Chapter 20

Darkness’s Downfall

                Katrina grew dizzy as Taemin dived down rapidly into the seemingly never-ending abyss with her in tow. The grey concrete stairway seemed to flash by as they descended, making Katrina sick to her stomach.

                “Are we there yet?” she asked, annoyed at how long the so-called fastest way to the ground floor was taking. Taemin shrugged.

                “Not too long. We should be there in-“

                Before Taemin could finish, he realized that they were closer to the bottom floor than he thought. A white light could be seen, penetrating the darkness of the corridor. Realizing that they were going too fast, Taemin flapped his black wings frantically, attempting to slow down. He did, but not quite enough; Both he and Katrina ended up making a crash landing onto hard, white marble flooring, momentarily knocking the breath out of them. When they could breathe again, Katrina stood up, gently shoving the Valkyrie off of her; he had landed on her back during the crash. Taemin smiled sheepishly at Katrina, giving her an apologetic look as he slowly got up from the floor as well.

                They had landed in a pure white hallway lined with mirrors of all shapes and sizes. After being in the dark stairway so long, Katrina had to squint her eyes to get used to the over-bearing brightness the white walls and floor provided. Jonghyun, Leeteuk, Phillip, Siwon, Donghae, and Eunhyuk were standing just feet from them, who looked on in amusement.

                “Taemin, the first thing we’re doing after this is over is teach you how to make a proper landing.” Jonghyun joked before sub-coming to another coughing fit. This one was stronger than the last, almost bringing the Valkyrie leader to his knees.

                “We have to hurry.” Leeteuk commanded, turning to face the far end of the hallway. “Onew’s supposed to be down at the very end. Come on!”

                With that, everyone advanced down the hallway, becoming wary of their surroundings. At first, the hallway was empty, containing nothing but the mirrors. However, after a few minutes, they discovered matching white tables with various things laid upon them: Black candle stick holders with sticks of half melted white wax, empty jars and glasses with white residue on the bottom, and several dead corpses of black butterflies. Katrina turned to Jonghyun in confusion.

                “Occasionally, if the spirits don’t receive the amount of life force they need to survive, they will die.” Jonghyun explained. Katrina smiled at this. At least they could be killed. Destroying them may be easier than they thought. “Of course,” Jonghyun added, “for every butterfly spirit that is dead, five of them are alive.”

                Katrina looked around. On the table nearest them, there were ten dead butterflies. So ten times five was….

                Katrina gulped. Ok, she wasn’t very good at math, but she did know that that was a lot of butterflies to kill, and she had only taken one table full of corpses into account. This was not good. However, despite her new-found fear, she forced herself to keep going through the corridor. As they continued, the mirrors started to increase in size, and their frames became more intricate. Donghae stopped at one of them, admiring himself in to reflective glass.

                “Well hello there!” he smiled, adjusting his coat. “You know what Eunhyuk?” he addressed his twin brother, who turned back with an aggravated expression. “You are so lucky to share the same genetics with such a handsome brother like- WAH!” Donghae suddenly exclaimed, jumping back in surprise. Now everyone turned their attention to Donghae, who was now pointing a shaky finger at the mirror in horror. “Did you see that?” Donghae asked, scrambling to hide behind Eunhyuk.

                “See what, oh so handsome brother of mine?” Eunhyuk rolled his eyes, slightly smirked at his own joke.

                “That!” Donghae pointed to the mirror again. “Someone else’s face suddenly formed in the mirror out of nowhere. It’s haunted I tell you!”

                Jonghyun walked up to the mirror in question, observing his reflection and lightly tapping the glass. Suddenly, to everyone’s amazement, his image transformed into a different face. Key was now staring back at Jonghyun, smirking in his usual conceded way. Jonghyun, however, did not freak out as Donghae had; he simply walked away, continuing down the hallway.

                “They’re not haunted,” Jonghyun explained as the others followed his lead. “The mirrors are just reacting to the strong presence of Onew’s magic. If you stare at them long enough, they will reveal the face of the one dearest to you.”

