CHAPTER 002
1472 Words
CHAPTER 002
ZARA BYRNE’S POINT OF VIEW
Sandpaper was how my throat felt.
I awoke, unable to breathe because of the smell of something burnt, possibly metal or flesh. It was obvious. Bitter. I felt my eyes watering just before I could open them.
I felt cold. No, freezing. My skin was stuck to the cold stone beneath me. I couldn't move my arms. I couldn’t make my legs move. My heart was beating so fast I thought it could break through my chest.
I suddenly opened my eyes.
I was not dreaming.
It wasn’t anything like a strange dream. I was truly at the scene.
All around the room, purple candles were burning, giving everything a strange, sick look. Shadows were moving over the broken walls and statues. Everywhere I looked, the smell of death was present.
I was lying on a stone table. Straps made of leather were tightened around my wrists and ankles. I couldn’t move without feeling the ice hit my skin.
“Hello?” It sounded like I was squealing. “Is there anyone here?”
No answer.
The only sound audible is a steady drip. The sound is coming slowly and steadily. Plip. Plip.
I turned my head to try and see the scene better. All over the walls were strange, old symbols that glowed lightly as if they were alive.
Thereafter, I caught their sound.
Footsteps.
Two sets. One heavy. One light. Coming closer.
I closed my eyes tightly. I acted as if I was sleeping. Perhaps they’d just disappear. Perhaps they’d assume I was no longer alive.
There was no success.
"Awake already?"
I recognised that voice.
Mistress Camille.
I took my time to open my eyes. She stood near the end of the table, smiling back at me. Her dark dress moved behind her like a shadow with sharp claws. She pulled her hair back into a style, but bits of it drifted like smoke.
Ziva stood beside her as well. I made a new acquaintance at the party. Camille is younger, but she’s colder. She didn’t blink at all.
Quietly, Camille said, “Zara Byrne,” as she ran her hand down my arm. I flinched. I didn’t realise how strong you are. Most of the others didn’t make it to this point."
Others?
What are you looking for from me? I spoke, unable to control my voice.
She moved closer to him. It’s not focused on what we want. It has to do with your identity.
I am not anything.
Camille laughed. You’re wrong about that.
She took out a knife. Thin. Silver. The curved shape resembled a fang.
I was completely still.
“No—please! Please don’t.”
She grabbed my hand and made a line across my palm with a knife. It’s shallow, but still sufficient. The pain is so intense that I can't hold back my scream.
Blood spilled. Yet, it wasn’t actually red.
It shimmered.
The candlelight cast a silvery hue on it.
“What’s going on with me?”
She smiled as she saw the look in her eyes. “The holy germ.”
“What?”
“Shh.” She gently touched my mouth with her finger. You don’t have to know the reasons. You only need to bleed.
I looked in another direction. I was shaking all over now.
Ziva used my blood to draw a sign on my forehead. The pain felt like someone hurled acid at me.
The space was no longer the same.
Walls groaned.
The flames of the candles rose high.
A fire was spinning in a circle on top of the table.
They chanted. I couldn't understand the words they spoke.
Pain was in my chest. It felt as if something inside me needed to come out. It felt as if my bones were breaking up from within.
“Please stop!” I screamed.
They didn’t.
The crowd’s shouting became stronger.
I couldn’t see clearly anymore.
Everything spun.
I let out a cry that wasn’t my own.
It went very deep. Sharp. Not human.
Ziva’s smile grew bigger. “The fire is beginning to burn.”
My veins began to glow.
Burning hot, a row of bright silver lines travelled up my arms, down my legs, and into my chest.
I couldn’t get any air.
The straps broke.
There was a c***k in the stone.
All my energy came out at once, sending them both flying.
The fire circle came apart. Candles flew.
I jumped up, feeling shocked.
Ziva had risen before I could say anything, and her eyes were bright. Did you notice that just now? She’s almost done with everything.
She wiped some blood away from her lip. “Not yet. But close.”
I pulled myself off the table, shaking and I was barely able to stay on my feet.
“You’re crazy,” I said to him.
Camille grinned. “We’re visionaries.”
She raised her hand a second time. The knife was shining brightly.
I ran.
I don’t know the answer. I barely had any strength in my legs. I went through a side door and walked through a smoky hall.
Paintings hanging on the walls watched me. Moving. Twisting.
I heard a voice in my head, but I was alone.
He’s on his way."
Who?!
I didn’t hesitate. I hurried down a spiral staircase. I slipped with my foot. I landed hard; my head hit the ground, and I couldn’t see anything for a moment.
I blinked. I got on my knees and stood up. Kept going.
There was the sound of my feet slapping against the marble floor.
The world is filled with doors.
I opened the door and immediately shut it. There was a creature in there. Too many people are watching you. No mouth. Only teeth where its stomach should have been.
I shouted and bolted away once more.
I saw a window. Tall. Cracked.
I threw a chair in an attempt to hit the target. Nothing.
I could feel it after that. A pull. It felt as though someone was tugging at my heart.
I turned.
He was with us.
A boy.
He was a man, not a boy.
He wore dark clothes, had pale skin, and had eyes so dark they resembled the sky before a storm.
He didn’t say anything. Just looked at me.
I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe.
Then he began to talk.
I have claimed you as my own.
And everything before my eyes disappeared.
All I could see was darkness.
I woke up lying in a bed.
The bed had soft sheets and velvet pillows, and I could hear the crackling sound of the fire.
This place wasn’t the dungeon.
I enjoyed this.
Too nice.
I jumped up quickly. Looked around.
He was with us.
He was standing with his back to the door. Watching me.
“What is it that you want?” I asked.
He said, “I saved you.”
“No. You chose me.
He moved nearer to me. Would you rather be with the people you used to know?
I didn’t say anything back.
He moved to the edge of the bed. Too close.
I wrapped the blanket around myself.
I have no idea who you are.
His hand lightly touched my cheek. It felt both cold and warm at the same time. “You will.”
“Don’t come near me.”
He smiled. I have done that already.
I felt a spark of light wherever he touched me. I felt sparks running down my collarbone.
I took a sharp breath. I didn’t like the feelings that his words evoked in me. I wanted more than what I got.
Still, I didn’t believe what he was saying.
“Why me?”
He spoke softly, moving closer to her. “Because only you can survive through it.”
“Survive what?”
He didn’t say anything in return.
He bent lower, and his lips kissed my ear.
I’ll return tonight.
After that, he disappeared.
I looked at the door.
My heart beat loudly.
Fear consumed half of me. Half was taken from something different.
I really didn’t like this.
I hated the feeling of my skin still tingling.
I didn’t have any idea what his name was.
I couldn’t get his voice out of my mind.
His eyes. His smile.
He’d found a place in my heart. Something deep.
Something dangerous.
I got into bed and started shaking.
I wasn’t sure if I hoped he’d return or stay away.
Still, I was sure about one point. What’s happening to me... it isn’t how I normally feel.
I believe I’m not going to make it through this.
I’m not sure unless I become a different person.
Someone darker.
A person much like him.
What sort of person was he?
- Writer
