Ella
Paranoia.
That sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach that makes goosebumps rise on your arms; the one that causes a huge knot lodge itself in your throat, making it more and more difficult to breathe, not to mention the constant feeling of being watched.
I've always been one to look over my shoulder, to fear for what might be lurking in the shadows, but that's only because I've seen things.
Things that other people can't see.
Grotesque creatures that wander the darkness, oozing a black slime, and falling apart at the seams. They don't come out every night, but they're out there, and they've made me such a recluse I may as well live in a cave.
Then, there's the little fact that I've experienced things that other people already lived through, due to visions of their past. My hands touch theirs, and it's like I'm transported into another time and place, not knowing what's going on, what I should look for, or what I should remember. These visions have burdened me so greatly, I've taken to wearing gloves on a daily basis to keep myself in the present.
My eyes also change color according to the weather, normally a brilliant green, but a deep shade of gray when it rains, and they turn dark blue when it's snowing or hailing.
I'm strange, to say the least; but honestly, I mostly like who I am. Besides the raging trust issues, and difficulty opening up to new people, I'm a fairly decent person
Maybe that's why they chose to experiment on me.
I don't really remember what happened that day... There was a big black Ford Explorer, and people in hazmat suits with syringes filled with various liquids. I remember a bright white room, a scratchy hospital gown, and being strapped to a cold metal table as was poked by more and more needles. There was an intense pain, like my skin was being burned and melted off my bones. My throat aches just remembering the screams that tore through me.
And I remember seeing the demons.
I'd seen them before, of course, but always from the safety of wherever I was staying at that point in time, or when I battled them; but here, we got up close and personal.
I was put in cages with them, weak from lack of food and sleep. They were able to feed, to nourish themselves while I was left with no form of defense, no one to save me, even though I was so used to saving myself.
I'm amazed that I'm even still alive. When those people decided they were done with me, finished administering their horrifying "tests," they released me...
Or more, dropped me off in an unknown location with nothing but the clothes they found me in.
Did I mention they left me in the dark as well? On a night that the zombies were out to play?
Yeah, they did that.
So I ran. I ran, and never looked back.
Passing state line after state line made me dizzy, but I refused to stop until I was far enough away from whoever it was that took me, that I'd feel safe again
It was a straight shot to Texas, hitchhiking with a trucker who called herself Venus, after the fly trap she repeatedly told me. From there, I'd taken a bus to Louisiana and stayed for the food, and the hauntings(only touring during the day, of course), then it was another straight shot to Alabama: one of the most forgettable states in America.
Trees covered every inch of my view when I exited the vehicle of some creepy man that picked me up at a gas station fifty miles back. I said thank you, and closed the door of his red camry firmly, making a beeline for anywhere that was open.
The sun was beginning to set.
Even though I knew how to defend myself against them, the demons still made my blood run cold. They were honestly one of the only things I was afraid of, one of the only things I will ever be afraid of.
I'd lost all hope after the third place told me I couldn't stay, that I was a minor and needed my parent or guardian to be with me.
Just as the stars began to twinkle overhead, I got my first hint that the monsters were out to play tonight: a rotten stench, reminiscent of week old road kill decomposing in the Arizona heat. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end, and I followed the smell, hoping to rid what I had assumed would be my new home, of the beasts that haunt the night.
I found a desolate street, near a club called Hearts, a large sign proudly displaying the words "GRAND REOPENING" dating the next Saturday in large red letters. Quickly tucking my only bag away in the arch of the door where it couldn't be seen, I slipped out of the ankle length skirt I was wearing, revealing the skinny jeans I had hidden beneath it, and settled into the arch as well. I relaxed my mind and exhaled allowing my spirit to exit my body, welcoming the frigid cold with open arms.
Again I stalked the rancid smell, forcing down the bile as I grew closer to the beings that were at fault.
The knife on my thigh thumped in it's holster, creating a rhythmic beat as I stormed towards the impending fight, feeling the adrenaline race through me like fire in my veins.
Luckily for me, though, I'd stashed some other weapons on myself(things that had been stolen for my own protection, and partly my own amusement), knowing I'd be hitchhiking by myself and not being sure of what sort of creeps I'd run into made it a very good idea. Two throwing knives were in my back pocket, a short sword was arced against my spine; held by a leather strap, and four throwing stars were tucked away inside of my jacket.
As I was mentally taking inventory, the putrid scent became overwhelming, nearly making me double over to vomit, but I pushed forward. At this point, I sort of craved the fight even though I was absolutely terrified of what I would see.
How many would I be facing? Will I be able to take them on all by myself? Would they kill me? How would that even happen? Someone would find my lifeless corpse sitting outside of a night club, covered in bite marks and bruises?
Doesn't seem like a sexual or cult crime at all!
