After Fate Fell

58 • SIX

Hey guys! Just a quick fix: last chapter I said it was the middle of they day, but it is definitely right after sunset. That's all! Feel free to give me feedback on this chapter, you know I love getting comments!
-Braden

1year, 3 months, and 19 days after it all
•SIX•

I am abruptly awoken from my unconsiousness as the ground beneath my feet rumbles...no, the ground shakes. It's pitch black out now, night has fallen. I jump up, regretting it instantly. My muscles are all screaming in pain, and I almost fall but I brace myself against the wall of cinder blocks I've built on the roof for cover. I reach up and feel dried blood on my forehead. I must've gotten that when I fell--what happened again? I can't remember.

I walk toward the stairwell taking me down to ground level and find that Ella is no longer here. I squint, looking toward the other building, I can't tell if the others are at their stations, but they've ceased fire.

I make my way toward Sam and Five, and the others start to come into view, except I still can't locate Ella. What happened to her? The ground stops shaking. I feel Sam's hand squeezing mine.

"What was that?" he asks, looking concerned.

"I don't know. I've been out. What happened after my lighting storm hit it?" I ask.

Sam's eyes are wide. "So you didn't see..."

"See what?" I ask, I feel the blood drain from my face. "What happened Sam?"

"Ella. After your storm rained down, the entity was weakened, but still alive. I was using my telekinesis on it, throwing debris into the well, hoping to choke its powers, and all of a sudden, Ella's hurdling toward the well. She was gone before I could do anything."

I put my hand over my mouth. I feel like I'm going to throw up.

"Gone? What do you mean gone?"

"She threw herself into the well. Just like before, at the Sanctuary. I think that shaking, whatever it was, she did it."

I feel a rush of hope come over me. She has a chance at least.

"Ella did it," Five says, smiling. It's a sad smile, and I turn away. I don't want to give up on her. She did it, but we still need her, Lorien still needs her. I can see the others from the other building start coming toward us, Marina's hand over her mouth, her eyes glistening, her hair blowing in the breeze, a cloud of icy air surrounding her. Adam and Nine follow behind her.

Everyone's soaking with sweat, some have cuts or bruises, but nothing more.

Marina goes straight to the well, and I rush to it alongside her. It's just a gaping hole in the ground, charred, blackened sand surrounding it on all sides. Down within it is just darkness, the blinding light and coursing energy from before is gone, replaced with nothing.

"If the entity is gone, there isn't any reason we can't go down there," Marina says. The glassy look in her eyes is gone, replaced with a confident look, her eyebrows furrowed. I see a large cut right above one of her eyebrows, blood dripping down almost into her eye, but she doesn't care, not now.

"I'll go with you," Adam says, walking toward the hole in the ground.

"I'm going too," I say, grabbing onto Marina's hand.

Marina's already on the ground, trying to figure out the best way to lower herself down in.

"Here," Five says, lying down on the ground next to the hole, his arms hanging over the side. "Hold onto me while you lower yourself down. If you need more slack, we can just have someone hold my legs."

"Right," I say, motioning for Sam and Nine to come help. Marina grabs onto Five's hands and starts lowering herself down. She digs her toes into the charred bricks on the inside of the well, scaling the wall.

"I can see the bottom, she says, her voice echoing through the opening. Five is already fully extended down, only his feet above the surface, Nine holding onto his ankles. "I need maybe two more feet further down and then I can drop." Five slides down further, Nine gripping his ankles tighter as he slides his body through the sand, Sam behind him.

The sound of feet hitting the bottom followed by sighs and grunts from the boys signals it's my turn.

We repeat the whole process until both Adam and I are down along with Marina. She's already looking around, but it's hard for me to see anything down here. It's so dark.

We all hold on to one another, Marina guiding us through the darkness. This place is way bigger than I thought. The ground is dry, and I can tell this was probably never a real well, for many reasons, including the obvious, that wells don't just open up into huge rooms below the ground. But I guess I already knew that this was more than just a water well. No, this was a well full of energy, what kind, I'm not sure. All I know is that evil lay here. Death and destruction stemmed from this place. I realize that I'm actually glad I can't see in the dark, better not see the evils of this place.

"Wait," Marina says, guiding us to the right. "Do you guys see that?" she asks.

"No, you're the only one who can see in the dark here Marina. What is it?" Adam asks as we hold onto her as she leads us toward whatever it is she sees.

Marina doesn't respond, and her silence unnerves me. What does she see?

I feel her hand let go of mine, and then I really do see it. Her hand wipes away black ash which was covering something blue...it's glowing too. Lorialite. Its soft glow at least lights the place up a little, if any. The Lorialite is ingrained in a massive gray stone which rests on the ground. I'm guessing this whole thing used to be Lorialite, before this entity started eating away at it, along with Legacy and her powers.

Marina gasps. She almost trips over me as she breaks into a run, rounding around to the other side of the huge stone. I follow her, kneeling down to the ground as I hold my breath. Ella's hand is visible from behind the stone, covered in black ash and bruises, I think. Attatched to her hand is an arm, and attatched to that is a body and attatched to that is a head, and a mouth, one that's breathing ragged short breaths. We have to get her to the surface.

"Ella," Marina whispers. "We've got you baby."