Okay, I don't want to spoil anything. Here's the chapter.
Chapter 12
"C'mon, let's go this way," Isaac motioned to a fork in the road.
"No, let's go the other way," Garet pointed in the opposite direction.
Mia giggled. "You'll get us lost, Garet. You ALWAYS get us lost."
"I do not!" the Mars Adept replied hotly, folding his arms. "Fine, we'll
go Isaac's way. Just for you. And when we get lost, it'll be YOUR
fault, so don't look at me."
"It's not like we're going anywhere," Alex pointed out. "We're just
walking."
"Let's go Garet's way, just to make HIM happy," Jenna agreed. "And then
when we get lost and we can't find our way back to the school, we can all
blame HIM."
"And eat him when it gets dark and we start to get hungry," Ivan added.
Garet glared at the Jupiter Adept. "We should eat Ivan. He's not good
for much else."
"I doubt that we'll ever get hungry enough to eat EITHER of you," Picard
laughed. The Mercury Adept decided to lead the way, going down the way
Isaac had directed. Everyone followed him, even Garet after he had
grumbled for a bit.
The day was gorgeous. It was late enough in the fall that the trees had
traded in their green for the scarlet, gold, and umber of autumn. The
sun was shining brightly, but the cool crisp breeze that caused it to
rain leaves kept the air a wonderful temperature.
Mia and Jenna danced ahead, laughing. Mia spun around, the thin rays of
sunlight coming through the trees catching in her long blue hair, loose
from it's long ponytail for once. She laughed, her eyes sparkling.
Jenna, who had gone rather far ahead, used this opportunity to sneak up
behind her and drop an armload of leaves on her head.
Shrieking, leaf stems catching in her long hair, Mia started chasing
Jenna up the path.
"Don't go too far ahead," Sheba, who was near the back of the group
warned them.
"Jenna, be careful!" Felix yelled after his younger sister.
"She's fine, Felix," Picard reassured him, looking highly amused at the
two girl's actions.
The two girls disappeared among the towering tree trunks, their laughter
echoing back to the small group of Adepts. After a moment, their
laughter fell into silence.
"Jenna, get back here!" Felix ordered. "You're going too far ahead!"
The afternoon air was broken by blood chilling screams. The little group
came to an abrupt halt.
"JENNA!" Felix, who had gone pale, broke into a run. The rest of the
group followed him after a moment.
"Jenna! Mia!" Ivan sprinted ahead of Felix. "Hold on!"
The screams stopped.
"They have to be alright," Isaac could hear Garet muttering. "Both of
them."
"Ivan! Wait for us!" Isaac cautioned the younger Adept. The Jupiter
Adept paid him no heed, running through the trees where they had last
seen Mia and Jenna, Sheba on his heels.
Dark storm clouds gathered over the sky. Sheets of purple plasma rained
down into the trees.
"Ivan! Sheba!" Isaac yelled, breaking through the tree line.
It was a wide meadow, a stream running through the middle of it. Mia was
lying face down in the stream, Jenna was over on the other side of the
bank, and neither of them were moving.
"MIA! JENNA!" Isaac made for them. Felix made it there before him. He
barely gave notice to Mia, dropping to his knees next to Jenna and
cradling her head.
"Jenna…" he let out a soft sob. Her throat had been slit, rather
effectively. Felix stroked her hair, sobbing.
Isaac dropped to his knees in the stream with a splash, realizing that
the water, once clear, was a deep scarlet. He turned Mia over, already
knowing what he would see.
A thin line of red across her neck, identical to Jenna's wound. He heard
someone kneel in the stream beside him, and Mia's limp body was taken
from his hands.
"Oh..Mia." Garet brushed away a few wet, blood soaked strands of hair from
her pale face. "Mia."
His eyes went from a ruddy-brown to crimson in an instant, and the water
in the stream warmed. Isaac stumbled out of the water and onto the bank.
It started to boil, steam rising in clouds, hiding Garet and Mia from
view.
