Slowly, as though time itself was stopping, Jeneta's eyes opened from the cloudy haze of unconsciousness to see the scene unfold before her. She saw Djoser, eyes filled with tears, holding the now dark-skinned Zain's hand, saw him whispering to him, as though talking of a time long ago. Then as Jeneta watched in horror, she heard Zain implore Djoser to stop Kumraa, then watched as the man lay still, his chest unmoving. She gasped with terror as she saw the evil demon lord get ready to strike again, gathering all his energy in his bony, yellow crusted hands.
Although her body was screaming in pain, Jeneta struggled to stand, sweat pouring down her face in streams. "Djoser.." she whispered out. Closing her eyes and concentrating hard, she lifted up her hand once more and called forth her sword. The glittering weapon appeared like a beacon of hope in her hand, and with her last remaining strength deep in her heart and tears from the pain flowing down her dark cheeks, she forced her protesting muscles to dash forward quickly, hoping against all hope she would make it in time.
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"And now, just like your pathetic, useless brother, you die!" screamed out Kumraa. He gave a rageful yell and threw forth his most powerful energy beam yet, intending to kill the young prince and his brother once and for all and making sure nothing of them was left.
His heart full of despair, Djoser could watch in horror as the the power raced towards him. Even if he had the strength, he knew it would be too late for him to move himself and his brother from the blast. The young man's heart pounded uncontrollably in his chest as he awaited his fate. My brother, I come to join you soon...and Mother and Father. Djoser thought to himself. His eyes closed as he held his brother Menes's body closer to him, hoping his death would be quick.
But just then, the harsh energy blast he was expecting didn't come. Instead, a young voice filled the air as she shouted "NOOO!", and a small yet determined figure stood bravely before him.
With her body trembling, Jeneta held up her sword defensively before her and took the blast of the evil lord full force. Although the sword absorbed most of the energy, it was will powerful enough to knock her back heavily. She screamed loudly with pain into the night air as she was thrown back and landed hard on the ground next to Djoser. Pain like no other shot through the young girl's body, and she could only groan deep in her throat as she tried to move and get back up.
"Jeneta!" Djoser gently laid his brother down and quickly rushed over to gather the dark-skinned girl in his arms. "Jeneta, please! Are you all right?" He gently wiped his hand across her damp forehead to sweep her hair away.
A moment later, Jeneta's eyes opened and she painfully drew in a breath. She looked up at Djoser and smiled weakly. "Djoser...you're...you're all right." she breathed out softly in relief.
The young man shook his head as took her hand in his own. "You impossible girl! Why would do you a crazy thing like that? Why did you risk your life just for me? It's you who has to live and complete this! How could you..you.." Anger was evident in his voice, but he was also feeling something he never had felt before as he held Jeneta. Something he thought he would never be able to feel since he lost his family. Could it be that the reason he was so angry with what she did...was because he actually cared about her? Dare he admit that to himself?
But before he could say anymore, Jeneta slowly reached up and gently touched his face. "I...I couldn't bear to see you get hurt. We all need you. I need you. Not just for the journey, but because I..I..lo.." She never got to finish what she wanted to say as blackness swirled into her vision again, and her eyes closed once more in unconsciousness.
"Jeneta!" Djoser shook her gently to try and wake her, but the pain was too much, and Jeneta remained still.
For a long moment, silence filled the air as anger and frustration slowly entered the young prince's heart. Already so much was taken from him. His home, his country, his family...everything he loved and cared about was gone. Memories of his childhood flashed through his mind again, and the more he remembered, the more angered and rage-filled his heart became. He remembered his father holding and comforting him after he fell off a horse as child...he remembered his mother singing him to sleep one of the many ancient songs passed down through the years...he remembered his brother Menes teaching him how to hold a sword. Now...all that was gone.
"Well, well, isn't that so sweet. Not only do I get the chance to destroy you, I can destroy the very girl you've grown to love." wheezed out Kumraa as he stepped forward. "This just isn't your day..."
Eyes narrowed with anger and determination, Djoser slowly raised up his head to look Kumraa fully in the eyes. "You will not touch a hair on her head." he said, his voice filled with coldness and determination.
So surprised was Kumraa at the raw emotion in Djoser's eyes, he took a step back, the glow in his eyes flickering. "What?"
"You heard me." The young man gently laid Jeneta down, and slowly stood on his feet to his full height to face the powerful demon. "You will not touch her, nor any of her friends...not while I'm alive." He took a step forward, fear quickly leaving his heart and being replaced by the desire to protect the one he loved. "All my life, all I've ever wanted to do was live peacefully. I had a home, family, friends, loved ones, and now all of that is gone because of you."
He voice grew louder, and he pointed an accusing finger at the evil lord. "But all of that ends now! I will avenge what I have lost, even if it means my life! It's now going to be your turn to suffer!"