                Fascinated by this piece of knowledge, Donghae stood in front of another mirror, smiling at the image as it transformed into the one dearest to him: Eunhyuk. He waved at the image, which waved back, imitating Donghae’s movements. As he laughed at this new entertainment, Jonghyun spoke again.

                “But if you dwell on the image too long,” Jonghyun started to explain, but before he could finish, the jovial face of Eunhyuk in the mirror instantly turned sinister, causing Donghae to jump back in terror once again. “They will turn on you.” Jonghyun finished as Donghae clung onto Eunhyuk for protection. Eunhyuk shook his head, giving his brother a small pat on the head in reassurance that everything would be alright.

                They began to walk again, passing by mirror after mirror and table after table. After at least a half hour of walking, their feet started to drag. Although she knew she shouldn’t, Katrina glanced at a couple of the mirrors, looking for something to distract her from the monotony of the journey. In the mirror, she saw not one, but two figures that meant the world to her: her mom and dad. They were holding hands side by side, creating a picture-perfect image of a couple in love. Katrina gave a small smile, until the reflection of her mother abruptly hissed at her. Katrina smile was gone in a flash, and from then on, she didn’t look into another mirror.

                The corridor continued on and on and on, until things started to seem… familiar.

                “I think we just passed a mirror exactly like this.” Siwon suddenly stated, stopping in his tracks.

                “Yeah,” Phillip piped up, “I’m pretty sure I saw a table with the butterflies arranged exactly like that one.”

                Leeteuk looked around, realizing something. “This must be a diversion set up by Onew.” He concluded. “It’s probably an illusion we have to get ourselves out of.” Leeteuk tried kicking one of the walls, but it stood firm, unfazed by the man’s attack. Then, he just stood still; he didn’t know what to do now.

                Putting his finger up to his mouth in contemplation, Taemin walked up to one of the mirrors and gazed into the reflection. A couple of seconds later, Minho’s reflection popped up, staring at Taemin emotionlessly.

                “I think I’ve heard of this kind of magic before.” Taemin spoke as he continued to stare at the reflection. After a couple more seconds, the image of Minho snarled, emitting a low growling noise. “This is a portal mirror.” Taemin continued to explain. “It’s meant to keep intruders out and let certain people in. It does this by taking a comforting image, such as a dear friend, and contorting it into an image that’s scary or uncomfortable to the individual.” As he said this, the Minho reflection started to screech and beat on the mirror, causing the whole wall to shake. “However, if you keep staring at the reflection without looking away and without showing any fear,” Suddenly, the image’s countenance became very calm, and the reflection smiled back at Taemin, slightly bowing his head. “The mirror will allow you to pass.” He concluded as the mirror faded completely, leaving a doorway in its place.

                “Wow!” Phillip shouted, pumping his fist in the air. “That was awesome Taemin! How did you know to do that?”

                Taemin turned to Phillip with a big grin on his face. “Well, I am the magician of the group after all. I need to know some things about magical defenses.” He explained as he passed through the square hole in the wall. Impressed, the others followed suit, leaving the hallway behind. However, they certainly did not leave the white atmosphere behind; the huge room the portal lead to was just as blindingly white, but instead of mirrors or tables, the only décor to be seen was a clock on the far wall. The numbers and hands were suspended upon the wall by magic as it ticked away the time.

Just below the clock, Katrina came across two very familiar figures. A young woman with long, mousy brown hair and her arms tied behind her back was crouched on the floor in what seemed like a very uncomfortable position, and a dark cloaked and hooded figure was standing in front of her; the same cloaked figure from the night of the alley explosion. His hands were outstretched, and he was chanting in a very low voice causing the room to be filled with a strange, dark aura.

“Mom!” Cried Katrina as she started to run to Christine’s aid, but Leeteuk stopped her with his arm just in time. Alerted by Katrina’s voice, the dark figure slowly turned towards the group, chuckling darkly.

“Ah, well if it isn’t little Katrina.” The figure spoke, his voice sending chills down everyone’s spines. “At last we meet.” The cloaked man raised his hands to the hood covering his face and pulled it down, revealing a young man with light brown hair. His smile seemed very friendly, and his pure white teeth gleamed in the light of the room. However, the friendliness and beauty of his face was ruined by his eyes, which were now completely black, and the very bottoms of his eyelids were lined with a dark red as though he had been crying tears of blood. “You’re just in time for our little ceremony.” He grinned darkly, causing the others to cringe.

