A Daniel X Fanfic
by Sakura Martinez
Author's Quick Note:
Okay, just wanna let you guys know that I have added a new category in my blog: Sakura no Kokoro where I will answer any question you might have and reply to reviews I receive from the stories and fan fiction I have scattered around the net. Just an FYI. Now, enjoy the new chapter. :D
Disclaimer:
I do not own Daniel X, or the characters in that story. James Patterson own the rights for them. What I do own is the idea for the fanfic and this fanfic itself.
Summary:
After surviving Void's Game, being reunited with his drang, and learning the truth about Void, Daniel X leaves with Khadagh to prepare for the imminent battle between Number One and Two. But when both Daniel and Khadagh disappears, The Prayer begins his revenge, seeking the aid of a mysterious group. Now, it's a race against time our heroes to put a stop to The Prayer's latest scheme before it's too late and it will take everything in their power to do so.
Daniel X: Out of Time
Chapter Eleven
The Girl With A Thousand Shadows
Daniel didn't bother to explain anything to me or to the rest of the drang. With the exception of Khadagh, we didn't know where we were going or who this "old friend" who was indebted to Daniel was. Try as I may, I couldn't pry the knowledge from either of them. All Daniel told me, repeatedly like a broken record, was "You'll see."
We passed by planet after planet, asteroid belt after asteroid belt. The path Khadagh took wasn't your conventional space travel path. He chose the most hazardous environs to plunge Bonaventure into with the explanation that it was one way to lose our pursuers and whatever mechanical drones that were sent after us. The way he maneuvered the ship could be described in one word: suicidal. Though we understood why he was doing it—apart from the fact that this was the way to wherever Daniel's friend was—I could see the others wrestling with the desire to take the wheel away from Khadagh with the hope of prolonging our lives.
"I swear, if he doesn't slow down, I'm going to rig the engines before I puke." Joe-Joe gritted his teeth. I knew he felt nauseous. We all did as the Bonaventure dipped, swayed, rolled from side to side, as it avoid space junk and other debris.
"Don't even think about it," Emma said, "I'd rather we all end up puking than being caught by The Prayer and his men."
"I'd rather we don't puke and Khadagh just drive this thing like a normal alien." sighed Willy.
"Ditto," was all I could say.
Daniel flexed his arms and I watched his face, waiting for him to grimace. He didn't. He just smiled and that smiled made me finally exhale the breath I didn't know I was holding.
"It worked," he grinned as he began shadow-boxing. "It doesn't hurt anymore."
I nodded. "One seal down, two more to go."
He stopped his exercise and tugged me at my arm, pulling me towards him. I didn't fight it and ended up in his embrace.
"I knew you could do it," he whispered to me. "And I'm pretty sure you can do it again."
"The distance helped," I told him. "The farther we get away from our pursuers the higher the chances of unsealing your powers. I've been trying to make myself stronger but, I'm afraid that, when the time comes, I won't be able to do much."
Daniel pushed me away so that I could see his face and he could see mine. He then shook his head and said, "I highly doubt that. I'm pretty sure you're getting stronger than you think, because I'm sure that you're much stronger than you give yourself credit for. I can train with you, if you'd like. Though I have no idea how you go about your training now that Maerwen's not around."
"That's...not entirely true." I said. And, before he could ask me what I meant, I added, "Dream Walking."
Understanding flared at Daniel and he nodded. "Makes sense."
Daniel and I talked some more after that. And I still tried to pry the information of our destination from him and even tried to make him tell me who this "friend" was. But, no matter what I said or did, he would not budge and he remained indignant with not sharing that knowledge with me. Which, of course, pissed me off.
"You'll see." was all he said.
And the next day, I did.
The Bonaventure docked at a strip of barren land. The moment we stepped out of the ship and Daniel led the way past the dead trees and the giant rocks that blocked our way however, the description of where the ship landed was pretty useless for we were surrounded by nothing but a barren wasteland. It was like a planet that had just experienced the apocalypse. There were no lush vegetation. No colorful floras and interesting, alien fauna. All there was were dead trees, large boulders, ragged mountains, and the cracked earth.
"What is this place?" Emma asked, shivering at the sight before her. She was in-tuned with nature and I can only imagine what this planet feels like for her.
"Varjo." Daniel replied. His voice echoing around us. He looked around, his face masked. "A couple of years back I managed to stop a maniacal circus master who was actually a slave trader in disguise. One of the prisoners he had was a Varjian."
"And this Varjian is what we came here for?" Willy asked.
Daniel nodded.
Khadagh remained quiet, not raining on Daniel's parade. Emma looked like she was sick. Willy looked skeptical as he began to finger the safety on the Opus 50/50. Joe, on the other hand, was deep in thought.