"Is that so?" rasped out Kumraa. "Don't you dare speak to me of suffering! I've suffered more than any living being should! Countless years of imprisonment!" For one brief second, an emotion that could only have been pain and sadness entered the demon's eyes, but just as fast as it came, it faded, replaced with evil and mayhem once more.
"But at least for all that suffering, I got to destroy your family." Kumraa smirked. He looked at Menes's body on the ground, then back at Djoser. "Do you know how your brother came to be in my service? Yes, I remember it now. Your brother was broken, near death after he and his men were so badly defeated by my army. I gave him a choice...to swear his allegiance to me...or die along with everyone else. Your brother finally chose to be with me after many glorious hours of torture. The last thing that fool whimpered before I wiped out his memory was that he hoped to see you again one last time. What a pity. He never knew I made him destroy his own country-"
"Shut up!" screamed out Djoser. His eyes narrowed once more as he slowly drew his sword out, ready to end it all. "This is it. It all ends here ..."
"Indeed. It does end here and now....for you." The evil lord flicked a wrist, and in bright flashes of fiery black smoke, Djoser was surrounded one by one with demons that seemed to melt into the night. Their forms didn't even seem solid. They crawled on the forest ground on arms and legs that seemed too long for their skinny bodies. Their heads had nothing more than glowing red eyes that seemed to bore right into his very soul. Although they did not seem to have mouths, harsh, gravely noises was heard from them, as though they were gnawing on something embedded in their mouths.
"KILL HIM!" roared out Kumraa. No sooner had the words left the demon's mouth, than the black-colored creatures advanced.
But in that whole time the demons were gathering, Djoser paid no attention. His eyes were closed and he concentrated on his anger and determination to protect those he loved. He now had to depend on every fighting skill he learned since childhood. His eyes snapped opened, and he was now ready to fight.
He jumped high into the air to narrowly miss the razor-sharp claws of a black demon that swiped at him. He did a double flip in the air, and as he landed, he turned and slashed down to deftly sliced the same demon in half.
Not even a second later, he spun and did a spin kick to the chest of another demon that almost had him in its clutches. It fell to the ground with a painful grunt, but before it could get up again, Djoser slashed his sword sideways to cleanly separate its head from its body. The young man barely had time to duck down in time to avoid being beheaded himself from a another demon that snuck up behind him. He rolled to the ground, then quickly swept the gelatin-like legs of the demon from under it. Just as the creature was trying to get up again, Djoser thrust forward and jabbed his sword right through its chest, leaving a gaping hole in the middle.
Letting his instincts and determination guide him, Djoser fell demon after demon, jumping high into the air and flipping over their heads to land behind them and end their lives. One demon nearly had him as it landed in front of him in surprise. But Djoser didn't let it surprise him too long as he balled his fist and smashed it right into the black demon's face. The creature barely had time to cry out before Djoser sliced his sword across his middle, and it too was destroyed.
It seemed like an eternity, but in truth only minutes had gone by as soon, the bodies of the demons lay all around Djoser, and he stood facing Kumraa, breathing hard and sweating pouring down his face. The two glared at each other for what seemed long an eternity before Djoser spoke first. "You made my brother do unspeakable crimes. I swear I will make you pay for them all. You will fall Kumraa..this I promise."
"Not if you don't live!" The evil demon lord screamed out, his voice filled with rage, and he madly dashed forward. While he ran, he gathered his energy up in his hands and made ready to strike.
At the same time, Djoser rushed forward, his sword held protectively in front of him. He ducked down low while still running to narrowly miss being vaporized by the double heavy blast of energy coming from the demon. Then with his eyes closed, Djoser gave a loud yell as he slashed down his sword with all his might. He didn't even know if he was going to hit Kumraa or anything else, but he had to at least try. Blindly he stumbled as he felt his sword hit something, and he fell in a tumble on the ground.
A moment later, he stood and turned to look behind him. His eyes widened in surprise as he saw Kumraa, hunched over and holding his side. When the demon lord turned to face him, the young man was amazed to see a sort of black fluid seeping from between Kumraa's long bony fingers as he held his hand to his left side. Rage like nothing ever seen before glowed from the demon's eyes, but it was also evident that his power was weakened...from the fight and from the fresh wound.
"Enjoy your small victory now, fool," Kumraa panted out. "But the day will come when I shall enjoy feasting on your bones. I will have my victory. This world will be mine!" With a throaty, gravel-filled laugh, the demon's form disappeared in bright flash of light. The bodies of the defeated black shadowy demons disappeared within moments after him. When they were all gone, the now darkened forest was once again filled with the sounds of life, signaling the end of another long day.
Exhausted beyond reasoning, Djoser fell to his knees, his sword falling softly to his side. Then finally, he covered his face in his hands and cried softly, feeling the loss of his family more than ever before.
