I'm sprinting the seemingly endless staircase as fast as I can. But my legs begin to buckle underneath me after running for so long. I bend my legs and take a short break, trying to catch my breath. I try to take as few breaks as possible because I need to get to Armani quickly.
Seconds later, I resume sprinting up the staircase. As I'm running, I keep thinking about Rhea and Griffin. The last thing I saw was Rhea getting fatally shot. From the looks of it, it wasn't looking good for Rhea. Still, I was hoping that she was going to be alright. She has to pull through, she just has to. She's Armani's friend and Griffin's too. I didn't know her that well so I don't feel right calling her my friend just yet. Regardless, I didn't want to see anything bad happen to her though.
After about ten excruciating minutes of climbing the staircase, I finally see the door at the end. I'm gasping for air but I take a deep breath and try to calm down. But it's hard to stay calm. I feel my eyes go wide as I realize that just on the other side of this door...Lord Vulcan and Armani are there. And this will be the first time I see Lord Vulcan in person.
My heart is racing a million miles a minute. I feel beads of cold sweat pouring down my face. When I look at my right hand that's just inches above the doorknob, it's shaking intensely. I'm trying so hard to stay as calm as possible and not have a complete meltdown right now, but it seems impossible.
But I know Armani is on the other side of the door too, not just Lord Vulcan. Armani needs me so I need to gather all the courage I have and face the enemy head on, no matter how terrifying it may be. I close my eyes and breathe deeply, in and out. My hand's shakiness begins to slowly subside as I tell myself, you can do this. Be brave for Armani. He needs you.
"Okay, here goes nothing," I whisper to myself.
"Three..." I say as I countdown to get myself ready to open the door, "two...one."
The door suddenly swings wide open and I'm propelled outside. The sunlight pierced my eyes, temporarily blinding me. But soon my eyes are adjusted and I immediately see Lord Vulcan holding Armani captive.
"Hello, Cassidy. We've been waiting for you."
Lord Vulcan speaks to me without using telepathy. He's grinning an evil, sadistic grin as he stares at me. I'm speechless and stunned by his appearance. Lord Vulcan is probably six feet tall, has pale skin with piercing, menacing yellow eyes, and red marks cover his face. Briefly I wonder what those marks mean or if they're just part of his body. (I've seen other Vulcan soldiers with the same marks, so it's probably just in their nature to have them.)
I hear Armani struggling to get free from Lord Vulcan's intense grip. My eyes drift over towards him, "Hang on Armani, you're going to be okay!"
Lord Vulcan chuckles, "On the contrary my dear, your friend is in deep trouble. You see, there's only one way out of this predicament."
Part of me wants to just charge at Leo's Vulcan head on and kill him. But something inside of me is telling me to hold back; wait to hear what he has to say. So I listen to my instincts.
"Let's make a deal," continues Lord Vulcan, "I'll let Prince Armani go if you transfer your powers to me. Then I'll truly be the most unstoppable force in the universe! No one would be able to defeat me with powers like yours!" He cries.
I stare at Lord Vulcan in complete confusion, and I glance at Armani. I think he's just as confused as I am. "Are you insane? I wouldn't even know how to do that! Just let Armani go and we can end this right now!" I yell furiously.
"That is not an option earthling. Transfer me your powers now, or Armani dies. It's up to you."
Armani is still struggling in Lord Vulcan's vice-like grip. He glances up at me with intensity, "Cassidy, listen to me. Your power is your life force. If you give it to lord Vulcan, you'll die instantly. You can't do it, I won't let you! Just let him kill me, then it'll all be over."
I shake my head, tears brimming my eyes again, "No Armani, I won't let you die! I'm going to save you, I promise!"
"Aww, how sweet," Lord Vulcan interrupts, "but my deal is not going to last all day. You have one minute to decide who shall live or die. You, or Prince Armani. And if I were you, I'd make my decision quickly."
I stare at Lord Vulcan in shock at what he's telling me. How can I have sixty seconds to decide my fate or Armani's? This deal is completely not fair at all, and he knows it. My mind is racing and I feel like I'm having a panic attack. I want to save Armani so desperately that I realize I'm willing to give up my life for him. He's the only true friend I've ever had, and if something happened to him, I don't know how I'd go on.
"Thirty seconds," Lord Vulcan growls, tightening his grip around ArmaniI's neck. Armani chokes but he still tries to speak.
"Don't do it Cassidy, please! I don't want you to die." I can see tears forming in his eyes too, and mine begin to flow freely since I've made my decision, and I'm not going back on it.
