Chapter 26
(Hope)
Numb…
She felt completely and utterly numb.
Malivore had possessed Landon, leaving no trace of the boy she knew behind. It felt different somehow from Akane's illusions—she could feel that this was really Landon, but it was as if he had been completely hollowed out inside.
She felt Clarke's emotions brush against her mind, soft and warm. She knew he was trying to comfort her.
But he shouldn't— She didn't deserve it.
Landon was gone and she had led Clarke right back into his abuser's clutches—she even managed to lose Clarke's token.
There was no denying it… This was all her fault.
She blinked back tears as she strained against the shadowy creatures keeping her restrained.
"Don't bother struggling," Akane advised her. "You've already lost."
"Hope will never stop fighting and neither will I," Clarke snapped, straining against his own semi-transparent captors.
His words nearly caused her to lose the battle with her tears—
He really believed in her…
Malivore smirked, taking in the scene.
"How interesting—even with your life hanging in the balance, you still choose her," he said, tapping the pouch around his neck.
"Clarke… What does he mean?" she asked, feeling her stomach drop.
He avoided her gaze, hanging his head low.
Akane broke out in laughter.
"Don't you know?" she asked. "If a golem's token is destroyed, they die—permanently!"
Pure dread seized her.
"You never told me," she whispered, tears now flowing freely; she could feel his guilt.
"It never mattered before—no one besides me ever cared if I lived or died," he said quietly.
"I care!" Hope shouted, voice cracking. "I've lost too many people I care about, I won't lose you too!"
"Thank you," he whispered. "For the record, I don't plan on losing you either," he said, breaking out into a lopsided grin.
She didn't know whether she wanted to kiss him or kill him.
"Bring them upstairs—I'll be waiting," Malivore said stonily before vanishing into thin air.
A jolt of panic coursed through her— He could use magic?
Hope looked to Clarke in confusion, but he seemed just as surprised as she did.
"Let's go," Akane said, beckoning the shadow figures to follow. She summoned several glowing, orbs of foxfire to light the way.
Hope shivered as the shadowy hands tightened their grip around her, half dragging her down the long hallway.
"What else has Malivore promised you?" Clarke asked.
Akane didn't answer, but Hope noticed the way her back stiffened at the question.
"He hasn't, has he?" Clarke asked. "He hasn't promised you anything new—you're just here because he hasn't fulfilled his end of the bargain."
"Shut up," Akane snapped, her voice echoing down the empty hall.
Hope could tell that he hit a nerve…
"That's how it will always be," Clarke continued. "Malivore will always want something more—no deal is ever done."
Hope could feel Clarke's sadness and frustration—he was speaking from personal experience.
"No one tricks a trickster," she replied haughtily, pausing in front of a large, wooden door.
Hope made careful note of Akane's reaction, storing the information for later. She knew by Clarke's guarded expression that he had noticed her strange behavior as well.
Akane pulled the heavy door open, revealing a set of stone stairs leading up into the darkness.
"Prisoners first," she said, stepping out of the way to allow the shadowy guards to begin pushing them up the steps.
The staircase was damp and narrow with a distinct musty odor. The smell reminded her of the lower levels of the Mikaelson family home in New Orleans—but it was impossible to forget that she was a long way from home…
The tightness of the space forced them to walk single file up the steps—except for the shadow figures who kept their grip on her shoulders while half melting into the stone wall.
She tried not to let the strangeness of their movements unnerve her.
Clarke must have felt her unease, because a moment later she felt the faintest touch of his fingertips on the back of his hand.
The sensation immediately grounded her, calming her the same way holding her family necklace usually did.
She willed her gratitude to reach him.
After dozens of steps, the stairwell finally emptied them into a small alcove. Unfortunately, the only thing visible was a long hallway, equally as dark as the one they had left behind downstairs.
"Let me by!" Akane said as she tried to push past the shadowy figures.
