Unmasked
By: Illusion of the Mirror
"Oh, Aric, it's absolutely lovely!"
Emily Bordeaux held up the gift her best friend in the whole world had just given to her: a beautiful, solid gold angel pendant connected to a long, golden chain. It glittered in the dim candlelight as Aric lifted the piece from its velvet box and fastened it behind Emily's neck as she pulled her long hair out of the way. When he was finished, the young man sat down across from her once more.
"I was hoping you would like it," he smiled, taking a sip of red wine.
"I don't like it, I love it," Emily beamed, her fingers affectionately stroking the present.
There was a companionable silence between the two; then Emily looked up, her smile fading. "Do you really have to leave on a mission tonight? This is our year anniversary, after all."
Aric reached out across the table and took her small hands into his own. "Yes, Emily, you know I do." He gave her fingers an affirming squeeze. "Evil doesn't rest, and so neither do we."
Emily chuckled softly. "You make it sound like we're some sort of superhero avengers." She watched his fingertips massage her knuckles. "But it's not really our job, you know."
A sigh. Aric released her hands and rose, pulling his chair closer. "I know you're not happy about this, but if we don't stand up to Darknation, who will?"
"I still don't like it," Emily intoned, her eyes downcast. "Why did it have to be you that left tonight? Why not one of the others?"
"It was my turn, Emily. It's only fair."
"I know…but-"
Aric leaned forward and pulled the red-head into his arms, stroking her long, silky locks with his hand. "Don't worry, baby, it's all going to go just fine." Emily snuggled her face into his midnight blue sweater and sighed, prodding her fiancée into continuing. "And when I get back, we'll get married, go on a trip to the mountains, move into a quaint little house with a white picket fence, and have seven kids all named after your dad."
"And one after yours." She giggled and squeezed harder. "You promise?"
He gazed down into her sparkling green eyes and smiled, never more sure of anything in his life. "Yeah, Emily. Cross my heart."
A scant hour later, as the love of her life waved goodbye and set off to right the wrongs of the world, Emily lightly held the angel pendant that hung from her neck. Everything would work out. Aric would keep his promise, she knew it. Now, all she had to do was wait for him to come home.
But Aric Bronach never did.
--- O ---
The man known as Kale sat behind a large ebony desk, the long, white fluted sleeves of his cloak piled on the table in front of him as he folded his hands. "Welcome to my humble abode, Miss Bordeaux. Please have a seat."
Two tall and rather burly men in black cloaks lined with gold pushed Emily down into a wooden chair, her hands still restrained painfully behind her back. She had given up struggling the moment the crossed the threshold of the fortress, knowing any attempts at freeing herself to be useless. She had really bungled things this time.
Then, something unexpected occurred. Kale reached up and lowered his mask, letting the hood fall to his shoulders. The moment his dark, indigo eyes met hers, Emily realized that she was never again going to leave this place. Hate clogged every pore of her body as she longed to lunge forward and claw the man's face away.
"As you can most likely surmise from the fact that you still breathe, you are here for a purpose." He ran a hand through his gelled, graying hair, a sinister smile on his lips. "If you cooperate, this whole process will go much smoother for you." To punctuate his words, Kale reached out and patted the handgun he had placed on the desk when they arrived.
Though her throat was clogged with fear and loathing, Emily managed a reply. "I have no intention of cooperating." To punctuate her words, she spat off to her side. One of the guards grabbed the top of her head and slammed it hard against the back of the chair.
Kale gave an amused smile as the girl hissed in pain. "I'm afraid you have little choice, girl. You see, I don't need your assent to perform the ritual and release our secret weapon."
Emily blinked away a tear, her jaw set. Ritual? So they did mean to wield the demon…but why would she be able to help with that?
Then it hit her like a ton of bricks. They think I'm the one with The Gift! They have no idea that it's actually Tifa!
