Gauntlet Rite of Ascension (38 page)

              Half of the crowd cheered at the returning to the old ways while the other half sat stunned. They had grown accustomed to my father’s ways and had begun to agree that the savage trials of the past were just that, savage.

              A door close to Eavan opened and a young man was pushed out. He was shackled at the wrists and looked around, obviously unsure of where he was.

              “Patrick!” Eavan gasped. “Vicktor, you bastard!”

              Vicktor just smiled at her and then turned to me, watching.

              A door near me opened and I waited to see who they had brought. I figured it was going to be Max, seeing as how he was so close to me, but I never really dwelled on it since it could have been anybody and I had no control over who they picked.

              I saw a figure slowly make her way out of the darkness and my heart sank. Her hair was dirty and hung in clumps. She was taller than I remembered and her body had changed, her curves more noticeable as she had grown into a woman. She looked up at me and I didn’t think my despair could grow anymore until I saw her look up at the full moon. The deep yellow of the Beast rose in my sister’s eyes as she broke free of her bonds and for the first time shifted forms, becoming the animal unchained. She leaned forward and opened her bestial mouth as she issued a large and deep roar of challenge.

              At the same time, another door opened and three Altered cougars leapt from the dark tunnels and barreled towards Eavan. They were massive, deadly monsters. Three times larger than normal cougars, they had grotesque muscles that rippled as they moved, their long claws dug into the hard dirt as they raced across it.

              Vicktor stood and laughed loudly.

              “Let the games, begin!” He shouted to the roar of the crowd as their bloodlust erupted.

              So this was my challenge. I had to save my sister from her own Beast. If I killed the Beast it would kill her and I’d fail and if I didn’t fight back against the Beast it would kill me and I would fail.

              I knew that right now my sister was struggling to make sense of what was happening to her. Deep in her mind Susan was waging a battle of her own, with no understanding of how to beat her Beast. My only hope was that she was putting up a good fight, otherwise it was too late and she had Descended. If that happened I would have no choice but to kill my sister and once again fail. I had to help her succeed in embracing her Beast. I just had to figure out how to pull that off while keeping her feral, unrestrained Beast from killing me and hoping Eavan wasn’t killed by the three monster cougars intent on bringing about her death.

              Susan flew at me a split second after her initial battle roar. I dove to the side but she clipped me and sent me spinning off into the rough wall. I felt my arm snap as it slammed the wall at an odd angle. I tried to get my feet under me as Susan’s Beast turned almost instantly and rushed after me.

              I didn’t expect such speed and strength but I guess it made sense. The Beast was a primal force, bereft of fear or remorse it was a relentless hunter, its sole purpose was to take down its prey quickly and efficiently. I knew I would have a hard time evading it so I decided to try and make it weary of me.

              I felt my arm heal as I willed my gauntlets to grow and my forearms and hands became covered in shiny chitinous armor. I kept the swords retracted and as Susan’s Beast swiped at me I brought them up, deflecting its powerful claws. It instantly countered my block with another swipe and I was soon backing up under the constant assault the Beast threw at me. Its power and speed was astounding and I was unable to keep up. My shoulder screamed as the Beast broke through my defense and I again flew through the air only to land on the hard packed dirt floor. My blood flowed from the savage wound before it knitted back up.

              I chanced a glance at Eavan and saw her surrounded by the three cougars who had circled her and were slowly stalking closer. Her shirt was in tatters and she swung her sword each time one of them stepped closer, keeping them at bay.

              My instincts screamed and I rolled to the side, as Susan’s Beast landed where my head had been. My mind worked furiously, trying to figure out how I could help Susan and stop her assault.

              I to had been untrained and ignorant of the Beast, yet with the help of my father’s legacy I was able to prevail and accept the inevitable. I didn’t know if Susan had the same presence, but even with my father’s help, my success was a close thing. I couldn’t just keep dodging and ducking as I felt the growing Beast within me. The full moon and exertion kept tugging at it, pushing it to provide me more strength and speed, making its impulses stronger.

              I had to do something; I couldn’t keep this up all night. Susan’s Beast caught me as I tried to roll and I grabbed its wrists to keep its sharp claws from ripping my throat out. Its strength was more than I could handle as I dodged its snapping jaws. I felt the sweet pain as I underwent the change, needing to be in Beast form myself to counter its sheer ferocity.

              As I shifted a lot of factors came into sharper focus.

              One, everyone in the crowd was on their feet, some with bloodlust at hoping to see me killed, others with the worry and desire to see me prevail, but watching me losing.

              Two, Eavan had killed one cougar and had herself shifted to allow her to keep up with the threat the remaining two still posed.

              Three, I could feel Susan deep in her own mind, she hid like I had. She was holed up in her place of solitude. Somewhere that always held memories of laughter and love.

              I don’t know how I sensed this, perhaps it was our closeness, not just physically, but we are twins and grew up together. We always had a hard to define ability to know what each other were thinking, that is until we hit puberty. Perhaps the Beast gave me a newfound ability that I had not yet tapped into and this situation forced it to come to fruition.

              Whatever the reason I didn’t question it, I just accepted it. I embraced the feeling and on a whim let go of its claws and grabbed it by both sides of its head. I brought our foreheads together and drew on the power of my Beast to make my will reality.

