Changeless ( Sequel Of Timeless.)

Chapter 4

They had been walking through the forest for what seemed like forever. Damon was in the front, followed by Bonnie then Shane then Elena, with Caroline and Rebekah bringing up the rear. The magical fire burned across the dirt and leaves, lighting their path. The flames smoldered, winding between the rocks and trees, but didn't seem to burn anything in its wake. There was an odd violet quality to the flames, that made Caroline want to reach out and touch them, to see if they would burn her.

An owl hooted in the trees that created a canopy above them, hiding the stars and moon from view. It was quiet, except for the sound of their footsteps and Rebekah's occasional catty comments directed at Elena. Caroline thought about telling her to stop antagonizing everyone, but she could hear the nervous edge in the older vampire's remarks. At least the banter was a distraction from the weird feeling that seemed to increase the longer they continued along the glowing path.

Caroline's gaze kept darting from left to right as she walked. She just couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. The group paused when they came across a collection of skulls, lined up and planted atop tall spikes. Dried blood streaked across the gaping faces, webs covering their eye sockets like a veil. A brown spider crawled out from the mouth of one and scurried over the top of the head and disappeared.

"Oh, good," Damon muttered. "So I guess that means we're not alone on this island?"

"Did we really think we were?" Elena asked, adjusting the pack on her back.

"Let's all just keep an eye out," he answered, continuing forward.

Something snapped and Caroline's heart to jumped to her throat. The next thing she saw was Damon being dragged down and pulled up by a rope that had wrapped around his ankle. He jerked to a stop high above them, dangling from a treetop like a fish on a hook and grunting at the painful position.

"Damon!" Elena shouted.

"Stay back!" he yelled to them, waving his hands.

"Some sort of animal trap," Shane guessed, walking forward and inspecting the rope.

"Not just any trap," Damon groaned. "The rope is laced with vervain."

It reminded Caroline of the time she had fallen into the vervain pool in the woods, back in 1492. She glanced up at Damon's ankle and could see his skin sizzling where it touched the rope.

Shane pulled a thick knife out of his pack and handed it to Bonnie. "Cut him down while I hold the rope tight."

Rebekah, Elena, and Caroline stood back while the other two worked to free Damon. Caroline and Elena followed the path a bit further, noticing that it cut off at a sharp cliff, the other side about a fifteen foot jump away from them.

"Well there's our next obstacle," Elena said, kicking a bit of rock over the side of the cliff. It bounced down the side of the drop, the clacking sound growing distant as it fell into the ravine below.

"We can make the jump," Caroline reassured her.

"And carry Bonnie and Shane at the same time?"

Caroline glanced back at their two non-vampire comrades. She shrugged. "I don't see why not."

Rebekah came up next to them. "We've got to be close, right?"

"I hope so," Caroline said. "We've been following this path forever."

"I remember Alexander once telling me stories about the cure, before he was about to set off on his quest, before I realized he knew that my family and I were vampires. He told me everything, all of his secrets, and I later wondered why he revealed all of that information to me," Rebekah sighed. "I guess it was because he thought he had already won."