Chained (The Reaper Saga Book 1), page 10
Beautifully monstrous.
The words came to mind the moment I noticed the dark-haired man with equal black eyes. He was being all happy and cheery but for some reason all it seemed to vanished at once when he saw me stare at him.
"There's something-"
"You are lying. I can only kill." I uncurled my fist and the ear of the last victim fell off on the ground. His eyes followed my movement and immediately he grimaced. In disgust? I couldn't tell.
"I hope the rest of the body is not in your stomach. What exactly was wrong when I was gone? Did you knock your head hard or what? I'm the usual cocky, handsome, and fearsome one but now you're the one who's creeping me out." He tried to touch me but at the end thought better of it when I let out a chuckle.
"Look around. Everyone's dead."
"I know. Finally, you broke the rules of your clan. Naughty girl." His smirk widened if that was possible. "You even hurt the mortals. The one you were supposed to protect as a pure soul. Then again, what happened was entirely your fault. I told you not to free your mother. She's a Reaper. And, what does a Reaper do?"
When I didn't say a word, his smirk dropped and he let out a whistle. "Oh come on! Humor me! They take souls, duh."
Souls...
"I need to go. Have to kill, payback."
"What is with you and killings? I love to kill b...but you're acting more like a freaking zombie than me!" He kept talking as if we were having a conversion about weathers. Pain. I was starting to feel pain again. He did that. I needed to go now or the fog in my head was starting to clear out.
"Hey...Wait up. Look at me. Look at my eyes."
The man slowly touched my chin to make me look at his eyes again. What was there to look at? It was just a void of dark holes.
Like my soul. Destroyed, blackened, full of darkness.
"Y-You don't recognize me, do you? Your eyes...they hold no recognition." He asked me, almost panicking.
"Yes...I don't know you." I snarled, breaking his finger that was closest to me. He let out an inhuman growl and yet he couldn't stop talking.
"Damn it to the devil and his sons! That hurts like a bitch. Do you remember Hannah, your mentor? Or...or the sister you were looking for?" He stumbled over his words like it was physically paining him to say those things. But why should I care?
Blood...
Screaming. So much screaming...
"Kill her!"
"She deserves the pain, don't you think?"
"You've killed us for her, why did you do that?"
"You're a monster, just like her."
"We want revenge!"
"No!" The voices stopped momentarily before they started again making me scream in despair. "Why? Why would you make me remember? Go! Go away! Get out of my head! Go!"
"I wasn't-"
"I won't let you in! I won't. I-I can't. I can't do this."
"Oh...For devil's sake! You're forgetting everything! I...it was my fault. I should have stopped you. But I thought if you kill, destroy then you'll understand that we're the same. But I didn't know she wanted you insane. She made you like this...She triggered the Reaper curse. Goddammit!"
I couldn't take his whining anymore. I wouldn't let the voices win. Just as I took a step toward the woods, I was dragged right back into a steel body.
"You're going to the woods! Are you fucking kidding me? You have no idea what have you done to that place. You can't go near the mortals anymore, little soul. Accept it." He had no right to stop me.
I didn't even fucking know him!
"Stop fighting me for devil's sake!" He snapped, tightening his hold.
"I can see them. They want revenge. I have to go." Why couldn't I just kill him? It's like there was some force that wasn't letting me kill him. Maybe I could just smash his head-
"What the hell are you talking about?" He frowned.
"The people I killed. They are in me. They are whispering. They want to be free. They want to..."
"Hey! Hey, look at me. Forget what they want. Try to remember your...um....who do you like? Maybe your mentor?" He tried but nothing made sense.
"They won't let me. And I won't let them remember any pain."
He stared at me for a second before determination crossed over his face. It was a little unnerving, watching him get unhinged but nothing pissed me off than him caging me near a half-burned tree suddenly.
