Dark's Descent (18 page)

The Rawshkin Mountain Range

      “So mother,” Cassandra began, “any plans for the rescue team?” Eva was already contemplating that problem. If they survived, they should arrive in a week. That was plenty of time for planning, and making her daughter permanently bad. Right now, she was still blossoming, or rotting, and she could easily be pulled from her success by a stupid boy!

      “Relax my dear,” Evangeline cooed, “let them have fun with their pathetic mission while the can! We'll take care of them when they get here.”

      Cassandra thought about what would happen to them. She really wanted them to just not get here at all! “What exactly are we going to do?” Cassandra asked, “They are my friends and family after all.”

      Evangeline laughed in her daughter's face. “Really dear? I am your family now, and Susan never was!” Eva expounded, “She was a mere liar! And don't get me started on your 'friends'! Will is coming. The one who left you the minute he found out you were simply related to me! Stella teased and taunted you for years!”

      Her mom was right. She was fooling herself all her life! But what about Charlie? “Charlie?” Cassandra inquired, “What did he do?”

      Eva taunted, “Think about it, what didn't he do!” Cassandra looked at her broken phone. “He was just like Will, only worse.” she began, “He led me to think that he accepted me. Charlie said he loved me even though you were my mother. And then he kissed, who I thought was my friend when I left to get a snack! At least Will never cheated on me!” Cassandra couldn't stand it and she punched the wall until it crumbled to pieces.

      Eva sighed, and remembered that they would be moving out soon, so she might as well let Cassandra beat up something.

      “Cassandra,” her mother began, “if we want to conquer the realms in a timely manner, we have to save the petty work for later! Right now we need to find the special spell I hid twenty years ago for this occasion!” Cassandra was curious as to how some spell could help them defeat over 13 billion people, and that was just Everlanon and Earth. Who knew if they had any competition in space?

      “I hid it in a cave in the Rawshkin Mountain Range, that I filled with tricks, traps, and everything else that could keep an intruder out.” Eva informed, “So, after twenty years, it's hard to keep track of so many deadly traps, so you're going instead!” Cassandra wanted to prove herself, so she set off to find the enchantment.

      By the end of the first day, Susan was still going. She needed her daughter back, and nothing was going to get in her way. “Mrs. Smith?” Stella called, “Should I take over so you can rest? If we drive straight through we'll get there sooner, but you look exhausted!” Stella was right. The last time Susan slept was 3:30 this morning, because Vanessa had puked. Everything was okay, but by the time she found that out, it was already eight o'clock. Susan decided to pull over.

      Stella took the driver's seat and despite everything the driver's ed. teacher said, she maxed the speedometer at 160 miles per hour. Overnight, they made a great distance.

      On the downside, however, it was the Market season. The Market season was when millions of vendors gathered by the Rawshkin Mountain Range and set up a gigantic operation called The Market Place. Will informed the group that the quickest way through was straight through, so that's what they did.

      The Rawshkin Mountain Range stretched across Everlanon, earning the nickname 'The Belt of the Realm'. It was filled with caves, caverns, and mountain critters. It was one of the most dangerous places in Everlanon to hide something, which was why Eva chose it. Somewhere no one dare stay too long was the perfect place!

      Cassandra flew from one mountain to the other, looking for the cave. For some reason, her mother refused to tell her what cave it was in. All she knew was whatever cave that she threw a stone in, that set off a dozen traps, was home to the spell they needed.

      Cassandra plopped down in frustration. She was never going to find that stupid cave! She picked up a rock and threw it at the cave in front of her. It tumbled inside and landed in the open. With the blink of an eye, a flaming arrow shot at the spot, a boulder fell on top, and lava poured over it all, quickly hardening into solid stone.

      Cassandra was amazed. She had found the cave! Now she only had to make her way a mile or two inside, while avoiding certain death, to get what was needed. This was going to be difficult.

      Cassandra walked inside the cave with a handful of pebbles. She would take the pebbles and throw them ahead to check for traps. Throwing the first pebble, she carefully walked forward. Then her mom appeared.

      “Cassandra!” Evangeline screamed, “Why are you going so slow? Just poof to the spell, and poof back! It's that simple!” Cassandra glared at her mother. “I thought there was a magic suppressor of some sort.” she explained. “I did!” Eva assured, “But it was magic that doesn't work on blood relatives! Duh!”

      “Blood magic!” Cassandra confirmed, “I read a fairy tale with that before!” Eva acknowledged her daughter's statement with a brief nod. Cassandra winked and dirt flew everywhere setting off hundreds of traps and tricks. When the dust cleared, the two were looking at a radiating scroll in a bottle. “Nice work on that move!” Eva congratulated, thoroughly impressed. Cassandra grabbed the bottle and sent them both back to the tower. It was time to get to work.

