I own only what has come from my head. That being Arson, Rayne, Orissa, Dawn and the Massadas and now Pharmakos…hope you like this.
Chapter 9
'Can't you just teleport us to the underworld?' moaned Rayne.
'Teleport?' Dawn looked around for Arson, hoping for an explanation. Arson nodded.
'I have the ability to travel through time and space,' he said in a low voice.
'So why don't you just do what Rayne says, and teleport?' asked Dawn. Arson said nothing for a while.
'It wears me down. It puts me under a lot of strain and it has many side effects.' Rayne nodded and grinned as he suddenly remembered.
'It makes you sick doesn't it?' Arson narrowed his eyes angrily but said nothing. Instead, he padded along the street, moving with a practised ease in the darkness. Dawn followed after him, her sharp eyes just about picking out his dark shape. People were beginning to rise now, and several turned to look at her, sensing a strange aura of power from her. It made Dawn feel uncomfortable as she hurried along, following Arson into the deepest shadows, where no one dared walk anymore. She stopped and waited for Rayne to catch up. His face was one of boredom and depression.
'I'm unaware of Arson's side effects, but I do know that it would cause a few eyebrows to raise if we teleported,' whispered Dawn. Rayne shrugged.
'Does it matter? We're all going to die anyway!' Arson turned to glare at him.
'No we're not!' he said sharply. Rayne shrugged again. He couldn't have cared less about what Arson said. Arson gave him another warning glance before he skulked off again. Dawn lowered her eyes and walked after him.
'How far is the gate to the underworld?' said Arson.
'It's just on the outskirts of this city, towards the South.' Arson nodded and quickened his pace slightly, hefting his bag. Rayne lagged behind, still unhappy.
'And I thought field trips were bad enough,' he complained. Dawn smiled sweetly at him.
'This isn't a field trip though. This is going to be so much more exciting!' Her eyes actually seemed to brighten up slightly as she said this. Arson gave her a fleeting glance and then his eyes returned to the road ahead.
Dawn suddenly tensed up.
'Get down, now!' she cried. She flung herself to the ground, Rayne following her example. Arson turned too late. He screamed as he was suddenly hit by a huge wall of water, slamming him into the ground. He slid back several feet under the intense pressure of the liquid, coming to land in a heap against an old crumbling wall. Rayne leapt to his feet, his red rimmed eyes blazing.
'What the hell?'
'Massadas!' cried Dawn.
'Massa wha-?' Dawn pulled him down again as another stream of water flew over their heads at Arson again. He made no sound as the water struck against his body. Dawn frowned.
'Why doesn't he get up?' Rayne groaned.
'He's allergic to water. His name's Arson for crying out loud!' Dawn ran towards Arson and stood in front of him, arms spread akimbo, trying to ward off the beast. Rayne suddenly heard another different sound. He looked towards Dawn for guidance. Her face had grown pale.
'Pharmakos!' she cried. Rayne frowned but then felt his head being pulled painfully back, exposing his throat. He snarled like a trapped beast and tried to force his head forward. Something like vines began wrapping around his body, ensnaring him completely, making sure he was incapable of moving a single muscle. Something like a pinprick stabbed into his arm and immediately, he began to relax. He gave a soft moan before he sank to his knees.
Dawn closed her eyes and bowed her head, so then her dark brown hair tumbled over her shoulders. The Massada, sensing defeat gave vent to a roar and charged at her. Dawn's head jerked up, her eyes glowing with a pale amber light. The Massada stopped, unsure by this new display of energy. Slowly, and in a low voice, Dawn began chanting, her voice rising as she half sung, half spoke.
'Tsah la Maé, Foe sa Laé, Budai Ho Sinaé, Morai ho Purai!' Arson slowly opened his eyes and raised his head, water dripping from his brown hair, which was falling into his eyes. His vision was oddly unfocused. He blinked slowly, but it did nothing to help. Dawn's body was surrounded by the same light that shone in her eyes. As he watched, he felt a strange sense of calm engulf his instincts. He could even feel some of his strength returning to him. He tried to get up, but then his legs buckled under his own weight. Apparently, he still didn't have enough energy to stand. He shivered with the cold and lowered his head again, his senses returning to the black void that was folding over his vision.
