Midori Aoi: I...am so sorry. I realize it's been a long time since I last updated. My life is just filled with work, work, helping in plays, helping around my home and expenses. I've little free time to catch my breath much less to actually sit down and work on an update, but I'm trying. This is one of those rare times I've the time to sit and work on this whilst wrestling with other plot bunnies that keep tearing me up inside.
I recently started watching Doctor Who with my brother and I immediately fell in love with the show. If you haven't watched it yet – beware. It's HIGHLY Addicting. (Plus, David Tennant is a complete FOX. I absolutely adore his performances. *siiiiiiiigh* heheheheeee…*AHEM*) So… on with the show.
LAST THING – NO MORE CHARACTERS THROUGH REVIEWS. I already warned you guys about it, if you want a character in here SEND ME A PRIVATE MESSAGE WITH THE CHARACTER PROFILE FORMAT (You can find that in the prologue. Just scroll down to the end.) If I see another character request on a review I will delete it – NO QUESTIONS ASKED. So… if you want me to place your char in the story, PM ME… Cool? Good… NOW.
On this chapter!
The group moves towards their final tour – the Hallway of Endless Sentences but something goes terribly wrong and Jackie gets separated from her group. Will she be able to keep her wits about her or will she succumb to the fear of this new nightmare?
The Avatar: TLA Fan-fiction Writer's Academy
By Midori Aoi
Chapter 7:
Caught in a Maze
The fury that surged within Jackie's chest hadn't lasted long.
When Jackie had returned from her confrontation with Wolfwood, the rage rolled off her person in waves, pushing away those with the sense to avoid oncoming wrath. Elise and Mae Ling watched in surprise as she marched off in the direction in which the other tours where headed, completely disregarding the calls from Kim.
Sure enough the only force that could stop her was the earth beneath her wrapping around her ankles, effectively gluing her to the spot. Jackie let out a yelp of irritation and made to bend the rock from her feet when Kim popped out from the earth in front of her with a frown and crossed arms.
"Hold your horses there, Jack." Kim said, shaking the dust off her long skirt. "Our group remains together, so don't think about just marching off as you see fit. As long as you're in my group, I'm in charge of you. Clear?"
Jackie glared at her earthen manacles before nodding stiffly. "Clear…"
Kim nodded in response and dropped an open palm. Jackie's manacles disintegrated into fine dirt. She could feel dust in her shoes, but she made no move to get rid of it.
The sound of footsteps approaching had Jackie tensing up, prepared to lash out if Wolfwood thought it was funny to taunt her again.
It was only Elise. "Hey!"
Jackie sighed, and Elise looked concerned. "Is something wrong?"
Jackie looked up from her staring contest with the dirt by her shoes into the nervous faces of Elise and Mae Ling. Elise tucked a loose strand behind her ear quickly; a nervous twitch.
Mae Ling twisted Rufio's tail around her fingers, letting the soft fur slide between her fingers. Behind them stood Zane, obviously there more for company and curiosity than moral support, but he looked nervous too. Even Rufio glanced at her curiously from a safe distance behind Mae Ling's head.
"It's nothing," was Jackie's solemn reply, and she looked away, embarrassed.
"Sure could've fooled me it was something," Elise retorted. Despite her somewhat amused tone, Jackie could plainly hear the reluctant edge, as if she were unsure how to talk to her in this state.
Jackie looked at the girls before her and smiled, before reaching past them to scratch Rufio behind the ears. The lemur let out an appreciative gurgle and leaned into her touch. Glancing quickly around her, Jackie saw that both Kanari and Autumn had disappeared, no doubt heading out with their groups already. She was glad for that. Kanari had seemed like the kind of girl who enjoyed arguments, and in her volcanic state, Jackie was sure it wouldn't have ended well.
"I'm fine. There was just something I needed to take care of."
"Did you take care of it?" Mae Ling asked, cocking her head slightly to the side. A flash of familiar black and green behind the shorter girl made Jackie glance up behind her only to catch the profile of the boy whom had viciously kissed her just moments prior. Jackie felt her stomach dip with a feeling that was too close to fear than Jackie could handle and she shook it off with malice. Looking back at her friend she allowed herself to soften.
"No… not yet," Jackie responded, making sure her voice carried enough for Wolfwood to hear. His eyes flashed towards her for an instant when she glanced back behind Mae.
Good, Jackie thought smugly, more pleased to know that feeling did not resurface. I'm not through with you yet.
"Alright, everyone's here!" Kim called out, and whatever tension there was between Jackie and Wolfwood was pushed aside as the group began to arrange behind the tan and amiable guide. Jackie looked back at her friend. Mae Ling's dark eyes blinked at her with some confusion. Jackie only gave her a bright, albeit forced, smile and moved past them towards the larger group.
"I have to get going," Zane said, tugging a nod towards his group. Elise pursed her lips with mild disappointment and nodded.
"I'll see you later?" she asked and he smiled, gave her a nod and headed off.
"Ooh, does Eli have a boyfriend now?" Mae Ling teased with an impish grin as soon as the boy was out of earshot. The fourteen-year-old girl's face burned scarlet at the comment and Jackie couldn't help the laugh that escaped her when Elise scrambled to face them.
"M-M-Mae, come on!" Elise sputtered, "I just barely met the guy, I mean, JEEZ! Besides," she huffed, "I don't even care about that sort of stuff."
Mae Ling giggled, "Whatever you say, Hun, whatever you say."
"Alright, kids, listen up!" Kim's voice interrupted whatever would have followed. The three girls turned to look at the guide with some surprise. If anyone could make their voice carry like a drill sergeant and still sound amiable enough to be a sibling, it was Kim. "We're the last tour to go inside the Hallway of Endless Sentences –" Kim was cut off by someone gasping.
"Whoa, hold on. No one ever said anything about going inside." Jackie turned to see it was the same short kid from the soccer game, his face pale beneath the rising light of the moon.
Kim sighed, scratching at the back of her head. "Sorry, Buyo –"
"My name's Jhybu,"
"– If you want to complain it was Avatar Korra's idea. You might want to take it up with her."
"Whoa, WHOA, KORRA IS HERE?" Bradley exclaimed, eyes bulging with fan boy glee. Kim's face fell as everyone burst into excited chatter. Jackie instantly began to think of the characters of the latest upcoming series with mounting enthusiasm. It was one thing having to wait for a show that hadn't aired yet, but being able to meet those same characters before the show aired? She wasn't sure if she could handle that much fan-service!
"CALM DOWN!" Kim snarled and everyone proceeded to quiet down, almost ducking due to the sheer force of her voice. Kim gave them a hard stare before grinning widely.
"Yes, some of the characters of The Legend of Korra are here –"
"No way!" someone squealed.
"SHUT UP, BRAD!" Kim Earthbended a decent sized rock at the guy's gut; Brad only had time to let out a yelp before falling to the ground. Those around him moved aside to avoid any more possible attacks.
"But… it wasn't… me…" He groaned from the ground.
"Anyway," Kim continued, unperturbed despite the nervous glances people gave Brad's fallen figure. "Some of the characters of the show are here – more to aid in the construction of the adjoining world. Most of what we have here is based on the world of The Last Airbender, and since more stories will begin being written for the Legend of Korra the school is undergoing remodeling so as to fit the canon in that series. However since it has not been aired yet, no students are allowed near the L.o.K characters until the series premiers."
A collective chorus of groans and disappointed sighs filled the air after her announcement. The short boy – Jhybu – shot his hand in the air once more. "But you said I could–"
"That was a joke, Jibby." Kim said with a roll of her eyes. Jhybu dropped his hand with a soft frown, someone clapped him on the shoulder and he sighed.
"Anyway, we've been assigned as the last group to go inside the Hallway. We will only be inside for a few minutes, long enough so you all understand what you'll be up against if you decide to mess with things you shouldn't."
Jackie felt a sudden shock of lightning in her stomach at the déjà vu caused by Kim's last words and turned her attention to the tan guide, searching, yet Kim had already turned around and was leading the group off. Jackie watched the back of the older woman's head with a troubled frown.
"Come on, Cadet." She felt a knock on her head and looked to face a smirking Wolfwood. With a clever comeback on the tip of her tongue, Jackie made to brush past him only to have Elise yank her by her elbow away from him and onwards.
"This is going to be crazy!" Elise exclaimed with an excited grin. Jackie nodded silently, turning to look for Wolfwood but the boy had disappeared amongst the group.
As the last of the sunlight faded it became more difficult to see ahead of them, even with the moonlight. There was a sudden flicker of green ahead of the group, which burst into a gentle glow. Jackie blinked and looked to see Aoi, just a few feet from Kim, holding an orb of green light. Her whirligig spun wildly, white light flashing at the tips of the blade in what looked like sparks.
As they neared, Aoi tossed the green sphere to Kim, who caught it with an outstretched hand. She spun it in her fingers like a basketball and the green ball of light – upon closer inspection, Jackie could see it was made from clear glass and that the light emanated from inside – rose from her palm just a few inches to hover in the air.
"What is that?" Mae Ling asked curiously, eyes transfixed on the glow.
"This is a Mingxing." Kim answered with a grin. "That's Chinese for 'Star', if I'm correct. We have a lot of cool gadgets here in this dimension. This is the equivalent of a lantern or flashlight. However, unlike with a regular lantern or flashlight, with the Mingxing you can control the strength of luminosity from a small flicker to a blinding light. All Guides and most Fetchers are given one, but it's possible you can win one of these babies as a prize in one of the contests we hold here."
Elise let out an appreciative whistle. In a split second, Rufio took off and flew towards Kim, her greedy little paws reaching to snatch the floating orb of light from Kim's grasp. Mae Ling let out a quick gasp before pushing past people, hissing at Rufio to stay away from Kim.
