The Heart of Darkness
by Akane-Rei
PART SEVEN
The Face of Evil
"The horror! The horror!"
Kurtz in "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad
Jonny opened his eyes.
Where the hell am I? he asked himself.
He was lying down on a hard surface, looking at nothing. He tried to get up, but found that he was too weak. His body felt heavy and sluggish. He stifled a yawn and resisted the urge to close his eyes. He used his arms, almost useless as they were, to try and rise from his position. Bracing himself against the ground, he sat down and stared.
He was above ground.
He struggled to his feet and stood up with a great deal of difficulty. In fact, he was almost leaning for support to whatever it was that was him.
Jonny shook his head, trying to see clearly in what looks like a dimly lit cavern. In fact he could hardly see five feet in front of him. And what he could see made him wonder if perhaps someone spiked the punch at Estella's party. He was floating. Rather, what he was in was floating. He felt at whatever it was that was enclosing him. It was smooth and circular, but invisible. He tested its strength by giving the invisible barrier a kick and ended up hurting himself instead.
He shook himself. For some reason, he felt weak and groggy. Given his current condition, he wasn't surprised that his kick hardly affected the barrier.
It was a pathetic attempt anyway, he thought. A four year old could have done better.
He cursed under his breath. He was a couple of feet above ground and he had no idea how to get down. Since he saw no harness holding his prison from above, he tried to jump in hopes it will move just a bit downward.
No such luck.
He was well and truly trapped.
"So you're finally awake," said a familiar voice below him.
He turned to the voice, surprise clear in his expression.
"Jeanette?" he said incredulously. "What's going on here?"
He saw her pout her lips and cross her arms.
"Not even a 'hello,' Jonny?" she asked in a mock hurt expression. "Is that the way to greet your girlfriend?"
"Jeanette," he said in an even voice, "we both know just how ridiculous that title is."
He saw her expression turn to genuine anger.
Uh-oh, he thought. Maybe that wasn't the best course to take when she's free down there while I'm trapped up here.
"That's right, Jonny Quest," she spat, "we do. What's the matter? Thought you were too good for me? Is that it?"
"Wha--" sputtered Jonny, "Ofcourse not!" he shouted. What the hell is going on here? he wondered to himself.
"It doesn't matter now anyway," she said in a sing-song voice. "By the time we're through, you're not going to be the most popular guy in school for long."
"We?" he said. Who's we? he thought.
"Don't worry, Jonny," she said. "We won't hurt you . . . much."
He had to find a way to get out of this. Now.
She turned from him and looked at the other direction. For the first time, he saw two other spheres in the cavern: one containing Hadji and the other, Jessie. While Hadji was fully conscious and was looking at him in return, Jessie was crumpled in a ball of heap inside her sphere.
"Jonny!" croaked Hadji. "How are you, my friend?" Jonny had a feeling that Hadji meant to ask that question a little louder.
"I'm alright!" Jonny shouted back. "So far," he muttered. He looked at Hadji and drew a breath. His friend looked physically drained. Dark circles were visible under his eyes. And something else . . . something in his friend's countenance betrayed an exhaustion that goes beyond what he could see.
"Are you alright, Hadj?" he asked concerned.
He wasn't sure, but he could have sworn Hadji grimaced.
"As well as I could be, Jonny," Hadji replied.
Worry marred his brow.
He wanted to question his friend further, but he saw that Hadji's attention was directed at Jessie. He looked at Jessie, trying to make out her general welfare aside from the fact that she's unconscious.
"Jessie!" he shouted. "Jessie!"
He stared at Jessie, willing her to wake up. But ofcourse, she didn't.
"Now as for her," he heard Jeanette say, "that's another matter entirely."
He watched with dread as Jeanette's right hand start to glow and a bright ball of flame began to form.
"Don't you dare hurt her," he said quietly.
Jeanette looked at him and laughed. "Or you'll what?" she asked, amused. "Stomp your foot?" She gave him a smile of superiority. "I don't think you realize your position here, Jonny Quest. You are not in charge. You can't threaten me."
With that, she turned from him and he watched with horror as she threw the ball of flame towards Jessie's sphere.
"NO!" Jonny and Hadji said simultaneously.
He pounded his fists to the clear barrier and watched helplessly as the ball engulfed Jessie's sphere and consume it, eating its way inside her.
Oh God, he thought. Not Jessie. Not Jessie. NOT JESSIE DAMMIT!!!!!
He watched as the fire got closer and closer to its victim.
*Do something, Quest!*
What can I do?
He started pounding at his prison. The futility of his action made him groan with frustration.
He watched as the flame touched Jessie's skin.
Just when he thought he was about to witness Jessie's being scorched, the fire disappeared and Jessie's body fell to the ground, her leg twisting unnaturally in an odd angle.
He saw Jessie slowly flutter her eyes open and let out a moan. Then blessed unconsciousness claimed her again.
"Jessie," he said. His legs won't support him and they gave out from under him. His feeling of weakness increased tenfold. Kneeling, his fists pressed against the barrier, he said again, "Jessie."
Different feelings churned within him, each warring to take control of his actions. The feeling of helplessness ate at his soul and formed a lump at his throat. Frustration at his immobility drove his fist to the barrier, breaking several of his knuckles. He felt the pain in the back of his mind, but anger at seeing Jessie in pain drove it from his mind.
What was going on here? he thought. Since when can Jeanette do these things?
"I can see you're confused," said Jeanette. "This is partly your fault, you know."
He looked at her, the source of all this fiasco.
"What the hell are you talking about?" he asked in a gruff voice.
"Well," said Jeanette reasonably, "if you hadn't gone and fallen in love with her instead of me, then maybe, just maybe mind you, Jessie and you won't be in this fix."
He prayed for patience.
"What do you mean by that?!" he shouted.
He was never one for patience.
Jeanette went still and looked at him with hatred.
"You," she said, "are not to address me in such a manner," she continued in an almost different voice. "Your impudence is really quite astounding. You are not in control here. You should be begging me at this point, not trying to anger me."
Jonny was about to give a scathing reply when he saw Hadji in the corner of his eye shake his head at him.
"Not now, Jonny," said his best friend.
Jeanette turned her back at him and walked towards Hadji.
"Are we finally wising up, Hadji?" she asked.
Jonny saw Hadji stare at Jeanette with loathing. He didn't think he'd ever seen Hadji look at anyone that way before.
"I will never do as you ask," said Hadji vehemently.
Please tell me I'm having a nightmare, Jonny thought to himself.
"I guess we'll just have to see, won't we Hadji," said Jeanette in a matter-of-fact voice. "Now let's see, how should I begin this?"
Jonny saw Jeanette walk over to Jessie's prone form.
**************************
"Wake up, Jessie," said a voice somewhere.
She tried. She really tried to wake up. But there was this pain . . . whenever she tries to wake up, the pain threatens to overwhelm her.
"I said wake up, Jessie," said Jeanette. This time Jessie felt someone touch her forehead.
Jessie gave a small whimper of pain. She tried to fight the regaining of her consciousness, anything to avoid that pain, but slowly and surely she opened her eyes and found herself staring at unfamiliar surroundings.
She immediately sat up, only to yelp in pain as she jarred her leg.
She winced as she felt excruciating pain shoot up from her leg. For a second, all she could see were blurry images as tears formed in her eyes. Her hands blindly searched for the source of pain while she maintained her fetal position.
"Oh," said the same voice. "You poor baby. Does the leg hurt?"
