Shadows Rising

The Seal of Darkness

{Jake's POV}

     I woke up and sighed when I noticed I was still in the cell. I thought it was only a dream. I remembered the woman- the Matriarch. She must have been the voice Andy heard when we got back. 

     "Jinxx. Oh, God, no," I cried as I remembered why she left earlier. She was going to hurt him. 

     "Now, don't you fret about him. He's fine...for now," The voice said. 

     "I swear to God if you hurt him, I will kill you!" I spat, glaring at her. 

     "You're not strong enough to harm me, Mourner. Join me, and no harm will come to you," she said. 

     "Never going to happen."

    "You know, you were never that stubborn before. Those rebels messed with your head. That will all be fixed soon enough," she rambled. 

     "What are you going on about? What do you mean by before? We just met today," I reminded her. 

     She examined me carefully, her expression shocked, but with a curious glint in her eyes. She disappeared in a cloud of smoke before appearing a few inches away from me, inside the cell. "You don't remember. How peculiar," she mused softly. 

     "Remember what? I asked angrily, getting more and more annoyed. This lady was insane!

     "Who you are. Who you really are," she answered. 

     "What do you mean? I know who I am, I'm the Mourner. I'm a Wild One, part of the Legion of the Black, the ones who are going to destroy you!" I answered defiantly, tugging once again at the chains binding my wrist as I tried to gain ground between us.

     She started laughing maniacally, a horrific sound that resembled a dying hyena. It made me shrink back against the wall, covering my ears with my bound hands. "You sure are funny, my boy. That is not who you truly are, though," She moved closer, leaning in until her face. "You...are the Prince of the Shadows. You are my son," she whispered. 

     I froze, shocked as her words sank in. "No...No, you're...you're wrong. You're lying!" I shouted. 

     She backed away, her smirk becoming a frown. "Why do you deny this, my child? Why deny your true self, Jake? This...This is who you are! You can rule by my side!" she said, her hand clenching into a fist, which she shook just inches away from my face. 

     I glared at her viciously. "I am not your son, and I will not join you! Leave me alone!" I ordered, tugging on the chains again. 

     She laughed once again, leaning in close until our faces were only centimeters apart. "You. Don't. Have. A. Choice." she said, each word spoken slowly, with venom in her voice. I tried to pull away as she leaned in closer, and planted her dark lips on my forehead. As soon as she pulled away, a sharp, blistering pain shot through my body. I cried out in pain as the burning continued, writhing in the chains. The Matriarch laughed maniacally. 

     "W-What..did you...d-do to me?!" I gasped, my eyes squinting as I tried to fight through the pain. 

     "You should feel honored, my child. I do not give the Seal of Darkness to just anyone," she said, smiling and leaning in close, taking my chin in her hand and turning my head towards her. She looked at me closely for a minute before roughly releasing my face.

     "S-Seal...of Darkness? What are you....agh!" I was screaming at that point. The pain seemed to be intensifying steadily. 

     "Do not fight it, my dear, and the pain will go away. Accept who you are meant to be. Let the darkness in!" she cried. 

     I kept fighting, and of course the pain grew stronger and stronger. "Do not worry. You will soon give in. You will succumb to the darkness. All in due time." She lingered for a moment before disappearing in a cloud of shadows. I sat back, closing my eyes, focusing on keeping it together. I couldn't afford to lose it. 

{Jinxx's POV}

     I could hardly move anymore, weakly struggling against the bindings as the machine drained every last bit of energy it could get. The canister was nearing the halfway point. My head rolled lazily to the other side as a tired groan passed my lips. I jumped when I saw the woman from before gazing at me with her black eyes. She smiled, her gaze flicking upward to the canister. 

     "Almost halfway! Oh, soon, I will be unstoppable! Once you're out of my way, I will have it all!" She cried, laughing.

     "You...w-won't win. We'll stop you. I'll st-stop you...even if it...k-kills me," I gasped, struggling to keep my eyes open. I just wanted to sleep, but I knew I had to keep holding on.

     "You know, you are a tough cookie. Stubborn, too. I can see why my son likes you so much," She said. 

     I stopped. "What are you talking about...?" I asked carefully. 

     She looked thoughtful for a moment, before her smile returned. "Oh, I didn't mention that? Yeah, your little boyfriend..." she stopped, leaning in until she was only centimeters from my face. "...he's my son." She whispered in my ear. 

    "You're lying! You...You...agh!" I cried, feeling the machine speed up. 

    "I would advise against straining yourself too much, Mystic. It will only hurry the process. As for my son, allow me to show you," she said. She touched a finger to my forehead. I gasped as images flooded my mind. I could see a small boy-Jake-wearing a black shirt and blue jeans. He looked about thirteen years old. I saw a woman, with beautiful brown eyes and brown hair. There was a girl, just older than Jake, and a man. They were sitting happily at a table outside, eating burgers and laughing. A few more images like this played through my mind. 

     The next image I saw was gruesome. Jake, older now, was running through a town that was littered with corpses. His father and sister, lying dead in pools of blood, in the living room of their home. Next came images of the woman from before, Jake's mother. I watched as different pictures passed by, showing her transforming into the woman that stood before me now. 

     I exhaled as the images disappeared and I was back in the lab. "No...No, Jake. He's..." I said in disbelief, even though the proof had just been shown to me. 

     "F.E.A.R came to our town, killed everyone who didn't join them or manage to escape into the desert. Nearly everyone died. The only survivors I know of to this day are Jake and I. Jake ran to the desert, met you, became part of your little gang. He was always different. He was special, with his ghosts," She spat the word as if it were poison, "I suppose that was why F.E.A.R came for him, but he got away. I managed to hide, and I survived. 

     "Slowly, however, I lost my mind with grief. My husband and daughter dead, my son gone. Everything was ripped away from me by Control and his minions. So, I joined Control. I became one of his strongest soldiers. He gave me the Seal of Darkness, showed me my inner evil. I became more and more powerful. And just as I was about to overthrow him and seize control, you and your friends go and do my job for me. I suppose I should thank you for that," she mused, before shrugging off the thought. 

     "Stop this. You have your son back. You can...leave the darkness behind. Be...h-happy with...with h-him," I stuttered. 

     She laughed again. "Oh, my dear, it's too late. Soon, he will give in to his own inner darkness, and he will rule by my side. The Seal shall soon take its hold on him. It's only a matter of time." She smirked, laughter dying out as she walked out of the room. Her words left a horror in my bones.

     She had given him the Seal of Darkness. I knew what that meant...

    ...and it wasn't good.

Ooh, boy. Things are getting interesting. Jake's got a lot going on with this "Seal of Darkness". And the Matriarch is his mom?! Surprise!

If you liked this chapter, please remember to vote and comment, and keep reading to find out what happens next! Thanks for reading! Later! :)