"I said, move," she snapped, suddenly pulling a slim blade from her sleeve— in a flash, Akane slashed at one of the shadow figures, causing it to tumble backwards down the stairs.
Hope gasped in surprise as the figure suddenly turned into a solid, human man with blood pouring from his neck.
The remaining shadow figures quickly parted to allow Akane through.
"This way," Akane directed as she made a left down the hall.
Clarke and Hope were forced to follow as the remaining figures pulled them along with renewed vigor.
"Where are you taking us?" Hope asked, fishing for some type of clue.
"You'll find out soon enough," Akane answered curtly.
They continued to follow Akane and her eerie foxfire, which only served to heighten the ghostly atmosphere.
But Akane didn't speak another word.
It seemed clear that she was still annoyed by Clarke's comments about Malivore— While she hadn't known Akane for long, she knew the kitsune never missed an opportunity to tease or antagonize.
"Malivore is ready for you," a gravelly voice spoke out of the darkness.
"Bring the restraints," Akane commanded, beckoning the mysterious newcomer forward with a wave of her hand.
Heavy footsteps advanced towards them, accompanied by the unmistakable sound of metal chains jangling.
Hope shifted anxiously, straining to see what type of creature would emerge out of the darkness.
A moment later, a truly enormous humanoid figure stepped out of the shadows—the creature appeared to be as tall as three average sized men with muscular arms the size of tree trunks.
The giant carried two sets of chains, which appeared like toys in his massive hands.
"Thank you, Gogmagog," Akane said as the giant locked the chains around their wrists with surprising dexterity.
As soon as the chains were secured, the shadow figures released their grip, sliding down the hallway and disappearing into the darkness.
"Gogmagog, the leader of the giants?" Clarke asked.
"I am," the giant answered.
"Do you know what treasure my father keeps? What prize of Ireland?" he asked.
"Enough," Akane interjected. "Return to your post, Gogmagog," she commanded.
The giant considered Clarke for a moment before making his way back the way he had come. A moment later, Hope heard the sound of a heavy door being swung open followed by a bright light emanating down the hallway.
"Enter," she heard the giant say from his post outside the door.
This was it…
(Ryan)
Ryan couldn't believe it— Gogmagog was here, working for his father. Gogmagog had once been the leader of an ancient race of giants who inhabited the British Isles. He had been both respected and feared by the people.
It seemed no one was exempt from the will of Malivore…
Akane led them into the massive chamber which was brightly lit in comparison to the darkness from which they came.
He could feel Hope's anxiety intertwining with his own. He desperately wished to comfort her, but he knew she would see through the attempt— the truth was he was absolutely terrified.
As they crossed the threshold into the chamber, he had to resist the urge to run…
The design of the space was similar to a Roman colosseum, complete with rows and rows of benches arranged circularly, stretching all the way to the massive rock ceiling.
Filling the seats were monsters of every kind—some human-like, others distinctly different. From every angle, creatures with horns, fangs, and wings leered at them with hungry eyes.
He and Hope exchanged a horrified look—this was much worse than he imagined.
At the center of the space was Malivore, in the body of Landon. He was seated in a large, stone throne with a massive green dragon chained behind him.
He was immediately reminded of a perverse medieval king.
The dragon appeared ragged with deep gashed down its side. It was also wearing a heavy-looking metal muzzle around its jaws—the look it gave them read as pure hatred.
Ryan didn't need confirmation, he knew it was Huan.
"Clarke, look," Hope whispered, drawing his attention to something laying behind the throne— it was his father's original golem body; and next to it, was the hilt of what appeared to be an extremely large sword.
"Welcome to my prison," Malivore greeted them. "It's fitting that you should join me here, son, since it is your fault this place was ever created."
The monsters in the crowd all began to jeer, hiss, and howl at his words. Ryan flinched inwardly— the sound was even more unsettling than the banshee's wail.
"But in the end, it did work out for the best. Thanks to you, I have secured an even greater prize…" Malivore said, turning his attention to Hope.