--- O ---
Deep within the bowels of Darknation's stronghold, Shera Highwind sat in the padded rocking chair she had been provided and watched as little Marlene lay on the concrete floor coloring and kicking her legs while she hummed "This Old Man." In her lap she held one of the romance novels that had been brought to their cell for the older woman to read.
Ever since they had been brought here, black bags over their heads and hands tied behind their backs, their captors had been suspiciously hospitable. Shera had been around long enough to know that if they were going to be killed, it would've happened already. So for some reason, Darknation was keeping them alive.
Actually, they were more than alive, they were comfortable, well, as comfortable as you can be in a prison. Guards brought three warm meals each day and came back every few hours to ask if there was anything else the prisoners required. The same nurse that had doctored Marlene and Shera's wounds the night they had arrived had the pregnant woman brought to the clinic every morning for a check-up. They had every convenience and necessity, as per the wishes of Darknation's leader. But what they didn't have was freedom, something Shera valued much more than the entire Harlequin series and an omelet in the morning.
The long hours spent in the quiet holding bay gave Shera plenty of time to think through their situation. Hostages would have been released by now, her old man would've payed any price to have her and Marlene back. No, the two captives were either being used as collateral, or something more heinous was at work. What was more unnerving though was the feeling that she couldn't shake; it seemed as if they were being fattened up.
Nearly forty-eight hours after they had arrived, the door to the detention center swung outward and two very large guards pushed through, a familiar petite figure dragging between them. Shera stood up as Emily was shoved into the cell next to hers and the gate slid shut, the electronic lock beeping to show it was engaged.
After the guards slammed the door behind them, Shera approached the wall of bars between their cells and reached a hand out, laying it on the disoriented girl's crown. "Hello, dear, I wish I could say I was happy to see you…but…"
Emily got to her feet and leaned her temple against the cool metal bars. "It's…it's good to see that you two are still okay.
Marlene, who had joined them, held up a picture she had drawn on a sheet of yellow legal paper. "I did this yesterday," she murmured. "It's you and Cloud."
Emily reached through the bars and took the drawing. "It's very pretty, thank you." Unable to stand for much longer, she sat back on the cot jutting out from the wall.
"Are you alright?" Shera asked, concern in her voice. "You look like you've been through a lot."
"I'm fine…I just need to rest."
Shera smiled weakly. "Well, there's definitely plenty of time for that here." She crossed to her own cot and brought back a goose-down pillow. "There now, use this."
The dizzy red-head received the pillow with quiet thanks and leaned her head back against the painted, white cinderblock wall behind her.
"You're the first person to get put in here with us," Marlene observed. Her little hands were curled around the bars as she stuck her head through. "I guess they don't get many prisoners."
Shera placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. She knew why that was; Darknation didn't take prisoners. People are easier to silence if they're dead. She was just about to tell Marlene to leave Emily be, when the door to the bay swung open again and three men in black cloaks, two lined with gold and one with crimson, stepped over the threshold.
--- O ---
The man known as Kale stood confidently in his office, his hands laced behind his back as he stared out the window into the darkness. He was exceedingly pleased with this turn of events. All that remained now was to set up for the ritual. Yes, everything was falling into place quite nicely.
A light knock on the door drew him from his musings. "Enter," he barked, and an elderly man wearing a cloak lined in crimson stepped into the room. "Ah, Azaezal, my most trusted wizard," he crossed to the hunched man, his arms outstretched. "What news?"
Azaezal looked about nervously, his hand gripping a black velvet bag so hard his knuckles were white. "Sir…I regret to say…I mean, that is…"
"What is it, man? Spit it out."
"The Talisman is not responding, Sir. This woman is not the one."
"WHAT?!" Kale reached out, his expression livid. "That can't be! Surely you have erred!" A vein throbbed at his temple as the cowering man merely shook his head while mumbling about auras.
Lashing out, Kale ripped the velvet bag from Azaezal's hands and shoved him aside. "It appears," he spat, "that I must do everything myself!"
