The Last Beacon

XII

The trio had been walking for only a few minutes more when Sascha had another uneasy feeling. Her skin was prickling, as if someone, or something, was watching her. Both Laurenz and Lion appeared to also be cautious, as if they were experiencing the exact same thing.

Sascha rubbed her arm, attempting to remove a tingling sensation that was crawling under her skin.

In the far distance, she could see an opening, the other side, she thought to herself.

Just as she was beginning to feel some sort of hope, Sascha felt a presence close behind her. As much as she wanted to believe that it was another hallucination, the body heat radiating from the figure behind her suggested otherwise.

"Not again," she mumbled, irritated. She was slightly surprised when she got no response from either Laurenz or Lion, but she guessed that they were both preoccupied with their own problems.

Sascha was still confused about how exactly the hallucinations worked. For a supposed mental vision, she had no idea how it felt as if Cain was actually there, touching her. It all felt so real.

"Sascha," she heard the figure whisper, sending goose bumps across her skin. She shook her head, hoping that this hallucination would leave her alone. Somehow, she knew that her wish was not going to be granted.

"Stop walking, Sascha," she heard, the voice indicating that it was a male.

Sascha debated whether she should listen to the voice. But for reasons beyond her knowledge, she felt inclined to stop, a mysterious feeling tugging at her consciousness.

As she went to take another step, her left foot found itself suspended in the air, as if it had changed its mind on its own accord. She took a deep breath and set her foot down, remaining still.

She watched as Lion and Laurenz continued to absentmindedly walk ahead without her, seemingly numb and oblivious.

"Good," the voice remarked, "now, before you turn around and look at me, there's something I want you to do."

"What do you want?" She murmured.

"I want you to trust me."

"You're a mysterious voice whispering to me, how am I supposed to trust you?"

"I can show you how to use that power of yours again. Don't you want to see what it can do? Aren't you curious?"

Sascha shuddered when he spoke the last word, his tone menacing and ominous.

"You are curious, I can feel it. Let me show you something. Focus on that pebble on the path there," the voice commanded.

Sascha was about to say that she couldn't see the path because of the fog, when the fog suddenly dissipated around her, creating a clearing over the path.

"Focus."

Her eyes landed on a stray pebble on the dirt path. She stared at it, but she wasn't sure what she had to do.

"Move the stone. Let your power consume you and move it with sheer will."

Sascha glared at the small rock, wishing it would shift its position on the ground. Stubbornly, it moved nowhere.

"You're not focused. Pay attention!"

Sascha began to get irritated from the voice's commands. She went to turn around when she felt hands grip her shoulders roughly, preventing her from seeing who was instructing her.

"Move the rock, Sascha."

"I can't move your stupid rock! This is pointless!" She hissed, her annoyance building.