by C. J. Lloyd
An earth-shattering boom swept them away.
What the hell was that? Violet felt pieces of the castle batter her body. She was able to get up a shield to take most of the damage. She tried to stand but couldn’t move. But from her insides, she felt the overwhelming crushing weight of misery, despair, and hatred.
This power, this wave of endless madness, was so much worse than London. It was even worse than Boston. It was frightening and debilitating. She couldn’t imagine darkness having so much density. Her face and entire body were being pressed into the sand.
This power … It had to be Elric. In a way, Violet hoped it was.
Chapter 25
Back from the Dead
Like a frail lifeless doll, Violet lay out on the black sand, thankful it wasn’t concrete or cobblestone. The grains embraced her body like a cushion as she took short breaths. She hated for Terra, Eden, and Jen to see her this way. Paralyzed by fear, consumed by desolation.
Raindrops landed on her face and hands, warm like sweat and black like the sand. She wondered how rain could be such a color. What horror or pain brought the world to cry such tears? Her insides quivered, and with all her might, she turned her face toward the castle from where the thunderous uproar spawned.
“I can’t move. What about you guys?” she asked, still unable to see anyone in the darkness that settled.
Eden groaned. “I’m good.”
“I–I think I’m good too, just this heaviness,” Terra answered.
“I’m good, Violet,” Jennifer replied.
“Rai, are you alright?”
“This sucks,” Rai’s internal voice came out as a moan.
A powerful gust of wind blew the darkness over the ocean, throwing away the concealment Calamity had over them. Eden knelt with his hands out, his face beet-red and sweating as his body shook.
Violet watched as he struggled to his feet, his blue eyes glaring over a massive hole that ripped the castle’s front open. Violet shook her head, barely able to breathe. What kind of attack was that?
Violet threw her hand toward Eden and teleported him by her side.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey, you alright?” he asked, breathing heavily. Sweat saturated his hair, and sand clumped to the short strands. His pants and shirt were torn and mingled in such a way it looked like he survived a battle with some horrible beast.
She raised a brow and forced a smile, panting. “If getting my ass kicked by some super-powered being is alright, I’m the cat’s meow.”
“Look. Jennifer.” He nodded to the beach where Jennifer stood staring at something.
Violet could see the glint in her eyes dancing even from a distance. The concerning part was Violet didn’t feel a bit of Jen’s hope and warmth. It was drowned out by the horrid cold and mercilessness of the dark spewing from the massive hole in the castle. And worst of all, Violet saw that darkness spewing over the sand like a river.
A trembling Calamity clutched a corner of the castle as she pulled herself up. Her whole left side had been peeled away, showing the inner workings of the muscles in her left arm. Violet could see her ribs and thigh bone, the damage slowly healing. She didn’t know whether to be overjoyed or frightened that such an attack did that to the creature they struggled against.
Violet watched nervously, gripping her chest with each passing breath. Calamity had a horrific expression on her face, and her eyes fixed on the same gaping hole that stole Jennifer’s focus from the battle.
The black rain calmed, and the thundering of the clouds silenced. The heaviness broke way, but just enough for Violet to gain whatever composure she could muster. This power, it was frightening. And it wasn’t coming from Calamity.
Eden helped her up. “Can you move on your own?”
“Barely,” Violet said, trying to catch her breath as she stood. “I just don’t understand. What did that to her?” she asked, watching Calamity closely.
Rai and Terra limped over, holding each other up. Violet changed her focus to healing the three of them. Whatever was coming, she needed to make sure that the most powerful ones on the island fighting to protect the world had all the strength they needed.
Everyone’s focus was on that hole.
“Jen, come over here with us,” Violet called to her, but Jen didn’t budge. She appeared frozen. Astonished.
“What was that?” Calamity shrieked into the darkness. “Who’s there?”
A scraping shuffle echoed from the blackness. There was something alive in there. Violet bunched her eyebrows, trying to sense life, but the negative energy was too heavy and too cold. Her belly burned with such intensity that she dropped to the floor.