--- O ---
Not fifteen minutes after they had left, the three men were back in the prison bay, a man wearing a white cloak storming through in front of them. Shera rose and held Marlene as the furious man punched in the authorization code to Emily's cell and then marched in, pinning the still reeling woman to the bars. He ripped something golden out of a black bag and held it up next to the red-head's wincing face.
"Hey," Marlene whispered into Shera's ear, her eyes wide. "That's the man that we saw at the college with Tifa!" Shera placed her hand over the girl's lips and shushed her softly.
The livid man glared at the Talisman then at the young woman before him. "Where is she: the woman descended from Marie Wolfe!?" When Emily didn't reply, he grabbed a fistful of her hair and smashed her head against the bars, eliciting a cry from her lips and a gasp from Shera and Marlene. "TELL ME!"
Emily remained silent, her eyes lolling to the side. Marlene began to sob into Shera's shoulder. Gradually, Kale's face melted into a calm facade and he backed away, letting the petite woman crumple to the floor. He turned on his heel and stalked out of the cell. With a flick of his hand, he addressed the guards on either side of the cell door. "Bring her out for questioning."
--- O ---
It was several minutes after everyone else had left before Shera even dared to move. She adjusted her hold on the still sobbing child in her arms. Things were getting bad and she smelled danger. It was time: time to implement her escape plan for Marlene.
With the guards busy and unlikely to come back any time soon, Shera struggled to her feet and began pushing Marlene's spare cot to the middle of the cell. After it was in place, she climbed on top and extended her hands toward the ceiling. Yes…that was just tall enough.
"What are you doing, Aunt Shera?" Marlene hiccupped. She rose as well and stared up at the older woman.
Shera alighted on the floor and took hold of both of Marlene's shoulders. "Listen to me carefully, now, okay? We're going to get you out of here."
Marlene glanced up at the ceiling. "You mean, through that vent there?" She pointed to the covered air duct that blew heat into the cell.
"Yes," Shera smiled, "exactly, honey. Now, I'm going to lift you up, and I need you to pull yourself into the vent."
"B-but…it's awful high up…"
Shera gave the girl's shoulders a squeeze. "You can do it, Marlene; I know you can."
The girl nodded reluctantly.
"Alright, now once you're in the duct, crawl toward the air that's blowing in your face. Eventually, it will take you to a mechanical room where there will be an exit door leading to the outside."
Marlene nodded again, starting to understand the plan. "And then, once I'm out, I go find the drain Emily told us about before the men came back in."
"That's right. Find the road and get back to Uncle Cid and Tifa, okay? They'll be able to help."
The girl stood up straighter, nodding a final time and Shera's eyes brimmed with tears. She stroked Marlene's cheek. "My brave little niece…" She enfolded her into an embrace. "I love you."
Marlene hugged the woman back, butterflies flapping about in her stomach. "I love you, too, Aunt Shera. Don't worry. I'll get Daddy and the others. I won't let them leave you here."
Shera sniffed. "I know. Now, up we go."
The two captives climbed onto the cot and Shera pulled the grate off the vent before lifting the child up to the ceiling. Together, they were just tall enough for her to reach and hoist herself up into the ducts.
"Do you feel the air?" Shera asked, trying to keep the tears from streaming down her face.
"Yeah…I'm gonna go now, okay?"
"Okay." Shera waved goodbye with a forced smile in place and as soon as the girl was out of sight, she replaced the grate and moved the cot back to its respective area. Hastily, she gathered the toys Marlene had strewn over the floor and the extra pillow off her own cot, piling them under the blanket. Then, she pulled her rocking chair over and sat down next to the seemingly inhabited bed.
Shera began to hum a lullaby, tears now flowing freely as she said a silent prayer. Please, protect her. Please let her be safe.
--- O ---
It was dark in the air duct…and dusty. Marlene tried her hardest to crawl silently through ventilation shaft, but each time she set her knee down, the metal bowed with a pop that echoed down the length of the duct. This was just like the movies she and Denzel watched. Only…this time it was real. Marlene turned a corner and the air smelt fresher as it blew into her face.
