Chapter 76: The Battle for Eldridge Falls

The rain lashed down in thick, relentless sheets onto Eldridge Falls as if the heavens themselves had conspired against them. Emma and Ethan battled through the storm, their feet slapping in puddles while each malevolent gust punched them from all angles. Every breath was heavier, each step a grim reminder of what was to come. "He's got Lucas," Emma whispered, her heart racing loudly in her ear. "We can't let him win, Ethan." Ethan nodded. His face was set in grim resolution. "I know, but if the benefactor has Lucas, it means he is desperate. We need to use that against him. They came right onto the square, and what opened before Emma's eyes made her blood run down her legs. There he was, the benefactor, right in the middle of the square with its cobblestones. His figure was shrouded in darkness, while the light from the lampposts, which fluttered around him, outlined his face and confidence as if nothing of what was happening around him mattered. Beside him, still bound and on his knees knelt Lucas. His hands were bound behind his back, a gag tight around his mouth, but his eyes were brimming with defiance. Not giving up yet, even now. "Welcome," the benefactor called over the storm. His voice was smooth, almost too calm. "I've been expecting you. Emma's fists had clenched as her mind whirled. "Let him go," she said, stepping forward. The wind whipped through her hair, crossing it over her face, but she didn't care. "This ends now." The benefactor's mouth curled into a tiny smile. "Oh, I agree. This does end now. But not in the way you think. Ethan moved to stand beside her, his hand clenching on the hilt of a small knife he'd secreted inside his coat. "You lose, old man," he growled out, his teeth clenched. "You don't have the town. We know what you've done, and we're not afraid of you. He cocked his head to one side, an edge of his mouth curling with humour. "Not afraid? Is that so?" He glanced around them at the storm tearing through the town, the wind howling like a wild beast. "You think you can win this? You're outmatched. You're outnumbered. Emma's chest had started to tighten as his words seeped into the gnawing truth that he wasn't wrong. The town was on the brink, the dam destroyed, the floodwaters rising. They had no time. Yet, she refused to let him see that fear now. "We're not backing down," she said with emphasis. "You can't break this town. The benefactor's smile stretched wide over his teeth, and he took a step forward in languid motion; his eyes glowing with malice. "Oh, my dear. This town was broken long before I arrived. I'm simply finishing what was started long ago.". He raised a hand, and the earth beneath them started to shudder. Emma's eyes went wide as weblike cracks shot out across the cobblestones-dark veins reaching for them. It was colder still, it seemed, the storm churning furiously as if even the earth itself had begun to respond to the benefactor's will. Ethan clutched at Emma's arm, yanking her backwards. "We gotta go. Now! Yet still there was a step ahead, and the cracks exploded in dark, shadowy figures rising from the ground-twisted and unnatural, their bodies smoke and darkness, their hollow eyes glowing with an eerie light as they started closing in on Emma and Ethan. The residues of the Great Evil, he thundered into the square, those that through the seal of the centuries were shut up tight, now am free to finish what was started. The figures closed in, Emma's heart racing. Faceless, expressionless, yet malignity seemed to reverberate around them. She knew in her heart it was the battle for which they had prepared. The last stand. Ethan unsheathed his knife, his eyes narrowing. "Stay close to me," he growled. "We gotta fight our way through. Emma nodded and took a shaky breath. She wasn't the fighter that Ethan was, but then again neither would she let something as insidious as fear get in the way either at this juncture. She bent down and picked up a broken piece of wood lying on the ground, clasping it tightly in her hands. The first of those shadowy figures lunged at them, its body twisting unnaturally as it attacked. Ethan moved fast, slashing at it with his knife, but the blade passed through the creature like it was air. It recoiled for a moment, then reformed, its hollow eyes locking onto them. "It's not working!" Ethan shouted frustration creeping into his voice. Emma's mind was racing; there had to be some kind of way to stop them, some way back. The benefactor had brought them into the world; there needed to be a way back. She swung the piece of wood with all her might at another figure diving at her. It did no good; this creature, too, passed through her strike like smoke. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lucas fighting against his bonds. *Lucas's machine!* Emma's eyes went wide as she stared at Ethan. "Ethan! We have got to get to Lucas! His invention - it's our only chance!" Ethan looked at her and then back at the creatures that surrounded them. "Go! I'll hold them off!" Emma didn't utter another word. She dove under one of the dark figures and ran toward Lucas, her heart beating a hundred miles an hour in her ears, the rain soaking her to the bone, and the wind trying to throw her off her balance, but she didn't stop. She finally reached him and met Lucas's gaze; even through the gag, she made out the urgency in his eyes that he was trying to tell her something. She knelt beside him, reaching for the ropes binding his wrists. "I'm getting you out of here," she whispered, her fingers shaking as she tried to work the knots. The ropes were wet, which made them all the more difficult to untie. At last the ropes released, and Lucas yanked the gag out of his mouth and gasped for air. "The machine," he grated, hoarse with cold. "It's in my pocket. The control." Emma's hands were shaking as she reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small device. It was cold to the touch, slicked with metal from the rain, but she held onto it tightly. What's that supposed to do?" she yelled, barely audible above the storm. Lucas sprang to his feet, his eyes now hard with resolve. "It's a disruptor. It'll stop them. But we have to get closer to the benefactor." Emma's stomach twisted at the thought of going head-to-head against the benefactor, but she nodded. They had no choice. They walked back in tandem to Ethan, still fighting the figures in the dark. His breathing came in laboured gasps, his movements slower than before. The creatures weren't tiring; he was. "We have to reach the benefactor," Lucas said, stepping beside Ethan. "It's the only way." Ethan's eyes flickered to the device clutched in Lucas's hand, then back to the mass of creatures swirling about them. "Enough," he muttered. "Let's be done with it. The three of them forged a way ahead, cleaving the creatures around them-struggling through them toward the benefactor. Every rise upwards was such a struggle as creatures closed in upon them from every direction. Yet, they couldn't stop. They couldn't afford it. Finally, they were at the centre of the square, where he stood waiting for them, the amused smile beginning to spread over his face. "You think you can stop me?" he was saying; the arrogance just poured off his voice. The silence was deafening. Lucas didn't say a word. He held the device in his hand; his thumb hovered above the button. And in that instant, the air thickened, the storm raging even harder-the world, it seemed, was holding its breath. Emma's heart, while watching Lucas, drummed against her chest. Now or never, she thought. Everything hung in the balance of that one moment. But just as the fingers of Lucas closed on the button, the benefactor raised a hand; a wave of dark energy shot out slamming Lucas to the ground. The device slipped from his grasp and skidded away across the wet cobblestones. "No!" Emma screamed, flinging herself at the device. She could see it, just out of reach, but before she was able to take hold of it, the benefactor's shadowy creatures closed in, enveloping her. "Emma!" Ethan shouted, with a completely panicked tone. Her fingers grazed the edge of the device, but the shadows were too quick. They clamped down on her cold, dark energy that smothered her. The last thing that she saw was the cruel triumphant smile of the benefactor before all went black. But the storm raged onward, unheeding; and below, in the square, a solitude of stone, the prostrate figure of Emma stretched upon the ground shadows enfolded her; the benefactor stood towering, certain of victory.