by Tiffany King
"Nightmares?" Lynn asked concerned.
"Yeah, I pretty much have them every night," I said, aggravated that I had let it slip out I was having them.
"What are they about?" Lynn asked with concern laced through her words.
"They're always the same. I'm in some kind of pitch black chamber. I can't see anything and I'm petrified to move because I'm afraid I might fall into oblivion. Then, when I finally work up the nerve to move, I realize I'm not alone," I said, shivering slightly as I recalled the terrible oppressive darkness and voices from my dreams.
"Krista, have you told Haniel."
"No way, I just know he would have used it as an excuse to make me stay at home," I said defiantly.
"I'm not so sure about that," Lynn said, smoothing out one of the sleeping bags with her hands.
"What do you mean by that?" I asked curiously.
"Well, let's face it Krista. We all try to act blasé about it, but there's no denying you got some serious kickass powers now. We all know it, including our see-all-know-it-all Archangel. We definitely need you here. Haven't you noticed how protective Haniel is of you, like, hiking beside you the entire afternoon?"
"I thought he was just doing that because he didn't want me to feel like the odd man out," I said, trying to analyze her words. My new powers were no secret, but were they really all that spectacular?
"I don't know Lynn. So what if I can now change over Forgotten Souls without even trying anymore. I'm not sure how that skill will be able to help us in this situation, especially if Victor is using nothing but Daemons…"
"Hey, why wasn't I invited to this party?" Sam asked, crawling under the flap of the tent to join us and settling on the stretched out sleeping bag beside me.
"What, you didn't get the secret party vibe I was trying to send your way?" Lynn mocked.
"I must have missed that one. Anyhoo, I agree with Lynn, your powers are something else."
"Oh great, can anyone else hear us too?" I asked self-consciously, not crazy about everyone in camp knowing about my bad dreams.
"Nah, it was just me. I was moving all our packs of clothes closer to the appropriate tents and I caught Lynn talking about your steroid powers," she quipped.
"Nice, steroid powers?" I asked, giving her a nudge.
"Hehehe, yeah, that's what I call them! You put the rest of us 'Olympians' to shame," she said, still giggling.
"Well, I would prefer to be like the rest of you," I said, quietly picking at a stray string that had pulled free from the material of the sleeping bag I was perched on.
"Dinner." Kieran called, interrupting any further conversation.
Sam, Lynn and I crawled out of the tent and joined the others around the campfire. The guys had dragged boulders and downed tree trunks for all of us to perch on while we ate. Super strength was a definite perk when camping, I couldn't help thinking as I sat beside Sam and Shawn with my loaded plate balanced on my knees.
"Wow, you girls outdid yourself," John said between a bite full of beans.
I had to agree with him as I took a big bite out of my burger. How they constructed such great tasting hamburgers in the middle of nowhere was beyond me. I had thought they were crazy when they were packing up the insulated backpack cooler with meats and condiments, but I was so glad they had insisted.
After I finished my meal, I stood up completely stuffed. I threw away my plate and noticed the bag of sour cream and onion chips had been accidently knocked over. I bent over and picked them up, placing them in the trash receptacle we had sat up beside the netted wall. Still a little nervous about bugs, I ran my fingers along the netting, testing its tautness. I was relieved of course to discover that the guys had outdone themselves making our campsite as secure as possible.
The rest of my friends finished their dinner and we spent the next hour discussing what all the other Band members had been up to.
"How's Timmy doing?" I asked Jaime while the others chatted.
"He's doing well. He still asks for his mom and dad a lot, but Logan and Ruthie have instantly taken to him and have helped take his mind off his loss. He prefers to hang out with Reagan, Kieran's little girl, but we all know why that is," she added with a small laugh.
"So Reagan will be Timmy's Link?" I asked, trying to understand the logistics of how we were created to complete each other.
"Yes, hopefully they'll be saving Forgotten Souls just like us one day. I feel for my poor Logan though," She added sadly.
