SWNOVELS Chapter 22: The Gathering Storm
Alan's POV
"Marie, you don't have to do this," I said, stepping forward. "We are family here. Whatever this is, we can work out together.
But as I moved, the shadow behind her changed to walk into the low light. My breath seized in my throat when the man with angular, sharp features emerged from behind dark, impenetrable eyes. Though I couldn't put it on, he seemed to me to be quite familiar.
"You've already lost, Ariel," the man murmured, his voice silky and cold. " Marie has decided upon something. Right now she is with me.
Alan came in front of me; his body served as a shield, but his presence was too much. Something about him, something terrible, made the air around him stifling.
"Who are you?" Alan insisted, his voice firm but tinged with rage.
The man slightly turned his head, as though he were thinking about the question. "Who I am doesn't matter. What counts is that I will soon have everything; for now, I have what I desire.
Marie moved toward the man, her hand falling into his as though it were the most natural thing on Earth. Seeing her like this, so totally changed, broke something inside me. How had we got to this? How had my sister slid into the grasp of this man?
"You don't need to fight us, Ariel," Marie replied, sounding somewhat patronizing. Come with us. Together, we can be quite relentless.
Her remarks sounded so unnatural, like a warped form of the sisterly link we used to know. I looked at Alan and found the same dread reflected in his eyes.
With a hard shake of my head, "I'm not joining anything." "This isn't Marie, nor is you. Not worth it whatever he promises you."
Marie's face grew stiff, and for a second I saw a flash of doubt, anxiety, I wasn't sure. Then it vanished, replaced by a steely resolution that sent shivers.
"You're the one not understanding," she spat. "This is the sole method. The only way we can get what we are due is this.
The man next her laughed with a low, disturbing tone. "Enough of chatting, Marie. It's time to show them what results from people standing in our path.
The man raised his hand before I could respond, and a living shadow of darkness flowed from him straight toward us. Alan threw me aside just in time, but the power of it drove both of us slamming into the wall behind us.
The contact knocked out my breath and sent agony across my side. Though the darkness was pressing in, oppressive and chilly, I battled to stand. I extended my hands blindly, fingertips brushing Alan's hand. His firm hand was the only thing keeping me anchored in the whirlpool.
"Stay with me, Ariel," Alan's voice sliced over the night, a lifeline I grabbed.
But the mysterious power was unrelenting, sapping our will by pushing down on us. My consciousness seemed to be slipping away, the planet becoming nothing. Then the pressure released, quite as abruptly as it had started. Breathing heavily, I opened my eyes to see the room once again faintly lighted. Though the blackness had receded, damage was done. Alan was on his knees next to me; his face was white but he was alive. Though it was fleeting as I watched the man and Marie standing above us, unbroken and triumphant, relief washed over me.
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"You're out of your depth, little sister," Marie replied, her voice icy and disconnected. "You ought to have come along when you had the chance."
My legs quivering under me, I staggered to my feet. Desperate to get to her and break through whatever control this man had over her, "Marie, this isn't you," I said. " Please, do not do this." Marie only shook her head, though, her eyes full of a determination I knew I could not muster. She hushed "Goodbye, Ariel," then turned to face the man. "Let's travel."
The man grinned, content, and with a wave of his hand the shadows surrounded both of them. They vanished in an instant, leaving Alan and me by ourselves among the ruins.
All I could do at first was stand there, staring at the void where they had been. It felt as though everything I knew had broken and the ground had been wrenched from under me. Alan dragged himself to his feet and murmured, "We can't let them get away," his voice stern.
I nodded, although my head was whirling. "How came it to be this?" More to myself than to him, I murmured." How did she become... this?"
Alan responded, "We'll figure it out," with his hand on my shoulder grounding me. But right now we have to relocate. Not stopping, Ariel We must be ready for whatever follows.
I inhaled deeply, separating the agony and anxiety. Alan was right-whatever had happened to Marie, I could not let it ruin me. I refused to let it destroy us.
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"We have to find out who that man is," I murmured, surprised even by my own determination in voice. "Maybe we might stop him before it's too late if we know what he wants."
Alan nodded, his attitude stiffening with will. "We shall also. But first, we have to reorganize. Find somewhere to lie low, then decide what to do.
I agreed, but as we walked out of the building my memories of Marie's eyes-the fury, the bitterness, and that brief flutter of doubt were still entwined. I had to trust that somewhere, deep down, my sister was still in there, buried beneath whatever gloom had seized her.
But I also understood that the path ahead would only get more hazardous. Marie was battling for something far greater than mere power-something that terrified me more than any physical conflict could ever have done.
My heart hurt with the realization that saving Marie might not be possible as we drove away from the dark, deserted structure. Giving up on her, though, was not at all possible.
We would discover means to stop that man. Whatever it would take, we would find a way to bring Marie back.
Deep down, though, I realized the sister I knew was already gone.
And that idea made me completely freeze.
The anxiety thick enough to choke on permeated the silent drive. I didn't blame Ariel; she glanced out the window, her head obviously elsewhere. The meeting with Marie and that enigmatic stranger had rocked us both at the very least. Neither of us was ready for Marie aligning herself with someone so black, someone with abilities beyond our comprehension.
Trying to concentrate on the road ahead, I tightened my hold on the steering wheel. We required a strategy, a means of offsetting whatever forces we were confronting. Still, my mind kept returning to that man who was he-and what did he wish for Marie?