**Hey, guys! I'm so terribly sorry for the pause in all my stories! I've been busy with much schoolwork, and my sport seems to need me to play almost every night. I'll try to update ASAP, but please know I do not have a posting schedule. I don't know what else to say for apologizing… Please don't hate me? And believe me, I'm not giving up on this story. I hope you enjoy!
The Time for Ten - Chapter 18
Marina
I slowly walk toward the pedestal in the center of the room and place my hand on it, or through it, as I just gained my intangibility legacy and do not know how to control it yet. I pull my hand back out and stare at the sword.
"Do you think this is one of those special weapons John was talking about?" I asked quietly.
"I'm not sure, but lets grab that and the crystal and get out of this place; something about being surrounded by dead bodies doesn't settle well in my stomach," Eight responded.
I grab the sword's hilt with both hands, and I yank backward. A satisfying metal against rock sound rings through the air, and the sword begins to radiate a coldness as it changes its color from bright orange to a deep blue. My vision blurs, and I'm standing on a solid hunk of rock, nothingness around me. The sword I was holding a few seconds ago now levitates in front of me, seemingly held by invisible hands. That is, hands that are now visible. Pittacus Lore slowly comes into view in front of me. He is floating, and his clothing is shredded with blood smeared across it as if he had just come from battle. I can sense Eight behind me; he is holding a small rock.
"Put the damn rock down, Eight. It's not going to help with anything," I complained.
Eight drops the rock with a shrug, "Whatever you say, Ma'am," he answered sarcastically.
"Enough, you two," Pittacus started. "You are in possession of your master weapon, you do know this, correct?"
"My master weapon? I thought this was John's!" I answered, startled.
"Number Four doesn't have a master weapon," Pittacus responded.
"Why not?" Eight asked curiously from behind me.
"You should know why by now," Pittacus told us.
"You don't mean-" Eight started.
Pittacus nods his head, and with that he is gone as quick as he came. I fall to my knees, the sword, my sword, clanking to the ground beside me. I hear Eight grunt as he stands up. At the same moment, Two comes sliding down the ladder shoot, blasting Mog cannons into the above night sky. When she turns to face me, there are tears in her eyes.
"They wanted you to keep these safe," she whimpered between gasps.
In her hand are two vials filled three-quarters the way full with a mysterious turquoise liquid. I put my hand over my mouth, realizing what has happened.
"They want us out alive, they sacrificed themselves to save you," Two said solemnly.
I nod, feeling stronger, and turn toward Eight, handing him the sword. I head straight for the last piece of Life Crystal and hold my necklace to it. A bright blue light emits from the crystal, and it suddenly pops of the wall. I clutch it in my hand to greet another one of me, standing in the wall. Not just in the wall, but on the wall, as if I was a painting. I feel an odd twist in my gut, and suddenly I am seeing the point of view from the painting, and I can move too.
"Mar, you're in the wall! Not like earlier, but, like, in it!" Eight shouted and pointed at me.
I focus on letting myself out of the wall, and I pop back into my three-dimensional self.
"I think I've received my third crystal legacy," I said happily.
Just then, my sword begins to radiate a coldness as a carving forms on the hilt.
'Crystal Warrior,' it reads on the side of the handle.
"Guys, I know this is amazing and all, but we seriously need to get the hell out of here before the Mogs send more troops," Two reasoned with us.
"Wait, where's Five?" Eight questioned as we gather our few belongings.
As if on cue, Five charges from behind the pedestal and knocks Eight unconscious. He turns toward Two and me, as we have gone side-to-side.
"You bastards killed me, and I must seek vengeance!" He screamed and then crumbled to the ground dead, again.
"What the fuck…" I whispered.
"How did he come back to life for a couple seconds?" Two asked, worry in her voice.
"I haven't the slightest clue, but we seriously need to get out of here, now," I demanded.
I sling Five and Eight over each of my shoulders, and we climb up the ladder.
xxxxx
Six
"Why in fuck's sake would they do something like that?" I roared wildly, our injured group huddled around.