Dawn gave vent to a piercing shriek. The Massada backed off, startled by the sudden noise. It had time only for a snarl before Dawn charged straight for it, a shining white blade in her hand. The Massada writhed as the blade pierced it, desperate to struggle free, but only managing to hasten its own death. One last scream of despair, and the Massada was no more. Instead, in its place, a pile of ash.
Rayne was lying on the floor now, but his senses were still intact. He stared up at Dawn glassily as she stood above him. His face wore a mask of terror. Dawn looked past his face and at the demon that held him still.
The Pharmakos had a face that consisted mostly of bandages, with only a single green jewel for an eye that glittered hungrily for flesh. The rest of the body was more like a black sphere, surrounded by groping tentacles. Dawn's amber eyes blazed with fury as she started walking towards the beleaguered vampire. Rayne shook his head wildly, trying to free himself. The demon applied more pressure around his throat. Rayne started writhing helplessly as he coughed and gagged.
'I'm burning! I'm burning!' he yelled. Dawn frowned and looked up at the sky. There was no sun, but yet Rayne seemed to be under the impression that there was. Rayne shook his head from side to side, like a snake caught in a trap.
'Unhand him!' said Dawn angrily. The Pharmakos surprisingly obeyed and launched itself at her. Dawn stared into its lone eye for a second before screaming, the sword flying from her hand. She cowered down, her hands covering her head as she felt a solid weight carry her down to the ground. All power deserted her as she felt a sudden and unexplainable fear hold her in its cold grasp.
Rayne slowly got up, the effects from the Pharmakos' spell wearing off. Dawn was sobbing wretchedly, even though there was nothing on top of her, apart from the Pharmakos, which was lying still upon her belly.
'Please don't…' whimpered Dawn. 'Please…please…' Her voice fell to nothing and her face grew suddenly pale. Rayne's eyes widened as he realized what was going on as Dawn shrieked and tried to force her legs together. He snatched up her sword from the ground, where she had dropped it, and hissed with pain as he felt a burning sensation running through his hand and up his arm. Forcing himself not to drop the weapon, he rushed towards Dawn.
Dawn stopped crying as she felt the weight suddenly disappear. She looked around, her fear blinding her vision. At last, her eyes focused on Rayne, who was hovering over her anxiously. He slowly shook his head.
'Bloody Hell…' he whispered at length. Dawn sat up, trying to regain her composure.
'I-it's going to get a lot worse when we actually get there,' she said, her voice low. She tried to fight back her tears, but they came all the same. Rayne hugged her close as she sobbed against him.
'It's okay…it was all a trick. Nothing happened, Dawn. Nothing.' Dawn pulled away from him and searched his face.
'You're afraid of the light, aren't you?' Rayne slowly nodded, his face grim. 'The elders warned me about them…but they never said what they could do. They never told me that they could use your worst fear to destroy you. That's their spell. I know now…' Rayne's eyes settled on Arson, who had still not moved from his position on the ground.
'I think we have other things to worry about.'
Dawn gently placed one hand upon Arson's forehead. Rayne watched on apprehensively.
'Well?' Dawn shook her head.
'He's got a fever. Dangerously high by the looks of things.' Rayne nodded knowingly.
'Yeah, water's got that effect on him. Anything that's cold weakens-'
'Quiet!' said Dawn sharply. 'Don't talk of his weaknesses. Anyone could be listening.' Rayne scowled but said nothing else.
'So what do we do now? Should we stay here for the night or what?' Dawn looked down thoughtfully at the fire demon. His face was pale, and he was in a cold sweat. It did not look as though Arson would survive for another hour, let alone the night. Dawn shook her head.
'Shouldn't he be healing himself by now?'
'He's a rookie. He doesn't know all of his capabilities yet.'
'Great…' Dawn suddenly smiled as she saw Arson's eyes opening. 'I think I know a place where we can go…' Rayne saw the troubled look on her face.
'But?'
'I don't think he'll like it. No one lives there now…but he'll still be afraid.' Rayne shrugged.
'Lead the way!'
It took some time coming, but now it's here! So what did you think? What did you think? Huh, huh, huh? Please review! ^_^