It was warm in the confines of the coffin. Too warm and at that point all I knew to do was scream in hopes that someone would hear me and dig me out. Terror began to rise in me when I realized no one was coming and I would have to get out of here by myself. I took a deep breath in and let power and energy build in me so I would have strength to do the impossible. I was going to punch and dig my way out no matter what it took. I sent my fist through the silken fabric of the liner and connected with solid wood, almost smashing completely through it and I felt Gordon jolt inside of me like he was helping and could see what I did. I could even feel his strength building inside of me and I was going to harness that as much as I could to get us out of the ground. I thrust my fist into the wood one more time and felt dirt gather around my fist as I broke completely through.
I gripped the edges of the hole with my fingers and pulled as hard as I could to open the hole up so I could squeeze out. Clots of dirt fell in around me and I knew that I would have to push through it somehow to get out. I had to be honest I was beginning to feel a little claustrophobic and wanted out as quickly as I could get out. More dirt fell in, splattering on my dress as I pulled one of the flanks of wood free. Once it was loose enough I pushed it upward so I could climb out. I could feel blood from cuts made by the wood run down my arms as I continued to work the hole until it was big enough for me to fit through, dirt falling in around me. It almost choked me as I tried to breathe past it and the earthy smell of it was trying desperately to gag me.
I reached my arms father into the cool and wet earth and began to pull myself from the coffin and my feet slipped as I tried to gain my footing. The dirt was clogging my nose and throat but I had to make it out so I could set Gordon free. I could feel him panicked and racing just like my own heartbeat. Then I felt my hand punch through the surface of the ground and hit open air. It was raining. Heavy drops were raining down on my skin and it was cool and welcome. It was exactly what I needed to stifle the heat rising within me from housing my own beast as well as Gordon.
With everything I had I pulled myself up with one arm and then pushed the other through the earth and I finally broke the surface. I took in a large gulp of cool air as I emerged from the ground, half of my body still submerged in the dirt. I continued to pull my lower body from within the earth until I had no choice but to crawl along the ground. I stopped crawling at the foot of my own grave. I decided to take a chance and look up and what I found was frightening. Sam was on the ground, a vampire’s foot on her throat holding her in place. She could barely fight and her screams were choked off when he pressed down even harder, making her hands grip his shoe. Her panic alone was enough to choke even me and it didn’t help that we were surrounded by them. The vampires were no doubt followers of Lilith and somehow she had known we were coming.
As I looked into her terrified eyes I could feel Gordon pushing against my skin to be free and I couldn’t hold him back any longer. The power of him brought me from the ground and to my knee. I let out an animalistic cry as the glow erupted from my chest, flowing out until Gordon was standing in front of me, the rain pouring down on him and soaking into his clothes. With the outpour of power I should’ve fallen to the ground, but I didn’t. I had enough power from my own beast to stay upright without passing out and I couldn’t have been more thankful for that then in that moment. Sam was still struggling against the vampire holding her down, his red eyes focused on me as I kneeled on the ground. Gordon turned to him and I could feel the power building in him as well. With our powers combined we could take down this whole entourage with no problem.
“Lilith sends her regards.” The words slithered out of the vampire’s mouth and I could feel them caress me as I blinked against the rain, squinting past my wet lashes.
“Does she now?” I questioned as I stared past Gordon and at him. He was the same vampire she had sent to rip me from my home and make me an offer she felt I couldn’t refuse. In the end I did. I wasn’t going to work for her when I knew the end result would be the enslavement of all of mankind. The scar on his face contorted his sly smile. He felt they had won, but what they didn’t know is that I had learned a lot during my stint in Hell and I was about to put it to good use.
“Oh yes, Executioner. She could feel you coming,” he breathed. I began to laugh, uncontrollable and damn near maniacal. He looked confused as the sound tore from me in waves that couldn’t be stopped.
“Oh yeah? Well, I need you to give her a message,” I said as I stood. My legs were still a little shaky but I held my own. My dress was sticking to my body and was black with grave dirt, the water making it so much heavier than it should’ve been.
“I won’t be giving her anything, Executioner. You aren’t in a position to be requesting things.” His words were clipped and condescending as I knew they would be.
I began to let the heat build inside of me and the light flow through my veins, “Are you sure about that?” It felt like electricity running through my veins. Electricity and fire, and it was going to be released right into his scarred face.
