Violet Eyes

20: The Erebus Clan

It was rather dark inside, there were a few holes broken into the ceiling where large tendrils of shadow had snaked their way in. The girls had also noticed that evening was creeping into night. There would be shadows EVERYWHERE that the Erebus clan could use. Nyx looked inside, trying to focus in the darkness for that flash of white hair.

"I don't see him!" Nyx shouted over the audiences screaming as they fled or died.

"There!" Soul pointed to her right, the girls looked to see Danny soar through the air and land hard on the ground, he caught himself a little bit but still stumbled and fell. Damien appeared from the trees that were planted to add "natural cover" to the arena.

"Just die already." Damien growled out as he lifted his hands at his sides, palms facing upward. The girls watched as dozens of shadow tendrils snake out of the ground behind Damien and point towards Danny. As Danny lifted his head as it was throbbing, bruised and bloody, his eyes widened as another vision crashed into him. He saw himself being stabbed with all of the tendrils through his body. He saw himself die.

"No!" Nerissa cried out. Soul took charge and bolted forward. She slid onto one knee and thrust her hands forward and clutched her hands into fists. Shadow tendrils shot out from her own shadow and wrapped around Danny's waist as he was frozen in fear. Once they were secured around him, Soul pulled her arms back towards her chest with a small grunt. Danny was pulled out of the way a split second before the tendrils closed in and stabbed into the ground where he was, causing a small eruption.

Way too close.

Nyx ran forward at that point and caught Danny in the air and lowered him gently with a slow drop of her hand. Nerissa eased him down to the ground as he looked at the girls like he still hadn't processed the fact he was alive.

Nyx approached him without looking away from Masamune. "Hey, glad you're okay, I'm-"

"Nyx." Danny finished her sentence. "Good to meet you." He was polite through his shaking voice. Nyx glanced back at him with a smile.

"Ditto." Nyx responded before moving her focus back in front of her. Soul and Nyx stared down Soul's brother as Nerissa looked over Danny's injuries.

"We have to go, Danny is beat up so badly I'm surprised he's still conscious!" Nerissa called out from behind the girls. Soul looked back at Nerissa and growled in anger as she looked back at her brother, who was smiling with a crazed look in his eyes.

"Fine!" Soul shouted as she curved her arms upward and a dome made of shadow blocked them in with the elevator door so they could quickly escape without being attacked. Nate and his group were on the other side of the arena opening the doors of the other elevator. Nate just barely saw the girls group as Soul brought up the protective dome of shadows. He also saw the unmistakable flash of white.

"I just saw the girls! They got Danny out safely. We need to go to the yard, now!" Nate said before the boys began descending down the ladder of the shaft, considering none of them had an ability that could make the elevator work.

After the guys got out of the elevator shaft they sprinted down the hallway towards the exit to the yard. Thankfully it wasn't too far from the arena. When they burst through the doors of the yard they stopped in shock.

It'll be a bloodbath.

There were bodies everywhere. Prisoners and guards alike, and the dirt was soggy with blood. The flash of a shadow caused Nate to look up and see Nighthawk soaring through the sky, shredding through tendrils with his hardened wings. Seemed he had his own way to get the collar off...

"Let's go, while he's distracting them." Nate said quietly before sprinting out into the yard towards the wall, but he didn't see the girls, which worried him. Until he heard a voice call out faintly.

"Alright, go!" An unfamiliar voice called out before Nate saw a flash of vibrant red hair just like Damien's and his whole body tensed. When the figure landed on the ground with the help of some tendrils they flipped their head up to reveal a woman's face.

"Soul." Nate whispered to himself. Then, Danny flew up from behind the wall and Soul caught him in some shadows that were weaved into a net. When she lowered him from the net, he immediately fell to his knees and leaned against the wall. Nate could tell he was hurt, badly.

"Danny!" Rhys called out and ran towards him, Drake and Nate followed closely. When they reached the two, Nerissa was coming over the wall and Soul caught her the same way she caught Danny.

"Dude what happened?" Rhys asked Danny urgently.

"Damien beat me again, obviously." Danny replied in a strained voice. "He would've killed me too if it wasn't for her." Danny added as he nodded towards Soul, who was easing down Nerissa.

"Alright, come on dude." Rhys said as he bent down to carry Danny on his back. Danny groaned as Rhys lifted him, just as Nyx launched herself over the wall and caught herself, gently floating down to the ground. Nate ran over to her and embraced her tightly.

"Oh, it is so good to see you." Nate said to her.

"I'd love to do this now, but we're not out of here yet." Nyx responded and started to make a break for the outer wall. The rest followed and got about 20 feet away from the dividing wall when it exploded outwards. After the dust cleared the group saw a very angry Damien. With two other men about the same age.

"You're not getting away." He growled out menacingly before the three men thrust their hands upward and sent a small army of shadow tendrils barreling towards them all.

"Run!" Nyx yelled before she lifted her hands with her palms upward. Looking like she was carrying a very heavy object. A huge chunk of the earth lifted out of the ground and formed a wall in-between the attackers and her friends.

When the wall was up, Nyx turned around and ran back towards the group as Soul was launching people over the wall. Rhys first because he was physically the strongest and could catch the others. Nate next because he was second strongest and could help, Soul made sure to use her key to release him from the collar before sending him over. Danny was next to get him out of harm's way. Then Drake, and then Nyx. Then Soul lifted both of her arms and lifted herself on a small platform of shadows. Right before she reached the top she turned around and her eyes widened as her brother was sending a shadow spike straight towards her. Just before it made contact she was swiftly snatched out of harm's way.

By the Nighthawk.

"Jack!" Soul said in relief.

"Hey, Soul. Glad I saw you in time." He replied with a smile as he soared through the air with Soul in his arms bridal style. He flew down and landed on his feet before he let Soul step out of his arms next to her friends.

"Let's get the hell out of here!" Rhys said with Danny on his back again. No one needed to answer as the group, with their new member, Jack, took off into the woods. Everyone knew that this made them more than wanted criminals, they would probably be executed on sight. But that didn't matter to them, they were finally out of there, finally seeing trees other than through a barred window.

They were free.