The Whispers of the Fallen (23 page)

“You know,” he chuckled. “It is still shocking to me that you are able to deny your dark nature so easily, Devin. I suppose redemption can be found in the most unexpected places.” He peered deeply into Devin’s eyes. “Unfortunately, I don’t have an answer to your question.”

“These other chosen ones, are they on their way to Aloisio?” I asked him as I still attempted to grasp everything I had just been told.

“Yes, they are all being led to this place,” Tonma answered.

“How? Who is leading them here? How do they know about us?” I asked.

Tonma set his gaze on me. “Just know that they are heading this way as we speak for the same reason you are here.”

“We must head back to the Gates,” Cresta announced. Tonma nodded in agreement.

“I stand by what I said before. The Creator should send an army from the sky and destroy all of our enemies!” Devin implied with an angry voice.

“Devin,” Tonma said in a soft voice. “The humans were the ones that chose to fall, and they brought this upon themselves. Free will was given to all, even to your kind. The Creator will never intervene to finish something before its end has come. You must understand that every choice will lead to a consequence. Today Elysium suffers the consequence of choices that were made in the distant past.” Tonma turned around, placing his hands on a massive boulder. Using all his strength, he rolled the heavy rock away, revealing a tunnel that sat hidden behind it.

“We must carry on,” he continued. The others nodded in agreement. “Let us find the other ones. We will join with them. Lucifer cannot win.” Tonma handed me one of his torches.

“We will meet again, I promise. Do not let your guard down,” Danathaniel said in an encouraging voice. As I watched them disappear into the dark tunnel, I tried to collect all the information I had just been given. Joy filled my heart with excitement just knowing there were others that carried the same burden as me.

“What should we do now?” I asked Devin.

“We look for the others. The question is where will we find—”

His sentence was cut off by the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. I heard the sound of metal hitting the hard cold floor.

“Get ready to attack,” I whispered, afraid of what might be approaching.

I saw the walls begin to brighten and then from the darkness someone appeared. All three of us stood there, motionless, staring at each other, contemplating our next move.

“Isaac,” the young man called out. I noticed that his clothes were worn out and dirty. Around his neck he wore a scarf, and to cover his hands, he had on an old ragged pair of gray gloves.

“Yes,” I replied. “How do you know my name?” I approached him.

He took a deep breath.

“Raziel…” he barely whispered as he took short quick breaths. It was quite obvious to us that he was exhausted.

“Raziel?” My eyes widened in surprise. “You know him? How?”

“He told me to come to this place. He introduced me to the lion with wings. I was told I would find you here in Aloisio.” Even in the dim light I noticed the trembling of his hands.

“What does he mean by lion with wings?” Devin asked, doubtful. I knew exactly what he was referring to.

“You mean the Creator? Is that the lion you speak of?” I asked.

He smiled. “Yes, that is the one. While I was in the sea, Raziel appeared to me and said that I would find you here.”

I could not believe what I had just heard. There really were others that had gone through the same experience as I had. This revelation was a great comfort to me.

“Who are you and why are you here?” Devin asked with suspicion.

“My name is Petra. I come from the Kingdom of Swordsmouth, near the Great River. I have come here to warn King Marco of the Darkness—”

“Well, you are too late,” Devin cut him off.

“Late? How so?” he asked, shocked.

“Nephele and the Fallen Stars have already reached Aloisio and King Marco has joined forces with them. Right now, they are probably lurking somewhere in Aloisio with the Diary in their possession.”

His facial expression changed immediately; he looked surprised. He slowly reached inside of his tattered brown bag and took out what appeared to be a book. It was covered with old pieces of cloth. As soon as he uncovered it, whispers echoed throughout the prison. I had not forgotten the last time I had heard such sounds. The cover of the book bore the identical symbol I had seen on the Diary. The only difference I saw was a second vertical line present inside of the circle.

“What is that?” I asked, intrigued.

“
The Book of the Light-Bearer
,” he stated as he reached out his hand to let me get a closer look at the book. His eyes were firmly fixed on mine.

We were all silent.

“You mean to tell me that there are more books?” Devin inquired as he approached Petra.

I marveled at the book, analyzing each small detail.

“Where did you get this, Petra?” I asked, puzzled.

From the shadows we heard the mutters of numerous men.

“The men that killed them probably headed this way,”
one of the men shouted.

I knew they were referring to Danathaniel and Cresta, but little did they know that they were long gone. Petra quickly placed the book back into his bag.

“We need to get out of here now,” I whispered.

To our benefit, Tonma and the other Underwarriors had not rolled the stone back over the tunnel.

“Are you sure we will be safe going through there?” Petra asked, staring into the darkness.

“It will be a lot safer than remaining in this prison,” Devin replied, walking inside the tunnel. Without hesitating, I followed him; Petra was at my heels.

It was dark; humidity was ever present in the air. There was no sign of any light source as we felt our way deeper into the tunnel. In the distance I could faintly hear the voices of the soldiers in the prison. They were arguing among themselves. As we quickened our pace, I heard terrifying screams coming from behind us, followed by the sound of bones breaking. The echoes resounded loudly throughout the tunnel; fear struck the very core of my soul.

“What is happening to them?” Devin asked under strong breaths.

If my abilities had not been cut off here I would be able to read them, but I was still powerless.

“Whatever it is, it is killing those men,” I said. My eyes narrowed in an attempt to better see my surroundings.

