Isabel and the Beast - Alucard

Chapter 1: Highway to Hell

Merdes, Village by the Sea-

One minute, the sky was bright blue and the sun twinkled in the sky. The unseasonably good weather, along with the ocean waves and salty air attracted many people out of the village and down the stone path leading to the beach. I watched my younger brother, Tomas, play in the sand with the other children. My horse, Fancy, her coat as golden as the sand, her mane and tail pearl-white as the seashells in Tomas's hands, stayed hobbled nearby. Our farm sat a couple miles outside the village square, and Tomas and I had only come in to pick up a few things and visit.

I would turn eighteen the following month and the village seamstress would have my dress ready soon - A dress fit for an adult. Not the childish, shapeless dressed I'd worn for years along with all the other girls. I'd needed to stand in one spot for a spell while she poked and measured fabrics, pinning this here and there. A couple times she stuck me by mistake and I winced but held my tongue. No need to make her feel bad.

Mother and father would expect us home soon. They trusted me to keep an eye out for Tomas, only six years old, but wanted us back in plenty of time for dinner.

The black clouds swirled in, covering the sky before anyone truly had a moment to realize what was happening. Lightning cracked, spooking Fancy as well as everyone else. She reared and someone nearby screamed. A brief glance up revealed moving shapes - Like small bats off in the distant sky.

"Tomas!" I yelled, running to where he stood, frozen in terror. Lightning continued to strike at unnatural speeds - Nothing like the seasonal storms we might see once in a while. It started raining, but as it streamed over my eyes and the smell hit my nose - copper and salt - I lifted a hand in front of me to see thick, red splotches. Blood.

"Isabel!" I heard him wail.

My heart pounded in my chest as only a singular thought fixed in my head - I had to get my brother out. I rushed to him, forcing the panic down as I grabbed him in my arms. He came up to my ribs in height but was all skin and bones, growing as he was, and I scooped him up, my hand moving one of his legs around my waist as he moved the other leg on his own. I heard the shrieks and screams and cries of those around me as I sprinted as fast as my boots could move in sand, with my brother, toward Fancy.

She protested as I yanked on the reins after untying her, but I hoisted Tomas up, jumping on behind him, barely sat before I kicked her to go. It was difficult not to think this was some kind of nightmare. As Fancy moved up the beach toward the grass line, I watched in horror as a black beast that most resembled an oversized wolf with red eyes mauled the baker's wife, Trise. It landed on her and bit down on her head and I had to look away. Something was chasing us. I kicked Fancy harder but she was bolting as fast as she could. Another beast with red eyes nipped and snapped at her and she swerved this way and that. The blood rain made it difficult to see far, but the bursts of lightning would make everything visible for a split second at a time.

The butcher's twin girls laid in bloody heaps near the well, one missing her head. I noticed this, but had no time to process it - Only wildly grasping at where I was going if we were going to get out of here. Left and right, people I knew my whole life were being run down, ripped apart and left in bloody chunks. I turned Fancy down the road headed out of town and kicked her in that direction and we flew by even more carnage. As we galloped by the seamstress's shop I had just been in not an hour ago, the sound of glass smashing resounded even over the commotion all around. I wiped my sleeve over my face to clear the blood rain when something bit my arm. I screamed even as Fancy pressed on as a small, bat-like creature dug into my arm, so close to Tomas. I smashed at the creature's red eyes and face with my other hand and it dug sharp fangs in deeper. I screamed and punched at it again, relief hitting me when it let up and fell away. My sleeve had already been soaked with the blood rain - It was hard to see what kind of marks it left, but my arm throbbed.

Soon we were out of town, but I kept Fancy running hard until we were far enough out that the blood rain stopped. No sooner had it let up did the whole world seem scarily quiet, by comparison. Tomas clutched at my arm, his fingers squeezing my wrist. I knew Fancy would fall in exhaustion soon, so I slowed once it seemed we were out of immediate danger, but kept moving toward our home.

I could smell the smoke before we even saw the house. As we neared our home on the dirt road, I heard the maniacal laughter, too. Unnatural laughter. The kind that curdled your guts inside your body. The house in sight, I brought Fancy to a halt. Tomas had already looked that way but I threw my hand with my good arm over his eyes as a sob caught in my throat. A winged creature stood on its legs as a human would, but it held mother's limp body, its hand curled around her neck and tossed her into the fire that engulfed our house. Her clothes had been shredded, red spotting them. Then she was gone in flames and smoke. As I choked back the sob, another black creature near the first one jerked its beastly head in our direction. I kicked Fancy again as both went on all fours, sprinting toward us across the field where Tomas and I used to chase each other. Fancy started off fast and I kicked her again until we barreled down the dirt road, away from town, away from home. What was left of them.

I didn't look back. I couldn't keep my shit together if I saw they were gaining, so I didn't look. Eventually we reached a river, and I did glance. Nothing behind us but road and trees. I helped Tomas down only to fall off the horse myself. My arm throbbed. The blood rain had stained my light blue dress dark, ruddy brown now that it had dried. Tomas was covered in it as well, only the skin around his eyes clear where he had rubbed at them with his sleeves. His blonde hair stuck down, matted with dried blood. He looked so blank. So stunned. Surrounded by trees and birds chirping, I fell into a heap on the dirt road, shaking and sobbing.