Raven's Dott Society Volume 3: Race to the Throne

[Will]

Chapter 1: The Return

(Will)indent I made up my mind. I took a deep breath. "I.... deny!" I answered. There was a moment of silence. I've had enough with demonic power. "I'll show myself to the door, now." I announced. No response. Slowly, a laughter began to sound. "Do you think you will live?!? You must be even more dense than Her!" the first voice cackled. I drew my blade. The darkness started to transform into eerie light. What was before me was truly an Eldrich Horror. It was a writhing mass of pure darkness and evil. And it wanted me dead. Out of nowhere, a tentacle shot out from it's body, and wrapped around me. I tried to cut with my blade, but I was immobile. "Ack! Let me down!" I shouted. "It's always more fun when they resist the change!" laughed the second voice. An antenna formed on top of the monstrosity, which glowed a sickly purple. I tried to wiggle out of its grip, but it was no use. "Someone, anyone, help!" I screamed. "Put him down!" ordered a familiar voice. The tentacle was severed from the body, and I was dropped. On a ledge, looking down from above, was Dr. Cox. "Don't tell me you forgot about me!" he laughed. The monster launched parts of its body flying at Dr. Cox, but he skillfully dodged each. "You'll have to do better than that! Will, I've got these chumps. You go do whatever you have to do. Tell Charlotte I said hello!" yelled Dr. Cox. I nodded, and ran through the door, locking it once I was out. I did it! I got past Them! I just hope Dr. Cox can get away... The room I was in now was a brightly lit tunnel, full of neon blues and whites. There was no one in there but me. I started my way down the tunnel. This tunnel feels... familiar. While running, I noticed something on the ground. Purple blood. That's when it hit me. This room felt exactly the same as the purgatory I was trapped in. Maybe they intertwine somewhere. I continued my run to find more blood on the floor. As I moved forward, the blood became increasingly fresh. I must be catching up with that impostor. I sped up my pace slightly. Eventually, the blood just stopped. A loud crash sounded far behind me. Is Dr. Cox still fighting?!? Maybe I should go back... but I have to keep moving! A loud roar sounded in the distance. I sped up my pace even more. The ground started to shake. I broke into a full sprint. I looked behind to see They were still chasing me. My adrenaline flowed through my veins, speeding me up even more. I dropped a few smoke bombs to disorient Them, but to no avail. They were even closer to me. They sent a shadow hand speeding toward me. Luckily for me, a door appeared a long stretch ahead. I made a leap forward, dodging the shadow hand, and ran through the door. I locked it, and stopped for a breath. I'm safe. For now.

Chapter 2: Now or Never

(Will)indent That door isn't going to hold for long. I quickly fixed up any injuries I had gained, and prepared my weaponry. Revolvers, check. Knife, check. Explosives, check. Ready to fight an Eldrich Abomination! "What the hell am I about to do?" I asked myself. The chances of me winning this are so small, I probably should just get a head start. If I still had that demon, I might be able to stun it or something. But while a human, a child none the less, I'm screwed. Let's just hope someone comes to my rescue. Again. The door began to rattle. I aimed my two revolvers at where the creatures head would be. I slowly backed up. The door burst open, stone flying everywhere. As the smoke died, I saw the creature that was about to hand me my ass. It was, in the simplest terms, a writhing mass of pure evil, darkness, and tons of tentacles. Combat Tentacles to the max. It's now or never! I opened fire on the head of Them, but there was no reaction. It slowly made its way toward me. I looked through my bag to find normal bullets, but they didn't work either. Damn, close combat it is! I equiped my knife, and charged. It dug its tentacles into the ground. The ground beneath me started to shake. I dived forward as the tentacles erupted where I was just standing. That would have hurt. I looked up to see another tentacle coming right at me. Pulling out my dagger to block, we reached a stalemate. My dagger must be ready by now! I looked at the gem to see it was indeed full. Frantically, I pressed the switch. Instead of sending me into overdrive, however, the gem exploded. Just my luck. I jumped backwards, and fumbled around in my arsenal for the purple gem. Putting it in, I saw it was somehow full. What is this thing going to do?!? I pressed the switch, and prepared for the worst. A purple aura formed around me. I don't feel any different... I lunged forward, and stabbed the monster. The aura left my body, and entered the incision. The area I had damaged began to dissolve. They moaned in agony. "What is this?!? We are invincible!" They cried. Apparently not to weird purple Deus Ex Machinas. Wait. How do I fill this one? I tried stabbing again, but the gem did not fill. Eh, it was nice while it lasted. All I can do now is run some more. Leaving Them to their pain, I sprinted down the hallway. The halls were beginning to grow darker... I hope I have enough torch materials. The ground began to shake again. They had snapped out of it. I sped up my pace. Eventually, lanterns began to appear on the sides of the corridors, that lit up as I passed them. The room continued to darken. Finally, I saw the end of the long hall. A large door, adorned with murals. There were 2 up there. The first was a young woman. It was split into four sections. The first, her surrounded by tombstones. The second, her levitating with the help of 2 shadow hands. The third, her sitting on a large, ornate throne. The final, her turning into ash. The other mural showed 4 sections, as well. This one was of a young man. The first section depicted him surrounded by other people, but all laughing at him. The second, he was cornered by 3 shadow hands. The third deeply disturbed me. It was Maxwell, sitting on the Nightmare Throne. The fourth section was unpainted. There seemed to be room for 2 more murals. The ground, by this point, had stopped shaking. I felt 3 presences around me. "You have done well in evading us. You are adequately strong." acknowledged the first voice. "You have shown the ability to be patient to earn greater things. You are intelligent." praised the second voice. "You have shown the ability to keep stable in dire conditions. You are prepared for insanity." whispered the final voice. This one, unlike the others, which had no gender, was obviously female. A lock appeared on the door. "The race begins on the other side of the door. The winner earns the throne. The loser perishes." explained all three voices, in unison. I held up the key, and plunged it into the lock. The door began to glow, and slowly opened. This is it. Into the end, I go.

[TheBunnymen]

THAT IS SO FRICKEN COOL!

[Will]

I'm glad to hear this!

[Will]

Chapter 3: I Meet Myself

(Will)indent Upon stepping through the door, I sighed in annoyance. The room was exactly the same as the one I had just left. I looked around. Someone is supposed to be waiting for me? I don't see anyone... Then a gurgling sound began to emit from the opposite side of the room. I turned around to see a black puddle of... something growing on the floor. I backed up, and drew my knife. Slowly, the substance began to take shape. In the end, it formed... me?!? "Ah, nice to finally meet you in person, Will. Or are you done with that, and want to be called by your real name?" laughed the doppelganger. This must be the demon that tried to kill Mallory and Landore! I took a step back, as I began to sweat in worry. "You wouldn't even begin to understand the power I now have! They simply told me to kill you, which was already my plan. After I get the throne, I'll be the ultimate being of darkness! And then, I can finally destroy that pathetic excuse of a being of darkness Landore! He made my existence hell, so now I will send him there!" cackled the demon. The room grew noticeably darker. "And don't think I've no plan for you, Will. I've heard that Charlotte is lonely, and could use a friend... I think you would fit nicely!" exclaimed... um... Dark Will. Sure, why not. "But for now, you can just lay on that floor in a pool of your own blood. I've got an old man to turn to ash!" laughed Dark Will. He raised his arm, and the area around me began to distort. I tried to move, but found I could not. My body began to feel as if I was on fire, and all of my bones were breaking. I screamed in pain as I began to pass out from the pain. No! I can't go down! I can't let him win! I slowly stood up. The pain grew much worse. "Stop fighting!" ordered the demon. "Never!" I retorted. The pain spiked immensely, and now was complete agony. Still standing my ground, I drew my dagger. " I won't let you hurt anyone else!" I screamed, as I threw the blade. He caught it in mid air. "Pitiful." he murmured, tossing it back. It landed in the center of my chest. I was knocked onto my back. Them was now full. I pressed the switch, hoping for a power boost. Instead, the pain ended. Everything was black. Slowly, I began to fade into a room. It was a hallway (big surprise) made out of purple brick. At the end was a single door. I walked towards said door, and opened the door to find the market place, except with purple brick instead of brown brick. It was loaded with people. I recognized a few of them. WeeJay, Wolfert, and a few others. I was drawn towards one booth.The Crock Pot. Sitting at one of the tables was four people. I gasped when I saw who was there. I recognized all but one. 1 boy, 1 girl, 1 man, and 1 woman. The man was Dr. Ludwig Van Dracruel, Landore's Grandfather. The woman was Mad Potatoes. The boy was... oh crap. The boy was Will from my fan fiction, The Observer.

