Disclaimer: Do I really have to say it? Fine, I don't own TLW!
AN: I am sorry this chapter is so late. I just started college so I'm a little disoriented. The chapters will be more spaced out as the semester progresses, but don't give up on me just yet!
Destiny Calls
Chapter 5: Then There was One
by: TheChosenOne3
'I can't believe they're actually gone. First Veronica, then Malone, Finn, and now Challenger too! I'm just glad that that bastard hasn't taken John from me. But tonight.there are only two of us left.no I won't let myself imagine the possibilities! Everything is going to be all right! Everything has to be all right! There is just no other option.' Marguerite stared straight into the roaring campfire, scarcely blinking.
It had been five long days since the Challenger Expedition had seen the treehouse, their home of the past four years, and four longer nights. On any other overnight journey, it was the days that wore on the travelers' nerves, but this was no ordinary trek through the jungle. Each time the sun retreated from the sky, it took the spirit, the very essence of one of the explorers with it. The body was always left behind as a cruel reminder of the person who once inhabited it.
The body remained fully functional in the absence of its owner. It could walk and take direction, but it had no mind or will of its own. The eyes of the now soulless being never closed, not to sleep or even blink, their eyes being true testimonies to the lack of a soul, the lack of humanity, that now resided in the empty shells of the once robust explorers.
Veronica had been the first. Her friends had been sorely tempted to just stay where they were, knowing that carrying Veronica the next few days through unknown territory was not a smart move at all. It hadn't taken them long to realize that Veronica could still walk on her own; she just had no motivation to do so. The five remaining adventurers took turns looking after their zombie companion.
That was the routine they carried one as one by one another of the group lost their spirits. Malone was the first to follow Veronica. Finn went the third night. And last night Tempest had taken the family's surrogate father and the expedition's leader, Challenger. The small band of voyagers dwindled down until two remained, Roxton and Marguerite.
They sat opposite each other, both silently gazing at the fire and contemplating one question: Who was next? The bodies of their friends were laying in tents, not too far from the two left standing, staring listlessly into oblivion.
The silence was doing nothing to relieve the tension of the situation. So Marguerite decided to try and talk to her anxious companion.
"So Roxton I bet I'm next. What do you think? You feeling lucky?" Marguerite asked, using the most lighthearted tone she could manage.
"This isn't a joke Marguerite!" Roxton seethed, the stress finally getting to him. He knew that his manner was more harsh than he had intended, but the thought of Marguerite lying there without the fire and spirit that he had to come to cherish in her taken by some sadistic psycho, was more than he was able to handle at the moment.
"Don't you think I know that John?! They are my friends, my family, too! I just can't take all of this waiting anymore! I don't want to lose you, any of you, not after what we went through to get to where we are." During Marguerite's outpour, Roxton had moved to Marguerite's side and gathered her in his arms, in as much need of the physical contact and the comfort it brought, as she.
"Marguerite I won't let anyone take this family away from us. Everything will be alright, you'll see." Even as he murmured the words soothingly into her ear, something in his gut told him that he wasn't certain of that himself.
The too emotionally weary explorers stayed that way, locked in each other's embrace, for what seemed like hours but in reality could have seconds. They were both perfectly content in staying like that until the gravity of the situation sunk in and ruined the moment.
"Marguerite, we have to go to sleep. The one who is left tomorrow will have to continue on alone, while looking after the rest of us. Neither of us can afford to be anything less than our best tomorrow." Roxton looked down at Marguerite. She hid her tears, but not before he saw them. His heart broke at the sight of Marguerite crying. He knew that she was afraid, but whether it was because she was dwelling on her possibly being the next victim or him he did not know, probably both.
"I know. It is inevitable. One of us will wake up in the morning and one of us won't. I just don't want to be alone tonight."
"I know. I'll stay with you tonight, I promise." She buried her head in his chest and he kissed the top of her forehead, silently pledging that he would do everything in his power to see to it that Marguerite was never alone again.
"Thank you John." Marguerite whispered so gently that she even wondered if she had said it out loud at all. She let Roxton lead her to the tent next to the one their four friends were "sleeping" in.
Night soon took the couple to dreamland, where one would not come back.
To Be Continued.
Just kidding!
"Damn it!" Roxton swore when he realized what had happened.
"Nice of you to join us Lord Roxton! You are the one I have been most anxious to meet. You were the one who spoiled all of my other plans. So your friends can thank you for being in this predicament at all." Tempest's mock-host smile soon transformed into a menacing grimace.
"What in the hell are you talking about?!" Roxton demanded while trying to lunge at his captor, but the manacles on his wrist, which were chained to the wall, held him back with a jerk.
"Oh your presence protects that witch! I can't even get near her when you are around. But guess what, you're not around anymore. And Marguerite is open game and I'm going hunting." Tempest let a sincere laugh at his own words. Roxton, however, did not find Tempest's humor quit as amusing.
As Tempest's laughter floated out of the room it enraged Roxton even more.