Eight teleported off with half the group in the middle of a fight just to prove a point, but in doing so left only four Garde to fend off a huge army of Mogs. Luckily, thanks to Hayley's flight, we barely managed to escape. In the very least, Eight could've left us Kal to teleport away.
We are somewhere in Virginia; a dilapidated grocery next to some rusted gas station named 'Harvey's.' The road stretches for miles through forests on either side of us, and there are no cars to be seen. During the fight, Sam was hurt badly on his left leg. A giant burn crosses his calf; from his knee-bend to his ankle. Ella has been having day-dreams, too. We still aren't sure whether it's Setråkus' tricks, or if the stress and pain is finally getting to her. Even though I'm not the oldest, I am definitely the strongest both mentally and physically, and so I decided to take charge.
Both John and Nine left for California before we went to rescue Marina and Ella from the Mog base. They went in search for Jackie, an agent we met just before our storming of the Mog base. She claimed to want to help, and that we didn't have to say yes, but would have to understand she will fight with us anyway. With those words, we decided to send those two out west to find her, and hopefully that will lead us to more of the few Garde on Pittacus' ship.
"Can somebody try and find something to work as bandages over in the grocery place?" One asked aloud.
"I'll go; Ella, can you come with?" I responded.
Ella nods her head and joins alongside me as I stride toward the old building.
Ivy curls down the brick walls with the occasional pink flower bud. Both the bricks and paint are chipping, the sign hanging on only one hinge.
"How long has this place been run down," Ella questioned rhetorically.
I shake my head and push the door open slowly, the light showing the dust littered across the floor. Not much is left inside the grocery; mostly decaying wooden shelves and a couple cobwebs. Ella and I head for the back where we see a door that possibly leads to the manager's office. I try turning the knob, but it's locked. I take a few steps back and then slam into the door, finding it easy to bust the door of it's hinges. Inside there are papers strewn across the floor, as well as blood stains on the carpet and walls. I motion for Ella to stay back and be quiet, and I proceed into the room. Taking swift glances around, I see holes in the walls and tiny print on the walls from blood. Behind the desk is the most terrible site; John's body in a twisted manner, his eyes pale.
"No!" I screamed and lunged down on top of him, but then he's gone.
"Six! Are you alright?" Ella asked as she barrels into the room and around the desk.
"Yeah… I just… Nevermind," I said as I try to shake the image out of my mind. What the hell was that about, I asked myself.
"Why did you want me to stay back? This room looks just like all the others," Ella said.
I take another look around to see the room is just like Ella said; covered in a small layer of dust with a couple cobwebs here and there. So where did those visions come from, I question myself.
I stand up only to feel nauseous, and then the world starts to spin.
"Six, Six? Are you okay?" I heard Ella asks before I fall to the ground.
Darkness follows, and then a tall, hideous figure steps out in front of me.
"Setråkus," I growled.
"Good, you showed up. We have much to talk about…" Setråkus said calmly as he pulls out his sword.
xxxxx
John
We put our trust into Agent Jackie Topman, and so far that is proving fruitless.
Currently, Nine and I are in our silver convertible and Jackie in her black punchbug being chased down by four red minivans full of Mogs shooting their cannons. Like I said, not a great situation.
Jackie had tossed me an earpiece when the Mogs came into sight so we can keep track of each other. We've apparently passed the entrance to her base already, but we can't let the Mogs know, so we decided to speed into San Francisco instead.
The desert flies by in a whirlwind of cacti, sand and various dried-up trees. I would've preferred to take in the surroundings instead of being chased by a horde of angry aliens, but this is the life I've been living with.
There is one thing that I can't bring myself to tell the others, although I'm sure they already know. The last two Garde of prophecy who could have the chance of being Pittacus Lore's reincarnation were Marina and I. Recently, Pittacus came to me in a daydream and told me the final truth. I am Pittacus Lore. He also told me the side affects of being him; all legacies ever known will flow into me in a matter of weeks. And when those powers start appearing, us Garde of prophecy will have exactly one month till the final fight, where I, Number Four, Pittacus' reincarnation, will have to kill Setråkus Ra.
