The Coming Darkness

by

JamesPicard_007

Chapter 9

Sabio Island

            Night had fallen on the little island of Sabio. The exotic island laid in rest. The full moon was hidden away by storm clouds as the island was soon entering the rainy season. The few village lights dimly shone upon the sandy beach however there was a strange light tonight. Upon the mountain a small yet indistinguishable red light was slowly traveling up the mountain side.

            The Caron Ruby shone brightly as Zarus tread up the mountain. After night had fell the villain had begun to make his way up the mountain. He stopped for a second and winced as if struck by an invisible pain then continued his journey up the mountain. Soon he reached a flatter part of the mountain.

            Zarus searched around and soon behind a huge thicket of bushes found a small passageway. He proceeded through the dark tunnel with the light of the Caron Ruby guiding him. As he drew closer to the end of the tunnel a light from inside the mountain began to grow as well as the temperature.

            When Zarus crawled out of the tunnel he found himself in a vast volcanic chamber. The lava boiled hot and was restless. Out of the corner of his eye Zarus saw what he was looking for. Near the edge of the cliff he stood on was an ancient pedestal. Covered in hieroglyphs on the top was a small cavity.

            Zarus took the Caron Ruby and thrust it into the cavity. Nothing happened at first, but a few seconds later the mountain began to rumble and a bright, blue beam shot from the pedestal straight into the sky. The beam only lasted a few seconds, but the mountain continued to rumble as Zarus removed the gem.

            "It is done my lord. The first seal has been broken and soon you shall be free."

Stonehenge

            Suddenly Ness felt pain like he had not felt before. He struggled to keep his eyes open. Around the chamber were his defeated comrades. Beaten by the powerful foe who called himself Servant. They had been treated as rag dolls and as easily defeated. Now Ness stood alone against the powerful foe.

            Ness looked towards Servant who was merely floating in the air. He struggled to invoke his psychic powers so that he could break free from the demon. Servant noticed the young hero's attempt and merely laughed and threw him against the nearby wall,

            "Give up you fool. Can you not see that your powers cannot begin to compare with mine?" Servant cried.

            "I will never quit until I breathe my last breath." Ness retorted.

            "That shall be a request I will be glad to fulfill."

            Servant began to rush Ness, but Ness launched a psychic flash of light against him. Servant was blinded for a moment and in that time Ness struck him with his bat. The villain was momentarily stunned however he recovered quickly and retaliated against Ness with a psychic blast of his own.

            Ness was thrown once more into the wall. His body ached, but he rose once more to fight his foe. However this time was too much for him and he collapsed to his knees. Servant floated over and picked up Ness by the throat.

            "Is this the power of the Chosen One? The power of the hero chosen by the Apple of Enlightenment? The one who will destroy the Nightmare Rock? Hahahaha. Don't make me laugh. Surely you cannot be the hero. Say goodbye to this world hero."

            Servant raised the young hero high above him. Ness struggled helplessly against his one handed hold on himself. Servant began to gather the energy he required to destroy Ness. The room grew bright with the collecting energies.

            "Farewell. Hero."

            Ness cried out in pain as the evil energies bombarded him. Servant howled with insane laughter, but then suddenly the energies overflowing Ness' senses stopped. The room dimmed and Servant stopped laughing. Then an aura of energy began to surround Ness. The aura grew brighter and filled Servant with unspeakable pain forcing him to drop Ness and back off.

            "So you do have some power in you. I will leave for now, but I shall return to finish you later."

            The room dimmed for a slight second and in that moment Servant had disappeared. Ness struggled to stand, but a sudden weariness came over him and he collapsed on the cold floor.

Sabio Island

            The first thing Allen noticed was everything. A dull pain shot through body; the result of being tossed around so much at sea. At first he thought he was still in the raft, but when he turned his head he noticed the softness of the pillow beneath it. He opened his eyes and looked around. He found himself lying in a bed in a hospital.

            "Doctor! He's awake!" A voice screeched.

           Allen looked up to see a nurse running out of his room. A minute later she returned followed by a young male doctor.

            "So he is. Thank you nurse. I can take it from here." The doctor said.

            "Where am I?" Allen croaked as he watched the nurse leave.

            "You're in the Grandstaff Hospital on Sabio Island."

            "How did I get here?"

            "That's a question we'd like answered as well. Some people found you and your raft adrift on the beach and you were rushed here."

            "…The Kraken."

            "The Kraken?"

            "Yeah. It attacked my boat. I got in the raft and floated around. I guess I passed out."

            "You were unconscious when they found you."

            "Lovely. Now let me out of here."

            "Sir I really advise against that. You need to rest."

            "Is there any reason you can keep me here?"

            "…No. Nurse! Get this man his discharge papers." The doctor yelled into the hallway.

            "Ugh. Where's my stuff?" Allen asked.

            "We'll have it brought to you."

            A few minutes later Allen belongings were returned to him. His duffel bag was, fortunately, water-proof and all his clothes and other things were still dry. He put on some clothing suitable for a tropical climate and then walked out to the front desk and handed the attendant his discharge papers.

            "Thank you, sir. Now there's just the matter of your bill." The attendant said.

            "Bill?" Allen replied.

            "Yes, sir. Now when they found you they didn't find any insurance card. Can you tell us why?"

            "I don't carry insurance."

            "Oh. What about your family? You should carry some for their sake."

            "I don't have any."

            "Wha…? Oh. I'm sorry to hear that."
            "I just happened to be in one of those professions where I don't have time."

            "Well you still need to take care of this bill."

            "Do you take debit?"

            "As long as it'll clear."

            Allen reached into his wallet and pulled out a debit card and handed it to the attendant. She swiped it through the card reader and waited several minutes before handing it back to him and have him sign a paper okaying the transfer. Then the attendant handed him a copy of his bill and bade him farewell.

            When he first walked out of the hospital the morning sun struck him brightly. He pulled on a pair of sunglasses to shield his eyes and looked for a nearby hotel. After checking into the Sabio Halton he decided to take a nap as he was still feeling a bit tired. Allen awoke in the early afternoon and decided to travel downtown for lunch. On his way down the island suddenly shook with a great force momentarily.

            "What was that?" He asked a nearby citizen.

            "Haven't you heard?" The citizen replied.

            "Let's say I just got here."

            "A few days ago the volcano became active again. Ever since then the island has been suffering these tremors."

            "I see. Thanks for the info."

            A while later Allen finished lunch at a local café. He decided to ask the waiter a few questions he came over to give Allen his bill.

            "Excuse me, but when does the soonest boat leave for Scaraba?" Allen asked.

            "I'm afraid there aren't any ships leaving for Scaraba in a long time." The waiter said.

            "Why's that?"

            "Do you know what happened a few days ago?"

            "I've heard about the volcano."

            "Not that. What's going on down at the docks."

            "I haven't heard about that one."

            "Well for the past few days the docks have been filled with… filled with Krakens."

            "Krakens?"

           "Yes. They sit on the edge of the docks so no boats have been attacked, but nobody comes in and nobody goes out. It seems a lot of weird things have been happening around here lately."

            "What else has happened?"

            "Well on the night that the volcano became active again the same moment that it came back to life a strange blue beam shot into the air from it."

            "A blue beam?"

            "Yes. It only lasted for a few seconds so very few people saw it."

            "I see. That is weird."

            "Yeah. Few tourists are coming to the island anymore."
            "Well I really need to get to Scaraba. Are you sure there isn't any way for me to get there?"

            "No way by boat however on the edge of town there is an elderly gentleman that owns a helicopter. Perhaps he would be willing to fly you to Scaraba."

            "Thank you. Looks like I have a visit to make."