Jessie looked through he pain glazed eyes at the direction of the voice.
She saw a familiar blond-haired girl.
Jeanette? she thought.
She moved her hair away from her eyes and stared incredulously at Jonny's . . . friend.
"Jeanette?" she rasped. "What are you doing here?" She looked around her. "What am I doing here for that matter?"
Jeanette smiled.
Jessie hated that smile.
"Why Jessie," she said. "You're here to help me persuade someone."
"Somehow," said gritted through her pain, "I get the feeling that there's a lot more than that."
She looks at her surroundings again and saw Hadji and Jonny floating in a spherical shaped object. Both were looking at her with concern. She saw their mouths move, but she couldn't hear what they were saying. There was a loud buzzing in her ear that was growing progressingly louder by the second.
Funny I didn't notice it before, she thought.
"What's the matter Jessie?" said Jeanette's voice.
In the back of her mind, she wondered why she can hear Jeanette's voice quite clearly.
Jessie struggle to get up even with her leg.
She saw, a second too late, a foot swiftly connecting with her mouth.
Her whole body was flung against the wall. She slid down the wall and landed ignominiously. She looked at her legs in front of her. Her right leg was twisted in a most . . . difficult fashion.
The pain was numbing her from feeling anything else.
She felt something dribble down her cheek. She wiped it with the back of her hand and saw a red stain.
A lethargic feeling swept through her as she felt blood rush through her head.
What's going on here? she thought. Why am I so weak?
Once again, she tried to get up.
Jeanette, apparently, had other ideas.
"Going somewhere Jessie?" she asked nicely. "We can't have that, now can we?"
Jessie felt herself being lifted up by an unseen force.
I can't move, she thought.
Her limbs betrayed her as they stayed in their unmoving position.
She felt herself being thrown.
She willed her legs to move, her arms to assume a protective stance, but they didn't. She felt the her whole body hit the ground with a decisive thud.
Oh, God, she thought.
She didn't think she could hurt anymore.
She was wrong.
She took a deep breath and coughed. She tasted her blood.
What's happening? she thought.
It was as if her mind was processing in slow motion. Everything was happening so fast.
Either that or I'm a little slow today, she thought.
She looked up from her position. She can see Jonny and Hadji from where she was. They were each trapped in a bubble-typed barrier. Again, she saw their lips move, as if they were shouting. Again, she didn't hear them. The buzzing was still in her ears, although softer now.
What are they trying to tell me? she thought. Why can't I hear them? Why can I hear Jeanette?
She listened more closely to them.
It was no use. Her other senses were flooding her brain with different sensory input. Most predominant of all was her feeling of pain. It blocked out all others. She tried to look at Jonny and Hadji again, but her vision was beginning to blur.
She looked for her tormentor. She saw Jeanette just as she felt a kick on her stomach.
More pain . . .
Dammit! she thought. Why can't I fight? Why can't I stand up and fight her?
She felt the weakness pervading her limbs. Her arms felt like lead weights. She felt a throbbing in her head.
Get up, Bannon! she thought to herself. Can't let anyone see you like this. Can't let anyone see how weak you are. Can't let anyone . . . Can't let Hadji . . .Can't let Jonny . . . Can't let myself . . .
She made her arms raise her body up and she saw Jeanette standing in front of her, staring at her with that familiar smile at her face.
At that moment, she knew she was going to die.
***************************
Michael felt light. He was floating and it felt . . . nice. Very nice. He could spend his days like this forever.
*Are you sure?*
He pondered. He thought about his mother and his father and the family business he was so proud of. Suddenly he found himself staring at his father. His father was staring at someone in a bed.
*He'll be okay,* the deep voice of his father said. * Michael is strong. He will fight this. He won't give up that easily.*
"Ofcourse I'm okay," he said. "What's up, dad?"
His father ignored him.
He tried to touch his father.
But couldn't.
His hand went through. HIS HAND WENT THROUGH HIS FATHER.
I have a bad feeling about this, he thought.
He looked around for his mother then he found himself looking at his mother. She was also staring at someone in the bed.
*I'm just so worried,* said her gentle voice. * Michael was always so . . . so alive, moving. He could never keep still. Do you remember the time he . . .*
He could hear the pain in his mother's voice.
"Mother," he said. "I'm here."
She ignored him.
"What's going on here?" he asked. "Mother, it's me, Michael."
He tried to hug her from behind.
But couldn't.
His arms went through his mother.
Confused, he looked at his hands for the first time. He can see through them.
A feeling of dread settled in him.
Where's Moira? he thought.
And with that, he found himself looking at his sister from behind. Like his parents, his sister was talking to someone in the bed.
*Michael* said her young voice. *Michael?*
He approached her from behind.
*Wake up, okay? Please? Don't make me have to hit you.*
He looked beyond her and stared . . . and stared . . . and stared at the person in the bed.
*You were supposed to drive me to the mall tomorrow, remember? If this is a ploy to get out of it, I swear I'm going to . . . You are the only brother I know who would go to so much trouble as to get in a coma just to avoid taking me shopping.*
He was staring at himself. HE WAS STARING AT HIMSELF!!!
*Michael, wake up right now!* sob *You never did listen to me.*
He can see various tubes connected to himself at the bed.
Oh God, he thought. What happened?
*But Michael, I swear, Jessie is on her way over here and you wouldn't want her to catch you wearing nothing but a hospital gown, now, would you? Michael . . . *
Jessie, he thought. Jessie . . .
Memories came crashing down.
The party . . . the kiss . . . the headlights on the wrong side of the road . . .
But there's something more. Something important. A danger . . .
He didn't know how he knew, but something deep inside him was urging him, insisting that he warn Jessie . . .
He needed to go to her. There was something . . . something on the edge of his consciousness . . . pushing him to go to her as soon as he can. He had to warn her . . .
Warn her from what? he thought to himself.
He felt himself being pulled . . . somewhere. He tried to look around him, at his surroundings, but everything turned into a blur. When everything cleared again he found himself staring at a scene from a nightmare.
He saw Jessie, gasping for breath on all fours, struggling to get up from her prone form. In front of her stood another girl. He stared at the girl. She was laughing as Jessie's arms collapsed from under her.
Jeanette? he thought. What the hell?
He ran to Jessie and tried to pick her up. Again, his hands went through.
Not now! he thought. Not now, dammit!
By now, he can see Jessie's face clearly and he gasped. The beginnings of numerous bruises were starting to form around her right cheek and her left eye. In fact, her left eye was already partly shut.
"Jessie," he said, his voice cracking.
She never heard him.
But Jeanette did.
He finally turned his attention to Jeanette, who was looking at him with an amused expression.
*Well, well, well* said a voice in his head. *It seems we have a lost soul in our midst.*
Michael looked around. "Who said that?" he asked.
Jeanette knelt next to him and Jessie and continued to look at him.
*I did* said the voice in his head.
"Jeanette?" he said. "What the hell is going on here?"
She smiled. *We're just having a little fun here* she said in his head. She stood up again and looked at her right.
"Well, Hadji," she said. "Do you think Jessie's suffered enough?"
He finally noticed the shouting that was going on from both his right and left side.
Michael looked at the direction Jeanette spoke to and saw the person being addressed. Hadji was suspended on air in a glowing, spherical bubble. He was on his knees, his face streaked with tears.
"Let her go," Hadji said in a raspy voice, caused by too much abuse to the vocal chords.
"Jessie!" he heard someone shout from the other side of the room. "Oh, God, Jessie!"
