Present day
Stella and I stood in the dark dining room. The room is too close to the living room where Katy and Mutale were. I didn't want them to hear what I had to say to Stella, so I had to be cautious.
"You've protected this place well," said Stella.
"The training I had really came in handy," I answered as I stood near the window.
"There's something out there, isn't it?"
"Yes, there's a shadow monster. And this one's the real deal."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because it's a level one shadow monster."
"Huh?" Stella removed the hood over her head, her thick black hair falling to her shoulders. She came towards me. "A level one?"
"You think I'm lying?" I looked at her.
"But..., how can you be so sure? Level one monsters are extremely rare. And I doubt you have ever encountered one before, so you-"
"-can't tell how strong one can be," I finished her sentence. I raised an eyebrow. "For your information, I have encountered several before and they weren't as strong as this one that's lurking outside."
"What? When?"
"Not long ago, but that's not important. It's definitely a level one. I felt its power that it sent shivers down my spine the first time it came after me."
"What were you doing out there at this time? You want to get yourself killed?"
"I had something to do. Besides, I wasn't going to stop the shadow monster from coming here even if I hadn't gone out. I would probably be dead already."
Stella put her hands on her hips. "This is bad."
"It is and we're running out of time. The barrier I've put up isn't going to last. I need to get out of here and also protect my grandmother and cousins."
"Where did you get this dust from anyway?" Stella asked as she looked at the window sill.
"From a Golden Elite soldier," I said as I directed my eyes to the door that led to the livingroom.
"Wait, that guy is one of the Elite?" Stella almost couldn't believe it.
"Yes."
"What the - Diana, you've to get rid of him," Stella whispered. "He's the enemy."
"I know. But even if I wanted to, I can't. Something tells me he doesn't know much about what he's involved in. He's just a rookie puppet following the Elites' orders."
"Why do you say that?"
I looked at the empty doorway in front of me hoping neither Katy nor Mutale will come in in the middle of our conversation. I turned back to look at Stella whose eyes were filled with anticipation.
"If he really is a Golden Elite soldier, he would've done all he could to attack you just like he did with me when you appeared in the living room," I answered.
"Huh? Do you mean he doesn't know anything about me?"
"No. I noticed when I drew the butterfly symbol to summon you. He didn't seem to know about it."
"Are you sure? I mean, he's injured and he could be pretending. Maybe he's just waiting for the right time to attack."
"That's my hunch. He did say he's part of The Golden Elite sent to kill me, and I found weapons on him only they use."
"You should have killed him or something. He's your enemy and ours." Stella furrowed her eyebrows.
"I wish I did. But I need answers."
"What answers?"
I turned to the window sill and I noticed that the brightness of the dust had dimmed a little. I wish I could tell Stella about Mutale. That he and I weren't just ordinary friends. She would kill me. But also, I needed him alive to acquire some important information.
"It can wait. We need to get out of here."
Stella didn't look pleased, but even she knew that there's no time to argue.
"We really have a lot to talk about," she said.
"If I get to survive, I'll visit you at the island someday and we'll get to talk about it over some butterfly cupcakes," I said as I smiled.
Stella smiled back. "Okay, you seem to have a plan. Tell me."
***
Narrator's P.O.V:
The man standing outside the house knew he wasn't going to hear Diana's conversation. And he can't go around the house just for that. He didn't want to run into the shadow monster despite his invisibility. He might end up provoking it, which would be disastrous.
He backed away from the door and approached the tall bushes a few feet away from the house. The crickets and other insects continued their night time songs. He stepped into the bushes and took a few more steps, until he stopped to look at the house.
He smiled at himself when he realised that he was close to meeting Diana again. His heart at the moment, couldn't stop beating with excitement.
"Don't worry, Diana," he said to himself as he lifted his hand, "you aren't going to escape so easily this time."
The sound of the nocturnal insects ceased at once. The whole world grew silent around him. Then, a dark mass on the ground came out through the bushes from all sides of the house. A large army of them made their way towards the house, too many of them to count. Some silently hoped, others crawled.
The insects had the house surrounded and they stood still, as if waiting for an order. The man smiled to himself as he thought of how easy it is to control such little things. He should hurry if he wanted to carry out his plan. Diana's smart and it's best to catch her off guard. Who knows, the person she summoned might also notice that something's going on too.
"Let's get the show on the road," he said to himself as he snapped his fingers.
***
Diana's P.O.V:
Stella and I came back into the livingroom. We found Mutale seated on the couch and Katy was looking through the bookshelf at the other end of the room. I wonder what she could be looking for?
"Ah, you're back," she said when she noticed us.
"Yes, we are," I said. "And we have a plan."
