Throne of Blood

by Amber Cook

  She could feel them. She could feel their fingertips pressing into her skin, their breaths against her nape. Their hands pressed against her abdomen, devilish delight in their eyes.

  "You lasted longer than the others; I'll give you that. But that no longer matters. Become one with me. Allow me to show you the true strength of the Orbs."

  She rolled her eyes as she stretched her jaw. The horrendous sound of bone being shattered filled the air, along with his gurgling cries for help.

  Pop! Pop! Pop!

  Adira's jaw began to shatter, stretching until her lips had split, causing blood to seep from them. She chomped down, severing his head cleanly from his body. Detached nerve endings twitched a few times, along with his spinal cord, but the body beneath her began to still. She swallowed his head, but that was not her real prize. She raised her hand and thrust it through his chest cavity, latching down onto his heart. Tearing it through his chest, she brought his shimmering heart to her lips.

  The only way to kill a demon was to consume their soul force. Common demons lacked the intelligence, along with body capability, to manipulate their soul force. There were always two places where it was most concentrated; the head and the heart. Adira could tell from this particular demon that the thing she craved laid here. She slowly dragged her tongue against the shimmering surface, allowing the bitter iron taste to fill her senses. It was intoxicating. Every time she consumed a being, it was unlike the prior times.

  She unhinged her jaw, sliding the heart into her mouth as she crunched down into it. She could feel its soul force, its Demonic Energy and soul, flooding into her body.

  How many times had Kace done the exact thing to get to where he was? She could only imagine. His soul was strong, and his strength was untouched. The number of souls he had to consume was in the millions, nowhere touching the amount she had eaten.

  Finally, when the demon's body was cold beneath her legs, Adira peeled herself off. Blood caked her thighs and chest, beginning to flake off. She didn't even bother to wipe herself clean. The Orbs would handle it for her. No matter where she moved, a thin line of blood followed her every step. The Orbs were still feasting on the demon's corpse. They would do so until he was nothing more than a slab of bones. Adira had just wished his body wouldn't be left on her bed, but she figured her father could handle it. She wanted to see him try and hide this.

  The cool breeze poured in from the open window, and Adira stepped towards it, casting her eyes back towards that barren wasteland. The moment the thrill of the hunt disappeared, she felt barren once again. It was as the stories had said. The only time demons were alive was when they were consuming souls and wreaking havoc.

  "Another one bites the dust. I was really hoping he would last longer than that. You would think that after all these years, I still wouldn't be a virgin." She sighed, but she knew the Orbs did not care about such things. In fact, they probably wished for Adira to stay untouched. If it were their choices, they would be the ones to finish the deed.

  "Don't worry," She whispered, lovingly enveloping the orb with her hands as blood filtered through its glassy surface. "Whatever happens, I will not abandon you. Without you, I am nothing."

  Chapter 11

  The moment the cell closed behind her, Adira was greeted by a world of eerie silence. Occasionally, she would hear the pitter-patter of mouses running down the hallways. Their eyes would peer at her through the slits, and Adira could see herself in their glassy surfaces. The small amount of blood that she had consumed from Zen had allowed her healing abilities to speed up. Although new muscle began to form on her bones, new skin had yet to cover it. Her pale complexion was starting to gain a flush color.

  Soft grumbles and moans would occasionally break the silence. Adira would try to lean forward, peering through the bars, but it was hard to see anyone. If they were demons, they would be unable to get close to the bars just like her. As for the humans that were beginning to morph, she could not say.

  Her throat felt raw. Even though she did not need water to survive, this human body did. Her vocal cords had already been put through so much strain. It was hard even to force herself to speak, for she knew the pain that would quickly follow after. "Hello?" She grumbled, a harsh rasp to her words.

  No one answered. She could hear the pitter-patter of water leaking overhead, as well as the dying hearts of men. She didn't understand how the world could be so quiet yet so horrible at the same time. She would take the screams and cries of a thousand over this.

