<- Hey babies! I am back and at it. I apologize for taking so long, I had some personal things I had to deal with. Thank you all for being so patient, I am truly so grateful for all of you. I write for you guys!
For those of you asking about episode- I know it's been forever, and I promise I have been working on it. I'm not happy with how 60 and 61 are, something is missing. But they are written. I will have time next week to sit down and focus purely on that, so stay tuned!
Love you all xoxo ->
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The colour from his face drains as his brother smiles back at him. Damien quickly reaches out to me to pull me behind him but he is immediately blocked by what seems to be an invisible wall. "Aryah, get over here!" He screams out to me but I'm unable to respond, I almost felt drunk; confused and in a dazed state. His gaze quickly shifts back to Kai, who begins speaking, "I'm sorry Damien. You must have expected this?" the corner of his lip twitches into an amused smirk as he shrugs his shoulders. Damien jumps forward shoving the wall, pushing his way through but is pushed back. "Giver her back!" He screams, echoing throughout the room. Kai chuckles as he slides his hand from the center of my back, up and around to the right side of my neck, resting in the nook. My eyes flicker before rolling to the back of my head, passing out. Falling backwards, Kai catches me, easily lifting me in his arms. Damien screams at the wall with tight fists. He throws several punches at the wall, making every attempt to break the barrier. He makes an attempt to teleport towards me but the barrier blocks it as well.
The door to the room swings open, slamming into the wall as Cain runs in. "What the hell- Kai!?" Cain takes a quick second to study the room, gathering the situation. He bursts into a sprint towards me but is thrown back as he connects with the barrier. "Ugh, shit. This isn't going to end well for you Kai!"
Kai stands unbothered as he watches his brothers desperately attack the barrier he has created. He chuckles lightly. "Really? It seems to be working well for me." He looks down to my unconscious face and grins. "Such a beautiful girl. So nice to finally have her again."
Damien's immediate reaction was to slam his fists into the barrier once more, causing a loud thud to ring throughout the room. "She is mine! I will kill you for this." He grinds his teeth as his eyes cloud and his inner darkness takes over. He begins to tremble in anger and a black smoke begins to swirl around him. Kai rolls his eyes, "Stop with the dramatics Damien. I appreciate you keeping her safe in the meantime, but it's time for her to come with me now. It's been a lovely family reunion, however I think I've overstayed my welcome. Good luck brothers." He disappears with me in his arms, within the second.
Damien screams as loud as he can, causing every muscle in his body to tense, buldging. He turns around and punches a hole through the wall, making the house shake. Cain quickly reaches up to see if the barrier was still in tact. It seems to be fading quickly. He whips his head around to Damien. "Get yourself together! Go after her, the barrier is down!" Before Cain could finish his sentence, Damien had already teleported.
Cain runs throughout the house yelling for everyone. He makes his way into his study, where Ben had been casually having a drink. He jumps slightly when Cain bursts into the room. "Go get everyone, I will meet them in the front hall in five minutes." Ben nods quickly, dropping his drink on the table and sprinting out of the room.
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<-Chris's P.O.V->
I've been sitting in this cell for an eternity. I can't stand the blonde ditz in here with me, she is enough torture on it's own. She's been talking non-stop the entire time and I haven't listened to one word. To my surprise she jumps up, mid sentence and slams her hands onto her hips as her expression twists into anger and annoyance. "Cain!" She yells out angrily. I twitch at the name and jump up as well, turning to face him. He comes charging towards the cell. He rips the door open, eyes never leaving mine. My body clenched at the uncertainty and chills domino down my spine.
