Take Back the Light

Chapter 30

Tears stung Sam's eyes.

"What do we do now?" Rhydian asked, for once sounding solemn instead of lighthearted. Sam closed the holoscreen. The video had been sent to the staff at Bonnie Springs. No other commentary, no verbal threat. Just the footage of the Shane Gang disappearing into the depths of the Great Abyss.

"We still scope out the area around the citadel. Alana's a strong girl, she might escape on her own, and we might be her only chance at being healed now," Sam said, clipping the holoscreen to her belt. Gwen ran her fingers through her pale hair.

"We cannot go help?" she asked. "She is just a child, she may not be able to escape on her own."

Sam led the healers out of the alley they'd pulled into when she'd received the transmission. They were all in white and pale green Mechas, with Alex's rhino pulling along a small cart with medical supplies and a gurney in case they found Alana in a bad state.

"No," Sam said, narrowing her brown eyes. "We can't just storm the citadel. We need to stay as neutral as we can. Not to mention, even if we did go on offense, we'd all get our butts kicked."

Alex protested, signing, hey there-

Rhydian interrupted her.

"Okay, Alex would rock it but we'd get destroyed," he said.

"Which is why we'll follow Eberly's orders. Observe, but don't engage," Sam said, glancing down at Ash, who nodded, but still looked worried.

A pit of dread was growing in Sam's stomach. She kept tugging nervously at her curly brown hair, trying to stop herself from imagining the horrors Alana could be facing. Alana felt like a little sister, but she was constantly undertaking tasks that no fifteen-year-old should.

Please let her be okay, Sam thought, to no entity in particular. She's such a good kid.

~~~~~~~~~

No. No, no, no.

Alana pressed her back up against the cool glass cylinder, watching as the dark water gas drifted down at her. She had a headache that felt like Dana had fired a Grimmstone at her temple.

She could feel the angry storm contained in the red gas. It was freezing cold, desperate to find something to contaminate and corrupt, ready to unleash anger and tear something apart.

"Dana, please," Alana gasped, unable to control her breaths. Her voice came out sounding more like a whimper than anything, but in that moment, she didn't care about sounding strong. She just didn't want to go like this.

But through the glass, Alana could see Dana in the control room. The ghoulslinger just kept a confident, cold smirk on her face before disappearing from view as the scarlet gas reached Alana.

Immediately, pain and iciness erupted where the gas came into contact with Alana's skin. She held her breath, desperate to keep from breathing in the dark water, but she wanted to cry out in pain. Her arms and face prickled as the cold dark water invaded, and Alana had to swallow out a cry ad she felt a bundle of cold begin to grow inside her.

Finally, Alana couldn't hold it in any longer. She gasped for breath, and immediately regretted it.

It was like inhaling knives of ice. Her lungs were so cold they burned. Small white bolts of lightning cracked around her as the dark energy corrupted her light.

"Please, STOP!" Alana screamed, writing in pain as she felt the darkness attack her heart and mind. She desperately pressed against the glass and screwed her eyes shut. There was only red around her.