ENGULF ME

Chapter - 8

As I held the necklace in my hand, a surge of energy shot through my body. It was as if lightning had struck, rippling through the building, shaking its very foundation. Purple smoke swirled around me, thick and suffocating. My eyes darted around, searching for Kyle and Derek, but they were nowhere to be found.

Heart pounding, I took a step forward, moving cautiously away from the gaping hole in the floor. The smoke began to thin, and that’s when I saw them-Kyle and Derek, bound and gagged, their muffled cries barely audible. I moved closer and gasped. Dark, sinister tendrils had twisted around their bodies, binding them like Living ropes.

A cold laugh echoed behind me, sending chills down my spine. My stomach clenched in dread. Dhaka was here. He had been waiting for us all along.

We had walked right into his trap.

I turned slowly, my heart heavy with fear, but my face betrayed nothing. I forced myself to meet his gaze with unwavering courage. I wouldn’t let him see the terror boiling inside me. I had to stay strong-for Kyle, for Derek.

Dhaka grinned, a cruel and twisted expression that made my skin crawl. “Jennifer, darling,” he sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. “It seems that spending time with them has made you soft. Have you forgotten how your parents died, right before your eyes?”

His words cut deep, and for a moment, my vision blurred. A new kind of fear crept into my chest-the fear of finally knowing the truth. My hands clenched into fists, knuckles white, but I didn’t break my stare.

Dhaka’s grin widened as he saw my reaction. “Ah, I see it now. You remember, don’t you? I should have killed you that night too, when I went to your house. Your parents were so happy, celebrating your birthday. But I couldn’t stand their joy, not after what your father did to me.”

My heart thudded loudly in my chest.  He was there?

He saw the shock on my face and laughed again, a sound that made my blood run cold. “Yes, your parents tried to kill me. But they were fools. Too late did I realize the power your family held, the power to find the necklace. And when I discovered that you-you- were the key to it all, well… I had to change my plans.”

His voice lowered, more menacing now. “At first, I wanted to drain your blood, use it to guide me to the necklace. But then you slipped away, escaped my tendrils. So, I devised a new plan.”

He paused, watching my face, his eyes gleaming with dark amusement. “Your mother begged for your life, made a deal. She traded their lives for yours. But I made sure to seal your fate too. After all, happiness was never going to be yours, not while I was still alive.”

Rage surged through me, hotter than anything I’d felt before. Every inch of my skin tingled with power, the necklace burning in my grip. I glanced at Kyle and Derek, still struggling in their bonds. I gave them a small nod-our silent signal to be ready.

I wasn’t sure how I did it, but I let the energy within me explode. With a single thought, the dark tendrils untangled from Kyle and Derek, freeing them. Dhaka’s eyes widened in shock, the tendrils leaving his body without resistance and wrapping around me instead. But they didn’t hurt-they embraced me, becoming part of my power.

For the first time, I saw fear in Dhaka’s eyes.

“You think you can defeat me?” he spat, masking his fear with arrogance. “I always have a backup plan.”

He gestured behind me, and I turned to see a horrifying sight. My aunt, held by two monstrous demons, their claws pressing into her sides, ready to crush her. My heart sank.

“Hand over the necklace, or I’ll have them rip her apart,” Dhaka said, his voice cold and unfeeling.

Derek and Kyle stood behind me, waiting for my command. But I knew what I had to do. My aunt’s life depended on me, and I couldn’t risk it. “Run,” I whispered to them my voice cracking, “Save yourselves.”

But they didn’t move. Instead, they charged toward the demons, trying to free my aunt. I used my tendrils to help them, but suddenly, spectral figures-souls of the dead-began to rise from the ground, distracting me, their sticky, ghastly forms pulling me away from the fight.

Chaos reigned. Dhaka stood, watching it all unfold with sick satisfaction, confident that we were doomed. Kyle and Derek were injured, barely standing, and I could feel my strength waning. I was losing this fight.

“Enough!” I shouted, my voice cutting through the noise. Everything is still, for just a moment.

My hand trembled as I lifted the necklace. I threw it at Dhaka, and his eyes gleamed with unrestrained greed. He caught it and immediately placed it around his neck. Dark tendrils swirled around him, and his body began to morph, twisting into something monstrous.

But I wasn’t finished.

My inner voice spoke to me, guiding me toward one last desperate act. The stone.

Ignoring the pain, I focused on the necklace, connecting my power with the stone embedded in its center. It began to glow, pulsing with dark purple light. A portal opened, swirling and menacing. The tendrils that had once obeyed Dhaka turned on him, pulling away from his monstrous form and feeding into the crystal.

One by one, Dhaka’s army of demons was sucked into the portal, their souls trapped inside the necklace. And then, with a final shriek of rage, Dhaka himself disintegrated, his body turning to ash as he was pulled into the void.

It was over.

I stumbled toward my aunt, who lay motionless on the ground, her head resting in Derek’s lap. I looked at him, fear in my eyes, and he nodded. “She’s alive,” he whispered.

Relief washed over me, but it was short-lived. Kyle stood nearby, the necklace back in his hand. Derek’s face darkened, disapproval written all over him. But I couldn’t worry about that now.

Ignoring the pain, I focused on the necklace, connecting my power with the stone embedded in its centre. It began to glow, pulsing with dark purple light. A portal opened, swirling and menacing. The tendrils that had once obeyed Dhaka turned on him, pulling away from his monstrous form and feeding into the crystal.

“We need to go home,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

I tried to stand, but exhaustion finally caught up with me. Darkness enveloped me as I collapsed, my last thought a fleeting hope that this nightmare was finally over.

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