"Why?" I asked confused.
"Because, Grace was three months pregnant with his Link when she was murdered."
I gasped in horror at her words. The loss of Grace had been hard on all of us, but I was particularly grief stricken at losing her. I was so upset that had never thought to consider the impact her death would have on what we were created for.
"What will happen to Logan?" I asked with dread, knowing that Protectors could not survive without their Guides.
"He won't die," she said in quick reassurance. "He was too young for the link to work that way. Haniel said he will always miss what he never had a chance to cherish, almost like missing a limb, but Haniel said her soul will always belong to Logan. One day when he joins her in the Other World, it will be as if they were never separated."
"Jaime, I'm so sorry. In my own selfishness lately, I never considered the full-impact Grace's death would have on all of us, but most of all your own family."
"Thanks Krista, but it's okay, this is what we we're created for," she said, sounding sadder than I had ever heard her.
I reached over and gave her a hug, getting a barrage of images from the pain she was in. My emotions sifted through her pain in rapid succession, and I poured the right amount of peace into her, taking away her melancholy and sadness without even thinking about it.
"Wow, Krista how do you do that?"
I shrugged my shoulders, slightly embarrassed by the awestruck look that covered her slender face. "I'm not sure, it just happens on its own accord now."
"That's amazing. Haniel told us your gifts had accelerated, but holy cow that's insane. I know that I should still feel bad, but I can't seem to find an ounce of sadness in me now. This is the first time in the last few months that I don't feel like I have the weight of the world resting on my shoulders. You are truly blessed."
"I'm glad," I said. For the first time since discovering them, I didn't resent my new abilities. Jaime's peace gave me hope that maybe I wasn't some kind of freak after all.
"All right first crew, it's time to get some shuteye," John said, rising from the log he had been sitting on. We decided it would be best to sleep in shifts so the camp would be protected.
"I better get some sleep while I can. Thank you Krista for helping me for the first time in…well, I don't know how many nights, but I know I'll be able to go to sleep right away without worrying."
"I'm glad," I said sincerely.
"What was all that about?" Shawn asked watching Jamie walk away.
I gave him the lowdown on what Jamie had told me, but glossed over the depression she had been feeling before I helped her out.
"Wow that totally sucks. Since none of us have kids yet, I never really thought about what happens to the future Links if one of us died or some…." He broke off looking at me apologetically. "I'm sorry Sis, I wasn't thinking."
"Me either, but it's fine," I said, getting the gist of his thoughts. If Mark and I were done forever, what would happen to the children they were meant to link with. Would they then link with others instead? It was mind boggling to try and make sense of the logistics of our species. Would The Light really condemn innocent Guides and Protectors to a lifetime of heartache or would he spare them that pain. It was something my band might have to face in the future. One thing was certain, I will be talking to Haniel about it, with his infinite wisdom I'm sure he would know.
"Don't worry about it Sis," Shawn said, slinging an arm across my shoulders. "It's all going to work out."
"I hope so," I whispered, resting my head against his shoulder.
Lynn and Robert looked concerned as they listened to our quiet conversation. I closed my eyes briefly, hoping to escape the questions I knew they yearned to ask.
Sensing my inner turmoil, Sam changed the subject and started talking about the briskness in the air. Soon the others got into the discussion of whether we would see snow while we were staking out the mountain. I listened to them with my eyes closed, trying to sort through everything I had learned that night. What would happen if Mark was forever lost? Would generations of Guides and Protectors feel the impact of his abandonment, and if so, would it ultimately affect my relationship with my new family? Finally frustrated at not knowing the answers, I decided to shelf my countless questions until I could corner Haniel and make him answer them. Once I decided to put it to rest for now, my mind slowly began to drift as my friend's voices droned on in the background. The effects of a lack of sleep were beginning to hit me hard. I tried my best to fight it, but this was a battle I was going to lose. My eyelids suddenly became steel traps and refused to open.
