"Now. Let us continue with the ritual, bringing good forward, and defeating the darkness."
To the Stones, Adrian was almost always bat shit crazy. His ideas and morals pushed them to the bounds of disdain. And even when the thought they were beginning to understand him, something happened that threw them off even more. How could he believe the lies he was spewing? How could he intentionally lead people astray?
They crept out of the car once the coast was clear, making their way to the entry door. "Just what do you think we'll see when we get in there?" Zeke whispered, uncertainty filling his voice.
"I don't know. Got your gun?" He gestured to Mick as she was not far behind. "Always." He smiled at her response, worry giving him pause. "Just don't do anything dumb." Mick rolled her eyes, taking his bicep in her left hand. "You too."
They found themselves face to face with a long, dark stairwell. The steep steps rose into darkness, each floor darker than the last. It was daunting to each and every one of them. But with Eden on their minds, fear didn't matter.
They walked softly up each stairwell, careful not to make much noise. Mick had to stop every once in a while just to catch her breath, and curb the nausea she was feeling.
So far her pregnancy wasn't bad, but the all day sickness was something else. Whoever dubbed it "Morning sickness" she thought, is an absolute moron.
They were met with a large room, the anti-stones huddled together in some sort of circle, forming a cult-like symbol with their lifeless bodies.
Everything had been sucked out of them, leaving them to be humans filled with nothing but anger, lust, and vengeance.
What had Adrian done?
"Now, let us disperse." At his words, the circle opened. Revealing a small fire, rising in smoke. "Bring the sacrifice."
Angelina pushed her way through the circle, but what she held in her arms caused shock and panic to set in. As the Stones and Landons watched in horror, Angelina lifted Eden little body to the glow of the flames.
Suddenly, everything went dark for Ben and Grace.
Their thoughts and sense had left them, and they were now nothing more than fury.
"Hey!" Ben screamed, his voice erupting through the quiet like a volcano. Everyone paused, their jaws dropping to the floor as they saw Ben, Grace, Cal, Olive, Zeke, and Michaela standing idle in the doorway.
Angelina gasped as she saw them, her face full of shock as she stared at Cal. For a moment, she didn't recognize him, and attempted to uncover his features. The familiarity in his eyes and spirit being the only guiding factors. As her eyes slipped to the left, she felt her heart sink. Grace was alive.
They stood like predators scoping out their prey, waiting for the right moment to pounce. Each and everyone's eyes locked, terror flashing over their faces.
That was when Mick let out three warning shots.
What was once a lively room awaiting a blood sacrifice, was now a room engulfed in chaos.
Ben went straight for Adrian, pulling him close to his face, and throwing him to the ground. Olive and Grace dashed towards Angelina, ripping Eden from her hands and then pushing her to the ground. Olive could no longer control her emotions. Rage flooded her sight, and all sense left her body... just like her parents. She stared down at Angelina, her soft face begging for mercy.
But Olive didn't give a shit what she begged for.
She clenched her fist, punching her in the face.
But she didn't stop.
She punched, and punched, and punched, giving Angelina no time to rebound, no time to fight back. "HOW COULD YOU, YOU BITCH!" She screamed as she punched her once more.
"I was… I thought…" Angelina could barely speak. Her bloody lips quivered as she felt only pain. Her face was black and blue, her nose most likely broken. Olive brethed heavily, sitting over Angelina in disgust.
Grace walked closer, standing over the both of them, disregarding the actions of her daughter. "We don't care what you thought."
Her voice was stern, yet chalky and breaking like gravel. Every emotion in her mind was on display like exposed wires. And if someone touched them, she would either short circuit, or straight up explode.
The next thing that came from Grace's mouth, caused Angelina to freeze.
"Run."
She jolted her head to Olive, who was holding her dented and bloodied fist in her hands. "Wh-what?"
Grace exhaled sharply, gritting her teeth. "I said, run."
Angelina stood up, and using what energy she had left, she fled towards the door.