"I have to Armani. Your people need you, your planet needs you. You have more purpose in this world than I do. And, you're my best friend. I'd do anything for you, so...I'm okay with giving up my powers."
Armani shakes his head as Lord Vulcan grins sadistically again, "Time's up my dear. Have we reached an agreement?"
I sigh, my entire body shaking as I realize I'm about to die. I'm sacrificing myself for my fiend. To be honest, I wouldn't want to die any other way. If I can save Armani's life by having my own taken away, then I understand and accept my fate.
So, I nod, "Y-yes. I'll give you my powers. But you must promise to let Armani go."
Lord Vulcan raises his right hand that isn't holding Armani, "You have my word, Miss Cassidy. Now, let us get on with the transferring process."
I begin to walk over towards Lord Vulcan nervously, slowly. My legs are shaking with fear but I hope he doesn't see it. Armani stares at me, eyes wide with terror. I try to avoid looking at him because if I do, I'll start crying all over again.
"Cassidy please, don't do this!" Armani begs desperately.
"Quiet pathetic Armanian!" Lord Vulcan snaps, "this is the girl's decision and she shall do as she pleases." I'm merely inches away from Lord Vulcan now, and my entire body is trembling. He has to be the most terrifying being I've ever met. As I get closer to him, I notice is bulging muscles in his arms and legs. Just the size of lot Vulcan would make anyone run away in terror. I'm doing everything I can not to do that right now.
I'm finally standing in front of him and he smiles, "Excellent. Now, hold out your hand, and I shall extract your powers from you. You're doing the right thing, young one. Armani will be safe because of you."
"You'd better not break your promise," I growl. I feel tears falling down my cheeks as I realize that I'm about to die. I'm never going to see my mom, Derek, Griffin, or Armani ever again. This is really it. Well, I wouldn't want to die any better way than saving my best friend.
Lord Vulcan ignores me. He then takes my hand and I stand there, not sure what to expect. He begins to mumble something in a foreign language, which is terrifying. Then, moments later, I begin to feel sick to my stomach.
My entire body begins to glow brightly, blinding Armani. I feel a horrible headache erupt in both my temples, as if my brain is going to explode. I cry out in sheer agony and drop to the ground.
"Ah, so wonderful! Your power is truly extraordinary! I feel it coursing through my veins, energizing me!" Lord Vulcan screams, spit flying everywhere. I would be completely grossed out but I'm in too much pain to care right now.
As my powers are being extracted, I realize that my skin is turning pale. I'm shaky, clammy, and I feel drained of any energy I might've had left. I just want this to end. I want Armani to be safe and I just want the pain to go away. At this point I want to die, but having the life drained out of me is taking longer than I expected.
I glance over at Armani, who's still in Lord Vulcan's intensely tight grip. He's staring at me with fear and sadness. I watch him shake his head sadly as he looks over at me. I don't want to cry anymore, but I can't help it. More tears fall as I try to muster a small smile to tell Armani that it's going to be okay. He'll be safe, and that's all that matters.
Several long, agonizing minutes of this goes on. I briefly wonder how long this will take. As if reading my mind, lord Vulcan says, "The process is nearly complete! Soon, I'll be the most powerful being in the universe. And you shall be no more." He stares right into my eyes and I feel my heart sink as I realize that soon, I'll be dead.
"Lord Vulcan stop please! Don't do this, she's my only friend!" Cries Armani. My heart breaks as I hear his desperate pleas, but no matter how much Armani tries to save me, nothing he says stops Lord Vulcan.
I feel very tired, as if I'm going to fall asleep any second. And I know when I do, I won't wake up. I feel so weak and helpless. My skin has now turned a light, sickly grey color and my power's brightness that was coming from my body earlier is now very dim. It's pulsating but barely, and I know that means that my time is almost up.
"You know, young one, I admire your bravery. You may perhaps be the bravest human I've ever encountered. If things were different, I just might've made you one of my top generals. Well, I suppose it's too late now. Farewell, Cassidy."
Lord Vulcan decides to speak to me telepathically one last time. I feel the energy completely drain from me, getting sucked out of my body. My eyes begin to close and I feel myself falling onto the ground, going limp. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths, trying not to be scared of dying, but it's literally impossible.
"No! You bastard, what have you done?!"
The last thing I see before my eyes shut is Griffin bursting through the door, eyes bloodshot with fury. I see him charge at Lord Vulcan and I want to tell him to run away, to save Armani, but I can't even talk now. As my eyes close, I hear Lord Vulcan speak again.
"You're too late, boy. She's finished, now bow to your king."