He saw Jonny Quest pounding his fist to the barrier of his prison, calling futilely to the girl in front of him. The mixture of anger and frustration on Jonny's face reminded him of what he was feeling.
He kneeled in front of Jessie and tried to touch her face.
He saw her look up at him . . . to him.
"Jessie," he said. "Can you see me?"
He saw her shook her head, as if to physically clear her thoughts. Her hands tried to rub her eyes, but he could see that she was only making her vision worse by accidentally rubbing dirt into them, too.
"Michael," she said softly.
"Jessie!" he said, elated that she saw him.
"Must be dreaming," said Jessie.
"Well Hadji," said a voice above them. "What is it to be?"
"No!" Jessie tried to shout, but it came up as a murmur.
Michael looked back at her and found her almost talking to herself.
"Whatever she wants, Hadji," she whispered. "Don't give it to her!"
A series of coughs wracked her body. She was wheezing by this time.
He saw the light in her eyes dying.
"Jessie," she said urgently, "Jessie."
A confused look entered her face.
"Jessie," he said again. "Don't give up."
*****************************
He felt invigorated. The energy from the Bannon girl was unique. Just a small amount had given him such a . . . rush. And he wasn't able to stop himself from taking more. A lot more. In fact, he had almost . . . killed her. Jeanette's consciousness was what stopped him near the end. He couldn't believe it. He had almost forgotten the all of what he had planned for a moment of . . .
He couldn't find words to describe the feeling. Not in this primitive language.
He watched through Jeanette's eyes as the girl tried, without success, to raise herself from her position.
So much fire, he thought.
He now understood what was it about her Jeanette hated so much. It was her love for life, her effervescence. Her soul. It was such a contradiction of what Jeanette's was.
And Jeanette had felt threatened by this.
Not that he cared. Right now, it was imperative that the Wielder willingly surrender the use of his powers to him. With that power, he can open a very special portal. A portal that would draw the Council's attention and have them entering this part of the galaxy in order to shut it. And that was when he would have his revenge. Sweet revenge.
******************************
Hadji Singh stared at the nightmare before him. He tried to shut his eyes from the horrific scene, tried to distance himself from the anguish that started flooding his senses the moment he realized that his friends are here with him, suffering.
*It is all you're fault*
He had ceased to differentiate between the voice of Jeanette in his head and the voice of his own conscience. Right now, they are both saying the same thing.
*It is all you fault*
**FLASHBACK . . . to a very recent past**
Hadji opened his eyes slowly. He did not know what it is that prompted him to wake up so early, but whatever it was, he could not help but feel a slight resentment over his disturbed slumber. The past week had been a series of . . .
Why do I have a feeling that I have done this before? he thought. There is something different, however, about this this . . .
He glanced at his surroundings. A nagging feeling tugged at his consciousness.
This is definitely not the Quest Compound, he thought.
He was inside a cavern and his body was floating in a spherical prison, which happened to have a very solid feel to it.
"You're awake," said a feminine voice below him.
Jeanette?
"Jeanette," he said. "What is the meaning of this?"
He saw Jeanette smile at him and say, "I need a favor, Hadji."
Hadji observed the sphere which imprisoned him. "Perhaps it might be wise to consider that imprisoning someone is not exactly the best way to ask for a favor," he said evenly.
"Oh, that," said Jeanette nonchalantly. "Well, that wasn't my idea, but he insisted."
Hadji looked around. He found no one else in the cavern with them.
He noticed Jeanette look at him peculiarly, amused.
"Silly," she said. "You can't see him. He's inside me."
Hadji stared at her in surprise. That's when the nagging feeling hit him full force. He did not know why he did not notice it before, but the feeling of evil . . . it is present within the girl standing in front of him.
"What . . .?" he said.
Again she smiled at his confusion.
"That's alright, Hadji," she said. "You don't have to understand anything. Just give him what he wants and --"
He saw her eyes glaze over.
"It is really quite simple," she said in a controlled voice. "You will surrender your soul to me and you will be rewarded with quick and painless death."
He looked at her closely. There is a difference in her manner . . .
"I do not succumb to threats," he said with all the dignity he could muster under the circumstances.
"Are you quite sure about that?" she asked. "Perhaps this is the time to quote a well-known human cliché. I do not make threats, only promises."
That's when Hadji felt the pain in his head. It teased his senses . . . promising to give more. It did not start out as much of anything at first, but time multiplied it intensity in tremendous proportions. Soon, not just his head throbbed, but his whole being. He tried to control it, to use his years of training to separate his mind from his body and distance himself from the excruciating pain which started to pervade his being. He had succeeded at first, but the effort drained him of energy and the input of pain kept coming.
He gripped his head, now bare of his turban, and bent down.
Do not give in, he told himself. Do NOT give in.
His skin felt hot.
He was on fire.
He looked at himself and noticed no flames.
It is all in your mind, he told himself.
"Is it?" asked Jeanette.
Hadji felt himself double over as the burning in his chest started to spread.
He felt as if he were a mass of pain and nothing else.
Ignore the pain, he told himself.
His vision started to blur. His breathing became constricted. He gasped for air.
Then suddenly, everything stopped.
Relief.
"Now," said Jeanette. "Perhaps you are more amicable about surrendering yourself --"
"Never!" he spat after taking a deep breath. "I do not know who or what you are, but you will not have your way in this."
He saw Jeanette frown. He was not sure, but he was almost certain her eyes glowed.
Then he found himself in a place in his past.
** "The Sultan of Bangalore has passed away," he heard a voice say.
An ache filled his heart at the reiteration of something he already knew.
A young Hadji crouched in the corner and watched the proceedings as people around the palace cried out their grief. He saw his mother looking out of a window and he walked towards her. He tugged at her dress.
He saw her look at him and give him a sad smile. She knelt down beside him and took him in her embrace . . .
Hadji's face clouded as he realize that Anaya had used him to steal the falcon. He struggled with the ropes which bound him and watched as Jessie and Jonny do the same. How could he have been so stupid. He should have seen through her. Jessie had been suspicious of her from the start. He should have listened to her . . .
Hadji watched with horror as the creature -- the one he knew as Elise -- grabbed Jessie and flew across the river. He ran towards them, his heart in his throat, trying desperately to catch up, but his legs will not follow his command. He watched helplessly as . . .
A young Hadji curls up in a pallet crying for something . . . someone . . . someone who was not there. He looks around at the unfamiliar place and yearns for that soft voice . . .
Hadji stood behind the school bleachers watching as Jessie gave Michael a long kiss in front of the crowd after he crossed the finished line. His fingers gripped the bar tightly, turning his knuckles white, contrasting with his dark skin . . .
Hadji walked towards the parking lot, thinking about the scene he witnessed in one of the classrooms. Jessie and Michael . . .
Hadji cries out into the night, calling for someone. Pasha comes into the room and tries to comfort the distraught boy, but his keening wails continue until dawn touches the sky . . . **
Hadji blinked and saw Jeanette standing in front of him.
"Do you want more, Hadji?" she asked.
Hadji stared at hard at the woman . . . no, monster who brought him to this place. Jeanette had made him relive the darkest moments of his life. He had been there . . . in the past . . . experiencing everything for the second time around. The grief he had felt over his father's death and the anguish that took hold of his heart when he was taken from his home had overwhelmed him. It was as if time never healed the sorrow. He felt a renewed pain in the region of his heart, tormenting his soul. Misery clouded his consciousness.
The world is a dark and lonely place, he thought.
