Ch 7 - The Enigma Ascertainment

Torri’s arrow supply was dwindling.  While she could collect all of her other arrows, they were not going to be as accurate as the fresh ones with perfectly balanced fletches.  She would, as always, chose her targets and shoot only what she had to until this was done or….she was dead.  Either way, she knew her limits.

As she felt and heard the spell Kimiko cast followed by the scream from behind the debris pile, she felt a chill run the length of her spine.  She knew it was not as simple as that.  Arawela and Algernon were injured but they weren’t out of the fight just yet.  They were both too nasty to be gone that easy.  

As a precaution, she slid closer to Sionn and now Lily as she joined them.  Looking over at the Norseman, she furrowed her brows then tsked.

”Whate’r you need t’do t’prepare for the worst, ye best be doin’ that.  These two kooks are not done yet.  Down….but not out.  Yet.”

She saw the crimson stains on Lily’s clothes and furrowed her brows again.

”Lily girl….we be needin’ t’get ye to a doctor soon.”

Torri looked at Sionn then and nodded.  Nocking an arrow onto the string of her bow but keeping the string loose, she looked out at the destruction all around her narrowing her eyes.  Algernon and Arawela were out there somewhere….no doubt waiting for the dust to settle like they were.

“Kainy?” Carla whined.

“Yeah?” Kain replied flatly.

“This ride isn’t quite what I had in mind…”

“Tell me about it.” He said and sighed.

“… Is that…?” Carla asked while leaning over the door for a better look.

“Another dead cow?” Kain once again replied flatly, “Yup – it is.”

“Eeeew!” She said and immediately threw herself back into her seat, “Why is it so-“

“Mangled?” Kain finished her thought, though Carla probably wouldn’t have used that word.

“Yuckie.” Carla said.

Yeah, that was more like her. “I don’t know.”

“Poor Mister Moo-Moo.” She lamented.

“Cows are girls.” Kain felt the need to correct Carla.

Carla gasped and tears welled up, “No, Missy Moomers! What happened to you!?”

“I’m not sure I want to find out…” Kain muttered and silence returned to the car for a while.

Of course, Carla only reflected on the tragedy for so long before her glittery-pink phone made another appearance and she immediately traded her sadness for outrage.

“Turn back to Moomers!” She demanded.

“What? No, we’d best keep going.”

“I need a picture!”

Kain’s face cringed with disgust, “We’re not turning around so you can have a picture of a bloody pile of broken bones and meat.”

“But Stephanie responded to my status update! She’s calling me a liar, that slut!”

“We’re not turning around.” Kain says resolutely; “With our luck we’re going to come across worse than dead cows for you to make pictures of.”

“We’d better!” Carla moaned with her arms crossed.

Kain could only shake his head, and to think this day started so nicely…

“Sound of the drums
Beatin’ in my heart
The thunder of guns
Tore me apart
You’ve been – thunderstruck”

“I know this song.” Carla said responding to the song that had started playing.

Most people do, Kain imagined.

“What’s it called?” She wondered.

And no one ever had to ask that question after hearing the lyrics even once. They JUST SANG IT WOMAN!

“Thunderstruck.” Kain answered plainly, he’d learned not to waste his breath on frustration anymore and added, “By AC/DC.”

“Yeah, yeah! A Sea Deeply, I know this song!” She rejoiced.

“What?” Kain didn’t quite catch that.

“It’s a nice song about a storm in Texas, pretty cool.” She knew, or so she thought.

“No – What? No, no, no. Ugh, forget it, just enjoy the song. I don’t want to interrupt it any more, I actually feel connected to this song.”

“So do I! I’ve been to Texas.” Carla stated, “Now hush.”

Goddamn this woman!

“Said yeah, it’s alright
We’re doing fine
Yeah, its alright
We’re doing fine

Thunderstruck, yeah, yeah, yeah
Thunderstr—“

A loud crash deafened the stereo as a boulder from the sky crashed into the car just behind Kain’s seat. The car rocked and swirved, Kain failing to keep the vehicle under control on the wet dirt. So much so that he got thrown from his seat and sailed across the car, across Carla's lap and into the side of the door.

“You’ve been thunderstruuuu-huck!” The stereo still managed to produce with an audible crackle from a wounded surround system as the car came to a screeching halt and Kain laid on Carla’s lap out cold.

