Shadow Beings

32. The Room of Misery

I caught my breath as my hands curled into a fist, hurting. With my eyes still closed I tried to steady my breathing, the hold on Jack's aura being my only guide.

I cannot leave them like this.

I decided to focus on the room with my eyes still closed but my focus divided between them and my surroundings, running towards the destination with my fingers lingering by the walls. With every second the magnitude of its ominous aura hardened and my footsteps quickened, taking care of staying silent. I didn't want to give away my position but, more importantly, I didn't want to disturb the Nature that stayed in the underground. Flowers in the walls, certain plants dotting the path and especially the single sturdy root of Paliv Verasel... 

It ran through the walls connecting all of the building, and Jack's aura from my visual feed continued to highlight my path. As he fought his strain increased and it hurt him so much but I held on, forcing him to share some of it with me.

Did he know I was coming? Fighting so many shadows he might not be able to feel my presence.

I hope he believes I'm coming. 

Audrey knew how strong Jack and Holly were and she regarded them so highly, but that number along with the chief... it would be too much.

Perhaps especially for her.

What if Vlad was awake now? One way or another, that stone will reach Vlad. Time matters, and our preparedness matters... but, can we ever possibly be prepared against such an entity? We have to stone with us until we are ready to give it to him; he must materialise to exist properly and die.

What if we will never be prepared? What if I'm too much of a coward? What if he's too strong?

Something told me he could destroy all the conscious in a blink.

I loosened my fingers and strengthened my focus on my brother's aura, letting go while holding on. I continued to run as fast as my legs could carry me till I reached a compact room, almost no light falling in it. Every figure seemed to be nothing but an ordinary shadow, fighting for a reason I didn't understand. I hoped that Jack and Holly wouldn't kill - though I really didn't have to, they'd be the last shadow-trappers to kill demons, but they must not be... 

I shuddered.

Holly moved side-to-side, dodging every attack the chief sent her way without ever attacking him in a lethal manner. She flinched at each additional scar she gave him, though they were many and weakened him each time, if only a little. His energy depleting little by little... 

Jack raised about ten shadows from the ground, giving them a tiny sense of intelligence while keeping them under his control. They moved according to the discrete movements of his fingers, something he managed to keep up as the other demons attacked him.

Deja vu of such a weird kind...

A Demon Knight thrust his sword towards Jack's feet but he jumped, bringing his blade down onto the demon's neck with an expression of remorse. I darted my eyes towards the left extreme of the room; I couldn't watch that strong wave of golden gush out before the creature disintegrated.

Maybe Vlad is right, I'm nothing. But violence is not the answer.

The Demons ignored the shadows Jack raised and focused their attacks on him, though they had to deal with them eventually. shadow-lifted shadows couldn't be destroyed normally as their existence was between that of the physical and abstract world, hence their attacks were weaker but they didn't count for nothing. Only with time did they fade, so thankfully their interference protected my brother.