"Varjo...Varjian...I could have sworn I've heard of them before," I could hear him muttering to himself even as we began to make our way with Daniel leading the entourage.
We had been walking for a long, long time and I have come to know three things about Varjo: one, it is as desolate as it looked; two, there are no other living creatures in the planet; and three, the sun was unbearably hot. It should already have been night-time, under normal circumstances. However, the sun was still at its highest, the temperature hotter than it had been when we first started trudging along. All of us were drenched in sweat. The boys—with the exception of Khadagh and Daniel—have already taken off their jackets and their shirts. Emma and I did the same, taking off our jackets but keeping our shirts on—thankfully, we were both wearing sleeveless shirts underneath our jackets.
Khadagh had, at one point, materialized a portable electric fan with unlimited energy, but even the wind from the said appliance did nothing to alleviate the heat. The water that he also materialized for us to drink only managed to quench our thirst for five minutes at most before we all began to feel dehydrated again. Touching my hair, I felt as though it would combust any minute now and I could feel the heat sipping through the rubber soles of my shoes.
"How...much...farther?" Willy huffed as he dragged the Opus—and himself—forward.
Daniel stopped and took a look around. After a few seconds of pause, he replied, "Just a bit more."
"Can't we just have Khadagh create a vehicle and just ride it to whatever destination we're going to?" I asked, sounding snappy. Like everyone else I was also so very tired.
Daniel sighed, "We can't. I won't be able to see the signs inside a vehicle."
Signs? What signs? I wanted to voice out that question, but decided otherwise. I did not want to waste any more time standing around under the glare of the sun.
We continued on with our grueling trek.
After what seemed like a gazillion years in hell, Daniel pointed ahead of us and shouted, "There!" before running. Looking at my other companions who merely shrugged, as confused as I was with what Daniel had seen, we all tumbled after him. I suppose all of us were thinking the same thing: Finally!
None of us were sure at that moment about what happened next. One moment, we were following Daniel as he sprinted across the wasteland and the next he was gone. We all stopped abruptly, adrenaline coursed through my veins and so did the feat that something bad had happened to my boyfriend yet again. I was ready to fight, should anyone come out wanting one.
"Where's Daniel?" Emma asked the question that was on all our minds, her voice trembling.
"I...don't know. He just disappeared," I answered, my voice quivering as well.
Khadagh cursed and clapped weapons into existence, handing one to me, Emma, and Joe. Willy flicked the safety of the Opus off and cocked it at the ready. It was like whatever was out there—for I suddenly felt that we weren't alone—were waiting for us to make the first move. The moment that we were all poised for battle, darkness suddenly flew out of the ground and covered us, encasing us all under a dome made of pulsating and tangible shadows.
"W-what the heck's happening?" Emma shouted her question.
Willy moved towards his sister, touched her shoulder and said, "I don't know what's going on but I'm going to make sure that whatever's out there doesn't lay a hand on you, sis."
Emma nodded, though she also promised not to be a burden to us all and that she was going to fight alongside us, too even though we all knew that the desolation of this planet was having an effect on her power.
"Be on guard, everyone," Khadagh said, his voice a whisper as if he feared that whatever had come to attack us and had taken Daniel would be listening. Of course, he didn't have to tell us that. We were already on our guards.
Just then figures began to emerge from the gloom. They were all humanoid in shape, though their arms were longer, they faces devoid of any facial features. They moved like they were made of jelly, their bodies just as flexible and swayed as they moved in unison. There were a couple of dozens of them, encircling us, that we had to move back and regroup, bundled together.
Even as it was evident that a battle would soon occur, Joe was still muttering the same thing, "I know I've heard about them. Where was it? What was it about?"
"Now really isn't the time for trying to remember whatever it was you read, Joe," I said, trying to keep my voice from shaking further.
But Joe-Joe either did not hear me very well as the shadows began moaning and groaning and making all sorts of ghoulish sounds, or he chose not to hear me amidst the noise. And, before I can berate him, our enemies began to engage us in battle.
We tried to push them back, fought with all we had, but whatever we do it did nothing to harm them. Our attacks just went past them, their bodies seemingly made from nothing but air.
Just when we were about to lose, Joe suddenly exclaimed, "I remember!"
"Remember what?" Willy shouted back as he called forth a weapon that looked as though it was a cross between a bazooka and a machine gun.
"The Varjians! I know what they are!" Joe replied, he was so ecstatic. He then turned to Khadagh and said, "This is a test. The Varijians are trying to gauge our strength—mentally and physically. They will only stop attacking once we immobilize the shadows. Khadagh, you have to create something that could block the sun. That's the only way we can pass through."
