Chapter 24
The great stone face in the Atlantis room stood open, just as Rei expected. (The last one is there. Just get it and we can get on with collecting the spirits.) Jumping down the steps, the others followed silently, knowing better than to get in her way after the past few hours.
Quatre momentarily brushed at his shirt sleeve. The very end was browned and stiff, a reminder of Rei potent anger. (It was my own fault, jumping ahead like that... If she hadn't flamed that creature, I'd be...) His fingers dropped off his sleeve. (She knows what she's doing.)
They stopped in front of the doorway beside the stone face. "There's a doorway down here and beyond that, a maze. At the end of that maze, there's one of the last jars we need." Suddenly feeling awkward, Rei turned to face them. Four pairs of eyes looked back at her, one pair stood out from the others, a fierce blue knifed into Rei from the behind Duo.
(I'll get him back.) Rei tried to tell her, but the words remained in her mouth and she turned away in frustration.
Starting down the steps, she pulled a thin piece of paper from the cloth at her chest. Pausing at the bottom, an emotion just barely registered behind her eyes as she looked at the paper.
Rei pulled the paper back away from him over her shoulder. "What? Don't trust me?" She taunted, suddenly very smug about catching Heero's attention, even if he may not have wanted it to happen.
He leaned over her and snatched the paper, taking advantage of Rei's surprise at his sudden nearness. "I'll check the sequence." He stated firmly, in his monotonous voice that left no room for argument.
(Stop that now. You have to end this or you'll never see him again.) The door at the bottom of the stair, dimly lit by what little light filtered in from the room above, loomed before her, covered in carved symbols and faintly colored designs. Unfolding the paper, Rei jumped at the sound of a gun locking. She turned briefly to see Wufei casually inspecting his gun. He nodded his head at the door.
"Get on with it."
Vaguely irritated at his tone, but grateful for the added protection, Rei turned back to the door and looked down at the paper. The scribbled notes stared back at her and she reached out and pushed the first panel. And another. And another. And back to the first one. The panel slid out again and the door growled, stone grinding against stone. The door slid away, and a rush of warm air hit them. The cavern opened up before them and Rei heard someone behind her take a short gasp.
The cavern was huge, carved out of a red stone with a number of dark openings scattered around the cave's circumference. Each one had a black pict of a stick man with a spear. The red stone was rough and the darker bands seemed to shift around. "Like fire..." Rei whispered.
A sudden shot rang out and Rei jerked in surprise. Across the cavern, a lone, blackened creature stumbled out of an opening and dropped to the floor.
Calmly reloading, Quatre stepped up next to Rei. "Which door?"
"I don't know-" She paused, almost expecting a retort from Relena, but she was busy looking at the pict next to their door. "We just have to pick one."
"We need to stay together." Trowa input quietly. "Splitting up will only get everyone lost."
"So which door then?" Wufei looked around the cavern, arms crossed.
"What about the one the zombie came out of?" Relena suggested. Everyone turned to look at her, surprised. Rei unconsciously held her breath, waiting for a side remark. "Well, you said they're attracted to the jars, and if there's one at the other end of this maze..." She looked around, defying anyone to yell at her.
"She's got a point." This time everyone turned to look at Rei. "The zombie door it is." Turning, with her most level expression on, Rei started across the cavern. Going on an impulse, Relena followed, leaving Wufei, Trowa, and Quatre a few steps behind.
"They just agreed..." Quatre whispered.
"Odd."
"You guys coming?" Rei yelled from the door.
"Just ignore it." Wufei resolved and started over.
After a good twenty minutes of fiery red stone walls, mindless turns, and last minute left/right decisions, the group found themselves, not at the glorious end of the maze, but back where they started.
Rei let out a heavy sigh. "There's goes the logical decision out the window..." She glanced around the cavern. "If there was a window..."
"So what, do we just keep-" Relena stopped short. Rei turned to her. But she wasn't there.
"Oh no..." Quatre stared at the spot where she had once been.
"You're moving too slow, Mars, dear..." Nia's voice echoed ominously off the curved walls.
"Stop it! You have you're bait, we're moving already!" Rei shouted at the ceiling, her own voice echoing.
"Oh, you're moving just a little too slow for me. Pick up the pace..." He voice faded and a stream of fire suddenly erupted over the stone of the ceiling.
The fire faded as soon as it began, leaving Wufei, Trowa, Quatre, and a furious Rei alone in the cavern.
(WHY?! She was just starting to act nice! Why did Nia have to take her too?!) Taking deep breaths to try and steady herself. "Let's go." Suddenly sprinting across the cavern, Rei picked the first door she saw and ran through it. A creature, rambling towards her around a turn, met with a harsh death in a bout of flame.
A hard ten minutes of running found them back at the central cave. "DAMN!" Rei shouted, slamming her fist into the wall.
"Just keep going, Rei, it has to be around here somewhere." Quatre soothed through Rei's anger.
Picking another door they ran and ran, leaving dustings of zombies in their wake. Finally, after a long while running, they entered a room somewhat different. "About...time..." Rei growled though gasps of breath.
