Carolyn's Comments:
Mood: Ticked as Hell!
Rant: I hate people who make spyware; you know that? Who the hell do they think they are? What good does destroying my computer do them? What kind of sick thrill does it give them?
I am so sorry for not updating, but I had severe computer problems that lasted for several weeks. My computer was packed with spyware, adware, and so many viruses that I lost count around a thousand. I couldn't even get into 'My Computer'. It got so bad, that one day my poor computer just wouldn't turn on anymore.
Now I'm a cautious person. I used to use Kazaa, but I've come to my senses and stopped. I run routine spyware and virus scans, so I have no idea how this problem started. Fortunately, I'm the computer whiz in my family. (I'm like a built-in tech-support). I managed to turn the computer on. I spent hours looking up different dangerous files, and deleting harmful registry items. I'm happy to say that I finally fixed my computer. (breaths content little sigh)
Once again, I'm very sorry about this. I made the chapter three times as long as a normal one to make up for it. I'll be in Las Vegas over Spring Break. I'm going to work my ass off to get a chapter done before I leave, so don't worry.
By the way, my novel's website is done. (Check my bio for the address. It's in the description section.). I'll be adding artwork and more content soon.
Carolyn, who was hiding plenty of knowledge from Mia and the others, could hear her blood pounding through her ears as she raced down the winding halls of the temple. She'd only been there for two days, but she already had most of the main routes memorized. She could hear the others behind her, trying desperately to keep up.
Even though this had been going on for three years, Carolyn still had to marvel at how drastically she had changed. Before discovering her destiny as the Chosen One of her world, she had been the slowest runner that she'd known of. It would take her twenty minutes just to run a mile. Most of the time, her actual running had been short, painful sprints, followed by an even more painful period of jogging slowly and trying to catch her breath as her muscles screamed in agony.
But now she was running at top speed down a winding, labyrinthine hallway and wasn't feeling the least bit winded. All the training that had been imposed on her when she became Chosen One helped, of course. But then again, it also helped when your previous incarnation was a faerie queen of untold power.
Carolyn saw the ornately wrought iron doors to the ceremony hall up ahead. Even from this distance, she could sense the darkness hanging over it. There seemed to be an aura pulsing within them, like a dark heart beating a slow rhythm. She could almost see the dark tendrils of shadow seeping from the crack between the doors. Carolyn had the chilling thought that she was the only one who could see them.
As she approached, she could feel the darkness tensing up, bracing itself against her coming. She knew that simply pushing or pulling the door would be unsuccessful. She pushed her shoulder forward, and slammed against the doors with all her might.
The doors swung open, and Carolyn instantly felt wind on her face. A dark spray of air roared out at her. She screamed and shielded her face with her arm. She could feel her feet lifting off the ground, as the dark storm threw her back.
STAY OUT.
She hit the ground, and was on her feet as the others reached her. She looked up, and saw that the doors had remained open, but the room within was shrouded by a black mist.
"What the hell was that thing?" Sora yelled.
"Oh, boy," Katie sighed. "This is so much tougher without Lauren here." She was taking off one of her earrings. This one was a small black hexagonal jewel.
"Who?" Riku said frowning.
"Everyone stand back!" Katie commanded, pulling her earring off. Carolyn rolled her eyes as she stepped behind her. While Katie was only just sane enough to stay out of a nuthouse, Carolyn knew that her friend probably still belonged in one. (Carolyn had actually called the white-coats on her on more than one occasion)
But Katie had these moments…when she seemed to become serious. Normal even. She'd talk for a full minute without quoting Invader Zim, talking about how much sugar she'd consumed, or how many squirrels were plotting to kill her.
"Maybe you're smarter than we all think." Carolyn thought as everyone gathered behind Katie. Katie pinched the small stone between her thumb and forefinger and held it out in front of her.
"When I give the word, everyone move forward!" Katie ordered. Everyone stood still, waiting for Katie's instruction.
Katie released the earring. It hovered in the spot where she had held it up just a second ago. The black stone began to expand, retaining its original pattern. It continued to grow, until it formed a huge translucent shield between them and the shadows in the doorway.
