Possessed (9 page)

20
Clarisse

Shit! I knew this was going to happen. Rebecca probably thinks we're all knocked out; well, technically we are. The green-eyed Demon rendered our bodies and minds useless with one of his powers. I remember this from one of my dreams. The dreams are the reason I chose the specific potions that I took with me. I don’t know how long this one works for but I took it before we left. It is designed to stop me from going weak but I can't let him know that, not yet... I see everyone else fall so I fall, too.

Rebecca's eyes betray her terror when she is grabbed from behind. I don’t blame her- I’ve watched this play out over and over again in another dream of mine, but at the time I thought I was a goner, too. My dreams must all be connected to this place. I’m glad I thought to take this potion. It took years to develop but having these dreams my entire life has given me the motivation to create a weapon to defeat these Demons.

He’s talking to her but I can’t hear what he’s saying. I can only see his mouth moving against her ear. I quickly and quietly take the potion Rebecca gave me to create fireballs. I can only finish swallowing it when I hear Rebecca screech so loud that I jump up without even thinking. I look over at her and she is unconscious on the ground, bleeding through a wound in her back. That bastard stabbed her in the back and ran! As soon as the others gain back their mobility they are at Rebecca’s side.

To everyone’s surprise- including mine and Sebastian’s- she is healing herself! How? We are in the Underworld, our powers are not supposed to work down here! Regardless, the gash in her back is disappearing before our eyes. As soon as it's healed she tries to get up but everyone drops to the ground again. Except me. I’m ready to kill this bastard. I don’t want to witness any more dreams coming to life while I’m down here, powerless to do anything to help the ones I love.

So, without thinking, I just conjure a ball of flames and throw it at him. He dodges it, but barely. Now he is coming straight for me. Thankfully I still have the ability to levitate so I jump over him and quickly shoot out another fireball at him before I landed back on the ground. It hits him in the back but it doesn’t kill him.

He turns around to face me and I have another fireball ready but he doesn’t charge at me or make a move to attack. Instead, he speaks to me: “Clarisse, you are meant to be here. It is the path that was laid out for you to take. Those dreams you had are a part of your path. They were to get you ready so you can help stop what is otherwise destined to happen today. You have very little time left to save yourself, or your friends and family. If you do not make it then you will all die down here. Beware of the possessor Demons- they are everywhere and everyone. You never know who is who until it is too late.” He releases the others and as they rise we all see him turn to flames and ashes on the ground.

“What was that supposed to mean? And what happened to him?” Rebecca asks when she is able to stand up again.

I explain everything that he said to me, although I don’t know much of what it means- except that I was meant to be here and my dreams will help me win. “I don’t know who he was or why he just burst to flames in front of us but he warned us that we will all die down here and that we don’t have much time left. We need to get Alana and get out. I’m worried about what will happen if we don’t make it to her in time,” I finish, grabbing Sean’s hand and walking forward.

I don’t stop to check if they are following; I just keep walking. Like that Demon said, I’ve been here before in my dreams and I know this place. I also know that Alana is in deep trouble and we are going to need a very powerful potion to get her out; one that I unfortunately wasn’t smart enough to take with me. 

We walked around the tunnels for a while before we finally come to a spot that reminds me of another dream. We are in an open hall which has doors upon doors along the walls. I know from experience that those doors lead to other dimensions... and only one leads to the room where Alana is being held.

Everyone crowds around me and looks at all the doors. I assume that they are wondering which one to take and I’m sure that no one knows what lies beyond them. This Jeffrey is really slick; getting us down here and locking her in a room that is almost impossible to find, and with the chance of getting trapped in another dimension. But he didn’t count on me having dreams about this place and knowing what kind of trick he is playing. “Don’t touch any of the doors; if you open the wrong one you and anyone close to you at the time will be sucked into another dimension,” I say. The group seems to doubt me, though. They don’t all know that I’ve dreamt about this before and I’m not wasting time to tell them again. “Just trust me, okay? I know which room Alana is in and I know how to get her out. The only problem is that it requires a powerful potion that I made years ago, but I don't have it with me.” It probably wasn’t the best idea to say that last part, but they need to know everything.

