Never Say Die- Chapter 25

 

Chapter 25

 

 

            I stepped into the clearing and came to meet Malcolm face to face feeling like my heart was going to beat its way out of my chest, he had come in a human form which surprised me. He had a very debonair look to him, polished and impressive despite simple slacks and a button down shirt; I assumed that this was his last attempt to impress me before he destroyed me instead.

            His eyes glowed red as fire and his smile was full of venom but I stood my ground, I allowed my emotion to take control of me and felt the change from human to my demon form as the adrenaline flowed.

            When my eyes glowed as red as his I spoke, “You will not touch my human.” I was pleased to find that my voice was strong and very clear.

            “I do not wish to fight an unnecessary battle, accept my proposal and there will be no need for any unpleasantness.” He replied in a voice that was smooth as silk.

            “I've told you already I cannot accept your offer, my heart does not and never will belong to you.” I could feel the evil building in me just being in his presence but I fought it back, determined not to turn completely unless I absolutely had to.

            “Then I'm afraid I will have to kill you both.” he answered with an easy smile like he was offering to do me a favor as I watched him change into something hideous and frightening, he grew at least a foot, there was a fiery tinge to his skin even though it had turned nearly black, his teeth were pointed and razor sharp and there was a very skeletal but solid look to him.

            “I guess I have to remind you thatI am also immortal so you might want to rethink your strategy. There are plenty of other demons that I'm sure would be more than proud to marry you, so why do you keep wasting your time with me?” He raised an eyebrow at me but still seemed strangely calm.

            “It seems that you are my only female equal, other female demons are below me, so please no more nonsense.”

            “You think that after all the interfering you've done in my human life that things would still actually work out between us? You don't know much about relationships.” I spat at him.

            “I don't care about relationships, I care about reproducing powerful demons.” Agreeable, unselfish and reliable my a*s I thought, remembering his proposal letter, he was a demon after all.

            “I've given you my answer, I live a human life, I love a human man and I will not marry you.”

            “Perhaps some persuasion will change your mind.” He suggested and I felt the anger begin to flow through me, he was tempting me to make the first move and I tried to remain as calm as I could.

            “He will not die by your hand, not today, not ever.” I knew that Rhys probably wasn't coming out of this unharmed but I was going to do everything I could to keep him alive.

            Then I suddenly found myself lifted from the ground and stared in horror as I fell with ridiculous speed, closer and closer to the large gathering of boulders that Flan and Rhys were hiding behind. I instinctively put my hands over my head as the impact cracked the boulder, shaking the ground; I caught a glimpse Rhys staring out at me in terror and defiance from a bubble just like the one Flan had protected us with in my kitchen. I noticed that Flan was gripping on to him as tight as she could to prevent him from retaliating; she was going to have one hell of a fight keeping him at her side.

             I was acutely aware of my painful collision with the rocks at this point, but before I could move I was flung into the air again and felt the air fly past me as I hurtled toward the ground a second time but this time I seemed to slow as the ground got closer and landed on my feet to find that I was a little sore but relieved that I was mostly unharmed.

            I owe you big Flan thanks, I thought without looking at her.

            I gathered every bit of power I could muster and felt the flame rise around me as I burned out and came to stand behind Malcolm. Before he could turn to see where I'd gone, I raised my foot and planted it into his back, sending him flying into a large pile of rock that quickly turned to a pile of rubble on impact. For the first time in my life I was wishing that I was full demon and had the power to destroy him. As it was I only had the power to keep playing this game of cat and mouse.

            “My, my aren't you feisty? Perhaps your feelings for this mortal are stronger than I originally thought, obviously starting with you was the wrong tactic.” S**t he knows! I thought frantically, Flan had been right about his power being stronger than her own, he knew exactly where Rhys was. Faster than a bullet he moved to stand in front of the boulders that were protecting Rhys and Flan, raising his fist he brought it down on the one directly in front of them and it shattered into a pile of rock.

            “No!” I screamed and charged toward him, knocking him to the ground just a fraction of a second too late as Rhys went flying into the air. I could see the terror in his eyes as he looked down at me and started to fall, I was on my feet in a split second ready to catch him but as mine had before, his fall slowed and he came to land gently on his feet. I shot a grateful look at Flan and she gave me a wink as she beckoned him back to her side.

            But then my heart sank into my stomach as I realized that he was in between Malcolm and I now, and he wouldn't be able to run fast enough to get out of the way. As if it were in slow motion I saw Malcolm get to his feet and prepare to charge, all I could do was stare at Rhys in horror.