"GO!" Katie shouted, pushing her arms out in front of her, so that her fingertips were almost touching the shield. While Carolyn could see hesitation in her otherworldly friend's faces, she knew what to expect. She bolted. After seeing her example, Sora and the others ran too.
The shield sped forward in front of them, shielding them from the dark miasma that flooded the room. Carolyn felt the shadows pulling at her, trying to drag her down and damn her. It was a tired, achy feeling that she had encountered many times before. It made her want to lie down and go to sleep. But she continued to press forward, though it felt like she was trudging through a thick layer of mud. She called up a memory of something Fiona had once said.
"It is in defying darkness that we defeat it."
"Don't let it drag you down!" Carolyn screamed when she saw some of her comrades struggling to stay upright. As she spoke, she felt her bow forming in her hands and her quiver full of arrows materializing on her back.
They all burst out of the thick black fog that made up the first section of the room. Katie's ward had spread until it covered all of them in a transparent, protective shell. While this portion of the room wasn't pitch-black like it had been earlier, there was still a fine mist of shadow covering the room.
"All this from one Lifeless?" Carolyn heard Alex exclaim.
Carolyn wasn't paying attention to him. She was scanning the room, trying to see through the darkness. Trying to see who was trapped within.
Then she saw them. Raphael was sprawled out on the floor, lying on his stomach. A tentacle of darkness seemed to be stuck in his back. He wasn't moving, and Carolyn saw his skin was deathly pale. The tentacle seemed to be pumping the very life force from his body. Cassius was sprawled out nearby, and Marcus was over to the left. Both had tentacles in them.
Carolyn readied an arrow, pulled back on the bowstring, and released it. The missile zipped forward, as it flew it began to glow with a white-hot light, and sank into the arm of shadow, just above Raphael's back. There was the sound of a thousand creatures screaming in death. Electricity crackled from the protruding arrow. The tentacle wrenched itself from Raphael's back, still screaming that unearthly scream. The boy shuddered and writhed on the floor in pain. The light from the arrow began to fold around the monster's arm. The limb gave one last shudder, before it faded from existence completely.
Carolyn readied another arrow to use on the tentacles that had Marcus and Cassius, but the others were in action. There was the hacking and slashing of swords and keyblades, and then both boys were free.
Carolyn began to reach out for her threads of energy, ready to weave them together to form the Omega Arrow. She knew it might not be enough to take down this beast, but it would weaken it severely.
Then she stopped and frowned. Wait, this was all wrong; the creature had been cut off from its sources of darkness. It should've been far weaker than this. But its aura was still pulsing with strength.
Could it be…?
"Guys?" Carolyn called out. Everyone but Caitlin, who was busy healing Raphael, looked at her. "This monster is still strong, even though we took away its source of food. It's hiding something." She pointed at the darkest part of the mist, where the tentacles had crawled out. That was the body of this Lifeless; it's core. She didn't know how she knew, but she did. "I think there's a person in there."
Then Carolyn felt an aura spark to life. She recognized it instantly; she also knew that the one behind it wouldn't reveal it unless it was an emergency signal.
Cedric apparently sensed it too. "TIRA!"
Carolyn felt a familiar sense of panic crept into her heart. "LET HER GO!" She screamed at the shadowy mass.
As harsh voice hissed in reply. It seemed to come from everywhere at once, causing the room to quake. It seemed composed of thousands of wicked voices echoing at once.
NEVER. SHE IS MINE MINE MINE. GO AWAY.
Carolyn's eyes darted around. She could see more tentacles emerging from the mist. She would h ave to go to the creature's body to rescue Tira. The monster had probably seized the unaware girl when it first emerged, and had then proceeded to attack her brother and friends. But Tira was its main source of power. Remove her from the core, and they would have a fighting chance.
But she couldn't get in there alone.
She looked up. Her guardians and friends were already attacking the newly emerged tentacles. Sora and Riku's keyblades flashed as they cut through shadow. Katie was using her ability to bind darkness to freeze the creature's arms as they slivered across the floor. Alex had called his sword to his hand and was slicing his way through the battle with ease. Caitlin was trying to heal Cassius and Marcus, while simultaneously trying to ward off the attackers. Sam was throwing lightening bolts, and Cronos was throwing energy attacks at anything that came near him. There was only one person available to help her.
