Psycho raised the gun again and shot me in the hand. “I brought you in here, so that if you got Racer to me, then I would let you go.” He took a deep breath. “I know I tried to kill you before, but I was angry. I don’t really want to hurt you. I’d just tell Assassin that you got away, but I tend to go back and forth from time to time with my decision making, so if you don’t do The Calling for me, I might just change my mind.”
I held my shaking hand in front of me and watched as the white light steadily covered my skin. “Psycho, please. Even if it was possible for me to do it, I don’t know how.”
Psycho growled. “Do it! Bring that murderer back here!” He raised his gun again and pointed it at my chest. “I’m going to kill him for taking Jackie away from me.”
I was confused but couldn’t dwell on what he’d just said. I needed to get myself out of this mess. I took the chance and quickly went to pull the dart out of my thigh, but as soon as my fingers wrapped around it, another one was shot into my shoulder. I yanked the dart out of my thigh, then ripped out the one in my shoulder before sprinting for the side of the tent, but I didn’t make it far before Psycho hit me with lightning. I crashed to the ground and rolled into the side of the tent, knocking it down over me. As I was cloaked in darkness, I shakily pulled the last dart out of my hand and started recovering from shock faster than usual.
My lips trembled, making it hard for me to keep from crying. I was frustrated, tired, hungry, and sad. Too much had happened in such a short amount of time, and in almost every situation I was helpless. I didn’t want to be helpless anymore. I wanted to be as strong as Soren thought I was, and I wanted my suffering to stop.
I have to get away and find Soren.
Psycho roared as he fought his way from under the fallen tent, sounding as if he’d lost his mind. I could hear him stomping and kicking at the dirt, yelling vulgar language, but then he stopped once he was from under it. “I tried to give you a chance!”
I prepared myself as his footsteps stomped in my direction. I couldn’t be defenseless anymore and was going to get away from him. I had to.
“I’ll just follow the original plan and kill you,” Psycho growled as he grabbed the tent and ripped it off. As soon as he did, my black energy exploded from my chest in swirls of smoke with sporadic zaps of light within it, knocking a few Depleters to the ground. The only problem was that it didn’t knock him down.
I noticed that I was actually standing in the middle of the village pathway again, facing Psycho’s back. He was just as baffled as I was as he stared down at the empty spot on the ground where I was laying only seconds ago. The Depleters that I had previously knocked over were the ones on the pathway. Not around the tent.
“What the—” one of the Depleters near Psycho said once he spotted me.
Psycho dropped the tent and looked over his shoulder with anger covering his features. “So, she learned how to jump,” he said as he turned around. “Figures.”
My lips parted to inhale when Psycho shot a roaring flame towards me from his palm. All I could think about was moving out of the way, and in a blur, I was out of the way by only a few feet. The black smoke trailed behind me, something a Brights light would do when using speed, but as soon as it caught up, I dropped to the ground to duck another roaring flame.
I noticed that the others were keeping their distance from this fight, seeing that their leader was furious, and also maybe because they’ve never seen black energy before. As far as I knew, they hadn’t. Or maybe they had and were afraid of it.
Looking up, it only took for me to see the spark of Psycho’s other hand to roll out of the way and back to my feet. A large lightning bolt shot out of his fingertips, blowing up the ground that I was previously laying on. I was sure that by now, he was actually trying to kill me. The first time that he hit me with lightning, it only stunned me, but the last one would have ended my life.
“Aren’t you going to fight back!?” Psycho yelled as he punched two flames at me. I dodged the both of them but wasn’t as fast to move when I noticed two-pointed icicles shooting in my direction. I didn’t have time to evade the attack, but what I did do to avoid being killed had completely thrown me off guard.
I caught the first one with one skin tight iron gloved hand, and punched the second one, shattering it into pieces. The elbow length black iron glove was considered a weapon, which would make me a dim, but before this, I was using my bright abilities. Maybe I really was a Gods Daughter. That would explain how I was using two abilities.