  "Is anyone still alive?"

  It felt like such a strange question to ask. Adira had passed by nearly a hundred containing cells. Each one had a body inside of it. She just didn't want to believe that out of all of those cells, she was the only one alive.

  "Mhm..."

  To her left, she could hear someone grumbling. Just like her own voice, there was a horrible rasping sound as if the individual was being strangled.

  "Hello?" She asked once again, pressing to the left side of the cell. She hesitantly pressed her ear against the cell wall, nearly retching. She was greeted with a slimy, wet kiss. Mold stuck to her cheek as she jerked her head away, and she desperately tried to wipe it off with the folds of her cloak. "Disgusting."

  "Hello?" A voice echoed back to her, and Adira leaned towards it.

  "Are you alive?"

  "Am I alive?" The voice whispered, hoarse and gritty. "Barely, I guess you could say."

  "I didn't think there would be anyone else in here."

  "Why do you say that?"

  "When I walked down the hallways, all I saw were bodies."

  The woman let out a hoarse laugh, grimacing as it shook her body. "You must be new here. It's very rare that they actually kill someone off."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Your smell... The blood that runs through your veins is similar to my own. Can demons simply die of blood loss? Have you ever experienced death that way?"

  No, Adira never had. She had never heard of a demon dying from blood loss. That was not to say that losing blood did not, in fact, harm them. It simply put them into a comatose state until their bodies could heal.

  "The only way to kill a demon is to consume their soul. Do you think humans would be able to do that? They've been trying to since I got here. I've only seen a select few walk out of those doors. Even if they consume a demon's soul force, it doesn't mean they'll live. In fact, the soul usually consumes them instead."

  Those humans she had seen walking in must have been in the same boat, fighting for their lives from a demon's soul.

  "Who are you?" Adira asked. This woman seemed to know an awful lot about what was happening here.

  "I am an old lady that is simply passing the time."

  "But, as you said, you are not human."

  "Human? You should be careful who you insult in here. Please, do not mention them in the same sentence as me." Adira could have sworn she saw a sliver of fiery, ruby red hair slip from the bars next to her cell. "If you so badly want to know, my name is Fionna."

  Somehow, that name tickled something in the back of her mind, but Adira didn't know why. There was no way she could have met this woman, who had been entrapped in The Halls. "I'm-

  "No need. I know who you are, Adira. You are Kace's daughter, the Demon King's sole offspring, and the heir to the First Demonic Pillar. And with this pull of energy, I assume you really do harbor them. All five of the Demonic Pillar's sleep in your chest."

  Hearing those words caused Adira to pull the cloak tightly around herself. How could this woman see things when a thick, stonewall separated them? It was almost as if she was right there, staring at her from a distance. She could nearly feel the woman's chilled breath against her nape.

  "H-How do you know about me? How long have you been here?"

  "It is rude to ask a lady her age, even if she is a demon." Fionna said, and Adira could envision a cheeky grin on her face. "Days become meddled into years. Although time passes so differently here than
back home."

  "What Pillar did you belong to?"

  "The Fourth Demonic Pillar. Is my Lord doing alright?"

  She belonged to Enyo's Pillar. She nodded her head, laughing a bit as she spoke. "You know, Enyo. There's not a thing that can make her falter."

  "That is very true... It's been so long since I was home. These walls, caked in grime and filth, have been the only thing I've seen for so many nights."

  "What have they done to you?"

  "Small things," Fionna said as she pushed aside the clothing she wore. Although Adira could not see it, her forearms were nothing more than a battlefield. "I thought they would kill me, but then I realized that they truly couldn't, or at least they wouldn't. I have more purpose in being alive than I did being dead. Once I realized that I began to stretch my limits. The only thing they do is take a few vials of blood every couple of hours. I don't know what they do with it, but the only thing I could assume is they are injecting humans with it. Surely you saw the Changelings?"