"Cedric!" Carolyn shouted, "Get ready! We're going in!"
Cedric turned and stared at her, as if she'd just told him to give the Lifeless a great big hug. "WHAT!"
"Damnit, Cedric!" Carolyn cried in desperation. Tira's time was getting shorter with each passing second. "I can't get in there alone!"
Cedric looked back at Carolyn's guardians, and his fellow keyblade masters.
"They'll be fine without us! We have to go NOW!" Carolyn shouted/
Cedric nodded. "Fine! Let's do it!"
Carolyn's bow and arrows faded from her hands and were replaced with her sword. The Light Blade. The same weapon she'd lent Mia three years ago when this whole crazy thing with other worlds had started. It had been her training weapon, until her powers had become strong enough to materialize her arrows. While it was a toy compared to her bow, it would be more suitable for her current situation. It felt light and familiar in her hands, and she vaguely remembered how she had the reputation of being a prodigy with a blade.
Time to see if that reputation had any truth to it.
Carolyn lunged towards the thickest part of the darkness. Cedric followed. She heard him yell as one of the tentacles lashed out at him. He hacked it away.
Then the creature's arms came at her. Carolyn sliced through it before it got near her. Another came at her from behind, but Cedric cut it in two.
She felt one of them wrap around her leg, She slashed it, but as she did so, another came at her and wrapped around the hand that held the sword. Cedric started to help her, but he was immediately overcome by more of the damned things. He was having a hard enough time watching his own back.
Carolyn let out a yell as another tentacles seized her leg again. She was being lifted off the ground by her right arm and her left leg; being stretched out. She could already feel it trying to let the darkness in. It was poking around her barriers, trying to find a crevice in her heart.
"Sorry, but no dice!" She yelled. The sword vanished from her right hand and reappeared in her left. She swung it through the one around her leg, and then cut the one around her arm. She toppled to the ground and landed with a thud. She felt Cedric beside her, trying to catch is breath.
"What are you stopping for!" She yelled getting to her feet. "Get moving!"
They finally burst out of the protective ring of tentacles and into the core. Carolyn immediately knew that this was it. This was the creature's true face.
In fact, the creature didn't seem to HAVE a face. It was giant blob of shadow in the middle of the room. It was constantly moving and shifting its shape. Tentacles kept sprouting from it, and crawling out to the front of the room to attack the others.
But Carolyn and Cedric saw none of this. Their eyes were locked on only one thing: Tira.
She was embedded within the shadow. Only her arms, chest, and head were visible as she hung within the mass of black substance. Her eyes were rolled up and blank. Her mouth was hanging open slightly, moving as it formed words.
"Mommy..." She whispered softly, "Daddy..."
"It's feeding on her!" Carolyn's mind screamed. Frantic, she wailed. "LET HER GO!"
Then the Lifeless responded with that horrible, horrible voice again.
YOU STUPID STUPID GIRL. GET OUT. SHE IS MINE. GET OUT. LEAVE.
Cedric didn't waste another second. He leapt into the air, and came down at the creature with his sword raised. A tentacle burst from the creature's body. It slammed into him, knocking him down into the floor.
Then a voice spoke in Carolyn's head. It was comforting and familiar. It was a voice that she knew too well; it spoke to her in her dreams, and whenever there only seemed to be darkness. It was one of the secrets that Carolyn was hiding that Mia wanted to know about. It was the voice of her past, and yet it was the voice of her future as well.
"You know what must be done."
Carolyn felt a surge within her. This was her power; pure and undiluted. Raw energy that seemed to surge with instinct, while retaining her humanity. She felt her sword beginning to vanish in her hand. It had been useful getting her inside, but she needed to bring out the big guns now. She felt her bow and arrows return to her again.
"Release her at once." Carolyn said sharply. Her eyes shone violet; the same violet that Mia had spotted. And it wasn't Carolyn talking, it was the voice now. "I will NOT ask again."
NEVER. SHE IS MINE.
Carolyn drew a single arrow. She could feel her power pulsing now, like two hearts beating in one chest. One kept her physical form alive, and the other sustained her very essence, her life-force. And it was beating rapidly.