"Ah, ah," Kim sang, turning off the light with a quick grab and yank from the Lemur's reach. "This is no monkey toy, Rufy."
Rufio chattered, sounding confused, and flew around Kim in search of the missing light. Mae Ling managed to catch the flying lemur midair before the animal tried other tactics to grab the Mingxing.
"If you're going to keep the lemur," Kim said as she turned the Mingxing back on. "You'll have to file a permission slip to the Headmasters, keep that in mind."
Even in the dark light of the evening, Jackie could see Mae Ling's face burn hot with embarrassment as she nodded and sputtered a quick apology and her understanding.
"You think they have leashes or collars for Rufio?" Elise asked as the group moved onwards. Mae Ling made her way back to the two and catching Elise's statement scowled and shook her head vehemently.
Clutching Rufio to her chest in a more protective gesture Mae Ling said firmly, "We are NOT collaring Rufio."
"Hold on, Mae," Jackie said gently, "That might not be such a bad idea. We wouldn't want Rufio to get lost right?"
Mae Ling didn't budge. "Rufio is our friend, not a pet. If she wishes to take off and do her thing I'm not going to stop her. Besides, Aang didn't have to put a collar or a leash on Momo so I don't see why we have to with Rufio."
Elise placed a hand on Jackie's shoulder before she could protest. "Mae's got a point. It's not like either of us can take Rufio back to our world when all this is over with."
Jackie sobered at Elise's comment. "When we get sent back to our world… chances are we won't be able to hang out like we can right now."
Mae Ling's scowl faded to a more solemn look. "I live in Seattle."
"Indianapolis," Elise jerked a thumb at her chest.
"Delta, Colorado." Jackie replied and the three girls let out a sigh. A small moment of silence passed between them, and the chatter of other people around them and the sound of footsteps against the ground was all that kept the silence from being overwhelming.
"Well," Elise began, perking up, "at least we're not countries away from each other. Plus, I'm sure we can Skype each other occasionally. We don't have to stop being friends."
Mae Ling smiled, "Yeah. It's not like we're going back to a world without a hope of communication. I'm sure as we get older we'll also be able to visit each other and stuff, right?"
The two girls turned their attention to Jackie and she watched them back with a hesitant look. Jackie moved a lot when she was young and she had many friends that she had lost contact with. She couldn't just outright promise them something that would break with the pressures of time. Yet, their looks were so hopeful, even somewhat naïve. And that was an innocence Jackie realized she didn't want to be responsible for tarnishing, so she smiled at the two girls and extended her arms to tug them into an embrace.
"Of course we will," Jackie chuckled. "We can even become friends on Facebook and stuff. Who says we have to stop being friends?"
The two girls nodded and giggled and returned the warm, albeit slightly awkward walking embrace. Rufio crawled around them quickly with a loud chattering curiosity before settling on top of Jackie's head and looking down at them with wide butter yellow eyes.
The remainder of their walk was occupied with stories they had read on the net and works they were working on themselves. Elise explained that as long as she studied hard she would probably get more people to review her work. Mae Ling had only shrugged, preferring to read than write and that being here was only a way for her to keep an eye on her younger brother and improve her choices in reading and helping others in their work. Jackie couldn't hide the embarrassment when she told the short version of how the Headmasters reacted to her work, and even though Mae Ling elbowed Elise in the gut the girl still couldn't hide her giggles very well. The older girl didn't mind as Elise giggled, in a sense it was kind of funny… in a brutal sort of way.
"Sorry," Elise finally choked out after heaving another bout of giggles. Mae Ling rolled her eyes and Rufio gave a curious gurgle.
"Don't worry about it," Jackie chuckled in response. "It's funny in a way."
Normally, Jackie would've been incredibly offended at the reaction Elise sent her but from what Jackie could tell the freedom fighter didn't harbor a single malicious bone in her body and so it was easy to shrug off the minor irritation that came with having someone laugh about a relatively humbling event.
"But hey, it's what we're here for, innit?" Jackie grinned, "Improvement. We've got to start somewhere and by the end of these four months I'm going to write stories so fantastic people will trip over themselves to read."
"That's the spirit," Mae Ling agreed with a beautiful smile.
Elise nodded and clapped Jackie on the shoulder, "At least you're brave enough to post stuff on the net. I'm too embarrassed to show my work."
"So how'd you get here?" Jackie asked, surprised. It wasn't hard to fall under the impression that recruitment usually was done do to things being posted on the internet… or well… almost posted as was her case.
"It's a bit hard to get, really," Elise shrugged, shoulders brushing the ends of her short hair. "Somehow, my work made it to one of the Fetchers. I've no idea how or why since all I write is stored in my hard drive or in a notebook I've got lying around in my room. Maybe they just have some kind of device that tells people of our interest in writing."
"It makes sense if you think about it," Mae Ling hummed, kicking at a loose pebble. "Maybe they have something that alerts them of potential. We're pretty much here just to learn how to harness our abilities, what we do with them is our choice."
Jackie considered Mae Ling's statement with slightly pursed lips. "It's a bit creepy, though. It's like their watching you or something…"
Elise uttered a low ghostly wail, wiggling her fingers at the girls. Under the green glow of the Mingxing she looked positively eerie but it was enough to make both Mae Ling and Jackie laugh at her antics. Rufio let out a squeak before hiding under Mae Ling's tunic and their laughter only increased at the small lemur's reaction.
The remainder of the walk was spent with the girls talking about other shared interests. Jackie found that despite their age difference she could really confide in the two younger teens. Perhaps it was something to do with the fact they were so inclined to literature and all its wonders that helped in speeding maturity. Jackie could tell both girls had dealt with things throughout their lives that helped such maturities along. Elise, albeit goofy and energetic, was quick witted and didn't flick her gaze at nearly everything around her like Jackie had done when she was her age. She was quite focused and gave Jackie the impression she knew more than she let on.
Mae Ling, despite spouting rants of her younger brother, was careful with her words. It was impressive how much thought she gave when asked a question, ensuring that what she said was straight to the point. Of course both girls did have tendencies to get carried away – but who wouldn't if thrown into a dimension that fulfilled your wildest dreams? – They were well grounded for girls in their early teens.
That or Jackie was just younger in spirit and heart than her chronological age suggested. Either case suited her just fine.
Laughing at a joke Elise had told, Jackie found herself enjoying the girls company. Yet the tiny little voice in the back of her mind that said, "This won't last long. Before long, you'll be back in your world and you won't be able to see them again," sobered her enough before she let herself completely entrust herself to her newest friends.
Glancing around at their group, Jackie's laughter was cut abruptly short.
There, standing like a wraith beside other people was the piercing presence of Wolfwood. Their gaze connected for an instant and the fury that had been sparked by his actions returned nearly full throttle. Jackie could only tear her hardened gaze from the onyx eyed boy before she found herself attacking herself, steeling herself from letting him get under her skin any more than he already did.
But his presence did not cease to prod at the back of her mind. With a lightened mood soured, Jacqueline Ortega could only count the seconds before the laughs around her faded to reverent silence as the towering and most dreaded edifice known as the "Hallway of Endless Sentences" loomed dangerously close to their approaching figures.
Swallowing the turmoil of emotions from clinging to her throat, Jackie squared her shoulders as they neared the building. Kim turned around abruptly, the Mingxing wobbling in the air above her hand.
"We are the last tour to enter this place," the tanned woman announced, her voice no longer carrying the laughing warmth it usually did. "Keep in mind that you will not be allowed to enter this place unless you have broken a code of conduct and that is after the given warnings. If your friend gets sent here, you cannot visit them for obvious reasons."
The silence that spread over the group was so strong not even Rufio dared break it and they watched as Aoi approached Kim with a quick nod.
"The building is, effectively, a maze." Aoi spoke, the whirligig's blades spinning by her ear at a less rapid pace and all manner of light was gone save the reflective flashes of light from the Mingxing. "Much like run on sentences they weave and warp but usually leave dead ends. Whilst you are inside, and you better pray to whatever Deity you worship that you don't, you are given a sentenced time.
"You can shorten your time inside the Hallways by answering grammatical questions or writing prompts. However, it isn't just an area where you walk aimlessly around. Each person taken into the Hallway is given a map and answers to those questions." An astounded murmur rose amongst the crowd at the revelation. Aoi lifted a hand and all noise ceased.
"However," Aoi's face hardened and a smile pulled at her lips. Beneath the light of the Mingxing she looked positively vampiric. "There is a ninety percent chance that that map and those answers could all be wrong and mislead you completely."
Chills and shivers coursed up and down Jackie's body and she suddenly felt her mouth go dry. Audible gulps could be heard all around as people registered the dark information.
"Even worse," She continued and at her voice everyone stiffened. "There is an even greater chance that correct answers and correct directions could be mingled within all the wrong ones. So you're given a choice, test your luck and see how well it leads you or make sure you learn your lessons."
A long pregnant pause followed and Aoi's smile only broadened as a hand somewhere ahead of Jackie rose. Aoi nodded at the person, Jackie looked over some shoulders to recognize the disheveled mop that was Jhybu's hair.
"Do… do people…uh… die in there?" Jhybu asked timidly. The question, although previously asked already by someone else and to a different person, shot icy tendrils of electricity over Jackie's body.
Stiffening, she suddenly felt the surge of Wolfwood's presence right behind her and she clenched her fists. The plaque upon the Hallway of The Never After shoved itself to the very back of her eyes and she dry swallowed in vain to push it away.
"No one dies in this dimension." Aoi announced sharply, as if exasperated by hearing the repeated question. Jhybu's hand was yanked from the air as the boy cowed under the force of the response.