"Roxton it won't work, we already tried it." Finn stated blandly, referring to Roxton's struggling.
"Well I can't just sit here while he goes and does God knows what to Marguerite! There has to be something we can do." Roxton slumped forward, the feeling of uselessness weighing him down.
"We have tried everything we can think of, but nothing helps." Malone said with sympathy. He can understand how Roxton was feeling, that was how he felt when Veronica was taken.
"Where the hell are we anyway?" Roxton asked, finally looking around at his surroundings.
"As far as I have been able to figure we are in a different reality, a reality that exists inside of our subconscious." Challenger hypothesized.
"So Tempest somehow pulled us out of our own dreams and locked us into this chamber? Well what about our bodies? How are they still functioning without any conscious control?" Veronica asked.
"Well that is my theory. And as to our bodies, I believe that there is a part of our brains that are still functioning; it just needs a little urging." Challenger continued.
"That doesn't help us figure out how to help Marguerite. You heard what that bastard said, he's going after Marguerite. I just want to know what we can do to prevent it." The others looked at each other; they all knew that there was nothing they could do to help themselves, much less Marguerite.
Marguerite was trudging along with the lifeless bodies of her friends lumbering along behind her. She was in tears, hardly looking where she was going, she didn't care anymore. Marguerite was on her own again, just like she always has been and just like she always will be. Her destiny was nothing more than being alone forever.
'That's right Marguerite, they left you. Just like everyone else you have ever known. You will always be alone. There's just no way around it. Think about it, when has anyone ever stuck around? Never.' The words echoed in her head like thunder across the desert. The voice in her head seemed so cold, almost as if it were sneering at her pain. But that didn't matter right now, nothing did.
'No, stop thinking like that Marguerite. You are stronger than that. They didn't leave you, they were taken from you. They are waiting for you to save them, so save them damn you!' Marguerite chastised herself for her weakness. With a new, determined attitude, Marguerite continued her journey to Avalon.
'Tempest took your family from you once; don't let him do it to you again.' Marguerite repeated that concept like a mantra, and it was the only thing that kept her going, that and the thought that she could not fail her friends, not now when they were all so close to finding what they had each been searching for. Marguerite would succeed if she had to move heaven and earth to do it.
To Be Continued (for real).
Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, you know who you are. They really do mean a lot. I really do want to give each of you an individual shout out, but I'm a little frantic. Just know that I love you all. If you cannot count yourself among these beautiful people, then review now! Next chapter I will do the whole shout out thing, I promise! Thanks again!
AN: I am sorry this chapter is so late. I just started college so I'm a little disoriented. The chapters will be more spaced out as the semester progresses, but don't give up on me just yet!
Destiny Calls
Chapter 5: Then There was One
by: TheChosenOne3
'I can't believe they're actually gone. First Veronica, then Malone, Finn, and now Challenger too! I'm just glad that that bastard hasn't taken John from me. But tonight.there are only two of us left.no I won't let myself imagine the possibilities! Everything is going to be all right! Everything has to be all right! There is just no other option.' Marguerite stared straight into the roaring campfire, scarcely blinking.
It had been five long days since the Challenger Expedition had seen the treehouse, their home of the past four years, and four longer nights. On any other overnight journey, it was the days that wore on the travelers' nerves, but this was no ordinary trek through the jungle. Each time the sun retreated from the sky, it took the spirit, the very essence of one of the explorers with it. The body was always left behind as a cruel reminder of the person who once inhabited it.
The body remained fully functional in the absence of its owner. It could walk and take direction, but it had no mind or will of its own. The eyes of the now soulless being never closed, not to sleep or even blink, their eyes being true testimonies to the lack of a soul, the lack of humanity, that now resided in the empty shells of the once robust explorers.
Veronica had been the first. Her friends had been sorely tempted to just stay where they were, knowing that carrying Veronica the next few days through unknown territory was not a smart move at all. It hadn't taken them long to realize that Veronica could still walk on her own; she just had no motivation to do so. The five remaining adventurers took turns looking after their zombie companion.
That was the routine they carried one as one by one another of the group lost their spirits. Malone was the first to follow Veronica. Finn went the third night. And last night Tempest had taken the family's surrogate father and the expedition's leader, Challenger. The small band of voyagers dwindled down until two remained, Roxton and Marguerite.
They sat opposite each other, both silently gazing at the fire and contemplating one question: Who was next? The bodies of their friends were laying in tents, not too far from the two left standing, staring listlessly into oblivion.
The silence was doing nothing to relieve the tension of the situation. So Marguerite decided to try and talk to her anxious companion.
"So Roxton I bet I'm next. What do you think? You feeling lucky?" Marguerite asked, using the most lighthearted tone she could manage.
"This isn't a joke Marguerite!" Roxton seethed, the stress finally getting to him. He knew that his manner was more harsh than he had intended, but the thought of Marguerite lying there without the fire and spirit that he had to come to cherish in her taken by some sadistic psycho, was more than he was able to handle at the moment.
