Hehehehe...I feel like Stephen King. You know...forever bound to a typewriter, writing stories from now until Judgement Day. Seriously...I'm chained to my computer desk right now. I think I'll stop with this chapter tonight and do the last three tomorrow.
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Bella woke up the next morning feeling slightly dazed and noticed that the T.V. was on, playing an old episode of Katie and Orby.
"I wanted a distraction, not an abortion." she said, turning it off and heading to the computer. She shook the mouse. Her eyes widened. Riley hadn't closed the browser and she was looking at the article he had read last night.
She scanned it and felt a small lifting of her heart. It felt so much better to know that she wasn't the only one experiencing these problems.
Bella back tracked a little and went to the search engine. She typed in "mind remedies." Most of the searches were about yoga and meditation and really didn't help. She put the word "supernatural" in front of what she'd already typed.
This time, there were a few promising searches. Most of them were to do with wicca and calling the corners. But one in particular caught her eyes.
"Para-psychology." she read. The website was surprisingly clean for a supernatural site. It was a light blue page with star signs, triquetras and crosses on the border.
"Let's see," Bella mused, ''telepathy, empathy, etheric projection...what the hell is that?"
Out of curiosity, she clicked the link to etheric projection and was taken to a different page. There was an illustration of a girl lying in her bad and a transparent version of her hovering above her body.
Bella didn't notice Alexa and Riley wake up and lean in closer to see what she was doing. It was only when Alexa gave a big yawn, did she jump and turn around.
She calmed down and turned back to the screen and began to read the article.
Of all the unknown practices used to divine ones-self, etheric projection is the least known and least used. Many who claim to have out of body experiences say that they feel as though they are a ghost walking around and able to communicate with others or physical objects.
These people seem to be coma tose patients, unconcious victims or deep sleepers. However, etheric projection can also be achieved through intense focus and concentration.
Indeed, in early Indian cultures, during intense exorcisms, shamans would use etheric projection to battle the spirits and vanquish them.
Bella stopped reading and turned to Alexa and Riley, who were staring at her.
Then Riley stood up straight and began to pace.
"So you have to use this etheric projection to fight the Malignancies?" he said.
"It's a start." Bella said. "But what the hell am I supposed to do, stab them or something."
"Maybe." Alexa shrugged.
Bella shook her head. "I don't think that would work. I could certainly fight them more easily in the etheric plain, but I don't think they're ghosts."
Riley turned to her. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"I think they're from my mind. They said that that was what they wanted from me."
"In other words they want you to loose your mind." Alexa said tensely. "You can't let them win that way. You said that the two that resembled your boyfriend and his sister could touch things right?"
"Right."
"And that other one. The big bad."
"The Master." Riley provided.
"Yeah, that one. He's the one that can't really touch you physically."
Bella nodded.
"Then maybe you can defeat the other two with your etheric self. The Master might be able to touch you in that state, so he's the one that's going to be the toughest to defeat."
They all stared at each other for a minute.
Then Riley's cell phone rang.
"Hello...Victoria? Yes...she's with me and Alexa...you what! Oh...okay..." he hung upon, looking put upon. "She wants me to see her in her office right now. She says that you have to go back to your room."
Bella rolled her eyes.
"I'll go with you. Just let me get something from my room and then I'll come back and get you."
She and Riley walked out of Riley's room.
"What's wrong?" Alexa asked. Riley looked worried.
"I think Victoria's going to fire me." he said.
"Why?"
"Because Bella's gotten out of her room too many times." he shook his head. "If she does, make sure that you help Bella as much as possible."
"She won't fire you." Alexa said emphatically.
"She could."
"Well she's not." And with that, she kissed him.
Riley was stunned for a few seconds, and was about to respond when Alexa broke the kiss and walked hurredly to her room.
Riley watched her and then walked to Victoria's office door.
Alexa returned to Riley's room a few moments later with a book.
"What's that for?" Bella asked.
"It's the Idiot's Guide to Meditation." she said distractedly. "And boy am I an idiot." she added under her breath, thinking of what she'd just done.
Bella laughed and walked with Alexa to the elevator. They went to Bella's room together and for the next several hours, they practiced meditating.
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"You're...promoting me?" Riley asked Victoria in a stunned voice. He blinked several times.
"That's right." Victoria said. "I spoke to one of my friends in Florida and they said that they needed someone in the psychiatric ward at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. You'll be able to treat celebrities."
Riley just stared at her.
"What about Bella?" he asked after a while.
"Well, Alexa can take care of her." Victoria answered.
Riley bit his lip. Cedars-Sinai was the most prostegeous hospitals on the West Coast. And he was being offered the opportunity to go there. Yet how could he leave Bella behind now, when they were so close to stopping the Malignancies.
Besides, he felt that getting rid of his past issues was somehow tied to curing Bella.
"Riley?" Victoria asked after a while.
Riley got a grip on himself.
"I...I suppose. But...can it wait for at least three more days?"
Victoria looked taken aback, but nodded.
