by Wendy Owens
“Wait, what about Peter?” Gabe asked, remembering the poor scared boy from Iron Gate.
“Uri was able to get back to Iron Gate and tell Patina everything that had happened. A couple of her men were able to slip in during the chaos after Duke Mortiguard was killed. Peter is now home safe and sound, but I doubt he will want to visit us here at Rampart any time soon,” Michael slightly chucked as he thought of the boy.
“And Uri?” Gabe asked, worried about his friend.
“He is on his way back with the Alicorn,” Michael added. Gabe smiled at the thought of his dear friend’s return.
“So I guess everything turned out all right,” Gabe said in a snide tone. “Well, everything except Sophie.” Gabe stood to his feet and hobbled towards the door. “I mean what I said, Michael. If you can’t fix this, I will,” Gabe replied, reminding Michael of the threat to take Sophie to Patina to be wiped.
When Gabe left Michael’s office he found Haim waiting outside. He rushed to his friend’s side and offered the support Gabe needed to move.
“Hey buddy,” Haim exclaimed. “I thought you might need some help when you were done, so I waited around.”
“Yeah, thank you, Haim,” Gabe replied, feigning a smile. “That was very thoughtful.”
“No problem, it’s the least I can do,” Haim chirped. “So where to? Hungry?”
“I want to see Sophie,” Gabe replied.
Haim gasped; clearly he had not expected Gabe to make the request so soon.
“I don’t think you want to do that, Gabe,” Haim said, trying to persuade his friend to reconsider.
“Haim, I need to see her. That’s all there is to it. You can either help me or I can find her on my own.”
Though Haim still thought it was not the best idea for his friend to see his beloved in her current state, he could not deny him his request. Silent, the two headed in the direction of Sophie’s cell.
Each step Gabe took, though he knew he was getting closer to seeing his darling Sophie, seemed heavier than the last. Everything he had done up until this point was to help free Sophie from her bondage of this wretched curse. He needed to see her blue eyes, to be close to her, to smell her subtle floral scent, and feel her alabaster skin against his.
What Gabe feared the most, though, and what made him so heavy footed, was that he did not know if his sweet Sophie would even be the same girl that he remembered. Michael had described to him before they ever left for Iron Gate what would await a cursed soul if the curse could not be removed. The possible progression horrified Gabe beyond words. Catching a glimpse of Artis’ transform back in that court yard foretold of the vision that might await him.
Just before they rounded the corner, Haim placed a hand on Gabe’s chest, steadying him as they stopped. “Wait,” Haim instructed.
“What is it?” Gabe asked, seeing the anguish on Haim’s face. “I’m not going to change my mind if that is what you’re going to say.”
“Nothing … well … it’s just …” Haim stumbled over his tongue as he tried to find the right words.
Shifting his weight to lessen the pain, Gabe lifted a hand up to grip Haim’s shoulder and said softly, “Haim, it’s all right, you can tell me anything. Just take a deep breath and spit it out.”
“Gabe, it’s just ...” Haim looked away, unable to say the words while looking his friend in the eyes. “About Sophie, I don’t want you to be shocked or anything. She is different. I know Michael will find a way to fix her. I just want you to know what to expect.”
“Haim, you’re kind of freaking me out here. How bad can she be?”
“She’s pretty bad. Try not to listen to anything she says. It’s not her, all right?”
“Let me see her already, this is ridiculous.” Gabe was consumed with worry by this point and discussing it with Haim was just making matters worse.
“Michael will fix her, I just know he will!” Haim confirmed, trying to reassure his friend.
“Just get out of my way then!” Gabe bellowed, annoyed and pushing past Haim. Bracing himself on the wall in front of the door, Gabe took a deep breath and then reached out, slowly turning the door knob.
As the door creaked open, a small hint of candle light peeked out.
“Why is it so dark in there?” Gabe asked, glaring back at Haim.
“The overhead light seemed to agitate her; she seems to like the candle light. The barrier shield can only be removed by Michael, but if you want, you should be able to cross in,” Haim explained.