"People are allowed food, water and relief whilst in the hallway." Kim replied, her gentle voice a stark contrast to Aoi's irritation. Jackie frowned as she studied her assigned guide. Aoi's dark eyes were carefully blank as she looked into the crowd, but seemed quite fixed over Jackie's shoulder where she could feel Wolfwood shifting behind her.
"However, it is no happy place. The punishment is ensuring no one breaks the rules again. It is a bit rough but it is effective. Now, we will not take any more questions, so if you have any save them for the end of the tour. We'll enjoy a pretty sweet party after this and…"
Kim's voice trailed off as she began to lead them towards the building yet Jackie remained still.
"You heard Aoi." He spoke in her ear behind her. "No one dies in this dimension." Jackie felt her jaw clench tightly as she felt him move around her and suddenly that same disgusting feeling settled in her stomach. I am not afraid of him. She thought viciously and she could not help but hate her relief when he pulled away.
Her hand tingled in that moment and not even the twinge of mild satisfaction that she had managed to hurt him once was enough to overwhelm the desire to do it again. Because right before he moved on, she had caught sight of the grin on his face and that made her blood boil.
The walk inside was intimidating. The style of the building was nearly exactly the same as its dark cousin. Tall and in the style of an old Victorian mansion, it felt out of place when considering the show's cultural influences but it felt like it needed to be there. Wide stairs rose to its entrance, and Jackie realized that she must might originally have been mistaken. She didn't remember a staircase or an entrance as grand as this one, yet it was the simple idea that she could've only been exposed to the rear-side of the building that crushed whatever hope was beginning to form.
Why is this affecting me so much? She thought irritably. It's just a building. It was just a stupid plaque, let it go.
The doors were immense yet nowhere near as gargantuan as the doors of the Headmasters Chamber. As they neared three Mingxing lights flickered into sight ahead of them. Red, Blue and Yellow Mingxing light brightened as they got closer and Jackie could see that they were floating by themselves just three feet from the large doors.
Kim looked at the star in her hand with a smile, blew on it and as if blowing a candle the light within the glass orb flickered as if tickled before glowing brighter. She then moved it towards the other lights and positioned it next to the yellow Mingxing. The group of lights flashed brilliantly once before shooting to the ceiling of the vestibule they stood beneath.
The colors intermingled and Jackie watched them fascinated before looking back at Kim's smiling face, the gap in her teeth a bizarre yet still endearing little shadow. "Alright, make sure to stay close! Get ready!"
A loud click resounded behind the guide and the doors pushed open. A cold wind followed by an equally intense heat blew at them from within the building and Jackie grimaced as she saw several lights within the distance. The depth of which the lights were set gave the illusion that the building was bigger on the inside yet she knew it was no illusion.
The group followed the perky Kim with caution, but no one dared pause.
As soon as the last person entered the dark hallway the doors slid silently closed. The tension was high as people walked. No one dared breathe a word. The only sounds were the scuffing sound of shoes striking stone and the ragged breaths of wary students. From the corner of her eyes, Jackie saw Rufio curl around Mae Ling, clearly spooked.
The Mingxing lights, Jackie noted, were all a pale yellow as they walked and seemed to hang suspended in mid air very much like the lights at the entrance. Yet the light didn't seem to touch walls, only the floor ahead of them and despite the feeling of vast space it was suffocating. A hand suddenly grasped Jackie's tightly and she nearly jumped with a start.
"Sorry," someone whispered, and her hand was dropped. Jackie turned to see Elise, face pale in the poor lighting. Jackie shook her head and offered a light smile, extending her hand for Elise to grab.
Elise smiled weakly and allowed her hand to curl around Jackie's. The older girl gave a gentle and reassuring squeeze.
The walk was long and torturous and only seemed to put everyone around her on edge. Elise's hand, once warm and gentle, felt cold and tight in her own and Jackie wasn't sure if it was because of the bizarre temperature or if it was because the girl was struggling to maintain her calm.
The lights around them no longer felt like aids for their darkened journey but felt like links of a constrictive chain around them. A sudden bout of claustrophobia struck Jackie in the gut and it took all her willpower to keep herself from doubling over in hysteria.
"Alright!" the cheery comment was like a shout after those long minutes spent in tight silence and everyone nearly jumped at the abrupt voice.
Kim had turned around with a grin that in normal circumstances would've sparked a contagious mirth but under the darkness and pale lighting seemed manic and disturbing. Even the gap in her teeth felt eerie. Looking behind the guide Jackie spotted another set of double doors, obscured by the darkness and virtually untouched by the Mingxing light. She would've walked straight into it if she had been looking for it, Jackie noted.
"We've passed the relatively nice part," Kim announced and Jackie's jaw dropped in disbelief. Relatively…?
"Oh, take a breather," Kim waved carelessly at the group. "We're not going to go through the entire maze, that'd be ridiculously stupid."
A collective sigh passed throughout the group like a wave and Kim only grinned widely again. Jackie wasn't sure if she appreciated the woman's efforts at lightening the mood or wanted to punch her for being so… cheery in a place this depressing.
"We're just going to pass through a separate maze. It's smaller and more user friendly for the tours, and it'll give you a taste of what it's really like in there!"
If Jackie hadn't already been standing inside a building designed to discipline misbehavior she was sure she would've hurt Kim then and there, and judging by the rise in tension Jackie wouldn't put it past the rest of her tour-mates to be feeling the same way.
"Oh don't worry," Kim continued, oblivious to the suddenly murderous and horrorstruck aura that was now pushing from the eyes of those around her. "It's like comparing milk to scotch or whatever hard liquor your enjoy… as long as you're of age. Hm…that wasn't as general as I would've hoped." The guide rambled and Jackie realized Kim was probably just as edgy as her students.
"Kim," Aoi appeared next to her and the other guide heaved a sigh. "I'll take care of the rest." Jackie squeezed Elise's hand one more time, more of an attempt to comfort herself than the younger girl. Aoi turned and, with a carefully blank poker face, eyed them all for a moment.
"This final tour is only fifteen minutes long. When we go in we will make our way to the Admittance Chamber, where the crew will greet you and offer words of warning. Captain Zha Yu is the head of the security guards here and a teacher too. He doesn't teach much, though; prefers to work here and only really teaches action writing, specifically fight scenes. Just...don't make direct eye contact and you should be fine."
Jackie felt her stomach drop. Aoi was not doing a very good job in easing them in this next part. Knowing the guide, Jackie was pretty sure Aoi didn't really care very much at this point if they were comfortable or not. "That would defeat the purpose of the tour," Jackie was sure she would say.
"Once we're done with that we will make our way through the… user friendly maze." Aoi paused slightly as she considered Kim's description of that part of the tour with a contemplative nod. "Don't worry," Her voice took a gentler tone, "Once this part is good and over with you can enjoy some time with friends in the final festivities and tomorrow… the real fun begins."
Jackie looked up at the large doors ahead of them with some trepidation. A squeeze on her hand reminded her of Elise and turning to see the girl she felt some relief at her smile.
"You're okay?" Elise asked. Jackie nodded before seeing Mae Ling on Elise's opposite side. The two girls were grasping hands as well.
Forcing a grin that didn't feel quite so bogus, Jackie lifted their joined hands with a good shake. "I've got all I need right now." The two girls replied with bright smiles that would've been brighter anywhere else.
"Not to worry people, we're only going to be in here fifteen minutes! What's the worst that could happen? Eh? Alright, let's get a-going!" Kim exclaimed before turning, the large doors emitting a loud click that boomed in the empty space before inwardly sliding open, a similar blast of cold chill followed by thick heat blew their hair and clothes back and a brilliantly white light blinded them to the inside of their destination.
"Welcome to the Hallway of Endless Sentences!"
Jackie flinched as the bright light flashed once before it dimmed. Spots covered her vision as her eyes attempted to adjust to the sudden change in lighting and she found herself, along with her tour-mates, in a wide room. It looked no different than what Jackie would imagine a posh hotel lobby room to look like with its fine carpeting and exquisite furnishing. However it was wrong, because posh hotel lobbies weren't furnished in such dark and pale colors, they didn't emit a feeling of entrapment. This room did.
Standing just ahead of them was the very same dark and intimidating man who had stood by Jake Wu's side during the final assembly and Jackie felt her stomach give a wriggle of uncertainty as his eyes scanned each and every one of them with such coldness. He was no longer dressed in the warm red robes of the Fire Nation. The armor he wore was dark steel and was clearly no stranger to the battlefield. Jackie glanced at his crossed arms and recognized the gauntlets. Her eyes flicked to Aoi and yes, she and Zha Yu had matching sets. Frowning, Jackie studied Aoi with pursed lips, before turning to face Kim.
"Everyone this is Captain Zha Yu!" Kim introduced cheerily and Jackie almost smiled at the comical irony of such cheery positivity in the face of someone so frightening.
"Captain, if you please," Kim bowed and urged him forward. The tall man took one step forward and it was enough to nearly have everyone take two steps back, his lips curled back to show brilliant white teeth that looked rather more like fangs in the dark room.
"This is the Hallway of Endless Sentences." The man's voice boomed over them and Jackie fought the urge to cringe away from his merciless stare. "I'm sure you've been entertained with the process of getting sent here and that is all well and good…" he trailed off, his lips stretching into a taunting smirk that made Jackie gulp.
"But what they failed to tell you is that this is my domain. You get sent here, you will be at my mercy and you better hope to God that you don't." He finished with a dark chuckle that sent chills up everyone's spines.
"I've been instructed to give you a taste of how things work here," He crossed his arms behind his back before pacing in front of them, each step hit the carpeted floor with a firm thud and Jackie's eyes flicked to his black combat boots before back to his face, making sure she didn't make direct eye contact.