…

“Uhhh…” Kain moaned while opening his eyes ever to slowly. He regained consciousness to a pounding headache exacerbated by the giggling of what could only be his annoying blonde passenger. His body got pulled from side to side and as soon as he opened his eyes further, he realized he was in a moving vehicle. In fact, it was his convertible, he realized. He also realized he was lying among his driving aids and quickly deduced Carla was at the wheel.

Oh God, why!?

“Hey! You’re awake!” Carla quickly realized Kain was conscious again, “Now I feel silly, I only just got done removing these – things of yours.” She said an laughed; “You know… I never even drove a car before.” She said and continued laughing.

Please God, have mercy!

Kain pulled himself upright in a hurry, but did so far too quickly for his own good, his head feeling like it was about to explode and his world spinning.

“Please slow down.” Kain said weakly.

“Don’t worry, I think I’ve got the hang of it after hitting that one tree twice. It’s really quite easy.” Carla thought.

“Slower, please.”

“You worry too much.” She said and waved a hand at him.

The car immediately slid a little across the dirt, but Carla managed to keep control with one hand somehow.

“Besides, I think I’ve found people down by the waterside!”

“Alright, alright. Go there. Slowly. Two hands.” Kain said softly with his pounding head in his hands.

“On it like two peas in a pod!” She confirmed with a very odd choice of words.

Kimiko walked over to the group, the lighter debris from her explosion was still settling around the area and it was clear she was utterly exhausted from using magic. Her hair which had been neatly tucked up and tied back in a very traditional Japanese way when they had first met her only 20 minutes before was now in tassels and stringy strands hanging all around her. Her hair was down past her waist in length and was fluttering and flowing in the breeze coming off the ocean as she came up to them. Her eyes still held a raw determination despite the loss of her little brother and she spoke flatly, "Where's the other one?"

Dietrich turned to where Algenon had been and so did Torri, Lily and Sionn. Sionn spoke, "He was just there, we hit him with some extreme cold, but we have no found a body yet." Kimiko furrowed her brows and the raw determination in her face was plan to all. She started walking towards where Sionn had pointed, it was clear she had vengeful intentions despite the depletion of her strength. The air was still freezing cold from Sionn and Torri's actions. Sionn turned to Lily as they walked behind Kimiko and showed concern on his face for her wounds. He sighed and touched her arm, stopping her as the others continued on, "Come lass."

He sat her down and spoke softly, "This will sting, but it will stop the bleeding aye?"

She nodded and he pulled the moisture in the air around him to her wound and touched it gently, the freezing cold flash froze the skin and blood, sealing it for now. She winced and he nodded, "I know lass, I am sorry, but at least you will no bleed to death. It is no the best way, but at least it will keep ya alive until we get you proper help."

He helped her back to her feet and they walked over to the others. Kimiko was talking to Dietrich who was explaining all he had seen. She had a softness on her face as she listened, but there was still intensity to the situation. As he finished she looked around and spoke, "He is still here... hiding like the reptiles he is."

"What about Arawela?" The group turned to Sionn as he asked his question. Kimiko spoke, "You saw the explosion, she is dead."

Sionn looked at Torri and they spoke an entire conversation in a half second glance. Both were shaking their heads but Sionn said the words first, "She is no dead..."

Kimiko furrowed her brows and looked intensely at Sionn, "I felt the impact of my spell on her, I assure you she is dead."

Sionn looked at her flattly and spoke, "T and I have faced her several times in the past, she is as slippery as an eel, until we see her body I am no convinced."

"Nor I."

Kimiko turned to look at Torri as she spoke her two words. Two words that were so simple, yet struck a cord in the Grey Wizard. She looked at them both and spoke, "Though I disagree, I know better than to disregard the instincts of a Fara, and even more so the instincts of two... we will go look for a body."

She turned to look around the beach and furrowed her brows again as there was no sign of Algenon.

Dietrich gritted his teeth as the ghastly ghost used his spell passing through him he let the axe swing letting one hand off to burn the momentum off in a slow spin of the axe haft in his deft fingers as the weapons head his the sand resting as in a slow explosion the walls raised around him and he saw glimpses of the Fara two flanking round he prayed they found him as he caught the scent of all this magicka raising the air crackling when he saw the harmless shaft drift into the sandstorm... Pop? Naaa I tell a lie Booom as the flash came he closed an eye letting it half blind him as he shook his head at the flash before opening the other eyelid the glare taken off as slowly the wall of sand dropped he smiled a little as he tested his left arm which the elbow felt. crunchy as something was catching on bone as they regrouped. He gave his fellow warriors nods as he was smiling ear to ear as Torri gave him her warning that the cooks weren't out yet. "Loki's persistence." Winking a little he picked at a piece of wood that had peppered his leg teasing it to see if it would pull out but left it for now the salt was cleaning the wound.