"Then forgive me for what I'm going to do as you left me with no choice. It is unheard of but, little soul, it looks like we always do things backward so we will nail it just fine." He muttered scratching his neck and suddenly took out an opal ring from his jeans pocket.
"What-" Before I could finish my words, he pried my fingers apart and forcefully put the ring on my ring finger.
Why'd he even-
"I've to complete the matrimony or it will be too late. I, Alexei, the King of the shadows, known as Darkness, take you as my lawfully wedded wife."
I opened my mouth to scream but his lips came down harsh on my own almost knocking me over. A part of me wanted to get away but another wouldn't let him go. It's like everywhere he touched, my aching throat or my trembling lips, I just burned.
Like cackling fire.
Or maybe it felt like I was on fire because I also couldn't breathe. No matter how I gasped, my lungs just kept caving in and I had no choice but to close my eyes with a ghost of a whisper near my ears.
"Happy birthday, little soul, I wish it didn't have to come to this. Not once..."
EMELINE
Empty.
Everything was just so bland. No color, no sound, and no peace. Where was I?
"Emeline?" Someone whispered softly.
Please don't go away.
Please stop the pain.
I'm dying. I deduced with a grim realization.
Please help.
"Emeline?"
The voice sounded farther away as I welcomed the white blinding pain again...
Sound...
There were so many static sounds.
Where was I?
"I did what was necessary for her to stay sane. You can't seriously blame me for what that poor excuse of a woman did, do you?"
"You didn't think to stop her before everything went out of hand. She has triggered the curse, dammit! You know she'll change and it will be your fault!"
"Yeah right, anything happens just throw me the blame! It's easier that way, isn't it? Oh, he's already evil, why not blame him even more, right?"
I tried opening my mouth to tell them to go to hell but I couldn't even move my lips a centimeter. The ringing in my ears grew the more their voice raised.
Please stop...
Please let me sleep in peace...
"Look! I think she's moving her toe." Someone whispered, sounding not far away.
"You think?" This one sounded harsher, like thunder?
"Fine, let me check." If checking meant setting my whole body on fire then I didn't want this freaking check. And, why on earth was I feeling like someone had thrown me out of a thirteen-floor window and then crushed me under a truck at the same time?
Come on, eyes, open!
"What do you think?"
"Her pulse is falling."
If I mistakenly ended up in hell, that's what I expected to hear every day when I heard voices getting frantic and too much louder for my poor ear to conceal. Was I in demons' land or something?
"YOU SAID SHE WOULD BE FINE! YOU LIED-"
"Shut it." I choked out.
I heard a rush of air.
"Did you hear what I-"
The second voice agreed with a sigh. "Yeah, I did too."
"Rise and shine, birthday girl. Someone's late to their own party." Opening my eyes seemed harder than any other day as if someone glued them together as a prank. After my fourth try, I blinked twice, opening my eyes only to close them again.
Freaking sunlight!
"Water," I whispered at the same time someone thrust a glass of water in my shaky hands.
Once I was fully satisfied to clench my thirst, the same person took the glass and wrapped their arms around me to help me sit properly. The other person in the room covered the window, the curtains whooshing at the force they used.
With the damn light gone, I finally dared to open my eyes to take into my surrounding. Someone must have left me on a soft king-sized bed with lace curtains hiding my view to the right. To my left, red walls surrounded me, not to mention the large bookshelf was also reflecting the color. The first thing that came to my mind was this place radiated nobility.
So, what was I doing here?
The realization that I was not in my room was what made me quickly stumble from the bed. Now that the right side was exposed to me, I noticed two men watching me with interest.
One of them I had never met with an odd spike on his chestnut hair and piercing hazel eyes. He also had a lip ring which shined when his lips widened to give me a welcoming smile. By definition, he was handsome, even more than the men in my previous clan but something told me that he might be way out of my league. So, dragging my gaze back from the God-like face and angelic smiley-faced man, I turned to the other man. As if he realized that I was seeking him out, the hoodie fell away revealing a face filled with mischief.
