Kill The Luna

53

"No! No! Stay away from me!"

The frantic screams tore from my throat as I scrambled backward, turning around to sprint deeper into the dark, uncharted depths of the cavern. Behind me, the two large men didn't even bother to run. They simply adjusted their grips on their heavy flashlights, casting the blinding white beams directly onto my retreating back. The bright light cut through the shadows, tracking my every movement as I stumbled blindly over the uneven stone floor. They walked with slow, casual steps, their heavy boots thudding rhythmically against the gravel, completely unbothered by my desperate attempt to escape. They knew I had nowhere left to run.

I kept pushing my bruised legs forward, my chest heaving violently as I panted for air. My eyes darted frantically across the rugged stone walls, searching with pure desperation for any hidden crack, an upper ledge, or an opening that could lead me out of this terrifying trap. But there was nothing. The rock walls were entirely solid, closing in around me as the slow, steady footsteps of the men grew louder and louder behind my back. They were coming closer and closer with every heartbeat, their long shadows stretching out to swallow me whole.

Suddenly, my hands hit a solid wall of freezing, jagged stone. I had reached the absolute end of the cave.

Panicking, I spun my body around, only to be completely blinded as the intense torchlight shone directly into my face. I squinted through the glare, raising a trembling arm to block the light, but it was already too late. Two pairs of rough, muscular hands violently grabbed my shoulders and arms.

"Let me go! Get your hands off me!" I screamed, kicking my bare legs and thrashing my body with every ounce of strength I had left.

The men didn't care about my cries at all. Their expressions remained completely blank and hollow as they effortlessly overpowered me, lifting my small frame off the ground. With a brutal heave, they dumped my body flat onto the cold, blood-stained stone table. Before I could even try to roll off the edge, they grabbed the heavy, rusted iron restraints. The loud, metallic clinking echoed sharply off the cavern walls as they securely locked the two thick chains around my wrists and ankles, pinning me flat against the hard altar.

Elda’s smooth footsteps approached the table. She leaned over my trapped body, a soft, maternal smile appearing on her face as she reached down and gently cupped my burning cheeks with her smooth hands. "You are so incredibly beautiful, my darling," she murmured, her thumb lightly tracing my jawline while her eyes shone with a creepy, intense fascination. "From the very first day I ever laid my eyes on you, I knew in my heart that you were made for truly great things. You have such a massive, glorious destiny ahead of you."

I glared up at her through the blinding light, my teeth gritting so hard my jaw ached. "f**k off!" I spat, my voice dripping with pure venom as I tried to twist my face out of her tight grip. "Your sick little plan has finally worked out, hasn't it? So that is the real reason you didn't just kill me on the road earlier. It's because whatever you want to do to my blood has to be done through your stupid, twisted ritual! But I guess you are just going to end up killing me at the end of it anyway, aren't you?"

Elda didn't seem bothered by my outburst at all. She let out a soft, patient sigh, her expression turning into one of deep exhaustion as she patted my shoulder. "Do not worry your mind about all of that tonight, Fedora. I promise I will explain every single detail to you tomorrow morning. It has been an incredibly long, exhausting day for both of us, and I am really quite tired, my darling. Just stay completely calm and let me handle everything from here on out, okay?"

She lowered her face, planting a soft, gentle kiss directly on my left cheek. But as she began to raise her head back up, a sudden surge of pure defiance exploded in my chest. Gathering every bit of moisture in my mouth, I spat directly into her open face.

Elda instantly froze. Her polite smile completely vanished, replaced by a look of pure shock. She stood up straight, her posture turning incredibly stiff as she reached into her pocket, pulling out a dark cloth to angrily wipe the saliva from her eyes and cheeks. Once her vision cleared, her face twisted with a dark, furious rage. Without warning, she brought her hand swinging down, slapping me hard across the face.

The sharp smack echoed loudly through the quiet cave, and my head snapped to the side as a burning, throbbing pain bloomed across my cheek.

"Don't you ever dare do that again! It is incredibly disrespectful!" Elda hissed, her voice trembling with anger as she pointed a stern finger down at me. "I know you don't believe a word coming out of my mouth right now, but you need to understand that I am doing all of this for your own ultimate good!"

"My own good my ass!" I screamed back, coughing slightly as a tear slid down my burning cheek. I stared up at her with pure, unadulterated hatred. "You are just exactly the same as all those monstrous people you warned me about! Every single one of you just wants to extract something from me for your own gain. You are the absolute most selfish, hypocritical monster out of all of them!"

Elda’s angry expression faded back into a look of cold indifference. She simply let out a long, heavy sigh and turned her back on me, signaling the two men to follow her.

As her dark figure began walking away toward the exit, I started thrashing against the heavy iron restraints, the metal cutting deep into my wrists as I screamed into the darkness after her. "I hope you burn in hell! You are a disgusting devil and a pathetic deceiver! Do you hear me? Burn in hell!"

She didn't say a single word back to me. She didn't even bother to turn her head around. She just kept walking silently until her dark silhouette and the bright beams of the flashlights completely vanished around the stone corner, leaving the chamber in total, suffocating darkness.

The heavy silence of the cave crashed down on me. Left completely alone with the rusted chains and the scent of old blood, the final wall of my strength completely collapsed. I slowly curled my trapped body up as much as the tight chains would allow, my chest shaking with violent, uncontrollable sobs. I didn't even know why I was fighting it anymore; a endless flood of hot tears filled my eyes, spilling over my nose and dripping onto the cold stone altar. I was completely helpless, trapped in the belly of the earth with absolutely no way to break free. There was nothing left for me to do now except lie there in the pitch black, weeping silently as I waited for my own inevitable death to arrive.