            I'd promised to keep him safe and I was going to but how? Before I could do anything the ground began to shake and a giant crack formed in the ground between Malcolm and Rhys creating a crevasse that was impressive but not enough to stop a demon. Un-fazed, Malcolm smiled an evil smile and I realized that I could see the plan in his head to crush Rhys one bone at a time, killing him slowly and very painfully.

            Only a second faster, I launched myself over the gap in the ground managing to reach Rhys first, I pushed him just far enough out of the way that the wind ruffled his hair as Malcolm's iron fist collided with my jaw instead of his. The sound of his fist meeting my face was like a crack of thunder as two impenetrable forces came together, it wasn't as painful for me as it would have been for Rhys but there was still a whole lot of force behind it, I knew that it probably could have killed him if I had not intervened.

            The thunderous noise rumbled again as I came in contact with a stone wall and it cracked under the impact, sending large chunks of stone falling down on me as I slumped back against it. Impenetrable or not, I was learning quickly that my human form still allowed me to bruise and feel pain.

            “Saydie, no!” I heard Rhys cry and as I dug my way out of the rocks I could see him running toward me, Flan seemed to be concentrating on a spell to bring him back to her but it definitely wasn't working. He crossed the quarry in what seemed like seconds and was pulling rocks away as I fought my way out.

            “Rhys you need to go back to Flan before you get hurt, please just trust me.” I pleaded.

            “I'm not going to stand by while you fight for me Saydie, it's not right.” He argued.

            “You can't win this battle, Rhys please just let me finish-” I stopped dead as he flew away from me and in a flash he slammed into the wall across the quarry. For a brief moment I thought that he might have slowed down before he hit but the thought was erased from my mind as I looked on in horror as he hit the wall with a dull thud and slid to the ground, motionless.

            “No!” I screamed, over and over until it didn't sound like my voice anymore. I ran to his side to feel for his pulse and tears came to my eyes as I realized that he was still alive, A wave of relief washed over me, “Flan you need to check him over for injuries, I won't let him die, do whatever you can.” I called through my teeth, still furious despite the solace I took in knowing he wasn't dead.

            I looked up at Malcolm and felt fury, hate, fire and madness flowing through me like hot lava, he had pushed me to my limit and I finally let go of my human self, allowing the demon to completely take over. Then a new feeling began to spread through me, a burning like poison in my veins as I stared at him full of unconcealed rage, I could feel the changes taking over my body, my skin took on the fiery glow although I didn't turn black like he had.

            I could feel my teeth elongating slightly and turning into sharp spikes full of venom and my face seemed to automatically adjust to accommodate the change. I could hear things that I hadn't heard before without having to focus on it, like Rhys's shallow breathing and uneven heartbeat, I could even hear the slosh of blood as his heart fought to pump it through his body.

            I could see everything with more definition than I'd ever thought possible; I was a perfect and efficient weapon of destruction but I was too lost in my own rage to consciously pay any attention to all the changes. All I could think about was finishing this battle and getting Rhys out safely. In the back of my head I couldn't help but wonder how I still cared so much about his well being now that I had given myself over to the evil that had consumed me.

            “Finish this Saydie, you can do it, I'll take care of Rhys.” I heard the whisper in my head just over the now-amplified sound of Rhys's heart beginning to slow and it was all the encouragement I needed. I would not let him die

            I was on my feet in a blur of movement, confronting Malcolm again “You will not kill him.” I growled and was startled to realize that my voice had developed into a deep, demonic sound. The burning seemed to be getting stronger and it was a moment before I realized that I was actually on fire. The burning was consuming me now, I felt it in every fiber of my being, this is what I had been born for, this was what it felt like to let my inner demon take total control.    I focused on what I was going to do to Malcolm next, seeing myself hurtling great boulders at him, crushing him beneath the massive stone, and before my thought was even completed a boulder flew at him out of nowhere. He seemed just as shocked as I was to find himself pinned against the wall and I was crouched defensively looking to see where the boulder had come from.

            He pushed it away as easily as if it was a large rubber ball in his lap but before he could rise I envisioned more boulders flying at him and watched as two more sped in his direction, aimed at his head this time. Finally it dawned on me that I was controlling the boulders with my thoughts, I barely had to form the thought and what I wanted happened, the only person I knew who could do that was my father. I stopped short as the reality dawned on me, I had more power, powers that no created demon had and if my assumption was correct my powers were limitless, I just had to figure out how to make them work.

