The Pariah Child & the Ever-Giving Stone

by Natasha D Lane

  “Yes, yes, that’s all fine and well.” Serwa appeared beside Jacob at the bars. “But, to do all that we first need to get out of here. You two forgot that part during your touching reunion, I suppose.”

  “If we want to get out of here, we need to kill the Queen. There’s no other way.” Jacob’s voice was flat and low.

  Serwa held her face in her hand. “Not that I have any problem with killing the hag, but it’s easier said than done.”

  Kill her? Sarah never imagined she would be confronted with such a task. She knew the Queen was evil and would slash her throat with ease, but Sarah wasn’t like that. She wasn’t a murderer or at least she hoped she wasn’t. Hoped she wouldn’t have to be.

  She thought of the old man by the well and the swordsman from the fight, and suddenly wondered if either of them had ever gotten up from the ground.

  “Sarah,” Serwa’s voice was full of surprisingly warm tones that wrapped around her. “There is no other way.”

  The redhead grasped the bars until her skin bruised.

  “I told you when you first arrived here,” Serwa looked at the wall, her eyes nostalgic, “This is no fairytale.”

  “I never thought...I don’t know if I can.”

  The witch sighed. “When it comes to kill or be killed, you’ll be surprised at what you can do. At what you’re willing to do.” She glanced at the dark corner where Alexander rested. “Especially if important people are involved. Ultimately it is up to you. In our current situation you are needed, so what do you want to do?”

  These were bad people right? Bullies like Elaine... still she never wanted to kill Elaine, even with all her teasing.

  What can I do? If the Queen gets the stone then Lyrica...Skuntz, Dasi, Gan, they all die. So, do I really have a choice?

  “Okay.” The word left her mouth. It was solid yet light and quivering.

  Serwa nodded. “If we are going to make it out of here, it’s time you learn to use your magic properly.”

  “I don’t think I can –”

  “Shhh,” the witch hissed. “Trust me, you can. It takes one to know one, right? Right now I’m weak. These chains are blocking my power. We need you, Sarah. You can’t deny you are not a normal human any longer. I think you’re beyond that.”

  Sarah dropped her head. Normal is all I ever wanted.

  “If Sarah has powers, why didn’t they put those chains on her, too?” Jacob asked.

  “Then, how would she call the stone? Right now, she doesn’t even know how to use any of her magic without instinct, so why waste a pair of chains? She may have magic, but she was still raised on earth.”

  He eyed the material wrapped around the witch’s neck, wrists and ankles. “What is it made of anyway?” He reached out to touch the chains, but Serwa pulled them away.

  “Black diamond. Rare. My magic is running through this right now. I suggest you don’t touch.”

  He nodded and pulled his hand back.

  Serwa turned to Sarah. “Let’s start now. Lesson One...”

  Sarah lied awake on the dungeon floor. All was silent besides little groans from Alexander here and there and a light snoring from Serwa. She stared out of her cell, not able to see anything. It felt strange knowing Jacob was so close after all their time apart. Close enough that if the bars weren’t in her way, she could take a few steps and be by his side.

  “Sarah?” Jacob’s voice broke into her thoughts.

  She sat up. “I’m here. You awake?”

  “I wasn’t at first. I figured you’d be though.”

  “Why’s that?” she asked.

  “Because it’s hard, the first few nights, to get to sleep here. You get used to it all, after a while. The darkness, the cold, the smell, soon none of it even bothers you.”

  Sarah squeezed her hand to stop from sobbing. “I hope I’m not here long enough to get used to it. I’m sorry I got you caught up in this Jacob. I know you don’t want me to apologize, but I am so sorry.”

  “Don’t. I’d do it again.”

  Her face was hot; for once she was thankful for the darkness. “You’re a good friend, Jake.”

  “So, does that mean you’re not mad at me anymore?”

  “Yeah. I think I stopped being mad a while ago.”

  “Good, so then you’ll go to the dance with me when we get back?”

