"No!"
I couldn't remember who said it. I couldn't remember anything as the world went numb around me. The rest of my group became blurry spots in the corner of my vision. All I could see, sense, feel was one figure, one girl, my baby sister.
Ver.
She smirked, pulling back her hood to reveal her painstakingly familiar face. She was covered in deep scratches and scars, and her eyes were not at all happy to see us. They looked cold enough to murder.
"Wait, there's a fulfiller to the prophecy and you never told us?" Aureole's sharp voice broke through the fog as she reeled on my parents. "You told us we couldn't know the prophecy because it couldn't get into enemy hands!"
"How do you have that power?" Mother repeated, steeling herself and ignoring the flaming fire elemental.
Ver half-grinned. "It's almost funny how much you lie. It's like a programmed respons—"
"THE POWER DIED WITH HIM!" Mother started shaking uncontrollably. "He's dead; there's no way he could have given it to you." We all watched in a numb sort of shock as she picked up her knife and held it towards her rebellious daughter. "I watched him die. I went to his f-funeral. He's d-d-dead."
Father stepped in to intervene before Mother could collapse. "Ver, please, just come to the ground and let's talk this out like adults."
"Don't 'Ver' me. I have no interest in hearing what you have to say," Ver frowned from her position, taking in everyone around her. Carmen had gotten to her feet and was joining the circle once again. "I came for the key, and the key I will get. Where is it?"
"We have no interest in your chitter-chatter, Miss Boring!" Carmen shouted, hurling a rock at Ver. It bounced off the winds holding her up, but it still caught her attention. "Get lost before we make you!"
Ver narrowed her eyes. Her fists tightened, the wind stirred, and Aureole let out a screech of attack. She ran straight for my sister, aiming her fire at her heart. Before I could take in what had just happened, Ver was simultaneously flicking away all of Aureole's intense flames as well as dodging the ground attacks from Storm and Carmen.
Morro was just standing there, like I was, trembling on his feet.
My sister, my sweet sister who used to love gingerbread, bike riding, and puzzles, was literally attacking our friends.
As much as the heroic side of me wanted to intervene, nothing could make my feet move. Ver, the girl who I grieved over, the girl who I was willing to go on this mission for, the girl who I was ready to risk everything to save, had betrayed us. She was attacking us to steal what we'd worked towards.
Morro was right.
She hadn't been kidnapped.
She'd probably planned this all along.
And the realization broke my heart.
"Ver, I don't want to fight you!" Father called from in front of my hovering sister. She was only a foot off the ground, with his sword to her throat. I had probably watched him gain the upper hand, but I didn't remember it. I didn't even know where Mother was. Aureole, Storm, and a winded Carmen stood behind Ver, all of them ready to attack. Ver grimaced from the fresh wounds covering her sleeveless arms, then readied a punch.
Before anyone could react, Father flew backwards, slamming into the ground with such force that I could hear him grunt in pain.
"Enough is enough!" Morro roared, lunging towards her. His shock seemed to have run out. However, Ver easily slipped out of his grasp and returned to the sky.
"I don't care why you're doing this, or what lies we've been told, but this is just plain wrong. Ver, we're your family!" Morro screamed, his face wet from uncontrollable tears.
"Does family mean ignoring the daughter since she has no place among elementals? Does family mean making someone's life miserable because they didn't come out a boy? Does family mean lying to each other so you can destroy the world?" Ver's rage was undeniable as her winds pushed everyone back.
"What are you even saying?" Storm's foothold slipped as he fought against the vortex. "Do you even hear yourself right now?"
"Some right you have to question me, seeing as you're a powerless whimp who never will be anything close to what I've become." Ver rose higher, her eyes gleaming with a chaotic triumph. "You ignored me because you thought I was useless. You ignored me because I wasn't the chosen 'son'. But, my lovely and dearest parents, he has made me more than you could ever expect. He has taught me how to be more powerful than any of you. There will be time when both of my brothers will fail at being the son, and then you will have no one left to turn to. I will be the Chosen One, and now it is too late to stop it."
"V-ver—" my voice gave out as her winds pressed stronger against my stagnant skin. I was so cold, but I wouldn't fight her. I couldn't bring myself to even try. Maybe this wasn't happening. Maybe I was still trapped in that terrible dream, hoping, wishing, praying to wake up.