"You won't get anything from me," Hope asserted, jutting out her chin in defiance.
Malivore laughed wickedly— "As it turns out, you have no choice in the matter," he answered.
Despite the words coming from the lips of a teenage boy, the cruelty in his father's tone still cut deeply.
"Just let us go. You already have what you wanted," Clarke said, stepping protectively in front of Hope.
"Landon's body may have been enough at one time, but no longer," Malivore answered, standing up from his throne.
"You can't possess us all, so take me if you want. Just let your sons go free—they've suffered enough," Hope said, looking at him.
She was truly the bravest and most selfless person he had ever known…
"Foolish girl!" Malivore snapped; he was now standing directly in front of them. "Do you even know what power this body holds?" he asked.
"Landon is a phoenix," she answered.
Malivore merely smirked as the monstrous crowd began to howl and screech with laughter.
"Landon was not a phoenix," Malivore sneered. "Landon was my son, my one perfect creation. His purpose was to absorb monsters."
"I don't understand," Hope answered, confusion playing across her features.
"This body doesn't physically absorb monsters like my golem form…this body absorbs the powers and abilities of other creatures!" Malivore finished with a grin.
That was how he was able to disappear downstairs—he had already been using this body to absorb the powers of other creatures.
Hope looked ghostly pale as she took a step backwards.
"Then Landon's phoenix powers…"
"Landon's mother killed a phoenix on her way out of this dimension. The unborn child absorbed the creature's powers," Malivore explained, a pleased look on his face.
Ryan felt like he was going to be sick.
"I don't believe you," Hope snarled.
"Care for a demonstration? I'd be more than happy to oblige…" he said as he made his way back towards the throne.
"Consider Huan," Malivore said as he approached the dragon. "All it takes is a killing blow by these hands and all of his powers will be mine."
Huan let out a terrible screeching sound, muffled by the muzzle around his snout—he thrashed against the chains holding him in place, but they held fast.
"You can't," Akane said from behind them. "He made the same deal I did—you swore you would never use it on us."
Ryan turned to see her expression was completely terrified… this wasn't planned.
Malivore ignored her as he drew the sword from behind his throne— there was no mistaking it, it was the Sword of Light. Its silver hilt shimmered and its blade glowed with a radiant, unearthly light.
Malivore raised the sword above his head, and in one smooth arc, he brought it down on Huan's neck, severing the dragon's head from his body.
He heard Akane let out a scream of anger as Hope covered her mouth in shock.
"Observe," said Malivore as he held out a hand and summoned razor sharp claws—Huan's claws.
"You want the powers of the tribrid," Hope said, voice small. "But I thought my powers made me a loophole to destroy you…"
"You are a loophole," Malivore answered, carrying the sword back towards them. "I was created by an alliance between witches, werewolves, and vampires, so I cannot destroy them. However you are something else—something new."
"I won't let you kill her!" Ryan yelled, coming between Hope and his father.
Malivore had taken everything good from him, there was no way he would let him take Hope too.
"You have become nothing but a nuisance! It's time for you to finally understand your place," Malivore snarled, ripping the pouch from around his neck.
"No!" Hope screamed—but it was too late, Ryan watched helplessly as his father dropped the pouch containing his token to the ground and drove his sword through the center.
The world around him shattered like glass— splitting into fragments of images and fractals of light. The last thing he saw before the darkness was Hope's beautiful eyes shining with tears.
"In ancient British folklore, Gogmagog was the leader of a race of giants which inhabited the island of Albion, which would later come to be known as Great Britain.
A colossal humanoid standing three times the height of a man, Gogmagog was possessed of enormous physical strength, capable of uprooting an Oak tree as if it were no more than a twig. According to the legend, he and his people lived in caves in the hilly countryside."
(P.S. Just to put everyone's mind at ease, I'm not going to permanently kill Clarke. There is a purpose to this event, I promise! I don't want anyone to be too distraught...)