The whine of the supercharger accompanied the deep burble of the engine as the driver stepped hard on the gas. Heated rubber squealed for a second before propelling the vehicle violently forward. Red and blue lights flashed in distinct urgency, paving a clear way in the traffic ahead. Then, another set of lights joined in, with the same deep-set roar of an engine being urged on. Then, another, and another, and another, until for as long as the eye could see, an army of enforcement vehicles storming the highway.

Patrol vehicles ushered civilian cars to the side, forging a path down the centre lane. Curious muzzles peered out of their windows as countless sirens rang out and blurs of black and white shot past. Every available officer in the city had been mobilised, briefed over the radio and were all anticipating the same message to be broadcast.

“All units, be advised. Target is on Highway 1. Repeat, Target is on Highway 1...”

Jack gripped the steering wheel as he felt the entire body of the car start to vibrate. The Doberman was already travelling at more than twice the legal speed limit, but he had to if he was going to make it in time. The dashboard beeped as the GPS called for his attention, informing him that he was now less than a mile away from the programmed destination.

Blood splattered all over the beeping screen as his passenger broke out into a fit of violent coughing. The gasps and ragged breathing told him that he had very little time left, which further fuelled his urgency. Reaching over, he clasped a blood-soaked paw, eyes constantly shifting between road and passenger.

“Hang on, Stella! We’re almost there!”

The other Doberman beside him gave her best red-tinged smile as she clutched as her partner’s paw. The other pressed a pressure pad into the bullet wound by her side where the female’s body armour was the weakest. 

“If I… don’t make it…”

“NO!” Jack burst out. He bit his lip as the realisation that his outburst had been far too emotional than he intended it to be. He clenched her paw even more tightly. “You’re going to!”

He tried to read his partner’s muzzle, but between the fluttering eyelids and the head that flopped about with every jerk of the wheel, he knew his words had been lost on her. If anything, time was running out for the female. All Jack could do was flex his right foot even harder, even though the pedal was already as far forward as it could already go.

The streets cleared as the car barrelled down the highway and onto the long stretch of road leading up to the towers of glass and steel. The patrol cars that were once following closely began to pull back, leaving the speeding car on its own. The numbers on the bloodstained screen began to run down as they drew closer to its programmed destination.  With the road now straight and clear, the Doberman could now pay closer attention to his passenger.

“Jack... I feel cold.”

Jack squeezed at Stella’s paw, a moment’s panic racing up his arm when she failed to squeeze back. He had factored in blood loss, but the bullet that wounded her did not go deep. Constant pressure on the wound should have kept blood loss to a minimum and the sensors on her bio-suit did not register any major organs being hit. The new chime sent a chill down his spine, followed by the thin robotic voice from the high tech vest that seemed to stir up his worst fears

“Blood pressure low. Seek medical attention. Blood pressure low. Seek medical attention. Blood pressure…”

Jack was only too aware of the growing numbness in his own paw, and what seemed like a black mist swirling around it. His jaw tightened, suppressing of whine of distress as the extent of Stella’s condition began to sink in. He clenched his eyes and whispered a soft prayer of protection, but he knew it was not going to be enough with the limited amount of talent that he had. It was not until the incessant beeping from the dashboard had grown increasingly urgent did the canine glance back to the road.

Jack slammed his foot hard on the brake pedal on instinct before he could react. The entire frame of the vehicle began to shudder as the electronics, friction and inertia fought for dominant control of the over-speeding car. Even from within the cabin, the smell of burning rubber was too strong to ignore. Another message flashed on the driver’s electronic console, cautioning him that the brakes had overheated.

The car wobbled and shook, but never strayed from its path towards the small crowd gathered directly ahead. Jack gripped the wheel, partly to ready himself to swerve out of the way, but mostly because he was seized with fear as the cold tendrils of numbness slowly crept up his torso. He could taste the blood rising in his throat, giving a gurgled gasp of panic as his tongue began to register the undeniably strong coppery flavour. It was not the prospect of death that scared him, but the prospect of dying in untold agony. The stories that spoke of others suffering a similar fate always had the same ending. Most begged, some fought; but in the end, almost everyone died.

Jack was so absorbed in his thoughts that he failed to realise that the car had already come to a complete stop. By the time the passenger-side door had been opened, the Doberman had barely the strength to resist, let alone warn them about the danger. He struggled to lift his hand, but the feeling of helplessness infected him from the neck down. If what he heard was true, this was what most tainted would have felt like. The inability to fight back was worse than death, and now, he knew why most stories spoke of the dead begging to be put out of their misery.

From the corner of his fading vision, a faint white glow pierced the darkness. A surge of warmth broke through the cold numbness, giving the Doberman the first sensation of feeling since he last clenched Stella’s paw. Another stab of warmth burst from his chest, and for a brief moment, his vision cleared enough to see an ornate-looking handle emerging from his chest.

Jack gave a gasp, before realising that feeling was quickly returning to his numb body. Air rushed into his once paralysed lungs, and he could feel his muscles relaxing among growing pinpricks of pain. As the handle was pulled away, he saw the same white glow now stained with swirls of black. Now free from the restraints of his magical bonds, the Doberman bolted upright in his seat as he began to take stock of his situation.

A loud bark left his chest, along with a violent spray of blood across the dash. As more of the dark life fluid spilled from his nostrils, he gave an unintelligible burble before slumping back into his seat convulsing violently.