  Sarah smiled and imagined the playful smirk that was on Jacob’s face. His words made being in the dungeon a little bit easier. She pulled at her skirt, momentarily forgetting it was covered in blood.

  “You don’t want to go with Elaine?”

  “Ugh.” A retching sound had never been so pleasant to her ears, and she couldn’t help but giggle a bit.

  “I guess that’s a no.”

  “I told you,” he said. “She kissed me. I didn’t want to kiss her.”

  “I know. I believe you. I should have the first time.” She yawned; her eyes had steadily become heavier.

  “Getting sleepy?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Can I tell you something? Something that even surprised me?”

  “Of course.” She forced her eyes open.

  He took a deep breath. “After the well, when I woke up and saw what was happening, the only thing I could think was to save you. Everything else was gone. I wasn’t scared because every part of me was focused on making sure you were safe. I couldn’t control my own strength. I didn’t even feel my fist hit any of them, but I don’t regret it and I never will because it saved you. You’re special, Sarah.”

  There was a long silence.

  “I wish I could see you right now,” said Sarah.

  “I wish I could see you, too.”

  “Thank you, Jake. For everything.”

  “What are friends for, right?”

  She smiled. “Night.”

  “Goodnight, Sarah.”

  Isabella lay on one side of the bed, her husband on the other, with their late night meal between them. Both their fangs were deep into the beggar’s neck; the man cringed with hollow eyes every time they swallowed.

  “Do you think he will kill her?” William asked coming up for air.

  Isabella pulled back her fangs and chuckled. “Of course he will. If there is one thing I know, it is my son’s appetite. He’ll go crazy with hunger and tear her to pieces. She’ll call for the stone, and it will be ours. Then, when he recovers from his craze, he’ll feel guilty. His friends will turn on him, believing him to be a monster. He’ll have no one. We’ll be there to pick him back up, and our people will have their greatest warrior again.”

  “And until then?” her husband asked. “I knocked Alexander pretty hard. That combined with his obvious lack of blood...I say he’ll be out for more than a few days. Hopefully, he doesn’t comatose.”

  Isabella exhaled. “You need to watch your strength, honey.”

  “I know,” he agreed, “but having him disrespect me... I needed to set an example. For the younger generation, remind them to respect their elders.”

  “And I do agree, William, but he is still our son. He may be stupid and a traitor, but we cannot get rid of the blood connection.” She thought for a moment. “Though I admit I originally wanted to kill him off for his crimes immediately when we caught him. After seeing how well he handled three of our best on his own... my heart was softened.”

  William licked the man’s neck with a wet, slow flick. The poor man squirmed in his grasp. The King then picked their meal up by the collar and tossed him over the bedside. The beggar lay there limp on the ground for a minute before trying to stand, only to crumble to the ground.

  The Queen sneered. “Charles! We’re done for the night.”

  A tall, slender boy scurried in, examined the room, identified the man and proceeded to drag him out.

  “And Charles,” she smiled. “Take some for yourself. Think of it as a little treat, hm?” She winked.

  The boy stopped mid-retreat, nodded and bowed. “Thank you.” He then continued on with th
e nearly dead man.

  “Come here, my love.” William stretched out his arms, and the Isabbela snuggled in beside him. He kissed her head. “Things are better now. We lost two sons, but we still have one warrior and that’s all that matters. Give it a few days, and we’ll have everything including the stone. Then, a few months and Lyrica will be ours.”

  “As it was always meant to be.”

  Chapter 17

  Charles knew the man was not long for this world. His heart was beating too slowly and he was growing paler every minute. There was no point in trying to save him. He’d die either way. At least his death wouldn’t be in vain. The last inklings of his blood could be put to good use.

  At the cave’s main entrance, Charles turned away from the disposal tunnel and instead made a right heading toward the dungeon. He was huffing slightly as he approached the stairs leading down to the dungeon; the man was a bit large for a beggar. He pulled the round body down the staircase. The beggar’s head cracked on the stone steps that were already coated in blood. Charles reached the bottom of the stairs where two guards stood at the entrance.

