WHABAM! I told you I'd be back after Christmas! XD
Also, if anyone has figured out yet WHY it is hilarious that 9 calls Dixie his "precious girl", I'll probably have to send you a virtual present on Deviant Art. XP I've scattered so many Easter eggs throughout this story… Well, so many is kind of a stretch. But this egg is my FAVORITE one, and no one seems to have noticed it yet.
Just a bit of light-hearted banter before this chapter, considering it is ominously entitled…
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Taken
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It wasn't terribly late at night yet, but it was certainly bedtime. 7 had already rocked her baby to sleep, and laid her down in the crib—hopefully for the night. After watching her child slumber for a while, she had climbed into bed, herself. 9 had gone off hours ago for his turn on watch, but she didn't expect him back any time soon. Not with so much danger to be watched for. So while she missed his warmth and presence beside her, she felt completely safe.
It must have been about midnight, though, when she was suddenly woken by the sound of the door opening and closing. Only half awake, she sat up a bit to see that her husband had returned, after all.
"You're back early," she teased.
"It's 8's fault," he answered quietly, as he climbed into bed. "He said that if I didn't go to bed and get some sleep, he'd punch me in the face."
"Did you see anything out there?"
"No. It's quiet tonight. Do you think we just got lucky this time?"
She sighed and lay back down. "We rarely do…"
She felt his arm slide around her waist, and he snuggled close to her. "I should get a little sleep, I guess. In any case, we have quite an adventure when we wake up. I love you."
"And I love you," she agreed. With that, she was asleep once again.
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In another part of the library, 6 was startled awake from a restless sleep. The Voice was whispering to him again, and he dare not ignore it.
The shadow is coming. It will be here soon, and it will cause pain and destruction when it arrives. It believes that this attack will bring peace to its rule. In truth, by dawn tomorrow, it will be utterly doomed. There is nothing to be done this night; it cannot be stopped. And it must be so, or the numerous Lost will remain so forever. Ponder these things, and keep faith, but tell no one. The sun will rise, and the day will be new, indeed.
At least the Voice hadn't told him to remain clam. He jumped out of the bed he secretly shared with 4 now, and began to pace in distress. He wanted nothing more than to run to one of his brothers and give them some kind of warning. If the Shadow was coming, how could he not tell someone?
"6? What's the matter?"
He turned to see 4 sitting up in bed, looking at him with concern in her eyes. He wished he could tell her what was troubling him, but…
"Bad dream," he excused quietly. Not entirely a lie, he supposed. She held out a sympathetic hand to him.
"Come and lie down. I'll make it better."
Well, as long as he couldn't do or say anything about it, he could at least try to go back to sleep. And he had found that his girlfriend's embrace was just as soothing as his sister's. It calmed his raging mind like a balm. Maybe he could sleep a while longer, despite the looming danger.
Apparently, there was nothing else to be done…
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In spite of what had happened that morning, Alpha was pleased with himself. He had never particularly left the garage, when there had been a mindlessly devoted priestess to hunt for him. But tonight, he was actually hunting for himself. The journey had been a quick and easy one, atop his eight-legged mechanical steed. It was a three or four hour trip on foot; his spider covered the same distance in a fraction of the time.
And now he stood just outside the library gate, sizing up the building's meager defenses. There was a fire glowing in a window on the second floor—a watchtower, and a guard. But it was dark, and there were many shadows along the walls of the courtyard. Whoever was on watch wouldn't see him, as he rode toward the entrance. If the guard was observant or clever enough to see him, it would be too late.
He would take back what was rightfully his. He would strike quickly, and mercilessly. The fifth clan would pay dearly for heisting his priestess, with one of their own lives. And he knew just the one to take…
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The imminent threat of attack by a dark wizard had left the library under a tense silence. There were few things that 1 liked more than a good silence; there were few things that 2 liked less. It kept both brothers from sleeping at all, and so they sat awake in the common room, weapons at the ready. Just in case.
"If the girl is right about everything," 1 commented uneasily, "I doubt that a blow to the head will do much good against him."
"There isn't much more we can do," his brother pointed out. "But we have to try, at least. I refuse not to try."
"Yes, you would."
A long time passed in that tense silence as they waited, and listened carefully for something to break it. Then all at once, something skittered around out in the building, near the common room. 2 jumped to his feet, spear in hand, and walked cautiously toward the door.1 suddenly felt a surge of panic, and ran to stop him.
