by Kealohilani
Jharate screamed in despair as he rocked with her in his arms. He looked up at the ceiling of the cave as tears streamed down his face and screamed again from the very core of his being. He looked down at Lani and clutched her body close to his heart as he began to sob uncontrollably.
Drakne laughed. “You thought you were above the influence of evil. You thought you would never succumb. I would say there is substantial proof to the contrary in your arms right now.”
Jharate became aware of Drakne’s presence. It was like breaking through the ice and feeling the impact of the freezing water beneath. He looked up and his eyes shot hatred at Drakne— as if the look alone could kill him— but nothing happened. Drakne remained there, laughing at his misery.
“That’s right. You did this,” Drakne smirked.
Jharate had nothing to say. He could not deny it. His pride had made him think he could never fall under Vranah’s or Drakne’s influence. But the proof was right here in his arms. She had been so much stronger than he— and he had just killed the love of his life!
“You want to know something fascinating?” Drakne asked, pausing for effect. “She was a Half-Heart too.”
Jharate’s heart nearly stopped. He could barely breathe.
“Yes— she is the long lost Princess Adrienne Brielle Arvanatasi. You two could have fulfilled the prophecy— and made quite the power couple. Not only that, but there is something unique about both of you.
“You two are complementary Half-Hearts. You only fit each other. So, of course, your union would have been extraordinarily powerful, and you would have most assuredly won the so-called ‘battle against evil.’ Tragic. Simply tragic. Tsk tsk tsk.”
Drakne formed a deadly red energy ball and tossed it back and forth between his hands.
“However, there is some good news. As you two only fit each other— you don’t need to die. Instead, you will simply never love again. You will be forever haunted by the image of the woman of your dreams dying at your hand. Without a doubt, I could not do better than that.”
Drakne nonchalantly threw the red spell ball at the waterfall, blasting a fleeting six-foot hole in its previously-continuous roaring cascade of water. Vapor filled the room as the waterfall resumed.
Drakne took off his black leather gloves, cast them aside, and laughed again— sending a chilling echo reverberating out of the cave.
So far out of the cave, in fact, that Arante and all of the others heard it traveling on the gentle winds— even though they were scattered throughout the woods. They all froze in their tracks and immediately turned back and ran for the cave.
Drakne stopped laughing but his smile remained as he looked down on Jharate. He knew that the rebels would return soon. Drakne snapped with both hands and held out his palms.
Lani’s body disappeared from Jharate’s grasp and simultaneously materialized in Drakne’s arms. He stood triumphantly— holding her limp body as her hair and dress cascaded to the ground. Jharate looked up at Drakne with murder in his eyes.
“It was nice seeing you again, Jharate. You saved me the trouble of trying to kill her. Funny enough, I couldn’t have managed it without help. She was far too strong. Only the one she loved and gave her heart to had the power to kill her. Thank you for helping me. Farewell.”
Jharate rushed Drakne with a furious yell but was only able to seize the air where Drakne had been standing. Drakne had vanished, taking Lani’s body with him.
Jharate fell to his knees and roared a primal yell of fury, grief, and torment. He fell forward— his face scraping against the dirt and rocks of the cave floor until his body settled against the cold hard ground.
Everything went black.
Creepy
Drakne appeared inside his personal suite in the Castle of Trisakne. He phased himself, along with Lani’s body, into the fifth dimension so that he would be invisible and intangible to anyone who entered his room.
Only two details distinguished his quarters in this dimension from the way that it appeared in the normal realm— a large gilt-framed mirror on the wall and a strange machine standing in the center of the room. He hurried toward the contraption.
A transparent tube large enough for a human to stand upright within it made up most of the device. The top and bottom of the tube had copper caps with intricate designs that were as much for artistic appeal as they were for structural support. It looked like some sort of giant radio tube with visible electric current flowing throughout the glass enclosure.
Drakne snapped his fingers and Lani’s body teleported inside the tube— suspended upright with her feet just inches from the bottom.
Her body and dress floated and moved as if she were under water, whilst the electric currents inside the tube began to course around her. Her hair drifted like a mermaid’s and her arms rose slightly from her side.
Drakne watched intently, with his brow knit, as he muttered incantations. As the moments wore on, the lines in his forehead increased. He kicked the base of the machine hard with his foot.
“Work! BLAST IT ALL! WORK!”
He watched and waited. Nothing happened. He muttered the ancient words over and over again— more emphatically each time— as he gestured toward the machine, circling it all the while. Nothing.
“WORK!”
Drakne kicked the base of the machine again and recited the same words— nearly shouting them. At long last, her body shuddered and began to breathe again.
The machine amplified sound so that he could hear her heart as it began to beat once more. He sighed in relief as the mechanical beats continued at a normal rate— strong, steady, and sure.
She did not regain consciousness— but that was to be expected. Drakne was grateful it had worked at all. Bringing her back was a much more complicated prospect than bringing Jharate back had been. The method of her death was much more powerful.
He quickly levitated the machine in front of the immense mirror, which was somewhat larger than the glass tube.
After muttering a few more carefully chosen words, the mirror began to pulse with energy and electricity flowed throughout the mirror itself.