"What?" Khadagh asked. It was apparent that whatever mission the Planet Varjo and the Varjians had with Daniel, Khadagh knew nothing about it. Which also meant that this was one of those things that differ between the two realities presented in both Khadagh and Daniel.
Joe's fingers began to move through the keyboard of his Symbiote. "The Varjians are Shadow Puppet Masters. Shadows only appear when there is a source of light, take out that source and you take out the shadows. Problem solved. Now do it!"
I could see that Khadagh didn't like being bossed around by Joe but he didn't argue and he quickly did as he was told. With a clap of his hands, Khadagh materialized the largest, widest, and longest roof I had ever seen. It encompassed the whole area as far as the eye could see and did what it was meant to do—it severed the connection between the sun and whoever it was that were controlling the "Shadow Puppets".
With the sun hidden behind the iron roof, the Shadow Puppets halted in their movements. Seconds later they vanished completely leaving us alone and sweaty and tired. The dome made of shadow that had also disappeared and we soon found ourselves looking at a little girl with dark-red skin and big eyes the color of muck. Beside her was Daniel, his arms crossed and looking as though he was greatly annoyed.
I was to. Of him and of that girl whom I guessed was the Varjian in question.
"Sorry," Daniel said as he walked towards us, shaking his head. "I wanted to help out but Nocta didn't want me to. She said you'd have to prove yourselves on your own." He then turned towards Joe and said, "Good call on Varjians, Joe."
Joe nodded, but his attention was fixed solely on Nocta—the Varjian.
Nocta fixed us with a gaze that could freeze the fiery depths of hell. A second passed, and then a full minute before she spoke two words. Her voice was cold and hollow.
"Follow me," was all she said.
Fifteen minutes later, we found ourselves seated inside a cave. The source of light coming from its entrance, as well as from the braziers that held blue-violet flames bathed the room in an eerie sort of light. There was nothing in the cave worth nothing. No furniture, no decorations that would make it feel homey or would indicate what kind of...person...Nocta was. It was as bare as the desert that we had fumbled our way from.
Away from the heat, the refreshments that Khadagh created with his powers managed to do what it was supposed to do—refresh us. Finally, after what seemed like a millennia, the water that I drank quenched my thirst. I fought the urge to moan in pleasure as I drank like my life depended on it.
Once she had seen that we were all settled and refreshed, Nocta turned to Daniel and aske, "Why have you come, Daniel X?" The way she spoke Daniel's name made it sound like she was saying 'Dan-Eel'.
"I—We—came here to ask for your help, Nocta," Daniel replied.
"Help?" Nocta sounded surprised, like she never believed that there would actually come a day when Daniel X would ask for her help. I wondered just how famous Daniel really was and how much he was revered by those whom he stands for and those that knew of his existence. "What is it you need from me?"
Daniel then launched into a full-retelling of the events that had transpired from before his capture up to the moment of his rescue. He told Nocta that "bad men" were after him and that the only way to defeat these "bad men" would be to send them back from where they came from. He then told her of our dilemma. That we were too few as opposed to the number of followers The Prayer and Undinogh has. I didn't understand what this lone Varjian could possibly do to account for a boost in our line of allies, but I didn't voice out my confusion and simply listened as Daniel went on with his spiel.
Once he was finished, Willy had fallen asleep and Joe and Emma had went to their own corner discussing who knows what. Only Khadagh and myself had our attention directed at the conversation between an Alparian and a Varjian.
Another full-minute passed before Nocta spoke again, "You want me to help give you more time to finish the preparations for this portal?"
Daniel nodded. "They will, most likely, try to get to us with an army of their own to capture me and Khadagh and put a stop to whatever we're doing. That's where you come in."
"It will be difficult." Nocta spoke slowly. "I have never tried to use my powers in space before. I don't even know if the use of my powers extends to such a place."
I was still at a lost as to what they were talking about but, apparently, Khadagh had managed to get the idea.
"I believe you will be able to use it," he said, "There is a source of light and shadows does exist in space, far more than on planets. It would also be more powerful considering that there would be nothing to hinder the connection between you and your source of light, which is this galaxy's suns."
Daniel agreed with his alternate-universe self. "With the two suns of this galaxy, you would have to sources of lights, that would expand the cover of your powers."
Nocta thought for a moment, perhaps running the scenario—whatever it is—on her mind.
After a while, she spoke. "It has been a long time since The Prayer sold me to that circus. It would be nice to be able to have my revenge on him and his people." she paused then added, "I will ask for the others to help. There are only a few of us, but they would also want to take part in such a scheme in which we can pay The Prayer back for what he has done to our people."
"That would be great, Nocta," Daniel smiled at her.
"Yes," she nodded in agreement, "It would be. Especially when they get what is coming to them."
