Hey guys! Sorry, it took so long, but I'm finally better now, and ready with the next chapter. Please, please, please keep reading and reviewing the story. I love reading your reviews, and I'm hoping to have at least 25 before I continue the story.
Here's chapter 4. Enjoy!

Marina

I close my eyes and strain against my bonds again. I groan inwardly. Still nothing.

After I was caught, Setrakus summoned two of his soldiers and ordered them to secure my hands and feet with "special" manacles. As I soon discovered, their "specialty" is being unbreakable and immune to my Legacies.

In fact, they seem to be blocking them altogether. Every time I try using one of my Legacies, I feel bile rise up in my throat and a sharp pain pierce through my head. Now I'm being dragged by Setrakus to one of his jeeps, where he's personally going to be guarding me. He seems to be afraid that I will somehow break out.

Or, more likely, he's just afraid that Six or Nine will rescue me.

A Mogodorian soldier appears in front of us. 'There's no sign of them, my Lord.' he says, sneering at me. I resist the urge to launch myself at him. 'Not even the tell-tale trail of ash the boy is so fond of leaving behind.'

'No matter.' Setrakus says, lugging me to the largest jeep. He deposits me in the back roughly and I immediately curl into a ball. I'm hurting all over from being dragged across the hard ground, and my throat still aches from when he strangled me, but I'll be damned if I'm going to show it. I look up at him defiantly and struggle against the chains again. He grins back, showing me his disgusting teeth. 'They know we have her. They will come.'

'You are not using me as bait!' I yell, thrashing about now in my effort to break free. I'm not going to give him the pleasure of taking me without a fight. 'You killed Eight! I'm going to make you pay! I'm….'

'She's a feisty one, isn't she?' Setrakus says smugly. 'Maybe she should take a nap.'

I realize what he means too late. The last thing I see is his fist hurtling towards me before everything goes black.

Adam

'John!' Sam cries. 'Look!'

He holds up the tablet and waves it about urgently, forgetting that we're in the middle of our security check. Heads turn curiously as they stare at Sam bobbing up and down restlessly, waiting for us to finish.

'What is it?' John hisses, after collecting his bag from the official. 'You practically drew attention from the whole line. We need to be unnoticed.'

'They're moving.' Sam says, ignoring John's fixated glare, examining the three flashing dots in Florida once again. 'And this is weird…..'

I look over his shoulder curiously. He jabs his finger at the screen, indicating the dot which is slightly ahead of the others. 'They seem to be in separate cars. Here, see?'

We stare at the tablet. Sam's right. The lead dot is about half a mile ahead of the other two.

'What does that mean?' John asks, his anger forgotten. 'Why would they be in different cars?'

My blood runs cold. 'They would if they were captured.' I say hollowly, horribly certain that I'm right.

John examines the tablet again. 'I think you're right.' he says slowly, his voice filled with dread. 'Look. They're not the only ones who are moving.'

We follow his line of sight. The flashing dot that is Five is no longer in Washington D.C.

Instead, it's making its way south.

'We have to get there!' I say urgently. 'Now.'

John nods. 'Yeah. If only this flight wasn't delayed….'

'It seems to me you have bigger problems.' a harsh voice says from behind.

I whirl around. Standing there, with a look of cruel amusement on his face, is my father.

Marina

I'm floating in a large black void.

'Where am I?' I wonder, trying to examine my surroundings. For some reason, I am completely certain that this is not a dream or a vision. I, or at least my spirit, is actually here.

I try to move, and find that I am able to walk normally. I warily take a few steps forward. It feels strange walking without anything solid below my feet, but somehow I know exactly when to shift my weight.

That is, of course, if I am even walking at all. There is no way of knowing if I even moved, since there is no way of judging my progress.

I step forward again, now more uneasy than cautious. This place is very creepy. There is something about it that makes me feel….. lost.

'Marina?' a voice says with disbelief.

I spin around. I know that voice. How could I forget it? I hear it all the time, in my every thought, torturing me with what could have been.

Hovering there, with an expression of stunned disbelief on his face, is Eight.

Eight

I shake my head, unable to believe what I am seeing. Marina hovers just a few metres away from me, and she looks just as shocked.

I recover first. Teleporting to her, I wrap my arms around her, and pull her into a hug.

Marina

Eight embraces me, and I don't resist, melting into his arms. A million emotions are running through me right now, so I do the obvious thing. I burst into tears.

I don't know how long he holds me, how long I sob, taking in his comforting arms, his familiar smell, and everything else about him, but eventually, I pull away, wiping the tears off my face. 'I'm sorry.' I tell him, my voice thick. 'It's all my fault.'

Eight cracks a grin. 'Nice to see you too.' he chuckles.

Only Eight could crack a joke even after he was dead. I punch him on the shoulder, but the damage is done. I grin, and before I know it, we're both laughing uncontrollably.

Finally, we pull ourselves together, and he grabs hold of my shoulders and forces me to look at him. 'Listen to me.' he says, suddenly serious. 'What happened at the Everglades was not your fault. I made a choice, and I knew the consequences, alright? Nothing to do with you.'

