I could never do this alone." 

"So there's more of you?"

Ivory reaches forward and presses a finger to my lips. "Shh," she whispers, eyes gleaming as if we're not ankle-deep in bodies. "You never know who might be listening." 

A jolt of fear locks me in place for a moment. I stumble but manage to regain my balance, quickly catching up to Ivory again.

Is it possible that they somehow know about the listening device inside of me? 

No. Of course not. If they knew, they'd have dealt with it by now. 

"But," Ivory continues, "Yes. There's more of us. You'll meet them soon, though. Don't worry." 

"Can't wait," I mutter. 

"That's the spirit!" Ivory cheers. She loops her fingers around my wrist and tugs me forward. "We're almost there!" She says excitedly.

I frown. "Almost there?"

"Oh, you'll see." Ivory glances at Rai. "Okay. Do the thing."

I furrow my brow, curious as to what exactly this "thing" is, and watch, fascinated as Raelyn pauses and faces what seems to be a random section of black brick wall. The bodies have thinned out by this point, so maybe that's what makes this location ideal? 

Raelyn looks the wall up and down like she's studying a frog ready to be dissected. I hear her sigh. She tenses up, and so do I, terrified that she's going to attack me. 

Ivory catches my eye, the corner of her mouth tilting up into a small smile. I guess it's supposed to be reassuring. I dunno.

Raelyn crouches down, and I feel a powerful breeze swish through the room. She jumps up, strong legs propelling her upwards, and just when I figure gravity will pull her back down, she keeps on going up. 

Her long nails rake across the brick surface, and oh, that screeching noise makes me want to rip my ears off. Her claws leave flaky white markings in their wake. When she's all the way up to the ceiling, it seems like her magic falters. She twists around in midair, somersaulting and landing with an uncanny grace. 

"Beautiful," Ivory says with a grin.

Raelyn rolls her eyes, but I can see the faint blush tinting her cheeks. "Now we wait." 

"Wait for what?" I ask, but midway through the question, I hear a sharp crackling noise. 

"You guys ready?" A smooth, lyrical voice calls. 

In between the lines left behind by Raelyn's claws, the black brick is shimmering and swirling. If I squint, I can faintly make out a blur of gray and turquoise inside. My eyes widen. A portal.

"Impressive, right?" Ivory laughs, glancing at me. 

Raelyn doesn't hesitate, passing right through the wall. The surface of the brick ripples like a stone dropped into a puddle. 

"Come on!" Ivory urges. She leans against the opposite wall, clearly waiting me to walk through. 

And what other options do I have? 

The portal feels sticky like honey against my skin as I walk through it.