I heard the moans of the lifeless long before I saw their decaying forms, but what I did see when I approached shocked me to my core.
People fighting them.
Six people all evenly matched, two women, and four men all fighting against the horrors that bred in darkness.
Silvery blonde hair twirled, taking down two as a young man with black hair reduced them to ash. The second woman, very sleight in her stature, swept the legs of another, taking no time before kneeling on it's sternum , easily turning it into gray soot. A blond boy mechanically fought four at a time, decapitating and stabbing them one by one, no emotion in his features. A head of blue hair snapped towards a group of six, and he charged towards them, a broad sword in each hand, cutting their heads off left and right. Finally, I saw the last young man, surrounded by at least eight, all towering over him because they had knocked him to the ground. He fought against them to no avail.
My breath caught, and I acted on pure instinct, reaching into my jacket to retrieve my throwing stars. I tossed all four quickly, knocking a few of the living dead off of their feet so I can buy the stranger some time.
Without a second thought, I strode down the large hill quickly, pulling my largest blade from its holster on my leg before I reached the bottom.
Running on nothing but pure adrenaline and fear, I moved forward, stabbing into the spine of one and pulling upwards, slicing it in half from the middle before bringing the blade down on the skull of another, cutting it in half to it's waist.
Instinctively, I crouched, swinging one foot out as a hot white fire licked my fingers, turning my two victims into piles of dust.
One of the monsters tumbled to the ground after tripping on my outstretched ankle, and I let my fire lap it up as well, it's remains blowing away in the wind.
Another four monsters trudged their way towards me, and I snatched the short sword from my back, slicing their necks like butter before their heads tumbled to the ground. The girl with the pale blonde hair stepped forward at that moment, ashing the now headless forms littering the ground. Silently, she pointed me in the direction of the male she was fighting with, the one with the black hair, and I stood without hesitation, making my way towards him.
He didn't seem like he needed help, but I wanted these things gone so I could get some much needed sleep. We made eye contact, and his violet irises stunned me but I got back to business. Nodding a greeting, I turn my back to his and whip my sword to the left, decapitating the fiend coming too close for comfort.
We continued fighting, making heads roll, and bodies hit the ground in tangled heaps.
It took less than fifteen minutes to finish the rest of them off, the boy with the dark hair seeming to be the only person that needed help.
As soon as we were all in the clear though, I grabbed all of my weapons and stowed away as they healed each other.
I made it out with barely a scratch, only suffering a black eye because I let my attention slip to someone else for a mere second. A hard and mangled fist came down on my face, knocking me off of my feet momentarily. It's safe to say that I made that one in specific suffer, even if it was already dead.
Heavy footsteps echoed behind me, and I turned without thinking, holding my short sword in my outstretched arm, the tip of it barely touching the chin of a now shocked, black haired zombie slayer. He held his hands up in surrender, backing away slowly.
"I just wanted to thank you for what you did back there. I really appreciate it." He told me, the blonde woman hidden behind him slightly, her fingers laced through his.
"It was no big deal. I smelled them and honestly thought I would be fighting them myself." I stated justly, finally coming back over the hill and retrieving my bag after I'd rejoined my body. "But apparently I was wrong."
"We've got a kind of troupe." The blonde told me, her voice like bells. "We would love for you to join if you're up for it."
I shrugged, pulling on my backpack. "I only fight those things when I absolutely have to. Plus, I don't even know you guys."
"I'm Cole. This is my girlfriend Ali. Now you know us." Black haired boy says, gesturing to the blonde. "We do this to protect our town and the people in it, not because we want to. You seem like a good asset."
"I really don't know, okay? I don't do this whole trust thing, and I'm still new here. I still have to find a steady place to stay so I can maybe get a job and afford anything I'll need because I am definitely not going back to where I was." I rushed out, pulling my jacket tighter against me, making my ribs hurt.
"You don't need to trust us," The girl stated, a small smile playing on her lips. "But I'm not letting you stay out here. You'll stay with us, all of us."
"What do you mean by all of you?"
Cole chuckled, "Myself, Ali, everyone that was fighting tonight, and three others who were guarding our bodies and tending to our wounds while we sparred with the z's."
O-kay. So they had a system, and they all had specific jobs. Being told what to do was not something I liked, and I probably would never like it.
"I still don't know."
"At least for the night," Ali offered, putting a light hand on my shoulder. "That way you can be rested for everything you need to do tomorrow."
Rest. Ah, rest sounded nice. A warm bed, and a soft pillow, with thick blankets that smelled like fabric softener, rainbows, and happiness. "Fine. But only tonight. I'll be gone tomorrow."