“Wait, what are you talking about? What barrier shield?” Gabe demanded.
“Michael thought it would be best if Sophie couldn’t leave the room in her condition,” Haim said, attempting to delicately shed light on the reasoning behind the imprisonment.
“And a guard isn’t sufficient?” Gabe asked defensively.
“I just think Michael wanted to make sure she was safe,” Haim replied.
Gabe hung his head; he had no words left to say. Part of him just wanted to close the door and walk away. To close the door on the entire situation Sophie was trapped in. Somehow, if he could close that door, perhaps everything would return to the way it was. Things could go back to the way they were over the summer when Sophie and he were happy and together, back to when Sophie was the light that made all of this worth it.
Gabe took another deep breath. He knew there was no going back, this was their reality now. He needed to go in and confront his fears, confront the situation they found themselves in. He had to be strong for Sophie’s sake.
As Gabe stepped inside he heard Haim interject, “Stay close to the walls,” just before the door closed.
Gabe squinted, trying to readjust to the darkness. To the side, he saw a small table with a candle perched on it. Under his feet he heard cracking. Looking down he could see the floor was covered in straw. Gabe’s stomach twisted. He couldn’t stand the thought of Sophie being kept like this.
In the far corner of the room, Gabe saw a figure curled up in the corner. A pale blanket wrapped around them. In the dark, Gabe could not even make out the color of the person’s hair.
“Sophie?” Gabe spoke softly.
The figure trembled, but barely stirred at his voice.
“It’s me, Gabe.”
Gabe watched, holding his breath as the figure slowly turned. The body moved in an almost unnatural way as it shifted and crawled slowly on all fours across the floor. When the candlelight at last fell on the figure, Gabe could make out the auburn hair of his beloved Sophie. Her hair was matted, greasy, and hung in her face.
Gabe saw her shoulders were hollow looking and her skin was almost glowing white. Gabe caught sight of Sophie’s fingers, her knuckles were bloody, and her nails cracked and peeling. Instinctively, Gabe fell to his knees and crawled to Sophie. Without even giving it a thought, he grabbed her hands and pulled them closer to the light.
“Oh Sophie, what happened to your hands?” Gabe cried.
Sophie jerked her hands from Gabe’s grasp. Arching her back she sharply hissed as she flipped her hair back and glared at him. Gasping, Gabe fell back on to his butt, crawling towards the door backwards on his hands. His beloved Sophie’s blue eyes were gone; instead a deep full blackness stared back at him. Her lips were dry, cracked, and appeared almost blue in color, at least at the places that weren’t covered with spots of dried blood. Unlike the skin on the rest of her body, her face her face was the color of ash. It was marbleized by black veins that crawled up her neck and splintered around her eyes, making them appear even more haunting.
“Oh God, Sophie!” Gabe shrieked.
“Hst!” Sophie spat and bared her jagged, sharp teeth at Gabe, the spaces filled with a rotting blackness. She hovered close to the ground like an animal.
“Sophie, please! It’s me, Gabe. Don’t you recognize me?” Gabe begged as he searched for any part of Sophie.
Blankly, the creature stared back at Gabe. There was nothing left of her true eyes, nothing of what they h
ad been, nothing of his former love.
“I’m so sorry,” Gabe whispered as he hung his head in his hands. He felt the overwhelming weight of failure. Everything he had done to try and help Sophie was a waste, leaving Gabe drowning in helplessness and hating himself for his inadequacies.
As Gabe sat there, he heard several curious popping noises in front of him. Glancing up, his eyes now fully adjusted to the dim lighting, Gabe could not believe what he was seeing. Sophie’s contorted and misshapen body was bending and shifting in ways he never imagined a human body could. Gabe had no idea what was happening. He wanted to run for help, but he couldn’t stop staring at the breathtaking display of horror.