"And a taste is exactly what you'll get." Zha Yu strode past them towards a set of doors at the other side of the finely furnished lobby. "My job right at this moment is to, in the words of the headmasters, "Ensure that students are made aware of the consequences of misconduct". In other words, If I have to scare the spit out of you to make sure you don't do something stupid," he turned to face them before placing a hand on one of the silver doorknobs, "then I'll make sure to do just that." The door opened to reveal a long and dimly lit hallway that seemed to stretch without end.
"You will go inside a specially designed Hallway that will show you exactly what you will be going up against. Because, however, none of you have actually committed any misdeeds – that we are aware of – the Hallway will be at a low level of security, ergo, it will be shockingly easy for you to get past the maze."
Someone in the back made the mistake of heaving a sigh of relief and Zha Yu's golden eyes flicked towards that part of the group before grinning widely. Jackie felt herself cower under the force of his stare despite the fact it was not aimed at her and yet despite how much she wanted to look away she couldn't.
"Oh, don't get your hopes up," Zha Yu chortled. "Some people who've already gone through this level experienced an inability to hold in their lunch. So don't think this is going to be a parade in the park, because I will personally assure each and every one of you," he fixed them all with a devilish grin.
"It won't be."
Silence followed his statement before he moved towards another door that seemingly appeared out of nowhere and disappeared behind it. Aoi walked towards the front of the group and with a nod she looked the group over, "Alright, people. The faster we go through this sooner we get to party. Let's move!"
The squeak of metal sliding against metal met the ears of the quiet librarian and fetcher as she placed the last file in her care for the day. All the information of their newest students had been archived and making sure to turn off the light of the room of archives, Ranai let out a long sigh. Pressing the bridge of her spectacles farther up her nose and closer to her eyes she gave the room a last glance before shutting the door behind her. The Library was closed and most everyone who worked with her had already left to prepare for the night's festivities. It was, after all, the last party before classes and the day had gone rather well despite the occasional hiccup amongst students and staff.
Looking up she saw some of the books that were suspended in mid-air had ceased moving across the tall ceiling of the annals, no doubt their unknown authors having stopped their writing for the night, whilst other books were still moving about, papers and pages coming together in a flurry of quiet whooshes and whisper thin fluttering. As she watched she saw one of the manuscripts fly off towards the section of covers and smiled as a soft yellow cover floated towards the stack of papers before it flashed a small glow and the book, now attached to its new cover, flew off to be sorted.
It was a spectacular sight and she knew she would never get tired of it. So many papers and covers meeting to signify the completion of a story, it was incredible. Someone, out there in the world, just finished the tale that had plagued them at night. Of course, it was only fan-fiction but it was no less inspiring. Writing was a daunting activity, and only a writer knew its hazards.
The lack of sleep, the constant revising and self criticism, the fear of rejection, and the hope that whoever was given the chance to read that work would not be left disappointed. Even battling words that never really sit in the right place to truly portray the story as the author intended. It was all difficult, and so for someone to see something so simple and seemingly unimportant come together at last after who-knows-how-long… it always put a smile on her face.
Ranai turned and shut the door of the Room of Archives behind her, lifting a hand to bend the metal around it she turned a hand and felt the lock click into place. She wasn't a particularly powerful bender at all, preferring to read and watch instead of getting part of the action. All she could manage was turning some locks and lifting small metallic objects in the air and that was it.
Not many people were allowed the ability to bend metal and despite her ardent desire to bend air when she had first joined the school's staff she became used to her given ability and even enjoyed it on occasion.
Pulling at her sleeves Ranai glanced through the stacks to ensure she was the only one in the library and that no one was attempting to sneak in a late night read. It was routine and Ranai enjoyed it. A sudden buzz in the pocket of her tunic startled her and she quickly pulled a hand through the fabric and grasped at her totem.
Every Fetcher and Guide was given the chance to pick out a totem or a Line. People were allowed to pick things like chess pieces, or pencils and pens. Ranai knew of a friend who worked in the Department of Grammar who had picked out a pair of Chinese meditation spheres as her totem. Aoi's was the most well known as not many people picked something as infantile as a whirligig. In a sense, that was why she was on such good terms with the Guide, because she didn't criticize or laugh at her choice of a totem.
Pulling it out, Ranai made quick work of the twists and turns and in within few moments all the colors of her Rubik's Cube were on the necessary sides. The cube's colored dials lit up, and soon the small puzzle rose in the air over her palm, lighting up in several patterns before all the colors began to glow a dark and ominous red.
Ranai's eyes widened in surprise and she snatched the cube from the air, nimble fingers twisting and turning the sides once more in frenzy as she hurried to relay the message sent to her.
The center tile lit up a bright white and the light from within spread through the cracks of the cube. Words began to appear in front of her through the light from the tile and Ranai lifted the cube so it would access the message without any interference.
"Emergency Protocol Fifty One: Creation of Troll Detected. Please report to the Central Defense Mainframe. Message 2150."
If there was moment to run any faster it was then. Ranai's blood chilled as she burst through the doors of the Library and rushed towards the main building, hands lifting to display her badge and her cube – not bothering to entertain the confused looks of whoever moved out of her way.
It was the beginning of classes! Ranai thought despairingly as she ran, her feet striking the ground with the grace of someone who had no athletic experience at all. Yet she did not allow herself to stop even though her sides were aching and her legs were already beginning to burn.
Who would dare create a troll now and why!
Pushing past several doors she found herself surrounded by Metalbenders and she quickly flashed them her badge. They turned and escorted her past the hallways of classes and towards the hall of the Headmasters.
Portraits of students and staff and other works of art surrounded her on all sides, and any other day Ranai would have loved to just browse to see them all, for it wasn't always often given the chance to walk in the hall of the Headmasters. The sound of metal clanking on metal and footsteps rushing over carpeted floor was the only thing she heard as they moved towards a side door with big red and bold letters announcing, STAFF ONLY, along with a scanner for identification.
She quickly flashed her badge over the scanner and then held her cube in front of it. One quick beam of light from the scanner into the object and the door slid open for the group to go inside. Whilst it was silent in the hallway it was complete and organized chaos inside.
The room was designed in the style of an indoor amphitheater with a large screen at its front. Each row of desks was aligned with large computers and wide-ranging technology that spanned most of the space inside. Currently people were running to and fro from desks of information, relaying orders and shouting statistics and numbers that to anyone else would've not made any sense at all.
The large red and bold words, TROLL DETECTED flashed brilliantly on the top of the huge screen as windows of scrolling data blurred words at incredible speeds. At its center a wide and hollow triangle was scanning for signals around a map of a bird's eye view of the campus. Graphs and Charts of erratically changing numbers popped up and out as the computer attempted to hold on to the signal that left everyone running about in a frantic search for more information.
"Someone track down the beast NOW!" Ranai heard shouted on the opposite side of the room where a similar door to the one she had just entered from slid shut with a hiss. People stopped to look up at the exceptionally angry face of Headmistress Baikei.
Her beautiful robes were replaced by a tunic and trousers and metal armor similar to that of the Metalbenders. Her long black hair was lifted into a high ponytail and her bangs were pulled back, exposing her full death glare to the screen ahead of them.
"Headmistress," one of the technicians spoke quickly, Ranai hurried along to near the imposing figure of the very angry and very dangerous Baikei, "We're doing the best we can."
"Let me make this clear to you, Blakeley." Baikei snapped, turning the full force of her wrath on the balding middle-aged man. "If that creature so much as materializes anywhere near a student and that student has to be sent back to their world because we weren't saved by the best you can do, I'll make sure you are out of this dimension and without a memory of this place faster than you can scream 'Troll in the Dungeon!' Do I make myself perfectly clear?"
The technician paled under the glare of the Headmistress' threat before nodding vigorously and turning towards the rest of the people scrambling about, yelled, "You heard her, get a move on!"
Ranai was at a computer in seconds and scrambling to gather information on the troll's materialization point.
"I FOUND IT!" someone cried, and turned waving a frantic arm over their head. He was a dark skinned boy who seemed no older than fifteen. His pinstriped red tunic stretched a bit loose over his body and he quickly tightened the gold and black trimmed sash at his waist to keep it from slipping over his slim body.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Baikei barked. "Put it on the screen!"
The boy blushed and quickly sputtered, "Uh… I don't know how to do that…"
"Move aside!" Ranai exclaimed before flying towards the boy. He moved aside quickly as she typed rapid commands on the keyboard. The image appeared on the screen in seconds and the hush that fell over everyone was one of relief.
"Thank the spirits!" someone gasped.
"If there was any place for a troll to appear I don't think I would've wished for a better one," the first technician breathed. The boy at Ranai's side slumped against a desk and placed a hand to his forehead.
"Is this information accurate?" Baikei asked, her voice losing its frantic edge yet still remained serious and commanding.
"Yes, ma'am," Ranai replied, turning to face the Earth Headmistress. "The information does point the troll's origins lead it to appear in the Hallway of Endless Sentences."
"Have all the tours completed the final tour?"
"Yes, ma'am," someone else replied and everyone let a sigh of relief. Even Baikei seemed less panicked now and even gave a smile to everyone.
"Excellent work, boy. What's your name?" Baikei asked the boy next to Ranai. His dark skin flushed at the sudden attention and he quickly cleared his throat and straightened up.
"A-Arturo Amador, ma'am," He said with a smile.
"Good work, Arturo." Baikei nodded at him before turning to the rest of them. "I've one more order for you; I want a message sent to Captain Zha Yu about this new addition to his charge. As for everyone else here, I want the people responsible for this situation caught and sent to my offices for questioning immediately whilst I prepare the expulsion papers! I do not want this to happen again!"
