Well, here's the sixth chapter to the story. It's shorter than usual but
it just didn't fit into chapter five. Anyway, here's a warning, this will
probably be the most depressing chapter of them all. Up until now, the
entire story has been more focused on the drama aspect but hopefully I can
get back to the more romantic part as the story comes to an end. In case
you get worried, this isn't the ending. A quick tip, I hate depressing
endings, that's why I never quite liked reading Romeo and Juliet. By the
way, pardon my analogy to that story. The rest of this I hope you can read
for yourself. I'll try to work on the next chapter and get it out as soon
as I can.
Note: Thanks for the encouragement. I'm still half expecting some one to write that they hate this, so its really encouraging seeing so many people give good comments.
Disclaimer: I don't own them, I never have, and I don't think I ever will. I just have too big of an imagination to settle for the horrible ending the writers gave the series.
"Ned," Veronica screamed as Malone came up to her again, "Ned, help me!"
"What is it Veronica, what's wrong." He looked around but he couldn't see what was hurting her
"Stop it Ned, it hurts!" Her voice rang in pain.
After another quick glance, he rushed forward, determined to grab her and protect her from whatever was happening, but as he approached her, he suddenly felt very hot, and pulled away with a yelp of pain. He got his bearings about him and found himself staring directly at the same shimmering wall that had chased him before. It was completely see-through, allowing him to watch as Veronica fell to her knees on the other side. She seemed to be completely lost in despair.
"Ned, why won't you help me?" She seemed almost to be questioning the air, she was so caught in her thoughts.
He yelled her name at the top of his lungs but she continued staring hopelessly in front of her. Once again, he approached the wall, only to be burned again. He couldn't get her attention and was forced to stand there as a bright yellow light descended on her.
Her once secluded expression contorted into fear and then pain as she started to scream at the top of her lungs. He could see her and tried to reach out to her but the wall again burned him. Her screams increased in intensity, ringing in Malone's ears. Each sound was torture to his heart and each second compounded his pain immeasurably. What had been several long screams turned into one continuous scream as the light increased to almost blinding. His eyes couldn't take it and he looked away.
Suddenly, her screaming stopped and he looked back towards where she was. Her eyes rolled up into her head, and she slowly fell. He rushed forward again, surprised that he actually made it to her. He caught her, just before she could hit the ground and looked down at her. He could almost feel her life fading in his hands and with her last breath she muttered, "Ned, why?"
Once again, Malone woke up in the tree house. Tears were already rolling freely down his cheek as he found himself wrapped around Veronica's body. She looked so still, completely and utterly unmoving. He tried again to rein in his emotion but his will power was already gone. There was no one else awake, so he decided that it was okay to feel, for once.
He couldn't stop his tears. All he wanted to do was see her again, just one time, that's all he asked. But it seemed like everything refused to help him. He didn't know who or what to blame, so he did the most logical thing, he blamed himself. He hadn't been there. He had gone off to discover himself, only to have a piece of him ripped out when he returned.
If that wasn't bad enough, now he got the enjoyment of reliving that pain every time he went to sleep. The nightmares plagued him each time, and what's more, he couldn't stop himself from sleeping. He had had next to no sleep for the past four days, so staying awake was nearly impossible. He would try his hardest, but sooner or later his eyes would close and he'd drift of into his nightmare world.
Every time, it felt like a stake through the heart. He couldn't do anything but watch, and he could never touch her. Then it would end without warning, leaving him a wreck. Usually, he could keep it inside but the dreams were slowly cracking through his resolve and he found himself spilling a minor fraction of what he felt.
Nothing could compare to it. He didn't think even death could come close. Somehow, death actually seemed preferable to the constant torture. With a shrug, he tried to let go of the idea, but it just wouldn't go away. He reasoned that it must be how a torture victim felt, seeking death as a release to the constant pain.
