The truth, unleashed (pt. 11 Mutants versus Witches)

I was getting really close to breaking my promise to John, and honestly, I regretted making it.

"No unnecessary damage or burning, Simin, promise me."

Gritting my teeth, I rolled to avoid the plants Maybelle was controlling. The plant-powered witch laughed from her broomstick, watching me kick off roots and vines. 

"No flames today?" She taunted, hands darting back and forth with the movements of the plants. 

Tearing off roots, I scrambled up a rock. "Haven't you-heard-of global warming?" I caught my breath and glared at the witch, letting a few flames dance on my fingers. "We need these trees, and I really don't want to set this forest on fire." 

Maybelle narrowed her eyes, contemplating. But evil people aren't paid enough to have opinions of their own, so she made a tree rip itself out of the ground to try and kill me. 

I was out of places to go, the grass was going to kill me, the tree was going to kill me, hell the moss on the rock was trying to kill me. So I leapt up into the air, using my flames to propel me right into the witch. 

I collided right into her, and Maybelle shrieked, grabbing onto her broom frantically as she slipped off it.

It would have worked if I didn't burn it. Like those old roadrunner cartoons, for a second, we stayed up there. 

Then gravity tugged us down and I latched onto Maybelle, driving her into the ground. The impact still rattled my bones. 

"Get off me!" Maybelle spat, but I had scorched the earth around us. No plants were coming to rescue her. 

"I will burn you!" I warned when she kicked me, and finally, the witch stopped, raising an eyebrow at me. 

"So do it already." She challenged, sticking up her dirt-covered chin. 

I rolled my eyes. "You know, it's really admirable that you're willing to die for the cause. What a good little mindless henchman you are." 

Maybelle frowned, blinking dirt out of her eyes. "I'm not a mindless henchman."

"Henchwoman. Henchperson." I amended, never one to insult anyone. 

"No, moron! I'm not mindless. There's a reason-"

"A reason you go around murdering innocent people?" I scoffed, my arms aching. "Let's hear it, asshole." It would give me time to figure out what the hell to do with her. 

Maybelle got quiet like she'd maybe shared something she shouldn't have. 

"Oh, no, no. Now you've got to tell me why you've made my life complete hell." I grinned at the witch, rearranging my legs. 

"Don't you want to save your friends?" Maybelle hissed, struggling. "My coven could-"

"They can manage without me for a few minutes. Tell me, or you won't have arms anymore." I let some flames eat away her sleeves and Maybelle screamed. "It's really funny watching witches burn." 

"Fine! Fine! Stop, stop it!" 

I narrowed my eyes at her, coughing away her designer dress's smoke. "Make it short." 

"You said it yourself, earlier." Maybelle squirmed, "Remember? The thing about global warming and burning the trees." 

"You're after us because we cause global warming? All humans do that!" Incredulously, I stared at her. Hey, her grey, dead eyes actually had some very pretty blue. Interesting. 

"No! Imbecile! Your dangerous powers, how many humans have you seen with them?" 

I squinted at her, wondering if she was pulling my leg. "We're aliens?" 

"No!" Maybelle yelled and I started yelling back too, extremely irritated. 

"Then stop making me guess!" 

"We're from a parallel universe," Maybelle said very seriously and I burst out laughing. 

"Nice one. I guess I'll have to torture some other witch for the answer." I cleared my throat, pretending like I was going to start burning. 

"No! I'm serious. Your friend, Eliza-"

That got my attention. "Elysse?" I frowned, correcting her. 

"She can open portals, right? Like portals back from where we come from! Where you come from!" 

"So you're like ICE? Instead of deporting, you're straight-up murdering anyone from there? Why?" I sincerely hoped the witches never opened a travel agency. Enjoy your holiday, it will be your last! 

Maybelle was still talking, so I stopped making myself laugh and paid attention.

"Witches got here a long time ago when the first, little portals existed. We were exiles with lesser abilities, and we stabilized our powers by marrying the humans. They're safe, they belong on earth now. But you?" Maybelle's lip curled with disgust. "Too much. We don't know how you got through the portal, but your powers are not meant for this place. You'll burn down forests, destroy social connections, it's doomsday." 

"My parents didn't have powers," I argued, blood suddenly feeling chilly. 

"You were switched. Nobody knows who did it, but you got switched with the real you. The you that belongs here." Maybelle was looking at me with the same scrutiny and uncertainty I looked at all witches with, as though she couldn't believe I had feelings and actual desires to live beyond my evil mission. 

I need answers, I need to talk to John. "Sorry about this," I told Maybelle. Her eyes shut in terror and I got up and ran. 

Ran like an Olympic gold medal depended on it. I couldn't kill her after all. 

I wished we had a signal or something, so I wouldn't have to tear out my lungs, sprinting around these dark woods. 