"How long will you follow them to this realm's destruction? How long will you keep letting them lie to you over and over?" Ver's arms flexed and suddenly the vortex of gales became so strong I thought it would fly me into the sky. Instead, the gusts softened into breezes, and the world was loud, swirling around and around with endless wind.
Flashes of color tried to break through the wind tunnel from the outside, but Ver's hold was too powerful for them to break.
"How long will you keep living a life you're dissatisfied with?" Ver finished quietly, finally meeting my eyes.
I looked up at her, realizing that somewhere in the chaos I must have fallen to my knees. She stood alone at the other end of our little enclosure, her dark cloak rippling behind her like a flag. The sand was barely shifting between us, yet outside all that existed was turmoil.
"Why?" was the first word that slipped through my mouth.
She had changed; Ver had changed. Her voice was hoarse, her eyes dim, and her skin littered in marks of pain. She had suffered, yet for some reason she seemed to think it was all for her own good.
"I don't want to hurt any of you," she said, taking a step forward. "But you're trying to end the world."
"Why did you fake the kidnapping—scratch that, why did you choose to leave us? Ver, we're famil—"
"I quickly learned that my family would never understand. I was always the crazy child. The little girl who would never be as good as the rest of you. Well, Shade, my 'hallucinations' have awakened my element. I am stronger now." Ver strode towards me, no longer taking cautious steps forward. Shaking, I made my way to my feet. "He will accept you too. It's never too late to do what's right."
"Why are you doing this?" my voice cracked.
"You won't have to live in the shadow of Father. You won't have to live up to the marvelous destiny of the son. He'll help you grow into the best version of yourself; he won't lie to you."
"Who, Ver, who is he?"
"The Overlord," she replied nonchalantly, holding out her hand. "You were always special, Shade, always a good light among all the bad. You know, deep down, that the goal you're fighting for is wrong. All you have to do is give me the key, and everything will be okay. I promise."
She's free now, freer than she ever was under your parents' grasp.
The whispers in my mind had told me that when I thought about Ver. Now, my sister stood in front of me, convinced that fighting for the Overlord was for the best of everyone. She was free; however, freedom wasn't always what was right.
It only took me a second to connect the dots, but it was enough.
The Overlord was speaking into my mind.
Just like he had been speaking into Ver's.
"H-he was the v-voice," I stammered. "H-he was the voice in your head. You tried to warn us, and we didn't listen."
"The prophecy says he is what will destroy the world. Yet, all he seeks to do is save it. Join me, Shade. Give me the key." Ver's tone had a slight edge to it, as if she were getting tired of waiting for my answer.
The winds around us weakened; my parents and friends' shouts became clearer. I forced myself to meet her eyes. Their usual bright blue hue was replaced with a dull resolution. Ver knew what had to happen if I refused.
I realized that nothing we could say would change her mind. The Overlord had been whispering to her for a very long time, and our neglect had slowly turned him into the only person she could trust. Ver would attack me and Morro to get the key. She didn't care about us anymore.
Ver really was going crazy.
And if I listened to her, then surely the Overlord would turn me into what she had become.
"No," I said, my voice draining of emotion. "I don't have the key. Even if I did, I would not give it to you."
Surprise flickered through Ver's face, but it was quickly replaced with a blank determination. "Very well."
She lunged forward to tackle me, only for me to respond with practiced motion. I kicked her shins, causing her to drop to her knees. Before she could ready the wind to ally her, I knocked her backwards into the sand.
"Even my own brother is a traitor," Ver hissed, scrambling to get to her feet before pausing at the sight of my poised fingers.
My elemental instincts had already locked onto her life force, and all I had to do was snap.
My stance tremored as a moment of waiting passed.
The gales around us filtered back into the still air, causing my friends to finally rush forward—until all of them saw our position. Aureole held out her arms to stop Carmen and Storm from proceeding further. Even Morro and Father didn't dare step forward. They all knew the story, as did Ver.
All I had to do was snap, and she would be dead.
