Twilight Bridge: Immersion (Volume 1)

Chapter 23: Lies and Kindness

On the battleground, the dark gigantic monster kept on shooting blasts in every direction as the glaive pressed on.
"Don't give him a chance to hit you!" one glaive shouted.
"Show him hell!" Frankie charged.
"Petra, stab his freakin' eyes!" Aksel said.
Hearing his suggestion, the gothic girl directed her floating knives towards the monster's glowing eyes. "HAAAYAH!" she yelled.

~FLINN!
~Scratch!

"Ghuaah!" the monster retracted for a second.
After regaining it's balance, the dark creature change its strategy. It generated a forcefield sphere in its hand while hanging it high. And as it slowly descended, the demonic dark monster caused the sphere to explode into the ground.

~KA-BOOM!

"WHAAA—!"

"EVERYBODY, FALL BACK!" a glaive yelled helplessly as most of the ones who got caught in the attack go incinerated. "It's getting more powerful! You might lose your life!"
"This— is not good.." Carmen hopelessly cried.
"Are we gonna run..?" Aksel dropped his baseball bat down. The world around him seemed dying in ruin.
But there was one person who didn't want to back down. "No way—" she managed to stand on her feet.
"But, Petra—!" Carmen tried to say.
"Running away would be means betraying all those who gave their precious lives to us.." Petra's hands started to glow bright white, covered by light aura. "Rex told us to save Maplewood. So, this thing needs to die!"
The giant monster had begun charging its forcefield sphere as everyone backed away. Petra was alone, the only one who stood facing it. She put her hands together, and a small sphere of bright energy started gradually growing between her palms.
The dark monster charged its attack as the destructive sphere fell down upon Petra and the others.

~Grrrrrrrrr!

"You're going down!" yelled Petra as the energy sphere within her hands was about to blow up. "HAAAAAAAA!!"

~Chaaarrrr!

Petra blasted the bright white energy against the deadly monster's rein. And in a fraction of second, both attacks clashed and began pushing on each other.

~BAAAAAM!

But deep down in the pitch black space, Jaden was still in a shock from what his eyes were looking at. It was impossible to grasp! The demonic monster with its metamorphic appendages, and deceptive mind tricks, grinned back at him with Safi's face.
Jaden's hung body remained still as though it was devoid of life.
"..How could this be..?" he mumbled.
"So, now— Mado," the demon's voice echoed. "Do you know 'hurt' ?"
"This is way too far!" he replied. "You took her memories, snooped through her feelings, and now— you stole her face?!"
"But, I didn't steal anything. All of this is her true feelings. I'm just making it show.." the demonic vocals started to get mixed with Safi's. All what Jaden heard were the faint echo of her voice.
"Stop.." he uttered. "Safi would never think of me like that.."
"Oh, but she does!" the demon replied. "The memories can't tell lies. Those are her true intentions! But you—"
The demon grinned, "You're just incapable of facing it!"
That's true, he thought. I'm incapable of doing anything. I won't be able to protect her smile. I'm not that sorta hero who saves the day and sweeps the girl off of her feet. I'm just a person! I get scared— of a lot of things! This world, the real world, the people, and myself— I'm not sure of anything...
"You're just horrible for a human..." the demon continued. "Simply by thinking your so called kindness is inconsequential, you keep on catching hearts, and then put them on hold.."
"You know nothing about me!.." Jaden barked.
"I do.. In fact, I coursed through your memories as well.." it responded in calm tone. "I know exactly what you're thinking. 'Why can't she fall for someone else? Kamal, Suhail, Majd, anyone else who would do it'..!"
"..Shut.. up!.." Jaden tried shaking himself off the piercing thorns.
"You're afraid, Mado! Afraid that you will do the same thing all over again.." the demon taunted. "If you'd end up opening up, you'll hurt her— just like that someone! What was her name, I wonder.."
"Shut up!.." Jaden kept on rocking his body even harder.
"Mari, wasn't it?" the demon's double pitched voice rang hard inside his ears. "Hehehehe!"
"SHUT UP, YOU DEMON!!" Jaden shouted in pain. His arms and legs were bleeding as he pushed through.