At last, it appeared that her body was actually beginning to resemble that of his Sophie once again. The former shell of Sophie was now in a kneeling position, head hanging down, her hair hiding all view of her face. Slowly she rose into a standing position, her head still hanging. She somewhat appeared human again with her corrected posture. Gabe’s stomach twisted as he watched her, waiting for her to move or do something. Surrounded by the eerie silence, he was scared to even breathe.
“How could you?” she whispered. Gabe gasped as he heard Sophie’s soft voice from behind the thick covering of hair.
“Sophie, is that you?” Gabe cried, so thrilled to hear her voice again that he didn’t seem to notice what she was saying.
“You said you loved me,” Sophie continued, still not lifting her head and standing perfectly still. The candlelight flickered, causing Sophie’s presence to appear even more unsettling.
“Oh Sophie, I do love you, and Michael is going to help you. I know he can,” Gabe wanted to run over and hold her, hold on to the small piece of her that was left, but something held him back.
“How could you leave me here, alone?”
“I didn’t want to. I had to, don’t you see? I went away to try and help you,” Gabe explained, taking two steps closer to his beloved.
“You let them do this to me,” Sophie said flatly.
“I’m sorry, I had no idea,” Gabe pleaded. “But we’re going to get you out of here right now, all right?” Gabe cautiously moved forward and reached out his hands to Sophie. She did nothing in response. Just continued standing there, head bowed.
Gabe was sure now that she was back. Sophie must be fighting the insurmountable evil that lurked within her. He moved forward again and wrapped his arm around her shrunken waist. She did not respond to his touch.
“Come on, Sophie,” he added, turning to face her and placing his free hand on her other hip. “Let’s get you out of here.”
Without warning, Sophie’s head jerked back wildly. Her arms shot up and wrapped themselves tightly around Gabe’s torso, locking his arms at his side. Gabe managed to look up at her face just as she hissed, “Die Guardian scum,” and sunk her jagged teeth into his shoulder.
“Ahhggghhhh!” Gabe cried out.”
In an instant, Haim was in the room pulling Gabe free of Sophie’s grasp, a chunk of his flesh tearing away in her mouth as he did so. As Gabe was pulled out of the room, darkness creeping in from all sides, he managed to look back only to see his dear Sophie spitting his flesh to the ground. Then everything went black.
Gabe opened his eyes, Michael leaning over his lifeless body. It didn’t take Gabe long to realize he was lying on Michael’s sofa. Gabe thought about how many people he had seen injured, laid out on this exact spot in the short time he had been at the manor. It seemed to be a common theme that people were always getting hurt in one way or another.
Gabe attempted to sit up, but failed to do so. He tried to lift his hand to assist himself but again it would not respond to his brain’s commands. “Michael? What’s going on?” Gabe asked, panicked.
“You’re going to be all right,” Michael assured him.
“I don’t feel all right. I can’t move.” Gabe cried.
“It’s just the numbing tea, trust me, better you have it with that nasty gash,” Gabe heard a voice behind the couch.
“Uri?” Gabe called out. “Is that you?”
A moment later, Uri was popping his head over the edge of the couch, a big grin on his face as his hair hung down in his eyes.
“The one and only,” Uri replied.
“I thought you were at Iron Gate,” Gabe tried to make sense of the situation.
“I was and now I am not. Crazy thing how those Alicorns work,” Uri added sarcastically.
“Wait, how long have I been out?” Gabe asked confused.
“I’d say a good six hours,” Michael answered.
“Yeah man, your girlfriend did a number on you. What kind of kinky stuff are you two into?” Uri moved around to the front of the sofa, clearly proud of his joke.
“Sophie!” Gabe exclaimed remembering every horrific detail of what had happened in one second.
“Uri, stop it!” Michael snapped.
“How long has she been like that?” Gabe inquired.
“Haim says a while. She seemed to progress faster than the others,” Michael replied.
“Oh God, she’s awful,” Gabe said as he tried to sit up again. “A little help here. Can you all sit me up?”
“Yes, of course,” Michael replied reaching out to Gabe and motioning with his head for Uri to come help. “Careful Uri, the flesh patch is fresh.” Gabe’s stomach turned at the talk of flesh patches.
