Author Games: The City of Gold

Semifinals: Christopher Barros

The jungle was dark, all the last straggling rays of sunlight had set hours ago. The usual loud noises of the night creatures were hushed, as if they were nervous for what would occur. Everything was muted, even night-time colors were more dull than usual. Christopher too, was muted. He was nothing but a dull shell of himself without Elspeth. Every step he took through the trees reminded him that he was alone and Elspeth was somewhere dangerous, fighting for her life. Every breath he took was a prayer than Elspeth was still breathing.

He passed by venomous snakes without casting them a glance. Three different times he almost walked off a drop-off into a patch of thorny plants. Countless times he tripped and stumbled into trees. He didn't care if he was injured. He couldn't care less if he died because if Elspeth was gone, no life was worth living.

Tears rolled down his cheeks as he appeared in front of the ruins. The buildings were the same as they were a couple days ago, but now a dismal curtain hung over them, shielding all light and happiness from them.

David Goethe stood in the archway of the ruins, staring at Christopher. He looked tired, but strong. He didn't seem to be injured, but Christopher thought he had died.

"¿Señor Goethe? I- I thought you were, uh, muerto. How are you here now? Are the other lost estudiantes here?"

Seeing David alive meant that Elspeth could be alive.

And Chris was going to take every splinter of hope he could get

Instead of a response, however, David simply tilted his head to the side and raised his arms. Unsure of what to do, Chris took a step backwards, and slowly raised his wand.

"¿Señor?"

An amulet around David's neck gleamed, shining a deep red-wine color in the dim light. David's eyes, the same wine-cinnamon color, glowered with hatred and a ferocity so great and unlike his usual personality, that Christopher took another step back.

Christopher prayed again, praying that if Elspeth was alive, she wasn't in the state that David was. He knew deep down in his heart, and though he hated it, that Elspeth Ladds would rather be dead then controlled by someone else. Even as he said his prayer, he his heart shattered a little because he had used the word 'if.' Despite all the hope and faith in the world, his soul reminded him that there was a chance that Elspeth was gone.

Part of him wanted to give up now, to die because Elspeth was dead. Then he could see her in Heaven. He wouldn't have to deal with saving everyone else back at the camp, and he wouldn't have to deal with the grief of losing her. He could walk calmly into the darkness and embrace it with open arms.

The other half of him remembered that Elspeth might be alive, and if she was alive, she would want him to not die, but to fight and survive. Even if Elspeth was dead, she would want him to fight and survive.

Christopher raised his wand, prepared to attack when he saw David's face. His attacker's face still held the familiar features, but instead of cheerful, they were strict and full of malice. He didn't have a wand, but David's arms were poised and ready to snap Christopher's neck.

"You thought you could win this battle, didn't you?" a rusty, wise voice rolled out of David's tight-lipped mouth. It echoed around the room, blowing through like the North Wind, "What in this world could ever make you think that?"

The words echoed with enough force to strike cracks into the crumbling foundation of the ruins. David thundered forward, ripping the wand out of Christopher's hand and snapping it in two, The light coming from the tip of his wand diminished, leaving Chris in a room flooded with darkness, lit only by the amulet hanging around David's neck.

Christopher shuddered and made a grab for the necklace, only to be knocked back into a wall. He crumpled into a ball on the ground, and dust fell onto his back and neck. The wall cracked, and he hoisted himself back up from the ground to make another grab at the necklace. The darkness made it difficult to see where he was going and what he was against, but he didn't care. All he needed to see was the amulet. Something inside him told him that the amulet was controlling David. All he needed to do was break it.

"Hope. Hope make me think that."

Christopher lept from his position and lunged for the amulet, running into one of David's arms. Christopher's arm swerved around and caught hold of the chain of the amulet, yanking down and throwing it to the ground.

The amulet fell to the floor, shattering on the cracked stone ground. Droplets of the wine-coloured liquid splattered around the room, seeping into the crevices before evaporating into the humid air. Christopher ran over to David, helping the weary expert sit up before running down the hallways.

"Elspeth!"

He tripped on countless cracks in the floor, ran into countless walls, but each time he just stood up and continued running through the darkness, screaming Elspeth's name the whole time.

In one of the rooms, something in the darkness of the room grabbed for his hand, barely brushing his fingertips before it slipped back into the shadows. And despite the fact that the room was devoid of light and Christopher's wand was splintered on the floor, he knew that it was Elspeth reaching out to him. He stopped, and felt around in the darkness for Elspeth, barely stopping himself from crying out in joy.

Tears streamed down his face as he pulled Elspeth into his arms.

"Te amo."

Even though he knew in his heart and soul that they were true, the words surprised him. He had never said them before. He had said 'te quiero' and 'te adoro,'but never something as serious as 'te amo.' He hoped she understood what she was saying, because he couldn't find the right translation. Neither 'like' nor 'love' came even remotely close to his feelings for her. 'Te amo' wasn't even close to expressing his feelings.

Elspeth's smile could be seen, even in the darkness, "I love you too."

The darkness seemed to lift a little, but not in it's usual way. The room was still darker than the blackest night, but it was no longer devoid of hope or love. Instead, the black was one of new light to come rather than light faded away. And the only reason this switch was made was Elspeth. And Christopher knew without a doubt that Elspeth was the hope and light in the darkness, the only thing that shone when the rest was seemingly bleak.

Everything was dark, but Elspeth was shining more brilliant than the sun.