  Adira nodded her head, "I had never seen humans before that looked like that."

  "Mhm... Injecting humans with demon blood is a risky play. Every droplet of our blood contains Demonic Energy. I'm certain you already knew that, as you live off of it. The problem is, mere humans are not built to outlast Demonic Energy. It's a slow and cruel thing, but the Demonic Energy begins to consume them. It starts with their flesh, mangling it until it is unrecognizable before it turns to their mind. Once they've been injected with it, there's no escaping."

  "What do they wish to gain from it?"

  "The only thing any living creature has wanted; power. Humans have many weaknesses, but their most notable one is their strength. It would take a hundred humans to equal the strength of one demon. In a war that is constantly being waged, strength has the opportunity to turn the tide. For so many years, they've been trying to create weapons."

  "Have you seen one of these Changelings before? One that has actually lived?"

  "Yes, I have seen quite a few. The one's who walk amongst us are Changelings. They are the perfect combination of demons and humans. It's quite terrifying, isn't it? Humans always claim we are the cruelest creatures, and yet they are changing their own kind. They are playing the hand of becoming a god."

  That meant Zen was a Changeling, a combination of both human and demon blood. She could only assume that was why her body craved him and the blood that flowed through his veins. It was an intense hunger, a lust that seemed to be fueled by the Orbs themself. Adira had never experienced something like that before since she had tasted his blood. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know if she should ask Fionna, this demon that she had just met, about such things.

  "What about...Are there other demons?"

  "If there are others, then they are already too long gone. You're the first voice I have heard in years."

  Adira swallowed deeply. She could not see Fionna, but she wondered what she looked like. Even without physical injuries, being in the Human Realm for so long was harmful to demons. It harmed more than just the body, but the mind.

  "They're coming." Fionna hissed between her clenched teeth, and Adira could hear her push herself away from the bars. Adira tried her best to try and listen, but she could hear no one. The only sound that swelled in her ears was the soft trickle of water sputtering to the ground and the scurrying of mice.

  A moment later, Adira could see someone around the corner, walking down the hallways. She tried to shift herself away as much as possible, allowing the shadows to envelop her, but she doubted it would conceal her. Her steel-grey hair and shimmering eyes would be a giveaway, no matter how dark it was.

  She watched as the man walked past her cell, whistling a soft tune she had never heard before. It sounded cheerful, the total opposite of the hellhole she was stuck in. She couldn't see any apparent weapons at first glance, but they didn't need to carry weapons if what Fionna said was true. If they had demonic blood, then they could use their strength alone.

  A horrible moan tore through the darkness, and moments later, the man reappeared. She could hear the scuff of boots against the packed ground and taste the bitterness of blood on the air. Seconds later, she could see the body being dragged behind him. He was dragging the person, possibly creature, by the ends of their hair. Even from her distance, Adira could tell that only a reduced amount of tendrils remained. Blood oozed from the creature's scalp, the thin flesh beginning to peel back from the scalp like a peach.

  She wasn't even sure she could call this thing a human or demon, let alone a creature. If Adira hadn't heard the moan before, she would have had a hard time believing it was alive. Its skin was darkened with intense rot. She could see where the skin itself had begun to crack, a combination of both puss and blood oozing to the surface. There was not a bit of flesh on its body that was not similar, rotten beyond words. Adira was surprised it even held form, that it even clung to the muscles and bone. With how its body looked, the rot had to have at least advanced to the bone.

  No matter how gruesome the scene was, she found herself unable to pull her eyes away. If it weren't for the bars, she would have pushed herself closer to get a better look. In all of the stories she had read, she had never heard of this. Each one had painted these humans as gods. They would save the town, protect the livestock and people, and everyone would live happily ever after. There were no mentions about The Halls and what was practiced here. There were no stories about humans being injected with demon blood, trying to gain strength from the very things they despised. But, most importantly, there were never any stories about the treatment. Whatever the hell they were, humans, demons locked in cages to rot until they begged for death. The only thing that did that in those stories were the demons that were perceived as villains. Did that mean they were villains as well?