He tilted his head as he saw the wild array on Kimiko's hair alive as she asked where he was... "Not in two halves." As they recuperated he found himself in recuperation explaining he had been sent here as an imbalance had been felt he didn't know if he was here to support evil or good but he had just been jumbled inside a cube of wood to test his survival and conferred his regret for her losing a brother as he cleaned the blade of his axe with a rag from inside his coat keeping the salt off the keen blade as he smiled. "Should we go test the theory of the two and see if we can find some gibblets to sack and tag?" Always a pinch of a smile one had to be positive in these situations as he placed the axe on his shoulder. Waiting to see who would take lead he had no idea if they even had a leader structure after all he was the mad Norseman who fought from his supposed watery burial much alive.

Lilly gasped at the burn of the coldness from Sionn's hands but she felt the bleeding stop for now and gave him a small smile. "Thank ye, Sionn. I will be okay. Tis sorry I be for not being better help to ye and Torri." She looked away, clearly feeling as if she'd failed at something but she didn't know what.

She got slowly to her feet, her back still burning and her side aching something fierce, but she was a fighter and she wasn't about to give up. At Sionn's and Torri's words about Arawela her odd colored eyes went to an icy blue as she felt her anger begin to grow over what the bitch had done to Hibiki. She looked at Sionn, "I be fine and I want to be with ye when we find that bloody thing on two legs." She looked then at the Norseman and wasn't quite sure what to make of him. "Can he be trusted? Who is he?"

Kimiko walked cautiously, the group following behind her as she scanned the rapidly clearing mists. After about twenty minutes she turned and looked at Sionn and Torri, her eyes scanning both of them. She inhaled deeply and turned to look back to where she had fought Arawela when the ground all around her erupted in a column of mud and debris. She screamed instinctually as she was thrown back and into Sionn, the two of them flopping backwards like rag dolls as the energy transfer from the spell to material matter swatted at them like a massive hand against a couple of flies.

Algenon and Arawela stepped up, side by side, on top of the pile of garbage that Kimiko had struck with her spell and looked down at the group. Kimiko was severly dazed and Sionn was out cold. Arawela look directly at Torri and spoke, "A shame if he does, he is such a beautiful specimen."

With a twisted smile She and Algenon lifted their hands in unison and a massive ball of energy surrounded them like a sphere made of shadow and sand. It swirled violently as they braced off one anothers strength. It was not clear what they were about to do, but the pull of magic was so strong it was like wind being sucked into a vortex with them at the center.

The car slid and bumped awkwardly towards where Carla had spotted the people. Kain wasn’t even sure there were any, his head was still pounding and his vision blurred. The car’s jagged movements didn’t help him any either.

“Slowly…” Kain moaned, “Careful…”

Carla didn’t respond, maintaining her focus on driving the car downhill. Her stare at the distance and her tongue sticking out the corner of her mouth as she yanked the steering wheel left and right.

As soon as the explosion hit, not even Carla’s intense focus could keep the car from spinning and landing against a tree. A girlish squeal and a loud groan could be heard in the process, but soon enough an eerie silence returned to the destroyed coastline.

“What was that!?” Carla asked trying to keep her voice down, but clearly rattled, while hiding inside the car.

“Damned if I know.” Kain said.

The two exchanged some looks after the rain of dirt had subsided. Kain wasn’t that keen on poking his head out, though Carla’s intense glare by the end of their exchange of looks made him think it might very well be safer than doing nothing. It took a moment for Kain to get his bearings because of the car spinning.

“What do you see?” Carla asked impatiently.

“It’s quiet again.” Was all Kain could really tell once he had looked around for a moment.

The answer was not very satisfying for Carla and though she hesitated for a moment she had to have a look for herself.

“I think I see where the explosion happened.” She said after she ducked back down, but soon popped back up, “There’s like some smoke or something there.” She said after looking again.

This prompted Kain to take another look. He strained his eyes to find what Carla was talking about, but eventually saw the violently swirling sphere. He didn’t consider it as anything but smoke from the explosion from this distance, but a terrible feeling stirred in his stomach.

