Chapter 64: A Gathering Storm

The storm seemed to come out of nowhere. Thick, black clouds boiled up and obscured the sky above Eldridge Falls. Incessant shrieks whipped down the main streets, tugging shutters from their hinges and ripping branches from trees. Lightning tore across the sky in great blinding arcs, casting grotesque flashes of illumination over terrified townspeople scrambling for cover. But this was only the beginning of it. Emma and Julian, Harper and Grace, had circled the town hall windows, their faces grim. It was only a week after the mines fell when they hardly managed to save their lives now something worse was hanging over the city. "It's not natural," Harper whispered, shaking. "This storm feels wrong." She didn't need to hear more; she felt it, too down to the marrow. The air was electric, thick with something sinister, unnatural. There was no coincidence here, simply one more omen of that very evil they'd so far fought. Julian paced the room, fists in. "We barely survive the mines, then this? Next thing you know, the town falls apart. She sat at the long, wooden table, her fingers tapping against its surface in a nervous rhythm. "And the benefactor." The sentence fell away as she narrowed her eyes to gaze out the window. "They've gone quiet. Too quiet. But I bet they're behind this storm, somehow. It was then that this "benefactor"-that figure who at first had seemed to help the town along-revealed his real colours: he wanted control and power. And as if on cue, with the storm tearing through Eldridge Falls like a curse, that grip seemed to be clenching. "We need to find out what they're up to," Emma said resolutely. "Because if we don't stop them now, this town won't make it through. The storm, disasters—they are using it against us. Harper had been looking out at the swirling clouds, but he turned back to the group now. "But how? We don't even know where they are." Julian stopped his pacing. "We have to split up and search. There is no time to waste. They must be around here somewhere, taking full advantage of all this confusion to further their scheme. Grace nodded. "We'd have to do it fast, though. This storm is getting worse. Take too long and we might not have a town to save anymore." It was a town all but deserted save the small group battling their way down its centre heads into the driving rain. Water filled up to flooding the cobble paths, swirling around feet trudging through the storm. The windows banged open, and the wind whipped through, carrying with it a cacophony of trees snapping in the distance. Emma's heart was skittering; the benefactor's influence just seemed to spread and spread, and the town was falling to pieces around them. "We'll try the old library first," Grace yelled over the storm. "If they're hiding anywhere, it's going to be someplace abandoned-someplace nobody would think to look." Julian nodded. "Brilliant. Let's go. Boarded-up windows made the library dark, while this creaky, old building was groaning along with the storm outside, and the inner air thick with wood and dust; the reverberation of footsteps echoed within the empty corridors. "This place gives me the creeps," Harper muttered low, holding a lantern to cast flickering light over row upon row of books and shelves that seemed ancient. "Why would anybody want to hide themselves here? Emma shook her head, her form pressing deeper into the library. "It is not because we want to hide; it is just because we need to be kept hidden. Whoever this benefactor is, he is playing a long game. He is just waiting for the perfect moment to strike. They fanned out, peering down corridors, yanking on drapes, and pounding on walls. It was as if the library were inhabited by no one, abandoned- until Emma heard something: a faint scratching, the screech of something heavy being dragged. "Over here!" she called, waving the others after her. Together they pulled a big bookcase away from the wall. Behind it was a little door half-concealed in darkness. Julian seized the handle. "This should be it." The door now opened, a cold and moist puff of air issuing therefrom, with the faintest whispering of voices. It was a small room, and only four of them were allowed in. In the centre, there was an old wooden desk with the walls papered with all kinds of signs up and down, and nothing else. One candle struggled to burn; above it, the flame danced in the middle of the room, throwing long shadows throughout the eerie scenery. "This is it," Grace breathed, her eyes wide. "This is where they've been working, plotting it all." Steaming, Harper strode to the desk and picked up one of the papers. "These are maps of the town… but they're marked with something. Look." He pointed at several red Xs scattered across the map. "These are places of power where the town's energy is strongest. The places popped out at her, and she realized that her heart had gone right into her stomach. The town square, the old clock tower, the mines. He had attacked every place that had been hit either by the storm or by disasters. "They've targeted these places on purpose," she stammered, voice tight. "They're weakening the town, one step at a time." But none of them had gotten a word out before the sound of a loud crash echoed from behind: the door shut, and the room went dark. Emma's heart stuttered as the candle gutted out. She heard the others gasp in the sudden blackness, her breath coming in sharp, panicked bursts. "Who's there?" Julian called the tension in his voice and gave him away. A soft chuckle escaped; it ran chills down her spine. "You've come so far," a voice whispered from out of the shadows, "but you're too late." The benefactor. Emma's blood ran cold as he stepped into the inchoate light. Cloaked in shadows, his face wasn't visible, yet it oozed incontestable power from him. "You have been playing with things you do not understand, " he went on, voice cold and smooth as silk. "Eldridge Falls belongs to me now. The storm, the disasters. It is only the beginning. Soon, this town will go to its knees before me." Julian took a step closer, fists clenched. "We'll never let that happen." He laughed again; that mirthless sound. "You don't have a choice. The town's power is mine to command, and soon everyone shall see that." The anger bubbled up in her chest. "You can't just destroy everything," she said, voice quivering. "This town-these people-they won't let you." The benefactor smiled coldly. "We'll see about that." And in an instant, he lifted his hand and a wave of dark energy ripped through the room, sending Emma and the rest crashing to the floor. Pain convulsed through her body as the wash of power crested over her, and for a moment she couldn't breathe. "We need to get out of here!" Harper wheezed, struggling up onto his feet. Yet, there had been a seal, and now the space was starting to close in on them. Odorous, smoke-and-ash-thickened walls pulsed through with dark energy, his mind's eye seemed to say. "We're trapped," Grace whispered, fighting hard not to show her fear. The benefactor chuckled; the tone was flat, the reverberation dying across the room thick with whirling darkness. "This is your end," he told him words running with malice. "Eldridge Falls will fall, and there is nothing you can do to stop it." With the increase in dark energy, the walls start closing in piece by piece; no hope seems to come out for Emma with her friends as the storm outside surges every second. Someone controls the town.