Again, images of Jessie and Michael, of Jessie and Jonny danced in his mind.
*You threw away the best thing you could have had in your lifetime, Singh*
He tried to push his feelings of jealousy out of his mind.
*How does it feel to know that it could have been you with her?*
Control, he thought. Control.
He heard a laugh.
"Very good, Hadji," Jeanette said. "But how long do you think you can hold out?"
Hadji looked with hatred at the source of his torment, his mind momentarily distracted from its painful journey.
"For as long as it takes, Jeanette," he said. "For as long as it takes."
He saw her smile a secret smile.
"Do you love her, Hadji?" she asked.
Hadji refused to respond.
"You do not have to answer," she said. "I know."
Silence.
"You would not want to see her hurt, would you, Hadji?" Jeanette probed.
Hadji's look of hatred intensified.
"If you ever, ever do anything to hurt her," he began.
"Oh I will," said Jeanette. "But do not worry. You will get to watch it all."
And he did.
He watched helplessly as Jessie nearly burned to her death.
He watched as her leg twisted at her fall.
He watched as Jeanette gave each blow to Jessie's helpless form.
He watched, unable to do anything but scream his horror, his anguish at the sight. His throat felt raw and his knuckles were bleeding from the abuse he had given them when he started punching the sphere.
In the end, he begged.
**END FLASHBACK**
He felt the bile rise from his throat again as the scene before him started embedding itself to his mind, to be forever remembered.
"Well, Hadji," said Jeanette, "what is it to be?"
Hadji almost choked at his fury and frustration. Jeanette knew very well what is it to be. He had been screaming at the top of his lungs for her to stop hurting Jessie. He had screamed that he would give in . . . that he would do anything, anything she had asked for, including the sacrificing of his soul . . . and yet she continued with her torture. He had yelled out his begging. He had shredded his pride, but to no avail. Jeanette had continued physically abusing Jessie. He thought she would go on forever. Truth be told, the past several hours had seemed like forever.
He looked at Jessie's crumpled form. He would never forgive himself for what happened to her today. If only he had capitulated sooner. Maybe then she would not be in this predicament.
"What's going on here!?" he heard his friend yell in a raspy voice.
He looked at Jonny and his haggard appearance.
"Hadji," he said, "what does she want?"
He did not respond immediately. He did not know whether he wanted Jonny to know his shame. He did not know whether he wanted Jonny to know it was he, Hadji Singh, who was the cause of all this. In the end, however, he could no more lie to his best friend than he could to himself.
"My soul, Jonny," he said softly, "she wants my soul."
*******************************
Jonny stared at his friend, trying to grasp the implications of what Hadji just told him. From what he could understand, there are only two choices: Jessie's life or Hadji's life.
He had been struggling with his ignorance of the whole situation from the very beginning. He didn't know where Jeanette got her new abilities. He didn't know that she had an intense dislike for Jessie and him -- until now, ofcourse. He didn't know what role Hadji played in the whole scheme of things. He didn't know what it was Jeanette wanted from Hadji that she had to torture him to get it -- until now. He didn't know what it was Hadji refused to give up until too late -- until now. What's more, he didn't know that Hadji loved Jessie as much as he did -- until now.
The choices were clear. He just didn't know if any of the three of them would survive what happened here. And if for some miracle, they did, he didn't know whether they would survive the aftermath. Because right now, he didn't know what he wanted Hadji to do.
Did he want Hadji to give his life for Jessie?
Would Jessie want that of Hadji?
For the first time in his life, he has to admit that he didn't know anything.
And it scared him.
*Snap out of it, Quest!*
Who said that?! he thought.
*Jessie always said how you can be depended on to get them out of the scrapes you usually got them into*
Jonny looked around him to see if there is another person in the room with them.
He found no one.
*Get them out of this one*
"But I don't know how," he whispered. He felt the weakness of his limbs. "I don't know how to stop her. I don't even know where to begin."
*********************************
Hadji could see the conflict in Jonny's eyes.
It matters not, he thought. He had made his decision. His soul for Jessie's.
In a way, it was a selfish decision on his part. He did not think he could face life and the people around him if something ever happened to Jessie. He had a feeling that he would be dead inside, one way or the other.
*********************************
He smiled. These humans are foolish to let one person be so important to them in their lives. He had thought, at first, that the Wielder would be made of much sterner stuff. When he -- correction, when Jeanette -- decided to have her little fun, however, he could see that the Wielder is like the rest. He is ruled by his emotions. The Wielder had begged him for the life and well-being of the Bannon girl.
But it's too late. The Bannon girl's life force is leaving her body bit by bit. She won't last much longer. The Wielder, however, did not need to know that now. Not when he so willingly offered his person to him.
He laughed at the Wielder's ignorance. By giving him the power to control his soul, the Wielder failed to realize that he has given him the power to destroy the world, the universe -- not just the girl he had tried so hard to protect.
He walked towards the Wielder and released him from his prison. He stared at his eyes. The Wielder is so willing . . .
Just in time, too. The energy from his owning Jeanette's soul had been approaching the lower end of the scale due to all this work. The Wielder's soul, however . . .
Black smoke engulfed both of them.
*********************************
Jessie watched from her prone position as Hadji and Jeanette were surrounded by swirls of black. She had tried to cry out, to demand that Hadji not do this, but nothing came from her voice.
She knew exactly what Hadji was doing. He was trying to protect her, Jessie Bannon. While she was grateful in one sense, she was also furious in another. She was furious with herself for being put into this position that somebody actually had to come and rescue her. She was not a damsel in distress. She was a Bannon and a Velasquez. The people of her family can take care of themselves and that included her.
She sobbed at the thought of her helplessness, of how her body -- after all its training -- had betrayed her.
She watched as Hadji's form was completely engulfed with the black swirls.
If she could, she would have shouted with frustration. She would have yelled and screamed and kicked. She would have done anything to stop what was happening.
But she couldn't.
She felt so weak.
Oh, God, she thought. Hadji, don't do this!!
She thought back to her school girl crush on one of her best friends.
Come back, Hadji, she thought. Don't let her take you!
*Please, Jessie, don't give up*
Funny, she thought. She could have sworn she could hear Michael talking to her right now.
*I love you, Jessie*
Michael? she thought. Or Hadji?
She tried to shake her head in a futile attempt to clear her thoughts.
A jumble of voices filled her head all of them calling her name.
She felt sleepy . . . so sleepy.
*Please, please, Jessie*
She felt tired . . . so tired.
*Don't leave me*
She stifled a yawn.
*Fight it*
Her eyes closed.
*Fight it, dammit!*
********************************
Michael stared a the girl before him. He had ceased to care about what was happening to Jeanette and the rest. All his attention was with Jessie.
He had watched as the light in her eyes started to dim. He knew it was only a matter of time.
********************************
He could feel it. The rush of energy flooding his being, seeping through all that was him.
It is not long now.
He would open the portal.
The Guardians would come and he . . . he would have his revenge.
*********************************
Jonny watched as the black smoke that engulfed his friend disappear. He watched as Hadji stepped away from Jeanette and Jeanette crumpled into the ground. He watched as Hadji -- no, not Hadji, someone with Hadji's body -- emitted a blue light in his hand.
The light intensified, brightening the cavern.
Jonny watched as Hadji stretched his arm and pointed his hand into the wall of the cavern.
He watched as a bright beam of blue light was released from Hadji's palm and was shot straight into the wall.
In the wall, an opening began to form.