I took a deep breath, preparing myself for another attack from Psycho, but was actually tackled by another Depleter. I crashed to the ground, losing concentration on keeping the iron on my hand and slid over the dirt. I tried to jump back to my feet, but a large hand came over my face and pushed the back of my head against the ground. When I thought that he would leave me at that, he tightened his grip around my face and slammed my head down two more times to knock me out, only instead, he dazed me.
When the Depleter removed his hand from my face and stood up, my eyes met with Psycho’s, his feet standing next to my head. “Your just like him. I wasn’t sure at first, but your powers are just like Assassin’s.”
My vision was blurred, but I could still see Psycho’s eyes clearly. He crouched down next to me and roughly grabbed my chin, but his expression— He didn’t want to do this, I could tell. It was similar to the look that Artemis gave me before, the two looking just alike.
“I’ll only give you one last chance. Do the Calling,” Psycho commanded.
My eyes were low, and I was exhausted, but I wouldn’t let myself lose consciousness. I wasn’t going to let myself be helpless anymore. “No.”
The frown forming over Psycho’s face was what reminded me more of Artemis, but instead of fear, I felt anger. A lot of it. I wasn’t going to let this man hurt me anymore.
Psycho pulled his hand away from my chin with wide and fearful eyes. Mine must’ve been black. I felt my energy building inside of me, making me feel stronger than I’ve ever been before, and in a split second, another blast of energy exploded from my chest in swirls of smoke with sporadic zaps of light within it, sending Psycho and the others in all directions before crashing to the ground.
I quickly got to my feet, noticing that the Depleters I just knocked over were passed out, including Psycho, but there were still a few conscious ones that hadn’t been hit with the blow. Luckily, they were too afraid to chase after me as I sprinted for the woods.
—
I ran for as long and fast as I could until my legs gave out after tripping over a tree root and falling to the ground. I rolled over to my back as I caught my breath and noticed a yellow orb bouncing over my head. I felt as if this one was the one I met on my fist day to the Wild Lands. There was just something familiar about it, but I didn’t have much time to observe closer.
The sound of leaves crunching sent me back into alert, and I quickly rolled over to my stomach, ready to push myself up and start running again, but when I noticed a particularly familiar pair of hooves, I let my face fall to the ground with a sigh of relief.
Vexodus snorted and walked over to me, then leaned down and slapped his large tongue over my cheek before nudging my head with his nose.
“I missed you too, Vex.” I couldn’t believe that I was back. It had only been a few days, but it felt as if years had passed. Lytonia felt miles and miles away from me, like I’d never have to go back, and it felt as it the Wild Lands were welcoming me home. Only, I no longer had a home. My village－Soren’s village－was gone.
Vexodus snorted again before nudging my head, and then he stomped his foot. I had almost fallen asleep before he nudged my head even harder, and thankfully he did, or else I might have just woken back up in Lytonia.
I slowly got to my feet and climbed on top of Vexodus. I was so exhausted that I rested my head down on him, letting my arm dangle over his side. “Thanks for coming, buddy. Take me somewhere safe.”
&nbs
p; Vexodus snorted and started walking in the opposite direction of Psycho’s camp.
—
The sound of something popping was what woke me up. As soon as I opened my eyes, I knew that it was a fire burning next to me. Fear struck through me as I thought that I had been captured by psycho again, but then something told me to be calm. There was nothing for me to worry about.
When I turned my head away from the fire, I met a pair of glowing green eyes, and suddenly, I was filled with so much relief and happiness that tears were brought to my own. “Soren,” I whispered. “You’re okay.”
Soren had his head propped up on his hand as the light from the fire flickered over his face and chest. “I’m okay,” he said. “I’m glad to see that you are too.” His voice was soft, and there was an intense look in his eyes.
I swallowed. “I’m sorry.”