Once Gabe was securely propped up, Michael and Uri sat down in the side chairs nearby, ready to assist Gabe at his first sign of distress.
“What were you thinking, Gabe? There is no way you should have been in there alone with her,” Michael reprimanded his injured pupil.
“I had no idea she was that bad. She wanted to kill me!” Gabe shrieked.
“Of course she did, numb nuts!” Uri boasted. “She’s kind of evil right now.”
“Michael, we have to do something!” Gabe urged.
“Gabe, we have been trying spells, and the elders apparently had tried an ancient elixir before we even returned. None of it has worked. But I am sure we will figure it out. We just have to be patient,” Michael explained.
“No! Don’t you get it? She’s a monster,” Gabe argued.
“Gabe, I’m sure Michael is doing everything he can,” Uri commented, dropping the comedian act when he realized how upset his friend truly was.
“No, I don’t think he is,” Gabe snapped.
“And what’s that supposed to mean?” Uri began to feel as though he had to defend his trusted leader.
“He can wipe her,” Gabe suggested firmly.
“I said no!” Michael yelled quickly.
“You know it will work,” Gabe insisted.
“Gabe, it’s not about it working, it’s about wiping away any trace of the Sophie we know,” Michael asserted.
“You don’t know that will happen,” Gabe stressed.
“Gabe, I would have to go so deep I don’t know how it could not happen,” Michael tried to explain more calmly.
“Uri, what’s better, a Sophie who has to get to know us again or a psychotic demonic version of Sophie who tries to kill you with her teeth if she can?” Gabe asked in a sarcastic tone.
“Gabe, Michael has a point. Artis had no idea who I was, not even when I left. Can you really deal with Sophie having no clue about who you are or what you had?”
“More than I can with her trying to kill me!” Gabe exclaimed.
“Gabe, it’s not just her not knowing who any of us are, it’s also if her mind can handle the stress of it. Some people are never able to adjust to their new realities when they begin to learn about it,” Michael explained.
“I think that gives her more of a chance than being locked in a box, being treated like an animal,” Gabe argued.
“I think you’re exaggerating a bit. We’re trying to keep her and everyone else around her safe.” Michael reassured Gabe sternly. “Look at what happened to you!”
“I’m not going to let up on this, Michael. You could wi
pe her right now and her suffering stops,” Gabe insisted.
“Michael, maybe Gabe has a point. Nothing the elders have done has worked, you have no clue how to help her and she’s getting worse.”
“Uri!” Michael exclaimed, clearly feeling betrayed. “We can’t do this to Sophie.”
“I don’t see how we can not,” Gabe added. “And, considering you were the one that had her work with relics in the first place, I would think you would feel some sort of sense of responsibility to fix this.”
“Gabe!” Uri exclaimed. “I think that’s a bit harsh, come on now. Michael was only doing what he thought was best for you and Sophie.”
“And I’m telling you, wiping Sophie is what is best for her, I know it,” Gabe insisted. “Would I have you do something to her if I really thought it would hurt her?”
Michael sat silent, it was clear he was considering Gabe’s words. Gabe held his breath as he waited for his answer. The two boys stared at their teacher, almost ready to leap from their skin.
“Gabe, I think this is the wrong decision but leave me, let me think about what you have said. I will discuss it with the elders and let you know what we decide,” Michael replied.
“That’s all I ask,” Gabe said, positive his teacher would come to the right answer.
“Uri, help Gabe to his room. He needs to rest tonight. The flesh patch should take a solid hold by morning. I will give you my decision then,” Michael said, hanging his head immediately in deep thought.
“Come on, Nancy,” Uri said giggling and picking Gabe up as though he were a damsel in need.
“You’re just loving this, aren’t you?” Gabe asked annoyed.
“Oh yeah!”
Gabe ran his fingers over where the flesh patch had been. He was amazed that just three days ago there had been a gaping hole in his neck where Sophie had bitten him. There really had not been much of a change in her condition.
