Seven Day War

Plans.

Plans.

“I didn’t expect that to happen.” Misty picked up the closest coconut and hurled it toward the jungle where Mister Death just disappeared.

“We must decide what we are going to do… I say we gather our forces, grow stronger, and when the little prick attacks in seven days we slaughter them.” Crystal sank back to the beach, weak from her outburst.

“That sounds like a wonderful plan. Is this before or after you collapse into a puddle because you let yourself become too weak?”

“Let’s not argue, when you are near I possess much more power. There’s something about us standing together that makes me stronger.”

“Of course, silly, we are always better together than apart. Even when you imprisoned me inside yourself, I perceived your power combining with mine. We are stronger together than apart. When we are in different locations, I can sense the weakness creep in.”

Misty strolled closer to Crystal, sitting her leather-clad butt in the sand next to her.

“Perhaps we’ve been going about this all wrong. I wish there were a place we could be together and coexist like we did in Athens or Rome in the old days. Now everything has become civilized. Negative emotions are hidden until the time of conflict and war.”

“You’re saying we need a modern-day Gomorrah, where anything goes, where the best and the worst of humanity’s emotions are put on display day and night.” Once Misty moved closer, Crystal sensed her energy returning, though still not at full strength.

“I hope you’re not thinking of Las Vegas. That will never do. They turned that into a modern-day theme park for families,” Misty said.

Crystal shook her head. “Do you think so little of my knowledge as that? We need to heal quickly not lounge about in the sun. It must be close enough to not tax our energy. It must be a place where all the emotions run amok. I can think of only one place that fits all those requirements.”

“Surely you can’t mean…” Misty put her right hand over her mouth in a mocking gesture.

“Yes, we need to go to Thailand, specifically Pattaya.”

Misty couldn’t control herself, like a child she clapped her hands together in excitement. “All those wonderful raw emotions, let’s go, I can’t wait.”

“A moment before we go.” Crystal placed her right hand on Misty’s leg to calm her excitement. “We need a plan before we run off and sate our appetites in Thailand. Do you have any idea how we’re going to combat Mister Death?”

Misty slumped her shoulders. “You understand I’ve never been a long-term planner, I’m more of a spur-of-the-moment kind of girl. I would say though, we need to gather all our forces in one place. Then do whatever we can to prepare them… That’s all I got.”

Crystal studied Misty’s face before continuing. “That’s not a bad start, but we can’t gather them in Thailand, it would be like trying to herd cats. They would scatter in all directions. No, we need someplace boring, a site with absolutely no distractions, someplace like West Texas. Once we regain some strength, we will search for our members and Chosen and direct them to Marysfield. Not out in the desert this time. We need another location to gather them, someplace off the beaten path and safe. I think I know just the base.”

It took their combined strength and effort, but working together they opened a portal which delivered them the two hundred and fifty miles to Thailand’s answer to Sin City: Pattaya.

Pattaya represented everything the pair expected. Known as the capital of Asia’s s****l tourism industry, the couple found every conceivable emotion flowing from the inhabitants and visitors.

Misty headed straight for the kickboxing arenas, where she scanned the bloodlust of the spectators flowing out of the area like a wave. She sat in the crowd watching the fights, using her power to push the unsuspecting tourists into the ring with the professional fighters gleefully watching as they got their butts beat into the mat.

Crystal moved towards the more relaxed places where the prostitutes trolled the beach looking for prospective clients. She always found more energy in helping others find their inner peace and safety than the open display of s*x. But she needed to feed on positive emotions, and she would do whatever she must to grow stronger.

She sat on the beach, amidst the Hookers and the Johns. Not trying to save anyone or force anyone, she meditated in the Lotus position. Soon two of the western men sat down in front of her. Whatever pain they tried to fill by paying for s*x, Crystal’s gentle touch removed. Shortly after, several prostitutes joined the trio. The pain of needing to sell their bodies to survive lifted once inside Crystal’s influence.

While Misty relied on others’ more primitive instinct and animalistic emotions, Crystal projected serenity, and her influence over people removed their misery and brought them into her fold. It only took a slight push with her mind, and she began feeding off the growing group that gathered around her.

It became a self-fulfilling symbiosis: the more people came, the stronger Crystal became, the stronger she became, the more people gathered. If left unchecked, Crystal might collect the entire city, maybe the whole region. She was never brave enough to try such a large group. The energy generated might be too much for her, perhaps deadly. The most she ever attempted was fewer than sixty thousand people, and that ended badly for her. Five years ago, at the New Age wave in the desert outside of Marysfield—she would never forget that disaster.

Calm, meditating, she came to the realization that while Misty was conjoined with her, they displayed much more control of her mind and powers. If she grew stronger and more focused, she might be able to take on Mister Death—if she could only convince Misty to join with her again. She squirreled that thought into the back of her mind, knowing it would be impossible to persuade Misty to join with her once more.

She concentrated on staying in the moment, not worrying about what would happen in seven days, or even tomorrow. Her goal: to enjoy each second as it came to her. Tomorrow would take care of itself, she must focus on the now.

While so focused on the present, she couldn’t help but take inventory of her thoughts. Deep in the recesses of her mind she felt as if she had forgotten some important detail. Something she was meant to remember. It would need to wait. Right now, Crystal needed healing and strength.

She set up shop far enough away from where Misty gathered the more violent individuals in the area for her feeding. She sensed the anger and blood being spilled at the kickboxing arena, but she chose to ignore it.

Her part of the beach grew calm, peaceful. The men and women looking to satisfy their s****l needs were currently being fulfilled by Crystal. Which was good because the small police force of the resort town had their hands full with the near-riot taking place in Misty’s part of town.

With her mind relaxed, Crystal reached out farther than Southeast Asia. She stretched herself all the way to southwest Texas and a little town called Marysfield. Where she found Trevor and his family mostly alive. She reached out as best she could to check on their condition.

When she discovered Ellie dead, pain ran through her heart. In a strange sort of way, Ellie and Crystal had shared DNA to become El’s mothers. They shared more than genetic material when they bonded to create Crystal’s egg. Now that part of her lay dead. She almost lost her concentration and her group of followers sitting on the beach when the realization came to her. It took all her focus to keep from breaking down and crying. She’d forgotten something important, she wished she could remember. It would need to wait.

This confused her, she never needed to confront human emotions. She felt for the humans like they might feel for an animal on a farm, but never to the point where she would cry over a single person’s death.

To keep from losing her focus on the group she fed off, she brought her mind back to the task at hand. Crystal knew everyone that sat in her sphere of influence would be changed by the experience. Several would go on to do great things, a great many of them at least would become better people. If Mister Death didn’t destroy the world, the people in Pattaya would never be the same.

At the same time, peace and love were flowing over the group surrounding Crystal, she recognized those near Misty were being changed as well. A few that survived would come to realize they needed to transform themselves or they would die in an unruly mob, somewhere sometime. Of course, some would never change; even when faced with their own mortality and when staring in the face of chaos, they wouldn’t switch to save their own lives.

They only had a small amount of time, seven days was a very short time indeed. The mere blink of an eye. She hoped it would be enough. Now she needed to grow strong, gather their forces and kick Mister Death’s ass.