But little did they all know I hadn't powered up yet. My whole act was a bluff. Taking energy away needed time to 'warm up' if I wanted to reach my maximum potential. If I snapped now, all Ver would feel would be a light wave of coldness.
That fact was the only thing that kept my head clear.
"It's never too late to do what's right," I quoted her words, mentally wishing that she would just surrender. Sure, the more time I stalled meant the stronger my energy powers were going to get, but I didn't want to harm her. After that day in the meadow, I had promised to myself to never snap the life out of a living being again. I would rather die than kill someone by draining their life force away.
"So, none of you have the key then," Ver responded.
Before anyone could question her line of thinking, the sands whipped up in our faces, causing all of us to temporarily shield our eyes. I could feel the gales gathering around me again, and I rushed to find the source of their energy. If I could alter the air around Ver, then I could scare her into submission. However, no matter how far my senses spread, all they could find was wind. And the winds were too strong for me to control.
Beneath me, my feet started to rise.
"No!"
Ver evaded Aureole's lunge, elbowing the elemental in the gut and using brute force to knock her down. As Aureole readied a flaming punch to swing up and hit Ver's face, Ver flicked her wrists and fires blew out. Ver caught Aureole's fist with alarming speed, twisting Aureole's arm with such strength I could hear the loud pop from inside my bubble.
Carmen attempted to use a discarded dagger to fight off Ver's attack. However, she was still very inexperienced in combat. Ver not only managed to deliver a powerful kick to the side of Aureole's head (rendering her unconscious), but also was able to tear the knife from Carmen's grip.
Suddenly, the knife glowed white-hot and Ver dropped it with a hiss of pain. Morro and Carmen started to circle the wind elemental, both of them raising their fists.
"They obviously wouldn't keep it on Morro, seeing as that would be too obvious," Ver said to herself, knocking Morro off-balance with a blast of wind, then spinning to blow up sand in the approaching Storm and Father's faces. Ver picked up the dagger and threw it at Aureole's limp body—which was being drug out of the way by Nori.
Morro cried out in shock as the blade sliced across the mountain girl's shoulder. His hesitation allowed Ver to blast him backwards, trapping him, Nori, and the unconscious Aureole all in a wind bubble.
Father started spinning, activating his Spinjitzu, but Ver held out a hand to signal for him to stop.
"If you want her to survive, you will halt this nonsense," she raised her head, tilting it to the side.
To my horror, I saw Mother fighting against another wind bubble that was over ten feet high in the air. It kept rising as she struggled from within; the vortex holding it up weakening with each inch it rose. At this rate, the bubble would unravel completely when Mother reached a dangerous height.
"STOP THIS, VER!" I screamed, punching the walls around me. My fists ricocheted back at me with enough force to knock me off my feet. "THIS ISN'T YOU!"
"Where is the key?" Ver shook her arms, causing all of our bubbles to tremble.
"I will never tell you," Father had taken a neutral stance, but his lack of fighting didn't mean he was going to surrender our most important item.
All of a sudden, a shriek echoed throughout the area. Carmen's lower body was rising with a tight vortex. The Midnight Menace struggled to attack Ver from her close range, however Ver just stepped out of arm's length.
"Don't even think about it, Storm," she said coolly, drawing everyone's attention to the dark-haired boy creeping up behind her. "You can try to fight me, but you will not win. Give me the key," Ver hissed, her teeth gritted from her efforts to keep all of her bubbles operating.
Carmen's hand reached for her neck. "Over my dead body."
One, singular mistake was all it took.
By the time Carmen realized what she had said, it was too late.
Storm cried out, thrusting out his hands to the two as Ver sliced Carmen straight across the chest.
The dark-haired girl flew backwards through the air, crashing straight into one of the huge boulders nearby.
Blood splattered against the stony surface as Carmen's limp body fell into the sand.
Ver walked over the body, ripping the key from Carmen's neck with a ferocious snap.
"NO!" Storm's hands flew to his mouth, and he fell to his knees, shaking.
Immediately, all the winds dissolved, and I collapsed to the ground. Before I could even get to my feet to run to Carmen, Ver rose into the air, pulling the hood back over her pale face. She didn't grin at her fortune, nor did she stay to taunt us.
Her gales had appeared quickly, and she disappeared just as fast as she had arrived.
