Introducing the NEW typo free chapter eight...
~*~
Disclaimer, etc. in part one
~*~
Authors notes: I have been informed that I hold the record for updating a continuous story!!! *jumps up and down grinning like an idiot* Haha anyway... Okay, so part seven pretty much sucked. Everyone has one of them days, right? Well, this one isn't really much better and still doesn't have much action, but it's mushy! God, I need to get some more action back up in this piece. Oh and... FIVE CHAPTERS IN FIVE DAYS! YAHOO!!!
veggie5 & Audrey:
Roxton sighed and pulled back from her so that he could look her in the eyes. He gave her a reassuring smile before trying to calm her down. He was always good at making her feel better when she had nightmares, which is why she ended up spending most of her nights asleep in his room.
Yeah I know, lame explanation. But trust me, more went on than just cuddling! *evil grin* I PROMISE they'll be flashback scenes or something close to it before this story is over!
Jaclyn and chapeau - You little devils, you! You two had very good guesses... read to find out!
Mayhem Mountain (8/?)
by: Brandy Leigh
~*~
Marguerite continued to suffer from her visions as the day went on, each one getting more and more vivid and lasting for a longer period of time. By the end of the day she was a total wreck and wouldn't let anyone but Roxton go near her. She had clung to him for dear life for much of the day, and everyone was quite worried for they had never seen her quite so upset.
Veronica had begun to notice that Julian seemed rather happy of late and was starting to wonder if maybe this latest development didn't have something to do with her. She sure had seem satisfied to know that Marguerite was suffering, and it would only prove to be valid sense the two of them didn't get along too well.
While everyone was beginning to set up camp for the evening once again, Veronica decided to confront Challenger with her suspicions.
"You know," she said once she and Challenger were alone, "Julian doesn't seem bothered by Marguerite's condition."
"Well it doesn't surprise me," Challenger told her. "Marguerite hasn't exactly been friendly with our guest."
"And Julian hasn't exactly been friendly with her, or any of us for that matter. I'm really starting to suspect that there's something she's not telling us. Something's not right."
"Oh I wouldn't worry about it, Veronica. I'm sure everything is going to be just fine," he said with a reassuring smile, although he wasn't sure if he was reassuring Veronica or himself.
Veronica just sighed and shook her head. "I hope you're right, Challenger. I don't think we can afford for anything to go wrong out here."
Challenger patted her shoulder lightly then went on to help the others get dinner started. He was having the same doubts as Veronica, but now certainly wasn't the time for false accusations. They couldn't turn on each other now or they might not make it through Maschou Monso. Truth be told, they needed Julian to see this through to the end.
"Any new visions?" Challenger asked Marguerite after dinner as he sat down in front of her. He was in full doctor mode now and intended to do his best to figure her illness out.
"Not since the last one about an hour ago," she told him.
"Which is a good thing," Roxton said, a protective arm wrapped around her waist. "That last one really had me frightened."
"Had you frightened?" Marguerite asked incredulously. "I thought I was going to die!"
Challenger just smiled. "But you didn't and that's all the matters, hmm?"
"Yes I suppose," she replied. She just leaned her head on Roxton's shoulder and tried to relax.
"That a girl," Challenger said. "Get some rest. I'm sure you'll feel much better in the morning." With that, he walked over and entered his tent.
"As long as I don't have any more nightmares," Marguerite muttered.
"Well if you do, I'll be right there beside you when you wake up," Roxton told her softly.
Marguerite smiled up at him and snuggled closer. 'What did I ever do to deserve this man?' she thought to herself. 'I don't know what I'd ever do without him...'
Later that night while everyone was asleep, Marguerite began to have another nightmare. She tossed and turned, reaching blindly for Roxton in her sleep. The dream got worse, far worse than any of her previous visions. She let out a loud scream as she continued to suffer from the terrifying images, running through the forest in her sleep. The carnage, the death...
Finally, when she thought she could take no more, Marguerite awoke. She stared with wide eyes at the ceiling of the tent, trying to catch her breath. When she thought she was calm enough to maneuver without passing out, she turned over to find out why Roxton hadn't tried to wake her from her dream. It was then that she realized Roxton was gone.
"Roxton?" she asked shakily, managing to pull herself into a sitting position. She was greeted by silence.
