Chapter 24 - The Afterlife pt. 1

This was it. Ekyt had the war won. Shadow was down, a victim of a missed electrified whip-crack from Lien-Da. All Ekyt had to was finish him. Suddenly, he was yanked upward by an unseen force. “What the hell?” Shadow, Ekyt, and Lien-Da all said at the same time.

Ekyt landed in the familiar red area, except he was alone. Usually Aurora was waiting. “Did I just get killed?” Ekyt wondered. He saw three paths. One was as good as the other. He picked one and ventured down it carefully.

Linda-Su and Julie-Su had finally hit their breaking point meanwhile. They were sisters, and they loved each other, but their loyalty to their husbands was a stumbling block. “Knuckles could have done something!” Linda shouted at Julie. Julie yelled back with “It’s not my fault your husband wussed out!” Two hot-headed females in a volatile situation. Not a good thing, even though they were sisters.

Ekyt felt the walls. It was a squishy-feeling thing. All of a sudden his legs were sucked into the ground. “What the hell? Damn!” he swore as a four-legged dog breathing fire came barreling at him. If he wasn’t dead yet, he was now. He had his arms free, but that dog could roast him at will. Or so it seemed.

Colin felt older. Ekyt had just…disappeared. Shadow had been on the edge of defeat. Maybe he couldn’t do it? Ekyt hadn’t struck him as the type who could kill, no matter what the circumstance. Maybe Shadow had blown him up. Not a good scenario. “I’ve got to track him. Mitch, get Kyle and Tracey (both Shadowthe_Hedgehog) ready! We’ve got a mission here!” After issuing the order, he let his shoulders drop. “damn. What happened? C’mon Ekyt, pull it off…”

Ekyt swung out with his left hand, catching the dog off guard. With his right hand, he grabbed the dog’s collar…Why the hell did it have a collar?… and flipped it over. It disappeared. Ekyt’s legs were freed from the jelly-like substance. “Man, this isn’t how I remembered the afterlife (Ekyt’s been dead before – see The Next Guardian –NG). He kept walking, reaching another fork in the road. He strode down the right path. He felt the walls. Not jelly this time. They were radiant, glowing gold. Somehow comforting, it made Ekyt feel…powerful. Which was good, considering he was staring down a number of nasty-looking…whatevers with wings.

Shadow got up. “Are you alright?” Lien-Da asked him. “I’m great! What did you shoot him with?” Shadow asked. “What are you talking about?” Lien-Da shot back. “Ekyt. He’s not here. How did you kill him?” With a little crack in her voice, Lien-Da told him: “Shadow…I didn’t kill him…I thought you did…” They exchanged glances, wordlessly agreeing to see if Robotnik knew anything.

“Take it back! You know he wouldn’t do that!” Linda shouted. “You would know better than I would! At least my husband isn’t an outcast to society!” Julie taunted. They both stopped, aware of just what they were saying.

Ekyt stared at the leader of the… “What are you guys?” “We’re Pherinx (Pronounced Fear-inks).” “That tells me what. Good. Now, what do you want?” “A meal.” The leader said viciously, reaching out a long, clawed hand. Ekyt knocked the hand away and touched the wall. He had already figured out that by keeping in contact with the wall, he would have some sort of power. He just hoped it would be enough…

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