Alright. From now on, updates are going to be always on Mondays. It's easiest to get to them with this hectic lifestyle that I live, haha. Read on!
Emily slowly stirred, groaning as the blackness of her vision eventually faded and cleared up. She blinked several times until she was fully awake, granted, the throbbing in her head was still ever-present. She reached her hand up to the ache, lightheadedness rushing through her body. She shook her head to clear her vision entirely, glancing about the dingy room she'd been imprisoned in.
Where am I? she thought wearily. A single hanging light from the ceiling illuminated the room. There was a heavy, algae-green door in the back corner, and the floor was paneled with light green and white tiles. The room was completely empty except for Emily.
Emily drew in a deep breath, but found herself coughing from her dry throat. She reached her hand up to her neck, cringing as she swallowed. I've got to get out of here, she thought quickly. She jerked her head up when she heard the door rattling, indicating someone entering. She clenched her fist, anger overtaking her being at the thought of coming face-to-face with Karel.
When the door opened, however, she didn't see Karel – she saw Siamak. She wasn't sure why, but she became even angrier. "What do you want?" she muttered angrily. Siamak pushed the door shut behind him, folding his arms over his chest. "I'm here to help you," he replied.
"Yeah, right!" she retaliated. "You put me in here – why would you help me?"
"I didn't put you in here," he argued. "I'm just here to supervise."
"As if that makes it better," she muttered.
Siamak sighed, glancing back towards the door as if he expected someone to come through. Then, he turned and faced Emily. "Do you want my help or not?" he asked.
"No," she said quickly. "I want you to leave me alone."
"Fine," he muttered. "If you don't want to see your parents again, then that's your choice."
Siamak turned away towards the door as Emily glanced up quickly. "Wait!" she protested. He stopped, his hand on the doorknob. Then, he slowly turned to face her. She sighed quietly, dropping her head in defeat. "I…" she said slowly. She drew in a deep breath. "What do I have to do?"
Siamak slowly approached her, his shadow towering over her. Sure, he was just a young boy of seventeen years, but his brute strength and reputation made Emily afraid – not to mention the fact that he was rather good-looking. Emily summoned her strength and looked up into his eyes as her own teared up. Siamak bent down near her. "I'm not here to hurt you," he said. "You'll have to trust me if you want to make it out alive."
"But why should I?" she asked. "You already tried to kidnap me and kill my parents…"
"Are you going to argue with me or listen to what I have to say?" he asked impatiently.
Emily sighed. "Sorry," she muttered.
"Karel wants me to kill you," he said. "But I'm not going to."
Emily's stomach dropped, and she swallowed to keep her fear at bay. "Why?" she asked nervously.
"There's no need to," he said. "But I am going to need your powers."
Emily's fear turned to anger. "You're tricking me!"
"I'm not," he assured her. "Like I said, just trust me."
He reached forward, gripping her hand between his hands. She eyed him angrily and jerked her hand away. "No way," she said coldly.
He narrowed his eyes at her. "Have it your way, then," he said flatly. He rose to his feet, heading towards the door. Just as he opened it, several mercenaries stepped through the door. They approached Emily and dragged her to her feet, shoving her through the door. She sent a death-glare to Siamak, then looked away, refusing to give him any satisfaction of her defeat.
This wasn't the first time she was sure that she was going to die, and it wasn't the first time that she didn't care. She didn't have anything to return to. Her mother hated her, and probably her father, too. She was going to lose her powers, and then be murdered by one of these freaks. She had nothing to hold onto. Instead of fearfully and submissively following along, she jerked her body against the mercenaries' grips on her arm, protesting as much as she could. She wouldn't die letting them have the upper hand.
They dragged her down the hallway and through one of the doors, entering into a large, dark room. There were several pillars in the corners of the room, leading to a second-level plank above. Suspended at least one hundred feet overhead was a small chamber with wires inside of it. Emily's fearlessness began to sink away at the creepy sight, knowing that the weird chamber in the air was likely for her.
A noise was heard in the distance, and Karel emerged from the hallway, accompanied by several Cabal followers. Siamak emerged from behind the group of mercenaries managing Emily, slowly approaching Karel before him. Karel approached Emily, his hands clasped casually before him. "I'm glad to see you could be here for the show," he said. "I trust you're ready to give your debut…?"
Emily glared up at him. "Go to hell," she said icily.
Karel glared at her, then nodded towards the merks. They shoved her forward, then pushed her onto her knees. Siamak approached Karel's side, standing before the young girl. Siamak slowly stepped forward, extending a hand in her direction. His palm touched her forehead. She jerked about, fighting to escape his grip, but the mercenaries held her still. After a moment, she felt a jerking motion, and then a surge of pain in her brain. He's stealing my powers, she thought angrily. She felt her energy slowly seeping away. After what seemed an eternity, he removed his hand from her forehead, stepping away. He reached his hand forward, watching as the orange energy surged through his arm. Then, he turned towards Karel. An evil grin spread across his face. "It's done, then," Karel said. He approached Emily. "She's of no use to us anymore."
One of the Cabal followers approached a pillar in the distance and pulled the small hand lever, lowering the airlock from above until it reached the ground. The small door to the chamber opened, and Karel turned towards Siamak. "Kill her quickly," he said. "Then make your way into the airlock. We have work to do."