  Charles looked at either of them, his hair smoothed back with filth. The life of a servant boy was a hard one.

  The guards stared at him then both placed their right hand over the right side of their chests. Charles nodded, they followed suit and disappeared up the stairs without a word. A set of cell keys just happened to fall from their grasp. The boy grabbed the keys and continued on his journey, dragging the now completely unconscious man past several body-filled cells. The cell he was looking for had a living girl and a very hungry unconscious vampire inside.

  “Focus, Sarah. Focus,” a voice trailed from an upcoming cell. “Let your magic flow through you and then around you. Let-stop!”

  Charles stood in front of the cell staring at the red-headed girl as she glowed with a sparkling light. Her eyes flew open and the light died down. She took in several hard, shuddering breaths before her whole body began to shake.

  “Please, don’t –” she began, but he cut her off.

  “I don’t care what you we’re doing. I didn’t see anything. I’m only here to feed the future king.” Charles pulled out the keys and unlocked the cell. He pulled the gate open and tossed the man in, relieved to be rid of such a heavy load. He then looked at the girl. The witch had called her Sarah. “How has he been lately?”

  “Who?” Sarah asked, edging her way into the corner.

  “What king is he talking about?” asked the boy from the other cell. He approached the bars and examined Charles.

  “Who do you think? King Alexander, of course.”

  “What’s your game, boy? Why are you helping Alexander? Don’t tell me the Queen’s heart suddenly started beating again,” the witch laughed though it was empty of joy.

  Charles ignored her and stepped into the cell. Sarah clutched her chest. He looked at her. “Don’t worry; I’m not going to drink from you.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small cloth and bottle. He opened the bottle, poured some of its clear liquid on the cloth and began to tend to the Alexander’s wounds.

  Sarah’s jaw dropped. She shook her head.

  “I thought they we’re the enemy,” the boy from the opposing cell said.

  The witch smirked. “Looks like we’ve got a bit of a mutiny on our hands.”

  Charles didn’t respond to her accusation. He wasn’t going to tell all his secrets. Not yet.

  He let Alexander’s head rest on the wet cloth. He grabbed the beggar’s wrist, which now had a nearly inaudible pulse and slit it open with two pointed fangs. Sarah watched the red drip from his mouth. He lifted the beggar so that his body sat up and pushed his bleeding wrist by the King’s mouth.

  “Take it,” Charles spat and pushed harder on the man’s wrist. He let the scent of blood waft around Alexander’s nose.

  “I don’t think he –” the boy in the other cell began and was cut off by a sharp hissing sound.

  Alexander’s eyes grew wide and glowed. The vampire growled and bit into the man’s wrist. Blood fell from his mouth, and the veins in his neck pulsed with life.

  He sank his fangs deeper into the supple flesh and drank more.

  Charles let Alexander wrap the man in his arms to get a better bite. Alexander moved from the wrists to the neck. The redheaded girl turned away.

  Charles took a step back and let his king have his fill of the man. He then turned toward Sarah and regarded her with a skeptical eye. “I hope that’s enough for him or else he’ll take you next.”

  Sarah held herself. “Alexander wouldn’t do that. He’s my friend.” Her words were tentative.

  Charles furrowed his brows. “When it comes to our hunger, we vampires have no friends.” He left the cell, re-locked it and whispered, “That’s one of our problems now.”

  “What happened to him saving us?” the boy shouted. “Why is he only helping Alexander?”

  The witch sighed and fiddled her fingers. “So, are you going to tell us now or you going to make us wait, little vampire?”

  “I’ll come back for the body later.”

  Charles looked the witch over once. So, she’s the one. He headed up the stairs. In the main room, he moved to the left hall across the space. From the hall he could hear joyous laughter. When he listened carefully, he could also hear the underlying screams. Charles continued ahead and peeked into the hall room. It was well lit with candles and the glowing red eyes of his people. He watched them in disgust as they danced around the room in a drunken stupor, blood being their choice of beverage, of course. Some tore into the throats of their human meals, others into the throats of fellow vampires.

