After our messages were sent, both Rachel and I swiftly dissolved our mental connection. Although I wanted to take every precaution, I was confident that the new cloaking abilities we had would mask that small surge of power. The real test would be when the four other mystics approached this location, and our powers surged as we got closer to one another. Despite this thought, for the first time in a long time, I felt a strong sense of relief knowing that my group was on their way. We all might be heading into certain death at the hands of Chaos and his cult, but at least we would be reunited, and fighting them together.
Soon after I had mentally reached out to Rachel, Kate appeared, and asked us all to resume our same spots at the refreshed tables. After we did so, she told us that she had a special surprise for us. Just by looking at her face, and the faces of the other older cultists standing around us, I knew that something significant was about to happen. Kate then told us that it was her honor to present our next speaker and that, regardless of our excitement, we were to remain seated. And as she directed all our attention to one of the corridor entrances, he finally walked into the hall, and all the cultists and new members alike, exploded into deafening shouts and applause. I felt my jaw hanging open. There he was—Billy Ranter himself.
I would recognize Billy anywhere. After he had disappeared, and his journal was eventually found, his face was everywhere. And while he looked a little older, he still had a boyish face. He was smiling widely and waving at all the new members—who could barely contain themselves. Billy was wearing jeans and a tucked in, collared shirt, and after walking up to Kate and hugging her, he turned and addressed the hall full of cheering people. As I looked at all the cultists and new members around me, it was obvious that they were enraptured by Billy’s presence. His journal, and his story, was what they identified with, and what made them take interest in the cult in the first place. He was not just a celebrity to them—he was their star.
After the cheers and applause eventually died down, Billy confidently shouted “Glory to The Chaos of the Five,” which everyone in the hall immediately shouted back. It was obvious that Billy had completely assimilated into the cult and was thrilled to be here.
Billy then congratulated all of us on a job well done and welcomed us to this final graduation of sorts. He was jovial, and even funny, and joked about how our experiences might have been “a little different” from what he had described in his journal. Everyone in the hall laughed. If I didn’t know his story, I would have thought that he was nothing more than a well-adjusted, energetic young man, doing a job that he loved. After making several more jokes—one of which was about how he liked the cult’s chefs, but that their meals tended to be a little furry—he went on to say how the cult had changed his life for the better, and how he loved worshipping and offering sacrifices to Chaos and the five sisters. The new members seemed to be in awe of Billy and could not believe that they were in the same room with him, and although his speech sounded energetic, to my not-addicted ears, it also sounded a little rehearsed. Like he had said these same words, and these same jokes, to every group of new members that passed The Tests. Regardless, I cheered and laughed along with everyone else, and acted like I was hanging on his every word.
After Billy had finished his performance, and received a tidal wave of cheers, he got quiet for a moment. All the older cultists seemed to follow his lead and became calm and solemn as well. Suddenly, the same jolt of mystic energy flooded through my body, and I strained not to let it show. Billy, now with tears in his eyes, began to introduce the legend who he said had literally saved his life from being a meaningless and ultimately useless existence. As I glanced around, all the other older cultists also had tears in their eyes, while the new members looked like they had stopped breathing altogether. As his voice broke, and rivers of tears flowed down his face, Billy introduced Chaos to the hall of worshippers. Unlike when Billy had made his entrance, this time, the entire hall was as quiet as a tomb.
At first, all eyes, including my own, looked toward the same corridor that Billy had entered from, and I expected to see Chaos walk into the hall in the same manner. That, however, did not happen. Soon, all the new members were looking around, as Billy and the older cultists all looked up at the stone faces of the five sisters.
Along with the rest of the hall, I looked up at the statues, and saw that they all seemed to be crying. What looked like thick, dark blood was trickling down their stone faces. After a moment, the trickle of blood-tears flowed more heavily, streaming down all the statues, and pooling on the floor of the hall. The pool of dark blood instantly became larger, until the streams running down the statues stopped flowing. The blood-pool then began to bubble—like molten tar—until it slowly started to twist, and lift off the floor, into the air. The churning tar quickly formed itself into a humanoid shape, until its consistency suddenly changed, and a white face slowly emerged from the black cloak it was hidden under. And there he was—Chaos himself. The pale white demon was standing in front of us, bald, and almost luminescent in his pallor, exactly as Billy Ranter’s journal had described. His eyes were dark and still, and he hardly moved. I had to admit—it was a good entrance.
And as the demon slowly and silently walked next to Billy, all the new members seated at the tables next to me seemed to lose what little was left of their minds. Unlike when they had seen Billy enter, many of them began crying uncontrollably, and let out loud, guttural sobs that echoed all around the hall. Many of the new members, despite their recent injuries, began to spontaneously punch each other, causing even more damage to their already battered bodies. Many people’s eyes rolled back in their heads, as they repeatedly slammed their faces into the tables in front of them. After a while, all the new members simply began to scream at the top of their lungs, not with expressions of cheer or joy, but with piercing wails that sounded like they were in horrendous pain. And even though I was screaming along with them, it was truly a disturbing sight to see.