She placed the arrow on the bow and drew back on the string. "Cedric, get ready to grab her." She spoke with complete confidence that he would not question or protest to this command.
She felt it gathering inside her. It was a shining light from within. It was burning; it was too great for her body to hold. Her shape was a weak and unworthy vessel for such a mighty force. And yet at the same time, this power was hers. She shaped it and molded it. It was her.
The arrow was shining now. It vibrated in her grip, but she held on. The power continued to swell. She felt like a balloon being filled to the breaking point. She was going to burst if she held such a force much longer.
Finally, at the exact instant it became too much to bear, when she was just about to be completely ripped apart from within by her own powers, when it seemed almost comical that a young girl could be wielding that much energy, Carolyn let go of the arrow.
It seemed more like a ray of solid light than an arrow. Its flight was instantaneous. The point sank into the monster's skin, and suddenly everything seemed to freeze.
A dome of appeared from the arrow. It began to spread out, like a nuclear explosion. This was the force of light, with no masks or hidden intent. It was purity, and everything it touched was filled with a brilliant radiance.
When the dome's wall came at Cedric, he braced himself, but nothing could've prepared him for what he felt when it passed over him. Suddenly everything was illuminated; there were no shadows or lies to obstruct his view. There was only light. He felt...wonderful! Everything was suddenly perfect. There was no pain, no sorrow, and no tragedy. He was one with the universe and everything within it.
The arrow itself was roaring with brilliance. Brighter than a thousand of the brightest suns. The entire room, no, the entire world was glowing. All traces of hatred and anger were simply wiped away, like dirt off a window.
Then it was suddenly over. The light began to dim and lose its intensity. Finally it was all drawn back into the arrow. The object glittered and then faded away. Cedric didn't go right back to normal, instead, he felt intense sorrow that it was over so quickly.
Then he came back to reality. The roars of the Lifeless had become little more than pitiful shrieks. The shadows and the tentacles were all retreating back into the main body. Then Carolyn's words suddenly came back to him. Cedric bolted forward, and seized Tira by the arms. She was being pulled into the core, along with the rest of the creature's body. Cedric wrenched her free. He staggered back, unprepared for the sudden weight of her in his arms. He held onto her and watched as the lifeless began to shrink. Earlier it had towered to the ceiling, but now it was becoming shorter than him. The light regular light was returning to the room, though it seemed dull compared to the earlier wave of brilliance that had encompassed it moments before.
Carolyn watched the Lifeless shrink. She was suddenly nauseous. It felt as if something was eating away at her from inside. Her arrows vanished, and a hiss of pain escaped from behind her clenched teeth. She rubbed her hands. It felt like they were on fire. She just wanted to collapse on the floor and sleep.
"How'd you like the Omega Arrow, you bastard?" Carolyn snarled. Then she frowned. The Lifeless had stopped shrinking. Its height was about up to her knee. She blinked to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. It had survived? It had endured the Omega Arrow. Carolyn had never come across such a thing, not in her previous lifetime, and certainly not in her current one.
"Why isn't it dead!" She screamed.
"I told you!" She looked back, remembering that she and Cedric weren't the only ones in the room. Raphael had regained conciseness and was struggling to his feet. The others were trying to help him up. "No weapon can destroy the Lifeless! Not even the Omega Arrow!"
Carolyn looked incredulously at the Lifeless. That twisting little black thing on the floor, couldn't even be killed by the most powerful attack a human could perform? Her stomach suddenly felt like a pit of despair. How could they seal up something like this? How could they defeat all of them, if just one had managed to drain her of all her power?
She was just having that thought, when the Lifeless lunged at her. It had been deprived of its former host, but this one was better. This one had such mighty powers at her disposal. More energy for it to feed on. And now she was weakened and easy prey. It was all too perfect.
Carolyn hardly had time to let out a scream when someone rushed past her. Sam bolted straight into the path of the monster. Suddenly it dawned on Carolyn; the legend of the Guardians. Their code of honor. The unbreakable oath that had been given to them by destiny.
Protect the Chosen One, even at the cost of your own life.
"SAM! NO!" Carolyn shrieked.
Sam ignored her. He met the Lifeless in mid-jump. He threw his arms around it, as if he were embracing it. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut.
Then they were both gone.
