Reborn (19 page)

He turned back toward the circle with his sword raised high. Angry red flames pulsed up the blade, begging him to take as many souls as possible. It wanted to feed, and part of him wanted to oblige the hungry weapon. “Am I the Shantie Rhoe, you ask? Am I the Gate Keeper? Ask your precious sprits!” he shouted.

The roaring crowd was now on the verge of rioting. Rocks and sticks flew through the air as the guards assembled into a living wall at the front of the stage, trying to keep others from climbing up.

“So be it,” hissed Wara as she hurried back and sat between the other two. The twins clapped their hands then pointed their palms upward, releasing a scattered orange light into the air. “I’ve no doubt there is a demon burning inside of you,” said Wara as the mob backed off, captivated by the show of raw power seldom shown by the Circle. Lines of white mist floated up from the black cauldron, slithering about like snakes as the thick ooze rolled and bubbled violently. “You can lie to your friends about the blackness stirring within you. You can lie to yourself if it helps you sleep at night, but deep down inside, you know what you are...demon.”

The same old woman who had previously accused Eric for the loss of her baby grandson’s parents slowly made her way through the crowd, working her way to the front. “Grandol halla,” she hissed while pushing through. “Grandol halla, grandol halla.” Others around her began to repeat the phrase, quietly at first. “Grandol halla, grandol halla.” Then more and more began to join in, as others began to shout and pump their fists in the air.

Jade shook Kelus’s arm. “What’s going on? What are they saying?”

“Grandol halla,” he whispered. “The slayer. The Shantie Rhoe in his most primitive form. A killer with no cause or reason, driven by pure animal instincts.” He looked to Jade with an icy, emotionless glare. “If the legends are true, he will either merge with the untamed darkness within him, or perish here and now. There is no turning back.”

“Eric...” whispered Jade, her eyes flooding with tears. It horrified her how familiar this all seemed. Each time that glowing golden light shined in his eyes, he became someone else, possessed for a period of time, with limited control of his anger and actions. The Guardian, born only to serve and protect the Gate Keeper, was now helpless as a babe. All she could do was watch.

The crowd continued to chant as Eric stood before the Circle. Misty lines flew around him, each with a humanlike face, laughing at him, mocking him. They whirled around like angry serpents looking for somewhere to strike, but fear was not what gripped him, just emotionless fatigue over having no control over his own destiny. Eric was beyond tired of being hated for things he may or may not do in a future that promised him nothing more than pain and despair. “If you’re all-knowing, eternally wise spirits, you have already decided that I’m too dangerous to be kept alive, so let’s just get on with it,” said Eric. “Let me sleep. Let me finally find peace at last.”

Wara smiled wickedly. “Soon enough, demon.” Eric froze as one of the spirits flew straight at him, then funneled into his forehead. It was the last thing he remembered.

* * *

At last, his eyes fluttered open. Eric sat up quickly, the memory of what had just happened still fresh in his thoughts. He got to his feet, reaching around in the darkness, trying to adjust his eyes. Slowly, his blurry vision began to function once more, and to his horror, he recognized where he was: that same lonely, shallow cave he had called home for a time. In a surge of panic, he stumbled toward the dimly lit entrance, running out onto the familiar stone platform.

He fell to his knees as lighting flashed across the blackened sky, heavy rain and hail bombarding his face. Slow, rumbling thunder echoed through the distant mountains, a bitter reminder of how far away he was from any sort of civilization. Tears rolling down his cheeks, blending in with the rain as angry fists pounded down into the muddy puddle repeatedly. “No, it can’t be,” he whispered to no one. He closed his eyes tightly, then covered his face with muddy hands. “I can’t be stranded here again. It’s not possible. It’s not fair.” Yet when he opened his eyes, the nightmare remained.

