Prometheus' Orb (Legends of the Dark Creatures Book 1)
Chapter Twenty-Two: Ashley's Resolve

Everything was blurry when Ashley opened her eyes. She was lying on hard, wet soil and could hear something; rushing water. She was near the ocean. Icy cold raindrops drenched her body and her clothes and her hands and legs were tied with thick ropes. It didn’t hurt much but it was tight enough to hold her.

The last thing she remembered was Adrian and Richard. Her heart began to pound against her chest when everything started coming all back. Jacob was killed; killed by Adrian. Ashley remembered the look in Adrian’s eyes. When he pointed that bow at her she was sure he would release it. But then Richard intervened and then...

“It seems you’ve awoken little one,” a deep voice said.

That’s right.

Ashley squinted her eyes and the blurry image began to take shape.

That’s when she saw him; Sebastian. He held her shoulders, raised her upper body, and made her sit on the wet ground.

“I hope this feels more comfortable,” he said with a small smile.

Ashley didn’t answer. She was still lost in thought and getting a clear picture of her surroundings. She was at a familiar place; the cliff. This was her favorite place in the whole town. It was where she came whenever she wanted to be alone and it was also the place where she met Richard.

But this was also where Richard fought and defeated Ethan.

“What do you want with me?” she asked. It was a stupid question because she knew exactly what he wanted.

“You know what I want little one,” Sebastian said. It was raining but Ashley could clearly hear his voice.

Ashley turned her face to the object glowing in Sebastian’s hand. It was a glossy spherical orb with a glowing green cloud spiraling inside it.

“Is that Prometheus’ Orb?” Ashley asked.

Sebastian stretched his hand near her.

“The largest Ethren stone in existence,” he said. “Not many get to see it, let alone touch it.”

The Orb was glowing even brighter when it was close to Ashley.

“A unique specie,” Sebastian said. “The only one of your kind... The Orb recognizes you, Ashley Morgan.”

“You know my name because of Jacob, don’t you?” she said.

A spark of grief ignited in Sebastian’s eyes.

“The boy’s death was unfortunate,” he said. He sat next to her and began to speak.

“You are probably wondering why I am doing all this... Trying to awaken someone the whole world thinks is nothing but pure evil.”

“From what I’ve heard, all the realms consider Ethan evil,” Ashley replied.

Sebastian chuckled.

“Granted my master has never been what you may call a ‘people person’,” he said. “You know I was once like you... I used to hear the stories of the terrible Chimera even as a child. I belonged to a group of merfolk called Drifters. We were nomads but because of our belief that humans and merfolk could co-exist, we were usually shunned from society. When my father died I became the leader of the Drifters. I was gifted with power over the earth so I used my abilities to protect my people. You could say I had everything; good friends who I trusted with my life, a wonderful and caring wife and the most loving daughter any father could ever hope for. I remember one time I was working on my Earth Manipulation techniques and I didn’t notice that my little Serena was nearby. A boulder hit her and she was badly hurt. I rushed her to a healer and I was relieved when I was told that she would be okay. I made a promise to her that day; that never again would I ever hurt a child. Everything was perfect until Richard Thane happened.”

The anger and hatred in Sebastian’s aura sent a shiver through Ashley’s body.

“One day Richard came near our settlement. Everyone knew who he was, the Fire Demon who was said to be the only one who could defeat the Chimera. I went on land and welcomed him despite knowing what he was up to. Now I consider that act as the worst mistake of my life. Richard told me that he was looking for someone like me... an Earth Element Master. Element Masters are rare and Richard said that he was lucky to replace me. I asked him what he needed from me and that’s when he told me.”

“He wanted you to be one of The Ten,” Ashley said. She was now hearing the same story Richard told her but this time from someone else’s point of view.

“The Ten... living beings... chosen to sacrifice everything, including their souls, in order to destroy The Chimera and save the realms. I refused Richard’s offer. I had a family and I wasn’t going to give that up for anything. However...”