Numb with shock, Isaac turned to see what else was happening. Over
towards the edge of the clearing, Ivan had his staff out and was blocking
the huge blade of a Scythe. It's bearer, cloaked in a black that seemed
to absorb light, pushed harder, bringing Ivan to his knees. Sheba was
crumpled on the ground beside him, and from the amount of blood around
her she had suffered the same fate as Mia and Jenna.
*Menardi? Could it be her?* Isaac got to his feet, drawing the short
sword he had strapped to his back. *I...I'll kill her!*
He could hear Picard and Alex behind him, Garet's howl of agony, and
Felix's sobs, but they had faded to mere noise in the background.
*She'll pay.*
He charged towards the battle, but he was unable to save Ivan. The
Jupiter Adept's staff disintegrated, and the Scythe sliced across his
neck in one smooth motion. He fell next to Sheba.
*She'll pay!* Isaac brought up his sword. The Scythe came down, slicing
the blade in two with ease. It ignored him, spreading black, skeletal
wings, and with a single flap it rose into the air, and shot in towards
the other end of the clearing.
Towards where Felix, Garet, Alex and Picard were. Isaac spun, cursing,
in time to see the Scythe's next deadly sweep at Felix. The other Venus
Adept fell to the ground without a sound. Alex drew his own sword, and
Picard pulled his mace from where he had slung it across his back. The
Scythe bearer landed, slitting Picard's throat with the weapon, brought
up one hand, and a force of Psynergy shattered Alex's sword. Alex backed
up a few steps, but his throat was slit, too.
*She'll PAY!*
Garet had dropped Mia into the stream. He stood, the air around him
crackling. There was no sanity or reason in his eyes, the energy
emitting from him blackening the grass around him into mere ashes.
He cast Pyroclasm. The Scythe bearer was engulfed in flames.
*If that doesn't kill her, I will,* Isaac vowed.
The fire died down, leaving a large, circular area burned.
The Scythe bearer was untouched. With something that sounded almost like
laughter, it killed Garet effortlessly.
Isaac threw the hilt of his sword at the bearer. It was hit in the
shoulder, and the hilt went black and crumbled into dust. The Venus
Adept quickly followed that attack with Grand Gaia. The wings were
spread once again, and it rose effortlessly above his attack.
"WHO ARE YOU?!" Isaac screamed, falling to his knees. Everyone he knew,
everyone he cared about was dead.
The Scythe bearer landed in front of him. He struggled to his feet,
glaring into the shadows beneath the hood. "Who are you?"
It reached up and slid the hood off.
*****
"Isaac, wake up," he was being shaken lightly. Isaac opened his eyes.
Garet was the one shaking him ever so slightly. The sun had set, and
cold night had set in. Everyone else was on their feet, looking at him
expectantly.
He was still in the Lamakan desert.
*A dream,* relief flooded through him. *A stupid dream*
With Garet's help he got to his feet, still shaking from the reality that
only existed in shadow. *Who was that? Menardi?*
He glanced at her scythe. He couldn't see it clearly in the moonlight,
but it looked much smaller than the one in his dream.
*But if it wasn't her, then who?*
Then he remembered the wings, and shivered. *Death. It must have been
Death.*
"C'mon," Menardi glared at him, her eyes glowing eerily in the dark. "We
have a long ways to go tonight."
****
"Isaac?" Mia stood up. "Isaac left here a few days ago. Why? And how
do you know Isaac?"
Kyle shook his head. "I didn't expect him to be here."
"Why are you looking for Isaac?" Ivan asked, standing up. Kyle made his
way to the porch and sat down with a heavy sigh.
"Isaac is a Venus Adept," Kyle replied with some difficulty. "So are
you, Felix."
He gave Felix a tired smile.
"H-how did you know?" Felix asked.
"Who are you, really?" Alex picked up one of the wooden training staffs
and held it menacingly. "What do you know about us?"
Kyle smiled again, looking more tired than ever. "I'm a member of the
Venus Clan, and Isaac is my son."
*****
Um...yeah. I shouldn't write while listening to Final Fantasy music.
Nope. Nope. Not at all. Especially not "The Man with the Machine
Gun"(Laguna! Laguna! Laguna!) and "One Winged Angel" (Sepheroth!)
Sorry if that first part was kind of confusing. ^_^;;;
Uh...yeah...don't hurt me. Please.