The same dark chamber greeted me as always, but that didn't make it any less frightening. Panic immediately set in as I felt nothing in front of me with my outstretched hands. I followed my pattern from the previous nights by dropping to my knees so I could crawl toward a possible way out. Cold smooth cement lay beneath me as I slowly began to inch forward. I heard a sound to my left that sounded like soft chuckling and I pivoted my head around, trying to peer through the blackness. The sound grew louder and I realized it wasn't chuckling, but the sound of something or several something's scurrying across the floor. I froze in mid-crawl as the sound grew even louder deafening out my own rapid heartbeat. The scurrying was coming from all sides surrounding me completely. I felt something crawl across my right ankle, followed by several more. I kicked my foot out, trying to knock whatever it was off of me. I began to shriek as hundreds more began to crawl all over me.
I awakened, startled by my own shrieking. I sat up a little confused and saw that the campfire was almost completely out. I squinted my eyes, trying to see through the dim light and after several seconds, I could make out the sleeping silhouettes of my friends. There was a strange buzzing sound that sounded like a radio on a station that had a low frequency.
"Sheesh, we make the worst lookouts," I muttered, sitting up straighter to work out the kink in my back. Shawn sat up next to me looking puzzled.
"Sorry, I fell asleep too," he mumbled, looking down at Sam who had fallen asleep with her head resting on his knees.
"I guess we all did," I said, standing up to throw another stick onto the fire and watched as the flames reignited and lit up the area. I gasped when I noticed that the net was gone and blackness surrounded our campsite. It was as if someone had snuffed out the moon and the stars.
"Hey where's the net?" I asked my friends, taking a groggy step forward. I reached out my hand, confused that the entire net had disappeared on us. I went to take another tentative step forward when I was jerked backward by a hand grasping my arm.
"What the heck?" I asked, aggravated at my brother who had gripped my arm so tightly. I turned to see his horrified expression as he peered out into the darkness beyond me.
Unease flooded through me like I had been doused in ice water. I turned around cautiously, scared that the eyes of a Daemon or something would greet me. I squinted in the darkness, trying to understand what had alarmed my brother. My eyes finally began to adjust and I was puzzled to see that the blackness around us seemed to pulsate as if it was alive. I took a terrified step backwards, finally realizing that thousands and thousands of bugs had filled the night sky around us.
My terror induced scream filled the night air when I realized that the net wasn't gone, but was completely covered with the squirming bodies of every bug imaginable. The weight of their bodies made the netting bow in around us.
Shawn grasped me by the shoulders, pivoting me around to face him as my scream continued to slice through the night like a banshee.
My nightmare had somehow seeped into reality.
Chapter 6
"Krista, Krista it's okay! They can't get in!" Shawn said, shaking my shoulders.
My scream cut off and I looked at him, too scared to look anywhere else.
"A-r-re y-you sure?" I asked in a trembling voice.
"It looks like the net is holding them at bay," John said, coming over to give me a quick pat on the arm as he and the others joined our group.
"Why are they crowding the net?" Sam asked, voicing the question all of us were afraid to ask.
"Victor," I said clearly, knowing without a shadow of a doubt we were facing one of the obstacles Haniel had warned us about.
John nodded his head looking at me.
"They're so disgusting," Kieran said, standing as close to John as she could get without climbing into his arms, which looked like a distinct possibility.
"I know babe, but they're out there and you're safe from them in here."
John and Shawn's confidence in our shelter reassured me and I finally worked up the nerve to scan the perimeter of our camp. I let out a pent up breath when I saw that they were right. The ground beneath our feet was clear of anything that crept or crawled. I glanced up above our heads and an involuntary shudder raced down my spine. It was freaky as crap to see the netting bowing under the weight of what looked like millions of bugs. Their chattering and chirping had swelled to a deafening pitch, making it hard to hear what the others were now saying.
I turned to Robert and Shawn who both look concerned, studying the area behind our tent. "What's the matter?" I asked, stepping closer to them.