"Don't' go out there, you fool!" he hissed. "Who knows what that could be? The last time there were ominous noises in this building, it turned out to be you!"
True to form, 2 shrugged him off and answered, "I have to see. It could be one of ours."
"Our own don't make noises like that when lurking about," 1 muttered fearfully, as 2 stuck his head out the door. But he didn't seem to see anything.
"Hello?" he called into the darkness, and stepped a little farther out into the darkness. "Is someone there?"
1 gripped his hammer in a death grip, terrified that something wretched would jump out of the shadow and bite his brother's head clean off. But finally, 2 stepped back into the light and sighed in relief.
"I don't' see anything."
No sooner had he spoken, a pair of horrifying red eyes appeared in the dark, right outside the door. 1 gasped in terror and leaped back, dropping his hammer on the floor. Before 2 could react, a hand of black metal reached out of the darkness and caught him by the shoulder.
"Found you."
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7 was slightly peeved to be woken again, this time by Dixie. The baby was wailing angrily, demanding attention; though whatever she might need so late at night was hard to determine. When 9 moved to get up, 7 stopped him.
"No, no, I've got this one," she insisted as she climbed out of bed.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"You spent seven hours on watch while we slept," she pointed out as she scooped her baby out of the crib. "Now it's your turn to sleep."
He didn't argue with that and fell back into his pillow without another word. In the meantime, 7 began to hum quietly to her child, as she walked back to her rocking chair. Once she sat down, she adjusted her catch so that Dixie could nurse; when her mouth was full, she quieted down considerably. But she went on whimpering sadly.
"Aw, did you have a bad dream, my little love?" she asked. "You seem scared. It's okay, mommy's here. Mommy will take care of you, sweetie."
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At the same time, Pi felt her senses snap to attention, and her eyes flew open. She sat up straight, training her senses on everything around her. The air was filled with a nauseating buzz that she knew all too well. Somewhere very close by, someone had used dark magic.
"Oh no…"
Beside her, 5 sat up a bit and yawned. "What's the matter?" he asked sleepily.
"He's here," she whispered fearfully, beginning to shake, and clutched his hand. "He's here, in the library!"
All traces of sleep fell from his face, replaced by the same terror, as he sat up and snatched her into that safe, defensive embrace that she loved so much. She buried her face in his shoulder, soaking up his warmth, knowing he couldn't shield her for much longer.
"What are we going to do…?" he wondered, mostly to himself as he tried to devise a plan. Any plan.
"There's nothing we can do now," she lamented. "We can't hope to stop him! He's too strong."
5 squeezed her gently, still thinking… And then he sighed heavily, leaving a soft kiss on her check.
"Then all we can do is try," he decided. He jumped out of bed and switched on the light, grabbing his crossbow from the wall and loading it with a newly made arrow. Pi felt her heart constrict—there was no way he could fend off the dark magician with brute force. She ran to him and caught him by the arm.
"5, no! If you get in the way of this, he'll kill you! There's nothing you can do to stop him now…"
"Then I can say I died fighting for something," he answered evenly. "After all this time, I'm not letting go of you without a fight. "
"You don't have to do this."
"Yes, I do," he insisted, taking her hand. "You're worth fighting for—if not for life, for love."
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Alpha staked down the dark hallway, following the scent of fear in the air. It vibrated intensely all around him, growing stronger and stronger as he drew closer. Of course, delicate Pi would have felt his presence, and now she was frightened. And she knew good and well that there was nothing she could do about it. Her soul would be just the right kind of strong for the taking. And so would be the soul of the one who had freed her.
He followed the hallway to where a light shone through a closed door—the delicious smell of fear was strongest there, and he couldn't help a cruel grin. It made him hungrier than ever. He shoved the door open and… Was slightly surprised to see the one-eyed idiot standing to face him, armed with a crossbow, not looking terribly afraid at all. And then there was Pi, trembling in abject terror behind him.
"Back off," 5 snarled, his finger moving to squeeze the trigger.
Alpha answered with a slightly amused chuckle, and cast his fingers at them both. "Be silent."
The spell hit them both with full force, even though it had been spoken in English instead of the mother tongue. They immediately froze, and 5 dropped his pathetic weapon as they fell to the floor, paralyzed.