Chapter 4: Dimension Hopping is Fun

(Will)indent Okay. So, a character I created is right in front of me. This makes no sense. Will I destroy the universe if I interact with him? I hope not, because I'm doing it. I slowly approached the table. I should probably speak to Ludwig first, since he is an associate of Raven. I cleared my throat. "Dr Ludwig Van Dracruel, I presume?" I asked. He looked up at me with a look that screamed , "Go away or I will kill you." Better get right to business. "This has something to do with Raven, Landore, and Maxwell." I explained. At the mention of his grandson, his expression immediately changed to annoyance. "What did he do this time that is about to doom all of us?" he asked. I'm sure he'll be happy to hear that I was the one to mess up, not Landore. "This cannot be said in public. I need to speak with you. Personally." I added. "Fine, just let it be quick." sighed the Doctor. Once we were alone, I sighed. I should be careful to be clear, I don't think he is in a good mood right now. "Long story short, a demon is about to take over the Nightmare Throne because I exist, and he has a nasty grudge against your family. Plus, he has been granted power by Them. Waclaw's soul has been taken, and I'm pretty sure I'm in the wrong dimension." I explained. He just looked at me in silence. "I'll see what we can do... I suppose..." he muttered. That was easy. We entered the computer room. "Let me take a blood sample." he ordered. After scanning my blood, he came to a conclusion. "Yes, you are in the wrong dimension. I can tell because you are basically a slow black hole. You should not be here at all, and are causing an imbalance. It has to do with the character you created. Who did you create, so we can keep you apart to slow it down?" he asked. "Will." I answered. "Ah, Will. He is one of our more... boring characters." Ludwig explained. He typed something on the computer. "I've prepared a way for you to return to your dimension, but it will take a while for it to fire up. Until then, stay as far away from Will as possible." Ludwig ordered. I nodded my head. He then saw the knife I was carrying. His mouth gaped open. "How did you get that?!?" he demanded. "I found in the hideout when I was in my mind." I answered. "That is one of the Sanity Blades. It has differing effects based on the Sanity Gem inside it. You seem to have the Emotion Gem. Do you know where the others are?" he asked. "The green one exploded." I answered. "The Stability Gem." he muttered. "And I threw away the Red Gem while I was in my mind." I added. He stopped moving. "You did what?" he whispered. Oh crap. "You imbecile! That was the Insanity Gem, the most unstable one out of the three! What if someone dangerous where to find it?!? Or even worse... if They got it!" he yelled. A sudden realization struck me. "Or what if a demon with powers granted by Them were to find it?" I muttered. Nice job breaking it, me.

[Will]

Chapter 5: Maxwell

(Raven Crow)indent Harlekin put his wait on me as we walked to the portal to the mortal dimension. Whatever Waclaw did to him is spreading extremely fast. Half of his torso was covered, along with his left arm. "Don't worry about me, Raven. I'll be alright. I think you should go after Will and Landore. They'll need you." suggested Harlekin. I shook my head. "Harlekin, I can't risk having this curse fully envelop you. We have no idea what it might do. It could kill you, or something much worse." I sighed. As much as I would like to chase after Landore, Harlekin was in danger. We finally made it to the portal. "I've set it to transport you to an uninhabited beach. The sun's rays should be strongest there. Now, I must chase after Landore." I instructed. The temperature in the room suddenly dropped, and a new, sinister presence joined us. Not him, not now! The transporter proceeded to suddenly burst into purple and black flames. Festive. I turned around to see him. The "queen" of the match. Maxwell. I set Harlekin down on the floor. "Maxwell, now is not a good time. I am very aggravated right now." I warned. A brief chuckle escaped from Maxwell's lips. "Oh, but I believe I could help you relieve some stress. And your friend over there. Is he alright?" he asked nonchalantly. "Leave Harlekin out of this." I ordered. "Oh, dear. This is really serious, isn't it? Well, I happen to have the medication he needs to cure his... problem." Maxwell informed. "You know, maybe Will might accept that, or even Dr. Cox, but you must know by now I am not as gullible." I retorted. "Isn't that adorable. The little eldrich abomination thinks it has a choice in this matter!" Maxwell laughed. I turned to Harlekin, and quickly helped him onto his feet. "You must really enjoy his company if you're going this far to protect him. I see the other one has been losing your appeal, letting him nearly be destroyed by a 14 year old boy with mental problems." Maxwell whispered. That's it. "You stop talking about Landore now." I growled. Harlekin had passed out by this point. I set him back down. I pulled out my scissors, and filled them with power. "Well, I hate to break it to you, but I'm afraid I cannot fight at this very moment. I have a... different, younger, and, to be honest, promising individual to deal with. You know, monarchy business." Maxwell informed. He checked his nonexistent watch, gave a good slasher smile. "Oh, I almost forgot. Here is the cure to your friends problem. With this, it will accept him. Sanity and evil don't tend to work well together, now do they?" Maxwell laughed, as he sank into a portal of darkness. I turned to the other Transporter to see it had been rendered useless. It had been slashed multiple times with a knife. I turned back to Harlekin to see the curse had nearly spread over his whole body. Only half of his face remained. "Very well then, Maxwell. I see turning people against others is still your specialty. I'll just have to play along... for now." I sighed.

Chapter 6: End of A Dimension

(Will)indent "So Will is of little use and you are extremely incompetent. What a wonderful combination." Ludwig stated. "Well, excuse me for throwing away something that made me go on murdering sprees for using it!" I retorted. "Oh, and you also used it a few times! That's even better; you'd think if something does that once, you'd want to stop using it!" he yelled. "I'm sorry that I've ruined everything! But right now, I've got to leave so I can fix it!" I shouted. "I'm afraid that won't be happening today." chuckled a new voice. Great, today keeps getting better and better! In a gush of purple fire appeared: guess who! Maxwell! I unsheathed my dagger. "I've got you now!" I yelled, rushing towards him. I leaped up, and stabbed at Maxwell. He held out his hand, and a dark cloud formed around me. I hoisted upwards, immobile. "Foolish boy! You dare make an attempt on my life?" Maxwell demanded. I threw my dagger. Maxwell caught it in between his fingers. He pulled a red gem out of his coat pocket. "I do believe you are looking for this?" he laughed. He swapped the gems, and pricked his finger. The dagger was instantly full. He removed the gem again, and threw the dagger on the ground. He then proceeded to evaporate it with dark magic. Maxwell produced a hollow amulet from under his coat, and inserted the gem. "There we go, nice and snug. Now; I end this wretched dimension." Maxwell stated. I fell to the ground. I looked toward Ludwig to see why he wasn't helping to see him helping the girl, other Will, Mad Potatoes, WeeJay, and Wolf-Hound through the portal. Escape is the only option, I see. I threw a rock at Maxwell to distract him as I leaped into the portal. Everything went black for a small window of time. I awoke to find myself in the hallway where Dark-Me had stabbed me with my own dagger. On my chest was the other dagger, with a blue gem inside it. I thought there were only 3! Oh well, I don't have time to wonder about convenient plot holes! I have to stop that demon! I got to my feet, to hear someone clearing their throat behind me. I turned to see Landore, Ludwig, and Mallory, and the girl. "Landore! Mallory! You're both okay!" I exclaimed. "No thanks to you." Mallory chuckled. The girl elbowed Mallory. "Jeez, Storm. Sorry for using sarcasm." Mallory muttered. So that's stormfront. "Will, we've all decided that we need to help Raven. That is, except for stormfront. She's going with you to ensure you get to Maxwell. Don't worry, she's one of our more versatile fighters." explained Landore. Stormfront stepped forward. "Shall we?" she asked. I nodded. "Good luck, Will. You are going to need all of it." Mallory shouted from down the hallway. I certainly will. You see what I did there? I'm here all day, folks. We turned, and began our run to catch up with Dark-Me. "So, how does the Will in your dimension act?" I asked. "He's very quiet, but very passionate about what he cares about. He also is excellent at ax throwing. And fast." answered stormfront. There was a moment of silence. "Am I going to die?" I asked. She hesitated. "Yes." she whispered. "I... I see." I muttered. Tears began to roll down my face. "Are you?" I asked. "It's up to it." she responded. I don't like the sound of that. "Mallory's really nice." I put out. My voice was beginning to shake. "She's feisty, but has good morals." stormfront noted. I realized that stormfront was about my age. "I'm sorry if I do anything horrible." I whispered. "Best not to think about that." she responded. From that point on, we remained silent. We had spoken our final words to each other.

[Ellebelly24]

I LOVE IT!!!! So fluently written! This is priceless!