Eyes dark like coal.
Equally long dark hair.
Tensed jaw.
Lips turned into a hint of a smirk.
Oh, no.
"You! Oh, God, what-what am I doing here? You didn't take any organ from me when I was out, did you? Oh, God! My soul..."
Something was wrong. Very much so. I could already feel the headache coming. My trembled fingers raised to soothe my forehead only to catch the glimmer of a ring on my finger. Huh? Where did it come from? Mouth wide open, I stared at both of them.
"This...where the hell this came from?"
Startled, Darkness took a sharp breath. "This...This is a spelled object for your safety. I wouldn't take it off if I were you."
Like hell.
"I'm taking it off right now-"
"No!" It was the other man who screamed. When I glared at him, somehow his face contorted to a blank one. "I mean, I don't condone his methods but even I have to say he is serious when it comes to your safety. Besides, it worked."
My pulse skyrocketed when Darkness's gaze also turned to the other man in the room. His deep voice sounded somewhat different today. "So, you do believe in me. I told you she would remember me again and she did. You were getting worked up unnecessarily."
"What do you mean by not reminding you? Every sane and insane person will remember you perfectly!" I snapped in hysteria .I knew I had to calm down but the more he laughed, the more my breath shortened.
"That's wonderful, Lex. I have never seen someone this sane after what happened." The hazel-eyed man, Spiky stared at me with wonder. The more he stared, the more my skin felt hot, a little prickling washing over me as if it was my body's command to take my eyes off the man. Only when Darkness coughed that he looked away, taking the feeling of dread from my skin. It took me a few seconds to get back from that feeling and I was left with another question.
Who was Lex?
Another one of my whispers drew Darkness's eyes to bore into mine again. "Who is Lex?"
"Me." Darkness took a step toward me, forcing me to take one back. "To every kind, I'm Darkness, the master of the shadows, the man feared by everyone. To my people, I'm Alexei, the former member of Moon clan..."
My gaze turned to the other man just as Dark-Lex's did. "And, who is he?"
"He?" Darkness's eyebrow raised in amusement. "He's no one. No one important for now. Now the problem in hand, baby. You had gone insane by your power. You didn't even remember Hannah. That's why that poor old hag left you in the middle of a road. I found you passed out, took pity, and brought you back to my humble abode. Happy birthday by the way. I was thinking of bringing a cake but the owner of the cake shop is currently being breakfast for my shadows. What with sins and all."
Huh?
My birthday.
Hannah...How could I forget all of these? The last thing I remembered was going to find my sister. Then-
Then everything went blank.
"First of all, I'm not a baby and I don't need a cake! God, you killed another person just like that. And, Hannah? Did you do something to her too?" Surely, he was mistaken. Hannah leaving me had as much as the chance of Dark-Lex leaving me in peace. Which was beyond impossible at this point.
"Well, you sure act like one. I didn't even tell you the full history." He stopped and then huffed. "OK, I lied. I thought that this version was way more fun to tell."
"Lex!" Spiky warned, in a second looking back at me apologetically. "I'm so sorry. You've to excuse him. As you can see he has forgotten all his manners in the last few centuries."
"What? I have perfect manners! Look, what happened was you found your mother who's been teaching you black magic for months without your knowledge. Hannah wanted to help, that old hag really did, but before she could, your mother took her soul and body to use as a vessel to return to the land of the living. So, your mentor's soul now belongs to the many unfortunate souls your mother consumed. Which in other word means, your mentor is now dead as a doormat and you are just like the lost little puppy without any direction. But! Lucky for you, you have us!" He clapped happily after his long explanation and I just blinked back. He had to be joking, right?
It was a nightmare...It had to be. As if my body just shut down, I went limp against my will. Lex was fast enough to catch me with a smirk.
"Whoa, careful. That old hag isn't here to cure you magically."