  A loud bang startled Adira, and she spun towards it, throwing her hands up to protect herself. Zen was there, a slight pull of amusement on his lips. When she saw his face, hers immediately darkened. Before, she had simply believed he was a mercenary bent on killing demons. Now, she didn't think it was just that simple. That small look of amusement, the thrill that filled his eyes when he saw her in pain, stemmed from something deeper.

  "You look pale. Is something wrong?"

  Adira swallowed deeply. There were multiple reasons for that. "What do you think could be wrong?"

  "Don't take that tone with me. Don't you realize that, as long as you are here, you can't win? The Halls were created for demons like you. It's easier to accept your defeat then continue to try and fight the inevitable."

  "The inevitable?" Adira asked, a soft smile tugging on her lips as she looked at her hands. However, the smile did not reach her eyes. "Is that what you all call this? The inevitable, destiny, fate, whatever you want to call it, I don't believe in it. But, I know one thing for certain. If it is real, destiny would not see me die at the hands of a human."

  "Is that what you believe? Fight it all you want, but one thing stays the same. You need me, Adira. At least in here, you do."

  "What do you mean?"

  Zen did not continue to speak. Instead, he raised his wrist and, very slowly, drew a dagger across his flesh. Her eyes tunneled as his flesh was split open, blood beginning to ooze from the cut. The ruby red, crimson droplets rolled down the sides of his wrist, landing on the floor. If it weren't for the bars that separated the two of them, Adira would have been on him. She would have been trying to eat him alive.

  Her fingers twitched to touch him, but she pulled them close to her chest. She winced as the intoxicating smell of his blood wafted into the air, filling her nostrils. Never before had she been drawn to someone so much, but it felt like every inch of her needed him. The Orbs themselves seemed to be enthralled as well, peeked by the exquisite flavor of his blood. He was right. She did need him, even though her mind screamed at her that she didn't. It was like her body was moving of its own accord.

  "Damn you." She hissed between her gritted
teeth, wincing as pain raced up her forearms. She kicked herself away from the bars, trying to put space between the two of them.

  "The moment you showed this card, you should have known that you had already lost. All it takes is a small kink to cause everything to unravel."

  "I-I know what you are." She spat out as if the words were poisonous to her. "How many people have you hid it from? Did those kids know what you are?"

  "What are you trying to say?"

  "You are what we call a Changeling; a human that is changing to become something they should not be. The moment I stepped into here, it all made sense. I figured out the reason why you are so strong and why your blood calls out to me. It's because the blood that races through your veins does not belong to you."

  Zen's eyes darkened, his fingers clenching by his side. Adira continued on.

  "Explain to me how that works. How can humans hate my kind so much and yet strive to be them? How can you inject demon blood into yourself and not believe you have changed? You all may never admit it, but in the end, you are just like me."

  "Shut up!" Zen screamed, slamming his fist against the bars. They rattled, flakes of rust fluttering to the ground in front of her. "Never compare us to vile creatures like you."

  "If we are so vile, then why do you do this? Why do you become the very thing you despise?"

  Zen's eyes were wide, the white edges beginning to redden. Pronounced veins stood out on his neck, as well as his clenched hands. He looked like a wild man, a wild beast, waiting to tear into whatever was in front of him. "You would never understand."

  "Is that so?" Adira grimaced again as the droplets of blood splattered onto the ground closer to her, calling out her name. "I know what I am. I know what I have done. I have slaughtered and killed humans, but more importantly, my own kind. Since the day I was created and thrown into this world, that is all I have ever done, and I have come to accept it. I have despised the man called my father since the day I could lay my eyes on him. On numerous occasions, I have seen him wipe out towns and populations with the blink of an eye. He needs no reason. He does it out of boredom, of a sick perversion. But I have realized one thing after being alive for so many years."