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Jessie, the not so Anon Storyteller Brad grasping the paper. "This'll get us out of here then!" Grinning widely, seeming to think that he had the answer. "I'm sick of this!" Charging off towards the direction the girls had appeared from. And disappearing. As if he was pulled under, down into the fog, lost to them. "Damn idiot" Jessie exclaiming. "I didn't mean ..." Staring off into the fog. "There's no way we can find him now ..." "What did you mean?" Wayne responding, stepping forward. "Because if it's a way out of here, I want to get back at him for this." Shaking his head. "And can we go after him?" "NO!" Linz exclaiming. "Charging after him will just have the exact same thing happen!! We can't lose more of us. He'll be found ... we will, but we have to escape ourselves ..." Jessie nodding. "For what he had, it won't protect him, but it wouldn't help us find him either. It only represented what was hidden. Poor Wax thought I was a mage, like Linz. I'm not. So this trap isn't made for me. As long as we can find an exit ..." "What about this girl?" Colin commented, hand resting over her protectively. "Well, it's magic that holds her here. The only way to get it off, is therefore magic." Wayne responded, stepping over. "Same with finding ... Brad it was right?" Standing proud again, defiant. "That's the spirit" Ryan said, slapping him on the back. "If his brother is the one who caused the magic, could he help?" Linz's eyes widened. Grabbing at the book hidden. Flipping through it. "There's gotta be... yes!" the triumphant yell. "I can do it, with Wayne's help, but we have to get out of here..." "Then we need an exit" Greg responding. "And I saw two figures in the mist over there. But still, if it takes magic to get in here, and we can't use anything ..." Jessie smirking at that. "But you forget ... I don't have magic." Fire flaring in her hand again, she raises her hand, the salamander like creature burning wildly there seeming comfortable. "I have friends, that's all. One of them got Emile ... more can help get us out to where Linz can use her powers." Stepping towards the fog, raising the light provided by that hand towards where Greg had pointed. Eyes widening at what she saw... |
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Linz "Babs! Can you see us?" Jess shouted. Babs could hear a wobbly sounding voice but she responded. "Yeah, if you asked if I can see you, the answer is yes!" Jess started heading off toward the sound and the others instictively followed. For some reason Linz knew to concentrate on Babs, and when she opened her eyes again, her, Jess, Ryan, Colin, Wayne, and Greg were in a bedroom with Babs and Lionel. "We did it!" Jess hugged Linz. Linz *sigh*ed, "What about Brad and Mel? We need to help them." "Well, Mel is probably up to you Linz..." Lionel said. "Why?" "Well, Wax put a spell on her...and I just thought..." "I know, but only Wayne can free her now..." "What? When? HOW?" Wayne perked up. "Allow me to explain," Linz said. |
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Mel "You're the only one that can help save Mel," Linz told him once more. Wayne glanced around at the others in the group and couldn't help but feel tired and overwhelmed by everything that had happened recently. "Well, how?" Wayne asked her again. "You are Wax's brother. You have similar DNA," she told him matter-of-factly. "I don't understand..." Wayne said, voice trailing off. "Only the one who casts the spell can release it from the victim," Linz started, pacing slowly around the cramped bedroom. "But this is different Wayne. Entirely different." The rest of the group watched Linz, curious to know what Wayne could do, and yet also fearing what they might soon discover. "How is it different?" Colin asked scratching his head. "This is not a normal spell. I looked it up in the book. It's an unusual form of the regular spell," Linz announced to the group in a voice that was barely audible. "Wax cast this spell purposely, but I don't know why..." she muttered to herself, but stopped in midsentence when she saw the rest of the group looking at her. "Mel can only be saved by Wayne because of the way in which this particular spell was cast. Wax put a death sentence on Mel for a reason. But I haven't figured out why yet," she continuted. "I don't understand" Wayne told her. Linz nodded at him. "I know, I'm sorry. I'm getting to it." She walked over to the bed and sat down on it. "The only way to save Mel in this particular spell is for a blood relative of the caster to destroy the thing most precious to the caster." "So...Wayne has to find Wax's most precious thing and destroy it?" Lionel asked, confused. "Yes," Linz informed him. "But there's more. Wayne has to find it and destroy it. However he must get inside the head of Wax. And this is the part that gets more complicated. Wayne must go to the blue mist and clear his mind. He must