Regrets
Back in the cave, Jharate heard voices. They sounded as if they were far off in the distance. The language being spoken was Trisaknen, but somehow he could not understand the words being said. He tried to open his eyes and failed.
Fear set in as he realized that opening his eyes was not the only thing he could not do. He struggled to move anything in vain. Finally he relaxed from sheer exhaustion and succumbed to the dark void he found himself trapped in. The voices became clearer and he was slowly able to recognize them.
“What happened?” Justin panicked.
Arante held up her right index finger to silence him. She paced back and forth— moving her hands through the air and whispering to herself. Justin lit a few lamps to provide more light.
As Arante worked, two holographic images appeared. Lani and Jharate stood in their places and re-enacted the scene that had just been played out only minutes before the rest of the camp had arrived. Everyone turned to look and listen.
“You are wrong,” proclaimed the holographic Jharate.
As he said this, they saw a third holographic character emerge onto the scene. Tierza gasped.
“Drakne? How did he get here?”
“Shhh!” chided Arante.
They continued to observe the pitiable scene and watched— eyes wide with horror— as Drakne threw a purple spell ball into Jharate’s heart, followed shortly after by a larger one.
“Well, I don’t love you anymore,” said the holographic Jharate.
“Finally!” the holographic Drakne blurted out.
The power of Jharate’s words threw Lani against the wall and she fell to the floor— struggling to breathe. Kendra put her hand over her mouth as she saw Lani’s agony and Raoul cringed as he saw the holograph of Drakne smile.
“Please! Don’t say that… Can’t you see? He’s trying to kil
l me. He knows that you are the only one close enough to my heart to break it. Don’t let him use you to destroy me. Save me, Jharate. Remember, I love you. Remember. Oh please remember,” pleaded a desperate image of Lani as a constant purple stream of energy began to flow from Drakne’s hand into Jharate’s heart.
“How could he do this?!” demanded Justin.
“Drakne is evil, that’s how,” Erik stated, as though he were spitting out a bug that had flown into his mouth.
“Not him! Jharate!” Justin snarled.
“Drakne was controlling him! Didn’t you see the spell balls and that horrid purple stream of energy? Can’t you see? Look at the images of Drakne and Jharate. They are starting to speak the words at the same time!” Tierza pointed out.
“Like that matters! Lani was able to get out of it! She wouldn’t have hurt Jharate!”
“Seriously!” Kendra agreed.
“Shhhhh!” Arante demanded.
Jharate’s heart sank as he heard their comments. They were right. He should have been stronger!
Tears flowed out of Jharate’s closed eyes. He still could not move but he did not care. He felt his self-loathing deepen and twist around his stomach until it clenched so tight he was sure it would burst as he listened to Lani pleading with him again.
“Jharate… you’re… killing me… Please… stop… talking…”
“I’m not killing you. I just don’t love you anymore! Accept it!”
The holographic image of Lani collapsed as she whispered her last words.
“Remember…”
“Stop it! I don’t want you. I don’t love you anymore!”
Kendra gasped as Lani’s body went limp and her eyes closed. Justin’s throat tightened as he tried to swallow. Erik slowly looked away from the image of Lani’s dead body and quietly hung his head.
“NO!” cried Raoul. “I— She— She’s my best friend.”
Raoul grasped for a rock behind him to steady himself just as the holographic Jharate screamed and rushed to Lani’s side.
“What have I done? What have I done?! Do not leave me here, my love! I am so sorry! I am so very sorry… I did not mean it! I have always loved you!”
A tear fell from Rezarahn’s eye as he watched Jharate’s attempts to revive Lani fail.
“We will be together forever… Please stay, my love. Oh, please!”
Kendra’s eyes filled with tears as she watched the gut-wrenching scene before her. Her heart broke for both of them— even as a boiling anger began to rage inside of her for the death of her sister. She put her hand over her heart and barely heard the holographic Drakne as he taunted Jharate.
“You thought you were above the influence of evil. You thought you would never succumb. I would say there is substantial proof to the contrary in your arms right now.”
“He should have been stronger,” Justin snarled as Drakne paused.
“That’s right. You did this… You want to know something fascinating? She was a Half-Heart too.”
“What?!” everyone cried out together.
“Are you serious?!” Justin yelled as he threw his hands over his face and pulled them down slowly.
“You two could have fulfilled the prophecy…” Drakne continued.
“Oh what an idiot! They were so close!” Kendra exclaimed in disgust.
“So close…” Arante uttered mechanically as she sighed and sank to the ground. She went numb inside as she realized just how close they had truly come to winning the war against Vranah. She inhaled sharply— her eyes wide— as she snapped back to the moment and saw a red spell ball form in Drakne’s hand.
“However, there is some good news. As you two only fit each other— you don’t need to die. Instead, you will simply never love again. You will be forever haunted by the image of the woman of your dreams, dying at your hand. Without a doubt, I could not do better than that.”
The Alameans in the cave could not help but sigh in relief as Drakne discarded the deadly energy ball into the waterfall.