Leeteuk took a step forward, horror written all over his face. “On- Onew?” he asked as he observed the possessed face of what once was his innocent little brother. “What have you spirits done with Onew?!” Leeteuk addressed the spirits inside their host. Onew’s face contorted into a smirk as Christine lifted her head.

“Don’t get any closer Leeteuk!” she exclaimed. “You’re about to enter his area of influence, the area where his power is greatest. His dark aura is concentrated too much near him. If you take one more step, he’ll easily defeat- AH!” Christine’s explanation was cut short by a slap across the face.

“What did I say about speaking you little twit?!” Onew exploded. However, his voice didn’t sound like a man’s. It sounded like an old, cantankerous woman. Everyone was taken aback by this, not sure what to think. In a rage he turned to his guests. “Enough of this!” he exclaimed, this time speaking in his regular voice. “You should not have come here, for now I am forced to destroy you. Usually, I would kill you all very slowly in excruciating torture, but I’m afraid I’m too busy the life out of poor Christine here. So, I’m going to have to settle for the next best thing: watching as my pets dispose of you, ripping the flesh from your bones and your blood dry.”

At this, Taemin gagged. “Ew! That’s gross! We’re vegetarians! We don’t eat meat. Well, unless it’s fish. But only if you get it from-“

“Ah!” Onew interrupted Taemin, grinning evilly from ear to ear. “I didn’t realize two of you were already here.”

Jonghyun turned to Taemin, giving him a death stare for bringing attention to them. Taemin shrunk in both Onew and Jonghyun’s gaze.

“Oh, and look here! You brought another of your kind!” Onew exclaimed, pointing to a terrified Phillip. “Perfect. Though, it seems like my babies are having trouble controlling you. Here, let me help.” Onew’s eyes suddenly became wide, and he let out a horrible screech which summoned dozens of black butterfly spirits. All three of the Valkyrie panicked, rushing for the door that lead to the hallway, but Onew waved his hand, and the door disappeared before they could escape, allowing the butterflies to reach their targets easily. The others looked on as all three were being choked alive by the spirits wiggling themselves down their throats. In less than a few seconds, they had completely taken over their hosts. The Valkyries’ eyes went completely black, matching their master's.

Just then, the whole back wall abruptly came crashing down, revealing Shindong, Atlas, Ryeowook, Yesung, Kyuhyun, and Sungmin. They ran into the room, looking behind them as if something were chasing them. However, they skidded to a halt when they saw the possessed trio, and slowly backed up into the white hallway again. Before they could completely retreat from the room though, the other two Valkyrie, Minho and Key, flew in, blocking the escape route. They were now trapped as the Valkyrie circled the five Phantoms and the wolf. Onew’s evil chuckle filled the entire room.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some unfinished business to do.” Onew’s smile disappeared as he returned to his spell, waving his hands over Christine. She trembled as the spell took its effect, the life from her beaten body. Leeteuk snarled in anger, an action that shocked Katrina. Leeteuk was usually so nice and calm, but she understood how he felt. She wanted to rip Onew limb from limb, but she knew it wasn’t really Onew doing all of this. She had to perform the spell with her mother, and fast.

Wait, the spell! Katrina suddenly remembered: She had forgotten the spell book! They needed that to destroy the spirits. Nice going Katrina! She scolded herself. She frantically looked around. By now the Valkyrie had begun their attack, and everyone besides her was fighting back. She wanted to help her friends, but she had to go get that book. With a panicked wave of her arm, she vanished, teleporting out of the white room. At first, no one realized she had disappeared, but after being shoved out of the chaos of battle, Ryeowook looked around only to find that Katrina wasn’t there.

“Has anyone seen Katrina?” Ryeowook shouted, getting everyone’s attention. The fighting stopped for a second as everyone looked around in confusion.

“Um, no. Where is she?” Sungmin asked.

“Don’t tell me she ran away!” Kyuhyun exclaimed in exasperation.

