Let me be the first to say welcome to what I am hoping will become one of the best Gregor the Overlander sequels ever written. The reason for this is that I will be taking suggestions on where the story should go from readers, these can be submitted in the reviews. I may not choose your idea the first time but keep submitting. I am not the best writer and I enjoy constructive criticism greatly.
Gregor flew on Ares back feeling the wind rush through his hair. Elation pumped through his veins as they climbed high to speed towards the earth, pulling up at the last second. Luxa was flying next to him on her bond Aurora, she looked stunning as her beautiful hair flapped wildly in the wind. They were laughing as they twirled through the air effortlessly side by side. Luxa gained a slight advantage, speeding in front of him she dove into a cave off to the left. He flew after her zipping into the cave faster than he thought was possible. He entered the cave, and immediately Ares began to fade away. He fell hard to the ground skidding to a stop. He looked around himself "Luxa...Ares?" He called out. Looking to the side he noticed a set of stalagmites, and a repulsing smell whenever he breathed in. He thought he recognized the cave, but he could not put his finger on where he knew it from. Silence ensued for a few minutes, then he heard the sound of one rat running down the cave in front of him.
A force not under his control made him turn on his heels and dash off in the other direction. He noticed a strange light that made the tunnel have a dim, evil aurora. Memories flew through his mind, and he grimiced as though feeling a real pain. He knew exactly what this cave was. This was where he had his final confrontation with the Bane. He raced on faster using his rager ability to keep from feeling the exhaustion of running for so long. He wanted desperately to turn and fight his assailant, but his legs would not let him. Suddenly he skid to a halt, causing a small avalanche of loose pebbles on the cave floor.
Gregor stared at the cave ahead of him, taking slow deep breaths attempting to remain calm. The path ahead of him forked in two directions, and neither way looked familiar despite knowing his whereabouts. His echolocation skill was failing him, not only depriving him of the ability to see around corners, but leaving him in almost complete darkness. Behind him he heard what now sounded like the patter of hundreds of rat feet on the cave floor. His heart was beating so fast he could feel it in his head. A decision had to be made, the rats were closing in. A blood curdling scream emanated from the cavern to his right. Time seemed to stand still and everything around him became fuzzy as all his thoughts focused on one thing, the source of the scream "Luxa". Diving into the cave on his right he attempted to find Luxa, fearing the worst. He emerged into a much larger cavern which was the scene of his final battle from the last prophecy, the sight that greeted him made him sick to his stomach. The Bane had a Luxa in its hideous moth. He watched in horror as it dropped Luxa's lifeless body to the ground, punctured in too many places by the razor sharp teeth of the beast. The Bane then turned toward him. Blood was flowing from all of the wounds, and he could tell from his current vantage point that it was to late, she was gone. He ripped his attention from the bodyy and focused on the Bane.
In a voice that could only be described as a deep growl that struck fear into its victims the giant white rat said "your next!" It lunged, propelling its huge mass towards him using its rippling leg muscles. Its claws reached out for Gregor, all of them glinting like freshley polished knives.
"You will pay for this" Gregor whispered to himself in stunned horror. Realizing he had no time to dodge the attack he reached for the sword he always carried at his side. Then he made the shocking realization that it was not there, he had left it by the side of his bed this morning. He tried to dodge the attack even though he knew it was futile. The bane grabbed him in midair by the front of his shirt, lifting him off the ground just as the rats that had been pursuing him throughout the labyrinth caught up. He swallowed nervously, he couldn't believe it, he had failed, not only to save Luxa's life, but also his own.
The Bane dangled Gregor over its mouth. "Goodbye Gregor the Overlander" realeasing its hold it dropped him into the dark abyss of its maw.
Gregor awoke breath exploding from his lungs, covered in a cold sweat that had soaked his sheets. He stifled a terrified scream that had been building up in his throat since the moment he awoke. "Everything is okay" he told himself "It was just a dream". He pushed off the covers on his bed and got up.
Ever since leaving the underland he had been plagued with horrific nightmares about the Bane, Luxa, and Ares. He went over to the bathroom door and carefully opened it making sure not to wake his two sisters.
It had been about three years since his return from the underland and things had not gotten much better for him. He was still horrified of the Bane even though he knew it was dead. He felt lonely, because none could understand what he had gone through in the overland. He was ostracized from his peer group at school, except for his two best friends Larry and Angelina.
He turned the water on and splashed some in his face. The icy cold water helped him to wake up and realize that there was nothing to fear he was safe, with his family. His father had taken back up his job as a science teacher, and they were no longer struggling financially. He took a few more deep breaths while clutching the sides of the sink so hard that his knuckles were turning white. He released the edge of the sink and stared at his chest in the mirror. He traced a few of the scars, reading them like stories. He missed the underland greatly, The beautiful architecture of the city, the perfect temperature, but mainly the people he had come to love, Ripred, Luxa, Vikus, and yes even Howard. He would never tell his mom about his longing to return to the underland though. She would throw a tantrum, and then they would move for sure. A frown found its way onto his face when his thoughts strayed to Ares. He missed his bond almost more than his other friends in the underland. Sighing he turned to the door of the bathroom and gently pushed it open. His mind was finally clear and thinking straight. He climbed back into bed knowing he needed the sleep. It took a while but ever so slowly he drifted off.