remove any thoughts from his mind and become completely one with himself. He has to wipe his brain of his original identity. Only then can his spiritual state enter that of Wax's..." Linz trailed off to take a breath and look around. Everyone was starting to get worried. "There's more, isn't there?" Babs asked quietly and Linz nodded. "Once Wayne's mind is in Wax's, there is a chance that he could become permanently part of Wax's spirit. If Wax finds out that Wayne is in his mind, he could use this power to entrap his brother forever. And Wayne's body would become clinically dead, with no way to get his spirit back. Wayne is the only one that can do it because he is the one with the closest DNA to Wax. I don't think that Wax knew what kind of spell he was casting. He cast this spell for a reason...but he did it wrong. We can never let him know though. Or else Wayne could die." Linz looked around at the group and she found that most of them had gone two shades paler. Wayne gulped. "I have to do this. What would happen if I didn't?" he asked nervously. Linz shook her head. "If you don't do it, Mel will die. But it's much worse than that. Once she dies, her body will shrivel up into a ball of green gas. The gas will spread all around the world in a matter of days. And everyone will die." No one spoke... |
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Jessie "I think one of us should go back in there. Stay with her." Colin commented, staring back in the mirror at the fog, at the small figure of Mel lying there in the mists. Babs shook her head. "Is it safe to do that though, with all we have to do? Basically, we have to get out of here and find the others, help Mel, stop Wax ..." her voice trailing off. "Wait, aren't we missing a performer?" "He ran off into the fog and disappeared" Greg commented. "Unless what's written on that scrap of paper can help him...someone will have to search for him." Jessie standing mutely as people looked at her about that paper and situation. Changing the topic abruptly. "We also have to get you guys your real memories back, instead of what we've told you ... my friend who is with Emile can help us there, if we can get through to them. I can find her easily, can feel her even now...it's getting past whatever Wax has set up that's harder..." Babs shrugged. "All I have to do is look in the mirror and think..." Not sure why the mirror seemed so keyed to her, but turning to it, thoughts of her sister already entering her mind. Only to have her mind's path cut off quickly. "Wouldn't it be more useful, though" Lionel commented softly, "to find what Wax's most precious possession is, so Wayne can use it to save Mel, and us all? There is only so much we can do, and such little time to do it in..." Babs biting her lip as she stared at the mirror. Trying to decide... |
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Linz She was still trying to decide when the door of the bedroom opened and Wax came in. "Well! Someone got too smart for their own good." Wax said in measured tones, glaring at Linz. "What are you going to do about it?" she responded defiantly. "Nothing that can't be handled like civil adults," Wax said, grinning. "What do you mean?" said Jess, as she stepped forward. "Well, how about a wizards duel? Only we'll change a few rules..." Wax responded. Jess whispered to Linz, and Linz nodded. "On what grounds?" Linz asked. "On the grounds that you are tresspassing on my property." Wax said, ever-so-evilly. "Why you little-" Linz shouted, when Jess held her back. "Either way, you're coming with me you two, so you may as well make it easier on yourselves..." Wax responed. Linz turned to the group nodded at Wayne, and she, Jess and Wax left the room, but not before Linz twisted her hand in a circle, allowing the yellow mist to float into the heads of everyone except Wayne, Lionel and Babs. |
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Nikki_Lynn ...Emile stroked the little creature's back as he thought. He knew D'Shen could easily find Jessie, but he wasn't so sure that blindly following a fairy dragon was too smart an idea, given the circumstances. "So what do we do?" Nikki_Lynn finally asked, growing uncharacteristically impatient. "Well," said Emile, "This little critter can take us all straight to Jessie, assuming she's not being hidden by Wax's magic...but we have no way of knowing where we'll end up...Or who, besides Jessie, will be waiting for us..." "And Wax is too smart not to plan for something like this," noted Nikki_Lynn. "I say we risk it," said Holly. "Me too," replied Sue. "I'm not so sure about this. What if something happens to us? Then who's gonna stop Wax?" said Mon. Kathleen and NE nodded in agreement. "OK, how's this?" said Nikki_Lynn, "Mon, you, NE, and Kathleen stay here with Dan, Ben, and Chris...Just in case something goes wrong. Sue, Holly, and I will go with Emile." The other girls murmured their approval. Nikki_Lynn turned to Emile. "So let's get going," she said. Emile raised his hand above his head and closed his eyes. Suddenly, the fairy dragon began to glow brighter than before, and Nikki_Lynn, Sue, and Holly felt as though their bodies were being separated from the physical world... |
