New story: Feathers Chapter 1

1: A Monster or more

"You're a monster, Nethaniel." She spoke pointedly.
"Thank you," he replied with a wry grin.

It was dusk on a late-summer saturday, as two teenagers strode laughing down Pearl Street. It was a quiet evening, aside from their laughing, as there were not any passerby to disturb the silence. Their smiles lingered in their silence as the two calmly made their was south. The sky in front of them was quickly melting into darkness, a sliver of orange gleaming to the west. Birds flew overhead, easily overtaking them as they took to the south. Isabele quietly pondered if those very same birds would meet them at their next destination as well. Again she laughed, as the birds bore onward, quickly streaking beyond her abnormal vision. She loved to follow the path of birds, but even if they had not headed in the direction they were, she would not follow. Her eyes, capable of pinpointing a flea in the dead of night, were easily agitated... and the sky to the north behind her billowed with smoke. Bodies and ash lay amongst the splinteres, as flames licked into the now blackend night sky.
"To the next one?" she asked, an air of false boredom dripping from her voice. Her smile widened more as she played with the small, singed feather in her hand. Her smile dropped momentarily, noticing a small scar that encircled her wrist. The bracelet she usually wore there had burnt off in the fire. She wore a shirt with no sleeves, and jeans that were frayed into shreds at the bottoms. Isabele's smile returned an instant later, as she slid her hand through her long brown hair, leaving the feather tucked behind her ear.
She gazed south to where the birds had flown, knowing the answer to come.
"You know you're out past bedtime." Nethaniel had not stopped grinning since the explosion. How he loved to let loose! He too held something in his hand, however it was not a feather. Instead he held his weapon of choice, a simple book of matches. He stopped and turned to admire his work, and Isabele thought the scene suited him well. The glow of the flame accentuated his copper windswept hair, and the gleam of the sparks were reflected in the singular earring he wore in his right ear. His hands in his pockets, his pose seemed to her as if statuesque, a work of art surpassed only by the chaos he had wrought. His white sleeves hung loose and unbuttoned, his tie wallowing in the slight breeze. His collar and the four buttons below it sat unclasped revealing a circular scar not unlike isabele's worn almost like a badge of honor in the center of his chest.

They stood silently for several moments, Nethaniel admiring his work and Isabele watching the empty night sky behind him. They waited, knowing it would not be long before police arrived to investigate. Distant sirens broke the silence, as two more figures emerged beside them. One stood tall, his shoulders and head slumped, letting his black hair fall over his face. unlike the others, he wore black shirt and pants, with a long black coat over them. He stood silently for a moment, a blood soaked feather clasped tightly in his bandaged hand. Beside him stood a man contrasting every aspect of his larger companion. He kept his hair short and expertly combed, and he wore dim white, neatly pressed pants with a light green dress-shirt neatly tucked into the waist.
"You Ready," the neatly trimmed man asked casually, "or are we supposed to stand around all night?" He chuckled to himself, as he pulled a handcloth from his pocket and attempted to wipe away a smudge of blood he found on his shoulder.
"Oh can't I just stay a little longer?" Nethaniel Cackled, not taking his eyes from his handiwork, and Isabele not taking her eyes from him. "I do so love the bright lights!"
"It's time." the darker of the two newcomers said simply, and with a yawn the neater and happier of the two complied. Tugged at his green collar, cracked his neck, revealing a circular scar there, and he raised his hand into the sky. As one, the group of four melted into nothingness, moments later red and blue lights mixed with the orange and yellow permeating the now purple night sky.