Part 2: Rick

Aelen

"Now I see what they have done to you," I said out of pity while stepping out of fast travel. I go back into my demonic form. My sun eyes appear. Rick stands there shaking like a mutt about to lose his cool. He tugs on his chains and snarls.

"Stay still," I say to him while freezing him in place, "I am not going to make it more painful than it actually is."

"Ae-uh-Ae-len," he tries to talk. His voice is hoarse and raspy as if he isn't fed enough and taken care of.

"I can hear you. What do you want?" I ask him.

"Saaaaaaaaavvvvvveeeee meeee-"

A wretched scream from the damned erupts out of the blue. The ground shakes. Rick screams like a zombie. The veins in his arms pop out while he pulls at the chains. He breaks them. The muscle in his arms grew bigger. He screams again before charging at me.

"Stop it," I order, trying my freezing ability on him. He keeps on moving. He's immune now. Dominique's order is to keep them under control, but don't kill or hurt them. I crack my knuckles. "I guess I am knocking you out," I sigh, knowing the remorse will be here soon.

We fight like boxers in an arena. We are dangerously close to each other despite the room. He punches me in the stomach and shoulder, but I recover and punch him in the chest. The whole room trembles, throwing both of us off guard.

"What the hell?" I blurt and Rick clocks me to the face. I tumble to the floor. The shaking didn't end, screaming rocks the ground even more. Rick kicks me in the face, forcing me to lie on my back. My nose becomes clogged with blood that I blow out.

What is going on with the cell next to me? There's Ivelisse and Ella.

Ivelisse, subdue her! I call out urgently within the telepathic link.

I can't, she replies back helplessly. What does she mean that she can't? She is making these walls brittle and that's not helping. The dark ceiling cracks. Ceiling particles are raining down. Soon, a large fragment of the ceiling comes upon us.

I shout and tackle Rick to the side as he punches me in the gut. I breathe out more air than I actually should as we merely dodge the large debris. Dust covers the whole cell now. I look up. No sky, but the next floor above me isn't doing well either. The room keeps on rumbling to Ella's wrath.

Rick punches my cheek, I tumble to the floor. My cheekbones ache and throb madly. It won't be forgotten anytime soon.

If you don't, both Rick and Ella will escape. You have to knock her out, I yell into her head.

I side flip and quickly get up before Rick's foot stomps me into the ground. We go into another boxing fight as the world around us falls down as if it's all an illusion.

She's got me cornered, I-I can't. My head is loopy, she whines.

I forgot that none of the coven experiences telepathy as often or as intense in our connection right now. I dodge Rick's arm swing. I say to Ivelisse, almost saying outloud, For Pete's sake, Ive, snap out of it. Use your powers. Remember who you are, Remember who Ella is, She's not the enemy and never will.

The familiar rumbling came from up above again. Seriously, not this again. Before I can get us out of the way, Rick grabs me by the throat and throws me behind him as he steps back. The large debris falls on me. The explosion of misery cries as the debris crushes my body. There's no chance that I will regenerate now, but I might if everything stops shaking. I can't move anything. The only thing undamaged is my mind.

I-Ivelisse, I call out to her weakly.

No answer.

Ive, please, do this quickly.

Unwanted silence.

Ivelisse.

Crap.

The debris moves and the weight grows as more debris piles on. No, I can't end it like this. I need to break through. I have to break through Rick's mind. I visualise a link connecting Rick's to my mind.

Rick, you're not yourself, I say to him.

I feel the link flickering. It's weak. It can't handle long messages or messages are less likely to get through.

Rick, I know you are in there, I persist.

I hear him growling outside the debris.

You have to fight it.... Break through.

An undead scream breaks out and you thought a demonic screech was unsettling. My organs pop and my bones fracture while I am unable to wail out as Rick jumps on top of the debris with a wish of murder.

Rick, fight! I say to him through the link, but the link flickers and then vanishes. There's no way I am getting to him now.

Ivelisse! I shriek out, the only link I feel that remains unchanged. The hidden mind gem does have its perks. The only way to shatter the link is to break it, but its invisible wires make it indestructible. The link doesn't seem so weak as glass. I lie there, hoping Ivelisse responds, but no. I think of nothing, but wishing for all this to end. The shaking. I am so low that Rick isn't jumping onto the debris pile. A few minutes pass by until the shaking has stopped. I am so in tune beneath the rubble that I don't notice it at first. I try to move and shove the debris off of me. Yeah, there's no way.

Ella is knocked out, Ive whispers back telepathically.

Thank you!

I create another link into Rick's mind. Rick, I'm still here...

All I can hear is heavy breathing that is muffled by the debris. I've sworn up and down that I will never control his mind, nor my other friends' minds. It doesn't feel right to me and it also feels immoral to do what they don't want to do. I can't use my powers to remove the debris above me because my brain is crushed. I don't want Rick to snap either.

"H-Help meee," he cries out.

I can't. Fight.

"Save meeeee."

This is horrible. The mind link begins to flicker. It's your body. Your mind, your body has more control than some outside influence. I say to him as fast as possible. The link fluctuates and goes out completely.

"I-I caaannn't fight."

"It'ssss controllin' meeee..."

I say even with my throat and lungs' protests, "Are you sure you want to go there?" My voice is bleak, but I speak as loud as I can as if he is sitting right next to me. "Rick, you're tough. You can still talk against it. You can restrain it." I hear groans, followed by an audible collapse and groans. They grow louder and louder. His voice sounds like there's another person trying to take over. He goes silent. Then, an ear-piercing cry happens. It's hoarse, in agony, and desperate. He sobs loudly before I can hear another tumble sound onto the floor. The whimpers continue for a minute until he finally stops.

The taps of his feet make me assume he rises back to his feet.

"Ael-Aelen, where are you?" He asks. His voice is his own, but still weak, yet he has control.

As if right on time, my body forces me to cough and gurgle on my own blood. He hears it and rushes to me. The clanking and clanging of the rocks as he grabs and throws them behind him. The weight decreases over time and the thought of relief is about to happen soon.

"Hang on, got this big debris on you," he says as grabs it. I can't see it happening, but I can visualise it like there's nothing there. I hear him grunt. The major crushing pressure comes off of me. I breathe and cough as my lungs rejoice in freedom. My ripped shirt reveals a large part of my abdomen turned red and black. It slowly reverts back to its normal colour. He tosses the large boulder. He sees and smiles at me. He resumes pushing away the smaller debris.

"Aelen, you alright?" He offers me a hand. I gladly take it as he helps sit me up.

My regeneration kicks in. It feels like euphoria as the mad pain goes away like nothing. I breathe heavily for a moment as I wipe the blood from my mouth. A tingling sensation, something that feels so magical. It makes me want to smile and have a good time. It always happens when no danger is around. It doesn't do that when I know there's an opponent nearby. It will be very weird if I burst into laughter.

"I am now," I assured him.

He helps me up.

"Are you okay?" I ask him.

"Much better for now." He shivers, "I don't want to feel that again."

"Neither do I want to fight you again."

"Where's the coven?"