The room was smaller than the cavern, but was still made of the same fiery stone. A pool of thick, bubbling tar snaked around the room, cutting it in half. On the other side, on a shelf cut in the stone, the top to a jar sat, almost blending in with the surrounding stone. Rei stood up straight and took a deep breath. "There it is."
"Is it the last one?" Trowa eyed it suspiciously and crossed his arms.
"We need one more jar to go with this other top..." Quatre replied absently, sorting noisily through the bag.
"Alright then." Rei stepped out of the entrance and up to the stream, at the narrowest point. (We're so close now, we can get through this...)
Just as she stepped up to the bank, one of the bubbles exploded before her feet and an oozing mass rose up. As tar dripped away from the face, Nia's likeness sneered at her.
Vaguely aware of gunshots, Rei's anger flared up and she swept out her arm, inches from the creature's face. It ducked and looked up at her, almost confused, before bursting into flames. The fire raced over the room, following the snake path of the tar. Nia's creature writhed in the blaze for a moment, then shriveled back into the muck now concealed under the fire.
Wufei stepped up next to Rei. "That was efficient." He observed, looking around the room. Rei looked over at him, unsure if he was being sarcastic.
"I can still get over there." She said. (Is he really being sarcastic?)
"It would be best if we could move as quickly as possible..." Trowa prompted quietly.
"Oh! Yeah." Rei looked through the flames for the other side and found the other bank. Taking a deep breath, she leapt through the fire and landed, somewhat unsteadily, on the other side. The jar sat in the corner, its shadow flickering behind it. "Here you are..." She reached up to take it down. As her hands clasped around the warmed clay, a shout behind her brought her running back through the flames.
"She took..." Quatre began, looking at the ground, where Trowa had stood only seconds before when Rei had passed through the fire.
"She took Trowa." Rei finished. Her arms dropped to her sides, and she looked down at the jar in her hand. "I'm taking the bag."
"B-"
"That is the most logical thing to do." Wufei cut Quatre off. Looking over at the smaller boy, he held out his hand. "Either one of us could be taken next, and if she decides to take that bag too..." He left the sentence unfinished.
"It won't hurt anything if I carry it." Rei assured as she slung the strap over her shoulder.
That's al I have!!! I really wanted to be able to get the whole last chapter down in one shot, but this is all I can get to come out! I appreciate all the reviews I've gotten recently especially, since I haven't updated since...February. I'm so sorry!!! I have another fic, Inuyasha, up on Mediaminer, and that's kept my focus recently. I will finish this fic, I promise, it just may take me awhile... Please review, they might spur something in this accursed imagination...
The great stone face in the Atlantis room stood open, just as Rei expected. (The last one is there. Just get it and we can get on with collecting the spirits.) Jumping down the steps, the others followed silently, knowing better than to get in her way after the past few hours.
Quatre momentarily brushed at his shirt sleeve. The very end was browned and stiff, a reminder of Rei potent anger. (It was my own fault, jumping ahead like that... If she hadn't flamed that creature, I'd be...) His fingers dropped off his sleeve. (She knows what she's doing.)
They stopped in front of the doorway beside the stone face. "There's a doorway down here and beyond that, a maze. At the end of that maze, there's one of the last jars we need." Suddenly feeling awkward, Rei turned to face them. Four pairs of eyes looked back at her, one pair stood out from the others, a fierce blue knifed into Rei from the behind Duo.
(I'll get him back.) Rei tried to tell her, but the words remained in her mouth and she turned away in frustration.
Starting down the steps, she pulled a thin piece of paper from the cloth at her chest. Pausing at the bottom, an emotion just barely registered behind her eyes as she looked at the paper.
Rei pulled the paper back away from him over her shoulder. "What? Don't trust me?" She taunted, suddenly very smug about catching Heero's attention, even if he may not have wanted it to happen.
He leaned over her and snatched the paper, taking advantage of Rei's surprise at his sudden nearness. "I'll check the sequence." He stated firmly, in his monotonous voice that left no room for argument.
(Stop that now. You have to end this or you'll never see him again.) The door at the bottom of the stair, dimly lit by what little light filtered in from the room above, loomed before her, covered in carved symbols and faintly colored designs. Unfolding the paper, Rei jumped at the sound of a gun locking. She turned briefly to see Wufei casually inspecting his gun. He nodded his head at the door.
"Get on with it."
Vaguely irritated at his tone, but grateful for the added protection, Rei turned back to the door and looked down at the paper. The scribbled notes stared back at her and she reached out and pushed the first panel. And another. And another. And back to the first one. The panel slid out again and the door growled, stone grinding against stone. The door slid away, and a rush of warm air hit them. The cavern opened up before them and Rei heard someone behind her take a short gasp.
The cavern was huge, carved out of a red stone with a number of dark openings scattered around the cave's circumference. Each one had a black pict of a stick man with a spear. The red stone was rough and the darker bands seemed to shift around. "Like fire..." Rei whispered.
A sudden shot rang out and Rei jerked in surprise. Across the cavern, a lone, blackened creature stumbled out of an opening and dropped to the floor.
Calmly reloading, Quatre stepped up next to Rei. "Which door?"
