Don't Trust the Music

~♪ VII: Seven Strangers on the Road ♪~

VII

~♪ Seven Strangers on the Road ♪~

Seven people walked up the road towards us. I couldn't see their faces, but I knew that the one in the front was a woman. I shrunk back, an instinctual fear to keep out of sight of them.

When they reached us the woman smiled, her straight white teeth flashing behind her ruby red lips. "Why, hello there." Her long blond hair rolled over her shoulders, framing her petite porcelain face. Her eyes were a beautiful red-pink, shining behind her long eyelashes.

The group of us stood, staring uneasily at the seven people. The music was loud, almost deafening, in my ears. When I looked at the strange woman, it got louder.

"Who are you?" Jon asked, clenching his fists. The first tendrils of magik were seeping through his fingers. Scot stood in front of me, keeping me out of their sight.

The woman just smiled. "You wouldn't believe me."

One of the men scowled at us. His red eyes simmered with rage, and his hair was even redder. Another man, his eyes a shining green and hair to match, stared at Castle's longsword that was in his hand, a longing look in his eyes.

"Where are you going?" Will asked gruffly, an arrow slackened in his bow, ready to fire if need be.

The ethereal woman glanced at her group before looking back at us. "Oh, here and there. You know how it is." She scanned my group before looking around Scot. "Hi," she smiled again, waiving her delicate fingers at me. I forced myself to not back away.

Instead of looking at her, I looked at her group. I scanned over the red and green haired men, already knowing what they looked like. Instead, I focused on the others. One had white hair and frozen blue eyes, looking like he was better than anyone else in his group. Another one had yellow hair and brown eyes, he had on expensive looking clothes. The next one had dark brown hair and orange eyes. He had a bag that looked like it was overflowing with food. The final one had messy gray hair and tired gray eyes.

Jon glanced back at me. I was trying to cancel out the music, but all I managed to do was quiet it down a bit. "You aren't going to any cities, are you?"

She crossed her arms. "Maybe."

Castle raised his longsword. "We can't allow that."

The woman's red-pink eyes clouded over in anger. "Too bad. We can go where we like anytime."

Liz's hands instantly became writhed in fire. "Go home. We don't need you around here."

"Why is that?" The red haired man asked, his voice gruff.

The woman scowled over her shoulder at him, but didn't say anything. Nobody I'm my group said anything either, they just kept their weapons (and hands) raised. Scot unsheathed his weapon, a sturdy rapier made from moonstone. I prepared to hide if things went bad.

"Marc," Jon said, "get ready."

I nodded, bracing myself.

The woman's eyes widened. She stared at me, the music playing double time now. "You."

Me? I didn't know what she was talking about, but I didn't really care. All I cared about was getting away from these people. Jon's hands became covered purple lightning. "Get away from us," he growled, his ice blue eyes freezing over,"or I will make you."

The woman snapped out of her trance from staring at me. "Greed!"

The yellow haired man jumped foreword, slamming into Jon. A dagger formed in his hand out of nowhere, stabbing into Jon. Scarlet covered the stab wound quickly. He pulled the dagger back, and a shining red light vanished inside it.

The woman glared at me, a smirk forming on her lips. "So long, boy."

She snapped her fingers, causing the seven to disappear in a flash of light, the music along with it.

I quickly ran over to Jon, dropping to my knees beside him. "Jon?"

Jon's shirt was covered in red now, a large tear in the cloth. His face had gone pale, his blue eyes barely holding light. Jon gripped my arm, his hand bloody from where he was holding the wound. "Marc?"

I nodded. "Yeah, it's me."

"I'm sorry, Marc," the Warlock whispered. "I shouldn't have done what I did." His grip slackened from my arm.

"What?" I asked. "Did what?"

The light was already gone from his eyes. Castle put a hand on my shoulder. "He's gone."

I shook my head. No, he can't be. He's too young. Not after our parents…

"Scot. Bring him back."

I looked over my shoulder at the Necromancer. "Bring him back."

Scot's eyes were desperate. "I can't."

I scowled. Why not? You brought the other guys brother back.

"T-there's nothing left," he mumbled as if reading my mind. "I already scanned him. He's gone."

Those two words destroyed my world.