“Medics!” came the roar, and a distinctly white-uniformed group rushed forward, fumbling with the medical packs strapped to their backs. Portable gurneys were unfolded as the medical team struggled to pull the Doberman out of the vehicle.

“Massive haemorrhaging,” reported a technician as he glanced through the eyepiece of the portable scanner. “Approximately 70% of all major arteries and vessels are leaking blood. Blood loss-induced shock, level 2. Blood toxin levels are approaching near-fatal levels. Code blue.”

The dragon pulled back the cloak around his head, acknowledging the technician’s diagnosis with a nod before watching them rush the Doberman into the back of a waiting ambulance. He sheathed his dagger beneath the regal full-body cape that wrapped around his body, concealing the ethereal glow that surrounded the traditional metal blade. S’sythrael leaned in through the driver-side door, watching as swirls of inky black magic spilled from the bullet wound that had wounded the female Doberman and into the feathered hands of his fellow mage.

“How is she, Mia?”

“Fortunate,” came the soft, gentle voice. Feathers crafted the dark magic into the size of a small, black pearl, which fell harmlessly into her hands. The swan’s cloaked peeled back of its own accord as she offered it to the dragon. “Her partner drew most of the effects into his own body. Her chances of survival are much greater despite the longer exposure.”

Stella awoke from unconsciousness with a violent start straight into Mia’s anticipating feathered arms. Her enchanted touch soothed the ragged nerves of the canine, who whined pitifully at her situation.

“Do you know who I am?” S’sythrael hissed softly.

The canine nodded weakly.

“Do you know who she is?”

Again, she nodded her positive response.

“Do you know why we are here?”

There was a pause, before a whisper left her muzzle.

“The… prophecy.”

S’sythrael and Mia cast a knowing look to each other. The swan rested her delicate feathers on Stella’s shoulder, her soft voice soothing the fears and doubts away.

“Tell us, child. Where will it lead us to?”

The Doberman winced as her muscles protested the simple action of reaching for the Communicator strapped to her waist. With all her strength sapped from her body, she could hardly free the device from the magnetic safety latch. She fumbled at it clumsily for a few moments before S’sythrael intervened, pulling it free for her.

“He is where they said he would be,” Stella wheezed, gesturing towards her Communicator. “Everything is in…”

“How is he?” the dragon cut in. “Is he well? Is he in danger? What about…”

A warning tone punctuated the air, followed by a repetitive chirp that emanated from the bio-suit still strapped to Stella’s body. The audible warning was enough to prompt the medical personnel hovering nearby to immediately swarm around the car.

“I’m sorry,” spoke up one of the technicians, “but she’s about to go into shock.”

Both mages stepped back to allow the medical team to carry out their duties, watching from an appropriate distance as paws flew across her broken body. The preliminary diagnosis was better than her partner’s, but there was still substantial damage inflicted by the dark magic to warrant a look of concern from the chief medic. Orders were barked across loudly, emphasising the urgency to guarantee her survival.

Mia gently rested a wing on a stiffened shoulder of the dragon, which relaxed visibly under her touch. If there was one thing the swan was capable of, it was her ability to reassure without a word of reassurance. That was her talent, yet it was not enough to wipe the concern and worry from the dragon’s bronze muzzle, manifesting itself as a distinct frown that Mia had long learned to identify.

“You worry about him,” came the swan’s soft voice, cutting through the thick of the noise.

“How can I not?” came the reptilian hiss.

“Your paternal feelings remain strong, especially for one who is unrelated to your own bloodline.”

S’sythrael gave a sigh as he turned to watch the medical techs perform their work. His grip around the bloody Communicator tightened as Mia’s words hit a sensitive spot. It was going even more difficult to conceal his emotions now that something more personal was at stake.

He remembered the first time he met his soon-to-be adopted son. The young tiger cub had been spared the unfortunate fate of his parents, who were prominent members in the Magi community. Their murders were the first high profile takedown within the hierarchical structure of the Magi, but the investigation into their deaths had taken too long before anyone realised what part they played in the greater scheme of things.

Even before the investigations made any headway, the dragon had had the idea of bringing the orphaned cub under his watch and care. Officially, it was going to be a student-teacher relationship. As the days progressed, however, the dragon’s presence was so intrinsically crucial to the tiger that it developed into a father-son bond.

The dragon had hoped things were not going to go as far as they already had, but it was now too far gone beyond what he had originally anticipated. With the body count increasing, he knew that whatever contingency plans that had been set into place were not effective.

“I raised him as though he were one of my own, Mia. He is like a child to me. Like a part of my family.”

“It is only natural,” came the knowing voice of reassurance. “You were there for him when he needed you the most, and he was there when you needed him the most.”

“I made a promise to take care of him. I intend to keep that promise.”

The Communicator gave a quiet chirp as the screen sprung open, revealing the last set of information that was last displayed before it was turned off. The dragon’s eyes quickly scanned the screen, giving a displeasured click of his tongue, as was his habit whenever anything annoyed him.

“We must hurry,” the dragon hissed. “If they know that we are onto their trail, he will need us as much as we need him now.”

As S’sythrael turned his head, others had already started to gather around him. They were all cloaked in discrete brown robes, and all dipped their heads in a silent bow as they approached. All were a menagerie of species gathered from all across different worlds, different planets and different backgrounds. Yet all were united for the same purpose, all endowed with the same abilities and all together now.

“We understand,” Mia acknowledged. “What are your commands?”

“Rally the guards and prepare the portals,” came the order, followed by a quiet utterance under his breath as the others turned and made off in different directions.

“I can only hope we are not too late.”