Oho? The monster cooed in her ear, a voice only she could hear but as real to her as Maren's lips. Getting soft, are we?
Lexi shook the monster off, her eyes burning that deep red.
The boys appeared around the corner of the cave, coming to a clean halt. Lexi made eye contact with Ariel. His eyes flicked between her, the infected, then to Twelve, and back to Lexi. The infected held their positions, trembling against her Command. Lexi could feel the pull of their will against hers, craving to spread their hellish disease. But their will was not stronger than hers.
"They won't hurt you," Lexi spoke up, clearing her throat. She stood on one knee and lifted herself to stand. "I've commanded them to stop."
Darrin's eyes flicked between the infected, and he made eye contact with Valen and mouthed the words 'what the fuck?'
Valen replied with a simple shrug.
Lexi rolled her eyes, lacking the feeling of obligation in explaining herself now.
"Why not kill them?" Valen asked.
The infected hissed in reaction, and the boys jerked back a bit.
"Some of them are still alive," Lexi replied, her reasoning sound, even if she hadn't thought much into it. "They can be cured. There's no reason to create more casualties than needed."
The truth was, Lexi hadn't thought much about it. She simply didn't want to kill them and she couldn't explain that feeling just yet.
At her explanation, the boys ventured deeper into the cave, moving carefully around the infected that stood in place, like soldiers.
"This is very odd," Valen commented as he approached Lexi.
"Imagine my surprise when I figured out, I could do that," she replied. Then, her ears perked up, just so. She thought she could hear something scraping in the distance, somewhere deeper in the caves, but it was quiet and so brief she almost thought she didn't hear it.
"So…" Ariel's eyes wandered around the cave curiously, "where's the big bad?"
"I don't know," Lexi sighed. "I really thought it would be here."
"It has to be," Darrin added, pulling the map out of his bag. "My mother drew me this map. At first, I thought her writing was just erratic but if she was being controlled," they gathered around him as he pointed to the peak of the messy drawing of the mountain where the cave was, "then I wonder if she was actually telling me to beware."
"It's possible," Lexi mumbled, confused. "I don't understand."
The infected grew further agitated, their hissing and clicking rose suddenly, but not enough to alarm Lexi.
"The Darkspirit should be-"
Then, she felt its presence behind her. She felt the creature's bloodlust before she saw it — its desperate wrath. Lexi and Valen moved at the same time, her grabbing Ariel and Valen grabbing Darrin, pushing them out of the way before a massive hammer came down upon them. Lightning burst inside of the cave, and the roar of thunder was heard in its swing. That sweet, yet metallic scent of magic suddenly engulfed the cave. The group rolled apart in an attempt to avoid the magical lightning.
Lexi's mind kicked into overdrive. Her ears rang with a horrible, piercing sound, but she knew she had to move. She pushed herself up, struggling to get a better look at what had attacked them. And what she saw took her by surprise.
It was a corpse, hundreds of years old but preserved enough that it could stand. The body was infected, but there was just one problem.
Why hadn't I felt it? Lexi thought, pushing herself up in preparation for the next attack. How did it get so close…?
The body was obviously a King, adorned in an ancient Forsythian crown. But which King?
"Run!" Darrin cried, his eyes wide. "It's King Caylor! His hammer — it's been mended!"
Lexi's mind flashed on the three masked figures from before. She knew she couldn't prove they had a hand in this, but her instincts told her what she knew to be the truth. In a matter of seconds, Lexi's eyes moved across the cavern.
She spotted a path, smaller than a doorway, but seemingly large enough for their group. The problem was — Lexi refused to leave Twelve.
"There!" She yelled, signaling. "Valen, get them to the opening!"
"But he'll just follow us in!" Valen responded.
"Just do it!" Lexi commanded, her eyes gleaming that deep hue.
Valen, unsure if he was compelled by her natural authority or her hereditary power, did as he was told. He hoisted Ariel over his shoulder, pulled Darrin to his feet, and moved toward the opening.
Lexi turned toward the reanimated corpse of the ancient King, unsheathing her sword.
"Alright you stinky bastard," she growled. "Let's dance."
