5 - Broken, Mangled, Destroyed

Sophia's hand rose across her eyes to block out the powerful sun blaze blinding her. Her reactions had to be quick as a red brick flew past her head. She ducked just in time and heard it clatter against the wooden floor behind her. The nearby building were rich with red, orange flames rising high and engulfing the village in a thick black smoke which began to block the blue sky above.
Sophia lost no time in grabbing her sisters wrist and pulling her quickly out of the doorway, they stumbled over a risen board on their front deck and fell onto the dusty ground. They coughed and choked as the black smoke filled their throats and cut off their breath.
Nadia felt the panic rise from within her, all she could think about was her mother. She looked up at her sister and said through her coughs.
"Sophia... where is.... Mum?" She took a deep breath, her red eyes reddening in the smoke.
Sophia was frantically looking around, trying to see what was going on.
"I don't know Nadia.... We'll find her" She replied hopefully.
She spotted an alleyway and ran towards it, her sisters hand clutched between her fingers. She could feel her skin get hotter and hotter with every second they stood still. Screams rang out all around them. People running for their lives, carrying anything and everything they could.
Sophia managed to get her bearings through the smoke and headed towards the courtyard, she dodged a falling gutter from the building next to her. Her dress was now a black colour from the soot and ash raining down upon her.
There was a group of men gathering in the square, they were shouting and pushing each other, oblivious to the pain about to rain down upon them.
The Spectres shot across the square like a plague of rats, their movement was swift and certain. It took them less than thirty seconds to dispatch the men and let their limp dead bodies crash to the ground. The men died without a word of panic or threat.
Sophia stood in horror as she watched the men lose their lives, she was hidden in the darkness with her sister, the dying flames around them provided the only source of light. She spotted the swinging sign of 'The Blue Hornet', it seemed untouched by the flames. The door below it swung open with force and Esmeralda stood in its place, she cried out.
"Sophia! Nadia!"
The girls quickly stepped out from behind the shadows to make sure their mother could see them but it was too late. The Spectres had heard Esmeralda's screams and she drew their attention. Their heads spun together to find the source of the noise. It didn't take them long. They slid towards her and she quickly dashed back inside, shutting the door behind them. It did not stop them, they crashed through the door and her daughters could only hear her screams. Nadia cried and fell to her knees as Sophia just stood in shock and anger.
The colour ran from her face, she was a pale white and felt sick to the pit of her stomach, she looked down at her broken sister. She was all she had left and she would protect her with her life.
She shook her head from side to side, regaining her composure. She reached down and pull Nadia to her feet and held her cheeks in her hands.
"Nadia, Nadia...." She looked straight into her eyes as she spoke, Nadia was trying to fight her sister, wanting to escape.
"You have to listen to me. Please Nadia. Mother is gone. We only have each other now. We have to get out of here, there is nothing left and nothing we can do. Now you are the brainy one, what do you think we should do?"
Nadia looked at Sophia with red eyes and rasping breathing, she knew what Sophia was saying was true but she did not want to believe it. Nadia looked back into her sisters eyes and saw the pity and sadness but also the control she was trying to maintain. Nadia took a few deep breaths and then spoke slowly and clearly.
"We need to find Tommy, he knows the woods like the back of his hand. If anyone can lead us away from here safely, it's him"
Sophia smiled and kissed her forehead gently.
"There's the sister I know and I love. Quick, let's go"
They moved quickly but silently through the back alleys to reach the edge of town. They passed Spectre guard after Spectre guard, almost getting caught a few times. The Spectres did not seem to care for the money or possessions, just the lives of the people they were ruining. The dead lay where they fell, no attempt to clear up just a massacre of flesh and blood stained the cobbled streets of Bayton.
The girls tiptoed this way and that. Sophia was too busy looking round when she ran into a branch, knocking her onto her back. A hand reached out across her body and rolled her to one side into the shadow of a nearby barrel. She tried to shout but a hand was covering her mouth. She opened her eyes slowly, terrified of what she might see. The smile of little Tommy Sprakan looked back at her from a soot covered face. He rose a finger to his lips and made a quiet shushing sound. Heavy footsteps moved nearby, the air was filled with a hissing which shook the very core of the Boarwood girl. Sophia turned her head to look across the way and sighted her sister hiding in a bundle of hay, she was shaking like a leaf but managed to stay quiet.
A scraping was following the footsteps that drew closer with every stomp. The air began to fill with the smell of death and rotting flesh. Tommy was looking around the place and Sophia couldn't work out what he was doing. He quickly crawled around the side of the house, leaving Sophia alone to hide. The Spectre was getting closer and closer. Sophia saw a pale white foot poke out from behind the barrel and shut her eyes tight, thinking that if she couldn't see it then it wasn't there. Suddenly a huge clatter came from back down the alleyway. With no hesitation the Spectre turned on the spot and slithered towards the noise and out on the Main Street. The girls crept out from their hiding place, running the short distance between each other and holding one another in their arms. Tommy came out of the back of the building and smiled, then quickly dashed off into the tall grass and the girls followed. They were still panicking and ran as fast as they could through the long reeds. They couldn't hear anyone following them but they weren't about to look back and find out. The incline began to grow and they climbed higher and met up with Tommy on the ridge looking over the town. It lay in tatters, broken in a few minutes by a force stronger than any that had passed through those streets before. Tears fell down Nadia's face. Sadness struck her as her eyes fell on her broken home. She could feel her heart pumping in her chest, she could hear it in her ears. Her sister's voice broke her thought.
"Nadia, we need to go, it's gone." Sophia spoke softly and with a soothing tone, she didn't want to frighten her fragile sister.
Nadia looked towards the sympathetic gaze of her loving sister and smiled gently and whispered.
"Let's go"
Sophia turned round towards the woods, the trees seemed bigger than usual to her today. She took her sisters hand and followed the silent Tommy into the woods, leaving the burning Bayton behind them.