The Market Place

      Susan took the wheel from Stella and slowly proceeded through the market. They moved through the crowds at a speed that made Charlie think of his grandma as a racehorse.

      As they drove, vendors knocked on the vehicle and tried to get them to buy their merchandise. “Ugh!” Will sighed, “Peasants!”

      One merchant got Stella's attention. He had a small pink flask that was glowing and sparkling brightly. Stella needed to know what it was! She rolled down the window and yelled, “What's that pink stuff!?” The man ran up close and answered, “This is the Elixir of Clear Sight. It shows you what is right in front of you, that you've taken for granted, looked past, or what you haven't let yourself believe. I'll give it to you for that necklace!” Stella glanced at the $250 necklace, and ripped it off. “Here, I accept the offer.” she began, handing him the necklace and taking the vial. Stella then put the potion in her purse.

      The limousine slowly rolled through the place, and relentless sellers continued to knock on the doors and windows of their ride. “I wish I could just plow right on through.” Susan admitted. “As long as no one buys anything else, they should give up.” Will explained looking at Stella.

      Will has lived among peasants for sixteen years, and he despised most of them. These individuals were worse, since they always demanded attention. Will looked out the window. Was that Cassie and Evangeline over there?

      Cassandra looked at her mom. They were going through The Market Place to grab the ingredients they needed for the spell. So far they got the squid, but still needed to find the rest of the twenty-some ingredients. Cassandra was surprised at first when her mother said they were going shopping, because she thought that evil didn't purchase. She was right. They had threatened the squid man with a small dagger and an evil grin. Cassandra was told that some give in easier than others, so she had to be prepared for a fight. They now walked past a group of people huddling around a limo? A limo! “Mother,” Cassandra informed, “We may have some trouble.”

      Eva looked at the limousine. “Eh, let's just go this way instead.” she ordered. Eva couldn't take any chances that her daughter meet her old friends because they might restore some old emotions. Those emotions could be good or bad, so she hurried her girl along.

      “Look!” Will announced, “It's them!” Susan turned the limousine to where he pointed, and honked to scare people out of the way.

      Cassandra turned around when she heard the honk. “They saw us!” she warned, “What now?” Knowing the possibility of losing her daughter, Evangeline shoved her forward. “If need be,” she explained, “I'll take care of them.”

      Susan raced after the duo, running into people who weren't smart enough to move. She honked the horn repeatedly. She was not going to lose Cassie this time!

      Evangeline pulled Cassandra around a corner. “Go! Run!” she told her, “I'll slow them down.” Cassandra smiled and shouted as she ran away, “Leave some for me!”

      Eva grinned and produced a fireball with her hand, sending the crowds screaming and running away. She tossed the fire at a nearby tent and the flames sprawled around the market. Good luck getting out now!

      Susan saw people running away from something around the corner. A red glow bathed everything in its light, as Susan watched the fire dance their way. “No!” she yelled, driving straight into the flames. She cranked on the air, for cooling purposes, and followed the woman who was with Cassandra.

      They drove out of the fire and went full speed into the lady. Right before contact, the woman disappeared.

Ingredients Of Evil

      Cassandra was in Evangeline's library when she heard a bang. It was her mother! “What happened!” Cassandra screamed. “Oh nothing,” Eva answered, gasping for air, “just catching my breath after barely escaping a limousine-ram.” Eva motioned for Cassandra's silence. “Now what do we need again?” Eva asked. Cassandra grabbed the scroll and read the list of ingredients for the power balance-tipping spell, “Squid, archiles, the golden flame, a tomato?” Cassandra took a break before continuing. “A black sheep's wool, a crushed beloved ornament, a skunk's stink, the combined blood of twins.” Cassandra paused before reading more, “the Silver Shadow!” Cassandra's memory blasted back to that night at summer camp, the night she killed a man, the night she was scared out of her wits. That was the night she held the Silver Shadow in her own hands.

      Cassandra put the scroll down and told her mother the story of the Silver Shadow. She seemed impressed when she heard the killing part.

      “Wait, so you had the Silver Shadow!” Eva exclaimed, “What did you do with it?” “The cops took it for evidence.” Cassandra explained, “It's probably still at the Paradise Police Department office.” Evangeline took her daughter's hand and said, “Field trip to Paradise?”

      Susan was furious at the fact that they had the advantage. Will had an idea. He read a book that told of a spell that could only be performed by a mother and daughter team. It was the reason Cassie was sent away in the first place. The oracles knew that Evangeline possessed it, so when they foretold that she was having a daughter, they immediately spoke to the king.

      The spell, was more of a curse. It allowed for the casters to alter reality and the balance of good and evil to their own desires. If the curse was cast, the battle was as good as over, with Evangeline the victor. They could even establish a permanent link between the realms if they wanted to!