Pushing herself forward to the opening of the tent, Marguerite peered out. She thought that maybe Roxton had gone for a walk or something of the sort and that was why he hadn't been by her side when she awoke. She didn't see him anywhere.
"John?" She asked the darkness. "For heaven's sake, where are you?"
She looked all through the campsite, behind the tents, past the edge of the trees. She frantically called his name over and over again, and before long the rest of the campsite was awake and groaning. They figured she was only suffering from one of her visions again, but nonetheless they each exited their tent to see what was going on.
"What the devil is going on Marguerite?" Challenger asked.
"Yeah, you're going to attract every predator within range," Malone grunted.
"Roxton, he's gone!" she shouted, nearly out of breath from her search.
"What are you talking about?" Challenger asked.
"I had another nightmare, and when I woke up he wasn't in the tent. I can't find him anywhere!"
"Alright, calm down," Veronica said, placing a soothing hand on her arm. "He's got to be around here somewhere."
"Yes, but where?" Marguerite asked, getting more and more hysterical by the minute.
"Roxton!" Malone shouted, walking around the campsite a bit. "Hey, Roxton, can you hear us?"
"We have to go look for him," Marguerite said as she ran back into her tent to grab her rife. She grimly noticed that Roxton's rifle was still there, unattended. She grabbed it and slung it over her shoulder, then headed back out of the tent.
"Come on, who's going with me?" she asked.
"We can't go looking for him while it's still dark out," Veronica told her. "It's too dangerous."
"Oh, and leaving him all alone out there isn't?"
"Veronica's right," Malone said. "We should wait until the morning."
"You wait, I'm going to find him. I'm not about to leave him out there all night for some hungry dinosaur to have for a midnight snack. I'm going, with or without your help."
Challenger sighed. He knew there was no way to stop her from looking, so he reluctantly grabbed his own rifle.
"What are you doing?" Veronica asked.
"I'm going with her, I can't let her go out there alone," he replied.
"I'm going too," Malone said, running back to his tent to get his own weapon.
"This is insane," Veronica stated, making sure she had all her daggers with her. If they were going, she was going too.
"This whole damn quest is insane," Marguerite said angrily, already heading towards the trees.
"Someone get Julian," Challenger said, right behind her.
"No need," Malone said grimly. "She's gone too."
"What?!" Marguerite asked, spinning back around.
"Her tent's empty."
"Why that wretched little bitch, I bet she's gone off and taken Roxton with her! God only knows what she's going to him by now! I knew we should have trusted that twirp!" Marguerite exploded.
"Calm down, Marguerite!" Challenger exclaimed. "I'm sure Roxton's fine."
"I'll believe it when I see it," she almost growled as she turned and stalked off into the woods.
"Bloody hell," Challenger muttered as he followed off after her, Malone and Veronica close behind.
"Anything?" Veronica asked after they'd been looking for quite some time.
"Not a damn thing. It's like he just disappeared," Malone said, beginning to get frustrated.
"Well I'm not giving up until I find him," Marguerite replied. She was nearly out of energy, but still she pushed on.
"You know, he might be back at the campsite, Marguerite. We should turn back and see if he's back there," Challenger said.
"Challenger's right," Veronica told her. "If he's not there we can search the woods on the other side of the campsite. Now that it's almost light we'll have a better chance to see what's around us."
Marguerite let out a reluctant sigh. "Alright," she said. "Let's go back."
The four of them headed back to the campsite but were greeted by nothing but tents. There was still no sign of Roxton, or Julian for that matter. It was as if the two of them had literally dropped off the face of the earth. There weren't even so much as a footprint to lead them to believe that either of them had walked off sometime in the middle of the night.
Marguerite sat down heavily onto one of the logs around where the fire had been burning the previous evening. She pulled Roxton's rifle from her shoulder and looked down at it with a small smile. She fondly ran her hand over the engraving of his initials, then noticed something she had never noticed before. Tucked underneath the trigger, almost where no one could see it, were the initials M.K.R.
"Marguerite Krux Roxton," she said softly as her eyes welled up.
The carving was deep and fresh. Marguerite figured he must have carved that there recently, most likely within the past few days. She just clutched the rifle to her chest, clinging to it like it was her last ray of hope. She knew he was out there, he just had to be.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Veronica asked as she sat down beside her.
