A/N: Here's chapter 7

A/N: Um… I can explain. I hope.

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Chapter Seven - Search

When the sun had arisen the next morning, Sam was already up and awake. She was still troubled, but had many questions answered the earlier night with Katrine. Sam had now known the story of Silvertia, but still, something just seemed a little... Off.

As Sam paced her footsteps in Katrine's room, she couldn't help but notice the broken window from yesterday. Its glass was still shattered, but strangely, it had matched with the surroundings of the room. And yet, somewhere in her mind she couldn't help but think...

Was it Danny that did that?

But there was no way to know for sure, and it was really helpless just walking around and thinking about it when you could actually do something. But Sam knew she couldn't do that something without Katrine.

So since the minute Sam had woken up, she had been waiting for the woman to arise. Then she would ask her to come with her to find Danny outside, since it was still morning. And hopefully, they would.

But it had been hours since Sam's awakening when Katrine had finally woken up. She lifted her head drowsily when she spotted Sam leaning against the wall. Yawning, Katrine said,

"You have been awake for many hours, I can tell. You have been waiting for me?"

Sam merely nodded, and then added,

"Yeah. I just wanted to ask you... Could we... You know..."

"Look for your friend?" Katrine completed.

Sam was amazed.

"Um... Yes, actually. How... How'd you know I was going to ask you that?"

Katrine stepped out of her bed and laid the sheets lightly on top of it.

"I have my ways." Katrine smirked, but Sam didn't notice.

"So, um..." Sam started. "Can you... Will you... Come with me?"

Katrine had hesitated before answering. She stood straight up and crossed her arms, but not yet had she looked at Sam.

"I can't," was all that she said.

"Why not?" Sam returned, her hope loosening.

"Your friend will not be here."

"But... You said that he may be!" Sam spat, causing Katrine to jerk up. "You said that he still might be alive..."

"No, no. I did not mean it like that." Katrine sighed. "Your friend does not exist in the morning."

"...Huh?"

"There was a high chance that he was taken by the Red-Ones." Katrine paused to see Sam's expression. She tried her best to hide it, however. "And," she continued, "when one is taken over by them, they become part of the Deceased. Meaning, they disappear when the sun rises and emerges when the Shadow Raven calls. Your friend shall most likely not be here, so if I were to come with you, we would have to wait until nightfall."

Sam hesitated, and then nodded in agreement.

"Oh... Ok."

Katrine shifted her pose and walked over to the Goth.

"But..." she began. "There is still one problem."

"What?" Sam replied.

"The Survivors... They are on constant lookout after I ring the bell, and Aleu will refuse to let anyone out of the church."

That caught Sam's attention.

"The Survivors? How come I didn't see any of them except you yet?" she wondered, crossing her arms.

"That... That is not the point." Katrine answered. "But, how are we going to risk escaping?"

Sam thought for a moment.

"Do they watch you ring the bell?"

"Yes..."

"Well, maybe I could ring the bell for you, while you were outside the church unseen."

"They will wonder where I have gone." Katrine countered.

"They can wonder all they want," Sam replied. "As long as they don't send out a search party or something, we're fine. They'll just think something happened to you." Sam smirked.

"But then they would wonder about you."

"They don't even know me, do they?"

"I see you have a point..." Katrine said. "Then it is settled. When the time has almost arrived, I will hide near the church, but not so near that they can detect my presence." She paused, thinking. "I will hide in the old pub, just east of the Glendea Church. It is not hard to miss; there is a big sign wavering on top."

Sam nodded.

"Ok then."

--

Katrine dashed behind the counter and peeked out of the little crack that had shone through. Nightfall had not yet arisen, so she was right on time. And as the plan had gone; when the bell rings, run for it.

The old pub had been a vile place when Silvertia had flourished, with violent thugs and rude people, and when they had died they had not faltered in their brutal ways. But Katrine had no other choice; every other nearby place was too broken-down and wasn't as good a hiding place as the pub. Besides, she needed someplace that Sam could easily detect.

Katrine shifted her stance, ignoring the blood-streaked skeleton that was sitting behind her, obviously lifeless. Like the other Survivors, she had many years of experience with the dead and had grown out of her fear several decades earlier. The skeleton was no exception.

Silently, Katrine sat there, waiting for the bell to chime. Minutes passed, and yet Katrine did not budge out of her position, gazing out of the crack. But of course, the bell did ring soon enough.

DING, DING, DING!