Sebastian raised his hand and a small rock rose in the air. When he began moving his fingers the rock started to change into a figure that resembled a sculpture of what Ashley could only call a demon. It had long sharp ears and teeth, bulging big eyes, and bat-like wings. Sebastian curled his hands into a fist and the sculptured demon crumbled into dust.

“We called them Lucviach but you might know them as demons. Two days after Richard’s visit hordes of them attacked a nearby underwater kingdom. My people had settled near the kingdom and some of the demons found their way to us. I did my best to stop them but they were just too many. Most of my kin died that day. My wife was also killed and my daughter would have been too if it wasn’t for Richard.”

“Since Richard couldn’t come underwater, he sent his allies who defeated the horde. One of those allies was Talya and she managed to seal the portal the demons used to enter our world. When I was taken ashore, Richard said that the leader of the kingdom was attacked because he had angered Ethan and that was how the Chimera punished all those who opposed him. I remember looking at my daughter’s eyes that day and in anger I chose to join Richard, making me the last one to be recruited.”

Sebastian stood up and said, “Well I am sure Richard’s already told you what happened next.”

“The ritual to create the dagger was performed,” Ashley said. “But Richard didn’t tell you about what would happened next and some of you died and had to leave the realm...”

“He lied to us!” Angry lines were forming across Sebastian’s face. “I had to leave everything behind me... Richard got what he wanted and I became a creature of darkness, consumed by blood lust. I left trails of bodies wherever I went and there were times when I just wanted to step into the sun and get reduced ashes. I couldn’t get out of the realm where Talya had sent me and the only thing that kept me going was the thought of one day seeing my daughter. But after ten years in that realm, I lost hope.”

“So one night I went up a mountain and decided I would wait until the sun came up... At least that’s what I would have done if he hadn’t shown up...”

“Ethan,” Ashley stated.

“I don’t know if you know this but in your eyes, Lord Ethan would just appear like someone of your own age. But trust me; he is more ancient than you can ever imagine. I didn’t know that back then so when he asked what I was doing on the mountain I ignored him. He sat next to me, stared into the sky, and said... nothing. There was silence between us for almost two hours until I couldn’t take it. I asked him what he wanted and he said, ′You have control over earth and yet you can’t even control your bloodlust... pathetic. How can you even call yourself an Element Master?′ ‘How do you know that? And what can a child possibly know about what I am going through?’ I replied. ′Try me,′ Lord Ethan said.”

“So I told him about everything. I didn’t know why I found it easy to open up to a total stranger but I was about to die so... Anyway, when I was done Lord Ethan did the most unexpected thing. He tapped his finger on the ground and my body, except my head, sunk inside.”

The malicious dark aura that Ashley had previously sensed from Sebastian had completely disappeared and was replaced by a bright and happy one. He was smiling widely and Ashley also felt her mood lightening up. It seemed like talking about Ethan made Sebastian feel much better.

I couldn’t use my earth techniques because my whole body was stuck and Lord Ethan said to me, ′At least now the ground will have some use for your body when your head burns. If you are so determined on giving up on your pathetic existence then don’t struggle. However, it means you won’t get the chance to exact your revenge upon the one responsible for all your misfortunes... me.’”

“I looked into the boy’s sharp dark eyes. I could see it; he wasn’t lying about who he said he was. When I realized that the boy standing beside me was the Chimera a profound power came upon me but unfortunately, I still couldn’t get out of the hole Lord Ethan had plunged me in. He told me that if I managed to free myself I would replace him at the peak of the mountain. And there I was... I tried moving my body but nothing.”

Ashley pursed her lips together and suppressed a laugh when she tried to imagine a grown man as big as Sebastian stuck in a hole.

“Ahem... Well, it was almost sunrise and luckily for me, I found a way to get out. I changed into my merform.”

“I thought you can only do that underwater or when I contact with pure, untainted water,” Ashley asked.

“That’s what I thought too. But it hit me back then... if, in our humans, we can manifest our claws, and fangs, sharpen our vision, increase our speed, and basic give ourselves some of the abilities we have underwater, why can’t we do the same for our tails? After concentrating hard enough I managed to change my feet into a tail and I used it to manipulate the element I command, I was out of the wretched hole just as the sun rose. I used my speed to reach the peak of the mountain and there I found Lord Ethan waiting. I could feel the sun behind my back and saw smoke rising as my skin burned. But even if I was going to die, I wanted to take the Chimera with me. So I attacked.”