The black scar Elric gave her back in New York bulged and pulsed just below her belly. Just what was it? Violet shook as the others tried to help comfort her. She could feel her thoughts giving way as depression and grief crept in. She felt worthless, hopeless, and defeated. And an awful knowing gripped her spirit. A knowing that they would all die today.
“Does anyone see that? Like something glowing in the darkness?” Rai asked.
From the ground, Violet searched harder, catching a glimpse of burning red dots, flickering eerily in the blackness. They were those horrible crimson red eyes, filled with despair and hatred. Elric’s eyes.
“It couldn’t be,” Violet said.
Eden’s gaze shook with surprise. “It’s him? Elric?”
Violet squinted into the blackness. The steps were louder, and the echoing faded as a clawed toe stepped on a block of stone. It wasn’t human by any means. Not even a foot but more of a black scaly talon. A clawed hand matching the same texture of the talon grabbed onto the side of the hole as a figure stepped out with large and black bat-like wings.
Even through the long black hair parting down the creature’s shoulders, Violet could see those awful eyes. The base of his neck down was comprised completely of jet-black scales, giving it a leathery texture, and pulsing with streaks of red throughout.
Horns stuck out from the sides of Elric’s head, but they were nothing like Calamity’s. These were more prominent and intimidating. Large, sharpened spines sprouted from his forearms, and the little bits of human skin that remained were white as snow.
The skin on Elric’s face hung loosely around his eyes with bulging black veins that connected to his sockets. He pushed a few strands over one horn, revealing more of the drastic changes. Violet gulped as she focused. The whites of his eyes were completely black, and his pupils were slit very thin.
He stepped onto the large stone that fell from the castle and turned in Calamity’s direction. The talons crushed the block into powder.
“So, you opened the final door,” Calamity said, sounding as though she fought back a nervous tremble. “Doesn’t matter. You and your friends are dead anyway.”
“If you believed that, I wouldn’t feel so much desperation wafting from you.” Elric’s voice was intertwined with a deeper grumbling, but the undertone was his, soft and calm.
“This isn’t good,” Rai whispered. “Mizzy says his Deva has a lot more influence now.”
Calamity kept talking. “You actually pulled it off. You have control over the beast?”
Elric didn’t reply.
His eyes glowed intensely, and black smoke poured from his nostrils and between his teeth as he exhaled. He stretched his arms out as his muscles and joints popped. His body, covered in blackened scales, was still defined and muscular, revealing a bare chest that kept its human features. The scar Violet left him with was still noticeable but pale like the rest of his remaining human skin.
Violet was silent and noticed not even Eden said anything.
The only one who seemed unbothered was Jen who said, “It’s about time you came out. You’ve been hiding long enough.”
“I don’t think this is the time to be poking fun,” Eden whispered to Violet nervously.
Elric murmured in a low voice, “It’s been a long time coming, but it’s time
for my destiny to come to fruition.”
Violet swallowed hard, fearing to ask. “And what’s that?”
“To destroy you and all other worthless life on this planet. Then I’ll cover it in darkness.”
Rai swallowed. “Well, I didn’t think his thoughts of saving the world could get any darker, but there you have it.”
Violet prepared for an attack. She could feel everyone around her powering up; even Calamity’s rancid power sprung to life. Elric was long gone now. Nothing that remained resembled the boy she once saw as a little brother.
Jennifer chuckled as she looked down at her hands. The light sparkled around her body. “Elric, remember back in school, before the portals, how shy and fragile you were?”
Elric glared with a cold, melancholic expression. He tightened his claws, releasing a wave of darkness that blew a horrendous wind all around them. It wasn’t crushing like before. Instead, it felt like he’d pulled that power from a bottomless pit.
Even with her locks wrapping around her shoulders, Jennifer continued.