The familiar echo had rung in the woman's ears, and quickly, she jumped out of her place and shot out the door. She didn't want to be slaughtered by that skeleton, especially at the range that she was in with it.

She kept on running until she spotted a sturdy wall, and immediately she jumped behind it. It wasn't long until she heard loud footsteps approaching. Katrine timed herself, and let her hand reach out bit by bit. And finally, she jerked herself up and grabbed the runner by her leg, pulling her inwards.

"Katrine!" Sam yelled as she skidded softly across the floor.

"Was there any difficulty?" the older woman replied with a smile.

"N-No, not really." Sam partly sputtered.

"Good." Katrine crawled silently near the wall's end and peered over. She looked on both of her sides before gesturing to Sam that the coast was clear, and that it was time to begin their search.

Slowly, the two girls ambled on against the buildings, trying their best not to be detected. They tip-toed and breathed as scarcely as possible.

Finally, they had reached an intersection. There were a few signs, but most of them had been knocked down and were presently lying down on the road, cracked. The street was rugged, and the paved sidewalk had been reduced to rubble. On the sides, there were various alleyways, each of them leading to a dead-end, with a rusted metal door on each. Silently, Katrine whispered,

"Sam, this way, please." Katrine gestured over to an alley. Sam nodded in response, and then followed the woman over across the cracked road, jumping over the fallen poles and skimping towards the alley unnoticed. She had almost tripped on a rock because of her nervousness.

Katrine pushes against the brick wall, and Sam did suit. She knew that whatever Katrine did was the best; she had been experienced in this for many years. And by the looks of it, she had gone on journeys like this often.

"Katrine..." Sam started. "Where are we going?"

"You will soon find out; do not worry." Katrine assured. "Now come."

Katrine scampered over to the end of the alleyway and hunched down on the rusted silver door. She scratched a few particles of the rust with her fingernail, and then examined it carefully, eyeing every detail.

"Yes; this is it," Katrine said. She smoothly placed her hand on the door's handle and leisurely opened it -- but not without making an atrocious squeaking noise.

Sam covered her ears and looked around worriedly. She observed the alleyway opening, just in case any of the Deceased could hear the noise and come flying towards them. But luckily, they didn't.

Katrine slipped behind the door stealthily and made a soft motion for Sam to follow. The young girl did as she was told and walked quickly over to Katrine's side, nudging against her so that the older woman had space to close the door.

And when she did, it was pitch dark.

"Katrine!" Sam whispered loudly. "Where are we? I can't see!"

"I know, young one. But do not worry. I am finding -- Oh, wait. Here it is." At those words, the whole room was suddenly illuminated by a vast, sparkling light, and Sam couldn't help but gasp in awe at what wonders were in this room.

Wax candles were scattered marvelously around, giving off many embers of red, orange, and yellow. There were many tables, but they weren't cracked or deceased, they were in perfect condition, as if they had never been touched. Books were ubiquitously scattered, and vials of liquid were placed vigilantly on top of stools, bookshelves, and many other places. But what was eccentric, in the corners of the area, there were vines and foliage sprouting out of the cracks.

"Ka... Katrine..." Sam gasped. "What is this place?"

"This," Katrine started. "is the Survivors' storage warehouse. We place many items in here for future use, as the Glendea Church is not very big, and we still need room for us to sleep." She paused. "And this is the place where we get our Blossoms."

"Oh," Sam said, amazed.

"But we must make haste," Katrine rushed. "Quickly; aid me in search of a dark-blue bottle. I think it is placed over there." She pointed to a corner to Sam's right side. Sam walked over to it and looked around carefully.

"I don't see it," she remarked. "What's it for, anyway?"

"I will tell you once you find it," Katrine replied. "It is vital for our search."

"Ok," was all that Sam could speak. She kept on looking; crushing through books and making various vials roll away.

"Sam!" Katrine suddenly outburst. At that moment, Sam dashed over to her side and asked,

"What? What happened?"

"I have found it," Katrine replied, holding up a sparking blue bottle of liquid, its contents shaking.

"Good," Sam breathed, "Now what's it for?"

"Please bestow me with a candle and I shall show you."

Sam walked over to a table and snatched a hot candle from it. The wax dripped on her hand, but she just ignored it. Sam then handed it to Katrine, who took it and uncorked the bottle. Cautiously, she poured a drop of the liquid right into the burning flame, and like a flash, it instantly blazed blue and gave out a cold essence, unlike the hot sensation with a normal flame.