  It had been like this for years now. The King and Queen had completely destroyed the domain. This once elegant, powerful, and vicious vampire clan had now become cannibalistic, untamed beasts. Charles fumed as his father stumbled around the room with the others. He was nearly nude, covered in blood, eyes glowing red and fangs fully extended. A human woman lay whimpering on the floor. His father didn’t hesitate; he was on her like a leech, sucking her dry. Not even taking time to clean himself.

  The woman’s eyes searched around the room for help; she found Charles hiding in the shadows of the entrance. With a limp hand she reached out toward him, her eyes pleading for mercy. It was killing him, yet he couldn’t stop looking.

  Her eyes... they’re the same color as...

  The woman went deathly still, her bright eyes faded and rolled into the back of her head. Charles dug his nails into the cave walls. He covered his mouth to stop from screaming. She looked like her. His stomach churned, and he couldn’t breathe.

  “It’s not her ... it’s not her. She’s already d –” He couldn’t finish the sentence. Charles closed his eyes and calmed himself. He then walked away from the massacre, allowing his disgust to fuel his determination. “It’s because of them,” he said. “It’s because of them that we we’re created.”

  Sarah wasn’t sure how long she had been in the dungeon. There was no sliver of light, no window to watch the sun rise and set. She guessed it had to have been a few days. For all she knew it could have been weeks. The constant darkness put time at a standstill, and Sarah found herself feeling frozen along with it.

  Serwa and Jacob had learned to get along...somewhat. Immediately, after Alexander had finished feeding on the man, he’d gone unconscious...again. Since then the servant boy hadn’t brought any more “meals” to her friend, but he had given them a small oil lamp. When she asked him why, he said so that they could see approaching danger. That comment wasn’t exactly comforting.

  “Silly girl, focus! Control your field,” Serwa snapped.

  Sarah jumped. Her mind had begun to drift. She closed her eyes and concentrated on her magic. She pushed it out and shaped it into a force surrounding her.

  Focus, focus. Sarah thought.

  “Now, bring it down,” Serwa instructed with a soothing voice. Sarah let the magic fade back into her
. It felt good like she was taking a positive force inside of her. She smiled as she drew the last bit in. “How was that?”

  Serwa gave her a slight nod. “Better than before. You’re improving. Hopefully, you continue to do so.”

  “I’m sure she will,” Jacob said confidently. He winked at Sarah. She blushed and smiled.

  “Oh,” the witch laughed, “you’re just so charming.”

  Jacob rolled his eyes. “I –”

  A loud crashing sound from above interrupted their pleasant conversation. It was followed by some shouting. Then, all went silent.

  “What’s going on?” Sarah asked trying to peek beyond the bars that held her captive.

  “Trouble,” the witch said.

  The dungeon door burst open, and two shadowy figures flew through the hall. Serwa immediately put out the little oil lamp.

  “No, look,” Jacob shouted. Several other figures ran into the corridor. Light shone up from above and the prisoners could see the scene that was playing out in front of them.

  One vampire had another pinned against the back dungeon wall. The pinned vampire looked much younger than his opponent, who had slithers of gray hair in her long waves of brown. Both their eyes glowed a bright red, and they hissed at one another, fangs bared. The approaching guards were armed. They pulled the older vampire off the younger man. She struggled in their grasp, clawing and biting at them anywhere she could. The young vampire launched himself at her and ripped into her throat. As he drank her blood, he moaned and shook. For a moment, the men let him take his fill until they saw Sarah and Serwa watching. Immediately, one guard pulled the man away. He growled and reached for the woman again.

  “Kill her,” one guard said to the remaining men. They nodded and one pulled a sword from his side. He lifted it in the air and stabbed the woman straight through the heart. Sarah gasped as the woman’s skin became mush and fell from her body. Blood oozed from her in slimy globs of red. A burning smell filled the room and the woman began to smoke like a barbeque. Finally, she turned into ash. The guard returned his sword to its sheathe.