I don't think any of us cared enough to watch her go.
"Where should we hide?"
"Let's go to the meadow; no one will find us there."
I awoke in a cold sweat, gasping for air as my brain processed the rush of adrenaline.
"Where is she?" I growled, feeling my fists start to spark fire. Anger towards Ver, her parents, and everyone else who had lied was surfacing in the blurry reality, and I wanted nothing more than to burn them all to the ground.
"Try not to move too much," a steady voice told me. "Your arm was badly dislocated, and you've been out for a while."
I looked up to see Lloyd attempting a smile, but he just looked tired. It was hard to stay mad when I saw his frazzled expression, hair that resembled a beach after a hurricane, and dim eyes. He looked on the verge of collapsing, yet was somehow able to keep up the façade that everything was fine.
Memories of the fight finally started to enter my mind, reminding me of the reason my right arm hurt so much. When I sat up, I started to swoon from the aching in my head.
"How... how is everyone else?" I asked. My anger could wait until I knew whether or not everyone else was okay.
"We're making it."
It became apparent that there were other people around us. I was propped up in one of the tent/blanket structures, and across from me the blonde-haired girl was tending to someone. Lloyd followed my gaze; the new girl seemed to realize she was being watched. She scurried aside, pulling her hat over her face as if not to be seen.
"Nori—sorry if I got that wrong—has been helping us tend to you two. Her grandmother was apparently an herbalist, so Nori's been very useful in identifying plants we could use as medicines." Lloyd breathed a sigh of relief when the other comatose victim stirred, even if it was just with a stuttered breath. "Carmen... the wind blasted her quite strongly. It practically splattered her against one of the boulders. She was bleeding pretty bad when we finally got to her, but Shade's quick thinking helped us all save her in time. He was able to get her head wrapped and her body properly laid out to stop blood flow from getting too drastic."
"She's alive?" I asked as my blurred vision finally cleared.
Lloyd nodded. "She's suffering from a bad concussion, but she's alive."
"And the key?"
"It's gone."
Neither of us really knew what to say next. The girl mumbled something resembling an apology and left the tent. With Carmen knocked out and Lloyd right in front of me, I let myself finally address the elephant in the room.
"Why did you lie to us?" My voice sounded calmer than I expected it to. Perhaps it was because I'd been dealing with disappointment towards my loved ones my entire life.
He fidgeted with his sleeves. "I assume we're talking about the prophecy."
That made me a lot more suspicious than it should have. "I suppose."
"Harumi and I, we had our reasons for not telling you all everything. Good reasons, I assure you. Ver was right. The full prophecy states that the Oni and Light will have a son, and that son will defeat 'Time's Overlord.' Since the reincarnated Overlord has leadership over the Time Twins and their Vermillion army, he is Time's Overlord."
"Who are the Oni and Light?"
"I am the Light; Harumi is the Oni. We planned for everything to go smoothly, but then instead of one boy, we got two."
"Which one's the 'son'?" I watched the former ninja run a hand through his hair.
"That's the thing, Aureole, we don't know. Shade is the optimal choice, but Morro has so much potential. Every time we think it's clear, one of them does something to make us doubt ourselves. We didn't want them to know because we didn't want them to fight each other over this destiny." He paused briefly, his tone becoming more strained with each word. "My father and his brother fought when there was a singular destiny placed upon both of their shoulders. I don't want history to repeat itself."
"That doesn't excuse the lie!" I exclaimed as more of more of the pieces fell into place in my brain. "All of you, my parents, Storm's parents, even Zane and PIXAL, you all pretended you were just preparing us for some... some meaningless fight. But one of us is a chosen one. One of us is tasked with saving the world. That's something too big to be brushed aside." Lloyd opened his mouth, but I put a hand up to stop him. "Furthermore, how does Ver have wind powers? The only other person who was a wind elemental died long before Ver was even born."
Lloyd quieted when Carmen stirred. The girl didn't awaken, just let out a small moan and returned to her still state.
"The answer to that question is a complicated one." Lloyd bit his lip. "We... haven't been completely honest about that either."
"Oh great."
"There was a Ghost Ninja, and he did die a long time ago. However, he had a name that you should recognize. Morro."