Alpha walked over to stand above his failed enemy, glad that his one eye was facing him. "You didn't really think you could be rid of me that easily? The elder was right: you are a fool, of the worst sort. I'm going to enjoy the taste of your soul."
Once again to his surprise, 5 didn't remain still. He was struggling, enraged, against the effects of the spell. So there was strength in him, after all. All the more to—
His train of thought was interrupted suddenly, by the shrill cry of a baby nearby. He raised his head to listen, a new and better idea forming in his mind.
"Hm…"
He looked back down at his victims and gave them a sly smile.
"Never mind all that talk, 5; I'll spare you today. There's been, shall we say… A change in plan."
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This time, 9 couldn't be content to stay in bed. Not while his precious girl was in such apparent distress. He sat up, just as 7 sank back into the rocking chair with an annoyed sigh.
"Oh, I thought you were going back to sleep," she mumbled to Dixie, who had burst into fearful screaming again, flailing around angrily as if to escape from something. "I wish she could tell me what's wrong. What could be upsetting her so?"
9 couldn't imagine what it might be, either; mostly because he was only half awake, and what part of it was awake was taken over by the crying of his child. He climbed somewhat wearily to his feet, stumbled the few steps to the rocking chair, and knelt on one knee before them. He reached up for Dixie's small, soft hand, and just held it firmly, comfortingly in his own.
"You see, sweetie?" 7 said softly, like the coo of a mother dove. "Daddy's also here with you. You don't have to be afraid, while he's here to keep you safe. Your daddy loves you so much, he would never let anything bad touch you, would he?"
"That's right," he agreed, giving the child a reassuring smile. "There's nothing I wouldn't protect you from. And mommy will also protect you. We love you so much that we gave you life, remember? Well, my precious girl, we love you so much, we'd give our own lives to keep you safe. And there's nothing that could ever change that."
Dixie didn't seem convinced; but she quieted down a bit to listen to her father's voice. Something was still bothering her badly. But what…?
As 7 began singing another song, something caught the corner of his eye. From where he was kneeling on the floor, he was the only one who would have noticed the door as it suddenly began to open, as if one its own. And then standing there outside was a shape—a shadow in the dark. And a pair of glowing red eyes.
"Be silent."
It could only be one thing in the world. He thought to jump up and shield his wife and child, maybe even tackle the monster to the ground—anything, to keep it away from them. But he felt his being stiffen, and a cry of alarm freeze in his throat. It felt like his heart even stopped for half a second. Panic and anger filled him, and he tried desperately to fight the paralysis, only to fall over in a clumsy, twitching heap. Above him, Dixie had fallen completely silent, and 7 made no move to get up and run. The spell had paralyzed them, as well.
Now there was nothing stopping Alpha from sidling across the room to them. Without any control over her body, 7 couldn't stop Dixie from slowly slipping out of her arms, toward the floor below. But the shadow swooped down and scooped the baby into his own arms before she could fall.
9 couldn't decide what was worse: letting her hit the floor and be hurt, or having the monster catch her. Alpha regarded the child for a moment, and then turned to 7 with a cruel sneer.
"Such an unfit mother, dropping her only child," he chided. "If you can't take care of her, then I suppose I'll just have to take her, won't I?"
7 was also struggling against the paralysis, but all she accomplished were a few useless twitches. While she couldn't defend herself, Alpha leaned over her, reached down and touched her face. She gasped in fear at his poisonous touch, and he smiled vaguely.
"The rumors were true, after all," he mused. "You truly are the most beautiful of our small race. It's unfair, really, that one man would have the nerve to lock such beauty away, all to himself. A better man would know to share."
Taking his child was bad enough; daring to touch his wife was the very last straw. 9 finally felt his fingers manage to twitch significantly. A small victory, which Alpha reward by stomping as hard as he could on his hand. Pain surged up his arm, and warranted a scream that was frozen as the rest of him.
"You fifth clan are stronger than the others," Alpha growled, unimpressed. "I've never known a man to fight as successfully against my magic as you. But then, perhaps, so much the better." His sharp metal foot still planted firmly on 9's throbbing hand, he knelt down and grinned.
"This is incredible work you've done," he commented, admiring Dixie's small, still form. "She is perfect—a true masterpiece. I doubt you could ever create anything this perfect again. Her soul is strong, like yours, and so concentrated. Unspoiled, and unmolded. Oh, she knows that she's loved; and she doesn't have the sense to know how to love in return. I've never seen a specimen so intact, in all my life.