"Don't you always?" Katy asked sarcastically.
"So, how are we going to get out of here?" Mutale asked as he shuffled to a comfortable position on the couch.
"Stella can teleport Mutale and I out of here," I said, "but I fear for everyone else in this house."
"Wait, you're leaving?" Katy asked, surprised by the news.
"I have to. I can't stay here with that shadow monster around. It's after me, remember?"
"And what about Agogo? What will she say when she realises that you aren't here?"
"Not to worry," said Stella. "I'll handle that too."
Even when Katy had her back towards the bookshelf where the torch stood, I could still make out her face in the partial darkness staring back at me with a not so pretty expression. She didn't want me to leave, but I had no other option. I had already put everyone else in danger of the shadow monster just because of what I am. I wasn't going to let it harm them just to get to me.
"This decision isn't easy for me either," I said. "But it has to be done. When all is sorted out, I'll come back."
"And what if you don't?"
I gulped. I knew someone was going to ask me that question some day. I could tell she's extremely worried and she has every right to be. I wish I could tell her that everything was going to be alright, but that would only be a lie.
"I will," I smiled at her. "Don't you worry."
"Okay," said Stella, quickly stepping in to get things in motion. "First of all, we need to draw the shadow monster out of this area before teleporting."
"That sounds tricky," said Mutale. "How are we going to do that?"
"Since the shadow monster is after me, I'll do it," I said.
"Are you crazy?" Katy asked. "You'll get killed."
"I agree," said Mutale. "It's suicide. You remember how you had to run away from that thing before I came along."
"I wouldn't worry too much about Diana's speed," said Stella. "She is fast after all."
"Ya, but at some point the monster gained up on me," I said. "If Mutale hadn't intervened, I would have been a goner."
"And you've run out of the gold dust that saved you guys a bit of time," said Stella. "So that's not an exception."
"What's wrong with teleporting from here?" Katy asked.
"Shadow monsters might look like brainless life forms, but there's no telling what it will do if the shield finally wears off and it still thinks I'm here," I said.
"It's very destructive, Katy," said Stella. "You might not even survive when it realises that Diana isn't here. It tends to get very angry."
Katy turned to look out the window, obviously wondering about the shadow monster. I didn't like that I had involved her in all this. She's probably scared and I didn't know how to make her feel better.
"After Diana draws the shadow monster's attention," Stella continued, "I will put up a barrier, stronger than this one. It will ward off any dark creatures like it for at least a few days."
"But what if it comes back days later?" Katy asked.
"I doubt it will, but if it does, I'll know."
"Then what will happen after you place the barrier?" Mutale asked.
"You and I will follow Diana and the shadow monster. We need to be far away from the house. When we catch up to Diana, then we will teleport."
"But how will we catch up? I have a busted leg, remember?"
"Stella will carry you," I said. Mutale gave me a look. "Don't worry, she's just as strong as I am. She's also pretty fast, so you better hold on to her."
"I never thought I would be carried around," said Mutale, looking embarrassed.
"Once we're in a safe place, I will make sure to heal you," said Stella. "It might not be enough, but it will help. Right now, we're out of time."
I looked over at Katy and she quickly looked away. I went over to her and placed my hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, are you still worried?" I asked.
She folded her arms and scoffed, her eyes still not meeting mine. She turned towards the window. I also looked out. Then I realised something.
"Oh, no," I said as I walked over to the window.
"What is it?" Stella asked.
I looked out the window and I saw something dark on the ground come up the walls of the house outside. What is it? I had never seen anything like it. I looked closely as the black mass creeped up. A few insects came up on the window sill outside.
"What the heck-" I said as I backed away from the window. "We're under attack."
"Under attack?" Katy came to stand beside me and also saw the insects creep up on the window. They covered it whole in a matter of minutes.
"What's happening?" Stella couldn't believe what she was seeing too.
I looked to the window on the other side of the room. It was also covered up. I soon heard the little critters on the iron tinned roof above us. Katy looked up and turned to me. She looked scared. I had to do something, quick.
"Could the shadow monster be doing this?" Mutale asked.
"Shadow monsters are known for their destructive, berserk nature," answered Stella. "They don't control creatures or people."
"Huh? Does that mean there's someone controlling these things?" Katy asked.
"Yes," I answered. "Whoever it is must be after me too."
"Well, this ruins our plans," said Stella.
I walked over to the window. Luckily, they had been closed the whole time. Who knew what would've happened if the insects had the chance to get in. I watched them crawl, jump and fly around like nothing's going on. With this many of them, it's difficult to see what's happening outside. The sound of them moving about on the roof grew irritating. What if my other cousin or my grandmother wake up due to the noise?