'It has everything to do with me.' I say quietly. All traces of humour have suddenly disappeared from our conversation. 'If I had been stronger, there would have been no need for you to make that decision.'

Eight sighs. 'Firstly,' he says, 'you are the strongest person I know.' He grins at my shocked expression. 'Oh, so you mean to say that you know someone else who is so determined even though their Cepan neglected them their entire childhood? Do you know someone else who takes responsibility for everything that goes wrong, whether it's their fault or not?' He draws a breath. 'Do you know someone else who has suffered so much and is yet so gentle, so pure?' he finishes, his voice suddenly soft.

'My gentleness is what got you killed.' I counter.

Eight sighs again. 'Your gentleness is what is keeping us going.' he says.

'What do you mean?' I ask, stunned.

'Think about it.' he says. 'We claim that we fight the Mogodorians because they are evil, and yet we're exactly the same. We willingly kill them even if they don't attack us, we're cruel and vicious, and, in our hearts, we want to make them suffer.'

'I don't.' I say hesitantly.

'Exactly.' he says. 'You are what separates us from them, Marina. Without you, we're as bad as them.'

I look up at him, suddenly hopeful. He doesn't hate me. He doesn't even blame me for his death. 'You really mean that?' I ask.

Eight grins. Then, without any warning, he leans down and kisses me.

Eight

Energy courses through me, and I suddenly feel rejuvenated. All I care about right now is Marina, her gentle arms encircling my waist, her hair brushing my cheek, the feel of her lips pressed to mine. I'm suddenly filled with warmth and hope, like anything is possible. I've never felt so alive (yeah, I get the irony too).

I slowly pull away, and she gasps for breath and gapes at me, open-mouthed. Her expression is so priceless, I just have to laugh.

Marina

We sit together silently for a while, gazing out into the nothingness, our shoulders brushing, our fingers intertwined. I replay the kiss in my mind for the umpteenth time, warmed by the pleasant memory. It is, quite probably, the weirdest date of all time.

Finally, I break the silence. I don't particularly want to broach the subject, but I have to know.

'Is this what death is like?' I ask. 'You know, floating about alone in the middle of nowhere for all eternity?'

Eight shakes his head. To my utmost relief, he doesn't look offended. 'I don't know.' he says. 'For some reason, I can't remember what it was like before you came along. It's like my memory has been wiped before I was allowed to meet you. I'm pretty sure I wasn't here, though.'

I nod. 'That makes sense, though.' I say. 'The living shall not acquire the secrets of death, and all that rubbish.'

Eight laughs again. I suddenly grin. He's rubbing off on me more than I thought if I'm the one who's making him laugh.

'You'll have to go soon, won't you?' Eight says sadly. I nod. I haven't told him, but I've been getting a tugging sensation in my gut for a while now, and I know I can't stay here much longer.

'I won't see you again for some time now, will I?' I ask.

Eight shakes his head again. 'No. I don't think so. But….' he hesitates. 'I will see you again before this war is over. My Precognition Legacy is telling me that much.'

He hesitates again. I look into his green eyes, and I can see there's something that he's trying to hide. Not anxiety, or even worry.

Fear.

'Eight.' I say. 'What aren't you telling me?'

'There's something else my Precognition Legacy is telling me.' he says, not quite meeting my eyes.

'What?' I ask, suddenly afraid.

'Next time,' he says, finally looking me in the eye. 'Next time, you won't have to leave.'

My eyes widen as the implications of his words hits me. There's only one way I won't have to leave Eight the next time we meet. I stare at him, and I can make out he's come to the same conclusion.

I am going to die.

Eight pulls me into a hug, and I don't resist, seeking the comfort of his arms. I am suddenly shocked and afraid, and only he can make me feel any better.

The tugging sensation becomes too much for me, and Eight cries out with surprise as I fade away, pulled back into the world of the living. 'Goodbye, Eight.' I whisper. He hears me, and his head whips around as he searches frantically for me.

'Marina, listen! I need to tell you this. When you wake up, you can't blame him! You can't blame him!' He's necessary for us to win the war, do you understand?'

I try to reply, but I'm being dragged back, and it's all I can do to hang on for a few precious seconds. Eight finally looks my way, and our eyes meet as he says, 'Goodbye, Marina.'

Then he's gone, and everything is black.

I wake up with a jolt, to find someone leaning over me. I'm still puzzling over Eight's words, and it's only when the figure draws back that I see him clearly and understand.

'Hello, Marina.' Five says.

Firstly, I know I said that I won't bring Eight back to life at least until the war is over, and I've stuck to my promise. But I just had to have him meet Marina. I felt she needed some closure.
Should Marina die or not? I've actually already made my decision, but it's fun to keep you guessing.
I know I took a long time for this chapter, and I'm sorry about it. I promise I will post the next chapter tomorrow or on Sunday, unless I fall ill again, to make up for the time I took for this one.
I also solemnly swear that I am up to no good and the next chapter will have a huge twist. So please review!