[Will]

Chapter 7: Cure

(Raven Crow)indent I heard the door behind me slam open. "Raven, Harlekin! We're here to help!" announced Landore. Behind him was Mallory and Dr. Cox. He knelt down, and opened his necrobunnicon. "I need to draw out the toxins, someone get a container from his bag!" he ordered. Mallory fetched a beaker from the bag. As Landore's hands begun to glow, a dark brown liquid began to fly from Harlekin's shoulder, and into the beaker. Soon enough, the the beaker was full, but Harlekin was still not back to normal. Another beaker was gotten. The shadows began to withdraw back into the area Harlekin had been attacked. Harlekin's eyes then opened. "L-Landore?" he asked. "Everything is going to be fine, Harlekin." Landore responded. Harlekin let out a sigh, and went unconscious again. Finally, the toxin had been fully removed from his body. "Now we just need to treat the wound itself." Landore sighed in relief. He wrapped the wound after placing antibiotics on it. "There we go. He should be fine now." Landore explained. "Now, I do believe it's time to rally the militia. Will and stormfront aren't going to be able to get to the throne by themselves." I announced. Everyone agreed strongly. We searched the whole building, gathering anyone still left. We had only found WeeJay and Wolfert. Ludwig returned to tell us, to his sorrow, their dimension had, indeed, been destroyed by Maxwell. No one else was alive. "Damn him... he'll get what's coming to him soon." I muttered. We made our way to the door. We all pulled the switch, and found ourselves where Will and stormfront had begun their race to the throne. "Well, then. Shall we begin?" I asked. A loud chorus of "Yes!" sounded. "Leeeet's do it!" shouted Mallory, as she charged forward. We all made our way down the hall, to the end of cause. The end of Maxwell, and the rebirth of William Carter.

Chapter 8: Friends

(Will)indent We came upon another door. "Holy ****, how many doors are in this place?" I asked. "Maybe the architect had a fetish?" suggested stormfront. "I've finally met someone with the same sense of humor as me!" I cheered. We pushed the door open, not knowing what was on the other side. Of course, it was just more hallway. And lanterns. "Well, wasn't that anti-climatic." I sighed. Pushing forward, we exchanged no idle conversations. I then heard footsteps behind us. Many, almost a crowd. I saw seven figures coming our way from behind. stormfront had caught on, too. We both drew our weapons. "First fight. Let's see what you can do." I whispered to stormfront. Out of the shadows came the figures. I gasped once I saw them. They were... my friends. We both dropped our weapons, and stormed forward to greet them. I ran immediately to Mallory. "I'm so sorry I made you think I was dead!" I apologized. She hesitated. Then a smile broke out on her face. "It's okay, pretending to be dead is one of the many perks of our line of duty! That's how I get my vacation hours!" she whispered. I'm going to pretend I didn't just hear that! I turned to Raven. "I'm so sorry for what I did..." I muttered shamefully. "Fine, whatever. Just don't hug me or anything, Landore would kill you if you got it dirty." sighed Raven. That's the bitter humor that I've been missing. I turned to Landore. "It's okay, you don't have to apologize. You're young and reckless. Just like a certain imp..." he chuckled. "Hey!" shouted Mallory. We all shared a good laugh. I turned to see stormfront was doing the same with the others, in their own little group. Something was... missing, though. That's when it hit me. Where was the other Will? Eh, I'm not supposed to be around him, so maybe he's back at home base. "Okay, enough catching up. We've got a throne to storm." Raven announced. Stormfront and I gasped. "You mean you guys are coming with us?!?" I questioned. "Of course, you didn't honestly expect to get there by yourselves." Ludwig sighed. "No! Maybe...So?!?" stormfront retorted. "Anyway, we need to get moving." Raven ordered. We resumed our sprint to the end. Maybe, we might have a chance!

I'm sorry about the short chapters this time, but it will be made up for the fact that the next few chapters are going to long. Very long. Thank you for staying with me for so long, and supporting my stories! Feedback, whether positive or negative, is welcome!

[Will]

Chapter 9: Interruption

(Will)indent "Why is this hallway so long?!? What purpose does it serve?!?" I shouted in between breathes. It felt like we had been running for hours. The hallway looked the same at every point. No landmarks, just tables with lamps on them every 7 feet or so, and the ground. Nothing. Else. "Okay, I suggest we stop for a moment. Something is wrong. It feels like we are going around in circles!" suggested Landore. I couldn't agree more. We all slowly stopped, and Landore opened his dark book of adorable-evil. "Let's see... no, not that... no... ooh, I'll save that for later.... Here we go!" announced Landore. He pulled a quill out from in between the pages, and pricked his skin. With the blood, he scratched a note in his book. The shook for a moment, and the lamps went out. The lamps went back on to reveal a door not too far ahead of us. "Well, back to jogging." I muttered. We slammed the door open, and all gasped. Except for Raven. Behind the door was Maxwell. "I expected as much. We figure out one trap to spring another. What is it this time, you ****?" Raven asked. "Oh, nothing much. Picking up some rent, and escorting some visitors out of my house." Maxwell responded casually. I have to admit, I do admire his personality. At least he's a suave villain, and not some beef-head. "Rent? From who, and on what?" questioned Raven. "You know, you are not ageing well. First, you fall for the old never-ending hallway trap, and now you don't know who I'm collecting from. It's the child." Sighed Maxwell. "Excuse me? I owe you something?" I asked. "No, I just enjoy taking things from people. Of course you me something, and something very important at that!" chuckled Maxwell. At that point I began to back up, as well as draw Waclaw's revolvers. Raven drew his scissors, and got in between Maxwell and me. "I'm sorry, Maxwell, but all debt is null and void. I won't let you make him yours." Raven growled. "Make him mine? You must be crazy to think I would want him! Look at him! He's pathetic! I bet he couldn't defeat any of my minions one on one without any help!" Maxwell laughed. "I want to make him useless to you!" Maxwell explained. Okay. I can take being cheated out of a major chunk of my life. I can take all of this psychological trauma, but that is where the line is crossed. I have been called useless one too many times! I loaded Waclaw's revolvers, and jumped in front of Maxwell. "You and me!" I demanded. "Will, get back here!" Raven ordered. "No! I'm done being called useless! If I'm going to take the throne, I need to be strong!" I retorted. "Yes, Raven. And besides, even if he does lose, I promise not to kill him." Maxwell assured. Normally I would have backed off when I heard Maxwell say that as if killing me would be nice compared to what he was going to do, but I was enraged. Maxwell snapped his fingers, and a translucent, purple, circular wall appeared around me and Maxwell. Oh boy, I should not have done this. What was I thinking?!? I can't beat Maxwell!

Chapter 10: Hopeless Fight

(Will)indent I pulled out both of Waclaw's revolvers, pointing one at Maxwell, and the other at the wall. I have to break that wall down before he kills me! Maxwell snapped his fingers, and in a puff of black smoke, a Dark Sword entered his grasp. He began to walk towards me, sword outstretched in one arm, and the other arm behind his back. I fired a shot at Maxwell, but he was unfazed. I began to unload Waclaw's other revolver on the wall, but no fracture appeared. Damn, I'll have to find another way out! Drawing my dagger, I dived to the left to dodge Maxwell's swing. In my new position, I saw Landore and Raven reading through the Necrobunnicon, most likely looking for a way out. I've just got to stall Maxwell so they can bust open the wall! I guess it's time to see what this blue gem does! Upon activating the gem, the dagger morphed into a short sword. "You think your little toy dagger is going to save you? You must be mad!" laughed Maxwell. I jumped toward Maxwell, and brought my sword down overhead. I looked up to see he had easily side stepped. Before I could respond, he sent me flying with the hilt of his sword. "Maybe if you want to live, you should stop telegraphing your attacks." suggested Maxwell in a sarcastic manor. He's right, that was too obvious... That's it! He expects me to use my sword! I drew my bow, and fired arrows at Maxwell's head. It's so big, I couldn't possibly miss. Maxwell raised his sword to block the arrows with ease. I need to shoot in different areas! I loaded another arrow, and fired at Maxwell's groin. Almost immediately after, I shot another arrow at his head. Luckily for me, becoming a demon doesn't mean losing certain... parts. As expected, Maxwell defended his groin, with no time to block the shot to his head. The arrow pierced his head, and Maxwell fell to the ground. I dropped my bow in surprise. "Did I just... kill... Maxwell?" I gasped in shock. After no one responded, including Maxwell, I began to literally jump for joy. "He's dead! I've done it!" I cheered. I noticed a distinct lack of sarcastic remarks from the crowd, and turned to face them. That's when I realized that Maxwell, was in fact, not dead. Outside of the wall was pure black. I turned back around to see the arena had expanded to a drastic scale. Grabbing my bow, I prepared myself for a, "I underestimated you" speech. I looked up into the scaffolding to see a lone figure standing upon them. I noticed something fall off of them, and ran to see what it was. It was a pair of... glasses? Maxwell doesn't wear glasses.... Looking up again, I saw the figure now had bright red eyes. Oh crap. Bright red eyes always means bad! I quickly ran to the edge of the arena, keeping my eyes on the figure. Once I reached the edge, the figure slowly floated down to the ground. Upon reaching the ground, it began to quiver. It then began to balloon in size, growing grotesque. I looked upwards in horror as the darkness shot off of the creature to reveal a giant, dark purple rabbit. Wait, rabbit? That seems sort of... off. It let our a huge roar that sent me flat against the wall. Isn't this going to be fun.