**************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** ****
Revised December 29, 2001
by Akane-Rei
PART SEVEN
The Face of Evil
"The horror! The horror!"
Kurtz in "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad
Jonny opened his eyes.
Where the hell am I? he asked himself.
He was lying down on a hard surface, looking at nothing. He tried to get up, but found that he was too weak. His body felt heavy and sluggish. He stifled a yawn and resisted the urge to close his eyes. He used his arms, almost useless as they were, to try and rise from his position. Bracing himself against the ground, he sat down and stared.
He was above ground.
He struggled to his feet and stood up with a great deal of difficulty. In fact, he was almost leaning for support to whatever it was that was him.
Jonny shook his head, trying to see clearly in what looks like a dimly lit cavern. In fact he could hardly see five feet in front of him. And what he could see made him wonder if perhaps someone spiked the punch at Estella's party. He was floating. Rather, what he was in was floating. He felt at whatever it was that was enclosing him. It was smooth and circular, but invisible. He tested its strength by giving the invisible barrier a kick and ended up hurting himself instead.
He shook himself. For some reason, he felt weak and groggy. Given his current condition, he wasn't surprised that his kick hardly affected the barrier.
It was a pathetic attempt anyway, he thought. A four year old could have done better.
He cursed under his breath. He was a couple of feet above ground and he had no idea how to get down. Since he saw no harness holding his prison from above, he tried to jump in hopes it will move just a bit downward.
No such luck.
He was well and truly trapped.
"So you're finally awake," said a familiar voice below him.
He turned to the voice, surprise clear in his expression.
"Jeanette?" he said incredulously. "What's going on here?"
He saw her pout her lips and cross her arms.
"Not even a 'hello,' Jonny?" she asked in a mock hurt expression. "Is that the way to greet your girlfriend?"
"Jeanette," he said in an even voice, "we both know just how ridiculous that title is."
He saw her expression turn to genuine anger.
Uh-oh, he thought. Maybe that wasn't the best course to take when she's free down there while I'm trapped up here.
"That's right, Jonny Quest," she spat, "we do. What's the matter? Thought you were too good for me? Is that it?"
"Wha--" sputtered Jonny, "Ofcourse not!" he shouted. What the hell is going on here? he wondered to himself.
"It doesn't matter now anyway," she said in a sing-song voice. "By the time we're through, you're not going to be the most popular guy in school for long."
"We?" he said. Who's we? he thought.
"Don't worry, Jonny," she said. "We won't hurt you . . . much."
He had to find a way to get out of this. Now.
She turned from him and looked at the other direction. For the first time, he saw two other spheres in the cavern: one containing Hadji and the other, Jessie. While Hadji was fully conscious and was looking at him in return, Jessie was crumpled in a ball of heap inside her sphere.
"Jonny!" croaked Hadji. "How are you, my friend?" Jonny had a feeling that Hadji meant to ask that question a little louder.
"I'm alright!" Jonny shouted back. "So far," he muttered. He looked at Hadji and drew a breath. His friend looked physically drained. Dark circles were visible under his eyes. And something else . . . something in his friend's countenance betrayed an exhaustion that goes beyond what he could see.
"Are you alright, Hadj?" he asked concerned.
He wasn't sure, but he could have sworn Hadji grimaced.
"As well as I could be, Jonny," Hadji replied.
Worry marred his brow.
He wanted to question his friend further, but he saw that Hadji's attention was directed at Jessie. He looked at Jessie, trying to make out her general welfare aside from the fact that she's unconscious.
"Jessie!" he shouted. "Jessie!"
He stared at Jessie, willing her to wake up. But ofcourse, she didn't.
"Now as for her," he heard Jeanette say, "that's another matter entirely."
He watched with dread as Jeanette's right hand start to glow and a bright ball of flame began to form.
"Don't you dare hurt her," he said quietly.
Jeanette looked at him and laughed. "Or you'll what?" she asked, amused. "Stomp your foot?" She gave him a smile of superiority. "I don't think you realize your position here, Jonny Quest. You are not in charge. You can't threaten me."
With that, she turned from him and he watched with horror as she threw the ball of flame towards Jessie's sphere.
"NO!" Jonny and Hadji said simultaneously.
He pounded his fists to the clear barrier and watched helplessly as the ball engulfed Jessie's sphere and consume it, eating its way inside her.
Oh God, he thought. Not Jessie. Not Jessie. NOT JESSIE DAMMIT!!!!!
He watched as the fire got closer and closer to its victim.
*Do something, Quest!*
What can I do?
He started pounding at his prison. The futility of his action made him groan with frustration.
He watched as the flame touched Jessie's skin.
Just when he thought he was about to witness Jessie's being scorched, the fire disappeared and Jessie's body fell to the ground, her leg twisting unnaturally in an odd angle.
He saw Jessie slowly flutter her eyes open and let out a moan. Then blessed unconsciousness claimed her again.
"Jessie," he said. His legs won't support him and they gave out from under him. His feeling of weakness increased tenfold. Kneeling, his fists pressed against the barrier, he said again, "Jessie."
Different feelings churned within him, each warring to take control of his actions. The feeling of helplessness ate at his soul and formed a lump at his throat. Frustration at his immobility drove his fist to the barrier, breaking several of his knuckles. He felt the pain in the back of his mind, but anger at seeing Jessie in pain drove it from his mind.
What was going on here? he thought. Since when can Jeanette do these things?
"I can see you're confused," said Jeanette. "This is partly your fault, you know."
He looked at her, the source of all this fiasco.
"What the hell are you talking about?" he asked in a gruff voice.
"Well," said Jeanette reasonably, "if you hadn't gone and fallen in love with her instead of me, then maybe, just maybe mind you, Jessie and you won't be in this fix."
He prayed for patience.
"What do you mean by that?!" he shouted.
He was never one for patience.
Jeanette went still and looked at him with hatred.
"You," she said, "are not to address me in such a manner," she continued in an almost different voice. "Your impudence is really quite astounding. You are not in control here. You should be begging me at this point, not trying to anger me."
Jonny was about to give a scathing reply when he saw Hadji in the corner of his eye shake his head at him.
"Not now, Jonny," said his best friend.
Jeanette turned her back at him and walked towards Hadji.
"Are we finally wising up, Hadji?" she asked.
Jonny saw Hadji stare at Jeanette with loathing. He didn't think he'd ever seen Hadji look at anyone that way before.
"I will never do as you ask," said Hadji vehemently.
Please tell me I'm having a nightmare, Jonny thought to himself.
"I guess we'll just have to see, won't we Hadji," said Jeanette in a matter-of-fact voice. "Now let's see, how should I begin this?"
Jonny saw Jeanette walk over to Jessie's prone form.
**************************
"Wake up, Jessie," said a voice somewhere.
She tried. She really tried to wake up. But there was this pain . . . whenever she tries to wake up, the pain threatens to overwhelm her.
"I said wake up, Jessie," said Jeanette. This time Jessie felt someone touch her forehead.
Jessie gave a small whimper of pain. She tried to fight the regaining of her consciousness, anything to avoid that pain, but slowly and surely she opened her eyes and found herself staring at unfamiliar surroundings.
She immediately sat up, only to yelp in pain as she jarred her leg.
She winced as she felt excruciating pain shoot up from her leg. For a second, all she could see were blurry images as tears formed in her eyes. Her hands blindly searched for the source of pain while she maintained her fetal position.
"Oh," said the same voice. "You poor baby. Does the leg hurt?"
Jessie looked through he pain glazed eyes at the direction of the voice.