There were nods of agreement before everyone turned back to their work. Baikei let out a soft sigh before making her way back towards the exit.
"Headmistress!" A panicked exclamation made her turn. Ranai was standing over a monitor with a look of horror.
"What is it?" Baikei demanded, fists clenching in preparation.
"I just looked at the figures; it appears we haven't received all the accounts of all the tours just yet."
Baikei's face paled at the statement and moved towards the younger girl in a flurry of steps and leaps over large monitors. "Do you mean to tell me not all the tours have completed the final tour?"
Ranai's cheeks were pale under the lighting of the monitors around her. The triangle on the large screen was pulsing red over the building of the Hallway of Endless Sentences, "Just one group, ma'am."
"Which one?" The headmistress insisted and Ranai gulped.
"Yun Kim's group was assigned as the last tour and we received information from the Mingxing that they have entered the Hallway just five minutes ago. She is also accompanied… by your sister, Aoi."
Baikei was deadly silent at the declaration and her green eyes were wide and unfocused now. A long stretch of silence followed and people waited for the Headmistress to speak. Finally after a few long moments Baikei let out a long sigh.
"What is the Level of the Troll?"
"L-level 6, ma'am," someone else replied.
"Are we sure they have not finished the tour yet?" Baikei asked, clenching her fists as she leaned over a blinking monitor. Silence met her query and she took a deep breath.
"Report," she said briskly and one of the technicians moved towards her, holding a translucent pad with several glowing words and charts flashing through its exterior.
"The Hallway of Endless sentence is at its lowest level of security at this moment because of the tour to ensure the protection of the students. This also means the Troll won't be subject to the Hallway's maze." The technician explained, her voice wavering as the Headmistress turned her full gaze on her.
"Right now, those people are trapped in a maze with a Troll and if we increase the security level to contain the troll we risk those people lost within the maze itself."
"What if we just send them all the answers and maps so they can get themselves out?" Someone asked and the technician shook her head.
"A level Six Troll would require a level 2 security standard lock-down within the Hallway to be fully contained before Guards could dispatch it. It needs to be weakened over a period of time. The safest level security standard for any human would be a level 4 and even that is dangerous. We cannot risk a level 2 unless we plan on abandoning those people there for months. The Hallway has been designed so that cheating did not occur within it, so sending in all the answers and right choices is impossible. "
Ranai let out a wavering sigh as beads of sweat ran down her face.
"How much time until the Troll is truly manifested?" Baikei asked and the sound of typing filled the air with tense atmosphere.
"Seven minutes and fifteen seconds," came the reply. Baikei slammed a fist over the wood of a desk and people all around her flinched at the sudden display of anger.
"Seven minutes and counting…" Baikei whispered before turning towards one of the Elite Metal Benders. "Get all the guards and staff down there this instant. I want that tour group out of that place immediately."
"But ma'am, we can't possibly get there in time—," someone tried to interject before Baikei whirled and roared at them all.
"We have no time to waste! I would rather spend these precious seconds sending in all the help we can spare to save those people! We have approximately seven minutes for that beast to appear, but we should pray it will appear at a good distance away from those people just enough to give us extra time for our guards to get there. I will NOT spend these last few moments weeping because of something I couldn't control. Get those people out of there and find me the person responsible for this!"
A split second of stunned silence followed her shout. She looked at all of them in disbelief before throwing her arms in the air and crying out, "MOVE!" and that was all it took for everyone to burst into action.
Ranai's fingers sped over buttons and hot keys so fast they were a blur to her own eyes and while she tried to find some form of trace to the true origin of the Troll she sent a tiny prayer of hope to whatever spirit or god was out there to protect those people long enough for help to arrive.
They'd been walking through dark and dreary hallways for seven minutes. Every step forward was only achieved because of the promise of eventual escape, food and festivities. At that moment, though, Jackie wanted nothing more than to run off, jump in her mother's arms, curl in her bed with a cup of hot cocoa and watch her favorite episode of Doctor Who. This place reminded her of the episode with the Satan Pit. The walls were high, so high it looked like there was no ceiling and yet it wasn't starlight that greeted her, just pitch black.
Jackie swallowed for the umpteenth time and gave Elise's cold hand another squeeze. It only took a second for the girl to squeeze back and she was slightly comforted by the presence of her friend. The only light they had was the one and dim glow of the Mingxing hovering over Kim's hand. The group turned yet another corner, (how many has it been since they started? Seven? Thirteen?) and the silence that stretched over them was worse, if possible, than the silence in the hallway before the lobby.
It wasn't just chilling, it was pressing. As if the swirling depths of black above them were slowly inching towards their heads, threatening to crush them. Someone up front fell to their knees, gasping, and a quick flash in Jackie's peripheral vision was enough to catch her full attention. Looking over several shoulders, Jackie saw Aoi pull out something from the pocket of her tunic before giving it to Jhybu, his shoulders shaking as he hyperventilated.
It wasn't two seconds later that the boy finally relaxed and let out a sigh. Aoi stared intently into his eyes, before whispering something Jackie couldn't quite make out. She guessed it was a question because the boy nodded vehemently and then stood quickly.
The collapse, at this point, hadn't shocked Jackie in the slightest. Three people had already dropped due to the crushing claustrophobia of the location and Aoi had come to the rescue without hesitation. Whatever it was she gave them, Jackie didn't know, but it's proved in its effectiveness. Once Jhybu had stood, Aoi gave the boy a quick smile before turning to the rest of the group.
"We're almost through, guys. Just another few minutes and we should reach the end—"
The sound of an explosion ahead of them shook the walls and ground beneath them. Jackie let out a cry as the force swept her off her feet and straight to her knees. Hot knives of pain shot up her knees, up her spine and through her head and she lost Elise's hand in the commotion.
Hissing in pain as the ground continued to shake; panic crept into her stomach as she tried to make sense of what was happening. In the explosion the light of the Mingxing disappeared, swallowing them all in darkness.
The sound of people letting out cries and yelps of pain and confusion mixed with all the chaos and Jackie searched in the ground for something familiar. In the near distance, Jackie could catch the frightened screeches and gurgles of Rufio and she scrambled to near the scared animal. Something fell from above and struck the side of her head and Jackie groaned as the pain in her head increased; the roar of the shaking around her deafening everything else.
"Mae!" Jackie exclaimed, wincing as the pain in her head throbbed. Jackie nearly tripped over a leg and distinctly felt someone's fingers under her knee but there was so much chaos she didn't have time to apologize. All that mattered was finding Mae Ling and Elise.
"Jackie!" She heard to her left and she began to maneuver around to near the voice.
"Mae! Elise!" Jackie cried over the rumbling roar. Her heart pounded in her ears and her breathing came in ragged huffs as she tried to feel around in the pitch darkness.
"Jackie!" She suddenly heard right in front of her and Jackie stopped. Moving her hands to feel in front of her, Jackie felt bare arms and some tunic. Those same arms moved and hands met clumsily with her own and all Jackie could do was pull herself next to whoever this was and push them close, keeping their head low. Jackie could feel long hair tied to a braid brush against her arm and Jackie recognized Mae Ling's whimpers.
"Just hold on!" Jackie exclaimed, tightening her hold over the panicking girl.
Seconds passed like hours and suddenly the ground quit its merciless shaking. Silence followed the chaos like a shock and the heavy breathing of people around her was all that registered in Jackie's mind as she tried to make sense of what just happened.
Seconds hung above them like string tied to a roof and the sudden flickering of green light to her side nearly made Jackie flinch. Someone coughed.
"Is everyone alright?" Jackie turned to see Aoi holding onto her side with a pained expression, blood smeared down her left temple, her hair a tangled mess.
"What," Brad groaned. Jackie was pleased to see the big guy hadn't suffered anything than a bruised cheek as he lifted himself by her side, "the hell," he paused for breath, "was that?"
"You said this would be safe!" someone else exclaimed before groaning in pain.
"I can assure you this wasn't planned." Aoi replied, somehow managing to look calm despite her injuries.
"Well, then what was that?" Brad exclaimed, sounding more confused than furious. Aoi turned, surveying the damage before looking down at the Mingxing.
"Everyone stay calm, I'm going to send out a message to the Mainframe and I need you all to be quiet. I'm sure this is probably a glitch in the system. There's nothing to worry about."
"Yeah, tell that to my back…" Brad groaned as he righted himself from his sprawled position on the ground. Jackie took time to look around, Mae Ling peeking out from under her to see the chaos. All around them people were sprawled on the ground, the rubble and dust rising and settling from the quake. Somewhere someone coughed and Jackie felt Mae Ling give a shudder before the girl coughed as well.
"You alright?" Jackie asked, moving to get off the fifteen year old. Mae Ling coughed again before nodding, she straightened from her position, Rufio peeked out from beneath her looking ruffled and frightened but nonetheless fine.
"Yeah," Mae Ling choked out before clearing her throat. "Just fine before you decided to crush me."
"Oi, I was keeping you safe from all the falling rocks." Jackie replied with a half-smile, trying to make sense of all the chaos and what she could see in the dim green light. People were beginning to raise from the ground, some with injuries, others without.
There was Jhybu, sporting a black eye and looking extremely frightened. Kim was already standing and was Earthbending a large piece of rubble from off the leg of the girl with the ponytail from the soccer game. Brad was already up, groaning and muttering under his breath and Aoi was busy tapping furiously on what looked like a map card.
But… where was Elise? And upon further search, Wolfwood was also missing.
"Elise?" Jackie called, grunting as she lifted herself to her feet, her knees throbbing in sync with the pain of her head. Breathing deeply Jackie tried to see through the poor light and dust calling her friends name one more time.