“I don’t know what Lord Ethan did but everything for me went black. When I came to, I was still on the mountain. It was already sunrise but my body wasn’t engulfed in flames. Lord Ethan was next to me and before I attacked again he told me that he had turned the ring my wife gave me into a daylight ring.

Sebastian smiled. “I was shocked as you are now, Ashley. I simply sat down and asked him why he hadn’t just let me die, especially after I had just told him that I helped create a weapon that could defeat him. He never gave me an answer but all he said was, ‘You could take off that ring and be reduced to cinders for all I care but if you do choose to keep it then it means you will be indebted to me.’"

“Sounds like a deal with the devil,” Ashley said.

“It does, doesn’t it?” Sebastian replied. “Well Lord Ethan left and I choose to keep wearing that ring. For months, I tried replaceing him but it seemed he had left the realm. Then one day I was out roaming a certain town when I heard some of the local merchants talking about the earth realm. They noticed that I was from Earth and they asked me if I knew about the decree made by the Trarisian King, Thorus.”

“Trarisian?” Ashley asked.

“Trarisia was the kingdom that the demons had attacked back when I was a Drifter,” Sebastian replied. “I was told that Thorus had ordered the extermination of the Drifters.”

“Why?”

“I didn’t know back then but I asked my acquaintances what year it was on earth. 1225 AD was what I was told. Only forty-five Earth years had passed since I became a creature of the dark and it meant...”

“Your daughter... she still could have been alive,” Ashley finished.

“I searched for every possible way of getting out of that realm but no magic could prevent me from dying if I used any portal from there to Earth. For days I couldn’t sleep or even think about feeding; all that was on my mind was my daughter. But then one day, I was in a deserted town and there I met Lord Ethan. I ran to him, fell to my knees, and only asked one thing of him; that he save my daughter and if he wanted, my people. He looked at me and asked, ‘And what good will that do for me?’”

“If it were anyone I would have probably appealed to the goodness inside them but this was the despised Chimera. So I did the only thing I could think of; I offered myself to him. I would do anything he asked, go anywhere he went, kill anyone he wanted. I told him I would do it all if he could just save my power. But Lord Ethan lifted me by my neck and told me that he had no time to waste on petty things that didn’t concern him. He snapped my neck and when I woke up he was gone.”

“I stayed in that ghost town for months and did nothing. Maybe I was hoping that I would run into Lord Ethan again but no... he never came. With the little bit of strength, I had left I walked to a nearby town. I remember sitting like a beggar in the street when I heard yet another conversation from some of the town’s people. ′I was in the earth realm when I heard this,′ one said. ′The one they call the Chimera has wiped out an entire Trarisian army.’”

“I rushed over to him and grabbed him by his robe,” Sebastian said. “He was clearly shocked when he saw my pale, dissecting body; I had not fed throughout that time. By the way, I was in Arzyria... the realm where your friend Shira comes from. I asked the Arzyrian if what he was saying was the truth. Hesitantly, he told me that all the merfolk he encountered on Earth’s land were talking about it and he added to say that the Chimera had also killed King Thorus.”

A sigh of relief came out of Ashley’s nostrils. She didn’t know why but throughout the story, she was hoping that Ethan would save the Drifters and to hear this...

“I met Lord Ethan again in Arzyria,” Sebastian said. “This time it wasn’t by coincidence because he came to me and he wasn’t alone; Serena was with him.”

Though it was raining, Ashley was sure she saw tears flowing out of Sebastian’s eyes.

“My daughter,” he said. “She was so grown up but she jumped into my arms exactly the way she did when she was a little mergirl. My whole body was shaking and Lord Ethan just stood there staring at us. He left us but said he would be back in seven days. In those seven days, I told my daughter everything that had happened to me; both the good and the bad. She didn’t judge me for the wrong I had done and she greatly delighted in the good. I also found out that she was now married and had two children. She also told me that the reason why Thorus made that degree was that the Drifters had saved some humans who had almost drowned. But the humans were actually pirates and months later they captured and killed Thorus’s son who was known to be a wild adventurer.”