"Wait—Morro? As in 'the guy who saved Harumi's life' Morro? He was the Ghost Ninja?" If I wasn't so sure that he was finally admitting the truth, I would have cast this all aside as preposterous.
"He was the Ghost Ninja. Morro had the elemental power of wind," Lloyd sighed tiredly. "He was able to return from the Departed Real—"
"And you trusted him?"
"No, no we didn't. We didn't truly trust him until he gave up his life for Harumi. Since he died a few years before Morro and Shade were born, that closes the gap significantly."
"You're still not answering the question," I pointed out.
"That's because I don't know the answer," Lloyd's hair was becoming more disheveled with every time he raked his hands through it. It resembled my father's terrible bedhead, and that was saying something. Just thinking about my family right now made me extremely upset, so I shelved the thought for later.
"I know for a fact that Ver is my child. There's no way she could have inherited the power unless..."
"Unless?"
"Unless Morro somehow used dormant transference. He could have given his power to Harumi at some point and have disguised his intentions. He knew he was going to die; he knew he had to pass on the power, or it would extinguish forever!" Lloyd's shoulders sank in relief. "She'll be so relieved when she hears this. I don't think either of us have been dealing with the fact Morro could possibly be alive very well."
He started to get up to leave.
"Wait," I insisted, biting back hisses of pain as I crawled out after him. Chills came over me as soon as I stepped outside. It felt like it was snowing, but the sky looked as sunny as ever.
Lloyd caught me before I fell over from the dizziness.
"When are you going to tell them?" I asked, gesturing around the battered tent. I must have only been out a few hours, since most of the camp was still in wind-blown ruins. "They need to know. Division only makes us weaker."
"Sometimes I forget how much of your mother is in you." Lloyd gave me a tired smile. "I'll gather everyone to tell them tonight."
>(<>)<
Much to my aggravation, it took me another day to finally be able to stand on two feet without falling over. Carmen had woken up long enough to swallow some broth, but she was still pretty pale from the blood-loss. Her words were slurred when she inquired after Shade, and since I hadn't seen the boy since the attack, I didn't exactly know how to answer. She fell asleep before I could think up a reply though, so I was spared from that awkward conversation.
Storm spent a lot of time outside the tent, wallowing in self-pity. Everyone was grieving in their own way, I suppose. The only person who actually got up and moved around was Nori, but even then, it was only to provide the basic necessities. I had watched her ground up leaves into an herbal paste. She smeared the paste into her wound, which caused her to cry out in pain. It worked though; her shoulder's scabs stopped breaking open and bleeding all over her already filthy dress.
Harumi worked with the young girl to make sure we all had daily meals. Other than that, Shade's mother was barely in the sight of anyone. Lloyd had told me she sprained her foot, but I was pretty sure that wasn't where her pain was coming from. And speaking of Lloyd, he was practically the only person keeping us alive.
The air was bitterly cold. I felt like sparking fire every time I shivered, though my fear kept me at bay. We all knew where this was coming from. Somewhere, Shade was grieving, and his powers were slowly taking over everything.
As much as I hated to admit it, I was afraid of Shade.
"Aureeeeoolleeeee," Carmen moaned from inside the tent.
I held up the flap to see her attempting to sit. Makeshift stitches dotted the wound below her collarbone, and her eyes were bloodshot with grogginess. I moved to help her lay back down (a task not easy with a sore arm), but she waved me off.
"IneedtoseeShade."
"Carmen, you're not even supposed to get off your mat until my father shows up."
"...donotmakemefightyou..." Carmen slurred, touching different parts of her head until she found the large bump on the back of it. "...wowIgotbeatgood..."
"You need to rest," I insisted, moving the bandages wrapped around her head wound back into place. It was a miracle to me how the wind could do such a thing to a person, and it was even more surprising to know that it was Ver who had done this. Ver wasn't even able to beat an elemental less than a month ago, but now she could somehow best us all. It was scary to think about.
"...heishidingsomewhere... wejustneedtofindhim..."
"Where should we hide?"
"Let's go to the meadow; no one will find us there."
I cringed at the memory, trying not to shudder as the temperature outside dropped another degree. Shade had not taken his father's talk very well.