Life, it makes me take time away from fun stuff!

[Will]

Chapter 11: Bunzilla!

Willindent I rose to my feet, and took aim with my bow. Go for the eyes, I thought to myself. Reaching toward my quiver I realized it was empty. Great. I opened Waclaw's revolvers to see they were out of bullets, and I didn't have the ability to make energy bullets. Time to go Shadow of the Colossus on this... "Run!!! It's Bunzilla!" I shouted to no one. Bunzilla turned its head toward me, as if surprised that my spine wasn't broken. It began to slowly shuffle toward me, with no sense of urgency. After all, I was tiny compared to it. Unsheathing my new short sword, jumped onto the abominations foot. I then proceeded to stab it. Bunzilla lifted his foot up to see what caused the pain, which gave me the chance to leap to its arm. I pulled out my makeshift parachute, and jumped to the arm. As I glided, I realized I was falling faster than I expected I would. Oh crap. Looking around, a crazy idea came into my head. I ended up gliding right below the hand, and whipped the cloth around a finger, and hoisted myself up. Climbing on the outside of his arm, I made my way to his shoulder. That climb was rough, I do not want to do it again. Looking up, I saw a solution. I grabbed my grappling hook, and attached it to the scaffolding. I let the rope hit the floor. There we go, now I just have to climb a really... long... maybe that wasn't such a smart idea. Now, for the eyes. I ran along the shoulder of Bunzilla to its neck. Before I began climbing, its hand came up to sweep me off. I jumped up, and grabbed hold of the back of its neck. Once it was done trying to grab me, I stood on top of its head. Wait, why go for the eyes when I can just end it by going for the brain? I activated the gem again for the sword to extend more. Now it was more of a light clay-more. This will work. I raised the sword up, and stabbed down. I heard a wet thunk, and felt the sword go in. Deep. Abandon ship! I jumped off with my parachute toward the rope, and caught on. The monster fell to the ground, causing a loud shock-wave. I slowly went down to rope. How am I going to get that thing down? Right as I asked that question, the scaffolding... vanished. I jumped to the side as the hook fell to the ground, breaking into pieces. I wiped the sweat off of my face, exhausted. I hope I'm done... I can't do much more. And of course, the ground began to rumble. Bunzilla was shrouded in darkness, as it began to spasm and shrink to a slightly smaller size. Parts of the ground began to fall away, leaving a few circle platforms. I looked back at where Bunzilla was to see he was gone. Out of the darkness flew a giant serpent. Oh, god dammit. How am I supposed to kill that?!? It re-entered the darkness, preparing to probably eat me. I only I had arrows and bullets, I might be able to win...

Chapter 12: Defeat

(Will)indent I quickly jumped to a new platform to confuse my enemy. I looked around for anything I could use as a weapon... when genius struck. I pulled out some of my sticks, and tied bombs to them with grass rope. I then used my used-to-be-a-clay-more-but-now-a-knife knife the create a notch so it could be loaded onto my bow. This is going to be hard to shoot, but it's my best option. The serpent rose from the darkness, and crashed onto the platform I was once on. I lit the fuse on one of my "bomb arrows", and shot it into its mouth. Luckily for me its mouth was huge. Smoke gushed out of its mouth as it roared in agony. Jumping to a new platform, I prepared a new arrow. The creature ascended, and was met with another arrow. Upon being shot, it shot out 3 smaller serpents into the darkness. I jumped to a new platform. To my horror, in mid-jump, one of the small serpents intercepted me, knocking me off course. I felt myself land on the main serpent. Now's my chance! I dove my knife into the head as many times as possibly. All barely went in, as the surface was too rough. The serpent's tail rapped around me, and held me to its eyes, and it was... captivating. It looked me from head to toe, and then I felt the most curious sensation. I felt as if I was sliding down a tube, and the walls of the tube was a dark purple. I landed back in the original arena where I fought normal Maxwell, and everyone was there. I turned to see Maxwell, looming before me. I tried to move, but it felt as if I was in bounds. "Um, Raven, Landore, please get this barrier down! I don't really want to die just yet! I still have more jokes!" I pleaded. "We're trying! It is resisting!" Landore shouted in desperation. Maxwell looked at me from head to toe. He lifted me up my the collar of my shirt, and threw me against the wall. "Pathetic. And to think I hoped you could replace me." he growled scornfully. I tried to move once more, but I still felt constricted. Maxwell grabbed hold of his Dark Sword, and lifted it above his head. I looked up in pure terror. The sword came down, and I closed my eyes in fear of the pain. "Will! No!!" cried Mallory. I opened my eyes to see I was not dead, or anything of the sort. My bonds were cut. Maxwell threw his sword to the side, and looked me in the eye. The barrier came down, but everyone was pushed far back. "I said I would make you useless, but I have changed my mind. I really am going to kill you." Maxwell whispered. A spear of shadow appeared in his hand, and he raised above his head. A blur of gold smacked into Maxwell's head, and he fell. He had impaled in the head with a... golden ax. "Can't let you do that, Maxwell." said a new voice. I turned to see... Will(3)*?!? "Will(3)! You're alive!" shouted stormfront, as she ran to him. "Yes, I'm fine. I go missing for an hour or two, and everyone thinks I'm dead. Am I really that wimpy?" he asked. stormfront replied with a pleasant no, but Ludwig expressed everyone's thoughts. "Yes." Will(3) walked over to me, and extended his hand. I hesitated for a moment. What if this messes up the dimensions?!? "Don't worry, we are in-between three dimensions. Nothing will happen." Will(3) assured. I took his offer, and he helped me up. We all turned to Maxwell to see he was gone. "I guess he is back on his throne." I thought out loud. No response. "I guess we should go further?" I asked. "Well, Maxwell just got axed, so I guess we can take a small break." Raven sighed. We all broke into the cheer, except for me. This is going to be my last meal isn't it? That's how these things work...

4 chapters in a few hours, oh my!

[Raven Crow]

Bunzilla,how did you know that is one of landore's necrobunnicon ultimate summoning?

[Will]

Bunzilla,how did you know that is one of landore's necrobunnicon ultimate summoning?

Lucky guess on my part, I presume.

[Battal]

Haha! Bunzilla? These are fantastic!

[Will]

Chapter 13: The Throne is Taken

(Will)indent Will(3) walked up to me. "I want you to have this." he said. In his hand was a syringe full of purple liquid. "Um, what is it?" I asked. "It is a watered down batch of Monster Juice. It will turn you into a powerful monster, but only for a small amount of time. Use it only if the other option is someone's death." he warned. I stared at the syringe a few moments before taking this. I've not always been a big fan of needles. Our rest quickly ended, and we continued are sprint. It was during this that I thought to myself, how far ahead is that doppelganger? For all we know, he could already be there. I guess we just have to hope he is somehow behind us. A door appeared down the hall. This one was much more ornate and foreboding than the others, however. Is this the end? Have we made it? "Okay, everyone. We've made it to the throne room. We just have to get to the throne, and plug in that key." announced Raven. I slowly pushed open the door, and nothing happened. No trap, just the throne room. Suddenly, the room began to shake, and a menacing laughter sounded throughout the room. "Oh, ****!" I yelled, as I ran toward the source. Not after too much running, I came upon a terrible sight. The Nightmare Lock unlocked, and a pile of ash in front of the throne. Standing to its side was the doppelganger. I pulled out Waclaw's revolvers, and shot all of my remaining bullets at the demon, but they fell to the ground. He sank into the ground, and re-appeared on the chair. The group caught up, and looked in dismay. Wait, I've got a key, too! "Prepare for your reign to end before it begins!" I laughed in victory. I ran toward the lock, and jumped into the air to slam the key into the lock. Before I could land, I was sent flying backwards. "Shut it, Hannibal." he ordered. "Now, that I've won, its time for your consolation prize. A trip home." he announced. What?!? Home?!? Not now, I'm so close! I stood up, key in hand, and charged. "Will, stop!" Raven yelled, but it was too late. A portal had opened in front of me, and I ran right into it. On the other side, was... my room. "No.. no, no, no, no!" I whispered to myself. Then, I noticed something was wrong. Terribly wrong. All of the electronics were off, dust was everywhere, and there was no noise. I slowly opened my door to reveal... oh god. The rest of the house was in ruins, and outside... The ground was all different shades of white and grey, and the sky was a sick purple. Everywhere were these... eyes, attached to the ground, trees, houses, you name it. There were only a few in the house. Oh no. I burst into my brothers room to see it was like the rest of the house. There was a purple liquid all over his desk. I looked on his bed to see... blood. Please don't be his... I rushed downstairs into my parents room to see there was much more purple liquid, and there was blood everywhere in the sink in their bathroom. I searched the house to find no bodies. What happened here?!? I reached for my knife to find it was gone. All of my equipment was gone. Except one piece. The syringe. I hope I won't need it. I have to find someone. Anyone. This can't be happening...