"Where is she? Is she here?" Mae Ling gasped, grasping at Jackie's arm with shaky fingers. Jackie glanced at her friend, unable to see her face as the shadows obscured everything but the edges of her figure. Jackie swallowed, trying to shake off the pain of her temple. Rufio was curled around Mae Ling's neck, her butter yellow eyes glowed an off-shade of green from the Mingxing.
"I don't know, I can't see or hear her." Jackie replied after another quick scan of the room.
"Elise!" Mae Ling called, hysteria coloring her voice. Jackie found her hand after a quick fumbling movement and turned to face the girl, moving her so that she could see her eyes clearly.
"Mae, I'm going to go look for Elise." Jackie said quickly. Mae Ling gasped, her hand lifting to rest over her mouth.
"Jackie," Mae Ling whispered, horrified. "Your head…!"
"Never mind me, Mae." Jackie said, grasping the girl's hand with firmness. "I need to find Elise. Stay here and see if you can help Aoi with… whatever it is she's doing."
"But how are you going to find her?" Mae Ling asked. Jackie gave her a humorless smile before letting go and walking off. Rubble and dust crunched under her feet as Jackie tried to keep herself steady. "Jackie, I don't think that's a good idea!"
"I'll be fine, stay with the group!" Jackie threw over her shoulder as she stumbled over a rock the size of her fist. The air was cool against her face. Jackie breathed, more as a way to calm herself. Something was wrong… but then again this whole place was wrong.
But somehow, there was something different. A whole different kind of wrong and Elise could be in the middle of it and Jackie had to help.
Throwing a glance over her shoulder, Jackie found Aoi just a few yards away, spinning at her whirligig and looking frustrated, the green light of Mingxing making her face look pale. Kim was kneeling by that same girl, studying her leg. Brad was busy helping Jhybu up and Mae Ling had made her way to help someone off the ground, dust rising as they shook their hair from the dirt.
Jackie walked slowly, not being able to see the obstacles ahead of her as clearly as she'd like. Nonetheless she pushed forward. Elise hadn't been back with the group and Wolfwood was missing. There were sixteen people in the group, seventeen including Aoi. All those were back there only counted to fifteen… Jackie took in a deep breath as she stumbled, her heart jumped to her throat as her train of thought broke.
Her head was throbbing again and her knees ached as she moved about but that didn't matter. How could someone have moved so far ahead in that kind of chaos?
Maybe she ran, Jackie rationalized. Maybe she bumped into Wolfwood and they tried to find a safe haven while the quake relaxed.
Her initial distaste for the boy returned with vehemence but she forced herself to trust him. I rather she's with him than alone.
It was getting darker the further she moved. The pressing black of the hallway seemed to coat her skin with cold sweat and as she stumbled yet again she found her hands were shaking. She growled as she shook her hands and wiped her palms on her tunic. "El…Elise?" Jackie called out.
The light of the Mingxing suddenly brightened behind her, pushing the shadows away a few feet and Jackie suddenly found herself at an intersection. Three different hallways stood at her sides and ahead of her, the light only exposing their entrance for a few seconds before the shadows crept back to their original place.
Jackie pushed herself to the side, her hand extending to feel the cold wall. Preferring to slide her feet on the ground instead of stepping, Jackie maneuvered through rubble and had to be careful as some parts of the ground split to reveal wide cracks that would've become nasty surprise falls had she been less careful.
Jackie felt along the wall, the stone was cool and rough to the touch. Stretching her fingers along she made sure to hop over a particular wide crack only to stumble viciously as the wall broke into the corner and she had to bite her lip from crying out in surprise.
"Elise!" Jackie exclaimed, exhaling when her echo returned to her ears. Okay, long hallway. Jackie waited a few seconds until her echoes subsided back into silence and swallowed. Ten seconds. Very long hallway…
Jackie waited a little while for a reply. If Elise had gone through here she would have heard her calling. Jackie moved on. A few more steps and she felt a hollow breath of cool air to her left and in the darkness the blacker part of the void appeared like a permanent black splotch. "Okay, next hallway…" she breathed and took a moment to call out to Elise.
Unlike the other hallway her call seemed to slap back to her in a few seconds. Dead end…
Something in the idea of a complete stop and the word dead struck a hysterical chord and, chest suddenly heaving, Jackie screamed Elise's name again.
"Jackie!" She heard in the distance just ahead, no doubt in the third hallway, just straight ahead.
"Elise!" Jackie called again, throwing caution to the wind as the relief of hearing her friend safe and sound just a few yards ahead.
"Jackie! Don't!" She heard and as she jumped another crack she heard a sudden crash, as if it were in the distance.
"Run! Run!" Jackie heard another voice, masculine. Wolfwood?
"Jackie, Get away! Run!" Jackie pressed herself against the wall, confused. The air began to pick up as if someone opened a window on a windy day.
"Elise, what is it? What's going on?" Jackie called out, suddenly catching the urgency in their voices and the echoing footsteps as they ran. Another crash but this one was so strong it shook the ground and walls around her, Jackie yelped as another rock fell over her.
"Jackie, RUN!" Elise screamed and a bright burst of red light blinded Jackie at the end of that Hallway. Flinching away, Jackie nearly fell over a crack as she lifted a hand to block the harshest part of the light. Two silhouettes were running full speed towards her, jumping over rocks and cracks as they fled but her eyes remained on the source of the light and she could feel something build in her stomach as she tried to register what that was.
A sudden shriek, like metal scraping painfully on metal and glass being scratched with stone like fingernails dragging and breaking over a chalkboard, struck Jackie like a thousand needles and she threw her hands to her ears, doubling over and yet she could not tear her eyes off that thing.
It was a creature, at least fifteen feet high. Its flesh was like fire and molten earth burning and smoldering the shadows around them. Balrog… Jackie thought, horrified. But it wasn't like the mythical creature from Lord of The Rings, as it didn't have twisting horns and an animalistic appearance. Instead of a scowl over its hideous maw was spread a chilling crooked grin, fangs curled and spread over its jaws and its eyes… it had no eyes but deep holes that were so pitch black the darkness around her suddenly felt benign.
It spread its arms and pressed its large claws against the walls, cracks burst from where it touched and its huge feet crashed on the ground. If there were ever a creature to personify fear and nightmare, it was this one.
It looked over the running figures of Elise and Wolfwood as if amused and curious before jerking its attention to Jackie and it let out another bone snapping shriek. Jackie screamed, pressing herself against the wall as she felt its gaze press over her with something akin to bloodlust.
"JACKIE! RUN!" She heard yet she was caught within its evil stare. This was a demon, Jackie knew and there was no fear like facing it.
Hands grabbed at her shoulders that yanked at her from her frozen position and pushed her to run. "Now's not the time to freeze, cadet!" she heard as she was shoved, and Jackie felt newfound energy and adrenaline melt the ice that had frozen her hopeless.
"What the hell is that?" Jackie cried over the crashes. She jumped over a crack and nearly stumbled a large piece of rubble that was not there before.
"Never mind that," Wolfwood shot over his shoulder, Elise running by his side looking just as frightened as Jackie felt. "Run!"
But their run was yanked to a stop as a sudden wall stood right before them, covering their escape. Jackie nearly crashed into the wall, her hands pressing against the rough stone, searching in a panic.
"This can't be! This wasn't here before!" Jackie shouted, pushing at the impossible dead end. "How?" she shouted again. She had just walked through here and there was not wall! "Aoi! Kim!" Jackie screamed, pounding at the rock.
Wolfwood's hand grabbed at her wrist and yanked her to the side, "This way!" he pushed and the three ran to the left down a completely new hallway that hadn't been there before. Bright red light streamed right behind them, evidence that the creature was right behind them. It let out another shriek, and Elise stumbled with a yelp. Wolfwood grabbed her arm and hoisted her back up, never ceasing in their running.
It was nearly impossible, running towards the darkness but the ever present danger of the beast behind them only made them run harder. Jackie panted, feeling her body adjust again to the feeling of running, her backpack slapping against her back and she made a mental note to thank her mother for taking her to the gym with her to run on treadmills and get in shape as a way to keep her busy. Her feet rolled off the ground, legs straightening behind her and giving her enough strength and momentum to push off into long strides that made her faster.
Wolfwood grabbed her wrist again before yanking her to the right and suddenly they were running down a new hallway. They jumped over rocks and cracks and soon the light dimmed behind them and Wolfwood led them down yet another hallway but this one slanted downwards.
"Where are we going?" Jackie asked over rhythmic breaths.
"As far away as we can get from it!" Wolfwood replied shortly before grabbing her hand again and yanking her down another direction. Jackie glanced to Wolfwood's other side and saw Elise throw a glance behind them, her short hair whipping over her face.
"Elise, are you okay?" Jackie asked after they jumped another crack.
"Just… fine!" She called back, heaving a quick laugh as they continued their escape "Will be much better once we get rid of that thing!"
Another shriek and Jackie nearly fell to her knees and if it hadn't been for Wolfwood's grip over her hand she might've met her fate on the ground.
They continued to run for what felt like eternity. Soon fire was burning its way through Jackie's legs and arms, her lungs feeling heavy and tight. The bright red light of the creature dimmed nearly to nothing now and it was becoming more and more impossible to make out their surroundings. After stumbling over a rock and scraping her shin rather nastily, Wolfwood reached into his pocket and pulled out something rectangular and tapped its center, light burst through and after a few moments of rapid tapping the light brightened substantially. He aimed what was in his hand in their direction and Jackie heaved a particular heavy sigh in relief at being able to see where they were going.
Another dark hallway appeared and without a word the trio turned into it, running a few more steps before Elise began to slow down, her breaths coming in heavy and labored.