FROSTY
I stared around myself blankly, drinking in the scene around me as Reeve stitched me up because of some careless zombie bite. I saw a random girl with long brown hair who was dominating, sending zombie after zombie to the ground and ashing them without any problems; so I was a bit distracted, wondering who on earth she was.
Gavin was talking endlessly about how he saved her life, and how she owes him favors. I shuddered. "She kept those z's from tanning your hide. If anything, you owe her."
Everyone chuckled, and Reeve patted my shoulder, signalling I was finished being poked and sewn. I stood, walking towards the foyer so I could head up to my room and try once again to sleep. Night after night I lie there, staring at the ceiling, begging any higher power there might be to take my memories, to make me forget my Kitty Kat, and the pain that losing her had caused.
My bed always seemed so empty now, and I dreaded returning to it every night, but being awake was much worse; at least in my dreams I could see her.
She had come to me a few times, telling me how much she wanted me to smile, how she wanted me to stop dwelling on losing her and move forward because it killed her to see me sad.
Then she'd laugh at herself because "get it? I'm dead! C'mon, Frosty. I'm hysterical and you know it."
That was my Pretty Kitty for you.
The ceiling above me opened up and I realized I was in the main corridor, standing opposite of Ali, Cole, and the girl from the fight. She was sporting a deep purple and black bruise under her eye, and her long chocolate hair was tied up into a tight ponytail, cascading down her spine. She was wearing dark skinny jeans, and a gray tank top with a fitted leather jacket. She had on scuffed black combat boots, and an old TARDIS backpack. The oddest thing though, were her gloves. They were lace, and black, with what only could be described as a wrist tutu?
I turn away from them, feeling like I was staring for too long, and head up the stairs, not wanting to spend more time than necessary awake. I want to see Kat.
"Heading to bed, Frost?" Cole called, and I raise my hand, giving him a thumbs up.
He knows I'm hurting, so he didn't press, and I silently thanked him for it without turning back.
My room was dark when I entered, it had been dark since Kat had passed, and there was no way it would get brighter again.
Not ever again.
Pulling off my t shirt, as well as my jeans, and climb into my empty bed, laying on top of the deep blue comforter that covered the mattress.
Now I am completely alone with the darkness, and my thoughts.
ELLA
"Frost" ascended the stairs, and I stared after him, wondering why he'd be going to sleep so early. He wasn't very hurt during the fight, but I could see some stitches on his arm. I'd hoped he was all right.
"They killed his girlfriend, my best friend." Ali whispered to me, pulling me towards a door underneath the loft the stairs lead to. "Well, kind of. They were experiments created by a corporation called Anima, and were sent here to kill all of us. Some detonated like bombs, so the house literally fell apart around us. I found Kat under a pile of rubble... She'd already been bitten. He's taking it pretty hard; all of us are."
My heart sank to my stomach, and I felt my breath catch. Anima? That's what they called themselves. The people that took me worked for a corporation called Anima.
Anima was here, and they killed the people that opposed them.
Maybe staying here isn't such a good idea.
Ali smiled at me tentively, and I pushed the thought down. She spoke of Anima in past tense. Hopefully that meant they were gone; that they were destroyed.
Leading me through a doorway, I spotted some new faces, a pair of redhead twins, both extremely gorgeous with deadly physiques to match; and a lovely dark haired woman, tending to their wounds, ever so gently.
The dark haired boy from earlier was there as well, and I was surprised to see that a lot of his major wounds had already healed.
I was also surprised to see him staring at me hungrily.
"Can I help you?" I asked, putting a hand on my hip.
The entire room turned to face me, everyone looking amused when they realized I had been talking to the same boy who had almost just been mauled by the living dead.
"Definitely, baby. You can help me with a lot. Are those space pants? Cause that booty is out of this world." He winked.
"Actually," I stated. "These are baseball pants, cause this booty is out of your league. Can I just go lay down now?"
They all laughed loudly, and I felt myself getting uncomfortable with the whole situation. It felt like I was in that big white room again; surrounded by a bunch of people I don't know that continue to stare at me like I'm some freak behind glass, some monstrosity.
"Sure. Just let Reeve look over you really quick, then we'll take you to your room." Cole stated easily just as the dark haired woman(who I assumed was Reeve) finished tending to his face and knuckles.
The dark haired girl made her way towards me, and tilted my chin, scanning by face and examining my black eye. "Does anything else hurt? It's just a bruise and it'll heal fairly quickly, but I just want to be sure."
The sincerity in her voice kind of astonished me, and I found myself answering before I could even think. "My ribs. I think one or two might be broken, but it's not from the zombies." The words came out in a whisper, and I looked down at my boots, analyzing the scuffs with a strange earnest.
"All right, sit up and let me see."