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Holly Brad approached the door, and as he reached for the handle, it swung open in front of him. "Come in," a creaky voice said from within. "No one is going to harm you here." "Who are you? Where am I? Where are my friends?"Brad demanded, rather impatiently. "My, my, so many questions. The only place you can look for them is inside yourself?" Brad looked puzzeled, trying to see through the mist. "I don't get it. You're talking like that guy in Kung Fu." The shadowy figure leaned forward and whispered, "Brad, don't you know that you are the key? You are the only one who can save your friends. They know about the twin's powers to help save the girl, but they need you to finish everything." Brad exclaimed, "But I don't know where I am! I don't even know what I want to do when I grow up! I'm just a comedian!" With that he started to weep uncontrollably. *Sigh* the wise man despaired. "Why do I always get the ones who need career counseling? Listen, Masterful One, you need to act fast. I will help you get back, but you need to be brave. Here's what you have to do..." |
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Babs Elsewhere... As the door shut, all the contestants aside from Wayne shook their heads and stumbled around for a few seconds. "Are you all right?" Lion said, grabbing Ryan's arm to keep him from falling over. Ryan looked at Lion, at first confused, then shocked. "Lion? What are you doing here?" "You remember me?" Lion asked, just as shocked. "Of course!" "Hey! I can remember everything!" Colin said excitedly. "Me, too!" Greg exclaimed. As Greg, Colin, and Ryan talked rapidly and happily about their newfound memories, Wayne looked on the scene somewhat morosely. Babs walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "What's the matter, Wayne?" "I can't remember anything..." he said softly. "Why can I still not remember?" Babs' heart wrenched at the sadness in his tone. "Linz must have thought it for the best. She did say your mind had to be completely blank when you entered the mist. Maybe she thought if you had all of your memories, it'd be harder for you to clear your mind." "Maybe..." he said. Babs rubbed his shoulder, trying to soothe him. "What could possibly be the most important thing to someone like Wax?" Wayne asked. "A man who seems to care about nothing save his revenge?" Babs shrugged, then perked up, "Hey! Could that be it? You just have to destroy his revenge?" Wayne perked up, then became morose once again. "Doubt it. It proably has to be something tangible. And even if it was revenge that's most important to him, how on earth could *I* destroy it? This is hopeless, all hopeless." "No, don't say that, Wayne!" Babs said earnestly, "There is hope. It lies within you. You just have to believe in it." "I wish I could be as optomistic as you, but what can a simple man without any memories do against a mage with all of his memories and revenge fueling him on?" "You might be suprised." "What's that supposed to mean?" Wayne asked. Babs shrugged absent mindedly, staring at the mirror again. What was it she was missing about the mirror? She knew there had to be something, but what? "Damnit," she swore. "What?" Wayne asked, surprised at her sudden outburst. She sighed. "Nothing." Wayne looked at her, then looked at the mirror, and shrugged, shaking his head. When Babs took her mind off of the mirror and turned back to Wayne, she saw he was holding his head in his hands. "Wayne?" she asked. "I'm facing this man alone, and I don't know how...I mean..." his voice cracked with utter despair. "Would you like me to be there with you?" Wayne looked up at her, and Babs was shocked to see his face streaked with tears. "You would...I...yes. Yes, I would like that." Babs patted him on the shoulder as he rested his head in his hands again. She looked back to the mirror and cursed silently. Why couldn't she get her brain to work? She needed a good cup of strong coffee, that's why, she lamented, turning her attention back to Wayne. "What kind of freak keeps a place like this?" Nikki_Lynn asked. "I don't know, but I don't think we're in Australia anymore, Totto," Holly mused while gawking in awe at a painting that must have been 40 feet high, and 15 feet wide. They continued to follow the corridor. Then, the faint echo of voices could be heard much further down the hallway... |