Chapter 12
"C'mon, let's go this way," Isaac motioned to a fork in the road.
"No, let's go the other way," Garet pointed in the opposite direction.
Mia giggled. "You'll get us lost, Garet. You ALWAYS get us lost."
"I do not!" the Mars Adept replied hotly, folding his arms. "Fine, we'll
go Isaac's way. Just for you. And when we get lost, it'll be YOUR
fault, so don't look at me."
"It's not like we're going anywhere," Alex pointed out. "We're just
walking."
"Let's go Garet's way, just to make HIM happy," Jenna agreed. "And then
when we get lost and we can't find our way back to the school, we can all
blame HIM."
"And eat him when it gets dark and we start to get hungry," Ivan added.
Garet glared at the Jupiter Adept. "We should eat Ivan. He's not good
for much else."
"I doubt that we'll ever get hungry enough to eat EITHER of you," Picard
laughed. The Mercury Adept decided to lead the way, going down the way
Isaac had directed. Everyone followed him, even Garet after he had
grumbled for a bit.
The day was gorgeous. It was late enough in the fall that the trees had
traded in their green for the scarlet, gold, and umber of autumn. The
sun was shining brightly, but the cool crisp breeze that caused it to
rain leaves kept the air a wonderful temperature.
Mia and Jenna danced ahead, laughing. Mia spun around, the thin rays of
sunlight coming through the trees catching in her long blue hair, loose
from it's long ponytail for once. She laughed, her eyes sparkling.
Jenna, who had gone rather far ahead, used this opportunity to sneak up
behind her and drop an armload of leaves on her head.
Shrieking, leaf stems catching in her long hair, Mia started chasing
Jenna up the path.
"Don't go too far ahead," Sheba, who was near the back of the group
warned them.
"Jenna, be careful!" Felix yelled after his younger sister.
"She's fine, Felix," Picard reassured him, looking highly amused at the
two girl's actions.
The two girls disappeared among the towering tree trunks, their laughter
echoing back to the small group of Adepts. After a moment, their
laughter fell into silence.
"Jenna, get back here!" Felix ordered. "You're going too far ahead!"
The afternoon air was broken by blood chilling screams. The little group
came to an abrupt halt.
"JENNA!" Felix, who had gone pale, broke into a run. The rest of the
group followed him after a moment.
"Jenna! Mia!" Ivan sprinted ahead of Felix. "Hold on!"
The screams stopped.
"They have to be alright," Isaac could hear Garet muttering. "Both of
them."
"Ivan! Wait for us!" Isaac cautioned the younger Adept. The Jupiter
Adept paid him no heed, running through the trees where they had last
seen Mia and Jenna, Sheba on his heels.
Dark storm clouds gathered over the sky. Sheets of purple plasma rained
down into the trees.
"Ivan! Sheba!" Isaac yelled, breaking through the tree line.
It was a wide meadow, a stream running through the middle of it. Mia was
lying face down in the stream, Jenna was over on the other side of the
bank, and neither of them were moving.
"MIA! JENNA!" Isaac made for them. Felix made it there before him. He
barely gave notice to Mia, dropping to his knees next to Jenna and
cradling her head.
"Jenna…" he let out a soft sob. Her throat had been slit, rather
effectively. Felix stroked her hair, sobbing.
Isaac dropped to his knees in the stream with a splash, realizing that
the water, once clear, was a deep scarlet. He turned Mia over, already
knowing what he would see.
A thin line of red across her neck, identical to Jenna's wound. He heard
someone kneel in the stream beside him, and Mia's limp body was taken
from his hands.
"Oh..Mia." Garet brushed away a few wet, blood soaked strands of hair from
her pale face. "Mia."
His eyes went from a ruddy-brown to crimson in an instant, and the water
in the stream warmed. Isaac stumbled out of the water and onto the bank.
It started to boil, steam rising in clouds, hiding Garet and Mia from
view.
Numb with shock, Isaac turned to see what else was happening. Over
towards the edge of the clearing, Ivan had his staff out and was blocking
the huge blade of a Scythe. It's bearer, cloaked in a black that seemed
to absorb light, pushed harder, bringing Ivan to his knees. Sheba was
crumpled on the ground beside him, and from the amount of blood around
her she had suffered the same fate as Mia and Jenna.