Chapter 14: Death and Ruin

(Will)indent I opened the front door, and walked outside. There was a foul smell in the air, and the temperature was chilly. On the street was much purple liquid and blood, mixed together. I opened the garage to find that our cars where gone, and most of the tools looted. The only thing left was a small ax. I need to arm myself. I decided to test my luck, and shout for help. "Hello?!? Anyone?!? I'm all alone!" I shouted. Many ear piercing shrieks responded. I readied my ax. The doors on the other houses broke open as what I can only describe as terrible abominations ran toward me. They were almost humanoid... They had long claws, and had what looked like the bottom of a purple octopus for heads. Their bodies were studded with the eyeballs. I ran back inside, and tried to hold the door, closed, but they all burst in. I distanced myself, and threw my ax and the hoard. With what time it gave me, I readied the syringe, and injected the liquid into myself. I immediately felt lightheaded, and fell to the ground. I looked at my hands to see the skin turning pitch black, and I began to form claws. My whole body began to severely throb in pain as the transformation took place. When it was finally over, I drove into a carnage, slashing into what ever I could kill. They tried spitting acid at me, but it felt like water. They tried the strangle me, but I had no need for air. They tried to rip into my body, but my flesh was rock hard. As each one died, the eyes on their bodies closed and fell off, revealing what I had first thought. They were previously humans. Soon, all of the monsters were dead, and the effect of the syringe wore off. I pulled my ax out of the corpse of on of the monsters, and heard more footsteps behind me. I turned to see the most horrifying image of my life. My family shambled toward me, covered in those eyeballs. They still were obviously recognizable. I took a step back. "No... not you guys... please, no..." I whispered. I felt the hot tears coming down my face. "I can't... no... why.. who would.." I muttered. I fell to my knees, sobbing in horror and sorrow. I didn't notice them advancing, nor would I have cared. There was no worth left in my life. Those mot important to me where as good as dead. The surrounded me, and began to bore down. I heard a loud tearing sound, and then three thuds. I looked up to see Waclaw. "W-W-Waclaw?" I whispered in between sobs. He helped me to my feet. "Will, I cannot express how sorry I feel for what you have just witnessed." he whispered. "S-Sorry? Sorry?!? My whole family is dead, and I have no one else in the world! How would you know how this feels?!? To lose everything?!?" I yelled. "Because I have." Waclaw responded dryly. "You don't know? I was an orphan, and my sister was all I had. Her name was Anna, I believe. One day, she just... died. I was lost, and made some bad choices." Waclaw muttered. Oh god. "I am so sorry, I didn't know..." I whispered. "Don't be. You just went through something no one should have to." he stated. "Now, let's get out of here." Waclaw offered. "No, not yet. I need... to make sure they are safe." I responded. We brought their corpses out back, and lit them up. "I'm ready." I informed. "You can save them. You will find a way." Waclaw said sternly. "Let's go." he said, as we left my world.

[Battal]

Even after all thee years, I can't figure out why you mortals take death so seriously...This is quite an entertaining story.

[Will]

Chapter 15: Third Time's the Charm

(Will)indent I awoke in the area I fought Raven at. Upon coming to my senses, I looked to my side to see Waclaw. Hasn't he woken up yet? I poked him, but no response. "Waclaw, wake up." I whispered. I began to shake him. "Waclaw, wake up!" I ordered. Still no response. "Waclaw, wake up! Please!" I pleaded. "Don't leave me alone..." I whispered. Placing my hand on his wrist, I checked for a pulse. Nothing. "No... please, not now... I need you!" I begged. Laying him on his back, I attempted CPR. He did not stir. I could feel my face was wet with tears. "Someone! Anyone! I need help!" I cried, to no response. I quickly stood up, and ran around the building, looking for someone. I found myself in the teleporter room, above Harlekin's body. Checking his pulse, I found he was alive. "Harlekin! Please, wake up! Waclaw.. he's... he's..." I shouted. Harlekin did not stir. "Harlekin! Please! I need someone!" I pleaded once more. He failed to awaken. I can't be alone! Not now! "Harlekin!" I screamed, but to no response. I got up once more, and ran through the hallways, looking for help, but no one else was found. The pain began to resurface. "Oh god, not again! I killed that second one!" I gasped. Before I could find a weapon, I began to grow dazed. I fell to the floor, unconscious. Yet again, I awoke in the dark version of the hideout. Yet, something was... different. I didn't feel that foreboding feeling as usual. An idea came to mind. If Landore could seal the demon inside me, what was stopping me from doing it? I just have to somehow incapacitate it. As I looked around for a weapon, the splashes began to sound. The hunt has begun. Turning a corner, I ran down the corridor, looking for any way to defend myself. Upon seeing nothing, I fled down the passage to the right. Still nothing! The splashes were getting louder and more frequent. Running further down the passage revealed I had met a dead end. Oh, come on! Not again! Turning, I sprinted back down, hoping to get out of this hall before the monster found it. To my horror, the other end closed off as well. I was trapped. The splashes began to slow. It did not need to exert itself, as I had no escape. I turned, expecting to meet a terrible horror. There was... nothing. I was then pushed down by an unseen force. On top of me, was a sort of shadow lizard type creature. It raised its hand to strike me down. In mid-swipe, I grabbed its wrist. Pushing as hard as I could, I kept its hand of death from harvesting my blood. At the peak of my adrenaline, I pushed the monster off of me. I ran forward, and attempted to pin it, but sent my flying with its spacial magic. Upon hitting the wall, I felt my right arm break, the bone breaking through the skin. Seeing I was incapacitated, it crawled toward me. As it raised its arm once more, I made a last minute attack. I stabbed my broken bone into its stomach. We both screamed in agony as we fell into a pool of our mixed blood.

Chapter 16: Saved By My Enemy

(Will) indent My vision began to blur, as I felt all of my injuries finally catching up on me. Looking to my side, I saw the demon was struggling to move. "You... ruined... everything..." I whispered. There was no sign of it hearing me. Is this really how I'm going to die? Blood loss? I thought I'd at least make to the the throne... "Say pal, you don't look so good." said a voice that was strangely familiar, and unknown at the same time. Someone was standing next to my head. I looked up to see who it was. Shocked is far from what I felt. It was none other than William Carter. "Are you dead? You look rather dead..." he asked in a worried tone. "No, I'm not dead, but I'm about to be." I replied." Carter walked to the monster, and nudged it with his shoe. "Is he dead?" he inquired. "Sadly, no. Is there anything else that is going to delay you saving my life?" I retorted. "Well, if you are going to be that way, I'll just leave you to bleed out." Carter sighed. "Wait, no! I'm sorry, just please save me!" I shouted. "Gets them every time..." he muttered. He squatted down, and gave me a good look over. "Well, your ulna is protruding from your skin, and you are bleeding heavily. Normally, that would mean months, if not, years of bed rest. Unfortunately, we do not have even days." Carter explained. "So what are we going to do? There isn't exactly any supplies in here." I pointed out. "Well, I'll just have to magic you to full health, I suppose. Just a warning, it will hurt like nothing else in any world." he warned. Oh, great. More pain. "Magic me back to health? How are you going to do that without the throne's power?" I questioned. "Well, I'll use what saved me from that train wreck. I know some of my own magic, mind you. Hence the title, magician." Carter replied flatly. Uttering a few words of complete gibberish, his hands begun to glow a dark orange. He then stopped all of it, walked toward me, and tapped my ulna. The pain cannot be described by normal words. The closest I can get is imagine your body being burned molecule by molecule, multiply it by ten, and limit it to your right fore arm. That is close. Shortly after it begun, I blacked out from the pain. Upon waking, I was met with Carter examining the corpse of the monster. "I suppose you want me to put it in you?" he asked. "Not much else of a choice." I sighed. My arm was as good as new, but extremely sore. "Alright, just let me take a few samples of its blood and flesh. Never know when you might need something like this." Carter explained. He produced a piece of blue, chalk like substance. He drew multiple intricate symbols around the corpse. "Come over here." Carter ordered. Walking over, I recognized a few of the symbols from the sanity obelisks. Producing a green version of the chalk like substance, he drew the same symbols around me. "This is going to feel very... wrong. Think mind ****." Carter warned. Before I had a chance to respond, he activated the spell.