“Did you see it?” Carla asked and Kain nodded, “We need to go see if anyone got hurt!”

Kain was reluctant, “Are you sure you saw people down there?”

“Yeah, at least a couple. They might be hurt!”

“Alright, alright…” Kain relented and climbed out of the car.

The two of them quickly made their way down the hill, or at least as quickly as the slippery, debris riddled slope allowed. The closer they came, the clearer it became it wasn’t smoke from an explosion they were heading for. The feeling in Kain’s stomach spread and the entirety of his body  became tense. He thought he was just getting sick from hitting his head and Carla’s driving, but now his training began to kick in and the events that had taken place this morning began to make sense.

“Hide!” He said as the magical origin of the swirling shadows hit him and he dragged Carla behind the trunk of a large tree.

“Owww!” Carla winced as the unexpected strength of the little man pulled on her arm.

“Something is very wrong here.” Kain said as he made sure the two of them were pressed against the tree.

“What—“

“Shhhhh!” Kain urged Carla to be quiet as he peeked around the tree to observe the swirling darkness and noticed the people around it.

His right hand had instinctively gone for his pocket, clutching his extendable rod. He could feel the conflicting powers, though there was an overwhelming air of evil.  Kain wasn’t sure what he should do, or even what he could do.

“Kainy…” Carla said softly, tapping his shoulder.

“Carla, please.” He urged, but soon he heard something from behind.

Kain’s once glorious silver convertible slowly gathered speed as it came down the slippery hill, heading straight for the shadowy sphere. The two of them watched it come by and as soon as it passed them he poked his head around the tree again to see what was about to happen.

The empty car had picked up quite some speed and the stereo still did its best to do Kool & the Gang justice.

“Celebrate good times, come on!
It’s a celebration
Celebrate good times, come on!
Let’s celebrate”

Lilly ran over to where Sionn was laying, sliding to a skidding halt on her knees next to him.  She quickly checked him over injuries and didn't see any but knew that she couldn't see anything internal if there were any.

"Sionn!!  Sionn!!  Wake up!!!"

She turned to see Arawela and her father surround themselves with some kind of sphere after she'd heard what the druidess had to say to Torri.  Standing, her odd eyes were all but glowing as they turned to a icy blue filled with anger, rage and hatred.  She now held a sharp throwing blade in each hand and stood protectively in front of Sionn and Kimiko protectively.

"It won't be Sionn dying today ye bloody bitch", she whispered to herself.



Aurora slept deeply in Ean's strong arms on the loveseat her head resting on his massive chest.  It was then that the dream started and she began to whimper.

~She was battling goblins again, only this time she was on her own.  She could see Ean, Lizzy and Lexy within the protective confines of an orb but she couldn't get to it.  As she looked around she could see the animals around her, either dead or dying, laying in mangled bodies.  Goblins were all around her and when she cried out to Ean he would bang on the inside of the orb but couldn't step through it.  Suddenly, Beau was there, running towards her when a goblin tackled him, tearing into his body.  She ran over to him only to see the goblin tear him in half.  She screamed in her dream and in reality.  In the dream she was once again running towards the orb making her way through the mutilated bodies of the precious animals she'd called to help them, sending them to their deaths, only the more she ran the further the orb with Ean and his sisters was.  Suddenly, she was standing in front of Arawela who was holding Eryn in a small cage.  Arawela smiled at Aurora and it was the smile of death before she took a knife and stabbed Eryn with it, the bird crying out as it died.  

"I told you that you would suffer many times over before I was done with you and this is just the beginning", Arawela said to her laughing.~

Aurora was now screaming in her dream and in reality, tears coursing down her cheeks.

Lexi knelt beside Aurora. Her face was furrowed in an expression of concern and compassion as she watched her friend, clearly in a horrific nightmare of some kind. Ean stroked his beloveds hair and Elizabeth sat off to the side, watching with her quiet eyes. Finally Aurora snapped awake and the first thing she saw was Lexi’s smile, “S’alright sister, though what you felt seemed real t’was just a dream.”

Elizabeth exhaled softly and spoke, “They are getting’ worse.”

Aurora looked over at her, as did Ean and Lexy. Ean sat up slightly, still maintaining his embrace on Aurora, “What’da mean Lizzy?”

