A/N This chapter was the hardest thing I've ever had to write.

But it kind of clicked today, at half past four in the morning, so I sat down and wrote this. I hope you like it :) This chapter is dedicated to the kind and lovely people who had faith in me. I WILL update again! But this one's for you.

The air was cool and damp, almost greasy against her skin. The mossy and dark cave smelt of rot and mould, almost overpowering the scent of fresh blood. It was a miserable and dank little place.

But Darquesse barely noticed. She was free, in control! Nothing could stop her now. She was the most powerful person on earth.

She took a deep breath, enjoying the feel of air sliding into her lungs, and turned to idly observe the vicious battle between Leaf, Kitty- well, 'Angel' now- and White.

White. Something twisted in her stomach, turning her mood ugly as she strode towards the pale-skinned monster. He had hurt her. That wasn't acceptable. The smile dropped off her face, replaced by a dark glower.

Maybe something tipped him off or maybe his senses were extra-sharp, but White's pitiful excuses for eyes flicked up from the fight, landing squarely on the dark clothed girl approaching from behind.

Small. Young. Weak. She could see in his eyes that he barely regarded her as a threat, even as the shadows thickened around her, drawing in gleefully from every corner of the room, hovering mid-air for a split second and arching down, faster than her eyes could normally follow, down, down, down. White's face shifted- fear registering for a split second- Kitty was there, her back to the shadows as she fought- one pale arm was wrapping around her- the shadows were so close- his arm wrenched to the side- just as the shadows struck, burying themselves deep into Kitty's flesh.

She arched backwards, her arms going limp and Kitty crumpled to the ground in a small, weak pile that was slowly turning red. A fallen angel. Leaf was screaming her name, blind to anything else but his dying friend as he fell to his knees by her side. His agonised thoughts pierced her mind, so she shut him out. Stupid boy.

Darquesse ignored the children. They didn't matter, they were just distractions from the one who had really hurt her. She gathered energy in the palm of her hand, intensifying the crackling ball and lifting her arm back to throw.

Bony, hard arms crushed her backwards against a skeletal chest. She struggled stumbling, but her forearms were crushed against herself and she couldn't possible fire now. Darquesse twisted around to look up at familiar skeletal features.

Skulduggery gazed back down at her, empty eye sockets giving away nothing. A soft, multi-coloured aura of magic surrounded him, keeping him together. It still fascinated her, so she wriggled one arm free and dipped one hand into the sparkling, pure energy. He let out a moan of pain and loosened his grip, taking an almost involuntary step back. Darquesse placed both hands on his chest and shoved him to the side, ignoring his cry of pain as he crumpled just like his daughter.

Well, that made two then.

XxXxX

Pain, pain, incredible agony that throbbed and screamed through her veins, worse than fire. She couldn't see or hear, but faintly Kitty felt Leaf's hand on her arm, saying something, begging. There was a puddle of something warm around her chest, but the pain was so strong it took her a while to realise it was her own blood.

How long had she been like this? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? Days? Everything in her head was blurry.

But at last, the pain was fading, each part of her body going numb slowly. Starting at her extremities –fingers, toes, ears- it was almost as if she was falling to pieces, breaking up and drifting away with the wind in a million little pieces of sand. She had no limbs anymore. What had happened? Where had everything gone? Where was she? Kitty wanted to cry out, but her muscles wouldn't work. She could hear again, a weird buzzing sound like static. The numbness crept up her stomach and she couldn't feel Liaf anymore. He must have gone.

If it wasn't for the intense pain in her back and icy coldness of her face, it would almost feel like she was going to sleep.

Yes, that was it, she was drifting off on her bed at home. Her head hurt. Why did it hurt so much?

But the pain was fading now

Drifting off to sleep

Her lungs were cold, sucking in empty air, slower and slower

She couldn't feel anymore

There was nothing but her heart beating in her chest

Peace

Quiet

No pain

Heartbeat

Heartbeat

Heartbeat

Heart

Beat