I didn't know what to focus more on... the dragons shrieking and clawing at each other in the sky or the numerous elves wrestling with the Cerberus. Farlen was growing just as worried as us and actually began to look helpless.
Nearby, I heard a cry of pain and watched as Kade collapsed to the ground hissing, with Salazar on his knees not too far away. When I started to get a splitting headache, my whole mind flooded with realization.
"Lord Farlen! If you can, please go help the others! Tell whoever's fighting the Cerberus that there's a bare spot on its chest. That's its weak spot!" I yelled. The elf removed a sword he'd been carrying on his back and with just a nod of understanding, he rushed into battle.
"Bella? What's wrong?" Maeve asked when I painfully rubbed my temples. Based on the tone of her voice, I had a feeling she already had an idea of what was happening. But I directed her attention to Kade who had begun to shake his head quickly, fighting off some mental force. Maeve shook her head too, then Odis (still in his wolf form), and then me. It was happening again. Again. Please no.
Nausea struck me and then it was the physical sensation of bricks tumbling on top of me. I fell to one knee, furious and growling with frustration and pain. "Son of a bitch," I muttered as the headache intensified and triggered a ringing in my ear. My vision was blurred but I was able to see Odis shift back and sprint to Kade. Maeve was at my side, staring into my squinted eyes with her vibrant green ones.
"Bella? Bella... stay with me." The ringing absorbed her voice and her beauty was blocked out by the blurriness. Things became wavy, disproportionate. I was in so much pain, aching at every single joint, every single muscle. I collapsed to the ground and cried, though I couldn't hear it clearly and wondered if I was just screaming instead. For a split second, I was able to make out Odis and Kade in the background.
Odis was screaming at Kade, inching closer until Kade shoved him away and yelled back. Salazar was chuckling nearby, weak, bleeding, and barely able to stand it seemed. He watched the scene play out without a single intervention.
"Bella... she's... Kade! Snap... quit it!" I could hear Odis shouting things but only managed to make out bits and pieces of what he was saying. "Madness, Kade! Bella... dying... stop! Sickness... spreading... come on!"
I blinked quickly in an attempt to adjust my eyesight. Only managing a slight improvement, I was able to see Kade having a slight spasm and his friend backing off worriedly. Something was radiating from him... in the literal sense, I mean. It was sparking the air, sizzling, creating a ripple-how to perfectly describe it, I don't know. Kade started crying out loudly, screaming as he patted himself down like someone who was on fire. He finally turned around for me to see his face, though I wish he hadn't.
It was covered in the pasty black substance that appeared to melt his skin. Consume was probably the correct term. He tried not to touch it but the temptation was too strong. He was in so much pain, yelling as he furiously tugged his shirt over his head. His whole body was coated in the blackness and his clothes obviously weren't helping the burning sensation he once described. 'Like a really bad sunburn, only worse.' I watched painfully, stiff and still as he writhed in agony.
The thing that hurt more than anything was his black eyes.
The demonic gaze was fighting against his pain. Something evil was trying to take control of him, trying to make him forget how bad the consumption was. His voice alternated from menacingly deep and regular, though the regular was giving out with every scream.
My heart was shattering into pieces. Seeing him in so much pain made me want to endure all the torture for him. He was being consumed by something he couldn't control, something I wanted to get rid of immediately.
"Maeve," I heard myself say in a low, croaky voice. Her attention was instantly sparked as she turned her head towards me. Her eyes widened, obviously meaning she was waiting for me to say something else. "Kade's madness... I have 'half' of it, right? What would happen if he didn't have any at all?"
She began to ponder the question. "Well, a demon's madness is basically what makes it a demon. If Kade didn't have it then he wouldn't have to worry about these outbreaks anymore. He could pretty much go full warlock like he used to. And considering the sickness runs on madness... he'd be cured of that as well." She paused for a long while and then gasped when she realized why I had asked such a thing.
"Bella, no! If you try to absorb what he has left, it will kill you! Death is inevitable!" she fumed. Tears rolled down my cheeks in two steady streams.
"He'll die if I don't," I sobbed. "Please, Maeve. Help me save him."
"By allowing you to kill yourself? No way!"
I started to become angry when Odis approached us, overheard what we said, and agreed with Maeve. They were so willing to let their best friend die like that. He was more important than me. He deserved to live more than I did.
Although weak, I mustered up what little strength I had and channeled my energy at the two, being sure I met their saddened and hopeless eyes. "I'm sorry," I whispered, right as they discovered they couldn't move. My only option was to limit their mobility. If I had tried to approach Kade without doing so, I would've surely been stopped.
Terror spread across their faces. They tugged against the invisible restraints and cried out to me. "Bella, no! Stop! Please!" But I didn't listen. Instead, I rose to my feet weakly and staggered over to the screaming Kade in front of me. He was still on his knees, staring at the sky with his demonic black eyes. With so much pain shooting through my body, I fell next to him, barely avoiding touching his affected arms. After a while, I was convinced he didn't even know I was there.
