Next Mage
37.The Truth

~Marilla's POV

Everything seemed to shatter and collapse. My head pounded and my knees seemed to turn into water. What?

My stomach felt like it was on a roller coaster, dropping then flying then dropping again. I didn't know what to think.

Should I be happy? Should I be sad? Should I be angry at my mother for keeping this huge secret from me all my fifteen years of life? I thought. Mom walked over tentatively, her hands out, as if she were trying to tame a skittish animal. "Marilla?" Her voice was shaky. I looked up at her, trying to swallow all the questions that were pushing at the edges of my mouth, threatening to burst through.

"Then what happened to him?" I blurted, then shut my mouth again, my lip quivering. Maybe I don't want to know, I told myself. Maybe I shouldn't have asked that. My mom's face crumpled and her eyes were like storm clouds. "H-he didn't die in a car crash," she gulped, as if she were holding back tears. Something inside me began to rise, a floating bubble, flying higher and higher. Could he still be alive? "Is he--"

"He was killed. Someone--something, killed him." Mom whispered. The bubble popped. Everyone immediately stared at mom, their eyes wide in horror. They had already guessed. The Ragnarok.

"He was found," Mom continued. She looked like she was about to break down crying. "Lying on the ground, bleeding, teeth marks all over his body. He--he told me he was going to the mage realm for a b-bit. But...I think he was thrown through a portal after being..." Mom choked and tears began to spill out of her eyes. I felt my eyes sting with hot tears as well, and I flicked them away, trying to stop myself from crying.

I hate you, you foul beast, I thought, with as much anger as I could muster. All I was feeling at the moment was sadness.

Your father was tasty, the Ragnarok snickered.

Rage filled my mind, and I felt my limbs shaking with adrenaline. But instead of taking it out on the Ragnarok, I turned to my mother.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I half-sobbed, half-snapped, embarrassed and miserable and enraged all at the same time.

"I'm so sorry," Mom hiccuped helplessly. "What would I have told you? You were so young...so innocent....I...I need to think," And with that, she was stumbling back into the house.

I looked around at the people surrounding me, suddenly feeling weary, like I had just ran a marathon.

Adrian is still frozen, I thought, before I collapsed and my vision blinked out.

dashy line thingo

~ Oliver's POV

"Hey Elvira, have you un-frozen Adrian yet?" I hissed. Elvira shook her head.

"It's best if we don't until we're sure he's out of the Ragnarok's control," she replied quietly. She put her hands over Marilla's head once more, then moved to Emma's then Laila's. "Ugh, I can't believe they still haven't woken up yet," Elvira said, reverting back to her usual sadistic self. I grinned.

After a few moments, Laila stirred.

"Wh-what happening?" She questioned, her voice slurred a little.

"It's okay, Laila. You're okay. Just rest," I said in my most soothing voice possible. I glanced at Marilla. Her face was deathly pale; she had fainted from shock.

Now I hate the Ragnarok even more, I thought. It killed my friends, my family, and my friend's families. Elvira looked at me sadly. She had read my mind. I looked down at my hands, when suddenly, Emma awoke.

"Where am I? Oh, urgh...and wh-why does my head feel like it's being trampled in by a herd of zebras? Not that I know the feeling," she laughed a little, as if she were delirious, then lay back down on her pillow. "Ow,"

Now I looked expectantly at Marilla. Soon, she awoke (with a little help from Elvira's healing powers, of course; without them Marilla would've taken a few hours or even a day to awake) and sat up straight, looking around at her surroundings. Then, immediately, tears began to flow out of her eyes. No one said a word; not even Elvira had a sassy comment to make. Then Emma spoke up.

"Rilla, why are you crying?"

another dashy line thingo

Destan went back to Myragon, and all the other recruit mages except for Laila and Emma went to their separate homes. They left reluctantly, worried expressions casting a shadow over their faces.

"Uh..." Elvira held her head. "Their minds. They have so many thoughts and questions; it's hard to shut them out this time," she complained. "What's going to happen to Earth? Poor Marilla, I hope she's alright... Is the Ragnarok going to attack?"

I felt helpless. There was nothing I could do. I had tried to be a good leader, tried to be a good teacher, then everything fell apart. Was there anything worth doing anymore?

We sat in front of the TV, watching the news. Laila was still resting, and Marilla were sitting with us, blurry but functional. Emma was standing behind us, styling Marilla's hair.

"I'm so sorry, Rilla..." Emma whispered sympathetically, forming a thick, glossy braid down Marilla's back. Marilla had a packet of tissues by one side and a tub of ice cream on the other, which she was eating from quite vigorously. She was still sobbing, but less violently, and she seemed to be crying out of anger.

"I'll kill that--that Ragnarok myself," she snarled, downing a spoonful of ice cream.

Suddenly, the house, the ground, the whole Earth seemed to shake.

"What's h-h-happening?!" Emma screeched, flailing her arms in an attempt to regain her balance.

"Earthquake?" I suggested, holding on to the couch for support. Elvira didn't seem phased by the quake, however, but she looked somewhat afraid.

"Elvira?" I searched her expression. "Something wrong?"

Elvira turned her green gaze on me.

"Yes. Yes, something's wrong," she replied, her voice unusually shaky. "Listen. I just had a vision."