      “Mrs. Smith,” Will began, “If you want to save Cassie, and everyone else in existence, turn around and drive to my castle, I just had an awful realization.” Susan did as he said and drove the way he told her to. If this was her only way of bringing back her child, then she would do it.

      Cassandra walked into the P.P.D. with Evangeline and waited for the secretary to see them. Eva was already impatient. “How may I help you?” said the lady. “I was wondering if you had a knife from a case a while back called the Silver Shadow?” Cassandra inquired, “I have been having nightmares lately about my involvement, and my counselor said that if I saw it again, maybe I would stop having the dreams.” The secretary looked on the computer. “Yes it is here, are you sure you want to see it?” the lady asked. “Yes,” Cassandra answered. The woman got up and went to the evidence room to fetch the knife. When she came out, she held out the bag. “Is this it?” she asked. Cassandra flashed back to that night. She heard the sound of the knife jabbing in the man's gut. She felt the blood run all over her hands. “Yes,” she smiled, “Yes it is.”

      Cassandra snatched the bag and waved her hand in front of the shocked woman's face. The woman fell to the ground, smashing her head on the desk on the way down. “Come on mom,” Cassandra ordered, “let's go!”

      Susan had the pedal pressed all the way down, for there was no time to lose. She surprisingly arrived at the castle in under an hour, though no one paid attention. They ran inside, and Will waved the guards away. He needed to get the Book of Death from the library so they could see the ingredients and somehow figure out their next move.

The group barged in on King Albert's reading session and started searching. “What is going on here!” he demanded to know. Will told him what they needed and why. “I had that book locked up!” the king explained pointing to a book shelf, “Remove the three red books and the vault will open. It should be on the table.”

      Charlie ran and did as the king ordered and the bookshelf swung to the side, revealing a secret room. He ran inside and grabbed the book. Will flipped through the pages and found it. The top of the page said 'The Mother-Daughter Disruption'. Charlie scanned through the ingredient list and stopped about halfway. “The Silver Shadow!” he screeched. Susan stopped on 'the combined blood of twins'. “No!” she yelled, “You are not going to hurt my babies!” Stella froze when she read the second to last ingredient. 'The heart of the one the daughter hates most'. She knew that was her. She kissed Charlie. She was doomed if they didn't stop them.

      Stella expressed her worry to the group, making Susan cringe. They all knew that Stella's worry was a real problem. Stella was definitely the one Cassie hated most of all.

      Will was smart, and he knew Cassie. He did some quick figures, and he determined that they more than likely have the Silver Shadow, and the next ingredient they went for would be three up from that. “What's Cassie's most beloved ornament?” Will asked.

      “It's at the house! With the twins!” Susan yelled, already running to the limo. Everyone followed and Charlie carried the book. They were through the portal at an incredible speed, and flying through the streets of New York.

      Betty had been informed of the situation, so she stayed the night with the twins and James, knowing that Susan would insist he still work. James was the primary breadwinner of the family, so he needed his job.

      Vander and Vanessa were running around the house laughing when Susan burst through the door. “Vander! Vanessa! Go hide in the storage space!” Susan demanded. She didn't know how much blood they needed.

      Susan dug through the Christmas decorations and got out Cassie's favorite one. It was a gold star that she got from her grandmother on the day she died. Every year, she was very careful to not break it. The glitter occasionally fell off, but Cassie still loved it. They were going to be ready.

      “What do you want to get next?” Evangeline asked. Cassandra already picked it out. She told Eva and she smiled. It was time to visit home.

      Smoke filled the Smiths' place as the two appeared. Cassandra dashed to the Christmas decorations, but it wasn't there! “What happens if we can't get an ingredient?” Cassandra inquired, panicking. Evangeline shouted, “It doesn't work! What's wrong?”

      “I know what's wrong!” Susan teased. Charlie popped out from behind the couch. “It's an ambush!” Evangeline gasped. Charlie ran up to Cassandra. “I didn't kiss Stella, I don't even like her! I'm sorry! I love you!” Charlie blurted. “Shut your mouth!” Cassandra screamed, punching Charlie in the gut. Cassie gasped, “I'm so sorry!” “But I saw you kiss her you pig!” Cassandra accused.

      Evangeline knew she was going good. It was time to retreat. “Cassandra! Come!” she ordered. “No! I need to make sure Charlie is okay!” Cassie cried. “And kick him after I do!” Cassandra howled. Charlie stood up and grabbed Cassie. “Let go of me you-” Cassandra cut out and Cassie continued, “amazing boy! I love you!” “Love is weakness!” Cassandra hooted, “Mother!”

      What was he going to do? Charlie was losing her! He had to kiss her, maybe that would work! Charlie stood up and leaned forward. He fell face first as a loving Cassie disappeared in a poof of smoke.

      Cassandra laid on the floor, exhausted. “Go rest in your room.” Evangeline ordered, “You barely made it.” From now on, Eva was going to have to collect ingredients on her own.