"Alright," she said, "you can stay here for three more days if you want. But you're going to have to fill out this paperwork."
From her desk, she pulled out a sizeable amount of papers.
"And you're also going to have to help with the transference information."
Riley sighed, took a pen from Victoria's desk, and set about fillinf out the forms, realizing that he wouldn't be getting out of here for a while.
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"One more time." Alexa said in slight frustration. "Breath in deeply, and out slowly."
Bella complied, closing her eyes and breathing as instructed.
Alexa watched silently, hoping that this time Bella would get it this time.
It was almost sunset and they had been practicing for hours. Bella was always screwing up the meditation by laughing or simply not wanting to comply.
Now however, she seemed to have gotten the jist. She was breathing deeply and evenly. A little too deeply, as a matter of fact.
"Bella?" Alexa said suspicuosly. She leaned forward. Bella didn't stir. "BELLA!"
Bella jumped and looked around wildly.
"Sorry." she mumbled. "I was tired."
"I give up." she said. "There's got to be another way to do this."
Bella groaned."I'm too tired to try anymore voodoo at the moment."
"To be honest, I am too." Alexa admitted. She closed the book and tossed it aside. She stretched and then settled herself more comfortably in the chair. "Mind if I watch T.V?" she asked.
Bella shook her head and then gave a yawn.
Alexa flipped around the channels, looking for something to watch. She settled on "Mommie Dearest" and got a little more comfortable.
Night settled around the hospital. Still, Riley did not return. The movie was now at the infamous hanger scene when Alexa felt a chilling presence.
She turned around and yelped. The Master, in the form of the woman, was looking through the windows. Alexa stood up and shook Bella awake.
Bella stared wildly around and noticed the Master, appearing to her as the black figure.
She slowly stood up next to Alexa. Both woman moved cautiously to the side of the room. In the next moment, the Master had disappeared.
"That was close." Bella sighed.
Alexa just shook her head.
"It's waiting." she breathed.
Bella groaned and then began to shake.
"What are we supposed to do now?" she asked angrily.
"We can't stay here. We're sitting ducks."
"How the hell are we supposed to get around that thing?" Bella demanded.
"I'll go first." Alexa said. "If the coast is clear, I'll signal." Bella rolled her eyes but nodded.
Slowly, Alexa crept up to the door and peered around the corner.
There was nothing there.
She motioned to Bella, who followed her at the elbow. The two walked slowly down the hall, both alert for any sounds of disturbance.
They reached the end of the hall when Alexa again felt the chill run down her spine.
She turned and saw the Master at the other end of the hall.
"RUN!" she yelled. Both turned around and began to run down the dark hall, but Alexa tripped. Bella fell on her knees next to her friend.
There was a chain around Alexa's ankles.
Bella clambered to the bonds and began to pull at them, trying to free Alexa, but it was useless.
Darkness, the un natural thick darkness surrounded them again. Alexa gave a scream as she was jerked backwards and flew through the air.
The chain, which was obviously haunted, pulled up and turned her upside down. She was face to face with the ghostly woman, he was holding a knife.
Bella was screaming from the darkness, sobs escaping her at times.
The Master looked back at the darkness for a brief moment before turning to Alexa.
"Go fuck yourself, bitch." Alexa spat before the Master plunged the knife into her stomach.
The darkness vanished.
Bella heard a thud and looked up.
"NO!" she screamed, running towards the prone figure of Alexa, who was bleeding quite badly. "YOU FUCKING BASTARD!!" she screamed. She put her hands on Alexa's stomach, trying to find some way she could help, but her hands were shaking so much that she couldn't do anything.
Gasping with anger, fear, and sorrow, she scrambled away from Alexa to her room, blood dripping on the floor and bed and pillows. She pulled the call button out and pressed it.
Remembering how Wade's body had vanished the night before, Bella ran out and was relieved to find that Alexa was still there.
The elevator dinged open.
"Oh fuck." she heard Riley curse from nearby. "God dammit, no. Please." his voice was shaking now. He pulled his phone out and called Victoria.
People, others who meant nothing swarmed the scene. Two interns put Alexa on a stretcher and got her to a room. Bella stood up and, almost in a trance, walked through the throng back to her room.
Silently, she closed the door and looked at her bloody hands. Then she turned and opened a cabinet.
The sleeping pills she'd snuck out of Riley's room were there.
She opened the bottle and poured four into her hand. Without even thinking, she swallowed them and lay on her bed, feeling dazed and distant.
The bottle dropped from her hand, sending pills flying all over the floor.
She heard the door open and Riley walk in.
She heard him curse at what he saw...and then she knew no more.
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There we go. I'm really sorry about Alexa. But as I said before I did have this planned for a long time. I did change my plan about twice, so you'll find out what happened to her later on.
As for Edward, he won't be back until the Epilogue.
Please keep the reviews coming. By the way, there are only two chapters left, plus the epilogue. Thank you to my main reviewers, mixz and di14 for your supportive and wonderful comments.