I turned towards Stella. "Could you go out and see who's controlling these things?" I asked.
"On it," she replied. A blue glowing light emitted out of her, but it quickly faded. A worried look came upon her face.
"What is it?" I asked.
"I can't teleport out of here," said Stella. She turned towards the insects on the windows. "Could the insects be acting like some absorber?"
"Absorber? What do you mean?"
"When I tried to teleport, I felt my energy drain out of me."
"Whoever is controlling them must be absorbing your energy by using the insects. But then again, you still would've gotten out of here. It must mean you've been blocked from getting out."
"A barrier that absorbs energy and doesn't let anyone out."
I looked up at the tinned roof. "Who are we dealing with here?"
"Someone dangerous, that's who," said Katy as she looked at me.
"What are we going to do?" Mutale asked. He looked just as frightened as Katy but he was doing his best not to show it.
"Whoever is doing this is pretty smart using insects because they can't be held off by the barrier," I said. "So why use them?"
"Oh, goodness," said Katy as she held her head in despair and there was panic in her voice. "Why aren't insects considered dark creatures too? I mean, they are annoying enough already."
"Not to mention that they are gross too," said Stella.
"But we can't stay here forever," said Mutale. "There's a shadow monster out there."
"So, if neither of us can't get out of here and Stella can't use her powers, what are you going to do, Diana?" Katy asked.
I continued to assess the situation instead of figuring a way out.
"The person must have figured out that our protective barrier is wearing out," I said. "To put up another barrier of insects that can't let us out and absorb energy, must mean they are keeping us in here till the barrier falls apart. They are probably sucking out the energy from the sand too making the process much faster."
I felt everyone's eyes on me and I returned their looks. I felt a sudden tension in the room and I could tell by their body language that they didn't like my assumption. But whether they liked it or not, I might be right.
"Are you trying to tell me that we're sitting ducks?" Katy asked, her voice louder than usual.
"It makes sense," said Stella. "Whomever is doing this can't come in here. And to keep us from going anywhere until the protective barrier breaks means we are being stalled."
I heard Mutale gulp and I tried my best not to look at him. By the look of things, he isn't an experienced Golden Elite soldier. He's just a rookie sent on his first mission that he didn't expect to take such a drastic turn.
"We've no choice but to wait," I said.
"Eh?!" Katy shrieked. "You want us to wait here till the barrier gives in? No way!"
"We've no choice," I said. "Stella can't use her powers and neither can I. We have to be smart about this. When the barrier gives in and the person attacks, we have to be ready for a fight. We will need all our energy to do so."
"I have to admit, Diana is right," said Stella. I think I saw the corner of her lip raise up to a smile. "Diana and I will be rendered useless if the enemy comes to attack when our energy is depleted. And let's not forget, we have a more dangerous foe to worry about."
"But Diana," said Katy, "can't you try to -?"
"I can't, Katy," I said as my hand automatically flew to my neck. I could still feel the cold metal of my neck chain. "My energy will just be drained like Stella's. We don't have enough time, so we have to devise a plan."
"Okay, but what about Katy and I?" Mutale asked. "I can't fight because you threw my weapons away."
"Don't worry, you two will be out of the way until the matter is dealt with." I looked over to the window sill. The gold sand now in a yellow dull state. We had to be ready for anything.
I turned towards Katy. "Katy, take Mutale and go stand in the hall leading to the bedrooms. Stella," I turned to her, "do you have a weapon or two for them to use?"
Stella pulled out two short hand blades from her cloak. In the faint light I could see the butterfly engraving on the handles. She gave Katy and Mutale the knives.
"Are you sure these things will help?" Mutale asked as he took one in his hand. "They look kind of ordinary."
"They are like the weapons you had," I said. "You better start heading down the corridor."
Katy went over to help Mutale up and they slowly went out of the living room leaving Stella and I.
"I wish Ryan or any of the others were here," said Stella.
"Why do you say that?" I asked.
"Well..," she chuckled lightly as she scratched the back of her head nervously. "I hate to be the one to say it, but you really have grown, Diana."
"Grown? Like in height?"
"I mean you're more mature now. Your way of thinking in such a situation is rather astounding, really. For a moment there, I wondered if you are the Diana who first came to train at our island."
I smiled at her as I blushed a little. Maybe I had grown a little smarter. I've had my own experience with the supernatural and learnt a thing or two. But I wouldn't have known the basics if it wasn't for Stella and the others at the Butterfly island.
"I'm guessing you have a plan," said Stella. "Let me hear it."
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"Okay," I said. "But as usual, you aren't going to like it."
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