章 18: The Unleashed Fury
Zac awoke with a jolt in an unfamiliar room that oozed grandeur and had a delicate feminine charm that could put even Cinderella's castle to shame. He glanced around in confusion, momentarily forgetting how he ended up in this palace of pastels and lace.
His eyes fell upon the enigmatic Clarisse, who sat perched on an ornate chair beside the bed, her eyes closed as if in peaceful slumber. But Zac knew better than to underestimate Clarisse, for she was no ordinary woman; she was a vampire, with heightened senses that could detect a mosquito's heartbeat from across the room. A squirrel's sneeze. She'd have that covered too.
Sensing the movement, Clarisse's eyes fluttered open, revealing crimson irises that could make any vampire swoon. "Oh, you are awake, Zac. Do you feel fine? Do you feel pain anywhere?" She bombarded him with questions, like a detective investigating the scene of a crime.
Zac, still dazed and dazzled by the room's extravagance and Clarisse's supernatural aura, mumbled, "I am perfectly alright," his voice a croak. Only after his confirmation did Clarisse's tense expression loosen, and her guard seemed to drop.
"Zac, after you lost consciousness, your little girlfriend went berserk," she said with an impish smile dancing on her lips.
Suddenly, Zac's eyes widened, and he patted his chest pocket in panic. "Bells, what happened?" he cried out to the part of Bella's soul residing in his Soulsea. His face bore a gravely worried expression, as if the world had lost its harmony.
Clarisse, taken aback by Zac's sudden frenzy, tried to reassure him. "Zac, Bella is fine. She is with Elise. They went to visit the library," Clarisse said with a hint of nervousness, fearing that she might not be doing a good enough job at calming him.
At the same time, unbeknownst to her, Bella was having a similar conversation with Zac from within the depths of his Soulsea. And both attempted to soothe Zac's frazzled nerves.
Zac breathed a sigh of relief, as though he had just found his long-lost puppy after a frantic search. "What happened after I was knocked out?" he inquired, his curiosity burning with the intensity of a thousand suns.
Clarisse, with her charming, almost ethereal beauty, continued her tale, "Well, after you were knocked out, uncle graciously let us out of the barrier. We had a rather animated discussion with Uncle, you see, because he had promised that he wouldn't harm you. Uncle insisted that he was merely testing your resilience and that you were simply knocked out, not a scratch on you."
Her scrutinizing gaze searched Zac's face for any signs of distress, but he remained unreadable. "We inspected you to ensure you were perfectly fine, and that's when Bella decided to make a dramatic entrance."
Clarisse paused at this point, her eyes glistening with suspense and anticipation.
"And then...?" Zac prodded, his curiosity reaching its peak.
"Well," Clarisse drew out the word, savoring the suspense. "Bella lost her miniature cool entirely. The pint-sized powerhouse suddenly grew to your size, and she launched into a full-blown assault on uncle. We were dumbfounded when she first sprang out of your pocket like a tiny tornado. Uncle tried to explain the situation, but Bella wasn't exactly in the mood for a heart-to-heart chat. She unleashed attack after attack."
Zac held up a hand to halt Clarisse's words. "That's enough," he declared firmly. "I'll get the rest of the story from her directly."
Clarisse nodded, thinking that Zac was planning to have a stern conversation with Bella later. But oh, was she in for a surprise.
"Bells, I distinctly told you not to reveal yourself. Why on earth did you jump out?" Zac inquired, his tone tinged with a mix of exasperation and affection.
Bella, her voice echoing from within the confines of Zac's Soulsea, replied with an air of guilt, "Well, I just lost it for a moment when I saw you like that. I couldn't help myself."
"Show me the footage of what had happened at the time," Zac ordered, his voice a mixture of curiosity and concern.
Bella hesitated for just a heartbeat, her holographic nod a dance of pixels and light. A virtual screen materialized before Zac, visible to him alone, as if it were a secret window into another world. Clarisse, seated beside him, was blissfully unaware, assumed Zac was merely contemplating his thoughts, little did she know the extraordinary spectacle unfolding before him.
The footage began to play, unfurling like a cinematic masterpiece.
Bella, the pint-sized dynamo, leaped out of Zac's pocket and expanded to her true form. She leaned over him, shaking him with a mix of desperation and frustration.