"Oh, nothing," Marguerite lied.
"Liar," Veronica said with a small smile.
Marguerite managed a small smile and said, "I just realized something that should have been obvious, that's all."
"What's that?" Veronica asked.
Marguerite showed her the carving in Roxton's rifle then very quietly said, "He loves me just as much as I love him."
Veronica looked up at her, wide eyed. Never in her wildest dreams would she ever imagine Marguerite admitting that she loved Roxton. She knew it was true for she could see it everyday, but hearing her admit it was a shock to the system. It also made Roxton's disappearance a harder situation to digest.
"We'll find him, Marguerite. I promise," was all the younger woman could offer.
Marguerite just smiled and hugged the rifle closer. She looked out over the trees and sighed. "Where are you, John?" she whispered to the wind.
Meanwhile, off in the middle of eternal abyss, Lord John Roxton was coming to know the true meaning of being alone. Around him was complete nothingness, to the full extent of the word. There was no light, there was no darkness. There was no up nor was there down. There was no sight, sound, or touch. There was only existence. Roxton assumed this was how it much have been before God created Earth.
'Where the hell am I?' he thought to himself. It was strange to not have the ability to speak. It was something he never truly appreciated until it was gone.
'Ah, Lord Roxton. Yet another one of your ignorant questions,' came an evilly familiar voice.
'Julian! Why you little-'
'Tsk, tsk. Such words from a gentleman!' Julian scolded.
'Just tell me what's going on or so help me God-'
'You'll do what? You're not exactly in the position to be making empty threats.'
'Just tell me!'
'Fine, fine... spoil all my fun. Won't even feed my hunger and now you're demanding answers!' Julian shouted.
'Your hunger?'
'You're not afraid, are you?'
'Why, no I'm...' Roxton trailed off as his thoughts drifted to a conversation had days before...
"The Chucahna need no food to survive, they are predators that feed on the fear of the innocent..."
'Oh my God...' Roxton thought.
'I see you've wrapped your inferior little mind around what I've said and discovered my true identity haven't you?' Julian said as she grinned that wicked grin of hers.
'You're the Ultouma!'
'Score one for the home team, good man!'
'Damnit, Marguerite was right, she knew something was wrong. I should have listened to her!'
'That she was. And now, she suffers my wrath.'
'What have you done to her?' Roxton asked angrily, his thoughts on the edge of a growl.
'I've made her visions and nightmares increase to an almost unbearable rate, it's truly lovely! Not to mention she's now currently suffering her most delightful greatest fear.' Julian said almost gleefully.
'Her greatest fear?'
'Life without you.'
'Life without me? That's her greatest fear?' Roxton asked, astonished.
'Why yes, you didn't know? Oh that's right, the two of you play your little mind games and pretend there's nothing between you. Get a clue Roxton, the woman loves you with her entire being! As far as I can tell from where I've invaded her mind, she's never felt this way about anyone. She's never exactly had the ability to trust until she met you,' Julian explained.
'I... I have to get back to her," Roxton said frantically.
'No can do," Julian replied. "This is Marguerite's fear, and until she passes her test you're not going anywhere.'
'You never actually explained what you mean by passing the test, what exactly does she have to do?'
'Ah, the test. I'm so glad you asked! In order for someone to pass the test, they have to be worthy. They have to have a pure soul, and I do believe that your believe your beloved Marguerite has quite the tainted soul.'
Roxton managed the equivalent of a gulp and asked, 'And just what will happen if she fails?'
'When she fails,' Julian corrected, 'her fear will become permanent.'
'What will happen to me?'
'My dear Roxton, you will be lost here forever.'
~*~
End part eight
~*~
Authors notes: Whew! Okay, there we go. Part eight is complete, and it was a rather hard chapter to write! Not only did I have to fill in all the holes with what's going with Marguerite and why Julian is being such a you know what, I attempted to answer some questions about the test (AND throw in some M/R!). Sooo... anyway, I hope I answered your questions and also managed to bring ya'll a worthy chapter!
~*~
Possible questions answered in part 9...
Will Marguerite pass her test, or is Roxton lost forever?
Will the others realize Julian is the Ultouma before it's too late?
What does Julian have planned for Challenger and Veronica?