Wolfwood and Jackie slowed as the girl nearly stopped running but continued to push at a light jog. The two were panting and stopped by her; Wolfwood placed a hand over the young girl's shoulder and nodded. A silent conversation passed in their eyes that baffled Jackie until Elise slumped against a wall, heaving.
"What was that?" Jackie asked.
"We're going to rest for a moment," Wolfwood replied, ignoring her question as he gazed at Elise with concern.
Jackie looked at the two of them with surprise but focused her attention on Elise. "Hey," She said softly, kneeling by the girl as she slid to the ground. Elise gave her a smile as she gasped for breath.
"Boy…" Elise heaved, "Am I…glad to see you. How long has it been… A few hours, maybe more?"
Jackie frowned, "El, it's been a few minutes since I last saw you."
Wolfwood stepped close, rigid. "What do you mean?" Jackie stood to look at him, he was pointing the light towards the ceiling to make it bounce around them and at a glance Jackie recognized its source as a map card.
"I mean, it's only been just a few minutes since the first quake. Why?" Jackie asked tightly, feeling her original wariness of him return as he stared at her intently. He looked away, swearing under his breath.
"Hey, watch your mouth!" Jackie shot in annoyance, hoping Elise didn't catch it. "Anyway, what's going on? What was that thing and why was it chasing you?"
"Jackie," Wolfwood started, looking at her with an unfamiliar look.
"What does Elise mean that you've been here hours? You better start talking, Wolfwood, or I'm going to shove that light up your—" Jackie hissed, feeling the stress of their situation begin to mount in her chest.
"Jackie." Wolfwood was suddenly inches from her, his hands grasping on to her face as he made her look at him. The memory of their kiss popped up in her mind unwillingly and she felt a familiar shudder settle in her stomach as he stared at her. She shoved him off her, perturbed and took a step back but said nothing.
"What that thing was…is…" He started before letting out a sigh and running at hand over his face. "Jackie, what you saw back there, that was a Troll."
Jackie felt her stomach drop in realization of Wolfwood's statement. Feeling the blood drain from her face Jackie took another involuntary step back. "You mean…" she whispered, feeling like all the heat in her body had vanished. "Someone… created that?"
Wolfwood nodded. Jackie looked away, her eyes straying to a rock just a few feet away, her mind racing a thousand miles a second. "But why was it chasing you?" Jackie whispered.
"It needs to feed," Elise explained and Jackie nearly jumped, almost completely forgetting the girl was there. Under the pale white light, Elise looked older as if she had aged in the past few minutes… no hours… she said they had been separated hours.
"What did you mean it had been hours?" Jackie asked again, more to Elise than Wolfwood. "I only just left the group a few minutes ago in search for you two. What happened?"
"I…" Elise began, breathing slower now. "I'm not entirely sure. All I know is that there was chaos. One minute I'm holding your hand the next I feel like the ground beneath me was turned on its side. I remember stumbling through the quake and trying to get myself close to a wall – my mom said during a quake you should get in the fetal position against the nearest wall. Something about buildings falling inward instead of outwards during earthquakes, so that's what I did. – Anyway I must've taken a few feet towards my right when I fell over a crack. I got myself to the nearest wall and just waited there. It must've been seconds because after it all just stopped and it was so quiet. I thought people had died from how silent it was, and it was so dark. I tried to get back but just like what happened to us after we found you a wall just appeared in front of me. Out of nowhere, like it had been there all the time." Elise paused, looking away.
"It was an hour until I saw a light. I thought I had died or that I had found you guys so I just ran like crazy towards it, but it only led me to Wolf, here." She looked up and tilted her chin towards the boy standing next to Jackie.
Wolf? Jackie wondered at the nickname as she gazed at Elise before turning to face him.
"The same thing happened to me," He explained. "Only, I was able to access the map card here. Elise's didn't work when she found me and we've been using mine. They aren't infinite in energy though, so hers must've died sometime after she got separated."
Jackie reached over her back and grabbed her bag, searching inside for her map card. Upon feeling the sleek plastic she pulled it out. Wolfwood took it from her in a moment, tapping at its center. To their relief it breathed light into their faces.
"Alright, we've got two light sources," Wolfwood explained as he tapped into its surface quickly. "Sadly, even with its defenses as low as they are, this location wipes out the mapping preference in these devices. So finding directions out of here is not an option."
Jackie felt her stomach drop yet again and she looked to Elise. The girl was staring off into space, unusually silent.
"How long have you been here?" Jackie asked Wolfwood. He passed her the cards, Jackie grabbed them, making sure to avoid physically touching him.
"See for yourself." He invited before turning to the young girl and kneeling by her side. Jackie looked at the two cards, to see two blinking time sets on the corners. Jackie's eyes bulged out of her sockets and she almost stopped breathing. "Wolfwood, you've been here for days!"
"Can't have," Wolfwood snapped, looking at her with a glare. "I found Elise just minutes after I got separated myself."
Jackie moved towards the two with two long strides and knelt by them both. "Look at your clock and then look at mine. Now look beneath and see the date."
The two did as Jackie said and Elise's breath hitched in shock. Wolfwood's eyes darkened, if the was possible and he snatched his card away. "It must be some kind of glitch." He muttered.
"I'm not so sure about that," Jackie began before he turned on her.
"It has to be a glitch!" he shouted, his words bouncing off the walls and ringing in her ears. Jackie flinched backwards and looked away from him. She heard him sigh before he suddenly pulled her into a tight hug.
"I'm sorry," he whispered into her hair and Jackie stiffened, more out of shock. "I shouldn't be yelling at you."
He kept his hold over her body for a few long seconds. Jackie was frozen in his hold, her heart ramming in her chest as that same disgusting feeling of fear filled her and she clenched her eyes shut tight, angry she could not move. He inhaled deeply once before letting her go and she was in a sudden turmoil of feelings. Anger, irritation, relief, confusion, and that icky feeling of fear…yet she could not help but feel somewhat grateful to Wolfwood for keeping Elise safe and that was clashing with everything else, making Jackie dizzy.
"Come on, Eli." Wolfwood said, extending a hand and helping her up. She shook her head and brushed the dirt off her pants. Jackie met her eyes once and suddenly Elise had jumped into her arms.
"Oh god," Elise breathed into her shoulder. "I thought I wouldn't see you again! Good grief, look at your forehead, when did that happen?"
"Shh…" Jackie breathed, stunned as the young girl nearly sobbed in her embrace. "It's okay, I'm here, El."
"Let's go." Wolfwood said after they broke away and Elise brushed at her eyes. They began to walk down the hallway for a few minutes, making turns here and there while Wolfwood tapped rapidly into both cards. Elise's hand had at one point snaked into Jackie's, grip tight and firm as if the girl was determined to not let the events of their separation happen again.
They must've been walking for another ten minutes before an orange light flickered to life around them and the three nearly jumped to a sprint at its abruptness. As they looked around Jackie let out a sigh of relief. The area looked like a small kitchen with three vending machines.
Wolfwood and Elise jumped into action. Elise pulled out what looked like a canteen from within her tunic, and Wolfwood made quick work of the glass of each vending machine. Elise ducked her head under the faucet of the sink and turned it one. The hiss of water met Jackie's ears as Elise opened her mouth to drink greedily at the water that poured over her. After several generous gulps, she pulled away and began to fill the canteen, wiping at her mouth with a wrist.
Wolfwood kicked shards of glass away from the vending machines' now gaping mouths and looked at their goods. Jackie approached Wolfwood with curiosity as she peered into the vending machines when he suddenly turned towards her with a grin.
"You and that green bag of yours," He said, excitedly before yanking the bag off her back. "I could kiss you, Jackie…again." He took a moment to glance up at her to wiggle an eyebrow and Jackie nearly kicked him, gone was the gratitude from before as quickly as a light going out.
"What's that about kissing?" Elise asked as she neared them, offering her canteen to Jackie. It was at that moment that she realized just how parched she was and Jackie accepted gratefully before letting herself have a few generous gulps of water. It was cool and refreshing against her throat, and Jackie had to bite back a happy moan.
"Alright, what've we got?" Elise asked, leaning over Wolfwood as he began stuffing bag after bag of treats in Jackie's bag.
"We've hit the jack-pot here, Eli." Wolfwood said, brushing some glass out of the way from a particular bag of chips.
"Oh, look! Cookies!" Elise nearly jumped over him to retrieve a bag of chocolate chip cookies, "Just what I've been in desperate need of." The two worked together so efficiently and in sync Jackie couldn't help but feel left out. She pushed the feeling away, feeling silly.
"You guys haven't finished explaining," Jackie said after a sip of water. She sloshed the water in the canteen, nervous as her mind pulled up the image of the troll. "Why was that thing chasing you?"
Elise paused after she bit into her treat and swallowed. "Like I said earlier… it needs to feed."
"Feed?" Jackie repeated. "You mean it was going to eat us?"
"Not us… our ideas." Wolfwood replied, as he settled by a vending machine, ripping a bag of chips open. Jackie bit her lip and urged him to continue. After a few bites Wolfwood looked at her before sighing. "That thing... that Troll… it doesn't feed on people. It feeds on your ideas, your imagination. It searches through your mind and conjures up an image so terrifying it will freeze you with fear. Once it gets near enough it'll go through everything else. It'll find every dream you've had, every joke you've ever come up with, every story you've ever wanted to write down and it'll bleed it out of you until every idea, be it original or not, is purged from your mind. Until there is nothing left for your mind…"
Jackie felt her fingers clench around the canteen. "How do you know this?" Jackie breathed.
