Fire Scarred *Un-Edited Version*

Chapter Twenty

      The next day, I sat with Noah, Georgia, Raylynn, and Josh for my meals. I wasn't fully relaxed around them yet, but they seemed to be making an effort. Two days later, I was attacked again, this time in my bedroom. That same day, I decided to tell my friends everything that they didn't already know, about me being hunted and everything. Three times I was attacked over the next five days– twice in the woods, once in the middle of my English class. Each time after an attack, I'd end up back in front of the Hall, whimpering, crying, and no one but me knowing what had happened for sure. It was exhausting. Students and teachers began to avoid me like my misfortune would wear off on them. Mom and Dad were concerned that I'd never be safe again. Leo believed he wasn't doing all that he should to keep my well-being intact. My friends were on edge. Everyone's stress levels at Woodland Creek had cranked up to an all time high. I was tired of it.

      The next morning I was walking to the Hall for breakfast when the world went silent. The birds hushed, the wind stilled, the bugs were dumb. The air seemed to grow thick like pudding, but venomous like whiskey. My head felt light like I was on a high, which was what made me that much more vulnerable. I stood frozen in my tracks.

      A liquid hand placed itself over my mouth and nose and wrapped itself around my arms, legs, and waist, restricting any movement I could've made. It burned into my skin, and I wriggled trying to free myself from it. Like candle wax, it melted into me.

      "Let me go!" I yelped only to have it sound like "Wet we gwow." My skin screamed. The acid sank into me. My head spun and my knees grew weak.

      My capturer chuckled, a sickening familiar sound. "I don't think I can do that."

      Then, the world vanished.

      The air was heavy and cold. It hurt to suck it into my lungs. Stalactites and stalagmites rose and fell all around me like a cage made of daggers. Snakes of water slithered across the stone surface. It singed everything it touched. Strange hyrogliphics scarred the cave's walls. Pictures of trees and mountains and rivers marked the surface, a path carving a way through it. A map. In the center of the web was the painting of a stone. Even from my sprawled possition on the floor, I could see the great care and detail taken in the drawing of this oval. It reached out to me in a way nothing else ever had. It was like it depended on me for its own servival. It radiated hope, love, and a need that I couldn't describe. Like I was wanted.

      "Beautiful. Is it not?" The sky was dark as it peaked through a crack in the hard rock dome. The moon's light barely highlighted the satisfied face of my capturer.

      My face could hardly move, it burned like fire, but I managed to choke out, "Yes. What is it?"       Ciris smiled. "I might as well tell you. It's called the Stone of Zephri. Makes you feel special, doesn't it?" I nodded. "It should," he continued. "When Zephri died his final time, he left that stone in his place. It contains all the power of every nature spirit ever created, and whomever posses the stone has power over all nature spirits. He can control them, bend them to his will, claim their power for himself. It has a mighty powerful call to those of us who know of it. The Stone of Zephri was hidden, though, to be kept secret from the common nature spirit, such as your friend Leo. No one was to know of the stone's existance to save our kind from the fight for power struggle. Only one spirit was entrusted with the knowledge of how to get to the Stone of Zephri. This is where you come in. But, we're getting ahead of ourselves, my dear. Propper introductions must be made." The man gave me a wide smile. "Call me Sorrel."

      I looked up at the man who's been decieving me for weeks now. "I don't understand."

      Sorrel chuckled. "I need knowledge, my dear, and by extent, I needed you."

      "Why?" I pushed myself up into a sitting possition as well as I could in the small space I was trapped in.

      "Ciris."

      The pieces began to click together into place. I finally understood. "You pretended to be Ciris to trick me into trusting you, so you could eventually trap me in hopes that my third parent would come to save me. You need Ciris in order to know where the Stone of Zephri is so that you could have power over all nature spirits. You're the leader of the clan!"

      "You're a very smart girl. I underestimated you. But, you got one part wrong."

      "What'd you mean?"

      "I'm not going to trap you here. I don't have the patience to wait around for Ciris to come save you. No. I'm going to release you. You will tell no one of our plan except that I turned out to be a fraud, but you took care of me, and now you're out to search for the real Ciris. Once you have gathered Ciris, you will bring him here to me. If you fail to do so, Woodland Creek will be no more, and I will make Leo, your family, and your friends all sit in the very place you are right now and force them to watch me torture you. Piece by piece I will bring you down. Limb by limb you will be no more. They will be defenseless to my power. They will not be able to turn away, to cover their ears, to rid the memory from themseles. And once you are through, I will trap your love Leo here and consume a bit of his soul every day until none of him is left but insanity and missery, trapped between two fates worse than death. Do you understand me?"

      By now I was sobbing, my body shaking in uncontroled ways, my face and arms and legs aching from the acid's burns. I turned my face to the evil man who stood over me smiling. "Yes," I said, my voice hard, steady, and unbelievibly mine. "I understand."

      Sorrel barred his teeth in a way that I supposed was meant to be pleasent. "Good."

      With a wave of his hand, I was swept into a tornado of wind, pulled from my stone cage, and pulled from the toxic water, cave paintings, and the wretched man. "Remember what I said," the man called from behind me. "Tell no one."

      I found myself in front of the Hall, my appendages splayed out in odd angles, a crowd around me. Go figure. Mom stood before me, questions like "What happened this time?" and "Are you okay?" popping out of her mouth. Pretty logical questions to her, but to me, they were petty and useless when there were more pressing matters at hand.

      "Yeah, I'm fine," I told her as I crawled to my feet.

      My dad frowned. "If you're so okay, then why are you crying?"

      Leave it to my parents to notice small things like tears and hurt and lies about being okay. Mom put her arm around my shoulders, and begun to lead me away. "Let's go back to the cabin. I'll get you some hot tea or something. You're absolutely freezing."

      "There's nothing here for y'all to see," Dad told the crowd. With a little bit of reluctance, they began to wander away. He then said to me, "Coralynn, are you feeling okay?"

      It was like they were talking to me from a far off land. Their voices barely made it to my ears. I was back in the cave with Sorrel again. Everything I had would be gone. . . My knees buckled, the ground greeted me, I lost my lunch. The world faded into blackness.

Author's Note: Okay, guys. So, I'm not a big author's note fan, but I decided one was required. Sorry for the short chapter, but... I don't know what to follow that with. Please tell me what you think. Was Sorrel a surprise? Do you think this was enough of a twist on the story? A good twist? Tell me, please, what you think. Love you guys a ton! ~Sara~ P.S. Sorry that my chapters haven't been proofed or anything, and that I haven't gotten a chance to fix some of the errors in my earlier chapters. I haven't had much free time with school and sports and all. Sorry, again. Hope y'all ejoyed this chapter.