6: The World’s End
Phantasia slipped out of his grasp with a twist, taking him by surprise. She stood there and smirked as he slashed his knife across her throat, only feeling a slight shiver as it passed through her ethereal body. He stumbled backwards, pressing himself up against the wall as he began an incantation. Phantasia had to try not to laugh.
He thinks I’m a demon!
The shaman was moving towards her again, but in that pause between his attacks, Phantasia took her chance. Following an instinct, she moved into the circle and reached out towards the people locked in the darkness’s embrace.
Please, let it go!
The shaman stabbed her again, plunging his knife into her back a dozen times. It stung, as the knife had been imbued with his spiritual power, but was still too weak to hurt a determined faerie. Her dress was suffering far more from the attack! Still, if he kept up the assault, her defences would start to weaken, and in such a dark place…
Please…
She thought of Kaori, her eyes smeared with make-up.
Don’t be afraid any more
The circle of power shattered, the candles extinguished, and the victims snapped out of their euphoria. The shamans stopped their chanting in an instant, and Phantasia’s attacker dropped his knife as the energies he’d put into the spell snapped back in his face. The shadowy spectre, still half formed, let out a piercing scream and bolted through the ceiling like a wounded animal fleeing its natural predator.
Phantasia followed in a flash. It took effort and energy, but she was able to make herself fully incorporeal, allowing her to follow the creature as it tried to escape. But the more she used her power, the more the atmosphere of the dying land dragged at her, and after only phasing through a few floors she had to stop. Any more, and she wouldn’t have the strength to resist the darkness. The creature, unhindered by such drawbacks, fled to the surface and was soon beyond the range of her senses. Defeated, she shuffled towards the nearest exit and, no sooner had she seen the first signs of the night sky, collapsed against an old wall.
After a short while struggling to recuperate, she heard familiar voices calling after her. She called out, her voice hoarse, and soon her friends came running – or stumbling, in some cases – over. Kaori was the first to reach her, falling to her knees and throwing her arms around her.
“Oh my god, what happened? Phantasia, are-are you all right?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,”
“Dude, what the hell went on down there?” asked Joel, “Kaori said you went down on your own. You should’ve got us to help! Those guys are dangerous!”
Phantasia stood slowly, then stared at her friends, her white eyes glinting in the starlight. They fell silent.