[Raven Crow]

he meet William.did he know William and Maxwell was the same person?

[Will]

The door that led to the throne revealed Maxwell's past identity, along with the previous throne holder's.

[Will]

Chapter 17: Enraged Gentleman

(Will)indent I felt all of my defenses shatter. This thing was seeing everything I had ever seen. I started to cringe as we got to the recent part of my life. So many mistakes. I never should of come here, I shouldn't have accepted that deal, I shouldn't have let my anger get in the way of my judgement. I have royally messed up. Before I knew it, I was back in the real world, on my knees panting. "Now, I must be on my way now." Carter announced, seeing I was not a vegetable. "Going where?" I questioned nervously. Please, not when I just found some help. "Back to Earth. I need to catch up on what I missed. The past years are... hazy." he explained. "You can't just leave me!" I protested. "I'm sorry, but I've given you enough help. You can manage." Carter argued. "Well, what are you going to on Earth? Everyone's dead!" I pointed out. Carter froze. A look of horror entered his eyes. "Who did it?" he whispered, barely audible. "They did it with the help of the new throne owner." I responded. The look of horror left his eyes, to be replaced with sorrow, then anger. He conjured a portal. "Where are you going?!?" I gasped. "Revenge." he retorted flatly. We both entered the portal. On the other side we were met with a version of the Great Hallway afflicted by the same plague as Earth was. Out of the walls oozed humanoid figures. I let out a quiet gasp of shock when I saw they looked worryingly similar to Raven's vital essence. Carter conjured a chakram in each hand, and threw both at our obstacles. They cut right through them, but the masses rejoined. "My turn." I announced. I summoned the power of the creature inside, and found myself taking its image. But this time, it had no conscious, being dead. It was only me. I pinned one of the enemies as it charged at me, and bore down upon its neck. It is good to be back in the saddle. It's brethren shuffled toward me, but Carter kept them at bay with his chakrams. "Will, I do believe you have defeated that particular entity. Please do both of us a favor, and don't get distracted. That thing may not influence you, but you can still lose yourself!" Carter yelled over the battle. I leaped backward, and rolled into another mass. I pinned the mass, and ripped out its chest. Rising to my feet, I surveyed to battle field, looking for a target. Turning around, I saw Carter holding off an enemy from pouncing on him. Rushing to his aid, I jumped forward, crushing the entity. I began to tire, and returned to my normal form. Looking around, I found a dagger. Not mine, but none the less, a weapon. Carter and I stood back to back, slashing at anything that drew near. "Do you have anything different, Carter?" I asked. "Yes, I do think it is time for the finale. Oh, Charlotte!" Carter called, adding in a strange series of noises. The light died, and I heard the familiar sound of breathing that haunted my dreams in the islands. Following the breath, was the sound of large amounts of liquid being splattered. The lights returned, as I saw the carnage. "What the hell?!? How did you- I thought-" I stammered. "We agreed if I was somehow cheated out of the throne, Charlotte would return to me. Of course, They never thought it would happen." Carter explained. "Wow, massive insight failure." I chuckled. "I turned to see Carter's reaction to my remark to see him sprinting down the hallway. "Hey, wait up!" I shouted. "Get on your feet, Will! We have to hurry before something terrible happens!" Carter yelled. Something terrible? It gets worse than this?!?

Chapter 18: Fallen Friend

(Will)indent We reached the top of the stair well, and burst through the door to find a circular room with a door on the other side. "Well, as if this doesn't have trap written all over it." I sighed. "I'll go first, I suppose. Protect the children, or whatever you all say." Carter muttered flatly. As he stepped into the open space, nothing happened. "All clear, it looks like." Carter called. Walking to the door, I realized it had been awfully quiet since we had beaten the first wave on monsters. But, this room seemed perfectly safe. Carter opened the door, and passed through. As he made it past, a grate made out of pink energy slammed down where the door had been, effectively trapping me. "Damn, I knew it was to good to be true. Let me see if I can open this.." Carter grumbled. "I'm afraid that will not be happening, William Carter." laughed an eerily familiar voice. I turned to face the pitcher of said words to find something that chilled me to the bone. It was Landore, but he had been taken by the pathogen created by Them. His left arm had been covered in its sickly flesh, along with a shoulder pad with one of its disgusting eyes. Landore's eyes had turned a cloudy pink. "Landore! Let me out of here!" I yelled. In response, he rushed toward me in what seemed like in a microsecond, swatting me half-way across the room like a piece of dust. "You do not tell me what to do. You have no idea the new power I command!" he boomed. Rising to me feet, I drew my replacement dagger. "Let Landore go, you monster!" I cried. Suddenly, he was gone. I jumped as I felt a hot breath drift across the back of my neck, and a incredibly smooth hand caress my left shoulder. "You see, Will, I don't quite want to. Unlike you petty mortal beings, I have nor feelings nor morals. I could care less about what I take control of, or who is damaged by me. As long as I survive, I don't care." he whispered. I stumbled forward, turning to face my former friend and ally. "Fine, if you won't leave peacefully, I'll make you get off of him!" I shouted, charging at my target. He jumped up, onto my blade. "You really must learn not to telegraph your attacks so much. It's quite obvious, really." he chuckle. Dropping my dagger, I jumped backward. "Well, then get a load of this!" I shouted in an Eggman fashion. Beginning my transformation, I began to formulate a plan. If he's too fast to attack head on, and he can see what my attacks will be before I finish them, I'll have to be more spastic. "Will, I will get moving now. I have faith in your ability to fight this monster. Good luck!" he shouted, as he ran down the hall. I'm on my own, now. In a burst of adrenaline, I rushed forward. Raising my left hand, I saw the monster leap to the right. Perfect! At the last moment, I swung my right hand, landing a direct hit. Flying backwards, the monster drew the Necrobunnicon. "So, this is what you can do. Maybe I might not be able to end this in one minute." Former Landore chuckled. Enraged at his humor, I lunged forward once more.

[Will]

Chapter 19: Will vs. Landore

(Will)indent Rushing forward, I feigned a left strike. Former Landore, having learned from its previous mistake, leaped to the left. Seeing an opportunity, I grabbed instead of striking with my right, tossing former Landore at the wall. In retaliation, he prepared a large spell, and sent it toward me. In an effort to defend myself, I charged my spacial power, and attempted to implode the sphere of energy. I literally saw the atom split as the room was filled with enough energy to fuel a small town for days. As the light died down, I came to realize I had been forced out of my demon form. Landore, a heap against the wall, let out a sickening crack as it repaired its body. Drawing my replacement dagger, I charged to deal the finishing blow. At the last moment, he grabbed my weapon with his corrupted arm, spreading the plague to the blade. In panic, I dropped my weapon. If I get infected, its over. Walking backwards, I reached down in a hopeless attempt to find anything I could use while my other form regenerated. As I reached the wall, I felt my hand grasp a familiar leather belt. My supplies! Instinctively, I reached for the holster, and felt a warm feeling of delight to find my dagger still there. Looking up, I saw another sphere heading my way. Damn, I thought I was the only one allowed to be genre savvy! I rolled the the right, but was still sent flying from the small explosion. Climbing to my feet, I charged with my old weapon. Before he could catch this dagger as well, how ever, I extended the blade while swinging upwards. I felt my blade slice through Landore's corrupted arm like a knife through a lemon. The arm instantly turned to purple mush upon leaving Landore's body. It was then when I realized how bad Landore had it. The brief second i saw the inside of the corrupted arm, I saw it was hollow. Some how, Landore had lost his arm fighting my doppelganger. Taking my chance as the entity was shocked, I let loose a series of slashes. "This one's for my family! This one's for my friends! This one's for Landore! And this one... is for the human race!" I shouted in fury. Finally, as my arm began to tire, I stepped back. Landore fell to his knees, a blank expression in his eyes. In kicked him onto his back, and retrieved the rest of my supplies. "Landore? You good now, or do are you still in carpool?" I asked. After a moment of silence, colour returned to his eyes. "Will? What- I thought- how?" he questioned. "Is that really your first question? You're missing an arm, and you ask me how I got here?" I laughed. "Ah, yes. I do appear to not have an arm." Landore stated in a sarcastic tone. Pulling my medical supplies out, I applied antibiotics to the cuts on his chest, and the rest to his stub. After that, I bandaged as much as I could. "There, now you won't get an infection or whatever. I hope that arm is going to grow back." I sighed. "Yes, it will. Now, you leave me. Go get that throne, Will." he ordered. I hesitated for a moment. Something seemed wrong all of a sudden about being called that. I was no longer Will. But did I risk revealing my real name? I shook the idea off, as it was not important. "Will do, Landore." I replied. Time to run some more. Yaaay.

