Immortals (ON HOLD)

Chapter 38

Dimitri

            Today was normal other than the fact that it snowed overnight, and Ariel wasn’t around. And that I had some weird vision. We were out tracking Dark Elves again, and I was using my Psychometric powers to try and see what I could see. Mostly, I came up empty, and I wondered how they were able to get around my visions. Maybe the snow was interfering. I’d get images and clips of hunters, hikers and campers, with the exception of one. But with this, I was only able to perceive audio, emotions, and physical sensations. Everything else was black. I could hear this strange phrase being uttered over and over again, but I’d focus on that later. My arms felt as if they were being clawed, and I felt trapped, smothered, defenseless. I soon began to feel sick-my stomach was churning, my skin was drenched with sweat, and my muscles spasmed painfully. I couldn’t make sense of it. I felt the presence of some strange primal creature I didn’t recognize, and the night air breezing through an open window. A TV was humming somewhere in the distance, like on a lower floor. And then there was the chanting. It was repeated over and over again, to the point where I could recite it at the drop of a hat. Emmortae ut demose eck gnata eck ruina. I couldn’t get it out of my head.

But I didn’t want to tell the others right away and give them false hope. I was disappointed that I hadn’t heard from Ariel, since I left her a pretty deep voicemail. I’d probably swing by her house later just to make sure she was alright. After spending hours scouring the woods and forests around town, we called it a day, and headed back to Headquarters. The others ordered a pizza, and I actually decided to eat after last night’s surprisingly tasty meal. The pizza wasn’t what I remembered, but I still didn’t mind the flavor. I gulped down elixir after my slice, regaining some of my energy. Emrick, Geoff and Darien were eating with us, and it felt unexpectedly crowded. I remembered a time when there were hundreds of us, and now seven Immortals in one place seemed too much. “I didn’t want to say anything earlier, because I don’t know what it means, but I had a weird vision today in the woods.” Everyone’s eyes were on me abruptly, most of them glaring. “Why didn’t you say something?!” Scarlet snapped, balling her hands into fists. “Because I didn’t see anything,” I growled, taking a breath before I continued. “It was just sound, and feeling. I couldn’t see anything, and what I heard doesn’t make sense, so I didn’t want you guys to get excited for nothing.”

Emrick nodded, although I could tell he wished I had said something sooner, too. “What did you hear?” Darien asked coolly, taking the question from everyone’s mind. “An open window. A TV on somewhere in the background, but nothing I could recognize. Weird giggling and auras from something I never felt before. Maybe Dark Elves, but I couldn’t see anything, and the unfamiliar presence was overpowering. And I felt smothered and sick-sick like I was human and had the flu. Smothered like the air was being pressed from my lungs. And then there was this…chant that these voices kept reciting over and over.” “Do you remember what they said?” Kat prompted, her tone hopeful. I rolled my eyes with a nod. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget it,” I muttered, and everyone looked at me expectantly. “Emmortae ut demose eck gnata eck ruina.” Emrick and Geoff’s eyes widened at the same time before a slew of curses erupted from the Scotsman’s mouth. “What?” I asked, my heart starting to skip a few beats. “Dat’s Dark Elf speak, ya’ bassa!” Geoff shouted, slamming his fists against the table. I was surprised his hands didn’t go through it, but swallowed hard as guilt flooded through me. “What does it mean?!” Chris asked, eyes wide. “I’ll be needin’ paper and a pen,” Geoff muttered, Emrick nodding. Darien went off to Emrick’s study, back within a few seconds.

Emrick stood and hovered over Geoff’s shoulder as he scrawled out what he imagined the spelling to be. It just looked like gibberish to me, but I hoped they would be able to decipher its message. They asked me to repeat it a few times, Chris, Scarlet and Kat looking on, intrigued. I figured since this seemed like a pretty big clue, that Ariel should know, regardless of what was going on between us. “Hey Kat?” I asked, gesturing for her to follow me. She stood up quickly, skipping over to me. I leaned against the kitchen doorframe, watching the others for a moment before turning toward her. “Ariel isn’t answering me back. I just thought she should know what’s going on with the Dark Elves. I was thinking maybe you could call her…?” Kat smiled and nodded, whipping her phone out from her back pocket. She punched in Ariel’s number, but didn’t bother to move somewhere more private. I was actually happy that she didn’t, and suddenly nervous about hearing her voice through their conversation. But Kat frowned once it rang three, four, five times. She didn’t bother to leave a message, but looked at me with concern. “Maybe I’ll try texting her…” she muttered, her fingers moving without missing a beat. We stood next to each other quietly, anxiously waiting for Kat’s phone to chime. But it never did. “I…I don’t understand…” she started, apprehension quickly filling her.