Page 60 of Soul Keeper

“These critters sure are quite the nuisance!” Misty yelped as a machine sprang towards her, baring its fangs. “We’ll do our best to hold them off, darlin’. But you need to stop Charon, before it’s too late!”

Zoe drew a startled breath as Charon advanced towards Persephone’s Tree, accompanied by a vast machine twice the size of the others. It scuttled towards the tree on its spider-like legs, while its body quivered at the presence of the magic within. And as its drill whirred to life, Zoe knew she had no time to waste.

She raced towards the tree, and threw herself at the machine. But she cursed as her spectral body drifted harmlessly through it, until Charon’s cold laughter reverberated through the skies.

“You are quite powerless here, Zoe. Just as you’ve always been.” Charon approached the tree, his dark robes billowing in the powerful winds, until he barked orders at the machine. “Now, strike!”

The machine’s drill soared towards Persephone’s Tree like a javelin, until it pierced through its bark. A terrible scream of pain filled the air as the drill whirred to life, boring deeper into the trunk, until golden magic bled from the wound. Zoe turned to see Shadow roar in agony, feeling the Underworld’s pain as the drill bore deeper into the great tree. And she knew that if she didn’t stop Charon, she would lose them both.

“No!” Zoe cried out as the machine drained the tree’s magic with vast suction pipes, feeding on the life of the Underworld. “You have to stop!”

“Nothing can stop me!” Charon laughed coldly as the golden magic was drawn from the tree and into the chambers of his machine. “With this power, I’ll be unstoppable!”

Zoe watched in horror as more suction pipes emerged from the machine’s body, until it greedily gorged itself on the Underworld’s power. Tears bloomed in her eyes as the magic bled from the Underworld, until the light of the will-ó-wisps faded. As Charon’s cold laughter echoed through the skies, she felt her heart sink with the realization that she was powerless to stop him.

A buzz filled Zoe’s ear, as a will-ó-wisp called to her pleadingly. She watched the tiny creature as it danced beside Charon, where the tails of his robes billowed in the stormy winds, before it fluttered towards the machine.

“There’s no use.” Zoe looked at the will-o–wisp mournfully. “Charon’s right. Without a body, I’m powerless to stop him.”

The will-ó-wisp buzzed once more, before it darted through the sky. Zoe watched its strange dance between Charon and the machine, until she drew a startled breath in realization. As the frayed ends of Charon’s robes fluttered in the winds, she studied the arms of the machine, and watched as they greedily vacuumed up the magic of the Underworld. And as she returned her gaze to the formidable Ferryman of the Underworld, Zoe realized he might be powerful, but he was by no means unstoppable.

“With the power of the Underworld in my hands, never again shall I be forced into years of ferrying lost souls.” Charon cackled with delight as the winds howled across the Underworld. “Finally, I shall be the one in charge!”

Zoe drifted closer to the machine, and studied its control panel. Among the flickering lights, she guided the will-ó-wisp to a lone button, before it buzzed in acknowledgement. It was now or never.

With a shrill buzz, the will-ó-wisp zapped the button, until a golden light raced through the machine. At once, its drill came to a stop, while the arms slowly retracted from suctioning up the Underworld’s magic. The machine turned to face Charon, until its body quivered at the sight of the specter.

“Interfering with my machines will hardly be enough to stop me, Zoe.” Charon drifted harmlessly through the machine’s drill, as if to demonstrate the futility of her plan. “Soon I will have the power of a god! And I will be unstoppable!”

“Perhaps. But until then, you have the same weaknesses as every other ghost.” Zoe broke into a smile as the arms of the machine inched closer to Charon. “And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that there’s no greater threat to a ghost’s plans of world domination, than a vacuum cleaner.”

As the will-ó-wisp struck the control panel with a flurry of sparks, the machine whirred to life once more. Its arms reached towards Charon, until the edges of his robes were caught in the grasp of its powerful suction.

“No!” Charon desperately tugged his robes to free himself, while his eyes flashed with panic. “I am the true god of the Underworld. Nothing can stop me, you hear me! Nothing!”

But despite Charon’s roars of fury, his robes were swallowed inch by inch. He yelped in fright as the machine began to devour him, and his spectral body was pulled into its powerful currents.

“Make it stop this instant!” Charon turned to Zoe pleadingly. “I can give you power. I can give you riches. Everything you ever dreamed of will be yours, if you just release me…”

Zoe smiled at Charon’s offer. Once, it would have been everything she had ever wanted. But now, she knew that she didn’t want riches, nor power. She wanted magic.

“Sorry Mr. Gravesend.” Zoe watched as the machine’s engines went into overdrive, pulling him deeper into its pipes, until only his scowling face remained. “You can consider this my two weeks notice.”

With a popping sound, Charon’s face disappeared inside the vacuum. His muffled curses echoed from the machine as he was squished into the tiny chamber, while his eyes burned with a deadly fury. Zoe staggered backwards as the ground trembled nearby, until a vast vine erupted from the earth and ensnared the machine in its grasp. Despite Charon’s protests, it pulled the machine into the dark abyss of Tartarus below, like a kraken’s tentacle at sea. Zoe watched as her former boss was pulled into the depths of the Underworld, where the wails of the damned greeted him. And she knew that whilst it wasn’t quite the promotion Charon had intended, it was exactly where he belonged.

One by one, Charon’s army of machines powered down, until they clattered to the ground, lifeless and still. Spooks trumpeted cheerfully at the sight, while Misty fanned herself in relief.

“Oh, thank goodness. I thought that old ghoul was going to be the end of us!” But Misty’s smile faded as she turned to Persephone’s Tree. “Oh no, darlin’...”

Zoe drew a startled breath as she followed the specter’s gaze. A vast and bloodied hole lay in the trunk of the great tree, while the buds on its boughs now lay lifeless and gray. But what drew her gaze was the lone figure who lay slumped within a pool of the tree’s blood.

“Shadow! Shadow, it’s alright. It’s over.” Zoe drew a breath as she approached, to see his body grow faint and translucent. “Shadow?”

Zoe looked in horror as Shadow’s body began to fade. His breath grew short and ragged, while the magic that had once sparkled in his eyes ebbed into darkness.

“Shadow, no!”

“Persephone’s tree… it’s dying. And without its power…” Shadow drew a pained breath before he spoke once more. “The Underworld’s magic will cease to exist.”

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