The King lunged first, moving at her with a frightening speed. Lexi dodged, clumsily, but weaved around him. The Darkspirit inside the body was concealing its presence. She supposed that since it regained such power, the core spirit would be more powerful than the others. She had to give credit where credit was due — it had lived, hidden for hundreds of years.
The creature turned, fast, lifting its hammer for another monstrous blow. Lexi wouldn't get another hit in, but that was alright. Her goal wasn't to defeat the spirit now.
It was to save Twelve.
Its hammer came down with a godly fury, lighting spewing chaotically across the cavern walls. Lexi rolled on the ground toward the Star Members limp body. She pulled Twelve's weight on top of her own and while the corpse struggled to lift that divine hammer, Lexi made a run for it toward the opening in the wall.
Her legs ached horribly. She was exhausted, hungry and ready to collapse.
But the fight wasn't over yet.
Lexi made it to the opening in the cave wall. The room was small, with no opening. Her plan to make the King's hammer cause a cave in between the main cavern and the opening was moot. There was no escape for them here. Lexi had chosen wrong. She knelt down, placed Twelve in Valen's arms, and then lifted herself back up.
"What are you doing?" Valen asked. "You can't fight that thing, Lexi. It's dead!"
"It will listen to my Command," Lexi answered, turning around so that she wouldn't have to meet Valen's eyes.
The monster inside her chuckled, deep and insidious. Are you finally ready to see how deep that power of yours runs? Are you ready to feel the depths of your bloodline, and bend a true Darkspirit to your will?
"Yes," Lexi muttered, her eyes burning as she gazed upon the infected King.
Careful now, the monster murmured. Your Will matters here. It must be unwavering. Are you unwavering, Lady Lexington Raine?
Lexi dropped her sword, letting it clatter loudly on the cavern floor. The Infected King turned to face her, still gripping his weapon. Lexi knew she could do this. She knew she could win against the spirit.
The monster raised its hammer, readying for another attack.
Lexi reached inside herself, calling to her power. She gazed past the body, into its core. She almost felt like she could see the Darkspirit itself — wrapped around the body's spine, and what was left of its brain. She called upon her power, connecting with the spirit, forcing her will upon it.
And then — just as her lips parted to give the Command to die — Lexi felt its fear. Fear as real as her own. As real as Twelve's or Maren's.
The creature was terrified.
Her eyes widened and her grip upon the spirit loosened, only for a moment.
FOOL! Her monster's voice boomed in her mind.
That's all the Darkspirit needed.
The hammer came down beside Lexi, as powerful as the will of the Goddess herself. She only managed to evade the hit by an inch, and was tossed backward, into the opening by the sheer force of the hit.
Again, her hearing was muffled and her body bruised in a horrible way. The pure adrenaline coursing through her veins was the only thing forcing her to keep her eyes open. She looked up, rubble falling from the ceiling, creating a wall between the main cavern and the small room Lexi had commanded her group into.
Lexi blinked, and suddenly Valen was in front of her, shaking her. She realized, just for a moment, that she must have fainted. But then, her eyes rolled back and she was plunged into darkness once more.
***
The sky thundered in the distance. The Ram mask looked back at Mt. Caylor, just as their leader stepped through her portal. The sickeningly sweet scent of magic engulfed the air, just far enough from civilization that their presence wouldn't alert anybody.
"Are you sure you just want to leave her?" She asked, tilting her head slightly. "Even the Parasite knows how to hide from the Bloodline."
"You worry too much," The Cuttlefish Mask said with an audible smirk. "She will be fine. Besides, we have pressing matters in Inaha that must be taken care of."
"I thought the next Trial was in Avelle," The Lion Mask replied, his voice deep.
"It is," she replied, dusting off her cloak with her hands, "but we won't be bothering with the spirit there. I wouldn't dream of approaching her. Even The King himself couldn't handle Gathlaira. Do you know what he called her?"
Ram and Lion looked at each other, then back at her before shaking their heads.
She chuckled, low and dangerous.
"Well, I suppose it doesn't matter," Cuttlefish mask sighed cheerfully, entangling her fingers together behind her back as she disappeared into the forest. "The Star-Beings will find out soon enough."