              I called on the memories of all the times I spent with Susan, playing games on a rainy day and running through the puddles afterwards. The times we argued and the times we shared secret jokes that only children could find magical, I gathered the feelings I had for her as my sister and pushed my awareness out of myself and willed it into hers.

              A feeling of movement overwhelmed me as I suddenly found myself traveling down a tunnel. My body lay under the Beast as my awareness was pulled into Susan’s mind. I landed at the kitchen table in our home, Susan stood at the countertop calmly pouring her mixed cake batter into a cupcake pan. My mom and Susan spent many weekends making breakfasts and dinners together. They always loved to cook together; sometimes they even made something that was edible. Most of the times they just made the house full of laughter and joy.

              “Oh, hi Eric, what are you doing here?” She said as she put a cupcake pan into the oven.

Chapter 34

              “Susan?” I asked, confused at her seeming ignorance of what was happening.

              “Yes?” She answered.

I heard a deep growl that seemed to come from far away. It possessed a deep wildness to it that I knew came from the Beast as it stalked Susan’s mind in search of its prey. Susan looked up, a look of worry and fear rushed over her face before it was replaced by serenity.

              “Do you know why I am here?” I asked.

              I heard my father’s legacy come clear to my mind, “It is no use, she has retreated into a far corner of her mind, somewhere she feels is safe from the Beast. She is unwilling to face her fears.”

              “Then we’re going to have to help her, aren’t we?”

              I went over to Susan and grabbed her wrist, turning her to face me.

              “What are you doing? I have to start peeling the potatoes.” She said, annoyed at my actions.

              “What is the last thing you remember?” I asked.

              “What?” she answered.

              “What is the last thing you remember, before you started cooking?”

              “I don’t…” She began, but stopped as her mind drifted to find the answer to my question.

              “I was…” She started again only to be stopped by a wave of fear and anguish.

              “It’s okay Susan, I’m here with you. It’s okay.” I said, keeping a hold of her hands.

              “I think I was dreaming, having a nightmare.” She thought back.

              “I was at home, I had a date with Ricky, we were supposed to go see some new romance movie. He wanted to see some movie about a comic book, but I convinced him to see my movie.”

              “I went outside to drive to his house when I was attacked; someone grabbed me and put a bag over my head. I smelled a strong odor then I passed out. Later, I woke up in a comfortable room with no windows. The door was locked so I sat, hoping for some explanation. I thought for a minute it was Ricky’s doing, maybe he swept me away on a romantic weekend vacation.”

              “Then the door opened and a monster walked in, it came to me. I tried to fight it, but it was useless, the thing pinned me and bit my shoulder. After that everything was a blur again.”

              “I felt something beginning to stir within me, something wild and terrifying. Then I woke up in the dark corridor. I walked out and saw you standing there. I looked up to the moon and then everything went red.” She shuddered at this last bit, hugging herself.

              She started to cry, deep powerful sobs that made my heart ache.

              “It was so horrible. But now you’re here, it was all a dream.” She started to get control of herself, slowly.

              There was another, louder growl that seemed to come from much closer.

              A look of panic swept over her and I thought she was going to run.

              “I want you to listen to me Susan. What you saw wasn’t a dream, it was real. The thing you encountered was real, what you know as a werewolf. It bit you and you now have the same powers, only you must confront your Beast and accept it as a part of you.” I explained.

              She started to pull away from me as denial spread on her face; she shook her head back and forth.

              “No, no, no, no.” She repeated.

              “Yes, Susan, yes. If you don’t do this it will find you and you will fall to its power, you will become its to command instead of the other way around.” I pleaded with her.

              “What are you talking about? That’s madness!” She sobbed.

              “It’s true.” The voice of my father came to us. I felt a strong feeling of love and compassion as he spoke.

              “Dad?” She asked, looking around.

              “I’m here, honey.” He said. “I’m with you even though you cannot see me, listen to Eric he speaks the truth, Sugarlips.” The last was a nickname he had given her after she got into a batch of powdered donuts and had the white sugar all over her mouth.

              She looked stricken with fear, guilt, denial and paranoia. Yet behind it all I saw a spark of hope, a spark of strength.

              “Look at me, really look at me. Try to block everything from your mind and concentrate on me, listen, smell and see. Feel with your entire being if I am telling the truth. See if your heart doesn’t tell you what is real.” I said to her.

              Susan shook her head once, then tentatively met my gaze. I let the love and the trust we shared as only siblings could, flow from me, hoping she would respond to it.

              A loud roar split the air as the Beast was almost upon us. She turned, terror marred her beautiful face.

              “No, you can do this. I love you, Susan, you can do this.” I said.

              Something in my voice got through as she focused on me, I could see the fog of her denial fade as she opened herself for the first time to the power that had been in her ever since she had been bitten. I could see her slowly grow in strength as the power filled her and she aimed it at me, doing as I asked.

              “I am your brother, I love you and have myself defeated the Beast. You have to do the same, but it’s up to you, once you begin I cannot help. You can prevail only if you believe in yourself.” I told her.

              I could see as she sensed the truth of my words. The fear didn’t lessen, but it became something different, something that rode along with her instead of driving her.

              “Eric.” She rushed towards me, hugging me fiercely.

              The sky erupted as the deep yellow eyes of the Beast rose above us, its primal voice hurt my ears at its sheer volume and I instinctively covered them with my hands, Susan did the same even though the voice was not physical, but within us.