They exchanged looks, obviously contemplating whether to tell me or not. Finally, Robert shrugged his shoulders in defeat.
"We think they found a way in," Shawn said, pointing to the darkness behind our tents.
I peered into the darkness where he pointed. "No, I thought you guys secured the netting back there too!" I said, unwilling to believe.
"We did, but I could swear I saw something moving just beyond our tents a few seconds ago," Robert said, pulling Lynn close to him as per the instincts of a Protector. I watched as the other Protectors, who were on high alert, followed suit, all but Shawn who struggled with his dilemma of protecting the other half of his soul and me at the same time. I made the situation easier for him by stepping behind him next to Sam.
Sam smiled grimly at me as we darted our eyes back and forth, looking for any kind of movement. After several seconds, I began to think maybe Robert was mistaken. I slowly started to relax until I noticed John tense back up in front of Kieran. I peered around Shawn trying to see the cause for alarm. Suddenly, our tents were completely engulfed by a mass of squirming, crawling bugs that was steadily making its way toward us.
My group backed up in one fluid movement, putting the fire pit between us and the oncoming mass. Shawn reached down for one of the branches we had collected for the fire. He pulled off his hoodie and jerked off the t-shirt he wore underneath it. He quickly wrapped it around the end of the stick and dipped it into the fire, creating a torch. The rest of Protectors quickly mimicked Shawn and within seconds they all held torches out in front of them.
My heartbeat was erratic as the distance between us and the insects closed to less than ten feet. The fire from the torches made it easier to see them now and I felt bile rising in my throat as I could make out the long hairy legs of tarantulas crawling over the hard-shelled bodies of the smaller bugs. It was as if the gateway to Hell had opened up and the end of time was now upon us.
I could hear Amelia panicking and gasping for breath to my left on the other side of Sam and Lynn. How ironic that we had spent the previous day discussing our hatred of bugs while we tried on boots together. Never in my wildest imagination did this scenario even seem possible. I was disappointed that Haniel had disappeared again, just when we needed him the most.
The gap betwe
en us closed to less than five feet and I watched in horror as some of the bugs and insects crawled right into the fire as if it wasn't even there, burning themselves alive. Black smoke rose around us as the bugs began to make the fire smolder from the multiple bodies piling up. The fire slowly snuffed out as if a bucket of water had doused it as more bugs crawled over the remains of the charred bodies. Terrified, I backed up even further, taking care to keep a safe distance between my back and the bowed-in netting behind me.
Our Protectors lowered their torches to ground level, keeping the fire close to the dirt in an attempt to force the bugs back, but I could tell they knew their attempts were futile. The insects didn't appear to have any sense of survival left. Victor had instead turned them into mindless pawns that would all burn alive trying to get to us, and by the sheer number of them, it was going to happen.
"Shawn by your foot," I yelled, watching as a group tried to make their way between the narrow gap of Shawn's feet. Several escaped his torch and began to crawl up his legs. Sam reached down, knocking them away with her own hands. Shawn shot her a silent look that spoke volumes and I felt tears fill my eyes, their bond was undeniable. Looking around, I was dismayed to see that the insects had found ways around the torches and were now freely climbing over and between the Guides.
Amelia shrieked beside me as several started the journey up her boots and legs. Without thinking, I dropped to my knees, trying to knock them off her. I realized my mistake instantly as my dream from earlier crept in. Kieran stumbled into me, trying to stomp on the bugs at her feet and sent me sprawling face first into the dirt. Panicked, I frantically tried to get up as pandemonium took over our campsite. I could hear my friends screaming and Robert yelling for Lynn. I tried to raise my head to search for her, but saw nothing but the horde of bugs crawling toward me. Sickened, I curled up in a ball with all hope disintegrating like dust in the wind. I wrapped my arms around my head, trying to make myself as small as possible. I felt millions of tiny legs crawling over my body. All sound was drowned out by the chirping noises coming from the insects that covered every inch of us.