Wolfwood looked away, suddenly evasive, "I told you, I've been here a while. I've had some time to read things and look them up…"
Jackie let out a frustrated growl, "Oh, not this again! Stop trying to spoon feed me this bull because I am not in the mood for it! I had to deal with your crap outside this place but we're in actual danger! Stop withholding information from me and just tell me the truth! How can you know so much about these things? How?"
Wolfwood made no motion to reply, just took another chip and bit into it. Jackie watched him, searching for some kind of reaction and after a few seconds she shoved the canteen back in Elise's arms and marched toward him. Blood boiling, Jackie quickly slid into a horse stance then stomped and slid a wrist from her side to the air, jerking the ground beneath Wolfwood up. In any other moment she would've been so excited to have been able to do so without crushing him to a wall but all that mattered at this point was that she got an answer.
Grabbing his collar, Jackie pushed him to slam into one of the plastic vending machines that stored drinks. The plastic let out a loud and hollow whomp as his body collided against it.
"I'm not playing games, Wolfwood." Jackie hissed, pressing her face as close as she dared. "I'm not just some kid who's going to settle for whatever the grownups tell her. Tell me the truth."
Wolfwood gazed into her eyes with that same infuriating poker face and it further angered her to realize her ire had no effect on him. Wolfwood let out an amused scoff before his eyes flicked over towards where Elise was standing and something in his expression changed enough for Jackie to notice and he sighed.
"Alright, Ortega," He sighed and Jackie's hand slid from his collar and down his chest. Her eyes widened at the toned muscle beneath her palms and she threw her hands off as if she had been burned. She caught his smirk right as she stepped away and felt her cheeks fill with blood.
"Now, spill." Jackie grunted, placing as much space between them that was reasonable and didn't catch Elise's attention. Wolfwood sighed and pushed away from the vending machine as he straightened his tunic but the sound of a familiar shriek off in the distance sent chills up Jackie's spine and the trio snapped their attention to the direction they had come from.
"Oh God, it's catching up." Elise choked.
"That wasn't so close, was it?" Jackie stammered back, her confrontation with Wolfwood forgotten as the Troll's roars and cries reverberated through the hallways.
"It's trying to track us down," Wolfwood's voice came from right behind Jackie, his voice suddenly cold. "Stay quiet and try to keep your mind as empty as you can."
Jackie let out a small gasp as they were suddenly drenched in darkness. Two sets of hands grasped for hers and she met them eagerly, Elise and Wolfwood pushing towards her as if shielding her from the beast ahead.
"Sshhh…" Wolfwood hissed in her ear and she closed her eyes, the darkness behind her lids was no different than the pitch black around them. Jackie struggled to keep her mind quiet and focused on the sound of their breathing and the count of her increasing heartbeat, the pain in her temple increasing as she tried to keep from panicking.
The shrieks rose and fell for a moment before silence followed and all Jackie could hear was the sound of Wolfwood and Elise's breathing. The group didn't move from their position, waiting.
"Elise, grab some of the drinks from the vending machine," Wolfwood said after a long pause. "Use that trick I showed you back in the room with the pillars. We'll need to get as much food and water as we can take."
Elise made a movement that Jackie guessed was a nod before the girl let go of her hand and moved away. Jackie made to grab the girl and bring her back only to enter Wolfwood's embrace. "We're going to have to finish this conversation later, Jackie. You still owe me lunch…"
Another shriek shook the hallways and Jackie could feel it reverberating through the ground beneath her feet. Shying away from the painful screech Jackie curled within Wolfwood's arms and felt him tighten his hold on her. When it was over she shoved away from Wolfwood, sending him a glower through the dark, "We are going to finish this conversation."
Yet another shriek reverberated through the hallways and Jackie felt the chilling feeling curl under her skin as she made a terrifying connection. "It's getting closer."
"We've got to go." Wolfwood hissed, grabbing her hand and yanking her in the opposite direction.
"I got what I could. Jackie's bag isn't as infinitely deep as you'd hope." Elise spoke from somewhere nearby and she was soon covered in the pale light of Wolfwood's map card.
"We need to get help," Jackie said as she looked over whatever food they couldn't bring.
"That's obvious," Elise replied stuffing can after can into Jackie's now bulging bag.
"We've been wandering the hallway for a very long time, Jackie." Wolfwood explained, tugging at her hand as they began to jog off.
"That's another thing," Jackie asked as they moved off. "I've only just left the group and you guys have you've been here for days. How can that be possible?"
"This place is designed to keep you moving about for specific periods of times, based on the amount you've been sentenced all the while time continues normally outside. Sometimes people can spend days to months in here whilst only minutes go outside." Wolfwood explained as they jumped over another crack, the path appearing less destroyed as previous hallways.
A dread feeling of déjà vu hit Jackie as she remembered Aoi's explanation of time in this world and the real world and nodded. "Alright so how do we get out of here?"
"Normally, people would wander about until they could hit specific places to test grammar and vocabulary problems. But because classes haven't started yet those options aren't up for grabs right now." Elise answered this time and Jackie looked at the girl with a surprised glance.
"Wolf explained a bunch of this stuff to me already," Elise grinned. Jackie's eyebrows rose, again with the nickname…?
"This way," Wolfwood yanked Jackie's hand and the trio made another turn into another hallway.
"But there has to be some way we can get out of here," Jackie persisted. "Maybe if I use my bending to break through the walls…"
"That won't work. It'll only lead you into a deeper part of the maze." Wolfwood threw over his shoulder. "This version of the maze was supposed to be easy to overcome, since it was just for the tours but this… the troll must've messed with the levels when it appeared. I'm just glad it's not a level 6 Troll or we would've been in even bigger trouble."
"Remind me to be grateful that it could've been worse!" Jackie snapped as they continued to run and thought she saw a smile lift his cheeks. She felt the anger in her chest bloom anew and it fueled her strides. They ran for a long time spent in rushed silence as they turned left and right down corridors, and Jackie felt a twinge of annoyance as Wolfwood yanked her without warning down another corridor. Minutes passed as they stopped and waited before running again.
Jackie's head throbbed every more painfully and she felt a strange heightened sensitivity in the area of her temple, her knees and shin throbbing along and hindering her ability to keep up with Wolfwood and Elise before she finally stumbled over a rut and tripped, rolling on the ground to land on her side. The other two paused and turned toward her, rushing in concern.
"Jackie!" Elise yelped, reaching the injured girl with almost a panic.
"Are you alright?" Wolfwood asked, looking her over. Jackie nodded, gritting her teeth as her side ached.
"Fine," She hissed as she stood up, but was stopped by an offered can of some beverage. Elise held it out to her with a worried gaze and Jackie accepted it.
"We have to keep moving," Wolfwood urged. "These hallways are treacherous, you never really know if you're going in circles or actually making progress."
Jackie wheezed as she straightened before shaking herself off, "I'm fine."
And they continued on but at a lighter pace than before as the Troll's shrieks seemed to have faded in the distance. After another few minutes of wandering they paused for a breather and Elise let out a small laugh.
"I think… we may have lost it." She hummed before clearing her throat. Jackie caught on to the flitting strip of hope and rubbed Elise's shoulder with a smile.
"Come on," Wolfwood said. "Let's not linger for too long."
Elise straightened from her lean against the wall and began to walk ahead. Jackie made to follow only to stumble over another rock. Wolfwood's hand shot out from seemingly nowhere and caught her hand, helping to keep her from falling on her face. As soon as Jackie straightened she yanked her hand from Wolfwood's grasp, unable to let herself near him especially in the darkness. A sudden boom shook the ground beneath them viciously, Jackie's heart plummeting to the bottom of her feet in terror.
It had found them. And somehow it had managed to keep its presence hidden from them.
A bright burst of red light blinded them from continuing on and Jackie stumbled back, Wolfwood's grip on her hand disappearing. The Troll's terrifying screech shook Jackie's ribcage and insides, and she struggled to cover her ears from its effect. There it stood just a few feet away, towering over her like death itself and Jackie screamed as it leaned over her, it's hideous grin expanding as it registered her fear.
"JACKIE!" She heard Elise scream from a few feet to her right but the Troll made no motion to look at her, it's pitch black voids for eyes were fixed right on Jackie and the seventeen year old could feel its mind, scraping over her own, searching for something and the pain in her head increased like someone was shoving a knife into the base of her skull.
She let out an agonized scream as the Troll neared her by a few more feet.
A sudden bright white light burst through from behind them and the troll's presence was suddenly ripped from her mind. Jackie slumped to the ground and someone caught her before she fell completely to the ground.
Five figures blurred by shadow and light jumped in front of them, and the Troll let out another shriek and Jackie could suddenly feel emotions that were not her own. Anger, irritation, pain, malice, hatred and the hunger it all overwhelmed her for a moment before she felt herself bathed in blackness but this time is was a warm one and she realized all too slowly that she was fainting.
"Jackie…" She heard by her side and Jackie could do no more than succumb to the safety of her mind.
Midori Aoi: aaaaaand that's it for this chapter! Whoo! Boy how'd you like that? 16,000+ words and I nearly shot myself with how much I still wanted to write for this. But enough is enough. This is it guys, next chapter we start classes and we'll get a move on further into the plot of this story! Like it so far? Boy I sure hope so. I battled writer's block like crazy this time. WHOO.
FAVE AND REVIEW! (I do promise, the more reviews I get the better the chances at a faster update. Just saying.
NEXT TIME: Jackie is thoroughly shaken from her ordeal with the troll and her only reason for staying makes itself manifest through her friends and a surprise visit! Bummed she missed the festivities she prepares herself to face her new professor and tries to find Wolfwood but the mysterious boy has disappeared and Aoi is hardly around to guide her. Will she continue with this endeavor or decide to go home and will she continue to pursue the every present mystery of the Hallway Of The Never After?