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At first, Jeneta welcomed the darkness, because that meant she felt no more pain..no more pain in her body or spirit. She relaxed in it, found comfort in it. She wanted to be in it and stay in it as long as she could. But slowly, the darkness began to fade away. All of a sudden, she felt something on her forehead...something that was soothing and wet. More and more the darkness evaded Jeneta, and suddenly, the memories of what happened in the forest flashed through her mind. The god Iyanish! Sabanti almost getting the Sacred Medallions...and...and...Djoser!
With a gasp, Jeneta sat up quickly in bed, startling the person that was sitting in a chair beside her. When Jeneta's eyes adjusted to the light, she looked around to see she was in a large bedroom with two large windows to the side. There were other beds within the room besides hers that were obviously slept in, but for now she was alone....alone that is except for the sorcerer Yelsnid, who was looking at her with annoyance...and yet with slight relief.
"Where...where am I? What's going on? Where are my friends, and Djoser?" She reached up and felt a cold rag on her forehead; so that was why she was feeling something wet on her head!
"Well, well, looks who's finally awake." said the sorcerer, getting up from his chair and walking up to her. "It's about time. Your friends were getting very worried about you. Although it wouldn't really matter to me-"
"What...what happened?" Jeneta shook her head to try and recall what went on after she saved Djoser, but she couldn't.
"Are you daft or something girl?" sneered Yelsnid. "With all that ruckus you and your friends made in the forest with bright lights and explosions, a bunch of the city's people ventured out to see what was going on. When they got there, they found you and your friends passed out and your tall friend there not saying a word."
"My friends!" Jeneta looked around, but she didn't see any of the other girls.
"It's all right, they're fine. They're outside waiting for you to get up. You were the most hurt. You've been out for almost two days. Figures...young folks like you are always being so lazy..." The sorcerer clucked his tongue and rolled his eyes.
"Please...I have to see my friends." pleaded Jeneta. With a groan, she removed the covers from her still painful body and got up out of bed.
"Really? And you plan to go outside looking like that?" The older man pointed at her, and Jeneta slowly looked down at herself. All she had on was a small tank top and her panties.
"GAHH!" Blushing fiercely, Jeneta jumped right back into bed and covered herself. Yelsnid just chuckled as he shook his head, then walked to the door to call forth one of his servants.
A brown-haired girl shyly brought in Jeneta's clothes, then she and Yelsnid left to give her privacy. Jeneta quickly got dressed, wincing at little at the lingering pain from the other night's battle.
She walked downstairs through the large living room after she dressed, then to the large double doors of the immense house. When she walked outside, Angeni, Prya, Ling, and Heather were already there waiting in the bright early morning sun, talking amongst themselves.
Heather was the first to turn and notice her there. "Jeneta!" With a joyful cry, the blonde girl rushed up and gathered the shorter girl in her arms.
"We were all so worried about you..." Heather whispered as she hugged her, tears misting her eyes.
"Yeah, don't you ever scare us like that again!" admonished Ling. When Heather finally finished her hug, Ling gave Jeneta a big one of her own.
"I'm...I mean..we're happy you're okay now." Prya said shyly as she stepped forward. Angeni nodded in agreement, relief evident in her eyes.
"Thanks," Jeneta smiled. She gave each of the girls a grateful look. "It's so good to see you all again!" She then looked around worriedly. "But..where's Djoser?"
"In the back of the house looking after our horses. We knew you'd ask about him." Angeni teased. She pushed a strand of dark hair behind her ear and winked knowingly.
"OH! No..it's just that..I mean..." Jeneta blushed once more as she shook her head.
"Jeneta, it's okay. Go and see him." Heather chuckled. She nodded and laid a hand on her shoulder. "I think he needs to see you too."
Jeneta thought for a moment, then nodded her head with a smile. With a quick wave to her friends, she sprinted around the large house to the small stables in the back. Standing in front of the stables was a sad looking Djoser, softly stroking the side of his horse and murmuring softly to him.
When she saw him, Jeneta slowed down and shyly walked up to him, her hands clasped behind her back. "Djoser..I..err...I just wanted to see if you were okay, and...umm.."
But it didn't even seem like the young man heard her as he continued to stroke the horse. She took a deep breath and tried again. "Umm...that General Zain, he was your brother Menes, wasn't he? I'm..I'm very sorry for your loss. I'm sure his spirit will be watching over you."
Again, it didn't seem as though Djoser heard her. With a dejected sigh, Jeneta turned to leave, thinking he wanted to be alone. Before she took her first step though, she felt a hand take her arm. She turned to see it was Djoser, his eyes filled with tears. But before she could even say a word, the young man pulled her into a strong yet gentle embrace, wrapping his arms around her. Jeneta didn't try to fight it. She just wrapped her arms around him as tears also filled her eyes, giving him he strength and comfort she was sure he needed. And for long moments, that's how they stood, wrapped in each other's arms and glad just to be there for each other.
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To Be Continued...
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