“So then how do we get the potion if we don’t have our powers? I mean, Sebastian and Rebecca could conjure it, but were in the freaking Underworld and our powers don’t work down here!” Yashira exclaims, unable to hold back her anger.

I think about what she says and the only logical answer is for me to go back home to grab the correct potion, especially since no one else knows where I keep it “Okay. I’ll go back and get it. No one go to any of those doors- I’m serious about what will happen. It should take me about five minutes. Okay?”

Rebecca speaks up now. “She is telling the truth. She will explain everything after we get Alana out of here and we are back at home. For now, we stand watch for anything that might sneak up on us. You will not touch any of the doors because if you get stuck in another dimension there is
nothing
we can do to help you. Clarisse will go grab the potion and come back, and then we will go to the door that contains Alana. Is everyone clear?”

Upon hearing the sounds of agreement, I drink my returning potion and go home.

21
Alana

I wake up, not knowing how much time has passed since I drifted off. But, I can feel them near me. I know the Wolves, especially Rebecca, are close
-  which means that they will be trying to break down the door that is in the back of my cell. The front is wide open but they don't know that this is a trick cell and that I can't leave. I don’t want them to come into this cell and be stuck with me. I’ve been trying to reach Rebecca but our connection is being blocked; my guess is that it's Jeffrey’s doing.

I hear some commotion outside but my hearing isn’t as good in this room. The Demons know that my Covenant is here and they must be preparing for a fight. I hope Rebecca received at least part of my message about this trap cell-
unfortunately, it’s just like her to run in head first and ask questions later. I hope they are planning this out. Oh my God, I’m going to kill myself with an anxiety attack. I know she is capable. I just don’t want them to kill themselves trying to get me out of here.

I pace the cell in a circle but my body feels like
it’s being pulled to the door, the door I know they are all behind. I wonder if they are calling for me with a spell. Out of curiosity I go to the door and, strangely, I feel the pull stronger. I put my palm up to the door and instantly a fire starts to form from the bottom of it and I can’t pull away from it. Instead, my hand pushes back harder on the door and the flames climb the door and around my body! But they don’t hurt me... in fact, I feel more powerful with the flames surrounding me, enough to take on an army of Demons.

Just as my hand is getting ready to fall the door crumbles to ash on the ground in front of me. The shocked faces of a few of my Covenant members are staring back at me and all I can do is
shrug my shoulders. Clarisse looks at me incredulously and says “Alana! You’re…you’re on fire!”

Everyone around shows equal surprise but I don't even notice. Even as I look down and see myself surrounded in flames I don't feel any burning. In fact, I feel empowered. “I guess I am, but it’s not hurting me- it’s actually helping me. I feel more powerful now, but I’m not sure that I can escape this room. It’s under a spell of some kind. Jeffrey said that if you enter you’ll all be trapped, too,” I say, worried as I watched Clarisse and Rebecca come closer to me.

They look at each other and share a smile; I must be missing something because Clarisse then walks right into the cell even as I try to stop her. She grabs my hand and pulls me right to the entryway- it seems that she gets stuck but she has a strange grin on her face. We must be stuck but I'm not sure, actually.

“Go on,” she urges, trying to convince me to take a step out. Well, maybe we're not stuck after all. I nod that I will try: I tentatively lift my right leg and go to push it out over the threshold... and it works! So, I take my other leg and the rest of my body with me and before I’m completely out I grab Clarisse and pull her out with me.

“How did you know to do that? And how did you know it would work? Are you the one who set the door on fire?” I ask, my rambling getting the better of me.

She just nods. No explanation or anything, just a head nod... from Clarisse? This is so strange; what are they hiding from me?
“Helloooo? I need an explanation! I am in the middle of the Demon's home- you can't expect me to just go with you, willingly, without any sort of explanation. How do I know that you are not being possessed, or that you're not just an illusion leading me into another trap? I’m not leaving this spot until I get some answers, now!” I say, sitting to prove my point.

Clarisse lets out an exasperated breath and reluctantly starts explaining.