It scared him to think of such a thing, but somehow he was oblivious to the fear he should have instinctively felt. His gaze was once again caught on her face. It was losing what little color it had as time passed. Soon, she would be as pale as a ghost. That thought brought up a very emotional point. Eventually, he would have to bury her body in the ground, but the thought of it was unbearable. It meant giving up. It meant that he had lost her forever, and that was something he couldn't stand.
His heart ached with pain as he stroked her hair. He couldn't say goodbye, not now, not ever. If he had to admit she was gone, he just knew somehow that he wouldn't be able to go on, his heart wouldn't allow it. Discretely, he reached into his bag and brought out a small glass bottle. I can't go on, without you. You were everything good in the world and now you've been taken from me. I don't want to bury you, I don't want to lose you. I want to be with you. So I pray, that you'll forgive me, I'll be with you soon.
His shaking hands brought the bottle up into his view as he opened the top. A small symbol was etched into the glass, one that stood as a warning. He remembered getting the bottle as a gift from a shaman he had met on his journey. It was a potion that the shaman said would "separate the spirit from the body." The blunt interpretation was that it was poison.
At the time he got it, he never anticipated on using it. I guess, times change, he thought as he held back his tears, and people change too. He looked straight at her, one last time, bidding her and the world he always knew one last goodbye. Slowly, he lifted the bottle to his mouth, spilling the contents into his throat.
The impact was immediate. His legs gave out and went numb, followed shortly by his arms. With no support, he slumped down onto Veronica. As he slowly lost control of his body, he stared out of the tree house into the night. In those last seconds, he cursed life which was so cruel, he cursed the fate that had torn her from him, he cursed the world, the universe, the stars, everything that existed. Remembering an old line from an even older story, he said one last thing before he darkness pulled him in. In a low voice, he uttered to the universe, "I defy you stars." A lone tear slid down his cheek and his eyelids slowly shut to the world around him, and, with that, Ned Malone faded away into oblivion.
Well, there it was, the low point of the story. If there's anyone out there, you're probably thinking "What sort of story is this, you just killed off the two main characters?" Well, that's partially true, but this isn't the ending so try to keep reading. Like I said before, I haven't quite hit the twist yet. Hopefully, it will surprise you, but I never know. Anyway, review if you want and I'll try to get the next one out as quickly as this one.
Note: Thanks for the encouragement. I'm still half expecting some one to write that they hate this, so its really encouraging seeing so many people give good comments.
Disclaimer: I don't own them, I never have, and I don't think I ever will. I just have too big of an imagination to settle for the horrible ending the writers gave the series.
"Ned," Veronica screamed as Malone came up to her again, "Ned, help me!"
"What is it Veronica, what's wrong." He looked around but he couldn't see what was hurting her
"Stop it Ned, it hurts!" Her voice rang in pain.
After another quick glance, he rushed forward, determined to grab her and protect her from whatever was happening, but as he approached her, he suddenly felt very hot, and pulled away with a yelp of pain. He got his bearings about him and found himself staring directly at the same shimmering wall that had chased him before. It was completely see-through, allowing him to watch as Veronica fell to her knees on the other side. She seemed to be completely lost in despair.
"Ned, why won't you help me?" She seemed almost to be questioning the air, she was so caught in her thoughts.
He yelled her name at the top of his lungs but she continued staring hopelessly in front of her. Once again, he approached the wall, only to be burned again. He couldn't get her attention and was forced to stand there as a bright yellow light descended on her.
Her once secluded expression contorted into fear and then pain as she started to scream at the top of her lungs. He could see her and tried to reach out to her but the wall again burned him. Her screams increased in intensity, ringing in Malone's ears. Each sound was torture to his heart and each second compounded his pain immeasurably. What had been several long screams turned into one continuous scream as the light increased to almost blinding. His eyes couldn't take it and he looked away.