Elizabeth adjusted in her chair and took a sip of her tea before answering, “Just look at her Ean, these episodes are no getting’ better, whatever plagues her is deepening.”

Ean kissed the top of Aurora’s head and spoke, “You think Arawela  has bewitched her?”

Lexy looked at Aurora and smiled, stroking her hair gently as Lizzy spoke, “I can no say, of course anything is possible, but I think if she had managed such a thing we would have either detected it by now, or she would have used it more to her advantage than nightmares. My guess is less sinister, but still needs to be addressed.”

As Aurora say up Ean stood and rubbed his arm gently, looking at Elizabeth, “How?”

Elizabeth sighed softly and shook her head, “I do not know brother, first we need to find the cause, I do no want to cure sleeplessness with magic if melatonin would suffice aye?”

Ean nodded and looked at Aurora, “Or maybe we should just hunt down Arawela and put an end to all this nonsense.”

Elizabeth sighed again and spoke, “If’n it was that easy I think we would have done it by now aye?”

Ean looked at his sister again but said nothing. His face showed a deep, lingering resolve however, clearly his thoughts were in motion. Lexy stood and with a smile to Aurora she stretched out her hand, “Come sister, let’s clean yer pretty face and get you some breakfast, we can at least start there.”




Arawela and Algenon pressed, back to back, the massive surge of power exploded from their bodies and left the shoreline like a black sphere, tearing through the air and smashing into the ocean, causing a huge wave to burst into the sky, flash boiling the sea water where it made contact and sending a huge plume of steam into the air. Algenon looked at those whom they had been fighting and hissed, “And now, let the first of three consume!”

Arawela laughed and Algenon reached, touching her shoulder, in a twisting swirl the two vanished from sight. Only seconds after the ground began to tumble and roll under those left, a violent and horrific earthquake shook them to their teeth and made it so no one could even stand. Kimiko reached and touched Torri. As the Fara turned to look at her she spoke through the jostling, “Grab your brother and anyone else you can touch!! She also turned to the dwarf who had just arrived and screamed, “COME HERE! NOW!”

He and his female companion obeyed, and as the group all made physical contact with one another, Kimiko screamed words of magic, her voice shaky and growing weak, the whole group were suddenly pulled through the air as if removed by a strong wind and landed several kilometers away up on the hillsides. The ground was still moving here, but not as bad. Kimiko collapsed in exhaustion, the pain from her impact with the ground when Arawela and Algenon hit with the spell mixed with the drain of magic use was certainly taking its toll and she could barely lift her face from the soft dirt as she watched the entire shoreline rock and twist, dropping into the ocean as the shoreline gave way to the fault line which had just been opened. The entire city of Nanao disappeared almost instantly into the water and Kimiko screamed, reaching out her hand as if she could grab any who reached up a hand. It was over in seconds, the shaking began to subside and the air all along the new coastline was full of dirt and water. Kimiko  screamed into the dirt and her body shook with grief and rage.

As Lizzy and Ean spoke, silent tears trailed down Aurora's cheeks as the dream was still very vivid in her mind. She looked for Beau and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him sitting next to Lizzy's chair, staring at her with a very worried look in her amber eyes. Another sigh of relief was quickly heard when she heard Eryn's cry outside the house only to be replaced with that of panic. It was not even a second when Lexy finished speaking to her that Aurora jumped up from the couch and ran to the door, slamming it open with a strength she didn't know she possessed. She whistled loudly, outstretching her arm to the great bird of prey, calling Eryn to her, unmindful that she hadn't put on the protective covering over her wrist to protect her delicate skin from the birds talons.

"ERYN!! COME TO ME!! PLEASE COME TO ME!!", she cried out to her, watching as the bird flew gracefully towards her, landing gently on her wrist.

Aurora turned, feeling Eryn's talons digging into her skin as the raptor clung to her to keep her balance in Aurora's haste to get her into the house. Yet, Aurora felt none of it. She didn't even notice as her blood began to drip from the puncture holes in her arm, her only thought was to get Eryn indoors where it was safe.

She didn't notice the concerned looks on her friends' faces nor on her her beloved's as she rushed upstairs to her room and placed Eryn on her perch, only vaguely aware of Ean following her.

"I am sorry, my friend, but I must ask that you stay indoors from now on. Tis too dangerous out there for you and Beau and both of you HAVE to stay indoors." She stroked her silky feathers, "I cannot lose the two of you to that bitch. I cannot let you pay for my sin of killing Erebus."