“Can I eat Yesung’s flesh now?” Phillip asked innocently despite being possessed as he held Yesung’s neck in a strangling choke hold. Onew looked up from his spell, grimacing in anger.

“Yes, do it now! Forget the girl! She’ll fall to her doom no matter what she-“

Out of nowhere, a large, leather-bound book flew from across the room into Onew’s face, knocking him over. He landed hard on the fall wall, shaking it just enough for the 6 on the floating clock to shake loose and fall on his head with a thump. He groaned, losing consciousness as Katrina materialized in the middle of the room.

“I did not forget the book!” She exclaimed before realizing the scene around her. Everyone stared at her, wondering how she managed to knock out Onew just by sheer luck and irresponsibility. But hey, it worked. Realizing she had successfully attacked her archenemy, she bounced up and down in victory. “Wow, I’m awesome! I wasn’t even try-“

“Just get the book and help Christine with the spell!” Leeteuk shouted as he punched Jonghyun in the shoulder, starting the fight up again.

Katrina rolled her eyes. “Fine. No need to be so bossy.” She muttered as she ran to her mom, where the book had landed. She helped her mother to her feet. She was a bit shaky still, but the effects of the draining spell were fading.

“Give me the book.” Christine commanded as Katrina struggled to pick up the heavy book. She opened it and stood by Christine’s side as they held the spell book together. Christine rapidly flipped page after page until she found one entitled, The Exorcist Spell. “This spell has to be recited by two people.” She explained as she pointed to a paragraph of text. Katrina silently read through it, her face contorting in confusion.

“What language is that? Latin?” she asked.

Just then, Onew suddenly sprung up from the floor, apparently recovered from his bonk on the head. He advanced on the two women, his mouth twisting into a smirk.

“Ah, the two Phantom heirs in one place. How convenient.” Onew mused as he started to lift his hand and cast a spell. But before he could do so, Leeteuk rushed to Christine and Katrina’s aid, surrounding them with a protective barrier. Onew sent out a blast of energy, put the force field kept the evil magic from reaching his target.

“Recite the spell!” Leeteuk exclaimed, struggling to hold the barrier as Onew started to bombard the barrier with a barrage of attacks. “I’ll hold him for as long as I can.”

Christine and Katrina looked at each other, preparing themselves for what was to come. With a nod, they turned to the book and began to slowly read:

“Nos duo coniungere vires ut, quaerens destruere malum quod consumit omnes.”

As the first line was finished, the Valkyrie and Onew ceased their fighting, their faces going blank, as if in a trance. The others stopped fighting as well, bringing their attention to Christine and Katrina’s reading.

“Ut nostri revelando lucem splendescere per fallacis tenebris, discooperiens veritatem et sublevandis ones afflixit.”

By this time, the Valkyrie and Onew were screaming as the spirits started to die inside of them.

“Pellat tenebras hinc inde malis spiritibus veniens.”

Now the possessed were on the floor, writhing in extreme pain as the butterflies that were still alive frantically flew out of their hosts’ mouths, trying to find an escape from the spell.

With a loud shout, Christine and Katrina recited the last words from the book:

“Mori, malum, mori!”

Suddenly, tiny, high pitched screams came from the butterflies as they vaporized in a burst of flame, littering the floor with bits of crushed butterfly wings and ash. Everything became deadly quiet as the book was closed and Leeteuk disabled his force field. The Valkyrie and Onew were passed out, lying on the floor, and the others just observed in astonishment. Had they really just won?

Unfortunately, that question was answered as Onew’s eyes suddenly opened; they were still black. He slowly floated upwards towards the ceiling, his feet leaving the ground as a dark apparition appeared behind his still limp, lifeless form.

“Foolish Phantoms!” A woman’s voice boomed from the apparition, which started to take the form of a shredded grey cloak. “You thought you could destroy me? Ha! Well, I commend you for your efforts, but they will be to no avail.” The ghostly specter pulled her hood down, revealing the terrifying face beneath. The figure was an old woman who was in desperate need of a face lift; the skin from her face was drooping badly, creating the illusion that her face was melting off. She grinned at the faces of pure shock staring at her, revealing a set of pointy, yellow, rotten teeth. “Surprised are we? Hmm. It’s a wonder I even created you worthless beings in the first place. Oh well. That’s going to change right now. I have now successfully drained one of your brethren of his life force.” she said, waving towards the still floating body of Onew, his eyes now closed. “And all of you are about to be next!”

