To the Source and Back

Lacy

Lacy Anico's P.O.V

I woke up on the pile of grass I had slept on last night. We were supposed to go to the heart of the underworld today, and I was hoping that there was some kind transportation spell to get there. I was starving, so I drank some leftover mushroom soup, from yesterday's lunch. It tasted horrendous, but we were going to need all the energy I could get. Nick was still asleep on a tree branch, so I did what any good friend would do. I climbed up the tree, and pushed him off, so that he would fall into the pile of grass I was sleeping on.

"OOOWWWW!!!!!"

"Rise and shine sleepy head."

"LACY! THAT WAS NOT NICE!"

"Ok, ok. I'm sorry, but stop shouting. You're going to wake up the rest of the forest like this."

He smiled. "Apology not accepted. Anyway, where's Aztek?"

I shrugged. I had just noticed that Aztek was nowhere to be found, but couldn't look for him now. We had to go to the underworld. I would leave Aztek a note before we left. Nick and I ate as much food as we could and Nick started flipping through his spell book to find a teleportation spell. Once he found what he needed, he used a blade of grass to bookmark the page. He packed all the potions and as many herbs as he could find into his backpack.

He nodded to me. "Lacy if we're going to go to the underworld together, then you're going to have to hold on to me." I held onto him as he told me to.

Nicked yelled out, " Nobis sui cordis to guide spirituum inferis!(spirits of the underworld guide us to its heart!)"

Wind whirled around us and I gripped Nick tighter. The cold shivering winds ripped me apart, until I finally felt like exploding. I screamed and screamed until finally, I felt nothing. The next thing I knew, I felt Nick shaking my sore, aching body. I sat up, slowly, shivering from the cold surrounding me. To tell the truth, it looked a lot like the Nether from Minecraft. It was crazy. Except, there were no zombie pigmen. That made me sad. There were dragons and elves and things that looked a lot like ghasts. Out in the distance, I saw demons. Hundreds and hundreds of demons walking to one guy on a quartz and obsidian throne. Even the vampire dude that we had killed weeks ago, had regenerated and was walking to the throne. The Source. The guy that was doing all of this was there. We had to kill him.

"Lacy. Let's go. We can't afford to waste anymore time." Nick helped me up and we both started walking to the source of all this mayhem.

We barely talked. Nick was flipping through some high level killing spells in his book. Only the sounds of monsters, lava, and dragons, filled the dank air. We walked over, careful not to be seen by any monsters, but an elf found us and shackled our hands behind our backs. He took us to the front of the crowd and as we thrashed, the source looked down upon us. It was Aztek. I felt hurt, betrayed even.

Nick growled. "I knew we should have finished him off when I had the chance." He tried to advance on Aztek, but was only held back by more guard elves.

"Let him go, my guards. Let them both go." Aztek smiled.

"What do you want with us, Aztek?" Nick snapped at him.

"On the contrary, my dear friend. What do you want from me? You come into my abode and try to kill me? Tsk, tsk, tsk."

"We want to fight, Aztek. You need to stop trying to take over the world. Please." I begged him. I fell down on my knees. I felt weak, emotionally.

"Poor, poor, Lacy. Wants to fight, but is too weak." He laughed and the crowd laughed with him. Nick snarled, and I got up.

"Why did you train us, Aztek?" Nick inquired him, with his anger building.

"I knew this was going to happen, so I wanted to have worthy adversaries. Thus, the training."

"Fine. You think I'm weak? Try me," I growled at him.

He got into a battle stance and we advanced. "Lacy, no! Stop!" Nick yelled out at me. It was already too late.

Aztek and I had already started fighting. Our swords clashed, and sounded like thunder. It echoed throughout the underworld. I made an interception every time he took a shot at me and vice versa, until finally, I couldn't fight anymore. Aztek took the chance and drove his sword into my right thigh. It was agonizing, and I screamed and cried with the utmost pain. It was unbearable.

I looked at Nick. He had that same murderous look in his eyes as he did when he killed the vampire. It was more intense this time and the fire danced more vigorously in his eyes. Nick advanced with his most powerful killing spell yet, as I sat there with agonizing pain seething through my skin.

"Et lux in tenebris ex malo creatura, ut incenderent odium cum ex pelle mea! (Evil creature of darkness and no light within, I burn you with hatred from my own skin!)"

A bright blue light shot from the palm of his hand and he was struggling to hold the power. His energy was draining quickly. Aztek muttered his own spell and let a pink light shoot from his hand. He was too strong for Nick. The pink light overpowered Nick's blue one instantly and hit Nick right in the chest. He collapsed on the floor immediately.

"NICK! NICK!" I yelled out to him, but he didn't respond. He was dead.

Suddenly, I felt anger and hatred. Tears flowed out of my eyes like never ending rivers. I got up, no matter how much it hurt, and I screamed as I pulled the sword out of my thigh. I gripped the two swords in my hands and used my pain (both physical and mental) to my advantage. Hatred surged through me and I wanted revenge. I ran, quick as lightning, to Aztek. He looked shocked, as if he didn't expect this. I chopped off his head, savagely and it sank down in a lava pool, sending up smoke that smelled like a steak-house. I fell to my knees and cried my heart out. It took a long while for the monsters there to figure out that I had just killed their leader. I got my revenge and I saved the human race from extinction.

I got up and took Nick's book and backpack. When I looked up, I saw the monsters advancing towards me dramatically. I did the most sane thing to do at the time. I ran. The monsters chased after me and I had to lose them. I jumped over pools of lava, made dragons aim their fire-breath at the monsters. I ran and ran and ran and ran, until I felt like exploding. I had lost them for the time being, but I knew they were not far behind. I trudged forward and found a purple portal- like the Minecraft ones- that I knew led back to the overworld. The monsters were advancing quickly and were about to reach me when I sprinted forward and into the portal. When I crossed to the other side, I blocked the portal with a big boulder I found on the side.

I had come to a cave that led out. I was back in the Amazon, safe, but without Nick. I fell to my knees and started sobbing and sobbing until I fainted from exhaustion. I had another dream that day. The goddess came back and she was happy. Her eyes sparkled and her inner glow was magnificent.

"You have done well, child," she sighed, "Ask anything. And you shall receive it as a token of my appreciation."

"I want Nick back, healthy and well." I gushed out to her.

She nodded to me and smiled. "Your wish is granted. Now wake up my dear Lacy. There is a world and a Nick waiting for you."

I exited the dream as quickly as I could and I woke up in excitement. I saw Nick standing there grinning his happy grin. I laughed. I was happier than I could have been in a million years. Nick continues to be my best friend, and I made sure that I never got onto his angry side. We never went back home and we lived in the Amazon with the Mwandishi Tribe and now live in peace and harmony.