Chapter 20: Replica

(Will)indent After what seemed like forever of running, I finally caught up with Carter. "Ah, I'm glad to see you are alive. Now, if you please, could we stop wasting time? We need to reverse what is happening. As you can probably can tell, this place is growing unstable. This throne is only meant for humans to rule long term." Carter explained. "Makes sense, that would explain why They don't just take the throne for themselves." I thought out loud. Pushing through the door, we found yet another arena. Yet this one, the wall was covered in mirrors. "Oh no, I think I know what's coming. Carter, don't wait for me this time. Just keep going." I sighed. "Those were my intentions. Good luck with this gauntlet, Will." Carter responded, nodding his head. Walking to the center of the room, I prepared myself for battle. I heard a steel grate slide down the passage way upon Carter leaving the arena. I was caged, and ready for battle. "Will! Help!" shrieked a familiar, feminine voice. After a moment of thinking, I realized the voice I was hearing belonged to Wendy. "Wendy?!? Where are you?!?" I called. "I'm right behind you." stated the voice calmly, slowly changing into growling as it carried. Instinctively, I rolled to the right to avoid the fatal dash of my enemy. Looking up, I saw the challenger. It was none other than my own character's demonized form, Monster Will. The look in his eyes lacked all humanity. The feeling I felt was deeply jarring, as I realizing my own creation was standing right in front of me, ready to sink its claws into my flesh. Within moments, I was pinned against the wall. I could smell the lust for blood in his breath. Gasping for breath, I started thrashing about, trying to break free. Its free hand rose into the air, and with a spark in its eyes, sent it flying toward my head. Unsheathing my dagger, I barely blocked the blow. In rage, it leaped backward, dropping me to the floor. Upon rising to my feet, I felt something that I had come to associate as dreadful. It was the same rush as the first time I had transformed. Turning back, I saw I had somehow slipped into my monster form. Turning back to my attacker, its eyes had lost all lust for flesh, and now was dominated by the need the assert its dominance. I began the charging of my spacial rift as the monster thought about its attack strategy. Leaping forward to fake it out, I jumped back right as I blocked. Upon landing, I unleashed the rift right on the demon. In a last ditch effort, it released a time rift right at the location of impact. All of the mirrors shattered as the room sustained a massive amount of vibrations. As the light died down, I saw that it had changed. His body structure was more regal, yet at the same time increasingly menacing. Protruding from his spine were various tentacles. As I looked on, I felt the rush increase in intensity. Looking back in fear, I saw that I was changing to reflect upon his new form. It was changing me with it!

[Will]

Chapter 21: Humanity

 

(Will)indent No, I can't let Them take what's left of my humanity! "No! No! Not my humanity!" I cried in fear. In the midst of my breakdown, the demon pounced. In an effort to shield my neck, I blocked his fatal strikes. Damn it all, how do I used these tentacles?!? I finally get them, and they're useless to me! As I attempted to learn how to use the newly acquired appendages, the barrage of his razor sharp claws did not end. If anything, they hastened. Why did killing the demon have to have such a large trade-off?!? I can't do this by myself! I'm not strong enough! "Carter! Come back! Please!" I shouted as loud as possible, in a hopeless attempt to obtain the help I very much needed. Desperate times call for desperate measures! In an attempt to reverse the transformation, I lowered my guard. Maybe life threatening injury will be enough to revert me to human again! As the hand of my enemy, covered in tiny swords of death, begun its crash course to my demise, I felt my eyes grow wide in fear. At the last moment, I felt the loss of a good foot and a half. While the monster's hand was stuck in the ground, I slipped out from under its grasp. Drawing my knife once again, I leaped into the air. I quickly felt the knife enter the body of my creation. "Backstabuuuu!" I shouted in glee. I finally get to use that phrase in real life. Snatching out my dagger, I prepared to sidestep my creation's incoming grab. In a swift flurry of black, I was on top of the beast, with the knife to its throat. "Let's hope this works for you, too!" I shouted. Raising my knife into the air, I swiped my dagger at the throat of my prey. Before it could land, I had tumbled off of it. Turning, I saw not an eldrich monster, but a human boy. Great, now I can keep moving! Upon turning around, however, I saw that he had other ideas for me. The door was still locked. Out of the shadows rushed William Carter. "What is it, you ****? Did he give you a bruise?" Carter questioned. I was taken aback by the sudden... rudeness of Carter. Something was wrong. "What do you mean, ****? You saw me take care of-" "Yes, I saw you barely beat that clown guy." he interrupted flatly. Clown guy?!? I just fought Landore, not Harlekin! Carter should know- Oh, no. Something tells me I was to stay in this cage for a little while longer.

 

Chapter 22: Corruption of a Hero

 

(Will)indent"You aren't William Carter." I accused. "What the bloody hell are you talking about? Just get moving, will you. We need to get to that throne." The man sighed. "Where is he?" I questioned. "I'm right here." he growled. I begun to string my bow. "Where. Is. He." I repeated. "I'm. Right. Here!" The man shouted. Notching an arrow, I began to speak. "I'm going to ask you on more time. Where is William Carter?!?" I shouted. There was a brief silence. Suddenly, the man's voice was no longer Carter's. "How did you know?" he chuckled. "Well, you are terrible at impressions." I sighed. Immediately after, I let the arrow fly into the impostor's head. The arrow landed with a nice, "thunk," and he fell to the ground. I soon begun work on the gate. All I had to do was lift it up. Stepping over the corpse, I entered the darkness. "You must be a fool to enter my domain." laughed a new, deep voice. I drew my knife in preparation. "Who's there?!?" I demanded. Silence. A loud gush of wind sounded, and I was on the floor in a pool of my own blood. "What the hell?!?" I gasped in surprise and agony. The darkness faded, as the light came on. Before me was a tall standing figure. Upon looking up, I felt a part of me die inside. It was none other than Dr. Cox. "No..." I whispered. "It's time to end this little game, William. Oh, but I forgot. That's not your real name." Dr. Cox cackled. "Damn it, Dr. Cox! What did he do to you?!? What did They do to you?!?" I questioned. "They made me a monster. And I like it." he chuckled. "What about Charlotte?!? We were so close to saving her!" I retorted. Dr. Cox lifted me up by the collar of my shirt. "It's over, Will." Cox yelled. Gathering my strength, I slapped him across the face. Standing in front of his face, he turned back to be. "Listen to yourself, man! What have you become?!? What did They promise you, because I guarantee they won't honor it!" I shouted. Grabbing his shoulders, I placed some of my weight on him. "You are a disappointment. At least the others joined unwillingly, but not you. I wish They had killed you!" I shouted. Upon seeing his stunned expression, I began to limp further down the hallway before I was stopped by a hand on my shoulder. "Please take me with you... I have to help her..." he cried. I simply nodded my head before passing out via exhaustion.

Edited December 31, 2013 by Will

[Will]

Don't worry, I'm coming back soon.