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Nikki_Lynn "Shhhhh..." whispered Nikki_Lynn. She motioned for Sue, Holly, and Emile to follow her. They crept down the corrider, edging their way along the wall. The voice grew louder and more distinctive. "Hey," said Sue, "That sounds like Colin!" "I think you're right," replied Holly. They hurried down the hallway until they came to a large wooden door. Emile tried to turn the knob, but it was locked. He reached into his jacket pocket, where D'Shen had hidden herself away when they had arrived. The little dragon cooed at him and nodded her head, then flew to the door. She hovered in front of the lock for a moment, as if studying it, and then flicked her tail into the keyhole. There was a soft click, and the door inched open. D'Shen disappeared back into Emile's pocket, and they hurried into the room. "Babs!" exclaimed Holly on seeing her sister, "How'd you get here?!" "I was looking for you!" Babs replied, "Do you have any idea how worried I've been? You fly to LA, you tell everyone you won't be gone long, and then you just disappear!" "Well, it's not like I had much choice in the matter," said Holly, "I WAS kidnapped by an evil mage bent on revenge, and besides that..." "Can we continue this discussion later?" Nikki_Lynn cut in, "Where are Linz, Mel, and Jess?" "Wax put some kind of spell on Mel," said Ryan, "And then he took Linz and Jess somewhere." "What kind of spell?" asked Emile. "We're not sure...all we know is that Mel will die in less than 72 hours if we don't save her," said Babs, "Along with everyone else in the world...At least that's what Linz said." "And I'm the only one who can break the spell," Wayne lamented, "And I still can't remember a thing!" |
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Linz ...and Jess watched what Wax had just done. "Did you see that?" she whispered to Linz. "What?" Linz asked. "Wax is stealing Mel's life force and converting it to himself!" "Really? Maybe this duel won't be so hard after all..." Linz trailed off as she flipped though an invisble book that apparently only she could see.
Please,
Wayne knew what he had to do now, he nodded to Babs, and she and Wayne entered the mirror. "And NO CHEATING!!!!" Linz said. "You first!" Jess said. "Oh no my dear, you see, I only duel one at a time..." Wax responded as he crossed his hands rapidly and Linz was tied to a chair very quickly. Wax looked at Linz and smiled evilly... |
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Mel Linz felt a gripping fear creep into her stomach and she suddenly wasn't feeling too confident about the fight that was about to take place. However, despite any reservations she now had, Linz knew that they had to swallow there fear and keep Wax busy for as long as they could. Wax glared at her for a few moments before casting his first spell. With a flash of colour and a loud crackling sound, a gust of wind appeared and transformed into an animal. "Oh sh*t..." Jessie muttered as she watched the animal that Wax had created approach... "I don't even remember meeting you. Yet I feel like somewhere inside me I know that you exist and that I do know you," he told her softly and sighed. Wayne stood up and walked to the edge of the pit. Babs followed behind him. "So...what now?" Wayne asked Babs. "Well, I think that you have to sit here and let the myst engulf you. You have to completely clear your mind or else it won't work," Babs told him, recalling what Linz had told them all. Wayne nodded and took a deep breath. Babs touched his shoulder and started to walk away. "Where are you going?" Wayne called out to her as she started to disappear. "You've got to do this by yourself. I'll be with Mel. But if I stay with you, I'll just be a distraction. You can do it Wayne," she let him know kindly and then walked out of view of Wayne and sat down beside Mel. Wayne closed his eyes as he sat down. 'Clear your mind Wayne, clear your mind' he hummed to himself. Wayne sat by the pit, breating deeply and inhaling the blue gas. He tried to think of a room. A white empty room. At first it was hard to concentrate. But suddenly Wayne felt something happen to him. All of a sudden the white room disappeared and he saw a girl standing across from him and another was tied up in a chair. 'Where am I?' Wayne frantically searched his mind and found that he couldn't remember anything. Then he realized that he must be in Wax's body. It was time to get on with the plan... |
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Jessie Meanwhile... Brad looked around, perplexed at the way he swore the building pulsed with red light out of the corner of his eye. Not seeing anything in front of him though, except for the old man. "So how can I help the others?" he inquired. The other man pressing a stone into his hand. "Use the light of this to make your way back." The ruby glinting, glowing softly with that same pulse behind it. "It'll help ... clear the fog." Brad not noting the soft chuckle that followed the comment. |