She wasn't sure when or if she would reach the end, but as she continued, the air got warmer and the whirring up ahead got louder. For a split second, the image of a red-hot boiler popped into her mind and Marlene froze. Was this that kind of pipe?
No, Aunt Shera said to go until I get to the mechanical room, so that's what I'm gonna do.
After what seemed like an eternity of creeping forward in the grimy dark, Marlene spotted a faint light down a tunnel to her right. Climbing up a slight incline, she advanced toward the glow and found that it was another grate like the one she had entered through, but this time, it was in the side and not the bottom of the duct.
Peering out through the holes, Marlene saw that this room was dimly lit by two bare overhead bulbs. She was about twelve feet off the ground, but there was a latter leaning against the wall only a foot to the left. That'll work.
Threading her fingers through the holes, Marlene pushed the grate free and then held onto it as she poked her head out into the open. There was no one in the small room, but there was a door across the room. The sign that glowed about the door caused Marlene's heart to leap. The Exit!
The young girl tilted the grate to one side and pulled it into the duct. Setting it aside, she moved on to the next step; she had to climb down the ladder. Her dad had never let her play on ladders when she went to Uncle Cid's shop, so the very idea seemed forbidden, but it was her only choice. Cautiously, Marlene turned around and stretched a tentative foot out toward the ladder. Finding it to be sturdy enough and within her reach, she fully left the vent and scrambled down the ladder.
Once her feet hit the floor, Marlene went from feeling a sense of accomplishment to a pang of fear. She had to leave through the door before someone caught her! Swallowing the lump in her throat, she quickly dashed to the exit and pushed the metal door open. The chilly outside air rushed in and after one last glance behind her, the brave girl darted out into the darkness.
The moon was full and bright in the sky, so after her eyes adjusted, Marlene had little trouble finding her way around the trees that grew out of the manicured lawn. She scanned the ground for the drain Emily had mentioned, but it was nowhere in sight. Frightened tears poked behind her eyes, but Marlene fought them back. She had to be strong for Aunt Shera and the baby.
After several minutes of dashing tree to tree, Marlene finally found the drain. The holes in it were only about four by twelve inches, but she was small and agile. Taking a deep breath in an ineffective attempt to calm herself down, the girl got down on her belly and shimmied into the hole. Once her head and torso were through, she felt around the inside. It was pitch-black, but using her fingertips, she guessed that there was room enough for the rest of her in the space beyond.
Once she was completely free, Marlene dropped into the empty space and felt around for the drainpipe Emily had described to her and Aunt Shera. Finding it, she got down on her hands and knees and began to crawl again, feeling mud cake her knees and spider webs tangle in her hair. But she was doing this to save Aunt Shera and the baby, so she didn't have time to be afraid.
The drainpipe wasn't as long as the duct, and Marlene passed through it with relative ease. At the end of the tunnel, she could see the opening through which moonlight spilled in. The light prodded her forward with renewed strength. In moments she was out of the dirty, cement tube and in the open air of the woods.
Marlene stopped for a moment. The woods were silent except for the rustle of the dry leaves in the trees and the chirp of late-august crickets. An owl hooted in the distance and she suddenly felt very small and vulnerable in the night.
But she had a mission: find the road, get to Daddy and Tifa. Immediately, the mud stained girl set out along the wall that encircled the fortress. They had come here in a car…so there had to be a driveway out. And a driveway would lead to the road.
--- O ---
Margie Biersner was a kindly old spinster who, every Friday night, played bingo at the senior center outside of town. At that very moment, she was driving her and her two lethargic cats, Fluffy and Xerxes, back to her apartment in the suburbs. Her white sedan puttered along down the curving road at the roaring pace of five miles per hour short of the speed limit, but safety came first.
"Now, babies, Mamma's going to make you both a nice dish of cream and tuna when we get home okay?"
Fluffy blinked and turned away. Xerxes yawned.