As I glanced at the older cultists, while they seemed to be silently emotional at Chaos’s presence, they were still very controlled, and were nowhere near as dramatic as all the new members. I assumed that my colleagues’ fanatical reaction was a direct result of all the days of poisoned bread and cursed music. Or perhaps, it was the effect that Chaos had on people when they were first exposed to him. Either way, the screaming lasted for some time. It was not the reaction of seeing a celebrity, or a star. It was the reaction of seeing, what to them, was the divine.
Eventually, the pale demon cloaked in black slowly stepped forward. All the new members suddenly fell silent, before Chaos himself issued a piercing shriek that was almost deafening. Everyone seated around me seemed stunned and frozen. We all watched as Chaos momentarily covered his head with his cloak, only to reveal a completely different face when the cloak fell away. All the new members gasped, as the pale, bald demon’s head was now gone, and was replaced by the head and face of a very ruggedly handsome man. He had brown hair, tanned skin, and looked like he was in his thirties. And as he gazed back at all of us, he flashed a bright, devious smile, and spoke in a deep, warm voice. “My name is Chaos,” the handsome man said, with a light, unfamiliar accent, and a slight bow of his head, “And I am so honored to be here with all of you.”
Along with the rest of the new members, I too looked on in shock. I had no idea Chaos could change his form. I had only known him as the pale, demonic figure he was described as, in everything I had studied about him.
The man continued to gaze at the stunned new members of his cult, as they looked back at him in complete adoration. And as I observed his smiling, almost playful demeanor, I felt strong waves of energy coming from him. Not just from his incredible power, which I was also feeling in droves, but from his actual appearance. Although this form was handsome, whether or not it was his original form, his effect on everyone in the hall was mesmeric, and I felt my mind become hazy just looking at him. I was certain that his very appearance had been enchant
ed to charm and seduce. And although I wanted to use my own powers to shield myself, I did not want to risk him sensing a surge in the room’s energy—even if I was already cloaked from him.
Chaos continued speaking in a warm, generous manner, and congratulated all the new members for completing their training. He constantly looked at everyone around the hall and seemed to be connecting with every person there. He then went on to thank Billy Ranter, Kate, and all the older cultists for their hard work and dedication, and sincerely voiced his appreciation for them.
It was obvious that Chaos had everyone in the palm of his hand. They were utterly, and completely, captivated. If not for the enchantments that I already had on myself to make me immune to the honey bread and music, I would have been much more affected by his enhanced aura as well.
Chaos then went on to energetically speak about how proud he was of all his followers, and how much he genuinely loved and respected them. He reiterated that it was his honor to be able to share this momentous night with us, and he knew that we were all in service to a cause for the greater good, and for the overall benefit of mankind. What I got from Chaos’s speech— what he was making sure to be very clear about—was how much he truly loved humanity. He did not judge us. He accepted and celebrated us for everything that we were. He then concluded by saying that on behalf of himself and the five sisters, he wanted to once again thank us for our service. Chaos then solemnly turned to the five statues, and with tears brimming in his eyes, shouted “Glory to The Chaos of the Five!” Everyone in the hall enthusiastically repeated the same chant back to him, as our tears flowed freely down our faces.
Chaos was about to say something more, when he suddenly stopped cold, and didn’t move. At almost that exact same moment, I felt the presence of my colleagues nearby, and the mystic energies inside me began to surge and increase dramatically.
Right at that moment, I felt waves of energy erupt from Chaos, and I knew that he was about to make his escape. Despite our new cloaking enchantments, he must have felt the sudden swell of mystic energy and sensed that we were near.
Chaos had suddenly become semitransparent and was starting to fade from view. But before he could teleport away, I jumped up from the bench I was seated on and started shouting the powerful enchantment that would temporarily bind him to this location. As long as the enchantment held, he would not be able to teleport from this area. And as I finished shouting the incantation, a burst of rippling silver energy flashed from my outstretched arms, and blasted Chaos square in the chest, causing him to instantly become visible again. Everyone around me looked shocked, and the older cultists and new members alike, were looking at me in bewilderment. But despite their surprise, no one looked as shocked as Chaos, as he stared at me in open disbelief. And as I could feel more waves of tremendous energy practically pulsating from him, I knew that he was repeatedly trying to teleport away, but with no result. In that moment, no matter what happened next, I knew that the main purpose of my job was done. If not for my being right under Chaos’s nose, he would have easily escaped. But now, he was forced to face us.
As if on cue, the four other mystics flew in from the open windows, but since only Rachel and Linda could levitate, they were holding on to Katherine and Steve. All four of them were dressed in regular dark clothes and sturdy boots, while Steve had a fitted sweater on, with the hood covering his hair and forehead. And as my four friends entered the hall, I felt the mystic energy in me spike even more, as renewed energy flowed though me. And as Katherine and Steve landed on the stone floor of the hall, Rachel and Linda remained hovering. Even though I knew that they could feel the immense energy coming from Chaos, I still sent my thoughts toward Rachel and the other mystics, telling them that the immortal had changed his demonic appearance, and that he was the cloaked man standing below the statues. For a few seconds, no one in the hall seemed to move, until finally, my friends and I rushed toward the charismatic demon.
