The Raven And The Wraith (Completed!)

Chapter 19

The Wraith
Chapter 19

I had never felt such a sense of dread, under the gaze of these beings who were formed directly from the essence of despair and hopelessness. I felt my cheerful smile falter, felt my waving hand go limp. Felt my muscles sagging down under the crushing weight of apathy so deep, so complete, I knew even my heart would no longer feel the need to beat.

I was barely conscious as I slid off my perch. The impact with the stone floor of the cave was lessened somewhat by the curve of the floor, but it also served to accelerate me across the floor, transforming my downward energy into horizontal energy.

I slid right up the the feet of the outer-most ring of DraelWar, lying on my back, gazing upwards with eyes that were losing the will to even process what I was seeing. The DrealWar silently surrounded me, a smoothly flowing river of purest blackness, forming rings upon rings around me. Staring at me with their empty eyes. Consuming me.

My final, fading thought was a single realization. I was dying. That was followed by purest apathy. I no longer cared if I lived or died. But my mind nagged me with one more thought. If I died, Genevieve would die. Keira would die.

I felt a spark rise up inside, pushing back that swallowing emptiness. I cared if they lived or died. I had to live!

I sprang to my feet, my eyes wild, and immediately gave the nearest DrealWar a vicious spin-kick. It's head snapped to the side and it stumbled back, lifting its arms in feeble defense. I was bolstered by this, and launched myself into a whirlwind of attacks, spinning wildly, delivering kicks and spinning-elbow strikes all about. Knocking the DrealWar back.

I saw a burst of color every time I struck one. I saw it come from my fists and feet and elbows and knees. I understood, then, that I wasn't exactly physically striking these things. I was instead hitting them with my will to live. I was hitting them with my focus, my determination, my optimism.

They rallied, hundreds of them flinging themselves bodily on me. I felt the colors of my fury spike higher than ever at their violating touch, and I threw my hands up in a "V" and screamed out my rage. There was a multi-hued lightning storm, then, blasting out from the center of my chest, and the ceiling far overhead echoed that storm. It tore the DrealWar apart, tossing them out of sight, spinning and tumbling in the air like so much shredded rag dolls.

The bursts of color overhead gathered into one glowing, burning point, directly above me. I felt the emotions of my entire life rising up inside. A tidal wave with no limits, stretching out far past my comprehension. I felt life itself burning brightly inside of me, tied intrinsically with those emotions. I felt more alive than I could ever remember.

It kept rising. The point of colorful power glowing far overhead kept flaring hotter and brighter, lifting up until it lit the entire massive cave with its power. In the middle of the room, that glowing, flickering red liquid began to writhe, to thrash in obvious agony. It was shrinking by the second, the color storm of power glowing in the cave, glowing in my chest, crushing it. Burning it. Ending it.

Then it raised itself up, slipping out of the shallow hole it was in, forming itself into the shape of a man. Stalking towards me with such raw hatred enveloping it that I staggered back, falling to my knees in abject terror.

It's face was shifting constantly. Moving rapidly from one face to another. Familiar faces. All fourteen of The Council. Ravaging the very air with the totality of their hatred for me. For all that I represented.

I remembered Genevieve. I remembered how The Council had captured her. How they had enslaved her. Trying to use her to enslave me. Torturing her beyond imagination by making her try to hurt me.