She saw a familiar blond-haired girl.
Jeanette? she thought.
She moved her hair away from her eyes and stared incredulously at Jonny's . . . friend.
"Jeanette?" she rasped. "What are you doing here?" She looked around her. "What am I doing here for that matter?"
Jeanette smiled.
Jessie hated that smile.
"Why Jessie," she said. "You're here to help me persuade someone."
"Somehow," said gritted through her pain, "I get the feeling that there's a lot more than that."
She looks at her surroundings again and saw Hadji and Jonny floating in a spherical shaped object. Both were looking at her with concern. She saw their mouths move, but she couldn't hear what they were saying. There was a loud buzzing in her ear that was growing progressingly louder by the second.
Funny I didn't notice it before, she thought.
"What's the matter Jessie?" said Jeanette's voice.
In the back of her mind, she wondered why she can hear Jeanette's voice quite clearly.
Jessie struggle to get up even with her leg.
She saw, a second too late, a foot swiftly connecting with her mouth.
Her whole body was flung against the wall. She slid down the wall and landed ignominiously. She looked at her legs in front of her. Her right leg was twisted in a most . . . difficult fashion.
The pain was numbing her from feeling anything else.
She felt something dribble down her cheek. She wiped it with the back of her hand and saw a red stain.
A lethargic feeling swept through her as she felt blood rush through her head.
What's going on here? she thought. Why am I so weak?
Once again, she tried to get up.
Jeanette, apparently, had other ideas.
"Going somewhere Jessie?" she asked nicely. "We can't have that, now can we?"
Jessie felt herself being lifted up by an unseen force.
I can't move, she thought.
Her limbs betrayed her as they stayed in their unmoving position.
She felt herself being thrown.
She willed her legs to move, her arms to assume a protective stance, but they didn't. She felt the her whole body hit the ground with a decisive thud.
Oh, God, she thought.
She didn't think she could hurt anymore.
She was wrong.
She took a deep breath and coughed. She tasted her blood.
What's happening? she thought.
It was as if her mind was processing in slow motion. Everything was happening so fast.
Either that or I'm a little slow today, she thought.
She looked up from her position. She can see Jonny and Hadji from where she was. They were each trapped in a bubble-typed barrier. Again, she saw their lips move, as if they were shouting. Again, she didn't hear them. The buzzing was still in her ears, although softer now.
What are they trying to tell me? she thought. Why can't I hear them? Why can I hear Jeanette?
She listened more closely to them.
It was no use. Her other senses were flooding her brain with different sensory input. Most predominant of all was her feeling of pain. It blocked out all others. She tried to look at Jonny and Hadji again, but her vision was beginning to blur.
She looked for her tormentor. She saw Jeanette just as she felt a kick on her stomach.
More pain . . .
Dammit! she thought. Why can't I fight? Why can't I stand up and fight her?
She felt the weakness pervading her limbs. Her arms felt like lead weights. She felt a throbbing in her head.
Get up, Bannon! she thought to herself. Can't let anyone see you like this. Can't let anyone see how weak you are. Can't let anyone . . . Can't let Hadji . . .Can't let Jonny . . . Can't let myself . . .
She made her arms raise her body up and she saw Jeanette standing in front of her, staring at her with that familiar smile at her face.
At that moment, she knew she was going to die.
***************************
Michael felt light. He was floating and it felt . . . nice. Very nice. He could spend his days like this forever.
*Are you sure?*
He pondered. He thought about his mother and his father and the family business he was so proud of. Suddenly he found himself staring at his father. His father was staring at someone in a bed.
*He'll be okay,* the deep voice of his father said. * Michael is strong. He will fight this. He won't give up that easily.*
"Ofcourse I'm okay," he said. "What's up, dad?"
His father ignored him.
He tried to touch his father.
But couldn't.
His hand went through. HIS HAND WENT THROUGH HIS FATHER.
I have a bad feeling about this, he thought.
He looked around for his mother then he found himself looking at his mother. She was also staring at someone in the bed.
*I'm just so worried,* said her gentle voice. * Michael was always so . . . so alive, moving. He could never keep still. Do you remember the time he . . .*
He could hear the pain in his mother's voice.
"Mother," he said. "I'm here."
She ignored him.
"What's going on here?" he asked. "Mother, it's me, Michael."
He tried to hug her from behind.
But couldn't.
His arms went through his mother.
Confused, he looked at his hands for the first time. He can see through them.
A feeling of dread settled in him.
Where's Moira? he thought.
And with that, he found himself looking at his sister from behind. Like his parents, his sister was talking to someone in the bed.
*Michael* said her young voice. *Michael?*
He approached her from behind.
*Wake up, okay? Please? Don't make me have to hit you.*
He looked beyond her and stared . . . and stared . . . and stared at the person in the bed.
*You were supposed to drive me to the mall tomorrow, remember? If this is a ploy to get out of it, I swear I'm going to . . . You are the only brother I know who would go to so much trouble as to get in a coma just to avoid taking me shopping.*
He was staring at himself. HE WAS STARING AT HIMSELF!!!
*Michael, wake up right now!* sob *You never did listen to me.*
He can see various tubes connected to himself at the bed.
Oh God, he thought. What happened?
*But Michael, I swear, Jessie is on her way over here and you wouldn't want her to catch you wearing nothing but a hospital gown, now, would you? Michael . . . *
Jessie, he thought. Jessie . . .
Memories came crashing down.
The party . . . the kiss . . . the headlights on the wrong side of the road . . .
But there's something more. Something important. A danger . . .
He didn't know how he knew, but something deep inside him was urging him, insisting that he warn Jessie . . .
He needed to go to her. There was something . . . something on the edge of his consciousness . . . pushing him to go to her as soon as he can. He had to warn her . . .
Warn her from what? he thought to himself.
He felt himself being pulled . . . somewhere. He tried to look around him, at his surroundings, but everything turned into a blur. When everything cleared again he found himself staring at a scene from a nightmare.
He saw Jessie, gasping for breath on all fours, struggling to get up from her prone form. In front of her stood another girl. He stared at the girl. She was laughing as Jessie's arms collapsed from under her.
Jeanette? he thought. What the hell?
He ran to Jessie and tried to pick her up. Again, his hands went through.
Not now! he thought. Not now, dammit!
By now, he can see Jessie's face clearly and he gasped. The beginnings of numerous bruises were starting to form around her right cheek and her left eye. In fact, her left eye was already partly shut.
"Jessie," he said, his voice cracking.
She never heard him.
But Jeanette did.
He finally turned his attention to Jeanette, who was looking at him with an amused expression.
*Well, well, well* said a voice in his head. *It seems we have a lost soul in our midst.*
Michael looked around. "Who said that?" he asked.
Jeanette knelt next to him and Jessie and continued to look at him.
*I did* said the voice in his head.
"Jeanette?" he said. "What the hell is going on here?"
She smiled. *We're just having a little fun here* she said in his head. She stood up again and looked at her right.
"Well, Hadji," she said. "Do you think Jessie's suffered enough?"
He finally noticed the shouting that was going on from both his right and left side.
Michael looked at the direction Jeanette spoke to and saw the person being addressed. Hadji was suspended on air in a glowing, spherical bubble. He was on his knees, his face streaked with tears.
"Let her go," Hadji said in a raspy voice, caused by too much abuse to the vocal chords.
"Jessie!" he heard someone shout from the other side of the room. "Oh, God, Jessie!"