            My brief lapse of attention gave Malcolm the opportunity he needed to get to his feet and attempt to attack me again but this time I found that I was able to predict his next move and my newly sharp eyes could see the wave of power coming toward me in another attempt to throw me.

            Once again I had barely considered what to do to stop him when the power seemed to hit a wall, Malcolm gasped in surprise and understanding dawned on him as his eyes narrowed at me.

            You've become powerful! He screamed silently at me in his rage and I gave him an evil smile.

            Before he could contemplate my advantage, I lifted him into the air and threw him as hard as I mentally could against the opposite wall, I didn't know how or if I could destroy him so for now the best I could hope for was to beat him within an inch of his life. I reached toward him before he could move and envisioned him flying toward me, in a second his throat was in my hand and I was holding him off the ground.

            “Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way my friend, you can walk away with what dignity you have left or we can fight until you give up.” I said evilly as he struggled against my grip; but then I felt his hand around my own throat, squeezing as hard as he could.

            “I will never give up.” He gasped as I squeezed his neck even harder with one hand and pried his fingers from my own with the other. Once I'd freed myself from his grip I threw him yet again, bringing a much larger amount of rock down on him now and realizing that I was definitely more powerful physically than I was mentally. The more we fought I found that the flame was stronger, the power that flowed through me was amazing and I was using it to every advantage possible.

            Malcolm got to his feet yet again, his eyes on Rhys, I saw the determination in them and knew that this was the end. If I didn't stop him now he was going to keep going until he killed Rhys and maybe even Flan, I couldn't allow that to happen.

            I watched in slow motion as Malcolm started to run and I could see the plan forming in his head, he was going to crush Rhys with his own hands and be done. I began to run toward him, finding that I now moved ten times faster than he did, he never saw me come at him with my arm outstretched, fingers clawed and as we collided I felt the burning heat of his skin, muscle and blood sliding over my fingers like a hot knife through butter. The cracking of bone as my hand ripped into his chest was sickening as I grasped his heart and squeezed with every bit of strength I had before tearing through his back.

            He stared at me with shocked eyes that went lifeless as his body slid down my arm and hit the ground with a thunderous rumble. For a moment all I could do was stand over him open-mouthed, the power surge was fading as I came back to my human senses and the reality of what I'd done hit me.

            I felt what was left of his heart fall from my hand as I scrambled away from him, not entirely sure that I'd killed him, he was immortal right? Not waiting to find out, I rushed to Flan's side now that I could see her and she looked up at me in surprise, “Whoa Saydie you can see me?”

            “Of course I can, should I not be able to?”

            “I haven't lifted my invisibility shield yet...” she trailed off, the full extent of my power finally hitting her too as she realized that she was now defenseless against me.

            “That must have been some power surge huh?” she asked in awe.

            “Yeah a little.” I said hurriedly, I knew that my eyes were still red but for the most part I was back in control of myself. I looked down at Rhys to realize that his eyes were open and he was looking up at us through dazed eyes..

            “Rhys are you alright? It's over baby, I'm so sorry, why did you run after me like that?” The second question was more to myself than to him, I was crying, grateful and exasperated at the same time.

            “I couldn't just sit there and watch him beat on you like that.” I felt my heart soften at his devotion to me and a small smile crossed my lips. He tried to sit upright and Flan and I both reached out to stop him.

            “Are you sure you should try to sit up? Does anything feel like it's broken?” I was suddenly much more worried than I'd been before.

            “I slowed him down the best I could for as fast as it happened but I think he's probably broken a few ribs.” Flan told me just as Rhys let out a strangled scream of pain, his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell back to the ground to lay unmoving, the pain had clearly been too much.

            I was frantic with worry by now. “I'm so sorry, I'll fix this and make you better, I promise.” I was crying again, the guilt of everything that had happened to him weighing on me like a ton of bricks.

            I slid my hands beneath him and lifted his limp body effortlessly; he groaned and opened an eye to look at me for just a moment before slipping again into unconsciousness.

            “Are you going to take him to a hospital? Because you're going to have a hell of a time explaining all of this.” I shook my head impatiently.

            “Just trust me Flan.” She still looked unsure but nodded. “Hold on to my arm.” I told her, pulling Rhys's unmoving body closer to me.