[Will]

Chapter 23: Moving Forward

 

(Will)indnet I awoke on the same floor I had passed out on, but I found none of blood. I had no wound. Had Dr. Cox somehow healed me? "Hey, Dr. Cox, where are you?" I shouted. My words echoed throughout the hallway, but there was no reply. I climbed to my feet, and looked around to see what should of broke me. It was Dr. Cox's corpse, which had been obviously mutated. He did not make out of the room with Them. He had been hit by their magic, and took himself out to avoid this terrible fate. I simply stood there. I was used to death now. It was all a hallucination. There was no more time for mourning now, though. I had to move on. I had to avenge to only deaths that moved me, and that was my family's. Turning my body back to the direction I had previously been going, I ran forward. I had nothing left to fear except my doppelganger. Very quickly, I came upon a large ornate door. Was this really it, or another trick? It didn't matter, though. I had to just deal with it. The door opened with a loud moan. I could only see half of the room, and barely at that. The other half had been consumed with bitter darkness. This was where Their corruption had halted. I lit a torch, and begun my investigation of the room. On the half engulfed with darkness, were blood splatters. Looking around, it all hit me. This was where I attempted to attack dark me, and he teleported me to Earth. I eventually took notice of feint breathing. It was coming from the end of the room opposite from the door I had entered from. I slowly approached the source of the noise. It was Harlekin, and he was barely breathing. "Harlekin! What the hell happened to you!?" I gasped. His eyes lazily drifted to me. "That... that thing that looks like you... it took Mallory and stormfront... I don't know where Raven and Waclaw are... you... have.. t-" At that, Harlekin exhaled loudly, and fell into unconsciousness. He's got Mallory and stormfront... he's got.. he's got them... F*** f*** f*** f*** F******!!! I sprinted to the door, and threw it open. I had to get to them before anything happened. They were the few people I had left save. I burst into a new room, to find the nightmare lights that signaled the throne room. He had moved it because of the mess. On the throne sat my doppelganger. "Wait, what!? You're alive!?" he gasped in shock. He attempted to rise from the throne, but found himself unable. "Where are they?" I demanded. "Why spoil the surprise?" he laughed. Surprise? What does he mean... oh ****! Laying at the foot of his throne was the body of stormfront. Mallory was no where to be seen. I bolted forward, but was repelled by a red screen of energy. "What have you done to her!?" I screamed. "Nothing, yet. You caught me about to perform the ritual." Looking back down, I saw the symbols Carter had used on me were around stormfront, and the symbols Carter used on the demon were around the throne. "No... I won't let you go into her body!" I exclaimed. "There's not much you can do about it, you pest!" he retorted. The symbols began to glow. I was running out of time.

Edited December 31, 2013 by Will

[CoffeeBoo]

Even after all thee years, I can't figure out why you mortals take death so seriously...This is quite an entertaining story.

I sure don't YOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

[Will]

I sure don't YOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

There will be none of that here.

[Will]

Chapter 24: Ritual

 

(Will)      Knowing I couldn't get to stormfront's body, I drew my bow. Taking aim at Dark Will, I fired. The arrow simply bounced off of a bubble of protective energy around Dark Will. Before I could move, a bolt of lightning struck right next to me. I was flung back by the explosion. "That won't do you any good." Dark Will muttered in a monotone voice. I reached into my bag, desperate for something, anything! The only thing of possible use to me, however was my dagger. I threw the bag onto the floor in frustration. I couldn't just take the Throne! I didn't- Oh my god. I didn't have a Nightmare Key. Carter must have had it! Where is that guy, anyway!? "Just give up. I won. With this power, I can destroy all. And with her body, I plan to watch it all." Dark Will explained dryly. "You sadistic monster! Haven't you destroyed enough!?" I screamed. "There is never enough destruction. And even if you can somehow win, the Shades will end it instead. There is always one to end it all. I figure before I end your life, I might as well tell you my name. May you know in whatever awaits you in the afterlife, that you died at the hands of Bael!" he cackled. Shades? What is he talking about? "No, I won't die to you! I will destroy you for what you did!" I yelled, blade in hand. Bael simply yawned, swaying his left hand. My dagger flew out of my hand, and into the dark. He snapped his fingers, and I found myself surrounded by hands of shadow. They lunged toward me, clutching me tightly. A final shadow hand emerged from the darkness, wielding my own blade. It slowly drew near, and brought the blade down. I flinched, but I never felt the blade. I opened my eyes, and everything had... stopped. The blade was a nice foot from my face. Standing in front of me was... me. But, he was different. Different from me, and Bael. His hair was pure black, unlike my dark brown hair. His was nice and straight, while mine was somewhat wavy. His eyes had incredibly noticeable bags underneath them. His skin was incredibly pale, and his eyes were a faint purple. He was looking straight into my eyes. "You know, even though I'm a prisoner you, I think I'm going to help you out. I like this universe, and I don't want it to end." And he was British. I was not expecting that. He took the dagger from the shadow hand, and pricked his index finger. A tuft of black and gray fire arose from the wound, emitting an eerie light. "Who are you?" I asked. "I don't really know. You can call me Inigo until we save the world, I guess. We'll figure something else out then." Inigo walked up to me. "Get ready for this. I think you'll like it." Inigo light my hair on fire. Now, considering worse things were about to happen, I didn't flinch. The fire consumed me, and Inigo burnt away into ash. The ash all was swept towards me, and entered my body. Time resumed,. and the shadow hands faded away. I tried to move, and the lump of fire that was me molded itself into a human shape. "What!? There's no way... unless... for f**k's sakes, why does it always have to be pyromancers!? You all just can't let fate fulfill itself!" Bael shouted. I stared at the palms of my hands. I was pure fire. There was no body underneath the flames. I pointed my arm at Bael, and tried to reach for him. My hand transformed into a pillar of flames, that made it through the barrier. I heard footsteps behind me. Turning, I saw Carter, followed by Raven, Landore, and Harlekin. In Carver's hands was the Nightmare Key. "Will! What the hell is going on in here!?" Raven exclaimed. "Carver, toss me the key! Now!" I ordered. Carver threw the key at me, and it went right through my hand. It struck the barrier that stormfront was trapped in. I knew I couldn't insert the key in this form. Talk about a let down. I regained human form, and quickly pushed stormfront out of the circle. "Even if you gain the Throne, what next? Everyone you love is dead, and there is no getting them back!" Bael laughed. I inserted the key into the lock, and turned. "Wrong." The hands came, but I simply walked over to the throne, and threw Bael into the symbol circle stormfront had been in. I sat onto the thrown of my own volition, and the shadow hands retreated. The symbols glowed brighter, and soon, Bael was trapped in a pillar of light. "What!? What do you plan on accomplishing!?" he screamed. "Your powers always interested me. The ability to control time and space." I chuckled. Baels face briefly showed a look of terror, before he started screaming in agony. I could feel his power coming into me. "Normally, you can only change time by a few seconds, but with the throne... maybe a couple billion..." And then, everything went white.

 

Chapter 25: End

 

(Will)      I awoke to voices. I froze, trying to make it seem like I was still asleep. "So, this is Will." whispered a smooth voice. "He is... younger than I thought he would be." laughed a different, high pitched voice. This is all so familiar...  "Raven, it's obvious that we have no use for this child. Also, he is too young to endure the trauma of what you have in mind." muttered a third voice. Holy s**t. I was back at the night it all started. "You're right, Waclaw. It is time-" I slowly rose. "Guys, it's like 4:30 in the morning. You may not remember it, but I just saved the flipping universe from a demon who took the Nightmare Thrown. Can't this wait until I'm not exhausted?" I quickly fell down onto my pillow. "Jeez, you didn't even have the courtesy to bring Mallory or Dr. Cox. How inconsiderate." Everything went black. I never did find out how they reacted. I woke up about five or so hours later in a familiar room. I could hear voices outside the stone door. "How did he know so much was fact!? There's no way what he said was just a dream. It was too specific." shouted Landore. "Well, what I said still applies. He's still so young." yelled Waclaw. I rose out of bed, and put on the familiar black t-shirt and pants. Then I heard the third voice. "I can say that it happened. I was there. You all just don't remember it." Was that... Inigo!? "Wait- when did you get here!?" questioned Landore. "I heard you questioning my host's ability. While I may not always have good interests, I think I'd have too much fun out there in the human world, without you guys watching me." Putting on my shoes, I opened the door. "So, what is it? You gonna give me another shot, now that my little demon person inside of me doesn't want to destroy the world?" I asked, completely deadpan. Waclaw just looked at me for a couple of seconds, clearly trying to figure out if I just said that. Landore looked at me up and down. "well, you certainly act the part. What can you do?" he inquired. "Well, I can turn into a fire person when Inigo is in me. And I'm good with the Sanity Daggers. Green gem is my specialty." I explained. Landore looked at Waclaw. Waclaw sighed. "I guess he at least knows to much to just have him go... fine, I'll go talk to Raven about it."

===============================================3 Days Later=================================================

       "Alright, Will. For your first official mission, we're sending you to scout the original islands. You'll be by yourself, except for Dark Will." Raven ordered. "Yes sir!" "There''s been signs of very strange activity. Explosions and large quantities of dark energy. You'll be given a decent amount of supplies. Are you ready?" Raven demanded. "Of course. I saved the world 5 days ago, remember? It's just a scouting mission. I doubt anything important is going to happen." I stated. I ran to the teleporters. I still couldn't get what Bael said out of my head. And even if you can somehow win, the Shades will end it instead. I switched the teleporter on. Today would begin the first mission I'd ever have were I wouldn't be saving the universe! I could have fun!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Or so I thought....

 

CONTINUED IN SHADOWFALL