Drakne threw his holographic gloves to the ground— where they landed exactly on top of the real pair, which were still there. The chilling echo of Drakne’s laugh filled the chamber as the holographic steam did the same.
He snapped his fingers and Lani’s body disappeared from Jharate’s arms and appeared in Drakne’s.
“It was nice seeing you again, Jharate. You saved me the trouble of trying to kill her. Funny enough, I couldn’t have managed it without help. She was far too strong. Only the one she loved and gave her heart to had the power to kill her. Thank you for helping me. Farewell.”
“How awful!” Tierza cried.
They watched helplessly as Jharate rushed Drakne, only to grasp the air and fall to his knees. They heard Jharate’s gut-wrenching scream before he lost consciousness. The holograph of Jharate faded where he had fallen until only the ground showed.
Deafening silence gripped them all as they mourned their losses. In just minutes Jharate had killed Lani and they had lost the biggest chance they had ever had— in all the history of Alamea— of defeating The Evil One forever. They remained deathly still— paralyzed with their thoughts and emotions.
“I don’t understand,” Justin began. “Jharate didn’t do anything to her. He didn’t touch her… How is she dead?”
“It was the power of words, Justin,” Tierza finally answered quietly when no one else spoke. “Here in Alamea certain words have physical power. Words such as ‘love’ and ‘hate’ do not simply heal or hurt one emotionally— they affect the body as well.
“There are also words that are never used in conversation. These powerful words belong in two categories and two categories only. One side serves darkness, evil, chaos, and destruction, and the other serves light, good, order, and life.
“Many of the dark words are too evil and too powerful to be written down and therefore good people never do so. Conversely, it would be worthless to write down the equally powerful words of good, because they are of no use to anyone whose heart, spirit, and mind are not truly pure— and they are always revealed to those who are.
“The fact that Jharate was a Half-Heart intensified the power of words, and that is what… killed Lani.”
“Oh…” Justin said quietly.
A silence fell again— deeper, and even more unbreakable than the last.
Jharate suddenly realized he had been moved. He became aware that he was on one of the bedrolls that Lani had prepared. Kendra was mechanically wiping his forehead with a cold damp cloth, without realizing what she was doing.
Intense pressure hurt every inch of his body as if he were being crushed. A burning sensation filled his chest and his stomach— and a chilling one attacked everywhere else. Wracked by guilt until he could feel it in his bones— he wished that the pain from it all would simply kill him. Drakne was right— leaving him alive had been the worst thing he could do to him.
Jharate lay there, willing himself to die, unsuccessfully. Why? Oh why— WHY?! He yearned to seize his own sword and fall upon it. If only he could move. He had just killed his one true love and he did not deserve to live.
He exerted all of his energy to try to move something— anything. Suddenly his eyes flew open. Encouraged by this development, he tried to move his arms— only to discover he was still paralyzed. He groaned to himself, but everyone heard the noise. All at once, eight faces turned to Jharate.
Superb, thought Jharate. Now they see me. They must hate me. I do not blame them. I cannot. I hate myself as well. Please, Erik— kill me! Take your sword and run me through! I do not deserve to live!
Jharate sighed as— to his dismay— Erik remained where he was and showed no such intent. Jharate attempted to speak, but only air escaped his lips. Why was he still breathing at all?
Arante was the first to move. She crossed over to Jharate and took his hand in both of hers— her eyes brimming with tears. Her heart broke for him for the loss he had inflicted upon himself. No one deserved that.
<
br /> “It’s okay. You are safe now. We saw the whole thing with my gift. We know what happened. I am so sorry.”
Arante’s compassion struck Jharate’s soul. He felt like his heart was being crushed in someone’s fist and groaned from the pain. How could they still care about him after what he had done? After what he had cost them?
It was worse than being hated. Hate he could deal with. Hate would seem normal, fair, and deserved. This kindness only made him feel the horrific depths of his actions more keenly.
“This cannot go unanswered…” Rezarahn declared in a voice that was half-distraught, half-enraged.
“You’re one to talk,” Arante shot back.
“I am not suggesting that Jharate should be the one to answer for Lani’s murder— though I confess I do loathe the sight of him. He was merely dancing as the strings were pulled. It is not the blood of the puppet I want— it is the blood of the puppetmaster I require!”
Suddenly Jharate became aware that Raoul was pointing his crossbow at him. Jharate’s instinct for self-preservation overcame his desire to die and his eyes opened wide in helpless alarm.
Kendra saw the look on Jharate’s face and turned in time to surmise that Raoul desperately wanted to pull the trigger. She instinctively raised a shield to protect Jharate.
“Take down the force field, Kendra,” Raoul said in a deadly tone. “The puppet will do just fine for me.”
“I won’t.”
“HE KILLED LANI! And you’re protecting him?! He killed her! HE KILLED HER!” he said, his voice cracking as he spoke.
“I hate him for that too! But killing him won’t bring her back.”
“But he KILLED her! Don’t you understand? It was Lani I saw when the siren held us all captive! It was her! And do you know why? Because I loved her! But she loved Jharate! And he treated her like dirt! How many times did she try to fix things with him? How many times did he break her heart even before he broke it for real?”
“That doesn’t make killing him oka—”