Was he enjoying my pain? Was that the reason he kept talking about Hannah? The only person who loved me without asking anything back?
"Maybe there's another monster we missed. Maybe...maybe it's the Red clan. They were after me, right? So to hurt me, they took her. It's a possibility, right?" My voice cracked at the end. If even for a second I believed in Lex then-
Then it was my fault that Hannah was gone.
He's right, you know?
We could see it with your eyes.
Just open your mind to us, darling...
"What? Remembered everything?" His voice cut through the others.
"That's enough, Lex! You shouldn't talk to her like this. After all, she's the one..." Spiky paused abruptly. What was he going to say?
"I know soul giver. Don't need to fucking remind me, master." Lex bitterly spat the word and it made me wonder what their relationship was. Were they brothers? Friends? Frenemies?
“Why do I even try?” Spiky sighed before snapping his gaze to me. “Emeline, I want you to do something for me. Try to use magic, anything you can think of. I need to see something.”
“Why?’
Lex rolled his eyes. “Trust me. Just do it.”
I didn’t want to offend Spiky but a bitchy part of me just wanted to see Lex hurt and regret his decision to take me here. So, with a smile that was totally innocent, I moved my wrist.
“Ignite!”
“Ow, ow, ow, stop it.” His voice was like a whip and it ought to be since his pant was on fire, literally.
“Emeline!” Even sounding worried, I saw a brief smile on Spiky’s face. “Let him go, he won’t say anything stupid.”
“Would he though? Ah…let me think.” I trailed off, barely seeing the reason to let him go but since even my own body started to feel warm, I quickly thought of putting the fire.
Only it didn’t work.
What the hell?
“Tell her to stop it!”
“I’m trying!” I managed to squeak, thinking harder to diffuse the element. Only after my forth try, the fire disappeared making him crash into the book shelf.
“What the hell was that?” He snarled, scrambling out of the fallen bookshelf. If he looked angry before now he looked livid. Oh, oh…
“Lex-”
“No. I want to know what the fuck is her problem.” Lex’s voice cut through Spiky’s and I was the one left laughing. Huh, I should be afraid but I couldn’t stop myself from clutching my stomach and do a classical, ha, ha, ha…
“And now she’s laughing.” Lex’s mouth was set in a sneer when he whirled around to do God knew what to me. Before he could come closer though, I was smart enough to run behind Spiky.
“Hey! He was the one who wanted me to do magic, anything I liked. I liked watching you on fire, I wanted you hurt, I wanted you to feel what I’m feeling right now so I did, however, there’s a problem with my magic. I wasn’t fast enough to put out the fire.”
Spiky turned around quickly to inspect my hand that had dirt all over it. Seriously where was I before?
“Did you hurt yourself?”
“No-”
“Emeline is not her.” My heart was beating furiously in my chest the way Spiky looked at him then and for the first time I wondered if this man was just as dangerous as Darkness. And who was this she they were talking about?
I could feel Spiky taking a huge breath before looking away. “I know.”
“Apparently you don’t.” Lex spat out, nearly missing a book. “Emeline’s not a piss poor version of her that you can use-”
“What’s wrong with you?" I tried to lunge for Lex but both of them saw my fist coming fast. However, before it could hit him on the face, I froze. That prickling feeling came full force, forcing me to snap my gaze at Spiky who was staring at me with a level of calmness. He was doing something to me. Was he a warlock like me? There was no way I just froze on my own.
"Release her, master," Lex spoke with clenched teeth, clearing my confusion.
Spiky matched Lex's anger as he shook his head. "Only when you talk to her with respect and she doesn't try to kill you, hurting herself in the process."
I won't. Just freaking let me go! I thought in my head and to my surprise, the control over mine snapped and I was free.
"W-What-"
Spiky had that beautiful smile on his face again. "I'm sorry but he was so close to release his shadows that if you punched him, they would devour you in half. And I don't mean it in any sexual-"
