The Caverns of Carnage
The Blood Orb

I crumpled with a thump! onto a cold stone floor. Sparing no time to orient myself, I scuffled to my feet, as Nakia stood up as well.

“What happened?” she said, panting.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yeah I’m fine. You?” she said.

“I’m fine.”

We stood in the huge stone cavern with the enormous blood pool in the center. Nakia looked around.

“Where are we?” she said.

“This is where BloodLust took me yesterday. Where he told me about the Blood Orb.”

“How nice of you both to join us.” a cold voice murmured from the end of the cavern.

BloodLust walked towards us in the light, the torches casting strange shadows on his metallic armor.

“I told you to come alone.” he said, looking at Nakia. “Although,” he smiled. “You posses True Vision too. Why don’t you take a seat, my guest…” he flicked a finger, and Nakia was tossed onto the wall, and appearing from within the walls, a thick red, fleshy rope coiled around her arms and ankles, binding her to the wall.

“Let her go!” I yelled.

“I will… soon enough.” he replied, marching to the arching entrance. “First, I have some unfinished business to attend to.”

The door to the entrance opened, and Lila Crosby walked through.

She smiled at the sight of Nakia tied up to the wall.

“Alicia, thank you for joining us.” BloodLust said.

“Alicia?” Nakia and I exclaimed in unison.

BloodLust turned to us and grinned.

“Yes,” he said, “Alicia Hickman was one of the people with me in the cave. The night I became BloodLust. She’s the only person whom I shared the secret of the Blood Orb with. The secret to immortality.”

“Why am I not surprised?” asked Nakia.

Lila, or rather, Alicia, threw a dirty look at her. Alicia then turned to BloodLust.

“I did what you asked. I got Gabriel here, just like we planned,” Alicia Hickman said, looking at the floor. “I did everything you told me to do, so now you will give me powers too, just like we agreed?” she asked.

“You did not complete the task I had set for you. You failed to burn down the school and its inhabitants. You’ll have to be punished for this failure,” BloodLust said, tilting his head to the side. “Certainly you can understand that you cannot be allowed to get away with insubordination. It would set a bad precedent.”

I certainly felt no kindness or empathy for Alicia, but I hated seeing anyone being toyed with this way. I knew BloodLust had no intention of keeping his end of the bargain, why couldn’t she see that?

“Unfortunately, your deeds are far too great to allow his life to be spared,” BloodLust said easily, as if growing bored with the conversation.

It took a moment for his words to register with Alicia. When they finally did, her eyes widened and her jaw dropped.

“What? B-but…that’s not what we agreed,” she wailed.

“I’m afraid I’ve had a change of heart on the matter,” BloodLust said in a falsely propitiatory tone. He walked towards Alicia, reached for her head and started twisting her neck.

As she screamed, the skin started to tear. There was a CLUNK!, as the Blood Orb fell onto the hard stone floor. I couldn’t watch. I turned away and looked at Nakia. She had also closed her eyes. The sound of flesh ripping was heard, and the screaming ceased.

BloodLust now turned to me.

“Back to your ordeal,” he stated.

“You promised to tell me the Calamitous Phrase.” I said.

“Yes, If you join me.”

“And how do I do that?” I asked.

BloodLust smiled. “It’s quite simple really.” He pulled out a shining sword from his armor and handed it to me. He pointed at Nakia.

“Kill her.”

I looked with alarm at BloodLust and then at Nakia, whose face was filled with dread. I walked closer to her, and her eyes grew pleadingly wider.

“I’m really sorry,” I said, and brought the blade closer to her. Her eyes brimmed with tears.

“Don’t move.” I whispered.

I dramatically held the sword over my head.

“Hurry up! Get on with it!” BloodLust roared impatiently.

I turned around swiftly and snatched the Blood Orb from the floor. I focused and tried to imagine the vision in my brain. Immediately the Orb started glowing and the entire cavern was filled with a blindingly white light, and we were gone.