My crying intensified as I watched him. Something had to be done... and someone had to do it. "I'm gonna make this better for you," I whispered, knowing he couldn't hear me. "It'll all be over soon." He didn't look at me once which strangely helped me in some way. To meet his black eyes would break my heart even more and probably prevent me from succeeding in what I was about to do.
My heart raced and my hands tingled as they inched closer to Kade's cheeks. My body still surged with pain but I had enough strength to keep my arms elevated. And once Kade felt my hands, he finally glanced down.
Our eyes met, his tear-stained face softened but it was still hard to look at when it was simmering with the consuming sickness. I could hardly stare into his black eyes and had to look away for a quick second. But when I looked back, he gasped.
"Bella," he whispered, his voice scratchy and demonic like before. "No..." He obviously sensed what I was about to do. "No..." Though he refused to let it happen, he clearly didn't have the strength to stop me. I cried harder when his trembling hand touched my cheek and fell limp. Obviously, my hands, even when touching the infection on his cheeks, didn't affect him whatsoever. He didn't cringe, flinch, or pull away screaming. He just watched me carefully and sadly.
Odis and Maeve still called out to me but I had to do it, even if it meant not seeing my family again. I had to save him especially when he'd done so much to keep me alive and safe.
Sacrifices had to be made.
Call me stupid and you'd probably be right. The gang had worked so hard to get me where I was, to get me home, but if it meant one of them died, I couldn't live with myself. I had to give them what they had given me.
"I'm sorry Kade... I'm so sorry," I cried. The tingling in my hands intensified to the point of feeling electric. Kade's eyes widened as he screamed for me to stop, to stay, but he was cut off by my screams and whatever shot inside of him. I'm not sure why I screamed, maybe it was the overflow of adrenaline. Maybe it was the sudden intake of Kade's madness and all of his emotional pain. Maybe it was the feeling of being crushed by a bus. Or maybe it was the realization that I was going to die and never see anyone I loved ever again.
All of the above, I concluded. More of the last one if anything. But none of it seemed to last long. Suddenly things went quiet, I went limp, and everything just shut down, simply speaking. I couldn't hear anything, see anything, or feel anything, and sat in complete darkness.
I could think. That was about it. The only thing I could think about was "where am I"? This obviously wasn't Hell... but it wasn't Heaven either, I guessed. I didn't see the golden gates or God or angels or like I said, anything at all. I just felt empty, confused, lost, and a bit scared. To suffer in internal darkness and be aware of it is actually quite terrifying. To know that there's an alternative to where you could've gone, somewhere where things could actually happen, where you could either sing with joy every day or have your flesh burned off every minute, was a haunting thing to know when you were trapped in a dark abyss.
Just nothingness.
I couldn't scream. From what I could "see", I didn't even have a body. I was just some scrap of a conscience in blackness. A very scared one.
It was like that for I don't know how long. I forgot about time because where I was, I wasn't sure time even existed. In the real world, years could've passed and I wouldn't've been aware of it. One thing I did know was I was dead. I had to be. I listened to what Maeve had to say but a part of me wished she was wrong, that I'd live after trying to save Kade. Turns out... I was wrong. But it was my fault, I carried out the plan and got myself killed. A black nothingness was probably what someone like myself needed. Needed... not wanted. I could feel the emotions of a human but I didn't feel at all human. I felt like I was being eaten by something I couldn't even see.
Was this what madness felt like? Did it feel like you were locked away in some mental black cage that you couldn't escape? Even when dead, I couldn't evade such torture. Believe it or not, being surrounded by nothing but emptiness, nothing but absolute silence, was the worst feeling of all. No one could come for you, no one could hug and tell you everything was going to be okay. You couldn't do anything about your loneliness and boredom.
It seemed worse than Hell itself.
That was the endless thought that circulated my mind. I wished for something more, something climactic, something less torturous than this. I wanted to die and not be aware I was dead. I wanted to speak to someone, I wanted to touch something, I wanted to feel something other than fear and emptiness.
I wasn't the praying type but I prayed hard. I prayed until praying seemed like the only thing I could do. I wanted out, whether it was by God's hands or someone else's. I couldn't stay like this.
I don't know how long I prayed until things started to change. I wasn't quite sure I was seeing right at first, that small speck of white light in the distance. I could hardly believe it when the light started to grow in size. Though I couldn't see what was past it, I was relieved, overjoyed. It could've been the fiery pits of Hell and I still would've been okay with it. Anything but this.
Something electric washed over me like a wave. I felt heavy but in a good way, heavy as in body heavy. I felt myself move as the light grew brighter and closer. I lifted what felt like my arm and reached forward, attempting to somehow touch the light. To my surprise, fingers began to materialize from nothingness, then an arm, a shoulder, chest, and more. It was my body, my body. It had to be. I could look down and, with just a little embarrassment, see my nudity. But it was okay. I didn't care about being naked as long as I got out of this dark abyss. I just wanted something better!