"Zac... Zac... Zac..." she called out, but the hero remained ensnared in his unconscious realm. Bella checked his vital signs, relief washing over her as she confirmed he was physically unharmed. But beneath her digital exterior, a tempest of emotions swirled.
Bella had long bottled up her anguish, a silent witness to Zac's torment during his dark days with the sinister Golden Circle. She had been a powerless observer, her nascent capabilities not yet awakened. As she watched Zac endure pain and suffering, her virtual heart ached, and she wished to intervene, to stand by his side. But she was merely an advanced program, an echo in the digital void, not a living being.
Now, in her newfound form, her dream had blossomed into reality, thanks to her master. She had a life, a body, and the power to protect Zac through his trials and triumphs. Her once-affable demeanor gave way to icy resolve.
Damien and the sisters were bewildered, their expressions reflecting a mix of shock and awe.
Damien's thoughts raced like a speeding train; his incredulous gaze locked on the pint-sized powerhouse that had materialized out of thin air. His mind churned with questions, like a detective piecing together an enigmatic puzzle. "Who is she? How did she suddenly appear? Is she related to Zac? That should be the case. But how did I not notice her until now when she is on the same level as Zac."
Organizing his thoughts into a coherent query, Damien finally decided to confront the enigmatic girl. With a voice that exuded a mix of authority and curiosity, he pressed her, "Who are you?"
In response, he received just a single word, delivered with a nonchalant gesture. The girl pointed her palm backward, her eyes still on Zac's unconscious body invoking the words "Icicle Sword."
The air around Damien came alive with a breathtaking display of power. Six ethereal ice swords materialized, swirling with malevolence, and launched a coordinated assault. Damien, relying on his superhuman speed, managed to dodge the initial wave, but to his surprise, the relentless storm of icy blades had no intention of relenting. Another six swords descended upon him, catching him off guard.
This time, he had no opportunity to evade as the ground had formed clutches around both his feet. The icy blades struck him, producing a barrage of sparks and a resounding thud. Although the swords failed to pierce his formidable skin, they left their mark, inflicting pain upon the unflinching leader of the Crimson Family.
While he toyed with the idea of unleashing his full power to subdue the girl, his pride and his sense of responsibility toward Clarisse and Elise held him back. He recognized that this young girl, with a connection to Zac, had every reason to be furious about his treatment of their beloved hero. Instead, Damien chose to engage her on an equal footing, hoping that by doing so, she would eventually come to understand their circumstances.
However, the girl's powers continued to amaze. As Damien attempted to lunge at her, he discovered his feet trapped, ensnared by the very ground beneath him. It was an unusual display of power – a "Dual Element," a rare feat that only a select few among the Vampire race could command.
As Damien mustered his considerable power, he channeled it into his foot, breaking free from the clutches of the ground's grasp. With an uncanny swiftness, he lunged toward Bella, determination etched across his face.
As Damien launched himself towards Bella, his muscles coiled with power, he watched in awe as she chanted, "Earthen Wall."
In an instant, a formidable barricade of mud and stones arose before him, a testament to Bella's elemental command. Undeterred, Damien unleashed his might, channeling it into his clenched fist, which smashed through the wall like a battering ram. The earth gave way, crumbling in his wake.
However, before Damien could capitalize on this moment, Bella's voice resonated once more, this time in dual chorus, "Earthen Wall, Earthen Wall." Two fresh barriers surged into existence, rising one after the other like a fortress built in the blink of an eye.
The power that had coursed through Damien's fist met its match with the third wall, a solid resistance that abruptly halted his advance. Like a bull charging into an unyielding stone wall, he crashed into it, and his movements ceased.
Then, in a twist of fate, three more walls ascended with stunning rapidity, forming a tight, confining square that enclosed Damien on all sides. Before he could escape through the top the top also became covered.
Panicking as he sought an escape, Damien's body began to radiate a warmth. The warmth turned to a searing heat, and then he was engulfed in flames as a fiery sphere materialized within the enclosure. The flames expanded rapidly, devouring every inch of space, and even Damien himself.
Amid the blaze, Damien's anguished cries pierced the air. "F***! A third element... first Zac, and now this little girl! Where the heck did these monsters come from?"
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