Chapter Thirteen- Defeating the Light

Atticus was aware that she was lying in a bed and wondered if she was in the infirmary. It would make sense considering she was hurt. She slowly opened her eyes to see the ceiling of her room at Slifer. She blinked at the sight. Okay, I'm in my room instead…and all alone. Bastion's at Ra; Jaden, Syrus, and Hassleberry share a room; and Chazz and Alexis are at Obelisk.

She heard the door open and Mindy saying, "Atticus, you're awake. Jasmine, she's awake!"

Atticus sat up as Jasmine appeared in the doorway before both girls came over to her. "You okay?" Jasmine asked.

"No," she softly, looking down at her lap. "My boyfriend's gone cruel and my sister's in that society."

Mindy leaned down and hugged her. "Yeah, you're not okay. But, you still have us and the rest of our friends. Jasmine and I are staying here with you. It's not safe at Obelisk."

Atticus put a hand on her arm. "Thanks. I didn't like the idea of being in this place alone."

"Hey, this could be the new Obelisk," Jasmine said. "I mean, it is kind of fancy and all three of us are Obelisks."

Atticus thought Jasmine had a point about the place. She grinned as another thought occurred to her. "Don't expect the food to be at Obelisk standard, though you could go to Ra's cafeteria if you like."

"We'll deal with it. If you can, so will we."

Atticus got out of bed and, as all three went into the living area, the door opened and the rest of the gang came in. Hassleberry grinned at Atticus. "Glad to see you're up and about."

"Yes. We were concerned," Bastion added.

Atticus sank onto the couch as everyone else gathered on the couch or floor. "I never dreamed Chazz would be so strong. He defeated an entire dorm."

"The only ones he didn't get are us," Jasmine said.

"Yeah," Mindy said. "So…who's up for dinner?"

Atticus didn't answer, just stared at the floor and listened to footsteps going out the door. She became aware that she wasn't alone: Syrus and Jaden were still on either side of her and both looked sad too. Oh, right. Alexis is Jaden's girlfriend.

"Jaden, I'm sorry about Alexis."

"Hey, I'm sorry too," Jaden said. "This is really hard for all of us."

"This is real bad for Atticus," Syrus said, voice trembling slightly. "She's lost a boyfriend and a sister."

Syrus' words brought actual tears to her eyes before a few actually slid down her cheeks. I can't believe it. My first tears since I changed. She brushed them away, a bit embarrassed about them. "I'm sorry," she apologized.

"It's fine," Syrus said, looking up at her and she saw his eyes swimming with unshed tears. "I mean, you're a girl and you lost a part of your…family." Tears streaked Syrus' cheeks.

"Oh, Sy," she said. She put an arm across his shoulders and pulled him closer. He responded by burying his face in her shoulder. Her fingers tightened around his left arm slightly while her free hand stroked his hair. She looked over at Jaden who was dry of face and his eyes were full of sympathy and determination.

"We'll get Alexis back," Jaden promised. "Maybe if I beat her in a duel, it'll bring her back to her senses."

"That could work," Atticus said. "But, she's strong and you're still getting used to your space cards."

"Oh, yeah. I still need to practice with them."

The next morning, Atticus left the dorm and marched over to Obelisk. She was going to demand to talk to Alexis and try to bring her back to her sense through words. She pushed open the doors to see her guy friends there.

One of them smirked. "You want to duel?"

"No. I want to talk to Alexis," she told him. "Now."

"And why would she want to talk to a freak like you?"

Atticus recoiled. "What?"

"You heard. You're a freak. You used to be a guy like us, but then you found that necklace and became a girl in two weeks."

"You didn't think I was a freak after I completely changed."

"That was before we saw the light. Now, we see the truth. You are a girl who should sit with girls and not with guys even though you were a guy."

Their words were hurtful but she didn't cry or get angry though the latter part was difficult to control. "I see," she said calmly. "Look, I just want to talk to my sister. Either direct me to her room or get her for me."

"She's not here. She went for a walk with The Chazz before school."

"All right, then." She turned and as she went out the door, she heard, "Yeah. Get lost, freak." Atticus deigned to answer; instead she returned to her room, retrieved her bag, and headed for school to wait for Alexis to show up. That society is really bad news. You would think with the name they have, that the members would be friendly; what I just experienced was anything but. Besides, I'm not a freak. I am completely female; it's only my soul that hasn't changed.

They said she went for a walk with Chazz. I know he's in love with her so he's likely filling her head with the society's views and beliefs. I need to talk to her soon before no amount of talking will make any difference and she starts viewing me as a freak, too.

Students started approaching the entrance and Atticus began scanning faces. She nodded to those who greeted her warmly, but kept searching. She finally spotted her, hand in hand with Chazz. She made a beeline for them and stood in their path. "Alexis, can I talk to you, privately? Please?"

"I suppose," she answered sounding a bit cold. She followed Atticus off to one side of the sidewalk. "All right. What do you want to talk about?"

"The duel yesterday."

Alexis' look of indifference melted away to be replaced with the same happy expression she wore after the duel. "Oh, Atti, my life was so confusing and uncertain. But now that I've joined the Society of Light, everything makes more sense. Join us, Atti and everything will make sense to you, too."

Atticus was stunned by what she was hearing. "Alexis, are you hearing yourself? Chazz has brainwashed you. This isn't you. I want you back to how you used to be. Jaden wants you back."

Alexis jerked slightly and her happy expression faded to concern. "Ja…den?" she said.

"Yes, Jaden. Your boyfriend. He wants you back as much as I do. We love you, sis."

Alexis gasped and her hands flew to her forehead. She moaned softly and then began to breathe heavily. Slowly, her breathing became normal as she lifted her head and looked up at her. "Atti?" she asked.

"Lexi?"

"What…happened? Where are we?"

"We're in front of the school. You dueled Chazz yesterday and lost. You remember that?"

"Yeah, but after I lost…I don't remember anything until now." She looked down and gasped in disgust at her outfit. "Oh no! I joined that society, didn't I?"

"That's how they get people. Chazz beat everyone in Obelisk and they joined. The only ones they didn't get are Mindy, Jasmine, and me."

"Do you think I have time to change my clothes?"

Atticus checked her watch. "I believe so."

"Great." She hugged Atticus. "Thanks for bringing me back."

"Of course. We're family." She smiled as her sister dashed off toward Slifer. She was still smiling when her friends showed up.

"Atticus?" Syrus asked. "Why are you smiling?"

"I got Alexis back. I told her Jaden and I wanted her back and that we love her. I think the power of the society either wasn't very strong on her yet or can't stand up to the strength of our love and friendship for her."

"Could be both," Jaden suggested. "Where is she now?"

"Changing her clothes. She'll be back soon." She thought back on what she said to get through to Alexis. I wonder…Will the same tactic work on Zane? Hard to say. He's been acting "dark" for weeks. And I have no real way to see him face-to-face. But, if I get the chance, I'll take it without hesitation. I want the Zane I knew back- for me and for Syrus.