Carmen lazily slapped away my bad hand, causing me to hiss in pain. She started to crawl towards the outside, falling face-first on the mat before she could even get in a kneeling position. I realized that nothing would keep this girl from finding Shade, so I used my good arm to bring her to her feet.
She let out an estranged noise as we started to limp away from the tent, but quickly assured me she was doing fine. I would have believed it a lot more if she hadn't looked drunk while saying it.
As usual, the camp was empty, save Lloyd working on the communicators by the fire. I was pretty sure he had gotten them to start working, seeing as Father was going to show up in less than forty-eight hours. Still, Lloyd slaved away at different devices, trying to find enough work to distract him from his grief.
He started to freak out when he saw Carmen; I held out a hand to stop him, shaking my head. I told him we were going to get some air, then she was going to stay in the tent until she was better. Lloyd got to his feet anyway and offered to piggyback the injured girl.
When I asked where Shade was, he pressed his lips in a grim line and told me to follow him.
"What are you talking about, Ver? What meadow?"
"The meadow! The one Shade killed."
We passed Nori on our way across the beach. She was sitting next to the waters, alone, staring at each passing wave. In her hands she gripped a small piece of paper, and she was staring at it like it held all the secrets to her future. Morro stood a few yards away, pacing ankle deep in the waters. He looked lost, trudging back and forth in the gentle waves, smearing sand against his strained feet. When he saw us walking, he stopped, watching us go as the salty water continued to beat at his feet.
Lloyd finally started heading back to the mainland, ducking behind some boulders to show me a somewhat hidden clearing.
Shade sat leaning against a tree, his back to us, trembling on the cold, hard dirt.
I shuddered when I saw him, feeling the icy effects of his power flow off of him in crests and troughs.
"He used his power on it and snapped the life out of it. It's dead now; it's somewhere he never wants to go again."
I looked at the scared, grieving boy and felt my heart expand with compassion. He loved Ver, that much was clear. How it must have felt to have your own flesh and blood betray you must have been devastating. I mean, I knew disappointment from my parents, but there was never betrayal. Shade loved his family more than anything else, so this had to have hit hard. A twinge of guilt ignited in my chest as I watched him. Shade was one of my closest friends. He didn't deserve to be ignored solely because his power was dangerous.
So, I bit my lip, braced myself, and stepped forward to offer him consolation.
And nearly yelped in shock when I saw the tree he was leaning against.
"Ver, don't spread dirty rumors. Shade would never kill anything. He's too kind-hearted for that."
"Oh, that's what he wants you to think. Shade's more dangerous than he lets on, and someday, I'm afraid he'll use that power for the wrong purpose."
The warm wood was slowly turning grey; tendrils of life were snaking around the tree, flowing straight into the boy that was calling them to him. I could almost see the dark spots in the air where his power was slowly taking away all the life around him. It was his grief that was doing this to the world. If I stepped closer, then would I become a victim of it too?
Did Shade really kill an entire meadow?
My entire life I pretended away Ver's words during that innocent hide-and-seek game; I pretended that Shade couldn't actually drain the life out of someone. His powers could only stop energy. It wouldn't take it all away.
Here was proof I needed to stop lying to myself.
I backed up, rubbing my arms to converse what little warmth I had left. Lloyd put a steady hand on my shoulder to let me know he was there. Carmen started to protest as we both backed away, but both Lloyd and I realized it wasn't safe to proceed.
Footsteps crunched from behind us, signaling another presence.
We turned to see Morro walk straight through the growing cloud of sorrow, his hands gently glowing gold before he sat down next to his brother. The two leaned on each other, sharing their grief in a way an only child could never understand. I didn't try to; I just stepped away from the scene as fast as politely walking away could get me.
Who was the son of Oni and Light?
Was it Shade, the destructor who could probably kill the Overlord with a single snap?
Or was it Morro, the compassionate brother whose energy alone probably wasn't enough to take on the manifestation of darkness?
I realized that, just like Lloyd and Harumi, I had no idea which one of them it could be.
The realization was enough to quell the anger and sorrow brewing in me, if only for a second. It was a step closer than before to forgiving the parents for what they had done. It didn't justify any of the lies, of course, but the thought was still helpful nonetheless.