Sam jerked back, amazed. She stared at the fire for a few more seconds before saying,

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"It is what we call a Ghost Flame," Katrine explained. "It sets off a cold fire instead of a hot one, and with this most of the Deceased will just suppose that you are another one of Them. But just remember to always hold it in front of you."

"Wait... So you mean that they can sense heat?" Sam wondered.

"Yes, and also the presence of a heartbeat and the tone of your breathing. But of course, they only have an allotted space to sense them, so they can't always tell you are there." She finished. "Now, give me another candle."

Sam got her another candle. Katrine placed the other candle down and picked up the new one. She uncorked the bottle yet again and poured a small drop of the potion on the candle, causing it to shriek and turn blue like the other one. Slowly, Katrine handed it to Sam and took the other one for herself, placing the bottle down.

"Careful," Katrine then warned. "Do not get the wax on you. It will burn through your flesh."

Sam just looked at her strangely.

"Um... Let's just go." Sam walked over to the exit and waited for Katrine to come. Then, the older woman opened the door, candle still intact, and slipped out as she did before, with Sam following. Katrine walked out into the intersection, out in the open, and started walking forward.

"How long will these candles burn?" questioned Sam.

"A few hours," Katrine replied. "We will have to hurry."

Sam nodded in agreement and simply followed Katrine.

--

By now, Sam was about to snap. Not by anger, but by sheer sadness. By loss. Loss of Danny.

To Sam, almost a week had passed. But to anyone else, it's only been 5 hours. She was getting tired by all this enduring searching that never seemed to cease.

Sam, as much as she hated to admit it, was having second thoughts about this now. What if they failed to find him? He is a ghost after all, and knowing ghosts, they're extremely hard to track down without the help to ghost-hunting technology. But the thing is, they didn't have any of that with them that night.

The candles were still burning, though. Luckily, to add. Their blue flames flickered throughout the night, and any of the Deceased that the twosome had encountered had silently left them alone. Still, precious time was running out, but it had seemed as if they hadn't gotten any further than they had when they began their search for the missing ghost boy.

Sam sighed.

"Katrine..." she started, unsure. "I..."

"Please; hush, young one," the elder ensured. "I know you are giving up hope. But do you really want to?"

Sam looked up at her in a state of weariness. Her violet eyes looking up at her for encouragement; for guidance.

"No… I… I don't." Sam looked around. "I'm just not sure that we'll succeed in finding him."

Katrine let out a deep breath and closed her eyes.

"Samantha," she started, crouching down to Sam's height. Sam flinched a little but didn't react so unexpectedly like she would usually do. "I have been cursed to this wretched town for many, many years. I have seen things I know that a young girl like you never would've even imagined. I know all the twists and turns of Silvertia, all the dark corridors and endless walkways drenched in cold, daunting blood. Yet, I must have you know now… One thing I have never given up in my years… That thing is hope."

Sam just looked straight at Katrine's blue eyes.

"I…"

"Hush," Katrine hoarsely whispered. "Now I must tell you."

"Tell me…? Tell me what, Katrine?"

Katrine stood up and brushed some dust off of her jeans. She looked around cautiously before saying,

"Do you recall me mentioning Aleu?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Aleu is no longer here. Nor… Nor any of the other Survivors."

Sam was wide-eyed. She stepped back a little from Katrine, who didn't move at all.

"What do you mean?"

"Young one, don't you see? I am the only Survivor left. The others… The others have passed away long ago."

Sam could swear that she saw a tear dripping out of her eye.

"But…" Sam tried to speak, but Katrine gestured for her to be silenced.

"I have guided you with misinformation… Yet…" she paused, changing the subject. "Young one, I have never lost hope. I know that one day, the skies will dawn upon the new revival of this desolate town. You may see Silvertia as a bloodthirsty city today, yet tomorrow, it may be a working settlement as it was many years before. That is why I am the last Survivor. I have never lost hope. The others… Aleu, Vesna, Tivon… All of them… They have gone in brutal ways that I cannot dare say or even imagine." Katrine winced.

"Katrine…" Sam whispered. She was speechless. What could she say?

But she didn't have time to think.

The candles' cobalt lights blew out…

…And a growl could be heard.

--

A/N: Heh heh… Oops. Wait… What? What's going on? I really don't get anything here.

…?

Cliffhanger!!

Moonstar5569