I obeyed, straightening my spine even though it made the ribs in question ache something fierce. Reeve lifted my shirt to just below my bra, and I force myself not to look down at my bruised torso, knowing already it would be covered in black, blue, purple, green, and an ugly faded yellow.
"If the zombies didn't do this, what did?" She asked, shock and concern written all over her pretty face.
"I don't really want to talk about it." I told her honestly, still not trusting the group.
"How can I help you when I don't know what happened?"
I sighed, shifting on the examining table I'd resided on. "That place you talked about, Anima, they had some locations where I used to live and one day they took me, they were experimenting on me and they threw me in cages with those zombies, and I don't heal as fast as you guys do so here I am... As soon as they let me go, or abandoned me, per say, I ran away. All the way from South Dakota."
"Wait, where were your parents? Didn't they look for you?" I hear the blue haired boy from across the room.
"No. They left me on a doorstep when I was a baby. As soon as I was old enough to defend and take care of myself, I ran away from there too." I say looking over at him, seeing a certain sadness in his eyes. I could tell that he knew exactly how I was feeling, and exactly what it was like to not be wanted.
Reeve had wrapped an ace bandage around my ribs as I was talking, and I stood up as soon as she was done, looking to Cole and Ali for an escape, hoping they'd show me to my room now instead of later.
Ali sensed my distress, and sped walked towards me, latching onto my elbow and dragging me up the stairs. I thanked her with my eyes, feeling more than grateful for her at that exact moment.
She took me up the stairs, and down the hallway on the right, and stopped at the third door on the left, gallantly opening her arms. "This is you!"
The room was the best I'd ever had, a queen sized bed is in the center of the right side, flanked by two mahogany bedside tables. There's a desk against the wall right next to the door, and a bathroom opposite of the bed.
"Thank you, Ali. For letting me stay the night, and saving me from the embarrassment downstairs." I whispered, taking a seat on the bed.
"It's what I'm here for, Ella."
That's when the door closed.
FROSTY
My room was pitch black, only a small, golden sliver of moonlight intruded through my curtains, but I continued to stare upwards, willing unconsciousness upon myself.
I just wanted to sleep.
My door was opened just a crack, so I heard the whimpers long before I could place them. I tried to ignore them, I really did, but they just got worse.
Screams of agony filled the hallway, pouring through every crevice of the house, and I found myself bolting out of bed and across the hall to where it was coming from before a single thought could settle in my mind.
There she was, the same little dark haired girl from earlier, covered in sweat and obviously tinged with fear, thrashing around in her bed.
I couldn't let her continue to have nightmares like this...
Not when I know what they're like.... I'd had the exact same thing happened to me every night since I lost Kat.
I couldn't let this happen to her, too.
"Hey," I whispered, shaking her lightly. "It's just a dream, c'mon, wake up. You're okay..."
Her long lashes fluttered a few times before her eyes finally opened, her face already stained with tears.
Without thinking, once again(apparently I stopped thinking completely at this point), I pulled her into me, rubbing circles into her back. "It was just a dream. You're okay now."
She sniffled, pulling away to look up at me, her big eyes a beautiful shade of dark green...
And the world vanished.
We were in the middle of the forest, darkness covering every inch of the world around us. I could hear fighting, but all I could see was her.
"I'm so sorry, Liz." I whispered, feeling my heart crack as I took her face in my hands. "I'm sorry I dragged you into this. I'm so sorry. I can't lose you like I lost her, I just can't."
She placed her hands over my own, latching me to her cheeks. "Shut up, Frosty. We're in this together. Me and you. Forever. Okay? I'm not going anywhere."
The room comes back into view, and I felt my heart stop, I felt it ache...
What the hell what that? What did it mean? Why was I sorry? Why were we so close? Why did she say forever? And why was I so damn worried about losing her when we'd never even had a real conversation?
I wanted to leave, I wanted to walk away and not take another look at that stranger for as long as I lived; but I couldn't get myself to move. It's like I was rooted in that spot. By now she had buried her face in her hands, quietly crying against the knees she had pulled up to her chin. Her shoulders were shaking and I could hear small whines, pained sobbing, coming from her tiny form.
How could I have just left her like that?
I sat there, my hand still rubbing circles into her back, lost in my own thoughts about that stupid vision.
In the end, though, I'd concluded that I would pretend it didn't happen, that it never happened; and maybe, just maybe, I would have been able to decipher what the actual fuck was going on.
All right! So, this is the first of what I hope will be many chapters of a project I am very excited for! The White Rabbit Chronicles is one of my favorite series' and I'm so stoked to be expanding on it. This story takes place at the end of Queen of Zombie Hearts(book 3), and it'll make a lot more sense if you read the series. Hope you enjoy! Again, all of the characters besides the ones I create, and the concept for the zombies belong to the lovely and amazing Gena Showalter!