As everyone was distracted by the horrible sight before them, Ryeowook realized he had to put a stop to this woman. He could sense that she was an ancient evil spirit that would take more than a spell to destroy. He had to kill it using his spirit form. He had learned how to do this while living in the forest, but he’d never attempted the procedure on something as powerful as the spirit before him now. However, he swallowed his fear and closed his eyes in meditation, unbeknownst to the people around him. As his spirit started to leave his body, the ghostly woman spotted him, realizing what he was about to do.

“Oh, dear sweet Ryeowook, are you really trying to kill me with your little spirit ritual?” she cooed sarcastically, her grin getting wider. “I admire your pluck, so I’ll reward you by killing you first, that way you don’t have to watch your friends die!” The evil spirit whizzed past Ryeowook’s spirit form and headed directly towards his body. Ryeowook tried desperately to race back to into his host, but it was obvious he wasn’t going to make it in time. This couldn’t be happening! He had to help destroy this monster. He couldn’t die now!

Then, out of the corner of his eye, Ryeowook saw a flash of grey fur sprint towards his body. As soon as the apparition was about to shred Ryeowook to bits, Atlas jumped right in front of him, taking the woman’s blow. The ghostly phantom transformed into grey smoke and flowed into Atlas’s muzzle, causing his eyes to go wide as he choked. Ryeowook’s spirit floated in place for a moment, trying to absorb what had just happened, but he soon snapped out of his daze and flew to Atlas’s shaking form. He could still kill the evil spirit within him, but he had to hurry before it completely drained Atlas of his life. Taking a deep breath, Ryeowook started to circle Atlas, chanting in the sacred language of the spirit:

“May my spirit be a vessel for light to shine where darkness reins.”

As he did so, his white form began to shimmer, turning into a brilliant gold that out-shined even the blaring white walls of the room. It was like the light came from inside of him, growing brighter and more brilliant with each second until everyone had to shield their eyes in order to avoid going blind. The light started to enter Atlas’s form and engulf the now angry spirit woman. As Ryeowook’s power became stronger, her screeches of protest from within Atlas became louder. At the of the ritual, Ryeowook stood in front of Atlas, placing his hand upon his forehead. Atlas coughed and trembled as the evil spirit tried to fight of the light. With one final breath, Ryeowook flicked his wrist downward as he commanded,

“Go back to the Hell you came from.”

Suddenly, a giant crack tore open the floor, separating the room into two. It rapidly grew in size and became a gaping chasm, revealing a scene of blazing fire that engulfed the writhing souls of the wicked. Blood curdling screams could be heard, and the smell of brimstone and rotting flesh was overwhelming. Everyone looked in horror as the stream of grey smoke was out of Atlas’s body into the flames of Hell. As the fire grabbed her being, the smoke turned back into the old woman, who snarled at the onlookers.

“You think you’ve won Phantoms?” she spat. “Not even the fires of Hell can keep me from getting my revenge! I will be back, and you will pay! You’ll all pay!” The fire began to eat at her flesh, melting off her skin to reveal a rotting skull beneath. She turned towards Christine as the chasm began to close. “Especially you, Christine Daae. I will make you pay for even daring to try to break my curse you foolish, lovey dovey brat!”

As she let loose one last scream, the portal of hell abruptly closed, leaving the floor clean and clear like nothing had ever happened. Everyone’s face was frozen in shock as they tried to figure out what had just happened.

“That was terrifying.” Sungmin squeaked as he clutched Kyuhyun’s arm, trembling. Kyuhyun didn’t even make fun of the older man for losing his composure. He just nodded in agreement, his form shivering in fear as well.