"Get the fuck out of here Skye." She looks at him wide eyed for a moment before running passed him and into the distance. "Y-your grace?" I question, voice shaky. Before I had a chance to inhale a breath, his hands were gripped around my jacket, lifting me and throwing me across the cell, into the wall. An immense pain radiates across my body as I fall to the ground. I gasp a few times as the impact has winded me. I turn to look towards him, but I am greeted by his fist, several times. My head bounces off the cement ground, I bring my hands up to block my face as I feel it beginning to swell, each contact increasing the sharp pain. He grips my throat, pulling me up and pushing me into the cell bars. I cough out a splatter of blood as I desperately gasp for air. I finally have a chance to look into his eyes and the sight startles me. Complete darkness; his demon has come through. He breathes through his gritted teeth as he stares at me in hatred. He grips my face in his palm and once again throws me to the floor. I curl into a ball, covering my head once again. He kicks my shoulder, turning me on my back. "How did he find us!? It was you!" He screams in my face. I shake my head in confusion. "What are you talking about!?" I respond, matching his tone. He shoves me further into the floor. "If I find out you caused this. I will kill you myself, if Damien doesn't destroy you first." Terror consumes me at his words. I stare at him, frozen by my own fear. He places his hand on my chest. I look down confused, until a scorching heat burns through me causing me to wail out in pain. Screaming until my voice gives out and my body convulses. I feel a heavy liquid fill my throat, choking me as it rises up into my mouth like bile, the acidity burning along the way. I feel it pouring over my bottom lip and down my neck. Gargling, all the blood rushes to my face as I choke. I cough, splattering a black liquid all over myself and Cain. I look down to Cain's hand, where the black liquid overflows from his palm as well, pooling around my body. I yell in pain and terror as my sight fades in and out, my body giving up. A swift coolness flows across my body when Cain removes his hand, leaving an unbearable pain where his hand once was. He pushes himself up, standing over me. I roll onto my side, knowing I need to get whatever this liquid is, out of my mouth. The black pool continues to grow around me. I gain the strength to look up to Cain who is breathing heavily, the same black liquid dripping from his hand. "My brother may have been stupid enough to give you this 'gift'. But I deem you unworthy. I relieve you of the ability." My eyes widen at his words and my body quickly numbs, taking me into a delusional state. I lay in what was my inner shadow. He had removed it from my body and liquidated it in the process. My hand flops to the floor, as I drag it across the pool. I use my last remaining strength to lift my hand, watching as the thick liquid becomes transparent as it slides through my fingers. I had lost my shadow.
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<-Damien's P.O.V->
His feet heavy as he slams his feet into the forest ground, pushing his way through the dark forest. His veins pulsing as the black liquid creeps over his body, through each vein, rising up his neck. A mild red glow surrounding him as a black smoke trails behind him. A young soldier stands guard in the dirt path, directly in front of him. She turns in his direction and is startled by the sight. With barely enough time to ready herself, Damien runs through her, feeding on her soul in a matter of seconds. Without a chance to defend herself, she falls hard to the ground, dead.
A few feet ahead, another soldier stands guard, but he seems to be prepared. "No no prince. Not today." The soldier taunts him by lifting his hand, pointing his index finger to the sky and waving it back and forth signalling 'no'. Without changing his pace, he runs until he is only a few feet from him. The soldier takes a small step back, losing his confidence momentarily. The soldier quickly tightens his fist and reaches out for a quick jab at Damien's face. Damien angles his body casually, dodging the soldiers attack. Before the soldier has a chance to bring his arm back in from the punch, Damien catches his wrist, holding it inches from his face. He pulls the soldier foreward, but stops him by palming the soldiers chin, pushing it up, away from him. Pulling his arm and pushing his face in opposite directions until his neck cracks. The soldier twitches as all resistance from him depletes immediately. Damien drops him and continues forward.
He comes up to a small opening, the moonlight fills the grassy field, surrounded by the dark forest. He pauses as he kneels down, keeping himself hidden within the shadows of the trees. A group of four soldiers stand casually, as if they had no expecations for anything to really happen. Damien calms his breath and flicks his hand up towards the soldiers. The shadow leaks into the open field, slowly creeping over each blade of grass, until the darkness overtakes the soldiers own shadows and the light from the moon has dimmed. The soldiers become startled and begin frantically searching their own surroundings in disarray. Damien slowly stands as the darkness continues to grow around them, he stands completely, straightening his posture as he tilts his chin down, grinning.
"Did you hear that?" one of the soldiers blurts out with a sense of fear in his voice. "What did you hear!?" "I can't see anything!?" "What happened to the moonlight? did it get cloudy?" The four soldiers back into each other into a small circle. They stand ready but it is no secret that they are nit only nervous, but petrified. Damien steps in front of the first soldier, close enough for her to see him. Her eyes widen and she gasps as he comes into view. "I-it's him!" She screams, stepping backwards, pushing the other soldiers out of position. They all frantically look around. "Who!? who is it!?" A light breeze flows through the field, disturbing the smoke surrounding Damien, letting the red glow, shine in the darkness. They all freeze as the darkness lightens slightly. "Do something!" One of them yells as they all glance at one another. "You do something!" Another argues. "Shut up, both of you!" They turn back towards Damien, who was no longer there. Panic fills them as their breathing hitches, whipping around to search where he went. "Shit! Where is he!?" "Did he just walk by us!?" One of them sighs in relief. "Thank god, there was no way I was ready for that." "How the hell do you get ready for that? You don't, death isn't a question when you cross one of them." One of the soldiers turns around to look at the other. His face drains of all blood, becoming almost pale enough to glow. "Are you okay? you don't look to well."