“I thought I would always have to fight your battles until you started growing up. Then I realized you were fighting both our battles,” Jen said as a tear rolled down her chin. “As tough as I acted when we were growing up, you always saw through it because you knew me, the real me.”
Calamity yelled over the dying wind, “It doesn’t matter what you say, girl. The boy you knew is dead and gone. I killed that boy and from the ashes, I molded a knight of darkness. My knight. Elric, come, help me destroy this world and together! We can be one with Legion. We can be gods!”
“Look at how weak and pitiful you are.” Elric focused on Calamity. “I followed your orders, and then you attacked me? You’re garbage. Complete worthless, garbage.”
“How dare you talk to me like that, how dare—”
“You knew the risk of helping me control my powers, but your greed to control me was too much to care.” His voice was calm but condescending. “This Legion and my grandfather? I’m coming for them too since it sounds like they released you upon this world to wreak havoc.”
Violet listened, wondering how much Elric knew about Legion, but now his grandfather too? Lost and confused in the turmoil of it all, she tried to piece it all together.
“So proud.” Calamity sneered. “Just like your ancestors. That pride is the Achilles heel of every dark vessel. Don’t let your title of Titan consume you. That was a name given by humanity. None of us know real power. Power so frightening, you … Never mind,” she said, shaking her head. “You all die here, now!”
Calamity bolted toward Elric, raising a clawed hand. She had a dozen black streams over her shoulders, ready to skewer anything that moved.
Violet didn’t have time to breathe or say anything. Before Calamity could take another stride and her hoof-like feet hit the sand, Elric grabbed Calamity’s arm. It didn’t even have a chance to come down. With the slight wave of his hand, there was a wet crack.
Calamity jumped back in fear, holding a stub that dripped with black fluid. Elric gripped her dismembered arm in his claws.
“What just happened?” Eden asked with his mouth hanging open.
Violet wished she could explain it herself.
Calamity’s eyes widened. “How dare you. How dare you!” she screeched, looking on in disbelief. “You, a mere child, have no right to touch me, let alone harm me. You are nothing.”
Elric tossed the arm to the side with a blank expression.
Violet’s powers intensified because of Elric’s lack of emotion. What would he do to them if he could do this to Calamity? She watched as Elric sauntered toward Calamity.
“Get back!” Calamity launched a blast of energy toward him.
He smacked it out of the way with ease. The blast landed over the horizon of the island and unleashed an explosion that sent a shock wave through the entire area.
“That fear,” he said, “it’s similar to Blight’s when I killed him. He knew he was powerless against me and that his time had come.”
Calamity’s arm regenerated, piercing through the stub. She clenched her hands tightly and looked at Elric with a smile. “You think you’re strong? You’ll never be stronger than me. It’s impossible. You only own a little over half of that Deva’s power. You’re nothing but a brat with issues.”
Violet watched as black smoke poured from Elric’s mouth. Calamity attacked again as the two powers collided, slashing away at one another.
The island rippled and jumped. The ocean waves thrashed, and Violet felt blind without the ability to sense anything else but Elric’s overpowering darkness. She called out to the group. “Look, we need to figure something out. Should we back Elric up or not?”
“Honestly,” Terra replied, her voice soft, “it looks like he’s doing good all by himself. I’m more concerned about if he kills her. Then what?”
From Elric’s last statement about his plans for the world, everything was pretty clear. “Everyone, including Jen, come to me. We need to be ready to go!”
Jen crawled over, covering her face in protection against the swirling sand. Violet formed a purple dome around them, protecting everyone from the forces outside. She began healing Jen. Rai, Eden, and Terra were already good to go.
“Ready?” Violet asked.
Rai rubbed her arms. “Like ditching this place and running?”
Violet looked back at the others. “No, like getting ready to fight. I’m not leaving this place until we’re done. Understood?”
Eden gave Violet a terse nod. “Yes, ma’am.”
“I hadn’t planned on going anywhere anyway,” Jennifer said, watching the battle unfold outside the purple dome.