*Menardi? Could it be her?* Isaac got to his feet, drawing the short
sword he had strapped to his back. *I...I'll kill her!*
He could hear Picard and Alex behind him, Garet's howl of agony, and
Felix's sobs, but they had faded to mere noise in the background.
*She'll pay.*
He charged towards the battle, but he was unable to save Ivan. The
Jupiter Adept's staff disintegrated, and the Scythe sliced across his
neck in one smooth motion. He fell next to Sheba.
*She'll pay!* Isaac brought up his sword. The Scythe came down, slicing
the blade in two with ease. It ignored him, spreading black, skeletal
wings, and with a single flap it rose into the air, and shot in towards
the other end of the clearing.
Towards where Felix, Garet, Alex and Picard were. Isaac spun, cursing,
in time to see the Scythe's next deadly sweep at Felix. The other Venus
Adept fell to the ground without a sound. Alex drew his own sword, and
Picard pulled his mace from where he had slung it across his back. The
Scythe bearer landed, slitting Picard's throat with the weapon, brought
up one hand, and a force of Psynergy shattered Alex's sword. Alex backed
up a few steps, but his throat was slit, too.
*She'll PAY!*
Garet had dropped Mia into the stream. He stood, the air around him
crackling. There was no sanity or reason in his eyes, the energy
emitting from him blackening the grass around him into mere ashes.
He cast Pyroclasm. The Scythe bearer was engulfed in flames.
*If that doesn't kill her, I will,* Isaac vowed.
The fire died down, leaving a large, circular area burned.
The Scythe bearer was untouched. With something that sounded almost like
laughter, it killed Garet effortlessly.
Isaac threw the hilt of his sword at the bearer. It was hit in the
shoulder, and the hilt went black and crumbled into dust. The Venus
Adept quickly followed that attack with Grand Gaia. The wings were
spread once again, and it rose effortlessly above his attack.
"WHO ARE YOU?!" Isaac screamed, falling to his knees. Everyone he knew,
everyone he cared about was dead.
The Scythe bearer landed in front of him. He struggled to his feet,
glaring into the shadows beneath the hood. "Who are you?"
It reached up and slid the hood off.
*****
"Isaac, wake up," he was being shaken lightly. Isaac opened his eyes.
Garet was the one shaking him ever so slightly. The sun had set, and
cold night had set in. Everyone else was on their feet, looking at him
expectantly.
He was still in the Lamakan desert.
*A dream,* relief flooded through him. *A stupid dream*
With Garet's help he got to his feet, still shaking from the reality that
only existed in shadow. *Who was that? Menardi?*
He glanced at her scythe. He couldn't see it clearly in the moonlight,
but it looked much smaller than the one in his dream.
*But if it wasn't her, then who?*
Then he remembered the wings, and shivered. *Death. It must have been
Death.*
"C'mon," Menardi glared at him, her eyes glowing eerily in the dark. "We
have a long ways to go tonight."
****
"Isaac?" Mia stood up. "Isaac left here a few days ago. Why? And how
do you know Isaac?"
Kyle shook his head. "I didn't expect him to be here."
"Why are you looking for Isaac?" Ivan asked, standing up. Kyle made his
way to the porch and sat down with a heavy sigh.
"Isaac is a Venus Adept," Kyle replied with some difficulty. "So are
you, Felix."
He gave Felix a tired smile.
"H-how did you know?" Felix asked.
"Who are you, really?" Alex picked up one of the wooden training staffs
and held it menacingly. "What do you know about us?"
Kyle smiled again, looking more tired than ever. "I'm a member of the
Venus Clan, and Isaac is my son."
*****
Um...yeah. I shouldn't write while listening to Final Fantasy music.
Nope. Nope. Not at all. Especially not "The Man with the Machine
Gun"(Laguna! Laguna! Laguna!) and "One Winged Angel" (Sepheroth!)
Sorry if that first part was kind of confusing. ^_^;;;
Uh...yeah...don't hurt me. Please.