"We're about five minutes from San Francisco, are you guys ready to lose their tails?" Jackie asked through the earpiece.
"Yeah, sure, whatever," I responded, her voice wrecking my train of thought.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
I pause and think before answering. I think of everyone back in Washington D.C., how we left them by themselves to go on a risky mission for other Garde who might not even be alive. I think of my master weapon, wherever or whatever it could be. I think of the responsibilities left on my shoulders, of all of the ones I love and loved. Sarah and Six… No, I can't let this get to my head.
"I'm fine," I lied to Jackie. I can just imagine the look of doubt on her face.
"Just follow me," she responded with question in her voice.
The four remaining minutes were spent in silence. For once, Nine had enough reasoning skill to realize to stay quiet. He's been driving since we ran into Jackie, and he almost seems to be enjoying it. He slaps his hands on the steering wheel in beat with the stereo's music. I almost feel as if I'm the only one not enjoying the trip out west.
We arrive in San Francisco soon after, and once we stop traveling at the high speeds, I realize how hot the temperature is. People are walking around with umbrellas and practically no clothes. Some people are walking with their heads down to look at their phones, while others have their hands over their eyes to create a temporary shadow.
"How many babes do you think I can get today?" Nine asked aloud.
I give him a comical stare. "I thought you wanted Six," I teased him.
Nine slams the brakes and gives me a glare. "I so do not want Six; she's an overachiever and smells like day-old cottage cheese!"
I burst out laughing, all my emotions coming out at the one joke.
"Hey, I wasn't kidding! Stop laughing," Nine pleaded.
Suddenly a loud bang sounds from under the unmoving car, and the back right tire begins to lose air.
"Dammit, they caught up," Nine complained as he jumps out of the car to check the tires. "C'mon, Johnny-boy, we need to get out of here."
I jump out of the car and we both race down the heavily trafficked road, passing Jackie along the way.
"Hey, wait up!" She yelled as she jumps out of her punchbug to the many honks of nearby vehicles. She joins behind us as we charge toward the water.
A Mog cannon is fired over our heads, so we dodge down an alley and to the parallel street. We whiz by all different types of people, working up a heavy sweat along the way.
I finally decide to turn around and fight. I can't be a coward any longer. I summon what is deep inside me to unleash an enormous wind burst, which puts all the Mogs to ash.
"Impressive, let's keep going though. They've probably sent more," Nine said.
"I agree, but we can take our time. Tania has to ready the submarine and drive it all the way to the bay," Jackie told us.
"Submarine? That is so cool," Nine said, clearly amazed.
"Who is Tania, exactly?" I questioned.
"She's my colleague! Remember the lady with long black hair and green eyes?"
"Oh, the hot one…" Nine murmured.
"Excuse me?" Jackie asked.
"Nothing, he meant nothing," I said, recovering for his spill-up.
Jackie looks forward again, clearly hurt from Nine's comment.
I sense the tension forming between the two already.
"Anyway, how old are you?" Nine asked Jackie flatly.
"How rude can he get? Like, holy shit!" Jackie yelled aloud, gaining looks from nearby pedestrians.
"Nine, what has gotten into you?" I whispered into his ear with a mad tone.
He shrugs in response, and I kick him in the shin.
"Shall we go get some coffee or something?" I offered, desperately wanting the two to get along.
"Yes, yes we shall," Jackie said as she storms toward a nearby bakery.
"I hope you're happy," I said angrily to Nine as I storm off after Jackie.
"What, what'd I do?" Nine asked as he is crowded around by tourists.
**So, I hope this chapter was worth the wait! It's supposed to be 'the beginning of the end' of the story. I'm planning for this story to have maybe 25-30 chapters? What are your views on that? Anyway, thanks for reading and please review! Credit to Sam for editing!