Something peeked from the light, eventually taking the form of a hand. It grabbed my outreached one and pulled me closer and closer until I was locked in a firm embrace. Stiff arms tightened around my waist and an unfamiliar scent entered my nose. I was confused, relieved of course, but baffled by such a strange figure holding me so close, especially when I was naked. I didn't see a face or anything distinct, only felt a body. But I could also feel the flow of air as the two of us drifted farther and farther away from the darkness and into the light.
Suddenly the whole scene faded. The light disappeared, and all I saw was the fleshy, dark color of eyelids. I heard familiar voices crying out prayers and mumbling my name, barely covering up the background noise of total chaos. I felt arms wrapped around me, different from before but not at all strange. I also recognized the scent and deep voice that muttered into my ear.
I shivered... and my eyes opened.
I saw the battlefield, the dragons, the Cerberus, and the conflicting sides. I saw Maeve and Odis, tears in their eyes as they paced around. But more importantly... I saw Kade. I felt Kade. I heard Kade. I was pulled into his lap as he sat on his knees, pulling my head into his neck mumbling, "Please, Bella. Please, come back. God... I love you so much, just please don't die!" But he didn't say it much longer; he was finally convinced I was dead. There was no telling how long he'd been saying it but it tore me apart to hear his heartbreak.
The thing I noticed next was he was no longer covered in the pasty substance. He wasn't writhing in pain and neither was I.
Out in the distance, where the castle stood, I saw something perched on top of it. More like someone. They watched me carefully, almost emotionlessly as I recovered and took in my surroundings.
I recognized the enormous angelic wings instantly... Ciel. To see him here was actually quite shocking, especially after he made it clear how against the plan he was. I saw him open his mouth to speak and even though he was far away, what he said sounded like it was whispered right in my ear.
"Don't ever say I never did anything for you." And in an instant, he disappeared.
I nearly gasped. Him! It was him who pulled me out of that abyss! Of course, why wouldn't an angel be the one to pull such a stunt? He must've felt guilty about earlier but I forgave him that second. To save me from such torture was the best thing he could've done for me. I smiled and finally remembered my original focus.
"Kade?" I muttered into his ear. His arms instantly stiffened and he froze, silent. I waited for a reaction and it didn't take long for me to get one. I was pushed away from him, hands on my shoulders as he shook me and stared into my face. It was such a relief to see his clear skin and crystal blue eyes, his happy smile and mended heart. Odis and Maeve quickly approached and yelped with joy.
"B-Bella? You mean... you're not dead?" Kade gasped. I looked down at my clothed body, my clothes torn and bloody but intact, nonetheless. I still couldn't believe where I was sitting and how I had movement, sight, and hearing again after being trapped in such a hellish place for what felt like an eternity. Before I knew it, I was chuckling with disbelief, tears staining my eyes.
"Not anymore," I whispered mysteriously. It confused the others obviously, based on their alarmed expressions, but I wasn't up to offering an explanation. Not now at least. I wanted to get my mind off such a thing and get back to our original mission.
As if on cue, the loudest cry of a dragon pierced through the chaotic battle clamor. Everyone and everything froze suddenly, startled by such a chilling sound, and turned to watch the dragons' battle come to an end.
It was a skin-tingling sight to watch, one dragon plummeting to the earth roaring. The victor roared back but in a way that exhibited his dominance contemptuously. The loser, streaked with a blood red darker than his scales, twitched a couple of times before falling silent and still on the battlefield.
Rahul had won.
"Noooo!" Salazar bellowed furiously, fighting against his injuries to stand. "Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! You ruin everything!" He was looking directly at me and I shivered. His eyes were so bright, yet cloudy at the same time. The red that once matched the scales of his now-dead dragon was a red that could break your soul. It burned brighter than hellfire, brighter than the white light I saw in the darkness. From where I was standing I could see the black pupils of his eyes narrow like that of some monstrous reptile. Salazar had never been this angry before and it terrified the hell out of me... he must've realized he was losing this battle.
"If you won't die slowly, I guess I'll have to make it quick," he growled. As he spoke, his teeth took on sharper forms, displaying a more haunting smile than Xur's. His nails grew to claws, his muscles expanded, and before I knew it I was being approached at an uncomfortable pace.
Kade pushed me aside just in time. I didn't hesitate to let him take on the hellish creature in front of me. "Your days of torture are over, Salazar. This has gone on long enough." Kade spoke calmly, showing barely any emotion on his face and in his voice. I waited for something to happen but was not prepared for the sudden burst of heat around me.
Dead trees, bushes, grass, and anything else in Kade's proximity caught fire. It wasn't red though, just the normal orange-yellow color of fire! I was still startled by the unexpected flames but when I saw his eyes I started laughing with disbelief.
They were orange. How long had it been since his eyes turned orange and not black? How long had it been since he had been able to use his true power without worrying about hurting himself or me?
Maeve and Odis were smiling too as they noticed his eyes. Maeve was nearly in tears as she spoke.
"Now that's the true power of the Great Warlock."
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This story only has about 2 or 3 chapters left and hopefully they won't be as long as this. XD