“Those seven days with my daughter made me feel alive... even as a dark creature. When Lord Ethan came back, Serena asked him if I could go with her. I wanted to but I knew that I being a dark creature would only bring trouble to her and her family.”

“Lord Ethan did, however, give me the key to the Earth-Arzyria portal. It’s a magical marker that can allow me to go through any portal from Earth to Arzyria or vice versa. I promised my daughter that I would visit once every few years.”

“And Lord... I mean Ethan, what happened between you two?” Ashley asked.

“I did what I vowed I would do,” Sebastian said. “I pledged my loyalty to him. ‘Suit yourself’ was what he said and for five Arzyrian years, I followed Lord Ethan everywhere he went. In those years, I discovered that the more you learn about Lord Ethan the more you realize how little you know about him. After five years, Lord Ethan one day left Arzyria but before he did he gave me a gift; something I’d rather not mention. I have never seen him ever since. I did visit my daughter from time to time and the last time I came to the earth realm was four hundred years ago to lay my great-grandson to rest. I left and told myself that I would never return. The thought of seeing the people you love leaving you was just too much to bear. But after hearing about how Richard defeated my master I just had to act... so yes Ashley, this is why I am here...”

Sebastian gently grabbed Ashley’s hand and a stinging pain coursed through her body when he used his claw to pierce her palm. He placed the Orb in his hand below hers and some of her blood fell on it.

“See, that wasn’t so bad,” Sebastian said.

A brilliant green light emanated from the Orb as Sebastian began to chant in a foreign language. The light filled the entire area. Ashley closed her eyes for a while and when she opened them the light had disappeared and now only the inside of the Orb was glowing. The green cloud inside it was spiraling violently as Sebastian moved away from her.

“Let me ask you this Ashley Morgan,” Sebastian said. “Why do you fight? Why are you trying to prevent Lord Ethan’s awakening? You don’t know him; you two have never even crossed paths. Do you only fight only because Richard told you that Lord Ethan is someone that needs to remain in his eternal sleep?”

Why am I fighting? Ashley asked herself. Why was she even here? The Chimera, the Orb, all this; why was she so quick to drag herself into all this?

At first, she just wanted to protect her family and friends from someone like Jacob; someone she knew was out for blood. But Ethan was a different story... Everyone said he was someone who would bring an end to the world and the realms but why hadn’t he done it all this while?

Questions were still building up in Ashley’s mind when Sebastian said something thing she would never forget.

“Oh, and before Lord Ethan left I asked him something,” Sebastian said. “I asked him why he had summoned that horde of demons to attack Tharisia and what King Thorus had done to him and do you know what my master said? ‘Sebastian... if I were to summon even one demon, it would lay waste to ten kingdoms in less than a day. I may have known Thorus from the rumors I had heard but the first time I met him was when I dismembered his head from his body.’”

“That’s what my master told me, Ashley,” Sebastian said. “So who do you think it was that sent those demons? Who do you think was responsible for the death of my wife?”

Ashley’s head was spinning. She knew what Sebastian was implying but her mind didn’t want to accept it. Her breaths were becoming short and her lungs felt like they would explode.

She remembered something that Shira told her.

Ashley was facing the ground when she said, “Instinct..."

"What?" Sebastian asked.

Ashley continued, "Shira once told me to trust my instinct. When danger is close by I can sense it but never once has Richard ever given me that feeling.”

She smiled and said, “I don’t know much about his or your pasts but I know myself. I know who I am... Should Ethan be awakened? Maybe... but my gut tells me that this is something I have to prevent. I personally have no hatred for him but I know that if he was to return, everyone involved in his defeat would be punished; Richard, Adrian, and the Hunters. Perhaps that’s not good enough to be a reason but...”

“I see,” Sebastian said. “Well, daughter of Morgan tonight we will leave things in the hands of fate.”