Siamak glared at him as he turned away. He stared down at Emily as she closed her eyes, realizing death was finally around the corner. Then, Siamak reached his hand out, stopping Karel in his tracks. Karel was strong enough to break free, but he turned to face Siamak angrily. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked.
"Doing what you can't do," Siamak said.
Karel slowly stepped forward, his fist glowing with green energy. "There's too much spirit in you for your own good," he muttered. He attacked Siamak with the energy glowing in his hand, but the energy deflected to the side, instantly killing the mercenaries standing around – Siamak hadn't even needed to lift a finger. Then, he lifted a hand, sending his own energy towards Karel, knocking him backwards towards the airlock. He slowly removed the sword strapped on his back, approaching Karel as he struggled to his feet. Then, he shoved the sword forward through Karel's gut, pushing him against the glass of the airlock. "There's too much arrogance in you for your own good," Siamak countered.
Karel struggled for breath, reaching his hands forward to touch the sharp edges of the sword. Siamak glared into his eyes, then pushed him forward in the airlock. Then, he sealed the chamber shut. Karel slumped forward against the glass, reaching his fingers forward as he struggled to stay alive. "You seem to be so fond of Lemuria," Siamak said, strapping the sword onto his back. "Why don't you go there?"
Siamak turned towards the pillar in the distance, outstretching his arm to activate the lever. The airlock returned to the ceiling. Then, Siamak reached towards another lever, and the panel around the chamber in the ceiling closed around the airlock, activating a surge of electrical energy. Siamak stared up at the airlock. "Good riddance," he muttered. He turned around to face the Cabal followers, who stared on in uncertainty. "You work for me now," he declared.
One of the Cabal followers stepped forward. "What about Karel?" he asked cautiously.
"He's done away with," Siamak said simply. "It's no longer our concern."
"But the master's work must be followed!" he protested.
"Your master proved to be incapable," Siamak argued. "I have better plans for you."
"What about the Nephilim army?"
"Forget about it," Siamak said. "Lemuria has better things awaiting us."
"You can't do this," he argued. "You can't change the plans!"
"Oh, can't I?" Siamak challenged. He approached the follower, staring deep into his eyes. Then, he reached his hand forward, surging a ball of green energy his way, killing him instantly. Siamak turned to face the other followers, outstretching his arms. They cowered backwards, as if expecting him to attack them as well. "Anyone else have any points to make?" he asked. No one responded. They glanced back and forth between each other, dumbfounded. Siamak grinned dryly. "Good," he said.
Emily stared forward, too shocked to move. She couldn't believe what had happened. Siamak had turned on Karel – hadn't he been working for him? Emily stared up at the sparks coming from the airlock suspended in the air. Was Karel still in there? Siamak approached Emily, standing before her. She stared up at him cautiously. "Is he…is he dead?" she asked nervously.
"He's taken care of," he said. Emily wasn't sure if she was afraid of him, or thankful to him. She was far too confused over the situation. Siamak reached his hand forward, indicating she should take it. "It's alright, Emily," he said.
She stared at his hand, then looked up into his eyes. "You…you stole my powers," she said.
"I didn't," he argued. "I stole some of your energy. Your powers are still intact."
"But you said you were going to take them…"
"I had to rile you up somehow," he explained. "If you walked in here trusting me, Karel would've become suspicious."
Emily wasn't sure whether or not this boy could be trusted. He'd tricked both her and Karel – clearly, he had his own motives. Could it do something with Lemuria? Perhaps if I pretend to go along with him, I can turn the tables, she thought. Then again…that could be trouble. She wasn't sure what she should do. She knew what her mother would tell her – but she wasn't her mother, and her mother wasn't there. She needed to think on her own two feet for a change. Emily continued to stare up at him. "What are you going to do now?" she asked.
"I'm going to Lemuria," he said. "And you're coming with me."
Emily shook her head. "I don't want to," she protested. "I've heard stories – my father was trapped there for twelve years."
"Your father can't control Lemuria like I can," he protested.
"But what about my parents?" she asked fearfully. "I want to see them again!"
Siamak drew in a silent breath. "Everything will work out the way it should. Once I rejuvenate the sword…" She expected him to finish, but he didn't. He merely stared into her eyes, keeping his hand extended forward. Emily drew in a deep breath. I'm going to kick myself for this later, she thought regretfully. She reached forward and took his hand, rising to her feet. After a moment, the Cabal followers approached Siamak cautiously. "What are your plans now, Master?" one asked.
Siamak eyed him. "Make sure the Strahov is secure," he said. "We wouldn't want anyone getting in…or out."
Emily slowly looked to the floor as a shudder ran up her spine. Get me out of here, she thought. She fought to maintain control and seem like she trusted this boy, but in reality, she was terrified standing by his side.
The Cabal followers dispersed to tend to their duties. Siamak turned to Emily. "We'll be here for a while," he told her. "Until it's time to leave, I'll trust you'll behave yourself." Two men approached Emily's side and took her by the arms, likely to take her down the hall to another room to be locked away in. She glared up at Siamak. "You said –"
"That I'd take care of you," he finished. "Don't question me. Just do as I say." He nodded to her captors. "Take her," he instructed.
Well...let's see how that turns out with Siamak next Monday! Happy reading everyone!