As I leapt in front of the table, toward Chaos, I could see that he was no longer stunned, as a playful smile broke out on his face. The next thing I knew, a wall of such forceful energy burst out from him, that I felt myself flying backwards in the air. I had barely managed to instinctively block his attack with a blast of my own energy, which lessened the blow considerably. A moment later, I felt someone catch me in midair. They had grabbed me under my arms and lifted me high up into the hall. After catching the breath that had been knocked out of me, I could see long red locks of hair hanging near the side of my face, and I knew that Rachel had caught me. If I hadn’t shielded myself from Chaos in time, the sheer force of his attack would have probably crushed me. I reminded myself that even though he preferred to simply evade us, and not bother battling, it was not because he didn’t have the power to do so. In fact, my collogues and I had planned this battle, knowing that we would probably not survive. And even in the best-case scenario, we knew we could not destroy him. The best we could hope for was to temporarily weaken him and do anything we could to lessen the turmoil he was causing.
Rachel and I remained hovering above the tables, as Chaos began laughing hysterically, his high-pitched shrieking instantly filling the entire hall. As I looked down at the cultists, they all seemed to be getting increasingly agitated and enraged, and began screaming and screeching, mimicking their master’s inhuman wails. Within a few moments, all the cultists had been worked up into a bloodthirsty frenzy. Chaos then stopped his wailing and commanded his followers to defend him against the four other mystics and me, stating that his own fate, and that of the seasons, were in danger.
Half the enraged cultists swarmed at Steve and Katherine, who were on the ground, while the other half rushed protectively around Chaos. Several of the demon’s minions had lifted one of the benches and were swinging it at Rachel and I like a huge bat. As I glanced behind me, I saw several of Chaos’s henchmen hurling the thick candles from the tables at Linda, as she remained hovering in the air. Her head of short blonde hair quickly jerked out of the way, as several heavy candles almost hit her square on.
Amid the deafening mayhem, I heard Rachel’s thoughts in my mind. I mentally agreed with her plan, as she broadcasted it to Linda, Katherine, and Steve. Rachel and I, in many ways the two most powerful of the group, would take on Chaos, while the other three tried to handle his supporters. A moment later, Rachel and I were flying swiftly toward the demon, who was still positioned in front of the five statues.
Rachel, still lifting me from under my arms, started to chant under her breath. I tightened my grip on her forearms, and began to chant with her, so that our powers could combine. We then simultaneously directed our energy toward the wall of followers that had formed around Chaos. In an instant, many of the cultists fell limply to the floor, in a deep, enchanted sleep—but nowhere near as many as I thought would, especially since we had combined our powers. I had to assume that Chaos’s dark energy was lessening the potency of our own.
I asked Rachel to stop in midair, so that we could combine our powers once again. I felt our combined energy running through me, as a sphere of loud, blue, crackling energy surrounded us. A second later, a blinding beam of electricity shot out from the sphere, and hit Chaos in the chest, slamming him against one of the heavy statues. Several of his defenders screamed with fury, and started leaping onto the tables, before trying to jump high enough to grab us, and drag us down to them. Chaos steadied himself in front of the statue but did not look hurt or damaged at all. The electric blast we had just used was enough to instantly kill about fifty men.
As I watched Chaos, all he did was stare back at us from where he was standing. And as I caught his eye, I immediately knew that Rachel was about to drop me into the bloodthirsty mob below me. She had always been threatened by me. After all, we were the two most powerful mystics in our group, and now she wanted that position all to herself. This was the perfect opportunity; she would just drop me, let the cultists kill me, and say it was an accident.
I started yelling at
Rachel and told her that if she was going to get rid of me, then I was going to drag her down with me. I began to chant under my breath and had released one hand that was holding onto Rachel’s forearm. With enchanted inhuman strength, I used my newly free hand, grabbed her by the throat, and started to choke her. I suddenly felt my mind being blasted with so much of Rachel’s mental energy that I let go of her throat and shouted in pain. A moment later, I was once again thinking rationally. Rachel then grabbed my free arm and steadied us in the air. Chaos had flooded me with so much doubt and paranoia that I had tried to strangle her! After making sure that we were unharmed by one another’s attacks, I felt as Rachel summoned all her telepathic energy—her specialty—and mind-blasted the wall of cultists surrounding the immortal. The swarm directly around Chaos all screamed and grabbed at their heads, before falling heavily to the floor.
I heard several of the demon’s protectors yell from the back of the hall, and I turned to see Katherine, with her shoulder length black hair, blast the mob around her with the bright beams of force that were erupting from her eyes. Her force-blasts were sending large groups of followers flying off their feet and smashing into one another. Near her, Linda had definitely augmented her own physical strength, and was swooping down toward the cultists who were attacking Steve. She then easily lifted many of them off the ground, all at once, and effortlessly hurled them against the wall. Steve, however, twisted and bent his unusually thin body, before leaping off the ground with remarkable strength. He landed high against the stone wall nearest him, well out of the mob’s reach. Sticking to the wall like a spider, Steve then speedily made his way to the front of the room, toward Chaos.
It Took Billy Page 13