"You know, they say that it's only right, to render your very best unto your god for proper sacrifice. And I must say, 9, I am very flattered that you would save this for me. I may never need to hunt your clan again. Perhaps I'll reward your noble sacrifice, and just leave you with this, hm? Loose the one, save the others? It would be a shame to repeat the past, after we've already learned so much from it."
With that, he rose and turned to leave with Dixie held securely to his chest. It was entirely too much, to be unable to stop this. To do nothing but lie motionless, helpless, as the monster stalked away in complete triumph.
If only the paralysis would wear off…
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The spider waited motionless for its master's command, at the end of the hall with Pi cradled limply in its front-most claws. And Alpha returned to it with his compensation prize cradled in his own arms. Not bad, for his first solo hunt. He had to admit, he wasn't surprised it had gone so well. He mounted it effortlessly, and it rose to its full height, awaiting the command to turn and leave the library.
"Not bad, for an hour and a half's work," he commented. "Come along, my dear, let us return home. And don't drop my sacrifice."
As his steed skittered out of the courtyard and into the night, Alpha looked down at Dixie and tried not to be too perplexed by her twitching. They were a strange bunch, the fifth clan; how were they able to fight so successfully against his spell? Already, the baby was wriggling free of its hold, and her little voice was starting to squeak out in chirps of confusion and distress.
"Now, now, be silent," he insisted, casting his spell back over her. "At dawn today, this will all be nothing more than a bad dream."
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Having only one eye had had its advantages in the past. Mind traps had never affected 5 for as long as they did others. Already, he felt the paralysis wearing off; he was slowly taking back control of his fingers and arms, and wishing the rest of his body would hurry up and follow suit.
Because overwhelmingly more than fear, he felt rage. And that rage was certainly laced with fear, but little of it was for himself—most of it was for Pi, and what would happen to her if he couldn't get up and find her. Soon. And what of the others? Where were they? Had Alpha found them and ensnared them, as well? Did anyone even know what had happened?
As if in answer to his frantic wonderings, a new figure appeared in his doorway. To his joy, it was 6, who looked as if he had run all the way there.
"Oh," he sighed sadly. He came and knelt by his brother, and clapped his hands loudly three times. As suddenly as it had overtaken him, the paralysis melted away completely and he gasped in surprise.
"6, how did you…?"
"The Voice said to."
Never mind that. He sat up and grabbed his little brother by the shoulders. "6, he was here! Alpha was here!"
"He took Pi… And 10…"
"Where is everyone?"
"Stuck."
Of course. 5 bowed his head in despair. "It should have been me. It's not right…"
"Yes, it is," 6 insisted hopefully. "Now you will save them."
"…Do you think so?"
"I know."
The prophet was correct, as usual. This was no time to lose hope. Not when he could move again, and there was work to be done. He grabbed his crossbow from the floor and jumped up to grab his pack.
"Help the others," he instructed. "I'm going to the globe to get some things. Tell 9 and 7 to meet me at the door, ready for a journey and lots of danger."
When he ran into the globe, he wasn't entirely surprised to find a few candles lit, and the twins pacing anxiously in the dim light, as soon as she saw him, 4 darted up to him and threw her arms around his waist.
"6 said that the monster was just here," she flickered tearfully. "He said that thing took our sister! Is it true? 5, please tell me it's not true!"
"I'm afraid it is," he answered, hugging her back.
"And he took Pi, didn't he?" 3 guessed uneasily. "You're going to rescue them, aren't you?"
"6 isn't trying to go with you, is he? Is he okay? Did the monster—"
"He's fine, he's fine. And he's staying right here, I promise. This is something your folks and I have to do ourselves."
"Will you be alright on your own?"
"Maybe… I don't know. But I need my maps, and the weapons we left here last night. And I need the talisman. Where is it?"
"I'll go get it," 3 offered at once and skittered off, happy to be of use. 9 never kept the talisman on his person—the first place an enemy would think to look for it. Instead, he left it hidden in the globe, under the twin's guard. Only the three of them knew where it was hidden; and frankly, it was probably best that way. For himself, 5 had absolutely no desire to know where the thing was kept.