Soren slid his hand over my cheek with a chuckle. “Why?”
“Because I couldn’t jump back.”
He wiped a fallen tear away with his thumb. “All that matters is that you’re here now.”
My lips parted to take in air, but before I let myself get lost into his eyes, I sat up and took in my surroundings. “A cave? Where…where’s everyone else?”
Soren sat up next to me. “In another part of it, closer to the entrance.”
I gasped and quickly wiped away another stray tear. “So, the villagers－everyone’s okay?”
Soren’s eyes dropped from mine. “Mostly.”
I knew what that meant, but my mind just couldn’t register. When the Depleters made fun of killing some of the villagers, a part of me didn’t believe them, but hearing this from Soren’s lips knocked the air out of me.
“The Depleters killed a few of the kids and most of our elderly. I was stuck fighting against Psycho, while Grandmother Emerald and Sora took on the others. Even though we were stronger, we were still outnumbered, so we had to retreat. Our village usually moves from time to time, for reasons like this, but I guess we got comfortable. Psycho could never find us, so we just stayed where we were.” Soren sighed. “We should’ve moved right after saving Sora.”
I inhaled, then exhaled. “He…He called you a murderer.”
Soren sighed and shook his head. “What happened in the past was an accident, and I’d rather not talk about it.”
“Oh－ I…I’m sorry. I just－”
“It’s okay,” Soren said, giving me a half-hearted grin. “You were curious.”
It was so surprising how in a moment like this, he was still able to smile. It was odd, after all that’s happened since we were last together, all that mattered was here and now. I should have gotten up and run to see Emerald and Sora, but all I wanted was to be next to Soren.
Soren’s eyes dropped to my lips, but then came back to my eyes. The intense look on his face caused butterflies in my lower stomach, but also made me feel things that I wasn’t used to feeling. Those feelings caused me to blush, and I was ready to run out of this part of the cave, but I couldn’t move. Deep down, I really didn’t want to.
Soren chuckled and shook his head.
“What is it?” I asked in embarrassment.
“I don’t understand how you do this to me.” He pushed a few strands of his hair back. “I’ve never felt this way with anyone before you. Not even…” he sighed and looked away.
My eyebrows furrowed in surprise.
“When I sensed that you were here, I felt so relieved, but then I was worried because I knew that you jumped to the village. I was going to go to you, but Grandmother Emerald and Sora stopped me, saying that it was still too dangerous for me to leave here.”
I nodded, thinking about how sad I had become at the thought of Soren being dead. It hurt, even now, to think that way. “I thought that you were gone.”
Soren rested his hand over mine in between us. “Aren’t you glad that I’m not?”
“Of course, I am,” I smiled.
Soren chuckled, but then quieted down and turned to me in curiosity.
I tilted my head to the side. “What is it?”
“There’s something different about you. Something about your energy that just feels…powerful.”
An image of Kalsoton came to mind. I still didn’t understand the dream that I had about him and Vexton, but knew that somehow, I was of Kalsoton’s descent. Our energies were only slightly different but were both black. Kalsoton was the only half-god in the Gods Realm, and he should only have one descendant, but I still wasn’t sure if that were true. Psycho mentioned that I was just like Assassin. Maybe he was a descendant as well?
“Rayah?”
I snapped out of my thoughts. “Sorry, I was just－”
I was completely caught off guard. Soren’s soft lips pressed against mine, causing my cheeks to grow hot, my chest to burn, my body to freeze, and my stomach to do back flips. I wasn’t sure how to react at first, but as the seconds went by, I began to enjoy this feeling. This was exactly what Tristan was going to do to me, but I didn’t think I’d feel the same way with him as I did with Soren. Tristan wouldn’t have been able to make me feel this free.
When Soren pulled away, he only left a few inches between us. His soft eyes gazed into mine, and his thumb caressed over the back of my hand, but when I felt his warm breath over my lips, Artemis’ face flashed behind my eyes. I could picture him hovering over me, nearing my lips, and making me feel sick.