“Okay. So, I’ve been having these dreams for a while now. Ever since I was a kid. When they first started one of the people in my dreams was blacked out so I couldn’t see who it was. I assumed it was a female because she would cry endlessly every time Sebastian got killed in my dreams- which was a lot. But this changed once I met Rebecca- her face filled the black void in my dreams.

"I always thought these dreams meant something really important because they repeated so often. Considering that my friends died somehow in all of them I began creating spells and potions to combat everything I saw in them. I took most of these weapons with me when we came down here to get you. I actually just returned from retrieving the few that I
didn't
grab at first.

"Anyways, after we split into two different groups upon arriving here I started to get some serious
déjà
vu. I got these flashes of premonitions and I saw my old dreams play out before my eyes: Sebastian dying; and Rebecca refusing to leave his side to go and find you; a strange green-eyed Demon killing us all; etc. So I stopped the group and shared the information, which allowed us to bypass my premonitions successfully. We used potions that replicated our powers to do this.” 

She takes several seconds before she continues, which makes me think that the [crazy and unlikely] story is over, but then she continues:  “The big one, though, was this: that green-eyed Demon that I mentioned? Well, we encountered him on the way here and after he made the Illusion of killing us all and holding a knife up to Rebecca, he released us all and he turned to ashes. Just like that. But right before he died he warned us that time was running out and that we needed to get you out before it was too late and everyone died. I’ve seen him before in my dreams... and he even knew about my dreams, which is creepy because I haven't told
anybody
about them. Anyway, I needed to use the potion that I created to override him- one that stopped my body from going week- when all along he was trying to help us."  She looks a little too upset about a Demon dying- I guess I can understand if the story is true.

I think about what she had said about a Demon warning her of time running out and about him knowing her dreams- and especially about how her dreams are like premonitions. How is that possible? She doesn’t possess that power. Is this something that will grow into what Rebecca has?

There is so much going through my mind I have to force myself to stop to thinking about it all. I buy time to figure out how to react by standing up and pretending to fix my shirt, and then I settle for taking Clarisse into my arms and holding her. I know there is more to this story but we need to get out of here, first. I whisper into her ear that everything will be alright and she nods and pulls away.

I look up at the others, indicating that I'm ready. They smile briefly and Rebecca hands me a few potions. I’m very impressed that she thought to come with extras for me. “One is for your fire power.” She points to the one in my right hand. “This one is for invisibility.” She points to the one in my left hand. “Take them both now. We don’t know what we are up against.” I do as she says.

Once the powers activate I feel ready to find that bastard, Jeffrey. Maybe we can wait here for him? No, that would be too boring; my Wolf needs some excitement. So, I turn and now I have my Wolf’s powers as well as a duplicate of my fire power. Excellent. I am going to destroy these damn Demons and then I’m going to go home and see my baby and my mate.

We start to walk through my ex-cell and out the other side. As we walk down the tunnel in search of Jeffrey I get the uncanny feeling that he is already there with us. So, I stop and turn around, and the others do the same.

Rebecca partially transforms and lets out a menacing growl. The other Wolves follow suit: they are protecting their Alpha, as they always do, and they are standing in front of all of us. Eva and the guys are protecting Yashira, Maia, Rebecca, and I against God knows what (or who), but we all smell it. Something is in here with us, and this something doesn’t want us to leave alive.

I conjure a fireball and everyone else apart from Yashira does as well. I'm wondering if this is because she didn’t want to take the potion, or if Rebecca just didn’t have enough for everyone, but my thoughts get cut short when the Demons finally show themselves.

But there is a surprise. Someone is with them that I never would have guessed, and it gets my blood boiling.  That lying piece of shit! It's Jacob! I want to rip his throat out; send him to hell like I did his mother. Moreover, we are outnumbered
and
they know our secrets. We’re so screwed.

“Well, well, well- what have we got here?” Jacob mocks as he saunters towards us. On his right is Jeffrey and on the left there are a few others I have never seen. They are holding a human form, though, which means they are possessor Demons as well.

“Jacob? What the fuck are you doing down here? I sent you back to the compound when you were injured at the bowling alley. What is this?” Rebecca demands.