A scream split the air and I dashed towards it. That sounded like Elysse! Or Devon, if his voice got really high. 

I skid into the clearing, dirt flying ahead of me, wildly looking for enemies. 

Elysse was slicing witches in half. Opening portals right in them, or closing them on their heads. Blood spurted from their bodies and I winced. 

"Holy shit!" I yelled, and Elysse looked up, her eyes dark with concentration. "Dude, stop!" 

The last witch's body slammed into the ground and I stared at Elysse. 

"Give me a break!" She rolled her eyes. "You've melted them before with water!" The whole clearing was painted in blood. 

"It was...cleaner!" I argued lamely, then ran with her when she grabbed my hand. "John's the weakest link, take us to him!" 

Elysse opened a portal under us and we landed with a whoosh to where John was...

...smacking the shit out of a witch with a broomstick.

"Elysse? Simin? You're okay?" John yelled, and we nodded sheepishly. 

"You better hope he never finds out what you said," Elysse mumbled. 

"Why don't you shut up?" I whispered back, and John finished off the witch, snapping the broomstick in half and stabbing her with it. 

"I'm going to find Devon," Elysse said immediately and portalled away. 

"John are we-" I honestly had no idea how to say this.

My adopted father frowned at me. "Let's find the boys, we can talk after." 

I nodded, relieved to avoid it. John led me through the woods with way more confidence than I had, listening to sounds I couldn't hear, and following a path I couldn't see.

"Do you-uh-hike a lot?" When you're not raising random, superpowered children. From another universe.

John glanced at me worriedly. "Are you okay? You don't usually make little talk."

"Small talk." I mumbled, rubbing my neck. "Nevermind." Suddenly, I felt it, the ping of Harry's mental connection.

"Harry." John murmured, clearly hearing it too. We ran, John yelling after me when I went the wrong way and I raced past him.

Harry was clutching onto his arm, desperately, and sitting with a dying witch.

A quick glance around revealed another body, but I fell onto my knees next to Harry, grabbing his arm.

The witch gasped and I watched her with Harry until her chest stilled.

"You're gonna be okay." I murmured to him, taking stock of his paler than normal look and the glassy, horrified look in his eye. "Harry? Harry talk to-John!"

John ran over, out of breath and anxious. "Let's see it." He moved Harry's fingers a little. "Stitches, and you're losing a lot of blood."

"Should I-should I cauterize it?" I stammered, having seen the technique in some old movie.

"Burn wounds get infected a lot..." John trailed off, examining the wound more. "We need this cleaned, then I'll find a first aid kit, okay?"

"Harry, did you hear him?" I shook him, just a little but the telepath said nothing. It was eerie. He was silent both physically, but even the telepathic bubble that usually chattered to me was silent.

"It's shock. Give him your jacket, Simin, and-" John started lifting one arm and I grabbed the other. "Come on, Harry, you're going to be okay."

I never felt cold, but I was starting to get really freaked out. Harry was saying absolutely nothing, just leaning on John and walking.

Elysse and Devon appeared through a portal next to us, and Elysse just barely stopped Devon from walking straight into a tree.

"Are you guys okay? Harry?" Elysse asked, eyes unusually wide, and I noticed that her hands were shaking.

"John, you think there are more of them?" Devon's nose was bleeding everywhere, and he kept wiping at it. Like some strange nervous tic.

"I don't think so." John said, looking over all of us. "Let's just get out of here, yes?"

"There better not be more of them," Elysse said immediately, voice quavering. "I swear to-"

"Hey, hey, relax," Devon murmured, squeezing her shoulder.

I felt the wave of energy that surrounded all of us circle everyone. It was so weird, normally we kept our powers under tight control, and I kind of felt high off it. The air had gained this unusual quality.

Then I bitterly remembered. Of course, it did. We didn't belong here, we were changing the very air just by being here.

All my feelings about being fundamentally weird, wrong, this explained-

"When did John tell you?" Harry croaked suddenly, making us all jump.

"What?" I frowned at him, so surprised that I didn't even register his question. Then I looked up at John, eyes wide. "You knew? And-Harry? What the hell?!" I shifted away from him, anger creeping into my voice.

"Knew what?" Devon asked, looking between us.

"Simin." John said very calmly, "We can discuss all this later."

"Discuss what?" Elysse asked, and Harry stared at me, eyes dull. Don't, he told me.

"Simin, this is not the time." John insisted. "Harry needs help, you all do. Let's get off this mountain, and we discuss it."

Grudgingly, I nodded, taking another look at Harry's shaken expression. "Were you ever going to tell us?" I asked, my voice colder than normal, and I ignored Elysse's questioning look.

"No, it wasn't important," John replied, and I pondered over that the whole way down.

How could this not be important? It changed everything.