The Twin's Downfall | COMPLETED

Part IV - Death

There was a ticking time bomb on my chest. I was confined and unable to move. The only body part that I could move were my eyes. Deimos was bringing me somewhere and we were going deeper underground. From the corner of my eyes did I finally realised it was magma. We must be beneath a dormant volcano. That explains the unbearable heat and difficulty in breathing. I must've been breathing in sulphur from the moment I was inside. Thanks to that, it got hotter. It was hard to breathe and my eyeballs were getting dry.

"What are you planning to do, Deimos?" I asked.

"You see Demeter, I cannot imagine why Father and the others made you flee to the human world when they knew how capable you were in stopping me from my tirade," he started speaking. "They thought that keeping you safe and far away will be the answer for the future. But honestly, they were stupidly wrong."

I glanced around - seeing nothing but rocky outposts and spiralling stalagmites that seemed to reach out to the ceiling of the cave. We took a left and the pathway went downward - spiralling deep into the belly of the mountain. 

"Why were they wrong?" I asked.

The uneasy feeling inside my stomach has finally surfaced to my chest - causing my heart to speed up with worry and fear. There was something about his plan that unnerved me. It felt eerie, even to me. He must've found out about something else, something that even Father did not know about.

He turned to look - a grin on his lips and his eyes flashing red with malice. "Did you know about the existence of a prophecy?" he asked gleefully. "About our downfall."

I swallowed hard.

"I'm not going to be killed by you, Sister," he said with a little shake of his head. "What were they thinking pitting the twins against each other? No, what I'm going to do is use your powers for my greatest plan. When I heard news that you were sent to Earth, I was distraught. I only came to the castle to take you with me. I could only do that when I'm strong and Father is at his deathbed."

He was merely waiting for his chance and we gave it to him.

"Your place is beside me. My plan wouldn't work without you next to me."

Certainly, it has been centuries since I had spoken to him or played with him but his obsessive behaviour was still there. I stared at him as fear began to trickle down my chest. The obvious changes in his behaviour made me question about his diabolic plan. Knowing him, the plan would be very drastic and life-threatening. I don't think I would come out from here alive.

We stopped in the middle of the clearing.

"Are you planning to kill everyone here?" I demanded in a sharp whisper.

Deimos faced me – a tender look on his face as he held my face with his large hands. I could not struggle thanks to the bond in the spell. I felt powerless in his grip. The black vein-like pattern on his face receded into his skin and then, to my utter surprise, I felt a sharp pain flash across my eyes – almost blinding me unconscious.

I let out a scream – Deimos shushed me as he observed with mirth. What is this parasitic magic? I had never felt such terror and hunger invading my mind before. It seemed as if it was the by-product of a freak accident. As if on command, the parasite magic travelled downwards to my neck and chest, leaving an icy wake it in its path as it attempts to devour me hungrily.

No! Stop!

Please!

Overwhelmed with the pain and the thought of being taken over by a goddamned parasite made me react without much thought of the repercussions.  Honestly, it was a desperate attempt on my part, but I had little choice because I cannot afford to die in this awful place. I will need to act immediately.

You got to win, Demeter!

The first thing I needed to do was to break the spell that held me immobile. Without my hands to create a powerful spell, I had to initiate a non-verbal spell - layering it over and over with runes so that it was strong enough to get my arms free and given time, the spell managed to do just that.