The Light when all is Dark

Chapter 6

I got out of my bed and readied my gun, prepared to shoot someone or something if necessary. However, it probably was a person, as nothing else could possibly have opened the door that slowly.

It appeared that only I had woken up from that, as Emma and Jack had still been sleeping. Then I realized; Lily wasn't there. Where could she possibly be? Maybe she had been kidnapped; then again, maybe she was just as aware as I was. Or maybe I was just crazy. That's what I thought until I saw who was at the door.

It was Lily, holding an almost-dead Valhalla guard. That sight relieved me, so I dropped my gun. I then walked up to them. When Lily saw me, she gave a sigh of relief.
"I'm trying to get as much information as I can from him," she explained to me after I asked. That definitely explained a lot. I thought she had some sort of bloodlust and that this was normal, but I was glad it wasn't.

"So how much have you gotten out of him?" I asked.
"Not that much," she replied. "I don't think anything that I have gotten out would be useful. All he's said is that their plans will require a human sacrifice...." She paused. "I was meant to be the human sacrifice...."

That news hit me hard. I didn't realize that someone we had so recently rescued was meant to play such a huge role in Valhalla's plans. Although that also meant Valhalla couldn't pull off their plans. At least, not without Lily. So all we had to do was keep her safe. However, we still didn't know what Valhalla's plans were. And this hostage didn't seem like he could take another punch.

We decided that it was best to wait for Jack and Emma to wake up before making a plan of action. After all, the last thing we wanted to do was disappear without a trace of where we'd gone. If we got into any danger at all, and they followed us, we'd all die. So we both went to our respective rooms, Lily dragging our guest with her.

When Jack woke up, everyone had showered and eaten. So he was the only person eating and using the shower. After he had finished, the sun had only begun to rise, and the snow didn't reflect any glare, so we didn't turn on the heat shield.

Lily explained to everyone exactly what had happened in the morning. The hostage stayed tied up against the wall with his mouth bound up. Something in his eyes told me that he knew he'd never make it out of this place alive.

Emma stood up and got her gun out, then removed the hostage's mouth-wrapping. She aimed her gun at his leg.
"What is Valhalla planning?" she asked him. He didn't reply. She shot him in the leg, then aimed at his right arm.
"Answer me," she said calmly. She didn't sound scary, but she definitely was, because the man teared up and said that he didn't know. Emma shot his arm, then moved on to his other leg. The man couldn't take it anymore, so he blurted everything that didn't reveal exactly what they were planning.
"WE NEED A HUMAN SACRIFICE!" he yelled. He looked at Lily. "SHE WAS MEANT TO BE THE HUMAN SACRIFI-" He was cut off by Emma punching him in the face.
"I know that shit. Give me something useful, please." She said everything in such a nice tone, yet was so scary. She even said please.
"We're going to a place with fire," he said. "That requires a human sacrifice to get the thing out."
"What thing?" I asked, but he never replied.

He bowed his head down. Then raised it back up. His eyes were blood red. His voice changed into a completely monotoned one that went over and over on itself. It sounded like steel.

"Bow down before me," the voice said through the man. After nobody obeyed, he glared at us."Unless you wish to be murdered." He looked around the room, and none of us moved.
"How do you think you can kill us while you're tied up?" Jack asked. At that moment, a wild dog walked in and started barking. The devil-possessed man looked at it. The dog instantly fell on the floor, bleeding.

It had died. A painful, miserable death. Just because this possessed man had looked at it, and seemingly willed for it to die.
"Why don't you just kill us now?" Lily asked.
"I have plans for you," he said. "I still need to be reborn into this world."
"Who are you, possessing this man, anyway?" I asked.
"You will find out soon," he replied, and the man bowed his head down. He raised it again, and looked at our faces, seemingly not knowing anything of what had just happened.

We stayed silent, each one of us waiting for the other so speak. We stayed that way for five long minutes, then the guest broke the silence.
"Did I get possessed?" he asked. I nodded. He seemed extremely scared.
"That only happens when I disrespect the thing...." He then realized that calling whatever it was 'the thing' would definitely disrespect it.
"What is this thing you're talking about?" Jack asked. I had almost forgotten he was there.
"I can't tell you! They'll kill me!" The hostage seemed extremely desperate. He had gone and used the most common excuses ever. But something told me he was telling the truth.
"If you don't tell us in the next hour," Emma said, raising her gun, "you'll have more than just them to worry about." Although she sounded extremely threatening, the man didn't seem to care. He still wouldn't tell us. Until we stuffed half of his arm into a bowl of fire.

"WE'RE TRYING TO RESURRECT THE DEVIL!" he screamed, clearly feeling pain. This hit us all by surprise. Sure, the possessing and rumors of a place with fire, but the devil? That was the most unexpected thing we'd heard.
"How do you plan on doing that?" Lily asked.
"By killing you," he replied, staring into Lily's eyes. "You are the key to everything."

It didn't seem like any of us could take anymore. Lily ran to her room and lay on her bed, and Jack followed her. It seemed like Lily was really scared, and Jack was the only person in the world who could comfort her. Emma went to my room and forced me to follow. We both sat on the bed next to each other.

"Do you think he's telling the truth?" she asked me.
"Sure seems like it," I replied. She shook her head.
"I was hoping this wouldn't happen. Besides, how does a nobody know more about Valhalla than a former soldier?" She seemed extremely annoyed at herself for not knowing. I tried to find words to comfort her, but I couldn't.
"We need to kill the guy," Emma said, "before he starts manipulating us into setting him free."

The next thing I knew, Emma and I were dragging the man's body out with Lily and Jack, when leaves started moving on the snow-filled trees. Something green was in them.

Out crawled an anaconda the size of a leg. It gobbled up the man whole, then looked at Lily intensely in the eyes.