She looked down to see Beau nudging at her with his cold, wet nose, "You too, Beau. You HAVE to stay indoors now where it's safe. No more going outside." It was clear that whatever the dream was, it affected her to the point of panic for her two spirit guides. It was then that she turned to see Ean standing in the doorway of her bedroom, watching her with concern.

"I brought this on them, Ean. I brought this on all of you and she will do everything she can to take all of you away from me. I can't let that happen." She walked over to him, craning her neck back to look up at him, fear and love shining in her dark eyes as she raised a hand to cup his cheek. "If I could, I would insist that you stay indoors as well. To lose you on top of it would break me, Ean. I am already losing myself to the dreams, I can feel it. But to lose you.........", she struggled to hold her emotions together as another tear trickled down her dusky cheek. "I would no longer be of this world and she will try to take you from me, just like she will Beau and Eryn." She turned then, looking down at her hands, "I should've never said those words while holding his stone. I should've never brought his death upon him. Now all of you will pay for what I've done."

Her restless sleeping was beginning to wear on her, something she'd not told Ean was that every night she dreamed. This recent one had been the worst but ever since Arawela told her that Erebus was dead because of her and that she would pay many times over she'd dreamed. She agreed with Lizzy that more than likely she wasn't bespelled. She had a good idea on what it was. Guilt. It was eating at her gentle soul as she blamed herself for Erebus' death and blamed herself for the role that everyone she loved would play a part in the payment of her sin.

As the siblings watched Aurora move in a panic, none of them did anything to stop her. Finally the three of them stood in her doorway and Ean stepped in. Aurora spoke to him and he smiled, holding her tightly and stroking her long hair all the way down to where it ended, over and over again, attempting to sooth her.

Elizabeth stepped forward and spoke, her eyes reflected a deep sincerity and understanding, “Aurora, one is as likely to die inside as out, there is no control given us how death will end life.”

She looked at Ean and smiled, then back to Aurora, “It is obvious you love our brother, and we, all of us, love you. You have to begin to understand however, that none of this is your fault. Druids twist and manipulate, they will plague and deceive all they can for their own gain. It’s their nature, and they will strike in any way they can. I mean no offense by this, but you are no special enough to be the catalyst of a Druidess’ rage.”

Ean turned and looked at her with furrowed brows and Aurora looked at her with a stare, Elizabeth raised her hand and her face was soft and full of compassion, “That sounds harsher than it is meant, my point is that Arawela is insane, and she would do what she is doing despite your being the bearer of the bow, or simply being a mortal human. Don’t you see sister? She begrudges the world, because it is her nature, and she found a way to strike at just one more person, you. Why she chose you? That is beyond us all I think, but you are a child of light, and she is a child of darkness, and my suspicion is it is no more than that really.”

Ean looked at Elizabeth and though he didn’t necessarily agree with her bluntness he couldn’t help but agree, “You don’a have to be so harsh about it Elizabeth.”

Elizabeth looked up at her brother and sighed softly, “I think you know me better than that brother.”

He looked at her and instinctually held Aurora a little tighter, “Aye but…”

Elizabeth stepped into him, a little bit of annoyance on her face, “I love her like a sister, and I will speak to her like a sister, whether you like it or not. I will not pad words and patronize her, she is better than that.”

Ean looked at her and exhaled as he nodded his head, “Aye.”

Lexy looked at them and stepped forward, right in between them to keep things form escalating and lifted Aurora’s arm, “These wounds will need tending.” As she was reaching into her pouch the doorbell suddenly rang and instinctually she began to spin to go answer it. Elizabeth touched her on the arm and spoke, “Stay Lex, I will get it.”

Lexy nodded and smiled, turning her attention back to Aurora, applying some of the blue ointment and whispering magical words. The spirit within her moved and coursed off her fingers like liquid, dripping over the wounds and ointment, a soothing cool sensation washing over Aurora’s arm. It was obvious that Lexy was getting better at her craft. There was a small gasp from downstairs and Ean turned to look at the door, suddenly Elizabeth’s voice echoed off the walls and she yelled, “EAN! Come NOW!”

Ean leapt and Aurora and Lexy were right on his heels. They all three hit the bottom of the stairs with haste and Ean froze in his tracks, as did Lexy. Elizabeth turned to look at them and then to Aurora, standing in the entrance of their home was Erebus, not dressed in black, but in blue jeans and a white shirt, “Aurora, it is good to see you again.”