He saw Jonny Quest pounding his fist to the barrier of his prison, calling futilely to the girl in front of him. The mixture of anger and frustration on Jonny's face reminded him of what he was feeling.
He kneeled in front of Jessie and tried to touch her face.
He saw her look up at him . . . to him.
"Jessie," he said. "Can you see me?"
He saw her shook her head, as if to physically clear her thoughts. Her hands tried to rub her eyes, but he could see that she was only making her vision worse by accidentally rubbing dirt into them, too.
"Michael," she said softly.
"Jessie!" he said, elated that she saw him.
"Must be dreaming," said Jessie.
"Well Hadji," said a voice above them. "What is it to be?"
"No!" Jessie tried to shout, but it came up as a murmur.
Michael looked back at her and found her almost talking to herself.
"Whatever she wants, Hadji," she whispered. "Don't give it to her!"
A series of coughs wracked her body. She was wheezing by this time.
He saw the light in her eyes dying.
"Jessie," she said urgently, "Jessie."
A confused look entered her face.
"Jessie," he said again. "Don't give up."
*****************************
He felt invigorated. The energy from the Bannon girl was unique. Just a small amount had given him such a . . . rush. And he wasn't able to stop himself from taking more. A lot more. In fact, he had almost . . . killed her. Jeanette's consciousness was what stopped him near the end. He couldn't believe it. He had almost forgotten the all of what he had planned for a moment of . . .
He couldn't find words to describe the feeling. Not in this primitive language.
He watched through Jeanette's eyes as the girl tried, without success, to raise herself from her position.
So much fire, he thought.
He now understood what was it about her Jeanette hated so much. It was her love for life, her effervescence. Her soul. It was such a contradiction of what Jeanette's was.
And Jeanette had felt threatened by this.
Not that he cared. Right now, it was imperative that the Wielder willingly surrender the use of his powers to him. With that power, he can open a very special portal. A portal that would draw the Council's attention and have them entering this part of the galaxy in order to shut it. And that was when he would have his revenge. Sweet revenge.
******************************
Hadji Singh stared at the nightmare before him. He tried to shut his eyes from the horrific scene, tried to distance himself from the anguish that started flooding his senses the moment he realized that his friends are here with him, suffering.
*It is all you're fault*
He had ceased to differentiate between the voice of Jeanette in his head and the voice of his own conscience. Right now, they are both saying the same thing.
*It is all you fault*
**FLASHBACK . . . to a very recent past**
Hadji opened his eyes slowly. He did not know what it is that prompted him to wake up so early, but whatever it was, he could not help but feel a slight resentment over his disturbed slumber. The past week had been a series of . . .
Why do I have a feeling that I have done this before? he thought. There is something different, however, about this this . . .
He glanced at his surroundings. A nagging feeling tugged at his consciousness.
This is definitely not the Quest Compound, he thought.
He was inside a cavern and his body was floating in a spherical prison, which happened to have a very solid feel to it.
"You're awake," said a feminine voice below him.
Jeanette?
"Jeanette," he said. "What is the meaning of this?"
He saw Jeanette smile at him and say, "I need a favor, Hadji."
Hadji observed the sphere which imprisoned him. "Perhaps it might be wise to consider that imprisoning someone is not exactly the best way to ask for a favor," he said evenly.
"Oh, that," said Jeanette nonchalantly. "Well, that wasn't my idea, but he insisted."
Hadji looked around. He found no one else in the cavern with them.
He noticed Jeanette look at him peculiarly, amused.
"Silly," she said. "You can't see him. He's inside me."
Hadji stared at her in surprise. That's when the nagging feeling hit him full force. He did not know why he did not notice it before, but the feeling of evil . . . it is present within the girl standing in front of him.
"What . . .?" he said.
Again she smiled at his confusion.
"That's alright, Hadji," she said. "You don't have to understand anything. Just give him what he wants and --"
He saw her eyes glaze over.
"It is really quite simple," she said in a controlled voice. "You will surrender your soul to me and you will be rewarded with quick and painless death."
He looked at her closely. There is a difference in her manner . . .
"I do not succumb to threats," he said with all the dignity he could muster under the circumstances.
"Are you quite sure about that?" she asked. "Perhaps this is the time to quote a well-known human cliché. I do not make threats, only promises."
That's when Hadji felt the pain in his head. It teased his senses . . . promising to give more. It did not start out as much of anything at first, but time multiplied it intensity in tremendous proportions. Soon, not just his head throbbed, but his whole being. He tried to control it, to use his years of training to separate his mind from his body and distance himself from the excruciating pain which started to pervade his being. He had succeeded at first, but the effort drained him of energy and the input of pain kept coming.
He gripped his head, now bare of his turban, and bent down.
Do not give in, he told himself. Do NOT give in.
His skin felt hot.
He was on fire.
He looked at himself and noticed no flames.
It is all in your mind, he told himself.
"Is it?" asked Jeanette.
Hadji felt himself double over as the burning in his chest started to spread.
He felt as if he were a mass of pain and nothing else.
Ignore the pain, he told himself.
His vision started to blur. His breathing became constricted. He gasped for air.
Then suddenly, everything stopped.
Relief.
"Now," said Jeanette. "Perhaps you are more amicable about surrendering yourself --"
"Never!" he spat after taking a deep breath. "I do not know who or what you are, but you will not have your way in this."
He saw Jeanette frown. He was not sure, but he was almost certain her eyes glowed.
Then he found himself in a place in his past.
** "The Sultan of Bangalore has passed away," he heard a voice say.
An ache filled his heart at the reiteration of something he already knew.
A young Hadji crouched in the corner and watched the proceedings as people around the palace cried out their grief. He saw his mother looking out of a window and he walked towards her. He tugged at her dress.
He saw her look at him and give him a sad smile. She knelt down beside him and took him in her embrace . . .
Hadji's face clouded as he realize that Anaya had used him to steal the falcon. He struggled with the ropes which bound him and watched as Jessie and Jonny do the same. How could he have been so stupid. He should have seen through her. Jessie had been suspicious of her from the start. He should have listened to her . . .
Hadji watched with horror as the creature -- the one he knew as Elise -- grabbed Jessie and flew across the river. He ran towards them, his heart in his throat, trying desperately to catch up, but his legs will not follow his command. He watched helplessly as . . .
A young Hadji curls up in a pallet crying for something . . . someone . . . someone who was not there. He looks around at the unfamiliar place and yearns for that soft voice . . .
Hadji stood behind the school bleachers watching as Jessie gave Michael a long kiss in front of the crowd after he crossed the finished line. His fingers gripped the bar tightly, turning his knuckles white, contrasting with his dark skin . . .
Hadji walked towards the parking lot, thinking about the scene he witnessed in one of the classrooms. Jessie and Michael . . .
Hadji cries out into the night, calling for someone. Pasha comes into the room and tries to comfort the distraught boy, but his keening wails continue until dawn touches the sky . . . **
Hadji blinked and saw Jeanette standing in front of him.
"Do you want more, Hadji?" she asked.
Hadji stared at hard at the woman . . . no, monster who brought him to this place. Jeanette had made him relive the darkest moments of his life. He had been there . . . in the past . . . experiencing everything for the second time around. The grief he had felt over his father's death and the anguish that took hold of his heart when he was taken from his home had overwhelmed him. It was as if time never healed the sorrow. He felt a renewed pain in the region of his heart, tormenting his soul. Misery clouded his consciousness.
The world is a dark and lonely place, he thought.
Again, images of Jessie and Michael, of Jessie and Jonny danced in his mind.