Damien stands silently behind the soldier, close enough to feel his breath but still undetectable. The soldier shrugs, confused by the others expression. Within a second, Damien reaches up to grab the soldiers jaw, twisting it, snapping and dropping him. He drops like a bag of bricks to the floor. The three remaining soldiers stand frozen in silence as their jaws hang open. Damien had transitioned into a demonic state. There was no room for mercy. Damien looks down to his right palm, lifting it and turning it towards the soldier directly in front of him. He takes a slow deep breath in and out through his nose. In an instant a black smoke is sucked from the soldier, leaving through all the pores in his face as a black ooze leaks from his eyes, gushing out of his mouth as his body jerks forward, before he falls forward to the ground. The soldier takes one last short breath before dropping heavily face first. The last two soldiers faulter, taking a few quick steps back as they both begin to sob. They begin to run towards the trees. Damien tilts his head and makes eye contact with the female. Her feet come to a complete stop as she can't help but desperately gasp for breath in between each sob. The other soldier, slows down as he reaches the forest entrance, confused as to why she's stopped. "What are you doing!? Do you want to die!? Let's go!" Damien walks towards her at an even pace. "I-I can't move!" She screams, making every attempt to move her paralyzed limbs. "H-He's frozen me here!" Without a second the other soldier turns around and runs, leaving his comrade to fend for herself.
Damien makes his way close enough to feel her gasping breath. "I-Is this what he did to your mother and father?" She says this in hopes to gain some sort of empathy from him. "Now you, you're doing it as well?" Despite her attempt, it instead infuriates him. He clenches his jaw, shifting his gaze down to see that at some point she had pulled out a jagged blade. Despite her tight grip, she is aggressively trembling. He reaches down, pulling it from her hand. He brings the blade in direct view as he flips it back and forth, observing the blade, then shifting his gaze to her tear filled eyes. "Interesting words coming from someone who supports my brother." he says soft but assertive. She shakes her head and tears fall down her cheeks. "Your brother? No, no. This is far bigger than him. You are no different than any of them!" She pokes her index finger into his chest but quickly retreats. He shrugs, "Perhaps not." He flips the dagger towards her, pointing it in the center of her collar bone. Her breathing intensifies as sweat drips down her forehead, shutting her eyes tight. Damien leans into her, balancing the dagger against her, moving his palm to the end of the dagger; with his opposite hand he grips onto the back of her neck. Keeping full eye contact as the blade glides into her, holding it there as she struggles, dropping her freely as she takes her last breath.
Silence fills the field. He shifts his gaze back into the forest to see the last soldier still running in the distance. Within the second he transports his body a few feet from the soldier, causing the soldier to run directly into him, making him fly backwards onto the dirt path. The soldier pushes himself backwards away from him as his breathing increases. "Where did he take her?" Damien demands. "They got her!?" The soldier seemed strangely shocked. Damien angles his head and furrows his brow. "They?" The soldier nods lightly. "T-the shadows..." Damien's expression shifts further into anger and confusion. "Who sent you!?" The soldier hesitates to respond. Damien kneels down, twisting his fist into the soldiers jacket, lifting him slightly off the ground. "The order c-came from death!" Damien stands, throwing him forward onto his hands. He pulls out a dagger, flipping it and stabbing the soldier in the back. The soldier falls forward onto his stomach as blood pools around him. Damien stares at him for a moment before lifting his chin, looking off into the distance. A light breeze flows down the path, a hint of her scent fills his senses, he closes his eyes, allowing it to fill him.
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<-Meanwhile->
Everyone in the house gathers in the front hall, beckoned by Cain. All whispering, curious why they've been called from their rooms. As Cain enters the room, everyone becomes silently appalled as they see the blood and black liquid that is splattered across him. Cole is the first to speak up. "Is... is everything alright?" Vince steps forward. "Yeah, what's with the sudden meeting?" Cain takes a deep breath as he rolls up his sleeves to his elbows. "I have something to share with you all." Analyn crosses her arms and nods. "We're listening." Cain nods and continues. "I don't have a lot of time. I'm hoping you all will understand why we have kept this from you." He continues to explain the background history of their story with Aryah. "Aryah... is an essence. We've been protecting her." Silence fills the room. As he looks across the small crowd a mixture of shock, realization and understanding fills their expressions. "That makes so much sense." Wade shrugs and nods. "Is this why you brought us here?" Ethan brings his hand to his chin in thought. "Partially, my goal was to convince you to lean towards our cause." Cain crosses his arms. "I don't know about everyone else, but I've always leaned towards rebel status." Vince shrugs as he looks around to the others. They all nod in agreement. Sabrina nods, "We all know Kai is bad news. We have to give off the illusion that we are neutral in his eyes." Cain sighs and slumps forward slightly. "See that's the thing. Kai was here not long ago and he took Aryah with him. We need to get her back. Damien has already gone after her. His soldiers will be here any minute, I need us to work together." Marina steps forward, crossing her arms confidently. "So let's go kick some ass?" She gives Cain a wink and bursts into a sprint, swinging open the door, leaving it open behind her. "I agree, I'm tired of being afraid." Analyn nods, furrowing her brows before running out the door. Wade and a few others follow behind her. "Well I'm not going to stand here and do nothing!" Sabrina yells out as she runs towards the rest. Morgan runs into the house, searching out Cain. "Cain, they're here." Cain nods in response. "Let's go." Cole waves to the rest to follow him. "I'm going to follow Damien and Aryah. I need you to take care of things here." Morgan nods, allowing Cain to exit the house before her.