You'll have to read to find out...
~*~
Disclaimer, etc. in part one
~*~
Authors notes: I have been informed that I hold the record for updating a continuous story!!! *jumps up and down grinning like an idiot* Haha anyway... Okay, so part seven pretty much sucked. Everyone has one of them days, right? Well, this one isn't really much better and still doesn't have much action, but it's mushy! God, I need to get some more action back up in this piece. Oh and... FIVE CHAPTERS IN FIVE DAYS! YAHOO!!!
veggie5 & Audrey:
Roxton sighed and pulled back from her so that he could look her in the eyes. He gave her a reassuring smile before trying to calm her down. He was always good at making her feel better when she had nightmares, which is why she ended up spending most of her nights asleep in his room.
Yeah I know, lame explanation. But trust me, more went on than just cuddling! *evil grin* I PROMISE they'll be flashback scenes or something close to it before this story is over!
Jaclyn and chapeau - You little devils, you! You two had very good guesses... read to find out!
Mayhem Mountain (8/?)
by: Brandy Leigh
~*~
Marguerite continued to suffer from her visions as the day went on, each one getting more and more vivid and lasting for a longer period of time. By the end of the day she was a total wreck and wouldn't let anyone but Roxton go near her. She had clung to him for dear life for much of the day, and everyone was quite worried for they had never seen her quite so upset.
Veronica had begun to notice that Julian seemed rather happy of late and was starting to wonder if maybe this latest development didn't have something to do with her. She sure had seem satisfied to know that Marguerite was suffering, and it would only prove to be valid sense the two of them didn't get along too well.
While everyone was beginning to set up camp for the evening once again, Veronica decided to confront Challenger with her suspicions.
"You know," she said once she and Challenger were alone, "Julian doesn't seem bothered by Marguerite's condition."
"Well it doesn't surprise me," Challenger told her. "Marguerite hasn't exactly been friendly with our guest."
"And Julian hasn't exactly been friendly with her, or any of us for that matter. I'm really starting to suspect that there's something she's not telling us. Something's not right."
"Oh I wouldn't worry about it, Veronica. I'm sure everything is going to be just fine," he said with a reassuring smile, although he wasn't sure if he was reassuring Veronica or himself.
Veronica just sighed and shook her head. "I hope you're right, Challenger. I don't think we can afford for anything to go wrong out here."
Challenger patted her shoulder lightly then went on to help the others get dinner started. He was having the same doubts as Veronica, but now certainly wasn't the time for false accusations. They couldn't turn on each other now or they might not make it through Maschou Monso. Truth be told, they needed Julian to see this through to the end.
"Any new visions?" Challenger asked Marguerite after dinner as he sat down in front of her. He was in full doctor mode now and intended to do his best to figure her illness out.
"Not since the last one about an hour ago," she told him.
"Which is a good thing," Roxton said, a protective arm wrapped around her waist. "That last one really had me frightened."
"Had you frightened?" Marguerite asked incredulously. "I thought I was going to die!"
Challenger just smiled. "But you didn't and that's all the matters, hmm?"
"Yes I suppose," she replied. She just leaned her head on Roxton's shoulder and tried to relax.
"That a girl," Challenger said. "Get some rest. I'm sure you'll feel much better in the morning." With that, he walked over and entered his tent.
"As long as I don't have any more nightmares," Marguerite muttered.
"Well if you do, I'll be right there beside you when you wake up," Roxton told her softly.
Marguerite smiled up at him and snuggled closer. 'What did I ever do to deserve this man?' she thought to herself. 'I don't know what I'd ever do without him...'
Later that night while everyone was asleep, Marguerite began to have another nightmare. She tossed and turned, reaching blindly for Roxton in her sleep. The dream got worse, far worse than any of her previous visions. She let out a loud scream as she continued to suffer from the terrifying images, running through the forest in her sleep. The carnage, the death...
Finally, when she thought she could take no more, Marguerite awoke. She stared with wide eyes at the ceiling of the tent, trying to catch her breath. When she thought she was calm enough to maneuver without passing out, she turned over to find out why Roxton hadn't tried to wake her from her dream. It was then that she realized Roxton was gone.
"Roxton?" she asked shakily, managing to pull herself into a sitting position. She was greeted by silence.