"YOU WERE GOING TO SACRIFICE MY DAUGHTER?!" Ben felt like he was out of his body. His anger was unforeseen, and completely out of control. "I told you to stay away from my family, and here you are!" To Ben's dismay, Adrian's face was calm, taunting. He had no response… no remorse. "What is wrong with you, Adrian?!"
Grace held Eden tightly, relief coursing through her body. "I can't believe you're safe." She whispered through tears. Her body was weak with overwhelming joy, and though she was physically fine, she felt her knees give out. Falling to the floor, Cal and Olive met her, huddling together.
"Get out of here and pretend this never happened." Mick held her gun out to the remaining anti-stones. They crept backwards, making a dash towards the door. No rebuttal, no argument.
That now left them, and Adrian.
"If I could kill you myself, I would!"
Mick and Zeke made their way over to Ben, his eyes unrecognizable as they were filled with an anger they had never seen before.
Ben was a calm person. Well, he used to be.
He wasn't temperamental and easy to anger. He was gentle, and kind, and thoughtful, rarely ever raising his voice. But ever since 828 came back, he's struggled in his mind, fighting for peace and his thoughts to settle.
Hell, weren't they all?"
"I swear to god Adrian I will-"
"You'll kill me?" Adrian's sudden reply drew everyone's attention. Grace, Cal, and Olive rose from the ground, locking their eyes to that part of the room.
"You know, I doubt Ben Stone, of all people, could kill me."
Suddenly, Adrian's eyes flashed different colors of yellow, and green. His pupils reverberated with each flash, making Ben's go wide. "How?" He asked.
Everyone stepped back, watching as Adrian lifted himself from the floor, his body practically hovering off of the ground.
"I pegged you as the smart one Stone." Adrian spoke through a deep voice, his tone shifting like a gear. "You of all people should've figured it out by now."
Ben stood up, his eyes wandering all over the room. He searched for an answer, decoding his words.
Then, it was as if a light bulb had flickered on for the first time, filling a dark room with light. "No." He whispered, locking eyes with his sister.
"Ben." Michaela whimpered in fear, not understanding what was happening.
"You're one of The Fallen."
Mick felt her heart sink, her eyes growing wide with confusion.
"Right on the money." Adrian teased, laughing at Ben's response, and Michaela's reaction. "Now you understand."
"How are you in human form?" She asked, her hand instinctively going over her small bump. She doubted he would try anything on her, but she she knew she had to protect her babies regardless of if they were in danger or not.
"We have many forms, but this one is my favorite."
For the first time in his life, Ben froze with panic.
He had no plan, no idea what to do. After all, who goes against The Fallen and lives to tell the tale?
"I have to say, it has been…" Adrian paused, taking his time as he walked around the room, gawking over the fear he had created, the evil he had inflicted. "... A pleasure."
That was when he changed his form.
A raven was among them now. His large wings flapped in delight, as he gazed upon them. He turned to the window, squawking as if to have the last word. Shooting himself through the glass window pane, he fled the scene, leaving only fragments of shattered glass behind.
Ben stood still for a moment, before running to Grace and kids. He picked up Eden in his arms, the fear washing away. They were gonna find Adrian, and they were going to kill him.
"Zeke."
Mick spoke suddenly, her soft tone practically inaudible. Zeke stared at Grace and Ben, barely able to feel his mind inside of him.
"Zeke." Mick spoke again. The alarm in her voice caused him to snap out of whatever state he was in. Suddenly, he felt what she was feeling, his face wincing at the pain.
She grabbed his arm, tears falling from her eyes. "Something is wrong."
OOOOOOO, Adrian is one of The Fallen! Did you see that coming? And problems with Mick? I can't spoil but that's gonna be a wild story line.
Sooooooo what did ya'll think of this chapter? It actually took me no time to write, and everything came to me pretty quickly. A rare occasion, but an incredible one nonetheless.
Anyways, hope to see ya'll next month for chapter TWENTY! WHAT?! Thank you to everyone who has stuck around the entire time, I friggin love you. To all my readers, old and new, you're amazing and I'm so glad you continue to follow my stories. I'm so excited for you all to see what this one has in store!
See you next month!
Love, The Color Gray
