| The desperate scream echoed through the hallway, vibrating in Salem's ears. The sound landed in Kat's ears, echoing in her head. It was then that her grip loosened on her sword. The red glow in her vehement gaze suddenly faded, once again returning her eyes to their seductive purple state. Kat suddenly loosened her grip on her sword, allowing it to slip from her fingers, crashing to the floor behind her. She then fell on her knees, clutching her scraped abdomen, her belly covered with blood. "What happened to me??" she asked, horrified, and in horrible pain from her wounds. "For goodness sake, forgive me!" "It is all right," Clara said, slowly feeling her life leaving her. "If you can, get us to safety immediately. I fear I shall die if I do not find a healer." "Help me!!" Salem shouted, still stuck to the wall. "I am coming!" Clara cried out, hobbling towards him. But even as Clara stumbled toward him, her vision shifting, the floor began to shake under her feet. Soon the shaking turned to wave motion, knocking Clara over and tossing her about. Kat was also being thrown around; she struggled to brace herself, still trying not to let her insides escape her. Salem suddenly was thrown from the wall, landing flat on his face on the undulating hallway floor. He crawled on his hands and knees to rescue Clara, stretching out his bruised arm to her weakened hands. Suddenly, just as Salem reached Clara, the waving of the floor slowed and calmed down, then stopped, returning the floor to its flat state. Kat and Clara looked up, now far away from each other. All paintings and statues in the hallway were now scattered and destroyed, strangely to the exception of the leopard woman statue, which stood as it did before, unaffected by the movement of the floor. "Is it over yet?" Clara asked. "We must escape this place." She stood up, still unsure of how much longer it would be until she would expire. Kat climbed to her feet, looking down at the smears of her own blood on the floor and on her belly. "I am going to be sick," she groaned. "That, or I will bleed to death first." At that moment, a bright light filled the room, so bright it blinded Kat, Clara, and Salem for several seconds. It emanated from one of the walls, tearing cracks in the woodwork. Suddenly, the wall suddenly burst, showering the hallway with debris. Kat, Clara, and Salem cowered away from the flying pieces of wood as a small figure entered from the hole in the wall. "Who is there?!" Kat shouted, arming herself, struggling to keep the sword above her waist. The light then flickered and faded away. The figure who entered the room was none other than Keilich, holding his twisted, wooden, lightly-decorated staff above his head. "Keilich!" Clara cried. "Thank goodness you're here!" "I came as fast as I could," the old shaman replied, approaching his friends. "How did you get in here?" Kat asked. "I'll explain later," Keilich answered. "Right now, you must leave here before this house swallows you all whole. You are all in serious need of healing. Follow me." Keilich led the three adventurers down the stairs as fast as he could. All at once, they all knocked through the front door, unhinging it. The Guardians hundreds of feet away saw them running into the field and ran towards them. "Get back, you idiots!" Keilich shouted, waving the Guardians back up the hill. "You'll endanger your lives!" He then turned to Kat and Clara. "Is there any strength left in you?" Clara tried to catch her breath. "No, not really," she panted. "We must be treated or we will all surely perish." "But is there any will to live?" Keilich asked. Kat nodded affirmatively. "Always," she said, still holding her belly. Keilich held his staff out in front of himself. "Then we can bring the estate down together!" he proclaimed. "All of you, take hold of the staff and concentrate. When I say so, hit it upon the ground." Kat, Clara, and Salem each raised a tired hand and grasped the staff, then closed their eyes. They all stood together with Keilich, trying to shut out their distractions. Kat and Clara cringed in pain at their injuries but sternly refused to give up hope; even Clara feared that she would die on her feet. After a few agonizing minutes of deep thought, Keilich felt a tingling sensation in his arm; his power was beginning to take hold. Thin bands of blue and red began to wrap around his staff, making it glow before him. Keilich leaned over to Kat. "Open up your eyes," he whispered. Kat heeded his command; Clara and Salem also opened their eyes. Overcome with emotion at the sight of the ribbons of blue and red magical energy writhing on the staff, Kat, Clara, and Salem, in an uncontrollable fit, all screamed aloud at the top on their lungs. Their adrenaline had overtaken them all, and now empowered them. Keilich's eyes widened. "Now!!" he shouted. All four of them held the staff and pounded the end of it on the ground with a loud thud. The bands of energy formed a purple sphere that broke off from the end of the staff, running along the ground, spreading the long grass. All watched in silence as the bolt smashed into the house. The estate shook from the force of the impact, its windows all broken out at once, showering the lawn with glass. Like in an earthquake, it shook violently, then began to fall apart. Wood beams and panels collapsed and fell as the house was cleaved in half. Finally, a great orange glow appeared. Keilich cowered away. "Run for it!" he shouted. All ran up the hill as the house suddenly exploded, consumed in a single moment by a great ball of flame. The walls burst from their foundation; flaming wreckage was thrown into the field and the insides all burned in seconds. Finally, the house, totally ablaze, crumbled to the ground. Kat and Clara turned around as the fire continued to transform the estate into ash. "Is it over?" Kat asked. "Yes, it is," Keilich said. "No longer will it hurt anyone in Trillius. Let's go back now; you must all be healed." Keilich and the group of Guardians helped the three travelers up and brought them back to the palace, leaving the corrupted estate to burn. Back to Stories Back to "TAOK&C" Back to Home |