Pushing herself forward to the opening of the tent, Marguerite peered out. She thought that maybe Roxton had gone for a walk or something of the sort and that was why he hadn't been by her side when she awoke. She didn't see him anywhere.
"John?" She asked the darkness. "For heaven's sake, where are you?"
She looked all through the campsite, behind the tents, past the edge of the trees. She frantically called his name over and over again, and before long the rest of the campsite was awake and groaning. They figured she was only suffering from one of her visions again, but nonetheless they each exited their tent to see what was going on.
"What the devil is going on Marguerite?" Challenger asked.
"Yeah, you're going to attract every predator within range," Malone grunted.
"Roxton, he's gone!" she shouted, nearly out of breath from her search.
"What are you talking about?" Challenger asked.
"I had another nightmare, and when I woke up he wasn't in the tent. I can't find him anywhere!"
"Alright, calm down," Veronica said, placing a soothing hand on her arm. "He's got to be around here somewhere."
"Yes, but where?" Marguerite asked, getting more and more hysterical by the minute.
"Roxton!" Malone shouted, walking around the campsite a bit. "Hey, Roxton, can you hear us?"
"We have to go look for him," Marguerite said as she ran back into her tent to grab her rife. She grimly noticed that Roxton's rifle was still there, unattended. She grabbed it and slung it over her shoulder, then headed back out of the tent.
"Come on, who's going with me?" she asked.
"We can't go looking for him while it's still dark out," Veronica told her. "It's too dangerous."
"Oh, and leaving him all alone out there isn't?"
"Veronica's right," Malone said. "We should wait until the morning."
"You wait, I'm going to find him. I'm not about to leave him out there all night for some hungry dinosaur to have for a midnight snack. I'm going, with or without your help."
Challenger sighed. He knew there was no way to stop her from looking, so he reluctantly grabbed his own rifle.
"What are you doing?" Veronica asked.
"I'm going with her, I can't let her go out there alone," he replied.
"I'm going too," Malone said, running back to his tent to get his own weapon.
"This is insane," Veronica stated, making sure she had all her daggers with her. If they were going, she was going too.
"This whole damn quest is insane," Marguerite said angrily, already heading towards the trees.
"Someone get Julian," Challenger said, right behind her.
"No need," Malone said grimly. "She's gone too."
"What?!" Marguerite asked, spinning back around.
"Her tent's empty."
"Why that wretched little bitch, I bet she's gone off and taken Roxton with her! God only knows what she's going to him by now! I knew we should have trusted that twirp!" Marguerite exploded.
"Calm down, Marguerite!" Challenger exclaimed. "I'm sure Roxton's fine."
"I'll believe it when I see it," she almost growled as she turned and stalked off into the woods.
"Bloody hell," Challenger muttered as he followed off after her, Malone and Veronica close behind.
"Anything?" Veronica asked after they'd been looking for quite some time.
"Not a damn thing. It's like he just disappeared," Malone said, beginning to get frustrated.
"Well I'm not giving up until I find him," Marguerite replied. She was nearly out of energy, but still she pushed on.
"You know, he might be back at the campsite, Marguerite. We should turn back and see if he's back there," Challenger said.
"Challenger's right," Veronica told her. "If he's not there we can search the woods on the other side of the campsite. Now that it's almost light we'll have a better chance to see what's around us."
Marguerite let out a reluctant sigh. "Alright," she said. "Let's go back."
The four of them headed back to the campsite but were greeted by nothing but tents. There was still no sign of Roxton, or Julian for that matter. It was as if the two of them had literally dropped off the face of the earth. There weren't even so much as a footprint to lead them to believe that either of them had walked off sometime in the middle of the night.
Marguerite sat down heavily onto one of the logs around where the fire had been burning the previous evening. She pulled Roxton's rifle from her shoulder and looked down at it with a small smile. She fondly ran her hand over the engraving of his initials, then noticed something she had never noticed before. Tucked underneath the trigger, almost where no one could see it, were the initials M.K.R.
"Marguerite Krux Roxton," she said softly as her eyes welled up.
The carving was deep and fresh. Marguerite figured he must have carved that there recently, most likely within the past few days. She just clutched the rifle to her chest, clinging to it like it was her last ray of hope. She knew he was out there, he just had to be.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Veronica asked as she sat down beside her.