His eyes went wide and I let it go, thrusting my arm out in front of me as Gordon ducked so fast that I barely saw him do it. As he kneeled on the ground he turned to the vampires behind me and shot out a blast of icy wind and shards of ice right past me and towards the other vampires surrounding us. We were polar opposites and it was like we were meant to fight together. The vampire with the scar was so stunned that it gave Sam enough of a window to push his foot off of her throat, causing him almost to fall. He erupted in flames and his demonic screamed pierced the air. He would continue to burn until the flames reached his heart.
Sam got to her feet in one swift motion and I was about to see what she was made of. It was possible she had just been caught off guard by the posse of vampires here to greet us when she surfaced so I was giving her another chance. She turned to the vampire to her immediate right, grabbing his head in her hands and giving it a rough twist. I could hear the neck snap as she tore it away from his body and threw it to the ground. The body fell in a heap of ash and embers as the head rolled doing just the same, leaving a trail of ash behind it.
I left her and Gordon to their own devices and took on the three vampires to the left of the one who was still riling in flames. He would be taken care of soon enough without me having to do anything. The dress dragged on the ground as I walked and I had to stop to rip the bottom half off of it right above the knee. I was then able to turn my attention to the three vampires that were surrounding me. There were nine in total, not including their flaming leader and I knew we could make easy work of all of them. I could tell the three surrounding me were scared, but they had one mission and that was to take us down.
All three of them came at me at once and we became a flurry of punches, kicks, and pained grunts. I punched one in the throat, crushing his wind pipe and he fell to his knees. Vampires didn’t need to breath but it was still unsettling when you couldn’t. I turned to another and sent flames into the apex of his chest where his heart was. His most precious organ. The flames concentrated in just the right spot and a light burst from him. I used the rain to fuel my momentum. The second to last vampire was backing away and I wasn’t going to let him. The message I was going to send to Lilith was that none of her children would return to her and she would know that we were here for good and there was no getting rid of us until she was a pile of ash just like her fallen children.
Once I neared the vampire I slammed my hand underneath his ribcage and up into his chest cavity, feeling for his beating heart which I found with ease. As I gripped his heart I could hear demonic screams of the vampires dying around me and I found the sound strangely satisfying. I let my power and the heat of the fire raging inside of me flow into his heart, turning it into ash right in the palm of my hand.. His hands grabbed my arm that was still inside of him as he felt his life end and a shrill and demonic scream ripped through the air as his body fell to ashes and embers around my arm. I had one more
vampire left now.
I turned my attention to him. He was still on his knees and grasping his throat, trying to make his air way work when he knew it wouldn’t. Even when you were dead you still had the urge to breath. It was a reflex and the fact that he couldn’t indulge that reflex terrified him. I was in no hurry though and I could draw his death out as long as I wanted. I walked over to him, my feet squishing through the rain soaked ground.
As soon as I was right in front of him I caught a glimpse of his eyes. They were crimson red with that familiar black ring around the iris. He was a creation of Lilith and not watered down by centuries of choice mutation. He was pure, but why was he fighting so hard still to breathe? I caressed his mind found he was newly undead and that was why he was trying so hard. This was only going to make it easier to take him down and for me to put him out of his misery. I placed my hand on his forehead and let the heat build in my palm until it was so intense all I could do was release it into the vampire. As the heat took him over light burst into his eyes and escaped his open mouth as he screamed into the darkness around us. Little did he know his screams would be heard, but no one would be coming to save him. He was disposable and Lilith could always make more.
He crumbled to ash beneath my hand and fell to the ground. A few live embers still burned as I looked down at what remained of him. I turned to Gordon who was now standing there watching me with Sam only a few feet away and out of breath.
So this was the world we were going to come back to? Lilith was creating her army and using unsuspecting people to do it who had no idea what it would mean for them to join her. We were going to stop her and put her back where she belonged.
About the Author
Kindra Sowder was born and raised in Rancho Palos
Verdes, CA until the age of 12, when her family moved to
Spartanburg, SC. She graduated from high school in 2006
with full honors and as a member of her high school Literary Club and the Spanish Honor Society. In January 2014, she graduated with her second degree in Psychology, earning her an AA and BA in the field. She began to write long before this though, forming the basis for the
Executioner Trilogy at the age of 15. She got married to her husband Edd Sowder in May 2014 and still lives in Spartanburg, SC where she is basing Burning Willow Press. She dissolved her contract with another company, deciding to form her own. She based the company around the idea that she would be fair to all of its authors and not just a select few. She has decided to show that she has complete faith and trust in her own press by publishing her own works with her own company. She is also author of the Miss Hyde Novellas and has other works coming soon!
Follow the Screams (The Executioner Trilogy Book 2) Page 19
