Author's Comment: Alright, this and the next chapter are why I rated this story the way I have. They also happen to be my personal favorite chapters. )
Please Critique and Comment? D
The First to Fall
Angel stared at the small Eevee still sitting in front of him. "So… your name is Gold… and you were a friend of mum's… and because you were still an Eevee, mum adopted you into the family."
Gold nodded. "Yup, and I'm quite possibly the only normal one in it."
Twilight began to laugh. "You, normal? Boy, that's a hoot."
"Shush," remarked Gold. "Don't make me get out my frying pan."
Angel and Eclipse began to giggle at this, Eclipse stopping after a minute because of the growing pain in her chest from the blast she had received earlier. Gold and Twilight just looked at Angel, showing that there was more seriousness to that than what they had thought, and he sweatdropped.
"Sunset is trying to kill you both," stated Gold. "You need to get out of here before he succeeds."
"S...Sunset?" stammered Angel. "He's here?"
"The pack
resides outside of the crater towards the -mmph!" Gold was suddenly stopped
by Twilight, who had covered her mouth quickly and began to whisper something
into her ear. Gold nodded and shut up quickly.
Angel's face turned cross. "What was that all about?"
"Don't worry about it," replied Twilight. "It's actually better if you don't know where the pack is, just in case."
"Just in case of what?"
Gold stared at
Angel; a look that told him it might be best not to ask questions. He sighed
and walked over to Eclipse's side. The fur on her chest was singed badly,
along with the skin underneath. Because of the power of the blast, he wouldn't
be surprised if something was broken, either. Looking back up at Twilight and
Gold, he motioned them away. "Go back to the pack, then. I suppose since
we are outcasts, it would be better for us to stay here."
Gold sighed as she looked up at Twilight, who now had a pained expression on
her face. "I was banished from the pack too," commented Twilight.
"Because I have no rings, I remind them of Shadow. When I get angry, my
colors invert on their own and I look even more like her. It scares them."
"It's
not just that, really…" began Gold. "Sunset doesn't
want to have anything to do with the family anymore. Mlu's father died
in a battle, and it was rumored that Sunset had someone murder her mother."
Gold's expression now turned to pain as well. "The only way I could
stay within the pack was to deny my relationship with this family… and
I can't live out there on my own, so I had to; though I don't truly
believe it." Gold sighed again. "I do need to get back, though.
I never told anyone I was going anywhere, and if they find me missing they will
worry."
Twilight gave a comforting smile towards Gold, and followed her up the path
out of the cave, winking at Angel as she left. He was left alone with Eclipse,
and he nuzzled her cheek softly.
"Are you alright?" he asked her, knowing what she would reply, and also knowing he wouldn't believe that.
"Yeah, I'm alright," she lied; a bit embarrassed. She smiled at him softly, blushing. She liked him… a lot. She hoped this was pointing towards the fact that he liked her too.
He smiled back, and stretched his legs a bit. They were getting tense for some reason, and his fur bristled as he felt a sudden wave of cold come across him. He then realized… what a terrible position he had put Eclipse in. It wasn't exactly his fault, yet it was. The dark force within him now knew… that monster now knew that he cared for Eclipse, and could use that somehow, but how? Above that, why? Angel wasn't sure, but that feeling that came with the cold chill now began to fade with it. He glanced at Eclipse, to see if she had noticed him staring into space, but she evidently hadn't. Her eyes were closed and she seemed to have drifted off to sleep.
His eyes fell to her chest, singed and badly burned. His heart ached, and he wanted to do something to help her, help her with the pain, and to rid her of the soul... the evil soul that now resided within her. A tear trickled down his cheek as he bowed his head, lost in thought and now becoming engulfed in depression. These problems Eclipse was having all seemed to be because of him, somehow or another. He had brought her into his world, and it wasn't a pretty one.
Shadow… the same entity that his mother had inside her that long time ago now inhabited Eclipse, but how? His mother had died long before. Shouldn't Shadow have died with her? He snarled a bit, much to his own surprise as the cold sensation came back. Glancing at Eclipse, he was suddenly angry, angry at everything. He hated everything. The cold sensation grew, and he was suddenly scared of it. As the hatred and anger grew, so did this chilling feeling. A tingling sensation followed, and he looked down, where it had started. A black flame began to grow around his feet. He tried to put them out, but it was like they weren't there. There was no heat to them, just a black flame that curled up through his fur, consuming his flesh and turning his fur black. He backed away from Eclipse as it crawled up to his chest and torso, the cold crawling through his spine and his muscles tensing as the fire seemed to grow in intensity. He winced as it reached his neck, crawling across his face it seemed to hesitate as it reached the ring in the center of his forehead, but then it burst into a wave of power and extinguished as black fur now covered every inch of his body. Then he was falling… falling somewhere, but he couldn't understand. Then there was nothing. All was dark.