While humming to herself about what she was going to eat as a snack, Margie noticed someone walking along the side of the road up ahead. She reached over and made sure the doors of her car were locked. One never can be too careful. But as the distance between them closed, Margie squinted her weak eyes to see that the person walking in the ditch was actually a little girl. Her clothes were dirty and she kept stumbling as she trudged forward.
Never one to leave a child alone in the dark, Margie slowed down to a stop a few feet away from the girl and leaned over to manually role down the passenger-side window. "Hello, little girl," she called out with a friendly smile. "Are you lost?"
The girl stared back at her with frightened eyes and then looked over both her shoulders before nodding.
"Well, hop in! I'm going to the city if you need a ride."
"Thank you," the little girl murmured and she approached the car.
Once the girl had buckled in and Margie had started forward, the old woman looked the girl up and down. "My my, but you're a mess! What's happened, dear?"
"I-I'm lost. I need to find my daddy."
"What's your name, sweetheart?"
The girl turned to Margie and offered a tired smile. "Marlene. I like your kitties."
--- O ---
The waiting list at the East Midgar public hospital was quite long, even for a Friday night. Catherine Stratford sighed as she flipped through one of the medical magazines from the rack for a third time. Ever since the explosion the Resistance had been scrambling to reassemble themselves. She, Altmann, and several other key members had gone to the police stations and hospitals within a short distance of the blast, knowing that any survivors might go there for help.
So far, Catherine had met very few faces she knew, but still she stayed, not wanting to leave anyone behind. As she gazed distractedly at the cooking show on the waiting room TV, the emergency room doors slid open and a hunched old woman enter, a little girl at her side.
The girl looked about with wide, brown eyes, taking the whole area in. Curious, Catherine moved closer in order to hear what was being said to the nurse behind the entrance desk.
"I found her by the road all dirty and scratched up like this," the elderly woman explained, "I think she's delirious. She keeps babbling on about demons and magic and being kidnapped."
The nurse glanced up, uninterested. "Name?"
"Marlene Wallace," the girl interjected, her chin resting on the tall counter.
Catherine instantly recognized the name and rejoiced at her good fortune. "Marlene!" She called out. All three turned to look at her.
"Marlene, I'm a friend of your father's. He and Tifa have been missing you terribly."
Marlene smiled. "Really? I've missed them, too!" She turned back to the elderly lady. "Thanks for all your help, Margie. Tell Fluffy and Xerxes bye for my, okay?"
Margie laughed and ruffled the girl's hair. "Alright. Take care of yourself, sweetheart."
The nurse behind the counter merely looked away and heaved a great sigh. "Next!"
--- O ---
Hey, ho, and what do you know! I'm back for the third day in a row!
I'm pretty sure that this will be my last chapter for a little while, but hopefully not for too long. As this whole thing reaches its climax, it's getting harder and harder for me to put it down! ^^ It's great for the readers, but is wreaking havoc on my social life! Lol
What did you all think? I felt like it was time to bring Shera and Marlene back into the story and the whole thing started to take on a shape of its own.
So, shoot me a review! Shoot me two! (Just kidding, I know you can't.) I really relish the feedback. It's what keeps me going…that, and my need to get this story out of my system before it absolutely KILLS me!
Thank you to Ghedea, Fostersb, wolf of infinity, brokenmaelstrom, Darial Kuznetsova, and forevermare for reviewing on my last chapter. I hope all of you enjoy this one just as much!
Thank you, also, to all of my other readers, favers, and subscribers! I really can't do this enough. I'd be just another lame fanfiction writer if it weren't for you guys. You give me a reason to grow and progress!
A final thanks to my beta, Kimmit the Ferg. You know why. –wink—
Shout out to my readers from FINLAND, CANADA, and the UK! It's so cool that I have readers from all over the globe!
So until next time,
Hyvästi, Au Revior, and See ya later!
Fight the Power!
-- Illusion of the Mirror --
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