Eric got back to his feet and looked up. Jagged lighting split the starless sky as rain and hail continued pelting his face. “So this is how it ends,” he muttered, his tired voice lacking any life or emotion. He trudged across the platform, then stood at the edge with his toes hanging over the side. As he suspected, there looked to be no way down, just a pool of endless blackness as far as the eye could see. “I never did see how far this fall actually is. Perhaps the time has come.”
Jump, you useless fool. You’ve let everyone down, and yet you dare to think you deserve to live? Everyone will die because of your betrayal. Jade will die...your friends will die. The least you can do is be the first
.

Feeling the dark presence behind him, his lips curled back in a snarl, thoughts of his own demise quickly replaced by seething hatred. “You,” he growled as Spark awoke from its peaceful sleep, every inch of dark-red blade exploding into flame the moment it touched air. He turned slowly, holding the angry blade toward its potential meal, as fire pulsed across its edge in waves. He could almost hear it screaming...begging to feed.

The dark man stood perfectly still, nearly invisible while blending in with the darkness. A series of bright flashes revealed the dark, robed being for an instant, before the black of night all but swallowed him up once more. Broad shoulders shook with deep, booming laughter, before gray- skinned hands drew back its hood, revealing exactly what Eric feared...himself. His eyes were sunken in and colored a sickly yellow, while his facial skin was gray and cracked, like death had already taken him weeks earlier.

“So, does the mighty Gate Keeper plan to strike me down? That is who you are, correct? Do you still believe that to be true?” came the shrill, hissing voice before a thick, black, forked tongue slowly wiped across the beast’s forehead.

“Take a good look at my face, specter of death, for it’s the last time you will ever see it,” growled Eric. “Whether you die at the hands of the Gate Keeper or Eric Aethello is completely irrelevant. Your future as a corpse will change little.”

“I see you still doubt yourself,” shrieked the corpse. “The mighty Gate Keeper contemplates thoughts of suicide as he stands before his true self. I am strong and able, where you are weak and pathetic.” Eric slowly lowered his sword as his broad shoulders slumped as looked to the ground. “Oh, I see. I understand, mighty Gate Keeper. So tired, so very, very tired. This burden is simply too much for one man to carry.” The image of death glanced at the edge of the platform. “I know exactly what you’re thinking, and I believe your friends would also agree. Give me your life force, and I will gladly carry on in your place. After all, you are too weak to protect them. Too pitiful to protect...Jade.”

Eric listened to its booming laughter once more, his head low, eyes to the ground. His sword, which once roared with flames, now flickered like a dying torch. His fingers barely pinched the handle as the tip lay lightly on the ground. “True enough,” he mumbled like a shy child. “I am very tired. With each passing day, I find it more and more difficult to press on. I’ve considered taking my own life more than once, just to put an end to this misery, this suffering I never asked for.” He looked up at his corpse, the very symbol of everything his life was not. “However, I don’t think you know exactly what I’m thinking, as you so boldly claimed.” The smile faded from his dead image, and now appeared on Eric’s face as he strongly gripped his blade once more. Angry flames roared, sizzling against the rain as lighting flashed across the sky. “If you truly had...you would have run when you had the chance.”

Time slowed to a crawl as Eric exploded forward, his angry sword in hand roaring with dark red flames. Each footstep smashed into the ground, driving him hard toward this mockery of everything he believed in. His doubts, his fears, all rolled into this vile, despicable creature—an inferior, fabricated copy of himself, its every breath was an insult to mankind.

The sickly yellow eyes of his rotting twin widened with fear, and hairy gray hands found just enough time to rise in anticipation of his own demise. Its body jolted as it gasped one last breath, finding itself nose-to-nose with Eric. “But...but you need me,” the abomination gurgled, black blood running from its open mouth. “You can’t survive without me.”

Eric gripped his sword handle as the blade buried deep in the monster’s gut, clear up to the hilt. He twisted once, then again as the corpse dropped to both knees. Thick black blood pooled around them, darkening the rain puddles and staining the ground. “For once...we agree,” Eric whispered. “I do need you.” Eric opened his mouth impossibly wide, as if his lower jaw had somehow become unhinged. The dying being began to sparkle and shine. His rotting skin turned to glittering flecks, shimmering like golden dust. The tiny flakes flew into Eric’s mouth like a sandstorm of light, leaving nothing behind but an empty black cloak.