            Then in a flash of flame the quarry disappeared and we found ourselves standing in the middle of my parents’ bright kitchen.

            Flan looked around in amazement as I tried to gather my thoughts, “Where are we?”

            “My parents’ house.” I responded. “Let's take him into the guest bedroom so he can lay back down.” I started to head toward the hallway just as my mother came into the kitchen and dropped the hand towel she’d been using to wipe her hands.

            “Good heavens Saydie what happened? Why are you covered in...is that blood?” she stared at us in disbelief.

            “Malcolm.” I muttered and without further question she hurried to pull back the covers on the guest bed and lay out a few thick blankets before we made it to the room. I gently laid Rhys down on the bed, trying to make him as comfortable as possible. With a pair of shears my mom cut his shirt off to examine the damage.

            His chest was covered in bloody cuts, large bruises were blossoming all over his body and a few of his ribs seemed to be straining against his skin at awkward angles, I gently probed his head with my fingers to find that he had a few gashes in his hair as well. I knew that if we didn't do something soon he was going to die.

            Refusing to take my eyes off of him for even a moment I yelled, “Dad!” and in a flash of flame he appeared at the door causing Flan and my mother to jump in surprise.

            “Saydie what on earth happened?” He asked as he approached the bed, I didn't need to explain the story, without even looking at him I barely registered that I was putting the entire scene into his head and he gasped as the information came to him.

            He was silent for a moment as he watched it all from my point of view, I couldn't even bring myself to look at him when he put his hand on my shoulder.

            “Don't blame yourself my dear child, this is not a result of what you are, it's a result of Malcolm's uncontrollable temper but you protected him, he's a bit worse for the wear but he's alive, be thankful for that.”

            I turned on him in a fury, anger filled me and I was suddenly engulfed in flames, “How can you possibly say that this isn't my fault? Look at what has happened to him dad, all this happened because Malcolm considered me to be his equal and humans to be below him. So how is this not my fault? I should have protected him, I should have been able to stop him...”

            I was beginning to sob now as I sank to the floor, “Just fix him please, make him alright.” I was begging now and nearly screaming at him as he came toward me and reached through the flames.

            He pulled me back up to standing and wrapped his arms around me, supporting most of my weight.

            “It's alright darling we'll fix it, everything will be alright.” He held me until I was able to stop crying and the flames subsided.

            “Give me your hand.” He reached for my hand and as I extended it he gently placed one on either side of Rhys's chest and put his own hand on Rhys's head.

            “Now concentrate on what you wish to achieve.” he instructed me and in my head I pictured Rhys whole and unharmed. Just like before I felt a surge of power but this time it was different, almost as if I could feel the healing flowing through me and we all watched in amazement as Rhys's chest smoothed out, the bruises faded and blood disappeared.

He took a deep, gasping breath as he finished healing and looked around him in confusion.

            He sat up slowly, feeling his chest, “How do you feel?” I asked urgently, I couldn't bear even a moment of suspense.

            “I think I'm alright.” the rest of us sighed with relief but then I noticed a change in Rhys's face.

            “Do you remember what happened?” my father asked and Rhys flinched as he nodded, obviously not wanting to talk about it.

            “Can I go home now?” My mouth fell open and I stared at him, he looked so detached as If he really couldn't process what just happened.

            “Rhys please don't be angry, please...” I trailed off as he stood up.

            “I'm not mad Saydie, but it's been a long and crazy night. I have a lot to think about and this is way more than I ever thought I'd have to comprehend in my life, I'm just not sure if I'm ready to be a part of...all of this.”

            “This isn't what my life is normally like Rhys, this was a fluke that you just happened to get caught up in. My world is with humans, with you.” I was pleading for his understanding but he shook his head and looked away.

            “Please, just let me go home and have some time to think.” I nodded and didn't say anything else, I was fighting the urge to fall at his feet and beg him to stay but I wasn't going to be able to hang on much longer as the tears streamed down my face.

            My dad motioned for Rhys to precede him through the door and then followed him out to the kitchen, I vaguely registered that I could still hear them with minimal effort “I will send you home the same way you arrived if that suits you, and I will also make sure that your truck is returned.”

            “Thank you sir, and please tell Saydie not to blame herself, it's just a lot to take in.”

“I will do that for you.” my father agreed, then I heard the sound of flame engulfing Rhys as my father sent him home.

I finally lost my fight to keep myself together and slid to the floor as the room went black.