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Nikki_Lynn Wayne watched through Wax's eyes, helplessly, as the battle unfolded. He felt strangly disembodied...as though he were tethered to a life that was slipping away. He put the disturbing thought out of his mind and concentrated on the task at hand. He ignored the battle scene that floated before his eyes, and closed off his mind to the physical world. Suddenly, he began to see memories...Wax and himself growing up...vacations...old friends. He felt as though he were flying through his life, observing it from a distance. Soon, he came upon and empty scene... A vast expanse of nothing. No images, no memories... Just a darkness that seemed to have no end...and in that instant, he knew had become a part of Wax's mind... "Wayne!" he cried, shaking his friend. Wayne's eyes snapped open and he let out a cry of pain before slumping over onto the ground. "What happened?" asked Jessie, as she released Linz. "I don't know!" replied Linz. They walked cautiously over to Wax. He was sprawled across the floor, breathing heavily. His eyes fluttered open. "You're not much of a mage, Wax, if a little spell like that saps your strength," said Jessie. Wax looked around, dazed, as if he didn't know where he was. "Wax?" he said, "But, I'm not..." "Oh my God," said Jessie, looking into his eyes...into his mind, "It's Wayne! Well...sort of...They've been fused together!" She looked at Linz, as she helped Wayne to his feet. "You mean they're both in Wax's body?" asked Linz, "How is that possible?" "I don't know," said Jessie, "I've never heard of this happening before." "What do we do now?" ask Wayne, fighting to control his fear. Suddenly, he doubled over in pain. "No!" he screamed, "It can't be! How could you have gotten into my mind?" "Wayne!" screamed Linz, "If you can here me, fight him! Take control!" Wax raised his hand and Linz felt a stinging pain surge through her body... |
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Linz ...as she felt her body become weak. Wax was trying to suck her power to fight Wayne. "Linz!" Screamed Jess as she put herself betwen the two. "No!" Wax/Wayne said. Their was a stuggle and Wax/Wayne shook violently. "What's happening Jess?" Linz said as they watched helplessly. "They're fighting for control of the body...We have to hope Wayne wins..." "But, can we help?" "Not that I know of..." "Brad!!! What did you do?" It was Babs. "I...I just, I don't know!" Brad said, confused. "Oh no! What's going to happen to Wayne?" |
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Babs "Dear God, what did I do?" Brad shrieked. Anger and fear of the possibility of Wayne being lost forever welled up inside Babs. Choosing to side with the anger, she shoved Brad hard, knocking him to the ground. "You idiot!" she shrieked. "Wayne had to concentrate! He had to be alone! Now he's lost inside Wax's mind! You absolute idiot!!!" She lunged at him, about to punch him, but he grabbed her fist before it made contact with his face. "How was I supposed to know! I was lost in the mist for so damned long, when I finally saw someone I recognized, I was elated! I didn't know what was going on! How could I have?" Babs knew he was right, but anger still fumed within her. "You should have known!" she shouted. A weak retalliation, but the yelling made her feel better. Brad looked at her in disbelief and shook his head. Babs stood up and stepped away from Brad. Only then did she notice that he had dropped something. "What's that?" she asked, pointing to the strange stone. Brad shrugged. "An old man in a tower gave it to me, he said it would help clear the mist, or something like that. And it did! I found my way here!" Babs looked at the stone. "Can you remember who you are, yet, Brad?" "Yeah, as soon as I appeared here, I could remember everything. Hey, do you think the stone had anything to do with that?" Babs didn't respond. Turning her attention to Wayne's limp body, she noted it was still breathing. So, the body still worked, but he had no soul. The body couldn't survive long without a soul, she was sure. She just wondered how long they had left before Wayne's body did die, leaving him no way back... "So, brother, you've found a way into my mind...How do like what I've done with the place?" Wax asked nonchalantly, as though this were an everyday meeting in an everyday situation. Wayne took Wax's lead and responded in a casual tone, "Quite nice. A few throw pillows, maybe a couch or two, to liven up the place, but other than that--" "No more toying around, brother!" Wax growled. "What are you doing in my mind." "I was just exploring, I was getting rather bored with the Brady Bunch, so I decided--" Wax cut him off with a back-handed slap across his face. "The truth." Wayne glared at his brother. "I was looking for my memories," he fibbed. "Liar," Wax hissed. He charged at Wayne, and they locked arms, wrestling each other. Wayne tried not to cry out from the pain, but it was an effort. "I'm drawing power from the outside world. You can't win, brother..." "Fight him, Wayne! Fight him!" A voice echoed from nowehere. He tried, but it was getting harder... |