Ashley’s eyes opened wide.

“T-Tonight,” she said. “I thought you needed the solstice to activate Prometheus’ Orb.”

“And wait three more Earth days, no” Sebastian said. “Not when I can harness the power of the solstice that is happening in Arzyrian right this very moment.”

Ashley remembered Richard’s words.

“The last words she said to me were that someday I would meet a mermaid having the blue glow in her eyes and that on the Solstice that comes; she would be the key to Ethan’s return.”

“She never meant our solstice, did she?” Ashley said to herself.

“Hmmm... Well, I thought of using Earth’s solstice but time was running out and I had to act fast...”

“And how are you able to harness the power of Arzyria’s when you are not even there?” Ashley asked.

“Let’s just say that somewhere in this world there exists a very angry and powerful Sea-Witch with a will to see Richard destroyed by any means necessary.”

“Talya,” Ashley said.

“Who knows,” Sebastian replied with a smile on his face. “The Orb is currently connected to Arzyria. In about an hour, it will have accumulated enough power to do what it was made for. My master was defeated on this very cliff and it seems fitting that... ah... it’s ready... look, Ashley.”

The rain had almost stopped and Ashley looked in the direction Sebastian was pointing.

At a distance from where they were, the ocean waters were beginning to spiral into a whirlpool. Ashley’s eyes widened when the spiraling waters began to turn into blazing orange flames wide enough to cover a small stadium. Gusts of warm wind blew in Ashley’s direction and Sebastian said, “Prodeth... It seems like Talya held up her end of our deal. That’s the pocket dimension where my master lies asleep. Thanks to your blood, I will activate Prometheus’ Orb. As soon as it enters that portal it will absorb the magic in the dagger and...”

Thankfully Sebastian hadn’t noticed what Ashley had been doing this entire time. All this while Ashley was secretly concentrating on her lower body. Her legs... she had turned them into a tail, snapping the ropes that bound them. Hearing Sebastian’s story had given her this idea but she didn’t know it was a painful process. It was the first time she’d seen a mermaid tail. Her tail had shiny blue scales with different shaded that formed beautiful patterns across it.

After freeing herself, Ashley flapped her tail and controlled the water on the wet ground into a lasso which she used to grab Sebastian’s hand. She pulled him towards her and hit his jaw with her head.... which hurt her as well.

Her tail separated back into legs but surprisingly, her clothes were intact.

Sebastian got up and wiped some blood off his mouth.

Ashley gathered her strength and snapped the ropes tied to her hands. She stood up, took a defensive stance, and just as she was about to launch another attack, Sebastian projected a rock at her. She bent down, dodged it, and opened her palms. Ashley hit her palm on the ground and water began to cover her entire right hand.

She froze the water and dashed at Sebastian.

Sebastian blocked her punch and caught her hand.

“Impressive,” he said. “Your resolve is admirable but you are nine hundred years too young to fight me.”

“I was only distracting you,” Ashley said, smiling. Her free hand had controlled some water out of the ocean below the cliff. She raised her hand and aimed the water at her opponent.

Sebastian’s entire body was now enveloped in a ball of water. She controlled it into the air and held it there. Sebastian looked at her with shocked eyes. Inside the sphere of water, Sebastian couldn’t move. He was a merman so at least he could breathe.

Ashley opened her right hand and gracefully controlled the water in the sphere to get the Orb that was in Sebastian’s hand. A tendril of water grabbed the Orb and brought it to Ashley. A warm feeling coursed through her body when she held it.

Suddenly, fear dawned in Sebastian’s eyes. Even Ashley felt it. This presence... She looked behind and saw Richard. A shiver ran down her spine. His eyes were glowing orange, he had sharp fangs, and claws had extended from his fingers and ripped through his toes. Richard’s entire body was engulfed in flames, which had burnt parts of his clothes. Burning red cracks were all over his bare skin and everything near him was burning.

“Richard...” Ashley said.

Richard growled, immediately leaped into the air, and dove into the sphere of water. Ashley brought the sphere down, dropping both Richard and Sebastian. She knew what water did to Richard but it seemed like Richard himself didn’t care.