While he went to gather the things he needed, 4 sat down and wrapped her arms around herself. "It was here," she commented. "It was here, and he knew it. He had seemed upset earlier; he said it was just a bad dream. But he knew it was here—he must have! Why didn't he try to tell anyone? Why wouldn't he tell me…?"
"6 has his own reasons for doing things," 5 reminded her as gently as he could. "It's probably for the best. It always is.4, honey, look at me, please."
She raised her head and looked at him with a lost, forlorn look on her face. She sat up straight and pushed her loose hair out of her eyes, ready to listen.
"This is the way he's always been; we all know that. And it's something we simply have to accept." He came put laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, not sure if there was a gentler way to say what had to be said.
"If you love him—really love him—you have to learn to trust him as more than just an unusual means of information, like the rest of us do. That's easy enough to do; it gives us an excuse to be a little angry, if we don't understand. But you need to trust more than anyone else, that he knows what he's doing, and that he's only doing it that way because he's trying to take care of you. It's a difficult leap of faith, I know; but it's something you just have to do."
"That's a little scary."
"I know it is. And we all make mistakes, especially when we're learning. Love isn't easy, 4. It takes work, and patience, and a lot of… Well, sacrifice. Sacrifice of time, wants and needs, even safety. Look at everything that 9 and 7 have sacrificed—for each other, for you and your brother, you sister, for all of us. That's love. That's what it looks like, in its truest form. That's what makes it so beautiful. If it were easy and comfortable all the time, it wouldn't be strong enough to break through Alpha's magic. It wouldn't matter anymore."
While she paused on contemplated this, 3 skittered back into the light with the talisman in hand, wrapped in a scrap of cloth. It could have been anything, really.
"Good luck," he flickered, handing the parcel over to his uncle. "The three of you are going to do great, I know it."
"That fiend probably can't do anything to stop you," 4 agreed, standing to join her brother. "Not you and all your love. You're right about everything. Thank you."
5 only stayed a few seconds longer, to hug and kiss them goodbye, and he hoped it wouldn't be the last time he would get to see them. Then he ran off for the entrance, certain that his own brother and sister would be waiting impatiently for him to join them. The thought that their beloved little Dixie, who hadn't done anything to deserve any of this, was somewhere in the clutches of a monster like Alpha made his nonexistent blood boil. He couldn't imagine what her parents might be feeling…
He came upon them silently and found them in tight, fearful embrace, but ready to go, all the same. He though briefly of giving them another minute or two, but quickly decided that they wouldn't appreciate something so frivolous, while their only child was in mortal danger. So instead, he walked right up to them.
"You took your time," 7 noted tersely when she saw him.
"I thought we could use this," he answered, handing the talisman to his brother.
"You don't think we'll have to use it, do you?" he asked as he stuffed it into his body cavity.
"I hope not…"
Outside, the air was warm and the sky was clear. The moon was only in the middle of its waxing, but cast enough light to illuminate the ruins. Of course the fates would grant them a good night for a treacherous adventure. In the night sky, the constellations of summer shone bright and clear; they silently retold the ancient tale of Perseus' quest to slay the kraken and rescue his own love, the princess Andromeda.
I can relate to that, Perseus, he thought, observing the heavens. I have a princess to save from a kraken of my own.
"Hey, 9? Didn't you say a while back that it's a big wide world? Ours for the taking? Who knows what we'll find out there and all that?"
"Oh yeah… That was a while back, wasn't it," he agreed rather sadly. "I had prepared myself to take all the terrors along with the wonders, but… By the powers, every single one of them, I had never dreamed there could be something worse than the Machine lurking out there."
"What if we find something even worse than this one day?" 7 wondered quietly. It wasn't like her to fret like this, or be so afraid of the big, wide world. She had once longed for it, escaped to grab hold of it by the horns with all her youthful enthusiasm. But its dangers had stolen her treasure this night. All of a sudden, they were very real.
"If we've already stumbled into so much terror, there must be a great wonder waiting for us nearby," 5 decided, taking a page from hopeful 6's book of wisdom. "The night is far from over, yet. Looks like it's just about to begin…"
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Author's Notes…
First update of 2013, my peeps. Impressed? Horrified? Good. My work here is done.
Y'all know how 9 knows… things, from the last chapter? Some of those… things will come to the surface next time. Also, Alpha will continue being his usual, wonderful self. Ooh, the dialogue I've just planned…! ;D