Aftermath

My heart beat violently, hands shaking as I touched his cold unmoving palm. "Donny?" I whispered as tears rolled down my eyes. "Donny wake up." The warm tears rolled down even faster as I looked into his lifeless eyes. "Donny!" This couldn't possibly be real. "Donny please!"

I turned, searching for Angelo, my breath catching as I sobbed uncontrollably. "Angelo?" I blinked rapidly, trying to process what I was seeing. "Angelo." He looked to me, his beautiful eyes dark with a glowing silver in them. "Angelo what's happening?" He gave me a blank look before turning his back to me and disappearing. "Angelo!" I shot up, eyes glowing in panic.

"Thora where did he go?!" I wiped my blood-tear stained face, probably making it worse.

Thora's eyes glinted as she looked in the direction Angelo had disappeared from. "He's headed for the Arborians in the forest."

"Mason!" I called out to my shivering brother. "Don't let Donny out of your sight." With that, I dashed after Angelo.

"Wait! Mavis!"

"Nawi!"

Ignoring them, I zoomed ahead, legs whipping faster than normal against the coarse land, eyes flashing around for Angelo.

I stopped at the foot of the forest where the Arborians once stood. "Angelo!" The air was thick and I somehow felt his presence.

"And where might I ask, are you going?" The cloaked figure from earlier appeared beside me.

I jumped back in suprise, nearly falling over. "Who…..what are you?!" I cautiously moved away from it, putting as much distance between us.

"Not important at the moment my dear." It waved a dismissive cloaked hand at me. "More importantly I don't think you should wander in there."

I looked at the looming forest, feeling the dense power in it, and back at the figure. "I don't exactly have a choice, thank you very much."

"Of course you do! You're the Nawi!"

"I'm sorry but I don't know who you are." I turned to the forest. "Now if you'll excuse me."

"You'll die if you go in there."

I turned, raising a worried eyebrow at its words. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that you'll die if you enter that forest. I know you feel it. The overwhelming pressure. The presence of a power that would annihilate you if you dared confront it."

"But my friend is in there. I have to save him." I looked back and forth between the figure and the forest.

He scoffed. "Friend? Don't you get it? The thing in that forest is not your friend. It'll rip apart any and everything in its way."

"Angelo?"

"Yes Angelo." Its hands floated to its back, the wind threatening to push its hood back.

"But he's human. Isn't he?"

"You tell me."

I narrowed my eyes at the figure once more. "For the last time, who are you?!"

The ground rumbled, trees collapsing as a silhouette approached from the woods, silver and black tendrils surrounding it.

"Here he comes." The cloaked form beside me gave me a side eye. "You can call me Rajani."

The silhouette from the woods zipped forward in an instant, destroying everything around it while letting out a strained battle cry.

"Angelo?" The overwhelming power around him forced me to my knees.

"Ugh get up!" With a flick of his wrist, Rajani sent Angelo flying. "Are you trying to make me look bad?"

"YOU!" Angelo pointed a dangerous accusing finger at me, his eyes a glowing mix of black and silver. "THIS IS YOUR FAULT!" He zipped forward once more. "RAHHHH!"

Black and purple claws grew from Rajani's hands as he sliced at Angelo, drawing out thick black-ish blood.

"Angelo! Rajani what are you doing?!"

"Uhh, saving your ass?" He sliced continuously, as I stood dumbfounded watching more blood and flesh taint the terrain and I.

His claws retracted as he stood, dusting his cloak off and pulling his hood down. "Well, this is unsightly. "He looked at a bleeding Angelo, his jawline clenching. "I'm kidding. I love blood." He bent down, popping a blood stained finger into his mouth.

I rushed to Angelo, putting an ear against his bloodied chest.

"Relax he's alive. I avoided his heart."

"Why did you go this far?!"

"Would you have preferred he laid waste to you and continued his rampage?"

Angelo's eyes flew open and I flinched in fear. "Get your hands off me!" He moved backwards, his wounds healing in seconds.

"Angelo what's the problem?"

"YOU! You're the problem! You're the reason my brother's dead!" His eyes shone with tears and I deflated.

"You blame me?" I said with a shaky voice.

"I do! Arghhh!" He buried his face in his hands, shaking his head unceasingly.

I fell to my knees, legs scrapping the rocky land. "I blame myself too, Angelo. If you guys didn't follow me, none of this would've happened. I'm so sorry." I sniffed, turning to Angelo. "Please forg-"

He raised a hand, stopping me. "Just stop. Don't follow me." He stood, walking away back into the forest.

Hot tears ran down my bloodied cheeks. "…Angelo." I whispered his name in pain.

~~~

My chest burned, hands tainted with a mixture of sand, blood and tears.

"We need to get going, Nawi." Thora chimed.

"Thora!" Wisteria murmured loudly, tipping her head down suggestively. "What would you do if one of your sisters died this way?"

Thora's eyes widened. "None of my sisters would never die that way!"

"That's not the point!" Wisteria eyed me apologetically. "You can't just snatch her from her loved one. She's dealing with an unbelievable loss."

Mason held me tightly, his breath ragged, body shaking ever so slightly as my fingers dug into his shirt in desperation. "Is this really happening?" I spoke while staring at the pile of sand now covering my best friends body. "He didn't deserve this. No one does."

Mason ran comforting fingers through my hair whilst patting my back.

"And Angelo. I don't even know where he could be. What he could be. I've never seen him that way, Mason. I need to find him."

"I don't think that's a good idea, sis." He tightened his grip on me. "Angelo is my very good friend as well, but if he really attacked you back there I think it's best he left. Besides from what you told me, it seems he's not human after all so he should be fine."

I sighed heavily. "I just miss him a lot. I'm supposed to be there for him now. I mean his brother was all he had." A stray tear escaped my puffy eyes as I remembered Donny.

"Sshh it's okay." Mason comforted me further.

All of a sudden, Thoras' eyes glinted as she sniffed the air, Rajani coincidentally appearing in front of my brother and I, his back turned to the rest.

I jerked in surprise, holding a hand to my speeding heart. "Can you stop doing that?"

"I think it's time you left, Maraja." Rajani's purple rimmed eyes exuded a strange urgency.

"Left? What? Why?" I untangled myself from my brothers hold, taking a strand of hair away from my sticky face.

Mason regained his grip on me, pushing me behind his tall frame. "Who's this?"

"Relax Mason, he's the one who helped me fend off Angelo at the foot of the forest, remember?" I laid a reassuring hand on my brothers' shoulder, not budging, I peeked out from his protective structure. "Rajani what do you mean it's time I left?"

"Wait. Rajani!?" Thora took up a defensive stance, Wisteria and her brother following suit instantly.

"Step away from him, Nawi!" Wisteria yelled, eyes glowing in panic as her hands moved, readying an attack.

"Why? Who is he?" I eyed Rajanis' tense jaw worriedly.

Wisterio drew an arrow of flames, closing an eye and aiming for Rajani, an appalled frown plastering itself unto his face. "Killians' son."

What?