He woke up and yawned knowing he was not in another nightmare. The rest of the night had been uneventful, thankfully. He considered going back to bed, his alarm had not yet gone off. He turned his head to the side observing the old wooden table by his bed. The alarm clock's usually glowing numbers were dim, he must of accidentally unplugged it while he was dreaming. Startled he raised his arm and looked at his watch, it read 7:15. He jerked his head up off of his pillow, the school bus would arrive in twenty minutes. He vaulted out of his bed, ran over to the light switch, and turned it on light flooded the room. "Everyone get up the school bus arrives in twenty minutes". The bright light had made even him flinch.
Boots sat up groggily and mumbled in a kind tone "good morning". She exited her bed and traveled over to the restroom, tottering from side to side as she walked.
He then turned his attention to Lizzie who had drawn the covers tightly over her head. He chuckled softly at the childish act and strolled over to the side of her bed. "Come on sleepy head, you don't want to be late for school".
Muffled sounds came from under the sheets, he could not decipher them exactly but he thought it sounded like "five more minutes". Gregor grabbed the sheets and gently attempted to pull them off of the bed. Lizzie resisted for a while but finally she lost her grip and Gregor stumbled backwards a few steps "Why did you do that?" Lizzie asked groaning and drawing her legs to her chest where she rubbed them rapidly with her hands. "It is so cold in here" she continued. It wasn't that cold after you got use to it the thermostat read seventy-five degrees.
Holding up his hands in mock defense, and shrugging his shoulders Gregor responded "What would you have me do" the sarcasm evident in his voice "you would have never got up on your own".
She mumbled something that Gregor could not catch and then shuffled into the bathroom. He turned back to boots who had somehow gotten her head stuck in the sleeve of her shirt. He tried to contain it but burst out laughing.
She looked indignantly at him and said "Gregor, help". He got her head back through the sleeve and helped her put it on correctly. Even though she was now five years old she did things that made Gregor remember the two year old chasing a ball in the laundry room.
He turned from his sister, and began his walk downstairs. They all shared an upper room of their new house. He and his father had been able to convince Grace not to have them move to Virginia, but in order to make that happen they had to relent on remaining in the apartment building. Gregor was fine with it though, anything to try and help him forget about the underland, because it saddened him that he could not return. His parents slept on the first floor of the house in a room that after there old house seemed like a master bedroom. He could smell the aroma of bacon and eggs wafting up from the kitchen. He could tell his mom had been up for a while, and had prepared a bountiful breakfast for them. He walked the rest of the way down and around the corner, turning into the kitchen. His mom looked happier than he had seen her in a long time. There family was on the mend, getting over all the 'scars' that they had obtained in the underland. Only Gregor could not begin to mend though, his 'scars' had gone to deep. His father was sitting at the table dressed in a black silk suit and tie. He was eating casually and reading the newspaper. From what he could see, the front page depicted more war going on around the globe.
"Good morning sweety" Grace said to him as he entered "the bus will be here in ten minutes, so you need to hurry and eat". He sat down and practically inhaled the eggs and bacon set before him, following it up with a glass of orange juice. His dad got up excusing himself from the table, and went over to kiss Grace goodbye. He picked up his suitcase and headed for the door.
Before opening it he turned and said "see you later Gregor, make me proud and try hard in school today".
"I will" Gregor replied waving. His dad then shut the door.
A while after their dad left Boots and Lizzy came down the stairs. "Good morning, did you sleep well" Grace asked.
"Yes" Lizzy and Boots said in unison. They sat down and began to eat slowly, allowing Gregor some time to think.
He could go back to the underland, not permanently just for a visit. Tomorrow was Saturday he would have the whole day to himself. He could tell them he was going to the library to complete a school project. He would only be gone for a few hours. He could spar with Ripred, letting him release all of his rager moves. Ever since he had returned from the underland, he had wanted to fight. He had considered joining the wrestling club at school, but quickly decided against it. He could check up on how Howard was doing with his medical training. He could check up with Mareth who was basically his best friend in the underland. But above everything else he could go and see Luxa. They could go on another picnic perhaps. He juggled around a few more ideas of things he would like to do, but all the time knowing he could never do it. If things were to go wrong his parents would search for him there first. His thoughts began to drift onto the topic of whether Luxa still loved him as much as he loved her.
A loud horn sounded, alerting them of the arrival of the school bus as well as jerking him back into reality. "Time to go" Gregor said quickly, pushing his chair out from the table. He went grabbed his backpack from his room, and joined his siblings at the door. "Bye mom" Gregor said quickly echoed by each of his siblings, they kissed their mom goodbye.
"Bye have fun at school" she responded to all of them.
As the school bus pulled away from the curb Gregor had the feeling that he was being watched. He shook off the inkling and turned back to his freinds. He had to focus on school and avert his mind completely from the underland.
Thank you for reading the first chapter I am sure that it will only get better from here please remember to leave a review. I will try to update this story weekly, and sometimes I will put two chapters up at once to celebrate holiday's