He studies her for a few moments before answering her: “I am finishing my mother's work, of course. She had it all planned out right- except for that little part about trying to kill me off. I figured I’d change it all up and have you guys
kill her instead. So, thanks for that. You see, I don’t need your stupid bodies, all I need is Annie. I am a Warlock, as you well know, and I can perform the spell all on my own. Of course, getting you guys possessed was supposed to help kill you. I underestimated you, but I won’t do that again.”

I knew it. We shouldn’t have trusted him... but I couldn't help it! My instinct believed that he was truly good.
Boy, was I wrong.

“Well, you just underestimated us again. We came well-prepared even though there
is only ten of us. We will not go down easily,” Clarisse says, sounding more confident than I would have thought. Her dreams... they must have shown her this, too.

“My dear, there is no way you came well-prepared for what I have in store for you.” And Jacob snaps his fingers and in comes an onslaught of Demons. I smell them fine but I can't see them! He's right; how can we take them all? There has to be at least thirty invisible Demons
not
inclusive of the twenty in front of us. We are so dead! I can’t believe I’m going to make my baby an orphan.

As I’m thinking about Destiny and John I notice that Clarisse still isn’t surprised at what lies ahead of us. What has she gone through in those dreams to stand there so confidently, even in the face of death?

“I didn't know it was you at the time, Jacob, but I've seen this play out multiple ways- and you die either way. Even if we die, you die. So, go ahead and give it your best shot, because I know my fate, and I’m not afraid to die for the ones I love. But I created some very powerful potions to defeat you and your minions... and when I kill all of them and you're left here alone with no protection just remember this: I once loved you. Your life could have been saved, but you chose evil by trying to kill everyone in my Covenant for your own sake. And this will lead to your demise.” The venom drips from her voice as she pulls out a special-marked potion from her pants pocket and drinks it. I have no clue what she drank but now her body is glowing.

Jacob seems mildly surprised but he still sends his “minions” (as Clarisse called) them after us. One by one they come and one by one they fall. The Demons that touch Clarisse burst into flames and turn into dust. One Demon even throws a dagger at her, but her glowing body deflects it like a shield. I can’t believe my eyes. She is one bad-ass Witch right now- I’m glad she is on my side! I would hate to be on the end of that anger. I notice that the others are busy fighting with a few Demons
and  Jacob is just standing there, dumb-founded.

Clarisse said that she might die... I wonder if this potion is the cause of her death. It seems to make her invincible but that could take a huge toll on her body. I'd like to think that we could all really use that stuff during
every
battle, but I'll wait to form an opinion until I see what becomes of Clarisse. It can't be that bad; Sean didn't even seem bothered by the mention of her potential death. She must have told him about it and explained it to him at length; otherwise, he would have fought like hell to stop her from coming. But, he knows that sometimes to sacrifice one is to the save the rest. We would all do it, including myself. We have to get her out of here as soon as her body light disappears. She will be saved. I won’t let anybody die down here; after all, they risked their lives to come down here to save me.

First up is Jeffrey. He is busy watching the other battles- clearly losing patience as his Demons fall for a seemingly pointless cause, at this point- so I start towards him. But at the last second he whips a dagger at me- it just barely misses; I heard it whir past my ear.

That was way too close of a call so I retaliate quickly with a fireball that hits its mark on his calf. He flinches, which is a big mistake, because it gives me the chance to throw two more. He dodges the first, somehow, but the second one hits him right in the middle of the chest and his Demon body flies out of the possessed human body, out of Dave. He really is hideous, with two horns, three eyes, and warts all over. I would steal a human body, too, to save myself from having that face.

That last blow must have pissed him off because his naturally grayish-looking face is turning black. He conjures another fireball and throws it at me; this time I have to fall to the ground to dodge it. I jump back up immediately, though, and rapidly throw more fireballs before he can react. I hit him three times and, like I've been dreaming about for so long now, he explodes. All that is left is greenish-black goo splattered everywhere.

I walk away from the goo, satisfied that I killed Jeffrey, anxious to kill Jacob, and wanting to get the hell out of here, but very sad at the loss of Dave. I know that we were all hoping that we could save him, but there is no way that he survived my fireballs.