Ember steps out from behind the doorway, taking a few steps into the front hall. Taking a deep sigh, a somber look on her face. "That makes so much sense... I've been so blind." She whispers to herself before running out to join the others.
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<-Aryah's P.O.V->
I slowly come back to consciousness. The coldness in the air sends a shiver down my arms as the forest scent fills my nose. Distant yelling and crickets flows angrily through the trees, hitting my ears. I turn my head and open my eyes to see Kai standing at the entrance of what seems to be a cave, looking out. My body tenses as I puzzle together what's happening. I glance around the cave trying to keep as still as I can, not to make a sound. I see him turning his body towards me, so I shut my eyes, pretending to sleep. He takes a few steps towards me, kneeling down, sliding his hand in mine, giving it a light squeeze. "Don't worry Aryah, you'll remember soon enough." He whispers to me. With his other hand he cups my chin, turning my face from side to side, observing my face. Sliding his hand down my neck to my heart, feeling my heart beating underneath his palm. My beat quickens as I feel like this is the only chance I have to get away, while he's least expecting it. Without a second thought, I roll away from him, jumping up, I run towards the forest. I blink once and he's already in front of me, I should have known he'd be as quick as his brothers. He grips my upper arms, pulling me towards him and holding me in place. He closes his eyes to take a deepbreath, opening them again as he's calmed his anger. "It's time to remember. Look deep into your subconscious and pull out your memories." He says as if it was as easy as inhaling oxygen. I shake my head at him and try to jerk my arms away from him. Sadly he overpowers me easily. I switch my gaze to his to pull him into an illusion but he quickly looks away, avoiding direct eye contact with me. He turns me around, shoving me into the cave wall, hovering over me. I turn my head to look out into the forest but he grips my chin, pulling it back to him. "Please, it's me." He whispers with a desperate tone. I look at him perplexed, studying his face for any recognition, but nothing. "I-I don't know you. I need to get to Damien." His face twists as he pushes himself away from me. He makes a small circle. "Look at me!" He shouts at me, causing me to jump. He was obviously pained by my reaction. I make another break for it but he once again grabs me, pulling me backwards as he grips onto the back of my neck. Darkness shades over as I lose consciousness once again. He gently leads me to the ground. He stands up, pacing around the cave, agitated. "Where the fuck is he!?" He screams out into the forest.
Time goes by as he impatiently waits. He uncrosses his arms as the sound of footsteps grows closer. Chris emerges from the forest. Struggling to drag himself forward, limping, heavy breathing, hunched over and covered in his own blood and black ooze. Surprisingly Kai's expression is neutral. Chris stops in front of him, catching a few breathes. "Hm, which one was it?" Kai asks casually. "C-cain, your grace..." Kai scoffs and shakes his head. "Shit, you look terrible." Chris's gaze moves to the ground as exhaustion fills him, falling to his knees. "He, he took it back..." Chris says between breaths. "Really? Interesting." Kai crosses his arms, resting his chin in between his index finger and thumb.
"Come out come out, you piece of shit."
Kai lightly jumps and tenses as a deep voice rings around the trees and bushes. Chris whips his head behind him to search around, falling onto his back. "Fuck! He's closer than I thought. Hurry up! We need to bring back her memories, now!" Chris shuffles to stand, losing his footing."But your grace, it's not safe to do it all at once!" Kai whips around to face Chris. "We don't have a lot of fucking time, do we?" Chris shakes his head and shifts his gaze to my unconscious body, dragging himself towards me. "I'm sorry Aryah..." He whispers to me.
A deep laugh echoes and Kai and Chris both look back towards the entrance, both of them tense. Kai's breath hitches, breathing deeply through his nose trying to steady his heart. "Your grace..." Chris asks nervously. "It's Damien..." Kai responds in almost a whisper. His mental state had clearly become unhinged. "You've failed brother. I know her scent." Kai's eyes widen as he whips his head to Chris. "Oh my god, you said you'd mask her scent!" Chris flinches and throws his hands up. "I'm sorry! I didn't have time, she only came to see me once!" Kai smacks his forehead, dragging it down his face as he let's out a frustrated sigh.
"We're going to have to deal with Damien then. Hurry up, we're out of time."