The Chest of the Lost

Chapter 16: The Carry-out

A bang came from outside the door.

"They're here. Good luck," he said. He quickly pulled me into a hug, then jogged over to his position, where he lay on the floor. I quickly walked over to the wall behind the door and tried to hide in the shadows, pressing up against the wall. I looked over at Griffin, and thought back to the first time we were brought here, when he was unconscious. I desperately hoped this plan would work, for fear we would be back where we started.

I heard another bang and the heavy door slid open, allowing light to penetrate the darkness, enough that you could clearly see Griffin's limp body.

"The boy," someone said, pointing to Griffin lying on the ground. "But where's the other one?"

I held my breath as they approached Griffin, who lay far enough from the door that they were all standing in a huddle in front of me, while I stood unnoticed behind them. I took a deep but silent breath and brought my hands out in front of me. At first, I created a small force bubble about the size of a bowling ball, but I brought my hands further apart until it could've trapped several grown men inside. One of the men turned around and saw me, but it was too late. I pushed the bubble toward them and encaged them inside of it, lifting them up towards the ceiling. The men cried out in fear and I pushed the bubble slowly back to the wall. I almost laughed as the men swam in the air, struggling against my hold.

Suddenly a flash of pain spun through my head, making me nauseous. I screamed and fell to the ground, grabbing my head. The guards I had been holding dropped 20 feet to the ground and rolled over unconscious. Hawthorne walked through the door behind me clutching my Crystal in his hand. My vision blurred as he squatted down next to me.

"Just because you don't have a future, doesn't mean your Crystal doesn't still have control over you." He stood up and tossed it in the air, catching it right before it hit the ground. "I'm just surprised, I didn't expect you to last this long." He walked over to Griffin. "You just won't give up, will you? You refuse to admit that I won." He drew out the last few words as he stared Griffin in the face. Griffin met his gaze and I watched him slowly lift up his hand.

Suddenly my Crystal flew out of Hawthorne's hand and smashed up against the wall next to the door, shattering into a thousand pieces. Pain flooded through my body, and though I tried to sit up, I collapsed back to the floor.

"No!" Hawthorne shouted. But it didn't make any difference to me. If anything, it was better that my Crystal was broken; it no longer had control over me. "What have you done?" He yelled at Griffin, who looked satisfied, though traces of pain still lingered in his eyes and face.

"Now you have no control over us," Griffin said, standing up to face him. I lifted up my head, and the pain began to fade slowly, but I knew I wouldn't be able to get up.

Hawthorne turned and looked at me. "Don't be so sure," he said, a dark grin spreading across his lips. "Thanks to you Griffin, poor Cyndi can't even get up, let alone walk. Either you escape and leave her here, or you both stay. Either way, I still get what I want."

Griffin glanced over at me and a look of horror crossed his face as he realized that Hawthorne was right. I couldn't walk and he would have to leave without me. But if that was the only way to do it, then at least Griffin would get out.

Hawthorne looked satisfied as he stared at Griffin, knowing he had won. "Admit it, I won." He stepped forward and slapped Griffin, knocking him back to the ground. Blood dripped from Griffin's lower lip as he glared at Hawthorne, struggling to stand back up. But Hawthorne was already standing next to him, pushing Griffin back down with his foot stabbing into his chest. He pushed down harder, making it difficult for Griffin to breathe. I watched in defeat, knowing I couldn't do anything. To think we were so close to getting out; to making it back to our families.