I flinched away from Soren with wide eyes. “Don’t.”
Soren looked at me in surprise at first, but then a frown formed over his face. “What did he do to you?” His eyes flashed a brighter green as he clenched his teeth. I could tell that he was thinking of the very last time that we saw each other, when I was beaten down, bloody, and weak.
“Artemis…he…” I was hesitant to tell him what happened between Artemis and me. I was embarrassed about it, but most of all, I felt disgusted and violated. “He was torturing me when I came to you that night.”
Soren sighed and roughly scratched the back of his head. “Did he－” When his eyes flickered to black, he quickly closed them and took a deep breath. He must’ve thought that I didn’t notice, but I did. This was what happened before a Gods Son turned. They didn’t turn into demons like the gods could, but their happiness and any other positive emotions disappeared.
“He tried to kiss me,” I said, trying to hide the shaking in my voice.
Soren kept his eyes closed for a few seconds longer, but when I slid my hand over his back, he opened them.
“Are you okay?” I asked. “Your eyes, they—”
Soren sighed. “I know. I’m sorry. I just don’t want you to be there anymore. I want to get you out.”
I looked away, knowing that it was impossible. Still, the thought of him wanting to save me made me feel good for some reason. “I don’t want to be there either.”
He straightened. “I know that people had to have escaped from there before. How did they do it?”
“They died.”
Soren’s shoulders slumped again, and when I turned to him, I was faced with a frown.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “But it’s impossible to get me out of there alive.”
Soren looked disappointed, but then slid his hand over my thigh. “I promise you that I’ll get you out of there, Rayah.”
I offered him a half-hearted smile, then leaned in and placed a soft peck on his cheek. Soren meant what he was saying, but I knew that he wouldn’t be able to free me from Lytonia’s tight grip. No one could. I was a prisoner inside of those inescapable walls just like everyone else.
My only goal was to level up to six and so forth, so that when my mother was released in a few months, she’d have a daughter to be proud of and would know that her sacrifices were meaningful. For a while, I thought that I was just a Null, but now knew that I was something more. Something powerful, and because of my energy, I had the choice to be either a Vex, a Soma, or a Kali. I just had to learn how to control my powers first. To br
ing them to the surface, and for the first time, I was positive that I could. I could be a level six Vex.
Chapter 12
“I watched in the distance, too afraid to get any closer. That’s why I never really saw it. Fear held me back from the truth.” — Carmen
Carmen
Darkness. It’s everywhere, thickening the air and blocking out the sun. When I looked up, I found no hint of light. Just pure darkness. A Lighters worst nightmare.
As my eyes lowered down to the city below me, tears began to surface. The city that I had once dreamt of being a part of, the one that I worked so hard to get to, was in ruins. Buildings were either on fire or broken into pieces, people were fighting in the streets, and others ran screaming and crying, trying to find light and escape from the darkness, but there would be nowhere for them to go. She had obliterated our very energy source. She had made her choice.
“Where is she?” Tristan asked, stepping beside me. His eyes scanned over the city, but it was hard to see with the black energy lingering around like smoke. Not to mention that our only sources of light were the multiple fires and fights going on in the streets. Still, I was able to see her. I could find her anywhere.
“There,” I pointed out to the black swirl of energy in the middle of the city.
A few blocks away, the cause of this destruction stood in the middle of the street, surrounding herself in a tornado of darkness. Within the black smoke there were sporadic sparks of different colored lights. Blue, red, white, yellow, orange…It was something that I’d never seen before a day in my life.
“We need to stop her,” Tristan said.
I watched in awe as my friend destroyed everything around her. I could see her almost clearly through the smoke, so when she slowly raised her chin to look up at me through black eyes, I was sure that she could see me too.
Rayah’s mouth parted before pain and sadness covered her features. “Run…”
The Calling Page 13