"Don't you think I know that John?! They are my friends, my family, too! I just can't take all of this waiting anymore! I don't want to lose you, any of you, not after what we went through to get to where we are." During Marguerite's outpour, Roxton had moved to Marguerite's side and gathered her in his arms, in as much need of the physical contact and the comfort it brought, as she.
"Marguerite I won't let anyone take this family away from us. Everything will be alright, you'll see." Even as he murmured the words soothingly into her ear, something in his gut told him that he wasn't certain of that himself.
The too emotionally weary explorers stayed that way, locked in each other's embrace, for what seemed like hours but in reality could have seconds. They were both perfectly content in staying like that until the gravity of the situation sunk in and ruined the moment.
"Marguerite, we have to go to sleep. The one who is left tomorrow will have to continue on alone, while looking after the rest of us. Neither of us can afford to be anything less than our best tomorrow." Roxton looked down at Marguerite. She hid her tears, but not before he saw them. His heart broke at the sight of Marguerite crying. He knew that she was afraid, but whether it was because she was dwelling on her possibly being the next victim or him he did not know, probably both.
"I know. It is inevitable. One of us will wake up in the morning and one of us won't. I just don't want to be alone tonight."
"I know. I'll stay with you tonight, I promise." She buried her head in his chest and he kissed the top of her forehead, silently pledging that he would do everything in his power to see to it that Marguerite was never alone again.
"Thank you John." Marguerite whispered so gently that she even wondered if she had said it out loud at all. She let Roxton lead her to the tent next to the one their four friends were "sleeping" in.
Night soon took the couple to dreamland, where one would not come back.
To Be Continued.
Just kidding!
"Damn it!" Roxton swore when he realized what had happened.
"Nice of you to join us Lord Roxton! You are the one I have been most anxious to meet. You were the one who spoiled all of my other plans. So your friends can thank you for being in this predicament at all." Tempest's mock-host smile soon transformed into a menacing grimace.
"What in the hell are you talking about?!" Roxton demanded while trying to lunge at his captor, but the manacles on his wrist, which were chained to the wall, held him back with a jerk.
"Oh your presence protects that witch! I can't even get near her when you are around. But guess what, you're not around anymore. And Marguerite is open game and I'm going hunting." Tempest let a sincere laugh at his own words. Roxton, however, did not find Tempest's humor quit as amusing.
As Tempest's laughter floated out of the room it enraged Roxton even more.
"Roxton it won't work, we already tried it." Finn stated blandly, referring to Roxton's struggling.
"Well I can't just sit here while he goes and does God knows what to Marguerite! There has to be something we can do." Roxton slumped forward, the feeling of uselessness weighing him down.
"We have tried everything we can think of, but nothing helps." Malone said with sympathy. He can understand how Roxton was feeling, that was how he felt when Veronica was taken.
"Where the hell are we anyway?" Roxton asked, finally looking around at his surroundings.
"As far as I have been able to figure we are in a different reality, a reality that exists inside of our subconscious." Challenger hypothesized.
"So Tempest somehow pulled us out of our own dreams and locked us into this chamber? Well what about our bodies? How are they still functioning without any conscious control?" Veronica asked.
"Well that is my theory. And as to our bodies, I believe that there is a part of our brains that are still functioning; it just needs a little urging." Challenger continued.
"That doesn't help us figure out how to help Marguerite. You heard what that bastard said, he's going after Marguerite. I just want to know what we can do to prevent it." The others looked at each other; they all knew that there was nothing they could do to help themselves, much less Marguerite.
Marguerite was trudging along with the lifeless bodies of her friends lumbering along behind her. She was in tears, hardly looking where she was going, she didn't care anymore. Marguerite was on her own again, just like she always has been and just like she always will be. Her destiny was nothing more than being alone forever.
'That's right Marguerite, they left you. Just like everyone else you have ever known. You will always be alone. There's just no way around it. Think about it, when has anyone ever stuck around? Never.' The words echoed in her head like thunder across the desert. The voice in her head seemed so cold, almost as if it were sneering at her pain. But that didn't matter right now, nothing did.
'No, stop thinking like that Marguerite. You are stronger than that. They didn't leave you, they were taken from you. They are waiting for you to save them, so save them damn you!' Marguerite chastised herself for her weakness. With a new, determined attitude, Marguerite continued her journey to Avalon.
'Tempest took your family from you once; don't let him do it to you again.' Marguerite repeated that concept like a mantra, and it was the only thing that kept her going, that and the thought that she could not fail her friends, not now when they were all so close to finding what they had each been searching for. Marguerite would succeed if she had to move heaven and earth to do it.
To Be Continued (for real).
Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed, you know who you are. They really do mean a lot. I really do want to give each of you an individual shout out, but I'm a little frantic. Just know that I love you all. If you cannot count yourself among these beautiful people, then review now! Next chapter I will do the whole shout out thing, I promise! Thanks again!