"I don't know-" She paused, almost expecting a retort from Relena, but she was busy looking at the pict next to their door. "We just have to pick one."
"We need to stay together." Trowa input quietly. "Splitting up will only get everyone lost."
"So which door then?" Wufei looked around the cavern, arms crossed.
"What about the one the zombie came out of?" Relena suggested. Everyone turned to look at her, surprised. Rei unconsciously held her breath, waiting for a side remark. "Well, you said they're attracted to the jars, and if there's one at the other end of this maze..." She looked around, defying anyone to yell at her.
"She's got a point." This time everyone turned to look at Rei. "The zombie door it is." Turning, with her most level expression on, Rei started across the cavern. Going on an impulse, Relena followed, leaving Wufei, Trowa, and Quatre a few steps behind.
"They just agreed..." Quatre whispered.
"Odd."
"You guys coming?" Rei yelled from the door.
"Just ignore it." Wufei resolved and started over.
After a good twenty minutes of fiery red stone walls, mindless turns, and last minute left/right decisions, the group found themselves, not at the glorious end of the maze, but back where they started.
Rei let out a heavy sigh. "There's goes the logical decision out the window..." She glanced around the cavern. "If there was a window..."
"So what, do we just keep-" Relena stopped short. Rei turned to her. But she wasn't there.
"Oh no..." Quatre stared at the spot where she had once been.
"You're moving too slow, Mars, dear..." Nia's voice echoed ominously off the curved walls.
"Stop it! You have you're bait, we're moving already!" Rei shouted at the ceiling, her own voice echoing.
"Oh, you're moving just a little too slow for me. Pick up the pace..." He voice faded and a stream of fire suddenly erupted over the stone of the ceiling.
The fire faded as soon as it began, leaving Wufei, Trowa, Quatre, and a furious Rei alone in the cavern.
(WHY?! She was just starting to act nice! Why did Nia have to take her too?!) Taking deep breaths to try and steady herself. "Let's go." Suddenly sprinting across the cavern, Rei picked the first door she saw and ran through it. A creature, rambling towards her around a turn, met with a harsh death in a bout of flame.
A hard ten minutes of running found them back at the central cave. "DAMN!" Rei shouted, slamming her fist into the wall.
"Just keep going, Rei, it has to be around here somewhere." Quatre soothed through Rei's anger.
Picking another door they ran and ran, leaving dustings of zombies in their wake. Finally, after a long while running, they entered a room somewhat different. "About...time..." Rei growled though gasps of breath.
The room was smaller than the cavern, but was still made of the same fiery stone. A pool of thick, bubbling tar snaked around the room, cutting it in half. On the other side, on a shelf cut in the stone, the top to a jar sat, almost blending in with the surrounding stone. Rei stood up straight and took a deep breath. "There it is."
"Is it the last one?" Trowa eyed it suspiciously and crossed his arms.
"We need one more jar to go with this other top..." Quatre replied absently, sorting noisily through the bag.
"Alright then." Rei stepped out of the entrance and up to the stream, at the narrowest point. (We're so close now, we can get through this...)
Just as she stepped up to the bank, one of the bubbles exploded before her feet and an oozing mass rose up. As tar dripped away from the face, Nia's likeness sneered at her.
Vaguely aware of gunshots, Rei's anger flared up and she swept out her arm, inches from the creature's face. It ducked and looked up at her, almost confused, before bursting into flames. The fire raced over the room, following the snake path of the tar. Nia's creature writhed in the blaze for a moment, then shriveled back into the muck now concealed under the fire.
Wufei stepped up next to Rei. "That was efficient." He observed, looking around the room. Rei looked over at him, unsure if he was being sarcastic.
"I can still get over there." She said. (Is he really being sarcastic?)
"It would be best if we could move as quickly as possible..." Trowa prompted quietly.
"Oh! Yeah." Rei looked through the flames for the other side and found the other bank. Taking a deep breath, she leapt through the fire and landed, somewhat unsteadily, on the other side. The jar sat in the corner, its shadow flickering behind it. "Here you are..." She reached up to take it down. As her hands clasped around the warmed clay, a shout behind her brought her running back through the flames.
"She took..." Quatre began, looking at the ground, where Trowa had stood only seconds before when Rei had passed through the fire.
"She took Trowa." Rei finished. Her arms dropped to her sides, and she looked down at the jar in her hand. "I'm taking the bag."
"B-"
"That is the most logical thing to do." Wufei cut Quatre off. Looking over at the smaller boy, he held out his hand. "Either one of us could be taken next, and if she decides to take that bag too..." He left the sentence unfinished.
"It won't hurt anything if I carry it." Rei assured as she slung the strap over her shoulder.
That's al I have!!! I really wanted to be able to get the whole last chapter down in one shot, but this is all I can get to come out! I appreciate all the reviews I've gotten recently especially, since I haven't updated since...February. I'm so sorry!!! I have another fic, Inuyasha, up on Mediaminer, and that's kept my focus recently. I will finish this fic, I promise, it just may take me awhile... Please review, they might spur something in this accursed imagination...