The light that surrounded Ryeowook’s spirit slowly faded, and he returned to his body. As soon as he got the feeling back in his fingers, rushed to Atlas’s collapsed body. Katrina and Shindong followed suit, worried about his condition. Leeteuk and Christine, however, went to Onew’s side, who had fallen with great force to the ground as the hellish chasm disappeared. Yesung, Kyuhyun, Sungmin, Siwon, Donghae, and Eunhyuk went to check on the Valkyrie, who were still knocked out. Katrina crouched down by Atlas’s side, observing the damage that had been done. She couldn’t see much under his fur, but she knew from his panting and his trembling that his condition was critical. The pain put such a strain on him that he eventually turned back into human form, the fur receding to reveal a horrible sight. Katrina, Shindong, and Ryeowook gasped as they found that his bones were sticking out, threatening to poke out of his now yellowy skin. His eyes had sunken in and became a milky white, hiding the brilliant green corneas Katrina grew to love. Each breath he took grew shakier as he tried to breathe deeply, but couldn’t. His eyes met Ryeowook’s.

“Are you ok?” he asked, coughing between each word. Ryeowook patted the poor young man’s hands assuredly.

“I’m fine, but I’m more worried about you.” He replied. Then Atlas turned to Katrina.

“And you’re ok?” he asked again, wincing in pain.

“Yes, I’m fine.” Katrina huffed in exasperation. “Why are you worried about me! We have to get you to a hospital or something.”

Atlas attempted to laugh, but it put too much strain on his failing body.

“No, it’s too late for me.” He coughed. “I think it’s my time to go.” He concluded as he turned to Ryeowook one more time. “Take care of Katrina.” He ordered. “I entrust her into your hands now.”

Ryeowook nodded grimly as Atlas placed his head on the ground, his eyes slowly closing. Shindong started to sob as Katrina wailed,

“No! You can’t die on me! Not now! Don’t you dare leave me you stupid, countrified, idiotic wolf!” She emotionally broke down as she clutched Atlas, refusing to let go. “Don’t leave.” She whispered, as she leaned down and did something she’d never thought she’d do but secretly wanted to for many years now. She kissed the dying Atlas, interlocking her lips with his. Though he was very weak, Atlas managed to kiss back, savoring in the last magical moment of his life. After a few minutes, Katrina lifted away, staring at Atlas’s smiling face.

“Dang,” he said, smiling sadly as his eyes drooped. “I must say, Heaven’s got some pretty hard competition to beat if it’s supposed to provide blissful paradise, cause that was most definitely…” before Atlas could finish the witty comment, his eyes completely closed, and his body grew limp.

Ryeowook looked into the spirit world to find Atlas’s form slowly rising above his body. A portal tore open revealing the white glows of Heaven as three wolf forms sprinted from the opening and rushed to Atlas, showering him with of love upon his face. They began to lead him to his new home, but before he stepped through the white portal, Atlas took one last glance at the scene of his death, his face growing solemn as he witnessed the now crushed Katrina, who began to cry and scream hysterically, shaking his body like a rag doll in an attempt to wake him up. He then looked to Ryeowook, staring into his eyes with orbs of glowing forest green.

“Remember your promise,” he commanded as he gave him a small smile. “Or I’ll haunt you.”

With that, his spirit transformed into a wolf like the others, and followed them into the everlasting light. The portal closed behind him, leaving a scene of complete and utter sorrow.

“Is he dead?” Shindong asked, tears streaming down his face as he tried to comfort Katrina.

“Yes,” Ryeowook replied, a single tear forming in his eye. “He’s gone.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Whew! This took quite a while to write! I think this is my longest chapter yet! :) Yes, I know some people hate me now for killing off Atlas, but don't worry, this is not the end ^^ BTW, if anyone can actually translate the latin spell by themselves, kudos to you! I had to cheat and use Google Translate. How I love that thing :) Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please comment and subscribe... or subscribe and comment. Whichever works for you. And as always, thank you so much to all the people who have already subscribed and commented, or commented and subscribed. Your support is greatly appreciated. It really is ^^

PS: I have decided to write my backstories and sequel after I finish up this story. Many of you have encouraged me to do so, so I shall. Please anticipate, and I'm looking foreward to your on-going support. Thanks everyone!

~ Justjoking <3