Twilight watched Gold gallop towards the clan's new resting place until she was out of sight. Turning back towards the cave, she hesitated. Something wasn't right. Her ears twitched a bit and her hair bristled as a wave of fear came across her, yet she choked down the terror that was rising in her throat and bounded back towards the cave.
Stopping just outside and peering in, she saw just what she didn't want to see. The darkness had consumed Angel, and he now wasn't who he appeared to be. She once again had to choke down the fear that was welling up inside her chest as she prepared to dart in. A surprise attack might be best, because she didn't know what she was up against. Sure, she was the older, but he was bigger than her. In this family, size seemed to count. The bigger was normally stronger.
She dug her feet into the hard bedrock and lunged at him, knocking him away from Eclipse, who he was looming over. Startled by this sudden attack, he swiped at his assailant, but Twilight jumped back, narrowly missing a slash at her eye. He jumped and soon got the better hand, hovering over her body and swiping it to the side with one massive paw, then repeating the process over and over, grinning sadistically. Twilight struggled to stand, but the constant assaults by the Umbreon she once knew as her brother struck her off her feet even before she could rise again. Finally slamming her horribly bruised and battered body into the rock wall of the cave, she whimpered as she felt something crack. She hadn't truly wanted to fight him, as somewhere under that darkened fur was her brother. He stood over her and the color of her coat shifted, shimmering as the black of her tail moved towards her face. Her eyes glistened slightly with a red hue, and she swiped at his face with both paws but faltered, as the pain in her back grew immense, then too much to bear. As she leapt at him, he thrust his paw outwards, connecting with her neck and slamming her head into the wall. She winced, the pain in her back spreading up her spine and down her legs. He unsheathed his claws, piercing her neck slightly, but not enough to draw blood. She trembled, and looked into his ruby eyes. She recognized nothing in them. Nothing within them told her that the Umbreon she now faced was Angel. His face curled slightly in a sneer and he spoke, his voice demonic and spine chilling.
"Hello, Twilight…"
He unsheathed his claws more, and now blood began to trickle down her throat and onto her chest. Her frightened eyes pleased him, and he grinned.
Twilight stared at him still, petrified. She tried to calm herself, but her trembling just proceeded to worsen. She choked back tears as she began to stammer, "You… you do exist…" She cowered as much as she was able, her eyes full of pure terror. "The brother… does exist…"
Demon just snarled at this and unsheathed his claws fully, thrusting them further into her throat, then drug them out and powered a blast in his other forepaw, thrusting it towards her.
Twilight was silent as she was thrust further into the wall, then fell to the ground; drawing her final breath.
Eclipse woke as Twilight hit the floor, and looked on in astonishment as she realized what had just occurred. This darkened side of Angel had just killed his own sister. What would keep him from destroying her sooner or later? She struggled to stand and tried to run, but the constant pressure and pain on her chest weighed her down very heavily. She managed to get outside of the cave and out a distance, but Demon was gaining in speed as she slowed, and it took no time for him to catch up. He jumped at her, sending her face down into the dirt and held it down, sheer darkness covering his grinning face. She sputtered, crying out from the force of the blow on her chest, dust flying every which way.
"Poor Eclipse,"
muttered Demon. "Poor, poor Eclipse. Will she be the next pathetic soul
to go?"
Eclipse struggled against Demon's grip, trying to force herself away from
the ground, clawing at the clay and dirt around her. "Let go," she
moaned, her voice filled in the pain that the pressure caused.
"And why should I do that?"
Eclipse gave up.
She was getting nowhere in her struggle, and only succeeded in hurting herself
further. If this monster could kill Twilight so easily, then she would be a
breeze for him. She closed her eyes, waiting for the blow.
Demon tossed her body to one side, making her face up at him. "No, Eclipse
won't die just yet," he commented as he drug an unsheathed claw
across her neck, only strong enough to create a thin line of blood that began
to ebb slightly. She whimpered a bit as he drug it across her chest as well.
"Angel will just have to live what I do to you instead," Demon remarked,
a sadistic grin crossing his face. "Poor, poor Eclipse."
"Why don't you kill me?" murmured Eclipse, her eyes welling in tears from the pain.
"I can't
just yet," he replied, grinning still. "You mean too much to him
for me to just do that… right now, anyway."
Demon righted his stance and turned away from her as rain started to fall, leaving
her lying in the bone-scattered dirt that was the crater. "Poor, poor
Eclipse," he continued to mumble as he walked back towards the cave.