His smile was the same genuine smile she had seen at the Poe Mansion, wounds dotted his face that were nearly healed, clearly by the look of them leftovers from the event of shattering his stone.

Aurora knew that Lizzy was right and yet she couldn't get over the horrible guilt she felt for Erebus' death. But when she heard Lizzy's cry for Ean, all of that disappeared as she hurried down the stairs trailing behind Ean and Lexy, Beau next to her.

Who she saw had her face draining of all color as she stood there and stared at a 'ghost'. She swayed as if she were about to pass out but rested her hand on Beau's back, steadying herself. At first she was shocked but when he spoke she realized that he was real, he was alive and he was standing in Ean's doorway. She started shaking her head back and forth in denial, taking a step backwards when Beau stopped her, standing firm in not allowing her to run.

"How? How are you alive? Arawela told me that I killed you. I thought I'd killed you!! The guilt I have gone through!! How are you alive?"

It was then that everything hit her at once. After all those weeks of blaming herself...feeling such intense guilt, only to find out that Erebus was alive and had been all this time on top of the horrific dreams and lack of sleep, it was suddenly too much. She walked up to him, drew back her hand and slapped him, the sound like that of a firecracker going off. Then she covered her mouth, shocked and ashamed at what she'd done before running past him and out of the house. She didn't run for the barn this time, instead she headed for the small grove of trees that was about fifty yards from the house. Just inside the treeline she stopped, her emotions in such a turmoil that she didn't know whether to laugh, go into a rage or cry. Erebus was alive.

She turned to see Ean coming towards her and stood there, watching silently as he strode towards her. She didn't wait for him to reach her, instead she ran to him, clinging to him as her body shook with both shock and tears.

"How? Is he a ghost, Ean? Where did he come from? How is he alive?"

As soon as Kain poked his head around the tree again the two figures inside the shadowy ball had gone and the ground began to quiver and he and Carla tumbled from behind the tree into the open. Carla squeeled as they rolled across the mud. The moment they came to a halt Kain looked up to find himself in direct eye contact with Kimiko.

The powers that had faced off here were stirring in his subconscious, but as he looked into the woman’s eyes, they showed a great urgency, though most of all Kain thought he saw a warm and familiar light emanating from her. Kain then averted his eyes for a moment towards the dark sphere, its power self-evident. He looked back at the woman and the people that were thrown to the ground besides her when she screamed; “COME HERE! NOW!”

There was no time for second thoughts and Kain quickly got up on his feet, his low center of gravity was an asset for once. He dragged Carla onto her feet with a big tug and quickly they made their way down. Half way between their hiding place and the group the car had once again come to an abrupt stop, the shaking ground had directed it straight into another big tree.

Kain hesitated for just a moment, long enough for Carla to question his glance at the convertible.

“Kainy?” She said with a quivering voice.

“Go!” He shouted at her, and pulled on her arm one more time, sending the woman stumbling down the shaking dirt at great speed.

Kain then redirected his course to get to the car and collected his whip from the glovebox. He had a feeling he was going to need it. But other than that he wasted no time, there was little left.
He went as quickly as his little legs and the heaving ground allowed. Carla had lost her footing, but had thankfully tumbled by the group and the woman had grabbed onto her. Moments later Kain reached them as well and lunged for Carla’s other arm, landing in the dirt with his eyes closed tightly for impact.

Before he dared to open them again they were no longer on the beach. What transpired before their eyes then was past all belief. Once the ground stopped shaking Carla grabbed Kain tightly.

“Kainy… What just happened?” She whispered to him.

Kain however stared at what was once the site of an entire city, though he wasn’t even aware of his surroundings anymore. The ordeal and the powers involved had stirred up something inside of him and flashes of good and evil clashing in times gone by appeared before his mind’s eye. The senseless death and destruction of which he caught only bits and pieces caused great anguish. He shook and breathed heavily as he tried to regain control of his thoughts and put the lid back on his ancestral memory.

Carla held on to him, she was getting quite concerned. Kain wasn’t answering her and acting oddly. Then there were these other people she didn’t even know. Never mind the dark ball and the earthquake that caused a city to fall into the ocean. Where were they suddenly anyway?

“What just happened!?” She finally asked again, but this time shouted her question at the others.