The Orb

Chapter 6

The Past Revealed

Karla suddenly found herself awake and standing before the wall of glass, the view of the Citadel revealed once more but it wasn't the city that held her mesmerised but night sky. Her memories of the previous day haunted her even in her dreams and finally woke her in a cold sweat. Her chest had felt like a huge weight was sitting on it as some unseen force seemed to want to crush her, but it had disappeared the moment her eyes had opened.

Shakily she had gotten to her feet to seek a glass of water to calm her rapid pulse and was brought to a halt by the heavenly view. In the past there were few places that allowed you to see the night sky in all its glory and even then manmade satellites shone brightly altering the star patterns.

"Karla, are you okay?" Raven asked her coming to stand beside her the shift in weight of the mattress had woken her.

"I have never seen a sky like this before." Karla whispered reverently acknowledging the girl's presence that she hadn't noticed before. "The cities of my time polluted the sky with orange lights as life never rested." Karla suddenly grasped her chest as the weight that had woken her from her dream returned causing her to gasp for air.

"Karla! What's wrong?" Raven caught Karla as her legs gave way.

"My chest," Karla gasped as she desperately tried to breathe but her lungs refused to comply with her body's needs. "I... can't...... breathe......." She whispered as her eyes closed and went limp in Raven's arms.

"Karla!" Raven cried aloud in panic as she felt her rapid pulse begin to weaken.

"Raven! Open up! You are in danger!" Robin screamed in warning as her fists banged desperately against the closed bedroom door that would not open to allow her entry.

"Mum, help me! Something is seriously wrong with Karla!" Raven cried out not understanding what was happening, as whatever was hurting Karla reached out and drew her in as well. "I can't breathe mum! Something is ........" She could say no more as she to collapsed unconscious flopping over on top of Karla.

"Raven, answer me!" Robin cried out banging helplessly against the door that refused to open.

"What's wrong?" Marshall asked concerned, he had abandoned his post the moment he had heard Robin's warning.

"Some presence, I can't tell what, has gained access to the room somehow, I can't get into the room and neither Raven nor Karla are responding!" She told the military acolyte desperately as tears of fear trickled down her face.

Marshall turned to face the door and closed his eyes as he placed a hand flat against it to try to see beyond it, but the moment he made contact his mind was violently repelled leaving him nauseous and dizzy. "There is a barrier present, I can't see past it." He told the Hand Maiden shaking his head violently with a grim expression on his face.

Karmella emerged from another bed chamber as Baxter arrived with the rest of his team with a concerned General in tow.

"That is impossible! The Sanctum is permanently shielded to prevent anything like this happening." Karmella told everyone present as they stared concerned at the closed doors. "Activitus Reunir." She uttered and her mind reached out as Marshall's had but didn't need the direct contact through her skin to sense the problem.

#Robin, Marshall, Mamood, join with me, #

she drew on the strength of the other three acolytes present adding their strength to hers in order to see past the powerful barrier that was preventing them access.

Together they managed to pierce the barrier and saw the two girls' lying unconscious on the floor. The room was filled with an evil black aura that seemed to cry out at their unwanted presence preventing them from gaining access or reaching out to the girls.

None of them noticed in the shadows that clinged to the walls, the three figures, their identities concealed beneath black cloaks acting as an added barrier and an antenna for the source of the threat.

#Raven can you hear me? #

Robin called out to her daughter who lay unconscious on the floor not seeing the danger that was present.

#Help me, #

Raven cried out weakly with her mind.

#I can't breathe. #

#There is a barrier preventing us access, can you sense where it is coming from? #

Robin desperately tried to make her daughter focus.

#It hurts,#

Raven weakly told her,

#my chest feels like it is on fire. What is this happening to us?#

Karmella's mind searched her room seeking an answer to the solution while Marshall and Mamood focused on keeping the connection. She searched for anything that didn't belong as it was the only way that whoever was doing this could have accomplished this. The three shadows stepped forward drawing closer to the girls' sencing their presence intensifying the aura and the barrier.

#We can't hold it back any longer! #

Marshall told both women as the aura tried to invade their own spirits.

#Robin we must leave now!#

#I can't leave my daughter, she needs me!#

#Something is really wrong here! We must seek answers elsewhere if we are going to stop this.#

Karmella urged her friend knowing how she felt.

#We are not alone here!#

She warned and withdrew with Robin's hesitant spirit as the three shadows attacked.

The four of them were flung physically and violently across the hall before colliding into the doors opposite winding each of them.

"Robin!" Baxter cried out fearfully as he ran to his life partner's side.

"What the hell is going on Acolyte?" The General demanded to know from Marshall as he knelt before the High Priestess her taking her hand as her eyes opened and saw her entire aura shaken to its very core.

"Three people have gained access to the room, they are the ones sealing the room, but they are not the source of the threat," Karmella answered for the three others as she accepted Sean's hand to help her stand up shaking off the evil aura that still clung to her. "Somehow Zardel has gained access." She told everyone present fearfully.

"But how is that possible?" Sean asked the true horror of the situation now dawning on him, "what can we do to stop him?"

"There is nothing we can do. It is up to those girls." Karmella answered tearfully as Sean pulled her tightly into his embrace.

Everyone present stood staring at the door with grim expressions as they each felt helpless.