"Oh, nothing," Marguerite lied.
"Liar," Veronica said with a small smile.
Marguerite managed a small smile and said, "I just realized something that should have been obvious, that's all."
"What's that?" Veronica asked.
Marguerite showed her the carving in Roxton's rifle then very quietly said, "He loves me just as much as I love him."
Veronica looked up at her, wide eyed. Never in her wildest dreams would she ever imagine Marguerite admitting that she loved Roxton. She knew it was true for she could see it everyday, but hearing her admit it was a shock to the system. It also made Roxton's disappearance a harder situation to digest.
"We'll find him, Marguerite. I promise," was all the younger woman could offer.
Marguerite just smiled and hugged the rifle closer. She looked out over the trees and sighed. "Where are you, John?" she whispered to the wind.
Meanwhile, off in the middle of eternal abyss, Lord John Roxton was coming to know the true meaning of being alone. Around him was complete nothingness, to the full extent of the word. There was no light, there was no darkness. There was no up nor was there down. There was no sight, sound, or touch. There was only existence. Roxton assumed this was how it much have been before God created Earth.
'Where the hell am I?' he thought to himself. It was strange to not have the ability to speak. It was something he never truly appreciated until it was gone.
'Ah, Lord Roxton. Yet another one of your ignorant questions,' came an evilly familiar voice.
'Julian! Why you little-'
'Tsk, tsk. Such words from a gentleman!' Julian scolded.
'Just tell me what's going on or so help me God-'
'You'll do what? You're not exactly in the position to be making empty threats.'
'Just tell me!'
'Fine, fine... spoil all my fun. Won't even feed my hunger and now you're demanding answers!' Julian shouted.
'Your hunger?'
'You're not afraid, are you?'
'Why, no I'm...' Roxton trailed off as his thoughts drifted to a conversation had days before...
"The Chucahna need no food to survive, they are predators that feed on the fear of the innocent..."
'Oh my God...' Roxton thought.
'I see you've wrapped your inferior little mind around what I've said and discovered my true identity haven't you?' Julian said as she grinned that wicked grin of hers.
'You're the Ultouma!'
'Score one for the home team, good man!'
'Damnit, Marguerite was right, she knew something was wrong. I should have listened to her!'
'That she was. And now, she suffers my wrath.'
'What have you done to her?' Roxton asked angrily, his thoughts on the edge of a growl.
'I've made her visions and nightmares increase to an almost unbearable rate, it's truly lovely! Not to mention she's now currently suffering her most delightful greatest fear.' Julian said almost gleefully.
'Her greatest fear?'
'Life without you.'
'Life without me? That's her greatest fear?' Roxton asked, astonished.
'Why yes, you didn't know? Oh that's right, the two of you play your little mind games and pretend there's nothing between you. Get a clue Roxton, the woman loves you with her entire being! As far as I can tell from where I've invaded her mind, she's never felt this way about anyone. She's never exactly had the ability to trust until she met you,' Julian explained.
'I... I have to get back to her," Roxton said frantically.
'No can do," Julian replied. "This is Marguerite's fear, and until she passes her test you're not going anywhere.'
'You never actually explained what you mean by passing the test, what exactly does she have to do?'
'Ah, the test. I'm so glad you asked! In order for someone to pass the test, they have to be worthy. They have to have a pure soul, and I do believe that your believe your beloved Marguerite has quite the tainted soul.'
Roxton managed the equivalent of a gulp and asked, 'And just what will happen if she fails?'
'When she fails,' Julian corrected, 'her fear will become permanent.'
'What will happen to me?'
'My dear Roxton, you will be lost here forever.'
~*~
End part eight
~*~
Authors notes: Whew! Okay, there we go. Part eight is complete, and it was a rather hard chapter to write! Not only did I have to fill in all the holes with what's going with Marguerite and why Julian is being such a you know what, I attempted to answer some questions about the test (AND throw in some M/R!). Sooo... anyway, I hope I answered your questions and also managed to bring ya'll a worthy chapter!
~*~
Possible questions answered in part 9...
Will Marguerite pass her test, or is Roxton lost forever?
Will the others realize Julian is the Ultouma before it's too late?
What does Julian have planned for Challenger and Veronica?
You'll have to read to find out...