Calamity crashed through the castle. Violet and the others watched her fly past the dome, skimming across the sand and landing a few yards away.
She rose, her long black hair a mess and her body covered in black wounds that seemed to barely heal anymore. “I’ll end this right now.”
A black lightning bolt fell on top of her. She released the blast, the intensity high enough to melt her own flesh away. Her hair flowed wildly as she glared with anger and determination.
Elric didn’t move.
A hand-sized black hole that absorbed the lightning formed in the palm of his hand. Sparks snapped around him as strands of his hair rose but settled down onto his shoulders. Calamity dropped to her knees as smoke rose from her body.
Elric pointed with a long black claw, releasing a swirling beam of blackness that pierced right through Calamity’s chest. She fell to the side and curled up in pain, fighting to breathe. Her appearance changed, going back to her previous human form.
Calamity laughed. “I can’t move.” She clenched at the large hole in her chest. “I would have never thought I could feel so much hatred toward an individual as much as I do you, Elric Blake.”
She coughed up a glob of black fluid.
He raised a clawed hand toward her. “Thanks for getting me to this level, but you’re useless to me now.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter. Everything’s already in motion.” She crawled to her feet, holding the hole in her chest as it closed.
“Tell me more about Legion,” Elric demanded.
Violet focused on his words, remembering Calamity’s talkativeness. Legion.
“I’m nothing in comparison, nothing but a fly on the wall, Elric, and so are you. This world is nothing. The only interesting bits were you and her.” Calamity turned to the dome, pointing at Jennifer. “They will come. If you know what’s good for you, destroy this world, kill off everyone, and Legion will welcome you into their ranks like they did your grandfather.”
Elric spat on the ground. He thought about these beings of power, and wondered for a moment as to why his grandfather joined him. “Where are they?”
Calamity shook her head. “In a place, a universe known as Oblivion, on a world where the only life-giving light is the blood moon. A world where monstrosities loom and thrive
, and human flesh is a delicacy. Limbo,” she cooed. “Legion resides there.”
Eden yelled down from the dome. “Who the hell is Legion, and what does he want?”
“Not he. They.”
“Doesn’t matter to me,” Elric replied.
The heaviness returned. Sand rushed over the purple dome, strengthening it, and so did a massive wave of water. Violet could feel Terra and Rai struggling to support her and the shield she created. Violet wanted to stop Elric; she wanted to know more. Who were they? What exactly was Legion?
A thunderous crash fell over them as Elric and Calamity fell into a crater, a massive sphere of energy formed in his hand. The water, the sand, and the purple energy were ripped away amidst a howling wind.
Rai covered her face. “We need to get the hell out of here. This is too much.”
Violet shook her head. She knew if they left, Elric would take off and who knew where he would go? They had to stay and fight. “We can’t. We’re the world’s last hope, right?”
She looked down at the massive crater, at the dark energy forming in Elric’s hand. Calamity did the same as her flesh began flaking away. There wasn’t a bead of sweat on Elric’s face. Calamity had Violet and the others against the ropes. She clashed with all of them, including Jen. How was it possible? How was he getting stronger with every conflict and with every encounter? Violet tightened her fists.
“Jen,” Violet called.
She turned, her long locks flailing over her shoulder. “Yeah?”
“You have the power to protect us from this. Darkness can’t overpower the light. I know it. Only you can protect us. We can help support you, but at the end of the day, it’s you. You understand?”
Jennifer swallowed. She looked down at Elric and back at them. “I got it.” She closed her eyes, and an aura of golden light rose from around her and spread over Violet and the others.
Violet couldn’t help but smile at the overwhelming energy. Warmth. Hope. Strength. The exact opposite of Elric’s power.
Jennifer threw her hands up as a massive dome lit up the island. The dome overthrew the dark clouds above. Violet looked down at Elric and Calamity. They were both too focused on one another to notice that the darkness over them grew. The island was trembling, breaking into pieces.