Suddenly, her screaming stopped and he looked back towards where she was. Her eyes rolled up into her head, and she slowly fell. He rushed forward again, surprised that he actually made it to her. He caught her, just before she could hit the ground and looked down at her. He could almost feel her life fading in his hands and with her last breath she muttered, "Ned, why?"
Once again, Malone woke up in the tree house. Tears were already rolling freely down his cheek as he found himself wrapped around Veronica's body. She looked so still, completely and utterly unmoving. He tried again to rein in his emotion but his will power was already gone. There was no one else awake, so he decided that it was okay to feel, for once.
He couldn't stop his tears. All he wanted to do was see her again, just one time, that's all he asked. But it seemed like everything refused to help him. He didn't know who or what to blame, so he did the most logical thing, he blamed himself. He hadn't been there. He had gone off to discover himself, only to have a piece of him ripped out when he returned.
If that wasn't bad enough, now he got the enjoyment of reliving that pain every time he went to sleep. The nightmares plagued him each time, and what's more, he couldn't stop himself from sleeping. He had had next to no sleep for the past four days, so staying awake was nearly impossible. He would try his hardest, but sooner or later his eyes would close and he'd drift of into his nightmare world.
Every time, it felt like a stake through the heart. He couldn't do anything but watch, and he could never touch her. Then it would end without warning, leaving him a wreck. Usually, he could keep it inside but the dreams were slowly cracking through his resolve and he found himself spilling a minor fraction of what he felt.
Nothing could compare to it. He didn't think even death could come close. Somehow, death actually seemed preferable to the constant torture. With a shrug, he tried to let go of the idea, but it just wouldn't go away. He reasoned that it must be how a torture victim felt, seeking death as a release to the constant pain.
It scared him to think of such a thing, but somehow he was oblivious to the fear he should have instinctively felt. His gaze was once again caught on her face. It was losing what little color it had as time passed. Soon, she would be as pale as a ghost. That thought brought up a very emotional point. Eventually, he would have to bury her body in the ground, but the thought of it was unbearable. It meant giving up. It meant that he had lost her forever, and that was something he couldn't stand.
His heart ached with pain as he stroked her hair. He couldn't say goodbye, not now, not ever. If he had to admit she was gone, he just knew somehow that he wouldn't be able to go on, his heart wouldn't allow it. Discretely, he reached into his bag and brought out a small glass bottle. I can't go on, without you. You were everything good in the world and now you've been taken from me. I don't want to bury you, I don't want to lose you. I want to be with you. So I pray, that you'll forgive me, I'll be with you soon.
His shaking hands brought the bottle up into his view as he opened the top. A small symbol was etched into the glass, one that stood as a warning. He remembered getting the bottle as a gift from a shaman he had met on his journey. It was a potion that the shaman said would "separate the spirit from the body." The blunt interpretation was that it was poison.
At the time he got it, he never anticipated on using it. I guess, times change, he thought as he held back his tears, and people change too. He looked straight at her, one last time, bidding her and the world he always knew one last goodbye. Slowly, he lifted the bottle to his mouth, spilling the contents into his throat.
The impact was immediate. His legs gave out and went numb, followed shortly by his arms. With no support, he slumped down onto Veronica. As he slowly lost control of his body, he stared out of the tree house into the night. In those last seconds, he cursed life which was so cruel, he cursed the fate that had torn her from him, he cursed the world, the universe, the stars, everything that existed. Remembering an old line from an even older story, he said one last thing before he darkness pulled him in. In a low voice, he uttered to the universe, "I defy you stars." A lone tear slid down his cheek and his eyelids slowly shut to the world around him, and, with that, Ned Malone faded away into oblivion.
Well, there it was, the low point of the story. If there's anyone out there, you're probably thinking "What sort of story is this, you just killed off the two main characters?" Well, that's partially true, but this isn't the ending so try to keep reading. Like I said before, I haven't quite hit the twist yet. Hopefully, it will surprise you, but I never know. Anyway, review if you want and I'll try to get the next one out as quickly as this one.