* * *

The waiting crowd gasped as Eric’s lifeless body, which hadn’t moved in an hour, suddenly levitated into the air. He let out an unworldly howl as his body floated several feet off the ground, head tipped back and arms straight out, as if crucified. “Eric!” Jade screamed, trying to run to him.

Kelus threw himself at her, tackling Jade from behind. “Don’t interrupt,” he said desperately. “For all we know, that might kill him. You must let him be.” With Kelus draped on her back, she watched from her knees with tears in her eyes as the spectacle continued.

Golden light poured from Eric’s mouth and eyes as he wailed again, an inhuman howl echoing through the forest. Everyone watched in panicked horror as blackened clouds began to churn and spin, making the sky look like the eye of a massive hurricane. Green lightning struck the platform to his left, followed by a golden bolt to his right. Smoking pieces of wood flew everywhere from the impact. Many from the crowd began to run away screaming, while others watched the supernatural show, too terrified to move.

The misty trails with human faces began to twist and streak around like shooting stars. One moaning face sailed right past Eric’s left arm, scorching his skin and leaving a deep black line. Jade screamed again as the sudden smell of burned flesh filled the air. All she could do was watch helplessly as another scorched her lover’s chest, leaving a similar black burn. Other spirits began to take turns firing across his body, leaving deep, black scorches before disappearing altogether. Eric’s body jolted and twitched with each searing attack. The bloodcurdling assault went on for minutes, until the last spirit finally vanished into a cloud of smoke.

Unlike the chaos mere seconds ago, it was now deathly quiet. Eric’s badly charred body fell limply to the platform with a hollow thud. Jade broke free of Kelus’s grasp and ran to his side, gently lifting his head to her lap. His shirt was completely burned away, fully exposing his nearly black upper body. She wailed shamelessly, rocking him back and forth. “Somebody help him. Someone...please!”

Chapter 12

Jacob kept his distance, moving in quick, short bursts whenever he was sure it was safe, then darting around the next tree. Athel was moving fast, making it very hard to follow in this fashion, but there really was no other choice. With her keen sight and sharp senses, he needed to stay hidden as much as possible.

With no supplies other than the new staff he acquired and the clothes on his back, he was hardly prepared to make any kind of long journey. Of course, he had no idea, when he set out after her, that he would be following Athel through the forest this morning. More than once he considered making his presence known, thinking it might be best to just get her attention, but always decided against it. Visions of her running off at a speed he couldn’t possibly follow haunted his thoughts. No, he would stay conservative this time, and stop her only when the time was right— only when she was calm, and there was some possibility she might actually listen to what he had to say.

Oftentimes he would drop down on his belly, lying hidden behind a tree. There he would wait patiently, peeking out around the trunk now and then, forced to use extreme caution that wouldn’t have been needed with anyone else…but Athel wasn’t just anyone these days. Whenever the winds began to swirl, he dropped low to the ground again, even holding his breath to help minimize the amount of scent being given off.

As far as he could tell, the drastic measures appeared to be working. On occasion she would turn back, then look around for a few seconds before moving on, but these were just normal displays of caution, and nothing that led him to believe she was on to him.
Don’t let her sense me, but more importantly, don’t let her out of my sight
. He glanced back toward the village.
I’ll find out what’s going on and bring her back, guys. Just give me a little more time
.

* * *

Morita wandered down the silvery halls, her usual grace all but gone, slouching low and dragging her feet as she sulked. Never in her life had she felt so small and insignificant. A woman of power and influence, she had been reduced to the rank of a commoner, at least in her own mind. Even wrapped in her blue, skintight silk dress, with her full red lips and long, flowing red hair, all her alluring qualities seemed to be gone. These insecure thoughts were all in her head, of course, and at least part of her knew that, but the logic did nothing to relieve her from the dark feelings of despair.