Silence fell over us as we continued forging ahead to make our way through the pitch-black tunnel.

I was startled when I heard a strong roar coming from behind us, followed by the sound of beating drums, which caused the ground beneath our feet to tremble.

“What in the name of Elysium is that?” Petra whispered as he walked.

“Whatever it is, it is coming after us,” Devin replied, fearfully.

“Come on!” I shouted. With all my might I was trying to run in this dark tunnel. Unexpectedly, as I scurried forward, my foot was no longer touching the ground. I plunged in the unknown darkness. I heard Petra and Devin scream as they fell. Despite my lack of abilities in Alosio, my body flexed its wings as I plummeted downward; I felt a sharp pain throughout my back as they expanded to their full width.

Below me I could hear splashes. I flew down as fast as I could in search of Devin and Petra. My body shook violently when I plunged into the icy water.

“
Devin! Petra
!” I called out to them as I made my way through the freezing water.

“We are here!” I heard their muffled voices.

I could not see them through the darkness. Once again, the roars resounded. They were coming from above us, probably from where we had just fallen. I heard someone or something make a loud splash right next to me. I shivered when I felt the ripples of water touching me. Whatever had followed us was now lurking in the water not far from us.

The smell of putrid decay infiltrated the air.

There was silence. I could hear Devin and Petra gasping for air.

“
No. Who are…no…
” Petra shouted from the darkness. Following the direction of his voice, I heard Devin grunting. Terrifying screams reverberated on all sides; then dead silence. I heard the water crashing around me. The strong stench of whatever had come filled the air. My heart was beating incredibly fast.

“I see you,” a voice whispered.

“Show yourself, creature!” I commanded.

“Look harder.” The voice came from behind me. I felt the pressure of two cold hands against my face. Its palms felt like sharp knives cutting through my scalp, penetrating my head and crushing my brain. I closed my eyes; the pain was unbearable.

XIV

I opened my eyes to find my arms and legs completely immobile, without feeling. An intolerable piercing draft of cold air hung in the air as my senses returned to me.

I turned my head and a sharp pain in my back caused me to wince.
My wings,
I thought. My speculation was correct. Someone had chopped them off.

As I checked myself, I realized my wrists had been chained along with my legs. The chains that bound me were old and corroded. I was standing on the balcony of what seemed to be an enormous cathedral. The floor was constructed of perfectly inlaid black and white squared tiles. I was alone. The grayness of the sky was so dense it was almost black. I looked out from the balcony and saw many houses, and beyond the houses, the statue of the Star that stood alone in the middle of the sea. Undoubtedly, I was still in Aloisio.

Multiple bruises covered my whole body. Every piece of clothing but my black pants had been ripped off of me, leaving me without any protection from the bitter cold. My teeth chattered violently as I inhaled the frigid air.

“Devin! Petra!”
I shouted to the top of my lungs, but there was no answer. I was discouraged, but not ready to believe the worse had happened. I tried to jog my memory, to retrace the steps to remember what took place after I blacked out, but my memory was blocked. I could only recall vague impressions.

A throbbing headache pounded in my forehead. The pain made me nauseous. I caught a glimpse of Nephele; she appeared before me, her eyes peering hauntingly into mine.

“I see our Capios have done a terrific job in capturing you three.”

“Capios?” I asked in a hoarse voice.

“Yes…creatures from the Abyss. Apparently, the Gate of the Fourth Dimension is not being watched so vigilantly,” she said with a snarl, hoping to see my reaction, but I was not about to entertain her depraved humor.

I moaned.

“Capios are shapeless creatures, invisible to the naked eye. The only evidence of their presence is their growling, which serves as a warning to their prey that they are about to be taken. Once they latch onto you they automatically take possession of your senses. Quite useful and interesting beings they are.”

There was silence after her explanation. Because of the pounding headache, I was too weak to even lift up my head.

“Will you continue to believe the lying fools that surround you, Isaac?” she queried. Her cunning voice became soft and almost soothing.

“Where are they?” My lips mumbled the words feebly.

“They are safe, that is all you need to know.” She approached me. “Why are you being so difficult? You must know that aligning yourself with us is the wisest choice. Do not be fooled by the words of others. We have cut off your special ‘gifts’ so that you could see that we are stronger than any other entities you know.”

I chuckled. “When you say it like that, it sounds almost believable,” I retorted with a sarcastic smirk.

There was silence.

“Now tell me,” I said weakly. “Do you not need my blood anymore to open the Diary? You have been pursuing me with such relentless obsession that I thought your life was now driven by the ruthless desire to have me shed my blood for the Diary.”

“I am learning how to be patient with your kind, Isaac.”

I allowed my eyes to look deeply into hers.

“You lied to me. You said I was the only one that could give you blood to open the Diary; not that I expected anything different from you.”

She chuckled.

“Well, I must admit, it was not easy to believe Athalas when he informed me that there were four more like you, especially when we discovered that four more books existed. Since Petra has also been captured, I suppose it is true. Your value to us is vitally important—only you can shed blood to open the Diary, but opening the book isn’t enough. You have to read the words written on its pages. Every book-bearer can only open the book that lies in their possession. Demetre, however, was meant to be a host.” She paced around the balcony as a soft breeze blew her hair. “All he was ever meant to do was to be a dwelling place for Corbin.”