Inner Demons

Chapter 14: The Beginning

Rapunzel gently opened the letter and read it out loud to her gang in the doorway.

"Dear Rapunzel,
I am sorry, I'm truly sorry for everything that I caused, all the pain and suffering I brought upon the people you care about. I am not asking for forgiveness, so please don't forgive me, I don't deserve it. I don't deserve anything, I don't deserve to eat, sleep, or be happy. I just want you to know that I am a lost cause and what I am about to do is right. I'm a criminal, a detriment, and a waste of life. Please don't stop me, don't even look, and don't be sad. I'm simply taking out the trash. Thank you for trying, for helping, and for reading this. But it wasn't enough, it's never enough, I am not enough. Goodbye, Rapunzel.
Sincerely,
Varian."

Rapunzel covered her mouth in shock. With tears in her eyes, she checked the room and noticed specific things missing.

Her knife and rope.

"Oh my God..." She muttered, "Please no..." Rapunzel wiped the tears in her eyes and stood up, "We're are looking for him, now." She commanded her group, as they exchanged worried glances. "Hurry!" Rapunzel cried, pointing into the directions everyone needed to go. Rapunzel headed towards the cliff side, where mountains and trees stood.

She walked up slowly and looked around with worry, she called out his name a few times, no response. She grew even more worried, Rapunzel started tearing through bushes and trees, screaming for him.

She continued to cry out for him for some time, but started to give up. As she walked away to search elsewhere, she suddenly heard something.

It sounded like tugging.

Rapunzel quietly stepped towards the highest mountain, surrounded by trees and the moon perfectly illuminating the peak. She heard the tugging once more and faint cries. Once she heard the cries, she knew exactly who it was.

Varian.

Varian felt like a machine during the whole process, tying the rope onto the branch and carefully placing the noose over his neck before tightening. He looked over the cliff, all he had to do left was to jump.

This was the point of no return.

Instead of being a shadow as usual, the Medallion Demon manifested into his real form, towering over Varian as he prepared to fall.

Varian's knees were shaking, he took in deep breaths and started to think his final thoughts. He took a step forward, and tilted towards the edge...

Until...

"VARIAN! NO!" He heard a familiar voice scream. It was Rapunzel. He turned around, his eyes wide, was she crying?

"Varian! Please, please, don't do this..." She cried, stepping towards him. Then with her own eyes, she saw the Medallion Demon right before her. He was just as terrifying as she remembered, and around his neck, was the missing medallion. She shivered at the sight of him, but she eventually stood her ground.

"Varian, get away from the cliff, now." Rapunzel demanded. The demon let out a nefarious growl.

"Don't listen to her. Finish the job, you horrid waste of life." The beast said to Varian.

Varian sadly sighed, he let tears fall down his eyes as he turned away from Rapunzel, gazing once more at the edge of the cliff.

"You can't do this, Varian, please...Don't listen to him, PLEASE!" She screamed, pointing at the demon.

"Don't listen to HER! Now, FINISH THE JOB. You deserve this, remember?" The demon sneered to Varian, blocking her from his view.

Rapunzel started to walk towards him, but stepped back once the demon shot a killing glare at her. She looked at Varian hopelessly, she noticed the new bleeding cuts on his arms, and the way he tilted towards the edge.

The demon grabbed Varian's shoulders from behind and whispered into his ear, "What are you waiting for?"

Rapunzel clutched onto herself, "Varian, don't do this. We can fix it, we can fix all of this, just please come back..." She said to him, looking into his eyes for any give in life.

She saw nothing, his eyes were empty. They were dull and had jet black bags under. He was empty, stripped of any personality or life he once had. He was no longer the boy who smiled and thrived for admiration from his father and village. He was no longer the boy who thirsted for revenge and wouldn't have stopped for anything to save his father and get payback. He wasn't anything anymore. He was an empty shell of a person, no give at all for anything. He was nothing.

But Rapunzel didn't accept that, she knew that someone was still in there. Someone HAD to be in there. And she knew this when a hint of life flashed in his eyes, "Rapunzel, I-" "DON'T LISTEN TO HER!" The demon growled, tilting Varian's chin to his face so he would see nothing but his petrifying, piercing eyes. "YOU ARE NOTHING BUT SCUM! A LIABILITY, A WASTE, A DETRIMENT, AND A FAILURE!" He shouted at Varian, who had tears waterfall down his cheeks, trembling and stuttering to find words. Varian tried to speak again, but sewing on his mouth appeared. The same shadow sewing the demon threaded onto him when he first opened the box. He suddenly couldn't talk, which made him freak out and silently cry in anguish.

"NO!" Rapunzel screamed, running towards the Medallion Demon, pure determination on her face and frying pan in her hand.

She tried to strike him, but he dodged quickly. She quickly straightened herself and prepared to hit again, when suddenly a spike of shadows hit her as she was pressed against a tree. She yelped in pain, but saw a flash of metal zip past her.

It was Cassandra.

Suddenly, her gang appeared to fight the demon. Weapons in hand in preparation for a battle. The sword Cassandra tossed misses the demon and instead hit a tree beside Rapunzel. "Don't. You. Dare." Cassandra threatened the beast, who created more shadow spikes to toss at them.

"Don't worry, Blondie! We'll take him, get the kid!" Eugene said to her, clutching onto his sword as well.

"And to think you would have to do this alone!" Lance piped in, holding his sword incorrectly before adjusting it normally.

"We've got your back!" Hookfoot called out, carrying some rocks to throw.

Pascal was on Eugene's shoulder and smirked at the demon, ready to start the fight.

Seeing her friends prepare to fight for her made Rapunzel smile, she was so lucky to have companions like these.

Varian stood there, swaying at the cliff, gawking at the loyalty. He didn't know what to do, so he just held onto himself as he watched it all occur. Tears falling as he contemplated jumping now or later.

"How ridiculous. How stupid you are all to fight for something as worthless as the child who attacked you only a few months ago." The demon laughed, sharpening his claws to strike them with.

The battle was only beginning.

Chapter End.