Richard and Sebastian got up.

Sebastian moved some distance away.

“The Great Fire Demon!!!” he shouted. “Well, it seems I have to resort to some of your own old tricks Richard Thane.”

Sebastian reached for his pocket and pulled out a small red crystal pentagon with sharp edges. Richard must have recognized it because he tried to run at Sebastian but he was too late for Sebastian had already cut his hand with the crystal and thrown it on the ground.

It was like an earthquake. The entire ground was shaking and Ashley saw veins of cracks beginning to form. Smoke began to rise out of them as they grew wider and spread all over the area.

“Ashley over here,” a voice shouted from behind.

It was Adrian. He was with three other Hunters; Ms. Hughes, a man with sharp green eyes and a short beard, and of course Sara. They must have followed Richard.

She ran to them.

“We have to keep them from reaching the town,” Adrian shouted.

“Them?”

Ashley then heard an animalistic sound coming from the huge cracks that had formed in the ground. Scaly wet hands shot out of them. Demons... Ashley recognized them from the sculpture Sebastian had made earlier.

They were much bigger in person and even scarier. The demons had large sharp teeth and claws, big yellow eyes, and scaly reptilian bodies. They also had tails with pointed ends.

Ashley quickly counted over fifty of them. Other demons were lifting themselves out of the cracks in the earth while some stood between them and Richard who stood on the other side with Sebastian.

“What is that?” Ms. Hughes asked, staring at the Orb in Ashley’s hand.

“I have no time to explain but we must prevent Sebastian from having it no matter what,” Ashley replied.

“Bring the Orb to me!!!” Sebastian shouted.

The demons began to walk toward Ashley and her friends, the ground vibrating as they moved. She looked behind and saw that the smoking red cracks in the earth had spread throughout the forest.

“More demons will be coming,” Adrian said. “I contacted the rest of the Hunters and they should be able to prevent the demons that may try to attack the town.”

Ashley couldn’t destroy the Orb and she couldn’t throw it into the cracks below because she would basically be handing it to Sebastian’s minions. If Shira were here, she would have just taken it from Ashley and teleported to a safe place. And where was Shira? Where was Claudia?

Sara, Ms. Hughes, and the other man looked like they were all ready to fight. Some of the demons had already attacked Richard. He was handling them fine but Sebastian was already coming at her.

This was it Ashley thought. There was nowhere to run.

“What are you doing?” Adrian asked as Ashley placed the Orb on the ground.

“I am making my stand,” Ashley replied. “Adrian, you and Ms. Hughes take the demons near Richard... We can’t fight Sebastian ourselves but Richard can. If we can turn the demons’ attention to us then maybe we might have a chance.”

“So you get a few powers and you think you can boss us around,” Adrian said.

“This is not the time Adrian,” Ashley replied. “Sara, and Mr...”

“Call me Slayer love,” the man said.

“Sara and Slayer... You guys and I are going to prevent Sebastian from having the Orb. It will activate soon and if it replaces its way into that portal over there then...”

Sara tapped Ashley’s shoulder and smiled.

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Ms. Hughes said.

“Morgan!!!”

It was Sebastian. Ashley and her team were now deep in the woods away from the cliff. She didn’t know how Richard was doing but she hoped he would be fine.

Sebastian was surrounded by eerie-looking demons. Like an army being led by its commander, the demons all walked in unison. Ashley could hear growls in some other parts of the woods but Adrian had said that some other Hunters would take care of those.

Ashley closed her eyes and pictured her little sister Leah, her mom, and her friends; Claire, Samantha, Luke, and Robert... She promised she would get strong to protect them. She had been training all this while just for this.

Clear sparkling water rose from the ground and froze into the shape of a sword. Ashley held the sword’s hilt, looked at the Orb that lay on the ground next to her feet, and chuckled.

Somewhere in the past. In a nice room and on a soft bed. A little girl was looking out her window, gazing at the stars and wishing she could be exactly what Ashley was right now...

A Water Element Master.

***

I won’t say much except...

The final battle has begun.