*You threw away the best thing you could have had in your lifetime, Singh*
He tried to push his feelings of jealousy out of his mind.
*How does it feel to know that it could have been you with her?*
Control, he thought. Control.
He heard a laugh.
"Very good, Hadji," Jeanette said. "But how long do you think you can hold out?"
Hadji looked with hatred at the source of his torment, his mind momentarily distracted from its painful journey.
"For as long as it takes, Jeanette," he said. "For as long as it takes."
He saw her smile a secret smile.
"Do you love her, Hadji?" she asked.
Hadji refused to respond.
"You do not have to answer," she said. "I know."
Silence.
"You would not want to see her hurt, would you, Hadji?" Jeanette probed.
Hadji's look of hatred intensified.
"If you ever, ever do anything to hurt her," he began.
"Oh I will," said Jeanette. "But do not worry. You will get to watch it all."
And he did.
He watched helplessly as Jessie nearly burned to her death.
He watched as her leg twisted at her fall.
He watched as Jeanette gave each blow to Jessie's helpless form.
He watched, unable to do anything but scream his horror, his anguish at the sight. His throat felt raw and his knuckles were bleeding from the abuse he had given them when he started punching the sphere.
In the end, he begged.
**END FLASHBACK**
He felt the bile rise from his throat again as the scene before him started embedding itself to his mind, to be forever remembered.
"Well, Hadji," said Jeanette, "what is it to be?"
Hadji almost choked at his fury and frustration. Jeanette knew very well what is it to be. He had been screaming at the top of his lungs for her to stop hurting Jessie. He had screamed that he would give in . . . that he would do anything, anything she had asked for, including the sacrificing of his soul . . . and yet she continued with her torture. He had yelled out his begging. He had shredded his pride, but to no avail. Jeanette had continued physically abusing Jessie. He thought she would go on forever. Truth be told, the past several hours had seemed like forever.
He looked at Jessie's crumpled form. He would never forgive himself for what happened to her today. If only he had capitulated sooner. Maybe then she would not be in this predicament.
"What's going on here!?" he heard his friend yell in a raspy voice.
He looked at Jonny and his haggard appearance.
"Hadji," he said, "what does she want?"
He did not respond immediately. He did not know whether he wanted Jonny to know his shame. He did not know whether he wanted Jonny to know it was he, Hadji Singh, who was the cause of all this. In the end, however, he could no more lie to his best friend than he could to himself.
"My soul, Jonny," he said softly, "she wants my soul."
*******************************
Jonny stared at his friend, trying to grasp the implications of what Hadji just told him. From what he could understand, there are only two choices: Jessie's life or Hadji's life.
He had been struggling with his ignorance of the whole situation from the very beginning. He didn't know where Jeanette got her new abilities. He didn't know that she had an intense dislike for Jessie and him -- until now, ofcourse. He didn't know what role Hadji played in the whole scheme of things. He didn't know what it was Jeanette wanted from Hadji that she had to torture him to get it -- until now. He didn't know what it was Hadji refused to give up until too late -- until now. What's more, he didn't know that Hadji loved Jessie as much as he did -- until now.
The choices were clear. He just didn't know if any of the three of them would survive what happened here. And if for some miracle, they did, he didn't know whether they would survive the aftermath. Because right now, he didn't know what he wanted Hadji to do.
Did he want Hadji to give his life for Jessie?
Would Jessie want that of Hadji?
For the first time in his life, he has to admit that he didn't know anything.
And it scared him.
*Snap out of it, Quest!*
Who said that?! he thought.
*Jessie always said how you can be depended on to get them out of the scrapes you usually got them into*
Jonny looked around him to see if there is another person in the room with them.
He found no one.
*Get them out of this one*
"But I don't know how," he whispered. He felt the weakness of his limbs. "I don't know how to stop her. I don't even know where to begin."
*********************************
Hadji could see the conflict in Jonny's eyes.
It matters not, he thought. He had made his decision. His soul for Jessie's.
In a way, it was a selfish decision on his part. He did not think he could face life and the people around him if something ever happened to Jessie. He had a feeling that he would be dead inside, one way or the other.
*********************************
He smiled. These humans are foolish to let one person be so important to them in their lives. He had thought, at first, that the Wielder would be made of much sterner stuff. When he -- correction, when Jeanette -- decided to have her little fun, however, he could see that the Wielder is like the rest. He is ruled by his emotions. The Wielder had begged him for the life and well-being of the Bannon girl.
But it's too late. The Bannon girl's life force is leaving her body bit by bit. She won't last much longer. The Wielder, however, did not need to know that now. Not when he so willingly offered his person to him.
He laughed at the Wielder's ignorance. By giving him the power to control his soul, the Wielder failed to realize that he has given him the power to destroy the world, the universe -- not just the girl he had tried so hard to protect.
He walked towards the Wielder and released him from his prison. He stared at his eyes. The Wielder is so willing . . .
Just in time, too. The energy from his owning Jeanette's soul had been approaching the lower end of the scale due to all this work. The Wielder's soul, however . . .
Black smoke engulfed both of them.
*********************************
Jessie watched from her prone position as Hadji and Jeanette were surrounded by swirls of black. She had tried to cry out, to demand that Hadji not do this, but nothing came from her voice.
She knew exactly what Hadji was doing. He was trying to protect her, Jessie Bannon. While she was grateful in one sense, she was also furious in another. She was furious with herself for being put into this position that somebody actually had to come and rescue her. She was not a damsel in distress. She was a Bannon and a Velasquez. The people of her family can take care of themselves and that included her.
She sobbed at the thought of her helplessness, of how her body -- after all its training -- had betrayed her.
She watched as Hadji's form was completely engulfed with the black swirls.
If she could, she would have shouted with frustration. She would have yelled and screamed and kicked. She would have done anything to stop what was happening.
But she couldn't.
She felt so weak.
Oh, God, she thought. Hadji, don't do this!!
She thought back to her school girl crush on one of her best friends.
Come back, Hadji, she thought. Don't let her take you!
*Please, Jessie, don't give up*
Funny, she thought. She could have sworn she could hear Michael talking to her right now.
*I love you, Jessie*
Michael? she thought. Or Hadji?
She tried to shake her head in a futile attempt to clear her thoughts.
A jumble of voices filled her head all of them calling her name.
She felt sleepy . . . so sleepy.
*Please, please, Jessie*
She felt tired . . . so tired.
*Don't leave me*
She stifled a yawn.
*Fight it*
Her eyes closed.
*Fight it, dammit!*
********************************
Michael stared a the girl before him. He had ceased to care about what was happening to Jeanette and the rest. All his attention was with Jessie.
He had watched as the light in her eyes started to dim. He knew it was only a matter of time.
********************************
He could feel it. The rush of energy flooding his being, seeping through all that was him.
It is not long now.
He would open the portal.
The Guardians would come and he . . . he would have his revenge.
*********************************
Jonny watched as the black smoke that engulfed his friend disappear. He watched as Hadji stepped away from Jeanette and Jeanette crumpled into the ground. He watched as Hadji -- no, not Hadji, someone with Hadji's body -- emitted a blue light in his hand.
The light intensified, brightening the cavern.
Jonny watched as Hadji stretched his arm and pointed his hand into the wall of the cavern.
He watched as a bright beam of blue light was released from Hadji's palm and was shot straight into the wall.
In the wall, an opening began to form.
**************************************************************************** **************************************************************************** ****
Revised December 29, 2001
